Strange Story of Strange House

On the first night when Lin came late to Gu's house, there was another murder case in Gu's house.

The youngest son of the Gu family died young, and there was only one daughter left. Master Gu planned to recruit a son-in-law from a collateral lineage to inherit the family business. Boys of the right age flocked here.

Gu Zhenping, who had an accident last night, was one of them.

When Lin Chi got up early in the morning, he heard a lot of discussions outside. After listening carefully for a while, he realized that something had happened again.At this moment, Han Mei came to bring him breakfast: "Mr. Lin is up?"

Han Mei greeted Lin Chi with a smile. She could only be considered pretty, but her smile was really outstanding. When she smiled, she looked like spring flowers in March, which made people happy.

"There's some noise outside, did something happen?" Lin Chi asked knowingly, wanting to see if he could get something new from Han Mei.

When Han Mei heard this, her hands paused. Madam had told them not to talk too much this morning, but considering that Lin Chi was here to deal with this matter, she still told the truth.

"Xiyuan, another young master died yesterday." Hanmei said in a low voice, "Since the master planned to recruit a son-in-law to inherit the family business, all the young masters from the side line have lived in the house, but those who rushed to the Gu family None of the people who came from the family business could leave the gate of the Gu family alive. The master suppressed the news, but it was spread in the house that the late young master was taking revenge on those who wanted to rob him. "

Lin Chi thought for a while and asked, "So, many people have died?"

"Four." Han Mei counted with her fingers, "They are all young masters of the collateral lineage, who were found dead in the house early in the morning."

"When they died, did they have anything in common?"

"Flowers..." Han Mei shivered suddenly, "When they died, there were red flowers scattered all over the ground. According to the doctor, there was no blood in the corpses, as if they had been sucked dry!"

"Flowers?" Lin Chi somehow remembered the girl holding flowers she saw yesterday, "Is it the kind of flowers your cousin is holding?"

"Sir, do you suspect Miss Xinning? But I don't think it's her. Miss Xinning looks gloomy and her body is not in good shape. I don't believe that she can kill four big men. Besides, Miss Biao also read Those who have read books, how could they be so stupid as to throw the flowers in their hands beside the corpse, isn't this just giving people a chance?" Han Mei didn't quite agree with Lin Chi's point of view, "Someone saw Hua before and doubted Miss Biao, But Madam asked someone to ask, when the young masters died, someone had seen Miss Biao in other places, so it couldn't be her!"

Yesterday Hanmei warned Lin Chi to stay away from Miss Biao, and today she solemnly explained Xinning's grievances. Lin Chi couldn't understand it for a while, so he could only wait and see what happened.

"How many distant young masters are still living in the Gu family?" Since Xinning could not be the murderer, Lin Chi began to consider other possibilities. Could it be one or several of the distant young masters? Become the heir of the Gu family more smoothly, and design to kill other competitors?

"There are three more, Gu Yihao, Gu Shuwen, and Gu Yuanhong." Han Mei thought for a while, and then gave Lin Chi the names of the rest.

"Among the three of them, is there any suspect?"

"Let's think about it..." Hanmei is Gu Qingcheng's capable maidservant, and she has her own channel to inquire about news, so she can provide Lin Chi with some valuable clues. It’s in my hand, but as far as I know, the remaining three young masters were absent once or twice..."

"Could it be a partnership?" Lin Chi asked, "When one person does it, the accomplice deliberately creates an alibi. In this way, they all have alibi and eliminate their own suspicions."

"Sir, what you said makes sense. I'll investigate right away." Han Mei nodded, Lin Chi paused, and asked again: "I'm a magician, since your Gu family invited me over, it's probably because of suspicious ghosts. The late young master, how likely is it to kill someone?"

"Impossible," Han Mei showed a little dissatisfaction on her face, "It's not because I don't believe in ghosts and gods, it's just that my young master is such a good person, how could he kill innocent people indiscriminately for things outside of him?"

Lin Chi was taken aback. Judging from his impression of Han Mei, this girl was smart and cautious in her words and deeds. This was the first time he had seen this cautious girl, and he showed his preferences on his face.

After instructing Han Mei to check if there is any possibility of a partner committing the crime, Lin Chi planned to go out for a stroll.

The moat, also known as the Qingcheng River, surrounded Qingcheng in an embracing posture. Lin Chi followed the path to the Qingcheng River, and unexpectedly met the same person from yesterday.

Thinking of Lou Qi who entered the puzzle at the same time but was nowhere to be seen now, Lin Chi always felt that the person in front of him who was very similar to Lou Qi might be a character tailor-made for Lou Qi, so he couldn't help but want to go up. Pre-test: "We meet again."

Hearing this, the man glanced at Lin Chi and nodded at him.

"My name is Lin Chi, what's your name?" Lin Chi half-closed his eyes and revealed a slightly sly smile.

"Qingcheng." After a moment of hesitation, the man twirled the purple bamboo umbrella and said his name.

"Qingcheng? Miss Gu?" Lin Chi was taken aback.

"This city is my name." The man's eyes were a little hollow, as if looking at someone through the rushing river in front of him.

Looking sideways at the man in front of him, Lin Chi confuses him with Gu Qingcheng. It is not without reason. Their looks are too similar, probably because of their young age. The deep outline of a man has not yet grown, and the facial lines It's very soft, exuding an indistinguishable beauty. Only when you look closely can you find that the man in front of you is a bit more heroic than Miss Gu's.

Lin Chi pretended to be casual and asked: "I met Miss Gu's family by chance before, and she looks very similar to you. Do you have any relationship with her?"

"You're so rude." Qingcheng didn't seem to like this topic, "How can you ask the bottom line like this when you just met."

"I'm sorry, sorry, it's my fault." Without finding a good starting point, Lin Chi apologized hastily, but Qingcheng ignored him, propped up his purple bamboo umbrella, and left Lin Chi behind in a blink of an eye.

Lin Chi hurried to catch up, and the figure holding the purple bamboo umbrella walked a few steps away from Lin Chi, but Lin Chi lost all his strength and did not catch up. Qingcheng stopped.

"Qingcheng! Wait!" Lin Chi pressed his shoulder panting, Qingcheng glanced at him sideways, and said with a smile, "You should catch your breath first."

Feeling familiar, Lin Chi looked at him suddenly: "Lou Qi?"

"Ah."

"Aren't I chasing after Qingcheng? When did you come?"

"I came in a step behind you and just took over this body."

Seeing Lou Qi, Lin Chi was naturally happy, which meant that he finally had a backer in this puzzle, and he could let go of his hands and feet to solve the puzzle.

He excitedly grabbed Lou Qi to share his gains, as well as a few puzzles, including Lou Qi's new identity—Qingcheng full of mysteries.

Lou Qi didn't share Qingcheng's memory, so he couldn't answer Lin Chi's doubts. The two planned to search for clues separately, and agreed on a time and place to meet the next day. Lin Chi hurried back to the house.

As soon as he entered the small courtyard, he saw Hanmei in a red padded jacket waiting at the door with a food box.

"It's dusk now, and I thought it was time for my husband to come back." The girl had a sweet smile on her delicate face, and when she saw Lin Chi approaching, she laid out the food in the food box on the small wooden table in the center of the courtyard .

"Excuse me, I should be back earlier." Lin Chi took the chopsticks while apologizing, picked up the bowl and started eating.

"Where is it, sir, you are polite."

After dinner, Lin Chi wanted to digest his food, so Han Mei went out for a walk with him. The Gu residence was very big, and Lin Chi followed Han Mei around, without finding a clue. Han Mei seemed to see that Lin Chi hadn't continued. In the interest of going on a stroll, he pointed to a small courtyard in front of him and said to Lin Chi, "Sir, the courtyard in front is where I live. I got some good tea from the young lady earlier. Why don't you go in and taste it, sir?"

Lin Chi was still waiting to get more information from Han Mei, so naturally he would not refuse.

Han Mei is a servant, although Gu Qingcheng treats her differently and is assigned to an independent courtyard, but it is not that big of a deal.There is a big tree in the middle of the yard, which occupies most of the yard. It is late autumn now, but there are a few flower buds dotted on the bare tree branches.

"That's plum blossom," Han Mei brought out tea from the room, "My master likes plum blossom the most, he always said that plum blossoms are the most blooming in cold winter, so I'm called Han Mei."

Lin Chi took the teacup and looked up to see Hanmei standing under the tree smiling. She looked at the plum tree with deep and gentle eyes, as if looking at the person she loved through the tree.Just a word of liking can make Hanmei treat Meihua so kindly, so Gu Qingcheng must have something unique.

"Do you like your master very much?"

"Well, meeting the master is the luckiest thing in my life." Han Mei turned to Lin Chi, with a smile in her eyes that seemed to overflow.

The two chatted in the yard for a while, Han Mei sent Lin Chi back, and she had to go to Gu Qingcheng to wait for orders.Before leaving, he repeatedly told Lin Chi not to go out at night.

These days, the distant young masters are very low-key, each with a team of guards around them, and rarely even go out, presumably because they are afraid, and they are unwilling to give up the Gu family property that is at their fingertips.

The next morning, Lin Chi woke up very early, and Han Mei brought him breakfast, and said that Master Gu would select one of the remaining three collateral young masters to be his son-in-law to inherit the Gu family's business.So in the next few days, she will be very busy. If the hospitality is not good, please take care of Lin Chi.

After breakfast, Lin Chi pinched the door and went out. Yesterday, Lou Qi made an appointment to meet up.

On the way to Qingcheng River, we pass a small alley selling flowers. Most of the bosses are charming girls, who are more attractive than the graceful flowers in the shop. Only at the end of the alley is an old lady sitting. Because of old age and fading, although the flowers in this store are beautiful, the business is not comparable to other stores, and it looks a bit sluggish.

Lin Chi saw her sitting alone in the rocking chair with empty eyes, and couldn't help feeling compassionate, felt the money in the bag, and walked into the flower shop.

Lin Chi originally wanted to buy a rose for Lou Qi, but he searched around but couldn't find it. Not only roses, the store was full of light-colored flowers like lilies and narcissus, and there was no trace of red.

"Mother-in-law, why don't you sell some colorful flowers? Like roses, roses, etc. Girls nowadays like those."

The shopkeeper grinned when he heard the words: "Young man, are you from outside the city? Red flowers are not allowed in Qingcheng."

"Ah?!" Lin Chi was taken aback when he heard this, and then turned to look at the other flower shops. Sure enough, as the old woman said, there were no red flowers in these flower shops either.

"If red flowers appear in someone's house, they will be punished by the owner of Qingcheng River! They will suffer bad luck!" the old woman said in a spirited voice.

Lin Chi was startled when he heard this, and seemed to understand why the store was empty. He picked up a bouquet of white roses and paid the bill quickly, and almost fled under the watchful eyes of the old woman.

Running all the way to the Qingcheng River, he saw Lou Qi standing there holding the purple bamboo umbrella. Lin Chi cleared his throat, called him, and then watched Lou Qi turn around with the umbrella, smiling like a flower for a moment: "Xiao Chi .”

"Lou Qi!" Lin Chi rushed over and handed over the rose in his hand. Lou Qi was surprised, but still took the flower: "This is it?"

"It's for you." Lin Chi blinked slyly, "I've prepared some fresh flowers to give to my beauties."

"You." Hearing this, Lou Qi helplessly stretched out his hand to scratch the tip of Lin Chi's nose.

Lin Chi hugged Lou Qi's arm with a smile, and told him what happened after the two separated: "That mother-in-law is a little strange, saying that whichever red flower appears will bring bad luck to that family, the Gu family Miss Xinning wandered around holding the red Bianhua flowers all day long, but she didn't see... No, something really happened to the Gu family!"

Lou Qi frowned when he heard the words.

"Would that old lady know anything?!" After finishing speaking, the two immediately walked towards the shop where Lin Chi bought flowers.The old woman was still sitting in front of the store, and when she saw the two people coming to the door, she suddenly smiled: "Lord River Lord, long time no see."

Lord River Lord?

Lin Chi and Lou Qi exchanged glances, thinking that Qingcheng should be the river master she was talking about, but what exactly is the river master?Lin Chi looked at Lou Qi suspiciously, Lou Qi understood, approached Lin Chi and explained in a low voice: "Qingcheng is not a human being, but a water ghost. Because he was worshiped by people, he became a water god."

There are many waters in this world, but not every water has gods. Once the undead who died in the unowned waters are strong enough, they will be incensed by people. With faith and worship, they will one day transform into a water god. This is the case.

Since the old man knew Qingcheng, it was not suitable for Lou Qi to be present, so he found an excuse and left the flower shop quickly, while Lin Chi stayed alone to see if he could get a new breakthrough from the old man.

"Mother-in-law, are you going to live a long life this year?" Lin Chi sat next to the old man and spoke to her.

"I'm 78 years old." The old man narrowed his eyes, and it took him a while to remember his age.

"Then mother-in-law must know a lot about Qingcheng?" Lin Chi asked again.

"Of course, I have lived in this city for dozens of years." The old man looked nostalgic, "In a blink of an eye, I am already this age."

"Does that mother-in-law know...why the river master doesn't like red flowers? Who is he?"

"Young man, didn't you come to look for the old man with the river master?" The old woman squinted her eyes halfway, and the rocking chair under her made a "creak" sound as she shook.

"I met him by the river. I heard you call him the river master, so I thought of asking. Didn't you tell me before that the river master doesn't like red flowers?"

"The owner of the river is the owner of the Qingcheng River, the owner of Qingcheng. Those of us who live in the city are not good at commenting on the owner's preferences. We just need to abide by the rules and not annoy the owner of the river."

"Mother-in-law, just tell me, I'm really curious."

"..." The old man looked at the sky in a daze, and just when Lin Chi thought she would not speak again, she said quietly, "Qingcheng, ten years ago, had no owner. At that time, the owner of the river was still The young master of the Gu family..."

Isn't the young master of the Gu family the late brother of Gu Qingcheng? !No wonder the two are so similar.The old man didn't know the twists and turns in Lin Chi's heart, so she continued to tell what she had seen and heard: "Master Gu and his sister went to the river to play together, in order to pick a red flower for her, He fell into the river and drowned. Since then, the Qingcheng River has had an owner. But because of this, the owner of the river hates safflower very much. In this Qingcheng, whoever has safflower will want it. Bad luck..."

Lin Chi recalled the red flowers that had appeared at several murder scenes, and couldn't help shivering. Could it be that Qingcheng was really the murderer?The cousin with the red flower in her arms is Xin Ning, so why is she so at ease?A strange thought flashed through Lin Chi's mind—Miss Xinning, is she really innocent?

"As long as the red flowers appear, no matter what method... will they suffer bad luck?"

"No matter what method is used, as long as it appears, it will be punished." The old man said every word very firmly.

"Grandmother, I'm a foreigner. Do people in Qingcheng know that seeing red flowers brings bad luck?"

"Maybe you know it all." The old man narrowed his eyes, "This city has changed a long time ago. One or two are obsessed with money, so they don't care about red flowers and white flowers. Only us dying people still remember that The River Lord's preference."

Lin Chi was silent.I stayed with the old man for a while and offered to leave. The old man didn't mean to keep him, but just told him before he left: "Young man, some things don't just look at the appearance. Red flowers are as good as red flowers, and white flowers are also white flowers." Wonderful, sometimes, the pure white is the darkest."

Lin Chi seemed to understand, but the old man didn't mean to explain. Naturally, Lin Chi couldn't ask any more questions. He left the flower shop as planned and met Lou Qi at the corner.

"What's the gain?"

Lin Chi repeated the old man's words: "... No matter how I think about it, I think there is something wrong with Xinning."

"Then you might as well check this Xinning." Lou Qi suggested, Lin Chi nodded, "What about you?"

"I will continue to study the Lord River Lord, and we will meet by the river tomorrow as usual."

"Okay." Lin Chi agreed.After a brief meeting, the two continued to act separately.Lin Chi returned to Gu's house non-stop. He found Han Mei and asked who was responsible for purchasing flowers for Xinning.

"Sir, are you suspicious of Miss Xinning? But she has evidence..."

"Don't be nervous, I just want to check from the source and see if there will be any new gains from the place where the flowers are bought."

"Well...then I'll take you there." Han Mei took Lin Chi to Nanyuan, and found a servant who had been responsible for the purchase of ingredients for the Gu family, and he was also responsible for buying the flowers in Xinning's house.

"Miss Biao likes flowers. Since I came to the house, I have to buy a bouquet of flowers every day." The simple and honest man scratched his head, "Sir, why do you ask this?"

"Where did you buy it?"

"Every morning, after I buy the ingredients for the kitchen, I take a detour to the flower alley at the gate of the city, and I buy the flowers from the one that looks good. Flowers are very delicate, and they don't look good after a long time. .”

"But isn't there no red flowers in this city?"

"Red flowers? Didn't I buy white flowers?" The man scratched his head, "Red flowers are unlucky! They are not sold in the city, and the cousin didn't specify the color, so I bought white flowers on my own. like."

After finishing speaking, the man looked at Han Mei: "Does Miss Biao like red flowers? Then what should I do..."

Lin Chi's eyes lit up when he heard this, and the servant said that he bought Xinning white flowers every time, but when Lin Chi met her, what she was holding in her hand was a bunch of blood-colored manjusawa.Lin Chi grabbed the man's hand and thanked him repeatedly, then turned around and ran out the door. He must tell Lou Qi about this news as soon as possible, so that the two of them can discuss the next action plan.

The man who was left on the spot looked blank: "Han Mei, did I say something wrong?"

"No, I made a mistake." Han Mei bit her lower lip, a gloomy glint flashed in her lowered eyes.

Lin Chi trotted all the way, and soon arrived at the Qingcheng River. Lou Qi, now the owner of the river, naturally knew Lin Chi's movements. Lin Chi had just stopped when he appeared.

"What's the matter?" Lou Qi asked Lin Chi while supporting the panting Lin Chi, giving him some relief.

"Lou Qi, the servant in charge of purchasing flowers for Xinning said that the flowers he bought for Xinning were all white. His words were consistent with that of my mother-in-law, who said that there were no red flowers in the city, but when I met Xinning at Gu's house, The flowers in her hands are clearly red."

How did this flower change from the white flower when the servant bought it to the red flower in Xinning's hand?

"This is indeed a breakthrough, but if Hanmei has been insisting that Xinning is innocent, if you check Xinning, then don't go through her hands." Lou Qi pointed out.

Lin Chi nodded. Han Mei's attitude towards Xin Ning was indeed strange. She had warned herself to stay away from Xin Ning the day before, but turned around to help Xin Ning get rid of the suspicion. Every time Lin Chi fixed her eyes on Xin Ning, Han Mei's Performance will be a little weird.

If there is nothing tricky about it, Lin Chi would never believe it.