Chapter 279: Too Brutal

"Who else has participated in the investigation of this case? Bring them all here!"

Clutching these files, Shen Yu returned to his room and began to read them slowly. Being involved with a Hou Mansion might be a headache for others, but for Shen Yu, it was actually a good thing.

He had just arrived in the Capital and needed to establish his authority; wasn't this person just delivering an opportunity right to his doorstep?

"The case of the missing children?"

After roughly flipping through the files in his hand, Shen Yu frowned slightly; the matter was even more complex than he had imagined.

Over the past half year in the Capital, children had been disappearing continuously. At first, it was only the children of commoners, but later, even the children of high-ranking and wealthy families went missing.

Cumulatively, the number of lost children had reached several hundred. And that was only what was known; there was no telling how many more there were that had not been counted or reported in the shadows.

Perhaps the case of the missing children could be traced back even further, but it had only been exposed over half a year ago, and even now, there were not many useful clues.

The Capital was so large, and the target of the other party's actions was impossible to guess; it was simply impossible to guard against.

Moreover, in this high-martial World, if an expert were acting, they would come and go without a trace, leaving behind almost no clues at all.

However, there was something wrong with this matter. If the children of commoners went missing, neither the Patrol Guard nor the Capital Prefecture would actually be too nervous; this was the naked reality.

They did not take the Life and Death of commoners to heart. If a case involving commoners was solved, it was due to their own hard work and merit. If it could not be solved, then there was simply nothing to be done.

But now, it was not just the children of commoners who were missing; children from the households of wealthy merchants, powerful gentry, and even high-ranking officials had gone missing.

The Director of the Ministry of Justice, Zhong Wuwei, who had been acting bossy here earlier, was only throwing a tantrum because his own child had gone missing and there had been no leads.

Once these people were involved, it became quite difficult to handle. If they joined forces to apply pressure, any department would get a headache.

If it were dragged out any longer, until they lost their patience, then everyone would be afraid once they went mad.

This wasn't right. These people stole the children of commoners, and if they couldn't find them, they would just give up, and no one would dare to blame them.

Only those parents would wash their faces with tears every day, yet they were helpless against it.

But why steal the children of wealthy merchants, powerful gentry, and high-ranking officials? Why make such a big scene, to the point of becoming irreconcilable?

Since high-ranking officials and nobles were involved, every yamen would definitely investigate with all their might; wasn't this just asking for trouble?

Usually, cases like this were handled by the Capture Gate, but now it had been pushed to the Patrol Guard, which clearly meant the Capture Gate also found it thorny.

It had been so long without any progress; they needed a scapegoat, and the Patrol Guard was naturally the best choice. Wasn't that what they did every day?

The previous Feng'an Commandant was even more ruthless. Knowing this matter was thorny, and given his age, he chose to protect his own interests.

Otherwise, once those high-ranking officials whose children were lost started making trouble, the punishment would not be so simple.

Taking advantage of a group of spoiled brats causing trouble, he directly chose to resign and return to his hometown, perfectly distancing himself from the matter.

He might have run off, but this case fell back to the Capital Prefecture, and the Capital Prefecture had a headache too. If even the Capture Gate was helpless, what could he possibly do?

As for the progress of the case, heh, so much time had passed, and it had been nothing but mutual buck-passing; there hadn't been a shred of progress—a bunch of trash!

Perhaps the Capture Gate had some clues, and Shen Yu also believed that the Capture Gate had likely kicked the case away on the surface while actually investigating it in secret all along.

"My Lord, these are the colleagues who originally investigated the case!"

Just as Shen Yu was carefully reading through the files, several people were brought in. Upon seeing Shen Yu, these people appeared quite agitated.

"Sit!"

"This, My Lord, this subordinate dares not!"

"I told you to sit, so sit!" Putting down the files, Shen Yu looked up at them. "You investigated this case; were there any clues during the investigation?"

"My Lord, to tell the truth, there have been no clues in this case; it must be the work of an expert. Moreover, we in the Patrol Guard are responsible for public order; investigating cases is truly not our specialty!"

"This case was initially handed to the Capture Gate, but later, for some reason, they pushed it back, and then it was transferred to the Capital Prefecture, so we know very little."

One look at their expressions, and Shen Yu knew he couldn't count on them. Forget it; relying on a bunch of old slickers who liked to shirk responsibility was worse than relying on himself.

"What about the Nanhua Marquis Mansion? Isn't it said that this matter involves the Marquis Mansion?"

"This, My Lord, this subordinate has only heard rumors. It is said that the Nanhua Marquis's only son was seriously ill, and rumor has it that he needed the heart of a young boy as a medicinal primer, combined with Secret Medicine, to recover!"

"Oh? There is such a thing?" Frowning slightly, Shen Yu then asked, "How did you all come to know of this?"

"Reporting to My Lord, this matter has spread all over the streets, and it's being told with such vivid detail! Therefore, everyone is convinced that the case of the missing children is related to the Nanhua Marquis!"

"Moreover, someone found the corpse of an infant at the Marquis Mansion, but the Marquis Mansion has consistently denied it!"

"It's spread all over the streets?" He shook his head. If news on the streets could be believed, then someone probably wanted others to think that way.

The news on the streets, plus the infant corpse found at the Nanhua Marquis Mansion, seemed to have sealed the matter. It wouldn't be long before public resentment boiled over, pointing directly at the Nanhua Marquis Mansion.

It seemed someone wanted to make a move against the Nanhua Marquis Mansion, and this surging public opinion was the best blade!

"My Lord, the Capital Prefecture previously thought about asking the Marquis Mansion to cooperate with the investigation, but they were refused. This subordinate is worried that there is truly something going on here!"

"The Nanhua Marquis Mansion is different from others, after all. The Nanhua Marquis commands the fifty thousand troops of the Southern Guard in the Capital; he is high-ranking and powerful! If something is really uncovered, I'm afraid..."

"Worried he will retaliate? So what if he is high-ranking and powerful? I have killed plenty of high-ranking and powerful people in the past few years!"

"Bang!" Just then, a loud noise suddenly came from outside, and at the same time, a terrifying aura rushed toward them, drawing everyone's attention.

Rushing out of the room, Shen Yu happened to see an old man walking in with his hands behind his back, swaggering. With that kind of presence, one might think the Chief Councilor had arrived.

"Who are you, daring to come here and cause trouble!"

"This must be Magistrate Shen. My family's juniors offended Magistrate Shen today; I ask that Magistrate Shen please raise your hand and let them go!"

"They are just a bunch of children fooling around; why make such a big fuss? How about we shake hands and make peace, turning hostility into friendship?"

"Children? You call them children? If I remember correctly, they are even older than I am!"

"Old man, you are truly shameless!" Glancing at the other party with disdain, Shen Yu said indifferently, "If you make a mistake, you must be punished; that is the rule!"

"To hell with the rules? So, Magistrate Shen is unwilling to give me face!"

"What kind of thing are you? Why should I give you face!"

"You, junior, you are presumptuous! Fine, today I will teach you how to conduct yourself in the Capital!"

Without another word, the old man had already charged up. He didn't even bother to ask how many experts had died by his own hands; had his brain been kicked by a donkey?

"Ten Thousand Mile Surging Waves!" Both palms struck like a raging sea, hitting Shen Yu heavily, yet they didn't even cause a ripple.

"This, this is impossible!" The other party wasn't just uninjured; he hadn't even moved an inch—you've got to be kidding me!

"What, is this all the level you have? And you dare to act presumptuously before this official!" As he spoke, Shen Yu threw a punch forward fiercely.

This punch was plain and unremarkable, as devoid of technique as a child's brawl, yet it felt as if there was nowhere to hide and no way to evade it.

"Bang!" Under that single punch, the old man was sent flying far away, his protective Qi shattered, and his internal organs were instantly struck by a massive force. In a single exchange, he was completely crippled.

His Golden Bell Shield had already reached the fifteenth level, and its power was terrifying. Even experts at the level of a typical Grandmaster could not withstand a single punch from him. He had only used a fraction of his strength, and the man was already finished.

Those secretly observing from the surroundings all wore expressions of terror; one punch, just one punch, it was too damn brutal!

This young man is even more brutal than the rumors suggest; he is not to be trifled with!

Sweeping his gaze across the surroundings, Shen Yu could clearly sense countless pairs of eyes observing this place, and the Martial Arts of these people were not weak either.

Releasing his aura without reservation, it was as if a hurricane-like tornado had been whipped up on flat ground, that terrifying aura pressing down in all directions.

"I don't care who you are; if anyone dares to come here and cause trouble again, I will beat every single one I see! From this day forward, anyone who obstructs my Patrol Guard from maintaining order in the Capital shall be killed!"