Chapter 84: Broken Statue in the Ghost Temple

Moments later, the four people and one goose climbed over that earthen ridge and headed back.

Xu Yuan and Yan Lao walked in front.

Da Fu was snow-white all over, with orange-yellow feet and beak, standing over half a person's height, wobbling along beside Xu Yuan the whole way.

The two Captains followed behind, and as they walked, they too began to wobble just like Da Fu.

The two jolted awake, quickly straightened their bodies; this goose was truly sinister!

Another elder named Lu Zhengyan accompanied this journey, holding the same post as Yan Lao: "Handler" of the Southern Office.

This was a position of not-low status, but with little actual power.

Lu Zhengyan and Yan Lao had been old friends for decades; seeing them return with a goose, he looked at his old partner with eyes full of questions.

Yan Lao gave a bitter smile and shook his head, unable to explain.

"Let's go," Xu Yuan said.

Xu Yuan could not yet ride a horse, so he sat outside Seeing Fu Jingyu's carriage.

There was already a coachman; after Xu Yuan got on, there was little space left.

Xu Yuan held Da Fu in his arms, but Da Fu felt very uncomfortable, flapped its wings, flew out on its own, and jumped onto the carriage roof.

"Forget it, let it be."

After the group had gone some distance, Xu Yuan suddenly remembered: I can tell Da Fu to continue following Wang Yi for meals for the next while.

Could Wang Yi not have thought of that?

Why does it feel like Uncle Mao Si and Wang Yi both want me to bring Da Fu to Ghost Wushan?

The person guarding behind the earthen slope heard the commotion, then peeked out from the side again for another look; seeing the Purification Bureau people had departed, he hurriedly stood up to return and report, but suddenly heard a cheerful child's voice say: "Are you playing hide-and-seek? I'll play with you."

"Whose little brat..." The person turned and saw a tiny girl, with two round red cheeks painted on, her face deathly pale, floating in midair, her body rotting, with a fat white maggot dropping out of her hollow eye socket!

Terrified until his scalp went numb, he ran for his life without a care.

The little girl instantly became angry: "Why don't you want to play with me? You are no good thing!"

That person crashed headlong into a world like a bronze mirror; around him, countless dim and blurred little girls, with dead-person makeup and fully rotting bodies, simultaneously opened their foul-smelling, monstrous mouths toward him in hatred and roared: "Bad thing!"

Ceng Si waited with growing impatience: "Why hasn't Tang Yue returned yet? I'll go check ahead."

Captain Qin nodded.

Ceng Si went for a moment, then sprinted back: "Not good, Tang Yue has run into an evil spirit!"

Captain Qin frowned: "I'll go see—none of you follow."

Captain Qin arrived behind the earthen slope, produced a token: "We are Qiao Zi'ang's people; could you grant us a favor?"

The ground of the earthen slope surged upward, and the small temple that had long since collapsed reappeared.

The deity statue inside the temple was tattered and broken; most of the gold paint from those years had peeled away, the belly was shattered, and the organs stuffed inside were nowhere to be found.

On the long table beneath the deity statue, a pair of boy and girl children were offered as tribute.

The boy child was dazed and stiff, with a wisp of green ghost-fire on his head and another on each shoulder.

The girl child held the dying Tang Yue in her small hands.

Captain Qin said: "The business Qiao Zi'ang previously had with all of you, we will take over. If the matter is settled, the monthly blood offering from now on will be three times what it was during Qiao Zi'ang's time!"

The deity statue moved stiffly; an ancient voice that made one's whole body uncomfortable entered Captain Qin's ears: "I seek revenge; the Public Office destroyed my temple back then."

"No problem, this will be resolved together this time," Captain Qin agreed: "This person can also be given to Your Excellency's attendant child to eat; please, Your Excellency, introduce me to the few on Guanghuo Street so we may discuss the great matter together!"

Tang Yue could not be allowed to return; if he told everyone of his encounter, it would disrupt morale.

"Agreed," the deity statue assented; the girl child then opened a foul-smelling, disgusting huge mouth, and like a giant python devouring a person, slowly swallowed Tang Yue.

Xu Yuan's group arrived at Qihe Tai Town; with so many people wearing Purification Bureau uniforms entering, they naturally drew attention.

Xu Yuan led the big group straight to Zhao's Fur Shop.

He kicked the door open with a clang and moved in.

A few people in the town had originally thought that after some time they would seize Zhao's Fur Shop's house, but now they shrank back, daring not to plot this matter again.

After the group settled in, Seeing Fu Jingyu yawned and asked Xu Yuan: "Where should we start investigating? Do you have any leads?"

Xu Yuan thought for a moment: "Since they are plotting for the cocoon-food in the mountains, let's start investigating from this lead; I must ask two people."

"Which two?"

Xu Yuan did not answer; he looked around: "Where is Da Fu?"

After searching around, he found Da Fu biting a piece of beast-meat, hanging from the house beam.

"Da Fu, get down here!"

There was much beast-meat hanging from the beams of Zhao's Fur Shop; Xu Yuan had eaten a small portion of it last time as well.

Da Fu pretended not to hear.

Xu Yuan jumped up, waved his small knife in hand, and cut the rope; Da Fu and the beast-meat fell together.

Da Fu stretched out its neck and swallowed a large chunk of beast-meat.

On its long neck, a distinct bulge slowly slid down into its stomach.

Xu Yuan shook his head straight and said: "Go out with me for a trip; I'll introduce you to a new friend."

Da Fu tilted its head, not understanding what it meant.

Xu Yuan took only Seeing Fu Jingyu and Da Fu and went out.

After winding through seven turns and eight twists, they arrived outside Granny Ying's door: "Granny, it's me. Ah Hua, come open the door for me."

Granny Ying's slow, plodding footsteps sounded, but the door opened first; Ah Hua shook her entire plumage and stood behind the door, imposing and majestic.

Instantly, sparks flew from the clash of eyes between the chicken and the goose.

"They're fighting!" Fu Jingyu shouted urgently.

Xu Yuan hadn't expected the two to fail at making friends and instead peck at each other upon meeting; he scrambled to pull one back and block the other.

"Stop fighting, stop fighting; you're all poultry."

Old Lady Ying coughed as she came out and called out, "Ah Hua, come back."

Ah Hua glared with cross-eyed intensity and returned reluctantly.

Da Fu was also reluctant, but Xu Yuan held tightly onto Da Fu's neck.

Old Lady Ying's eyes were dim; after studying for a moment, she recognized Xu Yuan and then beamed: "Little Xu is back, that's wonderful. Quickly help me fill the water vat."

Xu Yuan went over to look; the water vat had long since run dry.

Xu Yuan lifted two wooden buckets and headed straight for the well.

Fu Jingyu strictly adhered to the Way of the Gentleman; although anxious inside to investigate the case, since what Xu Yuan was doing was honoring the elderly and aiding the weak, he kept his mouth shut and followed along.

The first trip with two buckets of water only filled the bottom of the vat when poured in.

The second trip with two buckets filled only half; by the third trip, Xu Yuan was somewhat out of breath.

After all, he was not a Wu Xiu.

Fu Jingyu couldn't help but ask, "Why don't you use a shoulder pole to carry the water like others? It would be easier."

Xu Yuan asked, "Why don't you help me carry one bucket? That would make it easier for me too."

Fu Jingyu clasped his hands, appearing very hesitant: "From childhood to adulthood, I have never done such things; I'm afraid I wouldn't do it well..."

Xu Yuan:...

On the fourth trip, Xu Yuan finally told Fu Jingyu the reason: "Old Lady Ying is particular; she refuses to eat the water from the back bucket carried on a shoulder pole—she says farts might pollute it."

Fu Jingyu:...

My Fu family is also a great surname; I have never heard of anyone being so "particular."

Da Fu is based on a real prototype.

There is also a younger brother, unsurprisingly named "Er Fu," haha.

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(End of this chapter)