Marquis Changxing was thunderstruck, taking a while to regain his senses before striding forward: “Official Zhen, what, what is going on here?”
Zhen Shicheng wiped his hands with a handkerchief, his expression serious: “Marquis, perhaps we should discuss this after we’ve finished our work.”
“This, this—” Marquis Changxing was sweating profusely, countless thoughts racing through his mind.
He wasn’t a fool. His son’s earlier behavior seemed overly nervous as if he already knew a body would be dug up here—
Could it be that his son was responsible for this death?
Madam Changxing, having heard the commotion, had already rushed over. Upon seeing the corpse, her eyes rolled back, and she fainted.
The maidservants who came with her were terrified and at a loss, causing another wave of chaos in the garden.
Jiang Qian hid among them, her face as pale as a ghost.
She knew that psychopath had killed so many people, it couldn’t be kept secret forever!
She instinctively looked towards the heir of Marquis Changxing, only to see him calmly looking back at her, his eyes like a cold pond, filled with intense warning.
Jiang Qian hurriedly averted her gaze.
The heir of Marquis Changxing curled his lip slightly.
This stupid woman had helped him cover up quite a bit. Did she think she could escape if something happened to him?
Near the flower bushes, Jiang Qiao gently nudged Jiang Si: “Fourth Sister—”
“What is it?” Jiang Si looked at Jiang Qiao.
Jiang Qiao’s lips were pale: “That corpse—”
Feeling it inappropriate, she shook her head: “Never mind, let’s talk after we leave this place of trouble.”
Although many noble ladies were thinking the same at this moment, despite their terror, no one suggested leaving.
When a horrifying event is exposed in broad daylight for everyone to face together, that horror seems to give way to curiosity.
Another corpse was dug up.
Zhen Shicheng was silent for a moment, then instructed one of his subordinates: “Go to the yamen and call for people!”
Although he said to go to the yamen, Zhen Shicheng had already arranged for lookouts outside the Marquis Changxing’s mansion. If corpses were indeed found in the mansion, as soon as his subordinate left, the lookouts would immediately go back to call for manpower, guarding against any desperate actions from the Marquis Changxing household.
Fortunately, today coincided with the Marquis Changxing household’s flower-viewing banquet. Unless they planned to silence all these noble ladies, they wouldn’t dare to stop him.
“Official Zhen—” Faced with this situation, Marquis Changxing didn’t know what to say.
He wanted to stop it but had no reason to, yet if he didn’t stop it and the matter escalated, the reputation of his household would be ruined instantly.
“Marquis, now that we have a murder case, and two lives at that, you’d better cooperate with my investigation to uncover the truth,” Zhen Shicheng said calmly, standing with his hands behind his back.
The two subordinates holding flower spades waited for Zhen Shicheng’s next instruction.
At this moment, the big dog suddenly darted out and continued digging at the deep hole that had been excavated.
Zhen Shicheng’s heart stirred, and he immediately said: “Continue digging!”
“Yes!” The two subordinates swung their flower spades and continued excavating, soon drenched in sweat.
“Marquis, please have your servants bring a few hoes. They’re more effective than flower spades.”
Marquis Changxing’s expression changed several times before he finally nodded.
With hoes replacing flower spades, the digging speed indeed increased.
Before long, another corpse was unearthed.
To call it a corpse was generous; it was mostly bare bones with some flesh still clinging to them.
Then another corpse was dug up.
Silence fell, and everyone seemed to forget to breathe, watching as corpse after corpse was unearthed, feeling chills all over their bodies.
The yamen runners from the Shuntian Prefecture had arrived, taking over the digging from the two subordinates.
The large patch of peonies had long been dug up and scattered, and a strange odor permeated the entire garden.
Those noble ladies who had been eager to watch the spectacle were now pale with fright. Some had fainted and were being taken home by their maidservants, but a few bolder ones remained, pale-faced, waiting to see the outcome.
So many corpses, who could have killed them all?
It must be the heir of Marquis Changxing, right?
There are always clever girls in the world, and that earlier calm-faced young lady looked towards the heir of Marquis Changxing from afar.
Even without evidence, she felt he must be the murderer.
Soon it was noon, and the diggers had been replaced several times, but the hoes never stopped swinging.
Finally, when nothing more could be found in the soil no matter how much they turned it over, the yamen runners stood up straight.
One, two, three…
A total of ten corpses lay on the ground. The later ones dug up were already fragmented bones, with only the skull’s deep hollow eyes indicating that these were once living people, perhaps even bright and beautiful young women.
Zhen Shicheng remained silent.
He knew human hearts could be evil, but reality often surpasses imagination.