Chapter 126: Duoduo Provides Clues, Imprisoned That Very Night

Strange occurrences often germinate from the most trivial of origins.

Yi Rushi interrupted Ji Duoduo at this point, asking, "Are you saying you went to the Six Gates to provide clues about a floating corpse?"

Ji Duoduo nodded, his voice heavy. "Exactly."

"That is strange," Yi Rushi muttered, falling silent.

Song Mo and Ji Duoduo both understood the implication: if Ji Duoduo, a professional corpse-salvager, had committed no errors in his ten years of work, his current predicament must stem from that specific corpse. Yet, he had gone to the Six Gates to provide information. Logically, he should have been rewarded, not punished. Why, then, was he languishing in a prison cell?

Song Mo and Yi Rushi looked at Ji Duoduo with suspicion. Finally, Yi Rushi asked, "Tell me, Brother Ji, did you discover something extraordinary on that corpse and get caught with it?"

Ji Duoduo shot him an annoyed look. "Listen to yourself! Do I look like that kind of person?"

Seeing Song Mo and Yi Rushi staring intently at him, Ji Duoduo’s tone softened. "I do occasionally take insignificant trinkets from the corpses I recover, but I am forced by circumstance. The Ministry of Revenue hasn't allocated our funding in years. We have to survive somehow, don't we?"

Song Mo and Yi Rushi fell silent. Ji Duoduo was right; in these chaotic times, what was harder than simply staying alive?

Ji Duoduo sighed again. "Believe it or not, that corpse didn't even have a hair on it."

After a long silence, Yi Rushi broke the stillness. "If that’s the case, how did you end up in here?"

Ji Duoduo’s face darkened with fury. "Don't get me started. It’s all that bastard Li Buxi’s fault."

Having accepted Song Mo and Yi Rushi as fellow unfortunates, Ji Duoduo laid bare his harrowing experience without reservation.

...

As it turned out, when Ji Duoduo went to the Six Gates that day, he happened to run into Li Buxi. Li Buxi was unhappy that a lowly corpse-salvager had shown up at his doorstep and initially intended to ignore him. Desperate, Ji Duoduo claimed he had clues regarding the corpse recovered the previous night.

Although the Six Gates had lost some imperial favor in recent years, it was still a prestigious institution. Li Buxi naturally did not want to miss out on a potential murder case. Intrigued, he took Ji Duoduo to a nearby teahouse to discuss the matter in detail.

Once they were settled, Ji Duoduo spoke bluntly: "That corpse had been soaking in the moat for at least three hours. Its face was swollen like a pig’s bladder, and the clothes were common wares found anywhere in the capital of Jian'an. No ordinary person could possibly identify who it really was."

Hearing this, Li Buxi’s face darkened. "Are you making a fool of me?"

Ji Duoduo hurriedly explained, "Master, you misunderstand. I haven't finished yet."

Li Buxi’s expression improved slightly. "Continue."

Ji Duoduo went on, "You must know, sir, that I have been a corpse-salvager for the Water Bureau in the capital of Jian'an for ten years."

Li Buxi eyed him skeptically, unsure where this was leading.

Ji Duoduo explained, "Our job is to recover the dead. Water is different from land; on land, a corpse would take at least a day or two to rot, even in summer, allowing the yamen’s coroners to identify it through descriptions or sketches. But here..."

Li Buxi nodded. "That makes sense, but what does that have to do with your Water Bureau?"

Ji Duoduo offered a servile smile. "You don't know the hardships of a salvager, sir. Ever since the Ministry of Revenue cut our funding, we haven't received a salary in years. Most have left or died; those of us left have to find other ways to survive."

Li Buxi remained indifferent; the lives of these men were of no consequence to him.

Ji Duoduo continued, "In these chaotic times, there are many deaths. The Water Bureau may still hold official status, but we’ve effectively turned to private business. There are many things in the water—sunken boats, lost treasures. We do whatever it takes to survive." His tone grew somber. "When we find sunken boats, the owners pay us. But it's different with floating corpses. After soaking for so long, their features are gone. Rarely is a person of status found in the water, so identification is difficult."

"But because the Ministry provides no pay, we rely on this to live. We only get paid if we identify the body. Over time, those of us remaining have trained our eyes to identify a person's trade and habits from the smallest details."

"For instance, if the arms are thick, they are likely laborers—we just ask at the labor market. If the thighs are thick, they are porters—we ask at the porter’s guild..."

Li Buxi finally became interested. He knew Ji Duoduo had found a lead. "In your opinion, who was the person recovered from the moat last night?"

Ji Duoduo thought for a moment, looked into Li Buxi’s eyes, and stated firmly: "A broker."

Li Buxi blinked, frowning. "A broker?"

Ji Duoduo nodded. "Yes."

"Any proof?"

Ji Duoduo nodded again. "It’s not hard to guess. The corpse wore a short cloth undershirt, suggesting he wasn't wealthy. He had soaked mint leaves on him, and his thighs were sturdy, suggesting he might have been a porter. But his hands lacked the calluses of a laborer. Most importantly, he had a tattoo of an arched bridge on his arm."

Ji Duoduo emphasized, "Only one type of person tattoos that pattern: a broker."

In the capital of Jian'an, brokers were common. They were well-connected, dealt with illicit channels, and were vital for moving goods, finding people, or securing lodging. They acted as bridges between buyers and sellers, hence the arched bridge tattoo—symbolizing their role as a bridge between parties. Any merchant needing their services knew exactly what the tattoo meant.

Having obtained the information he wanted, Li Buxi rose and left. What was worse, the scoundrel hadn't even paid him.

By the time Ji Duoduo returned to the Water Bureau, the Six Gates had already retrieved the body. Ji Duoduo knew that with Li Buxi’s methods, he would have quick results; once they knew the victim was a broker, a few inquiries at the markets or the trade offices would reveal the truth.

...

After finishing his story, Ji Duoduo smiled bitterly at Song Mo and Yi Rushi. "I thought my good deed would at least earn me a reward. I never expected that by nightfall, the men from the Six Gates would be at my door."

Yi Rushi asked, "To bring you your reward?"

Ji Duoduo glared at him. "Reward, my foot. They threw me straight into this dungeon that very night."

"What?"