Futile Devices Scans

“My lord, the corpse has already been carried over for you. It is currently in the courtyard.”

Mu Xueshi nodded and instructed the guard who had come to report, “Put this corpse in an empty room first. I’ll go handle it in a little while.”

“Yes, my lord.”

After the guard withdrew, Mu Xueshi could not help shuddering. Goosebumps rose all over his body. Solving cases really was not an easy job. From morning to night, one had to deal with dead people.

“Eunuch Shangde?”

“This servant is here.”

“Send someone to help me find some Jiuyuan charcoal. The faster, the better. I’ll eat something here first. Ideally, by the time I finish eating, it will already have been found.”

“All right. This servant will send someone to the palace to fetch it at once.”

After saying this, Eunuch Shangde walked out.

After Eunuch Shangde left, Mu Xueshi made a round through every room, secretly sighing that the Emperor was truly generous to have given him such a fine residence. Unfortunately, he did not have time to live here. If only he could call the Third Prince over, then he would be the host and the Third Prince would be the guest.

After walking through every room, sitting on every chair, and even lying on each bed for a short while, Mu Xueshi felt he had no regrets left. Once he walked out of the main house, he headed straight for the kitchen.

“Ah… ah…”

A few familiar screams rang out again, frightening Mu Xueshi so badly that he nearly sat down on the ground, his whole face turning pale. Only after he came back to himself did he remember that this was Wu Cai screaming, not the dead man who had just been carried in.

After adjusting his emotions, Mu Xueshi continued walking forward. The waves of shouting and cursing that reached his ears made his eardrums ache. He always had the feeling that Wu Cai was trying to express something.

…

“Is there anything good to eat?” Mu Xueshi quietly walked up behind a maid and craned his neck to look over the stove.

When the maid turned around and discovered it was Mu Xueshi, she was so frightened that she immediately knelt on the ground. As soon as she knelt, the other maids saw her and also dropped to their knees one after another.

“This servant did not see my lord come in. This servant truly deserves death. Please forgive this servant, my lord.”

Mu Xueshi sighed inwardly. The etiquette of this place was truly exhausting. Not only did people kneel all day long, they also kept “please forgive me” hanging from their lips. She simply had not seen him. Could that really count as a crime?

“All right, dispense with the ceremony. Remember this from now on. I don’t care about others, but when you see me, you absolutely must not kneel, and you must not ask me for forgiveness over every little thing. Anyone who disobeys will be beheaded.”

The maids looked at one another, all wearing startled expressions.

Seeing the people in the kitchen continue working in an orderly fashion, Mu Xueshi relaxed as well. He walked from one maid’s side to another. Whenever he saw something he liked, he directly reached out, picked one up, and put it into his mouth.

Many of those maids were newcomers recruited from the palace and had never expected their master to be such an informal person.

Just like that, Mu Xueshi circled the long worktable several times. Whenever he saw something was cooked, he went over and took a little to eat.

“So hot…”

“My lord, you must be careful.”

“Mm, this one is fried so crisp. It’s delicious.”

“…”

Eunuch Shangde received the Jiuyuan charcoal that a guard had just brought out from the palace and headed straight for the kitchen.

“Judicial Affairs Minister?”

Mu Xueshi was standing not far from Eunuch Shangde, yet he did not hear Eunuch Shangde call him at all and simply kept eating.

Eunuch Shangde did not know whether to laugh or cry. He walked a few steps closer and tentatively called, “My lord?”

Mu Xueshi still showed no reaction. His face, originally as fair and clean as snow, was already glossy with oil from eating.

Eunuch Shangde stood directly behind Mu Xueshi and boldly called out, “Young Master Xue!”

Mu Xueshi finally reacted. His brilliant, sparkling eyes looked around, but he did not notice Eunuch Shangde behind him, so he continued lowering his head to eat.

The maid standing beside Mu Xueshi could not hold back anymore and quietly said to him, “My lord, behind you…”

“Behind me?” Mu Xueshi shook his head, only then discovering the kind and amiable Eunuch Shangde standing behind him.

“Eunuch Shangde, what did you need me for?”

“Could my lord have forgotten the matter you instructed earlier?” Eunuch Shangde said, raising his hand and showing him the Jiuyuan charcoal the servant had just delivered.

Mu Xueshi widened his eyes and exclaimed in admiration, “They’re way too fast! I haven’t even finished eating, and they’ve already found it. Hurry and give each of those guards one tael of silver.”

Eunuch Shangde sighed and said to Mu Xueshi, “My lord, it is no longer fast. It has already been more than two hours.”

Mu Xueshi was somewhat stunned. He thought to himself, Had he really been eating for more than two hours? Surely not… After pondering it for a while, he understood the reason.

“I know, Eunuch Shangde. Of course I won’t leave you out. Reward them one tael, and reward you two taels. Isn’t that enough? Don’t be unhappy.”

“That is not what this servant meant…”

Mu Xueshi did not pay any attention to Eunuch Shangde’s words at all. He happily ran over to the freshly cooked sweet pastries, darting out his little tongue to taste them.

Only when his stomach truly could not hold any more did Mu Xueshi reluctantly walk outside. As he walked, he also instructed the guard at the door to send some of these pastries to Wu Cai’s room.

When Mu Xueshi reached the door of the room where the corpse was being stored, he was still muttering to himself. Did he really have to personally watch the cremation?…

Just then, Eunuch Shangde suddenly called, “Judicial Affairs Minister!”

Mu Xueshi’s heart pounded wildly. He fervently hoped Eunuch Shangde would say, “This servant will handle this matter for you.” If so, he would be so moved he would burst into tears.

“My lord, do not forget to take the Jiuyuan charcoal.”

“#￥%&…*”

Mu Xueshi walked in together with two of his subordinates. Those two subordinates were coroners personally appointed by the Emperor to serve at Mu Xueshi’s side, and they were already long accustomed to corpses. Therefore, all the actions were carried out by the two of them, while Mu Xueshi only stood at the side and gave instructions.

Even so, Mu Xueshi still felt his hair stand on end.

After a while, a loud cry suddenly came from inside the room. Immediately afterward, a figure shot out from within like an arrow leaving the bowstring, drenched in sweat as he ran toward a corner of the courtyard.

Eunuch Shangde quickly chased after Mu Xueshi.

Mu Xueshi had one hand braced against a tree and the other pressed against his chest, feeling as if he were about to vomit.

“Is Young Master Xue all right?” Eunuch Shangde used a silk handkerchief to wipe the sweat from Mu Xueshi’s forehead.

Mu Xueshi’s face was pale. His lips trembled as he said to Eunuch Shangde, “That… that person was burned until white bone was showing. The flesh was all charred black. Wuwu…”

Eunuch Shangde patted Mu Xueshi’s shoulder to comfort him. “It’s all right. When you go look again in a while, there will be nothing left.”

After Mu Xueshi came out, the two subordinates also followed him out. Eunuch Shangde led Mu Xueshi into a room, where he drank tea while calming his nerves.

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