Coroner's Diary

Yue Ning's furious roar seemed genuinely intent on tearing Wei Qizhi's mouth apart, yet Wei Qizhi felt as if he were hearing heavenly music!

Wei Qizhi glanced toward the door and burst into tears of overwhelming joy, crying out, "Princess! You've finally come! Save me! After saving me, you can tear me apart however you want—"

Yue Ning shot a sharp glare at Wei Qizhi. "Shut up!"

Wei Qizhi didn't find Yue Ning the least bit intimidating; instead, he thought she was utterly endearing at that moment.

Yue Ning scanned the room and stepped aside. Behind her, Yan Chi and Zhan Yang led the way, with Qin Guan and Zheng Baishi following closely. The courtyard outside was filled with black-clad covert guards, and the gray-robed old servant from earlier stood expressionless, restrained by one of them. Inside the room, Ning Buyi had just made a small cut on Wei Qizhi's chest with his blade.

Wei Qizhi looked at Ning Buyi and finally laughed with genuine relief and triumph. "Well? Brother Ning! My words earlier weren't meant to scare you. If you didn't run then, it's too late now."

Ning Buyi twirled the thin blade in his hand and pressed it horizontally against Wei Qizhi's neck. He smiled faintly. "Brother Wei's luck is truly remarkable."

After speaking, Ning Buyi raised his eyes to those entering the room.

He recognized every one of them, especially Zheng Baishi and Zhan Yang, whom he had known for a long time.

Seeing Ning Buyi holding the blade, Zheng Baishi and Zhan Yang exchanged heavy, somber glances.

Zheng Baishi sighed. "So it was you. Your earlier association with the authorities was all for today, wasn't it?"

Ning Buyi neither confirmed nor denied it, his expression utterly unruffled. "I apologize for the spectacle, sir. The matter I am undertaking is of great importance, and I had no choice but to proceed with caution."

Despite having committed murder, Ning Buyi remained calm and unhurried, as if his actions were of little consequence.

Zhan Yang's face flushed with restrained anger. "Ning Buyi, you've harmed so many for your own selfish desires, and even now you show no remorse?! You're an educated man—surely you know that killing people to set up an altar is nothing but absurd superstition!"

Ning Buyi shook his head at Zhan Yang. "Constable Zhan, the world holds more than what is written in books. How can you know what is true or false without testing it?"

His gaze swept over Qin Guan and Yan Chi, and he chuckled. "There are countless mysterious and wondrous things in this world beyond our understanding. What I am doing is perfectly natural—it is merely the ignorance of ordinary people that blinds them."

Qin Guan felt a chill under Ning Buyi's gaze. Staring at him now, she suddenly recalled their first encounter: she had secretly gone to the Meng residence to conduct a Corpse Examination for Meng Yao's family case and unexpectedly ran into Ning Buyi. At the time, he appeared elegant and refined, somewhat untethered, holding a few scrolls of paintings—truly like a figure who had stepped out of a painting.

Though she detested Ning Buyi for his many murders and evil deeds, she knew his words held truth. She herself was the best example: had she not experienced transmigration, she would have dismissed his claims as nonsense. But she was the one who had returned from death, and thus she knew that the world's mysterious legends were not entirely unfounded.

At this thought, Qin Guan grew uneasy. Ning Buyi was capable of setting up a Demon-Subduing Temple—his spiritual power might even surpass that of Zhang Daoshi. Could he see that she was not an ordinary person?

Qin Guan pressed her lips together. "When you went to the Meng residence before, were you already searching for a target?"Qin Guan suddenly asked, but Ning Buyi smiled. "The princess indeed has a heart of exquisite clarity. I presume everyone already knows about the Meng Manor incident. Originally, it was one of my targets, but I never expected the Meng Manor would stir up a murder case on its own, costing me a target for nothing. That Second Master Meng, being both a heartless man and guilty of crimes against women, would have been perfect for a live sacrifice."

Though Second Master Meng truly deserved death, everyone present were court officials—even Qin Guan held an honorary post. Such words were nothing short of a challenge to the court's laws. Sure enough, Zhan Yang was the first to lose patience. "If you knew he had committed crimes, you should have reported him to the authorities. Instead, you took the law into your own hands... all for your selfish desires. Such wicked deeds, yet you speak of them so righteously—what a villainous face!"

Most wrongdoers believe themselves to be righteous. For a moment, Zhan Yang couldn’t find better words to condemn Ning Buyi. Ning Buyi sneered, "Inspector Zhan speaks so nobly, but if the Meng Manor case had truly fallen into the hands of the authorities, how would they handle it? How would the Meng family face it? Inspector Zhan makes it sound simple, but with so much filth and sin in this world, how long can his justice and righteousness prevail? This world needs someone who will truly stand up and act on behalf of Heaven!"

Wei Qizhi listened to Ning Buyi’s shameless boasts and sighed bitterly. "Brother Ning, may I ask what crime I have committed?"

Ning Buyi didn’t even glance at Wei Qizhi, merely offering a cold smile. "Since I’ve been caught red-handed by you, I have nothing to say." Shifting his gaze, he looked at Qin Guan. "Princess, when did you first start suspecting me?"

At this point, Qin Guan saw no need to conceal anything. "I saw your painting at Marquis Anyang Manor and remembered seeing an identical one at the Wu residence. That’s when I realized the Wu family had purchased a painting from you. This could have been a mere coincidence, but it at least proved you knew the first victim. The first victim, Wu Qian, along with the subsequent ones—Zhao Jiaxu and Hu Dequan—were all connected to Phoenix Perch Tower. So I went to Phoenix Perch Tower and, sure enough, learned quite a bit. You likely used your confidante there to gather information about the patrons. Those patrons, when drunk, often reveal their secrets—sometimes even admitting to their own crimes. That’s how you identified your targets."

After a brief pause, Qin Guan continued, "You were close to me and the princess. When you saw us commissioning paintings from your masters, you grew cautious. That night, you stayed with us the entire time, and that very night, Wang Xin was killed."

"Under normal circumstances, this would have cleared you of suspicion. However, I happened to discover the timing device you meticulously prepared at the mill. That day, you took Wang Xin there early in the morning, hoisted the millstone, tied a slipknot, looped the rope around the partition wall, and secured it to the beam in the adjacent room. Then, you lit a pre-prepared candle. Afterwards, you must have tried to cover your tracks, but while you took the burned rope, you failed to clean the wax residue from the beam."

Ning Buyi listened with a faint smile. "It seems then that what Brother Wei said is true. He is not a heartless man—he only played the role of one in front of me on the princess’s orders."Qin Guan nodded, "I suspected you, knowing you were searching for a target, so I used Young Master Wei as bait. You had some acquaintance with Young Master Wei, and his behavior is rather unconventional. Even if he suddenly acted unfaithfully, you wouldn't be surprised. That night, you used the Third Young Master of the Wu family to disguise yourself as a victim. You went to deliver the painting, drugged the Third Young Master, but pretended to faint first, making him believe you both collapsed together. Later, the Third Young Master didn't suspect you either. When the incident occurred, we caught the Third Young Master red-handed, and I almost wavered. But your scheme wasn't particularly clever. You knew the Third Young Master of the Wu family had an unspeakable secret, so you tried to use that to create the illusion that he was the culprit. However, if we wanted to investigate the Third Young Master's matter, we could certainly uncover it. And if the Third Young Master were the murderer, why would he make the setup with the two cups of tea so obvious?"

After hearing Qin Guan's words, Ning Buyi moved his knife-wielding hand slightly away, seemingly no longer intent on taking Wei Qizhi's life.

Wei Qizhi breathed a sigh of relief, and Qin Guan continued, "Actually, you already knew I suspected you. You tried several times to exonerate yourself—why didn't you leave while we were interrogating the Third Young Master of the Wu family?"

Ning Buyi seemed to ponder something, his gaze growing distant, but he replied, "This matter has reached this point today. Someone must take responsibility for it, right? I did it. Leaving like this would make me seem like a coward."

Zhan Yang added, "Was it also you six years ago?"

Ning Buyi sheathed his knife into his sleeve, his demeanor resolute. "At this stage, Zhan Butou, why ask so much? Ning knows he is deeply sinful in your eyes. Since nothing can be changed now, there's no need to say more."

With Ning Buyi no longer holding the knife to Wei Qizhi, the others dared to take two steps forward. As they did, Ning Buyi retreated a step. Wei Qizhi's heart, which had been hanging high, finally settled. He was just smiling cheerfully at Yue Ning when he suddenly noticed her expression change.

"What's wrong with him—"

Wei Qizhi didn't know what was happening. Turning his head, he saw Ning Buyi, who had been only two or three steps away, suddenly turn deathly pale. At the same time, a trickle of bright red blood seeped from the corner of his lips.

Wei Qizhi blinked, and Yan Chi immediately shouted, "Bai Feng—"

Bai Feng flashed to Ning Buyi's side in an instant, tapping twice on his chest. Ning Buyi's body trembled slightly, but he smiled faintly, as if mocking Bai Feng's futile efforts. The blood at the corner of his lips increased, and soon he could no longer stand, collapsing to the ground!

Qin Guan also hurried to Ning Buyi's side, checking his pulse. Frowning, she said, "It's poison!"

Suddenly, everything became clear to Qin Guan. Earlier, she had only seen his pale complexion without understanding the cause, but now she saw it plainly—his pallor was entirely due to poisoning. But why couldn't she detect it when she checked his pulse?

Ning Buyi watched as everyone gathered around him, the smile never leaving his lips. His eyes, however, stared fixedly at the ceiling. Outside, the night had grown thick and deep, and he seemed to see through the roof to the sky above that night.He was naturally handsome, and in his final moments, the blood at the corner of his lips lent a vivid brilliance to his complexion. His eyes were wide open, his body—curled up in pain—lay stretched out, and even his hands, once resting on his chest, gradually fell to his sides. He let out a soft breath, and a smile of apparent relief grew increasingly bright, ultimately freezing in a moment of utmost ease and composure.

Qin Guan sighed. "It's poison. The onset was too sudden; there was no saving him."

Qin Guan bore the title of Little Medicine Immortal, and even Tuoba Hong had been rescued from the brink of death by her desperate efforts. Yet now, she declared Ning Buyi beyond saving. The others' expressions darkened as they watched Ning Buyi's breath cease entirely.

On the long table, Wei Qizhi struggled feebly, but he was utterly immobilized. Zhan Yang gritted his teeth. "Damn it, we haven't even finished questioning him, and he just died like that."

Zhan Yang stood and looked toward the courtyard outside. "Fortunately, there's still an old servant. Heir Apparent, Princess, My Lord, I'll go interrogate him now."

Zheng Baishi nodded, and Zhan Yang strode out first. Outside, the old servant stood perfectly still.

Inside the room, Zheng Baishi asked, "Princess, does he require a corpse examination?"

Qin Guan shook her head, committing the appearance of Ning Buyi's death to memory as she pondered the nature of the poison. "No corpse examination is needed. Although I am well-versed in medical principles, my knowledge of poisons is limited. I cannot immediately identify the poison he ingested."

Zheng Baishi sighed. "He probably prepared it long ago. After all, there were too many potential slip-ups in this affair. He must have anticipated a day like this."

Qin Guan disagreed. "This poison wasn't ingested recently. It seems to have been lying dormant in his body, suppressed but not activated."

Zheng Baishi was skeptical. "We know too little about his past. It appears we must send someone to his hometown."

Yan Chi interjected, "Leave that to me, Lord Zheng. For now, let's deal with the body."

Ning Buyi was a criminal, and it was unknown if he had any relatives in the capital. Zheng Baishi waved for the bailiffs outside to enter, and they quickly carried Ning Buyi away. On the long table inside the room, Wei Qizhi looked utterly helpless.

"Hey, hey, hey! Don't forget about me! Princess, I can't move. Do you have a solution?"

Only after Ning Buyi was removed did Qin Guan and the others turn their attention to Wei Qizhi. Qin Guan stepped forward to check his pulse. "It's just Tendon Weakening Powder. The wound on your chest isn't too deep either. I don't have any medicine on me, so we'll take you back to the Wei residence later for a dose. For now, let's apply some ointment to stop the bleeding. There are no bandages here, so bear with it."

Though Wei Qizhi's wound was bleeding, it wasn't severe. Qin Guan took out the trauma and bruise ointment she carried and applied it to his injury. Wei Qizhi hissed through gritted teeth, exaggerating his pain.

Soon, Qin Guan finished treating Wei Qizhi's wound.

Wei Qizhi breathed a sigh of relief and instinctively glanced at Yue Ning. "Princess, I'm not properly dressed now. Could you..."

Yue Ning shot him a glare. Did he expect her to dress him?!

She glanced at Bai Feng nearby. "Guard Bai Feng, help him with his clothes!"

With that, Yue Ning walked out. In the courtyard, Zhan Yang was interrogating the old servant.

Bai Feng stepped forward and straightened Wei Qizhi's clothes. Zheng Baishi called two bailiffs to help Wei Qizhi to his feet.

Zheng Baishi then asked, "Young Master Wei, what exactly happened today?"Wei Qizhi then recounted the events of the day. After hearing it, Zheng Baishi remarked, "As expected, Ning Buyi had planned this all along."

Yan Chi, however, frowned and said, "But his sudden death from poisoning is still puzzling."

Ning Buyi had died without saying a word, leaving many mysteries in the case unresolved.

Zheng Baishi agreed, "Indeed, there is still much to investigate."

As they spoke, Zhan Yang approached from outside. "The old servant was purchased a year ago. He usually just watches over the residence and has no other duties. He isn’t very familiar with Ning Buyi’s affairs."

Zhan Yang added, "It seems we’ll have to make another trip to the Phoenix Perch Tower." Once it was confirmed that Ning Buyi was the culprit, everyone connected to him needed to be thoroughly investigated. After all, Ning Buyi was a frequent visitor to the Phoenix Perch Tower.

Zheng Baishi nodded. "Very well, you can handle that tomorrow. For now, escort Young Master Wei back to his residence. Fortunately, Zhang Daoshi managed to calculate the third location in the end, or Young Master Wei would have been in grave danger today."

Wei Qizhi was helped out of the room by two constables. Yue Ning glared at him angrily, clearly upset by his earlier reckless remarks. Qin Guan apologized, "I’m sorry for dragging you into this."

Wei Qizhi laughed heartily. "What’s there to apologize for? A real man isn’t afraid of shedding a little blood! A man without scars isn’t much of a man!"

Hearing his boastful words, Yue Ning snorted coldly. "I wonder who was crying and wailing in fear earlier..."

Qin Guan couldn’t help but chuckle. Wei Qizhi huffed, "That was a moment of quick thinking! If I hadn’t done that, how could I have disrupted his focus? By the way, please don’t take what I said earlier to heart—"

At the mention of this, Yue Ning’s eyes widened in fury. "You dare bring that up again?! Do you believe I’ll—"

Seeing Yue Ning raise her fist, Wei Qizhi tilted his head and groaned, "Oh no, my wound is splitting open again! Zhan Butou, Lord Zheng, please hurry and send me back! The pain is unbearable—I think I’m going to faint—"

Wei Qizhi exaggeratedly pretended to faint, leaving Yue Ning both annoyed and amused. Given his injury, she naturally wouldn’t actually hit him. Though his wound wasn’t severe, he had been stabbed and was bleeding—it was no trivial matter. Zheng Baishi shook his head helplessly and quickly ordered the constables to escort Wei Qizhi back to the Wei residence. Wei Qizhi glanced back repeatedly as he left, saying, "I’ll take my leave now, Princess. Please don’t be angry—I’ll come tomorrow to apologize properly!"

Yue Ning snorted coldly, ignoring him entirely.

After Wei Qizhi departed, Zhan Yang led his men to investigate the residence further. Zheng Baishi stood with Yan Chi and said, "Your Highness, this case is finally resolved. You saw the expression on His Majesty’s face during the morning court session. If we hadn’t closed the case soon, I might have lost my position as prefect. Still, the outcome of the culprit taking his own life is somewhat unsatisfactory."

This case had brought Zheng Baishi much criticism, and now that it was finally solved, he felt a wave of relief mixed with bitterness.

Letting out a sigh, Zheng Baishi felt a weight lift from his shoulders. "We owe tonight’s success to you, Your Highness. Your men were far more agile than the constables. Without your help, even a slight delay would have cost Young Master Wei his life."Zhang Daoshi calculated that the third location was in the southern part of the city. If the constables were to search house by house, it would take an unknown amount of time. Instead, Yan Chi’s covert guards set out, scaling walls and entering courtyards. Though somewhat inelegant, it saved time.

Yan Chi said, “You are aware of the matter regarding the Northwest Frontier Army’s provisions, sir. With this case resolved, I have one less worry on my mind.”

Upon hearing this, Zheng Baishi hurriedly replied, “Leave the cleanup to us. Your Highness, you and the two princesses should return now. It’s very late, and with the case solved, everyone can finally rest easy.”

As it was late and there was no benefit in staying longer, Yan Chi offered a few more instructions before leaving with Qin Guan and Yue Ning. Yue Ning said, “It’s too late. Let the heir apparent escort Qin Guan back—”

Yan Chi replied noncommittally, “Leave it to me.”

Yue Ning had her own attendants and did not need an escort, so she bid farewell to Qin Guan and Yan Chi and departed first.

Unaware of the affection between Yan Chi and Qin Guan, Yue Ning simply thought that Yan Chi, as a renowned god of war, was the safest choice to escort Qin Guan home. Once Yue Ning left, Yan Chi and Qin Guan boarded the carriage together.

As soon as they entered the carriage, Qin Guan asked, “Don’t you find it strange?”

Yan Chi’s eyes held a clear understanding, indicating he shared her doubts. “His death was too straightforward.”

Qin Guan nodded. “Exactly. To this day, we still don’t know why he set up the altar… His final attitude was also very odd. He said this matter should come to an end, which doesn’t sound like the crazed thinking of an utterly wicked person. Six years ago, he killed three people and then fled. Why did he seem to give up resistance this time?”

Qin Guan’s words echoed Yan Chi’s thoughts, yet he couldn’t immediately make sense of it. “I will send someone to investigate his background in his hometown. I believe we’ll find answers. All these years, he has lived alone in the capital. Though his reputation is significant, we still don’t know who he truly is. Nevertheless, this case is finally closed.”

Recalling Yan Chi’s earlier remarks, Qin Guan quickly asked, “How are things with the military provisions?”

Yan Chi’s expression turned stern. “There have been some setbacks. News from the Northwest Frontier has been delayed, which is not a good sign.”

Qin Guan’s heart sank. “What does the Emperor say…”

A coldness flickered across Yan Chi’s face, but he said, “It’s fine. Don’t worry about this. The Northwest Frontier Army has stood strong for many years; it’s not without reason. The Emperor places great importance on the northwestern border and won’t allow anything to happen easily.”

Understanding that Yan Chi didn’t want her to worry, Qin Guan obediently refrained from further questions. It was already well past midnight, and the cool night breeze carried a slight chill. For some reason, Qin Guan thought of Ning Buyi’s relieved, almost liberated smile before his death, and a heavy sense of unease welled up within her.