A person sacrifices himself to become a saint in a chaotic world of martial arts.

The next day, the incident indeed caused a sensation.

The news spread from the alleyway before dawn.

An old man who was emptying chamber pots was pushing his cart past when he saw a person lying by the wall and thought it was a drunkard.

Upon closer inspection, although the face was smashed to a bloody pulp, the patch on the hem of the clothing was recognizable—it was the black uniform of a constable from the Zhenfu Division.

The mysterious death of a taxi driver is definitely a major event in the entire county.

The news spread like boiling water into a frying pan, splashing from the alleyway to the street, from the street into teahouses and taverns, and from the teahouses and taverns, it flowed along with countless whispering mouths all the way into the county government, into the town administration office, and into those high-class courtyards that ordinary people could never set foot in their entire lives.

Everyone who heard the news was shocked, from ordinary people squatting against the wall basking in the sun to the yamen runners holding teacups, to the solemn-faced constables, to Chief Constable Xing, and even the General Commander's Office.

That's a master of the second level of martial arts.

He received a salary from the Zhenfu Division for twenty years, working his way up from a temporary clerk to a senior officer, his calluses on the hilt of his sword piling up layer after layer.

How many people has he offended? Nobody knows.

They might kill him silently—but what kind of method would that be?

Moreover, the incident involving the heretics of the Reincarnation Cult was only discovered recently.

The repercussions of that incident haven't completely subsided yet.

A high-ranking official from the prefectural government is still stationed in the county; he is said to be a deputy commander-in-chief.

He lived a secluded life in the General Garrison Command, rarely venturing out. Even when the county magistrate came to pay his respects, he only exchanged three sentences with him through a screen.

It's hard not to associate this with the heretics of the Reincarnation Cult.

This time, the chief inspector personally nodded in approval.

The General Commander sent a senior constable to assist in solving the case.

This taxi driver's surname is Wei, Wei Donglai.

He was in his early forties, with graying temples and deep-set eyes that made his gaze look like two blunt awls.

It is said that he is also related to the Chief Constable—some say he is a distant cousin, others say he is the son of an old subordinate, there are many different opinions, and no one can be sure.

Only one thing is certain: this person has solved murder cases for seventeen years and has never failed.

-

"Quickly! Seal off the area and search thoroughly for clues!"

Just after Chen Shi (7-9 AM), the alley entrance was already completely surrounded by yellow cloth.

General Manager Xing personally attended the event.

He stood with his hands behind his back under the old locust tree, his face ashen as if filled with lead.

Wei Donglai squatted beside the two corpses.

He wasn't wearing gloves. He lifted the white cloth covering his face with two fingers, revealing a mangled mass of flesh and blood. He moved very close, his nose almost touching it.

The onlookers held their breath.

No one dared to speak.

The only sound was the very faint rustling as Wei Donglai's fingertips crushed the bone fragments.

After a long while, he stood up.

A soft click sounded from the kneecap.

He lowered his eyes, took out a white handkerchief from his sleeve, and wiped his fingertips with his head down—the handkerchief was originally snow-white, but after wiping, several light brown lines appeared along the edges.

He looked around.

The constables who were swept over by those two gazes straightened their backs in unison.

-

On that day, Chen Cha Tou and Chen Dong Quan hosted a banquet for Su Bai before their deaths, which they naturally made no secret of.

The news came from the restaurant.

The waiter witnessed Officer Chen smilingly welcoming the man into the private room and personally pouring him three rounds of wine.

Even though Su Bai is now a policeman, he was still summoned for questioning.

Zhenfu Division.

General Manager Xing's ward rounds.

Su Bai has been to this room before.

The last time was when he received his official document from the constable. Chief Constable Xing personally placed the bronze plaque in his palm and said, "Do a good job."

Wei Donglai sat in the armchair that Chief Constable Xing usually sat in.

Chief Constable Xing himself stood by the window, hands behind his back, watching the dust particles floating and sinking in the beams of light.

"Su Cha Tou".

Wei Donglai spoke up. "Why did Officer Chen and Chen Dongquan invite you to dinner?"

Su Bai stood in the center of the room.

He was wearing his police uniform today, standing very straight with his hands hanging naturally at his sides.

"This is actually not a secret."

His voice was steady, as if he were recounting an old grievance that had nothing to do with him.

"Back when I was just a temporary constable, my contribution during the siege of the Black Fiend Hall Master..."

He paused.

It wasn't hesitation, just a matter of organizing the conversation more smoothly.

"Now that I've become a constable on official business, Constable Chen hosted a banquet for me. Afterwards, he even gave me two hundred taels of silver and a courtyard house."

His expression was calm.

There was no smile when talking about money, nor any pride when talking about the courtyard.

It's just a statement.

State the facts.

"So you went home right after dinner last night?"

"Yes."

Which road did you take?

"Just take the usual route."

"Anyone traveling with us?"

"no."

"How long did it take you to get home?"

Su Bai's eyelashes twitched.

"I really don't know. Anyway, I didn't stop along the way; I just kept walking and I got there."

Wei Donglai leaned forward slightly.

The movement was minimal, and his voice was even lower, as if squeezed out from between his teeth:

"Then why—"

He paused.

Each word, slowly rolled between the lips and teeth:

"Chen Cha Tou and Chen Dongquan died after they hosted the banquet for you?"

As the last note faded, the room fell silent.

Wei Donglai's gaze was fixed on Su Bai's face.

Those gazes were like two nails, trying to pierce through Su Bai's flesh to see if anything was amiss.

Su Bai did not dodge.

He met that gaze, his eyes remaining calm.

He even sighed softly—very softly, like helplessness, like self-mockery.

Then he spread his hands.

The cuff slipped back with the movement, revealing a section of wrist. There were no scars, no bruises. Just an ordinary, slender wrist bone.

"How would I know?"

His voice carried a perfectly measured hint of helplessness.

"Officer Wei, I know I'm a suspect."

His gaze met hers calmly.

"But I really didn't do it."

He paused.

"I suspect that someone is trying to frame me and sow discord within our Zhenfu Division."

After Su Bai finished speaking, he did not offer any further explanation.

Wei Donglai remained silent for a long time.

He actually has intuition.

Su Bai has a big problem.

There's nothing suspicious about Chen Chatou apologizing to Su Bai.

After all, everyone knows that Su Bai is highly regarded by the Chief Constable, and being promoted to constable at such a young age means he has a bright future.

Chen, the constable, had been working in the Zhenfu Division for twenty years and was very pragmatic; he was not wronged in making this sacrifice.

But the problem is.

Chen Cha Tou has been doing well.

He's lived in this county for so many years, and he has a lot of enemies. There are so many who might want to kill him, or who dare to want to kill him, that you can't count them on your fingers.

He had checked all of them in the past few days, and each of them had their own alibi.

Why did Su Bai die right after the banquet last night?

And that wound.

Both corpses bore marks on their necks from repeated blows by heavy objects, with exposed bone fragments and rotting flesh.

Why go to such lengths for a normal murder?

Unless it's to cover something up.

To cover up the knife marks.

And things like damaging wounds—

Wei Donglai lowered his eyes.

Su Bai had done it before.

The night Mao Buli died, he was also a blurry mass of flesh and blood.

It is said that Su Bai fought Mao Buli to the death with stones.

But why is it such a coincidence that both wounds were caused by being hit with a stone?

All of the above.

He couldn't help but suspect it was Su Bai.

But how can these suspicions alone convict Su Bai?

Su Bai is a taxi driver.

They were neither temporary officials nor ordinary citizens.

It was a formal job with a General Garrison Commander's certificate, a registered rank, and a monthly salary.

Without irrefutable evidence and without being caught red-handed, who would dare to touch him?