Chapter 181: Missing a Case-Solving Expert

Watching the elderly county clerk leave with his orders, Mo Xiaobai finally relaxed his expression and smiled bitterly. “Everyone, the trouble we faced this time is truly tricky.”

Guo Jia glanced at the direction the gray-bearded old man had gone, then smiled as well. “My Lord intentionally sent the county clerk away to tell us something else, right?”

“Yes, there is something to say, and this matter must be handled by you.”

Filtering the Instance information in his mind one more time, Mo Xiaobai spoke. “We know almost nothing about Ziwu County, but since the former County Magistrate is dead, we must handle all matters of Ziwu County. Among the most important things are household registration and all taxes. There must be a huge loophole here. Wait for the other clerks of the County Government Office to arrive, then Guo Yuan, you go investigate this for me.”

“Also, as you all heard just now, the County Commandant of Ziwu County led troops out of the city to patrol against bandits. It sounds fine on the surface, but I still cannot trust them. So, I will appoint a new County Commandant later. Maogong, you will take this role. I brought food and Gold Coins. You will recruit new soldiers to form a unit. I do not ask them to be too skilled in fighting, at least they must look like they belong in the army.”

“We only have five days. We must not only find out the taxes stolen by the bandits outside the city but also solve the death of the County Magistrate and find the killer. By the way, among you Fengxiao, does anyone specialize in solving cases?”

Solving cases!

Since the Instance involved the death of the former County Magistrate, Mo Xiaobai felt that finishing the quest would surely involve solving cases.

However, an awkward scene appeared. Although Daming Village was full of talent with civil and military officials, there was really no one famous for catching killers or solving cases.

Guo Jia, Li Ji, and others looked at each other silently and lowered their heads without speaking.

They had the ability to govern a place and knew the process of solving cases, but if it came to specifically investigating the truth of a death, even Guo Jia could only rely on autopsy reports or witnesses for information. He did not possess more advanced investigation methods or case-solving skills.

Guo Jia could not do it, Guo Yuan could not do it, and Li Ji and Li Guang could definitely not do it.

As for Dong Zhen, since sitting down, she had been lazily squinting her eyes, wearing an expression that said, “You guys chat among yourselves; this young lady is only here to raise the team’s beauty.”

After sitting down and waiting a while, the county clerk finally entered with a group of people. They included the Gong Cao who handled performance reviews for clerks, two Ling Li in charge of managing archives and documents, the prison warden Yuan Yuan of the county prison, the Ji Zou responsible for carriages and horses, and three Cang Li managing the county treasury.

Once this group of clerks from the County Government Office arrived, Mo Xiaobai coughed softly and scanned the group. “Now, except for the County Commandant who went out of the city and has not returned, we have met everyone we needed to know. The former County Magistrate died unexpectedly. What are your thoughts? Feel free to speak.”

Mo Xiaobai had entered the Instance blindly. Even though he trusted none of these Instance NPCs, he still had to get the primary information from them.

However, after Mo Xiaobai asked, not a single one of the nearly ten county officials in front of him said a word.

After waiting for five or six breaths without any response, Mo Xiaobai’s eyes narrowed. “Elder County Clerk, you speak first.”

“Reporting to My Lord, the death of Magistrate Zhou was truly strange.”

“How so?”

“Magistrate Zhou probably died around the Chou Hour in the deep night at a restaurant in the west of the city. He was not discovered until after dawn. We also searched carefully, but found no witnesses, no weapons were found, and even no screams were heard when he died. Two days have passed, and it seems impossible to find the killer now.”

The old man rambled on, but after listening and summarizing, Mo Xiaobai could only think of three words for his summary.

No witnesses, no physical evidence, and the hope of useful testimonies was a delusion.

Alright!

He was really unlucky to encounter such a troublesome Instance Quest.

“So, Elder County Clerk, do you think this case cannot be investigated further?”

“It is not me evading responsibility; in reality, there is nothing left to investigate.”

“Very well. Since the County Clerk is old and weak and can no longer bear the heavy responsibility of investigating cases, starting today, go home and wait for further orders from the Commandery Governor. Zini, you take over the position of County Clerk. Investigate clearly first: how many killers are actually hiding in Ziwu County?”

Mo Xiaobai had never expected these Instance NPCs to help him with anything, so he went with the flow and dismissed the County Clerk. Although according to the law, dismissing a County Clerk required an edict from the Imperial Court, in this Instance Space, Mo Xiaobai was the highest official. For at least the next five days, he could freely use his power.

If he did not put his own people in important positions, this broken task would probably take a year to finish.

After making his first decisive personnel appointment, Mo Xiaobai immediately looked at the Yuan Yuan. “You are in charge of catching killers in the county. Who are the killers in the county, and who do you understand best? Are you willing to help Zini do a good job in this?”

“Your subordinate accepts the order!”

Seeing Mo Xiaobai dismiss the County Clerk so easily, the Yuan Yuan had no intention to oppose. He immediately stepped out, clasped his fists, and agreed. He thought very clearly: he was just helping; whether the case was solved or not had nothing to do with him.

Seeing the Yuan Yuan act “well-behaved,” Mo Xiaobai nodded and continued. “In a normal county, one County Commandant is enough. But I see Ziwu County is in deep chaos. One County Commandant is not enough. Today, I will set up another County Commandant. Maogong will take the role, responsible for recruiting new soldiers and restoring Security within the city. I do not care about other things, but at least people must feel safe walking on the streets instead of staying at home in fear.”

“Yes!”

“Start working on your own tasks. Also, prepare horses for me to take me to that restaurant.” After finishing his words, Mo Xiaobai stood up, left the main seat, handed his Xumi Bag to Li Ji, and walked out of the main hall with a wave of his sleeve.

Taking Guo Jia, Li Guang, and the Ji Zou on horseback to a restaurant named “Chun Li”, Mo Xiaobai stepped inside and found that this place was not a restaurant at all, but a brothel.

A county official visiting such a place?

That was too open and brazen!

At this time, the brothel was temporarily closed. When Mo Xiaobai arrived, all the young ladies lined up in a row, all looking at this new County Magistrate with nervous expressions.

“You do not need to be nervous. I am here today only to ask some questions. If we can successfully find the reason, your restaurant, hehe, can reopen as well.”

Mo Xiaobai sat heavily on a Hu stool, puckered his lips, and said, “Who was the first to discover Zhou Yi’s body? Step forward so I can meet you.”

“It, it is this slave.”

A young woman with light makeup, looking barely sixteen years old, stepped forward. “On that night, the Magistrate did not let this slave serve him. I came out at Zi Hour. I returned to the room early the next day, but, but!”

“But what? You saw Zhou Yi dead in the room?”

“Yes, My Lord.”

“Do you remember the scene you saw at that time? For example, where he fell, and what wounds he had on his body?”

“I remember, this slave remembers. At that time, Magistrate Zhou had fallen next to the table inside the room. Blood covered the floor. Many little holes were stabbed into his head, and his body also had them.”

Listening to the young lady’s testimony, Mo Xiaobai stroked his chin. “What little holes? How small are these holes?”

“Like, like the size of a wooden chopstick.”

“Oh?”

Hearing this, Mo Xiaobai raised his eyebrows and stood up from his seat. “You are quite bold. Take me to see that room.”