jdhmnovel Chapter 473 The Dilapidated Temple, the Wine Shop, and the Charming Matchmaker
Chapter 473 The Dilapidated Temple, the Wine Shop, and the Charming Matchmaker
Jiang Xiaoqi spent a huge sum of money (5 points) to exchange for the antidote, and in return, she got five addresses. How could this not be considered a huge profit?
He didn't ask where the suicide squad was going in the future, since anywhere would be happier than being a suicide squad.
Of course, besides these five locations, the assassin must have something else he was holding back—his trump card.
Jiang Xiaoqi doesn't like to go to extremes, after all, these five places are sure to give him a lot of surprises.
However, as long as the people behind these suicide soldiers know that the entire army has been wiped out, they will not move the location where they hid the items.
They knew best the deadly poison, and wouldn't give anyone the chance to reveal so many deeply hidden locations.
So these places are safe for now; the priority is to go to the ruined temple and the wine shop.
You can also try the pretty matchmaker while you're at it. Wait, no, the pretty matchmaker is only served when the assassins gather or when there's a mission.
It seems I can not only drink this wine, but also uncover some interesting information along the way?
Let's take advantage of the free time today and go to the dilapidated temple first.
Li Mo returned to Beijing yesterday and, after a night's rest, has recovered his energy.
Jiang Xiaoqi immediately gathered his men and rushed to the dilapidated temple to search for any clues.
The dilapidated temple on the outskirts of the city was less than half a day's ride away. With some water and dry food, the two left the city.
The dilapidated temple was completely empty, with no trace of any beggars or passersby living or staying there, which was very strange.
Jiang Xiaoqi didn't have high hopes to begin with, since this was clearly just a temporary meeting place, not even a proper base.
But the marks on the broken wooden door of the dilapidated temple, which was now only a single door, caught his attention.
"Li Mo, look, what is this?"
"Sir, this looks like saltpeter. And there seems to be some charcoal too? This black stuff looks like charcoal."
Jiang Xiaoqi once wanted to make ice herself and asked Wenbin and Li Mo to find saltpeter, so Li Mo knows about saltpeter.
As for charcoal, it was even more common. Li Mo's father and grandfather used to burn charcoal themselves and sell it to make a living when they lived in their hometown.
Jiang Xiaoqi took out a handkerchief and used a wooden stick to pry some of the things out of the groove on the door and catch them.
"It is indeed saltpeter, but how could there be saltpeter on a wooden door?"
This door faces the sun, and since there are no conditions for the natural formation of saltpeter, it must have been added later.
However, the simultaneous appearance of saltpeter and charcoal is rather intriguing.
"Li Mo, are there any shops in the capital that sell fireworks and firecrackers?"
Fireworks and firecrackers?
"There seems to be one, sir, but that shop is a bit out of the way. There are almost no neighboring shops around it. It's just a lonely little shop, located on a dark alley corner. I only discovered it by chance."
"Yes, there really is some. Let's look around again and see if we can find any traces of sulfur."
"sulfur?"
"Yes, you should be familiar with that smell. When we were soaking in the hot springs in Chunyi County, you asked me why there was always a faint stench. That's the smell of sulfur."
"Understood, sir. I'll sniff around."
Before anyone could stop him, Li Mo started sniffing around like a police dog.
Jiang Xiaoqi felt that he had always valued human rights, but now he realized he had been exploiting his subordinates a bit. Sigh~ He would treat them to hot pot tonight to make up for it.
The reason why seeing saltpeter and charcoal makes one think of looking for sulfur is due to the ingrained thinking of a person from a later generation.
After all, black powder is a common mixture, mainly composed of potassium nitrate (saltpeter), charcoal powder, and sulfur.
The composition ratio is usually referred to as "one part sulfur, two parts nitrate, and three parts charcoal". The 1:2:3 ratio here refers to the stoichiometric ratio of the three reactants during the reaction, not the mass ratio. It is useless to use the weight to make the ratio.
It's not unusual for a dilapidated temple on the outskirts of a city to have charcoal, saltpeter, or even sulfur on its own. But if all three of these substances appear at the same time, and not far from the capital, then this matter could be big or small!
Just as Li Mo was searching for sulfur everywhere, Jiang Xiaoqi left the dilapidated temple, hoping to find some clues outside.
As he expected, he indeed found many intricate wheel tracks outside the dilapidated temple.
As if deliberately designed to mislead, the tire tracks lead in all directions, some even leading directly into a forest where there is no road at all.
Jiang Xiaoqi squatted down and carefully examined the tire tracks, trying to make some sense of them.
He discovered a set of tire tracks that, although mixed in with the chaotic traces, were noticeably deeper, suggesting they carried something heavy.
He followed the deepest set of tire tracks for several dozen steps and found that it led to a rocky wasteland. Once he reached the wasteland, the tire tracks disappeared.
It leaves a clear mark on the land and can be preserved for a period of time if it doesn't rain.
However, once on the abandoned rocky beach, the car will not leave any obvious traces. Even if there are some traces at the time, they can be easily removed and the original state restored by a simple cleanup.
How cunning!
Just then, Li Mo ran out of the dilapidated temple and shouted, "Sir, I smell sulfur in a corner of the temple! But I can't find the exact location."
As expected! These guys are up to something! Something big!
Jiang Xiaoqi was startled; it seemed his theory about gunpowder had come true.
"It's alright, take me to see him."
The two returned to the dilapidated temple, where the smell of sulfur was emanating from behind the statues of the Three Pure Ones.
"Sir, this is it. The sulfur smell isn't strong. I've searched all around, but I haven't found the place."
Jiang Xiaoqi sniffed; it was indeed the smell of sulfur.
"It doesn't matter if we can't find it. Maybe the sulfur didn't just leak out like saltpeter and charcoal. It's just that the box that held the sulfur was left here for a while, which is why it has picked up a little smell."
Li Mo nodded, "What you say makes sense, sir."
Jiang Xiaoqi had already thrown the handkerchief containing saltpeter fragments and charcoal powder into her spatial storage, and now there were traces of sulfur in it.
What exactly was the purpose of these people transporting gunpowder?
"Sir, where do we go next?"
"A wine shop!"
Of course, there's no "pretty matchmaker" today, but there are two "pretty gentlemen," Jiang Xiaoqi and Li Mo.
The full name of the wine shop is "Forget-Worry Wine Shop," a rather postmodern name, which was Jiang Xiaoqi's first impression of the shop.
Why does this sound so much like "The Miracles of the Namiya General Store"? He even suspected that the store owner was a fellow countryman from the future, just like himself.
Upon entering the wine shop, there were only three or four tables, and the arrangement was not particularly exquisite. The tables and chairs were clearly quite old.
I wonder how many years this store has been open. Surely it can't be selling second-hand furniture?
The wine shop assistant was a dark-skinned man, not very tall.
Upon seeing guests arrive, the host neither warmly nor coldly led them in and settled them in.
"What kind of wine would you two gentlemen like? Would you like to drink here or take it back?"
"If we're drinking here, what's your signature dish? Give us a pound first! And a few side dishes to go with the drinks too."
"Those who frequent our shop surely know our signature drink is 'Charming Matchmaker,' but that wine is difficult to brew, and the owner only releases a few jars occasionally. I'm afraid you won't be able to drink it today!"
"Oh? When can we come back to drink this 'Charming Matchmaker' drink? We'll come again next time!"
"This... is uncertain, it all depends on the owner's mood, so I don't know exactly when it will be available."
The dark-faced man spoke sincerely, and seemed to regret saying the words "pretty matchmaker."
Seeing this, Jiang Xiaoqi didn't make things difficult for him and simply ordered two other fine wines.
The side dishes included braised pig ears, braised donkey meat, and peanuts, all of which were quite suitable for drinking with alcohol.
"Eat this and we'll have the kitchen make you a hot pot with two broths when we get back tonight!"
Li Mo's eyes brightened noticeably, and she decided to keep the baby in her belly.
Nothing can compare to what his young master's little kitchen produces!
"Thank you, Master!"