Chapter 3: Unraveling the Mystery

"No need, I'm already here," a man's voice suddenly rang out.

Wang Changsheng walked in, followed by Wang Qiusheng.

"This old man is Wang Qingyun, the mayor of Wangjia Town. Greetings, Heavenly Master." Wang Qingyun bowed to Wang Changsheng and spoke respectfully.

"Greetings, Heavenly Master."

Seeing this, the other members of the Wang family also bowed.

"One pen cannot write two 'Wang' characters; there's no need to be so distant. Tell me what happened!" Wang Changsheng waved his hand, speaking kindly.

Wang Qingyun nodded and looked at Wang Qiusheng.

Wang Qiusheng understood Wang Qingyun's meaning and explained, "Third Uncle, Ninth Granduncle learned that Wangjia Town was haunted and rushed here immediately, without even stopping to eat."

Wang Qingyun understood, and said respectfully, "Ninth Uncle, it's like this: Half a month ago, a family member was found dead in their home in the morning, with no injuries on their body. We initially thought it was a murder, so your nephew had Tianlong and Tianhu arrest the true culprit. However, they had no leads, and the case made no progress. Over the next half-month, family members continued to be killed. That's when your nephew realized something was wrong and quickly sent someone to notify you via carrier pigeon. I didn't expect you to arrive so quickly."

After hearing Wang Qingyun's account, Wang Changsheng frowned and asked gravely, "You just said that family members were killed one after another? Were all the victims members of the Wang family?"

This matter was more serious than Wang Changsheng had imagined. A ghost appearing in Wangjia Town was one thing, but if someone was targeting the Wang family, the nature of the situation would be entirely different.

"That's right. So far, a total of nine family members have been killed. Without exception, all the victims were killed at night, in their homes, with no injuries on their bodies and no signs of struggle. That's why your nephew realized the culprit was likely a ghost."

Wang Changsheng's brows furrowed deeply. According to Wang Qingyun, the culprit was definitely a ghost.

As far as he knew, ghosts inherently liked to absorb the essence of living people to nourish themselves. If too much essence was absorbed, a person's life would be in danger.

This ghost could be local or foreign. The former was acceptable; the latter would be troublesome.

Wang Changsheng thought for a moment and asked, "Is there a mass burial ground in Wangjia Town? Or have any particularly strange things happened?"

"There is no mass burial ground in this town. Our ancestors had cultivators, and mass burial grounds accumulate yin energy, easily giving rise to ghosts. If someone dies and is not buried, your nephew arranges for the body to be burned; we absolutely do not allow random burials. And nothing strange has happened recently!" Wang Qingyun replied truthfully.

"No, Third Granduncle, more than a month ago, Tofu Beauty Xiaofeng went missing," the chubby constable hesitated slightly before reminding him.

Wang Changsheng frowned and asked in a low voice, "Missing? And she still hasn't been found? What's the background of this Tofu Beauty? Is she also a member of the Wang family?"

"No, Ninth Uncle, Xiaofeng is not a member of the Wang family. She is eighteen years old and quite delicate-looking. She has a blind elderly mother at home. Xiaofeng sold tofu for a living and was given the nickname 'Tofu Beauty.' More than a month ago, Xiaofeng suddenly stopped coming to her stall. Because her mother was frail and often ill, Xiaofeng sometimes didn't come to her stall to take care of her, so no one thought it strange. It wasn't until several days later that a foul smell came from Xiaofeng's house. Tianhu went to investigate and found that Xiaofeng's mother had died, but Xiaofeng herself was not home. Your nephew sent people to search for a while but couldn't find Xiaofeng, so we burned the body."

"How did Xiaofeng's mother die?"

"According to the coroner's examination, her mother starved to death. Xiaofeng had depended on her mother since childhood, so she wouldn't abandon her. This case was investigated for over a month with no leads, so it was left unresolved. Not long after Xiaofeng's mother died, family members began to be killed."

"Third Granduncle, it couldn't be Xiaofeng's mother coming back to seek revenge on us, could it? We never harmed her when she was alive! The year before last, when Xiaofeng's family was struggling, I even gave her ten catties of white rice! For her to die and then come back to harm us, that's repaying kindness with enmity," Wang Tianhu said somewhat discontentedly.

Wang Qingyun glared at Wang Tianhu and reprimanded him unceremoniously, "You have the nerve to say that? You threatened Xiaofeng, wanting her to marry you, and when Xiaofeng refused, didn't you take those ten catties of rice back?"

"Is that true?" Wang Changsheng looked at Wang Tianhu, his face full of doubt.

Wang Tianhu's face tightened as he saw Wang Changsheng looking at him, and he honestly said, "Yes, that's true, but I didn't bother Xiaofeng after that. She couldn't possibly come back to seek revenge on us just for that! Li Er Mazi even spied on Xiaofeng while she was bathing! If her mother turned into a ghost to seek revenge, why wouldn't she go after Li Er Mazi? Li Er Mazi is still alive and well!"

"Li Er Mazi? Send someone to fetch him. I have something to ask him."

Wang Qingyun nodded and instructed the middle-aged man beside him, "Qiuxian, go invite Li Er Mazi here."

The middle-aged man acknowledged and turned to leave.

Wang Changsheng pondered for a moment, then asked:

"Before Xiaofeng disappeared, did anything strange happen? Or were there any signs?"

Wang Qingyun shook his head and looked at the others, asking, "Do you know? If you do, tell Ninth Uncle. Anyone who dares to conceal the truth will be severely punished."

"No, we don't."

The Wang family members present shook their heads in unison, speaking at the same time.

They had their own lives and couldn't possibly keep an eye on Xiaofeng every day.

Wang Changsheng looked at Wang Tianhu and said, "What about you? You liked Xiaofeng, didn't you know anything?"

Wang Tianhu shook his head earnestly, saying, "Your grandson works at the yamen daily; I couldn't possibly keep an eye on Xiaofeng every day. After my marriage proposal failed, my family arranged a marriage for me, and I just got married. How could I dare to provoke Xiaofeng anymore?"

At this moment, Wang Qiuxian entered with a middle-aged man whose face was covered in pockmarks.

The middle-aged man's face was long like a horse's, his eyes remarkably small, and combined with the pockmarks, he gave off a slovenly impression.

Wang Changsheng looked at the middle-aged man and frowned, asking, "You are Li Er Mazi? Is Xiaofeng's disappearance related to you?"

"That fatty has asked me several times already, why are you still asking? I've already said it has nothing to do with me. I did spy on her bathing, but her disappearance has nothing to do with me," Li Er Mazi grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth, which was quite repulsive.

"Li Er Mazi, watch your mouth. The one in front of you is my Ninth Granduncle," Wang Qiuxian frowned and reprimanded him unceremoniously.

"Your Ninth Granduncle isn't my Ninth Granduncle, so what does it have to do with me!" Li Er Mazi said dismissively.

Wang Tianhu's face turned cold, and he said grimly, "Li Er Mazi, I advise you to watch your mouth. Whatever Ninth Granduncle asks you, answer honestly. If you want to eat prison food, just say so."

Hearing this, Li Er Mazi said somewhat reluctantly, "Go ahead and ask! I promise to answer honestly."