Chapter 132: The New Corpse in the Empty Grave
As the night passed, the rain gradually subsided.

Zhao Ji, Di Renjie and his party rested for half a night, then got up, washed, had their meal, and prepared to go to Enji Manor.

Di Renjie had a big appetite, so Zeng Tai, a good student, accompanied Di Renjie and slowly enjoyed breakfast.

Zhao Ji and Li Yuanfang finished their meal early, prepared their carriages and horses, and waited for Di Renjie and Zeng Tai in front of the second hall.

"Yuan Fang, you and Zeng Tai are really stupid this time. The Bleeding Eagle case should not have been hidden from the adults, but you and Zeng Tai have led the adults into a ditch." Zhao Ji teased.

Li Yuanfang was a little annoyed: "Yes, the villain used a little trick to trick me and Zeng Tai. It's really thanks to Cheng Yuan."

Zhao Ji shook his head and smiled, "This can't be called a trick. Although their method of pretending to be a ghost is not complicated, the smokescreen illusion they created is indeed painstaking and can be called a masterpiece of a master."

Li Yuanfang nodded slightly, deeply touched: "Yes, although it has been proven that the evil spirits are fictitious, the Xilin General Temple, the Jiangjiazhuang Massacre, and the Xiaoguo Guards' rituals are all real. I still don't understand how they thought of using these to commit crimes."

Zhao Ji smiled mysteriously and explained, "Of course it's because the murderer of the Jiangjiazhuang massacre decades ago also participated in planning the current Bleeding Eagle case. This is why the adults said that in order to solve the Bleeding Eagle case, we must first solve the Jiangjiazhuang massacre."

Li Yuanfang was stunned at first, but then he understood: "Yes, this is the only explanation. But decades have passed, can the Jiangjiazhuang tragedy still be solved?"

Zhao Ji looked at Li Yuanfang with a smile: "My Lord, you never speak empty words."

Li Yuanfang thought of Di Renjie's past experiences and nodded in conviction: "That's right."

"Everything about you is good, sir, except that you eat too slowly." Zhao Ji was getting a little impatient waiting for Di Renjie and wandered around casually.

Hearing this, Li Yuanfang couldn't help but laugh out loud.

However, when Zhao Ji was wandering around casually, he suddenly noticed the footprints under the window of the second hall, and his face instantly became solemn.

Li Yuanfang noticed Zhao Ji's abnormality and asked, "Chengyuan, what's wrong?"

Zhao Ji frowned and shook his head: "Nothing, I just thought of something."

At this time, Di Renjie and Zeng Tai had finished breakfast and came to meet Zhao Ji and Li Yuanfang.

Di Renjie held his big belly and ordered, "Zeng Tai, go to Enji Manor first to appease the people and spread the news that I am the ghost-catching minister. I will take Cheng Yuan and Yuan Fang to Qingyanggang to take a look."

Zeng Tai naturally had no objection, but Zhao Ji suddenly said, "Sir, my Qianniu Guards have arrived. To avoid alerting the enemy, let the Qianniu Guards escort you. Brother Zeng, take the people from the county government to Enji Village."

Di Renjie looked at Zhao Ji in surprise, but did not refuse: "Okay, let's arrange it this way."
-
Zhao Ji, Di Renjie, Li Yuanfang and his party quickly arrived at the former site of Jiangjiazhuang in Qingyanggang.

Li Yuanfang was directing the guards to push the tombstone and dig up Jiang Xiaolang's coffin, while Di Renjie and Zhao Ji were talking on the side.

Di Renjie looked at Zhao Ji and asked, "Chengyuan, you didn't let Zeng Tai's servants come with you. Do you suspect that they are up to something?"

Zhao Ji nodded: "I can't confirm it, but I saw some footprints under the window of the second hall. They were very fresh, as if they were left last night. Maybe someone wanted to eavesdrop on our conversation."

Di Renjie's heart tightened: "Then our conversation last night was overheard?"

Zhao Ji smiled confidently and pointed at his ear, saying, "No, Yuan Fang's martial arts are far superior to mine. The only thing I can do better than him is my sense. There was a lot of thunder and rain last night, so I didn't notice his movements. It would be difficult for people outside to hear our movements."

"Oh, maybe there is no one outside, and those footprints were left by the servants when they were cleaning?" Di Renjie asked again.

Zhao did not directly refute: "It is possible. But this does not affect the conclusion. There is probably something fishy going on in Zeng Tai's government office."

Di Renjie seemed to be thinking about something, and then asked, "Why do you say that?"

Zhao Ji smiled slightly and explained, "No matter how carefully the murderer planned, he could not have anticipated that Zeng Tai would ask you to help solve the case. The original trajectory of this case should be that someone misled Zeng Tai and made him believe that it was a ghost who committed the crime."

Di Renjie's eyes sparkled, and he thought of something: "That makes sense. If you want to mislead the county magistrate to investigate a case, it would be most convenient to do it with someone in the county government office."

The following picture emerged in his mind - it was the scene when he first arrived at Qingyanggang, with the same dark clouds and the same ruins.

At that time, Di Renjie and Zeng Tai came here following the horse hoof prints and happened to meet the Yongchang County Magistrate who was looking for Jiangjiazhuang.

It was also from the mouth of the Yongchang County Magistrate that they first learned about the so-called Jiangjiazhuang Massacre.

As luck would have it, the Jiangjiazhuang Massacre was finally concluded as a case of ghost soldiers killing people and evil spirits taking revenge, which misled Di Renjie and Zeng Tai. While Di Renjie was thinking, Li Yuanfang had already ordered the guards to dig Jiang Xiaolang's coffin out of the grave.

Li Yuanfang walked up to Di Renjie and said, "Sir, Jiang Xiaolang's coffin has been unearthed!"

Di Renjie immediately stepped forward and decisively ordered: "Open the coffin!"

The guards acted quickly, the sharp axes fell, the nails on the coffin lid were pried up one by one, and the coffin was opened in two or three moves.

Everyone gathered around to check, only to see that the coffin was empty and there was no trace of Jiang Xiaolang's body.
-
In Enji Village, villagers found that Uncle Pang Jiu's door had been smashed and two old men had been killed.

The bodies of the two elderly victims were placed in the yard where Di Renjie had stayed, and the villagers surrounded the yard.

Zeng Tai and the county magistrate were blocked in the yard. The villagers knelt at the door, shouting for help and refusing to leave.

"My Lord County Magistrate, please save us!"

"The tragedy of Jiangjiazhuang decades ago is about to happen to us..."

Zeng Tai tried hard to calm the villagers, but their panic seemed difficult to quell.

The county magistrate was filled with anxiety and spread his hands: "County Master, what should we do? If the evil spirit kills people, Enji Village may repeat the mistakes of Jiangjia Village. Then we will be finished."

Although Zeng Tai couldn't control the situation, he remained calm: "Don't panic, wait for the mentor to come, everything will be fine."

The county magistrate glanced at Zeng Tai and felt a little strange. He felt that Zeng Tai's reaction was a little wrong. According to expectations, Zeng Tai should be flustered and confused now, not knowing what to do.

After all, the county magistrate overreacted to the matter of the underworld. After the incident, he didn't need any guidance at all, and rushed to investigate the matter as a ghost case.

County Magistrate Zeng called him his mentor for a reason. With Di Renjie at his side, a man who was afraid of ghosts could remain calm in the face of ghosts.

Is this the power of having a backer?

Just as County Magistrate Hu Si was thinking about it, there was a commotion outside the courtyard and the villagers made way for him.

"Lord Di is here, we are saved!" I don't know when this voice was heard.

Di Renjie came to the courtyard under the protection of Zhao Ji and Li Yuanfang.

As he walked, he promised: "Di will do his best to find out the truth, catch the evil spirit, and give an explanation to the villagers. It's going to rain soon, so everyone should go away and wait for my good news!"

"Okay! We'll wait for good news from Lord Di!" The villagers responded in unison and gradually dispersed.

After all the villagers had left, Di Renjie's face turned grim. He looked at the bodies of the two old men in the yard, and he was furious.

Only a few people knew what Uncle Pang Jiu and his men had said, so it was inevitable that there were traitors around him, and there might be more than one.

Di Renjie gnashed his teeth and said, "How hateful! We are a step too late. It was my negligence that I didn't expect someone to attack these old men. Where is Uncle Jiu? Is he okay?"

Zeng Tai quickly replied: "Uncle Jiu hid in the cellar of his home last night, and the murderer didn't find him. We invited Uncle Jiu here, and he is now in the house."

Di Renjie and his companions walked into the main room, only to see Uncle Pang Jiu huddled in a corner.

His face was pale, and he kept muttering: "Headless ghost... is taking my life... ghost..."

Di Renjie stepped forward and soothed him gently, "Uncle Jiu, don't be afraid. We are here for you. I promise you that we will catch the evil spirit."

However, Uncle Pang Jiu seemed to still have doubts about Di Renjie and others, and kept shaking his head.

Di Renjie was helpless, sighed, and left the room: "Chengyuan, you arrange for the Qianniu Guards to guard Uncle Jiu day and night. You must protect the old man's safety!"

Zhao Ji responded solemnly: "Don't worry, sir. If that headless ghost dares to show up again, he will never come back!"

Di Renjie nodded and said, "Let's go to the scene where the other two elderly people were killed and investigate to see if there are any clues this time."

(End of this chapter)