The Delicate Lady Coroner Chapter 96: Fifth update to 08

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Chapter 96 Five Updates to 08

Wu Xiang smiled brightly and said, "Money is nothing. There are ten of us, so we can just pay the money at the inn outside the capital. I see that there are only two of you in your family, but the house is spacious. Please prepare one for our lady." Bed, others can have a mattress to rest on."

Grandma Zhang was overjoyed when she heard this, "Old lady, go get ready now."

After she finished speaking, she handed the water to Bo Ruoyou. Bo Ruoyou curved his lips and took it. Then Granny Zhang pulled Yu'er into the inner room. The smile on Wu Xiang's face quickly faded and she signaled to Bo Ruoyou. You walked towards the door.

Bao Ruoyou walked quickly to the door and said amidst the patter of rain outside: "I saw the young woman's clothes in the inner room, and some jewelry and hairpins. There must be a mistress in this house."

Wu Xiang narrowed her eyes, "But she said that her daughter-in-law died of illness a few years ago. I could see something was wrong from the look on your face, so I thought that we are all here today. If we leave today and come back tomorrow, I don't know what will happen." , I decided to stay one night." He said a little guiltily: "We used to go out to the city for business, and some of us would sleep in the open air, but if you think about it, you have never done that before, and you will have to work hard this time."

Bo Ruoyou curled her lips and said, "Don't think so about the head hunter. I have gone to villages and towns to do autopsies before, and I have also walked a long way. It's just that there are a lot of weird things here, so we have to put safety first."

Wu Xiang then reached out and took the bowl in her hand, "Have someone get your water bag from the carriage. You'd better not touch the things here."

Wu Xiang has been a police officer for many years and has seen many cases, large and small. Naturally, she is more vigilant than Bao Ruoyou. She responded without drinking water, and Wu Xiang went to the inner room again. After taking a look, he walked to the door of the inner room with a smile, "Grandma Zhang, do you want us to help?"

Bao Ruoyou followed Wu Xiang and walked over.

Farmhouses are naturally not as refined and wealthy as those in the capital. There are two wing rooms on the left and right of the main room, and the inner room is behind the main room, with a corridor running across the middle, followed by three square bedrooms, all with doors. , Granny Zhang and Yu'er were in the middle room. The door was half open at the moment. At a glance, you could see a lot of old furniture in the room. Due to the age, the furniture had turned black, making the whole room look even more complete. The house was dark.

Bao Ruoyou glanced over and saw that the clothes of the young woman who had been piled on the open chair just now were gone, and the two jade hairpins that were originally placed on the desk next to the bed by the back window were nowhere to be seen. , Granny Zhang was taking out a few quilts from a cabinet. When she heard this, she gasped and said, "No need to help, I can do such a small thing."

The boy named Yu'er stood beside the bed, looking at Granny Zhang with a dull expression. He was wearing a small indigo coarse cloth gown. Although the material was ordinary, the stitching was extremely fine. Bo Ruoyou was very interested in Wu Xiang. With a gesture, Wu Xiang pointed to the place where the woman's clothes were originally placed, and then pointed to the clothes on Yu'er's body. Wu Xiang quickly understood.

He looked back at Hou Yang and pointed to the wing rooms on both sides. Hou Yang nodded and glanced at the wing rooms lightly. The other yamen officials were all experienced. Several people went out and walked around the eaves to check the room. In the yard, several people came back after a while, and they all shook their heads at Wu Xiang. Bo Ruoyou looked in his eyes, and doubts arose in his heart.

Just now she saw that Yu'er's robe was very well made, so she guessed that there was a mistress in the house. Thinking of the newly born baby, she even doubted at that moment whether there was someone who had just given birth in the inner room. The finished woman walked to the door and saw that the inner room was empty. There were only two suspicious women's clothes.

Grandma Zhang found all the beddings that could be used at home, but there were only seven or eight beds, and most of them were old and turned yellow. She pointed to the bedroom in the southeast and said, "This lady is resting in The bed here and that room is where the old woman sleeps. Tonight, the old woman and her grandson are resting here. This is usually the room where the son sleeps."

Grandma Zhang had difficulty with her legs and feet, and seemed to have some problems with her hands. Seeing how difficult it was for her to carry a few quilts, Bao Ruoyou stepped forward to help. Wu Xiang followed them and waited until they entered the bedroom that Grandma Zhang mentioned. , it can be seen that the house is full of things used by the old man. Granny Zhang shakily changed the bedding. Although her movements were not smooth, she did not look tired on her face.

After changing here, she went to the side room again, "There is a big kang in this room. You can squeeze in together. I will find you two straw mats and put them on the floor of the shop to last one night."

Wu Xiang agreed kindly, and Granny Zhang asked again: "Do you want to cook for you?"

Wu Xiang waved his hand, "No need, we brought dry food with us."

Grandma Zhang responded, Wu Xiang first took out two taels of silver and put it down, then asked Grandma Zhang, "Grandma Zhang said that Guzhang Village is fifty miles away?"

Grandma Zhang nodded, and Wu Xiang turned to look at the heavy rain outside. The rain had not abated. It was as if there was a hole in the sky, and the heavy rain poured down, covering the small village between the mountains in the rain. inside.

In front of him was a dense curtain of rain. Looking further into the distance, he saw the towering ridge. Because he was so close to the ridge, he had a cramped feeling that his line of sight was blocked. Wu Xiang felt depressed for a moment as if he had fallen into the bottom of a pit somewhere. .

"Does mother-in-law know what kind of plague that year was?" Bo Ruoyou asked.

Grandma Zhang recalled for a moment, "It seemed to be a plague like typhoid fever. People would vomit blood, then sleep for a few days and then die without knowing anything. I have never seen it with my own eyes. People in that village don't like to talk to outsiders. The villagers moved around for a long time, and people outside also forgot about them. After the plague, it took a long time before anyone discovered them, and by that time everyone was dead."

"This incident alarmed the Qinshui County government. At that time, the government sent people to collect the corpses, buried all the dead, and then burned several houses. The village was completely turned into a dead place. I heard that I had been there. Some of the officials were dead, and some were crazy. They said they were frightened. Although there were not many people in the village, there were nearly a hundred people. When we entered, they were all dead and rotten. It’s scary to think about it."

After Granny Zhang finished speaking, she held her grandson close to her. After talking for a while, she became less wary of Wu Xiang and others. Wu Xiang frowned slightly, "Plague is not a trivial matter, and there is often no cure. If a sick person runs out, he or she will infect people outside. This place is not far from the capital. If it spreads to the capital, something serious will happen. , Fortunately, the people in their village don't interact with people outside."

Times have changed, Wu Xiang’s words are common thoughts, but when he thinks of the entire village dead, the tragic situation is still shocking. Without saying more, he continues to ask: "In this way, Guzhang Village This village has disappeared for more than ten years?"

Grandma Zhang nodded, "Yes, she has disappeared for more than ten years. Nowadays, even young people in their twenties can't remember it. There are elderly people in the family who know a little bit about it, but they just listen to it. It’s scary, and it’s quite unlucky. If someone with no business asks the old woman, she won’t even bother to tell her.”

After a pause, Granny Zhang warned: "Don't believe the method you asked about how to pray to God. Back then, Guzhang Village was punished by the Water God. You are all rich and noble officials in the capital. Why bother? Do you want these?"

Wu Xiang smiled and said, "Grandma Zhang, I don't know, it's quite difficult to be an official in the capital. If this method is really useful, then of course I have to give it a try. The people in Guzhang Village were punished only because of the sacrifices." Not enough?"

Grandma Zhang shook her head, "I don't know about that. Their village is very weird. Because they don't go out of the village all year round, they rely on God for food. If the harvest is not good every year, there will be no surplus. How about using food as a sacrifice to the gods?"

Wu Xiang was puzzled, "Sacrificing food to the gods? This is very simple. I still think that these weird shrines have to be sacrificed with other strange things."

Grandma Zhang twitched her lips, "Other rare things? Then they can't even take them out. They are all untouchables in a remote place. What rare and valuable things can they have?"

Wu Xiang looked relaxed and continued to ask. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door of the Zhang family. The knock was loud and urgent, and it was also abrupt and harsh among the deafening words. Granny Zhang's face changed slightly. He took an umbrella and walked out of the house.

Yu'er wanted to follow, but Granny Zhang was walking very fast. He was stopped by the rain and stood under the eaves without moving.

Bo Ruoyou and Wu Xiang also went out.

Raindrops fell on the ground, and then flew up and landed in front of the door. Seeing mud spots flying onto Yu'er's shoes, Bo Ruoyou pulled him back, but Yu'er was startled. Turning around, his little face looked at her in horror.

Bo Ruoyou said hurriedly: "Don't be afraid, I think your shoes are going to be dirty."

Just now Zhou Liang had gone to the carriage to get a water bag and snacks. Bo Ruoyou handed a piece of bean cake to Yu'er, "This is a snack from the capital. It's very sweet. Try it."

Yu'er was stunned for a moment, then took it tremblingly in his hand, hesitated for a moment, lowered his head and took a bite. It seemed that it was really sweet and delicious, and he swallowed the remaining few mouthfuls, feeling more relaxed.

Bo Ruoyou smiled and looked at the courtyard door again. The door was half open. Granny Zhang was standing in the courtyard. A familiar face appeared outside. Bo Ruoyou thought for a moment. It was the two people he met in the afternoon. One of the men doing farm work.

Bo Ruoyou smiled and asked, "We met this man this afternoon. Who is he?"

Yu'er also looked at the courtyard door, "It's Uncle Zhang."

Bao Ruoyou didn't ask any more questions, just gave him another piece of snack and asked him, "Then what is your name?"

"Zhang Yu." After saying that, he took the snack.

My mother-in-law’s surname is Zhang, my grandson’s surname is also Zhang, and the man from the same village outside is also surnamed Zhang?

Bo Ruoyou frowned slightly, and Wu Xiang seemed to find it strange. At this time, Granny Zhang finished speaking, closed the courtyard door and came back. Seeing Wu Xiang and Zhang Yu standing at the door, she looked slightly tense and went up He grabbed Zhang Yu and went directly to the kitchen. It was already getting late, and the mother-in-law and grandson were about to have dinner.

Soon there was a ding-ding-dong-dong sound from the kitchen. Wu Xiang and others had indeed brought dry food. He first ordered everyone to eat some dry food, and then looked anxiously at the falling night. If it hadn't rained, he would They still wanted to go out and explore the situation in the village, but now that the night was pitch black and the rain was so heavy, they were really trapped here.

After Granny Zhang took her grandson to eat, she locked the kitchen, then returned to the main hall, found several oil lamps, and then took her grandson to have a rest. At this time, Wu Xiang asked : "Granny Zhang, how many households are there in Heishui Village?"

Grandma Zhang said: "There are only six or seven households. Originally there were more people, there were more than ten households, but later many people's children and grandchildren became successful and they all moved out. How many houses are there in the northwest? If it is empty, it means it has been moved."

Wu Xiang asked again: "Where does your son work?"

Grandma Zhang said: "On the pier."

The Gyeonggi ferry is only two days away from here, so this is quite reasonable. Wu Xiang stopped asking. Granny Zhang took Zhang Yu into the bedroom and closed the door, blocking all sight lines.

Wu Xiang ordered Hou Yang to stay outside. He took everyone to the side room with the kang. After entering the door, Wu Xiang said: "Wake up tonight. This village is quite weird. We will investigate it tomorrow before leaving. ."

A cadre asked: "Would you like to go to Guzhang Village to see it?"

Wu Xiang pondered for a while, "Go, not only go to Guzhang Village, but also go to the Qinshui County government office to ask what happened back then. If Guzhang Village is really dead, How could anyone use the method of worshiping the river **** this time?"

The heavy rain was still pouring down, and Wu Xiang said again: "You guys can rest here later, Xiao Bo can't live in that house alone, so it's safe for me and someone else to follow Lao Zhou and rest there. ”

Under such a situation, naturally they did not care about so many people, and everyone responded. Bo Ruoyou looked at Ye Yu, who was very loud outside, and frowned slightly, "Normally, such sacrifices are not only performed once or twice, but also It’s still the same problem. The dead baby died not long after birth. It was only a few days ago. Although the baby is dead, the mother must not have recovered yet."

Wu Xiang must be convinced, "This Granny Zhang knows about Guzhang Village. When it comes to the long-term workers of Guzhang Village, she also heard about it from the previous generation. Although these are just rumors, there may be people who know it very clearly. , and it seems that there may be a mistress in this house, but Granny Zhang said that her daughter-in-law died of illness two years ago, so her place is very strange. Maybe the mother is her daughter-in-law. In order to hide the infanticide, she She hid her daughter-in-law, perhaps somewhere else in the village. The long-term worker also said that many families in Guzhang Village have had children die, and they will also visit her tomorrow about this matter."

"Even if the incident in Guzhang Village has nothing to do with this village, I think there is more than one small village like this in the surrounding mountains. They are close to Guzhang Village and they are all mountain people. I am afraid they will also believe in these gods and monsters. It is said that if no suspicious person is found in this village, the surrounding areas will also be searched." At this point, Wu Xiang said with a headache: "The cases dealing with these mountain people are the most unpredictable. They are either extremely afraid of you, or I hate you very much, and you are so ignorant that I can’t explain you clearly for a long time.”

Other officials all showed signs of agreement. Bo Ruoyou said hurriedly: "There are not many people in this village. Tomorrow we should go and ask every household. This mother-in-law... I wonder if she is really hiding something. ."

The night was already dark at this moment, but here, there were no clues about the case, and no one was sleepy. While Wu Xiang was talking about this case, he also talked about several previous cases of dealing with mountain people, and he was full of hardships and jokes. When Bo Ruoyou heard this, he felt that the Jingzhao Mansion Office looked glamorous, but the people running errands underneath were really hard working.

Gradually, the night got dark, and there was no movement from Granny Zhang and Zhang Yu. But around midnight, for some reason, a burst of exclamation suddenly came from Granny Zhang and Zhang Yu's house. Wu Xiang's expression changed slightly, and he hurriedly followed. Bao Ruoyou walked out of the wing quickly, followed closely, and headed towards the inner room at the back. Wu Xiang didn't shy away and pushed the door open.

His hand was strong, and the door bolt was already old. He actually inferred that the door bolt slammed to the ground, and the door opened in response. Wu Xiang asked anxiously: "What happened?"

The mother-in-law and grandson in the room were startled. They turned their heads and looked outside. Their expressions changed slightly, and Wu Xiang also quickly lowered his eyes.

There was no danger in the house, but the roof was leaking. Granny Zhang was probably anxious when she got up. She was only wearing a singlet, and her calves were exposed. Although she was an old woman, she was still rude. Wu Xiang He quickly ordered others behind him not to follow him.

Granny Zhang went to find a robe to put on, but during this period, Bo Ruoyou saw clearly the calf of Granny Zhang, and finally understood why Granny Zhang was lame.

Her calves were originally skinny, but the skin on her right leg from the knee down was covered with large and small sarcomas, which made the leg look scary and deformed. Bo Ruoyou instantly felt that her arms The hair on her upper body stood on end, and the blood vessels from her calves to her ankles were swollen and bulging, clinging to her thin skin like worms.

Bo Ruoyou was extremely frightened when he saw this. He felt that this kind of deformity seemed familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had seen it before. Before he could figure it out, Granny Zhang had already put on her clothes. At this time, Bo Ruoyou Youcai saw a puddle of rainwater on the ground inside the house, and raised his eyes to look at the roof. He saw a gap as big as a cup, and rainwater was dripping in.

"Why is this room leaking so badly? Mother-in-law, please go back to your room and sleep. I'll just rest in the wing outside tonight." Bao Ruoyou said standing at the door.

Wu Xiang looked in now and felt embarrassed at first, "I'm sorry, I heard the noise and thought there was something wrong. I came in too hastily and the door bolt was broken."

Grandma Zhang looked a little ugly, so Wu Xiang persuaded her: "When the rain stops tomorrow, we will help you repair your house. You grandma and grandson should go next door to rest first. It's not easy to live here anyway."

Grandma Zhang hesitated for a moment, looked around the house again, and seemed to see nothing wrong, and then nodded, "If that's the case, then we, mother-in-law and grandson, can't shirk it. There is really something wrong with this house. It's old and will leak after a while, and the roof was repaired earlier."

Grandma Zhang found a footbath and put it under it, and then took her grandson to her house.

Wu Xiang and Bo Ruoyou looked at each other. Although Wu Xiang just glanced at it, he also saw something. He and Bo Ruoyou retreated to the main hall and asked softly: "What's going on with that leg?"

Bao Ruoyou didn't look away just now. She took a few moments to see everything. She stroked the back of her hand to relieve the shiver, "It's a disease. I should have read about it in some medical book, but there are some Forgot."

Wu Xiang frowned, "It is common for people to have problems with their legs and feet when they get old, but I have never seen anything like this."

Seeing that Bo Ruoyou was thinking hard, he comforted him: "It's okay, it has nothing to do with the case, so don't think too hard."

Bo Ruoyou felt that he couldn't figure it out and felt a little bit stuck in his heart. When he was studying medicine as a child, he only learned simple pharmacology. Although he read a lot of medical books, but later when he became a doctor, he only studied medicine and pharmacology. He was practicing the art of identifying the cause of death due to trauma, so at this moment, his head really felt a little empty.

After returning to the wing room, everyone felt a little sleepy in the second half of the night. The place where the kang head was against the wall was given away. Bo Ruoyou put a thin quilt on him and slept against the wall. The others He lay on the bed and on the ground in various directions, and made do with it for half the night. In the early morning of the next day, when the first rooster crow sounded, Bo Ruoyou woke up instantly.

Others also woke up one after another. At this time, the rain outside finally subsided, and raindrops were falling, and fog began to rise in the mountains. Two "squeaks" came from the front door, and Wu Xiang When he went out to look, he saw Granny Zhang walking out carrying a baggage. Before he could say anything, Granny Zhang had already disappeared out of the door.

Wu Xiang quickly ordered a government official to follow him.

When Bo Ruoyou saw Granny Zhang leaving, he went to look for Zhang Yu. When he found him, he saw him feeding chickens behind the eaves.

There is a messy barn behind the house, with a lot of firewood and fodder, and more than ten chickens kept in it. Zhang Yu is holding a small dustpan with broken brown rice in it, and is eating it in handfuls. Brown rice was sprinkled into the chicken coop. It rained, and there was mud next to the chicken coop. There was also a pungent smell of chicken manure. Bo Ruoyou didn't mind it. She walked up with her skirt in hand. Zhang Yu saw She was a little wary at first, but seeing her friendly face and thinking about eating her bean cake yesterday, her expression quickly softened.

Bo Ruoyou smiled and said, "When my mother-in-law is not at home, are you the one who feeds the chickens?"

Zhang Yu nodded, and Bo Ruoyou said again: "The robe you are wearing is very beautiful, who sewed it for you?"

"It's...mother...mother and mother-in-law..."

Bo Ruoyou's eyes moved, "Your mother——"

"My mother passed away two years ago." Zhang Yu said quickly, and then walked in through the back door holding a small dustpan.

Seeing him running so neatly and answering like this, Bao Ruoyou felt as if someone had taught her. She blinked and followed through the back door. Granny Zhang's door was closed tightly. Zhang Yu ran in and closed the door, while Bo Ruoyou went to the leaky main room.

Wu Xiang and the others were waiting in front, and when they heard the movement they followed. Bo Ruoyou entered the room, opened the visible cupboard door and took a look, but the woman's clothes he saw yesterday were no longer there. Even the jade hairpin disappeared. She and Wu Xiang were not able to search carefully for a while. After retreating to the side room, the yamen who followed Granny Zhang also came back.

"Captain, she went to a house in the east end of the village, where a one-armed old man came out to greet her."

Wu Xiang looked outside and saw that the rain had lightened up a little and said: "I will take a few people to visit outside to see if there is anything weird in this village. Xiaobo, you stay here, I will be back soon. ."

Bo Ruoyou responded, and Wu Xiang and others left the yard.

In the capital, Huo Weilou learned that Bo Ruoyou had not returned all night, and frowned and asked Eunuch Fu: "What case requires staying outside the city?"

Mr. Fu said fairly: "It's still the case of infanticide. It was said that a village was visited. That village believed in weird religious beliefs. Wu Xiang suspected that someone used babies as sacrifices because they believed in these things, so he brought them with him People went there, probably thinking that they would need an autopsy when they got to the village, so I asked Youyou to go with him."

Huo Weilou frowned for a moment, "How far is that village? I couldn't make it back last night? It rained again last night."

The last time Bao Ruoyou was on the line between life and death was on a night of heavy rain, so this time he was particularly worried. Mr. Fu said: "It is said to be twenty miles away, but I didn't rush back last night. I'm afraid I was attacked by something." I got stuck, but the people in the government office said that Wu Xiang brought a lot of people with him, so nothing should happen to him."

Huo Weilou rubbed the black jade ring on his finger, his eyes darkened, "It's impossible not to make it back from twenty miles away. I'm afraid I really found some important clues. What's the name of that village?"

Gong Fu said fairly: "Gu...Guzhang, yes, it is Guzhang Village, and the name is a bit strange."

Huo Weilou's back, which was leaning on the back of his chair, suddenly straightened up, "I seem to have seen this village in some old official document."