Chapter 58

The bodies, covered in white cloth, were carried out one after another. An Ruhai now only hoped that it was still in time to find Hu Xiaosi; otherwise, another body would be added to the Huaren Village outside the city.

"Even if it was to eliminate witnesses, killing Diao Qing would have been enough. To not spare even the children, truly, it is a mad act of a deranged mind," a nearby inner guard whispered, his face full of anger.

"Or, perhaps this murderer had met Diao Qing's family before," An Ruhai sighed. "Such a grand scheme, the planner would not allow even the slightest mistake. Even if we didn't investigate, Diao Qing wouldn't have lived long. Our swift intervention only hastened his death."

Outside, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed. An Ruhai looked up and saw the inner guard deputy, Yang Qing, running in from outside. Seeing the wounds and blood on Yang Qing, An Ruhai's heart sank.

"Commander, I did not fail my mission. If I had arrived a bit later, Hu Xiaosi would have been finished," Yang Qing panted. "Hu Xiaosi is captured, and I have already sent him under heavy guard to the inner guard headquarters."

"Great job!" An Ruhai was overjoyed, patting Yang Qing's shoulder. "Are you badly hurt?"

Yang Qing smiled. "No, just superficial wounds. Hu Xiaosi was gambling happily in a gambling den when we almost arrived at the same time as the assassins."

"Assassins? Any survivors?"

Yang Qing shook his head. "Two of them, both with excellent skills. One was killed on the spot during the fight, and the other, seeing no hope of escape, committed suicide. We lost three and five were injured."

"Any discoveries?" As they walked out, An Ruhai asked.

"The situation is complicated," Yang Qing lowered his voice. "Commander, you should go back and see for yourself."

In the morgue, two bodies were covered in white cloth on the tables. An Ruhai lifted the cloth and looked at the two unfamiliar, ordinary faces. Both were wearing the cotton coats commonly worn by commoners, and at first glance, there was nothing worth investigating. Yang Qing pulled back the outer coat of one of the bodies, revealing the inner clothing. "Commander, look."

"Hmm?" An Ruhai glanced at Yang Qing.

"Commander, this person's inner clothing is not the kind used by civilians but by the military. The material and the numbering on military inner clothing are different from those on the market." Yang Qing flipped up the collar of the inner clothing, and indeed, An Ruhai saw a series of numbers.

"The other one is the same. Upon seeing these numbers, I immediately had the inner guards check which army these numbered inner clothes were issued to. It turned out that both sets of inner clothing were originally issued to the eastern border army." Yang Qing looked up at An Ruhai, his face showing tension.

Eastern border army! An Ruhai's heart clenched.

"Is there any other evidence besides this?" he asked.

Yang Qing shook his head. "Nothing else. Everything else can be found anywhere in the capital. Besides, they probably wouldn't let us find any more valuable clues. This inner clothing was likely not changed because they were used to wearing it."

An Ruhai turned and walked out. If there were more obvious marks on these two, he would have been suspicious, but now, he couldn't help but think the worst.

"Anyone who could injure you is not an ordinary soldier. Investigate the identities of these two." As he watched An Ruhai's back and heard his orders, Yang Qing's face showed reluctance. This was not an easy task.

In the inner guard's side hall, Hu Xiaosi was still trembling as he sat in the chair. In the small hall, over a dozen inner guards stood ready, their eyes fixed on him. The earlier bloodbath in the gambling den had terrified this jailer. The two men had come to hurt him, and the assassin killed by the inner guards had thrown his knife at him with his last breath. If not for an inner guard pulling him away, that knife would have split him open. The intensity of the attack still made Hu Xiaosi's heart pound.

An Ruhai entered the side hall with a small bundle, waved his hand, and the inner guards immediately left, closing the door tightly. An Ruhai threw the small bundle at Hu Xiaosi's feet. "Hu Xiaosi, explain. Why do you have so much money?"

Seeing the bundle and hearing the sound of silver coins hitting the ground, Hu Xiaosi's face turned pale.

"Do you know who I am?" An Ruhai said coldly. "You also know that if it weren't for us, you would be dead now. Oh, by the way, Diao Qing's family was all killed, a tragic scene, seven people, none survived."

Hu Xiaosi slid off the chair, his face full of fear.

"Commander, what do you want to know? Whatever I know, I will tell you. But, but I really haven't done anything. This money, this money was given to me by the inner guards," Hu Xiaosi stammered.

"What did you say?" An Ruhai's face changed. "Given by the inner guards? Who gave it to you? Why?"

Hu Xiaosi swallowed. "It was a few months ago, when Liu Zhen was imprisoned. Two inner guards entered the prison with a token, saying they wanted to interrogate Liu Zhen. We registered them according to the rules. Later, when they left, they tore up the registration, saying that inner guard investigations should leave no trace. Diao Qing and I didn't think much of it, assuming it was a rule of the inner guards. We are just small jailers, how could we offend the inner guards? Later, when we were on leave, someone gave me this money, saying that the inner guard's case was handled smoothly, a big case was solved, but we had to keep quiet and forget about it, or we would face deadly consequences."

"Who were those two?"

"I only recognized one, the inner guard's deputy, Lu Zhenghao," Hu Xiaosi said.

An Ruhai walked to the door. "Yang Qing, immediately arrest Lu Zhenghao, quickly."

"What about the other one? Describe him to me." An Ruhai turned and asked sternly.

"Short, stocky, with straight eyebrows like a ruler, and large hands." As Hu Xiaosi described, An Ruhai's heart sank. He turned and walked out of the side hall. "Guard the side hall well. No one is to approach this person until I return."

The person Hu Xiaosi described was the inner guard's deputy commander, Yang Yi. An Ruhai felt a bitter taste in his mouth. Although he didn't want to believe it, he had to admit that the inner guards were completely entangled in this terrifying conflict. No matter the outcome, he, as the commander of the inner guards, would have to take responsibility.

"Commander, Lu Zhenghao committed suicide," Yang Qing hurriedly caught up with An Ruhai, who was about to leave. "Today was Lu Zhenghao's shift. He just smiled when he saw me, then suddenly pulled out his sword and killed himself."

"Understood, come with me." An Ruhai said coldly.

"Where to?"

"Yang Yi's house."

"Deputy Commander Yang?" Yang Qing's feet seemed to be nailed to the ground. "This, this is impossible."

"When Liu Zhen was first imprisoned, Yang Yi and Lu Zhenghao went to see him," An Ruhai said.

Under An Ruhai's lead, a large group of inner guards rushed to Deputy Commander Yang Yi's house, but it was already empty. Not only was Yang Yi gone, but his family was also nowhere to be found.