Humans in All Heavens: Starting with Detective Dee

In fact, Di Renjie had already noticed something was wrong with this issue.

But then a series of things happened.

First, Zeng Tai learned from Gao Rujin, who is actually Jiang Xiaolang, that Jiang Xiaolang had been murdered decades ago.

For a moment, he even wondered whether he was solving a case for people or for ghosts.

Startled, Di Renjie's judgment was flawed.

In addition, there was the appearance of He Yun, as well as the precious horses that had disappeared in the Later Han Dynasty and the horseshoes of the Sui Dynasty.

Several events piled up, gradually leading the matter into darkness.

Later, he learned from Pang Jiugong of Enjizhuang that Jiang Xiaolang was Yuwen Chengdu's subordinate, and from Fang Gensheng he learned about the headless ghost killing people.

This further intensified the atmosphere of terror.

For a moment, even Di Renjie, who did not believe in ghosts and gods, was somewhat shaken.

Moreover, the continuous thunderstorms in Luoyang for more than ten days further amplified this eerie and terrifying atmosphere.

People were filled with anxiety.

Di Renjie's heart wavered in the face of the talk of ghosts and gods, and he was unsure how to deal with the situation at hand.

Seeing the two deep in thought, Di Chun continued, "It all started with that dead Jiang Xiaolang on the official road."

Today, people believe that it is Yuwen Chengdu's vengeful ghost seeking revenge on Jiang Xiaolang.

But Yuwen Chengdu has been dead for decades.

Why take revenge now of all times?

The adults noticed something was wrong; the deceased's skin wasn't that of a centenarian.

It's just an identity document. How can you prove that it's Jiang Xiaolang? Couldn't it be a forgery?

The murderer also severed the victim's head and left arm, which was an attempt to cover up the crime.

They deliberately steered the matter towards the underworld to divert our attention and make us overlook the deceased's actual physical problems.

Upon hearing this, Li Yuanfang suddenly raised his head, still puzzled: "But what about horseshoes from the Sui Dynasty, which were already extinct in the Later Han Dynasty?"

"This is easier to explain. The world is so big, and there may be some Akhal-Teke horses that we don't know about scattered in other places."

As for horseshoes, as long as there is a pattern, any blacksmith's furnace can make them.

The horseshoe molds were for the exclusive use of the elite troops; using them for personal purposes was a capital offense punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family.

"Nobody dares to use it?"

Di Chun sneered: "Hmph, isn't rebellion also a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family?"

Yet, people still rebelled one after another.

If the law stipulates that certain things are serious crimes, then no one will dare to do them. That would be great, as the government would no longer need to judge criminals.

No one will commit crimes anymore.

The law stipulates that murder is a capital offense, so does that mean no one commits murder?

"The headless ghost that Fang Gensheng saw, someone actually saw it with their own eyes."

"A headless vengeful ghost." Di Chun deliberately pondered for a moment, then took out paper and pen, and began to sketch on the paper with the brush.

Soon, a headless figure dressed in heavy armor and wielding a phoenix-winged gilded cymbal appeared on the paper.

Di Renjie and his companion came closer to take a look.

Di Renjie was alright, but Li Yuanfang was terrified.

Gua Ling is afraid of nothing except ghosts. If Yuwen Chengdu were to appear before him, even if he were no match for him, he would fight him without fear of death.

He initially thought it was a ghost, but when he faced the headless vengeful spirit, he was so frightened that he froze, unable to move. It was only after Di Renjie pulled the Youlan Sword from his hand that he was truly terrified.

Upon seeing the headless ghost on the paper, his pupils contracted, his mouth opened slightly, and his body trembled slightly.

"That's right, I think what Fang Gensheng saw was this headless vengeful ghost."

"Brother Yuanfang, do you remember what I said? There are no ghosts in this world."

If there's a ghost involved, then someone with ulterior motives is plotting something.

They exploit people's fear of ghosts and gods to carry out their schemes.

I think this so-called headless ghost is most likely a fake made of clay by the mastermind and placed on top of a person's body.

It could lead people to mistake it for some kind of headless, vengeful ghost.

As he spoke, Di Chun drew the headless ghost and the fake body separately.

"This, this..."

Li Yuanfang pointed at the drawing paper, his face full of disbelief.

Di Renjie was both surprised and delighted.

He took the drawing paper and examined it carefully: "Not bad, not bad, Di Chun is right, I think that's probably how things are."

The mastermind behind the scenes orchestrated a series of schemes to make us believe that this was the vengeful spirit of Yuwen Chengdu seeking revenge.

Thus, they achieved their goals.

Di Chun answered several of the doubts one by one, which made Di Renjie, who was already somewhat of a believer in ghosts and gods, see the light in his eyes.

This dispelled the fog before his eyes.

Turning around, Di Renjie saw that Li Yuanfang still seemed somewhat suspicious. He smiled slightly and said, "Yuanfang, what's wrong? You still think there's something fishy going on?"

"My lord, I am ashamed..." Li Yuanfang lowered his head. Even now, he was still a little doubtful. "I remember what Brother Di said before we set off."

I saw it in the Kaihuang Shilu (Veritable Records of the Kaihuang Era): tattooing a blood eagle on the left arm was a ritual of the Xiaoguo Army.

The current case bears a striking resemblance to the Jiangjiazhuang massacre of decades ago.

It's hard for me not to suspect that this might be a case of a vengeful ghost seeking revenge.

Seeing this, Di Chun could only laugh and say, "Brother Yuanfang, I'll ask you, where do ghosts come from?"

Li Yuanfang frowned slightly: "After a person dies, they become a ghost."

"Fine, are you afraid of dying?"

"Of course I'm not afraid of dying."

Li Yuanfang was very confident about this.

Having fought against the Turks in Liangzhou for many years, he had long since disregarded life and death.

When someone says this, they might be trying to save face. If they're afraid of ghosts, how could they not be afraid of death?

But Li Yuanfang's words are still convincing.

"That headless vengeful ghost killed so many people, even if he really appeared in front of you."

It's nothing more than killing you, so what are you afraid of?

It's nothing more than death.

Logically speaking, you shouldn't be afraid.

"This..." Li Yuanfang was taken aback, then thought about it carefully: Yes, he shouldn't be afraid. It's just death, what's there to be afraid of?

After hearing Di Chun's words, he was in a much better mood and didn't seem so afraid of ghosts anymore.

While the two were talking, Di Renjie carefully recalled the entire case based on Di Chun's prompting.

If there are no ghosts, then it's people playing tricks.

That means the mastermind must be plotting something behind the scenes.

The Jiangjiazhuang massacre decades ago may also hold some unknown secrets.

Returning to the case at hand, the young corpse on the official road is definitely not the so-called Jiang Xiaolang.

The dead from the four provinces and ten prefectures were certainly not the so-called traitors of the Xiaoguo Army.

Who could it be?

If the purpose was simply to kill, cutting off the head to conceal the victim's identity is understandable. So why cut off the victim's left arm as well?

Left arm, left arm?