I became the Counterpart of the Winner in a Period Novel-Chapter 261 - 258: Just Crash Into Them

"Brother An, the Duke of Thunder asked me to tell you, that woman’s expression is dazed, something seems off. Do you think she might have gone mad?"

The response to Xiao Zhao was Brother An pedaling quickly, leaving him far behind.

"Ah! I’m coming." Xiao Zhao also pedaled desperately.

It was normal for Brother An to ride like the wind, but why was that new colleague riding just as fast?

Clearly, she was a delicate-looking pretty female comrade, yet Xiao Zhao inexplicably saw another Brother An.

"Mr. Jiang, you’re very familiar with the alleys of Nanxi City!" Even itinerant vendors can’t navigate like she can.

"Captain An, you flatter me. Captain An is the true living map of Nanxi City." Since he’s a captain, Jiang Mingyue felt it necessary to flatter him—no, to say something nice.

An Jian: "... Mr. Jiang is an interesting person. By the way, I’ll treat you to dinner sometime."

"Then I’ll thank Captain An in advance." The captain’s gift was hard to refuse; she wholeheartedly accepted.

In her mind, she was rapidly sorting through all the questions about Yuan Qingqing.

Spending a whole day and night to make a trip, and coming back, the first thing she did wasn’t to go home, but to feed fish at People’s Park?

Could those fish have been Yuan Qingqing’s partners in a past life?

Or perhaps those fish were koi that could bless her when fed? Had she foreseen her doom?

"Huh?" Jiang Mingyue thought she was seeing things, glanced ahead to see the entrance of People’s Park, and that woman was coming over from the right. Though the Duke of Thunder hadn’t followed, but perhaps?

Jiang Mingyue decisively changed direction.

"Mr. Jiang?" An Jian, walking ahead, didn’t notice at first, but Xiao Zhao, in the back, saw the new Mr. Jiang heading in a different direction. He wanted to call out but suddenly noticed Mr. Jiang chasing someone.

Xiao Zhao heatedly turned direction too.

An Jian heard Xiao Zhao’s shout, saw the new Mr. Jiang silently chasing someone, hesitated briefly, and followed as well. She’s a female comrade; what if the person she’s chasing is a criminal blocking the alley?

Leading the chase, Jiang Mingyue was unaware of the two tails behind her. She had released her spiritual power, confirming it was indeed Yuan Qingqing. Closing in, within effective range, she attacked Yuan Qingqing’s sea of consciousness. Perhaps the incident eight years ago had been tormenting Yuan Qingqing lately, Jiang Mingyue didn’t need to dig frame by frame like watching a movie; it floated right to the surface.

"Bang!" Jiang Mingyue directly ran into her.

This was like a signal: She’s guilty and can be arrested.

An Jian and Xiao Zhao, behind, had already abandoned their bicycles, rushed out, and handcuffed her from both sides.

"Let go, let go." Yuan Qingqing struggled, but when she saw the police, her face didn’t show much surprise. Jiang Mingyue guessed she had sensed they were investigating her.

"Let me go, what right do you have?"

"Mr. Yuan, you are suspected of a murder case from eight years ago. Please cooperate with our investigation."

Yuan Qingqing was momentarily stunned; An Jian didn’t miss that flash of panic in her eyes. She’s tough—she quickly regained her composure.

"Fine! As a good citizen, I’ll cooperate. But if you find no evidence, I expect an apology."

An Jian nodded: "No problem!"

This exchange of skills made Xiao Zhao admire their Brother An even more.

He also became more familiar with Jiang Mingyue.

"Hi! Mr. Jiang, I heard you’re the fiancée of Helian An?"

Jiang Mingyue was astonished: "Where did you hear that rumor?" She carefully recalled and realized it wasn’t her mistake—there was no condition for such a misunderstanding.

"Nope!" Little Chao scratched his head embarrassedly: "I’ll clarify for you later; I just heard it somewhere."

Then I thank you in advance! New-age young people must not believe or spread rumors.

Southern Institute

They threw her into the interrogation room, and An Jian first sought out Jiang Mingyue for a talk.

...

"So, Yuan Qingqing buried Yao Qiu’s body in the suburbs back then?"

"Correct. Back then, Yao Qiu, abused by her daughter-in-law Yuan Qingqing, had injuries on her face. Yuan Qingqing feared her husband would see, harbored long-standing resentment towards her deaf-mute mother-in-law, despised her for being humiliating, and simply resolved it. She used Mandala Poison, which is still buried in a pot at Yuan Qingqing’s home, the one with the four-season begonias. That night, after the family fell asleep, Yuan Qingqing moved the body to the back mountain of Qiong Bamboo Temple, under that millennium-old locust tree."

With a precise location, An Jian immediately issued orders to his subordinates.

"Little Chao, Wen Yu, go right away to Yuan Qingqing’s house, take that pot with the four-season begonias, explain the reason, and if anyone stops you, bring them too."

"Yes!"

"Hongfei, call Duke of Thunder Helian An and the forensic department, we’re heading to Qiong Bamboo Temple’s back mountain to exhume the body."

"Yes!"

"Captain An is amazing, hasn’t even interrogated her and already got all the information."

"Shut it! Captain An is indeed amazing, but this time the amazing one wasn’t Captain An."

"How so?"

"The new lady comrade, did you see? The one who just went into Gan Institute’s office. She’s a Special Ability User, Captain An had help, Gan Institute’s strong hand, and in the future, our Southern Institute might become famous."

"What exactly is her ability? Captain An has an exceptionally keen sense of smell, what about her?"

"I couldn’t find out more, but if you’re curious, you can ask Gan Institute or Captain An."

"Gan Institute? I’m not suicidal!"

"Captain An definitely won’t say."

"Then why ask?"

"..."

Luckily, there was nothing to do, and Jiang Mingyue followed them to Qiong Bamboo Temple’s back mountain.

Not to watch the exhumation.

Passing by Qiong Bamboo Temple, Jiang Mingyue purposely released her spiritual power. Today’s Qiong Bamboo Temple was not the same as in the original owner’s childhood.

Back then, every January, there was a grand temple fair here. Locals would come to the temple fair, burn incense and kowtow to the various deities inside, praying for family health and prosperity, and make good wishes for their children that year.

The temple fair was lively, with stilt walkers, folk acrobatics, and various snacks; it had everything. Now, Qiong Bamboo Temple’s surroundings were deserted, no excitement, only the "whoosh" of the mountain wind. Inside, the statues of deities were smashed and shattered, and the entire temple was desolate, not a single monk, decrepit, lifeless, housing only a group of beggars temporarily dwelling inside.

She recalled that night at Pear Blossom Lane, Duoduo mentioned Zhi Guang, and Qiong Bamboo Temple’s Zhi Guang.

In a past life, Zhi Guang was at Qiong Bamboo Temple, she often visited him there.

If Wuyun Mountain was still the same Wuyun Mountain, then the current Qiong Bamboo Temple bore no resemblance to the one with marble jade pillars she visited in future generations.

Jiang Mingyue retracted her spiritual power; some things might only be answered by meeting Wei Duoduo’s Zhi Guang.

The route to the back mountain was difficult, it seemed to have rained last night, so with every step, her shoes were covered in mud. Fortunately, there was more grass, quickly cleaning off the dirt, making mountain climbing a bit easier.

But it must be said, these were expert hikers, moving as if on paved roads, fast-paced, whereas Jiang Mingyue was notably lacking in this aspect.