The Famous Detective of the Red Mansion

Chapter 342: Longsheng Old Store Mysterious Event [(1)]

On the sixth day of April, in the evening, two men, and four women; a total of six outsiders rented an independent small courtyard behind the Longsheng Old Store.

After nightfall the next day, the shop assistant, Zhou Bajin, followed the usual practice and went to the backyard to ask if they needed hot water. However, he found that the courtyard door was wide open and there was no light inside.

Zhou Bajin was worried that they had encountered a thief, so he quickly called for Shopkeeper Zhao to come to the store and come inside together with lanterns to check.

Unexpectedly, they found that all six guests were lying naked on the ground, with holes in their chests and their hearts cut out!

Even though Shopkeeper Zhao fainted from fear, Zhou Bajin still called for the help of the guests in the neighboring courtyard before carrying him back to the front.

With this delay, the matter naturally couldn't be covered up.

When Zhao Wuwei received the report and arrived overnight, it was unknown how many people had entered and exited the scene, leaving behind a lot of vomit.

After on-site inspection, it was confirmed that all six of them had traces of being bound on their hands and feet, and there were multiple injuries on their bodies, indicating that they had been severely beaten during their lifetime.

The fatal injury was when their chest was opened and their heart was removed.

Given this detail, after taking over the case, Wei Ruolan pointed fingers at the possibility of revenge and instructed Private Advisor Qi to conduct a more detailed investigation.

However, this careful investigation didnt have much effect; the case has become complicated and confusing!

Upon hearing Private Advisor Qi's bitter smile, he said, "Initially, I asked the people in the inn to determine who had entered and exited the inn before and after the incident. However, everyone agreed that those six people were still alive before the evening.

Since entering the door, it has been Private Advisor Qi who has been speaking. Wei Ruolan only occasionally responded, obviously feeling that seeking help from Sun Shaozong would greatly lose his face.

Theyre still alive before the evening?

Sun Shaozong furrowed his brows and picked up the case file before questioning, "But the autopsy report clearly states that they died between 7:00 am to 11:00 pm; how could they still be alive in the evening?

After a pause, he hesitated and said, "Could it be that the body was once subjected to some manipulation that led to a misjudgment of the time of death?

I found it weird too.

Private Advisor Qi spread his hands and smiled bitterly. "But after several days of investigation, I didn't find any trace. Besides, the person in charge of the autopsy is Old Xu from our office. If there's something fishy, he should be able to detect it.

Not to mention Old Xu's professional qualities, Private Advisor Qi was also a Senior Official of the Criminal Department. Since he has already been interfered with, it was reasonable to say that he was unlikely to be fooled.

Also

Private Advisor Qi said again, "Not only did those six people have their clothes stripped off, but their luggage disappeared. They are not locals, so it is still difficult to confirm their identities until now, and the motive of the murderer is even more difficult to determine.

Even if there was not much luggage and six people's clothes, shoes, and socks, there should still be a considerable lump. It might not be easy to quietly transport it out.

Binding, beating, gouging out the heart, and possibly forcing questions should also take a lot of time.

Was it a collaboration between the inside and outside?

Sun Shaozong went through various suspicions and asked, "Where are the confessions of those witnesses?

Private Advisor Qi quickly approached and selected a few from the nearly a hundred pages of investigation records to point out to Sun Shaozong, saying, "Your Excellency, please take a look. All the statements related to time have been sorted out in one place.

Looking at the thick stack of records and his impressive demeanor, one could tell that he has put in a lot of effort for this case.

Sun Shaozong carefully read these few pages of confession and found that nearly half of them were the confession of Shopkeeper Zhou Bajin, while the remaining half belonged to a couple living in the next courtyard, the Shopkeeper of Longsheng Old Store, a waiter from a nearby restaurant, and a wandering Taoist.

The content of the confession was roughly as followed:

Waiter: I was called over in the morning and asked to recommend what food we had in our store. I recommended some specialty dishes, but to my surprise, the guests were very dissatisfied with the food. After lunch, they ordered a table of wine and vegetables from a nearby restaurant.

Nearby tavern waiter, Wang Ergou: Yes, yes. When I brought the wine and vegetables, the guests were still alive and well. At 2 pm, I came to collect the dishes, and they were all fine.

The Shopkeeper Zhou Bajin: Those guests must have had a few more drinks and started activities in bed. Hehe, you also know that men and women are not always so innocent when working away from home.

There was probably too much noise, which caused the couple next door to argue. The male guest next door came to argue and had a fierce argument with a female guest inside. When the Shopkeeper and I rushed over to pull them apart, the man had already been kicked out.

The guest surnamed Zhang, who was persuaded by both of us then calmed down.

Manager Zhao of Rongsheng Old Store: It was I who heard a commotion inside first, and then called out Zhou Bajin over and persuaded them to stop the fight.

Zhang Kai, who lives next door: Reply to Your Excellency, I and Zhujing did indeed hear them in having exercises in bed. It should have been around 3 pm at that time.

I came to ask them to keep their voices down, but unexpectedly, a shrewd woman came out and cursed me!

That's right, that's right. One of them died. This woman has a horse face, and even if she is burnt to ashes, I can recognize it!

Zhang Kai's wife: I wanted to stop my husband at the time, but he insisted on theorizing. Fortunately, he only had a few arguments; otherwise, one against six..."

The Shopkeeper Zhou Bajin: In the evening, a wandering Taoist accidentally entered the backyard and said he wanted to help several guests with fortune telling. However, he was kicked out with a vengeance.

Manager Zhao of Rongsheng Old Store: When the Taoist entered, I saw it. However, since the following guests were all in the house, I didn't pay much attention.

Taoist Li, who travels around the world: To rebuild the temple, I want to earn some incense money in this Capital. In the past half month, I have visited dozens of inns in the western city. If you don't believe me, you can go and inquire.

Due to the fact that guests may not be inside during the day, the alleys are often used for morning, noon, and evening divination.

That evening, before I could explain the matter clearly after I entered, a chubby man pushed and shoved me out. If it weren't for the help of a shop assistant, I might have been injured by him earlier.

The Shopkeeper Zhou Bajin: I helped the old Taoist out, and after about 15 minutes, the shopkeeper instructed me to go around the houses and see if the guests wanted to use hot water at night. Unexpectedly, I found

What? You said they died in the morning? How could this... Be possible?! This is impossible!

Next door Zhang Kai: This is impossible! Unless the woman who is arguing with me is a demon!

Zhang Kai's wife: Dead... Dead people, can they also... Do things like that?!

Manager Zhao: Your... Your Excellency, don't joke around. I... I clearly heard that the woman was arguing with the guest next door!

Wandering Taoist Li: No wonder that chubby man insisted on driving me out. It turned out that he was turned into a fierce ghost! I forgot to open my divine eyes at that time, otherwise..."

Assistant Zhang Ergou from a nearby restaurant: My Lord, you... I can't understand what you're saying. Only living people need to eat; dead people... Dead people... cant eat, right?

The confession came to an end there.

But this content was really... It was incredibly bizarre!

Six people who had already died in the morning even had interactions with these many people in the afternoon!

Moreover, the last time Taoist Li and Zhou Bajin saw the deceased was only 15 minutes before and after the discovery of the body. Looking at the timing, not to mention the murdering and heart-digging of six people, even if the murderer only stripped their clothes off and took away their luggage, it would be difficult to achieve it, right?!

Upon seeing Sun Shaozong finish reading it, Private Advisor Qi beside him quickly added, "Based on the investigation these days, Zhou Bajin grew up in the City of Xi when he was young and worked as a clerk in Longsheng's Old Store for four years. He has never left the Capital before.

Manager Zhao has had three generations of business owners in Longsheng's Old Store and has never left the capital before.

The Zhang Kai couple next door is from Jinmen Prefecture. They came to the Capital for the first time to visit his sister, who got married two years ago. They temporarily stayed at an inn because they had a grudge against their brother-in-law.

Taoist Li is a member of the Cangzhou Prefecture in Hebei Province. Six years ago, he became a monk at Qinglong Temple in the State of Tong and traveled to the Capital half a month ago, earning a living by helping others by observing their appearance.

The restaurant waiter Wang Ergou, originally from Bao'an Prefecture, Hebei Province, has been living in the Capital since the disaster last year. He was only hired by the restaurant a few days ago as a waiter.

After listening, Sun Shaozong remained silent for a while before saying, "What do you mean is that there is no connection between these witnesses, let alone hiding on behalf of each other?

Exactly.

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