Starting with a blind date with a female constable, you acquire the Nine Swords of Dugu.

Chapter 76 Chasing the Murderer

"Commander Yan, what are you doing here?" Gu Guanqi asked in confusion.

Yan Wangchuan glanced at Lin Yourong with a hint of mockery in his eyes, then smiled at Gu Guanqi, quickly walked over, and said, "Thanks to you, I've been assigned to this mission again."

"What does this have to do with me?" Gu Guanqi asked, puzzled. "Besides, why are you, a commander of a thousand men in Qingyang County, always handling cases across borders?"

Yan Wangchuan walked over and said, "Young man, your awareness is too low. We're all serving the court and protecting the people's safety. What's this talk about crossing borders?"

Hearing Yan Wangchuan's official-sounding words, Gu Guanqi immediately realized and said, "It seems that even though you're over sixty, your career is about to experience a second spring. Are you getting a promotion? Congratulations!"

Yan Wangchuan quickly waved his hand, appearing nonchalant, and said, "It's just a minor promotion. I'm merely a fourth-rank Zhenfu Tongzhi, only in charge of local arrests and cross-border coordination. I don't have much power, it's not worth mentioning!"

Gu Guanqi: "————"

Who asked you!

"Commander Yan—no, Assistant Magistrate Yan, you're looking good in your old age! Congratulations!"

Yan Wangchuan rolled his eyes and said, "You call yourself a cultured person? Is this how you describe 'looking pretty in old age'?"

"That's the gist of it," Gu Guanqi smiled and asked, "You still haven't said what your presence here has to do with me?"

Yan Wangchuan said, "The matter of you killing Nangong Yin and Ji Xianyun last time is not over yet. Nangong Yin and Ji Xianyun are not unknown people. They are demonic people who are under the close watch of the Six Doors. However, they were able to enter Qingzhou in a swaggering manner. This matter is very unusual. Someone must be helping them. The Heavenly Demon Sect branch in Linzhong County alone does not have that ability."

Therefore, we have been investigating this matter recently and have discovered that the Heavenly Demon Sect is suspected of engaging in a double-dealing scheme. On the surface, only the Tian Shu branch is causing trouble in Linzhong County, but in reality, there is likely another group hiding in the shadows, plotting something unknown. Currently, the Six Doors have obtained some clues that it is highly likely that members of the Heavenly Demon Sect are hiding in Tianping County.

Gu Guanqi said, "That's not my fault!"

Yan Wangchuan said, "I didn't blame you. When I say I'm grateful to you, I really mean it. I was originally supposed to be promoted to the position of Assistant Magistrate of the Garrison next year, but thanks to you last time, I was promoted ahead of schedule. Otherwise, this job wouldn't have fallen to me today."

"I see!" Gu Guanqi nodded and asked, "So, have you discovered anything yet?"

Yan Wangchuan shook his head, his expression grave: "We can only confirm that the poison was put in the food and drinks, but the method was extremely sophisticated, leaving no trace. We don't have any new progress for now. I've already sent word to the Poison Immortal to come; this is his specialty, but he won't be able to get here anytime soon."

Gu Guanqi nodded slightly, his gaze slowly sweeping over his surroundings.

Finally, it landed on the table where the four members of the Lin family had sat. The items on the table were still there, but because they had been handled, it was very messy.

He crouched down, leaned close to the table, and examined it closely. There were traces of poison everywhere on the table, in the food and wine.

His brows furrowed quickly.

Lin Yourong quickly asked, "Guanqi, did you discover something?"

Gu Guanqi pointed to the table legs and said, "It's normal for food and drinks to be poisoned, but why would the table legs be poisoned too?"

At this point, Lin Yourong said, "They were drinking at the time, and some drinks would have spilled on the table, so it's normal to find traces of poison on the table."

Gu Guanqi shook his head slightly and said, "Although this place is wet, it's not wine or tea. This table leg must have been soaked in water for a long time for some reason, so it won't dry for a while. And the key to breaking the opponent's poisoning method lies here."

Immediately, Yan Wangchuan looked at the trembling shopkeeper beside him and asked, "What's wrong with this table leg?"

The shopkeeper quickly replied, "This table leg was previously removed to pad a water tank, so it was indeed soaked in water for a long time. A couple of days ago, the original table leg broke, and I remembered this one, so I replaced it."

Yan Wangchuan nodded, then leaned close to the table leg and examined it for a while. He couldn't see any signs of poison, so he asked Gu Guanqi, "You know about poisons?"

Gu Guanqi nodded slightly and said, "I know a little."

Lin Yourong quickly said, "The poisoning of those who were just poisoned was cured by Guan Qi."

Yan Wangchuan asked in surprise, "I've never heard that you're an expert in poisons!"

Gu Guanqi smiled and said, "I'm a doctor, so it's normal for me to be proficient in poisons, right? It's just that I don't usually need to use them, so I haven't shown them much. Actually, my poison skills aren't much weaker than my sword skills!"

Yan Wangchuan's eyes were filled with shock as he said, "That high?" However, he didn't pry further and quickly asked, "So, what are your thoughts on this case?"

"The poison wasn't put directly into the drinks or food," Gu Guanqi said. "Someone poisoned the victims while they were eating, putting it all over the table."

Lin Yourong quickly asked, "How do we proceed? Although Lin Youyun and the others aren't top-tier experts, they've been traveling the martial world for years and are quite vigilant. If the other side makes any sudden movements, they'll definitely notice."

Gu Guanqi walked to a table by the window diagonally opposite and said, "If I were to poison someone, I would sit here." As he spoke, he opened the window, sat down, raised his hand, and said, "For example, if I hold an odor-based poison in my hand, I only need to wait for the wind to blow, and the poison gas in my hand will be blown over. No one will notice what I did, and the poison gas will disperse. It will dissolve in water. Food is sticky, and wine is even more so, which is liquid. The poison gas will instantly dissolve into it."

Yan Wangchuan suddenly realized, pointed to the corner of the table, and said, "Therefore, there are no traces of poison on the other dry parts of the table, but the corner of the table was wet and thus left traces of poison."

Gu Guanqi nodded slightly and said, "That's exactly right."

"If that's the case, wouldn't the poisonous gas potentially end up in the food and drinks of other guests?" Lin Yourong said. "But we've checked the entire inn, and apart from their table, no one else has been poisoned!"

Gu Guanqi shook his head and said, "The other party is a master of poisons, with extremely precise control over the toxicity. He calculated the direction and force of the wind so that the poison gas landed precisely on this table, without affecting anyone else."

Lin Yourong exclaimed in surprise, "Poison can be used like this—!"

Yan Wangchuan asked, "Can you do it?"

Gu Guanqi smiled slightly and said, "I think it's possible, but I haven't tried it!"

"You're so young, how do you know so many things? You're really amazing!"

Yan Wangchuan sighed in admiration, then immediately turned around and called over the tavern owner and several waiters, asking them questions one by one.

The shopkeeper, an old man in his fifties, was so frightened that his face turned pale and he stammered, unable to utter a complete sentence. The waiters were in no better shape; their faces were ashen and their legs were trembling.

After a series of questions, a waiter suddenly said, "I remember now, among the guests who sat at that table today, one of them specifically opened the window."

The sun was quite strong today, and none of the guests wanted to open their windows. Only one guest opened his window for a short while, so I remember him, but he closed it again after only a short time.

Yan Wangchuan quickly asked, "Do you remember the time?"

The waiter quickly replied, "I remember, it was the last table. After he left, the incident happened, and there were no more customers. However, the incident occurred after he left."

Lin Yourong and Gu Guanqi exchanged a glance and basically confirmed that the person was the murderer.

Yan Wangchuan quickly pressed on, "What did that person look like? Do you remember?"

"I vaguely remember that he had a big beard—"

The waiter tried hard to recall and gave a stammering description.

Yan Wangchuan immediately ordered someone to summon the Six Doors' professional painter, who then drew a portrait based on the waiter's description.

The person in the portrait had a full beard, making his features difficult to discern, and there was a scar near his eye.

After the drawing was completed, the waiter immediately said that it was the person in question.

Gu Guanqi and Lin Yourong both looked at it, but they didn't recognize it.

Lin Yourong said, "Prefect Yan, please draw more of this portrait. I will ask the Lin family to help issue a warrant for his arrest as well."

"Don't rush."

Yan Wangchuan examined the portrait for a while and said, "There's something wrong with this portrait."

Lin Yourong asked, "What's the problem?"

Yan Wangchuan said, "Our Six Doors organization specializes in training people in facial memory and facial structure recognition. The person in this portrait doesn't quite have the right face shape and eyes." He then placed the portrait on the table and told the artist, "Remove this person's beard and the scar near their eye, and make the tip of their nose a little more upturned!"

Immediately, the painter painted another one, and the person in the second one was completely different from the first one. The first one looked very bold and rugged, while the second one was a rather handsome and refined middle-aged man.

Lin Yourong walked closer and looked him over, then suddenly said, "I recognize this person."

"Who?" Yan Wangchuan asked hurriedly.

"Zhao Ziqi," Lin Yourong said, enunciating each word clearly, "is known in the martial arts world as the Six-Fingered Physician. You're not from Tianping County, so you might not have heard of him. But his medical skills are top-notch in Tianping County, and he's very famous in the martial arts world. To put it another way, he's somewhat similar to the prestige of your Poison Immortal in your Qingyang County!"

At this moment, a constable from the Six Doors of Tianping County said, "Zhao Ziqi is the owner of Baohetang in Dongyuan Lane. I bought medicine from him last year!"

Lin Yourong nodded and said, "It is indeed this person. Zhao Ziqi has been practicing medicine in Tianping County for more than 20 years. His medical skills are extremely high and he has a great reputation. My Lin family has had many dealings with him. He even went to see my grandmother some time ago. However, I have never heard that he is also well-versed in the art of poisons."

Yan Wangchuan beckoned to several constables and said, "There's no time to lose, let's go arrest them now."

Lin Yourong and Gu Guanqi also went along.

Zhao Ziqi's Baohetang Medical Clinic was located in his own home, in a place called Dongyuan Lane in the west of the city. It was a three-courtyard house with blue bricks and gray tiles, and the walls were covered with vines, making it look very elegant.

However, when the group arrived, the gate was tightly closed.

To avoid alerting the enemy, Yan Wangchuan simply climbed over the wall and went inside.

Then, they quickly took control of the gatekeeper's quarters, only to learn that Zhao Ziqi had already left half an incense stick's time ago.

Subsequently, Yan Wangchuan quickly led his men to search the house. Several maids and servants also said that Zhao Ziqi had left, and the constables found nothing when they searched the rooms.

"Did they just happen to go out, or did they sense something was up and run away?" Lin Yourong asked in a low voice.

Yan Wangchuan frowned and said, "I suspect he had spies watching around the tavern. When he saw us coming this way, he used some kind of carrier pigeon to let Zhao Ziqi receive the news in advance!"

Lin Yourong said in a deep voice, "Then what do we do now?"

Yan Wangchuan said, "I'll leave some men outside to keep watch, and then immediately notify the Six Doors to secretly seal off the city gates, preventing Zhao Ziqi from leaving the city. If he doesn't return for a long time, then we can be sure he's become alert and escaped. In that case, we'll issue a city-wide arrest warrant! The Lin family is the leading force in the Jianghu of Tianping County; we can mobilize all sorts of people to help search for him. As long as he's in the city, he'll have nowhere to hide!"

"Alright." Lin Yourong nodded and said, "Let's do as Magistrate Yan says!"

Then, Yan Wangchuan looked at Gu Guanqi and cupped his hands, saying, "If we make any progress, I'm afraid we'll need your help. This person is a master of poisons. The Six Doors of Tianping County don't have any masters of this kind, and I only have the Poison Immortal by my side who is a master of this kind, but he's not here right now."

"No problem," Gu Guanqi nodded in agreement.

Immediately, Yan Wangchuan left four constables to stake out Dongyuan Lane, while he rushed to the Six Doors.

Gu Guanqi and Lin Yourong then returned to Jinxiu Medical Clinic.

As they walked, Gu Guanqi said, "I have some antidotes that are even more effective than the Hundred Herbs Pill, as well as some life-saving pills for traveling the martial world. I'll get some for you later, so be sure to keep them with you at all times. Zhao Ziqi and that man in black robes are deliberately targeting your Lin family, so don't travel alone these days!"

Lin Yourong turned her head to look at Gu Guanqi and nodded, saying, "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

"Okay." Gu Guanqi nodded and said, "If you find anything wrong, come find me. I have nothing else to do and I'm always at Jinxiu Medical Clinic."

"Okay, whatever you say."

The two left while talking.

Soon, we turned into a relatively quiet alley after passing through a corner.

Just then, Gu Guanqi's gaze suddenly sharpened.

Deep in the alley, a figure was walking furtively, his steps hurried, glancing back every now and then, as if he were hiding from something.

The man was wearing a dark green brocade robe and had a fair complexion.

Lin Yourong followed Gu Guanqi's gaze and her pupils immediately contracted.

"Second Uncle? What's he doing here?"

That figure was none other than Lin Yuanhu, the second master of the Lin family.

At that moment, Lin Yuanhu was walking quickly along the shadows of the alley, completely unaware that someone was behind him. He walked very fast, glancing back every now and then, his expression showing a hint of nervousness.