That night, after entering He'an County.

Ning He did not immediately go to see the longevity magistrate recorded in his travel notes, but first stayed at the largest 'Yan Lai Inn' in the county.

But on the way to the inn.

Ning He did notice some scent of incense.

Following the breath, you can see portraits and statues of Magistrate Xu placed in some people’s homes.

After they prayed, these breaths drifted towards the county government office in the center.

It’s just that there are no priests there, and there are no fluctuations in decrees.

And the scent of these incense is also very thin, not even one thousandth of that of Lianghe God.

When Ning He saw the discovery, he didn't pay much attention.

It's getting late now, let's wait until tomorrow.

And in the early morning of the next day.

Ning He and Hei Xiongjing left the inn and had just arrived on the street of the county government office. When they were about to take a look at the county magistrate, they found an energetic old man coming out of the county government office with six more people.

The police and two civil servants went to the county together.

"Is this the county magistrate?" A gray light appeared in the eyes of the black bear spirit. He looked at the back of the old man who was going away, but he said in wonder: "Human body? But there is incense? This means that after death, he will be sealed by heaven and earth!"

"Yes." Ning He took a look and knew what the secret of Magistrate Xu's longevity was.

In addition to his good health, he also has incense to protect his body.

In other words, he is now a 'human priest' who has no legal body or laws, but has incense to nourish his body.

But it is precisely because he does not have the blessing of legal bodies and laws that the incense that can be absorbed by him now is pitiful.

Too few to develop any skills, and no Taoism.

The incense surrounding him can only be used to prolong his life and ensure that he is free from illness and disaster during his lifetime.

And if nothing unexpected happens, he will die in half a year.

Then he was canonized by heaven and earth, became a real priest, and lived for another thousand years.

Ning He thought about it and walked in the direction where Magistrate Xu left, wanting to see the Magistrate's itinerary.

After returning to the tea stall, I will add these events into my travel notes.

The black bear spirit was also curious about the county magistrate. Now when he saw Ning He going, he followed him.

This time.

Ning He didn't stop until he reached a river five miles outside the county.

At the same time.

On the river beach thirty meters ahead.

Magistrate Xu is frowning and inspecting everything here.

Because someone drowned here three days ago.

The person who reported the crime was a friend of the person who drowned.

The person who drowned was a carpenter named Feng in the county.

Then follow what my friend said three days ago.

The two were drinking and fishing together, and Carpenter Feng accidentally fell into the river after drinking.

My friend also jumped into the river, but in the end he was not rescued.

It seems nothing strange, just an ordinary drunken drowning.

But when reporting to the police, the friend's eyes were a little evasive, as if he had something to hide, and also seemed to feel guilty for not saving the person.

This made Magistrate Xu come here to observe every day in the past three days and look for new clues.

Because he didn't want to wrongly accuse his friend and make good people afraid to do good things again.

And I don’t want the deceased to suffer injustice.

Then you can only check the rest yourself.

Unless absolutely necessary, it is better not to torture severely.

But at this time.

As Ning He and Black Bear Spirit approached the crime scene.

The policeman outside made a false stop, which also attracted Magistrate Xu’s attention.

Subconsciously he looked towards Ninghe.

When he saw Ning He, who looked strange but had an extraordinary temperament, he mistakenly thought he was a distinguished gentleman in the city. He then took a few steps forward, cupped his hands in greeting and said, "I am the magistrate of He'an County. I wonder if you are here?"

”

"I'm here for the case." Ning He returned the gift and used his spiritual sense to scan the book recording the case in the clerk's hand, and he also knew why the county came.

"There is a sense of grievance in this matter." Ning He also directly pointed out the doubts in the county magistrate's mind.

Because within the field of vision that the county magistrate cannot see, there is a trace of resentment lingering in the river bed.

It's just that the body of the drowned man is not here, and neither is his ghost. It has probably been taken away by the underworld.

So the specifics can only depend on how the county magistrate investigates.

Ning He could only tell him the final answer, and his guess was right.

At the same time, faced with such concise words, Magistrate Xu gave such a strange answer to his doubts, as if he believed it, but also as if he didn't believe it.

It's all because he knows that there are some strange people in the world who can understand Yin and Yang and the Five Elements.

Then he was silent for a few moments, and then said politely: "Where did you stay, sir? When I find out the secret of the case, I will come and say thank you."

"Yanlai Inn."

The words fell.

Ning He didn't say much, and took the black bear spirit back to the inn.

As for whether he believes it or not, that's up to him.

Magistrate Xu stood there for a while, and only came to his senses when the official not far away spoke.

"Sir..." The clerk had just heard the brief conversation between the two of them, and now seeing the adults stunned, he couldn't help but asked curiously: "Why are you so sure, sir? Do you know some hidden secrets?"

"There are always some strange people in the world." When Magistrate Xu heard the inquiry, he said without hesitation: "This gentleman may have another way to investigate the case."

"Oh..." The civil servant was confused when he heard this, but he also felt that it was unclear.

Also on the other side.

After Ning He returned to the inn, he found that many guests in the inn during the day were talking about drowning.

After all, there aren't many things that can be discussed in a small county. It's already a big deal if someone drowns.

Several people gathered at one of the tables.

The middle-aged man in robe leaning on the left even sighed with emotion: "Fortunately, his friend reported it to the police, and the county magistrate led people to salvage it in time, otherwise we would not know where the body of this Feng family man had drifted."

"Yeah." The other person put his hands on the table, "Who would have thought that a person who was fine two days ago would just leave like this."

"Oh, the county master is getting old too." Another person said about County Magistrate Xu, "After all, he is already ninety years old..."

"The body of the county master is still very strong!" The middle-aged man in robe interrupted with dissatisfaction. He admired County Magistrate Xu very much and had a portrait of Magistrate Xu at home.

"Yes!" The man with his hands on the table also chimed in, "The county master is in good health! I heard that he went to court early today and tried other cases!"

"I know this too!" Another person is also helping.

The man who started talking about the county master was scolded by everyone and walked away asking for trouble.

The people who stayed behind looked at each other and smiled, just waiting for them to chat, but instead of talking about the Feng family men, they talked about the county master and envied the county master's longevity.

I even lamented that Mr. Xu, who is nearly 90 years old, is still working hard for their county.

But they don't know that Master Xu has been observed hundreds of times by the city's inspectors since he turned sixty.

Because when the chief officials reach a certain age, the court will usually let them abdicate.

Or if you are older, you may be confused in handling cases.

The patrols sent from time to time in each city will also report the matter to the prefect in the city.

If the local county registrar is capable, the prefect will first let the local registrar temporarily serve as the county magistrate to manage the people's livelihood.

After all, he is the chief bookkeeper who stays in the county all year round, so he can be replaced easily.

After that, the prefect will report it to the imperial capital for approval by the official department of the six departments, and then send people to review it.

If the chief registrar manages well, the post of county magistrate will eventually be determined.

But if you don’t have the ability, and the prefect in charge of a city doesn’t have the manpower to arrange it.
To be continued...