As the saying went, "City life is full of tricks; I'd rather head back to the countryside." But country roads were slippery, and country hearts were even harder to fathom.
Looking at the bodies before him, Li Wei thought that saying fit perfectly.
Fortunately, Little Red Riding Hood had been the first to discover the bodies this time. She had been delivering some food and medicine to Aunt Darby on her grandmother's behalf. When she arrived, no one answered her knock, so she pushed the door open out of curiosity and saw the crime scene. Only then had she rushed off in a panic to find Li Wei.
Li Wei had learned his lesson this time. He sent Little Red Riding Hood to notify the Priest and the Village Chief, then cleared everyone out of the area within two meters of the cabin's entrance. By the time the other villagers heard the news and arrived, the Village Chief and the Priest were already keeping them outside. Only then did Li Wei stroll into the crime scene, as carefree as someone singing over a hot pot, and begin his examination.
The houses in this village were not really any different from ordinary homes, even in how their rooms were used. Fraser's body, from his death yesterday, still lay on wooden boards in the sitting room rather than having been buried immediately. According to Little Red Riding Hood, local custom required the deceased to spend one last night at home before being taken away the following morning.
So, by rights, Fraser's funeral procession should have been today.
Now... it would probably have to be postponed.
Beyond the body in the sitting room lay two naked corpses in the inner bedroom. Li Wei could even infer what had happened last night from the