The Elixir is for You, The Poison is for Me

#455 - Hunting the murderer

Upon hearing these words, everyone at the table paled.

Jiang Lei is dead!

This martial arts hero, who rose from humble beginnings to achieve great success, a legendary figure, grandmaster of hidden weapons, and the soul of the Thunderfire Hall, had actually died, and his head had been cut off.

The first reaction of most people upon hearing this news was disbelief.

Especially Lu Jing, Li Bufan, and Yu Wenyu. Less than half an hour ago, they had just met with Jiang Lei. Who would have thought that would be their last meeting with him?

After a moment, Li Bufan was the first to speak, "Is the manor sealed off?"

Aunt Wen nodded, "I have already ordered people to guard the gates."

Seeing that the Duke of Yingguo seemed somewhat bewildered, Yu Wenyu explained, "We met Jiang Lei earlier, about half an hour ago. From then until we left and walked here, he never left his room."

Aunt Wen then added, "According to the maid who first went to invite Hall Master Jiang to the banquet, she arrived outside Hall Master Jiang's door about an incense stick's time ago. She didn't see Hall Master Jiang himself, but she saw a figure inside through the window paper. So, she told him her purpose outside the door. Hall Master Jiang replied to her, 'Understood,' but his tone was somewhat impatient.

"The second maid arrived about a cup of tea later, knocked on the door but received no response. So, she pushed the door open and went in, and then saw Hall Master Jiang's body on the bed."

"That is to say, Hall Master Jiang's murder should have occurred between the first maid leaving and the second maid arriving," Lu Qinghou said, stroking his chin. "Calculating the time from the incident to now, it's only been about an incense stick's time at most. Indeed, the murderer is likely still in the manor."

"It should be said that they are definitely still in the manor," Aunt Wen said. "Today is my mother's birthday. To prevent accidents, I specifically increased the number of guards. However, I didn't expect something to happen inside the manor. The main defense was against those bandits outside.

"I just asked the people in charge of security. In the past hour, no one has entered or exited through the main gate or the two side gates. In addition, I also arranged archers on the city walls, originally to prevent experts from sneaking in from the outside. However, if a master of light body technique wanted to climb over the wall from the inside, it would be basically impossible without alerting them."

"If that's the case, things are simple. Next, we just need to find the murderer in the manor," the Duke of Yingguo said, clapping his hands.

However, the expression on Aunt Wen's face still looked solemn. She sighed and said, "Hall Master Jiang died unexpectedly in Wen Family Manor. Even if the murderer is not from our Wen Family Manor, there must be someone from the manor who is their accomplice. Otherwise, it would be impossible to know Hall Master Jiang's whereabouts so clearly and seize that short period of time when he was alone."

Aunt Wen paused here, "Hall Master Jiang's death is of great importance. I not only need to give my second daughter an explanation, but also to the six thousand members of Thunderfire Hall, and the people of the martial world. Therefore, this time, we must not only catch the murderer and avenge Hall Master Jiang, but also catch the traitor who helped him, and preferably also find the mastermind behind his murder.

"The former matter may be relatively easy, but the latter two matters… relying solely on the strength of our Wen family, I'm afraid we are not up to the task."

The six people present were well aware that the Wen family was not actually incapable, but rather worried that the final investigation results would not be convincing and would not satisfy the Thunderfire Hall members and the people of the martial world.

After all, Jiang Lei died in Wen Family Manor, and it was very likely that a member of the Wen family was involved. If the other party's identity was not simple, people would inevitably suspect whether the Wen family would play any tricks to abandon a pawn to protect the king. Therefore, Aunt Wen needed several influential people to ensure the authenticity of the investigation results.

Or more precisely, the authority. And no one was more suitable for this task than the six people at the table. Although Lu Qinghou and the others were all sons-in-law of the Wen family, they were all heroes in their own right, and each of them was a man of great influence in the martial world.

Plus Lu Jing, with their endorsement, there should be much fewer people questioning.

Of course, Lu Qinghou and the others would not decline this.

And his words were echoed by everyone.

Aunt Wen was relieved to receive Li Bufan's assurance, and then said, "In that case, please help me, sons-in-law, and Hero Lu, to find out the truth about Hall Master Jiang's murder and find the person who murdered him. Don't worry, I won't let everyone work for nothing. Whoever can catch the mastermind behind the scenes, the Wen family will definitely reward them handsomely."

Lu Jing originally planned to come to the birthday banquet to answer questions and earn extra money. Now it seems that the birthday banquet is gone, but unexpectedly, the extra money is still there, but the question has become a criminal investigation question.

But this can also be regarded as corresponding to his business.

So, after Aunt Wen finished speaking, Lu Jing said, "Can I go and see the place where Hall Master Jiang was murdered?"

"Of course. From now on, you sons-in-law and Hero Lu can go to any place in the manor you want. No one will stop you. If you want to talk to anyone, the people in the manor will also cooperate as much as possible. In addition, I will also transfer a group of guards to each of you for you to use," Aunt Wen said.

Lu Jing didn't say anything when he heard this. After all, he was a newcomer and didn't know the layout, architecture, and residences of the Wen Family Manor. He did need someone to guide him and answer his questions. In addition, Aunt Wen's team also had another meaning for them.

As for this meaning, Lu Jing also understood it, but he would not expose it.

And Li Bufan and the others were the same as him. After receiving a team, they left separately.

In this process, they were very surprised that they did not communicate with their wives at all, and Lu Jing was the same. He just glanced in the direction of Wen Xiaochuan, and found that Wen Xiaochuan was also looking at him, with a hint of worry in her eyes.

But when she saw him looking over, she quickly hid the worry in her eyes and made a gesture to Lu Jing that only the disciples of the academy could understand.

She curled up her little finger and middle finger, which meant everything was fine, so Lu Jing also returned the same gesture to her, and then led his team towards Jiang Lei's residence.