“If you’re truly just doing your duty impartially, then I admire your professionalism,” Jiang Ke’er patted the soldier’s shoulder.
“By the way, do you know why I’m here?”
The soldier was uneasy but still put on a victim’s facade, replying softly, “This humble one does not know.”
“The King of Aolai was assassinated, and the assassin is nowhere to be found. This is all the information the authorities have currently released to the public,” Jiang Ke’er said with a clear and pleasant, yet very reliable, voice.
“But as a constable whose duty is to eliminate evil and uphold justice, I naturally cannot stand by and do nothing…”
“After my unremitting efforts, I finally uncovered many clues that the authorities haven’t yet disclosed. Following the clues left by the assassin, I tracked them all the way here.”
Jiang Ke’er said, looking at the soldier with a smile.
The soldier’s heart sank, realizing the gravity of the situation.
“My lord, you’ve wronged me! With my meager strength, how could I be the assassin?” The soldier was so scared he started crying on the spot. He couldn’t bear such an enormous accusation!
“Of course you’re not the assassin, but your actions have proven that you are an accomplice to that assassin.” Jiang Ke’er stomped her foot.
“I ask you, if you were the assassin, where would you flee after a successful assassination?”
Although the soldier had heard the trap in Jiang Ke’er’s words, he still had to brace himself and answer truthfully, “With everyone on high alert in the country, the assassin would have nowhere to hide. Naturally, fleeing to the vast territory of the Great Sima Kingdom would be the safest.”
“But at such a critical moment, the border guards would surely meticulously inspect every passerby. For the assassin to come here would almost be walking into a trap… How would he get through?” Jiang Ke’er pressed sternly.
“It… it must be an inside job with the border inspection personnel. That’s the only way…” The soldier became more and more alarmed as he spoke.
By now, his hands and feet were cold.
He even guessed what Jiang Ke’er would say next, but he couldn’t think of any countermeasure.
“At such a critical juncture, you’re making a loud commotion, attracting the attention of those around you… Could it be that you’re covering for your assassin accomplice? So she can find an opportunity to get through!”
“My lord, you’ve wronged me!” The soldier cried, repeatedly kowtowing to Jiang Ke’er, no longer daring to play any tricks.
“This humble one truly has nothing to do with that assassin!”
“Regardless of whether you’re involved or not, your dereliction of duty is set in stone. At the very least, you have major suspicions of treason!” Jiang Ke’er raised an eyebrow.
“Suspicion is enough to arrest and interrogate! Someone, come quickly, take him down and bring him back for strict interrogation!”
The soldier, of course, didn’t want to be taken back.
He knew all too well what awaited him if he was taken back…
In these extraordinary times, the interrogators in the prison wouldn’t waste words.
Once a suspect was caught, they’d immediately subject them to severe torture, regardless of anything else… Wouldn’t confess? Then another round, until they couldn’t bear it and their will collapsed.
By then, whether he was guilty or not would no longer matter.
He would already be half-dead, and most likely a cripple if he ever got out.
“My lord, spare my life! My lord, spare my life! This humble one knows his mistake!” The soldier quickly slammed his head against the ground, kowtowing loudly to Jiang Ke’er, making thudding sounds.
“This humble one was merely blinded by greed, wanting to extort money from those merchants, this humble one is truly not an accomplice to that assassin!”
The sudden turn of events left the onlookers queuing at the security checkpoint dumbfounded.
The soldier actually admitted to extortion himself.
Was Constable Jiang really wronged then?
“Oh?” Jiang Ke’er’s lips curled upwards.
“You didn’t say that just now. Could it be that since I discovered your secret as an assassin’s accomplice, you want to confess to a minor crime for a lighter sentence?”
“Absolutely not! This humble one has absolutely nothing to do with that assassin, this humble one is just a corrupt piece of trash!” The soldier said, kowtowing continuously, his head even bleeding.
“How do you prove that?” Jiang Ke’er asked, raising her voice.
“I have evidence! Evidence of my own crimes!” the soldier cried out, his voice choked with sobs and indignation.
“I’m a repeat offender; I’ve done this kind of thing many times. I have proof of my own guilt!”
Perhaps this was the definition of misery.
There was nothing more frustrating for a criminal than having to produce evidence to prove their own guilt.
As the soldier spoke, he unfastened the cosmic pouch from his waist and poured out all its contents.
Everyone looked… Aha! All of it was contraband!
“Normally, all confiscated contraband is handed over daily, and soldiers aren’t allowed to keep it. So the contraband I have stored here is all something I brought myself today, planning to secretly slip it into merchants’ goods later to extort fines from them…”
The soldier cried out, even pulling out a small notebook: “These are all criminal records. I have a habit of keeping accounts.”
Jiang Ke’er didn’t take the ledger but continued to ask, “You can’t do this alone. Tell me, who are your accomplices?”
“Our entire seven-man squad, the other six are all my accomplices!” The soldier betrayed his teammates decisively. “That dog demon isn’t. She’s a wandering warrior from the Great Sima Kingdom, hired by our government to help us with inspections… A conflict arose because she didn’t know our team’s secret.”
Jiang Ke’er was very satisfied.
“Alright, someone, take all seven of them in.”
After speaking, Jiang Ke’er added, “Oh, right, they still need to be interrogated. What if what they just said was a smokescreen they prepared in advance? In a critical period, we can’t let go of any suspect who might be an assassin’s accomplice… Do you understand?”
“Understood!” The other soldiers quickly responded.
“Nooooo!”
The seven captured soldiers let out heartbreaking screams.
Meanwhile, rounds of applause and exclamations came from the surroundings.
Amidst cheers and praise, Jiang Ke’er smiled modestly and successfully passed through the VIP channel, leaving the troubled land of Aolai.
“Ancient Learning Realm! Here I come! Goodbye, stinky dragon~”
Soon after, a person in a black robe arrived at the checkpoint leading to the Great Sima Kingdom and silently stood at the very end of the line.
She quietly observed the surroundings, and the more she looked, the more confused she became.
This… When did Aolai Kingdom’s border checkpoint become so orderly?
Something felt off!
Never mind, order was good.
A sudden commotion like this would attract more attention, like suddenly boiling water, which could create more opportunities for her to get through.
She looked around, scrutinizing the border personnel, seemingly searching for something.
How strange… Where were they?
Where was the seven-person squad she had bribed in advance, who were supposed to meet her and help her sneak through?
They actually stood her up!
What the hell!
How was she supposed to play this now?!
The black-robed person’s mental state crumbled.
She isn’t Constable Jiang anymore, she’s the bullshit detective. Bullshitting and gasslighting her way into solving actual crimes! XD