Seeing a Ghost Again, Catching Men by Their Boots

Seeing a Ghost Again, Catching Men by Their Boots

After watching the lantern of revolving scenes.

Yu Chen's brows knitted tightly, his heart stifled with misery.

He keenly felt Zhang San'er's indescribable pain, fury, and hatred.

—It was the pain of being unable to rest in death unless he saw the Ji Family's Three Brothers lose their heads on the execution block.

It became an obsession too, leaving behind a final wish.

Honestly, Yu Chen had seen plenty of ruffians and scoundrels, but what the Ji Family's Three Brothers had done right in front of a man's husband was beyond what ordinary people could imagine.

Even if you wanted to visit a whore, couldn't you?

Spend some money!

It would not cost more than a few coins!

Why did you have to tear apart a perfectly good married couple and ruin their home?

"Huff..."

After letting out a long breath of foul air, he looked toward the ghost by the Yellow Springs River in the Scripture of Deliverance, its eyes still open in death.

"Wait there in peace. I will make those three thugs lose their heads!"

At noon, Linshui Street, the constabulary.

Inside the dim evidence room, an amber oil lamp flickered.

Lin Yi stared silently at the boot before him.

This was the second case.

In less than half a month, this was already the second murder case under his jurisdiction on Linshui Street.

It weighed heavily on Lin Yi's heart.

True, having cases was a good thing. Once a case was solved, it became part of his merit.

But murder cases were not something Lin Yi wished to see.

With a long sigh, he took out the boot and examined it carefully.

The boot was large. Its material appeared to be Luo-silk Cloth—fire could not ignite it, and water could not soak through it. Naturally, it was not cheap either, so its owner was likely not from a poor household.

Moreover, if nothing unexpected had happened, this should have been the boot left behind by the murderer.

Less than half a day had passed since the murder, meaning the killer probably had not yet had time to dispose of the other boot.

In other words, the sooner they identified the killer, the more likely they were to find crucial evidence.

But Weishui was neither too large nor too small. Where could they possibly find a lone boot in such a vast place?

—Although every clerk from the Linshui Street constabulary had been dispatched once they settled on the direction of the investigation, they had yet to find a single useful clue.

Worrying!

So worrying!

Just as Lin Yi furrowed his brow, the oil lamp in the evidence room suddenly flickered.

Lin Yi turned to look.

He saw that beside his own shadow on the yellowed wall stood another shadow!

Lin Yi shuddered all over and immediately spun around.

There, in a dark corner, stood a soaking-wet translucent figure. Its feet did not touch the ground, and it swayed as it drifted.

—Not human!

Having experienced "seeing a ghost" once before, Lin Yi immediately recognized that the figure was absolutely not human!

Nonsense—no normal person could silently break into this heavily guarded evidence room in broad daylight!

"You brazen demon..."

A chill ran through Lin Yi's heart, and he barked sternly.

Compared to the last time he had seen a ghost, he was more clear-headed this time—and even more... terrified!

But before he could finish his outwardly fierce yet inwardly hollow shout, Lin Yi found the ghost before him looking more and more familiar!

He gathered his courage, stepped forward, and focused his eyes!

Good heavens!

Wasn't this Zhang San'er, who had just been fished out of the river that morning?

At that thought, Lin Yi swallowed. Suppressing the shock in his heart, he asked, "Are you Zhang San'er from the teahouse?"

To his surprise, the ghost answered his question and slowly nodded.

Delighted, Lin Yi suppressed his fear. He could not spare a thought for whether seeing ghosts twice meant he possessed some special constitution, and immediately asked, "Zhang San'er, I am Lin Yi, a constable of Linshui Street. I am investigating your murder. If you know who the killer is, tell me at once!"

The ghost nodded and recounted everything that had happened the night before, point by point.

After speaking, it drifted away.

Only Lin Yi remained in the evidence room, grinding his teeth in rage!

The Ji Family's Three Brothers?

What old acquaintances indeed!

Never mind the earlier accusation of rape against them. Lin Yi had not handled that case himself, and had only heard his colleagues mention it in passing.

But wasn't Eldest Ji the very ruffian who had beaten someone in the street, spouted wild threats after Lin Yi caught him, and was eventually released through connections?

Lin Yi's expression immediately turned cold. He strapped on his saber, fastened his iron ruler, called for his men, and went to arrest them.

He never noticed that, in an alley not far from the constabulary, the grave-watching youth had witnessed everything.

Linshui Street, the Ji Household. Its doors were tightly shut.

Outside, the cold wind howled. Inside, charcoal blazed, and warmth lingered.

The three broad, burly brothers sat around a large table. Several jars of wine, a dish of peanuts, and two plates of fennel beans lay atop it.

The middle-aged man seated at the head of the table had a square face, fleshy cheeks, and a vicious countenance enough to stop a child from crying at night. He was the eldest of the three brothers.

"This was somewhat impulsive."

Eldest Ji clicked his tongue and continued, "But that Zhang San'er truly did not know life from death. He actually dared to fight us—he deserved to die! Still, we should not have thrown the body into the river. I heard it has already been discovered."

Clearly, when he spoke of being impulsive, he did not mean killing Zhang San'er. He meant that they had not disposed of the body more thoroughly!

After saying that, he drained a cup of wine in one gulp and let out a long belch.

Beside him, Second Ji, even taller and sturdier, wore a worried expression as he frowned. "Sixth Master told us not to cause trouble lately. He cannot find out about this, or the three of us will all lose a layer of skin!"

"As long as we don't say anything, who will know?" Third Ji, slightly thinner than the other two, wore a gloomy expression. "We should act like this never happened and has nothing to do with us. I checked both coming and going—whether we went to Zhang San'er's house last night or threw him into the river, no one saw us!"

"That makes sense." Second Ji looked at his elder brother with concern. "But Big Brother's boot was dragged into the river by that dead bastard. I'm afraid it could become trouble. Why not dispose of the remaining one first?

"Hmm... let me think. Should we burn it? Or should I go out now and throw it straight into the river?"

At the mention of the boot, all three men looked rather grim.

After killing someone, the Ji Family's Three Brothers had all been nervous.

Only after rushing home in a panic had they discovered that Eldest Ji's boot was missing. Thinking back, they realized it had apparently been pulled off when they threw that dead bastard into the river.

This was a huge danger!

It was ironclad evidence!

If they were caught with it, it was a capital crime that would cost them their heads!

Eldest Ji took out the boot and shook his head. "Idiot, this boot is made of Luo-silk Cloth. It resists fire. You can't burn it."

Then he shot his brother a glare. "And besides, the streets are full of clerks right now. If you go out to throw away the boot, aren't you walking right into the net?

"Wait until deep into the night, when there are fewer people and those yamen dogs are all asleep. Then we'll sneak out of the city, dig a hole, and bury this boot. No one will ever find it. Only then can we rest easy!"

Upon hearing this, Second Ji and Third Ji nodded repeatedly.

If they threw the boot into the river, it would be dredged up sooner or later. Burying it in the mountains outside the city later on would be the way to eliminate future trouble forever!

After discussing how to dispose of the evidence, the three brothers stopped thinking about the murder and continued drinking.

Gulp, gulp, glug, glug.

Perhaps stirred by the alcohol, along with the excitement of killing someone.

Eldest Ji's little brother stood up again. Smacking his lips, he sighed, "What a pity. Madam Zhang was so soft and wet, yet she went and hanged herself."

Hearing that, Second Ji seemed to recall that night as well and grinned. "Big Brother, don't regret it. Once the heat dies down, we can go enjoy ourselves at Huaqing Tower!"

"What the hell do you know?" Eldest Ji cursed. "How can those vulgar women of the dust compare to respectable women?"

"Aren't they all women..." Second Ji muttered, then fell silent.

Amid their laughter and chatter, the three brothers roared with laughter, utterly free of the fear they had felt after killing someone.

But as the saying went, when joy reached its peak, sorrow followed!

Bang!

The heavy wooden door was kicked open violently, its square bolt snapped clean in half!

The moment Lin Yi entered, he saw the boot on the table and recognized it at once!

It was identical to the one in the evidence room!

Without another word, he waved several clerks inside, and in three strokes and two moves, they pinned the three brothers to the ground!

Eldest Ji cried out in pain, his fury surging as he tried to resist!

But with a clang, Lin Yi drew his gleaming great saber and pressed it to his neck. The thug immediately wilted and did not dare move!

"Take them away!"

Lin Yi shouted, lifting the ropes and binding the three men tightly!

They were escorted back to the constabulary!

At last, recalling what had happened to Eldest Ji before, Lin Yi drew his saber at the entrance to the constabulary and slashed it into the door. In a cold voice, he said,

"Today, if anyone dares release them without cause again, I'll flay him alive!"