The coroner and the concubine doctor pursue the murderer in the Dali Temple

Chapter 269 Salt Mine

Early in the morning of the second day, Xiao Mubei asked Wu Xu to lead the soldiers to build a long platform with wood in the center of Jumu Village. They also placed flammable materials such as firewood, branches and wooden strips around the platform. They carried the dead villagers of Jumu Village onto the platform one by one and laid them in a row. There were nearly eighty bodies placed there. The scene was horrifying and no one could bear to look at it.

Although Chu Yunxi was used to seeing corpses, it was rare for her to see so many corpses placed together. Especially when she saw the corpses of Father Weng and Aunt Weng, she felt extremely uncomfortable.

Wu Xu led his men to pour kerosene on the wood, lit torches and stood aside. Except for Hei Mu who was seriously injured and recuperating at Father and Aunt Weng's home, all the others, including Ke Yuwen and Qingshan, the yamen runners they brought with them, two hundred soldiers, Xiao Mubei, Chu Yunxi, Hongyu and Qingmei, all gathered here.

Xiao Mubei ordered his men to bring wine, poured a bowl for each person, and raised it to the victims together, saying in a deep voice: "My fellow villagers, please rest assured. I will help you find the murderer and give you justice. I swear here that I will not leave Southern Xinjiang until this case is closed. I will definitely catch the murderer and bring him to justice. When the time comes, I will use his blood to pay tribute to the souls of all the dead."

After saying that, he poured half a bowl of wine in his hand onto the ground and drank the rest. Everyone also poured half a bowl of wine in their hands onto the ground and drank the rest. Chu Yunxi and others just felt stuffy in their chests and felt sad for these villagers. On the other hand, although Ke Yuwen and others pretended to be indignant on their faces, they always had eye contact with each other, and the meaning in their eyes was ambiguous.

At Xiao Mubei's command, Wu Xu and several soldiers threw torches up. When the kerosene met the fire, it instantly burst into flames, gradually engulfing the figure on the stage. Hongyu and Qingmei couldn't help but shed tears, and Chu Yunxi also felt her nose sour, and she forced herself not to let the tears flow out.

It was not until noon that the fire gradually died down and all the bodies turned to ashes. Chu Yunxi and Hongyu Qingmei gathered the ashes together and packed them all in a large box. Two soldiers carried the box and buried the ashes halfway up the mountainside of Jumu Mountain, facing the direction of Jumu Village.

Chu Yunxi lit incense in front of the grave and said softly, "Fellow villagers, you can rest here. Jumu Village will surely be lively again, don't worry."

Coming down from the mountain, Xiao Mubei, Ke Yuwen and others were waiting for her at the foot of the mountain. Wu Xu also led people to follow. Seeing Chu Yunxi coming down, Xiao Mubei went to greet her and naturally held Chu Yunxi's hand, "Yunxi, let's go to the salt mine with Lord Ke."

So soon? Chu Yunxi knew that Ke Yuwen was anxious, but she didn't expect him to be so impatient that he couldn't wait for her to come back and went straight to the foot of the mountain to wait for her.

But since they already had an idea in their minds, it didn't matter whether it was a little earlier or later. Chu Yunxi nodded calmly and glanced at the people who came with them. Except for two maids and a small number of soldiers, everyone else had come.

Seeing that everyone was gathered, Ke Yuwen stepped forward and bowed, saying, "My Lord, Princess, shall we set off?"

The salt mine is at the foot of Jumu Mountain, not far from where they are now. Everyone walked here directly without riding horses.

Chu Yunxi and Xiao Mubei walked behind Ke Yuwen, holding each other's hands tightly. Xiao Mubei was afraid that Chu Yunxi would worry, so he squeezed her hand hard. Chu Yunxi looked over and understood what was in his eyes: she felt relieved!

So she curled her lips and showed a warm smile, "With you here, I'm never worried."

It was not a long distance, but it seemed like they had walked a long way, and yet it seemed like they had arrived in the blink of an eye. It was the first time that Chu Yunxi saw a salt mine, and she couldn't help but open her eyes wide.

This salt mine is huge and is located underground. Only a part of it is visible to the naked eye, and the rest is still covered underneath. It is unknown which parts have been reburied by landslides, and it is also unknown how many innocent souls are buried underneath. Ke Yuwen took them to the entrance of the salt mine, and looking inside, it was a vast expanse of white, very spectacular.

Ke Yuwen said: "After I found it, I arranged for some people to mine it. I wanted to see the scale of this salt mine. According to my guess, this salt mine is very large. Your Highness can take people in to conduct an on-site survey."

Xiao Mubei nodded and walked a few steps inside. Ke Yuwen couldn't help but show his joy. He didn't expect that King Dingbei was so easy to deceive. After he led everyone in...

Before he could finish his thought, Xiao Mubei suddenly turned around and said, "Master Ke, can you lead the way?"

Ke Yuwen was stunned and said, "There is only one road inside."

Xiao Mubei smiled and said, "This is the first time I've seen a salt mine. I don't know much about it. Lord Ke is an expert. I would like to ask Lord Ke for advice. Why doesn't Lord Ke want to accompany me in?"

Ke Yuwen laughed dryly and said, "How could that be? It is my humble honor." As he spoke, his eyes glanced at the green mountains beside him.

Qingshan gestured for him to accompany Xiao Mubei and the others in first, and then find a way out later. Ke Yuwen had no choice but to go to Xiao Mubei and accompany him.

Xiao Mubei instructed Wu Xu calmly, "General Wu, please take the others and stay outside. Otherwise, if those bandits suddenly show up and block the exit, we will all be caught in the trap."

Ke Yuwen couldn't help but sweat on his forehead when he heard Xiao Mubei's hint. Xiao Mubei pretended not to see it and pulled Ke Yuwen and said, "Let's go, Master Ke."

Ke Yuwen had no choice but to follow Xiao Mubei and Chu Yunxi into the salt mine. The scale of the salt mine was indeed quite large. Chu Yunxi was stunned by the scene inside. Everything around was white, and even the rock walls were covered with salt crystals, which was very beautiful. It looked like a world of ice and snow, but this was much more valuable than ice.

Ke Yuwen walked in absentmindedly, Xiao Mubei and Chu Yunxi followed him, and Zi Han and the Purple Guards followed behind.

Xiao Mubei exclaimed as he asked, "Are there other salt mines in Southern Xinjiang?"

Ke Yuwen replied: "Yes, but the salt mines discovered so far are relatively small. The sea area in southern Xinjiang was vast before, so there should be many hidden salt mines, but not many have been discovered."

Xiao Mubei exclaimed, "I didn't expect that Lord Ke has quite a lot of insights in this regard. He is indeed a talent of our Dasui. When I return to the capital, I will report back to my father and ask him to make use of Lord Ke. Our Dasui will definitely not treat talents unfairly."

These words made Ke Yuwen's heart stir again. He thought that he had studied hard in order to become a good official and to seek welfare for the people of Southern Xinjiang. But when did his heart change? Was it when he met Qingshan, or when he first received the silver bribe?