There is a god in the sky

Chapter 415 Abnormality

"It's so deserted, there's no festive atmosphere at all."

Xiao Ji and his group transported more than a dozen cartloads of goods into the city. They rarely encountered anyone on the way, and everyone they met seemed to be in a hurry.

Shen Lan stopped an old man and, before he could speak, slipped a small piece of silver into his hand.

"Sir, do you live around here? I'd like to ask you something."

Seeing that they outnumbered him, the old man didn't dare to run away. He took the money and asked, "What's the matter?"

"Do you know where the biggest grain shop in this city is? We've brought some grain here, and we want to sell it before the New Year so we can have a good year."

The old man looked around and whispered to her, "Young lady, you should leave quickly, you can't do business here."

"Why? Is it because the local food supply is plentiful and there's no need to buy from outside?"

"No, no, you guys should hurry up and leave, or it will be too late."

The old man said all he had to say and then ran off.

Shen Lan returned to the group and shook her head at Xiao Ji.

Xiao Ji told the driver, "Go around to the west along the main road; you'll pass the county government office there."

No matter what the county government office looks like, I still have to take a look at it.

If only I could meet a few county officials, they would definitely know more than ordinary people.

The convoy moved forward slowly.

Along the way, it attracted many people to open their doors and watch, but most of them only dared to peek.

It's obvious that well-informed people won't be entering this city anytime soon; they probably haven't seen any outsiders in a long time.

The gate of the county government office had vanished without a trace.

The stone lions at the entrance were stained with blood, and the plaque was cut in half. Even without entering, one could guess the terrible state of the county government office.

"My lord, I'll go in and take a look." Shen Lan leaped forward, her figure disappearing inside the wall.

Xiao Ji, still uneasy, sent a few more men in, shouting, "Is this the county government office? What happened to it?"

"They've been robbed, haven't they? Who would dare to go against the government?" Li Ye chimed in from the side.

“It wasn’t like this when we came to Tongzhou County last time. It looks strange. Let’s sell the grain and leave quickly.”

Shen Lan and the others didn't stay inside for long; they came out quickly.

"Nobody here, nothing here, pretty much the same as what Sui Feng and the others found."

Xiao Ji's face turned grim, and he shouted, "Let's go, let's go! This place looks gloomy and scary!"

There was a large inn near the county government office, and they had already decided to stay there.

What I didn't expect was that the inn didn't even have a manager or a waiter.

"What should we do?" Li Ye asked, looking at the empty inn.

"Take some men and check the place inside and out, guard the front and back doors, and settle in first."

Xiao Ji guessed that if there really was a group of robbers staying in the county town, then they should have heard news of them by now.

If this group of people came for money, they would not have spared the wealthy and ordinary people in the city.

This inn usually does a lot of business, so the owner must be quite wealthy.

But as far as we can see, this place has not been looted.

But the county government office, which was not far from the inn, was completely robbed. What was the reason for this?

Moreover, the fact that the people were still able to live normal lives indicates that the bandits' target was the government.

Therefore, they might not come to kill us before we know their identities.

Shen Lan reached out and wiped the table.

"Judging from the thickness of this dust, no one has been here for four or five days. This inn is big enough for us."

Fortunately, they had purchased enough food and vegetables to last them ten days to half a month.

"Okay, let's stay here first. Tonight we'll go out and search for the magistrate's body, as well as the government officials."

Xiao Ji had made thorough preparations before his arrival, bringing with him the files of all the officials in the Tongzhou County government.

Before dark, Sui Feng and Sui Ying came looking for them.

Suiying was actually injured and was carried here by Suifeng.

"What happened? Did they exchange blows?"

Xiao Ji had previously instructed them not to alert the enemy.

Seeing that his wound was still fresh, Shen Lan quickly went to get the first-aid kit.

"Treat the wound first."

The shadow wound was on his back, two knife wounds, one of which was so deep that the bone was visible.

"The wound was extremely fine, probably caused by a very thin, sharp blade. This kind of weapon doesn't seem like something bandits or mountain brigands would have."

Shen Lan examined the area while handling the situation.

Despite being covered in sweat from the pain, Sui Ying calmly replied, "Yes, the opponent was very strong and used a soft knife. I sensed something was off about their identities, which is why I risked going in to investigate."

"What did you find?"

Sui Ying shook his head helplessly, "They were very cautious. As soon as I was discovered, they surrounded me. Two other experts drove me out, but they didn't seem to intend to kill me."

If the other party were more ruthless, those two stabs would have been enough to kill him.

Xiao Ji stroked his chin, frowned, and said, "This case does indeed have a strange quality to it."

As darkness fell, Xiao Ji dispatched three groups of people to search for officials in the county government.

It's strange, though. Every address found in the archives is wrong, even the county magistrate's house is listed as being on a small hillside.

There was clearly nothing on that little hillside.

"The file is fake." Xiao Ji finally realized.

This whole night was a complete waste of time.

Similarly, the inn was quiet and peaceful; nothing happened, and no bandits came to rob it.

"That's strange. Who has such long arms that they can change all the files?"

Moreover, from the time the incident occurred to the adults leaving the house, only a day had passed. How could the person behind this act so quickly?

Li Ye listened to their conversation without having many thoughts in mind.

He is not good at solving cases.

But seeing their solemn expressions, he still shared his thoughts.

"This is more like a setup, a trap that lured us here to investigate the case."

After saying that, Li Ye denied his own words and corrected himself, saying, "Of course, I was just an afterthought; perhaps I came specifically for Lord Xiao."

Xiao Ji reflected on himself. He did have enemies, but it was strange that they would go to such lengths to lure him out without setting up an ambush.

His gaze fell on Shen Lan, and a person suddenly popped into his mind.

About seven days ago, he encountered Li Ge when he came out of the palace, and Li Ge asked him for a favor.

What kind of busy am I?

"Lord Xiao, our Lan'er is young and impetuous, please guide her."

"Miss Shen is meticulous in her work and has a resilient character. The worries of the steward are too unnecessary."

"I guess I'm just worrying unnecessarily, but she did say she liked performing autopsies. I wonder if she'll be unhappy now that she's no longer a coroner."

Xiao Ji also understood Shen Lan. For her, autopsy was not just a job to make money; it was something she genuinely loved.

That's why he decided to bring her along this time.

Of course, wanting her to make a contribution was also part of the reason.

He suddenly asked Li Ye, "Has anything unusual happened in the palace recently?"

What kind of thing qualifies as special?

"May His Majesty summon Li, the head of the affairs department, every day?"

"No, the head of the department doesn't really handle things anymore. The Emperor only summons him occasionally to discuss political matters."

Shen Lan suddenly stood up and snatched the weapon from the Imperial Guard beside her.

"Li Ye, come with me."

Shen Lan looked serious and walked very quickly.

Li Ye hurriedly followed, and the two figures quickly disappeared into the darkness.

The Imperial Guards had not received orders and could not act rashly.

The officials of the Criminal Investigation Department were all waiting for Xiao Ji to give the order.

In such a chaotic place, the two of them going out alone would likely encounter danger.

"Sir, shall I take some men and go after them to take a look?" Sui Feng asked.

Xiao Ji thought for a moment and seemed to understand Shen Lan's intention. He shook his head and said, "No need. Let's talk about it when they get back."