Chapter 23

The Reason

“But...” Before Shen Moping could finish his sentence, Yin Yi gently touched her cheek and said with a soft sigh, “This face may have been exposed, but the other one hasn’t, so we still have a chance.” Then she asked, “Do you have any news of Mei Xue?”

Shen Moping understood her meaning and shook his head. “I haven’t heard anything, but perhaps I could...”

“Don’t rush. Let’s wait until my injuries are a bit better. The fire in the pharmacy was sudden, and the people at the Taishou residence will likely suspect you. So, you must not go out for the next couple of days,” Yin Yi interrupted.

Before Shen Moping could respond, a growl came from her stomach. Shen Moping, recalling that Yin Yi hadn’t eaten anything since last night, realized he himself was also famished. Smacking his forehead, he said, “I’m so foolish! I should have grabbed something from the kitchen earlier.” He got up and added, “They’re probably still dealing with the fire at the pharmacy. I could—”

Before he could finish, Yin Yi sharply said, “Didn’t you hear me? No going out for the next two days!”

“But, my lady, you’ve been starving. How can your body bear it?” Shen Moping said anxiously.

“It’s just for a few days. Starving won’t kill me,” Yin Yi replied. Before he could speak further, she continued, “This matter ends here. Don’t mention it again.”

With no choice, Shen Moping reluctantly agreed, lowering his head to continue preparing the medicine. Meanwhile, Li Jiancheng and Li Shimin had been notified by their servants and arrived at the pharmacy. The fire had been put out, but there was still lingering smoke.

Li Jiancheng, with a grim expression, stared at the sweating pharmacy manager. “What happened?”

The manager hurriedly responded, “I don’t know! I was the last one to leave. I made sure all the lanterns were extinguished, and I even checked the inside and outside of the pharmacy. I can’t understand how the fire started.”

“Is that so?” Li Jiancheng said, suspicion in his tone.

The manager quickly said, “I swear, I’m telling the truth. I would never deceive the eldest young master.”

Li Jiancheng snorted but remained silent. At that moment, a guard emerged from inspecting the fire’s origin, holding a charred object. “Young masters, this is what we found at the fire’s source. It looks like a firestarter.”

“A firestarter?” Li Shimin, who had been silent until now, raised an eyebrow. “So someone deliberately set the fire?”

“I cannot be sure, but it is a possibility,” the guard replied.

Li Shimin surveyed the people in front of him, then raised his voice, “Who was the first to notice the fire in the pharmacy?”

Everyone looked at each other, then one person stepped forward. “We only heard someone shout that there was a fire before we came out, but… I didn’t see anyone outside at that time,” he said, looking back at the others. “Did any of you see anyone?”

Everyone spoke at once, all giving the same answer: they had not seen the person who had shouted. Li Shimin thought for a moment, then turned to the pharmacy manager. “Go check if any medicine is missing.”

The fire hadn’t been very large, and it had been extinguished in time, so the medicines in the drawers hadn’t been seriously affected.

Li Jiancheng, noticing his brother’s line of thought, asked sharply, “Second brother, what are you thinking?”

Li Shimin hesitated before replying, “I suspect... the arsonist was one of those two assassins!”

“The assassins?” Li Jiancheng furrowed his brow. A moment later, he shook his head. “Impossible. The entire backyard and all its surroundings have been searched thoroughly. They couldn’t have been hiding here. Plus, the guards at the gate are watching day and night. How could they have entered to set the fire?”

Li Shimin didn’t respond but simply said, “This is just my suspicion. We’ll wait until the manager reports back.”

After a while, the manager hurried over. “Second young master, the pharmacy is missing a bottle of golden healing medicine, and some other herbs, like bull gall and silver sophora, show signs of having been rummaged through.”

Li Shimin murmured to himself several times before saying, “I remember these two herbs have heat-clearing and detoxifying properties, commonly used for high fever, delirium, and poison-related conditions, right?” After the manager nodded, he turned to Li Jiancheng and said, “Elder brother, when Shen Yunyi escaped, she was seriously injured. Even if she managed to stop the bleeding, without medicine, her wounds could easily become infected, leading to a fever. In this case, bull gall and silver sophora would have been life-saving for her. Not to mention, there’s also a missing bottle of golden healing medicine. Apart from them, who else in the mansion would urgently need these herbs?”

Li Jiancheng’s face turned grim as he said, “So, this fire was indeed set by the assassins? What about the guards who were supposed to be watching the area?”

Two guards quickly stepped forward, saying, “We are here, young master.”

“How dare you!” Li Shimin’s voice was filled with anger. “I told you to guard this place carefully, but you neglected your duties and allowed the assassins to come and go freely. Do you think I won’t punish you?”

“We dare not!” one of the guards said, panic in his voice. “Since we started our shift, we’ve been guarding the back courtyard without leaving a step. We never—” He paused, then quickly added, “Wait, I just remembered. Around midnight, we heard something unusual and went to check. At that time, we—”

Li Shimin finished his sentence, “The assassins deliberately led you away, entered the back courtyard to steal medicine, and then set the fire to cause chaos, escaping during the confusion.”

“Immediately send men to ambush the area near the pharmacy. If the assassins appear, arrest them right away. As for you two...” Li Jiancheng’s cold gaze swept over the guards, “You can go and face your punishment.”

“Big brother,” Li Shimin whispered to Li Jiancheng, pulling him aside. After a moment of thought, Li Jiancheng nodded slightly and raised his voice, “There’s no need for an ambush here. Everyone, go back. I’ll make other arrangements. As for the pharmacy, I will speak to Manager Lin tomorrow and have him send people to repair it.”

The others, though confused, did not dare to question him further and left as instructed. Once they were gone, Li Jiancheng asked, “Second brother, do you really have confidence in this?”

Li Shimin nodded, “I can’t say for certain, but there’s a seventy percent chance. They will definitely go there.”

“Good. I hope we catch them this time, or I won’t know how to explain things to Father. And Second Mother... she will definitely take this opportunity to criticize our incompetence in front of Father,” Li Jiancheng said, somewhat irritated.

Li Shimin smiled and said, “Second mother is always like that. Elder brother, why get upset over something so trivial?” Then, he casually asked, “By the way, elder brother, do you know why Uncle Xia came to Honghua County this time?”

Li Jiancheng stopped in his tracks, his expression turning serious as he stared at Li Shimin. “Do you really want to know?”

Li Shimin was taken aback. “What’s wrong?”

Li Jiancheng didn’t answer immediately. He patted Li Shimin on the shoulder and said, “Come, let’s go to my place. I’ll tell you slowly.”

Qingchun Garden was Li Jiancheng’s residence. Li Yuan, their father, was very fond of this eldest son, and this place was the sunniest spot in the entire governor’s residence. Even during the harshest of winter, as long as the sun was out, it would be warm and comfortable.