Before they even reached the front hall, the group heard screams and pleas for mercy coming from inside: "This servant knows she was wrong, sir, spare my life! Master, spare my life! This servant truly knows she was wrong!"
Upon hearing this, Fang Duobing immediately realized that this must be an act of vigilante justice, given the deafening screams. When the group rushed over, the maid was being subdued and beaten by several servants. The person in front of her must be the master of Cailian Manor.
He vented his anger on the maid, shouting loudly, "How many times have I told you! Lotus is a noble thing, how can it be fertilized with such filthy fertilizer as chicken feathers and bean cakes! Give her a good beating! Make sure she learns her lesson!"
"Stop!" Fang Duobing immediately shouted to stop him.
Only then did the manor owner notice their arrival. Upon closer inspection, he recognized their faces and asked, "Who are you?"
"Detectives from Baichuan Courtyard! Cailian Manor is infamous, yet they punish a maid so brutally. It won't sound good if word gets out." The maid was beaten to the point of near death; if this continued, she might die. Those who struck her had no restraint at all.
That kind of force is something no young girl could withstand.
Seeing that the detectives from Baichuan Academy had arrived, the manor lord had no choice but to wave them away. He felt very unlucky, but he couldn't show it in front of others, so he could only put on his classic smile.
Guo Gan invited the group into the living room, then said apologetically, "I didn't know that you chivalrous gentlemen from Baichuan Academy would be visiting. My apologies."
"Master Guo, you're too kind." Fang Duobing was about to reply when Li Lianhua beat him to it and looked in the direction of the person. They were all stunned. Who was the detective from Baichuan Academy?
Guo Gan went straight to the point and asked them the purpose of their visit, "May I ask what brings you gentlemen to our office?"
This time, Fang Duobing spoke crisply and directly, without any hesitation, "Master Guo, you must still be in mourning right now."
"Yes, it was my son who got married, but his new bride tragically drowned. Because she was the daughter of the Weiyuan Escort Agency and had connections in the martial arts world, the Baichuan Academy had come to investigate before. It was an accident, and the case is now closed." Guo Gan said with a regretful expression, but that's only human nature.
Weiyuan Escort Agency has a certain reputation in the martial arts world. Cailian Manor's ability to climb up to them means they have a connection in the martial arts world. Anyone with a powerful backer would not dare to offend them.
"If the records from Baichuan Academy are correct, this should be the third bride to die at Cailian Manor in recent years." The accidental death of one bride isn't unusual, but why has it been this wedding dress that has caused the deaths of three brides in succession?
This alone speaks volumes: if one is an accident, how could the other two or three be such a coincidence?
Guo Gan paused for a moment before chuckling and continuing, "These are all things of the past. The government sent people to investigate back then, and it was an accidental fall into the water. There was nothing suspicious. My Cailian Manor has never practiced martial arts, nor am we any Jianghu sect. We are just ordinary people, so there's no need for you to trouble yourselves with such trivial matters."
Guo Gan gave a perfunctory reply and was eager to get rid of everyone. This only deepened Fang Duobing's suspicions. Who, besides the murderer, would least want a criminal investigation?
"Oh! What a coincidence. My young brother here is not only a criminal investigator from Baichuan Academy, but also the son of the current Minister of the Imperial Censorate, and he is in charge of the Censorate. He has always been very interested in strange cases. Hey, Fang Duobing, let the Master of the Manor take a look at your sword."
Fang Duobing was speechless, but he still followed Li Lianhua's words and raised his sword forward a little.
Guo Gan could only swallow his words, and with a look of sudden realization upon seeing the sword, he exclaimed, "So it's Lord Fang! My apologies for not recognizing you!"
"I'm not one to meddle. I initially thought it was just an accident, but these two occurrences in a row are quite suspicious. This matter must be investigated. Master Guo, please tell me in detail what has happened in the past few years." Fang Duobing sheathed his sword, realizing that he couldn't do anything today, and that not letting them investigate this matter might bring trouble.
"Please have a seat, everyone." Guo Gan gestured for them to sit down, and they all sat down to listen to him.
"My first wife passed away early. Ten years ago, I married another woman, intending to remarry. However, on our wedding night, my bride suddenly drowned. A few years later, about seven years ago, I remarried, but the same thing happened again."
So from then on, I decided never to marry again and to avoid this matter. But I never imagined that so many years later, my son's marriage would end in the same tragedy. Alas, what sins has our Guo family committed?
As Guo Gan spoke, he beat his chest and stamped his feet, his face filled with such grief that it seemed like he wasn't acting.
"I heard that all three brides died wearing the same wedding dress. Is this true?" Fang Duobing asked the man, and Guo Gan nodded in confirmation.
Li Lianhua thought for a moment, then turned to Granny Jiang standing to the side and asked, "Granny Jiang, you've been at Cailian Manor for quite some time now, haven't you? Have you experienced any of these things?"
"They were all wearing the elaborate pomegranate-red dresses from Cailian Manor, and they all drowned in the pond. I saw it with my own eyes. There's definitely something wrong with that wedding dress, definitely something wrong with it!" She always felt that there was something fishy about that wedding dress.
Otherwise, why would all three brides have drowned one after another after wearing that wedding dress?
"Shut up! People in town love to gossip and spread rumors, so it's best not to publicize this funeral." After Granny Jiang said there was a problem, Guo Gan noticed her expression had changed and was afraid she might say something, so he quickly scolded and stopped her.
"Indeed, such legends should not be believed. I suppose even Master Guo wouldn't believe that wedding dresses can kill people. But why would these three brides, separated by so many years, wear the same wedding dress?"
Knowing that this wedding dress had caused the deaths of two people, why did the bride still wear that eerie wedding dress this time?
Guo Gan explained, “Oh, it’s like this. My ancestors were from the Zhao clan. This pomegranate-colored wedding dress is a treasure passed down from our ancestors, so every generation of our descendants must inherit it.”
That makes sense.
A moment of silence fell over the room, and none of them spoke. Suddenly, a voice came from outside, and a person rushed in, dressed in opera costume with a bright red flower on his head, but speaking incoherently.
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