The Whispering Verses Chapter 1274: Rumors about stone statues

"No, no, I'm just curious."

Xia De defended himself, and then couldn't help but asked curiously:

"There are also craftsmen who specialize in making fruit-body stone sculptures?"

"Of course, and the whole body is even more difficult to sculpt than wearing clothes. After all, you have to consider the proportions and details of those private parts. Don't look at me like this, I also heard what my friends said."

Mr. Antonio spoke seriously, and then in a lower voice told the anecdotes he knew:

"I even know that someone commissioned a famous local stonemason to carve a one-to-one statue of a woman, but the upper part was filled with soft cotton and silk, and the lower part... ahem, you just Treat it as a local urban legend, don’t say I said it.”

For this rumor, Shade didn't even want to touch the mithril cube to confirm it. However, no matter in which world or in which era, men's hobbies have not changed at all.

Because the room was really dark, the gas lamps on the wall were already turned on at this time, making the atmosphere at eleven o'clock look like it was already night.

Shad looked away from the oil painting on the wall:

"Let's not talk about stone statues of women. Mr. Antonio, I heard that the Masons' Guild once made movable stone statues."

"Yes, yes, this kind of rumor will appear every few years. There are many legends, such as the masons who killed people and then disguised the bodies as stone statues to hide them; or the souls who were murdered by the masons possessed them. On the stone statue, he took revenge on his enemies; or a young girl who longed for love died of a disease, and the young man’s longing for him turned the stone statue into a real person... There are many themes. ”

Mr. Antonio knows more about this than Shade, and this kind of story is interesting even to a foreigner:

"So what is the truth?"

"Mr. Watson, I am just a writer, not a detective. I don't care about the truth, what I care about is the story... Well, I still care about the truth. I am here today to collect materials. I just want to I need to write a new script with a similar theme."

Xia De smiled:

"Sounds interesting, do you mind if I come with you? I won't steal your idea, but maybe I can adapt it into a popular detective."

Of course Mr. Antonio won’t mind.

The playwright actually didn't have any good ideas for investigation. Like Shade, he came to the Stonemason's Guild with the intention of giving it a try.

So the two of them went to have lunch together first, and then returned to the Stonemasons Association again after lunch. At this time, the police officers standing at the door still did not leave. Only when they were sure that they were out of hearing distance, Mr. Antonio said to Shade:

"This time, the police will definitely make the association pay the price."

"At what cost? You mean the assassination? But that couldn't have been ordered by the Masons."

Xia De said, the middle-aged man touched his chin:

"But so what, the police don't care who gave the instructions. My friend at the police station told me that the identity of the assassin has been clearly investigated. He was the person who caused the collapse of the Willendale Colossus more than ten years ago. The victim of the incident was permanently disabled and unable to work. His wife left home on a rainy night eight years ago, and his only child fell ill and died three years ago... I personally prefer that the assassination of Prince William was a private vent of anger, but if he insists, It is not impossible to get involved with the Masons Association.

"Because you are wronged, do you want to retaliate against the victim?"

Xia De said suspiciously, and Mr. Antonio looked around nervously:

"Watson, don't you dare say such nonsense. Moreover, this matter cannot be the royal family's idea. It is most likely that the people below are trying to please the people above. Moreover, Prince William was attacked, no matter what Find someone with weight to convict, otherwise the local police department will be held responsible..."

He gave Shade a "you know" expression. Shade clicked his tongue, then turned to look at the policeman standing at the front door, while Mr. Antonio was still nervously reminding:

"Be careful with the gray gloves...these

People always have a way to find out what they want to know, so let’s not get ourselves into trouble. "

After returning to the Stonemasons Association in the afternoon, the two of them did not continue to look at the stone sculptures waiting to be sold in the hall. Mr. Antonio didn't have any clues, but when Miss Shadtorasse helped collect information, they found that someone in the Masons' Association claimed to have seen moving stone sculptures, and that was last year, so the two decided to visit that person. eyewitness.

The target this time is Mr. Peter Tolford, a middle-aged stonemason in the Masons' Guild. He does not have his own independent workshop, but works in the Masons' Guild.

When Shade and Mr. Antonio saw him, this stonemason with dark skin and exaggerated muscles was taking inventory in the warehouse with his two young apprentices. He originally didn't want to waste time chatting with strangers, but after Mr. Antonio threw the coin, he stood happily among the densely arranged stone statues and answered their questions enthusiastically.

"Yes, moving stone sculptures. Last year, 1853, I can't remember exactly when it was. It was probably the end of winter like this. I was drunk... I mean, I came out of the tavern Later, I thought about taking the apron I used for work home to wash, so I said hello to the gatekeeper and went to the backyard warehouse, which is probably where it is."

He pointed to the shelf against the wall, with a row of hooks welded on the side for hanging things:

"When I got the apron and wanted to leave, I saw a black shadow wandering in the warehouse. Oh, I was frightened and woke up."

Mr. Tolfo probably has a talent for telling scary stories. When he gets older, instead of being a stonemason, he can still make money by telling stories in taverns:

"Gentlemen, you are all decent people. You can't imagine what a warehouse looks like at night. In order to prevent fire,

The gas pipe in the warehouse is closed at night, so the gas light cannot be turned on. I was holding a kerosene lamp, and God, my eyes were filled with people in dense shadows, looking at me from all directions. ”

"I'm sorry, I don't doubt your story, but are you sure that what you saw was a moving stone statue and not a shadow that was moving because of the shaking of the kerosene lamp in your hand?"

Mr. Antonio asked suspiciously, and the middle-aged mason shook his head with certainty:

"I'm very familiar with these stone statues. How could I recognize the shadow as a stone statue? It's not a shadow, and it's not my eyesight, so it must be a moving stone statue!"

He has told this story many times to others, so he tells it very carefully.

"Be careful! Don't you know the ground is uneven? Which **** didn't tie the cart down?

Suddenly, the roar of the warehouse steward came from the side of the three of them, and then they all saw a stone statue of a nun sliding automatically towards the door of the warehouse. Fortunately, the flat cart under the statue was caught in time.

Mr. Tolfo was a little embarrassed, but still emphasized:

"This was definitely not the case at the time. I definitely saw it correctly. It was not because I was drunk. I knew my drinking capacity."

The way he explained it made his story even more suspicious.

"So do you have any guesses about this?"

Shade then asked again, and Mr. Tolford nodded again:

"It must be 'silent old Fleming' appearing again!"

"What is that?"

Mr. Antonio asked, and Mr. Tolfo explained:

"Old Fleming was one of the founders of the Randall Valley Stonemason Guild in 1108 G.C. , someone also auctioned one a few years ago and sold it for a lot of money."

He probably didn't know the exact number, but he just heard people say there was a lot of money.

"This gentleman was low-key by nature, and there were no cameras in that era. He didn't even leave an oil painting. He carved stone statues for countless people throughout his life, but he never carved for himself. Rumor has it that Old Fleming He disappeared unexpectedly one day, and no one has seen him since. But from that time on, people occasionally met him at night.

In the evening, I saw moving stone sculptures in the association. This was the return of old Fleming. He wanted to see the place where he worked during his lifetime. ”

"I'm also a local. Why haven't I heard that one of the founders of the Stonemasons Guild had a surname named Fleming?"

Mr. Antonio raised his question, and the middle-aged stonemason said sheepishly:

"These are all rumors among the masons of the association. I have only heard them from the old people. As for whether they are true, I don't have the ability to investigate clearly. If the stone statues at the auction are unknown ancient stone statues, they are also They all just use the name Fleming...but I always believe that there is definitely the old Fleming!"

This makes everything he just said even more unbelievable.

"Is there any news you can trust?"

Xia De asked, touching the silver cube in his pocket, but there was no reaction at all. Seeing the other party rubbing his rough fingers again, he snorted:

"I want to hear the news first, the confirmed news, not what you saw when you were drunk or what you heard from hearsay."

The mason rubbed his hands in embarrassment:

"Of course there is credible news. Some time ago, someone said that the new janitor was turned into a toy puppet. You can ask him."

You don’t need to ask others about this, Sha De himself knows it very well:

"We are here to investigate the stone statues, not the puppets."

He emphasized it, and Mr. Antonio was not distracted by it.

So the middle-aged mason thought hard for a while, then clenched his right fist and smashed it into the palm of his left hand:

"I remembered that last fall, the Church of the Sun sent several priests to investigate the entire association and performed an exorcism ceremony in this warehouse. I was also here at the time and watched for a long time. It’s lively.”

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