Chapter 76 part1
Dear readers, I made a mistake last chapter and a phrase ended up being erased when I was editing >.< It’s the paragraph after Yin Wanwan’s reply, you can and read it. Good read ~

The yamen runners spared no effort to pull Yin Wanwan from the water. They then discovered that her mouth was filled with blood, and promptly forced her lips apart. They couldn’t help being shocked, and one of them said: “Provincial Governor, she bit her tongue and committed suicide.”

From beginning to end, Ran Yan stood nearby without moving away, and the instant that Yin Wanwan had fallen into the river, Ran Yan had seen blood spilling from the mouth. Yin Wanwan loved and hated so intensely that if she was truly determined to die, how could she ever give herself any room to survival.”

She used Zhang Fei’s blood to wash away the hate inside her heart, and perhaps she had no choice but to return Yin Miaomiao’s life here in Pinjiang’s river, feeling that it was the only way to be fair, and the only way for her to die without any grievances.

Ran Yan pursed her lips and looked down at the corpse lying on the deck. “Miss, are you alright?” Wan Lu asked concerned.

Ran Yan shook her head. She remembered what Ran Yunsheng has said, Yin Wanwan was a lively girl who loved to laugh, furthermore, she frequently disregarded the family’s rules, rather rebellious. This kind of girl had to pretend to be a model of kindness and virtue, it was the worst type of torture for someone like her! Moreover, when she was alive, she built herself based on her blood sister’s life, having to continuously worry about being exposed by others…

Be exposed by others? Ran Yan was stunned, then finally understood. Yin Wanwan’s disguise was not at all perfect, maybe she was seen through by Han Shan and Fan Chun, and decided to kill them off, shifting the blame into Fourth Master Qin.

Ran Yan heaved a deep sigh. After saying goodbye to Liu Pinrang, she took Wan Lu and left the painted boat.

Since the case reached this stage, Ran Yan no longer wanted to follow it closely. As it was before, she only wanted to be responsible for the autopsies. Going to crime scenes for reconnaissance and investigating the crime to supply the correct directions and clues, unless the case involves Wan Lu’s safety, she absolutely did not want to meddle with it.

Leaning against the inside of the carriage, Ran Yan took from her sleeve the lump of paper Miss Wei had given her. She carefully unfolded it, and the inside had three papers neatly folded together.

They were written using a regular script with small handwritten characters. Ran Yan went near the window to read its content clearly.

——It was a house deed.

Ran Yan quickly opened the second one and it was also a house deed. The rays of light passed through the bamboo curtain, allowing Ran Yan to read them very clearly. There were two deeds for shops in the East Market in Suzhou, and one deed for a residence in Yanzhou city.

All the three papers were title deeds. In the Tang dynasty, women could not have ownership of the land, but they could own house deeds and slave contracts. This must be a leeway that Madame Wei prepared for herself or for Cui Mei. Unfortunately, everything was thoroughly ruined, and these cheap contracts have now been transferred into her possession.

Thinking about that woman who was like an ink painting of the misty rain, Ran Yan lightly exhaled, rolling back the title deeds and placing them inside her sleeve once again.

Ran Yan estimated that very soon she will be sent to the Ying Mei Temple to worship Buddha, so she must prepare to go to Cai Xiu House today. Although she is not short on money at the moment, a person must keep the promises they have made. She has already collected the money yet only completed half of the treatment; she cannot terminate it without a sound reason.

Wan Lu had just recovered from her grave injury and has been straining herself all morning. Her face was beginning to look rather pale, nevertheless, she was anxious that Ran Yan would go to the brothel alone and insisted on following along.

It was already past noon when Ran Yan changed carriages at the Yamen before heading to the East Market, in search of a tavern to have something to eat. Then she would hire two palanquins from the side street to take them to the Cai Xiu House.

At a remote alley, the backdoor of the Cai Xiu House remained tightly shut. Wan Lu got down from the palanquin and went forward to tap with the knocker.

The door creaked when opened, and a young girl wearing a pink-blue flowery ruqun poked her head out. She lazily looked at Wan Lu, yawning once before saying: “Our brothel is closed for business this month…” She abruptly paused, thinking that the other party’s Miss shouldn’t have come seeking to fulfill pleasures desires, and instantly switched her words: “This is Cai Xiu House, who are you looking for?”

“Can I trouble this xiaojie [1] to inform our arrival. Our Miss is the doctor who came to see Zi Xu xiaojie .” Wan Lu’ speech was quite polite.

The young girl suddenly popped her eyes open, curiously looking at the silent Ran Yan who was wearing a bamboo hat veil. With a very respectful tone, she said: “So you’re the doctor, there’s no need to inform, Ah Mu [2] has already explained, please, come in.”

The girl with a blue skirt guided Ran Yan inside, bowing as she told her, “Please, follow me.”

Entering Cai Xiu House, the courtyard appeared a lot quieter than the last time they came, when the faint yet lively sound of musical instruments could be heard. The summer sunlight shined upon the withered plants in the courtyard, and the rising vapor inside carried the dense fragrance of flowers and plants, concentrating the stuffiness indoors.

As they walked by the veranda, they could see many prostitutes wearing only light clothes, reclining at the railing within the pavilion.

As they walked by the veranda, they could see many prostitutes wearing only light clothes, reclining at the railing within the pavilion at the side of the lotus pond. They fed the fishes with sheer boredom while chatting with one another.

Two women who were gossiping together soon noticed Ran Yan and Wan Lu at the veranda. Their eyes glimmered, sweeping away their boredom and loneliness. They energetically patted the woman with a pea-green skirt who was feeding the fish at their side, “Ai! Stop feeding, during these last two days several fishes died because you fed them to the point of bursting!”

The woman replied without raising her head: “What else can I do besides feed the fish? Who told these small animals to be so foolish, they eat everything they receive, and you want to blame me for it?”

[1] xiao3jie3 = it means ‘Miss’, but nowadays it can have the meaning of prostitute too. As I am already translating another word as Miss, I’ll leave it as xiaojije here. ↺

[2] Ah is a term for endearment/closeness; Mu here means nursemaid/matron. Ah Mu is the older woman responsible for the brothel. ↺