False evidence

Chapter 456 Painted Skin (6)

As I entered the restaurant, I patted the arm of the person sitting there.

The other person reacted somewhat slowly, muttering something before stiffly turning their face away.

I didn't hear what he said, but I could see a clear hint of disappointment in his eyes.

"What, it's you, kid?" Yan Fengwei recognized the man as well.

This was indeed an acquaintance; Cao Xinyun, the young manager of Cao Furui's tailor shop.

Yan Fengwei shouted towards the kitchen: "Someone come here!"

The curtain was lifted, and a plump woman poked her head out: "What would you like to eat?"

"Two pounds of potstickers, please. Are you cooking any other dishes right now?"

"Stir-fry!"

"Then let's stir-fry two main dishes and make two cold dishes."

The fat woman said "Oh" and pulled her head back.

Yan Fengwei went to the counter, grabbed a bottle of baijiu (Chinese liquor), returned to the table, and said as he poured the liquor:

"I never expected to run into acquaintances here at this hour. Hey guys, what are you doing here?"

"Go to Sanhe," Cao Xinyun said in a muffled voice.

"What a coincidence, I'm going to Sanhe too!" Yan Fengwei looked at me.

"Same."

I have a bit of a knack for drawing. Could it be that these two weren't hired by Zhao Qi?
I asked Yan Fengwei what he was doing in Sanhe County.

"Don't even mention it, it's really upsetting."

As Yan Fengwei spoke, he took out a delicate little wooden box from his bag.

When opened, inside is a narrow, elongated copper plate with two small hooks at the front.

I do recognize it; it's a key, just not a modern one.

Yan Fengwei said, "These past few days, this piece of junk has been driving me crazy."

Aside from his business acumen, he was always straightforward in everything else. As soon as the cold dishes and potstickers were served, he began to explain the purpose of his trip.

Three days ago, a woman came to his shop with this key.

He glanced at it, and without saying a word, he accepted the item at the price offered.

Cao Xinyun interrupted and asked him how much he paid.

He quoted a price.

Cao Xinyun chuckled.

Yan Fengwei grinned. "Don't laugh yet, let me finish. This thing would cost two zeros less on the market than I offered. But since I saw it, I'm buying it even if it costs double. Because it originally belonged to our family!"

He picked up the key and turned it over to show me.

On the other side, there is a faint, blurry mark.

Yan Fengwei said, "It wouldn't be fair to say that these things are mine. Brother, you know my background. The markings on these are the exclusive mark of the Lin family."

I suddenly realized.

His previous incarnation, Lin Qin'en, also came from an antique business.

At that time, especially in the southern region, most of the household items used by wealthy families would have special family markings.

Yan Fengwei said that as soon as he saw the key, he remembered a distressing incident that happened to the Lin family in his previous life.

One morning, Lin Qin'en accompanied the old master of the Lin family to the storeroom for inventory. As they opened the main gate and the second gate, the old master turned to look at Lin Qin'en.

Lin Qin'en understood what he meant. At that time, the old master was in charge (in reality, Lin Qin'en died before he could take charge).

The warehouse is a sensitive area, and the key would not be entrusted to just one person.

Old Master Lin doted on this grandson the most. He kept the keys to the main gate and the second gate himself, but gave the key to the third iron gate to Lin Qin'en.

In other words, only the father and son could enter the warehouse together.

Lin Qin'en knew what was important, so he always tied the key with a leather cord and hung it around his neck, even when he slept.

Seeing the old man looking at him, he quickly took off the key.

But when the key was handed to the old man, his expression suddenly changed.

It's a key, but it doesn't have the Lin family's mark on it!

At this point, Yan Fengwei looked frustrated. "I remember it clearly. The night before, a typhoon hit, and the doors and windows were locked from the inside. They were still locked at dawn. I just can't understand how that damn thief managed to switch the keys? The key is that the leather cord was the same one, tied in a tight knot, and even sealed with rice glue and stamped with a sticker. Damn it..."

Cao Xinyun also became interested: "Are you sure the rope is still the same one? It hasn't been replaced?"

Yan Fengwei took a rope loop with a safety buckle attached from around his neck and said:

"Ever since I started thinking about my past life, I've been pondering this matter. This rope is a replica I made later, exactly the same as the one from back then."

Before Cao Xinyun could speak, he continued, "Don't say it was changed before locking the door. I can't sleep every night because I touch this key. I'm sure the key was the same one the night before."

Cao Xinyun took the rope loop and checked it. "If the leather rope has been broken, even if it is glued back on, the break can be detected later."

"It's never stopped."

Cao Xinyun squeezed the knot: "This kind of rice glue is very special. It may not be as good as 502 glue, but it's not much worse."

The knot was clearly a tight knot, covered with a layer of semi-transparent, hard rubber. There was even a printed pattern on it.

The key point is that the leather cord is not loose. In other words, its total length is shorter than the head circumference.

Whether you're wearing it or taking it off, you need to stretch the leather cord.

In this way, as long as the person is not unconscious or drunk, anyone who tries to remove the leather rope will definitely wake the person wearing the leather rope.

"This is quite interesting." Cao Xinyun simply put the leather cord around his neck and tried various methods to remove the safety buckle.

But obviously, this is not a magician's prop, and it is impossible to remove the safety buckle without untying or breaking the rope.

Yan Fengwei said with a long face, "I'm sure the leather cord was the same one back then. After all, it's something I've worn for seven or eight years. If it had been changed, I couldn't possibly not recognize it. That one time, several things went missing from the warehouse. The old man got sick from anger that very day, and he 'passed away' in less than a month!"

At this moment, Lü Xin suddenly chuckled softly.

I asked him what he was laughing at.

He said, "You asked this bald man if he slept alone that night?"

Lü Xin's words were a wake-up call.

I asked Yan Fengwei who he slept with at the time.
Yan Fengwei paused for a moment, then said somewhat embarrassedly, "I'm the only son in my family, and the adults spoiled me. I've had a wet nurse since I was little, and when I got a little older, I had a maidservant by my side."

In his mind, Lü Xin snorted: "The one with him that night must be his new lover."

Before I could even ask, Yan Fengwei confessed on his own. He said that the maid he slept with that day hadn't been with him for very long, but it had been about half a year.

Cao Xinyun realized what was going on and asked, "Did you drink alcohol that night?"

Yan Fengwei reacted quickly: "I've thought about this a million times already. If someone has been drinking or drugged, do you think they wouldn't feel anything the next day?"

Lu Xin smiled and said to me, "Don't think about anything else. If you're willing, you only need to prepare three things, and I can teach you how to perform this magic trick!"

My curiosity was piqued, and seeing that it was still early, I asked him what three things he needed and how to secretly replace them with the real items without anyone noticing...

(End of this chapter)