Chapter 39: Not Easy

The younger one was called Xie Miao, he had an ordinary face with a long nose, and a very astute intuition.

The old man was Xie Miao’s third uncle, and his name was Xie Zheng. Nobody in the entire county dared to contradict his findings.

However, Xie Zheng thought very highly of his nephew and hoped that he would eventually surpass him, no matter how the situation currently appeared.

Xie Miao looked simple and slow, but he had a very smooth character. He was very meticulous and careful. When there were clues to be found, it was like he had godly perception and nothing could escape his eyes.

He was just as skilled as Xie Zheng when it came to solving cases, but what he lacked was experience.

Actually, Xie Zheng didn’t even do things by himself anymore; he just let Xie Miao do everything and watched, giving him some advice once in a while. Xie Miao had never disappointed him.

Xie Miao thought that the murderer was incredible because there were absolutely no clues left behind. He had no idea where to start and there was not even any lingering fragrance in the air. Even though his sense of smell was trained better than a dog, he couldn’t even smell another human presence. It was as if the killer didn’t exist.

Xie Miao felt uncomfortable because he had grown a kind of blind faith in his sense of smell. However, he was starting to have doubts.

But because Counselor Peng had asked them to come, he couldn’t say much. Even though he looked simple and slow, he was far from being stupid.

Now, Mu Yi was here, and Xie Miao didn’t know what Mu Yi’s social status was. However, Counselor Peng thought highly of him and behaved respectfully in his presence. Counselor Peng didn’t even seem to doubt Mu Yi despite his young age.

Therefore, he didn’t dare to underestimate Mu Yi and even told him everything he knew. That way, he could also rely on someone else’s help.

He just wanted to understand the situation and solve the case; he didn’t care about glory. For him, this was just one case amongst many.

When he heard Mu Yi’s questions, he had the feeling that there might be an opportunity for them to solve the case and felt a rush of excitement.

Mu Yi had also noticed a sudden excitement of Xie Miao’s Qi and watched on with a strange look. The situation seemed to be getting more interesting.

He hadn’t thought he would encounter such incredible people in this small village. Even though their social statuses weren’t as high as Peng Songlai’s, they were all important figures within the county.

He had never despised anyone for their chosen profession.

“There are two floors, and it is one zhang and three chi from top to bottom. The floor is soft, and there are were no other footprints. There isn’t a mark on the window, and the window locks from the inside. Without damaging the window, it can’t be opened from the outside. Therefore, the murderer can’t have come in through the window,” Xie Miao said. He didn’t look simple and slow anymore, his eyes were sharp and piercing. He also looked slightly angry when speaking, he clearly wanted to punish the murderer.

Mu Yi listened carefully. Even though he knew that the murderer was a human, he was still curious. How had the murderer covered his tracks? Even though Mu Yi had reached the third level of the Heart Stage, he couldn’t have achieved the same result as the murderer.

Besides, Mu Yi didn’t understand the technique the murderer used to flay the victim’s skin.

“Besides, I also looked at the window on the ground floor, and it’s the same,” Xie Miao said as Xie Zheng glanced at him. He knew his nephew’s habit, but he had to be careful in front of Mu Yi.

“Indeed, the window on the ground floor is intact too. You can only close that window from the inside too. I tried to open it from the outside, but it’s impossible without breaking it. Also, there is no secret passage in this building, so the murderer couldn’t have come in at night,” Xie Miao said with confidence.

“Oh, you mean that he came in before, hid, and waited until it was dark to commit the crime before leaving?” Mu Yi asked Xie Miao.

“No. He’s extremely sly and smart. If he had left after killing the victim, there would’ve been marks. Also, he couldn’t have closed the door from outside. Therefore, I’m convinced that he didn’t leave after killing the victim. He waited until it was daytime and left when other people were around,” Xie Miao said.

“But if he was a stranger. If someone saw him around the scene, how could he escape? Also, you said he was hiding, but where could he have hidden?” Mu Yi asked.

When Xie Miao heard Mu Yi, he frowned. That was the problem. He didn’t know the answer either. If he didn’t have any clues, everything he said was just his own theory.

A normal human being would’ve definitely been found hiding inside the building, especially if they had been hiding for an entire day. There would’ve been marks where they hid, unless they magically became air.

Xie Miao initially wanted to prove his abilities; but he hadn’t thought that Mu Yi would immediately point out the problems in his explanation.

Xie Zheng glanced at his nephew angrily but said nothing.

“There’s only one possibility. The murderer was in the building the entire time and didn’t need to hide. However, we were not allowed to even consider her,” Xie Miao said with conviction, and Mu Yi understood exactly what he meant.

“This is the portrait I found earlier,” Su Jinlun said while interrupting and opening a picture scroll for Mu Yi.

There was a man who looked like a prince in the picture. He looked slim and noble. No wonder Peng Songlai’s daughter had fallen in love with him. Unfortunately, he had died two months after their wedding. What a tragedy.

Mu Yi looked at the picture, suddenly turning a blind eye to Xie Miao after his accusation. Xie Miao’s face reddened in anger.

“Ahem!”