"The weather is dry, beware of fire!"
As Chen Nan followed, Wang Dalei had already disappeared.
At the four-way intersection, he didn't know which direction Wang Dalei had gone.
Only the voice of Old Ji, the night watchman, echoed from afar.
Then,
Old Ji, carrying his clapper, approached from the distance.
Hunchbacked.
One-eyed.
He looked somewhat eerie under the night sky.
Chen Nan wanted to ask Old Ji if he had seen Wang Dalei.
However,
The progress of the case could not be revealed to others.
He then saw Old Ji enter the Ruyi Tower, where Ruyi Tower prepared hot water for the night watchmen to rest.
This could be considered a good deed.
At this moment,
A gray rat, weighing five to six catties, appeared in the corner.
It stood up, bowed to Chen Nan, and then pointed towards the south.
"The moat again?"
Chen Nan's eyes lit up.
Immediately, led by the rat, he sped towards the outside of the south city.
Finally,
He saw Wang Dalei about to jump into the river.
"Quick!"
"Stop him!"
At Chen Nan's current speed, he couldn't stop Wang Dalei at all.
He could only command the group of rats by the river.
The rats understood Chen Nan's words. They quickly formed a wall of flesh, blocking Wang Dalei's path.
Successfully stopping him at the edge of the moat.
His eyes were vacant.
He continued to step forward.
Unaware that something was blocking his path.
When Chen Nan rushed over,
He found that
Wang Dalei had long since stopped breathing.
At the same time,
Song Yunfei and others also arrived immediately.
Seeing Wang Dalei, whose limbs were still moving but had stopped breathing,
The five of them showed shocked expressions.
Was this the rumored living dead?
This was their first time seeing it.
"Boss, what exactly is going on?" Song Yunfei's face was pale, frightened by the scene before him.
Chen Nan's expression was solemn: "We underestimated Ruyi Tower. The matter of selling lifespan that Wang Dalei mentioned is true. His life was sold to Ruyi Tower."
Although he was not a forensic doctor,
He had studied medicine.
Wang Dalei's body was still warm, indicating he had just died.
But why could he still move after death?
Was it really the secret art of corpse control from the Fan Tian Sect?
Moreover,
Even if his life was sold to Ruyi Tower to repay a debt,
Who took his lifespan?
A sale means there is a buyer.
Someone had to have taken his lifespan.
Thinking of this,
A gleam flashed in his eyes.
Both the Hu Ning'an case and the Wang Dalei case involved one person who could not be bypassed.
That was Old Ji, the night watchman.
"I know who the murderer is!"
Chen Nan's eyes lit up: "The murderer is Old Ji, the night watchman. Ruyi Tower was responsible for signing the contract with the victim, and Old Ji was responsible for taking their lives."
"And another thing."
"Hu Ning'an did not argue with Old Ji before his death. That was merely Ruyi Tower deliberately finding evidence for Hu Ning'an to leave Ruyi Tower."
Zhang Lu gasped: "No way, Old Ji has lived in the county yamen for most of his life, always diligent and conscientious. How could he use secret arts to control corpses?"
They had a good impression of Old Ji.
It was just that Old Ji was a bit ugly.
They would usually give him some benefits.
They could never believe that Old Ji was the murderer of Hu Ning'an and Wang Dalei.
Chen Nan chuckled: "You can't judge a book by its cover!"
"Since it's Old Ji, what should we do? Should we arrest him?" Song Yunfei's expression was solemn.
He did not believe Old Ji was the murderer.
But,
He trusted Chen Nan even more.
Chen Nan looked at him intently: "Can you defeat a master who can control corpses with secret arts?"
Song Yunfei gave an embarrassed yet polite smile.
Chen Nan exhaled: "Let's return to the county yamen. Tomorrow, the case will be clear!"
Although he also wanted to arrest Old Ji directly,
He didn't think he could defeat a master who used secret arts to control corpses.
In Tongcheng, only Magistrate Han Zongyuan could defeat him.
------
Returning to the county yamen,
Chen Nan went straight to Han Zongyuan's residence.
Because Han Zongyuan had said that any new developments in the case should be reported to him immediately.
Even though it was late at night,
He had to inform the other party of the clues he had.
To his surprise,
A faint candlelight was emanating from Han Zongyuan's room.
Just as Chen Nan was about to knock, Han Zongyuan's voice came from within: "Come in!"
Creak!
Chen Nan pushed the door open and bowed to Han Zongyuan, who was sitting in the room reading the county annals: "Greetings, Lord Han."
Han Zongyuan asked: "Is there any progress in the case?"
"Yes!" Chen Nan recounted everything that had happened and his suspicion of Old Ji, then said: "I wanted to investigate further, but my cultivation is too weak. To avoid alerting the snake, I have come to ask for your assistance."
Han Zongyuan nodded slightly: "Whether it's corpse control or yin-yang contracts, these are the methods of the Fan Tian Sect."
"But you have no evidence for these actions."
"Even if we search Ruyi Tower, the yin-yang contract would have vanished into thin air when Wang Dalei died."
"This matter is quite tricky."
"Unless we catch them red-handed and prove Old Ji is a remnant of the Fan Tian Sect."
"Only then can I take action to eliminate him."
Chen Nan remained silent.
Although Old Ji was a night watchman,
And held a very low position in the county yamen,
He could not be accused without cause.
Chen Nan said: "How about this, I will try to test Old Ji tomorrow morning."
Han Zongyuan nodded with satisfaction: "Feel free to do so. If you can prove that Old Ji is a remnant of the Fan Tian Sect, I will give you a great merit."
"Then I will take my leave."
Chen Nan bowed and exited Han Zongyuan's room.
He found an empty room and sat down cross-legged, planning to consolidate his strength during this time.
Although he knew that Han Zongyuan would protect him in secret tomorrow,
Relying on oneself was better than relying on others.
Time flew by.
Morning arrived in the blink of an eye.
Chen Nan called Song Yunfei and the others to the mess hall for a hearty meal.
Just then,
Old Ji, with his hunched back, dressed in patched clothes, and with one blind eye, walked in with his bowls and chopsticks.
Because many people complained about Old Ji's appearance,
He walked with his head down, fearing that others would see him.
He gave off a sense of inferiority,
And evoked sympathy from kind-hearted people.
Seeing Old Ji serving himself food and going to a corner of the yard to eat alone, Chen Nan picked up his bowl and walked over.
Then he sat beside Old Ji.
Old Ji slowly raised his head and asked cheerfully, "Officer Chen, is there something you need?"
He didn't believe Chen Nan would sit and eat with him for no reason.
Chen Nan sighed: "Old Ji, I'm tired of living. Life feels meaningless, and I want to have some fun before I die, but I have no money. Can you help me get some?"