Chapter 107 - 81, lingering spirit
Tongji Street was pitch-black.
If it were a normal day, Tongji Street would be bustling around this time.
Various merchants would have troupes perform at their homes for the entertainment of their guests, with long lines of carriages and horses in front of their doors, while coachmen squatted in corners gambling and boasting.
But today, Tongji Street was eerily quiet, with many merchants having left overnight, fearing that the Spy Department might arrest them as Jing Dynasty spies trying to claim merit.
In an abandoned mansion, seven people dressed in black and wearing hats stood solemnly around the body of Manager Yuan, resembling seven statues.
Chen Ji pondered, and the others didn’t dare utter a word, fearing they might interrupt his thoughts.
What happened just earlier at Yingke Restaurant was still vividly in everyone’s mind. With a new superior of remarkable perspicacity, the spies didn’t even dare to breathe heavily, as though a boulder were pressing down upon them.
Chen Ji looked at Manager Yuan’s unmoved body on the ground and suddenly asked, "The stab wounds target the vital points, consistent with the assassin’s method at Yingke Restaurant, which suggests that both scenes were indeed by the same person. Among the Jing Dynasty conspirators, is anyone skilled with a short knife? There aren’t many assassins who use a short knife as their weapon of choice."
West Wind hurriedly said, "There is one who is extremely skilled with a short knife. Colleagues in Jinling once attempted to capture him, but after killing more than a dozen of our men, he jumped into the Qinhuai River and escaped... We suspect it’s him, but he has never shown the skill of using a broken knife before, making us somewhat uncertain."
Chen Ji asked, "How long ago was the Jinling incident?"
West Wind replied, "It seems to be three years ago."