In the middle of the night.
The bell mansion is still brightly lit.
Many monks in the Taoyuan of the Second Chongyuan were still changing cups and drinking freely.
However, there were also some monks who, after receiving the news, quietly left the scene and quickly headed to the Sixth Level Courtyard.
Among them, Liu Chengyang, a young man in black, is a confidant of the Shen family and is highly appreciated by Shen Nanfeng.
This time when I came to Qingyang with the team, although I had the task of secretly supervising and reporting progress, in the end I had to serve as Shen Lanxin's dowry and become the guest of the new family formed by Shen Lanxin and Zhong Yan after they got married.
Therefore, he also intends to make friends with the monks on Zhong Yan's side and communicate enthusiastically with many monks.
When he received a message from Xiao Tao saying that there was an emergency, because he knew Shen Lanxin and the maid's style, he even frowned and felt dissatisfied, and he apologized and left with the monk who had been chatting happily.
When he arrived at the Sixth Level Courtyard, Liu Chengyang was shocked after hearing Xiao Tao's explanation of the situation. He sobered up in an instant and used magic to dispel the alcohol. With the maid accompanying him to explain, he carefully inspected the crime scene.
now.
On the lawn outside the independent courtyard, dozens of people gathered one after another, including monks, guards, family members, and maids.
Liu Chengyang walked out of the room, glanced around, his face was extremely ugly, and he looked at Zhong Yan and said: "Master Zhong, the Shen family must explain this matter!"
"Explain?"
Zhong Yan looked at him and said, "How should I explain? Miss Lan Xin came all the way from Changning, and Liu Daoyou and his entourage are escorting her, so they should be prepared in advance."
"The highest level of cultivation in the Zhong Mansion is only the sixth level of Qi Refining. Why aren't the guards guarding me?"
"You have seen the scene. The murderer's cultivation level is not low. Even if I guard this place with my wife, I may not be able to stop the attack!"
Liu Chengyang was speechless.
They followed the official path from Changning to Qingyang. Including Shen Lanxin, there were a total of fifteen monks, two of whom were at the seventh level of Qi refining and carried a large number of talismans. It was difficult for ordinary bandit cultivators to succeed.
Who would have thought that something would happen in the 'safest' Zhong Mansion when we arrived at our destination?
All the guards were dismissed by the lady on her own initiative.
Even his personal protection was placed in the attic next door, more than ten feet away.
Thinking of this, Liu Chengyang was also a little annoyed. Shen Lanxin also blamed herself for doing "dirty" things for the convenience of not letting her "unable to hide" follow her.
"In terms of responsibility, you guards and attendants have greater responsibility! Now that things have happened, no one wants to think about it. The most important thing now is to find the murderer!"
As he spoke, Zhong Yan pointed to the two maids who were kneeling on the ground shivering.
"I have already asked. The two of them were originally arranged to serve Miss Lan Xin, but they were kicked out because they 'need to be clean'."
Dong Caozhan came out and said: "Yes, husband!"
Xiaotao also nodded and said, "With the servants here, I think two maids are enough."
The words fell with a 'bang' sound.
One of the maids fell to the ground and died. The place was so quiet that you could hear a needle drop.
But it was Zhong Yantan who slapped her to death, "Yun Ning, take her down and ask her strictly. Find out who she saw today and what she said!"
"Yes, husband." Zhou Yunning and the warrior guards dragged away the sobbing maid who dared not cry out.
Zhong Yan looked at Bai Siyuan in the crowd: "Master Bai, could you please summon all the comrades from the Keqing Mansion to help ask at the monks' mansions in the city if there is anything abnormal."
"Okay." Bai Siyuan nodded and turned to leave.
"Shangwen, please go to the City Lord's Mansion and ask City Lord Qin for help. Send sergeants to strengthen patrols at the city gate and throughout the city to see if any clues can be found. Then send another team to the Zhong Mansion."
"Yes, uncle!"
Zhong Yan looked at Liu Chengyang again and said: "The mansion has sent guards to search. All the monks in the Zhong Mansion will be questioned one by one later to prove their innocence. Can Fellow Daoist Liu have anything to add?"
Liu Chengyang pursed his lips and nodded: "Just do as Master Zhong says, especially those present in the hall this morning!"
At this time, a guard stepped forward quickly, "Master! Mrs. Zhen is dead!"
Everyone was shocked, their faces changed, and they all looked at each other.
Zhong Yan frowned and asked, "Where is it?"
Dongcao said hurriedly: "The three Immortal Master Sisters have just entered the mansion, and they are also arranged in the Sixth Level Courtyard, not far from here!"
A group of people went forward in a mighty manner.
A maid died, and the new concubine Zhen Rong died in the bedroom. There was a bloody hole between her eyebrows, a storage bag was missing, and there were no signs of a fight.
After some questioning, Wen Yongshan and Su Yunxi, who lived in the adjacent building, were trembling and said they knew nothing and had not heard anything.
Yu Qingyao said: "Recently, several female cultivators have been killed in the city. Could it be that the evil cultivator sneaked into Zhong Mansion to commit murder?"
Pang Baodu said: "It's possible. This person is really brave and his cultivation level should be quite high."
The maid Xiao Tao was a little confused and couldn't help but glance at Zhong Yan. She was not sure whether this was true or whether Zhong Yan was doing something secretly to create suspicion.
Zhong Yan frowned, his eyes flickered and he pondered for a moment, then said: "Qingyao, summon all the monks to the square of the outer courtyard."
"Senior Brother Han and Senior Brother Zhang, please help me if you can."
"good."
During the party, Han Jiuping and Zhang Dongzhuo, two people with sect backgrounds, were basically together with Liu Chengyang. They had not left the Zhong Mansion all day, so they were the least suspicious.
"Everyone, please go to the outer courtyard first. I'm sorry. I hope you can cooperate."
Everyone dispersed.
Liu Chengyang asked: "What does Master Zhong think?"
Zhong Yan's face was also ugly, and he frowned and explained: "Miss Lan Xin and the two maids present are both dead. It's hard to judge what the specific situation was at that time."
"Ms. Lan Xin was taking a bath. Even if she sensed a strange smell coming in, she probably wouldn't think about the 'attacker'. She was accidentally killed and was poisoned."
"Liu Weiwei should know better than Zhong what kind of person Miss Lan Xin is. She has been tired of traveling and traveling for days and has had banquets one after another. Why do you want to come to me so late?"
"Could it be that when she was taking a bath, she was completely immersed in herself and didn't care about the outside world at all?"
"There is suspicion of forgery at the scene, so the murderer's cultivation level cannot be clearly defined. Of course, it is not too low, at least at the same level."
Liu Chengyang pinched his eyebrows with an irritated look on his face.
Zhong Yan continued: "If it was done by a monk in the mansion, it is not difficult to find out. If there is no alibi, all will be handed over to the Shen family. But if it is done by someone outside the mansion, how to investigate?"
Asking the Keqing Mansion and the City Lord's Mansion to help out is just a show, to show the Shen family that Qingyang City is so big that you can find clues by looking for a needle in a haystack.
"Also, your lady deliberately spread the news about my marriage to the Shen family in the city, right?"
"If the murderer was eyeing the dowry, why didn't he choose Xiao Tao? She was the one who took out the magic weapon in the palace at that time. Killing the maid is a much smaller matter than the young lady, and it is easier to escape."
"Besides, the Zhong Mansion is quite large and has many houses. How could the murderer directly find the Sixth Floor Courtyard?"
"If the monks in the mansion who knew the situation betrayed the information and secretly communicated with people outside to commit the crime, would everyone be handed over to the Shen family? Do you think it is realistic?"
"All Zhongfu can do is try his best."
Liu Chengyang took a breath and said, "I have to contact Changning for instructions."
After saying that, he took his maid Xiao Tao into the room inside the courtyard and gathered the isolation shield.
Gongsun Nuannuan, who had been quiet for a long time, spoke up: "Senior, the murderer should not be the same person. The person who killed Shen Lanxin had a higher level of cultivation, and the blood hole in his skull was wider and deeper..."
Pei Nanjin tugged at his junior sister, "Stop talking nonsense!"
Zhong Yan glanced at the little girl, his eyes swept over Pei Nanjin's face, and he and Yan Sandao walked out.
Pei Nanjin pulled her junior sister to follow him, feeling suspicious and thinking: Could it be that an outsider happened to sneak into the house?
And in the small courtyard.
Liu Chengyang sent a message to Shen Nanfeng and told all the details.
But before that, Shen Nanfeng had already learned about his granddaughter's death.
In addition to the soul card left by Shen Lanxin in the clan, there was also a message from Lin Zhengping. Naturally, Zhong Yan informed Lin Zhengping first.
After listening to his ancestor's arrangements and coming out of the room, Liu Chengyang couldn't help but let out a breath and felt slightly relieved.
Xiao Tao said on the side: "Liu Guard, would you like to call the others over? During this period, the lady has been in contact with Li Guard, and he also knows the lady's specific residence."
Liu Chengyang's expression changed as he remembered this incident and hurriedly asked, "Has he been to Zhong Mansion?"
Xiao Tao: "No, but the lady has spoken to him via voice transmission. I don't know the details."
"Call everyone over here!"
The two of them took out the transmission talismans and cast spells, calling all the people who were traveling together to the Zhong Mansion.
At this time, more than half an hour after the incident, Chen Wanmiao and Gu Baiyu had returned to Zhong Mansion.
…
