d, "Madam, did I apply the medicine too forcefully Last night, I saw the Master applying medicine to you this way, it required some kneading and pressing, otherwise, the effect wouldn't be as good. Bu...Because the county office was haunted, two successive county magistrates had died. Therefore, the officials sent by the imperial court to investigate did not stay at the relay station but resided in the county office to better determine whether it was a case of human interference or a genuine haunting.

Gu Jingxi went to the guest room where Liu Da had lived. Du Da's family only had a son and an elderly mother. The old mother stayed at their ancestral home in the capital, guarding memories with her late husband; she didn't want to go with him on his posting. His son also did not come, so he came alone to take up his post and lived in the room where the magistrate resided. The other rooms were vacant. After Liu Da had died suddenly in the guest room, no one had stayed there since. Now, dust had accumulated in the room.

After entering the room, Gu Jingxi closed the door and looked around. The furnishings were ordinary, nothing special. The furniture was also old and hadn't been replaced.

But this is understandable. The furniture inside the county government office wouldn't be replaced unless it was broken. They would only change the bed sheets and blankets. If someone died in the house, then that room would also have a history of death. Even more people died in the county jail cells, so they couldn't possibly replace them all. If you minded it, when the next magistrate came, you could pay your own money to replace it, just like the bed in Master Du's room, which he had paid to replace with a new one.

Gu Jingxi didn't miss any corner, examining each floor tile to see if there was anything suspicious. He even checked under the bed carefully but found nothing. Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly discovered a carved symbol on the door. The symbol was shaped like an arrow pointing upward. The arrowhead was deliberately drawn thicker and consisted of three arrows stacked on top of each other.

This symbol is not large, about the length of a little finger, carved on the door. When opening or closing the door from inside the house, one's eyes would normally see this symbol, but this inconspicuous little symbol would be ignored by ordinary people unless they were experienced in investigations and accustomed to carefully examining the scene. Only then could they notice it and ponder its meaning.

However, this symbol doesn't look old. The carving wouldn't be over a year old.

In the blink of an eye, Gu Jingxi felt that the symbol seemed familiar. He pondered for a moment, hurriedly left the guest room and went to Mr. Du's room. After opening and closing the door, he saw the same symbol as in the guest room.

Gu Jingxi's gaze was fixed, his intuition telling him this was a hint. Recalling what A Yao had said, he pondered for a moment and, following the direction the arrow pointed, slowly raised his head to look upwards. There were no markings on the storefront sign. Above that was the wall, which was also bare. Then, looking further up, he saw the beams.

He whispered softly, "The joists"

Gu Jingxi looked at the beam above his head, then glanced at the table and chairs beside him. If someone didn't know martial arts and didn't use any other tools, they couldn't reach the beam. But with the help of a table and chairs stacked together, if a person stood on the chair, they could reach the beam with their hand.

Gu Jingxi leaped up, firmly grasping the horizontal beam. He glanced upwards at the beam and his eyes lit up. A surge of excitement filled his heart. He had a strong feeling that whatever was on the beam would be useful to his investigation, holding the answers he sought.

It was a square object wrapped in oiled paper, slightly larger than a palm and very thin, resembling a letter. The oiled paper wrapping was probably to prevent insect infestation, and half a jade pendant pressed on top of it.

He unwrapped the oil paper package and took off the jade pendant. Then, he leaped down to the ground and left Du's guest room for now. He went back to the room and checked the beams. There was another oil paper-wrapped object on top, with half a jade pendant pressing down on it.

He took his things down and then went back to the guest room where he lived with Ayo.

Meng Jin Yao saw that the dust had stained his clothes. The light blue robe looked very obvious with the dust, and even the spider web on his hair, she was surprised: "Husband, how did you get yourself like this"

Gu Jingxi coughed lightly to ease the awkwardness: "It's nothing, just once I rummaged under the bed."

"Digging under the bed" Meng Jin Yao's eyes widened in disbelief as she looked at him, sizing him up and down. "Husband, what are you doing digging under the bed"

Gu Jingxi replied, "Although I didn't find what I was looking for, I found something else in a different place."

Upon hearing this, Meng Jiny Yao was greatly shocked: "Found it Found it"

Gu Jingxi chuckled, wanting to hug her. But he was covered in dirt and said softly, "It's Ayao who is smart, reminding her husband so that he could find it. If not for Ayao's reminder, her husband would have overlooked a detail."red the maid: "Go and set up the meal. The young master will stay for dinner, add another set of chopsticks."Gu Jingxi saw that the little girl's smile was slightly strained, and her eyes were also sl...