Chapter 9 (1/2)

The Angry Aunt

“I…” Xu Lingyue stuttered.

The young girl’s face turned red as the family stared at her. The attention brought tears to her almond-shaped eyes.

‘I like this sister. A softie who cries easily…’ Xu Qian thought.

Xu Lingyue puffed up her cheeks and raised her head. She met Xu Qian’s eyes and said, “I want to know how did you solve the case with just the scroll?”

The question got Xu Xinnian’s attention. The young man raised his head slightly.

Xu Xinnian often boasted about his intelligence, yet he had not managed to solve the case. Instead, Xu Qian had done the impossible soon after receiving the scroll from him.

There was a blank expression on Li Ru’s face but her chopsticks slowed down a fraction and she stopped chewing.

“There is no such thing as a perfect crime. Outside of the occasional coincidence, any deed done by man leaves a trace,” Xu Qian said.

The words made Xu Xinnian’s ears perk up.

“Firstly, I went through the path taken by the cargo. The timing did not make sense which led me to suspect something was wrong with the load…”

Xu Qian regaled the investigation process.

As he spoke, Xu Xinnian listened with rapt attention as if he was attending a private class.

He had his hands clenched in fists beneath the table.

When Xu Qian was done, Xu Xinnian gave a flat response. “Not bad.”

Everyone in the family knew the young man was stingy with words.

The 16-year-old sister lowered her head to hide her admiration.

Xu Pingzhi slammed his hand on the table and spat a curse word in slang. “I can’t believe I was fooled.”

Xu Xinnian shot his father a look that meant, ‘It would be suspicious if you noticed.’

Xu Qian stared at his uncle and a line came to his mind. ‘Uncouth as it may be, f*ck is the most versatile word one can use in response to any situation.’

His uncle was a martial artist who had minimal schooling—he could write his own name albeit rather crookedly.

Meanwhile, his aunt was unimpressed. “You uncultured man! Please mind your manners at the dinner table.”

Xu Qian asked, “When they were counting the silvers, did they wear gloves?”

Xu Pingzhi recalled the events of that day. “Yes, I think so. How did you know?”

Was it really sodium? Xu Qian glanced at his uncle and asked, “Why was that detail not in the scroll?”

“It was a small matter so I didn’t think to mention. It’s all that Lu fellow’s fault, he gave me a bottle of osmanthus honey wine. You know how my alcohol tolerance is, I got greedy and had one cup too many. If you didn’t ask, I probably would have forgotten about that detail,” Xu Pingzhi grumbled.

‘If it weren’t for you and your fellow, I would have cracked the case sooner. What a waste of brain power…’ Xu Qian thought, then sighed.

In Xu Pingzhi’s eyes, the gloves were just a part of the people’s outfits which was unrelated to the case at hand.

The extra protective gear did not raise any suspicion.

“Sounds like that Lu fellow you mentioned is highly suspicious.” Xu Xinnian cut straight to the chase.

“My mistake nearly ruined our family,” Xu Pingzhi lamented. “Ningyan, when your father and I fought at the Battle of Shanhai Pass, we made a promise to come back alive. We wanted to achieve so much. Your father died in that battle because he took a fatal hit that was meant for me. At that moment, I swore I would do better, for us.”

He refused to be cannon fodder.

“It was my plan to send Little Nian for study while you learn martial arts.”

Li Ru rolled her eyes. “Your heart was always with your biological nephew.”

More than 100 silver taels a year.

“Do you mean to say Xinnian is not his?” Xu Qian swore those words did not come from him. It was a knee-jerk reaction.

The negative feelings the host had for the aunt was significant.