The officers searched the temple but found nothing. Apart from the corpse of a monk in the temple, they could not find anything useful.
"Miss Luo, there is nothing unusual found."
There were very few people coming and going in remote temples, and there was only one monk in the entire Hongshan Temple. No one found him when he died in the temple, let alone there would be any unusual evidence.
However, anyone with a discerning eye could see that the monk's death was strange, but everything seemed normal from the outside. This made the officials very embarrassed, as they felt that they had not shown their strength in front of Miss Luo.
As if she had guessed what was going on, Luo Xue Ning simply said in a calm voice: "It's not your responsibility if you didn't find it."
It was just a simple sentence, and the officers felt relieved immediately. However, they were furious when they thought that this key witness had been destroyed in advance.
It feels like they are now completely at the mercy of the murderer, which is a shame for any investigator.
As for Luo Xuening, she understood the feelings of the observing officers, but the facts were already like this, and she could only start from the corpse and from this strange Hongshan Temple.
Sometimes, the calmest appearance may hide the most turbulent waves.
During this process, Gu Shuchang did not say a word from beginning to end. He just looked at Luo Xuening quietly.
When she examined the body, she was not afraid at all, and when she issued orders, she was so decisive. She was like a queen who had everything under control, and no one dared to question her.
In just a few months, Luo Xue Ning was able to stand on her own. Gu Shuchang wondered if this was still the noble and aloof Luo Xue Ning he knew at the beginning?
Luo Xue Ning, she has grown up too fast, and it is too unbelievable.
At this moment, there was a commotion outside the door and the guards caught someone.
The man was about thirty years old, wearing a coarse linen sweater, which was stained with a lot of dirt and dust. Judging from his appearance, he should be a villager from this area.
However, as soon as he came in, he looked around the Red Mountain Temple.
Even though he saw so many officials, he was not afraid at all.
If she said that he was just an ordinary villager, Luo Xuening would not believe it.
The guards detained the man and brought him before Guo Gushuchang.
"Master Gu, Miss Luo, we found this man outside the door. He was sneaking around the gate of Hongshan Temple. I caught him and asked you to interrogate him."
"Brother officer, please spare my life. I am just a villager nearby. I have done nothing wrong."
The villagers began to get scared, but although he said this, there really wasn't much fear in his eyes.
Luo Xue fixed her eyes on the villager and said with a calm and soothing expression, "Don't worry, we just want to ask you something."
The villager nodded: "Ask me, I will tell you everything I know."
"How long has this Hongshan Temple been built here?"
“It seems to be more than ten years.”
“Do they usually have many pilgrims?”
Luo Xuening asked this question only to confirm the identity of the villager. If he was really a villager nearby, he would definitely know the situation of this temple.
The villagers sighed and said, "When it was first built, there were many pilgrims. I used to come here often, but it gradually declined."
“Is the temple not working, or is it in decline for some other reason?”
In fact, looking at the current state of Hongshan Temple, deserted and sparsely populated, everyone knows that the Hongshan Temple is in decline.
However, there is only one temple within a radius of hundreds of miles. It is hard to believe that the Hongshan Temple has fallen into decline.
A complex light flashed in the villager's eyes, and he frowned, as if he was recalling something carefully, before he told the story of that year.
"A few years ago, maybe five or six years ago, the Hongshan Temple was attacked by a group of gangsters. The temple was burned down, and all the monks in the temple were killed by the gangsters. Since then, the Hongshan Temple, which was once very popular, has fallen into decline."
The temple was destroyed and the monks were killed. This is a major case.
When everyone heard this, they looked at each other in confusion, and began to doubt the authenticity of this matter.
Buddhism was highly valued in the Nanzhao Kingdom, and temples and monks were always respected. Logically, when the Hongshan Temple was attacked by criminals, such a big thing would naturally have leaked out. However, the Hongshan Temple was right under the feet of the emperor, and the government would not ignore the attack. Even if they didn't pay attention, at least the people below would have heard something about it.
But no, everyone recalled that they had never heard that the Hongshan Temple had been attacked by criminals.
As everyone was wondering, a villager said, "The matter of Hongshan Temple has long been suppressed by the government."
Come to think of it, although this is the emperor's job, it is impossible for him to take care of everything. For such a big matter, the government officials cannot shirk their responsibility.
Since they can't shirk their responsibilities, they will try every possible means to conceal the truth.
Everyone's doubts were dispelled and they stopped dwelling on the matter. Luo Xuening then turned to ask about the condition of the deceased.
“Have you met him?”
Luo Xuening sent someone to take the villager to see the monk's body, and her eyes were always on the villager, as if she could see through people's hearts.
This time, the villager did not disappoint her. Even when he saw the corpse, there was no fear in his eyes, and there was even a hint of hatred.
Luo Xuening clearly saw that when the villager saw the body, he subconsciously touched his forehead with his fingertips to conceal his condition.
This is what happens when one person hates another.
Luo Xue Ning made a judgment in her heart, and then she heard the villagers answer: "I have seen it."
“Who is he?”
“The head monk of Hongshan Temple.”
“When did he come to Hongshan Temple?”
“Five years ago.”
The villager blinked and answered crisply.
“It was after the attack on Hongshan Temple.”
"It was half a year after the attack." The villager nodded slightly, his eyes suddenly becoming much clearer.
Luo Xuening knew that what he said was true, and that this villager must have a hatred for the deceased.
"I see. One more question. What are you doing here?"
This question is unavoidable. Of course, Luo Xuening did not expect his answer. Her eyes were indifferent from beginning to end.
But her eyes gave people an invisible pressure.
The villager lowered his head and tried his best to avoid looking into Luo Xuening's eyes. When he heard her question, his eyes turned and he spoke mysteriously.
"I heard before that there was a female ghost in the Hongshan Temple, screaming in the middle of the night. I always thought it was strange, so today, seeing the soldiers coming, I came here to take a look."
The villagers stopped talking, but fearing that people would not believe them, they frowned and pretended to be serious and said, "Don't disbelieve me, everyone in our village knows about this, so no one dares to approach the Hongshan Temple."
“Really?”
Luo Xuening's voice deepened, and her tone suddenly became sharper.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com