This past night, the Halloween Festival of the seventh and a half months of the lunar calendar, was the saddest night of the patrol house in the Shanghai Public Concession.

Exactly ten years ago, on September 2, 1907, what special event took place?

At eight o'clock in the morning, on the roof of the Hongkou Capture House, which was tragically destroyed, Sheriff Hilton, Ouyang Sicong, Qin Beiyang, and Qi Yuanshan of the Public Concession Patrol House were already involved in the past ten years ago.

Ouyang Sicong shook his head: "At that time, I hadn't come to Shanghai yet. ”

"But I'm in Shanghai! Twenty years ago, I started working in the patrol house of the Shanghai Public Concession. In my memory, in September of that year, there was no major case in the Public Concession, the French Concession, or the Chinese Concession. I checked the files of the patrol room, and on September 2 there were only a few petty arrests that were not worth mentioning. "But just because it's peaceful on land doesn't mean it's calm on the sea." ”

"Ocean?"

The sheriff stared at Ouyang Sicong's eyes: "On September 2, 1907, there was a passenger ship of the Japanese Haneda Steamship Company, with a displacement of 2,000 tons, Xu Fumaru, which sailed out of Shanghai Port to Kobe, but disappeared in the East China Sea for no reason. ”

"Right...... You reminded me, and I've heard about it. ”

Qin Beiyang found that beads of sweat appeared on Ouyang Sicong's forehead.

"This ship was carrying more than 400 passengers, including the president of Haneda Trading Company, who called ......" the sheriff flipped through the small notebook, "yes, Haneda Ryoma." There was also a huge amount of money entrusted by the Japanese government for transportation on board, which was also the Gengzi indemnity paid by China to Japan. ”

"Gengzi indemnity?"

At the mention of Gengzi Year, Qin Beiyang trembled inexplicably, not to mention the Gengzi indemnity that weighed on the hearts of every Chinese.

“Boxer Indemnity！ We Westerners call it fist reparations. To this day, the Chinese government has to pay to the Great Powers every year. In 1907, China paid Japan about one million taels of silver in reparations, all of which were loaded on the Xu Fu Maru of Haneda Steamboat. On September 2, at seven o'clock in the morning, the steamer sailed out of Wusongkou. By the end of the night, radio contact was lost. Haneda Trading Company and the Japanese government sent many ships to search, but there was no news of the ship. ”

Qin Beiyang, who was listening on the sidelines, remembered that eight years ago, on the night of the Tianjin German Concession Extermination Case, his adoptive father Qiu Desheng talked about this big case - a million silver in Gengzi's indemnity, which was inexplicably missing in the East China Sea.

"This ......"

"In the East China Sea, at the center of the route between China and Japan, there is an isolated island called Bodhidharma Island." The sheriff glanced at his notebook again and read out the English name of the island, as if it were an island of India or Ceylon, "As far as I know, the waters near Mount Dharma are not only full of reefs, but also infested with murderous pirates. ”

"Well, I'll admit it, Bodhidharma Mountain is my hometown."

"September 2, 1907, Mr. Ouyang, where are you?"

"Bodhidharma Mountain."

Sheriff Hilton bit his pipe and said: "After the disappearance of the million-silver steamer, the Japanese government sent marines to climb Mount Dharma to sweep it, but the whereabouts of the silver were not found, and not even a single survivor was found. ”

"Well, I've heard about it, but I happened to go to Ningbo to do business at that time, so I didn't meet Japanese devils." As long as the Japanese were mentioned, Ouyang Sicong's face was full of disdain, "I'm sorry, respected Mr. Sheriff." If, because of this inexplicable date, you involve me innocently in this big case, I will protest to the Ministry of Industry Bureau. Are you going to accuse me of piracy? ”

"I don't care about any piracy crimes, and the East China Sea Dharma Mountain is not under my jurisdiction. Mr. Ouyang, you are in the Shanghai Public Concession's mansion, Damo Mountain, which happens to be in the jurisdiction of the Hongkou Patrol House. And I only care about this murder that happened at our feet in the early hours of this morning, and ten of our heroic comrades died in the patrol room, and I must avenge them! ”

Facing the angry sheriff, Ouyang Sicong's cheeks were also trembling. Suddenly, he pushed Qin Beiyang behind his back.

"Why should we go so far? Why don't you tell me about the thieves who broke into my house a month ago? It was this brave young man who bravely fought off the invading thieves with one enemy and four enemies, and captured the tomb robber Xiaomu alive. ”

Qi Yuanshan thought that Ouyang Sicong was going to use Qin Beiyang as a scapegoat, wiped the vomit from his mouth, and stepped forward: "Mr. Ouyang, we have only been in Shanghai for three months, and we don't know those robbers at all." ”

"You're so angry with your brother!" Ouyang Sicong patted them on the shoulder, "Sheriff Hilton, I want to say that there were four robbers who robbed my house at that time, and only one of them was caught in the patrol room, and there were still three robbers left. Why wasn't it the three men who came to hijack the accomplices? ”

According to Xiao Mu's confession, he said that the other three bandits were only temporary accomplices with him, and they were all brave and unscrupulous ruffians. Of course, I can't judge whether this confession is true or false, or maybe this gang has also committed other heinous crimes. The other three criminals who are on the run must rescue Xiaomu or kill him. ”

"Mr. Sheriff, may I speak?"

After holding it for a long time, it was finally time for Qin Beiyang to erupt.

Without waiting for the sheriff to nod, Ouyang Sicong spoke first: "Okay, I'll bring you over, and let you say as much as possible." ”

"I know who the murderer of the bloodbath patrol room is!" Qin Beiyang took a deep breath, "First of all, it is definitely not the three thieves who escaped from Dharma Mountain on the sea, I have fought several of them head-on, and I know that these people have a few catties and taels, and they have no courage to run to the patrol room to kill people." ”

"Go on."

Sheriff Hilton held his pipe in his mouth and held his chin as he stared intently at the seventeen-year-old Chinese teenager.

"Eight years ago, in the first year of Xuantong, there was a case of extermination in the German Concession of Tianjin. Two murderous assassins invaded the home of an ordinary resident. They killed a middle-aged couple and a nine-year-old boy, but were fortunately rescued by the inspector of the Beijing Patrol Police Department. In that case, two patrolmen were killed by slitting their throats. In defiance, the boy stabbed one of the young Assassins, causing a twisted scar on the right side of his face. ”

When Qin Beiyang said this, he ran to the small attic again and asked the only witness for verification: "Hey, that killer with a scar on his face, can you see clearly which side of the face it is?" ”

The survivor thought for a moment, and his fingers gestured over the right cheek, crawling like a centipede, almost reaching his ear.

"That's him! A few months ago, Zhang Xun was restored, and there was a big case in Beijing. Three Assassins broke into the prison and killed many prison guards, including the warden. The method of murder is to cut the throat with a dagger. The tragedy at the Hongkou Patrol House in the early hours of this morning was committed by the same gang of assassins as the case of the extermination of the German Concession in Tianjin eight years ago and the massacre in Beijing Prison this year. Qin Beiyang's mind was flying, and all the scenes were like the drawings of the tomb beasts, one by one, appearing in front of him, and they all had a direct or indirect relationship with himself, "Who has a pen and paper?" ”

Ouyang Sicong and Qi Yuanshan shook their heads when they touched their pockets, but it was Sheriff Hilton who contributed the notebook...... Qin Beiyang drew a few strokes accurately, and the assassin's dagger was already on the paper-

About three inches long, it is extremely sharp, with blood grooves, ivory handles, and elaborate luodian patterns.

In particular, the comet hitting the moon is vividly painted and is about to come out.

The sheriff gave him frequent sideways: "You are the most special Chinese boy I have ever seen." Eight years ago, I also heard about the murder case, when I happened to pass through Tianjin, and there were indeed portraits of wanted criminals. A few months ago, the Beijing prison massacre spread throughout the Far East. ”

"The Beijing Police Department still has the murder weapon, you can go to investigate, I have no lies."

Sheriff Hilton took off his pipe, pointed at Qin Beiyang and asked, "But, kid, how do you know?" ”

"I am the only survivor of the murder eight years ago, the nine-year-old boy who was nearly killed by them, and I am the one who left the scar on the young assassin's face. I had vowed to avenge my parents by killing the two Assassins with my own hands. Now, at least one of the Assassins has appeared in Shanghai. ”

"Beiyang, why did they kill your whole family?"

Ouyang Sicong asked this important question.

Qin Beiyang couldn't tell the secret of the Tomb Beast and the Tomb Maker Clan, and shook his head with a wry smile: "Perhaps...... I'm the Lone Star! ”

So far, this case has finally made significant progress, at least it can connect the trajectory of the murderer.

Taking advantage of the sheriff's turn to record, Ouyang Sicong leaned into Qin Beiyang's ear and said, "Thank you, you have relieved the siege for me." ”

"I just want to catch those assassins!"

Standing on the roof of the Hongkou patrol house at the scene of the bloodshed, Qin Beiyang turned to face the Bund and the Huangpu River, and the mighty river rushed towards Wusongkou. The largest city in the Far East, like a labyrinth of anthills, hides three million ant-like people. And that assassin's face, I don't know where it is?

At this moment, a camera was pointed at his face on the roof of the opposite building.

Behind the camera, there is an assassin's face.