Jian Zhaoxing

Chapter 147 Dust and Scratches

The three exchanged a glance and quickly moved aside.

Jiang Liuyun pulled Lu Huai back and stood in the spot closest to the door.

Lu Huai didn't say anything. He knew that Jiang Liuyun was protecting him, and he also knew that he had no martial arts skills. If there were experts or hidden weapons inside the gate, he wouldn't have time to dodge.

After getting ready, Jiang Liuyun pushed open the door in one go.

They were greeted by the usual silence.

Lin Zhiqing poked her head out, and frowned the moment she saw the inside of the warehouse.

black!
very dark!

Not only her, but Jiang Liuyun and Lu Huai also had their brows furrowed.

There were no lanterns here, so Lu Huai took out a tinderbox.

The faint light soon came on, and they could roughly see that the warehouse was filled with what appeared to be miscellaneous items, with cobwebs on the nearest corner of the wall.

Moreover, the storeroom seemed smaller than they had imagined, a world of difference compared to the study. At first glance, it was only about a third the size of the first floor of the study.

"Is Liu Mang really that poor? Not only is there nothing in his study, but even his storeroom has nothing of value." Jiang Liuyun said as he stepped inside.

As soon as he stepped into the kitchen, he felt his legs go weak.

When he looked down, a cloud of dust rose up from beneath his feet.

He immediately smelled dust, scratched his nose, and felt a slight itch.

The next second, he couldn't help but sneeze: "Achoo!"

The sound was already quite loud.

Seeing that he was about to hit him again, Lu Huai quickly covered his mouth.

Lin Zhiqing turned to observe the guards outside the door, afraid that her sneeze would wake them.

After making sure no one could hear, she took out masks made of cloth and cotton that she had prepared in advance and handed them to Lu Huai and Jiang Liuyun:

"This thing is called a mask. You wear it over your mouth and nose to block out some odors and dust."

She took one out and put it on herself, then went into the storeroom.

This mask was originally intended to prevent Liu Mang from using their sense of smell to hypnotize them.

But just now in the study, Lin Zhiqing no longer needed this thing given his strength.

Lu Huai and Jiang Liuyun didn't even have a chance to go up to the third floor, so she didn't take out her mask.

Putting everything else aside, there's just too much dust in this study; inhaling too much of it can easily cause sneezing.

"A face mask? This thing looks so strange." Jiang Liuyun suppressed the itch on his nose and began to examine the face mask with great interest.

Lu Huai didn't ask any more questions. He followed Lin Zhiqing's example and put on a mask: "Haven't you seen enough strange things tonight? Hurry up and put it on."

After saying that, he walked past Jiang Liuyun and followed Lin Zhiqing.

By the light of the tinderbox, Lin Zhiqing could see the scene inside the warehouse.

Despite being called a warehouse, this place is more like a storage room.

A table with a missing leg, a football covered in dust, and even a shoe with a hole in it.

As they walked, the dust beneath their feet was kicked up.

It looks like this place hasn't been cleaned in a long time.

“When I came here before, this was indeed a warehouse, but it should be abandoned now,” Lu Huai said.

Lin Zhiqing wasn't worried about getting her hands and clothes dirty at all, and was rummaging through a pile of old books:
"Liu Mang does things haphazardly. His study has been renovated into that state, so it's no wonder that this place is dilapidated."

Lu Huai initially intended to stand the tinderbox upright on the ground, but fearing that the only source of light would be obscured by dust, he held the tinderbox in one hand while searching through a shelf with the other. Jiang Liuyun joined in as well.

The three searched for a long time but found nothing, so they reunited.

Lu Huai and Jiang Liuyun came with Lin Zhiqing on a whim, without any prior preparation. They were still wearing ordinary clothes made of high-quality fabric, the outermost layer of which was covered with a lot of dust.

But the two of them showed no change in expression, which Lin Zhiqing noticed.

After finding a corner, she first casually patted her own clothes, then took out a handkerchief and dusted off Lu Huai and Jiang Liuyun.

"Qing'er, this mask of yours is really useful; I can't even smell that dusty smell anymore." He then patted his sleeve. "But is there really any evidence here?"

Lu Huai also spoke up: "I've searched around the shelf and around the desk, but there's nothing useful."

"Me too." Lin Zhiqing looked around. She hadn't found anything herself, but she had dug out a lot of garbage and a few rather fat rats.

Could it be that I was wrong before?

This warehouse is just an ordinary warehouse... no, an ordinary storage room, with no special arrangements.

"Let's take another look." Lin Zhiqing felt that something was wrong, but she couldn't figure it out for the time being.

If it were a storage room, then the laxity of the guards outside would be understandable.

But if it's a storage room, why bother sending three people to guard it?

She put the handkerchief away and walked back to the doorway, intending to check it again.

Lu Huai looked at the wall in the middle of the warehouse with a hint of inquiry in his eyes.

"What are you looking at? Hurry up and check." Jiang Liuyun put his arm around Lu Huai's shoulder and went with him to the other side to start checking.

Lu Huai didn't speak, but his gaze became even more serious.

After the three of them had looked around the warehouse and gathered in the middle, Lin Zhiqing felt that something was not right.

She looked around again and then focused her gaze on the wall.

Lu Huai was the same.

Jiang Liuyun was left standing there completely bewildered.

After Lin Zhiqing and Lu Huai walked around the room again, Jiang Liuyun couldn't help but ask, "What are you looking at? Could it be that you've found a clue?"

"I'm starting to get a clue." Lin Zhiqing's gaze slowly moved, finally settling on the innermost wall.

She waved to Lu Huai, who understood and handed her the tinderbox.

Seeing Lu Huai's thoughtful expression, Lin Zhiqing asked, "Did you figure something out?"

"I've noticed some things, but I don't know if they're the same as what you've noticed." Lu Huai stared at the wall.

Jiang Liuyun was increasingly confused by their conversation: "What kind of riddle are you two talking about?"

As he spoke, he moved closer.

Seeing that the two of them were staring at the same wall, he scratched his head and said, "There's no difference between them."

"No." Lin Zhiqing moved the tinderbox closer to the wall. "Take a closer look."

Jiang Liuyun stared at it for a while before speaking: "I really can't see anything. Apart from being a bit darker, this wall is no different from the other walls."

“It’s not just a little darker,” Lu Huai said. “There are also some small scratches on this wall.”

Lin Zhiqing nodded.

Indeed, the wall in front of us is not only black, but also has tiny scratches.

This is the clue!