The first work of the imperial prison

It is rare for Ye Baiting to enjoy a dance quietly and comfortably like this night.

Yan Rouman is indeed very powerful. Every gesture, every movement of eyebrows, every twist of waist and limbs is full of desire to speak, full of charm, as graceful and enchanting as her name, it seems that what she dances is not a dance at all. Instead, it is telling a story, pouring out one party's feelings, which is quite fascinating.

Unknowingly, half of the watermelon in the white jade cup went down.

When he reached out again, he was held down.

"Huh?" Ye Baiting looked at Qiu Yiqing in confusion.

Qiu Yiqing moved the watermelon cup away, and changed him to a plate of snacks: "You are recovering from illness, watermelon is cold in nature, don't eat too much, eat this."

Ye Baiting paused: "...my sister told you?"

Qiu Yiqing raised her eyebrows: "Is what my sister said wrong?"

Ye Baiting: ...

Sister...of course everything is right!His health is indeed a little weak, summer is always sad, he will suffer from heatstroke and get sick, especially watermelon can't be eaten too much, and he must be restrained when he is sick, but he is greedy for this one, so...

I didn't expect my sister to tell Qiu Xingqing all these things, and Qiu Xingqing knew how to scare him with a banner!

Forget it.

If you don't eat, you don't eat.

Ye Baiting glanced at the snacks, wiped his hands, and chatted about Yan Rouman: "What do you think, that Mrs. Yao just now compares to Team Leader Yan?"

Qiu Xunqing: "Why did you suddenly think of her?"

"Don't you think it looks a bit like it?" Ye Baiting spoke slowly, while explaining to Qiu Xingqing, he was also sorting out his thoughts, "I'm not talking about dancing, and we have never seen this lady Yao dancing. They don't look like each other, but their temperament and demeanor... always feel a subtle similarity."

Both of them are used to love affairs, they have a special sensitivity to men, they speak just right, when they don't want you to feel offended, you will definitely not feel uncomfortable, when they want to highlight their specialness, there will be various hidden ways way, let you remember her.

There is a certain similarity in their wisdom in dealing with the world. They don't have the humbleness and shrinking of working in this kind of place. They are very confident, and the arc of their jaws is similar...

Ye Baiting boldly guessed whether these two people had similar experiences and worked hard all the way to have this free world?

They may have experienced different directions, and they are not familiar with each other, but in terms of 'similarity', they can have a better understanding of this lady Yao.

"Well," Qiu Yiqing was also very perceptive, "The last time the emperor Tang Gui showed his face was in this flower boat. The place is special. He may have been here more than once, and he is probably acquainted with Mrs. Yao, because the news is very new. , Jin Yiwei has not had time to investigate carefully, we need to pay attention to any direction."

"But you're right, it's still too lively here..."

Ye Baiting glanced out of the window, there were many people on the flower boat, many girls, many guests, and many waiters coming and going to serve wine and food, the sound of music, dancing, girls' charming smiles, guests' teasing, everywhere was noisy and lively, It's really not good for them to ask things.

Moreover, there are too many people, and all kinds of information are mixed. If you want to read it all, you can’t see it, but if you don’t want to read it all, how do you analyze the various connections in it?

Qiu Yiqing: "You and I will do our best."

Ye Baiting nodded, saw a waiter passing by the door, carrying wine and dishes up to the third floor, and suddenly realized a question: "There seems to be someone inviting a banquet upstairs?"

In the past few moments, seeing and hearing a lot of things, Qiu Xunqing also had an answer in his heart: "It seems that there are officials gathering."

It's too late for them, they have already missed the excitement at the beginning, and now it looks calm, probably after a few rounds of drinking, the most lively wave has passed, if they want to have a big excitement, I'm afraid they have to wait for the next round... …

Ye Baiting was gnawing on the dim sum boredly, while looking around, suddenly his hands stopped, leaving half crescent-like tooth marks on the dim sum: "Well, I seem to have read it correctly..."

He pointed in a direction and pointed to Qiu Xingqing: "Look, is that Dongchangchanggong Fulixing?"

"It's not just the master of Dongchang," Qiu Suiqing's eyebrows suddenly sharpened, "there is also the master of Xichang, Ban He'an."

Ye Baiting was stunned for a moment, only to realize that R&F seemed to be walking out, but in fact the speed was very slow. Although his face did not turn, his lips were parted, and his expression was not very pleasant. He was obviously talking to someone. There was indeed another person at the angle blocked by the wooden railing, and it was only after taking three steps that he could see clearly.

It was Ben and Ann.

This is a little strange, the flower boat, the place where men spend their time and enjoy the beauty, the two father-in-laws are not in the palace to serve the master, come here to play?playing what?

Just as Ye Baiting was about to say something, he heard a voice from the first floor: "Dead, dead—come quickly, dead—"

dead?

He immediately threw the snacks, just like Qiu Yiqing, he immediately stood up: "Let's go and have a look!"

It was a sudden excitement tonight, so if you are idle, why don't you come and have a look... If it is really a murder case, there is no need to hide your identity, you have to take care of it.

Huachuan also responded very quickly. As soon as the voice from downstairs appeared, a waiter came in from outside the door. Seeing that both of them stood up, they immediately smiled and said, "Where are you going? We haven't given you any How about arranging for a girl... Would you like to sit down again?"

Qiu Yiqing stood in front of Ye Baiting: "No girl."

"I don't want a girl...then I'll arrange a young man for you?" The waiter bent over, with a bigger smile on his face, "It's not a villain just telling you, we have everything on board, you can do whatever tricks you want, and the care will satisfy you !"

Qiu Yiqing protected Ye Baiting and walked forward without stopping: "Don't be a young man."

The waiter's eyes suddenly fell on the man's hand, and the action of this Yela man seemed... Take a closer look, what kind of young man do you want, isn't the guest behind him just a young man?The still alive Chun Hua Xiaoyue, with bright and clean eyebrows, with such a person by his side, what other young man do you want!

He twitched his mouth a little, and took a step forward: "Look, honored guest, do you want to have some special fun? We really have everything on board, whether it's twins or..."

He rolled his eyes, and the last point of his sight was the three-legged beast cauldron in the room. The incense in the tent was burned inside, and the smell was lingering and long-lasting, which was very pleasant. , the outer body of the tripod must be carved with beasts. This one is carved with a little tiger, not the kind that is mighty and domineering, which makes people look frightened, but a tiger head and a tiger brain, with a naive attitude, very cute.

Before Ye Baiting could react, Qiu Yiqing seemed to be unable to bear it any longer, reached out and took out a sign from his pocket, and sent it forward——

The waiter just knelt down.

Jin, Jin Yiwei!

Gold letters on a black background, and the official title on it...

"The villain has eyes but doesn't know Mount Tai, please forgive me, Commander!"

Only then did Ye Baiting take a second look at him. In the small running hall on the flower boat, he not only has a sharp tongue, but also has good eyesight. Not just anyone has seen the identity plate of the Commander of Jin Yiwei, but he can recognize it.

"Get up."

Qiu Yiqing didn't have the habit of embarrassing others, so she passed him and continued to walk outside.

The waiter hurriedly got up, wiped off his sweat, and wanted to go out to lead the way, but because of this kneeling, he couldn't catch up with the speed of the guests, so he could only trot out a few steps and shouted in all directions: "The commander is here. , don’t mess around, take good care of me!”

This shout was particularly loud. I don't know if it was frightened by the honored guest status, or it was deliberately announced to the building that there are important people present, so everyone below should be careful...

Downstairs was quiet for a while, some people inevitably turned their minds a little bit more, what the hell day is today, why did they invite this Buddha over!

Everyone can see that this Buddha is not wearing a flying fish suit, is not equipped with an embroidered spring knife, and probably didn't want to show off for anything, but now there is a murder case...

I didn't know the identity of the distinguished guest before, but now I know, none of the other girls dared to come forward, and in the end it was Mrs. Yao who faced everyone's gaze and greeted the stairs on the first floor, blessed her body: "I don't know the command The envoy is here, the hospitality is not good, and the servants will compensate the commander for the girls, I hope you have a lot of adults, and I will be considerate."

The smile on her face now is also just right, put away the previous little charm, generous, neither humble nor overbearing, this bow is full of sincerity, without the slightest contempt, nor the frivolity and flattery of the land of fireworks.

Qiu Yiqing didn't say much: "Who shouted just now, and where is the person, take me to see."

"Yes." Mrs. Yao was also very straightforward, turning around and leading the way, "Commander, please come with the servant's house. The road ahead is a bit dark with few candles. Please pay attention to your feet, don't step on the air."

I am very careful...

Ye Baiting paused, the corners of his lips slightly raised: "Thank you for reminding me."

The road in the past seemed to be a bit detoured, and I walked this way without saying anything, which seemed a little awkward, and it was not appropriate to talk too much, so Lady Yao spoke softly, with a smile: "I am a little sad tonight. , This flower boat has been in business for a long time, drank too much, and my heart was a little wandering. It seemed that I was blind, and I couldn't recognize the commander even after meeting each other. I don't know why you came today..."

These words are obviously a test. I am 'blind' and blame myself. I am afraid that not only did I not recognize people, but also that something should not happen on the ship. I am worried that I have nowhere to ask for forgiveness. I know that the commander does not like nonsense and waste of time. , simply asked directly.

Qiu Yiqing was quite individual, so she didn't answer her, but asked instead: "Is someone here to entertain guests today?"

"Yes," Mrs. Yao didn't even stumble, she spoke quite neatly, as if she didn't hear Qiu Suqing's indifference, "Wei Shili, Mr. Wei, was promoted to be a servant a few days ago. He is young and has a bright future. He is also high-spirited, and he has to treat guests to a banquet. Although this flower boat is not a serious restaurant, it is not a brothel with a lot of makeup. Whether the girls sing, dance or drink well, Mr. Wei decided to entertain guests here tonight. A lot of guests have been invited, the small space can’t fit at all, so the entire third floor is booked up, otherwise, the servants will not dare to neglect you two, and will lead you directly to the third floor..."

Her voice was soft and slow, with a special rhythm, and she sounded very enthusiastic. She also explained the previous behavior by the way, apologized in an apology that a smart person can understand, and gave some information appropriately...

But Ye Baiting still felt that she spoke too slowly.

The words were appropriate and the reaction was quick, but during the whole process, she still seemed to be taking the opportunity to keep thinking, such as how to deal with it next, and more... other things.

Or, they are also observing them, especially Qiu Xunqing, wanting to see the face of the commander, to see what kind of tricks he takes, so that he can adjust different speaking skills.

But she should be disappointed. Qiu Suqing is a person who has always been watertight. His character and emotions have been honed and formed through many wars. Sometimes if he leaks a little bit, he may lose not only his own life, but also the army under his command.

What he was thinking, never let people know.

Although the journey was long, it was fast and arrived at the scene very quickly.

Qiu Yiqing came out again from Ye Baiting this time, and he didn't bring too many people with him, only a small team was scattered in the dark place in the distance to prevent unexpected accidents. When there was a sound from here, the response was very quick, and there were not many people. , can also quickly control the scene and circle the scene. The other girls and guests can only whisper outside the circle and cannot move forward.

This is the stern of the first floor.

The structure of the whole ship has the widest place on the front deck, where there are many tables and chairs, and it is the place with the best light for entertaining guests in the open air. There is also a large stage for girls to perform. The stage extends backwards, including the The range is convenient for the girls to go to more directions to greet the guests, and also to appreciate the guests upstairs. Below the stage, to the side of the ship, there is a space for the aisle, where the guests can stop for a drink, enjoy the dance and watch the scenery. Can just pass by.

The surrounded scene is at the back of the ship, and there are a lot of sundries on the side. The space is much narrower than the front, and the light is not very bright. It is obviously not a serious place to entertain guests, and few people will come here to watch the river. Enjoy the view.

Ye Baiting saw bloodstains on the deck, very close to the outer wall of the ship, not many, there were traces of being rubbed, but the dead did not see it, could it be...

"outside."

Chou Yiqing stood at the stern of the boat, and when he leaned out, he could see the water directly below. Ye Baiting was a little scared, and followed behind him, staying very close to him.

It's really outside.

The hull of this flower boat is very large, and the workmanship is very good. The hull is not cut straight down, but there is a horizontal grid in the middle of the waist, which may be for the appearance or for measurement. The water level, because the boat is very big, the transverse partition is also very wide, just enough for one person to lie down.

A man, eyes closed, pale, lay there motionless, his clothes were stained with blood, and there was no movement in such a lively place, and he was not seen moving. It must be that something happened.

Ye Baiting looked at the bloodstains on the deck, and compared the posture of the man lying there, the degree of unnatural twisting of his arms... It is not difficult to deduce that the man must have been pushed out by some external force, It rolled to the outside, was stopped by the horizontal grid very coincidentally, and got stuck here, so it didn't fall into the river.

The blood on the deck is only this, the amount is not large, and it has been wiped off. There is nothing in the direction of the hull. Does that mean that the blood on this person and being pushed off by external force happened almost at the same time? ?

It's just that I can't see clearly... The night is too dark, and there are not many candles. I can only see a little of this person's face. What kind of situation is on the horizontal grid, I can't really see it.

"Just here, has anyone been here?"

The onlookers looked at each other, but no one said anything.

Mrs. Yao said: "The commander doesn't know. This flower boat is doing business. The most glamorous and best things are of course used to entertain guests. Some places that are not so good and not so convenient are separated and put some sundries. , this place is remote, the place is still small, and there is nothing to enjoy the scenery, so I put a rope in front to block it, the girls won't come over, guests, I won't..."

While listening to the words, Ye Baiting gestured to Qiu Yiqing to look at the high place, the window on the third floor.

It's really very remote here, and even the orientation of the room is not taken too much care. The entire second and third floors, the windows are almost closed, only the third floor is wide open, just facing this direction... It's just that the room is very dark, I don't know Anyone.

Qiu Yiqing gestured without a trace, Jin Yiwei nodded in the distance, slipped through the crowd, and went to this room.

"Does anyone know the dead man?"

"I know him from my family," Mrs. Yao happened to be next to her, and happened to see the face of the deceased on the horizontal grid, her complexion was slightly pale, and she was a little ugly, "This is Mrs. Fan Moyufan, who is the guest on the third floor tonight."

Guests on the third floor?What kind of guest at the wine bureau gathered by Wei Shili, the servant of the Ministry of officials?

"You might be sure?"

"Although it's a little far away, I can't see it clearly, but I am very familiar with this outfit. If there is no mistake, it should be Master Fan."

"Have you met him before?"

"Yes," Mrs. Yao thought for a while, "Master Fan came earlier tonight. He had been sitting with Mr. Wei before, and the atmosphere was very lively. When did he disappear, and he died here... I can't tell."

"really do not know?"

"Perhaps... I have to go through the room? This time I drank too much wine, the guests were swaying, coming and going, I really can't remember clearly."

"I'm coming, I'm coming—"

Suddenly there was a voice from far to near, very familiar, it was Shen Jiang, he ran over very fast, his forehead was still sweating: "I'm here to ask questions, the commander and the young master can do other things as much as possible!"

At this time, at this place, Ye Baiting turned his eyes from the flower boat to the moon in the sky, how could Shen Jiang appear?

The young master glanced over, and Shen Jiang's eyes drifted a little. He touched his nose, pretending he couldn't see it.

It can't be said that I just want to watch the fun, I heard that someone came to play with the flower boat, I can't help but want to see if the young master has any intentions, and if the commander has learned a lesson?

In the end, I didn't even look at anything serious, but there was a murder case first!I just hate that the sky doesn't have eyes!

The scene was handed over to Shen Jiang, and Qiu Yiqing was relieved, and walked to the side of the boat with Ye Baiting again: "I'll go down and have a look."

"Well, be careful."

The horizontal grid in the middle of the hull is not big, and the boat is still on the water. It is not easy for people to go down to find a support point. In fact, it is true, but Qiu Yiqing can do light work. It is not difficult to turn over, and it is not difficult to stabilize the balance. , it just takes a little more thought than walking on flat ground.

He didn't move the body immediately, but first looked at the bloodstains on the side of the ship. There were not many bloodstains, only one or two rubbing marks, which were not caused by external force, but more like they were brought by the dead man himself when he rolled down from above. Other than that... there are no more traces.

The position of the corpse stuck on the horizontal grid is relatively clever, the water surface is stable, there is not much fluctuation, and the shaking of the hull is very small. If there is no accident, it will probably not be thrown out.

And look at the body itself.

There was a lot of blood on the clothes, concentrated on the upper body, but after careful observation, there seemed to be no wounds on the surface of the deceased. After gently flipping his body, he found that the wound was on the back. An arrow was stuck on his left back shoulder. Stayed in his body, half of which was pressed behind him...

The source of the blood was obvious, it was this wound.

The creases on the body of the arrow are very new. It seems that when it rolled and fell here from the top, the body rolled and hit the side of the ship before it broke... The deceased was probably standing on the ship when he was hit by an arrow in the back and was driven forward by the momentum, resulting in the current situation .

After reading it, Qiu Xunqing had a clear understanding of the situation on the grid, and then called Jin Yiwei to come over and carry the body to the deck.

Ye Baiting had already put on his gloves and came over to conduct a preliminary examination of the corpse.

"There are no corpse spots on the body of the deceased, no rigor, limbs and joints are relatively flexible, and the conjunctiva is not cloudy..." He stretched out his hand to touch the skin of the corpse, "The body temperature does not seem to have dropped significantly. It should be a new death. Within an hour."

"On the outside of the arm, on the left cheekbone, on the inside of the ankle, on the palm of the hand...there are abrasions, the surface of the injury is lower than the skin, and the degree of moisture is high. The time of occurrence must have been within an hour. It was caused by accident, not confrontation. Trauma marks should not be arguing with people, but more like the scars caused by falling from the ship and rolling on the side of the ship. The deceased has lost consciousness at this time, or his own consciousness is limited, not enough to control the body to deal with the dangerous situation.”

In the real confrontation with people to resist injuries, there will be obvious differences in the injured parts.

Ye Baiting also noticed the bloodstains on the body of the deceased: "The fatal wound is very obvious. It is the arrow under the left back shoulder. The wound is oval, narrow and long, four inches inside, shallow at the top and deep at the bottom. It can be seen that the angle is not straight. The direction in which the arrow shoots should be much higher than that of the dead."

The murderer was at the stern, and the direction of the arrow came from top to bottom, which was much higher than the horizontal position where he was standing. Almost immediately, his eyes collided with Qiu Yiqing's, and he looked at the window on the third floor——

Only here is the most suitable!

"It's a little strange," Ye Baiting frowned, "This distance is not too short. The arrow was obviously coming with a lot of force. It was firmly nailed into the body of the deceased. It was more than four inches inside, and it almost came out through the chest. After taking it off the side of the boat, the murderer obviously knew that he was killing people, and his goal was very determined. To do such a big thing, he naturally had to think carefully. Pay special attention to the choice of weapons. What we are looking for this time is a sharpshooter? But why, the arrow The quality is so poor?"

It was broken so easily, and the broken surface can be seen at a glance, which is very poor quality.

Are archers, especially when they reach the status of marksman, so careless?Even if you want to hide your own traces, you don't want to leave any marks on the arrow selection, at least the quality should be guaranteed, so choose a good one?

Are you not afraid of encountering accidents?What if the arrow is too brittle to kill anyone?

If he is not an archer, he does not know how to choose these things... He still feels very conflicted. The wound is so deep, the force is so heavy, and this distance is the distance that ordinary people can do?

Qiu Yiqing gave another direction: "Bow and crossbow."

"There is such a weapon," he described to Ye Baiting, "it's made of wood, with an internal structure, and the arrows are placed in it, and it can be fired immediately with the finger. It has a longer range and higher lethality. It can be easily used by ordinary people."

Ye Baiting was stunned for a moment, yes, there are also bows and crossbows!He reflected on whether he had lived here for too long, his thinking was too fixed, and he had forgotten some 'advanced' weapons. The murderer might be an archer, and it was more likely that he used a crossbow!As long as you have a certain degree of accuracy, you can!

Just look up that third floor room...

There is no need to check, he has already seen Jin Yiwei coming, and reported to Qiu Suqing in a low voice——

In the room with the window on the third floor, a crossbow was found.