Chapter 465: Crime of Possessing Jade

"Ah?" Zhao Zhao Dazui didn't understand. "What kind of injury are you referring to? Frostbite, smash injury, or fall injury?"

"... Difficult to treat." Porcupine quills were not easy to deal with.

Zhao Zhao Dazui thought for a moment: "Haven't heard of it."

Jiao Yu interrupted: "Did anyone die of illness?"

"Ah, yes." Zhao Zhao Dazui nodded decisively this time. "Old Man Xu in Youtian Town had tuberculosis for many years, and he didn't make it through last winter..."

"I mean those who died in their prime. Villagers or passersby count."

"Oh..." Zhao Zhao Dazui thought again. "There are some. In Xu Village by White Pagoda Temple, thirty-something-year-old Xu the Second froze his leg in the mountain and died of high fever a few days after returning home."

He Lingchuan nodded and recorded it: "Anything else?"

Zhao Zhao Dazui thought carefully again, but couldn't remember.

He Lingchuan's heart moved, and he suddenly said: "What about injured or dead monsters?"

"Then I don't know." Zhao Zhao Dazui laughed. "Monsters don't live with us usually. If they have something, how would I know?"

"Do monsters all live in the suburbs?"

"Yes, most live in the suburbs, and we don't interact with each other. Except for cat demons, cow demons, and bat demons that live under the eaves, but I didn't pay much attention."

If a monster dies, what does it have to do with humans?

Before dark, He Lingchuan rushed back to Youtian Town and split into two groups with Jiao Yu.

He went to the largest pharmacy in the town, and General Ling insisted on following him, as if he had become addicted to watching the fun.

Zhitian Township was the largest medicinal herb distribution center in Chiyan, and one-third of the country's medicinal herbs were wholesaled from here, so of course, pharmacies and medical halls were everywhere.

The one He Lingchuan found had a medical hall in the front and a large pharmacy in the back. After entering, he went straight to the pharmacy manager, took out the red powder scraped from the porcupine nest, and asked what it was.

This manager was also an expert. After looking at it twice and sniffing it lightly, he didn't understand it either, so he mixed the medicinal powder with water and found several doctors to study it.

He Lingchuan felt there was no hope just looking at their posture, and he missed his medicine ape even more. At least Ling Guang wasn't as unreliable as them.

Fortunately, the manager finally invited an ape out from the back hall.

He Lingchuan was very surprised: "Medicine Ape?"

"Exactly." The manager smiled: "This is our chief alchemist, Mr. Lu."

Medicine Ape Mr. Lu had a white chin and beard. Hearing the manager say he couldn't figure out the origin of the stone powder, he took a pinch of red powder on his fingertip and spat on it.

Including the four or five doctors, everyone saw the red powder become transparent.

"No mistake, this is Shi Luo," Mr. Lu confirmed. "Also called Stone Blood. Where did the guest obtain it?"

"What is it used for?"

"This thing is commonly known as Stone Blood and is also recognized as the essence of mountain ranges. It is rarely used for medicine or alchemy, so ordinary pharmacists and alchemists don't recognize it, but in fact, it can still be used in some folk remedies," Mr. Lu said like a treasure. "In addition, it is also a material for making certain magic treasures. If the guest takes it to a craftsman, perhaps they will be easier to identify."

It paused and asked: "Shi Luo is rare, and these are very fresh. Is the place where the guest chiseled it not far?"

"This is mineral powder, not a plant; how can you tell if it's fresh or not?"

"This has the breath of mountain rock, and a little bit of rotten smell," Mr. Lu said with certainty. "It should have been dug out not long ago."

"Exactly, I just chiseled it from the porcupine nest on Mount Yulun this afternoon."

"Mount Yulun?" Mr. Lu was obviously stunned. "Mount Yulun actually has Shi Luo?"

"Is there any problem?"

"I have been in Zhitian Township for eighty years, and this is the first time I've heard that Mount Yulun has this thing," Mr. Lu stroked his chin beard like a human. "I just said, Shi Luo is very rare, and some prescriptions with strong medicinal effects are inseparable from it. This thing is very expensive. Refined Shi Luo powder can sell for a high price of five taels of silver per tael!"

"This is what I just knocked down; it hasn't been refined yet. How is the purity?"

Mr. Lu fiddled with it for a long time: "There are very few impurities."

He Lingchuan put away the bottle and laughed casually: "Whoever finds the Shi Luo vein will get rich?"

"If the reserves are rich."

The pharmacy manager couldn't help but interrupt: "Guest, it's not like that. You can't just dig for herbs or minerals here unless that place belongs to you."

He Lingchuan of course knew, and laughed: "Yes, mountains and rivers have owners; who can mine them at will? I was just saying."

Having obtained the answer he wanted, he thanked the Medicine Ape, put down a small ingot of silver, and left the pharmacy.

He Lingchuan knew that Jiao Yu's errand wouldn't be finished so quickly, so he followed the fragrance and found a small shop to eat.

It's called a shop, but it's more like a small stall supported by a snake-skin shed.

But the seven or eight low tables in the shed were all full of guests, each holding a jar and eating happily.

Right, this stall specialized in jar noodles.

Seven or eight jars were stewing on the stove, all medicinal meals. When a guest ordered one, the stall owner would put powder noodles into the jar.

He Lingchuan ordered a turtle dove soup with angelica, using local cloud silk fine noodles. As soon as the jar lid was opened, the fragrance was pungent, the soup was light brown, and there was only a very thin layer of oil on the surface.

Tasting a mouthful, it was mellow, warm, and thick, and the medicinal herbs and meat went very well together. The ingredients were also stewed until the bones were crisp and the meat was rotten, and they could be chewed and swallowed directly.

Smelling the pungent fragrance, the three Drill-Wind Beasts wouldn't treat themselves badly and also ordered things to eat. This is a monster country, and the scene of monsters eating in towns is common. To take care of their big mouths, the stall owner didn't give them jars but wide-mouthed bowls.

These sheep were really omnivorous, gnawing on the small turtle doves with a crunch, one bite at a time, and asked the boss to add more dishes.

He Lingchuan finished a jar with a slurping sound, and the others had already finished three bowls. He raised his hand and ordered another flavor of jar soup, this time eating it with small hot sugar cakes.

Sweet and salty, the taste was very interesting.

What's more wonderful is that this shed was opposite the pharmacy he had just entered.

When eating the second small sugar cake, he saw the pharmacy manager come out and walk away in a hurry.

He Lingchuan smiled and made a gesture with his arm.

Passersby saw it and only thought he was greeting someone, but in fact, a crow on the tree flapped its wings and followed the manager.

A ready-made eye, don't use it for nothing.

There were crows everywhere in Zhitian Township, and no one would pay special attention to its movements.

Only then did He Lingchuan ask the stall owner: "Two more sugar cakes, pack them up. By the way, this Shuojin Hall has such a large facade, may I ask who the proprietor is?"

"Who in Youtian Town doesn't know, this is the Li family's industry."

He Lingchuan said 'oh': "So it's the Li family."

After the meal, he went to the medicine market in Youtian Town to walk around.

It was rare to encounter a medicinal herb wholesale place; shouldn't he take the opportunity to replenish his inventory? It's just that Ling Guang wasn't there, and He Lingchuan couldn't grasp the quality control well himself.

Walking around, shopping, and buying like this, it was soon time to light the lamps.

He Lingchuan waited in the inn for more than an hour before Jiao Yu returned by moonlight.

"How is it?"

"I checked the township office's ledgers. Excluding those who died of old age or illness, seven able-bodied people died or were injured last winter, three went missing, and two passing merchant caravans reported that their own staff died of acute illness." It paused. "These were humans."

"As for the monster clan, the only ones who died were that nest of porcupine demons. Two monsters entered the township to seek medical treatment, so they were recorded, and the others are unknown."

Yes, if monsters don't come to seek medical treatment, who knows they were injured?

He Lingchuan shook his head: "You really can't see anything from the official records. No wonder Fu Shanjie couldn't handle this case. The person behind the scenes knows the government too well."

He recounted the trip to the pharmacy, and Jiao Yu said: "In addition to water sources and medicinal herbs, the porcupine territory now has a Shi Luo vein; the resources are truly rich."

"Crime of possessing jade," He Lingchuan said. "It seems our suspects are not just the Li, Wang, and Tu families."

He had already inquired that those three families were all in the medicinal herb business.

And Shi Luo was rarely known locally, and these few wealthy families might not have been involved.

He frowned again when he said this: "But there is one thing I haven't figured out: since the culprit knows our itinerary, why not wait until we leave Youtian Town or Zhitian Township before making a move?"

"Yes, ambushing us so hurriedly, once it fails, it instead exposes the fact that they are active nearby." Jiao Yu asked him, "What do you plan to do now?"

"Stir the water first, maybe the big fish will appear on its own." He Lingchuan said to it, "General Jiao, please find Wealthy Merchant Li."

"Now?" It was very dark.

"Yes, now," He Lingchuan said firmly. "That's the effect I want."

Jiao Yu was a man of action, and sure enough, he found Wealthy Merchant Li in less than two quarters of an hour.

Wealthy Merchant Li was dug out of his sleep. Although he was dressed neatly, his eyes were full of sleep, and he was yawning. He was fifty-seven this year, and although he usually took care of himself, his energy was far from that of a young man.

The Crown Prince's special envoy actually called him to his door in the middle of the night, and his heart kept drumming. He kept asking Jiao Yu sideways, was there anyone else going? To be able to do business to such a large extent, which person's hands were truly clean? If the old things from the past were dug up, then...

He was feeling uneasy when He Lingchuan took out a note with a fake smile and unfolded it in front of him:

"Someone is reporting you."

The next day, at the end of the Yin hour (around 5 AM).

The Bai Shi County Magistrate had just dreamed that he had been promoted and was holding a banquet to celebrate, when he was ruthlessly awakened by an old servant in his house:

"My lord, Wealthy Merchant Li and Wealthy Merchant Wang are seeking an audience."

"Now?" The Bai Shi County Magistrate rubbed his eyes, looking at the sky outside which wasn't bright yet, and couldn't help but be annoyed. "Are they crazy!"

"They said it's related to the messenger case."

Messenger? The county magistrate sat on the bed, dazed for a long time, before gradually recovering, and then remembered the Lingxu City messenger disappearance case.

He didn't think from the bottom of his heart that Zhitian Township could have anything to do with this case, and he hadn't thought much about it for the past two days. Why did these two wealthy merchants run to find him in such a hurry? "Let them wait in the study."

Two quarters of an hour later, the two township worthies, Li and Wang, had finished a cup of tea, and the Bai Shi County Magistrate arrived late.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 466 =====