chapter 10

“Just how deep must this grudge run…” Qin Nan muttered, and at the same time felt a distinct chill somewhere below the belt.

Jian Fan ignored him. After studying the body for a few moments, he said, “The one who castrated him isn’t necessarily the killer.”

Qin Nan agreed. “There aren’t any obvious bloodstains on his clothes. Clearly, someone did some work on him after the castration. I just don’t know which came first-did he die before he was cut, or was he cut before he died.”

Whoever cleaned up the body had done a decent job. On the surface, the clothes were spotless, which was why when Qin Nan and Jian Fan first checked, they hadn’t immediately noticed this particular problem. What they could be sure of, though, was that the castration was recent. The wound was still very clear. Even after being handled, there were traces of blood around it.

“This is terrifying.” Only now did Lin Junruo finally come back to herself. All the things she wanted to say ended up condensed into that single sigh.

Jian Fan had been half-squatting. Now he stood up. “I take the left, you take the right?”

Qin Nan nodded. “Sure.”

Once they’d come to an agreement, they got to work. One on the left, one on the right, division of labor clear as day, they began searching the crime scene.

Lin Junruo stood there, dazed for a moment. Her gaze moved from Qin Nan to Jian Fan, then from Jian Fan back to Qin Nan. She blinked.

She wasn’t sure why, but she suddenly felt…extra.

Even so, she didn’t dare let herself just stand around. After spacing out for a bit, she quickly joined in on the search for clues.

Qin Nan checked the bed first and found nothing. Next was the cabinet. Rummaging through it, he pulled out a ledger. The contents struck him as odd.

The first page listed this family’s purchases from ten years ago. The very first line: ten sacks of rice, priced at five hundred and thirty-seven taels of silver.

The Murder Mystery Game was set in ancient times, but it never specified which dynasty, nor if it was a completely fictional era. Qin Nan had no idea what prices should be like, but he was certain they shouldn’t look like what was written in this ledger.

He tucked the ledger away without hesitation, then went back to hunting for clues.

Jian Fan was in charge of the other side of the room.

By the bookshelf, he found a shard of something. Its shape… Jian Fan looked over at the round table in the room.

On the round table sat a tea set: a purple clay teapot and three matching teacups. The color and style matched the shard in his hand exactly.

A proper tea set shouldn’t come with an odd number of cups. The missing piece practically jumped out at him.

There was only this one room as the crime scene. It wasn’t exactly big, but it wasn’t tiny either. After each had combed through their half, the two men swapped sides and checked everything again. As for Lin Junruo, she was left to wander and look wherever she pleased.

When they finally finished with the scene, the three of them headed back together to the main hall in the front courtyard.

They were the first ones there.

Jian Fan went back to his previous seat and, once he sat down, immediately shut his eyes as if dozing. Qin Nan sat next to him, running through all the clues they’d gathered so far in his mind.

Lin Junruo was clearly the most unsettled of the three.

“Qin Nan, did we come back too early? Should we go take another look? Maybe we missed something,” Lin Junruo said anxiously.

Qin Nan’s train of thought was cut off by her question. He was a bit annoyed, though his face didn’t show it. “Miss, don’t worry so much. It’s not like we have to vote out the killer in this round. I think it’d be better if we sit down and calm our heads first.”

Lin Junruo didn’t really agree, but since both Qin Nan and Jian Fan clearly didn’t support her suggestion, she swallowed her objections. Smiling, she nodded. “Okay, I’ll listen to you.”
But deep down, she was already regretting it. She shouldn’t have chosen to be on the same team as Qin Nan and Jian Fan.

Lin Junruo sat there quietly, yet her mind was in turmoil, and it was already written all over her face. Qin Nan saw it, and in his heart he sentenced Lin Junruo to death as well.

She was clearly not a good Partner. A teammate with a muddled head could sometimes backfire and make things worse.

Xia Zeqin’s group of three was the second to return.

As soon as he walked in, his gaze flicked over Jian Fan, then settled on Qin Nan. “Yo. Pretty quick.”

Qin Nan’s thoughts were interrupted again. All of a sudden, he felt a trace of envy toward Jian Fan-being hard to approach showed its advantages at times like this.

Qin Nan didn’t respond.

Xia Zeqin greeted them anyway and took his seat, not caring whether Qin Nan answered.

Lin Junruo proactively sidled up.

“Xia Zeqin, how was it over there?” Lin Junruo’s expression was dramatic. “We checked the body. You probably won’t believe it-Dad… he was castrated. It’s terrifying!”

Qin Nan glanced at Lin Junruo, frowning slightly.

“Castrated?” Xu Tian spoke up first. Then she fell silent, her brows knitted as though she’d sunk into thought.

Lin Junruo had been about to reply, but seeing Xu Tian’s reaction, she paused. A hint of displeasure rose on her face, but she quickly forced herself back into high spirits and continued to Xia Zeqin, “Xia Zeqin, why do you think the killer castrated Dad?”

“Didn’t you ask your teammates?” Xia Zeqin said with a half-smile.

Lin Junruo choked, then said, “They don’t seem to think the person who did the castration is the murderer.”

“A brain is a good thing. Too bad you don’t have one,” Xia Zeqin replied.

Lin Junruo: “…”

Qin Nan didn’t say anything, but he’d been paying close attention to their conversation. Hearing that, he couldn’t help curling his lips slightly. He hadn’t expected Xia Zeqin to ever sound so pleasant.

Xia Zeqin had no intention of dealing with Lin Junruo anymore. He closed his eyes and pretended to rest. His female companion followed his lead, while Xu Tian stayed silent throughout, not speaking.

Lin Junruo had a bellyful of anger with nowhere to vent it.

The remaining six people came back together.

Once everyone had arrived, Xia Zeqin opened his eyes. “Can we start?” After speaking, without waiting for anyone to answer, he looked straight at Qin Nan, his expression solemn. “Qin Nan, we found a suicide note in your room.”

Xia Zeqin set the note on the table for everyone to read.

Qin Nan shrugged. “I already said it during introductions. My relationship with the old man was bad. I hated that he wronged my mother. He didn’t want me meddling in the family business. My mom died because she was betrayed. From start to finish, I never intended to hide any of that.”

“That’s not what I’m asking,” Xia Zeqin said.

Qin Nan’s expression tightened slightly. “Say what you mean.”

“I wasn’t completely sure at first, not until Lin Junruo just said Dad was castrated. Your mother died entirely because Dad was too promiscuous-he had an illegitimate child, kept looking for new women, and was unfaithful. So you felt it wasn’t worth it for your mother. You had a motive to kill Dad, and you also had a motive to castrate him. Of course…” Xia Zeqin’s lips suddenly curled. “That still isn’t what I’m talking about.”

Qin Nan frowned.

“You hid a clue, Qin Nan,” Xia Zeqin stated flatly.

The atmosphere instantly tensed.