Volume 3: Evil Ghosts Eat People Chapter 183: Is it really a ghost?
At 9:00 in the morning, at Kuhe Wharf in Yonghui City.
The tavern where the accident happened had been opened by the officials, and Xu Zun brought three ship owners who were drinking with Yan Sen at the time into the tavern.
Just in case, Xu Zun always kept Ku Niang with him, letting her sit in the carriage and wait outside.
In addition, Zhao Yu, Huo Anu and other guards were also present.
As soon as they entered the tavern, the three ship owners couldn't help shivering. Thinking of the scene of the macaque ghost that day, their legs became weak and they couldn't move.
"That day..." one of the boat owners pointed to the seats near the river and said, "We had a drink at this table, with Manager Yan facing the main entrance with his back to the Ku River.
"Then, the beast came in from the main door, jumped over the table and knocked Manager Yan to the ground, then dragged him into the wine cellar and bit him to death..."
oh……
Xu Zun observed the scene and found that the bloodstains on the ground had not been cleaned yet, and there was a smell of blood in the cold air.
"That is to say..." Zhao Yu asked behind Xu Zun, "The target of the ghost is very clear? It is going after Shopkeeper Yan?"
"Yes, yes, it seems to be so." The three of them nodded in unison.
"At that time," Xu Zun asked , "when the ghost appeared, didn't Manager Yan have bodyguards around him?"
"Yes, yes," one of them answered, "This whole tavern is owned by Manager Yan, and all the employees in the store are his people."
"However," said another ship owner, "the macaque is too scary. After Manager Yan was dragged in, none of us dared to go in!"
"Can you describe to me in detail what the beast looks like?" Xu Zun asked again.
"It looks just like the ones in New Year pictures, with green scales all over its body and fangs on its face," someone described it. "It walks on four legs, and its front claws are very sharp, and its teeth are also very sharp!"
"Also," another added, "when it pounced on me, I heard it roar like a wild beast. It was so frightening!"
"Yes, yes," the last one said, "When the leopard ghost came out, it seemed that the sky suddenly became dark. It was so cold that it should have snowed, but it rained instead."
"What happened next?" Xu Zun asked again.
Then, the three people narrated what happened later, saying that after Manager Yan was bitten to death by the macaque ghost, the macaque ghost pushed everyone away and jumped directly into the water and disappeared.
Later, County Magistrate Qin Lang rushed over after hearing the news, but no one expected that as soon as Qin Lang entered the wine cellar to check the corpse, the macaque ghost appeared again, knocked Qin Lang down and bit him.
If the officials present had not driven him away with sticks, Qin Lang would probably have lost his life on the spot.
Even so, Qin Lang was seriously injured. It was said that the macaque bit his cheekbone and pierced his cheek directly, causing Qin Lang to be completely disfigured and even having difficulty opening his mouth to eat.
Next, Xu Zun carefully investigated the scene, and after some thought, he asked the three ship owners:
"When you and Manager Yan were drinking, did he behave strangely?"
The three of them shook their heads in unison.
"Do you know who Shopkeeper Yan has offended recently?"
The three of them shook their heads in unison.
"So what were you and Manager Yan talking about while drinking?"
"Let's talk about purchasing goods," a ship owner replied . "Recently, Manager Yan bought a batch of good goods from Shuzhou. They are all top-quality Shu embroidery and Shu brocade. We are discussing how to take over the goods!"
"Then..." Xu Zun asked, "Where is the batch of goods now?"
"It should still be in Shuzhou!" said another ship owner. "Originally, we were planning to ask you for help. We can make a lot of money from this batch of goods!"
"Lang Jun?" Xu Zun was curious, "Who is Lang Jun?"
"Oh," the ship owner replied, "It's our boss Li's husband. He is the county magistrate of Zhinan County, which borders Shuzhou. He can just handle this batch of goods!"
What!!?
Xu Zun's heart skipped a beat and he asked hastily, "Is this young man Li Rong'er's husband?"
"Yes!" The boat owner nodded, "His county magistrate was also arranged by our Boss Li!"
Wow...
Xu Zun's forehead was already covered with sweat. He never expected that he would encounter such a thing related to green again.
Li Ronger already has a husband, why is she still... ah...
Is this my fate?
After the three ship owners left, Hou Zhen came in and reported: "Sir, after Manager Yan was killed, the Zishan Sect wiped out the gang members in the warehouse, and the staff of this wine shop has fled without a trace.
"The people in the other large warehouses have all gone into hiding. It will take some time to find them."
"Hmm..." Xu Zun nodded and asked Zhao Yu and Huo Anu, "What do you two think?"
"It's definitely not a ghost!" Huo Anu insisted, "If a ghost wants to kill someone, it doesn't have to be so ostentatious. It can kill people invisibly."
"Yeah," Zhao Yu agreed, "From what I heard from these people, it seems that this ghost is more like a monster! Otherwise, how could it make such a howling sound?"
"That makes sense," Xu Zun nodded, "but there is a question. If the ghost is a monster, how can it kill only Yan Sen and Qin Lang?"
"Is it possible..." Zhao Yu wondered, "Is this monster domesticated? Or... or..."
"Someone pretending to be a demon?" Huo Anu guessed, "A person with great martial arts skills pretending to be a demon?"
"There's one more thing I don't quite understand," Xu Zun pointed at the wine cellar, "Since the leopard ghost killed people in a high-profile manner, wouldn't it be more satisfying to bite Yan Sen to death on the spot? Why did it drag him into the wine cellar first and then bite him to death?"
"Sir..." At this time, Zhao Yu suggested, "How about we ask the most important person involved? I think no one knows this matter better than Qin Lang!"
"Yes, that's right, but..." Xu Zun said, "Before visiting the governor of Qin , we have to go and see Yan Sen's body."
After saying that, Xu Zun walked out of the tavern and told Hou Zhen and Ashuzi, "You two go find the guys in the big warehouse. I want to know what Yan Sen did!"
"Yes!" The two took the order and left.
Next, Xu Zun led the crowd straight to the charity cemetery. However, because it took too long, the people in the charity cemetery told Xu Zun that Yan Sen’s body had already been buried!
For some unknown reason, the corpse decayed very badly. In just a few days, it had rotted and smelled, and turned into a pool of rotten meat.
Originally, Xu Zun wanted to follow the example of ancient famous detectives and open the coffin to perform an autopsy, but when he heard this, he gave up the idea.
Since they could not examine the body, they had to settle for the next best thing and go to the inner residence of the county government to visit the county magistrate Qin Lang.
The county magistrate Tian Murong naturally did not dare to obstruct, and immediately invited Xu Zun and others into Qin Lang's residence.
The result was just as others had described. Qin Lang's cheeks were covered with wounds stitched with needle and thread, and his lips, nose and cheeks were damaged, looking extremely tragic.
Qin Lang opened his mouth but couldn't say a word. He looked confused. No matter how Tian Murong introduced him, he didn't know who Xu Zun was.
Qin Lang's family members were taking care of him and wiping away tears as they did so. Who could have thought that a county governor would be so miserable.
Seeing this situation, Xu Zun could only express his condolences and then leave his residence.
Tsk tsk…
Zhao Yu smacked his lips and sighed, muttering to himself, "A 猄鬼 is so hard to figure out, not to mention the 猄鬼 that can turn people into bones, and the 獜鬼 that can turn people into charcoal!
"Sir," he said to Xu Zun half-jokingly, "Do you think we need to find a mage with more advanced skills?"
Xu Zun smiled but said nothing, as if he had already made some plans in his mind...
