The three corpses were bloated to varying degrees, making them too suffocating for the average person to look at.
Even Jiang Jiulu and Li Guiqie glanced at it but dared not look again.
Jiang Junjing and Jiang Junyu weren't much better off.
Jiang Juncai was not here; he had gone to the palace to stand guard. Jiang Zhengqing had also gone to the yamen and was not at home.
Xiangli Mingzhu didn't even dare to look. She had a terrible headache. With such a thing happening in the manor, she had to go out and negotiate with the Li family.
Concubine Li was furious. She shouldn't have brought Li Huilin back. Look, now look what's happened.
Who knows what she's doing here?
She demanded justice from Xiangli Mingzhu in a huff: "Madam, I know Huilin. She wouldn't come here for no reason. This matter cannot be let off so easily. We must get to the bottom of it."
Jiang Junyu also thought that although Li Huilin was annoying, what was she doing here in the middle of the night? Someone must have invited her here, and who knows, someone might want to harm Li Huilin.
He has the most ideas. The Li family is greedy. If this matter is handled privately, the Li family will definitely extort a large sum of money. Although the Jiang family is rich, they will not let the Li family, who are always trying to take advantage of others, get away with it.
However, if we go through the official procedures, things will be much easier. The Li family doesn't have much power; they rely on the Jiang family. Without the Jiang family, the Li family is nothing.
The Jiang family was annoyed by the Li family's unreasonable and disruptive behavior.
Jiang Junyu glanced at Jiang Junjing, and the two were in perfect sync. Jiang Junjing nodded, and Jiang Junyu said, "Let's report it to the authorities."
Yuan Qi didn't go to her fortune-telling stall today; she came to watch the excitement. She was bold and went forward to lift the white cloth. She glanced at the body and saw that it was white with signs of lividity. There were no wounds on the exposed hands and neck, the clothes were not torn, and even the hairstyle was intact.
His death was indeed suspicious.
Seeing that she seemed to have figured something out, Jiang Junjing stepped forward and asked, "Seventh Sister, what do you think?"
“I can’t tell, there are no marks on her body.” She pinched Li Huilin’s cheek, checked the situation in her mouth, and said, “She didn’t drown, but was thrown into the well after she died.”
Jiang Junjing then asked, "Can't you see ghosts? Can you bring her ghost here?"
Yuan Qi chanted a soul-summoning incantation, while Jiang Jiulu called out Li Huilin's name from the side.
For a long time, no soul came.
Yuan Qi even summoned the local ghost messengers, but no one could see them. They just felt a chill run down their spines. Coupled with the three corpses on the ground, everyone felt a chill run down their spines.
Then everyone saw Yuan Qi ask the void, "She just died yesterday, didn't you take her soul away?"
The ghost messenger said, "No, seventeen people have died recently, and their souls have all disappeared. I'm having a terrible headache. Could you please keep an eye out for them, Celestial Master?"
Yuan Qi frowned: "You're not doing a very good job as the messenger of death. So many people's souls have disappeared, didn't you even look for them?"
The ghost messenger, Wuchang, was quite helpless: "I searched, who said I didn't? Besides, all seventeen of these people died before their lifespan was over, including fourteen from the imperial palace. Logically, these souls should be wandering the world, but I've already been reprimanded by Lord Bai Wuchang. But I really can't find them."
Yuan Qi recalled the Ghost King's attack on the palace and guessed, "Was he eaten by the Ghost King? The Ghost King must have suffered some losses when he attacked the palace recently, and his soul can help heal his wounds."
The ghost messenger immediately understood: "I will go and report this to Lord White Impermanence."
As soon as the ghost messengers left, everyone immediately felt much warmer.
Yuan Qi told everyone, "Li Huilin was killed by an evil spirit. Now her soul has been scattered, and even I have no way to investigate her. If you still want to report to the authorities, then go ahead."
Although she suspected that Jiang Juncai was out of control and would kill Li Huilin, she didn't say anything.
It's not about covering it up, but rather that if it gets out, things will become more complicated. If she doesn't tell anyone, she can investigate secretly. If she does, the matter will escalate, which will hinder the investigation and could even put everyone in danger.
Xiangli Mingzhu was annoyed when she heard this, as she knew what kind of people the Li family were.
"Concubine Li, you brought this person here, and now that something has happened, you have to take care of it. You should negotiate with the Li family about this matter. If you need any compensation, just tell me. I won't concern myself with anything else."
Xiangli Mingzhu left with Jiang Bailu and Jiang Songlu.
Looking at her two sons and daughter, Li Guiqie was also worried: "What should we do? Your grandmother and uncle will definitely not let this go if they find out. They won't let this matter rest until they extort some money from us. Junyu, you have many ideas, what do you suggest?"
Jiang Junyu sighed helplessly, "What else can we do? No matter how deep this bottomless pit is, we have to fill it. Who told us to get into this mess? Now we just need to tell my maternal grandfather about this and let them make their demands."
Concubine Li was also extremely annoyed: "Let them name their terms? Are you crazy? They'll swallow the entire Jiang family. Don't you know what kind of people they are?"
Jiang Junyu said, "Then let's report it to the authorities and let them find the murderer. Let's delay as long as we can."
Concubine Li cried out anxiously, "If that's the case, your maternal grandparents, uncles, and aunts will surely scold me to death."
Jiang Junyu analyzed, "This won't work, that won't work, what do you suggest we do? You know what kind of people your maternal grandparents' family are. If they get the upper hand, they'll definitely bankrupt the Jiang family."
Jiang Junjing said, "Alright, the best way is to report it to the authorities and have a coroner come to find out the cause of death."
By this time, the bodies of the other two maids had already been carried away by the servants, leaving only Li Huilin's body lying there all alone.
Jiang Junyu was eloquent and resourceful, and he personally went to the Li family to deliver the message.
The Li family arrived very quickly, almost at the same time as the officials from the Jingzhao Prefecture.
When the Li family saw Li Huilin's body, they immediately launched into a tirade of abuse against Li Guiqie, Jiang Junjing, Jiang Junyu, and Jiang Jiulu.
The four people, knowing they were in the wrong, dared not argue back.
The old lady of the Li family scolded him especially fiercely.
"I've raised such a terrible daughter. Huilin was such a good girl. She was only staying at your house for a few days to get to know Junjing, and you couldn't even take good care of her. She died in your house. This isn't over. If we don't find out the truth, this old woman won't leave."
Li Qingkui, the eldest son of the Li family, wept uncontrollably upon seeing his own daughter's tragic death. He was heartbroken: "How did she die? Tell me, did your family kill her? Did Junjing kill her because he didn't want to marry her? Are you trying to fool me with the excuse that Huilin was killed by evil spirits?"
Jiang Junjing tried his best to explain: "Uncle, that's not how it is. We're not lying to you. Seventh Sister said that Cousin Huilin's soul can't be found. It must have been eaten by evil spirits."
Li Qingkui shouted, "It's because you didn't want to marry her that you tried to kill her. Don't try to scare me with those gods and ghosts. I'm not easily frightened."
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