Volume 1 Zhangqiao Iron Coffin Chapter 16 Thirty-seven Corpses
The next morning, Xu Zun crawled out from under the bed.
Feeling the warm sunshine, I feel more energetic and all the haze is gone.
However, he knew in his heart that the fog surrounding the case of You Dalang murdering his wife had not dissipated with the sunshine.
Just in case, he did not sleep in bed last night. Instead, he made the bedding into a human shape and hid it under the bed.
To this end, he not only fell asleep with a sword in his arms, but also carried two sharp daggers.
Fortunately, the night was peaceful and nothing unusual happened.
Looking at the light coming through the window lattices, Xu Zun felt it more real.
He was sure that he was not mentally ill last night and that someone was indeed following or monitoring him.
So…why would anyone track or spy on themselves?
Is there anyone who doesn't want me to investigate You Dalang's case anymore?
The more this happened, the more curious Xu Zun became, and the more he felt that the truth behind this case was not simple.
After getting up, the servant Xiaoqi had already prepared toiletries for Xu Zun.
Xiaoqi is a young man under 20 years old. His original name was Xiaoqi, but later Xu Zun got used to calling him Xiaoqi.
Although he was a servant, all the affairs of the Xu family were taken care of by this young man, and he was like the future butler.
"Master," Xiao Qi said as he prepared water for Xu Zun to wash his face, "You don't look very well. You didn't even eat the food I prepared for you last night. Did something happen?"
Since Xiaoqi had been busy at home, he didn't know what Xu Zun experienced yesterday.
"Oh, nothing," Xu Zun answered casually after washing his face, "I was just hit by a club and was almost framed as a murderer!"
"Ah?" Xiao Qi was shocked when he heard this. "Don't be kidding! You are the county lieutenant, who dares to frame you?"
Yes, Xu Zun wondered in his heart, he was a county lieutenant, but You Dalang actually dared to frame him, where did he get such courage?
Could it be that he was being instructed by someone?
Ding ding ding...
Ding ding ding...
Just then, there was a hurried knock on the door outside the courtyard.
"Who is this? Why are you so rude so early in the morning?" Xiao Qi frowned and muttered while running quickly to the door.
From the rapid knocks on the door, Xu Zun could tell that the person knocking on the door must be very anxious.
Could it be that something big happened again?
The gate opened, and the head constable Zhao Yu and several constables quickly entered the courtyard. He shouted to Xu Zun in panic:
"Master Xu, Master Xu! Something big has happened! Something big has happened!!"
I click...
Xu Zun was shocked. He didn't expect that his bad words would come true.
He remembered that he had ordered Zhao Yu and others to go to Huaxiang Tower to investigate the situation yesterday. Could it be... that something happened in Huaxiang Tower?
However, Zhao Yu's next words left Xu Zun confused.
“Sir!” Zhao Yu came closer and said anxiously, clasping his fists, “Something big has happened. The iron… the iron coffin has appeared again!”
"Iron coffin?"
Xu Zun frowned and searched his memory, but no relevant information popped up.
What is going on?
"Yes, sir!" Zhao Yu said, "Our former county lieutenant was exiled because he was implicated in the Iron Coffin Case!"
Oh my god!
Xu Zun widened his eyes and searched his memory again, only then did he vaguely find some relevant information.
The former county lieutenant of Xinye County was indeed dismissed and investigated for his poor investigation of the case, and finally ended up being exiled to the border and died in a foreign land.
However, he didn't know what the case was about.
"Sir, it's still on the Zhang Bridge in the back mountain!" Zhao Yu said, "The location is exactly right! The county magistrate has already gone there, you should go and take a look too..."
…
Xinye County is a county town backed by a mountain. The mountain behind has no name, so the locals simply call it the back mountain.
Although the back mountain is not high, the terrain is steep. There is only one road leading into the mountain, and Zhangqiao is an ordinary stone bridge on this road.
One day two years ago, an incredible and serious murder occurred on this stone bridge.
An inky black iron coffin suddenly appeared on the broken Zhang Bridge!
Next to the iron coffin, there were 37 corpses scattered in a mess. The 37 people died in tragic and horrific ways!
It is said that it was early winter at the time and the stream under the bridge was dyed red with blood, which was shocking and made people who saw it shudder.
The case was serious and soon alarmed the governor of Tangzhou.
The governor asked the Xinye County Office to investigate the case as soon as possible. However, the case was very strange. In the end, not only was the origin of the iron coffin clear, but even the identities of the dead were not found out.
Finally, the governor was furious and dismissed the county magistrate and the county lieutenant from their posts. The county lieutenant was even exiled to the border and eventually died in a foreign land.
I really couldn't believe that two years later, on the second day after Xu Zun came to this world, the iron coffin appeared again!
It really doesn't give me a break!
Xu Zun was feeling depressed. The case of You Dalang murdering his wife had not been solved yet, but a shocking case broke out here. This time travel was really a bummer.
After carefully searching his memory, he found that he had indeed been in Xinye County when the Iron Coffin Case occurred.
However, he was not yet a county lieutenant at that time, and the government blocked the information about the Iron Coffin Case in order not to cause panic, so Xu Zun did not know much about the case.
But now it’s different. As the current county lieutenant, I have undoubtedly become the person .
If he still couldn't handle the case this time, he might repeat the mistakes of his predecessor.
County Magistrate Qiu is a Jinshi Hanlin and a disciple of the emperor. If he fails to handle the case properly, he will probably have to take the blame himself.
"Old Zhao," Xu Zun asked Zhao Yu, "How many people died this time?"
"I don't know for sure!" Zhao Yu answered truthfully, "I haven't been to the scene yet, but the person who reported the case said that no body was found."
"Oh," Xu Zun felt a little relieved and asked again, "So, in the last iron coffin case, what was inside the iron coffin?"
"Well..." Zhao Yu replied, "I don't know either!"
"Stop it!" Xu Zun said, "You've been a detective for more than ten years. Since Xinye County was asked to investigate the case, how could you not know about it?"
"Sir," Zhao Yu looked around first, then answered in a low voice, "Back then, I had not yet been promoted, I was just an ordinary detective, and I had no access to the core of the case.
"I only remember that before the iron coffin could be opened, people from the county governor's office and the governor's office had already arrived!" Zhao Yuyan said, "They sealed off the scene, removed the iron coffin and the body, and asked us in Xinye County to thoroughly investigate the case. Sigh..."
emmm……
Xu Zun muttered to himself, feeling overwhelmed.
What kind of logic is this?
Since you asked me to investigate the case, why did you take away all the evidence?
"Sir," Zhao Yu said uneasily, "I saw that iron coffin with my own eyes back then. It was really scary!"
"In this case," Xu Zun said, "we must learn from our experience and open the coffin as soon as possible!"