When the book-traveling little detective meets the two-faced prince

After hearing this, Jiang Lian'an turned his gaze to the paper dolls with different states of death placed on the ground.

If you look closely, you can see traces of splicing everywhere on the doll's body. Looking at the dolls placed everywhere, Jiang Lian'an lowered his gaze, a thoughtful look in his eyes, and thought:

"Eleven years have passed since the disappearance of Huaifeng Village. Almost no one has set foot in Huaifeng Village in these eleven years. It was not until two months ago when strange things happened in Huaifeng Village that people began to come here one after another, wanting to find out what happened. Then, a month ago, County Magistrate Chang received a threatening letter and ordered the ships to be closed. Since then, no one has set foot in Huaifeng Village since then."

Jiang Lian settled down for a moment, then looked up at Lin Lezhi and said thoughtfully, "Now that I think about it, the people of Pinghai Town have indeed never mentioned the matter of salvaging river lanterns."

"Based on this inference, the number of river lanterns gathered by the lake is indeed too small." Jiang Lian'an's eyes showed admiration as he said, "Mr. Lin is indeed attentive. If you hadn't mentioned it, I wouldn't have noticed the difference in the river lanterns."

"Jiang Gui has been here for a while. It was only when I saw these dolls that I remembered the river lanterns by the lake. Although I still cannot figure out the murderer's intentions based on these dolls alone, seeing these dolls can at least confirm one thing."

"What's the matter?"

"Detective Jiang Gui said that the smoke was set off to appeal for justice. If the murderer really intended to lead us here, perhaps..." Lin Lezhi glanced at all the puppets, his eyes darkened as he said, "He wanted to tell us that there was something fishy about the disappearance of Huaifeng Village."

Hearing this, He Yu's eyes widened in shock. Looking at the hundreds of puppets with tragic deaths that almost occupied the entire cave, the confusion in his eyes grew more and more intense.

"Strange...? You mean to say that the people of Huaifeng Village didn't suddenly disappear, but were brutally killed like these puppets?"

Lin Lezhi and Jiang Lian'an remained silent.

Although I don't want to admit it, from what I see before my eyes, this is the most likely possibility.

"But...after the people of Huaifeng Village disappeared, County Magistrate Chang led people to the island to investigate. If they were really murdered, why didn't we see any bloodstains or bodies in the village?"

"It's not difficult." Lin Lezhi looked at He Yu and said with reluctance in his eyes: "Huaifeng Village is built on the mountain, and the terrain gradually rises. Because of this, you can vaguely see the lights of Huaifeng Village when standing by the lake in Pinghai Town at night, and you have to pass through a dense forest before entering the village."

"Given the distance between Huaifeng Village and Pinghai Town, the lights may have a chance to enter people's sight, but the sound is difficult to reach the other side. In addition, the day Huaifeng Village disappeared was during the Lantern Festival, and the people of Pinghai Town released river lanterns by the lake. It was very lively and bustling everywhere."

As he spoke, Lin Lezhi took a deep breath and slowly said, "So, the entire Huaifeng Village is like a natural secret room. We just need to find a way to take the people away from the village and find a hidden place, and then we can keep it secret from gods and ghosts."

"This……"

He Yu was so shocked that he couldn't speak. It seemed like there was a lot of anger accumulating in his chest, which he couldn't vent.

"That's right." Jiang Lian'an said, "If we don't know where the people's bones are buried, we will undoubtedly have to dig deep into the ground to find them. The manpower and financial resources required are immeasurable. At that time, the disappearance of Huaifeng Village was widely spread, and almost no one dared to go to the island. Even if we want to find out, as time goes by, it will eventually be in vain."

He Yu clenched his fists, gritted his teeth and said angrily: "Who on earth is so cruel to these innocent people!"

Lin Lezhi patted He Yu on the shoulder and said softly: "What I said is just a guess. Until the matter is fully investigated, there is no way to make a final conclusion."

"Ah."

He Yu nodded in response, but his eyes were still very heavy.

"These boxes are all locked. Maybe there will be some clues inside."

As he spoke, Jiang Lian'an shifted his gaze to a few people, and his words seemed to be asking for everyone's thoughts.

Lin Lezhi lowered his eyes and thought for a moment, then glanced at Xiao Yihuo who was standing beside him.

Xiao Yihuo didn't say anything else except what he said to him when he first came in. He stood aside and no one knew what he was thinking. He even avoided his gaze just now.

Lin Lezhi turned his gaze back to He Yu and Jiang Lian'an and said, "General Cheng only asked us to come in to investigate. I think we should wait for General Cheng and his men to open the box. Besides... it's dark inside the cave, and we have to get back before the torch in Brother He's hand goes out."

Hearing the sound, He Yu looked at the torch in his hand, and saw that a lot of it had been burned.

In order to hide their tracks, they used the dirt on the wall to forcibly extinguish two torches. Only this one was left. If that was also extinguished, the visibility would be poor relying solely on the light source of the tinderbox.

"What Lezhi said makes sense." He Yu handed the torch in his hand to Lin Lezhi, then held the sword at his waist, and said solemnly: "You go back and bring the news back to the general. I will stay here to prevent any accidents."

"In that case, I'll stay too. It's not safe for you to stay here alone." Jiang Lian'an walked forward and looked at Lin Lezhi, nodded slightly and said, "I'll trouble you to inform Mr. Xiao about the general."

"Okay." Lin Lezhi took the torch, glanced at Jiang Lian'an's waist, and said solemnly, "You didn't bring a sword this time, so take this."

Jiang Lian'an's eyes flashed with surprise, and then he smiled lightly and said, "I didn't expect something like this to happen. Thank you for your kindness, Master Lin. You will need swords to defend yourself when you go back. You don't have to leave them to me. The one that General He carries is enough."

"Okay, then be careful, we will bring people back soon."

"Ah."

After entering the cave, Xiao Yihuo frowned, took the torch from Lin Lezhi without saying a word, and walked in front.

On the way back, I was able to walk much faster because I was familiar with the cave.

Lin Lezhi was somewhat uncomfortable with Xiao Yihuo's behavior.

Lin Lezhi thought for a while, and then heaved a sigh of relief as if to adjust his state. He said to Xiao Yihuo who was walking in front of him, "The situation in this cave is unclear. After we get out this time, you should... don't follow me in again."

Hearing this, Xiao Yihuo, who was walking in front, paused slightly, but did not stop. He continued to walk forward without responding to Lin Lezhi's words.

Lin Lezhi couldn't see Xiao Yihuo's expression, and said awkwardly: "I think... you probably don't like the environment here. I saw you frowning just now. Don't be hard on yourself..."

Xiao Yihuo stopped suddenly. Because he was walking fast and Lin Lezhi was talking, he almost didn't react in time and almost bumped into Xiao Yihuo.

Lin Lezhi steadied himself and couldn't help complaining, "Next time you want to stop suddenly, could you please..."

Xiao Yihuo clenched the torch in his hand, and before Lin Lezhi could finish, he interrupted with a cold voice, "None of your business is my business."