619: Chapter 615: The Basement 619: Chapter 615: The Basement “…”
Ye Tian did not speak, because the one who had blasted Long Wenshan and Xue Yunfu into pieces was himself, yet it was a move made out of desperation.
Long Wenshan and Xue Yunfu were both being manipulated by a mysterious power, acting like zombies, and if not shattered, their actions would not stop.
They could even harm ordinary citizens.
Seeing Ye Tian’s expression, Wang Ke’er knew there was a connection between him and the incident, but at this point, she did not want to spell it out.
“Xue Yunfu was the clan leader of the excavation team for the ancient tombs in Jiangcheng, so he has been deeply blaming himself since the tomb was robbed.
Our police force also conducted an investigation on him, but to no avail.
In addition to that, Xue Yunfu had an excellent reputation in Jiangcheng, so the police believed he was innocent.
After all, Xue Yunfu was an archaeology expert, the grave robbers may have approached him for some reason!
That’s why the police wanted to protect Xue Yunfu, but he refused, and therefore he was keeping a low profile in his own villa.
Although the police did not protect Xue Yunfu, they kept a constant watch over him, so when we received an emergency call tonight, we immediately responded.
But we still arrived too late, Xue Yunfu had already died!”
Wang Ke’er spoke earnestly, and Ye Tian, somewhat surprised, asked, “Tai Ping, didn’t you say earlier that the body was dismembered?
How can you be so sure that the victim was Xue Yunfu?”
“The flesh on the ground was subjected to DNA identification by experts right away, confirming the victim was indeed Xue Yunfu!” Wang Ke’er immediately replied.
“I see…”
Ye Tian nodded, he had almost figured out how the police operated.
Now that they knew Xue Yunfu was a victim, they had to give an account to the citizens of Jiangcheng, so they continued to investigate the site.
They could not overlook any trace, and at the crime scene in the yard, they sought clues to the murderer.
In the house, Wang Ke’er and others were searching through Xue Yunfu’s personal belongings to see who he had been in contact with before his death.
A wry smile appeared on Ye Tian’s face.
He wasn’t afraid that the police would find out he was the killer of Xue Yunfu—after all, Xue Yunfu’s actions were indefensible, and there was no shortage of evidence…
What worried Ye Tian the most was that if this group of police messed up, they might take away the thing he wanted to find from the villa!
“Tai Ping, have you found any leads?”
Ye Tian asked cautiously, and Wang Ke’er shook her head, saying, “Just now, some colleagues and I searched everywhere in the villa but found no clues; I came out just to see if the colleagues outside had found any leads!”
“Let me help you look!”
Ye Tian volunteered, aware that these police officers were ordinary people, and even those who graduated with a specialty in criminal investigation weren’t experts in finding clues.
If Xue Yunfu had intentionally hidden an item, how could these police possibly find it?
“This…”
Wang Ke’er hesitated, as Ye Tian was not a police officer, and she wondered if it would be inappropriate for him to join the investigation.
But upon reflection, she realized that relying solely on the police’s own efforts, they could investigate the villa for days and nights and still come up empty.
If Ye Tian could really get involved, the truth might surface more quickly!
“Alright then!”
Wang Ke’er nodded and led Ye Tian to the second floor of the villa.
Here was Xue Yunfu’s study, the place where Xue Yunfu and Mr.
Deng had met.
Typically, wealthy people liked to hide valuable items in their studies, and Xue Yunfu was no exception…
Since Wang Ke’er and her colleagues had been searching for clues in the study, it was very messy, with books scattered all over the floor, in a state of disarray.
“Ye Tian, my colleagues and I started our search here, but even after turning the place upside down, we couldn’t find any useful clues.
My colleagues have gone to search other places,”
Wang Ke’er said with a face full of frustration.
As a police officer, she felt ashamed and exhausted from coming up empty-handed in the investigation in the villa.
“Let me give it a try!”
Ye Tian pushed Wang Ke’er to one side and began to meticulously examine everything in the study.
Unlike Wang Ke’er and the other police officers, Ye Tian possessed clairvoyant ability, so no matter how well Xue Yunfu hid something in the study, or in which hidden compartment, nothing could escape his sight.
Utilizing his clairvoyant ability, Ye Tian quickly surveyed the study and soon spotted something amiss behind a calligraphy hanging!
Behind the calligraphy was empty!
On the second floor of a villa, it’s generally impossible to have things like “basements” or “secret rooms,” but Xue Yunfu’s study was different!
The wall between the study and the adjacent bedroom was more than one meter thick, but it was cleverly disguised, so that the police who came to investigate found nothing…
“I thought it was a clever design, but it seems it wasn’t much after all!”
As he spoke, Ye Tian looked at the wall behind the hanging, and a “thud, thud” sound immediately rang out.
Normally, a solid wall would not produce this kind of sound, and Wang Ke’er also immediately realized something was off.
“There’s a secret room behind this wall?”
Wang Ke’er said in surprise.
Although she knew Ye Tian was capable, she found it incredible that he could spot the secret room in the study with just one glance.
However, even though the secret room had been discovered, they couldn’t get in…
“But if we don’t find the mechanism, we won’t be able to get in.
Why not call my colleagues over so that everyone can search for the mechanism together!”
Wang Ke’er made a suggestion, but Ye Tian immediately waved his hand.
“Why make such a fuss?
What’s so hard about getting inside a wall?”
As he spoke, Ye Tian channeled his strength into his fingertips and then drew a circle on the wall with his finger.
There was a “swoosh” and a circular hole immediately appeared in the wall!
Wang Ke’er looked on in amazement at Ye Tian’s martial arts.
Could Ye Tian’s fingers be made of steel?
“Let’s go in,” Ye Tian said after making the hole in the wall, but Wang Ke’er hesitated.
“Ye Tian, should we inform my colleagues?
We don’t know what’s inside this secret room.
If we rush in rashly, I’m afraid it might be dangerous!”
Ye Tian smiled and said, “With me here, how could there possibly be any danger?”
Saying so, Ye Tian pulled Wang Ke’er into the wall.
Wang Ke’er was reluctant, but thinking of Ye Tian’s impressive skills, she could only follow Ye Tian into the secret room.
Ye Tian smirked slightly; he didn’t want to involve the other police officers because if he went with the police, he wouldn’t have the chance to obtain the items Xue Yunfu had hidden in the secret room.
Therefore, when creating the hole in the wall, although Ye Tian could have punched through it, he used a delicate motion, silent and unnoticed, so the police present wouldn’t possibly hear it.
“Ye Tian, it’s so dark in here…”
As soon as they entered the wall, Wang Ke’er spoke up worriedly; there were no lights, and she couldn’t see anything.
“Don’t worry, I’m here!”
Ye Tian patted his chest and said.
His night vision far exceeded that of ordinary people.
Even if he couldn’t see his hand before his face, Ye Tian still moved with ease.
After entering the secret room, there was a flight of stairs going down.
Ye Tian took Wang Ke’er’s hand and they stepped carefully down the stairs.
The staircase was long, with at least fifty steps before the two arrived at another room!
“Judging by the distance, this should be the basement of Xue Yunfu’s house,” Ye Tian murmured to himself, but aside from hearing Ye Tian’s voice, Wang Ke’er couldn’t see anything.
“Don’t you have a phone on you?”
Ye Tian reminded her, and Wang Ke’er suddenly realized.
She had been so nervous when they first came in that she had forgotten about the phone she was carrying.
Wang Ke’er quickly took out her phone and turned on the flashlight function.
With the light, she could finally see the items in the room clearly.
The basement was filled with various antiques.
Porcelain, calligraphy and paintings, bronze ware, ancient coins, ancient books, wood carvings…
Although the light was dim and they couldn’t see everything in the basement, just the area illuminated by the flashlight was enough to show the breadth and diversity of Xue Yunfu’s collection!
Wang Ke’er couldn’t help but exclaim, “As expected of an archaeology expert, to have so many antiques, it’s truly astounding!”
But Ye Tian shook his head and said, “Ke’er, you’ve been deceived by Xue Yunfu’s outward appearances.
In fact, he is far from as great as you imagine!”
Wang Ke’er was taken aback and asked, “Ye Tian, what do you mean by that?
Xue Yunfu comes from a wealthy background, but he chose to give up a life of luxury to work hard in uncovering history.
What right do you have to disparage him?”
“I’m not disparaging him!” Ye Tian continued, “Ke’er, think about it.
If he were truly a cultural relics expert, he could have collected antiques openly and honorably.
Why would he hide these items in such a secretive basement?”
“This…”
Wang Ke’er was left speechless by Ye Tian’s words.
Upon reflection, it truly was odd!
The behavior of Xue Yunfu, the archaeologist, indeed contradicted common sense!
“I do remember this book!”
Ye Tian found a book called “Taiping Essentials” in the basement and handed it to Wang Ke’er.
Wang Ke’er, who didn’t understand much about ancient books, just looked at Ye Tian blankly.
“Ke’er, this book is the famous ‘Taiping Essentials’ from history.
The Yellow Turban Rebellion at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty was launched with the help of this book!
Unfortunately, this book was lost over the long span of history!
However, in recent excavations, a handwritten copy of the ‘Taiping Essentials’ was found in an ancient tomb dating back to the Ming Dynasty.
The manuscript was preserved in parchment instead of paper, so it’s extremely well preserved!”
Ye Tian patiently explained, and only then did Wang Ke’er notice that the “Taiping Essentials” in her hand was indeed made from parchment!
“It’s really parchment!?”
Wang Ke’er was overjoyed, and then Ye Tian continued,
“Such a treasure, found in a Ming Dynasty tomb, so the nation regarded it as a precious artifact, wanting to study it thoroughly.
But soon after it was excavated, it was declared stolen, and the country used many means to find the thief.
However, all efforts turned up nothing, and the matter eventually fizzled out!”