During lunch time, Zhao Xiaoliu ran over and reported to Tang Tianyuan that the girl's identity was confirmed. Her name was Qi Hui, the young lady of the Qi Residence in this county. The servants of the Qi Residence were already crying in the morgue. Official Qi and his wife were on their way to the county office.
Tang Tianyuan didn't even bother to eat, and hurriedly went to the House of Xíng. At the door, Tang Tianyuan saw Tan Lingyin. She was holding a large bun in one hand while looking into the morgue. Her expression was very unbearable, but the movement of eating her bun did not slow down at all.
There were bursts of cries from the morgue, both from men and women.
"You really still have an appetite." Tang Tianyuan said. If you can read this, it means this chapter was stolen from p uretl . com
Tan Lingyin swallowed the bun in her mouth, "Birth, old age, sickness, and death are the fate of humankind. Affliction is Bodhi and the Pure Land will be born from mud[1]."
It felt like a clash of character for her to spit out such Zen-inspired words.
At this time, there was a commotion outside, and a group of people came in. Several men and women, surrounded by a middle-aged man and woman, came in a hurry. The man still knew to salute when he saw Tang Tianyuan, while the woman left them behind and ran into the morgue, and was quickly followed by a loud cry.
When the man heard the cry, his expression also became sad.
These should be the parents of the deceased. Tang Tianyuan allowed Official Qi to enter the morgue and meet his daughter.
Tan Lingyin touched her chin, looked at the howling men and women, and whispered to Tang Tianyuan, "Something's not right."
Tang Tianyuan replied in a low voice, "You noticed it, too? Tell me." He bent down slightly and brought his ear closer so that he could easily hear her whisper.
"Look, this family doesn't seem to be short of food or clothing, so how could their daughter dress like a village girl? This is unreasonable; since she is a young lady from a big family, she should be raised in a private bedroom with a maid always by her side, serving her every need. The murderer would usually have no chance of committing any crime. Unless she ran out by herself."
"So, she must have fled to avoid an arranged marriage."
Tang Tianyuan disagreed, "You don't even know if she has an arranged marriage, it is too arbitrary to assert that she was running away from marriage."
"You don't understand, do you?" Tan Lingyin flicked Tang Tianyuan's shoulder. Because they were too close, Tang Tianyuan didn't have time to avoid her. She continued, "What else is there to do at that time of night? Unless she wanted to leave the house for a long time. Fleeing from a marriage must be done after dinner time and before the city gate closes. So that the family realizes she’s missing and starts looking for her, she had already had one whole night to escape far from the city. Also, when a girl is escaping from marriage, she can’t dress up too well, it would be too noticeable, and secondly, her clothing can reveal her wealth and become a target for thieves. " If you can read this, it means this chapter was stolen from p uretl . com
Tang Tianyuan found that there was nothing decent in Miao Miao Sheng's mind, and he disdainfully said, "You explained it as if you’ve escaped an arranged marriage before."
"Of course not, how could I flee from an arranged marriage," Tan Lingyin said, pushing Tang Tianyuan impatiently, "Don't stay so close to me."
"That's true… There is no man in this world who would be so inconceivable to enter into a marriage contract with you."
Their initially quiet whispers became louder and louder. ‘Fleeing from an arranged marriage’ heard by the other members of the Qi Residence, they immediately became furious, "Do not sully my daughter's name!"
Tan Lingyin quickly apologized, "I'm sorry, I’ve spoken nonsense."
Tang Tianyuan stepped forward and said, "My condolences to the two of you. The inspection of the House of Xíng has ended. You can now bury Ling Qianjin and give peace to her soul. This officer will investigate this case thoroughly, we will find out the real murderer, and give you an explaination."
The two couples were about to kneel to thank him, but Tang Tianyuan quickly stopped them.
At this time, another person came in from outside. He stumbled, almost tripped, and pulled the eyes of everyone in the morgue to him.
Tan Lingyin saw that this man was eighteen or nineteen years old, with thick eyebrows and big eyes, and his face was sweaty when he ran in. He didn't care about anyone’s reactions and rushed straight to the corpse in the room. When he saw the corpse's face, his eyes were red in shock and he was shaking all over.
Tan Lingyin scratched her chin and looked at the man in wonder. Isn't this the girl's fiancé? She turned her head to look at the county magistrate, and found that his face was inscrutable and profound.
Well, when a person doesn’t know what to do, they usually pretend to be an expert. Tan Lingyin nodded. This method has been time-tested.