"Are there any villages or towns around here?" Chitose pointed in the opposite direction, "where did they flee." ”

"There is a small liao, it is called Huzhou. What used to be a small village near the water has grown to a population of 400 or 500. The guide brought by Shi Congyi stepped on his feet, "The place where you are standing now is called 'Shuitou', and it is a good place to fish in summer, but now even wild beasts do not come. ”

Yan Saburo stood on the sand and looked into the distance: "What is the place on the other side?"

"It's a wild forest. The guide replied, "Thirty miles further on, there is a tun in the upper reaches of the river." ”

"In such a small place, it should be very conspicuous to have strangers coming, right?" Chitose asked Shi Congyi, "Can you find out where they live?"

"It's been checked. There was no inn in the dormitory, so they stayed in a resident's house. Shi Congyi had just received the news, "Come with me." He sent another team to search across the river.

Walk back four miles through the lopus fir forest, it is Huzhou Liao, it is selected at the foot of the sheltered mountain, and there are fertile fields on three sides.

The officers and soldiers brought by Shi Congyi have already searched this place to the bottom.

Chitose is right, once something happens in such a small place, the outsiders can be found out clearly in the blink of an eye. They just walked into the liao, and Shi Congyi's men came down to report:

These outsiders claimed to be fur dealers and entered the dormitory to collect leather.

There are many rats in Huzhou, and it is rich in silver foxes, and the fox skin in winter is soft and fluffy, which is the top grade. It is very common for leather traders to enter the village to collect skins, but it is obviously a little unusual for them to return when the New Year is approaching.

It will take at least forty or fifty days for the material to be taken back, and then it will be sent to the store for trading, which is already a matter after the beginning of spring. At that time, the weather was warmer, no longer bitter cold, and Qiu Yu's business was not as good as autumn and winter.

"How many?" Yan Saburo was now standing in their quarters, walking back and forth to inspect.

"Three. ”

"In other words, there is another person whose whereabouts are unknown?" The house is built with an earthen kang, and it is not clear that there are many people living in it.

This is a very common farmhouse mud house, the doors and windows are very large, and they usually have to be plugged with cloth strips to avoid sizzling and leaking. But the door to this room was broken, and something could be seen breaking in.

The windows were wide open, and everything in the room was crooked, and there were a few claw marks on the walls.

It was evident that there had been a fight here, and there was blood on the floor and walls.

"The murderer broke in. Shi Congyi pointed to the floor, the pieces of wood were inside the door, "Those who live here, escape through the windows." Hmm, why did the murderer walk through the door in the open?"

"Maybe it's because it's too big and the windows are too small. Yan Saburo looked at the wooden door, the windows of the farmhouse were generally small, and the lighting was poor. If he remembered correctly, the peasant woman in Sanjiao Town said that the monster she saw at the head of the water in Huzhou was probably one zhang (three meters) high, and it was impossible to get through such a small window.

The landlord was also brought. The owner of the house was a dark-skinned local, and the family of four was standing outside the door with their heads cowered, with some horror in their eyes.

Small place, the news went fast, they already knew that the guest of the house died a few miles away. This is a good way for people to spend the night, and can they lend human lives?

Shi Congyi summoned them in and asked, "Where did these people say they came from?"

"They claim to be from Xingcheng, but the accent is not the same, and I, I don't care. The landlord said carefully, "There are many merchants who come to collect leather every year. As long as the money is given, no one asks in detail. ”

"What noise did you hear last night?"

"We lived next door, and the first thing we heard was the sound of the wood cracking, probably because the door was broken, and then the thing toppled over, and the guests were screaming......"

Shi Congyi interrupted him: "What did they call?"

"Ugh. "I heard them shouting, 'What is this?' and I don't know who was screaming, as if they were hurt." ”

"What else?"

"Someone shouted: 'Take it...... Let's go!" The landlord swallowed, "There was a lot of bang in the room, and I couldn't really hear it. ”

"Okay, missing the keyword. Chitose was dissatisfied, "How many days did they stay?"

The landlord thought for a while: "The first day of the lunar month came, and it must have been about 20 days before and after." The furriers who came at the same time are gone, and they are the only ones who have remained until now...... Uh, yesterday. "In the autumn of many years, there are often merchants in the liao to stay overnight, grain merchants and medicine merchants in summer and autumn, and leather merchants in autumn and winter, which are commonplace.

Shi Congyi frowned. More than 20 days?The princess team disappeared 10 days ago, is there a connection between the two?

Otherwise, why do so many things suddenly happen in the unremarkable mountainous area?

"Did you collect a lot of leather?"

"Not much. They have a very high eye, a whole good wolf skin, only an extra eye on the leg, they don't want it. The landlord rubbed his hands, "According to their method, they won't be able to receive a few tickets all winter." ”

Chitose suddenly interjected: "The entire Huzhou Liao knows that they are picky, right?"

"Yes, it's not that the good material is not shown to them, so as not to be picked. ”

"It seems that these people don't want to be disturbed. Chitose smiled, "That's not a sincere collection of furs." "If they really come here to do business, then I wish all the residents of Liao were looking for them to deliver materials.

The girl was right. The landlord stammered as she watched," said the squatters. These people are sneaky, they don't know what they are doing in Huzhou, and they died so miserably, probably because they were sought revenge. ”

The half-used cotton jacket on the kang was frozen cold and hard, and Yan Saburo reached out and pinched it, it was very thin. "Do they stay in the house a lot, or do they go out and about?"

"That's not clear. In winter, the doors and windows are closed, and it is not known if there is anyone inside. But at night, the lights in the house are on. ”

The lights are on doesn't necessarily mean that there are people inside, maybe it's just a cover-up.

Yan Saburo moved away from the low wooden table that had fallen in front of the window, picked up a few celadon pieces from the ground, and examined them carefully. Shi Congyi asked, he didn't squeak, but then he opened his mouth: "Where are their bags?"

"It was taken away by the soldiers. The landlord squeezed his hands uneasily, "I've seen it, and there are only a few pieces of leather and a few pieces of clothing in it." ”

Shi Congyi gave a few commands, and soon some of his subordinates brought the tenant's bags.

Two ordinary baggage.

When I opened it, there were indeed a few fine furs and a few sets of changing clothes. Yan Saburo picked it up and looked at it, the material was good.

But that's good.

In addition, there are no longer long things.

"And what?" the boy stretched out his palm and flicked his finger at the landlord, "Bring it." ”

"And ...... What?" the landlord was surprised, "the tenant's stuff is here." ”

As soon as the words fell, he saw that Yan Saburo's palm somehow conjured out of those few celadon fragments, reflecting a faint light in the light.