The missing person was named Sun Man. He was a gangster in the city. He had no home or friends, so no one knew when he disappeared. It was the neighbor who saw the bulletin posted by the government and said that all anomalies in the near future should be paid more attention to, so he hesitated to report the case to the government to avoid being implicated innocently.
The emperor was in Dayan City, so Xu Zhiqiu naturally did not dare to slack off. When Chu Yuan went to the government, the yamen had already brought a little widow back, looking at her pretty brows, she knelt in front of the hall and shivered all the time. Seeing the emperor, he was even more panicked, and he didn't say anything else, he only knew how to kowtow and complain.
Everyone in the city could see that Sun Man and this romantic little widow who sold tofu were a little unclear, but it didn't matter to him, and no one thought about meddling, at most joking after tea and dinner. two sentences. When he heard that the person was gone, naturally the big guy's first reaction was related to her.
Halfway through the trial, another onlooker villager remembered, saying that he had seen Sun Man the day before yesterday afternoon, and he was picking and buying flowers beside the trader's burden, saying that he would like to show off, but he never saw him again. The little widow was shaking like a chaff, and said that she had made an appointment with Sun Man for a private meeting the night before, but no one came after waiting all night. Later, she heard that there was a fire in Ye Shantang, and she thought he was going to watch the fun. I had it before, so I didn't take it to heart, and I really don't know about the rest.
"What physical characteristics does Sun Manke have?" Chu Yuan asked.
"Back to the emperor, this person is a prankster in the city. A few years ago, his right leg was broken for molesting a woman from a good family. After the injury, he walked with high and low feet." Xu Zhiqiu said.
Chu Yuan nodded, and after whispering a few words in Sixi's ear, he took people to Shantang.
The twenty-six corpses were still neatly placed in the courtyard, and after a while, Duan Baiyue also rushed over.
"I said earlier, which corpse is different from the rest?" Chu Yuan asked.
"The far left." Duan Baiyue said, "Sixi just said that there is a gangster missing in this city, but he?"
"Nine times out of ten." Chu Yuan reached out and tried to lift the white cloth, but was caught by his wrist.
Duan Baiyue said: "Whatever you want to check, just leave it to me."
"The missing person's name is Sun Man. He is tall, in his thirties, and has a bone injury in his right leg." Chu Yuan retracted his hand and did not insist on seeing it with his own eyes.
Duan Baiyue squatted down and examined the corpse carefully. There was a deformed old knife wound on the right knee.
"That's right." Chu Yuan frowned, "But only one person is missing in the city. Except for Sun Man, who are the other twenty-five corpses? Also, where did the old man in this shantang go? "
"You and I are both newcomers to Dayan City. There are some things that the prefect's yamen knows best." Duan Baiyue said, "Why don't you go to the yamen's study first? There are many secrets, maybe there will be discoveries."
"How can I open the mechanism?" Chu Yuan asked.
Duan Baiyue smiled: "There is a way, you might as well try it."
In the afternoon, a young man was taken to the inn. He looked like Zhou Zheng, with a tiger head and a tiger face, with calluses on his hands. He is Tian Yu, the best carpenter in the city. He was making coffins for the old people in Shantang, but he was brought here for some reason, and he didn't expect to see the emperor with his own eyes, and his heart was inevitably uneasy.
Chu Yuan motioned for him to be flat, and asked Sixi to sit on the tea table.
Tian Yu was flattered, and the whole person became more and more cramped.
At the same time, Duan Baiyue was also in the government office's study, throwing a bottle of fine spider silk-like woodfish into the crevice of the dark grid. In less than three days, these little insects will eat up most of the wooden drawers, and outsiders will only think that they are termites, and they will not think that someone has deliberately done it.
Xu Zhiqiu was still restless, but it had nothing to do with Sun Man's bizarre disappearance. After all, he was just a little bastard. If he died, he died, and it was not a big deal. What he was really worried about was that he didn't know what the next step of Tian Bra's teaching was, and he wanted to force himself to do something.
Duan Baiyue stared at it until it was dark, and seeing that everything was as usual, she just left the house and returned to the inn.
Chu Yuan was wearing a robe and was taking medicine.
Duan Baiyue frowned, stepped forward and sat on the edge of the bed: "Uncomfortable?"
"Go back to the king of the southwest, the emperor is fine." Father Sixi hurriedly said, "It's just that he couldn't sleep well at night, so Ye Guzhu prescribed a few pills and told him to take it every ten days."
"If I'm fine, why can't I sleep well?" Duan Baiyue took the empty bowl from him.
"What's going on in the yamen?" Chu Yuan asked.
Si Xi Shi Yu retreated.
"At most three days, Xu Zhiqiu is afraid that he will be looking for craftsmen to fill the study room." Duan Baiyue said, "Since Tianyu is the best carpenter in the city, there is no reason not to be invited into the house."
"Is he trustworthy?" Chu Yuan asked.
Duan Baiyue said: "Naturally."
Chu Yuan nodded: "Yes."
Duan Baiyue laughed: "Just an 'um', I don't want to ask why he is trustworthy?"
"I don't want to." Chu Yuan lazily leaned back on the bed.
"Yes, there are too many things in my heart, one less is one." Duan Baiyue covered him with the quilt, "Go to sleep, I will go back later."
Chu Yuan turned his back to him, and closed his eyes according to the words, probably because he took the medicine, and the bed was really warm, and his breathing began to grow after a while. In the dream, there seemed to be a slight warmth coming from the corners of the lips, and the brows involuntarily wrinkled, but it seemed to be just an illusion.
After returning to the inn, Duan Nian was waiting in the room.
"What did you find?" Duan Baiyue asked.
"Back to the lord, our people spend the whole day in teahouses everywhere, chatting with the people on the pretext of doing business with tables and chairs." Duan Nian said, "It sounds like Xu Zhiqiu's reputation in the city is not bad, even if he has no great achievements, he has no great achievements. However, at most it is more romantic and lustful, not like a confused and dazed official who has plucked his hair."
"Only these?" Duan Baiyue sat at the table.
"One more thing, there are several families in this city, and the men in the family all said they were going to do big business outside, but they haven't come back for two or three years." Duan Nian said, "It's just that they keep asking people to bring silver bills home. It's true. After making a lot of money, the neighbors are jealous, but they can't ask anything, and there are many gossip."
"Big business." Duan Baiyue touched his chin, "The renovation and repair of the Wangcheng Palace are all handed over to the craftsmen of Dayan City. Can there be a bigger and more eye-catching business than this?"
"Can you continue to investigate?" Duan Nian asked.
Duan Baiyue nodded.
Duan Nian took orders to leave, but was stopped: "Go back and tell Master and Yao'er that this king will be able to go back after a while."
"Master Nan has already passed the message to his subordinates." Duan Nian said, "Let the lord stay outside, and love the waves for as long as you like. It's better not to go back for three or five years. It's fine for ten or eight years."
Duan Baiyue: "..."
What is the love wave for as long as the wave is long.
In the southwest palace, Nan Moxie is feeding insects with Duan Yao.
"Master." Duan Yao squatted and moved in front of him, "Who is my brother's sweetheart?"
"Children, ask what the adults are doing." Nan Moxie shook his head, "Play with your mud."
Duan Yao asked again, "Does it look good?"
"Good-looking." Nan Moxie said casually, "If anyone dares to say that he is not good-looking, he will be beheaded."
Duan Yao opened his mouth in shock.
Is his brother blind, so he can love so cruelly
Two days later, Xu Zhiqiu opened the dark compartment and pulled the drawer, and saw the sawdust rushing down. Upon closer inspection, a lot of wood was hollowed out, so he hurriedly sent someone to find a craftsman.
Duan Baiyue leaned against the big tree outside the courtyard and watched the master bring Tianyu all the way into the study.
"Returning to my lord, termites are attracted after a long period of time without insect control." Tian Yu said after checking, "Fortunately, only a part of the hidden compartments were damaged, and it can be repaired in half a month at most."
Xu Zhiqiu nodded and watched him finish the drawing before going out together.
It was night, Xiang Lie secretly sneaked into the small courtyard, and took a copy of the blueprint from Tian Yu and brought it back to the inn.
"Secrets are really not too small." Chu Yuan said.
"It doesn't matter how much." Duan Baiyue took the blueprint from him, "two days at most."
Chu Yuan nodded.
"Do you want to go together?" Duan Baiyue asked suddenly before going out.
Chu Yuan was puzzled: "Huh?"
"Spy, do you want to go?" Duan Baiyue reached out to him, "It's fun."
Chu Yuan: "..."
Frankly speaking, he never thought that he could do this kind of thing himself.
But maybe just because you haven't done it, you feel that it's okay to try it.
So after a while, Father Sixi was called into the room.
"Where are the emperor and the king of the southwest going?" Seeing the neatly dressed two, Father Sixi was puzzled.
Duan Baiyue said calmly: "Enjoy the scenery."
Chu Yuan: "..."
Great view, great view. Father Sixi suddenly realized, and smiled as he watched the two go out.
It was cold at night, walking on the long silent street, Duan Baiyue asked, "Is it cold?"
Chu Yuan stepped onto the treetops, and then fell into the palace courtyard.
Duan Baiyue's expression was calm, and she retracted her outstretched hand.
The courtyard was quiet, and the study was not locked. Although there is no candle, the moonlight can illuminate most of the surroundings. According to the blueprint drawn by Tian Yu, Duan Baiyue quickly unlocked the chain lock and pulled out the dark drawers one by one.
The paper in the account book was covered with dust, apparently it had not been touched for some years.
"The state and county records more than forty years ago were probably left over from the previous ones." Chu Yuan read a few pages and said, "It should have nothing to do with Xu Zhiqiu."
"As an undercover spy, naturally you can't be impatient." Duan Baiyue said, "There are seventy or eighty secrets here, so you have to go and read them one by one before you can seal the conclusion."
Chu Yuan opened another drawer, and several huge cockroaches rushed out, almost rushing into his hands, so he instinctively retreated.
Duan Baiyue shook his head, reached out and gently closed the drawer in front of him: "It's dirty here, I'll come."
The two of them were so close that they seemed to be able to feel each other's breath. Chu Yuan's neck was hot, looking at his morning star-like smiling eyes, he was a little angry with himself for no reason, he simply turned his back to him and checked himself. drawer on the other side.
Duan Baiyue raised her eyebrows and continued to open the next drawer without saying much.
The room was very quiet, fine dust fluttered everywhere, and the tip of Chu Yuan's nose began to turn red after a while. Duan Baiyue caught a glimpse of him trying to sneeze but couldn't help it. It seemed very uncomfortable. Just thinking about taking the person back first, Chu Yuan had already opened a volume of accounts, which looked like found.
"What is it?" Duan Baiyue stepped forward.
Chu Yuan motioned him to take a closer look, the paper was very new, like something new in the past two years. There are some weird symbols drawn on it, I can't see what they mean.
"Anything aside, what do you think this thing looks like?" Chu Yuan asked in a low voice.
Duan Baiyue glanced again and guessed: "Accounts?"
Chu Yuan nodded.
"Xu Zhiqiu's private account?" Duan Baiyue tutted, "It seems that this prefect is really not just a matter of lust and romance."
Chu Yuan hurriedly glanced at it again, and wrote down the page that was opened. The sky is already bright outside, and it is not advisable to stay for a long time. Duan Baiyue said: "Let's go, if you still want to see it, come back tomorrow night."
Chu Yuan nodded, carefully restored everything, and returned to the inn with him.
Si Xi Gong Gong was dozing off in the side room. After hearing the movement, he hurriedly passed hot water and asked if he wanted to prepare some food. After all, the emperor stayed out all night and didn't know what to do, so he might be hungry.
Chu Yuan shook his head, unable to speak, and hurriedly took out a pen and paper to restore and trace the symbols one by one.
"If it's really the text, it's well documented." Duan Baiyue stood behind him and looked, "But if Xu Zhiqiu came up with the ghost painting talisman himself, I'm afraid I'll have to start elsewhere."
"If you have an account, you must have a business." Chu Yuan said, "But according to what the people said in the day, he did not open a business privately, and even if he did business in violation of the rules, the only business he could do in Dayan City was a carpenter. The son of an aristocratic family who is a high-ranking member of the imperial court will never secretly sell a few tables, chairs, and benches."
"People's hearts are unpredictable, and it's hard to say." Duan Baiyue handed him a small bottle, "Smell it and your nose will breathe."
Chu Yuan: "..."
Looking at his red nose, Duan Baiyue sighed: "Next time if we spy again, let's go to a clean place."
As soon as Chu Yuan pulled off the cork, there was a strong smell of seasoning.
"Ah!"
"Ah yo." Father Sixi hurriedly said outside, "The emperor has caught the cold?"
"It doesn't matter." Chu Yuan was teary and dizzy, but his nose really cleared up a lot.
Duan Baiyue held back a smile.
Chu Yuan waved his hand and drove the person out.
After a while, Eunuch Sixi came to serve hot water to wash and wash, and said that it was almost dawn, and the King of Southwest did not return to the inn, but stayed in the vacant room next door.
Chu Yuan: "..."
Duan Baiyue was lying on the bed with his arms on his back, listening leisurely to the movement next door.
The small sound of water, the rustling of the bedding being lifted, and the sound of sneezing with a stuffy nose.
Across a thin wooden wall, the distance was so close that it seemed like they were lying together.
Duan Baiyue smiled and closed her eyes with peace of mind.