Chapter 1644: Chapter 24: Proud Yet Powerless
"Did Feng Gu leave anything else behind?" Jiang Wang asked Lin Youxie.
"Of course, there are some other clues, but they were all intentionally misleading. To confuse the investigators, and even more so to confuse the people behind the scenes. His clues were meant for me. He knew I could see through the fog." Lin Youxie said, "Because my father is Lin Kuang."
"Pardon my bluntness." Jiang Wang calmly replied, "Without solid evidence, no matter what you do, it will be meaningless. Our analysis here is merely analysis."
Lin Youxie said, "I can’t prove who the assassin in Concubine Lei’s case was, but I only need to prove my father’s death is linked to the current Queen. That’s why Feng Gu wanted me to be involved in this case."
Lin Kuang died investigating Concubine Lei’s assassination case. If it’s proven that his death wasn’t a suicide and was connected to the Queen, it would indeed serve as significant evidence linking the current Queen to Concubine Lei’s death.
"How do you plan to prove that?" Jiang Wang asked.
"That’s my business." Lin Youxie said.
Jiang Wang originally thought Lin Youxie came today seeking help, and he was already prepared to assist, but he was surprised to find she wasn’t. It seemed she jumped onto the carriage along the way just to inform Jiang Wang of the truth she believed in.
"Why tell me all this?" Jiang Wang asked.
Lin Youxie hesitated slightly and said, "My father was the most outstanding since the establishment of the Green Badge, solving countless cases in his lifetime, loyal and dutiful. He wouldn’t commit suicide, nor should he have... I hope that if anything happens to me, someone will still remember these things."
"I hope nothing will happen to you." Jiang Wang gently said, "Because besides you, no one would remember him for that long."
Lin Youxie’s eyes, seemingly able to perceive everything, lowered slightly, her gaze falling on the edge of her clothes: "Back in the Near Sea Archipelago, you told me you were going to rescue someone at the Sea Sacrifice Grand Ceremony.
I thought you must have been lying to me, and using that absurdly unrealistic reason.
But strangely... I still believed it.
Later, I wondered, how would you accomplish it?
I couldn’t think it through.
But I saw it.
I saw you ascend the End of the World Platform, halting the Sea Sacrifice Grand Ceremony. I heard you went to the Lost World, completing the task of redemption that seemed nearly impossible.
The second time you ascended the End of the World Platform, you defeated Ji Shaoqing, dominated Diao Hai Building, with no one from the same realm daring to challenge you.
That period, your name spread throughout the Near Sea Archipelago.
You returned as a hero...
Perhaps you won’t believe it, but you inspired me.
I’m not as strong as you, but my heart is equally resolute."
Jiang Wang said, "The reason you believed me then, was because you were also chasing impossible things. You are equally firm in your beliefs. I’ve only been involved in this case for a few days, and I’ve already felt the overwhelming pressure. Yet you have endured under such pressure for so many years... Do you now have a bold plan in mind?"
"You’re overthinking." Lin Youxie said, "It’s just that, you are the most talented person I know. I believe that one day, you’ll reach the Absolute Summit. If... If anything happens to me, I would like to earnestly ask you, if you have the resources to restart my father’s case."
After speaking, she bowed deeply to Jiang Wang inside the carriage.
Jiang Wang reached out, placing his hand on her shoulder, guiding her back to her seat: "Arrest Officer Lin, the Absolute Summit, it’s not that easily reached. Depending on others is not as good as relying on oneself."
He thought for a moment before asking, "There’s a person named Du Fang, who comes from the Green Badge, do you know him?"
Lin Youxie was first taken aback, then, after a moment’s silence, said, "The person who left my father’s corpse in front of me back then... was Du Fang. He was my father’s subordinate and somewhat his disciple. His explanation at the time was, ’due to emotional distress, unable to accept it for a moment’."
She narrated in an emotionless tone: "Li Youjue investigated Du Fang, and later the investigation’s conclusion was — due to the standards within the Green Badge Aristocracy, many secret techniques my father wouldn’t teach Du Fang, causing growing resentment in him, and after my father’s death, he wanted to destroy me. Not long after, Du Fang unexpectedly died during a case, and the matter was left unsolved."
Li Youjue...
"Who was behind Du Fang’s death?" Jiang Wang asked.
"Before, I would confidently tell you, it was either truly accidental, or he was silenced, definitely unrelated to the four Green Badge Aristocratic Families. Because we’ve been taught from childhood to act within standards, adhering to rules. Moreover, Du Fang’s death only sounded suspicious, in reality, the case was normal. The suspect he was pursuing was indeed only in the Ascending Dragon Realm, but the one who truly killed him was the suspect’s father..."
Lin Youxie said, "But now I’m not sure."
Since Li Youjue secretly joined the Equality Country, the ancestral teachings of the four Green Badge Aristocratic Families could no longer restrict him. Even Lin Youxie herself couldn’t exclude the possibility of revenge killing by the four Green Badge Aristocratic Families...
Therefore, Lin Youxie said, she couldn’t be certain about Du Fang’s cause of death.
Jiang Wang didn’t speak for a moment.
Lin Youxie continued, "When Li Youjue was punished, I was at the execution ground. I shouldn’t have gone, but I couldn’t not go."
"The relationship between Li Youjue and my father was actually not good. Grandpa Wu said, he wanted to compete with my father in everything, but couldn’t win anything... But after my father’s death, Grandpa Wu resigned and disappeared for a long time. It was Li Youjue who took care of me throughout."
