Chapter 465 - 2: The Absurd Case (Part 2)

Chapter 465: Chapter 2: The Absurd Case (Part 2)

Xianyun said, "He killed the boss he had kidnapped. When it comes to this matter, everyone was quite puzzled. They originally thought that as long as they gave him the gold items he wanted, their boss would be saved. Who would have thought that after they packed up the gold items, the robber would directly stab a small knife into the boss’s chest!"

Just when everyone was in utter shock, he pushed the boss aside, grabbed the bundle full of gold items, and ran!

It is said that the boss didn’t make it on the spot."

Xiao Huai’an tapped his right index finger lightly on the table. Upon hearing this, his tapping suddenly stopped, and he said, "Did you find out how the robber initially kidnapped the boss?"

Xianyun was taken aback. Isn’t their lord’s focus a bit too peculiar?!

Fortunately, the person he asked was a passerby who witnessed the entire robbery, someone with a strong desire to express himself. Not only did he describe it vividly, but he also added many gestures.

How the robber kidnapped the boss was demonstrated in his actions.

Imitating his movements, Xianyun made a knife-holding gesture with his right hand and tightly embraced an invisible person with his left hand, saying, "Just the usual manner of taking a hostage, the robber held the boss’s upper body with one hand and had the knife horizontally placed at his neck with the other..."

Xiao Huai’an looked at him thoughtfully and suddenly said, "The robber initially had the knife held horizontally at the boss’s neck. If he intended to kill the boss, theoretically speaking, slitting the throat would be the easiest way.

However, he didn’t do that; instead, he deliberately flipped the knife and stabbed it into his chest..."

Xianyun was taken aback, only now realizing that the robber’s method was indeed deliberate. Thinking about it, he said, "Could it be that he thought slitting the throat might not be fatal, and stabbing the chest would ensure the boss would die for sure?"

But still, it doesn’t make sense. The robber was just after wealth; even injuring someone in that situation was already strange enough. Why did he have to make sure that the boss was dead?

Xiao Huai’an gave no direct answer but asked again, "Didn’t the boss resist at all?"

Xianyun shook his head and said, "It is said that the boss was already quite elderly, and the robber appeared tall and strong. Although he attempted to resist, he couldn’t fight back at all."

Xiao Huai’an nodded, stood up, left a few copper coins on the table, put on his felt hat, and said with a slight smile, "Let’s go, we’ll follow and see."

Xianyun couldn’t help but be dumbfounded for a moment.

Why is my lord so interested in this robbery case?!

However, remembering what the lord had done throughout the journey, Xianyun ultimately said nothing and obediently followed his lord as they walked out.

Throughout their journey, no matter how ordinary or straightforward a case might seem, the lord would always use facts to prove to him that there was something suspicious about the case.

After being proven wrong countless times, Xianyun learned not to seek amusement in this way.

It just goes to show that their lady is indeed excellent at raising her child!

Finding the direction in which the robber escaped was quite simple; they just needed to follow the chaos on the way.

Many vendors out today had suffered unwarranted disaster, and all the way, Xianyun could hear the cursing voices of those vendors whose stalls had been destroyed.

But the further they moved forward, the fewer pedestrians there were, until finally, there were no vendors at all. Luckily, since this incident caused enough commotion, they could easily ask nearby passersby for directions even if they couldn’t tell from the chaos.

In the end, they walked all the way to the Little East River by the Western Capital, a secluded place away from the bustling docks. Among the lush greenery, a group of citizens gathered, whispering to each other, while not far off, a group from the government office appeared to be encircling something, watching attentively.

Just as Xiao Huai’an was about to walk over, he suddenly overheard a nearby citizen saying softly, "Tsk tsk, who would have thought, the person actually died. You say, what’s the use of desperately robbing all those gold items? He has the life to rob, but no life to spend."

Xiao Huai’an’s footsteps halted.

Another citizen said, "Yeah, it’s said that the robber was forced to drown himself in the river, and that large bundle of gold items went into the river with him. Several have already been retrieved..."

He probably really urgently needed the money, otherwise why would he rob in broad daylight..."

Xianyun was dumbfounded.

The robber, he actually... actually died too!

Xiao Huai’an’s eyes flickered, and he walked forward with large strides, pushing through the crowd, and indeed saw a strong, tall, soaking wet man lying on the ground not far away. The man wore ordinary gray cloth clothes, the black mask on his face was gone, perhaps falling into the river, revealing a fat head, big ears, and a pockmarked face.

A man wearing a purple official robe with a gold and jade belt on his waist was squatting in front of the corpse with his back to Xiao Huai’an, examining for a while, then said, "Wang Man, has the forensic doctor arrived?"

Immediately, a government official next to him saluted and said, "Reporting to Lord Yao, the forensic doctor hasn’t arrived yet. This case already has two people dead; should we ask Lady Tang for assistance?"

The man shook his head, "Not for now, if this is just an ordinary robbery case, no need to trouble Lady Tang..."

Xiao Huai’an raised an eyebrow, and at this moment stepped forward, gently lifted the felt hat on his head a bit, and said with a light chuckle, "Lord Yao, if you don’t mind, I can help with the post-mortem."

The man in the purple official robe paused slightly.

Other government officials looked in amazement at the unexpectedly appearing delicate young man, one of them couldn’t help but shouted sternly, "Impertinent! How dare ordinary people interfere with government investigations!"

Before he finished speaking, Yao Wangzhi suddenly turned around, looked at the young man not too far away with disbelief, and took a light breath, "Young Master Xiao! When... when did you return?! Didn’t your mom say you were traveling elsewhere recently?!"

The government official who had just shouted at Xiao Huai’an froze, muttering instinctively, "Lord Yao, you... you know him?!"

This young man looked decent, but clearly wore coarse clothes. How could Lord Yao know someone like him!

At this point, some of the more senior government officials also recognized Xiao Huai’an, immediately pulling aside the dumbfounded official and whispering anxiously, "Are you stupid! That’s the eldest son of Lady Tang and Prime Minister Xiao! Lady Tang used to bring him along to investigate cases regularly! Such a distinguished person, you think you can just shout at him?"

Government Official: "..."

He started trembling uncontrollably.

Darn it, he’d just joined the Western Capital’s government office half a year ago, how was he supposed to know about all this!

Luckily, this Young Master Xiao seemed approachable, not planning to take offense at his earlier rudeness, just smiled gently and said, "I did go traveling, and just got back today. Who would have thought I’d run into this kind of thing."

Yao Wangzhi smiled and nodded, "So that’s how it is..."

However, he couldn’t help but feel a bit hesitant inside.

Although Lady Tang used to often bring Young Master Xiao along to investigate cases, and had even let him help with post-mortems, nevertheless, he hadn’t ever conducted a case independently; who knew if he could handle it?

But then, this appeared to be just an ordinary robbery case, letting him have a go might not be a bad idea?

While Yao Wangzhi was hesitating, a piercing scream suddenly sounded, filled with shock, "Fei’er? Fei’er! What’s happened to you?! Don’t scare Mom! Your father is already gone, you can’t have something happen to you too!"

Startled, everyone turned to see a plump, well-dressed woman suddenly rushing over, nearly throwing herself onto the body on the ground, just barely stopped by the timely intervention of nearby government officials.

Yao Wangzhi frowned and looked at her, and immediately one of the officials who brought her over saluted, saying, "Lord Yao, this woman is the wife of the boss of the gold shop who was robbed."

Yao Wangzhi’s eyes opened slightly.

So she is... the boss’s wife!

Could it be... is this a case where a son robbed his own father, and in the end, the son was driven to a dead-end and drowned himself... such an outrageous case?!