Upon hearing that Hu Ning'an did not die by drowning, everyone immediately surrounded him. They had stayed aside, not because they feared the autopsy, but mainly because the smell was overwhelming. After all, with the high summer temperatures, corpses decayed quickly, and the odor was pungent.
Old Deng pointed to Hu Ning'an's chest. "Look, there's no water accumulation in the deceased's thoracic cavity." Just the absence of water was enough to prove that Hu Ning'an did not die from drowning. There was no need to elaborate further.
Song Yunfei frowned and said, "Since Hu Ning'an didn't die from drowning, how did he die?" "Why are there no wounds on his body?" "And," "Where was the primary crime scene?" These questions stumped everyone. Hu Ning'an's cause of death was too bizarre, and they had no clues.
Old Deng offered his opinion: "The deceased should have died naturally, and then..." "No, to be precise, the deceased should have died naturally by the river." "And then fell into the moat." He had been a coroner for over forty years. If Hu Ning'an was murdered and then dumped into the river, there would definitely be traces of being moved. Because after death, the blood inside the body stops flowing. Let alone lifting or carrying the corpse forcefully, even a slight press on the body with a finger would leave marks. But Hu Ning'an's body showed no suspicious signs.
Song Yunfei said, "Impossible, how can such a coincidence happen in this world?" "I'm more inclined to believe that Hu Ning'an, having lost all his family fortune gambling, couldn't face his wife and children and chose to commit suicide." "However..." Last night, the five of them had discussed Hu Ning'an's fate and concluded that suicide was highly probable. Because he had done wrong and felt ashamed to face his wife and children, and after incurring gambling debts, he became despondent and chose to take his own life. But Old Deng said he did not die from drowning, which made things utterly perplexing.
Chen Nan said, "Could there be such a possibility? Hu Ning'an was murdered, and then his body was controlled by some secret technique to jump into the moat?" Zhang Mingquan had said that his clansmen personally saw Hu Ning'an jump into the river to commit suicide. This meant that before that, before Hu Ning'an left the gambling house, he was already dead.
"Right, right, right, what the boss said makes sense," Song Yunfei said excitedly. "This also explains why Hu Ning'an argued with the night watchman, despising him for being ugly." "Because the person arguing with the night watchman wasn't Hu Ning'an at all." Chen Nan nodded slightly. It was obvious that Ruyi Building was the primary scene of Hu Ning'an's murder. However, this secret technique of killing would not leave any evidence. Even if they deduced that the murderer was in Ruyi Building, they could not openly search for the killer there.
Zhang Lu asked, "Boss, what should we do next?" Chen Nan shook his head, feeling a sense of helplessness. A constable walked over. "Constable Chen, Magistrate Han has summoned you!" "Alright, I'll be right there." Chen Nan left the morgue and went to the front hall where Han Zongyuan worked. He was wearing his official uniform, drinking tea, and asked, "How is the investigation into Hu Ning'an's case progressing?" He had already heard that Hu Ning'an's body had been found, so he wanted to know the progress of the case. After all, this was the first murder case since his arrival in Tongcheng.
Chen Nan told Han Zongyuan all the clues he had gathered. "Secret technique to control corpses? This is the work of the Anti-Heaven Cult." Han Zongyuan's eyes flashed with a cold light. "So, there are still remnants of the Anti-Heaven Cult in Tongcheng!" Chen Nan's heart trembled. He remembered that when he had killed Yue Shan before, the latter had mentioned that he had informants within the county yamen. This gave him an immediate sense of unease. Fortunately, he had passed the credit for defeating Yue Shan and the green-eyed zombie to Yuan Zun. Otherwise, the Anti-Heaven Cult would have already killed him.
Han Zongyuan continued, "So, you suspect the Gongyang family is colluding with the Anti-Heaven Cult?" Chen Nan replied, "Based on the current evidence, it only indicates that there are remnants of the Anti-Heaven Cult in Tongcheng. As for whether the Gongyang family is colluding with the Anti-Heaven Cult, that remains to be discussed." Han Zongyuan nodded slightly, then produced six white pills from his hand. "Take these pills. They can help you disguise yourself as someone else." "This will facilitate your investigation." "Tonight, take your five subordinates and go to Rumeng Tower." "Remember, these pills only last for two hours."
Chen Nan was overjoyed. He had already been planning to investigate Rumeng Tower. However, they had been to Rumeng Tower before, and it had already attracted their attention. If they went to investigate again, they wouldn't see the true situation. But if they could disguise themselves as others, it would be convenient for them to gather information about the inside of Rumeng Tower, and perhaps even find the real killer of Hu Ning'an.
Han Zongyuan said, "Alright, you can go now!" "Your subordinate takes his leave!" Chen Nan bowed and withdrew. He then changed into plain clothes and left the county yamen with Song Yunfei and the others. Now, they just needed to wait for nightfall to infiltrate Rumeng Tower and investigate. Before that, they had many things to do. For example, cultivating penicillin. The house they had bought earlier had been renovated. Each room had many wooden shelves for placing vegetables, and the kang heads had been built. Once vegetables were purchased and placed inside, and left to rot and ferment, the first extraction could begin. Then came the secondary refining. The extracted mold could be injected.
Chen Nan hired six people. Of course, they were not outsiders, but the wives of Wu Jiu, Song Yunfei, and others. He first went to the vegetable market and bought a lot of rotten cabbage, potatoes, and other vegetables. It wasn't that he couldn't afford fresh vegetables, but there was no need for it. After all, the purchased vegetables would also be left to rot. Including Chen Nan, twelve people worked until almost sunset before placing all the vegetables on the shelves. Apart from Chen Nan, everyone was sweating profusely from exhaustion.
"Alright, that's it for today." Seeing that the sky was gradually darkening, Chen Nan said, "Let's eat first. After dinner, I'll have to trouble the sisters-in-law to stay here." "Your workload isn't heavy; you just need to strictly control the temperature of each room." The work was not heavy, but it required careful people. This was why he had asked the wives of Wu Jiu and the others to come. Compared to men, women were generally more meticulous.
"Young master, this is it!" Suddenly, a respectful voice came from outside. Immediately after, a young man in his mid-twenties, wearing a cyan robe and with a face as jade, holding a folding fan, walked in with an arrogant expression. He swept his gaze over everyone and asked indifferently, "Who is the owner of this house?" Chen Nan asked, "I am, what's the matter?" The man snapped his folding fan shut and said in an irrefutable tone, "Your house is nice. I plan to keep a few women in it." "I'll give you the time it takes for an incense stick to burn to move your belongings out." "From now on, this house belongs to me!" Song Yunfei's eyes widened. "What? Are you trying to bully us with your influence?"