Lin Jin instinctively reached for the dagger at his waist. Fortunately, Lu Wuxie reacted faster, pressing down on his arm the moment he was about to reveal himself.
Tang Yuanhua glanced over, his expression calm, seemingly having noticed nothing.
"Young Master Wang," he asked with a smile, "I'm asking you, do you believe me?"
Lu Wuxie raised his eyes, a faint, almost imperceptible smile on his pale face. "I do not."
Tang Yuanhua paused, completely taken aback by the unexpected answer.
Lu Wuxie shifted his gaze to Zhong Li. "My wife said this can cure my illness. Even if it were poison, I would believe her."
"Haha!" Tang Yuanhua burst into peals of laughter, glancing at Zhong Li. Shaking his head, he walked towards the door, saying, "I advised you, but you choose to leap into the fire yourself. What a pity."
After a while, as the room slowly fell silent, Lin Jin quickly went to the door, scanned the area, and confirmed that Tang Yuanhua and Cao Shao had indeed left. He then returned to the room and said, "Master, Miss Zhong, they are gone."
Zhong Li let out a soft breath, turned, and entered the inner chamber. When she reappeared, she had shed the clothes that clashed with her demeanor and changed into a simple plain gown, sitting in the room.
At this moment, Lu Wuxie also got off the bed and sat opposite her, though the fake beard stuck to his face and the pale powder applied to his skin had not yet been wiped off.
"Tang Yuanhua," he murmured, his eyes narrowing.
"He is a very cautious person," Zhong Li said, recalling Tang Yuanhua's repeated attempts to probe her.
The first time, he had used vulgar words to mock her, observing her reaction.
The second time, as she ascended the stairs, he had placed his hand on her shoulder to test if she knew martial arts, and at the same time, he had taken out portraits of Lu Wuxie and Lin Jin, scrutinizing her eyes again.
The third time, just as she was about to enter the room, he had suddenly called out her fake name, to see if she would respond.
Fortunately, her reactions were quick, and she hadn't revealed any flaws.
"Yes, I knew a bit about this person when I was in Jincheng," Lu Wuxie nodded, his eyes sharpening. "Back then, when Xuan Qingzi was captured by Officer Chen, Officer Chen brought people from the Dali Temple to Yuxian to thoroughly investigate the Divine Maiden Cult and rescue the affected civilians. Tang Yuanhua was one of the rescued individuals.
What made him memorable was that he was the most composed among all the cult members."
"The most composed? What do you mean?" Zhong Li asked.
"According to the case files, when over a hundred infatuated cult members were rescued from the Divine Maiden Cult, all of them exhibited varying degrees of self-harm after their rescue. Some were even disabled when they were rescued. Tang Yuanhua, however, was an anomaly.
He showed no signs of madness. Later, under Officer Chen's careful care for seven years, he passed the imperial examinations and returned to Yuxian."
Hearing Lu Wuxie's words, a scene suddenly materialized in Zhong Li's mind.
Officer Chen, leading the Dali Temple personnel, storming into the Divine Maiden Cult, like a mental hospital where all the patients were raving, yet only one person hid quietly in a corner, subdued.
"If that's the case, he has already left the Divine Maiden Cult. Why did he return to Yuxian?" Zhong Li inquired.
Lu Wuxie shook his head, indicating he didn't know.
Lin Jin thought for a moment and said, "Judging by Tang Yuanhua's demeanor just now, he seems to have a prejudice against the Divine Maiden Cult. I suspect he knows that the Divine Maiden Cult has not been completely eradicated and returned to Yuxian to uproot them, don't you think?"
Zhong Li pursed her lips, neither confirming nor denying Lin Jin's idea.
"By the way, I checked many case files at the Dali Temple, but I couldn't find this information you mentioned. Where did you learn about it?" Zhong Li asked, looking at Lu Wuxie.
Lu Wuxie smiled and said, "My dear, perhaps you've forgotten. I am from the Judicial Inspection Office. Some classified case files require imperial approval for review, and only the Judicial Inspection Office's Investigation Department has the authority to access them."
Zhong Li remained silent, picked up the warm clear tea on the table, and took a sip.
Seeing that neither of them spoke, Lin Jin walked to the window, glanced at the backyard, and exclaimed in surprise, "Where are those bodies? They're all gone?"
Zhong Li and Lu Wuxie, hearing this, also leaned towards the window to check.
Indeed, the courtyard, which had been piled high with bodies that morning, was now empty. There wasn't even a trace of blood on the ground.
"Earlier, I overheard the innkeeper and the waiter talking. It seems some cult members came to collect the bodies. I believe they must have transported them away," Zhong Li said.
"That fast? There were over a dozen bodies, and they cleaned up so thoroughly," Lin Jin narrowed his eyes, sounding somewhat disbelieving.
Lu Wuxie withdrew his gaze, casually closed the window, and said, "Moving bodies is not difficult. Four or five people can complete it in less than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea. As for the traces left on the ground, it rained heavily an hour ago. Perhaps the heavens have already washed them clean without any need for cleaning."
"Yes, the weather is the best crime scene cleaner," Zhong Li nodded in agreement with Lu Wuxie's words. "However, even with this explanation, we cannot let our guard down. Everything here is very strange."
Lu Wuxie nodded, his expression also turning serious.
"What should we do next then?" Lin Jin asked.
Zhong Li and Lu Wuxie exchanged a glance and said, "Let's try to get through tomorrow. The day after tomorrow, we will also go to the county entrance to collect the wooden tokens that grant entry into the Divine Maiden Cult."
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After the mountain's new rain.
Zhong Li stood at the entrance of Yuxian, gazing at the boundless sky and the layered peaks in the distance. Yuxian's geographical environment was quite unique, surrounded by water and mountains, so during certain seasons, the rainfall here was always more abundant than in other cities.
It was a rare clear day, and her mood seemed less troubled than in the past few days.
"They're coming, they're coming, the people from the Divine Maiden Cult are here."
Just as she was leisurely admiring the beautiful scenery after the rain, a commotion arose from not far away.
She snapped back to attention and looked. The county, which had been quiet moments ago, was suddenly filled with many civilians. They were all kneeling on the ground, looking up towards the depths of the street. The piety and reverence etched on their faces were so naked.
A clear, crisp ringing of a bell sounded. Zhong Li could faintly discern a procession slowly appearing in the distance.
Dozens of men and women, dressed in black, walked with solemn and grave expressions, each holding a death flower.
The flower, already a vibrant red, appeared even more eerie against the barren surroundings.
"I think I've seen that flower somewhere before," Lin Jin, still dressed as the old man from yesterday, leaned against the wall, observing the approaching cult members of the Divine Maiden Cult.
Zhong Li narrowed her eyes, carefully examining the flowers in the cult members' hands. "If I'm not mistaken, that is a Lycoris radiata. Legend has it that its fragrance has a magical power that can awaken the memories of the dead. By carrying that thing, they are likely hinting to others that they can connect the spiritual and earthly realms and grant eternal life?"
Lin Jin sneered, "It's just a flower, can it really bring people back from the dead?"
As soon as he finished speaking, a sedan chair draped in red gauze appeared in the distance.
The citizens of Yuxian who saw this sedan chair immediately began to kowtow, chanting, "Long live the Divine Maiden, long live the Divine Maiden, who heals the world."