Prince Jun's estate is out of the question.

At noon, on Yayun Street, a pair of wandering fortune-tellers—a master and his apprentice—made their way down the thoroughfare. The master had rather peculiar eyes; one pupil drifted upward while the other cast downward. Beneath his nose sat a pair of asymmetrical, waxed whiskers that gave him a rather comical appearance. He wore a long black robe, a black skullcap on his head, and held a birdcage in his left hand containing a black mynah bird. In his right hand, he carried a cloth banner emblazoned with bold characters that read: "The Divine Calculator," making it immediately obvious to all that he was a fortune-teller. Following closely beside him was a fresh-faced, delicate-looking young man clad in a white long robe, with a bundle slung over his right shoulder—anyone could tell at a glance that he was the apprentice. This apprentice was none other than our female protagonist, Yue'er. Her current "master" went by the name of Wei Yu, a rascal capable of playing any role to suit the occasion.

They strolled along Yayun Street, an area renowned as the residential quarter for high-ranking officials and nobles. Many imperial relatives and dignitaries had their estates established on this very street, making it a primary target for their mission. Naturally, Yue'er knew that the Prince's Estate of Jun was also located here. Before long, they drifted near the Prince's Estate, and Wei Yu refused to budge, loudly proclaiming, "Ask of fortune and misfortune, know the affairs of the heavenly court above and the depths of the netherworld below..." His slogan was outrageously exaggerated—knowing the affairs of the heavenly court above and the depths of the netherworld below—though perhaps he was rather hazy about everything in between.

Seeing that Wei Yu harbored suspicions regarding the Prince's Estate of Jun, Yue'er leaned over and whispered a warning, "It couldn't possibly be the Prince's Estate of Jun. The Prince of Jun doesn't fit the criteria; he hasn't taken a concubine in at least two years. Besides, the Prince doesn't match the old man's specific condition either!" No one knew this better than Yue'er.

Wei Yu glanced at her sideways with a smile and asked, "You seem remarkably familiar with the Prince of Jun?" Wei Yu was a young man of about twenty-five or twenty-six who had become a constable two years prior after passing the constable examinations. Back then, Shang Zhixia, the Junior Vice Minister of the Ministry of Punishments, had wished to recruit unconventional constables to investigate complex cases, thus establishing new examination subjects that allowed a fellow like Wei Yu to walk a righteous path.

Yue'er felt her heart skip a beat, but maintaining a perfectly calm expression, she replied, "Of course. I used to work under him, after all, so I naturally know a thing or two about him!" At the very least, knowing Zhao Chengxian's age was hardly unusual. Seeing that Wei Yu pressed no further, Yue'er breathed a sigh of relief. Just then, she noticed someone emerging from the Li residence, which was not far from the Prince's Estate. It was a girl of seventeen or eighteen, dressed in the attire of a young matron, who walked forward while looking back over her shoulder every three steps, as though terrified of being tracked. Yue'er nudged Wei Yu, directing his attention toward the furtive young woman. Whispering softly, Yue'er told him, "Look at her sneaking around like that; she's definitely afraid of her whereabouts being discovered. This person is certainly suspicious. And look at that—her dress is embroidered with China roses. It's not necessarily true that the killer's beloved is named Rose, but it's entirely possible that the woman he adores has a deep fondness for China roses!" Her reasoning was not without merit, and Wei Yu agreed to shadow the individual. Strictly speaking, according to their official ranks, Wei Yu should have been taking orders from Yue'er, but since this was Yue'er's very first assignment with the Ministry of Punishments, she could not afford to act solely on her own authority.

They trailed the young matron into a narrow alley and watched as she embraced a young man before entering a small inn. Growing even more suspicious, they followed them inside. However, the pair went straight upstairs to a guest room upon entry. Consequently, Wei Yu instructed Yue'er to use her wits to extract the identities of the two individuals from the proprietor. Wei Yu told her, "Go and ask the innkeeper and the waiter who those two are, but don't interrogate them directly—beat around the bush, understand?" Usually, people like that rented a room long-term in a single inn to facilitate their rendezvous, so the staff would certainly know their identities, even if they wouldn't readily disclose them. This was the ultimate test for Yue'er.

Yue'er nodded, walked up to the counter, and struck up a conversation with the proprietor. She began by lamenting, "Boss, business has been rather tough lately, hasn't it? The industry is in a slump. To be completely honest with you, my family used to run an inn ourselves, but unfortunately, it went under later on, which is why I ended up taking the Divine Calculator as my master!" Her expression of utter dejection made it virtually impossible for anyone to suspect she was lying.

The proprietor chimed in with deep resonance and complaint, "Ah, you said it, business is hard to come by! If it weren't for a few regular patrons gracing us with their presence, this humble inn of mine would likely have shut its doors long ago!" He looked thoroughly helpless; the inn was simply too small, and very few people cared to patronize it.

Riding on the proprietor's words, Yue'er probed, "Regular patrons? Were that man and woman who just came in your regular patrons as well? They looked awfully young, though!" She was fishing for information, hoping to unearth the identities of the pair so they could follow the clue to unmask the culprit.

Before the proprietor could respond, the waiter stepped in to interrupt, "Those two show up once every four or five days. Would you say they aren't regular patrons?" The waiter proved somewhat easier to extract information from than the owner. Meanwhile, Wei Yu stood a short distance away, leisurely sipping his tea.

Seizing the opportunity, Yue'er remarked, "One look at that woman's attire tells you she's either the wife or the concubine of some wealthy household. To cuckold her husband like that—isn't she afraid of him finding out and having her thrown into a pig cage to drown?" She wore an expression of watching a scandalous spectacle.

The waiter could not help blurting out, "She used to be a famous opera singer known as Little Swallow, before she caught the eye of a Junior Vice Minister of the Rites Department, who took her home as a concubine. Who would have thought that not even two years later, she'd step outside the marital bounds? No wonder they say opera performers are devoid of loyalty!" The waiter looked thoroughly indignant. The proprietor glared at him, realizing he had said far too much, and the waiter hurriedly went off to refill Wei Yu's teacup.

Realizing now that the pair were not their targets, Yue'er walked out of the inn feeling rather disappointed. Solving cases was never an easy task. Wei Yu hurried after her and said, "Case-solving requires patience. Take it slow!" For her very first outing, Yue'er's performance had already been quite commendable.