Chapter 107 Qin Dan's First Meeting
Chapter 107 Qin Dan's First Meeting
At this moment, Xiao Xia suddenly saw a pair of maces hanging on the saddle of the young constable. He was moved and asked with a smile: "Could this brother be Qin Qiong from Licheng County?"
The young captain was stunned and said with a smile: "Young man, you are a scholar, and you know me?"
It turned out to be Qin Qiong, what a coincidence.
Xiao Xia was overjoyed and said, "I have an uncle who practices martial arts. He told me that there is a hero named Qin Qiong in Licheng County, Qi County. He rode his horse across both banks of the Yellow River and beat six counties in Shandong with his mace. He is a righteous and kind person."
The three detectives nearby all laughed, "Shubao's reputation has spread to Jianghuai!"
No matter how many holes there are, flattery never fails. Qin Qiong was very happy that a scholar from Jiangdu actually knew about his reputation, but he did not show it on his face.
Qin Qiong smiled slightly and said, "Your uncle thinks too highly of me, but why are you going to Shanjiazhuang alone? It's not safe there!"
"I'm actually going to Chang'an. I'm here to deliver a letter to the owner of the manor, Shan Xiongxin, on someone's behalf."
Hearing that the letter was sent to Shan Xiongxin, Qin Qiong frowned and asked worriedly, "It's not a provocative letter, right?"
"Of course not. It was his brother Shan Xiongying who asked me to come to his hometown to tell him something before he died."
The three detectives were all shocked, "Brother, Shan Xiongying is dead!"
Qin Qiong was also a little surprised. He waved his hand at his subordinates and asked Xiao Xia quickly, "Shan Xiongying is a well-known thief. Can you tell me what happened?"
"It happened at the beginning of the year. I went to Gaoyou to visit my relatives and met a dying man on the way. He said his name was Shan Xiongying, and he was from Shanjiazhuang, Heze, Jiyin County. He was murdered. Before he died, he asked me to send his belongings to his eldest brother. Later, he died. This time I happened to go to Chang'an to study, so I stopped here to deliver a letter."
Qin Qiong thought for a moment and said, "Shan Xiongxin is extremely suspicious. This is about his brother's life. He will definitely not believe what you say. He will definitely detain you and interrogate you strictly, and may even torture you. If you trust me, Qin Qiong, I will deliver this letter for you. You give me everything you want to say and I will clear you. How about that? Of course, if you come here for the reward, I will not help you."
Qin Qiong's proposal was exactly what Xiao Xia wanted. He had originally planned to find a villager or a child to help him deliver the letter. He would not face Shan Xiongxin and cause trouble for himself.
Xiao Xia nodded, took out the cloth bag containing the hair and spear techniques, and handed it to Qin Qiong.
"I don't want any reward, and I don't want to deal with people like Shan Xiongxin. Thank you, Brother Qin, for delivering the letter for me!"
Qin Qiong took the bag and asked, "Little brother, do you know the cause of Shan Xiongying's death and where he was buried?"
Xiao Xia shook his head. "He didn't tell me who killed him. As for the body, the government should have taken it!"
Xiao Xia didn't want to mention Wei Lihu because he didn't want to involve himself. Although Wei Lihu deserved to die, once Shan Xiongxin tracked down Wei Lihu, he would definitely find out the cause of Shan Xiongying's death.
He didn't even tell Qin Qiong his real name, just to clear himself completely.
Qin Qiong smiled and said, "Little brother, go to Chang'an! We will meet again in the future if we are lucky."
Xiao Xia clasped his fists and said, "Brother Qin is indeed a righteous hero. We will definitely meet again!"
Xiao Xia turned his horse around and left. Several of his men said, "Shan Xiongxin is a very difficult guy. Isn't Shubao looking for trouble?"
Qin Qiong said calmly: "I told him the whereabouts of Shan Xiongying. At least it's a favor. Otherwise, our mission would never be accomplished. Let's see how lucky we are!"
The four continued to move forward, and soon they arrived at Shanjiazhuang, and soon found Shan Xiongxin's mansion.
Shan Xiongxiong was a local tyrant, very famous in the Central Plains and Shandong areas. He specialized in buying low and selling high, and made a huge fortune.
Hearing that the famous Qin Qiong was coming, Shan Xiongxin went out to greet him in person. Although it was the first time they met, they had both heard of each other's names for a long time. Even if Qin Qiong didn't say it, Shan Xiongxin could guess that he must have come for some stolen goods.
Qin Qiong was welcomed into the mansion, and the two of them sat in the guest hall, while three of his subordinates waited downstairs.
Qin Qiong smiled and said, "I came here so suddenly for two things, one official and one personal. Let's talk about official matters first. We arrested the thief Zhu Shen. According to his confession, he stole fifteen pieces of jewelry from a guest at an inn in Licheng last month and gave them to Brother Shan. The owner of these fifteen pieces of jewelry is a good friend of my boss. I beg Brother Shan to return the jewelry to us!" Shan Xiongxin smiled and said, "Let's talk about personal matters! I'm more interested in personal matters."
"The private matter is that we know the whereabouts of your brother Shan Xiongying!"
Shan Xiongxin stood up suddenly, "Where is my brother?"
Shan Xiongying has been missing for almost a year. Shan Xiongxin has been asking around for his whereabouts, but there is no news at all, which really worries him.
Qin Qiong said calmly: "Let's talk about business first!"
Shan Xiongxin said decisively: "The fifteen pieces of jewels are in my hands. As long as Brother Qin tells me the whereabouts of my brothers, I will definitely give them to you in their original form."
Qin Qiong handed a cloth bag to Shan Xiongxin, "Second Brother Shan, take a look at this!"
Shan Xiongxin shook out the items in the cloth bag, which was a bunch of hair and a piece of folded cloth. Shan Xiongxin recognized the folded cloth at a glance, it was the Shan family's spear, and it should be a personal item of the brothers.
He widened his eyes and asked, "What does this mean?"
"Your brother should have died in Jiangdu. Actually, we don't know. Before he died, your brother asked a scholar to send his hair back to his hometown. We met this scholar in Jiyin County. He was afraid of the reputation of Shanjiazhuang and didn't dare to come, so he asked us to send it."
"what!"
When Shan Xiongxin heard that his brother had died, he was immediately filled with grief and indignation. He slammed his fist on the table and yelled, "Mr. Qin, how did my brother die?"
Qin Qiong also stood up and said angrily: "I gave you the news out of kindness. If I just threw it into the ditch, who would you turn to?"
Qin Qiong's words hit the nail on the head. Shan Xiongxin slowly calmed down and sat down dejectedly. After a while, he covered his face and burst into tears.
Qin Qiong looked at him silently, and when he calmed down a little, he said, "The person who delivered the letter to you was indeed a scholar, and he has already left. Don't ask who he is. We don't know him, let alone his name. He just delivered the letter out of kindness. If he knew your brother's identity, he would never come all the way to deliver the letter and not ask for a penny in reward."
Shan Xiongxin stared at his hair and said after a while: "My brother must have promised him a reward before he came. My reputation is not very good, so he was scared, so he asked you to help deliver the letter."
Qin Qiong nodded, "That should be the case. I also asked him who killed your brother and where he was buried. He didn't know. He said the body should have been taken away by the government. If Shan Erge wants to know the cause of his brother's death, he can only go to Jiangdu."
Shan Xiongxin sighed and said, "I will definitely go to Jiangdu, but do you know when my brother died?"
"The scholar said it was the beginning of the year!"
Shan Xiongxin nodded, "That makes sense. At the beginning of the year, my brother said he had received a big deal, and then there was no news. He didn't say anything. The only clue was that a man named Wu Shaoan found him, but where is Wu Shaoan from? I don't know either. Now I know where to check."
Shan Xiongxin said slowly: "If you want to learn the spear and throw away your hair, I know nothing about it. You are so noble, how can I, Shan Xiongxin, be a mean person!"
Shan Xiongxin immediately ordered the butler to take out fifteen pieces of jewellery. Soon, the jewellery was taken out and placed on the table.
Qin Qiong was overjoyed. These were the stolen items from the wife of Lai Huer, the governor of Hejian County. Although the thief was caught, the lost items were not found. Now that the lost items were found, they could close the case.
Qin Qiong certainly knew that Shan Xiongxin had never returned stolen goods for free, but only redeemed them at a high price. He set a precedent for himself, and this was also the luck that the young man brought to him.
If I help him deliver the letter, isn't that also helping myself?
Qin Qiong bowed and said, "Thank you, Brother Shan, for returning the jewels. Qin Qiong takes his leave!"
Qin Qiong took the jewelry and left with his three men. The next morning, Shan Xiongxin took a dozen of his men to Jiangdu to investigate the cause of his brothers' death.
(End of this chapter)