The Famous Detective of the Red Mansion

Sun Shaozong went out of the restroom, led Su Xingfang a long way, and then took a few deep breaths of fresh air into the flower bed in the corner before asking, "County Magistrate Su, how many people have been to the restroom before the play?”

“Your Excellency.”

Su Xingfang smiled bitterly and said, "Due to the lesson of Zhu Er, everyone in this theater is used to going to the restroom before the show starts. I just casually asked, and a dozen people claimed to have been there, let alone the chaos backstage at that time. Even if someone falsely claimed not to have been there, I may not be able to detect it.”

Tch!

It seemed that ”urination” has existed since ancient times.

After a moment of contemplation, Sun Shaozong asked again, "County Magistrate Su, besides those who have a grudge against Zhu Er, have you ever asked who in this troupe has a close personal relationship with Zhu Er?”

“Have a close personal relationship with him?”

“That’s right.”

Sun Shaozong turned his head and said, "When I was just investigating, I found that the deceased did indeed use a latrine, which means that the murderer couldn’t have broken in and killed him in front of his locked toilet door.”

“And he was killed sitting in a corner, and if he was suddenly attacked at the moment of opening the door after entering the toilet, it is unlikely that this situation would occur, especially since there are not many signs of struggle around him.”

“Therefore, I infer that it was probably at the end of his business, or about to end, that the murderer opened the toilet door, killed him, and then left.”

“But the toilet is a very private place, and if it weren't for someone who has a close relationship with the deceased or has agreed with them in advance, it might be difficult to knock on the door and enter.”

“Hmm…”

Upon hearing this, Su Xingfang felt reasonable, but on the surface, it was even more difficult. After a while, he hesitated and said, "According to the investigation, the closest person to Zhu Er in the Royal Theater troupe is the leader Jiang Yuhan. Zhu Er is the son of Jiang Yuhan's mentor, so he has always been under his protection.”

This was not surprising to Sun Shaozong. A person with an unattractive personality couldn’t only gain a foothold in the Royal Theater troupe but also gained a significant role. How could he not have anyone to rely on?

But…

Sun Shaozong shook his head and said decisively, "The culprit should not be Jiang Yuhan. His every move in this Wangjiang Tower has attracted much attention. It is unreasonable to choose to attack at this moment.”

Moreover, with Jiang Yuhan's position in the Royal Theater Troupe, he could have killed Zhu Er without even letting people realize it. There was no need to make such a big fuss.

The latter, of course, was inconvenient to mention directly to Su Xingfang.

Su Xingfang was obviously also a fan of Jiang Yuhan's drama. Upon hearing Sun Shaozong's words, he breathed a sigh of relief and repeatedly said, "Yes, yes, I don't think it's him.”

However, apart from Jiang Yuhan, Su Xingfang didn’t know who else had a close personal relationship with Zhu Er.

As they spoke, they arrived backstage, only to see two Dragon Guards patrolling back and forth with their waist swords in hand. Seeing Sun Shaozong approaching, they only relaxed, arched their hands, and began patrolling again.

Su Xingfang explained in a low voice, "Just now, when I went backstage to investigate the case, I saw many people crowding outside. To avoid interfering with your investigation, I asked the Royal Guards to come forward and disperse them first.”

The Guards of the Royal Residence should be under the jurisdiction of the Southern Detective Department; no wonder they didn't show much respect after seeing Sun Shaozong.

“Brother Sun, Lord Su.”

At this moment, Jiang Yuhan was greeted from inside and said with a sullen expression, "I don't know if it was the talkative one who exposed the news to the Prince. Now the Prince is furious and has ordered the theatrical troupe to immediately return to the Royal Residence. Lord Zhou will be responsible for investigating this matter thoroughly.”

Tch!

Sun Shaozong immediately became embarrassed. If he hadn't taken over the case yet, the Royal family's private investigation and handling of it would still be fine. However, he has already taken over the case now. If he continued to sit idly by and let the royal family handle it privately, wouldn't it be a matter of giving someone a shortcoming?

But for the sake of an actor, fighting against Prince Zhongshun…

During a difficult moment, Sun Shaozong suddenly noticed that there was a hint of displeasure between Jiang Yuhan's eyebrows and eyes, and his heart immediately moved.

It was said that Lord Zhou was highly respected by Prince Zhongshun and had a legitimate background as a successful candidate for the Imperial Examination. It was unlikely that there would be much harmony between him and Jiang Yuhan, the top private pet.

So he deliberately frowned and said, "Brother Jiang, let's not worry about the others, but I don't know how the Royal family is going to investigate. Many of these people are suspects. If they are tortured one by one, the entire theater troupe may be injured. At that time, your face may be…”

“Brother Sun!”

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yuhan's face changed a few times, and he suddenly bowed and said, "I knew you were a Divine Judge. I wonder if you could find out the true culprit of this case for me before noon so that I can explain it to the Prince.”

“This…”

It was less than an hour until noon now, and even though Sun Shaozong has always been known for his speed in solving cases, he didn’t dare to assume this responsibility. He only solemnly said, "I can only promise to give it a try. As for whether I can find out the truth, it may depend on the will of heaven.”

Jiang Yuhan hesitated for a moment again, but after all, he stamped his foot reluctantly and said, "Anyway, let's bet on the will of heaven.”

As he spoke, he excused himself from Sun Shaozong and asked him to stay outside for a while with Su Xingfang before hastily entering the interior.

Not long after, he heard Jiang Yuhan roar inside, "At that time, I will plead with the Prince personally; it won't be your turn to punish me, Lord Zhou.”

Immediately after, he saw two wealthy slaves in blue clothes and small hats, leaving the backstage in a state of confusion. After a slight pause outside, they lifted their chests and noses high again and returned triumphantly.

At this moment, Jiang Yuhan came out again and invited the two of them in.

Sun Shaozong also knew that this matter couldn’t be delayed, so as he walked inside, he roughly informed Jiang Yuhan of the speculation of ”acquaintances committing crimes” and asked him if he knew who in the theatrical troupe had a close personal relationship with Zhu Er.

“This…”

Jiang Yuhan slowed down and said awkwardly, "To be honest, Zhu Er is also my informer in the theatrical troupe. He often reports to me about other people's affairs but seldom mentions himself, so I don't know who he is intimate with."

This was a typical case of black under the light.

As they spoke, the three of them had already entered, but they saw over thirty men and women, all dressed in moon-white underwear, standing in a state of anxiety.

Jiang Yuhan explained, "Just now, I saw what you mean. It seems that there is some clue related to underwear, so I asked them to take off their costumes and coats so that you can check it easily.”

Due to the scorching summer heat, the white lining of that month was all made of silk, which was particularly thin when wrapped around their bodies. Even if the male actors were indifferent, those female actors who showed curves and hidden flesh didn’t dare to raise their hands. This showed that Jiang Yuhan's strict laws and regulations were indeed true.

In fact, these days, most folk actors were played by men, while the domestic team was mainly composed of women. Only those who were ”free from details” and reckless, like Prince Zhongshun, chose to mix men and women.

Sun Shaozong roughly scanned these people once, but suddenly frowned and said, "Brother Liu, what are you doing inside?”

It turned out that Liu Xianglian had also lined up among them with a big smile.

“Brother Sun, have you forgotten?”

Liu Xianglian said confidently. "I'm also hanging around in the theater now, so I'm naturally one of the suspects.”

When others encountered this kind of thing, they pushed it out like crazy. But this guy was catching up and joining the fun!

Sun Shaozong was too lazy to pay attention to him, so he said solemnly, "Before the play, who has ever been to the restroom? Take a step forward.”

As soon as this statement was uttered, nine men and five women stood out in unison.