bayedsolid Chapter 923 Perhaps
Chapter 923 Perhaps
The corpse on the rainbow bridge Bianjing in the third year of Xuanhe was in the Qingming Festival. Bianjing at that time was like a gorgeous picture scroll that was slowly unfolding. On the Bian River, the rainbow bridge spanned the two banks like a rainbow, becoming the most lively place in the whole city. The peddlers carried heavy loads and walked through the streets and alleys, and the shouts echoed in the streets and alleys. "Selling steamed cakes, fragrant and soft steamed cakes!" "Fresh lychees, lychees shipped from Lingnan!" Various shouts intertwined together, like a unique market ballad. The boatmen stood at the bow, shouting loud calls and rowing hard. Boats shuttled back and forth, some were loaded with silk and porcelain from the south of the Yangtze River, and some were loaded with furs and medicinal materials from the north. The water splashed by the bow sparkled in the sun, and contrasted with the fallen flowers floating on the river, forming a lively picture. Willows on both sides of the river sway in the wind, their tender green branches brushing against the cheeks of tourists from time to time. Under the trees, vendors set up stalls, selling a variety of Qingming snacks. The aroma of sugar paintings, green balls, and roasted chestnuts filled the air, attracting tourists to stop. Zhao Mo, wearing a washed-out blue shirt with a few patches on the corners, and a badge of a Kaifeng government official on his waist, walked slowly in the bustling crowd. As a new constable in Kaifeng, although he has ambitions and a passion to uphold justice and punish evil and promote good, he can only be responsible for trivial matters all day long due to his lack of experience, either mediating neighborhood disputes or looking for lost poultry. Today, he finally got half a day off, so he couldn't wait to come to Hongqiao, wanting to experience the prosperity and bustle of this Bianliang city. He looked around curiously, watching the children running happily with windmills in their hands, watching the young men and women exchanging glances under the weeping willows, and his heart was full of comfort. However, this tranquility and beauty did not last long. Suddenly, a sharp scream came from the crowd: "Someone is dead! Someone is dead!" This scream was like a sharp blade, instantly piercing the noisy atmosphere. The originally bustling and lively Hongqiao suddenly became quiet, and everyone stopped what they were doing, with a look of horror on their faces. Then, there was a commotion, and people rushed towards the direction where the sound came from. Zhao Mo's heart suddenly tightened, and his years of intuition as a constable made him immediately realize that something was wrong. He squeezed towards the crowd without hesitation, and with the agile skills trained in Kaifeng Prefecture, he struggled to push through the layers of people. When he finally squeezed to the front, the scene in front of him made his stomach churn, and he almost vomited - a corpse was floating on the Bian River. The face of the corpse was swollen and deformed, and it was no longer recognizable. The skin showed a strange purple-blue color, as if it had been eroded by some evil power. The long hair of the deceased spread out like seaweed, swaying gently with the waves, forming circles of strange ripples on the river surface. What was even more creepy was that the deceased was wearing a red wedding dress. The bright red formed a strong contrast with the pale and swollen skin, which was particularly dazzling in the sun, as if telling the tragic experience of the deceased before his death. The gold thread on the wedding dress was embroidered with exquisite mandarin duck patterns, but at this moment it was a little blurred by the river water. The red satin was also covered with mud and looked shabby. "Everyone step back! Kaifeng Prefecture is handling the case!" Zhao Mo quickly showed the waist badge on his waist and shouted loudly. His voice was steady and powerful, and it was particularly clear in the noisy crowd. The crowd suddenly quieted down, and they all stepped back to make room for him. Zhao Mo squatted down, took out a piece of clean white cloth from his arms, carefully covered his mouth and nose, and then carefully observed the body. He found that the deceased was a young woman, with a circle of dark strangulation marks on her neck, the edges of the strangulation marks were purple-red, and there were some small bloodstains. It was obvious that she was strangled with something like a rope and then thrown into the river. Judging from the woman's clothes and the silver jewelry she wore, her family should be quite wealthy. She wore a pair of exquisite silver bracelets on her wrists, engraved with lotus patterns, with exquisite craftsmanship; there was also a pair of pearl earrings hanging on her earlobes, the pearls were round and full, exuding a soft luster. Zhao Mo looked around and suddenly found a half piece of red satin hanging on the awning not far away. The color and material of the satin were exactly the same as the wedding dress on the deceased. There were still a few deep scratches on the edge, as if the deceased had struggled hard before dying. Just as Zhao Mo was about to take a closer look at the half piece of satin, a middle-aged woman suddenly rushed out of the crowd. Her hair was disheveled, her face was covered with tears, her eyes were filled with despair and pain, she rushed towards the corpse crying and screaming: "My daughter! Who is so cruel! Give my daughter back her life!" Zhao Mo was quick to step forward and stop her, whispering to comfort her: "Madam, please accept my condolences. I am a yamen officer in Kaifeng Prefecture, and I will do my best to find out the truth and give your daughter justice. I hope your madam can tell me, has your daughter made enemies with anyone? Or has there been any abnormal situation recently?" The woman sobbed and finally stopped. She stopped crying and choked up and said, "My Xiuniang never leaves the house. She is kind and always smiles when she sees neighbors. She has never quarreled with anyone, let alone made enemies. But half a month ago, she said that she was engaged to marry the son of Li Ji Silk Shop in the east of the city. She was full of joy those days and went to the embroidery shop happily to buy wedding clothes... But who could have thought that she would end up like this now..." As she spoke, the woman couldn't help crying again. Zhao Mo carefully recorded this information in the small cowhide book he carried with him, and every word was written neatly and seriously. He ordered other yamen runners to find a bamboo raft and carefully salvage the body ashore, ready to take it back to Kaifeng Prefecture for a detailed autopsy by the coroner. Just as he stood up to sort out the things around his waist, he looked up inadvertently and found that there were gray-clothed men wearing bamboo hats in the crowd who were staring at the corpse. There was a hint of coldness in his eyes, as if he was admiring an interesting toy. Zhao Mo's heart was alarmed, and his intuition told him that there must be something wrong with this man. He immediately shouted loudly: "Brother, please stay! I have something to ask you!" However, after hearing the shout, the gray-clothed man paused slightly, then turned around quickly, mixed into the crowd, and disappeared in the blink of an eye. Zhao Mo wanted to catch up, but was blocked by the crowded crowd. He stood there, frowning, his eyes full of confusion and unwillingness. Who is this mysterious gray-clothed man? Why is he so concerned about this corpse? What kind of secret is hidden behind this seemingly ordinary murder case? With these questions, Zhao Mo followed the yamen runners, escorting the corpse, and walked towards Kaifeng Prefecture. He knew that a challenging journey of investigating the case had just begun...