Reborn as a Fake Heiress Marrying the Tycoon-Chapter 1139: Pickle Jar

In the span of a week, the police had been summoned twice to Jiangjia Village—both times returning empty-handed. No evidence, no breakthrough. The villagers’ grumbling resentment was already brewing like a summer storm, and now, to make matters worse, this woman from out of town was demanding they search yet again.

One of the officers, clearly out of patience, shot Lin Miao a look of barely concealed irritation.

"We’ve already conducted an extremely thorough search," he said stiffly. "We found no trace of the so-called evidence you mentioned. Now you want us to go over everything again? Do you think we’re your personal servants to order around as you please?"

Lin Miao, confronted with their mounting hostility, felt her heart lurch in panic. She was certain—absolutely certain. In her previous life, she had heard Gu Zi, during a televised interview, describe finding the crucial evidence right here in Jiang Nan’s house.

The truth had been unearthed here. It must still be here. But why hadn’t the police found anything? Where could it be hidden?

And more importantly—what exactly was it?

Under the officers’ increasingly icy stares, Lin Miao shifted uneasily. She had come all this way, gambling everything on this one lead; how could she possibly return empty-handed? Gritting her teeth, she decided to take the risk.

"Officer," she said, forcing her voice steady, "I am certain the evidence is in that house. If you search one more time, you will find it."

Across the courtyard, Jiang Nan’s expression darkened. She sensed the tide turning and, sensing danger, quickly played to the crowd, stirring the villagers around him into a frenzy.

"I truly don’t know what I’ve done to offend this woman," she cried out, adopting a wounded, pitiable tone. "She’s bent on framing me for something I didn’t do! Everyone, you must stand witness for me. If they insist on searching again, fine—but if they still find nothing, don’t let her leave here so easily!"

The murmuring among the villagers erupted into open hostility. They were furious—again. But Lin Miao knew better than anyone that Jiang Nan’s final words weren’t for the villagers at all. She had been speaking directly to her.

Her eyes, dark and venomous, pinned Lin Miao in place. It was the kind of look that could chill a person to the bone, and Lin Miao shuddered, a creeping coldness taking hold of her limbs.

So this was the true face of a murderer.

One look, and she was already struggling to stay upright.

For one terrifying moment, Lin Miao realized that if Jiang Nan wasn’t exposed today, she might not leave the capital alive.

Suddenly, another memory surged up—vivid and sharp. In her previous life, Gu Zi had nearly been killed while investigating this very case. At the critical moment, it was Gong Zhan who had swooped in and saved her.

Now, standing in the biting wind of the village square, Lin Miao felt her blood run cold. Perhaps it would be wiser to cut her losses.

Forget solving this case—maybe she should just find Gong Zhan, cozy up to some wealthy ladies, and get into business instead. That path sounded safer. She was about to back down, ready to say she had made a mistake, when—

"We’ll search again," the officer said sharply.

The policemen from the capital were a different breed altogether. They represented the very highest standards of the nation’s justice system. As long as there was a dispute, it was their duty to resolve it. They had already come all this way—what was one more search, if only to shut Lin Miao up for good?

The officers filed back into Jiang Nan’s house, launching a second, painstaking search. Minute after minute ticked by. From the anxious crowd outside, there was only tense silence, broken occasionally by the sound of shuffling boots across dusty floors.

Jiang Nan, meanwhile, was becoming visibly smug, arms crossed, a sneer tugging at the corner of his mouth. Lin Miao, by contrast, was shrinking into herself, her earlier confidence bleeding away with every passing second.

Footsteps approached—someone was coming out.

The villagers surged forward eagerly to see the outcome.

In the commotion, Lin Miao instinctively stepped back, edging away from the crowd. Then, seizing the chaos, she turned and bolted, heart hammering in her chest.

From the sidelines, Gu Zi watched the entire scene unfold, her face grim. She could tell: today, they weren’t going to catch Jiang Nan. With a heavy sigh, she tugged on Big Yellow’s leash, ready to go home.

But Big Yellow, that massive dog of his, had other ideas. In a sudden frenzy, the dog wrenched free, dashing straight toward the house. The officers, just preparing to report their fruitless search, barely had time to react before Big Yellow barreled past them, tail high and barking furiously.

The sharp-eyed officers exchanged a quick look. Something was wrong.

Without a word, they turned on their heels and followed the dog back into Jiang Nan’s house.

Gu Zi hesitated, nerves jangling. Should she chase after Big Yellow?

Before she could decide, a strange plop echoed from inside the house—a sound that made even the cockiest villagers flinch. Jiang Nan’s face drained of all color. Without hesitation, she raced inside.

Gu Zi didn’t hesitate a second longer. She plunged into the crowd, forcing her way into the courtyard.

In one grimy corner of the yard, right beside a ramshackle dry toilet, Big Yellow was circling an enormous pickle vat, barking with unrelenting fury. The policemen immediately swarmed the vat. As they cracked open the heavy lid, a putrid stench exploded outward, so vile that everyone nearby instinctively gagged, hands clamped over noses.

One officer, grimacing through the stench, demanded, "What’s in here?"

Jiang Nan, scrambling to compose himself, managed a weak smile.

"Oh, that? It’s... it’s fermented pickles. I learned how to make them from the southerners. They have a strong smell, yes, but they’re an appetite booster! I made them specially for my elderly parents—they can’t eat much otherwise."

Indeed, the police had seen the elderly members of the Jiang household earlier during their initial search: frail, disoriented, barely clinging to life.

A woman staying behind to care for such in-laws, in a house abandoned by all other men—it tugged at the heartstrings. She seemed like a rare and noble soul.

The officers’ hearts twinged with guilt. Was it possible they had misjudged her?

All Jiang Nan wanted, desperately, was for them to slap the lid back on and be done with it. The officers, moved by this touching portrait of filial piety, almost did just that.

Almost.

Just as the lid was about to fall back into place, Big Yellow went berserk, lunging at the vat and barking like a mad beast. His behavior was far too abnormal to ignore.

The two senior officers locked eyes, exchanging an unspoken agreement.

One gave a swift, decisive signal.

The younger officers immediately moved forward and began digging through the pickles.