Soon, the brush, ink, paper, and inkstone were laid out before Qi Shuo.
Qi Shuo selected a fine brush and signaled the waiter that he could speak.
"That guest looked to be in his thirties, quite thin, with black eyebrows, and eyes..."
Qi Shuo sketched a few lines and asked the waiter, "Do the eyes look right?"
The waiter looked closely, hesitating slightly. "They seem like they should be a bit narrower."
Qi Shuo nodded and redrew the eyes with a few strokes. "How about this?"
"Yes, yes, yes! That's it!" the waiter exclaimed excitedly.
"What about the nose?"
"The nose..."
And so, through this series of questions and answers, time passed unnoticed.
Chief Jia's eyes never left the drawing paper; he was anxious, yet dared not disturb Qi Shuo's sketching.
Lin Hao was much more composed, sitting quietly to one side, watching the young man hold the brush and paint.
She hadn't expected A-Shuo to be skilled at portraiture.
After an unknown amount of time, Qi Shuo suddenly stopped. A drop of ink condensed at the tip of the brush and fell onto the white paper, blooming into a dark smudge.
"Why has the Heir stopped drawing?" Chief Jia asked, puzzled.
Qi Shuo suddenly tossed the paper aside.
Chief Jia was shocked.
Why throw it away after drawing for so long?
Just as he was about to pick up the paper, he saw Qi Shuo spread out a fresh sheet and begin drawing again. This time, he drew rapidly, almost in one continuous flow. In less than half an hour, a portrait was completed.
The young man, his fair fingertips stained with ink, stared fixedly at the portrait, his brows slightly furrowed. "A-Hao, look."
Looking at the lifelike portrait, a chill rose in Lin Hao's heart.
It was Chen Mu!
Although there were slight deviations from Chen Mu's actual features, one could tell at a glance that the person in the drawing was him.
This discovery made Lin Hao's expression solemn; she pursed her lips and remained silent.
The gang led by Chen Mu had intended to blow up Jinxiu Street. Everyone else had been captured by the Jinlin Guards, leaving only Chen Mu as the fish that escaped the net, his whereabouts unknown until now. She hadn't expected that his next move would be something as grave as the murder of Princess Yuliu.
"Is it this person?" Qi Shuo asked the waiter, putting down his brush.
The waiter nodded vigorously. "Yes, that's him!"
He was clearly stunned by Qi Shuo's miraculous artistic skill. "It's too similar! Too similar!"
Suppressing his amazement, Chief Jia tapped the table with his finger. "Let the others look as well to see if they've seen this man."
Another waiter recognized him. "This man was greeted by this humble servant when he entered the teahouse."
"Did he enter before the two princesses, or after?" Chief Jia asked.
"After the two princesses," the waiter replied without hesitation.
"Are you certain?"
"When the two princesses entered, this humble servant couldn't help but look at them a few times and didn't notice the guest behind them for a moment. This man even coughed to remind me..." the waiter explained.
Chief Jia breathed a sigh of relief.
Setting aside whether they could actually find the man, having such a lead meant he could at least give an account to his superiors.
"I owe the Heir much today," Chief Jia thanked Qi Shuo sincerely.
Qi Shuo smiled. "As long as it helps Official Jia."
Chief Jia carefully picked up the portrait. "This subordinate must take this drawing. After reporting the situation to my superiors, we will need to use this portrait to put out a wanted notice for this man."
Chief Jia understood the attitude of the higher-ups very well; posting a portrait and offering a reward for his capture was imperative. Only in this way could they let more people know in the shortest time possible that someone else was responsible for the murder of Princess Lingque, thereby washing away the stigma of murder from Princess Yi'an.
"I shall certainly invite the Heir for tea another day." Chief Jia cupped his hands in salute and hurried away with his men.
Qi Shuo looked at Lin Hao. "Let's head back too."
As soon as the two left, the waiters began discussing the matter fervently.
"Don't speak recklessly, be careful not to bring trouble upon yourselves," the shopkeeper scolded.
"Didn't that official say a wanted poster would be put up soon? Everyone will know then, so it shouldn't matter if we talk about it."
The shopkeeper thought about it and agreed, saying nothing more, though he gave a harsh scolding to the waiter who had carelessly let people into the back.
The people at the teahouse simply could not keep their mouths shut after learning such shocking inside information, and the news quickly spread from ten people to a hundred.
Lin Hao and Qi Shuo returned to the fragrance shop and spoke about the portrait away from others.
"That person is Chen Mu," Lin Hao said with certainty.
Qi Shuo had seen Chen Mu during later surveillance. "I didn't expect the drawing to be him. Indeed, a fish that escapes the net leaves endless troubles behind."
Once Yuliu chose to ally with the State of Qi due to Princess Lingque's death, the common people of Great Zhou would be the ones to suffer most once the war began.
"A-Shuo, what do you plan to do?" Lin Hao's heart sank as she thought of Chen Mu's cold face.
"I'll go see Cheng Maoming." Qi Shuo hesitated for a moment, gauging Lin Hao's reaction. "Perhaps I can try to find out Chen Mu's hiding place from Du Qing."
"Is Du Qing still with the Jinlin Guards?"
"Yes."
Lin Hao thought for a moment and made a decision. "I'll go see him."
Qi Shuo hesitated slightly but eventually nodded. "Alright."
Having reached an agreement, the two wasted no more time and headed straight for the Jinlin Guard headquarters.
When Cheng Maoming received a report from his subordinate that the Heir of Prince Jing was visiting, he immediately perked up.
The Heir of Prince Jing was a man of taste; every time they met, he brought benefits. Why was he coming this time?
"Let them in."
With a strange sense of anticipation, Cheng Maoming waited for the Heir of Prince Jing and—staring fixedly at Lin Hao, Cheng Maoming froze.
His eyes for people were still accurate; this was a girl dressed as a boy, wasn't it? Looking closer, he recognized her: the second daughter of the General's Manor, the Heir's betrothed!
Cheng Maoming looked blankly outside.
It was still daylight; he wasn't dreaming.
What, is it fashionable now to bring one's betrothed to visit the Jinlin Guards?
"This is Second Miss Lin," Qi Shuo clarified Lin Hao's identity, his attitude open and honest.
Cheng Maoming greeted her, feeling even more bewildered: it was actually out in the open?
After the pleasantries, Qi Shuo stated his purpose. "The matter of Princess Lingque's murder—Grand Commander Cheng has heard of it, I presume?"
This topic immediately made Cheng Maoming forget everything else. "I have naturally heard of it."
Although the Emperor had handed the case to the Ministry of Justice for investigation, the Jinlin Guards were not at ease; the guest house was being quietly monitored by them.
"Before the two princesses went to the teahouse, they lingered at a fragrance shop. That shop is a property of the General's Manor, and Second Miss Lin happened to be there at the time—" Qi Shuo paused.
"Did the people from the Ministry of Justice seek out Second Miss Lin?" Cheng Maoming asked nonchalantly, thinking to himself that the Heir had come to ask for a favor this time.
"They did go to question her, and I happened to be there as well."
The look in Cheng Maoming's eyes toward Qi Shuo became somewhat strange.
For the dignified Heir of Prince Jing to frequent a powder shop for the sake of his betrothed... if this were his son—oh, he had no son.
Qi Shuo didn't care what Cheng Maoming was thinking and continued, "Since we encountered them, we put in some effort and assisted Chief Jia in identifying a suspicious tea guest. After listening to the description from the waiter who had seen the man, I drew a portrait, and it turns out that person is one of the group that attempted to blow up Jinxiu Street."
Cheng Maoming's expression changed abruptly. "Is the Heir certain?"
(End of Chapter)