Chapter 231: Captain Chen, it is indeed the reincarnation of Di Gong ( words, please subscribe)
"The Plum Blossom Killer is Prefect Chu Tian?"

After hearing what Ulutai said, Zhao Ya glanced at Chen Jie, who nodded calmly.

Zhao Ya said, "Mr. Tongpan, why do you say that? Do you have any evidence?"

At this time, Jin Yanzi said, "Oh, Princess, don't listen to his nonsense. He doesn't have any evidence. He is just making random guesses. Princess, don't listen to his nonsense."

"You are such a jerk. Without any evidence, how can you make random guesses? If you interfere with the princess's thinking on the case, wouldn't that be a big sin?"

After hearing this, Zhao Ya looked at Jin Yanzi and said, "Madam Jin, since the judge said so, he must have some guesses. I would like to hear the details."

After hearing this, Jin Yanzi looked at Wulutai and said, "Just keep talking nonsense. If you find out that what you say is wrong, the princess will punish you."

Wulutai said: "Nonsense? When did I say nonsense? Everything I said has evidence!"

After hearing this, Zhao Ya asked, "What evidence?"

Wulutai said: "The assassin of the princess must have a purpose. There are many officials in Huangzhou City, why did he choose only these officials to kill?"

Wulutai then asked Zhao Ya to come to the case files and said, "Princess, please look at these seven files."

Zhao Ya looked over when she heard this, and saw Wulutai pointing at the case file in front of him and saying, "Look, Zhao Xi, the salt search officer, is from Huangzhou Prefecture."

"Qian Shunsan, from Huangzhou Prefecture."

"The warden is Zhou Desen, from Mianshui County, Huangzhou Prefecture."

"There are also these few people. You see, apart from Huangzhou Prefecture, they are from Yong'an Prefecture, or other prefectures. Anyway, their hometowns are all in Hubei."

"And I, Wulutai, was born and raised in Huangzhou Prefecture. My grandfather stayed here after following Taizu to pacify the south. For nearly a hundred years, my family has been developing in Huangzhou Prefecture, and these officials are more or less related to my family."

"As for Chu Tian, ​​he was an official transferred from Dadu. How could these people listen to him? So he eliminated dissidents and killed them to prevent future troubles!"

Wulutai expressed his opinion that the appointment of officials in Daqian was very casual, and there was no requirement in later generations that one must serve as an official in a different place, so it was very easy to form cliques in the local area.

And Wulutai, the fifth-rank judge of Huangzhou Prefecture, is the leader of these local gangs.

The Huangzhou prefect Chu Tian was a parachuted official sent from the capital, so there was bound to be a dispute between the two forces.

Although they usually restrain each other, open and covert fighting is inevitable in private.

And these officials who were killed were all from the local faction of Huangzhou Prefecture, so Wulutai insisted that it was Chu Tian who used the incident of the Plum Blossom Killer to eliminate dissidents.

After understanding all this, Zhao Ya said, "There is actually such a calculation involved."

As she spoke, Zhao Ya looked at Chen Jie, wanting to see his analysis. Chen Jie did not interrupt, but just read it from the beginning. It turned out that most of them were local people from Huangzhou Prefecture.

At this time, Chen Jie said, "Master Wulutai, was Wang Wenyuan, the military officer who died today, also a native of Huangzhou Prefecture?"

Wulutai frowned and said, "He, he is not."

The post of Recorder and Military Officer was equivalent to the personal secretary of the prefect, so they were all close to the prefect. How could they choose a native of Huangzhou Prefecture? They must have chosen an official from the capital, or someone familiar to the prefect from among his students and former officials.

Chen Jie asked, "Then why did the Plum Blossom Killer kill him?"

"This……"

Wulutai was speechless for a moment. At this time, Mrs. Jin beside him laughed and said, "Haha... Captain Chen is indeed very smart. He saw the essence of the problem with just a few words. My husband, please stop talking nonsense. You have no basis. Just because of a party dispute, you say that Governor Chu is the Plum Blossom Killer. That's not rigorous."

Wulutai said: "Anyway, I think he is the Plum Blossom Killer."

Madam Jin smiled bitterly and shook her head, saying, "My Lady, please don't be offended by Captain Chen. My husband is just so impulsive. How can he accuse a high-ranking official of the imperial court without any evidence?"

Wulutai smiled after hearing this, and did not refute Mrs. Jin. He just said: "I only told this to the princess, and I didn't mention it to anyone else."

Zhao Ya said: "Well, the judge is a man of character."

After saying this, Zhao Ya asked, "Chen Jie, did you gain anything?"

Chen Jie looked at Wulutai and said, "Sir, can I take these files back to do research?"

After hearing this, Wulutai said, "Of course you can, take it away, take it away."

Chen Jie clasped his fists and said, "Thank you, Lord Ulutai."

After saying this, Chen Jie turned to look at Zhao Ya and said, "Princess, we have almost finished reading the files. We can leave now."

Zhao Ya said, "Okay, then I won't delay your official duties. Goodbye."

Zhao Ya said as she led her people away, with Wulutai and Jin Yanzi following behind. When they reached the door, Chen Jie glanced at a martial arts arena in the yard and said with a smile, "Madam Jin, I heard that you are very good at using a sword!"

Jin Yanzi paused, then laughed, "Haha, yes, my Chunxiang Pavilion is famous for its swordsmanship."

After hearing this, Chen Jie said, "I will definitely ask Madam for advice on the magic of swordsmanship some other day."

Jin Yanzi smiled and said, "Okay."

Zhao Ya took Chen Jie out of the Tongpan Mansion. Looking at the people leaving, Wulutai looked at Jin Yanzi and asked, "Madam, what do you think of them?"

Jin Yanzi said, "The princess is easy to deal with, but that guy named Chen is very difficult to deal with."

Wulutai said: "Haha, he's a tough one. There aren't many tough people in Huangzhou Prefecture, not even one more..."

After saying that, Ulutai turned around. Jin Yanzi smiled behind him and then went into the house.

At this time, outside, Zhao Ya looked at Chen Jie and said, "Jiu Si, did you see anything?"

Chen Jie held the box and said, "I haven't found any useful information yet, but I just checked the hometowns of the deceased, and they are all from Huangzhou Prefecture, just as Wulutai said."

"If we follow his division between the Huangzhou faction and the outsider faction, then all the dead people are indeed from the Huangzhou faction."

Zhao Ya was stunned when she heard this and said, "Well, you mean that the murderer is most likely the prefect, Chu Tian. This is exactly the same as what you speculated today."

Chen Jie said: "Princess, there is insufficient evidence and clues. We cannot confirm the identity of the murderer yet. We can only say that the prefect is a suspect."

Ah San heard this and said, "Should we go and arrest the prefect?"

After hearing this, Chen Jie said, "Brother Ah San, don't worry. We don't have any evidence. Chu Tian is a fifth-rank official in the imperial court. If we want to arrest him, we must have sufficient evidence, and we can't just assume that all the dead are from the Huangzhou faction."

"And brother Ah San, the dead are not just from Huangzhou Prefecture, there is also a Wang Wenyuan, who is the recorder of the prefecture."

The registrar is equivalent to the prefect's chief secretary. Those who have watched TV dramas in later generations should know that the chief secretaries around high-ranking officials are their closest people.

He definitely could not be from the Huangzhou sect, but now that he died, this matter has been brought to light.

After hearing this, Ah Er, who had been silent the whole time, said, "Could it be that the prefect thought that the princess wanted to come to Huangzhou Prefecture and was afraid that the princess would investigate this old case and find that there was a party dispute involved, so he deliberately killed someone close to him to get rid of his suspicion?"

Ah San looked at Ah Er and said, "Second brother, this is impossible. If that's the case, this Chu guy is really inhumane. He killed the recorder who had followed him for many years without any hesitation!"

Ah Er said: "Sacrificing the chariot to save the driver has been a practice since ancient times, it is not a strange method at all!"

Ah San was silent, looked at Chen Jie and said, "Jiu Si, what do you think?"

Chen Jie said: "There are too few clues, it is difficult to speculate."

Ah San asked: "Where are we going next?"

Zhao Ya also looked at Chen Jie and said, "Yes, Jiu Si, where are we going next?"

Chen Jie said: "Let's go to Wang Wenyuan's house first, and then go to the prefectural government office to meet the prefect Chu Tian."

After hearing this, Zhao Ya said, "Okay, I'll listen to Jiu Si."

With that, the group headed straight to East City, where the prefectural government office was located and which was also the administrative area of ​​Prefect Chu Tian.

Chen Jie and his party soon arrived in Dongcheng, and under the guidance of the guide in the city, they came to Wang Wenyuan's residence.

Wang Wenyuan lived in a small courtyard in the city. Chen Jie was curious, thinking that a sixth-rank registrar and military officer should not live in such a poor condition!

So I asked the guide.

The guide said, "General Wang is a very honest person. He is rigorous and fair in his work and never takes bribes or perverts the law. When he first came to Huangzhou Prefecture, he lived in the government residence arranged by the court. He only bought a small courtyard here a year ago."

Chen Jie looked up at the location of the courtyard. It was in a remote area, and he even had to go around two or three streets to find it.

Moreover, one needs to take a detour to get to the prefectural yamen from here. This place has almost no convenient transportation, and the surrounding area is not prosperous either.

Even though Chen Jie and his group had been standing here for such a long time, they didn't see anyone crossing the street.

Chen Jie asked curiously, "Why is it like this here? Aren't the people going here?"

The guide said, "Oh, this is normal. Didn't you see when you came here? The second street you passed was full of people selling funeral supplies."

"People don't want to pass through here because they think it's unlucky."

After hearing this, Chen Jie said, "Oh, that's why."

Ah San looked at it from the side and said, "Apart from being shabby, what else is there to make this shabby place worth living in? A clerk and a military officer living here?"

The guide said: "What the gentleman said is wrong. Being broken has its advantages."

"Benefits, what benefits can this place bring?"

Ah San looked puzzled, and the guide said, "He's cheap."

"Cheap? How cheap can it be?"

Ah San asked, and the guide said, "The housing prices here are more than double those in Tianshui Street, which is just across the street."

“Can it be so different?”

After hearing this, Asan was also stunned. A price difference of twice that is not a small amount. Moreover, in the same neighborhood, with such a big price difference, this house must be good.

When compared with the price, the value of this house is reflected.

Asan and others thought that Wang Wenyuan chose this place because of the cheap housing prices, but Chen Jie felt that there might be another hidden story. The cheap price was just an appearance. Why was the price so cheap?

Because the land is cheap and transportation is inconvenient, few people pass by.

But in the eyes of some people, these are precisely the advantages.

Chen Jie thought so and immediately pushed open the gate. He found that there was no one in the courtyard. The guide said, "General Wang likes to live alone, so there are no servants or yard workers in his house."

After hearing this, Chen Jie didn't say much, but he secretly shook his head in his heart. It was really interesting. A sixth-rank registrar and military officer, no matter how miserable he was, should not even have a servant as an employee. This was a bit too honest.

Unless this person is afraid of something, it is impossible for him to hide here.

Chen Jie felt more and more that Wang Wenyuan was not an ordinary person.

There must be some secret.

Entering the courtyard, Chen Jie saw a small martial arts training ground. This was nothing to be surprised about. Martial arts were popular in Daqian, and civil and military officials, merchants and common people all practiced martial arts.

Therefore, it is not surprising that a sixth-rank registrar and military officer knows martial arts.

When Asan and others came to the yard, they looked around. Chen Jie also looked around casually and deduced several storage rooms.

It was discovered that there was no kitchen in the courtyard, which meant that no cooking was done here. Wang Wenyuan might just be sleeping here but not eating.

Chen Jie thought about it and came to the master bedroom. He pushed open the door and saw that although the decoration inside was not luxurious, it was very elegant, which was very different from the dilapidated outside.

After seeing it, Zhao Ya said, "There is something else going on here!"

Chen Jie said: "I'm afraid Wang Wenyuan has some secrets."

Zhao Ya nodded slightly to show her agreement, and the two of them entered the house, which was simply decorated.

A tea table was leaning against the north table, with a teapot and tea bowls on it. Chen Jie picked up the teapot, opened the lid, and found that there was still tea in the pot. From this, it could be seen that Wang Wenyuan really lived here.

Chen Jie slowly came to his bed and found that there were three quilts on it, which were very soft.

Zhao Yayou discovered that there was a dressing table at the end of the bed, and on the dressing table there was a bronze mirror.

Zhao Ya said: "This guy is quite fond of beauty."

Chen Jie looked at the bronze mirror on the table and said, "As an official, you should dress properly, so this bronze mirror is necessary."

That's very true. Officials should pay attention to their appearance. If you, as an official, don't take care of your appearance and look like a street thug, how can you be disrespectful?
So it is reasonable to have a bronze mirror, but why is there also a powder box?

Chen Jie picked up the powder box, smelled it, and called Zhao Ya over and said, "Princess, how do you see this powder?"

Zhao Ya sniffed it, twisted it with her hands and said, "It has a fine texture and a light fragrance. It should be a more expensive local powder. You asked if it has a unique fragrance."

Chen Jie sniffed it and said, "Hmm, this scent is indeed very unique."

The two of them sniffed it, then looked at each other. Something was wrong here.

Doesn’t this Wang Wenyuan have no family, no servants, and lives alone?

Why would this person live here and have women's cosmetics, and top-grade cosmetics at that? Such top-grade cosmetics are hard to buy on the market and are obviously very valuable.

So, Wang Wenyuan has a mistress hidden in his golden house?
As the two were thinking this, Chen Jie put the powder in his pocket and said, "Princess, let's search to see if there are any other valuable things. When we have time today, we can go to the rouge shop and ask."

After hearing this, Zhao Ya said yes.

As they talked, the two continued to search the house, and soon Chen Jie found a wooden box under a movable brick under the bed.

Opening it, there were silver bills inside. Chen Jie counted out twenty of them, each worth one thousand taels of silver. Then he looked at the princess and said, "This Wang Wenyuan is really honest and upright. Twenty thousand taels of silver."

"This money is enough to buy a nice house in the city and some maids and servants, but he is living in poverty here?"

A playful smile appeared on Chen Jie's face.

Zhao Ya also said: "It seems that Wang Wenyuan is not a kind person."

Chen Jie didn't say anything, but saw a book in the box, or a martial arts secret book.

Chen Jie reached out and picked it up and took a look at it. His eyes suddenly lit up, because this martial arts book turned out to be a set of palm techniques: Xiao Mitian Palm.

Chen Jie took it and looked at it. It turned out to be the same as Chen Jie had guessed.

This is a book of palm techniques that can be practiced to the Baodan realm. This is nothing surprising, because palm techniques at the Baodan realm are not precious.

But what is precious is the connotation of this martial arts book. Yes, this martial arts book is the palm method corresponding to Xiaoman in the six sets of Xia martial arts in the "Four Seasons Celestial Phenomenon" that Chen Jie has been looking for.

Just like the Water Control Palm corresponds to the rain in the Spring Character Formula.

This Xiaoman corresponds to the Xiao Mi Tian Palm Technique.

Chen Jie took a look at the technique, then calmly put it in a box and took it away. This thing was both a relic of the deceased and Chen Jie's gain.

In this way, Chen Jie Xia Zi Jue has collected two sets of skills, one corresponding to the Lesser Heat and the other corresponding to Old Monster Liu's signature skill: Fiery Kung Fu.

The other is the martial arts secret book corresponding to Xiaoman: Xiao Mitian Palm.

In this way, Chen has already explained two of the six solar terms in summer.

Only left are: Beginning of Summer, Grain in Ear, Summer Solstice and Great Heat.

The four merits have not yet been achieved.

Chen Jie thought about it and put the things away. The two of them searched the room for a long time but did not find anything useful.

Thinking that the two of them came out with things.

Ah Da and the other two also checked the house. Ah San looked puzzled and said, "This is weird."

Chen Jie looked at Ah San and said, "What's so strange about that?"

Ah San said, "Jiu Si, we found that there are no horses in this courtyard, but there are traces of carriage tracks on the ground. Look here, here."

The three pointed at the wheel tracks in the courtyard. Chen Jie was silent for a moment and then said, "Princess, it seems that we guessed right."

Upon hearing this, the princess said, "Who is he meeting with here? Why is it so secretive?"

Chen Jie said, "The princess is right. This person is having a secret meeting here, and he is so secretive. It is obvious that he is afraid of being discovered by others. There are probably not many people in Huangzhou Prefecture who can make a sixth-rank clerk so fearful, right?"

Zhao Ya heard this and said, "What do you mean? Chu?"

Chen Jie smiled and said, "I don't know, but if it is really Chu, then the cause of his death can be explained clearly." After hearing this, Zhao Ya said, "Let's go and meet Governor Chu."

As they spoke, the group headed straight for the prefectural government office, and soon they arrived there.

At this time, when the prefectural government learned that the princess was coming, Chu Tian immediately brought out a middle-aged man. The middle-aged man had a long sword hanging from his waist, his face was neutral, and he looked intimidating without even being angry.

There was another person following behind him, and when Chen Jie looked, he actually recognized him.

That’s right, it was Zhong Liang from Hong Jianmen who I met once in the Medicine King’s Treasure not long ago.

At this time, the prefect led the two out of the prefectural government office, then bowed to Zhao Ya and said, "I greet the princess."

Zhao Ya immediately said, "Prefect Chu, please don't do this. Prefect Chu is a retainer of the Prime Minister, and the Prime Minister and my father are old friends. In this way, you and I are a family, a family."

Chu Tian immediately laughed when he heard this and said, "How dare I talk about my relationship with the princess? I am just a servant of the Prime Minister's Mansion. If you follow what the princess said, I am also a servant of the Ruyang Palace and a servant of the princess."

Zhao Ya laughed out loud when she heard this, "Haha, Lord Chu is so polite. By the way, who is this?"

Zhao Ya looked at the man with a neutral expression, who looked intimidating without even getting angry. Seeing this, the man immediately clasped his fists and said, "I am Zhong Guang, the leader of the Hongjian Sect. Nice to meet the chief steward of the Hubei Rivers and Lakes."

Men follow the etiquette of the underworld. Zhao Ya is the general manager of the underworld, so this can be considered as giving face to Zhao Ya.

Upon hearing this, Chen Jie looked at the man and couldn't help but take a few more glances at him. This leader of the Hongjian Sect, Zhong Guang, was also the sword tiger Zhong Guang, one of the famous four dragons and eight tigers in Huangzhou Prefecture.

He is also the leader of the martial arts sect that Chu Tian supports.

Chen Jie looked at Zhong Guang, who then looked at Chen Jie and said, "Oh, you must be the Captain Chen who the prefect just mentioned, the one who saw through the spy hidden in the Darughachi's mansion at a glance."

Chen Jie clasped his fists and said, "Chen Jiusi."

Zhong Guang said: "Zhong Guang, it is true that heroes emerge from youth. By the way, I also heard that you are the leader of the fishing gang in Mianshui County?"

Chen Jie said: "Master Zhong, please forgive me for making a fool of myself."

Zhong Guang said, "Don't laugh, don't laugh. I am a close friend of your Huangzhou Prefecture's Chief Gang Leader Zhou Feng. By the way, you should go to the Huangzhou Prefecture's Fishing Gang Headquarters when you have time. After all, your Mianshui Fishing Gang also split from the Huangzhou Prefecture's Fishing Gang."

After hearing this, Chen Jie said, "Yes, but it has been nearly fifty years since we separated, and we don't have much contact anymore."

After hearing this, Zhong Guang laughed and said, "Young man, no wonder Zhou Feng said that it is difficult to unify the fishing gangs, because each branch has become disloyal."

"Forget it, forget it, but it doesn't matter. Zhou Feng is a generous person and has long since given up on it. He doesn't care about it anymore."

Zhong Guang said this, as if he was standing up for his old friend.

And Chen Jie also knew who Zhou Feng that Zhong Guang was talking about. He was the leader of the fishing gang in Huangzhou Prefecture, but he was the leader of a fragmented fishing gang. It was not that this person was not strong. Zhou Feng was also a martial arts master and one of the Four Dragons and Eight Tigers of Huangzhou Prefecture.

Nicknamed the Tiger Blocking the River.

He is also a great master in the Wolf Smoke Realm, but he has no ambition to unify the country and has always let the local fishing gangs do whatever they want. Otherwise, he would have lived a comfortable life like Nan Batian. He would have been transformed from the leader of the Mianshui Fishing Gang to the leader of the Mianshui Branch long ago.

Just because Zhou Feng had no ambition, the entire fishing gang became a mess and each one acted on its own!

His good friend Zhong Guang tried to persuade him more than once, but to no avail.

Chen Jie and Zhou Guang exchanged a few words, and then Zhao Ya said, "Okay, we have almost finished the pleasantries, Prefect Chu, would you like to invite us into the mansion for a chat?"

After hearing this, a group of people went straight into the mansion.

After entering the mansion, Zhao Ya got straight to the point and said, "Prefect Chu, do you know why I'm here?"

Chu Tian said: "I know a little bit, it's because of Wang Wenyuan's matter."

Zhao Ya said, "That's right, sir. I am the chief of the underworld in Hubei Road. The case of the Plum Blossom Killer is very arrogant and has greatly affected the safety of officials in Hubei Road. The impact is very bad."

"Therefore, this chief steward has decided to conduct a thorough investigation of this case and bring this Plum Blossom Killer to justice."

After hearing this, Chu Tian immediately clasped his fists and said, "The princess's move is a blessing for our Huangzhou Prefecture."

Zhong Guang said at the side: "Princess, this Plum Blossom Killer case is probably not simple. I once fought against this Plum Blossom Killer."

"Oh!"

After hearing this, Chen Jie looked at Zhong Guang and said, "Master Zhong, have you ever fought against the Plum Blossom Killer?"

Zhong Guang said: "Well, once this plum blossom killer wanted to assassinate the prefect, and I happened to see him, so I fought with him and finally drove him away."

Chen Jie squinted his eyes and said, "Master Zhong, see that plum blossom killer, is he fat or thin, male or female, and how strong is he?"

Zhong Guang heard this and said, "He's a man with a mask on. He's not fat. As for his strength, he should be on par with me. We just fought a few rounds, and when we were about to fight seriously, he fled, so I don't know his strength."

"I just feel like he should be on par with me."

After hearing this, Chen Jie said, "So that's how it is."

At this time, Chen Jie looked at Chu Tian and said, "Sir, you were assassinated. Why didn't you tell us about such a big thing?"

The prefect said, "Haha, Captain Chen, you don't know that as the chief officer of this prefecture, if there is a rumor of assassination, the people will be panicked and it will be bad for the people. Therefore, although this assassination is dangerous, it should not be spread. In addition, this official is also secretly investigating the matter of the Plum Blossom Killer."

"It is also to restore order to Huangzhou Prefecture!"

After hearing this, Chen Jie exchanged glances with Zhao Ya and asked, "Is the prefect also investigating this Plum Blossom Killer?"

Chu Tian said: "Of course, this Plum Blossom Killer has committed seven murders in my Huangzhou Prefecture. As the prefect of this prefecture, how can I ignore it? So I am also secretly investigating the case of this Plum Blossom Killer."

"By the way, my clerk, Wang Wenyuan, is responsible for secretly investigating the Plum Blossom Killer case. For this reason, I rented a private house for him in the wilderness. He usually collects intelligence and investigates the case there!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Jie and Zhao Ya looked at each other and could see surprise in each other's eyes.

So Wang Wenyuan rented the remote courtyard to investigate the Plum Blossom Killer?
Chen Jie's face was full of doubts. He looked at Chu Tian and said, "Prefect Chu, this is unfortunate. We just came from General Wang's courtyard."

"Oh, you actually found out that place. You are really swift and decisive. I admire you."

Chu Tian bowed to Zhao Ya and Chen Jie.

Chen Jie said, "We are just beginning, and our investigation is not as thorough as that of Governor Chu. I don't know why Governor Chu asked Wang Wenyuan, a civil servant, to go to a secret place far away from the government office to investigate the case of the Plum Blossom Killer!"

After hearing this, Chu Tian laughed and said, "Haha, Captain Chen, you don't know that Wang Wenyuan is a disciple of Song Ci from the previous dynasty. He has a good ability to detect cases. Don't underestimate him."

"As for why he was asked to investigate the case in a remote place, it is also very simple, because Chu did not want others to know that Chu was also investigating the case?"

"Why?"

Chen Jie looked at Chu Tian, ​​and Chu Tian said, "Haha, the reason is of course very simple. I suspect that this Plum Blossom Killer is mixed in the officialdom of Huangzhou Prefecture, and his status is not low."

"Otherwise, this case would not remain unsolved."

"That's why I have to come here secretly to minimize these human interference factors. In addition, Wang Wenyuan recently reported a piece of news to me."

Chen Jie was stunned and looked at Chu Tian and said, "What news?"

"Wang Wenyuan said that he found a rouge scent in the rouge shop that was exactly the same as the rouge scent left on the body of Zhao Xi, the salt seeker who died in my prefectural government office."

"So Wang Wenyuan said that as long as we can find someone who smells like rouge and test their martial arts, we can figure out who the killer is."

Chu Tian said, and then looked at Chen Jie and said, "By the way, Captain Chen, you just said you went to Wang Wenyuan's residence, and I haven't had time to go get it yet. Did you find the rouge he mentioned?"

Chu Tian looked at Chen Jie and Zhao Ya inquiringly. Chen Jie and Zhao Ya exchanged a glance, and then Chen Jie smiled and said, "Of course I found it. Lord Chu, please take a look."

Chen Jie took out a box of rouge and handed it to Chu Tian. Chu Tian took the rouge, looked at it and said, "It is top-quality stuff. There are probably not many rouges of this kind that Huangzhou Prefecture can afford. If we search them one by one, we should be able to find something."

Chen Jie frowned upon hearing this. After a long moment, Chen Jie looked at Chu Tian and said, "Prefect Chu."

"Well, what's the matter? Captain Chen, please speak."

Chu Tian looked at Chen Jie, as if he was willing to listen. Chen Jie was silent for a moment and looked at Chu Tian and said, "Prefect Chu, since you have been investigating this Plum Blossom Killer for so long, do you have any clues or suspects?"

Chu Tian was silent for a long time after hearing this.

"No."

"Hey, Brother Chu, how could there be no one? You said a few days ago that you suspected it was..."

"Brother Zhong!"

Just when Zhong Guang was about to speak, Chu Tian suddenly stopped Zhong Guang, then looked at Chen Jie and said, "Some jokes between friends can't be taken seriously."

Zhong Guang looked as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.

Chen Jie looked at Zhong Guang and said, "Master Zhong, the princess is here today, you can speak freely."

Zhao Ya heard this and said, "Well, Master Zhong, don't hesitate to tell me what you know."

Zhong Guang looked at Chu Tian and said, "Brother Chu, I really can't hold it in any longer. I have to say it."

Chu Tian said: "Brother Zhong, you have no evidence, you can't accuse others without reason. This is not in accordance with the law."

Zhong Guang said: "What laws? I can't care so much. I'll just say it straight. This plum blossom killer must be Tongpan Wulutai."

Chen Jie frowned and asked, "Ulutai?"

When Chen Jie heard the name, he wanted to laugh. Something was not right. Why were these two local officers blaming each other?

One said Chu Tian was the murderer, and the other said Ulutai was the murderer. The two of them completed a perfect closed loop and blamed each other?
Chen Jie thought about it and was silent for a moment, then looked at Princess Zhao Ya. Zhao Ya also frowned. She did not expect that Wulutai and Chu Tian would fight each other.

Chen Jie calmed down a bit and said, "Prefect Chu, Sect Leader Zhong said that the murderer was Ulutai, do you have any evidence?"

Chu Tian said: "There is no evidence. I have already said it. It was just a casual chat between us friends. I never thought that Brother Zhong would say it directly."

"My Lady, Captain Chen, I am just talking nonsense, so don't believe me. I have no say over these things."

After hearing this, Chen Jie glanced at Chu Tian and said, "Prefect Chu, there is no smoke without fire. Since your friend said that the murderer was Ulutai during their chat, there must be a reason. Tell us and we can just treat it as a casual chat."

Chu Tian glanced at Zhong Guang and said, "Just harm my brother."

After saying this, Chu Tian looked at Chen Jie and said, "Captain Chen, since you and the princess want to listen, I will tell you."

"There is some rift between me and Wulutai because I was sent from Dadu to take Wulutai's position as prefect, so Wulutai has always had a problem with me."

"In order to target me, they deliberately created a distinction between the Huangzhou faction and the outside faction in the county government office."

"Let me first clarify that this is completely nonsense. There is no such thing as the Huangzhou faction or the foreign faction. We all serve the imperial court, so how can we be divided into factions?"

"If we must divide them, then they are the prefectural faction and the magistrate faction, with our two offices as the dividing point and our positions as the division."

"For example, I am the governor of the government office, in charge of taxes, grain, salt, iron, tea and horses."

"And he is the magistrate of the prefecture and is in charge of arresting people by Xing Ming."

"Let's look at the victims of the Plum Blossom Killer case. Among them are the Salt Seeker Zhao Xi, who works for my prefectural government, the Grain and Grass Officer Qian Sanshun, who works for my prefectural government, and the Iron Seeker and the Tea and Horse Seeker..."

"Look at these people, they are all from my prefectural government, including my clerk Wang Wenyuan, all of them are from my prefectural government."

"The only person in Huangzhou Prefecture who hates the prefectural government so much is Wulutai of the Tongpan Prefecture."

“So I have reason to suspect that the murderer of the Plum Blossom Killer case is Ulutai.”

Chu Tian said, after hearing this, Chen Jie frowned slightly. Ulutai and Chu Tian are both masters, and they actually started to practice Tai Chi. One side said that Huangzhou Prefecture was divided into two factions, the Huangzhou faction and the outsider faction. In this way, they could classify all the dead as their faction and blame the other side.

Another way is to divide people according to the government rules: the prefectural faction and the magistrate faction.

In this way, the deceased became one of the people who were executed by the prefect, so Ulutai became the most likely suspect of the murderer.

These two are really masters.

Zhao Ya was completely confused by both sides at this time, and could only place her hopes on Chen Jie.

Chen Jie was not led astray by Chu Tian, ​​and said to Chu Tian: "If we follow the prefect's meaning, then the murderers are the Wulutai couple?"

Chu Tian said: "I didn't say that, but Jin Yanzi is an expert in using swords."

Chen Jie paused and looked at Chu Tian and said, "But didn't Sect Master Zhong say that the assassin who assassinated you was a man?"

Chu Tian heard this and said, "It's a man, but this plum blossom killer is not just one person, why can't there be a man? There are still many Four Dragons and Eight Tigers masters in Huangzhou Prefecture. Who knows if Wulutai has hired other killers?"

"Among the seven murders, there is one case where the victim is the warden of Huangzhou Prefecture Prison, Zhou Desen. He is a close subordinate of Wulutai."

"He won't even kill his own loyal subordinates, right?"

Chen Jie looked at Chu Tian and asked. Chu Tian smiled and said, "What Captain Chen said is very true. However, there is a saying that you can know a person's face but not his heart. So what can't happen in this world?"

"Of course, Princess, Captain Chen, all of the above are just my guesses. I have no evidence."

"It's just a casual chat between friends. I hope it won't affect your judgment of the case."

Chu Tian looked at the two of them with a smile. Seeing Chu Tian like this, Chen Jie had to admit that this case was a bit confusing.

But Chen Jie thought for a moment and said, "Prefect Chu, thank you for your help."

Chu Tian said: "You're welcome. By the way, since you two came today, we haven't had a reception yet. Why don't you welcome them in my house?"

Zhao Ya wanted to leave after hearing this, but Chen Jie gave her a look.

Zhao Ya sat down.

Chen Jie heard this and said, "Yeah, that's great. I'm sorry to bother Prefect Chu."

Chu Tian said: "Haha, it is my honor to welcome Captain Chen and the princess."

After hearing this, Chen Jie said, "Then I'll have to trouble Prefect Chu."

After a few polite words, the banquet soon began and everyone took their seats.

They started to clink glasses, and after three rounds of wine, they had five kinds of dishes.

Chu Tian said, "Hey, Captain Chen, I'm not going to hide it from you. Today we're drinking, and I'm going to tell you something from the bottom of my heart. This Huangzhou Prefecture is shady! It's so fucking shady."

"Well, why did Governor Chu say that?"

Chu Tian said: "Military rations, hiccups, the whole Hubei province is in a disaster this year. Hubei is in such a mess, and the food shortage is so severe? Also, someone is reselling government rations, and I heard that the buyer is a Zoroastrian demon!"

Chen Jie's eyes widened when he heard this: "Who is so bold?"

"Burp, who else could it be? I won't say any more. I won't say any more."

"Hey, Prefect Chu, you're only saying half of what you said, are you serious? Are you trying to tease me on purpose?"

Chu Tian said: "Haha, if you don't believe it, go to the mountain road near Woniugang at midnight tonight and take a look. You will be shocked. Hiccup..."

As Chu Tian was speaking, Chen Jie's eyes narrowed. Woniugang Mountain Road?
Thinking of this, Chen Jie gave Zhao Ya a look, and Zhao Ya stood up and said, "We have been eating and drinking for a long time, why don't we see Madam? Is she in the backyard? I'll go and take a look."

"Hiccup, why are you going to see her?"

Chu Tian waved his hand, and Zhao Ya quickly came to the backyard, but at this moment a scream was suddenly heard.

"what!"

Everyone was shocked and wondered what happened. They ran over and saw the prefect's wife lying in a pool of blood in the lady's room. There was a very obvious sword mark on her throat, as if she had been stabbed in the throat by someone.

At the same time, there is a plum blossom print on the wall.

Plum Killer!
Zhao Ya frowned, and at this time Chen Jie also ran over, Zhong Guang also ran over, and everyone ran here together, and saw the prefect's wife lying in a pool of blood, and everyone's eyes widened.

This, this Plum Blossom Killer is too arrogant.

Thinking of this, Zhong Guang's alcohol smell disappeared and he said, "What should I do? Brother Chu and his wife are the most loving couple. What should I do?"

As he said this, Zhong Guang suddenly exclaimed, "Where's Brother Chu?"

Everyone was stunned and looked at each other. Yes, where is Prefect Chu Tian?

Everyone was stunned for a moment, and then suddenly realized what was happening. Zhong Guang was the first to shout, "Oh no, we've been tricked into leaving the mountain."

After hearing this, everyone headed towards the banquet hall where the banquet had just been held.

Then everyone saw the prefect Chu Tian, ​​who was pierced through the left chest by a sword and nailed to the background wall behind him. His eyes were wide open and he died with his eyes open!
(End of this chapter)