After being reborn as a man, the woman improved her family's fortunes through education.

Chapter 546 Missing Persons Case 3

"Alright, just like before, make them write down their names, where they live, and especially the information about missing persons."

Sigh~ It seems this case and the one in the city a few days ago were committed by the same group of killers. They'll probably have to investigate them together!

The clerk of the Jingzhao Prefecture directed the scribes to record the events while instructing the constables to maintain order, as the crying and commotion of the elderly women was giving him a headache.

After the clerks had finished reviewing the documents, the secretary collected them and went into the yamen to report to the prefect.

"Sir, were these people really kidnapped? They're young and strong men in their twenties; surely they could fight back like women and children?"

Prefect Li of Jingzhao Prefecture sat at his desk, his tea clearly cold, yet he hadn't drunk a drop, obviously quite troubled.

At this moment, he was also frowning. He had considered what the advisor had said, but what if there were more murderers?

"I've thought about that too, but if it's a gang crime, it's not impossible that they only kidnap one or two people each time, and then move to another place to commit the crime again."

Besides, these able-bodied men might have a hoe at most, while the bandits, if they were all armed, would completely overwhelm them in terms of fighting strength.

The advisor thought his master was right, but he still found these thieves very strange.

"Sir, what do you think these people are doing kidnapping young men? Women and children can be kidnapped and sold for a high price in other places, but men only have the option of becoming laborers, right?"

"I can't figure this out yet. Kidnapping people for hard labor? That's a huge investment. In Da Zhou, a day's work carrying heavy loads only pays ten coins. Is it worth risking kidnapping people for a few free laborers?"

Besides, even if they were kidnapped and forced into hard labor, they would still be fed. No matter how strong a person is, they can't survive without food.

"It's such a hassle, and they even provide meals. It feels like they're a bunch of mentally unstable, stupid thieves!"

Lord Li stroked his official hat, feeling that he was really frustrated in his position as the Prefect of the Capital. Why were there so many troubles in the past two years?

Whether it's gunpowder or missing persons, anything that happens within his jurisdiction is his responsibility as the Prefect of the Capital.

Sigh, I used to laugh at those classmates who couldn't stay in the capital and were sent to serve as officials in other places, but now I envy them a little.

It would be so nice to be a local official in the countryside. The emperor is far away, so even if you do something wrong, he won't find out so quickly.

Now, no matter how well or poorly I do, hundreds of eyes are watching me, and the worst part is that I can't afford to offend any of them.

"My lord, should we ask the city patrol officers to assist us? That would alleviate some of the pressure, since we are really short-handed."

This case involves a large area; the people who came to report the case today came from more than ten villages and towns on the outskirts of the city.

This is the data that the constables just compiled; please take a look.

If these cases had occurred in other, more remote counties, the local magistrate would have been in charge. But unfortunately, these cases either happened in the inner city or in villages and towns near the inner city.

In other words, whether he was lucky or not, everything fell within the jurisdiction of the Prefect of the Capital.

Did this kidnapper deliberately want to cause trouble for him, choosing to commit the crime in his territory?

"Alright, that's enough for you. Anyway, there aren't any from other counties. Take your people and visit various places first, so they won't say that our Jingzhao Prefecture is not doing its job!"

The advisor understood that regardless of whether they could find the person or not, they had already put on a show of force and attitude, which was to give the people an explanation.

This is meant to deter thieves and prevent more cases from happening. We've deployed manpower, so why don't you stop and calm down?!

It cannot be said that the Prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture was incompetent. After all, this is the same procedure for anyone investigating this case. It is always right to visit various places and try to collect more information and evidence.

The only difference is that some people use constables to investigate cases, while others use small animals.

Jiang Xiaoqi wasn't trying to meddle, but since this was happening right under the emperor's nose in the capital, it was impossible for him to completely stay out of it.

Rather than having this suddenly and unexpectedly fall into your lap one day, it's better to do some research casually in your spare time.

Even if he doesn't end up doing this unfortunate job himself, he can just consider it doing something for the people of the capital. He feels very sad seeing those elderly people with gray hair coming out to look for their sons and grandsons.

He knew a little about Lord Li, the Prefect of the Capital. He wasn't an incompetent person, but he was a bit timid and afraid of trouble.

Rather than saying the other party was a high-ranking official in Beijing, it would be more accurate to say that the other party was a lazy person who was waiting to be transferred to a post outside the capital.

Otherwise, his attitude towards work would definitely be several times more proactive than it is now. Is he afraid that he is doing too well as the Prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture and will be retained?

It has to be said that Jiang Xiaoqi stumbled upon the truth unintentionally.

"System, gather the cat squad, we have work to do!"

The fluffy system still looks like a tabby cat. It got up from its comfortable cat bed and stretched.

"Got it, what are they investigating this time?"

"Investigate...missing persons!" Jiang Xiaoqi's eyes darkened slightly, as if he had thought of something.

"Is it embarrassing?"

"Yeah, quite a few were lost."

"Alright, I'll gather the brothers right away. Host, you'd better prepare some canned food! Tuna and salmon, the brothers love it!"

"Got it, one dozen each! Plenty!"

Jiang Xiaoqi recalled the time she had spent searching for A Niu's two older brothers a few years ago, but all those years had passed and her efforts had come to nothing.

Unfortunately, the two brothers didn't disappear within the capital city area, otherwise the Cat Clan could have been mobilized to search for them.

Ah Niu himself seemed to have accepted the fact that his two older brothers had abandoned him, but Jiang Xiaoqi now had some doubts that the disappearance of those two brothers might not be an isolated case in the area.

There's also the story of how I used Doctor Wang and his apprentice as an excuse to fool my mother when I was a child. Doctor Wang and his apprentice inquired in the northern border for so long, but no one knew about it.

He, Wenbin, and Li Mo had visited all the medical wards in the Northern Territory. If they had really served as military doctors in the Northern Territory, they would know everyone. It was surprising that no one had any impression of the master and apprentice.

There's also Wangchuan. Although he lost his memory, after getting to know the place better, he was certain that his family members had been captured, not killed.

One, two, three...

Strange, this is really strange. There seem to be quite a few missing persons around me these days.

Men, young and strong men, a master and apprentice skilled in medicine, and physically robust brothers...

Where exactly would so many able-bodied, adult men be needed?

Illegal mining? Illegal weapon forging? Slave trading? Maintaining a private army? Trafficking in human organs? Kidney-cutting?

Well, the technology wasn't advanced enough at that time, was it?