Chapter 79: Pebbles

Ma Bing hadn’t gone far.

When Xie Yu caught up, he found her sitting high on her horse, gazing from afar at several women washing clothes by the river on the opposite side of the road. Among them were Xiaoya and her mother, whom they had previously encountered.

Out of the corner of her eye, Ma Bing noticed Xie Yu riding over. She tugged at the reins, and the large black horse snorted loudly, impatiently pacing a few steps.

The horse sensed its rider’s displeasure.

Neither of them spoke first.

This river flowed from the west, crossed through Baishi Town, entered the city from the western gate of Kaifeng Prefecture, and meandered eastward.

The river was quite wide, and it was currently in its flood season with a strong current. From a distance, the sound of rushing water could already be heard.

The sun gradually climbed higher, generously showering golden light onto the river surface, turning the splashing water into golden sparks.

Long before Baishi Town was established, this river had already existed, ceaselessly flowing day and night, carrying away countless generations and witnessing countless joys and sorrows of human life.

The air, infused with river mist, carried the unique scent of the water. Watching the endless flow of the river, Ma Bing slowly exhaled, gradually calming down.

Originally, today she and Xie Yu had come here to question Wang He’s family and neighbors. Their mission was only half completed; it was not yet time to leave.

Ma Bing gently shook the reins. Just as the large black horse lifted its hoof to move forward, the previously silent Xie Yu suddenly spoke, “Miss Ma.”

Instinctively, Ma Bing pulled back on the reins. The horse unhappily shook its head.

Go, then stop. What is it now?

Xie Yu asked, “What do you think of vigilante justice?”

It was a sharp question, but unlike before, Ma Bing didn’t avoid answering. Instead, she replied without hesitation, “If the target is a scoundrel like Wang He, why not?”

“I think otherwise,” Xie Yu replied, guiding his horse closer and looking toward the distant crowd. “If vigilante justice becomes widespread, then everyone will have the possibility to kill others.”

Ma Bing frowned slightly but did not argue.

Indeed.

But…

“But killing isn’t something everyone can do,” Xie Yu looked at her. “That’s what you’re thinking, right?”

Ma Bing pursed her lips but didn’t deny it.

Correct.

Killing sounds simple, but it’s difficult to do. Some people can’t even slaughter a chicken, let alone kill a person.

Unless one is truly desperate, who would choose this path?

“No,” Xie Yu shook his head. “You know the evil in human nature, yet you still underestimate it. The reason people fear murder is because they know they will be severely punished if they kill without cause. In other words, what you consider as a last resort is actually restrained by the law.”

A jolt passed through Ma Bing’s heart, and she finally couldn’t help but look at him.

Xie Yu looked at a few stray dogs fighting in the distance, then at the group of women washing clothes, and said calmly, “When someone wants to accuse another, there is always an excuse. If vigilante justice replaces the law, the innocent and the weak will become helpless prey. Wang He’s family is one example, and so are those women and children.”

The evil in human nature exceeds imagination. One can never believe that people can govern a country through self-restraint alone.

When the restraint of law and authority is lost, humanity will completely revert to savagery.

Ma Bing tightened her grip on the reins, her heart pounding violently.

Feeling her sharpness gradually fade, Xie Yu continued, “Law is not beyond human sentiment. If there truly are mitigating circumstances in this case, the court will naturally take them into account. However, if the real culprit remains at large, we must never allow them to escape justice.”

His voice wasn’t loud, nor was his pace fast, but every word was firm and resolute.

Xie Yu looked at Ma Bing, as if speaking about Wang He’s case, yet it seemed he was also referring to something else.

After a moment of mutual gaze, Ma Bing was the first to avert her eyes. She rode her horse toward Xiaoya and her son.

Looking at her retreating figure, Xie Yu couldn’t tell whether he felt happy or disappointed.

Happy because she had indeed listened.

Disappointed because she still wasn’t willing to open her heart to him.

Beyond these emotions, a sense of tenderness stirred in his heart.

If someone can quickly suppress their emotions within a short time and accept opinions completely contrary to their own beliefs, then her character must be incredibly strong, and she must have experienced far more extreme events than what was currently unfolding.

To earn such a person’s complete trust would never be easy.

The riverbank was covered with smooth, rounded pebbles worn by the water. The horses’ hooves slipped on them, risking injury. Therefore, Xie Yu and Ma Bing tied their horses to large trees by the riverside.

There was shade under the trees and tender grass nourished by the river, making it an ideal place to rest the horses.

The two horses happily swished their tails and lowered their heads to graze.

Ma Bing was clearly distracted. She stepped on a moss-covered stone and slipped, falling sideways.

Xie Yu quickly grabbed her arm and sighed somewhat helplessly, “Watch your step.”

A girl who could climb walls and scale trees as easily as walking slipping by the riverside—no one would believe it.

The summer clothes were thin, and his large hand held her arm, the warmth from his palm continuously transferring to her skin, almost scalding the area.

Fully regaining her senses, Ma Bing hastily steadied herself, stubbornly muttering, “Just a moment of carelessness.”

How embarrassing!

Xie Yu chuckled, “Alright, it’s not Miss Ma’s carelessness—it’s these pebbles that are simply too inconsiderate, growing moss right here…”

It was as if a child had run around and accidentally bumped into a table corner, crying loudly, and the elders would rush over to scold the table for not watching out for their beloved child.

But how innocent was the table!

Ma Bing almost laughed but quickly forced herself to maintain a stern expression, glaring at him before pulling her arm free and walking away with a “Hmph!”

Even with her back turned, she could feel his gaze from behind.

Is he trying to comfort me? Ma Bing’s mind was in a whirl. What does he take me for—a child?!

What nonsense…

But… somehow, no one had ever treated her like this before. It felt… indescribably pleasant.

Seeing Ma Bing’s suddenly lighter steps, Xie Yu couldn’t help but smile. He silently thanked the mossy pebble, bowing his head.

After taking a step forward, he even turned back briefly, quickly picked up the pebble, wrapped it in a handkerchief, and tucked it into his sleeve.

Back when he used to read those love poems in the Book of Songs, he never understood why people would go to such extremes over something as intangible as love.

When he expressed this to his master and parents, they always laughed and said he was still just a boy.

He resented it—did one have to understand love to be considered an adult?

At the time, Xie Xian had said, “Love arises naturally, without knowing its origin or end. One day, you’ll meet a woman whose joys become yours and whose sorrows become yours. Her frown will make you oblivious to blooming flowers around you. Her smile will make you feel spring even in a storm…

Your happiness and sadness will no longer be under your control. The calmness and restraint you used to be proud of will be completely useless on her. You will feel joy, and you will feel anxiety, as if your heart is bound by an invisible rope…

That is the taste of love.”

Back then, Xie Yu didn’t understand and even dismissed these words. But now, it seemed spot on.

Seeing someone approaching from afar, Xiaoya’s mother quickly tapped the stone with her wooden club. Several women washing clothes nearby looked up and saw her nod toward the direction.

“Why haven’t they left yet?” someone muttered softly.

“Washing clothes,” Ma Bing, seemingly blind to their hostility, cheerfully squatted down by the riverside.

The women exchanged glances, one hand holding the club, the other gripping dripping clothes, unsure how to react.

There were many large stones washed down by the upstream current. Ma Bing picked one to sit on. Xie Yu hesitated briefly before choosing to stand diagonally behind her.

It felt odd to him to sit among a group of women in such a place.

“It’s about Wang He again,” Ma Bing didn’t beat around the bush. “When did he disappear?”

Xiaoya’s mother hesitated, “Can’t remember.”

Someone else muttered softly nearby, “Yeah, it’s not like he was our own man. Who would remember that clearly?”

After all, a gambler disappearing to hide from debts was nothing unusual.

“Then when was the last time you saw him?” Ma Bing looked at the woman, who immediately lowered her head to continue washing.

The women exchanged glances and shook their heads in unison.

Still couldn’t remember.

Ma Bing was silent for a moment before suddenly saying, “Wang He is dead.”

One by one, the women turned to look at her, but said nothing.

“You don’t seem surprised. You reacted the same way when we spoke on the street,” Ma Bing said. “Did you already know he was dead?”

Xiaoya’s mother’s eyelid twitched violently. “Gamblers rarely have good endings. Getting beaten to death is nothing unusual.”

The other women nodded in agreement. “Exactly.”

“It’s not just him. We often hear of others who owed money and were killed…”

Ma Bing tilted her head to look up at Xie Yu behind her. His eyelashes fluttered slightly.

“You all live near Wang He’s home. Have you ever heard any sounds of a struggle?” she asked.

The body was found completely naked. Someone had gone to great lengths, and he was notoriously poor—therefore, it wasn’t likely a robbery.

He was known for gambling but not for lechery, so the most likely motive was revenge.

So, who had a grudge against Wang He?

Wang He’s activities were very limited. The authorities initially suspected the loan sharks and those relatives and friends he had repeatedly disturbed for money.

But loan sharks had a rule: once a debtor had their hands cut off, they were no longer served.

Because cutting off the hands meant that all possible means had been used to extract every last drop of money, and there was nothing left to squeeze. Thus, they simply cut off the hands.

This served as a warning and a mark.

Since they no longer accepted him, the loan sharks had no reason to kill him.

As for relatives and friends, they all lived in Baishi Town.

Xiaoya’s mother paused in her washing before continuing, “When does he ever come back without causing trouble? It would be strange if he didn’t.”

After saying this, she rinsed the clothes in the water, reapplied the pig pancreas soap, vigorously rubbed them a few times, and resumed pounding them.

“Peng~”

“Peng~”

The heavy wooden clubs struck the clothes, continuously squeezing out soapy water, which slowly flowed into the river along the fabric’s texture, quickly washed away by the current.

A club…

A thought stirred in Ma Bing’s mind.

Wang He’s remains were only bones, with no scalp left. Unlike typical murder cases, there was no torn scalp or wounds to identify the weapon.

But his skull showed clear signs of indentation and fracture, relatively smooth overall, suggesting it was caused by a very hard and heavy blunt object.

A stone, a rounded iron object, or even a hard, heavy piece of wood were all possibilities.

The wooden clubs used for washing clothes were often soaked in water, making the wood very hard; otherwise, they would break after only a few uses.

Just then, one woman, tired from washing, threw her club back into the basin and stood up to stretch.

Ma Bing immediately walked over, picked up the club, and swung it a few times, “Looks fun. Dear sister, let me try.”

The woman was stunned, unsure whether to take it back or not.

Xiaoya’s mother’s eyebrows twitched violently, “Miss, your hands clearly aren’t used to this work. Put it down quickly, don’t hurt yourself.”

Hearing this, the woman rushed forward to snatch it back, “My lady, you’re someone important in the yamen. Please put it down—it’s too much for us!”

Ma Bing let go naturally, stepping back to Xie Yu’s side. She lightly touched his arm with her fingertip while smiling, “Indeed, everyone has their own expertise. Watching you all do it looks easy, but why does it feel unmanageable in my hands?”

Xie Yu looked down at her fingers, slightly reddened from the cold water, and his brow furrowed.

Although it was hot in summer, the river water was still quite cold this morning.

Just as he was about to take out his handkerchief, he touched something round and smooth in his sleeve, and his entire body stiffened.

Xiaoya’s mother turned around and saw Xie Yu staring at her fingers. Her suspicion eased slightly, and she couldn’t help but smile, “Look at that, still so young, not married yet, I suppose?”

The other women made sounds of admiration.

Ma Bing was taken aback. Following Xiaoya’s gaze, she looked down and saw Xie Yu lifting his robe to wipe her hands. His fine robe instantly bore a water stain.

Ma Bing’s face flushed instantly, as if all her blood had rushed to her head. She hastily pulled her hand away.

Their eyes met, both slightly embarrassed, though clearly amused in Xie Yu’s gaze.

On the way back, Ma Bing felt Xie Yu’s gaze hadn’t left her even for a moment.

She resisted, but finally couldn’t help turning her head and snapping, “What?!”

Xie Yu’s eyes sparkled with laughter, gentle like May spring water, “Miss Ma must have noticed something. Won’t you share it?”

Oh, right, Ma Bing cleared her throat, “I think the murder weapon was probably a wooden club.”

Xie Yu nodded, “But that’s not something unusual. Any household that had conflicts with Wang He could have one.”

But there was something else he didn’t say, something Ma Bing herself could also think of:

The most likely suspects were Wang He’s family.

Because according to his wife Wang Xiang’s statement, in recent years, Wang He had already scared off all his relatives and friends by borrowing money. Now, people would avoid him from afar on the streets and wouldn’t even open the door if he knocked.

Wang He was a lazy scholar with no trade, unable to commit theft or robbery. He could only trouble his own family or a few unlucky neighbors…

“There’s another detail,” Xie Yu said. “A full-grown man’s body weighs at least 130 to 140 jin. How could someone move it? Wang He’s family consists of the elderly and children. The only able-bodied adult, Wang Xiang, is a frail woman. And the disposal site is over ten li away. They had even long since lost their livestock and cart to debt. So, how was the body transported?”

Though phrased as a question, the answer was obvious:

With help.

A familiar struggle returned to Ma Bing’s expression.

This was the outcome she least wanted to see.

Xie Yu said, “But for now, there’s no evidence.”

Whether this was said out of caution regarding the case or to comfort her, it was unclear.

Ma Bing nodded slightly and fell into thought.

Indeed, no evidence.

Clubs like that were common in every household. Besides, so much time had passed—any bloodstains, if there were any, were likely already cleaned up…

As for the method and people involved in transporting the body…

If the killers were Wang He’s family, they would have needed to borrow a cart and livestock. Did the lender know?

If the killers were neighbors, could they have kept this from Wang He’s family?

And if they found out, did they help?

And if they did help, what were their feelings?

If it was indeed Wang He’s family or neighbors who did it, she would rather never find enough evidence.