Martial Immortality: Starting with the Spirit Beast Scroll Chapter 68 - 64: The Witness

i Shilin recounted the events of that day in detail while Zhao Lin stood at the street corner, listening in silence.

It turned out that on that day, Chai Qihong, furious with his sons, had gone to vent to his old friend. He got dead drunk, and i Shilin, worried sothing might happen to him on the way, decided to escort him ho.

When they were almost at his front gate, Chai Qihong turned and said, "Brother i, I’m ho. You can head back now!"

i Shilin heard that his speech was clear and his words were coherent, so after a word of caution, he started walking back toward his own ho.

He hadn’t gone far when a pained cry of "AGH!" ca from behind him. The voice sounded like Chai Qihong’s.

Without a second thought, i Shilin turned and ran back toward the Chai family’s residence.

When he got to the gate, he saw Chai Qihong lying on his back in the courtyard, a gleaming steel knife plunged into his chest.

i Shilin turned pale with shock. ’Chai Qihong was perfectly fine just a mont ago. How could he be dead in the blink of an eye?’

He worried the killer was still nearby and didn’t dare rush in to check. He opened his mouth to shout, but suddenly realized sothing:

Everyone at the banquet knew he had escorted Chai Qihong ho. The killer had vanished without a trace, and he was the only one at the scene.

’Everyone will think I’m the murderer. How could I ever explain myself?’

The more i Shilin thought about it, the more terrified he beca. He decided to act as if nothing had happened and quickly left the Chai residence.

He locked himself in his room when he got ho. The next day, upon hearing the news of Chai Qihong’s death, he pretended he knew nothing.

"In a mont of cowardice, I hid this matter," i Shilin finished, sighing softly.

Madam i frowned. "Did you see the killer?"

i Shilin shook his head, then hesitated for a mont before saying, "I think I heard soone say, ’Father, why are you so drunk?’"

Madam i gasped. "It was one of his sons! Which one?"

i Shilin was silent for a while. "From the voice, it sounded like the third son, Chai Jie. But I was far away and couldn’t hear clearly. I might have misheard."

Madam i ca to her senses, her tone reproachful. "Husband, you’ve been a fool!"

"How have I been a fool?"

"When a murderer kills soone, there’s always evidence like the weapon and bloodstains. You could have been a witness. As long as you reported it to the officials and they investigated the truth, there’s no way you would have been suspected."

i Shilin sighed again. "To be honest, I regret my poor judgnt now. But so much ti has passed. Who would believe if I spoke up now?"

"Besides, how can I condemn a man to death based on a single sentence? What if I misheard?"

"Of his three sons, Brother Chai’s favorite was his youngest. If the killer wasn’t him, wouldn’t I be framing an innocent man? After I die, how could I face my old friend?"

After hearing this, Madam i was speechless for a long mont.

Just then, a KNOCK sounded at the courtyard gate. "Clerk i, open up. It’s , Constable Zhao."

The couple jumped in fright. Madam i asked in a panic, "What do we do?"

"It’s fine. You go open the door."

i Shilin walked to the window, opened it, straightened his clothes, and composed his expression.

Madam i opened the door. Zhao Lin strode straight into the living room and said coldly to i Shilin, "Clerk i, since you recognized the murderer as the Chai family’s third son, Chai Jie, why did you conceal it and not report it?"

"You know in your heart that he did it, yet you claim you were worried you misheard. Do you even believe that yourself?"

i Shilin was aghast. He glanced outside the door. "You... How do you know?"

"I have eyes that see a thousand miles and ears that hear the wind."

Zhao Lin said this half-jokingly, then his expression turned serious. "Chai Jie murdered his own father. He is utterly depraved. Just as Madam i said monts ago, there will be a weapon and bloodstains as evidence. You didn’t kill anyone, so what do you have to worry about!"

Hearing this, i Shilin was completely convinced that Zhao Lin had overheard their entire conversation. He slumped into a chair, his face filled with sha. "I have failed my friend. What do you want, Constable Zhao?"

Zhao Lin smiled faintly. "I only wish to bring the killer to justice. You said just now that when you saw Chai Qihong dead, there was a knife in his chest?"

"That’s right. It was dark, but the blade was gleaming and very conspicuous."

"What were the knife’s approximate length and width?"

i Shilin thought for a mont. "The knife was stuck in his body, so I couldn’t see the whole thing. But from the part that was visible, it was at least two feet long and about as wide as half a palm."

Zhao Lin nodded. ’A knife that big can’t be easily hidden on one’s person or casually discarded,’ he thought.

Moreover, when the knife was plunged into his chest, it must have sprayed a lot of blood, staining the killer’s clothes and shoes.

There were many beggars in the East City who slept on the streets, under trees, or in bridge tunnels at night. It wouldn’t be easy for Chai Jie to dispose of the items without being seen.

The items were most likely still hidden in his house.

At this thought, Zhao Lin felt a renewed sense of hope, as if a path had just cleared. He clapped his hands together. "Clerk i, if I find the physical evidence, are you willing to testify in court?"

i Shilin nodded firmly. "I should have done so from the start."

"Thank you, Clerk i. It’s late, so I won’t disturb you any longer."

Zhao Lin took his leave. Madam i looked at her husband and asked, "What’s that Constable Zhao’s story? Does he really have eyes that see a thousand miles and ears that hear the wind?"

i Shilin just shook his head with a wry smile.

Zhao Lin had been running around all day and was quite tired. By the ti he returned to the yan, it was already past the second watch.

’I have a witness. As long as I find the physical evidence, I can seal this case!’

It had been a long day, and he was indeed exhausted. He lay down and imdiately drifted into a hazy sleep.

「The next morning at roll call」

Sun Zhang made a point of walking over, hypocritically asking if Zhao Lin was getting used to his first day on duty, if he was facing any difficulties, and so on.

Zhao Lin put on a grateful expression. "Reporting to the Head Constable, I’ve just taken over and am still getting my bearings. Please correct if I fall short."

"Oh, that’s good. By the way, there are several murder cases in your district. How’s the investigation going? Do you have enough n?"

Sun Zhang asked with "concern."

Zhao Lin pretended to be troubled. "I don’t have any leads yet."

Sun Zhang’s expression turned serious. "You have less than six days. You need to step it up. Otherwise, if the County Magistrate and the Chief Constable hold us accountable, I won’t be able to bear the consequences."

’Consequences? He can go eat shit!’

Zhao Lin sneered internally but his face remained impassive. He said in a low voice, "Rest assured, Head Constable. I will do my utmost."

After the morning eting, Zhao Lin gathered Liang Song, He Qingquan, and Tao Erleng.

"The killer is the Chai family’s third son, Chai Jie. Don’t spread this around for now. I already have a witness. What we need now are two things."

"First, physical evidence—the murder weapon. Second, he claims he was at the casino all night and never went ho. We need to expose that lie."

Neither Liang Song nor Tao Erleng said anything. Liang Song trusted Zhao Lin, while Tao Erleng would follow him without question.

Only He Qingquan suspected that Zhao Lin couldn’t handle the pressure and was trying to find a scapegoat.

"Constable Zhao, who is this witness you ntioned? Why didn’t they co forward earlier?"

Zhao Lin shook his head slightly. "The witness’s identity will remain confidential for now. We’re going to find those two gamblers."

The case file recorded that two gamblers, Gao Xiaoliu and Duan San, said Chai Jie was at the casino all night and only left at dawn.

Zhao Lin led his n to the casino to ask for the two n’s addresses.

The casino naturally wasn’t going to offend Officials over two gamblers. Besides, it wasn’t a secret, so they imdiately told them the truth.

To save ti, Zhao Lin decided they should split up. He would take Tao Erleng to grab Gao Xiaoliu, while Liang Song and He Qingquan would get Duan San.

The two gamblers had only just returned ho and hadn’t yet gone to sleep when Zhao Lin and his n caught them red-handed.