A female coroner arrived at the Jingzhao Prefecture.

Chapter 217 Headless Female Corpse (11)

Even if Li Daguo was stupid, he finally realized what was going on when he heard the word "sack"!

"Master Mu!"

Li Daguo looked miserable, already like a skinny monkey, but now he looked even more clumsy and silly, which made Mu Qingcheng laugh. "I'm too lazy to interrogate you today, but I'll leave a sack in the interrogation room with your name on it, just in case, to shut your mouth up at any time."

"I won't dare again, I'll never dare again." Li Daguo, having survived the ordeal, shook his head vigorously.

Zhao Chengsi asked, "Master Mu, what do you need us to do?"

Mu Qingcheng scrutinized Zhao Chengsi's round face and said thoughtfully, "With your physique, if you dress up a bit, you should be able to look like a rich patriarch."

"Uh..." Zhao Chengsi looked completely bewildered. "What does Master Mu mean?"

Mu Qingcheng chuckled, her eyes narrowed. "I think you're quite clever. If I asked you to work in brothels and entertainment venues, would you do it?"

"Ah? No, no, I... I'm a respectable person, and a government official at that. How can I go to such shady places? If people find out, I'll probably lose my official position!" Zhao Cheng was shocked and hurriedly refused, his words failing him.

Li Daguo quietly patted his chest, relieved that he wasn't fat enough to play the role of a rich man.

"This is official business!" Mu Qingcheng persuaded with all her might, "What's wrong with disguising yourself as a spy to solve a case? As long as you do your best and don't use your position for personal gain, I will not only keep your job, but also give you a reward! Oh, and there's also funding. How comfortable it would be to use public funds for eating, drinking, and listening to music!"

Zhao Cheng's eyes darted around. "Really? Master Mu, can you guarantee the magistrate won't punish me?"

"Okay." Mu Qingcheng nodded and solemnly promised, "No matter what happens to you while you are performing your duties, I will cover for you."

Reassured, Zhao Chengsi immediately cupped his hands and said, "Please instruct me, Master Mu, what specific tasks do you require of me?"

Mu Qingcheng then said, “In our Great Zhou Dynasty, the women of noble families would adorn their faces and foreheads with floral decorations, but it was considered beneath them to have floral and bird patterns tattooed on their bodies. Only scantily clad actresses, singers, and performers liked to have tattoos on their arms, legs, and ankles. Therefore, I believe that finding tattoo artists in these low-class places is the most effective method.”

"Can't we just search directly?" Zhao Chengsi asked, puzzled.

Mu Qingcheng shook his head, "We haven't confirmed the identities of the murderer or the victim yet. If we rashly open a search, we might alert them."

"Understood, sir." Zhao Chengsi said knowingly. "I will only conduct undercover investigations, not make them public. But if I obtain any clues related to tattoos, I will report them immediately!"

Mu Qingcheng wrote a note agreeing to the withdrawal of public funds and sent Zhao Chengsi to collect the money and carry out the task.

Li Daguo, the last one remaining, eagerly approached Mu Qingcheng, asking with great hope, "Master Mu, where do you want me to go on a secret investigation? Is the budget sufficient?"

"You, hehe." Mu Qingcheng laughed maliciously. "Wait a minute, I'll make arrangements for you after I confirm with Constable Jiang."

"Alright, I'm ready to serve you at any time!" Li Daguo excitedly rubbed his hands together, hoping to be sent to a fancy restaurant to scout out the place and have a lavish meal on public funds.

Jiang Zhan returned just in time and entered the South Prison with Wang Tianzhu. Upon learning that Mu Qingcheng was in the interrogation room, he headed straight there.

Li Daxue was quick-witted; without waiting for Mu Qingcheng's instructions, he took the initiative to serve tea to Jiang Zhan.

Jiang Zhan gulped down two bowls of tea before he could recover. He said, "Master Mu, this is truly unbelievable! I sent out dozens of men, even two patrol dogs, and we still found absolutely nothing!"

Mu Qingcheng was taken aback. "Not even a single unusual woman's ornament was found?" "No!" Jiang Zhan frowned, his face extremely grim. "We've searched every place and item that Master Mu instructed us to visit repeatedly, but we haven't found anything!"

"Where is the other team that was responsible for conducting interviews and gathering information? Have they returned?"

"Not yet."

Mu Qingcheng rose from the desk, paced back and forth, and pondered for a long time before saying, "I have already examined the body. Although the deceased was not a pampered lady, she was definitely not from a poor family. The time of her murder was not late at night when she was sleeping. Therefore, there should have been hair ornaments and accessories on her hair and clothes, and they should have been valuable items!"

Having considered this, she slowly stopped and ordered, "Li Daguo, take a few constables, disguise them as beggars or vagrants, and stake out the entrances of all the pawnshops! If any suspicious-looking people come to pawn women's items, arrest them immediately and take them back to the Jingzhao Prefecture!"

Li Daguo was dumbfounded. "What? You actually want me to be a beggar..."

Mu Qingcheng suddenly spoke sharply, "If the suspect escapes, I will hold you accountable and punish you severely!"

"Yes, Your Excellency will remember this and will carry it out immediately!"

Li Daguo dared not play around any longer and quickly left the interrogation room. Wang Tianzhu arranged for someone to accompany him on his mission.

Mu Qingcheng thought for a moment, then instructed Jiang Zhan: "To prevent any oversights, you must immediately send someone to notify the managers of every pawnshop, instructing them to pay attention to people coming to pawn their items, and if they find anything unusual, to immediately report it to the Jingzhao Prefecture!"

"Yes!"

"Also, this list is provided by the complainant, Lu Xichun, and includes wealthy families in the villages around Suhe. Have someone investigate each of them. The deceased were between eighteen and twenty years old, of slender build, and died between late afternoon and late afternoon yesterday. They were killed by multiple people, beaten to death with sticks, and then their heads were chopped off. The deceased were either married women or unmarried women with lovers!"

"Yes!"

"Although the case is urgent, remember to take turns resting. You can't get fat in one bite. When it's time to slow down, don't force yourself or rush."

"This subordinate understands, thank you for your concern, Master Mu!"

Jiang Zhan left with the list.

When Mu Qingcheng walked out of the South Prison, the setting sun had already crossed the horizon and was retreating westward.

"Master Mu!"

Registrar Zhang Xingzhong approached her with a smile and bowed to her.

Mu Qingcheng returned the greeting and asked with concern, "Is Registrar Zhang feeling much better?"

"I think I'm fine now, but my wife is worried and insists that I rest a little longer. But I'm so bored staying at home, I'm almost going crazy!"

To prove he had recovered, Clerk Zhang stretched out his arms and kicked his legs on the spot, saying, "Master Mu, look, am I all better? Can I go back to work now?"

Mu Qingcheng suppressed a laugh, raised her hand to suppress it, and said, "Even if you recover, you shouldn't do any strenuous exercise for a while."

“Alright, I’ll do as Master Mu says. After all, I’m the registrar, my job is clerical work.” Registrar Zhang’s eyes shone brightly. “Please assign me some official duties, Master Mu!”

(End of this chapter)