Who in the world does not know you?

Chapter 13 Doesn't Know Martial Arts

The constables were originally just watching the show, but when Ning Qi said this, they looked at each other in astonishment. Then they all looked at Ning Mu, who was still standing next to Mu Li's body, with obvious pleading in their eyes.

However, since Ning Qi dared to act in front of his father, he must have had the confidence to do so.

Twenty taels of silver wasn't much, but Ning Qi, as a constable, didn't spend much on daily expenses. He would only carry some loose silver with him when drinking with his brothers, and he didn't have any silver notes on him. So, he had to ask everyone to chip in for him.

Ning Mu had always admired Yun Luobai and didn't find Ning Qi's actions inappropriate. Noticing everyone's gaze, he snorted coldly, but what he said made people both laugh and cry.

"Why are you all staring at me? I didn't bring any money."

The constables sighed softly, and then each reached into their robes.

Following this father and son, you'll go hungry twice out of every three days...

Ning Qi's intervention was tantamount to saving Ye Zi's life.

Dressed in green, Ye Zi turned to look at Ning Qi, bowing deeply with tears of gratitude streaming down her face.

"Thank you, sir..."

"No need to thank me. You'll be staying with the second brother from now on, just helping with the housework. Don't worry, our second brother is a gentleman, he wouldn't take advantage of a woman's misfortune..."

Sensing the teasing tone in Ning Qi's words, Yun Luo rolled her eyes at her older brother beside her.

"That's improper... Since you paid for her, take her back to your home. My family doesn't need maids."

"Hey, second brother, don't pretend to be innocent after getting the benefit. If Uncle Yun asks when we get back, just say it was my idea, and you won't feel embarrassed."

Ning Qi's smiling face made him seem harmless, completely devoid of the subtle threat he had shown when speaking to Liu Niang earlier.

Yun Luobai pouted and shook her head helplessly. Her gaze swept over Ye Zi's slightly thin body again, but she found that the latter's gaze did not meet hers.

After all, Ye Zi will be living in his house eventually, so it's probably the wisest decision for her to build a good relationship with this young master beforehand.

Not long after, Liu Niang brought back Ye Zi's indenture. She handed the yellowed indenture to Ning Qi with both hands. Ning Qi slowly unfolded it and examined it for a moment. After confirming that there were no problems, he then handed it to Yun Luobai.

Yun Luobai sighed silently, not wanting to waste any more words here. He gave Ning Qi a wink and prepared to leave Rouge Pavilion.

Ning Qi, unhurried, gave Ye Zi a wink. The limping girl in green followed behind the two of them, walking out the door and up the wooden stairs. Her irregular footsteps seemed to hide a silent joy at breaking free from her cage, yet one she dared not openly express.

Before leaving, Yun Luobai put the precious Two Hearts Hairpin back into Mu Li's hair.

Although taking this hairpin to the famous young master in Ningzhou Prefecture would be more likely to evoke his memories, this valuable hairpin is, after all, a murder weapon and a relic of the courtesan Mu Li. It is most appropriate to place it with the corpse.

The three of them left Rouge Pavilion, but Yun Luobai's choice of direction was unexpected by Ning Qi.

"Hey, second brother, the road to the general's mansion is to the south..."

"I know. But before that, I want to look around and confirm my guess."

As Yun Luobai spoke, she walked north along the outer perimeter of Rouge Pavilion.

Rouge Pavilion is a three-story building with an outer wall that separates it from other buildings.

Yun Luobai had noticed before that the window of Mu Li's boudoir where she died faced north, so it was not directly facing the street, and the window was just outside one side of the outer wall, which was secluded and did not attract attention.

Ning Qi and Ye Zi followed behind Yun Luobai, completely unaware of what he intended to do.

Yun Luobai really didn't do anything.

He simply stood below the window on the third floor, looked up, then looked down at the ground again and again.

The ground was ordinary soil and looked fairly flat.

Yun Luobai squatted down as if searching for something on the flat ground. He was unhurried and instead seemed quite interested.

Ye Zi and Ning Qi exchanged a glance, and together they followed Yun Luobai's gaze to look down at the ground, but of course they found nothing.

Until a certain moment, Yun Luobai looked at the corner of the mark left on the ground, and his eyes seemed to sparkle.

"I've got it, look!"

Yun Luobai pointed to the seemingly inconspicuous mark. The mark was just a circular edge mark, extremely small, and only the edge could be vaguely seen. The surrounding ground was also very flat, so it was impossible to see it without careful observation.

"What are you looking at...?"

Ye Zi spoke softly, her tone sounding somewhat timid, yet her words revealed exactly what Ning Qi was thinking.

"Yeah, what are you looking at, second brother..."

"Look at the marks on the ground, what do you think they are?"

When Yun Luobai asked him this question, Ning Qi stared intently at the tiny marks on the ground, and Ye Zi also leaned forward.

Although it was not easy to tell at first glance, combined with Yun Luobai's previous actions, Ye Zi looked up and came to her senses after a moment, and quietly gave her guess.

"Could these be... marks left by a ladder?"

Upon hearing Ye Zi's explanation, Ning Qi suddenly understood.

"Yes, if it's a ladder mark left on the ground, then it makes sense..."

Ning Qi muttered to himself, then suddenly frowned and looked up at the open window on the third floor.

That was Mu Li's boudoir, and also the scene of this murder case.

"Second brother, do you mean that the person who set up the ladder here is the murderer? After he moved the ladder, he deliberately erased the traces of the ladder legs in his haste to cover his tracks? Could it be that he fled from here after killing Mu Li?"

That's not the point.

Yun Luobai straightened up and looked at the two people beside him; he wanted to express more than just that.

"Brother, if you were the murderer who killed Mu Li, would you have needed a ladder to jump from that third-floor window?"

When Yun Luobai asked him this question, Ning Qi was taken aback for a moment. After thinking for a while, he roughly estimated the height of the three-story building from the ground to where Mu Li's room was located before giving his answer.

"I shouldn't need to. I've learned light-body skills. It wouldn't be difficult for me to jump out of the window and land right on the outer wall."

"So what I'm trying to say is that this killer probably doesn't know martial arts."

Yun Luobai smiled with narrowed eyes, while Ye Zi and Ning Qi were puzzled.

"Second brother, do you mean the murderer is an ordinary person who doesn't know martial arts...? But there are only a few people in this world who know martial arts, so what's the point of knowing the murderer doesn't know martial arts...?"

"Knowing he doesn't know martial arts, we can try to understand his thoughts using the mindset of an ordinary person. Actually, I already guessed he didn't know martial arts. If he really did, killing a woman who couldn't even kill a chicken should have been easy. Let's go, we should go see that unreliable young master."

Yun Luobai stood with his hands behind his back, his simple blue robe making him appear even more elegant in the warm sunlight.