Bone Painting CoronerBone Painting Coroner
Apologies for the delay! It's been busy but I'll try my best to keep to the schedule!Translator: Iris, Editor: Choufleur
Imperial Physician Chang ran a hand down his white beard and held up the book he had just plucked from the library’s shelves. “I have recently looked through most of the available medical journals and records, but none of them had recorded anything like Concubine Xiao’s symptoms. This is truly puzzling. If Her Ladyship is indeed seriously ill, the whole Imperial Hospital would be implicated. All we can do now is hope that whatever Her Ladyship is ill with is nothing serious; only then would we all be able to escape with our heads intact.” The older physician sighed.
Imperial Physician Gao understood, “But we don’t know what Her Ladyship is sick with, what if…” What if it really is something serious?
“Suwen.” Imperial Physician Chang called him by name, interrupting him as he walked over slowly. “Since you did not tell His Majesty and Her Ladyship at that point in time, all you can do now is watch and observe. No matter what happens, Her Ladyship is sick with a cold, don’t say anything else. Remember, remember it well…”
A reminder! Imperial Physician Gao went silent and nodded before he stepped out of the library quietly. Despite Imperial Physician Chang’s reminder, he still felt uneasy and worried. He did not know what he should do next.
At the Rong Estate
After Ji Wanxin informed them that Zhang Daqi had been taken by Prince Yi’s men, Jing Rong sent Lang Po to learn more about the situation from the shadows and verify her information.
The next day, Lang Po hurried back to the estate in the early morning. Half of his clothes had been soaked through and his long black boots clicked against the stone floor with an icy crunch as he stepped in. A thin layer of crystalline frost had formed on his hair, while his stony, unsmiling face had become pale and faintly blue. He had clearly been freezing all night long.
Jing Rong had already prepared warm tea in anticipation of his arrival. The moment Lang Po walked in, he glanced at that cup of steaming hot tea and said, “Drink some tea before you begin.”
His trusty subordinate obeyed and finished that cup with one breath. Its warmth spread through his body in an instant and he shuddered from the shock. Then, he commenced his report, “Your Highness, I had snuck into the Yi Estate under the cover of darkness. As expected, Zhang Daqi was there. But he was ruthlessly tortured and covered in blood. It seems that Prince Yi plans to force him to confess.”
That prince is truly twisted!
“What caused this?”
“Second Miss Ji was right. Prince Yi’s men learnt that the four-inch dagger came from a pawnshop and was redeemed by a young maid from the Huang Family. But on her way back, that maid bumped into a vegetable vendor and had lost the dagger as a result. According to the maid’s description, Prince Yi had decided that the thief was Zhang Daqi. That’s why they captured him and are interrogating and torturing him.”
Jing Rong’s brows flew up as he huffed in anger at the news. “What else have you learned?”
“I heard them interrogating him for the whereabouts of the dagger, and how the Budhha statue was moved. But he said he didn't know and was knocked out several times. I could not stay at the Yi Estate for too long, so I left before the morning light and returned in a hurry to report to Your Highness.”
Bam! Jing Rong slammed the table in indignance. “I can still rationalise his behaviour if he’s interrogating with evidence in hand. But he’s decided that Zhang Daqi is the murderer based on a young maid’s claims, and he’s torturing a confession from him with complete disregard for his life!”
“Your Highness, should we report this to His Majesty? We can take this chance to knock Prince Yi down a peg.”
“No!” Jing Rong shot down that idea immediately. “The most important thing right now is the case, and not the fight between the princes. Even if Father wishes to support me, under the watchful eyes of the ministers in the Royal Court, I cannot afford to make a single misstep. Reporting Jing Yi’s unauthorised interrogation would only backfire on me.” It’s not worth it!
In the end, Lang Po was still a do-er and not a thinker. He’s better at martial arts than anything that requires strategy. But after his master pointed it out, he understood. “But Your Highness, what do we do now?”
“Has there been any updates from the Ministry of Justice?”
“Not yet.”
“Didn’t Miss Tang go to the Zhang Village to investigate? Has she sent any news?”
“No.” Lang Po paused, “Miss Tang has always been rather reckless, why did Teacher Ji allow her to go? If something goes wrong, then…” We would be finished. He trailed off and left those words unsaid.
Jing Rong’s eyes darkened, and he merely answered, “I trust her.” He trusts her, even if the sky were to fall down.
Meanwhile, Ji Yunshu was relaxing in a small pavilion in the back courtyard. It had been either raining or howling winds the past few days and everyone’s mood had been dampened by the dreary weather. A maid brought a heater and set it down nearby. “Why don’t you head inside, Teacher? The weather has been so cold lately, you might catch a chill.”
Ji Yunshu did not respond. The maid was standing behind her, all she could see was Ji Yunshu staring at something in her hand, so she walked over with soft steps and looked. Ji Yunshu was rolling an ochre stone in her hands. The maid batted her lashes and asked curiously, “What is that, Teacher?”
“It’s a stone, can’t you tell?”
Embarrassed, the maid laughed stiffly, “I can tell, I’m just not that eloquent and asked wrongly. Actually, I meant to ask why is Teacher Ji staring at this stone in your hand? Is there something strange about this stone?”
“Strange?” Ji Yunshu mulled over her words as she gently rubbed her fingers over the stone. The stone was smooth enough for her fingertips to glide across its surface, cool to touch and hard. She said, “Indeed, there is something strange about this stone.”
“Hm? Where?”
She shook her head, “No idea.” She really did not know and merely had a hunch that there was something off about the stone.
The maid also stared at the stone for a long while. “Isn’t this just a yellow stone?”
“It's not yellow, it’s ochre.” Ji Yunshu corrected her. For a painter, colour accuracy is so important they would be almost obsessive about it.
The maid felt an embarrassed flush creep up her cheeks and she shrugged, ending the conversation.
Right then, another maid, Zhu Xin, walked over and joined them. She added more charcoal to the heater and commented, “Teacher, that stone in your hand must be really valuable, right?”
“Why do you say so?”
“My father used to run a stone gambling business, so I learned a bit too. I think the stone that you’re holding is called a Huxian Stone. It’s usually carried by people who have to travel long distances away from their family as a protection charm. I heard it’s pretty effective, so it’s quite pricey too, but I don’t think it can be found in the south yet. These stones come from the north, near the Nanlin Anlang region. Yeah, that should be the place, if I remember correctly.”
“Nanlin Anlang region?”
Zhu Xin nodded.
Ji Yunshu remembered what Gao Meng said when he introduced himself, “My family name is Gao, and my name is Meng. I’m from Anlang, and it’s my first time here in the capital for my business in tiger pelts.”
He was from Anlang. This stone is a Huxian Stone, and it cannot be found in the capital. Did…Gao Meng bring this stone from Anlang? If it’s Gao Meng’s stone, why does Idiot Si have it?