Becoming a martial arts god starting from the mortician.

Qi Huaili stood at the courtyard gate. Seeing that Shen Qi remained silent for a long time, he stepped forward and tentatively cupped his hands in greeting: "My lord, my younger brother's body... can it be placed in the coffin today?"

Shen Qi glanced at him: "Don't put him in the coffin yet."

Qi Huaili's expression changed slightly, but he dared not argue, and only whispered, "Yes."

Shen Qi walked out of the side courtyard with his hands behind his back.

Two armored officers from the Imperial Observatory followed closely behind, swords at their sides. The Qi family members, who had been waiting outside the courtyard, bowed their heads and made way for him when he emerged.

When Shen Qi reached the bottom of the front steps, he stopped.

He turned to look at Qi Huaili.

"The entire Qi family was summoned to the front courtyard."

Qi Huaili dared not delay and immediately instructed the steward to invite the person.

The steward bowed and replied, then quickly left.

The Qi residence was quite large.

After a short while, the front courtyard was packed with people.

The men stood on the left, the women stood under the eaves, and the servants and maids stood at the very end. Because there were astronomical inspectors present, no one dared to make a sound, except for the occasional rustling of sleeves.

Qi Huaili stood at the front, his hands tucked into his sleeves, and said with a smile, "Lord Shen, everyone has arrived."

Shen Qi nodded.

He stood on the steps, his gaze sweeping across the faces of the crowd.

"Who has entered Qi Huaiyi's courtyard in the past two weeks?"

The courtyard was completely silent.

Qi Huaili gave a wink, and an old steward quickly stepped forward, bowed, and replied, "Your Excellency, Master Huaiyi is a loner and hates being disturbed. The expenses for the side courtyard are paid monthly, and a supplement was just made before the end of the year. Since then, no one has dared to provoke him."

Shen Qi stared at him: "Has the person who added the furnishings entered the house?"

The old steward quickly shook his head.

"I wouldn't dare! The things are just left outside the gate. If you knock, you have to leave. Master Huaiyi gave an order years ago that anyone who dares to cross the gate will have their legs broken. Everyone in the manor knows this."

Qi Huaili hurriedly explained from the side, "Lord Shen, please don't be offended. Huaiyi is stubborn and cold-hearted, but he has never really hurt any of the servants in the manor over the years. It's just that he has been obsessed with martial arts since childhood, but unfortunately, he is not talented and has not made any progress in his training for many years. He was depressed and later became increasingly unwilling to see people."

"The household was afraid of embarrassing him, so they let him live alone in the side courtyard. Who would have thought that such a thing would happen?"

Shen Qi listened, but his gaze fell on the tops of everyone's heads.

Qi Huaili ordered thick silk, white with a silver sheen, hanging steadily, just like the style of a wealthy family.

Several young members of the Qi family had dark red veins floating in their life essence, but the color was pale and mixed, indicating that most of them only had a foundation of low-grade martial arts. Some stood casually, while others secretly puffed out their chests, as if afraid that Shen Qi would not notice that they had practiced martial arts.

The female relatives and servants were mostly dressed in grayish-white silk, some long, some short, some thick, some thin, each with its own variations.

A quick glance revealed it to be spotless, completely free of any trace of evil influences or malevolent practices.

Shen Qi lowered his gaze and asked calmly, "Is anyone absent today?"

Qi Huaili pondered for a moment.

"Most of the households are here. Only my younger brother, Huai'an, is not usually here. He manages the shops and grain stores outside, and he is even busier after the New Year. He just happens to be away today."

Shen Qi then asked, "Who handles Qi Huaiyi's daily needs for medicine, charcoal, paper, and pens?"

The old steward hurriedly replied, "There's a general ledger in the manor. Whatever Master Huaiyi needs, the accounting office will pay the money, and the shops outside will deliver the goods. If you require it, I'll go and arrange it right away."

Shen Qi nodded slightly: "Over the past half month, all the comings and goings, purchases, deliveries, and repairs in the manor have been listed in a register, including the people and tasks involved. Send it to the Imperial Observatory first thing tomorrow morning."

Qi Huaili immediately cupped his hands in greeting: "Lord Shen, rest assured, the Qi family will not dare to delay this matter. We will definitely deliver the booklet to the department first thing tomorrow morning."

Shen Qi's gaze swept over the people in the courtyard again.

"The side courtyard is temporarily sealed off. Qi Huaiyi's body must not be placed in a coffin, cremated, dressed, or moved."

The expressions of everyone in the courtroom changed.

"The corpse is still chilled and its death is not yet over; ordinary people must not approach it. If anyone enters without permission and is killed, they are courting death; if they ruin the case, they will be dealt with as obstructing the investigation of the Imperial Observatory."

Qi Huaili's expression turned solemn, and he immediately bowed.

"I will certainly follow your teachings in managing my family."

After he finished speaking, he turned around and selected two strong and sturdy servants.

"You two will guard the side courtyard and are not allowed to enter. If anything changes, report to me immediately, and then send a message to the Observatory."

The two guards turned pale, but dared not respond.

Shen Qi said no more and led the two armored soldiers out.

Qi Huaili personally saw the man off at the gate. The gatekeepers had already removed the threshold and bowed respectfully in farewell.

Only after Shen Qi mounted his horse and the sound of hooves gradually faded into the distance did Qi Huaili slowly straighten up.

The humility and ingratiation on his face vanished instantly, leaving only a gloomy expression.

A steward behind him whispered, "Sir, what about Master Huaiyi...?"

Qi Huaili glanced at him sideways, his gaze cold.

The manager felt a chill run down his spine from that gaze and swallowed the rest of his words.

"Are you deaf or didn't you hear what Lord Shen said?" Qi Huaili sneered.

The steward shuddered violently: "I...I heard it."

"Then why are you asking me?"

The steward hurriedly replied, "Yes, sir, I'll take care of it right away."

Before he could finish speaking, the sound of wheels came from his ears again.

A blue-curtained carriage slowly came to a stop in front of the Qi residence.

The coachman nimbly jumped off the carriage shaft and placed the footstool. The curtain was lifted, and a man in a brocade robe, around forty years old, leaned out.

His face was slightly pale, his features were refined, and he wore a brocade robe with a gray squirrel fur coat over it. As soon as he landed, he coughed twice, covering his mouth.

Qi Huaili's brows relaxed slightly when he saw the person who had arrived.

Qi Huaili's tense expression eased slightly: "Huai'an, you're back."

Qi Huai'an looked up and saw the steward and servants at the gate, as well as the Imperial Observatory personnel walking away at the end of the street. He asked, "Brother, has something happened at the manor?"

Qi Huaili glanced around and said in a low voice, "Come in and talk."

Qi Huai'an took a couple of steps, but his gaze remained fixed on the street corner.

"Were those people from the Observatory just now?"

Qi Huaili said, "That's right. A demon-suppressing envoy named Shen Qi has arrived."

Qi Huai'an coughed again, a strange emotion flashing in his eyes: "The Suppressor of Evil?"

"A slayer of evil spirits?"

Qi Huaili sighed and briefly explained the matter.

"This morning, the servant repairing the well smelled a strange odor coming from the side courtyard. He broke down the door and found Huaiyi dead inside. His body was chilling, and servants who approached him vomited blood. The household dared not move anything without permission and could only send a letter to the Imperial Observatory."

Upon hearing the words "Han Sha," Qi Huai'an lowered his head and coughed twice.

Qi Huaili continued, "Lord Shen said that it looks like he's forcibly practicing the Lesser Cold Technique, causing the cold energy to reverse and leading to qi deviation. But he forbids him from being placed in a coffin or cremated, and ordered the side courtyard to be sealed off."

Qi Huai'an asked in a low voice, "How long has Huaiyi been dead?"

"Judging from the situation, it will take at least ten days."

Qi Huai'an frowned even more deeply.

"How could no one in the household have noticed anything around the end of the year?"

"You know Huaiyi's temper; he won't even let anyone deliver his food. If the well's edge hadn't cracked from the frost today, it might have rotted for days." Qi Huaili's tone was irritated. "Lord Shen has given orders for a list of purchases and transactions for the next half month. You also need to get the accounts of the shops outside sorted out as soon as possible. At this time, we mustn't give the Observatory any reason to criticize us."

Qi Huai'an turned around, but Shen Qi and the other two had already disappeared from sight at the street corner.

He covered his mouth and coughed lightly, his voice slightly broken by the cold wind: "So, this Lord Shen... will come again?"