fast and ferocious

Chapter 173 Murder at the Inn ([-]) Second Watch

A few people waited under the eaves, and the old monk began to chatter non-stop, but no one paid any attention to him.

Not long after, several yamen servants came back with those tools.

The owner of the inn said that apart from the unmovable furniture and beds, other things in the three courtyards were moved in as a set after the guests checked in, such as teapots and cups, bedding, and everything used in the kitchen. It is because it is afraid that it will be dirty when no one lives there, and the second is that the residents who can rent the whole courtyard often don’t use the things in the inn, and it is very troublesome to move around, so he prepares a complete set of utensils. They have all moved here, and they can stay in the warehouse when they are not in use. It is also convenient for the cleaning and maintenance of the courtyard on weekdays.

Qin Wubing was not interested in the innkeeper's introduction, and he was not blind.

Qin Wubing asked the four of Holmes to take a piece of white cloth poured with white wine and start to wipe the knives, shovels, and hoes respectively...

First, the white cloth used to wipe the knives began to turn blood red, and not long after, the white cloth used to wipe a shovel also turned blood red...

The old monk was startled, he pointed at the blood red on the white cloth and yelled twice, staring at Qin Wubing with wide eyes, wanting to hear Qin Wubing explain why.

Without Qin Wubing's explanation, Lin Huai spoke first:

"It's not unusual. We drank secretly in the military camp. When we remembered, we would wipe our weapons while drinking. It often happens that the dried blood will show its original color when it touches the wine."

The eldest princess seemed to know what was going on, she was not surprised, but was thinking deeply.

"Have you figured it out?" Qin Wubing asked with a smile.

The eldest princess shook her head.

"The murderer may have opened the other two courtyards before killing and dismembering the corpse. Then, after burying the corpse and preparing to leave, should he still lock the courtyard door and put the key back?"

The eldest princess's eyes lit up, she jumped on the spot, and said excitedly: "But there is no blood on the key and door lock! Someone is accomplice!"

Qin Wubing nodded in relief, and suddenly put away his smiling face and said to the servants: "Quickly bring all the clerks, accountants, and chefs in the inn here!"

Several yamen servants were ordered to follow the trembling innkeeper away.

"Holmes! The four of you take white liquor cloths and go to the front guest room and wipe them down one by one. Don't let go of the corners of the furniture. Wipe off the blood. Remember the room and report!"

The four of Holmes hurried away with the wine and the white cloth.

Lin Huai glanced at Guo Yi and said in a low voice: "The third brother is really amazing, this means he knows who the murderer is."

When the old monk heard this, he rushed straight into the rain and ran to the gate of the courtyard, shouting as he ran:

"I have to let that kid know that my niece and son-in-law can solve this case even before dark! Even if he demolishes this inn..."

I couldn't hear the words behind, but Qin Wubing could guess it, he shook his head helplessly and said to the eldest princess: "I want to go back to the post house to get your seventh uncle some ginger soup. Rain, really!"

The eldest princess pursed her lips and smiled, revealing two dimples, Qin Wubing became a little crazy again.

……

The inn's clerk, chef, and cashier, a total of more than a dozen people crowded under the eaves.

"Which one is the new guy?" Qin Wubing asked the innkeeper.

The innkeeper was taken aback for a moment, he didn't know that this lord who didn't know what kind of official knew that there was a new guy in the store.

The innkeeper pointed to the young man standing at the end.

"Come forward!" Qin Wubing said coldly with his hands behind his back.

The young man was obviously very frightened. His face was extremely pale, his whole body was trembling, and he moved forward slowly. His outer shoulders were soaked by the raindrops from the eaves, as if he didn't even feel it.

"Come here!" Qin Wubing shouted loudly.

The young man's legs went limp and he fell directly to the ground.

The eldest princess looked at the young man in astonishment, and quickly asked in a low voice, "How do you know it's him?"

Qin Wubing patiently explained:
"Just now I was thinking about the scene where the murderer left after killing and dismembering the body. No matter how I thought about it, I thought it was wrong. You think, after he dismembered the body and buried it, he would take away the head, the clothes of the deceased, and the shovel for digging the ground. To take away the things he brought, to re-lock the three courtyard doors, and to secretly put the three keys back on the cabinet...how did he come here in such a hurry?"

The eldest princess thought for a while and said, "Even in the middle of the night, there is a possibility of being seen, so he must be fast, no one will help him to get up fast."

"I thought the murderer was two people, but if they are both residents, stealing the key and putting the key back on the cabinet afterwards is still a difficult problem, but it is not impossible, but there is another possibility. The guy in the inn is Colleague, in this way, the murderer doesn’t need to think about other things, just killing, dismembering and burying the corpse, and after finishing the work, it’s safer to return to the room with the head, pay the bill early the next morning and leave the city!”

The Eldest Princess nodded and said:
"So try these keys and door locks. If the murderer locks the door, there will be blood stains. If not, there must be an innkeeper involved."

"As you said just now, the guests at this inn are either rich or expensive. The inn clerk sees too many rich people, and it is difficult to get rich. Unless he is a new clerk, there is another possibility. The clerk and the murderer We were originally in the same group, and we intended to be a buddy in the inn, waiting for the day of revenge, if so, it would be a new buddy, but... this guy didn't leave with him, so it doesn't make sense."

"Just ask and you will know which possibility it is." The eldest princess said and looked at the young man on the ground.

……

In the inn hall, Qin Wubing crossed his legs and drank tea leisurely.

Holmes found a room with blood stains. It wasn't that Zhao Guang's servants didn't clean it clean, but that there were too many gaps in the furniture. Wiping with clean water was different from wiping with spirits, especially the dried blood stains mixed with the furniture. It is one color, it is not easy to distinguish, and it is normal if it is not rubbed.

Qin Wubing could understand that Zhao Guang ordered people to clean and wipe the kitchen, but what he couldn't understand was that Zhao Guang originally planned to live in the back yard, but he didn't live in the front rooms and ordered people to clean and wipe them all. Almost sick?
At the same time, Qin Wubing felt that those followers must have wiped blood when they were wiping, but they didn't make a sound, why?I'm afraid I cleaned two inns in one day, and I really don't want to clean the third one.

But the smell in the yard couldn't be covered up, and the body parts were dug out, and they didn't dare to hide it. These followers were also very helpless.

After finding out which room had blood stains, and checking the registered account books, he knew who lived in that room. Just as Qin Wubing deduced, this person settled the account early in the morning the day before yesterday and left the inn.

(End of this chapter)