There is a god in the sky

Chapter 47 The Murder of a Wealthy Family in Jianzhou (Part 10)

After writing the letter to the Marquis of Pingyang, Xiao Ji wrote another letter home.

Shen Lan saw him take an exquisite mother-of-pearl inlaid lacquer jewelry box from the bookshelf, which was more beautiful than any jewelry box she had ever seen online before.

She recalled what Sui Ying had said and said with a smile, "Lord Xiao is quite considerate to his fiancée."

Xiao Ji paused, a hint of embarrassment appearing on his face.

"This is a gift for my younger sister. She asked me to buy a jewelry box like this in the south before the New Year."

Shen Lan blinked and asked curiously, "Didn't you buy one for your fiancée too?"

Isn't this a perfect opportunity to give gifts and win favor?

Xiao Ji probably hadn't thought that far ahead. Hearing Shen Lan's suggestion, he nodded and said, "You're right. I'll have someone find another one like that tomorrow."

Shen Lan reminded him, "The styles can be similar, but never buy the exact same one."

No little girl likes receiving the same gift as everyone else.

Xiao Ji seemed to understand, but considering that the other party hadn't really liked the things he'd given her before, he figured it was always right to listen to Shen Lan.

His engagement to his fiancée was arranged by his parents, and they had only met once. Over the years, they had maintained contact only through a few letters, and there was no deep affection between them.

But since the other party will be his wife in the future, Xiao Ji naturally hopes for a harmonious marriage.

As for Shen Lan's marriage, Master Wei entrusted it to him, and he should do his part.

But now that he has a major case on his hands, he doesn't have the extra energy to deal with it.

His gaze unconsciously fell on Shen Lan's face.

The girl had fair and delicate skin and exquisite features. She looked much better without makeup than with heavy makeup.

Her eyebrows and eyes naturally exude a heroic spirit, especially when she is focused on doing something, she exudes a strong sense of confidence.

It was a composure and confidence that ordinary young women in their boudoirs lacked.

It's strange that a little country girl not only learned autopsy skills but also knew how to read and write and had a wide range of knowledge.

The only thing that wasn't quite right was her handwriting.

Xiao Ji's gaze fell on the words Shen Lan had written, which were like those of a three-year-old child learning to write, with uneven horizontal and vertical lines, barely legible.

“Miss Shen, tomorrow Officer Lei and I will be returning to the crime scene. If you have nothing else to do, you can come with us.”

Young women are observant; they might notice something different.

"Okay," Shen Lan agreed.

Drawing on modern investigative methods, she offered Xiao Ji several suggestions.

For example, since the murder weapon has not been found, could a search be conducted in the vicinity?

Furthermore, the murderer walked around the Wu residence, inside and out, before committing the murder. Did he leave any footprints or personal belongings?

So many people were killed, some didn't even have time to fight back, but surely someone saw the killer. Did they leave any clues?

When the third watch drum sounded, Xiao Ji realized it was already late at night.

Discussing the case with Shen Lan gave him a sense of sudden enlightenment.

"If Miss Shen were a man, she would surely be an outstanding chief criminal investigator. I admire her!"

Shen Lan said modestly, "I do have good experience in autopsies, but solving cases is not my forte."

Xiao Jizhen really wanted to ask, where did this experience come from?

This girl seems to be hiding a huge secret, making people want to explore it and unveil its secrets.

The next day, Shen Lan got up early to visit Chen.

Liao Chen's fever has subsided, but his cough is still quite severe.

Shen Lan rewrote his prescription and told him to take the medicine properly.

"You have a good constitution, but you recover quickly because you are young. When you are sick, you should rest more and not run around."

Liao Chen's eyes were filled with reluctance as he said, "I've been down the mountain for many days now, and it's time for me to go back so that my master won't worry."

Shen Lan paused for a moment. "I heard that Fayin Temple is not far away. Wait for me to come back, and I will take you back. I can also visit you often in the future."

"Hmm." Liao Chen smiled awkwardly.

He shouldn't have come back.

But he had only just met Shen Lan and hadn't even had a chance to look at her more than once, so how could he bear to part with her like this?

I don't know when we'll meet again.

He wondered if she would still smile at him the next time they met.

He silently prayed in his heart: Little Lan'er, live well. Some things have to be done by someone, but it can't be you.

The Wu residence has been searched inside and out several times.

Finally, Shen Lan found the missing half of the wooden stick in the earthen stove in the kitchen.

Half of the wooden stick was burned to charcoal, and the other half was covered with a layer of black ash.

Shen Lan was convinced that this was the murder weapon because there were obvious fingerprints on the half-burnt wooden stick.

"The fingerprints might not have been left by the murderer, could they? They could have been left by the kitchen maid."

The arriving constable Lei couldn't believe that such an important clue could be found by the coroner.

"If it were just for burning firewood, you wouldn't hold it in this spot. If you weren't holding it for a long time and your palms were sweaty, it would be difficult to leave these fingerprints."

The murderer was indeed incredibly strong.

"Even if it's proven to be the murder weapon, so what? It just looks like an ordinary piece of wood."

Xiao Ji shook his head. "No, this stick must have been pulled from the broom. Go look for a broken broom."

Sui Feng led a group of yamen runners to search everywhere.

Brooms are so common that they didn't even notice them just now.

But if you're determined to look for it, it's quite easy to find.

Finally, it was found in the courtyard of Wu Zhongjin's study, which confirmed Shen Lan's deduction: Wu Zhongjin was the first to be murdered.

After killing Wu Zhongjin, the murderer began a bloodbath at the Wu family home. He started from the study and left through the main entrance, which means he did indeed swagger out.

"That's too arrogant!" Officer Lei couldn't help but shout angrily.

In all his years as a head constable, he had never seen such an arrogant and composed murderer.

Xiao Ji gripped the stick and retraced the murderer's route.

"Most of the bodies were found in bed, murdered in their sleep."

"It is now known that only four guards, two doormen, and the steward were still awake at the time and died outside."

"Everyone else is fine, but why is the butler in the front yard so late at night?"

Shen Lan raised a question: "The murderer committed the crime in the middle of the night. Although he had a clear advantage, didn't he make a sound at all? Didn't anyone hear the noise and run out?"

Xiao Ji and she exchanged a glance, and said in unison, "Could it be that everyone in the Wu household has been drugged?"

Shen Lan walked into the nearest room and found a teapot on the table.

She poured herself a cup of tea, smelled it first, and then took a small sip.

Xiao Ji stopped her, saying, "Miss Shen, it's best to be careful."

He picked up the teapot, opened the lid, and smelled it, but didn't detect any strange odor.

Of course, it cannot be ruled out that it is a colorless and odorless drug.

Shen Lan dismissed his idea, saying, "There was no drug in the water; it was just ordinary tea."

Lei Dajiang didn't believe it, so he poured himself a large glass and drank it, then licked his lips after finishing.

"It seems... there's no problem."

He watched Shen Lan pacing around the house, puzzled. "What are you looking for, Miss Shen?"

"Besides water, there is another way to administer drugs over a large area."