After all the knives of varying sizes in the kitchen were lined up, the constable who had been questioning them was stunned.

There were nearly twenty cleavers of different sizes and shapes laid out on the counter. Each knife was different, and many had more than one, even four or five.

Looking at the knives, the constable turned to Wen Mingtang, who was explaining them.

“This knife is for chopping bones. Because it’s used for chopping meat and bones, the blade is sharp, and the body is sturdy…”

Wen Mingtang explained earnestly, but the constables didn’t listen any longer. They exchanged glances, smiled wryly, and interrupted Wen Mingtang, saying, “That’s enough, Master Wen.”

Wen Mingtang put down the cleaver and looked at the constables: “Has something happened?”

What happened? This story began when they followed Bai Sicheng to the slaughterhouse and saw Lin Shaoqing, Liu Sicheng, and the bald butcher confronting each other.

“The market smelled so strong, and Lin Shaoqing’s nose… tsk tsk, Master Wen knows best about that.” At this point, the constable glanced at Wen Mingtang, winked at her, and said, “After all, Master Wen also has a nose like that!”

Wen Mingtang paused, understanding. “So did Lin Shaoqing smell something he shouldn’t have?”

The constable nodded and said, “In the swill buckets used by the butchers at the slaughterhouse, Lin Shaoqing said he smelled something he shouldn’t have.”

The smells from all the miscellaneous things piled together in the swill bucket were all mixed together; what kind of smell could he possibly detect? Tangyuan’s eyes widened as she took the two peeled roasted chestnuts that Ah Bing had secretly slipped to her and put them in her mouth. The sweet and powdery taste of the chestnuts dispelled much of the instinctive fear that had arisen within her.

The constable paused, as if remembering something. His expression shifted slightly. He didn’t directly say what he had smelled, but after glancing at everyone, he said meaningfully, “Wu Bucai has already gone!”

The moment the name “Wu Bucai” was uttered, everyone’s expression changed.

Tangyuan instinctively covered her lips; thankfully, the sweet taste of chestnut meat still lingered in her mouth, preventing her from spitting it out.

These people weren’t the kind of pampered nobles who wouldn’t easily venture into filth; they had seen the butcher’s swill buckets at the market slaughterhouse before. The thought of a person hiding in a slop bucket piled high with waste from poultry and livestock… an indescribable sense of horror welled up in their hearts.

Seeing that everyone’s expression changed upon hearing the name “Wu Bucai”, the constable knew he had been right not to speak directly.

Those in the Dali Temple, who dealt with murder cases daily and had seen countless crime scenes, were still taken aback by today’s scene. Thinking of the body parts amidst a pile of livestock and poultry waste, the constable’s face paled. He shook his head, glanced at Wen Mingtang, whose complexion seemed relatively better, and said, “Lin Shaoqing said that perhaps this body… cannot be pieced together completely.”

Upon hearing this, Wen Mingtang’s expression immediately changed. She subconsciously looked down at the row of kitchen knives on the counter, her face pale, and asked the constable, “Could a butcher from a slaughterhouse be involved?”

The constable glanced at Wen Mingtang and nodded. “It’s unclear yet; it’s too early to say. But that butcher certainly had a lot of knives, many of which looked like they could be used not only for slaughtering livestock and poultry but also for humans…” The constable shook his head, not continuing.

Wen Mingtang gasped, suddenly remembering Liang Hongjin’s words: “The cook has excellent knife skills, chopping meat and bones with ease!” She subconsciously shivered and looked at her hands.

Seeing Wen Mingtang’s changed expression, the constable didn’t say anything more, only thanked her and left the kitchen to report to Lin Fei.

After the constables left, Ah Bing and Tang Yuan, their faces pale, looked at Wen Mingtang and couldn’t help but whisper, “Master Wen, could it be that the butcher killed someone with a knife…”

A light cough interrupted their conversation. Ji Caimai said, “It’s hard to say right now. The butcher might be innocent.”

Even so, Ji Caimai still shook his head and said, “In that case, regardless of whether the butcher is innocent or not, the people who hear the news will probably avoid butchers at such slaughterhouses!”

“I remember there was a similar case a few years ago,” Ji Caimai said, shaking his head. “If someone uses their livelihood to commit murder, I’m afraid everyone involved in that trade will suffer.”

Just like if a tea seller poisons the tea, the teahouse business will plummet, and everyone will be afraid of drinking poisoned tea and will dare not go to the teahouse anymore.

If a chef poisons the food he makes, the restaurants and taverns will also become deserted.

If the butcher at the slaughterhouse had used his knife to kill people, then this year would likely be a year of more vegetarians than meat-eaters. Add to that the incomplete body parts… those who had slaughtered poultry and livestock at the market must be terrified.

Although they lamented this, there was nothing they could do. Ji Caimai glanced at the simmering pork belly in the casserole and said, “Let’s get back to work!”

When Liu Sicheng and the others came to the kitchen to collect their gift boxes, they said they were there to visit Wei Fu and investigate the stomachache. How did it all end up involving the slaughterhouse? Ji Caimai shook his head in confusion and continued watching Wen Mingtang prepare the pork belly.

After scooping the pork belly from the pot and drying it, Wen Mingtang took a handful of iron skewers and began to “acupuncture” the pork belly. Even for Wen Mingtang, who was skilled in many cooking techniques, this was a first for her. Ji Caimai and the others put down what they were doing and looked at Wen Mingtang, who was processing the pork belly, quickly forgetting what had just happened.

While the cooks could temporarily ignore what was happening at the market, Lin Fei and his group could not.

Whether officials, constables, or even passersby were watching the spectacle, everyone covered their mouths and noses with handkerchiefs as they watched the constables, dressed in thick robes, search through the swill buckets.

The pungent smell couldn’t be concealed by a handkerchief or a robe. Surprisingly, the onlookers, seeing the constables searching, felt a rare pang of sympathy for those they usually envied for serving the government.

Searching for things in a swill bucket… it seemed even some government offices… like the Dali Temple, had difficult tasks!

Lin Fei, whose mouth and nose were covered with a cloth, put down the cleaver in front of the bald butcher, looked at the bald butcher who was being held down by two constables, pointed to the one or two pieces of “corpse” that had been found, and said, “You’ve been in this business for decades; you should know better than me that these are human, not poultry or livestock!”

The bald butcher’s face was also very ugly; his lips trembled, but he still nodded in agreement: “Yes, they are human parts.”

Lin Fei pointed to the sign in front of the slaughter stall and said, “You slaughter poultry and livestock, so why is there a human corpse in the swill bucket?”

The bald butcher shook his head and said, “This humble citizen does not know.”

(End of this chapter)

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