"This is supposed to be a stump with a woman's bones." Yan Suwen took out the brocade handkerchief he carried with him, and took out the stump in the wooden box in front of those ladies and ladies who had lost their faces: "Generally speaking, men's bones are thicker and longer than women's bones, and the bone surface is rougher, more uneven, and the bones are heavier, but these are just speculations, and it is not completely certain that the owner of this stump must be a woman, because it cannot be ruled out that some men's physical characteristics are closer to women's." ”

"How can you be sure?"

"The whole body was found. The male and female skeletons are the most obvious and the difference is the most obvious in the sex characteristics of the pelvis, followed by the skull and limb bones. At the moment, we are only seeing two upper limb bones, and there may be errors in judgment. ”

"Where do you think the rest of the bones will be?" Gu Changfeng asked.

Yan Suwen glanced at him and shook his head: "Judging from the cross-section of the bones, it is a standard posthumous dismemberment. Even if the body is divided, it is the murderer's intention to hide, and the remaining stumps may also be in this courtyard or anywhere in Yecheng. ”

"Lord Zuo doesn't mind letting people turn over your yard, right?"

"Don't mind, don't mind." Zuo Zongquan responded again and again, and he didn't dare to raise his head.

The bones were found in the house of the court officials, and the impact of this spread can be imagined. Zuo Zongquan is not a stupid person, at this time, he can't wait for Gu Changfeng to take over the case and find out the reason as soon as possible.

Gu Yunfei transferred another team of people from nowhere, and after a while, he turned over the courtyard. Under a white pear tree near the corner, they found a mud jar. The mud altar is buried deep in the earth, and the mouth of the altar is tied with a red cloth, and under the red cloth is a thick cowhide, on which are some charms drawn.

"Cursed? Oh my God, oh my God, shouldn't it be in this jar too-" Zuo Zongquan broke out in a cold sweat in his head: "Bad luck, it's really bad luck!" If I had known that there was something like this buried in this yard, I wouldn't have bought it if I had been killed. I knew, I knew, this yard must be so cheap that it must not be a good thing. ”

"Lord Zuo is calm, calm, you have already bought this yard, and things have happened, the most important thing at the moment is not to regret buying this yard, but to find out who this bone belongs to and when it was buried." Yan Suwen asked people to hold the clay altar up, pointed to the sealed charm and asked Gu Changfeng: "Do you recognize this?" ”

"I don't know, it doesn't look like a wine jar."

"This is Weng coffin."

"Weng coffin?" Gu Changfeng obviously hadn't heard of this word.

"It's a Weng coffin, but it's not the traditional kind of Weng coffin."

"You recognize?" Gu Changfeng asked, with curiosity in his eyes.

"There is a Yan Father in Yanjiazhuang, and Yan Daddy is in charge of the funeral in Zhuangzi, and he also likes to study these things in private. This coffin is what he told me. ”

"What is this coffin?"

"It is a special coffin used to bury a dead person, a baby who died young, a pregnant woman who died tragically, or a patient who died a tragic death of leprosy. This coffin represents an ominous person, and being buried in the earth will cause the family to be restless and provoke murder. Therefore, before the coffin is put into the ground, the mage will first place the spark and ashes of the deceased for three years, and then put them into the pottery or clay altar. ”

"So, it doesn't have to be bones."

"Just open it and see." Yan Su asked, and he was about to open the sealed cowhide.

"I'll come, I'll come, how can this kind of thing be done by Madame." Gu Yunfei took the first step and put his hand on the seal.

The clay altar was soon filled with people, and their eyes fell on the clay altar.

The moment the hides were uncovered, the disgusting smell of rancid smell washed out. Gu Yunfei covered his mouth and nose and said to the people around him: "It's pitch black, I can't see anything clearly, bring a lamp here." ”

The lamp and candle were brought quickly, and after Gu Yunfei pointed the candlelight at the mouth of the altar, he still shook his head: "I can't see clearly, it's pitch black." ”

"Is there a hammer? Bring a hammer and smash the clay altar. Be steady, don't smash what's inside. ”

"What if it's ashes here? It burned to ashes, and when the wind blew, it was gone. ”

"It shouldn't be ashes." Yan Su asked the size of the clay altar: "If it is something that is burned to ashes, there is no need for such a large clay altar." ”

Yan Suwen poured an antidote pill he was carrying and handed it to Gu Yunfei, "Although it is in an open place indoors, this mud altar is weird, so it's better to be careful." ”

"My subordinates know."

Gu Yunfei swallowed the pill, covered his mouth and nose with his sleeve, picked up the hammer, found the right angle, and smashed it hard.

The mud jar cracked, and a black head rolled out of the sticky sewage.

The onlookers scattered in all directions, each with a frightened expression on their faces.

"Bring a basin of water!"

Yan Suwen commanded, and people poured all the water on the head. The sludge wrapped around the skull was washed away, revealing its original form.

A young woman with her eyes gouged out and her nose gouged out, leaving only a mouth. The mouth, ajar, showed white, straight teeth.

"Oh my God! I thought I was ruthless enough, and this person was much more ruthless than me. ”

"Do you know?" Yan Suwen pointed to the corpse and asked Zuo Zongquan.

Zuo Zongquan didn't look at it, and quickly shook his head: "I don't know!"

"Lord Zuo, it's better to take a closer look before answering."

"It's not that the lower officials don't look carefully, but the lower officials are timid, and this person has been brutalized like this, and the lower officials are really ...... Don't say that the lower officials don't recognize it, it's just that the people who were originally recognized by the lower officials have become like this, and the lower officials can't recognize it. ”

"Do you know whose courtyard it belonged to?"

"This subordinate knows. Before buying the yard, the lower official made a special inquiry. This courtyard originally belonged to a businessman named Li Hong. This Li Hong is in the silk business, and the business is very large, and there are four or five shops in Yecheng alone. Before the New Year, this Li Hong suddenly fell ill and died. Because of the suddenness of his death, after Li Hong's death, his wives and concubines, including the mother's family members of his wives and concubines, came out to fight for his property. This matter is quite big, and many people in Yecheng know about it. This yard was pawned by Li Hong's wife. Because of the rush to sell, the price is kept low. I came to see it a few times before I bought it, but I didn't think there were any other things here. ”

"Then Li Hong died of illness suddenly?"

"Yes! It's all of a sudden. At that time, one of Li Hong's favorite concubines also went to the yamen to report to the official, saying that Li Hong did not die of illness, but was poisoned by his wife Xu. The government also sent someone to investigate, but did not find evidence that Mrs. Li Hong poisoned her husband, and the matter was closed. ”

"What about the newspaper officer's concubine?"

"I don't know!" Zuo Zongquan shook his head: "At that time, everyone was concerned about Li Hong's death, and where all the money he saved after Li Hong's death went, but no one cared about the concubine who reported to the official. However, I heard that she was kicked out by Li Hong's wife. Also, a concubine, when it comes to the matter, she doesn't want to think about how to settle the rest of her life but goes to argue with the housemother, and even reports to the official to testify that the housemother is a murderer. ”

"Then could this mud jar be Li Hong's concubine who reported to the official?" Gu Yunfei lowered his head and looked at it carefully: "Don't say Lord Zuo, even people like me who are used to seeing corpses, it is difficult to identify her original appearance from this head."

"Even if it's a concubine, there should be something to check." Yan Su asked and looked at Gu Changfeng: "My lord?" ”

"Yunfei will go and check."

"Then there's General Lao."

"Don't dare, don't dare, Madam said so, the master will kill his subordinates." Gu Yunfei said, and asked the mud altar to be buried back in the soil, wrapped the dug up head in a coat, and put it aside.

"The arms are over there, the head is over there, and if nothing else, the rest of this should be buried in this yard as well. It's just this yard...... Since this yard was bought by Lord Zuo, there should also be a layout plan of the painted yard, right? ”

"Yes, yes, the lower official will go and get it for his wife."

"The murderer hides the corpse, which seems random, but there are certain rules to be found. For example, she would hide the body in what she thought was the safest place. Assuming that the murderer is a member of the Li family, then the place where she buried the body must be a place that she is familiar with, and thinks that others will not pay attention to it, and will notice it. ”

Yan Suwen stared at the white pear for a long time before he spoke: "Li Hong, how many wives and concubines are there?" ”

"Li Hong's original wife is Xu, and like Li Hong, she is from a businessman's background. If the concubine is a concubine, there should be three people in the lower ranks. In addition to the concubine who reported to the official that accused Mrs. Xu of murdering her husband, there were also the Xue family and the Tang family. This Xue family is a native of Yecheng, and his parents are also engaged in small business, and the relationship between him and the Li family's silk shop is a business relationship. The Tang family is said to have come out of the flower building, but it is unknown where the flower building is and what the name used in the flower building is. ”

"I want the details of these people, the more carefully the better."

"Yunfei."

"Don't worry, what Madame wants, his subordinates will immediately send someone to do it."

"The lower officials will also assist General Gu to investigate." Zuo Zongquan arched his hand: "Xia Guan really doesn't know what to say." Today, I originally invited my grandfather and wife to come to the banquet, but I never thought that I would encounter such a thing. The banquet has been ordered to be moved to the side courtyard, Xiangye, Mrs. is here, please. ”

"Lord Zuo is from the Criminal Department?"

"Mrs. Hui, the next official is the squire of the Criminal Department."

"You should be able to transfer the files related to Li Hong."

"The lower official will do it immediately, and when the lady leaves the house, it will definitely be delivered to the lady."

"Don't worry, he won't dare not give it." Gu Changfeng said, and glanced at Zuo Zongquan lightly.

Zuo Zongquan's heart was cold, he quickly wiped it on his forehead, turned around and explained a few words to his wife, and then he couldn't care about greeting anymore, and went down to adjust the file.