There is a god in the sky

Chapter 401 Leading you into the urn

Shen Lan smelled foul.

Those who were nearby covered their mouths and noses.

The Imperial Guard Commander, Cheng Hai, looked at the woman with curiosity.

Shen Lan's name had already spread throughout the capital. It was she who, through her act of beating the drum to appeal for justice, brought down the Crown Prince and the entire Tong family.

The amazing thing is that she is still alive.

Although the Crown Prince and the Tong family were both dead, there were still many loyal servants in the capital.

Just look at the turmoil in the capital these days.

But why didn't those people come to seek revenge on Shen Lan?

Shen Lan had been assassinated before, but those people seemed to prefer taking revenge on society rather than trying to kill her, a woman.

The Prefect of Jingzhao jogged over, bowed, and said, "Your Majesty, Coroner Shen was the first person to arrive at the crime scene today, and also the first to start rescuing people. She even collected most of the bodies here."

The newly appointed Prefect of Jingzhao had a close relationship with the Xiao family, so he was naturally aware of Shen Lan's connection with the Xiao family and was happy to speak well of Shen Lan in front of the Emperor.

The emperor had already heard about the brutality of the bandits on his way here.

The Imperial Guards tracked down the group of thugs, but only managed to shoot and kill two of them; the rest disappeared without a trace.

Such a villain must be executed once and for all, otherwise countless people will suffer again.

"Very good. Coroner Shen is kind-hearted and courageous. I am very pleased."

If Shen Lan weren't a woman, the emperor would have really wanted to promote her.

Unlike Li Ge, who was full of scheming, Shen Lan seemed to be a simple-minded person.

Most importantly, she was all alone, without any family ties behind her, and could completely control herself.

What he needs most right now are his own people.

Xiao Ji is also a good person and loyal to him, but after all, he has the Xiao family behind him.

"This is what I should do, but unfortunately I am outnumbered and only managed to rescue a few people."

The emperor also saw the survivors huddled in the corner; he left the palace to appease the people.

Before he could speak, a woman with disheveled hair rushed out and angrily shouted at the emperor, "It's all your fault! You're the one who ruined it! My husband, my children... they're all gone!"

The emperor stood there, stunned.

The woman continued shouting, "You dog emperors, you have no regard for the lives of the people. All your fighting and strife only harms us!"

The Prefect of Jingzhao quickly gave his officers a signal, and the crowd swarmed forward and gagged the woman.

"Release her," the emperor said as he walked over.

Shen Lan stood quietly to the side and watched.

She also wanted to see how the new emperor would handle the people's grievances.

If he's smart enough, this is indeed a good opportunity for him to win over the people.

Those who hate him will still hate him.

Xiao Ji walked to Shen Lan's side and, using her sleeve as cover, grabbed her hand.

Shen Lan glanced at him and deliberately said, "These hands of mine have touched countless dead people just now, and I didn't even wash them."

Xiao Ji was not afraid at all.

"It's just a dead body, it's not like I haven't touched it before."

Shen Lan had no choice but to let him hold her hand, hooking his fingers with her little finger.

Sui Feng appeared beside Xiao Ji at some point and whispered, "Sir, the two bodies shot by the Jinwu Guard have been taken to the Criminal Investigation Department."

"okay, I get it."

It was already late at night when Xiao Ji pulled Shen Lan's hand and said, "Come with me to the yamen."

"it is good."

Over there, the emperor apologized with remorse and promised the survivors that he would rebuild their homes.

However, with their family members gone, rebuilding their home was not a happy thing for them.

Shen Lan knew that the emperor, whether out of kindness or for the sake of appearances, would not abandon these people, so she felt at ease and left with Xiao Ji.

"Which faction are these people who committed the murders today?"

"Remnants of a cult."

Shen Lan hadn't expected this. They killed to vent their anger, and she had assumed they had a deep-seated hatred for the emperor.

But what is the relationship between cult organizations and the imperial court?

"I investigated this matter for a long time before I finally made some progress."

The cult was eradicated back then, but many of its members escaped.

Some of them hid among the common people, while others were gradually gathered up by one person.

Shen Lan suddenly realized, "You mean... Tong Yiwen?"

"Yes, after he obtained the manual, he did not rush to start cultivating. Instead, he found many remnants of cults and, under the guise of rebuilding their gangs, led them to cultivate together."

These people were very loyal to Tong Yiwen, which is why they rushed back from all directions after learning of his death.

Upon arriving at the Criminal Investigation Department, they went directly to the morgue.

Two corpses, one of which was someone Shen Lan recognized.

"This is the old woman we wanted back then."

Xiao Ji moved the oil lamp closer, examined it carefully, and nodded. "It's her."

"It turns out that those people at the inn were remnants of a cult."

Then their worship of evil gods becomes understandable, but it's unclear whether their actions were spontaneous or arranged by Tong Yiwen.

"They did indeed die from being shot by arrows; they only had this one wound on their entire bodies."

Shen Lan then went to look at the items that had been found on them.

Besides a little silver, there were also some poisons and wound medicines commonly used in the martial arts world.

The weapon was just an ordinary knife, without any markings.

Xiao Ji dismissed the rest of the people and said to Shen Lan, "Could we dissect them to see if there are any other clues?"

"You're trying to determine their whereabouts from the food in their stomachs, right?"

"Correct."

"This method may not be suitable for them."

"Why?"

"They were being chased by the Imperial Guards, so there's no chance they'll return to their hideout. Besides, they've probably already scattered, and they won't be together tonight. Finding a hideout won't help."

Xiao Ji frowned deeply.

It's clear that he also really wants to catch these thugs as soon as possible.

"However, we can try another method."

"what way?"

"Luring them into a trap," Shen Lan explained in detail.

Soon, the Criminal Investigation Department announced that one of the two thugs they brought back was dead and the other was injured; the injured man had recovered.

We can begin the interrogation once she's past the danger period tonight.

Once the news spread, Xiao Ji began to make his plans.

Shen Lan worked with him all night and was only allowed to rest at dawn.

She took a nap in the lounge and heard Officer Xing's voice coming from outside.

"Go quickly and inform the adults that two vegetable farmers who deliver vegetables have come in through the back door, and they are acting suspiciously."

Shen Lan jumped out of bed, checked the weapons on her body, then opened the door and went out.

When Constable Xing saw her, he frowned and said, "Coroner Shen, you should go home now."

Shen Lan ignored him and rushed towards Xiao Ji's location.

When she arrived, a fight had already broken out.

A group of officials surrounded two farmers dressed in short clothes. When the farmers realized they had been discovered, they began to kill them.

Seeing that the officials were no match for them, Sui Feng and Sui Ying attacked simultaneously.

The vacant positions were then filled by government officials.

Shen Lan stood behind Xiao Ji, looking around warily.

It's unlikely that only two people will come.