Suspicion

The shop was divided into two areas, front and back. The front was for selling and displaying items.

The back was for living quarters. Our group arrived at the back of the shop.

As soon as we reached the backyard, a smell of blood hit us. Looking closely, there were four corpses on the ground.

One of them, dressed somewhat like the shopkeeper, lay sprawled on the ground with a rather exaggerated wound on his neck.

You could see the bone beneath, and a large pool of blood was spilled beside him.

The other four corpses were also lying on the ground in various states.

Without exception, they all had an exaggerated wound on their necks, a single fatal blow.

There were also pools of blood on the ground in the yard.

Flies buzzed around the corpses. Since it was summer, the sun was very hot.

Most of the bloodstains had dried, except for a small patch in the very center.

I walked over and squatted beside the bodies to examine them. I found that they all had a single fatal wound on their necks, killed with one strike.

I thought to myself, the killer must be an expert, judging by this swordsmanship.

There were no flashy or unnecessary movements, just a clean, decisive strike for each person.

Just as I was about to turn back and share my thoughts with them, I suddenly heard two "puke..." sounds from the back.

I turned to see Jiang Yujie and Yun Yao. One was leaning against the wall, and the other was on all fours, hands on the ground, retching uncontrollably.

I couldn't help but be a little surprised. Weren't they from prominent families?

What are prominent families? They should be people who have seen big scenes and weathered great storms. By rights, they shouldn't have lost composure like this.

At that moment, I stood up and went back, explaining my confusion to Jiang Yujie and Yun Yao.

"Nonsense, who says disciples from prominent families have to go through this?" Jiang Yujie said, his face pale as he lay on the ground.

Yun Yao, also with a pale face, said, "Most family disciples cultivate at home or listen to the teachings of their elders. At most, they might get into a fight with someone, and that's considered a lot."

I sighed helplessly and said, "Sigh... alright, alright, let's go out first. Seeing you two like this, there's no way we can investigate anything."

Of course, another reason was that I originally didn't think much of it.

But seeing the "yellow and white vomit" they spewed on the ground made my stomach churn.

When I said this, Jiang Yujie and Yun Yao nodded their heads like pecking chicks.

Then, they scrambled back the way they came, running as if a ferocious dog was chasing them.

After they left, I took another careful look around the scene.

Finally, finding nothing, I came out and saw them rinsing their mouths with mineral water.

"Have someone dispose of the bodies and let's go back first," I said to Yun Yao.

Yun Yao nodded and then called over a few people, telling them to do as I said.

Those people cupped their fists and replied, "Yes," then went in to move the bodies and clean the yard.

I looked at them and said, "Let's go back first. I've examined the scene, and it was done very cleanly.

Basically, it was a single fatal blow, with no other traces left behind."

Yun Yao nodded, and we got into the car, then headed back to the Yun Mansion.

Jiang Yujie asked me with some surprise, "You seemed so calm the whole time. How are you acting like nothing happened?"

Yun Yao, while holding the steering wheel, also tilted her head slightly to look at me. I, sitting in the back seat, noticed Yun Yao's feet trembling slightly.

I thought to myself, when the hundred ghosts chased me in the village, those ghostly things were much scarier than this.

Some had rotten faces, and their eyeballs dangled like little bells, swaying.

And later, in the underground corpse nest, those were even worse.

Bodies covered in maggots, some reduced to just skeletons, all sorts of corpses, there were too many.

Then there was killing the little puppy Huang Wenbin, the students who were made into human gùn and put in jars...

I've seen more disgusting things than this. It's just a few corpses now, what's the big fuss about?

I replied that it was nothing, perhaps I had lived in the mountains for too long.

Then we returned to the Yun Mansion in silence.

Halfway there, Jiang Yujie even joked that I must be a person with a story.

I waved my hand and said no, then retorted, "You're still laughing in this state? Have you forgotten what just happened?"

Hearing my words, Jiang Yujie's face immediately scrunched up, and he started to feel nauseous again.

He then asked Yun Yao to stop the car, and he got out to vomit for a long time, but nothing came out. Perhaps his stomach was already empty.

Seeing Jiang Yujie like this, Yun Yao also got out and leaned on the car, gagging a couple of times.

But she also couldn't vomit anything. Then Yun Yao gave me a reproachful look.

Jiang Yujie, on the other hand, lay on the ground with teary eyes, dry-heaving continuously.

Then the two of them repeated their earlier actions, rinsing their mouths with mineral water. Seeing this, I sat in the car and burst out laughing.

We returned to the Yun Mansion and sat in the living room. No one spoke first. I took out a cigarette and lit it, smoking by myself.

Perhaps they knew I smoked, as an ashtray was placed on the table.

Yun Yao spoke leisurely, "What should we do? These are all the clues we have right now."

I thought for a moment and then said, "See if the shops have received any valuable items recently, especially anything that people would fight tooth and nail for.

Then, check if anyone came to the shop asking about it, or if any of the shop's employees or the shopkeeper.

See if they had any arguments with anyone. Arguments between customers in the shop also count.

Finally, find a way to locate the expert guarding the shop. We need to see them alive or find their body."

Yun Yao listened to my suggestion and then called for someone to instruct them to carry out the tasks immediately.

After saying all this, I asked Yun Yao with some doubt why Grandpa Yun had no reaction to this incident. Yun Yao said her grandfather had given her full authority to handle this matter.

He said he wanted to test Yun Yao's abilities, and she had readily accepted the responsibility.

As a result, the situation turned out like this. Yun Yao lowered her head and fell silent.

Not long after, the butler walked in. This butler's surname was Bai, and I didn't know his given name.

He was holding a small booklet and walked in hurriedly, saying, "Miss, we have a clue."

Upon hearing this, we all stood up and looked at Butler Bai.

"Tell us slowly what the clue is," Yun Yao said, looking at Butler Bai's breathless appearance.

Butler Bai recounted, "Last month, this underground shop received a 'Yin Bead,' and then the shop spread the news.

Many people came to inquire about the price, but the price for this 'Yin Bead' was never settled.

It wasn't until Young Master Chen offered a price that no one else dared to bid higher.

Originally, we planned to trade directly with Young Master Chen at that time, but Young Master Chen said he didn't have that much money on him.

He said he needed a few days, but the rule of the underground shop is that whoever offers the highest price and pays first gets the item.

The shopkeeper of that underground shop directly refused. Later, Young Master Chen said he would wait one more day.

He promised to pay in one day, and the shopkeeper, knowing he was Young Master Chen, agreed.

However, after a day, Young Master Chen still hadn't come to pay.

Just then, someone else offered a higher price than Young Master Chen and could pay on the spot."