Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 266 Reveals the Murder Method

'Simple?'

'To murder a witness silently, without being able to determine the cause of death afterward, and only showing obvious injuries after more than half a day—such a masterful method of killing could not possibly be simple…'

Yan Shifan and Tao Dianzhen looked at each other, feeling it was all a fantasy.

Of course, if it were someone else, they would definitely have voiced their doubts; now, they are only half-believing and half-doubting.

Tao Dianzhen hesitated, but Yan Shifan simply asked, "Mingwei, you can't keep us in suspense, can you? I won't be able to sleep tonight! Tell us about this murder method!"

"of course can."

Haiyue smiled and looked at the grotesque corpse: "First of all, we must be clear about one thing: there is no such thing as a technique to take a life from a distance. Since this person is dead, the murderer must have done something to him directly."

He held up two fingers: "And the previous autopsy did not find any wounds, which can only mean two things."

"First, the fatal wound is very small and the location is hidden, such as in a private place, so it is overlooked due to carelessness."

"However, I believe that Master Tao has also checked it meticulously and would not have missed such a crucial detail."

Tao Dianzhen hurriedly nodded: "This humble Taoist priest dares not fail the Hanlin scholar's trust, and has indeed carefully examined the body..."

He thoroughly examined the corpse without any hesitation, even tracing its genitals.

Even if a poisonous insect bites that spot, it will be visible; there is no way it will be missed.

Haiyue said, "Then, excluding the other impossible possibilities, only one possibility remains!"

Tao Dianzhen's body trembled slightly, and he suddenly realized: "Hu Sandao wasn't dead back then?"

"what?"

Yan Shifan was stunned: "Didn't you determine whether he was dead or alive when you performed the autopsy?"

"Hu Sandao had no pulse, no breath, and his body was cold; he was indeed no different from a corpse!"

Tao Dianzhen, as expected of a Taoist who had traveled the world, said: "However, there is also a custom among the common people of keeping a corpse for three days, simply because some people's yang energy has not dissipated, and they have feigned death and returned to life in the coffin. Our Taoist sect also has a method of corpse liberation..."

He only mentioned the latter, saying that as a cultivator deeply immersed in the mortal world, Tao Dianzhen didn't really believe in those theories of attaining immortality; they were merely used to elevate his own status.

There are similar methods in the martial arts world, and Tao Dianzhen immediately realized that there was a way to do it: "If one has learned the art of tortoise breathing, or with the help of medicines available in the martial arts world, it is indeed possible to fake death. I know that itinerant people use this to cheat and swindle money... Hu Sandao's death was caused by this method of faking death?"

"Wait a minute! Something's still not right..."

Yan Shifan thought for a moment, then shook his head again: "If Hu Sandao faked his death, how did 'Yuan Tianzi' manage to give him the medicine? Doesn't the file record that he didn't eat anything when he returned to his room?"

Tao Dianzhen also asked in surprise, "Indeed, he did not take it..."

Haiyue said, "Have you two ever considered that perhaps we misjudged our stance from the very beginning? How did Hu Sandao come to our attention in the first place?"

Tao Dianzhen said in a deep voice, "It was Hai Hanlin who ordered me to investigate the details of the fire. My fellow disciples and I questioned him within the Imperial Guards, and he confessed that he had heard Guo Xun's cries for help that night, thus proving Wang Zuo's lie..."

Yan Shifan said, "That's precisely why Wang Zuo sees him as a thorn in his side. And since Wang Zuo is cooperating with the Liyuan Society, we naturally assume that Hu Sandao and the Liyuan Society are on opposing sides... Tsk!"

At this point, he suddenly realized something: "Could it be?"

"Yes!"

Haiyue also sighed, "The truth is quite the opposite. The witness who revealed the key clues that night was not on the same side as us who were pursuing the truth!"

"So this faked death wasn't caused by an outsider drugging Hu Sandao; it was Hu Sandao's own initiative to cooperate!"

Tao Dianzhen suddenly realized, and groaned, "Hu Sandao's true identity... he's a member of the Liyuan Society?"

"Not bad!"

Haiyue returned to the table and picked up the dossier: "Today's interrogation was not without its gains; on the contrary, we have gained a detailed understanding of this Imperial Guard."

"The Twelfth Regiment was disrupted this time. The strongest soldiers were selected by Minister Mao to serve as guards on the southern tour. These people were not familiar with each other, but almost every Imperial Guard had a deep impression of Hu Sandao and had some contact with him."

"To put it nicely, he has a wide circle of friends; to put it bluntly, he is adept at getting along with everyone, speaking to people in a way that suits them perfectly. Hence the nickname 'Three Knives,' which has been interpreted in various ways."

"Isn't it suspicious that such a person would give such a testimony?"

Yan Shifan understood: "Hu Sandao must know that the clues he provided were accusing the dignified Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard of deceiving the emperor, while simultaneously helping a notorious Marquis of Wuding who displayed an aged and decrepit demeanor in front of the Imperial Guards! How could he do such a foolish thing?" Tao Dianzhen: "From a perspective of interests, this is undoubtedly harmful in every way, unless Hu Sandao is an upright and incorruptible person like Hai Hanlin, who would disregard his own safety and dare to expose the truth!"

'You're analyzing the case, why are you praising him... Don't be like Zhao Wenhua!'

Yan Shifan secretly curled his lip and quickly added, "However, Hu Sandao is not like that at all. He is a slick and slippery person. Mingwei is indeed discerning and insightful. From the very beginning of his testimony, there was something suspicious about it!"

Haiyue chuckled: "This person has indeed gone too far, but have you two ever considered why Hu Sandao, being a member of the Liyuan Society, would do such a thing?"

Yan Shifan reacted quickly, immediately saying, "It must be that Li Yuanshe is also preparing to put pressure on Wang Zuo. That commander has been in office for more than ten years. Li Yuanshe is worried that Guo Xun alone cannot control him, so he has taken the initiative to arrange for his people to expose certain flaws, hoping to use our investigation to put pressure on him from both inside and outside, forcing him to submit..."

Tao Dianzhen said, "Besides, Hu Sandao's statement is entirely one-sided. He claims to have heard Guo Xun's cries for help, but his voice carries little weight, and he can easily recant his testimony. Without Hai Hanlin's unwavering determination to investigate the truth, the role of a mere witness is actually not that significant..."

Haiyue nodded: "However, Wang Zuo's strong reaction was probably to force the Liyuan Society to send someone to eliminate the threat. So the Liyuan Society sent out that snake-wielding assassin to pretend to assassinate him."

Tao Dianzhen felt a chill run down his spine: "This move has made us never doubt that Hu Sandao has any connection with the thieves again. Then, after the assassin failed, Hu Sandao took the drug to fake his death according to the 'Yuan Tianzi's' instructions, truly facilitating a miraculous assassination!"

Yan Shifan recalled the incident with amazement: "His repeated 'Surrender, Emperor' before his fake death was a direct flaw! Now that I think about it, if he wasn't a member of the Liyuan Society, how would he have known about the existence of 'Emperor Yuan'?"

Haiyue said, "In order to enhance his mysterious image, Hu Sandao had to say such a vague sentence. Moreover, those who know that person's cruel methods are also worried that his fake death will turn into a real death. This last sentence was indeed from the bottom of his heart."

At this point, all three gazes fell upon the grotesque corpse: "So... he really was killed!"

When Hu Sandao was pronounced dead last night, he was in a state of apparent death. There were no wounds on his body, but he had stopped breathing, had no pulse, and no heartbeat could be heard.

But after the Embroidered Uniform Guards took the body away and Wang Zuo examined it, someone ruthlessly killed him while others were no longer paying attention to the dead witness!

This confirms that it was a murder!
Yan Shifan sneered: "This person is doomed to die. If he doesn't die, his secret will be exposed in the future, and the mysterious image of 'Prince Yuan' will become a joke!"

Tao Dianzhen also said, "Only death, even with a clear wound, would add to one's majesty. If it weren't for Hai Hanlin's guidance, I would have been truly misled, thinking that the palm print was pressed down early on and only revealed half a day later. It's an unheard-of method! Now it seems... Hmph! Truly despicable!"

Haiyue nodded silently.

I initially felt somewhat guilty for taking an innocent life.

After all, it was he who had Tao Dianzhen spread the news, luring the other side to assassinate him.

The witness's identity was unexpectedly reversed, and the key point is that this move also tore away the other party's elaborate disguise.

Before the murder method is revealed—

With such incredible killing skills, the leader of the Liyuan Society is terrifying and extremely intimidating!

After the murder method was revealed—

They only target their own people; no wonder they've always stayed hidden in the shadows, unable to appear in public!
"The methods used by 'Yuan Tianzi' to kill people were really that 'simple'!"

“‘Yuan Tianzi’ did nothing but force his subordinates to fake their deaths, and then waited until everyone was no longer paying attention before delivering the real killer to eliminate any future troubles!”

In a few words, he explained in detail how Hu Sandao was killed. When Yan Shifan and Tao Dianzhen looked away from the corpse, they were shocked but also enlightened.

I felt all the pent-up emotions in my chest vanish, like the moon emerging from the clouds.

The gloom that had been weighing on my heart suddenly seemed so ridiculous.

"It must be said that Li Yuanshe's tricks of manipulating people's hearts are very clever. He uses a seemingly impossible murder to put a heavy pressure on people."

"However, this method requires a lot of preparation in the early stages and is subject to many restrictions. It is equivalent to creating the mysterious and powerful image of 'Yuan Tianzi' by killing each other."

"However, the target of this pressure is not us, but that one."

In conclusion, Haiyue shifted her focus towards the direction of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Yan Shifan and Tao Dianzhen nodded in unison: "'Emperor Yuan' meticulously planned the execution of witnesses to establish his authority, which must have forced Wang Zuo to submit to his orders!"

Before the words were finished, the two exchanged a glance: "So, it seems that Wang Zuo and the bandit leader are already secretly plotting to assassinate the emperor?"

We must be on guard!

Haiyue would tell people some things to reassure them, while keeping others secret to avoid complications. She said in a deep voice, "The most urgent task now is to protect the Emperor and bring this 'Prince Yuan,' who is all bluster and who practices demonic arts, to justice!"

(End of this chapter)