Bone Painting Coroner

Fu Bo hurriedly made a big pot of hot tea over the fire after everyone had been seated. “The weather has been especially terrible for the past two days. The northern region has almost been flooded. If this weather continues, a flash flood like the one from a few years ago will definitely occur again. I suppose the royal court will be really busy if that happens,” he said as he poured the hot tea for the others.

Ji Yunshu carried the hot tea in her hands and looked out from the window, then asked, “Fu Bo, how have you been? ”

He smiled, “Nothing new. It’s always been the same old illnesses. My bones hurt every time the weather gets chilly or rainy,” he said as he heaved a sigh, then he asked, “By the way Teacher Ji, are you here for a case?”

She nodded, “Yes. There’s a case in Yufu County.”

“Yufu County?” Fu Bo said in shock, “Even from here, Yufu County is still quite far away. What case is that? Weren’t you at the capital? Why were you assigned to solve a case in Yufu County? The country is so big. Is there no official or coroner in Yufu County who can work on this case? Are you the only one who can solve this?”

Good question. 

She grinned as she warmed her hands by the fireplace and answered, “Every case has its own difficulty.”

“You’re right,” Fu Bo asked further, “Then, Teacher Ji, will you visit Jinjiang again in the future?”

“Let fate decide.”

Fu Bo nodded before pouring another cup of hot tea for Wei Yi. His gaze was filled with warmth, affection, and even a hint of joy as he looked at Wei Yi. “You must be Young Master Wei. The last time I met you on the street, you were only this tall…” He made a gesture of the height of a young boy, “Now that we meet again and you’ve already grown so much.”

Wei Yi smiled faintly and nodded politely, “Nice to meet you, Fu Bo.” He greeted Fu Bo with a clear and loud voice.

“Good, good, good…” Fu Bo could not hide the plain joy on his lips. He gently patted on the back of Wei Yi’s hand. When he finished his cup of tea, Fu Bo immediately poured him another cup.

“Thank you, Fu Bo.”

“Fu Bo is happy as long as you’re doing fine.”

However, Wei Yi handed the cup of hot tea to Ji Yunshu, “Shu’er, have some tea.”

“It’s fine. Your body has just recovered and it’s still weak. You should drink more.”

“Fine.” He flashed a warm smile as he nodded.

Fu Bo’s eyes had not shifted away from Wei Yi since the start. His face shone with the tenderness of a caring father. The unusual behaviour surprised everyone else. Even Jing Rong, who was sitting on the opposite side of the room, took notice.

At this moment, Ji Yunshu remembered her painting. She quickly took it out before slowly unrolling it in front of the fire. A human portrait was depicted on the paper, the lively colours making it resemble a photograph.

Tang Si took a seat in front of Ji Yunshu, tilting her head to take a look at the painting, whose colour had been ruined by water. Unsatisfied, she moved over to Ji Yunshu’s side for a better view. “Ah Ji, who is this? Why did you bring a portrait of a man with you?”

“This is the portrait of a dead person.”

“Portrait of a dead person?” Tang Si subconsciously shifted her body further.

Fu Bo walked over as he heard Ji Yunshu’s words and took a glimpse at the portrait. ‘Clink’, the teapot in his hand made a sound. However, the sound was very faint and it did not attract any attention.

He, then, said, “Teacher Ji, seemingly your drawing is wet. Pass this to me, I’ll bring it over to the other side of the house and dry it for you. There’s an oven over there.”

“Sounds like a good idea.” She rolled the painting up neatly and handed it over to Fu Bo.

Fu Bo received the painting and left the hall. He went to the room where he usually boiled the vinegar water. Shortly after that, Jing Rong turned to Lang Po and asked, “Is there any more warming medication in the carriage?”

“I suppose…” Lang Po paused and thought, “Yes, there’s some warming tea.”

“Go make a pot.”

“Yes.” Lang Po left promptly to collect the tea and soon returned with a large pot.

Just as he was about to pour it out…

The minute Mo Ruo got a whiff of the tea, he abruptly straightened his back and his formerly sluggish behaviour disappeared without a trace. He immediately covered the teapot and asked sternly, “What is this?”

“Warming tea.”

“From who?”

“This…” Lang Po glanced at his Prince with concern hesitated briefly before he spoke. “This is… the gift from Miss Mu Jin earlier.”

Hearing Lang Po’s words, Jing Rong narrowed his eyes. Ji Yunshu had overheard the conversation as well, but she continued poking at the fire as if she didn’t notice anything

A ‘clink’ sound rang across the hall suddenly! Mo Ruo shockingly swept the teapot to the floor. Everyone was dumbfounded. “The tea is poisoned,” Mo Ruo said.

“What do you mean?” Jing Rong asked.

“The tea contains a type of poison named Abbot’s Incense. The poison acts slowly enough where you will not notice any effect in a short period of time. The signs and symptoms will only be seen a month later.”

Interesting! A month later?

“Slow-acting poison?”

Jing Rong questioned Lang Po, his tone curt. “This tea? This is really from Miss Mu Jin?”

“Indeed, this is from Miss Mu Jin. She told this humble one that this was warming tea, hence, this humble one…”

“Send someone back to Anfu to find out the truth.” Jing Rong’s face was stern and cold, but his eyes deepened as stared right into the fire.

Lang Po had no choice but to accept the order. “Yes!”

Ji Yunshu was surprised too. Miss Mu Jin poisoned the tea?

As everyone was still recovering from shock when loud knocks landed on the main door. “Bang! Bang! Bang!” Fu Bo came out from the small room and limped out to open the door. The door was forcefully shoved inward the minute he started opening it. The sudden movement knocked Fu Bo onto the ground. The umbrella in his hand dropped on the floor and the heavy raindrops attacked his thin body mercilessly.

Around five or six fierce-looking men in yamen uniform charged into the house with their weapons. Their leader ordered, “Arrest the suspect.” A few yamen runners promptly grabbed Fu Bo. Ji Yunshu recognised the uniform of the Jinjiang County Yamen at a glance.

Even though she had worked in that yamen for five years, she could not recall any of these faces. Had that fool LIu Qingping changed all his subordinates after she left Jinjiang?

Seeing that Fu Bo was being taken away, she immediately chased after them and shouted, “Wait!”

The yamen runners only then realised that there were other people in the memorial hall. The leader of the yamen runners stood in the rain as he sized Ji Yunshu up and pointed his knife at her before asking, “Who are you?”

“This one is but a passerby. This one is curious, what crime did this old man commit?”

“What does this have to do with you?” The leader shouted as he ordered the other runners, “Take him away.”

When they were leaving…

“Is this the  way Lord Liu taught you all to solve cases?” Ji Yunshu’s tone was colder than before.

Huh? The leader raised his cunning brows as he repeatedly inspected Ji Yunshu from head to toe. “Who exactly are you? You have the guts to question the way our Lord Liu solves cases.”

Ji Yunshu quit being polite and asked with her furrowed brows, “I’ll ask you one last time. What crime did Fu Bo commit?”

“Murder and illegal burial.”