That day, Zhengde called Princess Yongfu to order the general, but she didn't expect her to call Duan Fei's name, Zhengde Jinkou had been opened, so he had no choice but to call Duan Fei in front of him, let him decide for himself, I thought that after the New Year, Jinyiwei was busy, Duan Fei was going to prepare for the 'criminal investigation cram school', and he was going to organize the 'military song selection' activity, so he would shake his head and refuse, but he didn't expect Duan Fei to just frown and think about it after the words came out, and before Zhengde hinted at it, he had already replied: "Weichen obeys." ”

Princess Yongfu was very happy, but Zhengde was a little depressed, and after Princess Yongfu left, he retreated, and talked with Duan Fei for a while, and finally understood why Duan Fei agreed to accompany the princess to the south, Duan Fei received news that the Demon Sect leader and other masters had sneaked to Henan and Shaanxi, and the intention was unclear, Duan Fei sent the princess south, and she needed to pass through Henan, so she could just stop by to investigate.

Hearing that the matter involved the Demon Sect, Zhengde was also unequivocal, and immediately ordered Duan Fei to lead two thousand Jinyi guards and two thousand 'five military camps', one thousand 'Shenji Battalion' officers and soldiers, a total of 5,000 people, and also brought a lot of firearms to escort the princess back to Huguang'an Luzhou, and at the same time gave Duan Fei a task, that is, to supervise hundreds of officials along the way, verify criminal cases, and check the people's feelings.

The quarrelsome civil official group and the chamberlains didn't notice for a while, Duan Fei had already received the secret order and left the capital, and when they realized that Duan Fei had brought too many people, Duan Fei had arrived in Baoding, and when they gave up sending someone to chase him back, they heard that he had stayed in Baoding for a night.

Baoding Mansion since ancient times the folk customs are fierce and simple and martial, during the Song Dynasty, the Mongolian people suffered a lot in Baoding on the way south, many rich people will come to Baoding to recruit caretakers, Duan Fei stayed in Baoding overnight but it was an accident, just because the princess was soft-hearted for a while, and received a girl who pounced on her with wheat stalks to sell her body to bury her father, in order to finish her funeral for her, she had nothing to worry about, so she begged Duan Fei to stay in Baoding for a night.

In the early morning of the next day, everyone continued to go on the road, along the Zhending Mansion, Shunde Mansion, Guangping Mansion, Daimyo's Mansion, Kaifeng Mansion all the way, all the way slowly and leisurely, sometimes walking on the trail, each to a house to stay for a day or two days, when you came to Kaifeng, it was already February 10.

Henan officials had already heard the news and rushed to Kaifeng to greet them, Duan Fei only stayed in Kaifeng for two days before continuing to set off south, going to Weishi, Xuzhou, Xiangcheng and other counties, to Nanyang, an important town in Henan, this time it was much faster, arriving in Ye County at noon on the 13th, and arriving in Yuzhou in the evening.

Stayed in Yuzhou for a night, the next morning the team just left Yuzhou, suddenly two fast horses came from behind, immediately the knight carried the words Lushan Express, saw the governor of the Qincha banner almost cried with joy, they shouted: "Lord Qincha, I have an urgent matter to tell!" ”

Duan Fei was stunned when he heard this, Lu Shan? That place isn't suitable for big things, right? Could it be that the Demon Cult has changed its way of doing things, and plans to come to the countryside to surround the city? That's not right, from the information found in Kaifeng, it shows that the Lushan County Order is still a clean and capable official, although Lushan County is not rich, but it is definitely not a good place for Demon Sect disciples to start trouble.

He waved his hand to let the two stagecoaches who were protecting him come in, only to see the two fast horses coming close to turn over and dismount, and then crawled to the ground in front of Duan Pegasus, bowed their heads, and shouted: "Lushan Ya Servant Yu Dan and Kong Minghui meet Lord Qincha Duan." ”

Duan Fei said: "You guys get up and talk, what happened to Lushan?" ”

The two officials took out an official document from their arms, stood up and handed it to Duan Feidao: "There is a big case in Lushan, the specific details are detailed in our county order in the official document, please open it." ”

Hearing that it was not a rebellion, Duan Fei breathed a sigh of relief, if he wanted to rebel, he would wait until he was prepared, don't make a surprise attack, he took the official envelope, opened it and looked at it, when he saw that the number of dead had reached one hundred and seventy-one people, he couldn't help but exclaim, he didn't care much about the strange ghosts and ghosts described by Tan Bin, there are no ghosts in this world, and no matter how weird things are, they can be explained.

Duan Fei hesitated for a moment with the official letter, and the county magistrate of Lushan County asked for help with an official letter stamped with a big seal, and it stands to reason that he can't ignore it, but he is now tasked with escorting the princess, and it seems very inappropriate to walk away halfway, but I am afraid that the princess will not agree.

The two officials were still looking forward to Duan Fei's answer, Duan Fei thought about it, and said to them: "You wait here, the official wants to report this matter to the princess, Xiao Han, show the two eldest brothers of the officials, and get some tea and snacks." ”

"Yes, my lord, I'll go to Zhang Luo." The maid named Xiao Han bowed down and replied, she was the maid that the princess received in Baoding, but she was arranged by the princess to follow Duan Fei to serve, and now Duan Fei has two maids by his side, Li Yuying and Xiao Han.

Duan Fei came to the princess's sedan chair and said: "Your Royal Highness Princess, Weichen received a letter from Lushan County, there was a big case in Lushan County, the case is very serious, and the case needs to be solved urgently, otherwise the consequences will be unimaginable. ”

Princess Yongfu said softly: "If you can let Lord Duan say such a thing, this case must be a big case, in this case, Lord Duan still puts state affairs first, and immediately rush to Lushan County to investigate the case, I have Luo An and them to accompany me." ”

Duan Fei didn't expect the princess to be so easy to speak, he was immediately overjoyed, and naturally couldn't show it on the surface, and said: "Thank you for your forgiveness, Your Royal Highness the princess, this case is really important, now one hundred and seventy-one people have died, the people of Lushan County are panicking, and something will happen at any time, Lushan County ordered an urgent letter for help, Wechen has to go, please forgive the princess, Wechen ordered Wang Zuo to lead two thousand five military camps and one thousand Shenji battalions and one thousand brocade guards to escort the princess, Wechen took one thousand brocade guards to Lushan County to investigate the case, if the investigation goes well, Maybe Weichen can catch up with the princess's team before the princess arrives in Anlu Prefecture. ”

Princess Yongfu sighed lightly: "If it weren't for the urgency of time, I really want to follow Master Duan to Lushan County to have a look, will there be too few thousand brocade guards?" Lord Duan still bring two thousand brocade guards and one thousand divine machine camps, I will not have anything to do on the way back, bringing so many people will scare my mother, Lord Duan does not need to be in a hurry to go, it is important to find out the case, as long as it can catch up with my return date, even if it is a reunion in Kaifeng, it doesn't matter. ”

Duan Fei said goodbye to the princess with gratitude, leaving the old man of the palace to lead the team to escort the princess to continue southward, while Duan Fei took the others and turned around and hurried towards Lushan County.

This road is all over the mountains and mountains, although everyone's equestrian skills are quite exquisite, but because the road is not familiar, so when crossing the Luyang Pass, it was caught up by the Lushan County officials who rested in Yuzhou for two hours, and then the sky darkened, three thousand fast horses galloped on the mountain road, and the torches held high converged into a long dragon, winding forward on the mountain road, even if there were really ghosts, seeing the fire dragon had already scared away.

At about three o'clock in the morning, the brigade finally arrived in Lushan County, Duan Fei left Hua Ming and 3,000 soldiers, and only brought about 100 people to Shannan Village, and came to Shannan Village at about the beginning of the Mao Dynasty.

For a while, the fire was at its peak, and the people were noisy, and Tan Bin and others, who had been waiting for a long time, were overjoyed to greet them.

After the two sides greeted each other, Duan Fei asked as he walked, "How is the situation?" Is there anything new in the case? ”

Tan Bin replied: "My lord, the ghost cried for half a night in the first half of tonight, and as soon as the adult came, the ghost crying suddenly stopped. ”

Duan Fei sighed and said, "Is the person surnamed Zhang about to wake up?" ”

Tan Bin shook his head and said, "Not yet, he was too seriously injured and too frightened, and the doctor who treated him said that he was only afraid that he would be in a coma for a few days." ”

Duan Fei frowned and said, "Send a few more people to watch over him, and report to this official as soon as he wakes up." Where are the corpses placed? Take me to see it. ”

Tan Bin hesitated for a moment and said, "The adults came overnight, why don't you take a rest first?" It's never too late to see it tomorrow morning. ”

Duan Fei: 'Huh? With a question, Tan Bin hurriedly replied: "My lord, there are too many corpses, the weather has become warmer these days, many corpses are seriously decomposed, the old man in my county has just been killed, his apprentice was forced to go into battle, seeing so many corpses, he has vomited and fainted several times, so those corpses have not yet been sorted neatly, the stench is pressing, it is said that there are still bursts of ghost fire, adults should wait for the dawn and the sun to come out and then take a look." ”

Duan Fei snorted and said: "It is precisely because the weather is getting warmer, I am worried about the decomposition of the corpse, so I rushed here overnight, it just so happens that the official has a work with him, this little thing is not difficult for the official, Yang Sen, it's time for you to show your skills!" ”

Yang Sen walked out happily and said with a smile to Tan Bin: "Lord County Commander, the case is important, you better lead the way, if you are afraid of smell, I have two odor avoidance pills here to give away, my family is blessed by the gods, and is proficient in spells, all evil is easy to dispel, and there are no taboos." ”

Tan Bin smiled bitterly and took the two odor-avoiding pills, skillfully stuffed them into his nostrils, he waved at Duan Fei, and said, "Then please follow the lower officials to the morgue." ”

Duan Fei followed Tan Bin to go, the place of mortuary is in the south of Shannan Village, there is a field next to the small river, because it is not yet spring, this place is still barren, Tan Bin placed the collected corpses here, and temporarily set up a grass shed to shelter from the sun and rain, seven or eight fires were lit around the shed, and there were hundreds of soldiers guarding them.

Seeing Tan Bin's arrangement, Duan Fei nodded with satisfaction and said, "Yang Sen, first deal with those corpses that are more seriously decomposed, number each corpse, and write down all the details found in detail. ”

Yang Sen smacked his lips and looked at the pieces of corpses, he couldn't help but say: "My lord, there are too many corpses, and the work in Lushan County is not enough, I need someone to help, at least one to record, a few to help clean up the bones." ”

Duan Fei turned around and asked, "If anyone is willing to help, but stand up, this official will be rewarded!" ”

"My lord, count me in." Jiang Jun and Hong Bang stood up, but Shi Bin and Guo Wei scratched their heads and hesitated, looking at the girl they liked out of the corner of their eyes.

Xiaohuan also came out of Beijing for some reason, she hung her head and secretly kicked Shi Bin, Shi Bin walked out knowingly, Li Yuying also pushed Guo Wei out, Yang Sen gave each of them a deodorant pill, plus the four people still seemed a little small, Cheng Han Yi of Lushan County saw this and ordered a few people to come out, all of whom had participated in the digging and carrying of corpses in the Valley of Grievances, so that the people who collected the corpses were almost the same, only one person who recorded them.

There is a small official in Lushan County who specializes in this work, but he refuses to wander among the corpses when he is killed, Duan Fei is considering the candidate, but the newly accepted maid Xiaohan stands up and says: "My lord, I know how to write and keep accounts, let me come." ”

Everyone looked at her in surprise, but Duan Fei, who understood her identity, was not surprised, nodded and said, "Then it's hard for you." ”

Everyone started to work, Duan Fei did not enter the grass shed, but just asked someone to bring a few tables and chairs, sat down with Tan Bin, and listened to the information from Shi Bin's autopsy.

Shi Bin first checked the corpses of Liang Chun and others, the head catcher in Lushan Town, and only listened to his report: "The deceased Liang Chun is five feet eight tall, has a strong body, knows martial arts, appears in a different place, the muscles of the neck fracture show pulling and lacerations, the spine is broken, the tooth marks are obvious, it should be bitten off, the tooth marks are thick and sharp, it is inferred from the tooth marks that it should be some kind of carnivore, not a human ......"

Hearing that it was not gnawed by people, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, only to hear Shi Bin continue: "Judging from the broken neck, the blood has already coagulated, because it should have been gnawed off for a long time after death, and the fatal wound is not here, Liang Chun has obvious external injuries on his body, and he has several knives in his chest. ”

"Well," Lushan County Ling Tan Bin said to Duan Fei: "According to the inference of the lower officials, Liang Chun and the others had killed each other, and perhaps the knife wounds on his body were caused at that time." ”

Duan Fei touched his head, and Yang Sen continued to perform the autopsy: "These knife wounds are not fatal, unless there is excessive bleeding, but obviously Liang Chun has not suffered for that long, and the fatal wound on his body should be this shot straight through the back...... Please forgive me, I don't know what the murder weapon is, but this thing stabbed Liang Chun in the chest and in the back, it should be a round long stick-like thing, I suspect it is a gun or spear or something. ”

Duan Fei asked, "Is there anything else?" ”

Yang Sen turned Liang Chun's body over and over for a few moments, and said, "My lord, I can't see anything else for the time being, if you want to know more details, you need to find a morgue to slowly examine it." ”

There are so many corpses in front of him, corrupting all the time, where is there time for him to examine slowly, Duan Fei said, "Okay, next." ”

Yang Sen handed Liang Chun's body over to the intern in Lushan County for disposal, and he continued to examine the bodies of several other officials, who were almost identical to Liang Chun, all of whom had been pierced through the heart with a spear and then had their heads gnawed off, but their fatal wounds were not either, they had already died of injuries before they were pierced through the heart, and one of them had half of his head cut open.

After disposing of the latest deceased, Janssen called the 'volunteers' to pick out the most decomposed corpses, line them up one by one, and wait for him to examine them.

After staring at the several decomposing corpses in front of him for a while, Yang Sen asked, "Let's talk to a local, what is the local temperature this winter?" Can there be drastic changes? ”

Zheng Lu Kang in Shannan Village replied: "This year's winter is dry and cold, and there is not much snow, and it was not until the cold spring a few days ago that there were ice slags for two days, but the yin air in the Valley of the Soul is pressing, and it is extremely humid all year round. ”

Yang Sen nodded with satisfaction and said: "My lord, there are three corpses in front of me with the same degree of decomposition, it is estimated that the time of death should be within a month, and the three deceased should be a family of three in terms of clothing and age, among which the husband and wife are about thirty years old, and the child is about ten years old." ”

Duan Fei frowned and asked, "Can the cause of death be found?" ”

Yang Sen said proudly: "There is no problem with this level of decay, let me take a look......"

Yang Sen first looked at the adult male corpse, and suddenly the corpse's throat surged, and the people standing next to him let out a surprise and took two steps back.

Yang Sen was also taken aback, and Duan Fei asked loudly when he saw something unusual, "Yang Sen, what's going on?" ”

Yang Sen replied eatingly: "My lord, I don't know, but ......"

The mouth of the male corpse opened, and a black and fluffy thing came out, and everyone let out another exclamation, only to see Yang Sen reach out and grab the thing, pinching the thing, and said loudly: "My lord, it's a mouse, somehow got into his stomach from the mouth of the deceased, and just now he was frightened and crawled out, which scared everyone." ”

Duan Fei sighed indifferently and said, "Go on." ”

His steady tone soothed the panic in everyone's hearts, Yang Sen twisted the mouse's neck, and then threw the slimy dead mouse aside, looking at the slightly open mouth of the male corpse, Yang Sen reached out and broke his jaw, looking at the empty mouth of the black hole, Yang Sen sighed, pinched and touched the deceased's neck a few times, and said: "My lord, the deceased's hyoid bone is broken, I suspect that he died of suffocation, who will bring a torch over to shine it clearly." ”

When the torch was brought, Yang Sen took a closer look, raised his head and said: "My lord, the deceased has strangulation marks on his neck, the marks are thick and clear, this kind of marks are very common, I have also seen many times on the hanged death row inmates, and even the marks are extremely similar, and the murderer should use hemp rope of the same thickness." ”

Duan Fei sighed and asked, "Are there any other suspicious clues?" ”

Yang Sen carefully examined the corpse again, and found something again, and said: "My lord, there are many signs of wear and tear on the corpse, and there are bruises on the wrists and ankles, which may have been tied up and dragged on the ground...... That's basically it......"

Yang Sen's gaze turned to the adult female corpse and began to describe the situation of the female corpse.

The hyoid bone of the female corpse was also broken, but the tongue was still there, and it was so rotten that it would fall off at any time, and her hands and feet also had traces of binding and rubbing on the ground, and there were many whip marks on her body, especially on her chest and buttocks, and her clothes were all torn, and those two parts were the most seriously rotten.

"The murderer is really a madman......" Tan Bin muttered after hearing Yang Sen's description.

Duan Fei said: "If he is really crazy, it is understandable, but unfortunately he is obviously not crazy, it can only be said that this person has an extreme personality, is extremely bloodthirsty and sadistic, and has anti-human tendencies." Janssen, continue the autopsy. ”

Yang Sen sighed and said, "This kid ...... Alas, he is worse than his parents, who can do such a poisonous thing to such a child? ”

Duan Fei hardened his heart and said: "Hurry up, talk less nonsense, maybe the murderer is committing a crime, and solving the case early can save a few more people......"

As soon as the words fell, a terrified howl came from the direction of Shannan Village in the east: "Help...... Help me! Kill...... Kill ......"