The Countess and her friends fell silent.
If there hadn't been this heavy rain, the three of them would have gone to Whitechapel District to have fun as agreed——
This was Mrs. Ivens's idea. She said there were many boys there, young, inexperienced, and most importantly, easily satisfied.
Fortunately, I changed my mind last night, otherwise, the consequences would have been disastrous.
The Baroness lay on the bed, raised her eyes and scanned the room, quickly organizing her thoughts.
But today, a group of investigators who claimed to be secretly commissioned by Scotland Yard appeared. They first lurked into this private party, and then tried every means to get close to them. They waited until they had completely controlled the person before revealing their intentions.
"It is impossible to falsify the file. If we had not issued a hush order considering the negative impact of the case being exposed, major newspapers would have made this serial murder case public long ago."
Wensley said in a solemn tone: "If you don't believe it, you can go to No. 4 Whitehall Street under surveillance. There are more detailed files there."
"Or, contact a senior reporter on the phone and ask him about the serial murder case that occurred in the East District."
Now, the situation is clear.
Lu Li successfully took control of everything, and the Baroness and the two ladies began to believe that they were being targeted by criminal organizations.
"What to do? Hire a private security team, or..."
Before the Baroness could finish speaking, Lu Li interrupted:
"During this period, we will be responsible for all security work. You must follow the arrangements and go out appropriately."
Mrs. Ivens and Mrs. Ax were stunned. In this case, wouldn't it be safest to stay in the mansion and not go out?
Dame Vanessa also thought of this and asked doubtfully: "If I stay in this room all the time, won't there be no trouble? Purchasing ingredients and preparing afternoon tea and snacks are what servants have to do. If I am really free, If you are bored, you can also go to the garden inside the mansion to stroll around."
"Have you ever heard of an old proverb from the East? It's easy to hide from an open gun, but hard to guard against a hidden one."
Lu Li translated the meaning as best as he could and continued to lie, "Escape will not solve the problem. The simplest and most efficient way is to catch the murderers in one go."
"After all, if the murderer is not found, he will not be able to go out. You don't want to stay in the mansion your whole life without going out, right?"
The last sentence spoke to the Baroness's heart. She was too social and wanted to date all kinds of interesting boys.
For a week or two, I can grit my teeth and persist, but as time goes by, I will definitely not be able to bear it.
"Then what do you think we should do?"
Several eyes fell on Lu Li at the same time.
In fact, the relationship between everyone in the room was very strange. Lu Li and the tool men Bai Yu, Zhao Feng, and Gao Qian were firmly bound together, and Lu Li occupied an absolutely dominant position.
Officer Wensley represents Scotland Yard. He hopes to solve the case as soon as possible. In addition, he has a close personal relationship with Lu Li, so he cannot speak of unconditional support, but he is also willing to do something that seriously crosses the line.
The Baroness and her two best friends had no choice but to follow the arrangements.
The only exception was the old butler Mace. He had a revolver in his pocket and came with the intention of cleaning up the door. However, all plans were disrupted after the door opened.
Frankly speaking, Metz was full of expectations for that criminal organization. He kept thinking in his heart, could he use their help to help the family get rid of a harm?
"Go out for a walk more often in the evening. First go shopping in the square, then go to the dark alleys."
Although the idea of artificially creating opportunities and using bait to fish out the blond butcher is simple, it is indeed feasible.
After all, judging from the experience of the fight that day, the blonde is not good at insight. This can be deduced from her failure to notice that Pan Ming has been spying from a high place.
"when?"
The Countess was a little reluctant. It was so late and the weather was very bad. Only people with brain problems would want to go out.
"The sooner the better."
With that said, Lu Li motioned with his eyes to Bai Yu to help them open the handcuffs.
Although the metaphor is inappropriate, the gathering of these three slutty women was nothing less than a sumptuous feast for the blonde they met last time.
If the other party really has any special needs for the Unclean One, he will never miss this golden opportunity.
…
Pantheon.
A very commanding and mythical location, but in the foggy capital of the nineteenth century it was just a market, between Oxford Street and Regent Street, filled with small luxury shops.
After entering the foyer, you can see various antique sculptures, fountains, goldfish, a series of galleries, and glass rooms.
There are not many people who want to shop here. It is mainly used for meeting, walking, chatting and experiencing the bustling city. Especially on rainy days, it is particularly respectable to wander on the fashionable streets that can protect you from the rain.
Lu Li, who was leaning on a cane, wearing a wide-brimmed hat and sunglasses, acted very naturally. He didn't need to pretend at all, because he was just a passerby.
First stroll, then look at the shops, and finally take a swagger, as many gentlemen do.
Just like Lu Li, the same is true for Bai Yu, Officer Wensley and others. The former comes from an acting background and can play whatever he likes, while the latter is an out-and-out Londoner and can just act as he is.
Some people walked slowly holding newspapers, while others visited the display windows along the way. They seemed careless, but they had already firmly focused on the objects of protection.
"This is probably the first commercial district to realize modernization in the world."
Lu Li muttered in his heart.
In the Pantheon, you can't even notice that night is coming. There are bright lights everywhere, all kinds of lights, with almost no overlapping styles.
Many gentlemen personally drove luxury carriages along the broad avenue, and at the same time greeted the ladies who looked towards them.
On both sides, various luxury goods were displayed in transparent windows. To Lu Li's left was a bird taxidermy shop, including birds of paradise, parrots and hummingbirds. To the right was a funeral goods shop. It didn't look gloomy, but rather modern - —
Hanging plaques, obelisks, extinguished torches, and urns of various colors and materials.
In addition, there are high-end watch shops, photography shops, exquisite stationery shops, corset shops, jewelry shops, lace shops, French glove shops, perfume shops...
Judging from the blonde's past crime style, she doesn't like to be public, so the Baroness is not in danger for the time being.
During this period, Lu Li could just wander around and see if there was anything he could miss. He didn't need to be able to adjust the world line, timeline, and cause and effect line like the pocket watch in his hand, as long as it had some effect.
It is worth mentioning that unlike the East District, the shops here are very quiet. The waiters stand silently in the shop, smiling and waiting for customers to come. Because of this, it is necessary to determine what they sell or what services they provide through observation. .
A roll of tobacco, which is undoubtedly the tobacconist's trademark.
An arm holding a hammer in a striking shape, Lu Li guessed it was a blacksmith shop, but looking through the window, he saw that this was actually a gold foil shop.
"Boot shop?"
Lu Li saw a giant boot model.
In fact, a lot of people noticed this stuff.
In Her Majesty's eyes, it was big enough to fit through the giant statue of the sun god on Rhodes Island.
At this moment, the lady was well into the state, and she kept hinting that she was in a safe situation, with police officers armed with guns and skilled investigators protecting her all around——
Lu Li easily climbed to the second floor of the mansion with Wensley, leaving an impression of agility on the Baroness.
It has to be said that sometimes ignorance is really a blessing. If she knew how weird the blonde's killing method was, or if she saw the true face of the world, the Baroness would be crazy for a while and question her first half of life. authenticity.
"Sir, what do you want to buy or pawn?"
After observing for a while, Lu Li turned into a store and was immediately greeted by a male clerk wearing a white shirt and black vest.
This is actually a pawn shop!
The door was decorated with three gold balls. There was no transparent window, only a notice with a few large gilded characters on it:
Fireproof safes are provided.
Therefore, Lu Li subconsciously thought that this place was a private bank and that no transparent glass was used to protect customer privacy.
When I first came in, I saw a series of small cabinets and private boxes, which confirmed this guess.
But the result was unexpected. This place was actually a pawn shop. The reason why it was designed like this was probably to prevent customers from being seen by acquaintances and avoid all kinds of embarrassment.
This is not difficult to understand.
When a person needs to go to a pawn shop, it means that there is a problem with his financial resources and he must mortgage his things to tide over the difficulties. The people who come here are at least middle class and care about appearance.
After staying there for a moment, Lu Li said casually: "Just take a look and take action if you find something suitable."
Frankly speaking, Lu Li had nothing on him that could be pawned, except for his clothes, which were the mysterious pocket watch, the soul-binding bolt, and the wolf-headed sword and crutch in his hand. Even if his brain was caught in the door, he wouldn't sell it.
However, the sword crutch disguised as a cane caused the clerk to look up frequently.
In the eyes of knowledgeable people, both its workmanship, material, and even the historical heritage attached to it are extremely extraordinary.
Unfortunately, the customer was unwilling to pawn it.
Coats, mechanical watches, nanmu pipes...
In any case, this pawn shop is also opened in the Pantheon where every inch of land is precious, and it is difficult to see defective products.
"What if a guest comes to redeem me?"
Lu Li asked while holding a mechanical watch in his hand.
The clerk followed Lu Li's footsteps closely, his eyes fixed on the wolf-head handle.
At the same time, he patiently answered: "Our store has regulations. If the owner does not bring the pawn ticket to redeem the item within fifteen months, the pawnshop has the right to sell it."
"How is the ransom calculated?"
With that said, Lu Li put the adjusted watch back on the counter and walked towards the next one.
At the same time, the clerk showed a happy expression on his face. He thought that the customer wanted to pawn, and immediately introduced: "Before the pawn, we will sign an agreement with the customer to agree on the value of the pawn item, such as this one you are carrying. Cane, assuming you wish to sell.”
At this point, the clerk paused deliberately and praised in a slightly exaggerated tone: "It's worth at least five hundred pounds."
"I think it's worth two thousand pounds."
After making a casual joke, Lu Li picked up another watch and turned the crown.
"Yes, this cane is indeed worth this amount. If you are short of money recently and want to use it as collateral, our store will facilitate the transaction with the greatest sincerity."
The clerk believed it to be true. It was probably because Lu Li's not-so-expensive clothes gave him the wrong impression. He hurriedly said, "You should have heard that this industry is very deep and there are many tricks."
"Unscrupulous pawnshops will ask customers to take two pawn notes, each worth half the value of the goods, because the interest is calculated based on the base price, so when the owner comes back to redeem, he will need to pay a ransom of more than twice the agreed value."
At this time, Lu Li finally stopped and turned around. He had never taken it seriously, but now he could hear the desire in these words.
Frankly speaking, I have come into contact with not only ten thousand but also a thousand people, and no one has ever shown such a strong interest in this sword and crutch.
Two thousand pounds?
A sum of money unimaginable to ordinary people was enough to buy two apartments on Baker Street.
Therefore, Lu Li was very curious as to why a small shop assistant was so obsessed with a wolf-head cane.
You know, it has not yet entered its complete form. People who don’t know the inside story will only regard it as an ordinary silver-plated object, which is a daily necessities. Almost all the gentlemen on the street have one, including many gold canes and nanmu. cane.
"What about your store?"
Lu Li remained calm and picked up a square iron stove with Asclepius, the god of medicine in Greek mythology, engraved on it.
It was about the size of a palm and shouldn't have much practical value, but there were burn marks on it.
"Our store only has one pawn ticket and will never play tricks. Within fifteen months, if the customer has enough money, he can redeem it again with an interest rate of 12% per month. This is a very sincere condition. Other stores have It’s 15% to 20%…”
"What if I use money to redeem something and accidentally lose it?" Lu Li asked as he opened the stove cover and examined it carefully.
Hearing this, the clerk obviously hesitated for a moment, and it took him a moment to react and assured:
"This kind of thing has never happened to our store so far. If the customer is worried, he can write this clause into the contract. If the store accidentally loses it, we will compensate you at twice the agreed value of the collateral. "
"Well, we'll talk in a few days. I have to go back and think about it." Lu Li spoke tactfully, and without waiting for the clerk to reply, he added, "How much does this cost? I bought it."
"Ten pounds. The pawn was a young man addicted to bad drugs. This guy claimed to be a descendant of Johann Rudolf Glauber."
"Excuse my limited knowledge."
"Well, that was an alchemist from two centuries ago who had been working on the panacea."
The clerk gave a brief introduction and then said: "We don't know whether the ancestor of that customer is really Glauber, but after identification, this small stove does have a history of nearly two hundred years."
"Um."
Lu Li nodded and did not bargain. He took out a money bag from his pocket. It contained exactly ten gold coins, no more and no less. It was the preliminary activity funds provided by Scotland Yard.
