Gou Zai Xianwu Wenjing Search for Opportunities

Instead of resting in his bedroom, Master Xu lay on a couch in the main hall reading "The Strange Cases of Dali Temple".

He thought about it for several days, but he still couldn't figure out where Manager Zhang had gone wrong.

It was clearly a brilliant and ingenious plan, so how did it go wrong?

In his opinion, although Manager Zhang was a bit greedy, he was still capable; otherwise, he wouldn't have been favored by the eldest daughter-in-law of the Marquis's mansion and allowed to manage the pharmacy for so many years.

Although he hadn't left his house these past few days, he had some understanding of the pharmacy's news, and the more he learned, the more uneasy he became.

Now that Manager Zhang has fallen, the pharmacy is in disarray, and with Manager Qian in charge, Master Xu can't help but worry that the Marquis's mansion might find out something.

He was relieved that although there were problems with the account books, they were all explainable, and since Manager Zhang was dead and could not testify, he could probably exonerate himself, but there was still some risk involved.

He was aware of Lin Yuan's behavior these past few days; he kept his mouth shut.

"My beloved teacher."

"Lin Yuan has arrived, please sit down." Master Xu put down his book, looked Lin Yuan up and down, then slowly sat up. Seeing Lin Yuan perform the disciple's salute, Master Xu stepped forward to help him up, and said with satisfaction, "You've suffered these past few days!"

"It is my duty as a student to share my teacher's burdens!" Lin Yuan declared, praising himself.

"Excellent!" Master Xu smiled upon hearing this. It was rare to find a student with a compatible temperament, and the conversation flowed smoothly. In high spirits, he immediately asked, "How did things go at the pharmacy today?"

"The new manager has just seen off the Taoist priest and is busy managing the pharmacy business. Apart from urging the county government and the township government to speed up the investigation, he doesn't care about anything else."

Meanwhile, the newly arrived martial arts instructor Zhang from the Marquis's mansion was investigating the case. He had a coroner examine the bodies of Manager Zhang and the others. The two guards who died had been drugged and strangled from behind; the martial arts instructor who died had also been drugged and killed with a knife; and Manager Zhang had been slowly sliced ​​to death with a sharp blade.

Instructor Zhang said that the method was so sharp and ruthless, and the person knew the pharmacy inside and out, so he guessed that it was probably done by someone they knew, rather than a notorious thief.

The county constables and the local thieves are investigating, as are the people from the Zhang family, but they haven't found any clues.

Yesterday, Instructor Zhang placed Manager Zhang and the others in coffins. This morning, they were sent back to their respective homes for funeral arrangements, so the mourning should be held today.

However, Zhang's family tearfully said they would not bury him until the case was thoroughly investigated.

"Alas, I am ill now and unable to attend the funeral in person. I will have Xu Shan go and offer his condolences on my behalf later..." Master Xu sighed, then asked, "What are the county and village officials doing now?"

"The county constables and the thieves from Lishui Pavilion were conducting door-to-door searches a few days ago. There are so many people coming and going in Taoli Town, but they didn't find anything. I heard that the county government wanted to find someone to take the blame, but they were scolded by Instructor Zhang. Then the county magistrate summoned all the constables back."

"Oh?" Master Xu chuckled upon hearing this. "That's typical of them."

Seeing that Lin Yuan spoke clearly and logically, and with substance, he asked, slightly testing him, "Who do you think did it?"

Lin Yuan knew the answer, but couldn't say it outright. So he used the result to deduce the reasoning, hoping to take the opportunity to reveal the murderer: "I think Instructor Zhang is right. It wasn't the work of a notorious thief; it must have been done by someone we know."

"Oh?" Master Xu immediately perked up, knowing that Manager Zhang would never cooperate with notorious bandits.

"From drugging and killing the guards to coercing Manager Zhang to open the secret silver vault, everything went too smoothly. It was clearly meticulously planned. An outsider wouldn't know so much about the pharmacy, and there would have been more than a commotion."

"An acquaintance?" Master Xu stroked his beard and nodded, quite agreeing with this reason, and then asked, "What kind of acquaintance do you think it would be?"

Lin Yuan pretended to think for a while and then said, "That depends on what kind of people Manager Zhang usually associates with. We need to investigate among these people to see if there are any who are skilled in martial arts. If they were still in town before the incident and left afterward, they are most likely the culprit."

Master Xu looked at Lin Yuan carefully for a moment. This idea coincided with his own. Manager Zhang must have been assassinated by that group of thugs after carrying out his ingenious plan.

He suddenly had an idea and came up with a plan. He looked at Lin Yuan and said, "I once heard Manager Zhang say that he has a lot of dealings with the Black Snake Gang and they have a good relationship. Those people are mostly daring and reckless, and they also have some martial arts skills."

"The Black Snake Gang?" Lin Yuan didn't know who Zhao Jingang was, nor whether he was a member of the Black Snake Gang, but he knew a little about it. So he said, "My older brother worked for the Black Snake Gang, carrying sacks. They even collected the taxes from the Marquis's mansion where people sold firewood. They also collected the taxes from hunting in Jiuling Mountain and fishing in the Lishui River..."

"They were just managing these miscellaneous businesses for the Marquis's mansion. They also did some things that the Marquis's mansion couldn't do. Without the Marquis's authorization, how could a gang of outlaws have established a presence in Linyuan County?" Master Xu had been involved in the county for many years and knew a lot, but he usually dared not say these things.

"How dare the Black Snake Gang lay a hand on Manager Zhang? Don't they want to live in the underworld anymore?" Lin Yuan wondered.

"It's hard to say." Master Xu smiled slightly. "Even family members argue sometimes. Occasional disagreements are normal, and it might just be one person's fault."

"I've learned a lot!" Lin Yuan's admiration for his teacher grew even stronger. Suddenly, an idea struck him, so he seized the opportunity to speak, "Master, Constable Li wants to invite me for drinks. Should I give him a heads-up?"

"Haha..." Master Xu was just wondering how to communicate with Li Shi. Since Lin Yuan was willing to take the lead, that was naturally the best thing. He immediately patted Lin Yuan lightly, "I was just saying, don't take it seriously."

Lin Yuan thought to himself, "Then why are you telling me all that?"

"However!" Master Xu suddenly changed the subject. "You could talk to him and give him some advice. He's thinking about getting promoted, and if he gets his wish, he might be able to get you a position as a clerk at the Carp Pavilion. I watched Li Shi grow up, and he even studied with me. He's a bit impulsive, but not bad. He's just a bit slow on the uptake."

Lin Yuan immediately bowed deeply, saying, "Thank you for your guidance, Master!"

"With such talent, your future is limitless." Master Xu praised you again with the same words. The first time it was just a platitude, but this time it was sincere.

"Thank you for your kind words, teacher. I will never forget your kindness in the future!"

"Ha ha……"

The two looked at each other and smiled, a heartwarming scene of filial piety born of a loving teacher.

……

Lin Yuan returned to the front yard, having made up his mind. He would first find Zhang's mistress, Yingniang, to find out the situation, and then go to find Li Shi. With the Master as a cover, he could just reveal the murderer's identity.

This can be considered revenge for Manager Zhang. We'll find a way to get back the reward he gave us.

Lin Yuan felt great thinking about this.

Suddenly, he had a sudden realization: the Master seemed to be intentionally guiding him to help Manager Zhang solve the case.

Is Master Xu avenging Manager Zhang?

He dared not take the lead personally, but only secretly encouraged others to devise treacherous schemes, which shows that he was not indifferent to the death of Manager Zhang, but he was truly cowardly.

No wonder Master Xu was able to climb up from the bottom and retire safely!

Lin Yuan sighed and went to the front of the house to do laundry, only to find that the clothes had already been washed and were hanging out to dry in front of the house.

He must have been in a good mood because it was Grandma Li who made it.

During the hottest days of summer, clothes dry quickly, usually within half an hour.

Lin Yuan wasn't in a hurry. He put on his half-dry long robe and went out looking presentable.

Following the alleyway he saw in the mirror, Lin Yuan searched the town one by one. Taoli Town was a bustling commercial town with numerous shops and many alleyways.

Half an hour later, Lin Yuan finally found Red Willow Lane, which was the lane reflected in the mirror.

Lin Yuan circled the courtyard three times in the alley before finally finding Yingniang's residence.

Around noon, there weren't many pedestrians on the road, but Hongliu Lane was a place of pleasure and business was booming, with many stalls and vendors in the lane.

Lin Yuan found a roadside tea stall. There weren't many people inside. He ordered a bowl of tea and was about to ask what was going on when the stall owner's wife asked first, "Young master, are you here to find someone?"

Lin Yuan glanced at her in surprise, and the shopkeeper's wife quickly explained, "I saw the young man pacing back and forth a few times, and I thought you were looking for someone."

"Oh, I'm planning to rent a place and just wander around aimlessly by myself."

"Oh, so you're renting a place! Why don't you ask someone at a brokerage firm, young man?"

"I'm short on money, so I'm not renting the whole place, just a small room. They're asking for too much, so I thought I'd look for one privately," Lin Yuan said with an embarrassed smile.

"What kind of business do you run, young man?"

"I studied at the Xu Family School, and I was devoted to learning."

"Oh, so you're a young scholar. This place isn't suitable! It's mostly for women seeking pleasure, not for studying." The aunt was an honest woman and didn't want to see the young man wander into a brothel.

Lin Yuan suddenly felt the tea was no longer fragrant, put down the teacup, and turned to her with a disdainful look.

The shopkeeper's wife stood there, stunned.