Unbelievable.

Three corpses were neatly stacked together on the ground in the woods.

One was the woman who had been harassed by the fortune teller, another was the seventy-year-old man, and the third was the man in a straw hat whose clothes were being grabbed by the storyteller in the teahouse.

In an instant, all three were killed.

What's even more chilling is that the murderer began committing a series of crimes after the carriage entered Jiangyuan County, and even managed to dispose of the bodies in the short time before the carriage left the county.

That's an incredibly terrifying speed.

For some reason, Shen Suqing recalled what the fortune teller had said to the woman earlier: "You will surely suffer a bloody disaster today."

Zhao Jiu was also startled, his eyes widened, and he pointed tremblingly at the old man's corpse on the ground.

"Holy crap, isn't this the seventy-year-old man who was forcibly dragged to have his future calculated? This is too cruel. Who has a blood feud with this old man?"

Upon hearing this, Fu Shouan, who was standing to the side, stroked his chin thoughtfully.

"Have you seen these people before?"

"Reporting to your Excellency, I have met these deceased individuals with Lord Shen within the county. The murderer is most likely still in Jiangyuan County. Shall I send men back to arrest him immediately?"

As soon as Zhao Jiu finished speaking, Fu Shouan waved his hand.

"It's too late. If the other party was able to kill and dispose of the body in such a short time, how could they still be standing there and surrendering?"

He circled the three corpses again.

"All three victims died from internal bleeding caused by a blunt force trauma to the back of the head. The wounds were identical, there were no other signs of struggle, and the bodies were still warm. The time of death was probably just before the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea."

At this point, Fu Shouan suddenly frowned, his expression becoming even more confused.

Why did he feel that this perverted habit of neatly stacking corpses and disposing of them seemed familiar?

His eyes flashed, and he squatted down to carefully examine the hands, arms, and sides of the necks of the three corpses.

With a "rip," a thin, cicada-wing-like human skin mask was peeled off the old man's face, revealing a middle-aged strong man behind it.

Fu Shouan picked up the mask.

“No need to investigate further. All three of them have calluses on the sides of their hands from years of wielding swords. The man with the bamboo hat on his back has residual poison powder in his sleeves. They are most likely the spies that Lan Jiang sent out to infiltrate the crowd these past few days.”

"Huh?? Then, who killed them?"

Zhao Jiu was dumbfounded.

So the journey wasn't truly peaceful; someone was lurking in the shadows, taking care of all the assassins and killers for them.

——

I'm so tired I feel like dying.

Heaven knows she only chased after him because she was worried about his safety. She thought she could just secretly protect him along the way, but she didn't expect that the assassins would come in waves.

No, she just couldn't understand how a scholar could have so many enemies.

That's outrageous! She's buried about twenty people in just the last five or six days!

Once the carriage had driven far away, Zhan Xinjia, who had been hiding in the locust tree, nimbly leaped down and landed beside the three corpses.

The girl brushed the fallen leaves off her sleeves and rubbed her aching arms.

She casually kicked one of the corpses in the face with the tip of her shoe, puffed out her cheeks arrogantly, and spoke in a smug tone.

"I already told you that if you don't buy my talisman, you'll suffer a bloody disaster. Well, now you're dead."

The corpse remained silent.

Zhan Xinjia squatted down on the ground in dejection.

Actually, she didn't intend to let Lord Shen and the others see the corpses they had stumbled upon, but today she was too tired to dig a hole for these three, so she could only find a place to throw them away. Unexpectedly, she just happened to throw them on the road that Fu Shouan would definitely pass on his way back.

Luckily she dodged quickly, otherwise she would have been caught on the spot.

After a short rest, Zhan Xinjia pulled out the map he had bought earlier from his back pocket and resignedly began to continue his preparations.

"Hmm... There's an inn about ten miles north of Jiangyuan County along the forest road. The sun is almost setting now, so Lord Shen and his group will most likely stay there tonight. The dock is about ten miles further on from the inn. If you want to get to Yaozhou, you'll have to take a boat from the dock and travel for two days by water."

"Never mind!"

Zhan Xinjia, in a fit of despair, tossed the map into the air.

——

Following the carriage tracks for a short while, they finally spotted a simple inn. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was in the backyard, Zhan Xinjia climbed over the window from the stable into the storage room next to the kitchen.

Before I could catch my breath, a frightened voice suddenly came from in front of me.

"who?"

The skinny girl who happened to be rummaging through things looked at the unfamiliar girl in front of her in a panic. She turned around and was about to run away when she was knocked unconscious by a swift chop to the neck.

"Serve wine and dishes to the private room in the top-tier section!"

"They're here."

The waiter's call came from outside the kitchen. Zhan Xinjia, recalling the girl's voice, mumbled a reply.

Zhan Xinjia carefully picked up the temporarily unconscious girl and placed her on the soft straw laid in the corner. She quickly began to change their clothes, but her movements suddenly stopped when she was unbuttoning the last button.

Her brows furrowed deeply, and she pulled the girl's undergarment down even further.

The girl looked to be about my age, but she was so thin she was skin and bones, her ribs were clearly visible, and her whole body was dry and brittle. Her yellowish body, due to malnutrition, was covered with scars.

Some were bruises, some looked like burns that had already scabbed over, and most were tiny wounds caused by brute force. New wounds were layered on top of old scars, densely packed, a shocking sight.

Looking at her like this, it's clear that there's not a single good piece of flesh on her body.

Urging voices came from outside again, and Zhan Xinjia, who had no time to think, had no choice but to put the matter aside for the time being.

After carefully tidying up the details of her dress, she loosened her hair to cover half of her face, and finally wrapped her head halfway with a coarse cloth headscarf before leisurely walking out of the storage room.

"Qiao Niang, why are you taking so long to get something? You little slut, all you do is slack off!"

The old cook scolded her impatiently for a few minutes, then handed her a plate of steamed fish that was still piping hot from the pot.

"Don't spill it again, take it away."

Zhan Xinjia's eyes darkened.

This time she didn't answer, she just nodded.

Fortunately, the inn was dilapidated and shabby, with only one path leading to the second floor. Carrying the plate, Zhan Xinjia walked up the stairs along the corner, still pondering what she had just seen.

The girl didn't look like she was properly hired.

Can this be considered a legitimate store?

Zhan Xinjia only snapped out of his thoughts when he reached the door of the side room.

The other plainclothes guards who had been accompanying the carriage were having dinner in the main hall on the first floor, but Fu Shouan was nowhere to be seen.

However, since Master Shen prefers quiet, he must be the one living in the innermost room!

Thinking of this, Zhan Xinjia checked her disguise again. Only after confirming that even her own mother wouldn't recognize her did she clear her throat, put on a fawning smile, and push open the door to go inside.

"Oh, sir~~~..."

She took a step inside and suddenly froze in embarrassment.

Inside the side room, Fu Shou'an was sitting with his legs crossed, shaking them.

He sat at the table with one hand supporting his chin, while the other hand idly fiddled with a cheap wine glass.