Inscription of Different Cases

It was already the next morning when we went to the scene of the crime again.

Han Lang held the dice and thought about it all night, and vaguely felt that the man in Tsing Yi must be hinting at something by giving him this thing.What will it be?He has no idea.And the man in Tsing Yi might be...that kind of thing, it's probably not safe to hold this thing by himself.

He thought for a while, then turned around to look through the old book left by his father, learned the content on it, drew a talisman for himself and kept it on his body.This time he was much more at ease, and went out to inquire door-to-door, asking if anyone had seen a similarly dressed person.

Unfortunately, no harvest.

There was one person who gave a strange clue. Hearing Han Lang's description, he muttered to himself: "It sounds so like the third child of the Wang family."

"The third son of the Wang family?" Han Lang vaguely felt that he had heard this name somewhere before, so he hurriedly asked, "Where does he live?"

"Over there," the other party raised his finger, turned his head to the side, and gave Han Lang a meaningful look, "Are you really the new county lieutenant?"

This place is far away from where he lives, so it's normal for someone not to know him.Without thinking too much, Han Lang replied, "Yes."

The other party frowned, looked at Han Lang suspiciously, then snorted and said, "The youngest son of the Wang family is dead, killed by robbers, have you even forgotten this?"

These words were like a blow to the head, making Han Lang's head buzzing.

"Is that the third son of the Wang family?"

"How many youngest members of the Wang family are there in the world?" The other party curled his lips, "His father is dead, he has lost all the money I left, and he only knows how to steal chickens and dogs all day long, and now he is dead. This is how his family behaves, bah, It’s bad luck to mention it.”

After finishing speaking, the man turned around and closed the door without giving Han Lang a chance to ask any more questions.Han Lang was still in a panic. If the third son of the Wang family was dead, then what did he see yesterday...?

Sure enough... met?

However, it's just that they look alike. Maybe the third child of the Wang family has a younger brother, the fourth child of the Wang family, or something like that.He stroked his chest, comforting himself.Then he knocked on the door again.No one came to open it, so he simply yelled: "Hey - does the youngest of the Wang family have any brothers?"

The other poked out half of his face and said, "No!"

"What about the child? It's only one or two years old."

"If you say no, then there is no. His family is all dead!"

"..."

Well, there is no escape.

Han Lang clenched the talisman and decided to go to Wang Laosan's house to investigate.The man lived in a small room in the corner, the door was ajar and the windows were broken.When a person dies, the house is empty, and the whole house has a gloomy air in and out of the house.

The temperature in early spring was low, and it was especially cold in this room. Han Lang even wore a short coat under his official uniform, but he was still shivering from the cold.The room was small and surprisingly empty.A bed, two chairs, a stove, not even a storage thing.The rice vat was empty, and the firewood in the stove was only burnt to the point of more than an inch of dross.Has been damp and exudes a musty smell.

Apparently the man hadn't fired a fire for a long time.

Han Lang frowned, feeling that he was a little closer to the truth.Wang Laosan is obviously a poor man, so poor that he has nothing to offer.The house is leaking everywhere, and the windows cannot be repaired. The things in the house may be sold, but it is difficult to provide food and clothing.

What did that person say just now?Wang Laosan's father died, and he lost all the family's money, so he can only live by stealing chickens and dogs?

Han Lang was still holding the dice in his hand, turning it over and over again, it was drenched in sweat.As the saying goes, rape is close to murder, gambling is close to robbery, could it be...

Then he discovered another problem. Since Wang Laosan lived alone, there were two sets of bowls and chopsticks by the stove.There is also a rag doll on the bed, which is dirty.

At this moment, there was a sound of footsteps outside. A woman in her thirties stood in front of the broken window and watched for a while. After seeing Han Lang, she obviously hesitated for a moment, but still pushed open the door and walked in.

"I'm here to accompany my brother," she said cautiously, "Did you not offend your lord just now?"

Han Lang waved his hand. This woman seemed to be talkative and timid. He was afraid of offending the officials. If he put a little pressure on himself, he should be able to get something out of her mouth.So Han Lang said: "I'm here to investigate the cause of Wang Laosan's death. I have a few questions. You'd better answer them truthfully."

The woman nodded, looked at him a little timidly, and paused for a while before saying: "Wang Laosan...wasn't he killed by robbers?"

Han Lang didn't want to explain too much: "In short, what kind of person is Wang Laosan on weekdays?"

"He...he's not a good guy," the woman said, looking around, her eyes gradually revealing contempt, "their family used to have a little savings, but this old man is a wimp and can't do anything. , I only know how to eat and wait to die. At first, there were people who wanted to help him, but he saw that he was beaten and cowered all day long, and he felt angry. That kind of virtue, it seems that the neighbors bullied him."

"What enemies does he have?"

The woman shook her head: "I don't know. He has done some sneaky jobs, that is, the owner can get an egg, and the west can get a copper coin. Later, he became more courageous and took more and more. Everyone is discussing Do you want to report to the official, the result is good, he died directly."

"Then when did he start stealing?"

"It's been a long time ago, and it just got worse this year. In the past, his old man still had some family property, but this year he lost it somehow. By the way..."

As the woman spoke, she suddenly glanced at Han Lang hesitantly.Han Lang understood immediately, and as soon as he leaned his head closer, he heard the other party lower his voice: "Some people say that Wang Laosan may be betting..."

After finishing speaking, he remained silent, showing a look of fear.Now the ban on gambling is posted on the city wall, and the people of course dare not mention that word in front of the officials.Han Lang was holding the dice in his hand, and if people knew about it, they would definitely have to be punished.

However, there was no change in Han Lang's complexion, he only nodded to show that he understood.Asking about Wang Laosan's recent behavior, the woman said that he was at home during the day and went out in the evening, and he didn't know where he went.

Han Lang's mind turned, and his frowning brows relaxed a little: It seems that the case has some clues.But when he asked whether Wang Laosan had any children, or if there were other children staying temporarily, the woman shook her head firmly.

"Never heard of it."

Han Lang withdrew his smile and frowned again.

After the woman left, he went to several pawnshops, and sure enough, someone saw Wang Laosan bringing things in exchange for money.In the past, they were all small gadgets, such as copper fingers and silver chains. Since this year, there have been more and more valuable items. "The last time I brought the jade bracelet, he said it was from the ancestors, but I didn't believe it when I saw it," said the pawnbroker. "I kicked him out later. If I had to tell you, it was probably stolen."

Thinking about the child first, Han Lang is basically sure that Wang Laosan must have gone to gamble.Well, the sky is bright and bright, and there are still people opening underground gambling houses.Thinking of this, Han Lang was already gearing up. Since he took office, he had finally encountered a big case, so he could finally do something other than patrolling.

So Han Lang immediately went to the county government office. He wanted to report to the county magistrate, but Master Bo waved his hand and said, "Master Qian said he was caught in the wind and cold, so he went back early."

"That's it," Han Lang said helplessly, "Let's talk about it next time, I'll go first."

The chief secretary nodded as usual. Unlike civil officials like them, the county lieutenant was originally an errand, and it was normal not to see Han Lang all day long.

Han Lang didn't go far, and after he went out, he recruited all his arresters, and said, "Check it out, which yamen servants often go out at night recently, and those who are alone at night, report them together. "

"Boss, you don't look well," a young police officer interjected, "It's been a quarter of an hour, and you're so busy that you forgot to eat?"

It was only then that Han Lang remembered that indeed, he hadn't eaten anything since morning.Immediately said impatiently: "Don't be wordy, hurry up!"

As soon as the words fell, his hand touched the dice he had obtained before, and his mood suddenly became irritable.Now he didn't care to say anything more, and walked out.

Several catchers watched him leave, and the old catcher immediately said to the one who interrupted: "It's strange, this new Mr. Han is usually very kind, why is he like this today?"

The man showed an expression of "you don't know something", and explained: "The boss has a bad temper when he doesn't have enough to eat, and he often forgets to eat when he is busy, so that's how it is."

The head catcher suddenly realized and nodded: "So that's the case. We haven't figured out the temper of the new official since he took office, so we have to be more careful in the future. But, how do you know?"

The man rubbed his hands together and laughed: "I have known Boss for several years. He is from our street. He has practiced martial arts since he was a child. He is very good."

The head catcher showed a clear expression: "Hey, no wonder you came to be a catcher and want to follow him?"

"Yeah yeah."

"It's a pity," the old catcher glanced at Han Lang's back, and said meaningfully, "I think he has such a temper that he won't be a long-term official."

"how come?"

The old head catcher smiled but said nothing, pointed to the yard where the county magistrate worked, and then pointed to the east.

That is the direction of the capital.

+++

Han Lang didn't notice that someone was talking about him. After being reminded just now, he realized that he was really hungry.I wanted to go home and find something to fill my stomach, but when I got to the door, I realized that there seemed to be no ready-made ingredients at home.When I was worrying, a familiar shout came again: "Jelly Bean Sweet Cake—Needle Thread Brain—Silk Flower Fat Powder—Children's stuff——"

Sure enough, Lin Xiaosheng came over with a cargo box on his back. Seeing that he walked with ease, today's things should be selling well.Han Lang was thinking about whether he could go to the other party's house for a meal, but also thought that it was not time for a meal, so it was probably unlikely.Unexpectedly, Lin Xiaosheng saw his thoughts at a glance, put down the cargo box and said, "Come in and have a seat?"

Han Lang followed in.

Lin Xiaosheng has just moved here for more than half a year, and there is no furniture at home.On weekdays, all he does is women and children's business, and the house is full of groceries.The toy chisels and files were thrown here and there, and the sugar pots for boiling sugar were lined up, causing a cloying sweet smell everywhere.

Han Lang asked him where he was from before, and he said that he came from the south to make a living, and there was no one at home.After all, this county is a suburb of the capital, so there are so many people like this, so Han Lang didn't ask any more questions.At this moment, Han Lang is full?He pushed aside the things on the ground and found an empty space to sit down.Lin Xiaosheng was still packing up his things, Han Lang didn't deliberately avoid it, he took out the dice and put it in front of him, playing with it while thinking.

The ghost of Wang Laosan, the strange baby, and the dice of the clams...

Speaking of which, the texture of the dice...seems a little weird.

Lin Xiaosheng happened to see this scene when he turned around after packing up his things.He didn't seem to be surprised by the dice in Han Lang's hand, but asked quite calmly, "Did you get it from the investigation?"

Han Lang appreciated his wit, but now he was not in a good mood, so he hummed casually as an answer.

Lin Xiaosheng knew about Han Lang's old problem, so he dug out a food box from the cargo box and handed it to Han Lang: "I'll give you the leftovers."

This person has always said few words, and he left after speaking six words.Han Lang opened the food box and saw that it was full of jelly beans to coax children.He didn't care anymore, grabbed a handful and stuffed it into his mouth, frowning from boredom.

After eating three or two times, Han Lang felt much more comfortable, patted his clothes and stood up: "By the way, Xiaosheng, have you heard of someone opening a gambling house these days?"

"No," Lin Xiaosheng gave him a sideways glance, and replied calmly, "I'm just a peddler, how could I know so much?"

Han Lang shook the dice in his hand: "Then do you know this?"

"The dice of the japonica."

"Come here and have a look, what kind of texture do you think this is?"

Lin Xiaosheng took it in his hand and fiddled with it: "It's lighter than a stone, but stronger than a block of wood. I'm not sure, maybe it's made of bone?"

Han Lang showed an expression of "as expected", and fell silent.Lin Xiaosheng ignored him, returned the dice, and continued to play with the sugar bowl on the stove.The two were speechless for a while, but Han Lang suddenly sighed after a while, and said, "My filial piety..."

"What's the matter?"

"Although most of the dead are self-inflicted, I still have to find out the real culprit."

Lin Xiaosheng raised his eyebrows: "Have you figured it out?"

"perhaps."

"That's pretty good," Lin Xiaosheng was lighting a fire to boil sugar, and threw a scrap of fire into the stove.The flames sprang up with a "bass", and his face became flickering for a moment, "It's better to blame yourself, so that you won't feel sorry for him."

"You can't say that," Han Lang frowned, "I'm a bit of a nosy person, but if everyone dies, no matter how serious the crime is, it will be offset, right?"

"I just think you have too much kindness, and you are not too tired to panic."

"What's wrong with you?" Han Lang was confused by his untimely speech, thinking that he was in a bad mood, "Could it be that some widow is pestering you again?"

This dynasty's folk customs are open, and Lin Xiaosheng looks good, this kind of thing is not unheard of.Lin Xiaosheng glared at Han Lang after hearing this, and said in a different tone: "Today, someone bought less than ten copper coins, do you think I'm angry?"

Han Lang felt that he wasn't telling the truth, but he didn't have the time to investigate further, so he smiled and said, "Understood, let's see if I catch that little thief someday and beat him fifty times."

That night, he looked through the books left by his father again, affirming the judgment in his heart.Before going to bed, he specially wrapped the dice with a talisman and placed it on the bedside.Just as I was about to close my eyes and fall asleep, I heard the sound of something colliding in the room, crashing, crashing.

There is also the shadow of a child indistinctly.

He frowned and cursed: "Don't bother me."

The sound disappeared.Early the next morning, the talisman wrapped in the dice was burnt to a small cloud of ashes.He snorted coldly, and drew another one to cover it.At this time, someone came to him, it was his arrester, and said that the work he had ordered was done.He was in a good mood and quickly sat down to listen to their report.

The subordinates said that there was a yamen servant named Wu Zhao who was on duty every night at midnight, and the street he patrolled was Ansheng Street in the west of the city.There used to be a lumber workshop in that place, but it caught fire unexpectedly at the end of last year and turned into ruins.Since then, it has not been rebuilt, and it is so deserted.

Because there are few residents, Wu Zhao usually stays alone at night without other people accompanying him.Hearing this, Han Lang thought for a moment, clapped his hands decisively, and said, "Send someone to watch him. In addition, find out who he has met recently and where he has been."