Сhарter 73: The Wеi Fаmily Villa
Undеr the moоnlight, Zhu Yаn аnd Shеn Du stеаlthily infiltratеd the Liang residence, mаking thеir waу with prасtiсеd eаsе tо thе Wеi familу villa.
It must be said, thе Liаng familу truly were hiddеn snobs. During the dаy, theу арреаrеd to treаt thе Wei fаmilу with grеat kindnеss, but onсе night fell, therе wаs not а single carеtaker in the еntirе villа.
“Liang Jirеn is too goоd аt рutting on аn асt. Nо mаttеr what, shе is still а ladу of thе house, уet thеrе isn’t еven а singlе реrson to loоk after her.”
Zhu Yan cоmplained, fоllowing behind Shеn Du and lеtting hеr guard dоwn.
“She was previously the second wife, so it’s understandable if Liang Jiren doesn’t care. But this Second Master Liang is truly a man who loves the new and tires of the old.”
Zhu Yan pursed her lips, glancing at Shen Du with dissatisfaction. “What about the second master? The entire Liang household is still under Liang Jiren’s control. I don’t believe that if Liang Jiren gave an order, his brother would dare to rebel.”
“Shh…” Shen Du made a gesture for silence, lowering his voice. “Don’t forget the purpose of our visit. We can discuss these matters after we return.”
Zhu Yan quickly nodded, closing her mouth and saying no more as she followed Shen Du quietly into Wei’s room.
However, the scene that greeted them inside was enough to startle even Zhu Yan, who had years of experience handling cases and had seen much of the world. Even Shen Du was shocked and surprised.
Wei was originally a madwoman. Without anyone to care for her, her room should have been in disarray. Yet now, the entire room was filled with kites, all resembling moths.
What sent chills down their spines was a portrait of Liang Man in the room. The upper half of the portrait was no longer visible, with only the name “Liang Man” written in the corner. The upper part had been devoured by a giant moth, its shape extremely terrifying and exuding an aura of evil.
Cold sweat broke out on Zhu Yan’s forehead, and her hands trembled uncontrollably. “What… what is this?”
Her finger pointed at the half-devoured portrait, her voice filled with fear.
Shen Du shielded her behind him, casting a cold glance at the portrait before speaking gravely. “Our target was wrong from the very beginning…”
Zhu Yan also understood something, but the more she thought about it, the more terrifying it became, and she dared not stay any longer.
“Let’s go back.” Her mind was completely blank; the horror in the room had robbed her of the ability to think.
Seeing Zhu Yan’s pale face, Shen Du grew somewhat concerned. “Alright, we now know the culprit. It’s time to go back and get a good night’s sleep.”
…
In the blink of an eye, the first day of the month, the day of breaking the fast, was approaching, and the various wards regained a bit of vitality.
The once desolate Vermilion Bird Street returned to its former bustle as people flocked to observe the grand Buddhist ceremony presided over by the Empress’s male favorite, Zhang Baohuan.
The streets were packed with crowds. Even establishments like the Pingkang Ward and Lanyan Pavilion, which were looked down upon as brothels, saw their young women venture out to the temple to join the excitement, hoping to absorb the Buddhist aura and dispel their gloom.
With the nation’s customs being open and such a grand Buddhist event taking place, it was naturally a sea of people, making it difficult to maintain order.
The Unrighteous Agents and the Inner Guard Bureau personnel simply couldn’t hold them back. The commoners were flesh and blood, and they couldn’t use force. Throughout the morning, constant reports left the two deeply frustrated.
Today was also the final day within the deadline set by the Empress.
“They truly have a difficult task.”Zhu Yan felt some sympathy for the Unrighteous Agents and the cabinet brothers maintaining order, lightly touching her forehead with her hand. "With such a massive crowd, it's already a blessing if they aren't trampled underfoot. How can they possibly maintain order properly?"
Beside her, Jing Lin also sighed, looking up at the sky. "It's a good thing that the nation's customs are open, but with so many people crowded together like little ants, forget maintaining order—even offering incense at the temple would be difficult."
"From the sound of it, you also want to go to the scene to soak up some blessings?" Zhu Yan teased, glancing at Jing Lin. "If you were to go, just based on your face, they'd have to give you some respect. Wanting to offer incense would be easy."
Seeing Zhu Yan tease him, Jing Lin pursed his lips. "I don't believe in ghosts or gods. Even if you invited the Buddha himself today, I wouldn't go to that temple to pay my respects."
"Alright..." Zhu Yan drew out the word, then the glimmer in her eyes gradually faded. "Today is the last day within the Empress's deadline."
Before finishing her sentence, she turned to look at Shen Du, who was sitting behind her. "Have you thought about how to explain it to the Empress?"
Shen Du's expression was grave, one hand rhythmically tapping the nearby table. "What else can we do? Tell the truth."
Hearing their conversation, Jing Lin's expression turned serious. "Then, should we go to the Liang residence to arrest someone?"
Zhu Yan took a deep breath. "Let's wait a bit longer. Right now, the streets are teeming with people. Going to the Liang residence to make an arrest probably won't be easy either."
As she spoke, she turned and sat down on a nearby chair, leisurely sipping her tea.
The case could be closed, and everyone's hearts relaxed considerably.
Hearing Zhu Yan say this, Jing Lin also leaned leisurely against the nearby doorframe, idly teasing the birds that had landed in the courtyard.
Shen Du let out a long sigh. This case had dragged on for so long, and now it could finally be closed. This should be the time for him to relax, yet for some reason, his heart remained unusually heavy, as if something bad was about to happen.
Zhu Yan also noticed Shen Du's unusual demeanor and stood up to ask, "The case is about to be resolved. We should be happy, so why do you still look so troubled? Could it be that you think there's something suspicious about it?"
Shen Du nodded, then shook his head. His dark, inscrutable expression made it impossible to guess what he was thinking.
He stood up, paced to the door, then turned back. "For some reason, my heart is unusually unsettled, as if something major is about to happen. And although this case seems resolved, I can't shake the feeling that something isn't right. But when I think about it carefully, I can't pinpoint the problem."
"Could it be that you've been too stressed during this period, and now that you know the culprit, you can't let it go right away?"
Jing Lin, standing at the door, offered his guess. Zhu Yan also nodded in agreement. "The deadline set by the Empress was an invisible pressure. But at least we've found the culprit. You don't need to think about it so much anymore."
Shen Du nodded, but the darkness between his brows did not lessen in the slightest.
At that moment, the Unrighteous Agent Jiang Langxing hurried over, clasping his fists and bowing to the two of them, his expression anxious. "It's bad. There are too many commoners on the streets, and we simply don't have enough manpower. Even if we want to maintain order, it's very difficult. What if..."
Jiang Langxing didn't finish his sentence, but everyone understood what he meant.Today is the day of the festival, so it's only natural that there are many people. The real worry is that among these crowds, there might be some with ill intentions.
If someone were to cause trouble on this day, it would be extremely difficult to investigate, even if we tried.
Maintaining order is a problem, but at the moment, Shen Du and Zhu Yan seem to have thought of an even more serious issue.
A sudden flash of insight struck Zhu Yan's mind. It felt as though she had overlooked certain details in the case, and now she had finally found some connections.
Why do the bodies appear at regular intervals? Why are the hearts missing from the corpses? Why are the faces of the female victims always destroyed?
The timing of these bodies appearing, along with the methods of the crimes, seems to follow some kind of ritual. And if we calculate the dates...
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