Detective: Open your eyes, I am handcuffed in the interrogation room.

Chapter 486 Entering the Village, Ancestral Hall Elders

After what happened just now, Yushu looked quite depressed. It was obvious that his mood was greatly affected and he was no longer lively and talkative.

Chen Yi did not believe all of his words. As Yushu often went out, he should have been able to weigh the pros and cons of offending the village chief and offending an unidentified police leader.

Lao Shao has already clearly told his "origins". If something goes wrong after eating the wild fruits, he will be in big trouble. His motives are still questionable.

Moreover, this was already the second wave. Didn't he think that if the second wave couldn't get in, there would be a third wave? It was impossible for the police to give up this line of investigation just because of his small actions.

If you still can't get in for the third time, even a fool can guess who is behind it.

At this moment, Chen Yi was even more curious about Yulu Village. If Yushu lied, then one of Yulu Village and Yushu himself must be suspected of committing a crime.

If you are afraid of the police, there is no other possibility except committing a crime.

Why are you afraid of the police if you haven't committed any crime? As the saying goes, a person with a clear conscience fears no evil. If you have done nothing wrong, you won't worry about ghosts knocking on your door at night.

All the way was silent, Chen Yi looked at Yu Shu's back in front of him in deep thought.

Regardless of whether there is a problem with Yuluo Village or not, you will only know once you go there.

Let’s just talk about the person Yushu.

Assuming that Yushu has committed a crime, and he tried his best to prevent the police from entering the village, does that mean that as long as the police enter the village, what he has done will be exposed?

What secrets could a villager in an isolated mountain village have? The worst that could happen is stealing, cheating, or something like that, right?
If it was a big case, would it be covered up so tightly?

Yushu’s behavior is actually very irrational. Now the three of them can definitely enter the village. Once they enter the village and discover the unresolved strange things, the first suspect will definitely be Yushu.

If you stop the police from entering the village, who else do you suspect?

Therefore, Chen Yi's vigilance has not diminished. The mountain road is still very long, and Yushu is very familiar with the surrounding environment, so it is possible that he may take other actions.

If there really is a next time, we will have to copy it, and maybe even call for support, and then things will become complicated.

Fortunately, nothing happened and the four of them did not rest. After passing the last narrow valley, the three horses stopped at the entrance of the village.

A mountain river runs through the village, separating all the buildings. On one side is Henan River and on the other side is Hebei River. The number of households is almost the same. From a distance, you can see a wooden bridge built over the river for villagers to pass by.

The river is not wide, just a few meters. An adult can jump across it in a sprint, but it is impossible if you are holding something.

The village is not on the mountain. This is a rare flat area, which is just right for accommodating Yulu Village. If the population grows explosively, it seems that there will not even be room to build new houses, and the village can only develop towards the mountain.

This is what the village chief should consider. There is always a way.

Some villagers were delighted to see Yushu coming back. They shouted a few times and called their wives and children to come over to choose the goods they liked.

The villagers just looked at Chen Yi and his companions curiously and then lost interest. To them, the goods on the horses were more worthy of attention than the people on the horses.

Chen Yi and the other two dismounted and stepped aside, quietly watching the crowd that was gradually gathering.

Finally, the focus was on Yushu.

Is Yulu Village xenophobic?
Is this xenophobia? Although there was no loud welcome with drums and firecrackers, it was definitely not to the point of being scolded or even driven out. No one seemed to care at all.

At this moment, only the children in national costumes looked at them with wide eyes, as if they were looking at rare animals, while their parents were busy picking goods and paid no attention to them at all.

It's not the way to entertain guests, but it's not an act of rejecting guests either. It's very different from what Yushu said.

From what I heard from Yushu before, it seemed that bad things would happen if outsiders entered the village.

Chen Yi waved to Yushu.

Yushu was obedient and ran over quickly.

"lead."

Chen Yi said calmly: "Didn't you say that the village is xenophobic? Why don't I feel that at all?"

Yu Shu was about to explain.

"Ashu!"

An elderly man walked out of the village, shouting in a somewhat dissatisfied tone.

"That's the village chief, lead me over there."

Yushu expressed his apologies and went to explain to the village chief, only to see the latter frowning and looking towards Chen Yi and the other two.

Hmm... this is a bit exclusive.

After hesitating for a moment, the old village chief finally came over.

Even the most remote mountain villages are still under the jurisdiction of the state. Autonomous counties are autonomous under certain ethnic regulations, but they are not separate from the law.

"I am the village chief Zhongda. What are you doing here?" the village chief asked directly.

Zhongda?

Chen Yi immediately identified himself with the name. What a good name! He wondered if his IQ was comparable to Sima Yi's.

He smiled and said, "Hello, village chief. We are criminal police from the city. There has been a rather troublesome murder case in Ruicheng. We have no clues and someone saw the victim appear nearby. According to the investigation process, we need to come and take a look. I hope we can gain something."

Homicide?

The village chief and Yushu looked at each other, the former puzzled and the latter stunned. This was the first time they talked about the murder.

"Someone died... What does this have to do with our village?" The village chief was confused and unable to understand the police's logic.

Chen Yi smiled and said, "The village chief misunderstood. It's not that there is a connection. I'm just looking for clues. I'm really sorry to bother you."

He didn't explain much.

The village chief was silent for a while, then nodded and said, "Okay, since it's a government matter, we will definitely cooperate. I just don't understand...how should we cooperate? Should we gather the whole village together?"

Chen Yi: "Not for the time being, would it be convenient for us to stay for one night? If everything goes well, we can leave tomorrow."

The village chief didn't know what he meant by "smoothly", so he didn't ask. He agreed, "It's convenient. There are many places to live in the village. You can find a place you like. Or you can stay at my place. The three of us can squeeze in."

Chen Yi agreed to the village chief's suggestion to stay overnight without disturbing the second family. He wanted to pay, but the other party refused, saying that it was reasonable and no compensation was required.

"Don't these goods cost money?" Seeing the villagers not far away taking the things and leaving, Chen Yi couldn't help but ask.

The village chief said, "It costs money. They will send it over later. Everyone knows the price. Those who don't know will ask."

Chen Yi said, "Ah Shu is in charge of outbound purchases, right?"

Village chief: “Yes.”

Chen Yi: "Are there any rules on the selection of candidates? Is it by voting or voluntary?"

The village chief glanced at him and did not answer: "Let's go into the village and tell everyone so that there will be no misunderstanding."

Chen Yi originally had many questions, but since the village chief was unwilling to talk more, he couldn't force him to ask, so he followed the village chief into the village.

We have arrived at Yuluo Village, but the doubts in my heart have not disappeared, but have grown deeper.

He now not only felt that there was something wrong with Yushu, but this time he also included the village chief.

The village seemed normal, but these two people always felt something was weird.

After entering the village, the village chief explained the situation to everyone. Most of the villagers were curious and did not show any dissatisfaction. Some of them even smiled warmly and invited the three to visit his home.

The attitude of the villagers made Chen Yi look at Yushu from time to time. The occasional eye contact frightened the latter so much that he quickly looked away.

He now really wanted to stop the village chief and ask: Has Yushu done anything bad in the village?

This question actually has a lot of uncertainty, because the surrounding villagers are very familiar with Yushu, and many people even pulled him aside to remind him what kind of goods to bring next time. He doesn't look like he has done anything bad in the village.

Chen Yi frowned secretly, not knowing whether his feeling was wrong, or everyone was acting, or Yu Shu's problem was limited to a very small circle.

Since we are here, we should make the best of it. The murder case cannot be forgotten. Tu Xiangnan once wandered outside the mountain. What was his purpose? Based on my current understanding of Yuluo Village, it seems that he could only be picking up jadeite.

Unless, he has a relationship or connection with someone in the village.

Since Yushu doesn’t know, just ask other people. There’s plenty of time.

The villagers gradually dispersed, and under the leadership of the village chief, Chen Yi and his two companions strolled around the village. When passing by a gravel path, he bent down and touched one of the stones. After the dust faded away, it revealed its crystal clearness. It was indeed a raw jadeite.

What Yushu said was true. This village could be described as a jade village. Low-quality jade is still jade. If it is left outside and no one cares, it will definitely be demolished like a swarm of locusts. The village chief noticed Chen Yi's actions and said with a smile, "It's a pity to throw it away. Just treat it as stone, but it needs to be mixed with other rocks, otherwise it will be very fragile."

Chen Yi nodded slightly: "Ashu and I talked about it on the way here. It really broadened my horizons. It is worthy of being the birthplace of jade in China."

The village chief said: "Those are just rumors, not that exaggerated."

Chen Yi: "By the way...are you related to Ah Shu?"

Village chief: "Yes, he is my cousin's son, a member of the same family."

Are they really relatives?
Chen Yi thought, could Yushu be able to go out to purchase goods just because he is a relative of the village chief? But it doesn't seem like a good job. It takes so long to go back and forth, it's exhausting, and there's no money to be made.

When they were outside the village before, the village chief changed the subject and did not answer. Out of politeness, Chen Yi did not ask a second time. This matter was not important at the moment.

There must always be someone who goes out to purchase, so it is not a suspicious point.

As they were almost at the end of the village, Chen Yi stopped and turned to look at the building on the right.

There are very few villagers around.

This building is in sharp contrast to the residential houses. The main materials are bluestone and gray bricks. It looks very weathered after years of baptism. The roof is made of tiles, which is rare in the village.

Like an ancestral hall... No, it’s definitely an ancestral hall.

There was an old man sitting at the door, holding a pipe and looking serious, with a cold look in his seriousness.

When several people stopped, the old man's turbid eyes became even darker.

Chen Yi stared at him for a while. The other party was not targeting him, but the village chief next to him.

Have a grudge?
Along the way, everyone, young or old, male or female, greeted the village chief politely, but things changed when they got here.

"Let's go back. Our village is so small. It's almost time for dinner. You can try some of my treasured old wine."

The village chief glanced at the other party and asked Chen Yi and others to leave.

Chen Yi hesitated, but finally chose to follow the village chief.

You are in an unfamiliar place, and while investigating the case is important, it is better not to offend the "top leader". If you are kicked out, it will be very difficult to deal with.

In the deep mountains and old forests, even a strong dragon cannot defeat a local snake, and they will never resort to violence without reason.

"Young man from outside, a police officer, right?"

Unexpectedly, after taking two steps, the old man at the door suddenly spoke. He must have received the news from other people.

Chen Yi turned around: "Yes."

The village chief did not turn around, but stood there with his back to the camera, and his expression could not be seen.

The old man took a puff of his pipe and said with a smile: "Did Ah Shu do anything wrong outside? I knew that this kid had no good intentions. Zhongda, you closed it last time..."

"Fuqin!" The village chief turned around abruptly and said coldly, "You don't have to hold a grudge against me for not becoming the village chief a few years ago, right? Why are you as ignorant as a little kid?"

The old man was not annoyed, and his smile remained unchanged: "You are not even allowed to speak? After all, you are the village chief. Young man from outside, come to my place for dinner tonight. I have fresh pine nuts, and they are not fried as well as mine in the whole village. As for wine... I have that too."

The village chief snorted coldly: "Fuqin, this is a leader from Ruicheng, do you think you are qualified to receive him?"

The old man: "Qualifications are not something you can prove with your mouth."

Chen Yi and the other two looked at each other and chose to watch the show. It turned out that there were conflicts everywhere and they were unavoidable.

After arguing for five minutes, the village chief lost his patience and told Chen Yi to leave.

You can't leave at this time, so Chen Yi immediately asked, "You just said to close it, what did you close?"

"The ancestral hall." The old man Fuqin answered him, "Last year and the year before, the ancestral worship was cancelled for no reason. Zhongda forcibly closed the ancestral hall. Isn't it strange?"

The village chief was angry: "Of course I have my own considerations!"

Fuqin asked back, "What are you considering? When Yushu was a teenager, he came to the ancestral hall to steal the ancestral offerings. After being caught, he was confined to bed for three days according to the clan rules. Now that he has grown up, who knows what he might do. Otherwise, why did you let him go out to purchase goods? That is a punishment for the clan members."

Clan rules?

Family law?

Such a primitive word. If you don’t know it, you would think it was a hundred years ago.

The three of them were not surprised at all for being in such a remote place, and they could understand it.

"Going out shopping is a punishment?"

Chen Yi was more concerned about this sentence. Thinking about it carefully, it was not a good job to frequently travel back and forth on the mountain road for more than ten hours, so he said that the punishment was reasonable.

Who would be willing to walk on a mountain road for more than ten hours for no reason?

"Um...can I go into the ancestral hall and take a look?" he suddenly asked.

"can."

"no!"

Two people spoke at the same time, the one who agreed was Fuqin, and the one who refused was the village chief.

"Fuqin! Outsiders are not allowed to enter the ancestral hall! Even clan members are not allowed to enter casually, let alone outsiders! What do you want to do?!" the village chief questioned and reminded.

Fuqin smiled and said, "I am the elder of the clan. I have the final say on matters here."

The village chief responded: "I am the village chief. Although you have the final say in the ancestral hall, you have to listen to me!"

The logic is correct.

The affairs of the ancestral hall are under the jurisdiction of Fuqin, and Fuqin listens to the village chief, which means that the affairs of the ancestral hall need to be listened to by the village chief.

Fuqin was unable to refute this statement and gave Chen Yi an apologetic and helpless look: See, this is the village chief.

There was a hint in his eyes: The village chief can listen to you, just force your way in, and no police officer dares to stop you.

Chen Yike had no intention of doing this. Why would he break into someone's ancestral hall? There was no reason. He just asked casually. If it was okay, it was okay. If it wasn't, it was okay.

The village chief is still angry, and I will need to ask him for clues to the case at night, so I can't offend him.

If I really want to go in, I’ll wait until it’s dark and windy at night… and then sneak in.

The wall of the ancestral hall is not high and it takes less than three seconds to climb over it.

"Young man from outside, come and have a drink with me anytime you want."

Not until the few people walked away did Fuqin's voice come again.

The village chief looked unhappy and said, "His grandson was injured because of Yushu, so he is very prejudiced against Yushu and us. But that incident really had nothing to do with Yushu. It's normal for a seven or eight-year-old child to get injured when playing in the mountains. He himself said it was not careless."

Chen Yi: "Is it serious?"

The village chief sighed: "Lame."

Hearing this, Chen Yi also sighed.

It's a very normal psychology. When adults drink and get into trouble, they have joint liability. As long as they are not alone, then in the eyes of the injured person's relatives, the one who accompanies them is at fault, even if you did nothing.

This is the hate transfer effect.

Fuqin was unable to vent his negative emotions on his grandson and could only implicate innocent third parties.

Everyone is like this. Those who dare to say they don’t have this mentality are all pretending to suppress it. This is the difference between the strong and the weak.

However, although the village chief gave the reason, Chen Yi still felt that Fuqin was much more real than him. At least what he said was not fabricated, while the village chief's answer was quite vague.

The previous judgment was correct. Yushu was likely to have made a mistake, and it might be related to the ancestral hall.

Chen Yi hesitated whether to get to the bottom of the matter.

Let's wait for the follow-up. He doesn't want to get involved in a place like Yuluo Village where clan rules still exist. It would be quite troublesome.

Autonomy, autonomy, what does autonomy mean?

They have their own rules!
(End of this chapter)