Anna Brooks thought for a moment, recalled, and then said, “I used to live with my grandmother, and she liked to sing some local folk songs from Yincheng. I remember, there was one folk song that went like this…”

　　Anna Brooks, imitating her grandmother, cleared her throat and sang softly, “The Li family’s sword, the Zhang family’s knife, the Zhao family’s fist, the Liu family’s leg… the Zheng family’s young master is a drag!”

　　After singing a short segment, even Anna Brooks felt embarrassed, and she laughed awkwardly, “It doesn’t sound very good in Mandarin. Actually, when my grandmother sang it in the Yincheng dialect, it sounded much better. Of course, these are just some local operas that originated here. If you haven’t heard them before, they might sound a bit rustic.”

　　At this moment, Henry Thompson’s eyes were flickering wildly.

　　Folk song!

　　The Li family’s sword, the Zhang family’s knife…

　　There are eight surnames in this folk song!

　　Li, Zhang, Zhao, Liu, Wang, Hong, Zhou, Zheng!

　　He snatched the paper from Anna Brooks’s hand without any politeness, immediately landing on the first name, Quentin Carter.

　　This was the one who died ten years ago!

　　Also the first self-immolation case subject that Henry Thompson had found.

　　Next was that shop assistant Grace Hudson, then Howard Smith…

　　If, if the first to die wasn’t Quentin Carter, but someone with the surname Zheng, then Quentin Carter would be the second, Grace Hudson the third, Howard Smith the fourth…

　　In the Yincheng folk song, the eight major surnames, when reversed, actually match the order of deaths exactly.

　　The last to die, Ethan Bolton, corresponds to the Zhang family’s knife.

　　That means… there’s still one more!

　　There’s still one person who will die, with the surname Li, the first in the opera, the Li family’s sword!

　　Henry Thompson’s expression changed.

　　He hurriedly looked at Anna Brooks, unable to suppress his shock and excitement, his voice a little hoarse: “This song… when did it start circulating, who spread it…”

　　Anna Brooks was startled by his gaze, but quickly calmed down, “Don’t worry, Henry Thompson, quite a few elderly people should have heard this song, but few young people have, so you don’t know it. If you’re interested, we can look into it slowly, don’t rush!”

　　Henry Thompson took a deep breath, suppressing his impulse.

　　Don’t rush!

　　He hadn’t expected that just by showing Anna Brooks a glance, she would provide such an important clue. Henry Thompson had never heard of this song, nor had anyone sung it; it probably stopped being popular many years ago.

　　Because with the spread of Mandarin, these local rural folk songs had long been buried with the older generation, gradually lost.

　　Henry Thompson’s grandfather’s generation died early, Henry Thompson had never met them, so naturally no one would have sung it to him.

　　“Calm down!”

　　Henry Thompson shouted inwardly, What’s the rush? Now that there’s a clue, that’s what matters—don’t rush.

　　The key now is, I need to confirm whether the first to die had the surname Zheng.

　　The case files from ten years ago—some were destroyed in the confidential archives, but not all traces are gone, and he doesn’t need to investigate in detail. He just needs to find out if, between fifteen and ten years ago, there was a Zheng who died by self-immolation.

　　At this moment, Henry Thompson was both excited and terrified.

　　If it really matches, then the next one… is himself!

　　Xiaoyuan must have seen something, heard something, which is why he told him to run.

　　“The Li family’s sword…”

　　“The Li family’s sword!”

　　Henry Thompson thought to himself, and suddenly his eyes widened—The Li family… does have a sword!

Chapter 004: The Mist Begins to Clear

　　Henry Thompson remembered!

　　Speaking of a sword, the Li family really does have one… or maybe a piece?

　　The reason he’s a bit unsure is because the sword Henry Thompson remembered… doesn’t quite look like a sword.

　　But Henry Thompson knows, this is indeed a sword.

　　It’s contradictory.

　　However, it’s the truth.

　　When he was a child, Henry Thompson’s father put a sword-shaped jade pendant around Henry Thompson’s neck and told him very seriously, “This is called the Starry Sky Sword. It’s the only old heirloom passed down in our Li family. In the future, you’ll give it to your child. Don’t say it’s jade—this is a sword.”

　　When he said this, his father was very serious.

　　Of course, after a moment of seriousness, seeing Henry Thompson’s confusion, his father was a bit helpless and added, “This is what your grandfather told me, and what the ancestors passed down. That’s how it’s always been explained. We have to call it a sword—just call it that.”

　　That’s why Henry Thompson could immediately think of the Li family really having a sword, called the Starry Sky Sword.

　　In fact, at this very moment, it was hanging around Henry Thompson’s neck—a small sword-shaped jade pendant.

　　At this moment, Henry Thompson was feeling a bit confused.

　　If, in the folk song, the Li family’s sword refers to this jade pendant, then the Li family does indeed have a sword.

　　Does the Zhang family have a knife?

　　As for others, Henry Thompson wasn’t too sure. Ethan Bolton’s parents died early, and Henry Thompson had known him for many years, so he was quite familiar with Ethan Bolton.

　　“The Zhang family’s knife…”

　　Henry Thompson thought carefully for a while—did the Zhang family have a knife?

　　Recalling the past, soon, Henry Thompson’s eyes flickered slightly. The Zhang family might really have a knife.

　　Unlike his own jade pendant, which at least is something valuable—an old piece of jade, worth some money, and the Li family valued it.

　　As for the Zhang family’s knife, Henry Thompson suddenly remembered that when he was a child, he went to Ethan Bolton’s house to play, and Ethan Bolton once secretly took something out to play with him. Very soon, Ethan Bolton’s father discovered it and gave Ethan Bolton a good beating.

　　That thing… seemed to be a knife-shaped stone.