Zhao Fusheng fell into deep thought upon hearing this.
The room grew quiet enough to hear a pin drop. Fan Bisi, Magistrate Pang, and the others, seeing her silence, instinctively held their breaths, deeply afraid of interrupting her thoughts.
From Wu Dajing's words, Zhao Fusheng roughly pieced together a clear timeline:
Wu Dajing and Wu Datong were brothers who grew up together. Wu Datong's family was poor, and he hadn't been able to marry until after he turned thirty, when he finally had a son, Wu Liren.
Perhaps after having a son, he ventured out to make a living. For people of that era, leaving their village to enter a county town meant they had seen the wider world. Wu Datong was also quite lucky; he found a good backer, eventually returned home in glory, and took several concubines for his son.
From then on, Wu Datong's lineage began to make a name for itself in Dog Head Village. Wu Liren was chosen as the village head, likely becoming a prominent household in the village. And after Wu Liren had wives and concubines, his family branched out and grew, producing many children over the years. But strangely, all of them were sons, not a single daughter.
By this point, Zhao Fusheng focused the problem on Wu Datong's family because, although no vengeful spirits had appeared in this story yet, strangeness permeated every detail.
After clarifying her thoughts, she again turned her gaze to Wu Dajing: "I understand the matter of the Wu Datong family now. Next, tell me about Wu Lifu and Wu Jiu—" Saying this, Zhao Fusheng waved her hand again: "Don't talk about their grievances."
Even without Wu Dajing saying it, Zhao Fusheng could guess that the grievances between these two were accumulations of trivial matters. But the fact that Wu Dajing started by talking about their fight and then casually mentioned Wu Liren proved that the strange occurrences in the village likely began after these two argued and sought Wu Liren, the village head, to mediate. "Did they both go to Wu Liren's house and find something amiss?" she asked.
Wu Dajing was greatly startled, collapsing onto the ground, and only after a long moment did he exclaim: "Is Your Excellency perhaps a celestial being descended to earth? You guessed perfectly."
His face was filled with conviction, spittle flying as he spoke: "Their quarrel wasn't a matter of one or two days; everyone in the village knew about it and enjoyed watching the spectacle. Until half a month ago, the two happened to meet again in the fields, and without a word, they started fighting fiercely. They nearly caused a death, so some villagers escorted them to the village head's house, intending to ask the village head to mediate."
At this point, Wu Dajing's face finally showed signs of fear: "At that time, I heard a terrible commotion outside, so I followed along and saw the village head's main gate tightly closed from a distance."
As he said this, Zhao Fusheng also realized something was amiss. From the original host's memories, it was known that in this era, poverty and backwardness were prevalent, and there were many petty thieves and scoundrels. However, if someone was home in the countryside, the main gate wouldn't be tightly shut, unless the whole family was going out, in which case they would securely lock it.
In broad daylight, the Wu Liren family had many people, with over twenty sons, so they wouldn't fear ordinary petty criminals coming to their door.
"Was the main gate tightly shut, or securely locked?" Zhao Fusheng pressed, and Wu Dajing immediately understood her meaning, praising: "Your Excellency is a discerning person, it was tightly shut! It wasn't locked from the outside; it was bolted from the inside with a latch, not locked as if they had gone out." After speaking, he added: "Even if some of them were going out, they had servants at home, and Wu Liren had so many sons, so there's no way no one would be left behind. Why would they need to lock the door?"
"Did you see a ghost after that?" Fan Bisi, finding it somewhat peculiar at this point, also asked.
"No—" Wu Dajing's expression was terrified as he mumbled: "It would have been better if we had seen a ghost; we just didn't see one."
Magistrate Pang heard this and was utterly confused, like a monk trying to grasp the meaning of a ten-foot tall Buddha. He subconsciously turned to look at an old man beside him. That old man's face was also flushed red, his hands clasped, fingers tightly interlocked.
Everyone was eager to test Zhao Fusheng's reaction with a ghost case. Before this, they had only vaguely heard the gist, knowing only that the village head's family in Dog Head Village, Wu'an Town, had encountered a ghost calamity and were in a critical situation. They hadn't expected that no ghost had even appeared in this particular case yet.
If they weren't inside the Demon Suppression Division at that moment, Magistrate Pang would have been furious, throwing Wu Dajing into prison and charging him with disrespect. He felt a lump in his throat, deeply afraid that Zhao Fusheng would erupt in fury.
Just as he was feeling anxious, he heard Zhao Fusheng ask: "Then what did you see afterward?"
Her tone was calm, not sounding angry as if she had been toyed with by Wu Dajing. A great weight lifted from Magistrate Pang's heart. He turned to look at her, but saw her with a half-smile, and she also turned to look at him as she spoke. Their gazes met, and Magistrate Pang felt as though his thoughts were completely exposed before her, and he lowered his head, feeling quite guilty.
"The villagers knocked for a long time, but received no response, so they all began to discuss it animatedly," Wu Dajing continued. By this point, the people of Dog Head Village no longer cared much about the grievances between Wu Lifu and Wu Jiu; they were all discussing whether something had happened to the Wu Liren family.
Their entire household, including servants, numbered in the dozens, yet they hadn't risen even when the sun was high in the sky. With such a commotion outside, even if the people inside were dead asleep, they surely would have been woken up. After discussing for a long time, everyone suspected that thieves might have entered the village head's house last night.
"It's said that current kidnappers and tricksters have a kind of 'bewitching medicine' that they put into water. After drinking it, people unconsciously lose consciousness and become completely at their mercy," Wu Dajing said. "The Wu Liren family happens to have a well, so it's possible someone put medicine in it, and the whole family is unconscious."
"These are just guesses," Zhao Fusheng said faintly.
Wu Dajing quickly flattered: "Your Excellency is right." After speaking, he added with a hint of pride: "At that moment, someone suggested that I come up with a solution to this problem." He seemed quite pleased when bringing this up.
Wu Dajing was quite old, and having been brothers with the village head's father, Wu Datong, he held an unusual status in Dog Head Village, regarded as a venerable elder of considerable repute. With something happening to Village Head Wu Liren's family, the villagers naturally elected him to take charge.
"What solution did you come up with?" Zhao Fusheng asked, following his lead.
"I thought of—" He quickly began to answer, but his slightly cloudy eyes shifted, as if he feared the important figures would blame him, and he said with a hint of cunning: "I was worried that something had happened to the Wu Liren family; they just had a funeral not long ago, so what if something else happened? Therefore, I suggested letting a few strong men from the village force the door open and go inside to see what was going on."
This old man wasn't stupid; he knew how to protect himself while speaking. Zhao Fusheng was caught between laughter and tears: "What did you find in the end?"
"The Wu Liren family's house was empty!" Wu Dajing said this, the smile on his face gradually faded, and fear reappeared in his eyes. Recalling the scene, he felt his scalp prickle. Without waiting for Zhao Fusheng to ask again, he quickly repeated: "The Wu family's house was deserted, completely empty! There was no one there at all!"
Magistrate Pang and the others were dumbfounded, unable to speak. This old man had been rambling aimlessly for a long time, but now he had finally hit the mark.
"No one?" Zhao Fusheng frowned. She wasn't a criminal investigation professional and wasn't very clear about standard case procedures, but she knew one thing: "Did you check other doors and windows for signs of opening or closing?" The Wu Liren family had a large household and property, so the Wu family residence should not be small, and there were probably more than one entrance/exit.
Although this case initially sounded strange, there was no sign of a vengeful spirit yet, so the possibility of human involvement could not be ruled out—Zhao Fusheng needed to eliminate other possibilities one by one first.
"That—that wasn't noticed—" Wu Dajing felt a little guilty when Zhao Fusheng asked this. He subconsciously looked at Magistrate Pang and the old man sitting next to him: "We are just villagers from the countryside and don't understand these things—"
Magistrate Pang also knew his visit had been hasty. Hearing this, he felt both fearful and anxious, and quickly said: "This humble official will immediately dispatch yamen runners to Dog Head Village in Wu'an Town. After investigating the case, I will report to Your Excellency."
"No rush." Zhao Fusheng shook her head.
Facing a ghost case, she displayed extraordinary patience and tolerance. Relying on her intuition, Zhao Fusheng had already surmised that this case in Dog Head Village, Wu'an Town, was unusual. The Wu Liren family's situation was strange in every respect; although no vengeful spirit had appeared, it was highly likely related to ghosts—from this perspective, Magistrate Pang had not reported the wrong kind of case.
"Wu Datong, Wu Liren, seven or eight wives and concubines, over twenty sons—" She first sorted out the individuals she knew to be involved in the case, temporarily setting aside those like Wu Lifu and Wu Jiu who were not yet directly related to the ghost case. "It seems there's still an oversight—" As she said this, she vaguely felt as if she had missed something.
Zhao Fusheng had a good memory. She preferred to draft a plan in her mind before doing anything, so she would be prepared in advance, act methodically, and reduce the chances and possibilities of error. Especially after her rebirth, she was dealing with ghost cases that concerned her own life, so she was even more cautious. By all accounts, there should have been no omissions.
Perhaps due to the influence of the vengeful spirit possession, she was reborn in this body. Not only was her physical condition far superior to before, but her memory was also better than ever. How could she not remember things now? Realizing something was amiss, she immediately stopped trying to recall what exactly she had forgotten. Instead, she remembered something else: when Wu Dajing had been speaking earlier, he had also appeared confused at times, as if he had lost some memory.
This roundabout way of recalling seemed to revive a disturbed memory in an instant. She remembered something: when she had asked about Wu Datong's descendants, Wu Dajing had seemed hesitant, as if he couldn't remember. The fractured memory became clear and unobstructed in an instant. She suddenly remembered what she had overlooked: Wu Datong's son!
"Wu Datong had two sons—" Zhao Fusheng said this, a smile appearing on her face: "Besides Wu Liren, he also had a younger son."
After speaking, her earlobe seemed to itch. She couldn't help but reach up and scratch it twice, only to find a scab, like a fingernail, had formed there at some unknown time. She picked at it twice and tore it off. The wound had perhaps only recently healed; once the scab was torn off, it stung a little. Zhao Fusheng touched her ear twice, realizing she didn't know when she had been injured. Thinking back, the only time she had fought was when she battled the Beggar Ghost in Beggars' Alley. Perhaps she had been injured then.
Fortunately, the wound behind her ear wasn't large, and no blood flowed after the scab was torn off. She didn't dwell on the matter. She should have flicked the piece of skin onto the ground, but for some reason, Zhao Fusheng, as if guided by a strange impulse, unfolded the scab. After all, this was the first evidence left after her first encounter with a ghost; how could she discard it casually? Thinking of this, she casually tucked the scab into the case file, using it as a 'bookmark.'
After doing all this, she looked up at the others, but saw their faces were blank, as if they didn't understand: "Your Excellency, what son?"
Judging by everyone's reactions, Zhao Fusheng was now certain that there was something sinister about this case. It seemed Wu Dajing's forgetfulness was not accidental, but rather the work of a strange power. He and Wu Datong had grown up together, knowing each other intimately, yet when asked about Wu Datong's descendants, he seemed unable to recall.
It wasn't just Wu Dajing; even the other people inside the Demon Suppression Division, who had clearly heard her questions just now, now showed confused expressions in unison when she brought up Wu Datong's other descendant again. These people might not be wholeheartedly convinced by her, but they were certainly both awed and fearful of her, and would absolutely not pretend to be foolish or clueless regarding a ghost case. The only possibility was that they had been affected by some terrifying power, causing them to lose their memories of Wu Datong's other son.
In other words, the core of this strangeness lay with Wu Datong's 'younger son'. Through her conversation with Wu Dajing, Zhao Fusheng quickly pinpointed the core of the problem.
The others were still somewhat confused. Zhao Fusheng looked at Wu Dajing, who himself had memory gaps. After thinking for a long time, he finally had an epiphany: "Oh—right, right, right, Wu Datong did have another son." He seemed a bit embarrassed, and reached out to tug at his trousers again, subtly rubbing the outer layer of his trousers vigorously twice: "He did have a son."
Zhao Fusheng was not in a hurry to immediately pursue clues about Wu Datong's younger son. Instead, she brought up another matter: "So many people couldn't possibly disappear suddenly and silently overnight—unless they left on their own. Since you didn't notice if the doors and windows were open, did you hear any activity the night before?"
"No," Wu Dajing shook his head with great certainty: "The village isn't very big. My house isn't far from Wu Liren's, and normally, if his wives argued inside, I could even hear the commotion through the wall." After speaking, he pursed his lips and shook his head again: "That night, there was no sound."
"What about during the day? Did anyone see Wu Liren's family leave during the day?" Zhao Fusheng asked.
"No—no either." When it came to this, Wu Dajing wasn't as certain as before, but then he added again: "But Your Excellency, it's the busy autumn season right now. Everyone has work to do and isn't out idly wandering. There are people in the fields and on the land throughout the village. The Wu Liren family has many members; if they really left, how could no one have seen them?"
However, many days had passed, and while all sorts of rumors circulated among the villagers, no one had mentioned seeing the Wu Liren family depart.
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