C14 The First Case the Chain Murder Case of Bian Taisemo

Xiao Shaomei asked, "What are Jin Country and Liao Country?"

Jia Jiucheng replied, "They're the two major nations to the north of the Soong Dynasty."

Perplexed, Xiao Shaomei exclaimed, "There's only the Ogre Empire! What Jin Country or Liao Country? Your questions are getting weirder and weirder!"

"What? There's no Jin Country and Liao Country north of the Great Soong? Yet the other eras are the same. How then can I foresee the future?" Jia Jiucheng was thunderstruck by the revelation.

The second senior sister angrily interjected, "That scoundrel, he actually stuffed something beneath them!"

She carefully wielded the tongs, gingerly reaching in to slowly extract an object.

"The nerve of him, to use pebbles..."

One, two... The stones clattered one after another onto the metal dish. Four pebbles for the elder sister, four in total.

Hold on, the younger sister too... One, two, three, four, five. The younger Xie sister had been stuffed with five pebbles.

"Heinous freak, if I ever catch him, I swear I'll flay his skin and strip his sinews!" the second senior sister seethed, her fury mirrored by everyone present.

Witnessing such torment of the innocent, Jia Jiucheng's sense of justice was inflamed. He resolved to uncover the truth, no matter the obstacles, to restore justice to the people.

A chime sounded... "The system has issued a mission. Side Line Mission: Dingyuan Confusion Case 1: The Bian Taisemo Chain Murder Case.

Mission Description: On your first day of duty, a rare and major case has occurred – the Super Chain Perverted Lovelace Case.

At 254 Yellow River Street, South City, Dingyuan County, on the night of March 4th, the Xie family's two sisters were mysteriously murdered in their home. Players are tasked with uncovering the truth and delivering justice to the people.

Mission Success: Reward of 500 Justice Coins and 20 taels of silver.

Skill: Heaven Watching Earth Listening Technique, Level 1. Within a thousand miles, track and trace with no place to hide – an essential skill for any captor.

Mission Failure: Deduction of 1000 Righteousness Coins."

Jia Jiucheng pondered, "If I don't seek justice for the people, will the system refrain from issuing missions?"

"Could it be the Strange Item King?" Jia Jiucheng pondered his vendetta and mission, promptly inquiring.

Worker Zhang glanced at him knowingly, then said with self-mockery, "It's not him. The pleasures of the wealthy and powerful are beyond your wildest dreams. It's rumored that over a third of the young women in the North District willingly submit to him. Moreover, he couldn't possibly force himself on them; I've heard that the Strange Item King is impotent."

...

The Xie family couple were wailing in despair, especially Mrs. Dou, the mother of the two Xie sisters, whose cries of anguish, "My daughter, my precious girl!" were heart-wrenching. Xie Muzhi, the father, was also visibly distraught, covering his face in grief.

Upon seeing this, Worker Zhang addressed Mrs. Lee, "Please, tell us first. How did you come across this scene?"

"Last night, my family went to bed as usual. I woke up at 4 AM, finished my ablutions, and half an hour later, I was ready to head out for work. That's when I noticed the Xie family's second-floor windows were open, which is unusual because everyone here normally keeps their windows shut at night. I woke up the couple to alert them, fearing a burglary. But when they checked upstairs, Mrs. Dou's screams drew me to rush up, and that's when I saw this dreadful scene."

"Do you always wake up at that time to start your day?" inquired Jia Jiucheng.

"Every day, yes. It's cooler in the morning, which makes work go smoother," Mrs. Lee confirmed.

"Did you hear any strange noises last night?" Jia Jiucheng pressed on.

"Nothing out of the ordinary," Mrs. Lee responded.

Worker Zhang then dismissed her, "Alright, you may go back to your tasks. Now, Xie Muzhi, Mrs. Dou, please compose yourselves and think back carefully. What exactly happened last night?"

Xie Muzhi, pausing his grief, tried to remember, "Sir, there was nothing unusual that we noticed last night."

Worker Zhang, puzzled, asked, "No sounds from upstairs?"

Xie Muzhi explained, "The sisters often play and make noise, so even though there were some sounds last night, nothing seemed abnormal to us."

Worker Zhang inquired, "Did you all close the windows last night?"

Xie Muzhi affirmed, "The windows were definitely closed. They're checked daily by the household! Isn't that right, dear?"

Mrs. Dou sobbed softly in response.

Xie Muzhi urged, "The Official Master is asking you a question. Please, don't just weep—give an answer."

Mrs. Dou nodded, "Yes, Official Master. I did check the windows around nine o'clock last evening. They were all securely shut."

Jia Jiucheng asked, "Mrs. Dou, is this a daily routine for you?"

Mrs. Dou explained, "With only my two precious daughters living upstairs, and considering how close and accessible our windows are, not to mention the idle troublemakers that loiter around, I make it a point to check daily for their safety!"

Upon grasping the gravity of the situation, Mrs. Dou and her husband broke down in tears once more.

Unable to stand the emotional turmoil inside the house, Jia Jiucheng stepped outside by the window. To his surprise, he discovered a footprint on the windowsill that extended towards the neighboring house, clearly not resembling a woman's. He called out urgently, "Everyone, come quick! There's a footprint here!" Turning to Geh Yuanliang, he requested, "Eldest senior brother, do we have an artist? If so, please have them sketch this footprint immediately."

When no one came from inside, he re-entered and called out, "Worker Zhang, second senior sister, senior brother, there's a footprint here!"

The group exclaimed with relief, "A footprint! This will make things much easier!"

Worker Zhang directed, "Boss and Laosan, don't just stand there—come and have a look!"

Eldest senior brother and Zhu Yeqing made their way over.

As Jia Jiucheng turned back towards the house, he spotted several children from next door clambering out of a window and gleefully running towards the very spot of the footprint. They danced and played with abandon.

Realizing the impending disaster, Jia Jiucheng yelled frantically, "Get back! Don't come here to play!"

The children ignored him completely, encircling each other and chanting playfully, "Moonlight bright, shining on the bed..."

When Jia Jiucheng got a closer look, the original footprint had been completely obscured by the overlapping prints of the children's feet, erasing any trace of what was there before.

Jia Jiucheng urged frantically, "Can't you hear the others yelling? What are you doing jumping around here? Get out of here, now!"

The child glanced back at Jia Jiucheng, sensing that this older brother was scolding them, and burst into tears.

Bamboo Leaf Qing's fury intensified, as the easily obtained clues had vanished. "Damn it, I'm going to handcuff all of you little troublemakers!"

The commotion caught the attention of some women across the way, who rushed out to see what was happening. Recognizing their own children, they called out, "Dabao, Erbao... What are you doing?" These must have been the children's nicknames.

They hurried to shield the children, pleading, "Official, please, no harm must come to them! The children are innocent; they're just kids! They don't understand anything! Please, as an adult, overlook this minor transgression!"

Jia Jiucheng gazed at the gloomy sky, listening to the children's wailing, the women's sobs, and their soft pleas for mercy.

Maybe this was just the children's play area. "Let it go, just this once," Jia Jiucheng told himself.

Eldest senior brother and third senior brother came over, sighing at their failure to secure the scene. Such bad luck. If only there had been more people around. Not even one person to cordon off the area.

"The body was covered in wounds, hands bound, mouth gagged with a torn piece of blanket, death by a slit throat, bleeding out, the lower body violated. Both the Xie family's second wife and sister suffered the same fate."

Aside from a few pebbles, the scene was devoid of any distinctive items left by the killer, making it impossible to track them down due to the limitations of ancient times. If it were the present day, there would be crime scene evidence like fingerprints or DNA.

"What does everyone make of this?"

Eldest senior brother said, "We found no distinctive items. Based on the timing, the deaths likely occurred in the middle of the night. The murderer entered the Xie family home through a window, subdued the sisters while they slept, assaulted them, then killed them. He stuffed stones down their throats before making his escape."

"Who's the killer? Has anyone found anything?" the group was asked, but they all shook their heads in response, indicating they had found no distinctive items.

Jia Jiucheng observed, "Did everyone notice the food scraps on the table? The killer must have taken a break to eat there after murdering the Xie family's matriarch, before going on to kill the younger Mrs. Xie."

The second senior sister agreed with Jia Jiucheng's analysis, nodding as she said, "Exactly. The stone is likely from the protective river in Dingyuan. It's so common that it's impossible to trace."

Jia Jiucheng pondered, "Four or five stones—could they signify the fourth or fifth victim?"

Xiao Shaomei pointed out, "However, there haven't been any other murder cases in the county recently."

Jia Jiucheng was deep in thought again. "Right, no other cases." Suddenly inspired, he suggested, "Could it be unreported cases or perhaps missing persons?"

Xiao Shaomei considered, "That's not beyond the realm of possibility, though all of this is mere speculation at the moment."

Worker Zhang instructed, "Seal off this area. Second Brother, head back first and look into recent disappearances in Dingyuan, particularly those of young, beautiful women."

The mood among the five was somber. With two significant murders having occurred, the bereaved parents were weeping inconsolably beside them, their grief palpable. The atmosphere weighed heavily on everyone, and with no useful leads, the locals who had heard the news were understandably anxious.

Worker Zhang led the group away from the Xie residence, heading back.

As they walked, Jia Jiucheng realized, "This isn't the way to the yamen, is it?"

Eldest senior brother Geh Yuanliang explained, "You're unaware, but when Worker Zhang is at a loss, he often heads to the Hundred Flower Building."

Jia Jiucheng inquired, "What is the Hundred Flower Building? Does it aid in solving cases?"

Geh Yuanliang chuckled in response.

Jia Jiucheng wondered about the nature of the Hundred Flower Building. Despite being new to manhood, he was not naive about such matters. Internally he grumbled about his misfortune at ending up in such a place while still being responsible for the investigation. Too embarrassed to back out, he steeled himself and followed the others inside.

"That's right! I'm surprised you're aware of this place, given your young age," Zhu Yeqing said with a laugh.

"Hahaha!" They all joined in the laughter.