SFS Chapter 138: Mrs. Gao is dead
Chapter 138: Mrs. Gao is dead
Lu Chengjing shook his head: "No, they won't come again."
Chu Xu knew that the assassins were determined to kill and would not stop until they achieved their goal. The scholar surnamed Lu said so confidently that the assassins would not come again. There was only one possibility: the assassins were all dead.
His little brain worked quickly, and after thinking about the question Lu Chengjing had asked him just now, he was shocked and asked, "Do you suspect that the assassin was sent by my family?"
Without waiting for Lu Chengjing to answer, he shook his head vigorously, pulling the wound on his back and making a soft "hiss".
He took a breath and said, "Absolutely impossible, my family would never harm me!"
Lu Chengjing did not comment on this and asked him, "Who knows about your return to Beijing?"
Chu Xu muttered, "Father sent a letter home in advance. Grandmother and mother must know about it. Father and brother also know about it. I don't know about the others."
His family is simple and they have very good relationships with each other. He is the youngest child and everyone spoils and protects him. How could anyone harm him?
Lu Chengjing said: "Even if they are not your family members, they should have some relationship with your family."
Chu Xu frowned and lay on the pillow, trying to recall the people who had grudges against him since he was a child, and the families who had grudges against his family.
He was so busy thinking about something that he had no time to sigh.
Lu Chengjing achieved his goal and went back to continue rehabilitation training for his right hand.
He flexed his fingers while thinking about Chu Xu.
Since he had sent a letter home in advance, if Chu Xu did not return home for a long time, the Duke Dingguo's Mansion would definitely send someone to look for him, and maybe the military camp would also send someone to look for him.
So they didn't need to send Chu Xu back to Beijing, they just had to wait for the people who were looking for Chu Xu to come. Then those people would naturally take Chu Xu away.
In fact, a faster way is to send a letter directly to the border and ask the Chu father and son to send someone to pick up Chu Xu.
But this method has too many variables and is prone to complications.
The safest thing to do is to wait until Chu Xu recovers from his injuries before making any plans.
Just as I was thinking about it, there was a sudden noise outside.
"What's being said outside?" Chu Xu was a restless person, and he stretched his little head to watch the fun.
Lu Chengjing put down the two pebbles in his hands and walked out to take a look.
The reason for the noise was: Old Mrs. Gao died.
Xiao Huan said: "He should have been dead for two days."
"Two days?" Shang Wan was a little surprised. If it was two days, the corpse would have a smell, right?
Lu Chengjing asked: "Where is Gao Qi?"
"We didn't find him." Xiao Huan said as she hung out the clothes, "Someone said they saw Gao Qi at the entrance of the village yesterday afternoon. He had disheveled hair and looked crazy, as if he was sick. His face was as pale as a ghost, and he looked very thin. Even his voice had changed."
When a normal man becomes a eunuch, the voice may indeed change.
"Now the villagers are looking for him everywhere."
Shang Wan thought for a moment and said, "Let's help look for it too."
The search lasted until the evening, but there was no sign of Gao Qi.
It was not a good idea to leave the body of Old Lady Gao there, she had to be buried. The villagers gathered at Gao's house to discuss what to do about the funeral.
Old Mrs. Gao hanged herself on a beam, and was still dangling from it when she was found.
Shang Wan looked at the marks on her neck. They were in the middle of her neck and around her neck. They were of the same depth and degree. It was obvious that she was strangled to death and then hung on the beam.
As for who the murderer is, the most likely person is the missing Gao Qi.
But the villagers didn't seem to think that Old Mrs. Gao was murdered. They all thought she committed suicide by hanging.
After all, misfortunes happened one after another in the family. First, she discovered that her daughter-in-law had cheated on her son, then her grandson became a eunuch, and then her daughter-in-law was killed. Then her grandson went crazy. The old lady was too old to bear it, and it was possible that she committed suicide.
Many people sighed and felt sorry for Old Mrs. Gao. She had been strong all her life, but when she died, there was not even anyone to send her off with a funeral pot.
Shang Wan did not stay to discuss the funeral with everyone and went home directly.
"Strangled to death?" After hearing Shang Wan's words, Lu Chengjing frowned, wondering why Gao Qi strangled Old Mrs. Gao to death.
Shang Wan supported his chin with one hand and guessed, "It may be because he was too shocked to become a eunuch, and his spirit was gradually broken, which led to the murder in passion."
Lu Chengjing asked: "What is passion killing?"
Shang Wan explained simply, "It was just that he didn't plan ahead, he was emotional and suddenly had the idea to kill someone."
Lu Chengjing nodded, feeling that this statement was quite appropriate.
Shitou looked at the two of them and said, "Since Old Lady Gao was killed, should we report it to the police?"
"Of course we have to report it to the police." Shang Wan smiled and tapped the table lightly with his fingers. "How can we let the murderer go unpunished?"
Xiaohuan inexplicably sensed some ill intentions in her sister's smile. Her sister meant to report to the police instead of killing someone, right?
Shitou was so careless that he didn't feel anything at all. He said, "Then I will harness the bullock cart and go to the city to report to the authorities tomorrow."
"No, don't go. Tell the village chief about this and let him go." Lu Chengjing picked up the cup and took a sip of water, his long eyelashes drooping, covering the dark light in his eyes.
Near noon the next day, the Dongning County Court received a report that an old woman in Yushu Village was strangled to death at home and the whereabouts of the murderer was unknown.
Shan Dajun stood at the entrance of Yushu Village and sighed. A woman died in this village a few days ago. How come another person died?
He raised his hand and beckoned forward, "Let's go into the village."
Old Mrs. Gao’s body has not been buried and remains at the Gao family’s home.
After examining the body, the coroner said to Shan Dajun, "The deceased was indeed strangled to death and then hung on the beam, pretending to hang himself."
Shan Dajun sighed lightly. The old lady was so old. Even if she was alive, she wouldn't live for more than two years. Why would the murderer target her?
He summoned Village Chief Lin to inquire about how the body was discovered.
Village Chief Lin has said it countless times, and now he can say it very smoothly.
Ever since Gui's death, Gao Qi has stopped taking care of things. The villagers, thinking of the old lady's age and considering their fellow villagers' relationship, would come to visit her every few days and help her fetch water, chop firewood, and do other strenuous work.
Yesterday, Luo Da passed by and happened to catch two fish. Thinking of making soup with the smaller one for the old lady, he knocked on Gao's door.
The door was not locked and opened when I knocked.
People in the village often forget to lock their doors, and Luo Da didn't take it seriously. He just called out to Old Lady Gao twice and went in.
Not seeing the old lady at home, I thought she had gone for a walk in the village, so I put the fish in the small water tank in the kitchen.
Although he didn't like Gao Qi, he felt a bit of sympathy for Gao Qi as a man because he was already here. So, he decided to go and see Gao Qi.
No one answered the door when I knocked. When I pushed it, it opened. The room was in a mess, as if someone had ransacked it. Gao Qi was not there.
Although Luo Da was puzzled, no one from the Gao family was at home, and it would not be good for him, an outsider, to stay any longer.
Just as I was about to leave, suddenly a few mice ran out from the room where Old Mrs. Gao lived. The door was slightly open and a strange smell wafted out.