Chapter 41 The Deaths of Xiao Liu and the Other Two
Feng Fei and his two companions went out in high spirits, but their expressions were not very pleasant at the moment.
Standing before Feng Fei and his companions was a little boy, the same little beggar who had promised to do Feng Fei's favor yesterday but left after taking the buns. Lying weakly on the ground was a girl, the same beggar girl named Xiao Ying from yesterday.
The beggar girl named Xiaoying lay half-dead on the ground, her face streaked with delicate tears and pale. If it weren't for her tattered clothes, anyone would mistake her for a pampered young lady who had been accidentally bumped into and injured while out and about.
The male beggar grabbed Feng Fei's clothes and shouted, "You three are heartless! Xiao Liu, Xiao Qi, and Xiao Ba have never offended you, so why did you kill them! And now you've caused Xiao Ying and me to end up in this situation!"
The little beggar named Xiaoying, with tears streaming down her face, said haltingly, "Brother Ke, I'm so scared, Xiao Liu and the others... they died so tragically..."
Feng Fei looked at the two children who were putting on an act with great difficulty. No, the female beggar named Xiao Ying was putting on an act, but the male beggar seemed to be real. Of course, the real thing was not that they framed the three children named Xiao Liu, but that the three children were really dead.
Frowning, Feng Fei pulled out the hem of her robe: "Who are Xiao Liu, Xiao Qi, and Xiao Ba?" Although Feng Fei was asking, she already had a guess; they must be the three little beggars who scooped up the silver and left yesterday. Glancing at the expressions on Li Yimo and her brother's faces, Feng Fei became even more certain.
The little beggar, whom Xiaoying called "Brother Ke," stretched out a trembling finger and glared at Feng Fei, saying, "You don't even know them?" He took a deep breath before continuing, "Xiao Liu and the others are always so good to you! They always share their food with you when they come back from begging! I never imagined you would be so heartless as to murder the three of them for the silver you found yesterday!"
Upon hearing the deaths of Xiao Liu and the other two, the voice of "Brother Ke" became even more intense, his whole body trembling, while Xiao Ying, who was half-lying on the ground, lowered her head, and tears rolled down her cheeks.
Feng Fei held Li Yimo and Li Moxuan tightly; both children were trembling slightly, and she worried they wouldn't be able to bear it. But clearly, Feng Fei underestimated Li Yimo and Li Moxuan.
Li Yimo's small hand turned slightly in Feng Fei's hand, then she grasped Feng Fei's hand in return, and looked up into Feng Fei's eyes: "Sister, you believe me."
Feng Fei looked deeply at Li Yimo, nodded, and then slowly let go of her hand: "Xiao Mo, I believe you?"
Li Yimo responded to Feng Fei with a warm smile.
"Brother Ke." Li Yimo's voice suddenly fell silent. "Where are Brother Liu and the others now?"
"Brother Ke" shrank back slightly, glanced cautiously at Xiao Ying on the ground, and then looked up at Li Yimo again, shouting loudly, "They're in the ruined temple!"
"How did Brother Liu and the others die?" This question weighed heavily on Li Yimo's mind, but she still asked it calmly.
The onlookers were all surprised, never expecting that a little girl would step in to resolve the matter, and such a calm girl at that.
"This... was killed by you! Why are you asking me this!" "Brother Ke's" words were somewhat evasive, and he glanced furtively at Xiao Ying on the ground. Feng Fei saw all of this and couldn't help but snort coldly.
"Brother Ke, why do you think we killed Brother Liu and the others?" Li Yimo suddenly changed the subject.
“Yesterday, Xiao Liu and the other two got the silver, and you left. Then they died. If it wasn’t you who did it, then who was?” Brother Ke answered without hesitation.
Li Yimo chuckled softly: "Then do you know where Little Six and the others get their money?"
"How...how should I know!"
“The money for Xiao Liu and the others was given by Aunt Feng.” She pulled Feng Fei’s hand. “Aunt Feng is my and my brother’s aunt. She came to us this time to thank Xiao Liu and the others for taking care of us. I didn’t expect…” Although Li Yimo’s words were not entirely true, the emotions she expressed were genuine.
"Brother Ke" was stunned, and subconsciously thought that Li Yimo was talking nonsense. This scary-looking god had clearly come to ask them for help!
At this moment, Xiaoying, who had been lying on the ground, timidly stood up, and "Brother Ke" quickly stepped forward to help her up.
"Little Mo, Brother Ke was just confused, please don't mind him. Waaah, Brother Ke was just sad because of the deaths of Brother Liu and the others..." Xiao Ying said softly, her voice trembling with tears, as if she could be startled by any louder sound.
Seeing Xiaoying stand up, Li Yimo's brows furrowed subconsciously. Xiaoying had never had any awareness of being a beggar before; she never knew how to earn food with her own hands. If it weren't for "Brother Ke" protecting her, she would probably have starved to death long ago.
"Sister Xiaoying, how did Brother Liu and the others get into trouble?" Although Li Yimo really didn't want to talk to Xiaoying, it seemed that Xiaoying knew more about some things.
Xiaoying wiped her eyes with her sleeve before speaking haltingly, "Yesterday, Brother Ke and I left first and went back to the dilapidated temple. Brother Liu and the others didn't return until evening. Their clothes were torn, and they were covered in wounds, their faces bruised and swollen. At first, Brother Ke and I didn't think much of it; we beggars are used to getting injured." She couldn't help but shed tears again, which filled some of the onlookers with sympathy. Sniffling slightly, Xiaoying continued, "But as night fell, all three of them suddenly developed high fevers. I was terrified. If Brother Ke hadn't had the idea to quickly find water to apply to their wounds, we probably wouldn't know anything about what happened afterward."
"What did Xiao Liu and the others do?" Li Yimo noticed that Xiao Ying suddenly stopped talking, and knew that she was waiting for her to ask questions so that she could continue. Although Li Yimo was not happy, she still asked patiently in order to know the truth.
Xiaoying suddenly clung to "Brother Ke," sobbing uncontrollably: "Brother Liu and the others got the money, but it was stolen by bad people! They even beat them up! I'm so scared! Brother Liu told us to leave quickly, but how could we leave? If we left, who would take care of them? But Brother Liu kept cursing at us, telling us to go. In the end, Brother Ke took me away, but I fainted. The next morning, when Brother Ke took me back to the dilapidated temple, we found that Brother Liu and the others were dead!"
"Brother Ke" also looked pained, as if Xiao Liu and the others had died because of his heartless departure.
Xiaoying and "Brother Ke" were still building up their tragic emotions when they were interrupted by a rude voice.
"Make way! Make way!" The crowd parted to let in three men dressed as government officials. "A murder has occurred?" The lead official frowned upon seeing the two ragged beggars standing in the middle. "Where is the dead body?"
Feng Fei then stepped forward and pulled Li Yimo back to her feet. He then addressed the leading official, saying, “Sir, we don’t know either. Today, I was strolling through the market with my nephew and niece, whom I had just found yesterday, when these two little beggars suddenly darted out from the side and bumped into me. The girl fell to the ground, while the boy shouted that we, aunt and niece, had harmed someone. I looked closely and recognized them as the children I had begged with my two unfortunate nephews and nieces. Out of kindness, I inquired, only to learn that three other little beggars had died! I implore you, sir, to investigate this matter thoroughly!”
When the leading official saw Feng Fei approach, he took a slight step back before standing still to listen to Feng Fei speak.
Slowly, the officer frowned, beckoned to another officer behind him, whispered a few words in his ear, and after the officer left, turned to Feng Fei and asked, "And who is this young lady?"
"My name is Sister Feng."
"So it's you, Miss Feng. I understand everything. I've already ordered my men to investigate, but I still hope you can cooperate." The official's tone was polite, but not arrogant.
"Of course. But I wonder how I can cooperate?"
"Please wait a moment." The head officer glanced at "Brother Ke," who was clearly agitated, and shouted, "Take this little beggar down!" Another officer standing behind him immediately stepped forward and grabbed "Brother Ke," while Xiao Ying was suddenly thrown to the ground, her face full of astonishment. After a moment, she reacted and tried to pounce on the officer, shouting, "Let go of Brother Ke!"
Seeing that it was a small, delicate female beggar, and that she didn't have the typical smell of beggars, the officer felt a little embarrassed, or perhaps hesitant to just leave the girl aside. He looked at his leader with a troubled expression.
The leading officer frowned, stepped forward, and without any tenderness, threw Xiaoying to the ground: "What? Trying to obstruct official business?"
Xiaoying didn't answer, and instead burst into tears, immediately eliciting whispers from those around her.
The leading officer glared fiercely at the people around him and said in a harsh voice, "Don't try to be a good person! Don't forget that the most vicious people in this world are women!" He then brandished the sword at his waist. Seeing that no one was making any more noise that would displease him, the leading officer returned to Feng Fei and bowed, saying, "Last night, our office received a report that the bodies of three little beggars had been found in a dilapidated temple outside the city. According to the other beggars, that dilapidated temple was where those three little beggars and four other children lived. Yesterday, only five of the children returned."
Then, the leading officer glanced at Xiaoying on the ground: "Someone saw that the stingy man my men caught yesterday was using a stick to smash the three dead beggar children. The three beggar children didn't react at all and seemed to be dead, so they came to report it. What I need to ask you is where you were before dark yesterday until midnight."
Feng Fei frowned as he pondered the official's words. Upon hearing his question, he answered without hesitation, "I returned to the Dragon and Phoenix Inn with my nephew and niece before dark. Many people saw us there. We went downstairs to empty the dirty water around midnight and then rested. There is no one else who can testify to this."
The leading official nodded: "The time of death of the three children still needs to be confirmed by the coroner, but I estimate it was before the first watch of the night. It should be unrelated to Sister Feng and the others, but I would still trouble Sister Feng to stay at the Dragon and Phoenix Inn for the next few days."
"That's easy, please solve the case as soon as possible, officer. Those three children used to take good care of my nephew and niece."
The leading official nodded and said nothing more.
Before long, the officials who had left earlier rushed back.
Chapter 42 The So-Called Case Closed
"Boss!" The officer who had just run back whispered a few words in the ear of the leading officer, whose face immediately changed. "Take this female beggar on the ground back with you!" Without saying anything more, he hurriedly left with Xiaoying and "Brother Ke".
Those who remained were all taken aback, staring blankly at the departing officials.
Feng Fei, Li Yimo, and Li Moxuan were also puzzled. They exchanged glances and lost all interest in continuing their stroll.
Feng Fei and his two companions returned disappointed. As soon as they got back to the Dragon and Phoenix Inn, they went upstairs to their rooms and only gave Liu Xiaobei and his two companions a perfunctory greeting.
For three consecutive days, except for mealtimes, Feng Fei and the other two did not leave their rooms. During the day, Feng Fei studied disguise techniques, and at night she circulated her jade-colored spiritual energy; she felt she would soon make a breakthrough. Li Yimo, Li Moxuan, and the other two, aside from meals, spent the rest of their time cultivating their own family's techniques. Feng Fei never inquired; these were their secrets.
Li Yimo and Li Moxuan were both quiet, and had been even more silent for the past three days. Although their relationship with the three Xiao Liu brothers wasn't particularly good, it was much better than with Xiao Ying and "Brother Ke." Moreover, they had gone through many hardships with the three of them, so there was still some affection between them. Therefore, Li Yimo and Li Moxuan were saddened for a long time because of the deaths of the three Xiao Liu brothers.
Although the past three days were quite tedious, all three of them made some progress. Feng Fei broke through to the fourth level of the Acquired Realm, and Li Yimo and Li Moxuan's family-style techniques also improved. Moreover, they seemed to have some disguise skills, which they showed off to Feng Fei, arousing his great curiosity. The three of them even talked about the topic of disguise for four or five hours.
Three days later, Feng Fei went downstairs as usual, intending to order food and go upstairs, but was stopped by an official who had just entered the Dragon and Phoenix Inn.
Feng Fei turned his head and saw that it was the same junior officer who had been sent by the leading officer to inquire about something and then returned that day.
"Sir?" Feng Fei looked at the official who had called out to him with a puzzled expression.
"Miss Feng?" The junior official seemed to ask in confirmation, but seeing Feng Fei nod, he continued, "It's like this, the boss sent me to speak with Miss Feng. It's been confirmed that the case has nothing to do with you." With that, the junior official prepared to leave, but Feng Fei pulled him aside and asked in a low voice, "What exactly happened in the case?"
The young constable glanced around, his face flushed, seemingly embarrassed by being tugged at by a girl. With a slight struggle, he pulled his sleeve free from Feng Fei's grasp, letting out a sigh of relief before smiling and saying, "Miss Feng, I'm just a lowly constable, responsible for running errands. I don't know the answers to your questions, so I'm truly sorry!"
Feng Fei waved his hand dismissively, saying, "Oh dear, you're really too kind, young constable! I've troubled you with this trip, so please have some tea." He then discreetly slipped some loose silver to the constable. The constable was initially taken aback, then blushed shyly, his face turning bright red. However, he accepted the silver without hesitation, smiling as he left.
Feng Fei smiled as he saw the minor official off, but his heart was not at peace. It seemed that someone else was involved in that murder case, and he wondered what the outcome would be.
However, since there were some things she couldn't figure out, Feng Fei simply put them out of her mind for the time being, picked up the food the waiter had brought, and went upstairs.
Li Yimo had just finished exhaling and was sitting in front of the mirror, trying out the medicine she had prepared based on the recipes recorded in the disguise books she had memorized. Li Moxuan, on the other hand, was still sitting cross-legged on the bed, practicing his breathing exercises.
Upon hearing that Feng Fei had returned, Li Yimo used medicine to wash away all the dirt and grime from her face, and Li Moxuan also slowly stopped circulating his internal energy.
"Sister Feifei." Li Yimo stepped forward to help Fengfei carry the food to the table.
The three sat around the round table, eating their meal in silence. Just as they were finishing, Feng Fei suddenly spoke up: "The matter of Xiao Liu and the others has been resolved."
Both Li Yimo and Li Moxuan were slightly taken aback. Then, Li Yimo asked cautiously, "What was the result?" Although she had guessed some possibilities, she didn't want it to really be the work of those two people, after all, the seven of them had spent a long time together.
Feng Fei looked down at the rice in the bowl, stirring it absently, his voice wavering: "It's none of our business anymore."
Li Moxuan sighed softly, then cheerfully called out to Feng Fei and Li Yimo, "Feifei, Xiaomo, let's eat first! The food's getting cold!" Li Yimo silently picked up her chopsticks and continued eating, as did Feng Fei. Only Mingfeng, looking bewildered, glanced at Feng Fei, then at Li Yimo, calling out twice in confusion. Seeing that neither of them paid her any attention, she angrily spilled the soup from her bowl onto the table, earning a glare from Feng Fei.
After instructing the waiter to clear away the dishes, Feng Fei looked at Li Yimo and Li Moxuan, who remained silent, and pressed his temples with a slight headache. "Xiao Mo, Moxuan, let's go out for a walk! We've been cooped up in this Dragon and Phoenix Inn for the past few days, and I'm getting really bored!"
Li Yimo looked at Feng Fei, knowing that Sister Fei Fei was worried that she and her brother would overthink things in the room, so she specially asked to go out for a walk. So she smiled sweetly at Feng Fei and said, "Sister Fei Fei, I also want to go out and have some fun! Brother, shall we go?" The last sentence was directed at Li Moxuan.
Seeing his sister's rare smile, Li Moxuan couldn't help but laugh too: "Okay, then we'll ask Sister Feifei to take us out to play!"
"Alright, it's settled then!" Feng Fei finally decided. "Let's change our clothes now and go out. It's almost Qixi Festival, so let's come back later tonight and see what's going on!"
After they finished, the three of them changed their clothes. Feng Fei was still wearing those flamboyant clothes that would catch the eye, while Li Yimo changed into a pale yellow ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), with two flower-bud buns in her hair tied with light green ribbons, and a round pearl earring in her ear. She looked extremely cute. Feng Fei rubbed Li Yimo's face, which had recently become a little pampered, and muttered, "Oh, Xiao Mo, smile! You're so cute when you smile."
Li Yimo was being tormented by Feng Fei without complaining. Although she hadn't smiled yet, her eyes were full of laughter, and even more so, she felt admiration for Feng Fei.
Li Moxuan was wearing a light red shirt and stood there quietly. If it weren't for his small stature and drastically different face, Feng Fei would almost have mistaken him for someone who had shrunk several sizes and was standing in front of him.
"Hehe, Mo Xuan's outfit is really good. He's sure to charm a lot of girls today. Sigh, it's so sad. You're all so good-looking. What am I supposed to do?" Feng Fei sighed, feigning sorrow, with an exaggerated expression that made Li Yimo laugh out loud. Li Mo Xuan couldn't help but smile too.
"That's more like it! Children should act like children!" Feng Fei patted Li Yimo and Li Moxuan's heads, smiled, and then led them outside.
As they were going downstairs, they happened to run into Liu Xiaobei and his two brothers, who were coming out of another stairwell.
"Miss Feng, are you taking your nephew and niece out for a stroll?" Liu Xiaobei asked with a smile.
Feng Fei nodded with a smile: "Yes, we haven't been out these past few days, and I was worried the two children would get too cooped up. With the Qixi Festival just around the corner, let's join in the fun!"
After smiling and wishing them a pleasant time, Liu Xiaobei led Guan Dayu and Zhang Zhongfei downstairs first, their steps hurried as if they had something urgent to attend to. However, this was none of Feng Fei's concern. Feng Fei shrugged, tightened his grip on Li Yimo and Li Moxuan's hands, and only went downstairs after Liu Xiaobei and the other two had reached the bottom.
Because the Qixi Festival is approaching, Fengdu is much more lively than usual.
Feng Fei didn't go far either, just wandering around West Street with Li Yimo, Li Moxuan, and Mingfeng.