One remnant of Xiliang, let's assume he is a remnant of Xiliang for now.
He lurked in the capital of Linyuan, serving as a forensic examiner in the Ministry of Justice. Even if he didn't strive for promotion, he shouldn't have left the Ministry of Justice. If he were truly dissatisfied or disgusted with the backroom dealings in officialdom, why would he have gone to the Metropolitan Police after leaving the Ministry of Justice?
So, logically, it doesn't add up!
Nan Shiying touched her chin, feeling that the wine was getting to her today.
"When did Yuan Yi's parents pass away?"
Zou Cheng replied, "According to the records of the Ministry of Revenue, they should have died twenty to thirty years ago. Yuan Yi's father, Yuan Chong, was also a forensic examiner. He followed in his father's footsteps, so when the Ministry of Justice retrieved Yuan Yi's information from the Ministry of Revenue, all the information was recorded in great detail."
Zou Cheng reread the previous documents before remembering this.
"Followed in his father's footsteps?"
"How old was Yuan Yi when Yuan Chong died?"
"He was already an adult."
Nan Shiying said "oh." It seemed no information could be found through official channels, so she could only hope for news from the Prince. Since Yuan Yi's path was a dead end, Nan Shiying thought of Zhao Jun again. "What about that Zhao Jun?"
"Zhao Jun..."
Zou Cheng pondered for a moment. He wasn't actually familiar with Zhao Jun. How could he, a Minister of Justice, pay attention to a forensic examiner? He was familiar with Yuan Yi because when he first entered the Ministry of Justice, his official position was Secretary of the Ministry of Justice, responsible for investigating major cases submitted to the Ministry of Justice by the Metropolitan Police. He had entered the morgue more than once, investigating cases together with Yuan Yi.
"All I know is that he is from a collateral branch of the Zhao family."
"The Zhao family?"
"The Commander of the Capital, Zhao Wuyan, the Zhao family!"
Nan Shiying blinked. Lu Wan reminded her, "Zhao Wuyan, Zhang Silang's mother's cousin."
"Who, Zhang's mother's cousin?"
Nan Shiying was slightly taken aback. Was it Zhang's mother, who was willing to assassinate a princess of Dali in the imperial palace for her son's future? Zhao Wuyan was her cousin?
Meaning, a relative on Zhang's mother's mother's side?
Zhao Jun was from the Zhao family, and the Zhao family had ties to the Zhang family. But Zhang's mother was taught by remnants of Miao Jiang, while Zhao Jun was backed by remnants of Xiliang?
It couldn't be, could it? Relatives in the same circle being infiltrated by both Miao Jiang and Xiliang simultaneously?
Zhao Jun's act of taking poison was very much like that of a trained assassin. Even if he was just a collateral descendant of the Zhao family, he was still the young master of a powerful family. Even if his life wasn't good, he shouldn't have been trained as an assassin, right?
If he was indeed from a collateral branch of the Zhao family, and also a trained assassin, then had the Zhao family essentially blown themselves up?
They shouldn't be that stupid, right?
Nan Shiying pressed her temples, wishing she could drag all the remnants of the Longevity Dao Sect, Xiliang, and Miao Jiang to the Meridian Gate and have them beheaded, so they wouldn't jump around in front of her.
Zou Cheng glanced at her, a little puzzled by her reaction. "Does Young Master Feng know Zhang's mother?"
Nan Shiying replied, "No, I've only heard of her."
"Speaking of which, Minister Zou, was Zhang's mother really murdered by palace maids?"
Zou Cheng choked on his saliva, picked up his wine cup, and took a gulp. The alcohol rose, flushing his face. After he put down the wine cup, the flush receded. He nodded and answered affirmatively, "Of course!"
Nan Shiying clicked her tongue. The murderer was right in front of her, yet the minister was trying so hard to cover it up. How embarrassing, how embarrassing!
Lu Wan pursed her lips, the corners of her mouth turning up slightly, a hint of amusement in her eyes.
Fearing she would ask more questions about Zhang's mother, Zou Cheng no longer dwelled on her surprise at hearing about Zhang's mother's relationship with Zhao Wuyan. He continued their previous topic. "It's said he's from a collateral branch, but no one knows how many branches removed. If he were truly a young master of the Zhao family, he wouldn't have become a forensic examiner."
"Forensic examiners are not as good as officials in the Ministry of Justice. Would people with some status and position be willing to do this?"
"Of course, unless..." he muttered, thinking of certain perverts!
Zou Cheng didn't finish his sentence, but his expression and the look in his eyes made it clear, as if he were pointing at Nan Shiying's nose and calling her a pervert.
What normal person would disembowel organs with their bare hands, or think about skinning and dismembering bodies all day?
It was a waste of Feng Luan's talents not to be a forensic examiner!
Nan Shiying picked up a chicken leg and gnawed it down to the bone. She lowered her head and reassembled the chicken bones on her plate to resemble their original form. There were a few bones missing. She looked up at the chicken bones on Zou Cheng's table, thinking it a pity. She pricked up her ears, listening to Zou Cheng's useless chatter. It was truly devoid of any useful information.
She paid no attention to his hesitant words and pointed glances, even wanting to tell him what she had been holding back for a long time, to open his eyes.
After thinking about it, she held back again!
"Oh, by the way, Minister Zou, are the members of the human trafficking organization that Wang Er joined all imprisoned in our Ministry of Justice?"
"Yes, after the New Year's Eve, they will be dragged to the Meridian Gate for execution next spring!"
"Have they confessed?"
"They have!"
"Are you sure there's nothing they've hidden?"
"There shouldn't be!"
"Then there might be more?" Nan Shiying's eyes lit up.
Instead of dwelling on the Liu Ling matter, it would be better to approach it from another angle. How exactly did Wang Er join that human trafficking organization, and was the mastermind behind that organization the one who confessed? She hadn't heard of any powerful officials in the capital being involved in this human trafficking case before. But if this organization had no backing, how could it be so rampant?
Zou Cheng looked at her suddenly bright eyes and felt a chill crawl up his scalp.
"What do you want to do now?"
Nan Shiying replied, "Minister Zou, since these are all death-row inmates, why don't I make use of them? Perhaps I can get some information out of them?"
Zou Cheng's mouth twitched. "How do you plan to make use of them?"
Nan Shiying grinned. "Torture them until they confess!"
Zou Cheng: "..."
Truly, the mother of a pervert opened the door for the pervert, and the pervert went all the way home!
"Do you genuinely believe they have more to confess, or do you just want to torture them?"
Nan Shiying blinked, a lot of question marks in her mind. "Of course, I believe they have more to confess. I'm not a pervert."
Zou Cheng: "..."
Aren't you?
Feng Quan, Sun Minglong, and Zhang Yi, who had heard all the conversations: "..."
Aren't you???
Is your self-awareness so unclear???
"Of course not!"
Nan Shiying proclaimed her innocence!
Zou Cheng was silent for a long time, then finally nodded.
Those scum, even if this pervert only wanted to torture them, they deserved it. It would be a form of justice for the victims who were tortured to the point of being unrecognizable or even tortured to death.
"Alright, don't let them die!"
Zou Cheng thought for a moment, then amended, "Try not to let them die!"
Nan Shiying smiled and promised, "Don't worry, Minister Zou. I'm a professional. With me here, they won't even be able to die if they want to!"
Zou Cheng fell silent again.
He had forgotten. This person was a direct disciple of Medicine King Valley, with unparalleled medical skills. If she wanted someone to die, no one would survive until dawn; if she wanted someone to live, even Yama couldn't help.
In the hands of such a person, those individuals could only pray for themselves!
However, this way, it was perfect!