Di Renjie narrowed his eyes: "I see, I've been taught a lesson. Who made these puppets?"
The class leader carefully apologized and said, "To tell you the truth, in the entire capital, only villains can make puppets with mortise and tenon structure. Sometimes when the troupe is not busy, they will make one or two for others."
Finally, Di Renjie took the troupe leader back to Dali Temple, pointed at the Huadan puppet and asked, "Do you recognize it?"
The Huadan puppet's dagger had been taken away, but the blood on its face was still there. When the class leader saw it, his legs went weak and he knelt on the ground. His face was pale and he defended: "Sir, ordinary people have never made puppets that are as good as others. Please be aware of this! "
A guard walked in from a side door and whispered in Di Renjie's ear: "Sir, the head of Chunyi Tower likes to make money, and others jokingly call him an iron cock. He usually either guards the restaurant or goes to the Puppet House to listen to plays, and rarely goes to other places. I haven’t had any conflicts with anyone recently.”
Di Renjie looked at the frightened troupe leader below and said in a deep voice: "Xu Si, I ordered you to present the list of puppets you made and their buyers, and do it as soon as possible."
In order to prevent Xu Si from running away, Di Renjie also sent two of his men to guard him. As for the people in the theater, they were not allowed to go out until all suspicions were cleared.
…
Seeing this, the audience was confused.
When puppets kill people, shouldn't the camera be filming the puppets?
Why are you always hanging around Di Renjie? Could he be the puppet's next target?
Sudden panic.
The guy with the eye patch twitched his lips and comforted the temporary companion next to him: "No, even if it is a fantasy Tang Dynasty, Di Renjie is an official of the imperial court and will not be taken lightly."
The woman moved her mouth and her voice was a little weak: "Why don't I feel like it's not like a supernatural movie, but more like..."
Solving the case.
The guy with the eye patch was still guessing enthusiastically: "Do we have to be like that Bao Zheng, who judges the Yang every day and the Yin at night? Only by redressing the injustice of the wronged soul can we appease its anger?"
As expected of Director Jing, he found another shortcut. This is it.
Hearing what the guy with the eyepatch said, many people showed expressions of realization, and only a few people felt weird. But in a movie, it's impossible to reveal the mystery right away, so just wait and see.
…
Just as Di Renjie was leading his men to trace the traces of the puppets, something happened again in the bustling West Market, and this time the commotion was quite big.
In another Chunri Drunk Restaurant, the first floor of the lobby was full of guests. The storyteller was stunned on the stage and told the story of an innocent soul who demanded his life.
It was obviously a time when the sun was shining brightly, but the guests felt their whole bodies go cold when they heard it, and were frightened by the subtle plot in the story.
Creak——
There was a sound of wood scraping from nowhere, which was very obvious in the quiet lobby.
The strong man drinking wine looked over with dissatisfaction. In the corner of the stairs, a puppet as tall as a man stood quietly, looking down at everyone with a smile.
"Shopkeeper, in addition to storytelling, you also arranged a puppet show today?"
The strong man's face turned red after drinking, his body swayed like a tumbler, and he shouted with his tongue hanging out. Everyone turned around and was very excited to find a puppet.
As the name suggests, "Spring Drunkness" can make drunkards confused as long as they drink one cup.
Their brains turned into mush, and they naturally forgot about the murder that had happened two days ago.
"That's cool, shopkeeper. You can perform on stage after your husband finishes speaking, and bring me a bottle of wine."
"Yes, yes, here is a pot."
A drunkard pointed at the puppet's eyes and said vaguely: "It can actually move."
The shopkeeper who heard the commotion came over and saw the puppet's expression change, and he turned around and ran to the backyard.
The puppet, who had been stiff just now, turned its head instantly, twisted its limb joints, made a creaking sound, and chased after him like lightning.
It held the shopkeeper's neck, and the chubby man fell to the ground, struggling desperately while facing down.
The puppet sat on his waist and stepped on the fat man's limbs with a creaking sound.
In close contact, the shopkeeper could even feel that the other person's cold body was as stiff as stone.
The puppet took out a dagger, pointed it at the shopkeeper's back, and stabbed him hard.
"Ahhhhh!"
The shrill scream woke everyone up. The teasing man's body softened and he slipped from the chair. He watched helplessly as the shopkeeper lost his breath and blood rushed out from the wound, forming a pool of blood.
"People are dead, puppets have killed people!" someone screamed, turning into a puddle of mud and crawling out desperately.
The strong man who spoke first shouted: "I have been traveling around for many years. The puppets that kill people are just a trick of an actor. I put on makeup just to deceive your grandpa and me!"
He stood up with a sneer and threw the wine bottle hard. The gray wine bottle hit the puppet on the back of the head, making a clanging sound like weapons clashing.
The puppet's movements paused and then slowly turned back.
Its body was still sitting on the shopkeeper, its neck turned 180 degrees, and it looked at the strong man with a strange smile.
How could a person's head be turned behind his back!
"Ah ah ah there's a ghost!"
A group of guests screamed heartbreakingly and scrambled to get out, not daring to stay for a moment longer. The strong man was shaking like chaff, his eyes rolled up and he fainted.
When Di Renjie arrived after hearing the news, the scene was already in a mess. Cups, plates, and wine cups were smashed all over the floor, and trodden food was everywhere, and it would slip if you weren't careful.
The puppet kept its head turned and sat on the shopkeeper. There were many curious passers-by at the door.
Di Renjie signaled his men to move the puppet down. When moving it, he accidentally lifted his sleeves and found that there was indeed gray wood underneath.
There was a loud inhalation sound from the door, and everyone looked frightened.
Really puppets! They are not pretending to be human!
"Sir, the puppet in the evidence room is missing." Chen Yu's expression was solemn, "It 'ran' out."
In broad daylight, there were hundreds of guests in the entire lobby, and everyone saw with their own eyes that the puppets came out to kill people.
They vowed:
"Really! Its limbs can be twisted to a degree that humans cannot reach, including its neck!"
"I hit it with a wine bottle, but the sound was like hitting a stone."
"Its walking posture is uncoordinated, like a puppet being controlled by silk threads when singing!"
Master Wei Song looked at everyone's testimonies and frowned: "Sir, do you think they are lying, or is there really a puppet claiming life?"
Di Renjie touched his beard: "Sometimes, the eyes of an alcoholic are not trustworthy."
"But there were people who were not drunk and that's what their testimony was."
"So, the key is still the puppet."
The two of them turned their eyes to the puppet in the corner, their expressions thoughtful.
When going to court the next day, Wu Zetian reprimanded Di Renjie. This time there was too much noise. Rumors spread that the puppets were seeking their lives. Many shops were afraid of closing their doors and people were panicked. This was naturally very disadvantageous for the rulers.
In the cinema, many viewers clapped their hands proudly when they saw the puppet turning its head 180 degrees.
"Sure! This is definitely a puppet, it can't be a real person. Ancient people couldn't do it!"
The grand Night Parade of One Hundred Ghosts is still vivid in their minds. Many people still remember the ghost bride with two faces, one in front and one behind. She could turn her head using high-tech equipment to create visual differences, which did not exist in ancient times.
"I don't know why, but those puppets always feel gross to me when I look at them. Is it the uncanny valley effect?"
"Wu Zetian is Tang Hanyu again. Is she going to become a professional Wu Zetian?"
"Damn it, this wave is a combination of supernatural and crime solving! Director Jing's creativity is so talented! You should burn the puppets first, what to do if they run out again!"
"There are no movies of this type in Interstellar about the crime-solving theme of the Tang Dynasty. It's really interesting!"
In the court, some people also suggested burning the puppets. The case could be investigated slowly, but burning the puppets first could avoid more deaths.
This proposal was blocked by Di Renjie. The man, whose expression remained unchanged even before the mountain collapsed, bowed his hands to Wu Zetian and saluted: "I already have a clue about the two murder cases. They will be solved within three days. The puppet is the key to the case. It must not be done." Burn.”
Back at Dali Temple, Wei Song shook his head: "There are so many fools in the world."
Di Renjie smiled softly, his eyes fixed on the distance like a hawk, where was the puppet theater troupe of Dongshi.
"Sir, do you think this case is against a person or an incident?"
Wei Song didn't say anything. He picked up the brush and lightly drew a circle on the words "Chun Yi Lou".
Di Renjie put his hands on his hands and smiled: "Sir, you know me. Chen Yu, go and investigate if anyone in the theater troupe has anything to do with Chunyi Lou."
The next day, a case statement was placed on Di Renjie's desk.
"Sir, five years ago, the wine brewed by Chun Yi Restaurant was slightly astringent and sour, and the business was not doing well. Later, the situation improved after researching the Chun Ri Zui. However, there are rumors in the market that Chun Ri Zui was not brewed by the restaurant, but was stolen from others. He made a prescription and killed a family of four to get where we are today. There was indeed a case in which a family of four died, and the case was finally concluded as a fire."
Di Renjie's expression darkened. He had an upright character and could not tolerate any sand in his eyes. If it was true as Chen Yu said, Chunyi Tower was not a clean place.
"Send that case to me."
Chen Yu was well prepared and took out the old case from his arms.
Mrs. Song was sixty-eight when she died.
Mr. and Mrs. Song were thirty-six when they died.
Song Hu is only fourteen years old.
The corpse was burnt like black carbon and shattered with the slightest touch...
Their lives were summed up in just a few lines, and their complete bodies were not even found when they died.
Di Renjie closed his eyes and put aside his complicated thoughts.
"The knot in his heart is Chunyi Tower and Chunri Zui, so we will make a plan to invite him out."
The owner of Chunyilou is going back to the countryside! Before returning to his hometown, in order to repay the kindness of his guests, he planned to give away the remaining wine in the restaurant to everyone.
The news was like a hurricane, blowing through the entire city of Chang'an overnight. The murders of the past few days are still fresh in our minds, and many people were so frightened that they hid in their homes and shivered.
But there is always a group of people who are not afraid of death and have no resistance to Chang'an's best wine.
Chunyi Tower is located in Chang'an City, with two in the southeast and northwest. They didn't dare to go to the West Market, so they went to the bustling East Market.
A group of drunkards crowded at the entrance of Chunyi Building, lining up to drink.
"My boss, why don't you stop? Even if there is...but we have Lord Di, he will definitely catch the evil spirits!"
"It's a pity that I won't be able to enjoy such fine wines from now on."
"My boss is kind, and he is able to research fine wines that are famous throughout Chang'an. It would be a pity to return to my hometown."
