Volume 2: Female Corpse in Monk's Clothes Chapter 102 Who is the real murderer?
"That's a mosquito coil made of a mixture of grass powder and fruit," said Changping Hou Lu Jinlong. "It's cheap and low quality. It's no longer used. How could a child of your age have seen it?"
"We?" Unexpectedly, the girl in blue clothes said unconvincedly, "I am already fifteen years old. This happened ten years ago. I was already born. Lord Marquis, please don't laugh at our young age!"
"No, I was wrong," Lu Jinlong quickly corrected himself, "What I meant was that you all come from wealthy families and have never seen this kind of mosquito coil.
"Xu Tixing," he turned to introduce to Xu Zun, "Although this mosquito coil is effective in killing mosquitoes, it is extremely choking.
"Even ten years ago, it was mostly used in temples and Buddhist halls. Families with slightly better economic conditions would not use it. Now it is almost extinct in Shangyuan City!"
"Oh?" Xu Zun asked hurriedly, "Then how can the Marquis know so clearly?"
"Hmm... cough cough..." Marquis Changping coughed, and actually winked at Xu Zun, then turned to Lu Mingyue and said, "How is it, Mingyue? I have explained my affairs clearly, can you go back now?"
"No, no," Lu Mingyue waved her hand, and all the ladies shook their heads, "We haven't understood yet!"
"Little sister," Xu Zun already understood what the Marquis meant, and immediately said to Lu Mingyue, "People should be honest. It is rare for the Marquis to come to the county government to explain the case. Now that I have explained it clearly, you can go back first!"
What’s interesting is that when Xu Zun was talking to Lu Mingyue, he actually exchanged glances with Lu Mingyue.
"Oh..." Lu Mingyue was very smart and understood Xu Zun's meaning instantly.
It was obvious that the Marquis had something important to say, but he couldn't say it in front of these girls.
Therefore, only if she temporarily stepped aside could the Marquis make his words clear.
"Okay," Lu Mingyue stood up and said to the sisters, "Let's go back first! Don't worry, I will inform you when my brother Xu finds out something! Let's go, let's go..."
"My dear ladies," Xu Zun also reminded, "There have been many crimes in Shangyuan City recently. Please pay attention to your safety."
“Hehehe…”
When Xu Zun said this, all the girls laughed. It was the first time they heard the fashionable term "little sister".
As soon as the girls left, Wei Beihui followed them out to protect their safety.
"Huh..." Seeing the girl leave, the Marquis heaved a sigh of relief and said to Xu Zun, "It's finally quiet! Xu Tixing, now you know how lively my Marquis' Mansion is on weekdays, right?"
"Miss Lu is so heroic," Xu Zun said with a smile, "She will definitely be a heroine in the future!"
"Alas, that's not what I, as a father, want to see," Lu Jinlong sighed and said, "If it weren't for her grandmother's frequent intervention, Mingyue wouldn't have this kind of personality. I would rather she was a lady from a wealthy family."
"My Lord," Xu Zun knew that it was pointless to talk more about this kind of family topic, so he went straight to the point and asked, "You seemed to have something to say just now?"
"Hmm..." Lu Jinlong said, "I only knew about that kind of mosquito coil after I met Monk Liankong.
"Back then, Liankong used this kind of incense in his residence. It has a strong aroma of grass fruit, which is easy to remember.
"It is said that although this kind of incense is a bit pungent, it can help to refresh the mind. Monk Liankong translates scriptures every night, so he is very dependent on this incense."
oh……
Xu Zun thought for a moment and asked:
"My Lord, in your opinion, is Monk Liankong innocent? Is he really the Monk's Killer?"
"If I say that I don't care about that case, I'm afraid you won't believe it," Lu Jinlong said with a faint smile, "But... if I say I care, it's not really the case.
“When I was in prison, I asked the monk Liankong several times, and he just said that he had committed a serious crime that was unforgivable and against the Buddha’s will.
"Therefore, judging from his attitude, he should be the monk-robed killer, but..." Lu Jinlong frowned, "The reason he gave to the government was ridiculously wrong!"
"Oh?" Xu Zun asked hurriedly, "Why do you think so?"
“I heard from the Tai County Magistrate that Liankong killed people based on the verses in the Ci Luo Bei Sutra, in order to help those women who were trapped in the sins of reincarnation to be reborn!
"It also says that in order to cleanse the sins and help the deceased to be reborn, the internal organs of the deceased must be cleaned... Tsk tsk..." Lu Jinlong shook his head and said, "This is simply nonsense and goes against the Buddha's will.
“The Magnificent Sutra does have records about reincarnation, but no matter which verse it is, you still need to cleanse yourself of your sins!
"So-called self-care means clearing one's desires and purifying one's heart. It never says that one should help others attain salvation. How could Lian Kong, as a great monk, not understand this principle?"
Oh? Is that so?
Xu Zun felt like he had entered a fog again and it was difficult to find the direction.
"My Lord," Xu Zun looked around and asked in a low voice, "Do you think there were any problems when the case was tried back then?"
"I understand. You want to say that he was framed and tortured into confessing, right?" Lu Jinlong waved his hand and said, "Don't worry about that. I know Taimin well. He is timid and would never dare to do anything to such a big case!
"Besides, if you really want to frame someone, there's no need to put the blame on a high monk, right?"
"Well, that makes sense."
Xu Zun had thought so before. It seemed that there were no problems with either the trial or Lian Kong's confession.
"My Lord," Xu Zun asked again, "You said that when Lian Kong committed the crime, he was translating Buddhist scriptures. Could his case be related to those Buddhist scriptures?"
"Oh, this is..." Lu Jinlong frowned and shook his head repeatedly, "The Mahakala Sutra and the Aiko Buddha Sutra both talk about the supreme Buddhist thoughts. Although they are only fragments, they almost cover everything! It's hard to say, hard to say..."
"Then..." Xu Zun asked again, "At that time, who was Lian Kong close to? Was there anyone he was particularly close to? For example, fellow apprentices? Or...relatives?"
"Well..." Lu Jinlong recalled, "Lian Kong was pure-hearted and introverted, and had a good relationship with the monks in the temple.
“I’m not sure about my fellow disciples, but I certainly don’t have any disciples. After all, no one is willing to spend a lot of time and effort on translating scriptures.
"As for relatives, there are none. I heard," Lu Jinlong said, "Lian Kong has lived in the Huguo Temple since he was a child. He should have never had any relatives, right?"
After saying this, there was a brief silence.
Both sides have their own thoughts.
"Xu Tixing," Lu Jinlong said to Xu Zun after a long pause, "Logically speaking, it is not appropriate for this marquis to interfere in the case.
"But now that I'm here and have said so much, I wonder if you can help me solve a problem?"
"Oh? Please speak, my lord!"
"Can you be sure that the two cases at Huguo Temple and Luohan Temple were committed by the monk killer back then," Lu Jinlong asked solemnly?
“If it can be confirmed, then it means that Lian Kong took the blame for someone else back then!
"If not, then someone is imitating me!"
"This..." Xu Zun replied, "To be honest with you, Lord, I am not completely sure yet."
"How is that possible?" Lu Jinlong was puzzled. "Then Ju Ran was in charge of the case back then. How could he not be able to tell if it was the real murderer?"
"My Lord," Xu Zun thought for a moment and explained, "We can only say that the modus operandi is almost exactly the same, but we cannot be 100% sure that it was done by the monk killer himself!"
"Ah?" Lu Jinlong was surprised. "Is there such a thing? This case is really bizarre!
"Xu Tixing, since the methods are almost identical, even if someone imitated it, it must have been someone who was extremely familiar with the case, right?"
Why?
This one sentence immediately made Xu Zun's eyes light up.
Lu Jinlong was right. If the murderer was not the real murderer from that year, nor someone who was close to Lian Kong, then... he must be someone who was particularly familiar with the case of the female corpse in monk's clothes!
Who could this person be?!?