Da Li Temple - Chapter 26.1

Chapter 26.1
Injured

The third period of the night was the moment when dreams engulfed ten thousand families.
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Lin Wanqing followed Su Moyi and a group of guards to surround the embroidery workshop. They had already inquired about the ‘mute tailor’ residence, so they didn’t alarm the others.

Knock, knock. Knocking sounds echoed in the silent streets and alleys, with only the occasional barking of dogs and the beeping of burning torches.
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“Kick the door.” Su Moyi gave an order, and the gate was kicked open by Ye Qing and a few guards.
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The dancing torches rushed like a fire dragon stretching out its body, brightening that dark and small courtyard.
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“Lord!” The guards hurriedly returned after a quick scan, “There’s no one.”
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Su Moyi’s face sank. This place was just an ordinary courtyard, with only three rooms and simple furnishings. The murderer could not have received the information so quickly and fled before they arrived.
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Then —

“Check the floor and closets. Maybe there are secret passages.” Lin Wanqing said.
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“Lord!” Ye Qing’s voice came from the side room.
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Lin Wanqing and Su Moyi walked over.

It was a storeroom with some clothes and accessory decorations. The guards pushed open a box filled with rags, revealing an entrance below. Su Moyi took the torch of the person beside him, lifted his robe, and walked down. The secret passageway was small and could only accommodate one person at a time. After everyone held up the torch and traveled for a while, they saw a faint light appear before them, like an oil lamp that someone had lit. Under that dim oil lamp was the figure of a woman with her back to them.
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Lin Wanqing wanted to rush over, but Su Moyi stopped her.
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Ye Qing gripped the long sword he wore tightly and shouted at the figure, “Da Li Temple is looking for a murderer. Who is here?!”
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The oil lamp trembled, but no one responded. The woman only sat there, not moving a muscle.

Clicked, Ye Qing drew the sword in his hand, “This official is asking, answer quickly!”
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After another breath of silence, the silhouette was still sitting with its back to the visitor, not turning back.
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Under the dim oil lamp, the woman’s white hair was vaguely visible. She wore a married woman’s bun, and from her slightly hunched figure, she should be over forty years old.
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A hunched figure?
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Lin Wanqing was startled, her eyes stopping at her leveled shoulders. She suddenly remembered that from the time they had rushed into the secret room until now, the woman never seemed to have moved. There wasn’t even a faint movement of breathing. She pushed Su Moyi’s hand away and walked over to the woman to take a look.
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It was a dried corpse! Judging from the degree of weathered skin, she had been dead for at least almost a year, and the murderer had started committing the crime eight months ago.
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“Lord!” Ye Qing seemed to have discovered something. His voice, which had always been unperturbed, was colored with panic.
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Lin Wanqing looked over and saw embroideries of beauties hanging on the wall – they were all coquettishly smiling and looked delicate.
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More than ten beauties in the embroideries were naked, either lying down or reclining, with a lewd expression, as if someone was playing with their bodies. However, the most creepy thing was that the breasts of those beauties were so realistic that they could even see the tips of their erect breasts.
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Lin Wanqing almost vomited on the spot. This murderer was a serious Oedipus Complex and collector. Probably because his mother was too cold or strict, and he never received love from her, thus forming an inferior and twisted personality. Extreme low self-esteem, in turn, has caused him to be unable to properly pleasure women, so he needs to blindfold them when committing crimes. The death of his mother a year ago was an external pressure that he couldn’t control or dissolve.
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Lin Wanqing guessed that the man had wanted to gain his mother’s approval throughout his life, but to her death, he hadn’t been able to get what he wanted. This regret transformed into anger, and he began to fail to perform (*), which was why he became what he is now.
T/N: Impotence.
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When one doesn’t know the truth, one will always find the murderer hateful. But once touched the murderer’s heart, Lin Wanqing was inevitably sad.
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“There’s still a secret passage here!” Ye Qing’s voice pulled her back to reality, and Lin Wanqing saw another pathway behind the embroidered work that led outside. She mustered up the energy to follow it.
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This secret passage led to an alley outside the embroidery workshop. The alley was long and secluded, extending to the river on one side and leading to the main road on the other. Several people all chased after the river in unison.
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There was no wind or moon tonight, and the streaming clouds were thick. A few people chased and heard the gurgling water in the distance. In front of their eyes were all dark.
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Su Moyi asked people to extinguish the torches and not to make a sound.
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Everyone slowed down their breathing. A burst of water sounded from a distant place. Different from the running water hitting the rocks, it was like the sound of someone pulling their feet to wade in the water, carrying eagerness and panic.

Clater. The murderer realized that he was being pursued and plunged headlong into the pitch-black river. Seeing that he was about to drown in the night, Lin Wanqing reacted the fastest and jumped into the river even before recognizing the direction.
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In June’s weather, the river water wasn’t cold. Lin Wanqing took a sharp breath and quickly dived downstream below the man. She hugged his legs and abruptly got up to lift the man.
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The river wasn’t deep, not past the man’s chest. However, when someone ull his feet unexpectedly, he immediately panicked.
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Amidst her fluttering heart, Lin Wanqing saw a cold white light. He was carrying a dagger!
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The murderer was already surrounded and desperate. Under his anger and panic, the knife danced around him, and the remnants of the image rained down, stabbing Lin Wanqing.
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The murderer was not tall, but he was a man and was bound to be stronger than Lin Wanqing. She quickly lost the upper hand in dodging again and again. With the slip of her feet and too late to breathe, the murderer grabbed Lin Wanqing’s hair and then pressed her straight into the water. She suddenly lost her grip, and while fighting against the murderer’s strength, she also had to dodge the dagger stabs in his hand one after another. The formerly calm surface of the river resounded with clattering water. As consciousness faded, Lin Wanqing struggled on instinct.
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When a white light came down, Lin Wanqing felt it was impossible to escape. She closed her eyes, but what waited for her was powerful arms.
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With a tightening grip on her collar, she was carried out of the water. “Your death in the pursuit doesn’t count as death in the line of duty!”

Her ears were foggy due to being dipped in the water, and she couldn’t hear Su Moyi’s voice. She could only vaguely see his angry face.
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Lin Wanqing wiped her wet face and took several breaths before she calmed down.
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Su Moyi saw her messy face and felt it was not good to get angry again. He only said ‘follow me’ indifferently. After saying this, he turned his back and handed her his hand.
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Lin Wanqing subconsciously went to grab his sleeve.
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“Grabbing the sleeve is easy to slip.” Su Moyi frowned and held her hand in place with a solemn face. The man’s hot palm turned, tugging her hand firmly in his palm. With a pull of his arm, he made her small arm wrap tightly around his. She was pulled onto the shore by Su Moyi just like that.