Mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty

Chapter 10 Another cripple?
Changfeng was about to go to rescue him, but was grabbed by Mo Yun, who looked like he deserved a beating and was just watching the fun, so he had to give up.

Yan Mingzhang's face flushed slightly, and he felt a little embarrassed and angry, but he couldn't break free from Rong Wanyin's hand. He could only try his best to focus his eyes on the roof, avoiding the dizzying scene below. He took a deep breath, forced himself to calm down, and shifted his attention to the several arc-shaped pieces of ice next to the pool of blood.

Yan Mingzhang suppressed his inner discomfort, squatted down, and carefully examined the pieces of ice. He reached out and gently touched them. The ice was smooth and piercing, and a chill instantly passed through his fingertips. His brows furrowed, and he understood. "I already know the answer. Please, young lady, take me down."

Hearing this, Rong Wanyin's lips curled up into a sly smile, her eyes full of pride. "I know the answer too. How about we make a bet? Whoever guesses correctly wins." Yan Mingzhang frowned and replied seriously, "This is no joke. Only when we catch the mastermind behind this will we truly win."

Rong Wanyin glanced at the jade flute hanging from Yan Mingzhang's waist. There seemed to be a "little red bean" on the jade flute, but it was not very clear. Rong Wanyin reached out to grab it, but Yan Mingzhang saw this and quickly held it down with his hand. Rong Wanyin kicked a tile under Yan Mingzhang's feet, breaking it. Yan Mingzhang was originally afraid of heights, and his footing was unsteady. He subconsciously reached for the roof with both hands. Rong Wanyin took advantage of the opportunity and snatched the jade flute. Sure enough, there was a "little red bean" on it. It was the master's item!
"Where are you from?" Rong Wanyin asked seriously.

"Where did your compass come from?" Yan Mingzhang asked instead of answering.

"What do you care!" Rong Wanyin replied.

"This jade flute of mine was made by Elder Wuji himself." Yan Mingzhang spoke very slowly, watching Rong Wanyin's reaction. With so little information available, he was only speculating, trying to gauge Rong Wanyin's reaction.

Rong Wanyin's expression remained calm; she guessed right.

"So are your compass and Miss Wen's bracelet."

Right again.

"Old Man Wuji likes to leave this red bean-shaped seal on his handicrafts." Yan Mingzhang became more and more certain that he had guessed it all right.

"You rely on your compass to collect these objects. When it senses something, it will rotate..."

"How do you know this?" Rong Wanyin was shocked. This compass was newly made by her master.

"This compass was newly made by your master..." Yan Mingzhang had looked up all the information he could find about Elder Wuji since he was five years old, so he naturally knew him very well. Combined with his speculation and Rong Wanyin's reaction, many things could be directly confirmed. Today's gains were not small.

Rong Wanyin was no longer able to describe her shock. She even felt that the person in front of her was too scary. How could he know everything?

"You want to ask how I know this?" Yan Mingzhang smiled. "Because you used the Wuji Sword Technique..."

Rong Wanyin looked as if she had suddenly realized something, and thought to herself that she should not use the Wuji sword technique casually in the future, as it would be too easy to be recognized. Her master once said that when she was out, she should not tell others that he was her master, as he must have many enemies.

"It's true." Yan Mingzhang was relieved. It seemed that the man was still alive. That was great.

Rong Wanyin suddenly understood and became furious: "You tricked me! ... I didn't use the sword today!"

Yan Mingzhang smiled without saying anything, just calmly looking at Rong Wanyin. After a long moment, he said, "Miss Rong, I've finished my questions. Please take me down with you. Thank you." Rong Wanyin glared at him. This man was shameless! An old fox! A big liar! The feud between the two of them was sealed. Although Rong Wanyin was thick-skinned, she still couldn't do such a thing as robbing someone's belongings in front of them.

Rong Wanyin threw the jade flute hard, and Yan Mingzhang caught it.

Rong Wanyin nimbly grabbed Yan Mingzhang's collar, dragged him over, took Yan Mingzhang down from the roof, and threw him into the arms of Mo Yun and Changfeng.

"Young Master, are you okay?" Changfeng grabbed Yan Mingzhang's elbow and held him steady.

"It's okay, I just feel a little dizzy..." Yan Mingzhang pretended to be weak, without any of the momentum he had just had.

Rong Wanyin was furious and stamped her feet fiercely. "Pretending! Still pretending! I didn't do anything to him!"
Mo Yun looked concerned: "Sir, did you get anything?" Yan Mingzhang nodded slightly, his eyes swept over the Wen family members who were still in shock, raised the ice in his hand, and said in a deep voice: "Everyone, look at this."

Everyone's attention was drawn to this movement, focused on the ice. Seeing the remaining arc of the ice, and recalling the strange blood pouring from the roof not long ago, everyone suddenly realized what was going on. The fear on their faces remained, but they were also filled with surprise and realization. They all said in unison, "It's an ice bowl!"

Mo Yun stepped forward and continued, "Oh right, anyone with an ice bowl can place it on the roof in advance, fill it with blood, and wait for the sun to shine on it. When the temperature rises, the ice bowl will slowly melt, and the blood will naturally drip out. Once the ice bowl completely breaks, the blood will flow out in streams. Rich families will have some ice stored in their cellars, so it's not hard to get."

After hearing this, a trace of dissatisfaction appeared on Mrs. Wen's originally pale face, and her voice was tearful and angry: "It's the same as not saying anything. Anyone can be put in that position. Doesn't that mean anyone could be the real murderer?" As she spoke, her eyes reddened and her body trembled slightly.

Yan Mingzhang looked calm as he casually threw the almost melted ice in his hand aside. He took out a white handkerchief from his bosom, wiped his hands slowly, then took a step and slowly walked around the house.

His eyes were as sharp as an eagle, not missing any corner. He stopped from time to time, or squatted to check the ground, or carefully examined the marks on the wall. Everyone held their breath, not daring to make a sound to disturb him, for fear of interrupting his train of thought.

Yan Mingzhang stopped beside a big tree behind the house. The trees and grass here were lush, and there was a dragging mark in the grass. Following the mark, Yan Mingzhang found a ladder, which seemed to have been hastily abandoned here. The grass beside the ladder was trampled down and was in a mess. There was also a series of footprints on the ground.

The footprints were very strange, one deep and one shallow, as if the person who left them had walked with great effort and was limping. Yan Mingzhang picked up a broken blade of grass. The break was very fresh, as if it had been stepped on not long ago.

Rong Wanyin also followed and when she saw the footprints, she couldn't help but blurt out, "Why are there only one and a half footprints?" After that, she turned her head and saw Yan Mingzhang. She snorted coldly and turned her head to the other side.

Yan Mingzhang raised the corner of his mouth slightly, looked at her, and deliberately kept her in suspense: "What do you think? Why not take a guess yourself?"

Rong Wanyin didn't want to pay attention to him, but for the sake of her master's things, she had to be patient. After all, she still needed him.

Rong Wanyin's eyes flashed with intelligence, and suddenly an idea struck her. She lifted one foot and limped a few steps. After a moment, she suddenly realized something and shouted excitedly, "It's a cripple! The person who left these footprints is a cripple! ... Hey, why are there so many cripples in the Wen family?"

(End of this chapter)