Lin Sui'an took a piece of Hu cake and took a sip of the tea soup brewed by Ita. The bitter, sour and spicy taste made his whole body shiver. It must be said that in terms of refreshing effect, Ita's tea soup was far better than Any brand of coffee.
The sky was getting brighter, and the light of the rising sun fell on the old locust tree in front of the Document Hall of Dali Temple, giving off a smell of blood. I don't know if it was because there were too many unjust cases and unresolved cases recorded in the Document Hall, or because her eyes were filled with tears. Bloodshot.
Everyone worked hard all night, and it could be said that there was some gain, or it could be said that there was no gain.
The scroll book seized from Hao Liu's family (the so-called gift from the Seventh Master) turned out to be really useful. Dali Temple, Jingzhao Mansion and Jingmen cooperated to search according to the address recorded on the scroll book, and many people who spread rumors were caught. The gangsters who spread the rumors, coupled with the clues seized by the Hao Liu family, cooperated with the prison officers of Dali Temple to interrogate and intimidate them, and the young shepherds did not last more than two hours before they were all recruited.
A few months ago, Hao Liu compiled the legend of the murderous beast Xiangliu based on several corpse burial cases, and hired many street gangsters to spread the rumors. These gangsters hang out in gambling houses, wine shops, tea shops, polo fields and other crowded places all year round. The people they come into contact with are mixed and chaotic, so it is most convenient to spread news among the people at the bottom. The henchmen of the Hao Liu family spread the rumors to the girls who came to have fun. There were many wealthy businessmen and ladies from aristocratic families who came to the Hao Liu family to spend money. In this way, the rumors could smoothly reach the middle and upper aristocratic classes.
It has to be said that Hao Liu is indeed very knowledgeable about the principles of communication. Such an up and down attack doubled the speed and intensity of the spread of rumors, and the effect was astonishing. These gangsters are even more dedicated. In addition to activities around the stronghold, they also often go out to find friends to eat and drink with. They must spread the rumors to every corner of the eastern capital. Zhao Tiejiang took two of them. Pay money to do things for them. Unfortunately, there is no airtight wall in the world. Zhong Xue's case alarmed Dali Temple, and Blacksmith Zhao happened to hit the muzzle of the gun.
It is unknown how Hao Liu learned about this and how he came to kill him and silence him. Lin Sui'an suspected that it was probably the "Seventh Master" who did it. She even had an inexplicable feeling that they seemed to be taken advantage of by Master Qi.
In addition, there is still no progress in the real clues about the corpse case and Zhong Xue.
Lin Sui'an was waiting, waiting for Ling Zhiyan's interrogation statement, waiting for Fang's autopsy examination, waiting for Hua Yitang to crawl out from the overwhelming pile of files, and waiting for Wan Lin to find the specific burial locations of the remaining thirteen deceased.
When it was daylight, the first person arrived.
Jin Ruo yawned continuously, his face facing the morning light was a little sallow, he sat down next to Lin Sui'an, took out the sugar cake from his arms and stuffed it into his mouth, "You are right, the ones Hao Liuhe had at Bailufang before The men in black should be from the first group. His strongholds in Dongdu happen to be in the weakest areas of Jingmen. It must be the information revealed by Shen Xun. As for what you are talking about, Master Qi——" Jin Ruopai He drank the bowl of tea in one gulp, his face twitching with bitterness, "Did Eta bring tea?"
Lin Sui'an: "I stayed up all night and delivered it in no time. Full of sincerity."
Jin Ruo slapped his tongue, "No one in the world has heard of Master Qi. He is either a nobody or a rising star."
Lin Sui'an didn't expect Jin Ruozhen to find anything. Judging from the way the seventh master only heard his words but not his person, he was obviously a boss, so he had to maintain a considerable sense of mystery. It's just that when I heard Jin Ruo say this, I was still a little disappointed.
The compulsion to make the Jingmen bigger and bigger is imminent!
The second person to come back was Ling Zhiyan, who had huge dark circles under her eyes, her forehead was shiny, and the tip of her nose was shiny. She didn't have any special reaction after drinking Eta's tea. She must have been exhausted that night and her sense of taste has deteriorated.
"Everyone in the Hao Liu family, from the four garden owners to the janitor, has been interrogated. They all know nothing about the corpse case. They are just puppets acting on Hao Liu's orders." Ling Zhiyan A blood-red mark appeared between his eyebrows, "Man Qi is indeed a young boy from Hao Liu's family. He has been here for less than half a year. He is usually obedient and well-behaved. He is not good at dealing with others. He seems to be an orphan. Other than that, there is nothing else. information."
Lin Sui'an: The background information is handled very cleanly. This Man Qi is indeed no ordinary person.
"Ahem, Su Yiyun has nothing to do with this matter. He just happened to go to Hao Liu's house to have fun. Hao Liu was the only one in his house to receive male guests." Ling Zhiyan touched her nose, "I was accidentally beaten by Mrs. Lin by chance. A beating is really unlucky."
"He just has an unlucky face, he deserves it!" The door of the Document Hall was kicked open with a bang. Hua Yitang walked out holding the sleeping little beggar in one hand, and squeezed in between Jin Ruo and Lin Sui'an. Sitting down in a seat, the little beggar was convinced that Hua Yitang was a master of the Maoshan sect who was good at pinching and calculating. He refused to get down when he was stuck on him. He scratched Hua Yitang's clothes like a dog-skin plaster with black handprints everywhere. Even when he fell asleep, he refused to let go.
Miraculously, Hua Yitang, a guy who loves stinky beauty and cleanliness, actually endured it and didn't knock the kid out and throw him out.
On the contrary, Ita said something meaningful when delivering the tea soup, "Shiro has been liked by the baby since he was a child, and Shiro also likes the baby."
Lin Sui'an was very suspicious of Etta's evaluation. After all, Hua Yitang's nose was not a nose, and his eyes were not eyes. He was obviously not a lover of human cubs.
“I looked through the import and export records of Dongdu spices, balms, and fragrant powders in the past ten years, and found that there is a spice that is in line with Dr. Fang’s speculation. It can keep fruits fresh and fish and shrimps not rotten. It is often used by ships for long-distance transportation. . But later it was found that this spice was poisonous and was banned from import. It has disappeared since then. The last time it appeared in the records was five years ago." Speaking of this, Hua Yitang smelled the hair of the little beggar in his arms, and then smelled it again. He sniffed his sleeves and showed a miserable expression, "This little brat smells like salted fish!"
It was rare for everyone to see Hua Yitang's dejected expression, and they all couldn't help laughing.
When Fang Ke came back, the little beggar had already woken up. She was holding Hua Yitang's collar with one hand and nibbling the white sugar cake sent by Jin Ruo with the other. Her saliva fell on Hua Yitang's sleeves, making them wet.
The news Fang Ke brought back was shocking. The first item was Hao Liu's autopsy examination.
"Hao Liu, male, aged between thirty-five and thirty-eight years old, suffered multiple fractures in his thighs, calves, and ribs, but they were not fatal. The real cause of death was damage to internal organs," Fang Ke took out a bag from the box. The white porcelain altar was slammed to the ground, "His stomach melted."
Everyone was shocked, leaning back and pinching their noses.
"The stomach is not a candle, how can it melt?" Jin Ruo asked.
Fang Ke: "It must be that some strong drugs were taken before death, which corroded the stomach. This kind of drug will stimulate the heartbeat to accelerate violently, extremely dilate the blood vessels, and make people extremely excited."
"In other words, his strength and speed will suddenly increase?" Lin Sui'an asked.
"It will also hasten his death."
Everyone looked at each other.
Fang Ke: "One more thing, he is a eunuch."
Everyone: "Eh???"
"When the pilgrim ascended the throne in the first year of Xuanfeng, the eunuch system was abolished and all eunuchs were allowed to return to their hometowns to settle down." Ling Zhiyan said, "Based on his age, could he be an old man from the previous palace?"
Jin Ruo: "No wonder it looks like a sugar cake."
The little beggar suddenly stuffed the sugar cake in her hand into Hua Yitang's mouth, and Hua Yitang almost vomited.
"Ah, there is another interesting one." A strange smile suddenly appeared on Fang Ke's face. He took out the white porcelain gourd found on Su Yiyun's body and shook it. "I took the opportunity to test the elixir inside. It is about It is a strong|strong|yang|thing."
Everyone: "..."
Fang Ke turned out the Spring | Palace Album on Su Yiyun's body and said, "Based on this, it can be inferred that Su Yiyun is not here for fun, but to learn the art of Fang Zhong| from Hao Liu."
Jin Ruo: "What the hell?!"
Lin Sui'an: "Has Su Yiyun married?"
Hua Yitang sneered, "80% of the time, he took the rumors of concubine selection seriously, and planned to practice the secret book and reach the sky in one step."
Ling Zhiyan: "Cough cough cough cough cough!"
Lin Sui'an was shocked and speechless.
Good guy, really good guy! The Su family in Suizhou worked too hard!
The last one to come back was Wan Canjun, and the news he brought back was not good.
Among the remaining thirteen victims of the corpse burial case, two families had left Dongdu, and the address of the victim's grave could not be found. Another family disliked the disgraceful death of their daughter, so they burned the body directly and scattered the ashes. There were only nine victims left, eight families agreed to open the autopsy, and one family refused, saying that it would ruin the feng shui of the family.
"Bullshit Feng Shui, his family buried the girl in a mass grave without even entering the ancestral grave. I said the government wanted to open the coffin for an autopsy, but they still asked me for money! What the hell!" Wan Lin cursed.
There were only nine people. Lin Sui'an looked at the address on the paper and felt a little nervous. She didn't know the status of the corpses, and she wasn't sure whether the golden finger could be activated smoothly. It had been a day and a night since Zhong Xue disappeared. Could it be that it was already too late? She closed her eyes hard, raised her head slightly, and looked up in the early morning. The wind blew on my face, soberingly cold.
There is no time to worry about these things. At this point, we can only do our best and obey fate!
Lin Sui'an opened his eyes and looked at Hua Yitang, "Come with me for a walk."
Hua Yitang sighed, stood up with the little beggar in his arms, "Let's agree first, if anything unusual happens, stop immediately."
Lin Sui'an smiled: "Okay."
Jin Ruo wondered: "What kind of riddles are you two playing? And the person has been dead for so long, what else can be found?"
"You won't know until you get it tested." Fang Ke carried the big wooden box on his back and glanced at Lin Sui'an, a gleam flashing in his eyes.
Leaving the Yanchun Gate of Luonan City and walking ten miles to the north, there is a mountain called Baochuan Mausoleum, which is the tomb area where Dongdu people bury their relatives for generations. More than 90% of the people who have household registration in Dongdu City choose to go there. Sleep here.
Looking around, the tombstones are like a forest, each with its own shape and plan. The new tombs have a new color and a few cups of wine are being offered. The old tombs are mottled, looking at each other from a distance. Pear trees and poplars overlap each other, and the grass blades are green and yellow, withered. The leaves are flying and it is very desolate.
Among the nine families of victims that Wan Lin contacted before, except for one whose daughter was buried in a mass grave, the other eight families have their cemeteries here, three on the south hillside, four on the north hillside, and one on the top of the mountain. .
Based on the distance of the cemetery, Ling Zhiyan planned the route up the mountain. Wan Lin led a team of government officials to inform the victim's family members to wait in front of each grave. By the time Lin Sui'an and others arrived, the preliminary work was ready.
Opening the coffin for an autopsy is a matter of great importance, and the procedure is not uncomplicated. First, a "red shed" must be built over the tomb, supported by eight bamboo poles over eight feet high, with a special ceiling hanging above it. The shed is four feet wide and six feet long. , the material is similar to oil-paper umbrellas, oiled with tung oil, mostly reddish brown, which can prevent rain, shade, and ward off evil spirits. The most important thing is that when the sun shines on the red shed, part of the colored light is absorbed, which can show the scars of the corpse, similar to The effect of modern ultraviolet radiation.
Four black tile basins are set up around the red shed in the east, south, west and north. Atractylodes and saponaria are burned to dispel corpse gas. There is also a basin of charcoal fire with aged vinegar for more than three years. After the autopsy is completed, the vinegar is poured Pour it on the charcoal fire to generate vinegar gas, and all those participating in the autopsy must step over the charcoal basin to remove the contaminated smell.
The most important step is to put a "Soul Talisman" on the head of the corpse after opening the coffin. This is the secret method of each ghost. It is passed down orally from master to disciple from generation to generation. Outsiders are not allowed to pry. Therefore, each ghost's secret method is The painting methods are all different, some resemble Taoist charms, some are derived from foreign witchcraft, and some are derived from the Five Elements and Bagua. No matter how bizarre the painting techniques are, the effect is said to be miraculous. For example, it can purify evil spirits, gather souls, and transcend the afterlife, etc. If someone in a family dies in vain, they will often ask for a soul-calming amulet from the official's office and bury it in the grave together to comfort the deceased.
This was the first time Lin Sui'an saw Fang Ke writing the "soul-calming talisman". The two-inch wide and four-inch wide yellow paper was spread flat on a large wooden box. The wolf-hair pen was moistened with cinnabar, red as blood. Fang Ke wrote cross-legged and sat cross-legged. Sit down, close your eyes for a moment, and first write down the name of the deceased.
【Sanniang Zhou Xinghong】
She was the first victim to have her coffin opened. She died nine months ago at the age of fifteen. Her body was found in a ditch. The parents became depressed due to the death of their young daughter and died one after another. Now there are only two sisters in the family who depend on each other. One is nineteen years old and the other is seventeen years old. They support each other and stand ten steps away from the red shed, silently wiping tears.
The officials of Jingzhao Mansion dug the grave under the command of Ming Shu and Ming Feng. Ling Zhiyan and Wan Lin stood at the grave and were responsible for overseeing the work. Two new mounds of loess were piled next to them. , and heard the sound of a shovel being shoveled on the coffin.
Fang Ke picked up the pen and continued writing. The handwriting was dry and stiff, just like his voice.
[Tell me who killed you. I will cut that beast into pieces, crush its bones and scatter it into ashes. 】
Jin Ruo was speechless: "Is this okay?!"
Hua Yitang shook his fan: "Brother Fang, this soul-suppressing talisman is indeed——"
Lin Sui'an: It's really simple and crude!
"One, two, three - open the coffin -" the officials shouted, opening the coffin, and the rotten smell immediately overshadowed the smoke of Atractylodes and Saponaria, and poured into everyone's nostrils.
The government officials screamed and jumped out of the grave pit, shouting "evil door", "what a ghost" and so on. The faces of the two sisters changed drastically. They wanted to look but didn't dare to look, and they cried even harder.
Lin Sui'an roughly guessed why they were so surprised. He walked to the coffin and took a look. Sure enough, the face of the corpse in the coffin still maintained its original appearance, with its eyes closed and peaceful, as if it was asleep. Only the corpse odor floating in the air showed that the corpse's internal organs had long since rotted away.
Fang Ke's blood-colored gown floated into the grave, he put on his white cloth gloves, and without changing his expression, he folded the soul-soothing charm in his hand into three parts, placed it on Zhou Xinghong's head, and glanced sideways at Lin Sui'an.
This time, he took the lead in opening the corpse's eyelids. :,,
