The hand on her shoulder was broad and powerful. Even through her clothes, Song Yihuan could feel the burning temperature of the man's palm.
She was in a daze when Ji Lingchuan's serious voice came from beside her ear, "The road is bumpy. Hold on tight and sit properly. Do I have to teach you this?"
The next moment, the man grabbed her wrist and pulled her a bit closer.
Song Yihuan let out a soft cry. She didn't even have a chance to struggle. When she came to her senses again, she was already sitting beside Ji Lingchuan.
Although they weren't pressed tightly against each other, they were much closer than before.
A strange feeling lingered in Song Yihuan's heart. She gently pulled her hand away from his, lowered her eyes, and said softly, "Thank you, Young Master."
Gu Yunzheng was sitting opposite them and witnessed everything with his own eyes.
Hating his own helplessness to change the situation and having no position to pull Song Yihuan to his side, he averted his eyes, and the hand on his side tightened.
The carriage soon reached its destination. Gu Yunzheng got off the carriage first. As if in a show of strength, after his feet touched the ground, he turned around and reached out his hand to Song Yihuan, saying,
"Miss Rou, be careful not to fall. Let me help you."
Song Yihuan clearly felt a sharp gaze on her.
She coughed twice, thanked Gu Yunzheng for his kindness, and was about to jump out of the carriage with her skirt in hand.
Unexpectedly, the next moment, her arm was grabbed again. When she came to her senses, she was already standing firmly on the ground.
Ji Lingchuan let go of her and walked forward, "Time waits for no one. Hurry up."
Looking at the two equally tall and straight figures in front of her, Song Yihuan forced a bitter smile under her veiled hat.
What on earth had she done to be caught between these two men?
The three of them got into Heshui Alley and soon found the house marked on the map as the location of the old canal.
Like Yongding Alley, Heshui Alley was also a residential area for common people. Hearing the knock on the door, an old woman came to answer it.
The old woman had lived most of her life and had never seen any high - ranking officials or nobles. When she suddenly saw Ji Lingchuan, her face turned pale with fright, and she trembled as if about to kneel.
Song Yihuan quickly supported her elbow and said with a gentle smile, "Don't be afraid, old lady. We're here to ask for your help, not to arrest anyone. There's no need for this."
Song Yihuan explained their purpose to the old woman, saying that they wanted to take a look at the section of the old canal hidden in her house. The old woman quickly agreed.
While Ji Lingchuan and Gu Yunzheng were checking the situation around the entrance of the old canal, Song Yihuan was chatting with the old woman.
After a while, they bid farewell to the old woman and turned to leave.
Walking beside Ji Lingchuan, Song Yihuan said, "That old lady lives with her husband. They have a son and a daughter. The daughter is already married, and the son is not yet married. He works with his father at the dock to earn money."
These were all the information she had obtained during the chat with the old woman.
Perhaps the coarse cloth dress she was wearing had gained the old woman's trust, and the old woman had told her a lot.
Ji Lingchuan said in a deep voice, "The murderer only targets young women. I don't think this family is within his selection range."
Gu Yunzheng, walking on the other side of Song Yihuan, said thoughtfully, "Thinking about it this way, the murderer must have already figured out the situation of the families connected to the old canal and selected his targets in advance. After killing one person, he immediately rushed to the next location."
"Then, why did he choose those women? Those women were all between fifteen and twenty years old, with different identities. What was their common ground?"
Gu Yunzheng was smart enough to quickly find the key point.
That's right. The murderer was able to cross the capital city and successfully kill five people in such a short time, which meant he had planned it long ago. So there must be something in common among those women.
"Let's go to the next location first," Ji Lingchuan said.
Back in the carriage, Song Yihuan said, "Duanchi Alley in Taining Square."
The coachman then drove to the next address according to her instructions.
They rushed around the city like this. By the time they finally finished checking the last family with an old canal, it was already late at night with a bright moon and few stars.
Excluding the crime scenes where the bodies were previously found, there were a total of eighteen families with old canals, including the mansions of the Prince of Ningqin and the Marquis of Ding'an.
Among the remaining ones, there were both official families, ordinary people, and restaurants and teahouses.
After some eliminations, there were only nine families left with daughters aged between fifteen and twenty.
Among these nine families, the mansions of the Prince of Ningqin and the Marquis of Ding'an were still included.
However, Ji Lingchuan had already had the canal entrances blocked when he noticed something strange about the old canals. So there were only eight families left.
"The government yamen spent so much time but still couldn't catch the murderer, which gave him a great sense of accomplishment. This time, he deliberately provoked the government yamen because he thought he was extremely smart. I think the person he wants to kill this time must have a high status. Only in this way can he satisfy his desire to kill," Song Yihuan said extremely calmly under her veiled hat, presenting her analysis.
Among these eight families, the mansion of the Marquis of Ding'an was the most noble. Next was the family of Lord Xie, the left - assistant judge of the Court of Transmission. Then came the family of Lord Guan, the assistant music official of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. The rest were all common people.
In this way, the scope could be further narrowed. The three most likely places to be chosen by the murderer were left.
A look of approval flashed across Ji Lingchuan's eyes. He nodded and said, "Good. I was thinking the same way."
Noticing Song Yihuan secretly massaging her legs, Ji Lingchuan frowned slightly.
"Alright, let's stop here for today. We've been busy all day. I'm sure everyone is tired. We'll talk about anything else tomorrow."
He looked at Gu Yunzheng, and the hint of dismissal in his eyes was very obvious, "Lord Gu, it's not far from here to the government yamen. I think you should be able to go back alone. Take care."
Ji Lingchuan and Song Yihuan were both going back to the mansion of the Prince of Ningqin next. Naturally, Gu Yunzheng was the "outsider".
Realizing that the two of them were going to be alone in the carriage for the rest of the journey, Gu Yunzheng clenched his fists. His chest heaved for a moment, and finally, he had to leave the carriage reluctantly and strode away.
Ji Lingchuan said something to the coachman, and the carriage drove in the direction of the mansion of the Prince of Ningqin.
With one person less in the carriage, Song Yihuan immediately changed seats and sat where Gu Yunzheng had been sitting.
However, even so, she still felt that the carriage was narrow and enclosed. Her knees would always accidentally brush against Ji Lingchuan's. The carriage was stuffy and airless, and she increasingly had the illusion that she was being locked in by him.
She didn't know that since the moment she sat beside him, the fragrance of apricot blossoms on her body had wafted into Ji Lingchuan's nostrils from time to time.
That fragrance was like a straight fishing hook, attracting him closer.
Lifting his eyelashes slightly, he looked at Song Yihuan sitting opposite him with her head down and silent. A storm gathered in Ji Lingchuan's eyes.
Noticing that the carriage had stopped, Song Yihuan couldn't wait to get up and leave. But a force came from her wrist, and she was pulled back to her seat.
"Young Master?" Her heart was in a panic. She reminded Ji Lingchuan, "We're here."
"Not in a hurry. I have something to ask you."
Ji Lingchuan didn't let go of her wrist. He locked his eyes on her and asked,
"Why did you associate the old canal with the acrobatic troupe in the market and the dwarves with short statures?"