Farmhouse Green Plum

Chapter 698 Autopsy

In Feng Shui, the northwest belongs to the "Qian" hexagram, which represents austerity and killing. Therefore, charity cemeteries in various places are mostly set up under the city wall in the northwest corner of the county town. This is in line with the principles of yin and yang and is convenient for the transportation of corpses.

Dongling County is no exception.

After entering the city and passing two deserted alleys, I saw the gray building.

Although the walls of the charity cemetery were no different in shape from those of the surrounding houses, the two officers were still frightened by the faded wooden sign "Charity Cemetery" at the door.

He stopped the carriage a few feet away, and said anxiously, "Child Coroner, we're here now. We'll leave first. When we're ready to return, just send someone to let us know."

The meaning of their words was clear: even during their time in Dongling County, they did not want to have any contact with the child coroner.

Song Ying sighed secretly. The job of a coroner was really difficult. His job was to seek justice for the deceased, but not only was he not respected, he was also despised.

The child coroner was already used to all this, and his face showed no emotion. He raised his hand to adjust his crooked hat, picked up the coroner's bag and asked Song Ying to get out of the car.

Watching the carriage speed away, Song Ying couldn't help but ask, "Aren't police officers and constables responsible for catching murderers and handling cases? They must have seen a lot of murder scenes on a daily basis. Are they really that scared?"

"How many homicides can there be in Qingshui County? Especially in recent years, the weather has been good. Last year, there were only three homicides. What's more, the deceased this time was indeed strange. It's normal for them to be afraid."

Song Ying remembered the case described by the child coroner on the road, and immediately understood the two detectives. She also felt uneasy.

The child coroner went forward and knocked on the door for a long time before he finally heard a hoarse voice, "Here they come."

After a while, the door opened a crack and an old man stuck his head out. Without saying a word, he stared at the two of them with his eyes slightly narrowed.

The child coroner took out his badge and the autopsy approval document and handed them over. "I am the coroner from Qingshui County. I have been ordered to perform an autopsy."

The old man was the caretaker of the charity cemetery. He took the badge and carefully checked the words engraved on it, then looked at the official seal on the approval document again and again. Only after confirming that everything was correct did he open the door and let them in.

As soon as the door opened, a mixture of mold, saltpeter and some indescribable fishy smell hit Song Ying in the face, causing his throat to tighten.

Looking up, all I could see were neatly arranged corpse beds covered with white cloth, with the faint outline of a human figure visible.

The one closest to the door had a bluish-gray hand exposed on the side of the white cloth, with black and red blood scabs embedded in the nails.

In the cremation basin in the corner of the wall, paper ashes piled up into a small hill. A gust of morning breeze blew by, and a few pieces of unburned paper money were blown by the wind, and the words of the Rebirth Mantra on them were faintly visible.

Song Ying's eyes widened. "Why are there so many? Is Dongling County so chaotic?"

Haven’t you heard of it?

The guard narrowed his cloudy eyes and looked Song Ying up and down. After a long while, he asked the child coroner in a hoarse voice, "Is this your daughter?"

The child coroner smiled bitterly, "That's right. I wanted to keep her away from the bad luck of this profession, so I've even avoided autopsies for years. But I can't find an apprentice willing to learn autopsies, so I can only teach her first, at least to pass on my skills."

After saying that, he turned his head and explained to Song Ying, "It's not easy to hold funerals during the New Year. Some families will leave their relatives' bodies in the charity cemetery, and then bury them directly from the charity cemetery after the New Year is over."

So that's how it is. Song Ying suddenly realized and secretly reminded himself to be careful with his words and actions, and not to reveal any clues because of his ignorance and let others see it.

The guard, hunched over, led them through several rows of cots covered with white sheets and stopped in front of one in the corner. "This is it."

The child coroner looked around. It was only just beginning to get light, and the room was dim. He said, "Please bring me a lamp."

The watchman left grumbling.

The child coroner took out two more slices of ginger and handed one to Song Ying, "Put it in your mouth."

Song Ying took the ginger slice and put it in his mouth, and a spicy feeling rushed straight to the top of his head.

Before she could adapt, the child coroner quickly and decisively lifted the white cloth covering the body.

In an instant, an indescribable stench suddenly hit my face. The smell was like a mixture of the fishy smell of dead rats, the sour smell of rotten vegetable leaves, and an indescribable sweetness.

Song Ying's stomach convulsed, her throat tightening. She bit down on the ginger slices tightly, the spicy juice mixed with saliva spreading in her mouth, but she couldn't suppress the stench of corpse that penetrated her head.

She rushed out of the room, staggered a few steps and fell to the peach tree in the corner of the yard. She couldn't hold it in any longer and vomited with a "wow".

I was in a hurry on the road yesterday and didn't eat much. I soon ran out of vomit, but my stomach was still churning, and I felt like I was going to vomit out bile.

Soon, the farmhand came over with a lamp and said to him, "It's always like this the first time. You'll get used to it."

As he spoke, he handed over a plate of ginger slices and said, "It will feel better if you hold it in your mouth."

Song Ying straightened up by holding onto the rough tree trunk and said weakly, "Thank you, Grandpa."

The farmhand sighed and went into the house with a lantern.

Song Ying leaned against the tree, his face as pale as paper. Although he was standing in the yard, the faint stench of decay still drifted with the wind. Although it was not as strong as in the house, it was like a thorn in the flesh that could not be shaken off.

After a pause, she bit her lower lip tightly, suppressed the nausea that surged again, and put another piece of ginger into her mouth.

The child coroner was already performing an autopsy. When he heard footsteps, he asked without even looking up, "Why don't you wait a little longer?"

Song Ying came to see the craniotomy and understand the internal structure of the human brain. He didn't really want to learn how to perform an autopsy, so naturally he didn't need to be too demanding.

"I'm fine now." Song Ying bit the ginger and mustered up the courage to look at the corpse.

Although she was prepared, she was still shocked when she saw it. The corners of her mouth were stretched so wide that her facial skin was distorted.

Coupled with the wide-open pupils, it is really creepy!

This was the first time Song Ying saw a human corpse at such a close distance, and it was so hideous and terrifying that it frightened her scalp to the point of numbing.

The child coroner remained calm and leaned closer to the corpse, looking here and touching there.

Since she was here to help record things, Song Ying didn't want to be a drag. She took a deep breath, suppressed her fear, and picked up the corpse book: "Do you want to record it now?"

The child coroner looked up and saw that she was still calm, so he nodded and said, "I'll remember it."

Song Ying hurriedly picked up the brush and dipped it in ink, then remembered that he had not ground the ink yet, so he quickly picked up the ink stick and ground the ink.

This was the first time she was so flustered since she started learning calligraphy.

The child coroner waited patiently. When she finished grinding the ink and dipped it in ink, he said, "Examination, there are no wounds on the deceased's left hand. Examination, the deceased's right hand..."

Song Ying paused with his pen, very surprised. It turned out that the autopsy was so meticulous that almost every part of the body was examined carefully.