‘No, nothing concrete. But there seem to be too many coincidences. That guest of hers, for instance, who walked straight out to the spot in the backyard where the body of the maid was buried, still fresh and recognizable underneath the thin layer of soil. And that very guest who happened to know the people at Mayor Pei’s office, who immediately dispatched runners to investigate in the nunnery. Also, the hue and cry about the flies circling the backyard corner was not even mentioned once in the case report regarding the crime scene.’

‘But all this is just circumstantial, isn’t it? As for the flies, they could have flown away by the time the runners went to the backyard.’ Han Shan resumed after a short pause, ‘Besides, for a set-up scenario like that, it would not have worked unless all the conditions were met. Xuanji had to stay inside the temple without being aware of anything outside during the time period when Ning was killed and buried; and that particular guest had to come out to the very spot in the backyard the next day, and in the company of other guests – for the hue and cry to reach the mayor who then had to take immediate action. In other words, for such an elaborate plot, the conspirator had to be someone who was resourceful and desperate.’

‘That’s true, but one of those big bugs rejected by her could have been sufficiently resourceful and desperate.’

‘Well, it sounds like an echo of what Nameless said about Mayor Pei, Judge Dee. Still, I want to say something about Pei. He had told me about his invitation to Xuanji long before the murder case.’

‘What did he say to you – and when?’

‘It was when I first came to stay at the temple here. A couple of months ago. Mayor Pei paid me a visit, saying he wanted to have a party for poets and writers at his official residence. Xuanji was also on the invitation list because he thought she had been treated badly by a distant cousin of his – none other than Zi’an’s wife. He wanted to do something for her as a way of compensation, but she flatly declined the invitation. So it had nothing whatever to do with any romantic inclination. Gossip and misinterpretations of this kind of thing could have spread, however, like uncontrollable wild weeds.

‘And then, as Mayor Pei happened to be the one in charge of the trial, it’s natural for people like Nameless to speculate. But was there anything improper in the way Mayor Pei treated her during the trial? I cannot tell, but you may judge objectively as an experienced judge yourself.’