Wu Xianglang smiled and said, "Silver is nothing. We were ten people in our group and paid for the money by the inn outside the capital. I see that there are only two in your house, but the room is spacious. Let us prepare a bed for our ladies and the others have a mattress to rest."

Grandma Zhang was overjoyed when she heard this, "The old woman is going to prepare."

After she said that, she handed the water to Bo Ruoyou. Bo Ruoyou bent her lips and took it. Then Grandma Zhang pulled Yu'er into the inner room. Wu Xiang's smile quickly faded and signaled Bo Ruoyou to walk to the door.

Bo Ruoyou walked quickly to the door and said in the crackling sound of rain outside: "I saw the young woman's clothes and some pearl hairpins in the inner room. There must be a mistress in this house."

Wu Xiang narrowed his eyes, "But she said that her daughter-in-law died of illness a few years ago. I saw that your expression was different, so I thought that we were all here today. If we leave today and come back tomorrow, we don't know what happens, so we will stay overnight." As he said, he felt guilty: "We used to go out of the city to do business, and some of us were sleeping in the open air, but you never thought that we had to thank you for your hard work this time."

Bo Ruoyou bent her lips, "Don't think like this, the headmaster. I have also gone to villages and towns for autopsy before, and I have walked a long way, but there are a bit strange here, so we can put safety first."

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

Wu Xiang has been a headmaster for many years and has seen many cases of all sizes. When it comes to being vigilant, it is naturally even more serious than Bo Ruoyou. She did not drink water. Wu Xiang looked at the inner room again, then walked to the door of the inner room with a smile, "Grandma Zhang, do you want us to help?"

Bo Ruoyou followed Wu Xiang and walked over.

The farmhouse is naturally not as exquisite and wealthy as the houses in the capital. There are two wing rooms on the left and right of the main hall, and the inner room is behind the main hall, with a corridor in the middle, and then there are three square bedrooms, all with doors. Grandma Zhang and Yuer are in the middle room. At this moment, the door is half open, and you can see a lot of old furniture in the house. Because the furniture has turned black for too long, the whole room looks darker.

Bo Ruoyou glanced over and saw that the young woman who had just piled on the open chair had disappeared. The window was against the desk on the bedside, but there were two jade hairpins on the desk, but there was no trace at this moment. Grandma Zhang was carrying out a few quilts from a cabinet. When she heard this, she gasped and said, "No need to help, the old woman can do this little thing."

The boy named Yuer stood beside the bed, looking at Grandma Zhang with a dull look. He was wearing a small indigo coarse cloth jacket. Although the fabric was ordinary, the stitches were extremely fine. Bo Ruoyou signaled to Wu Xiang, pointed to the place where the woman was originally placed, and then pointed to the robe on Yuer. Wu Xiang quickly understood.

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

Just now, seeing Yu'er's robe was very well done, she guessed that there was a hostess in the house. Thinking of the baby who had just been born, she even doubted whether there was a woman who had just given birth in the inner room. But when she walked to the door, she saw that the inner room was empty, with only two women's clothes that were suspicious.

Grandma Zhang found all the beddings that can be used at home, but they were only seven or eight beds, and most of them were yellowed for ages. She pointed to the bedroom in the southeast. "This lady rests here. The bed in the room was slept by the old woman. Tonight, the old woman took her grandson to rest here. This place is the house where her son slept on weekdays."

Grandma Zhang had difficulty walking with legs and feet, and seemed to have some problems with her hands. Seeing that she was struggling to walk with a few quilts, Bo Ruoyou still came forward to help. Wu Xiang followed them and waited to enter the bedroom that Grandma Zhang said. It was obvious that the room was all used by the old man. Grandma Zhang changed the quilt. Although her movements were not neat, she did not look tired on her face.

After changing this place, she came to the wing room again, "There is a big kang in this room, so you can squeeze in. Find two straw mats for you, and put mattresses on the floor on the shop and deal with it for one night."

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

Wu Xiang waved his hand, "No need, we brought dry food to travel."

Grandma Zhang responded, Wu Xiang first took out two taels of silver and put it down, and then asked Grandma Zhang, "Mother-in-law 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 diminished. The sky seemed to have broken a hole, and the heavy rain poured down, trying to hide the small village between the mountains in the rain.

There was a dense rain screen in front of me. Looking further into the distance, there was a towering ridge. Because it was too close to the ridge, it felt like the narrowness of the sight being blocked. Wu Xiang felt a sense of depression of falling into the bottom of a pit for a while.

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

Grandma Zhang recalled for a moment, "It seems like a plague like typhoid fever. People vomit blood, and then they slept for a few days and died ignorantly. I have never seen it with my own eyes. The people in the village don't like to walk with people outside the village. After a long time, people outside also forgot about them. After the plague, it took a long time before someone discovered them. At that time, everyone was dead."

"This incident alarmed the Qinshui County government office. At that time, the government sent people to collect the bodies, buried all the dead, and burned several houses. The village was completely dead. I also heard that some of the officials who had been there were dead and crazy, saying that they were scared. Although there were not many people in the village, there were nearly a hundred people. They were all dead when they entered and were rotten. They were scared when they thought about it."

After Grandma Zhang finished speaking, she held her grandson beside her. After saying this for a while, she was less wary of Wu Xiang and others. Wu Xiang frowned slightly, "Plague is not a trivial matter, and there is often no cure. If the sick person runs out, he will infect people outside. This place is not far from the capital. If it is spread to the capital, it will be a big deal. Fortunately, the people in their village do not walk with the people outside."

As time goes by, Wu Xiang's words are also a common idea. He just thought that the whole village was dead, and the tragic situation was still shocking. Without saying much, he continued to ask: "In this way, the village of Guzhang Village has disappeared for more than ten years?"

Grandma Zhang nodded, "Yes, it has disappeared for more than ten years. Nowadays, even young people in their twenties cannot remember this. Some old people at home know some of them, but it is scary and quite unlucky to hear it. If the irresistible person asks the old woman, the old woman is too lazy to say it."

After a pause, Grandma Zhang warned: "Don't believe what you asked for God. The Guzhang Village was punished by the Water God. You are all wealthy officials in the capital, so why bother asking for these?"

Wu Xiang smiled, "Grandma Zhang doesn't know that it's quite difficult to be an official in the capital. If this method is really useful, then you will naturally have to try it out. The people in Guzhang Village were punished because they were not offered enough sacrifices, right?"

Grandma Zhang shook her head, "I don't know this. Their village is very strange. Because they don't leave the village for many years, they rely on God to have a meal. When will they not get better every year? Where can I have excess food to worship the gods?"

Wu Xiang was puzzled, "Use food to sacrifice to the gods? This is very simple. I also regard these strange gods as they should use other rare things to sacrifice to the gods."

Grandma Zhang tugged her lips, "What other rare things? They can't take out. They are all untouchables in remote areas. What rare things can they have?"

Wu Xiang looked relaxed and asked, but suddenly the door of the Zhang family was knocked on. The knocking sound was heavy and urgent, and it also seemed abrupt and harsh in the deafening voice. Grandma Zhang's expression changed slightly, and she took an umbrella and walked out of the house.

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

Bo Ruoyou and Wu Xiang also went out.

The raindrops fell on the ground, and the arrows rose and fell in front of the door. Seeing a mud spot flying to Yu'er's upper, Bo Ruoyou pulled him back, but Yu'er was startled. She turned around and looked at her with horror.

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

Just now, Zhou Liang had already gone to the carriage to get the water bag and snacks. Bo Ruoyou handed a piece of bean cake to Yuer, "This is a snack in Beijing, it's very sweet, you can try it."

Yu'er was stunned for a moment, then took it in her hand tremblingly, hesitated for a moment, lowered her head and took a bite. Perhaps because it was really sweet and delicious, he swallowed the remaining few more mouthfuls, and his expression became more relaxed.

Bo Ruoyou smiled and went to see the gate of the yard again. The door was half open. Grandma Zhang stood in the yard, revealing a familiar face outside. Bo Ruoyou thought for a moment and was one of the two men doing farm work he met in the afternoon.

Bo Ruoyou asked with a smile: "We have seen this person in the afternoon. Who is he?"

Yuer also looked at the gate of the yard, "It's Uncle Zhang Er."

Bo Ruoyou didn't ask much, but gave him another snack and asked him again, "What's your name?"

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

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

Bo Ruoyou frowned slightly, and Wu Xiang seemed to feel strange. At this time, Grandma Zhang finished speaking and closed the yard gate and came back. Seeing Wu Xiang and Zhang Yu standing at the door, she looked slightly tight and stepped forward to pull Zhang Yu and went straight to the kitchen. It was getting late, and the two of them were going to have supper.

Soon, a sound of dingdong dong came from the kitchen. Wu Xiang and others did bring dry food. He first ordered everyone to eat some dry food, and then he was a little anxious when he saw the falling night. If it had not rained, he would still want to go out to explore the situation in the village, but now the night is dark and the rain is so heavy, which really makes them really trapped here.

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

Grandma Zhang said, "It's only six or seven households. Originally, there were more people and more than ten households, but later many of them had a promising future and moved out. There were a few families in the northwest who were empty, so they moved out."

Wu Xiang asked again: "Where is your son working?"

Grandma Zhang said: "On the dock."

The Gyeonggi Ferry is only two days away, so this is reasonable. Wu Xiang stopped asking. Grandma Zhang took Zhang Yu into the bedroom and closed the door, blocking all her sight.

Wu Xiang ordered Hou Yang to stay outside and took everyone to the wing room with a kang. After entering the door, Wu Xiang said, "Wake up tonight. This village is quite strange. I will find it clearly tomorrow before leaving."

A yamen said, "Do you still want to go to Guzhang Village to have a look?"

Wu Xiang pondered for a moment, "Go, not only to Guzhang Village, but also to Qinshui County Government Office to ask, and see what happened back then. If Guzhang Village is really dead, how could anyone use the method of sacrificing the river god this time?"

The heavy rain was still crackling, and Wu Xiang said again: "You guys will rest here later. Xiao Bo cannot live in that room alone. I will be safe to take someone with Lao Zhou and I to rest there."

Naturally, I didn't care about such a lot of situations. Everyone responded. Bo Ruoyou looked at Ye Yu, who was very popular outside, and frowned slightly. "Usually, this kind of sacrifice will not only be sacrificed once or twice, and it's the same problem. The dead baby died not long after he was born. It's only a few days away. Although the baby died, the mother should not have recovered."

Wu Xiang was sure to be aware of the story, "This Grandma Zhang knows about Guzhang Village. When it comes to the long-term workers in Guzhang Village, she also heard from the previous generation. Although these are all circulating, some people may know them very clearly. Moreover, this family may have a mistress, but Grandma Zhang said that her daughter-in-law died of illness two years ago, so she is very strange here. Maybe the mother is her daughter-in-law. In order to hide the crime of infanticide, she hid her daughter-in-law, and perhaps she hid her daughter-in-law elsewhere in the village. The long-term workers also said that many families in Guzhang Village had children, and they would also visit this matter tomorrow."

"Even if the affairs of Guzhang Village have nothing to do with this village, I see that there is more than such a small village in the surrounding mountains. They are close to Guzhang Village and are all mountain villagers. I am afraid they will believe in these gods and monsters. If this village has not found a suspicious person, the surrounding areas will also be searched." At this point, Wu Xiang said with a headache: "The cases of dealing with these mountain villagers are the most difficult to predict. They are either extremely afraid of you or hate you very much, and some are too ignorant to be able to explain it after a long time."

Other yamen servants showed their consent, and Bo Ruoyou hurriedly said, "There are not many people in this village. Every household will go and ask tomorrow. This grandma Zhang... I don't know if she is really hiding something."

At this moment, the night was already dark, but when he was here, the case was not found, and everyone was sleepy. While Wu Xiang was talking about the case, he talked about several cases that had been dealing with mountain people. There were all kinds of jokes about being miserable. Bo Ruoyou heard it together and felt that Jingzhao Government Office was glamorous, but it was really hard to handle the matter below.

Gradually, it was getting darker, and Grandma Zhang and Zhang Yu were no longer moving, but somehow, there was a sudden burst of exclamation in the room between Grandma Zhang and Zhang Yu. Wu Xiang's expression changed slightly, and he hurriedly walked out of the wing room. Bo Ruoyou followed closely and headed towards the inner room behind. Wu Xiang did not avoid it and pushed the door open.

He had a strong hand, and the door bolt was already old, and he actually inferred that it was a piercing force. The door bolt hit the ground with a slam, and the door opened in response. Wu Xiang said anxiously: "What's wrong?"

The two women and grandsons in the room were stunned. They turned their heads and looked out. Their expressions changed slightly, and Wu Xiang lowered his eyes very quickly.

There was no danger inside the house, but the roof was leaking. Grandma Zhang probably got up and was anxious. She only wore an inner piece, and her calf was exposed outside. Although it was an old man, she was also rude. Wu Xiang hurriedly ordered the others behind her not to follow her.

Grandma Zhang went to find a robe to put on, but during this period, Bo Ruoyou saw Grandma Zhang's calves clearly with a sharp eye, and finally understood why Grandma Zhang was lame.

Her calf was originally thin, but the flesh on the skin and knees of her right leg were covered with sarcoma of all sizes, which made the leg look terrifying and deformed. In an instant, Bo Ruoyou felt the hairs on her arms standing up, while the part of the calf and calves down to her ankles had blood vessels that surged and raised, like a worm climbing under her thin skin.

Bo Ruoyou was shocked to see it, and he felt that this kind of devil was familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had seen it for a while. He had not figured it out yet. Grandma Zhang had already put on her clothes. At this time, Bo Ruoyou saw a pool of rain on the inside of the house. He raised his eyes to look at the roof and saw a gap as big as a cup on the roof, and the rain was dripping in.

"Why is this room leaking so badly? My mother-in-law will go back to your room to sleep. I'll take a break in the room outside tonight." Bo Ruoyou stood at the door and said.

Wu Xiang looked in at this moment and felt embarrassed, "I'm sorry, I listened to the movement and thought something had happened. He was a little anxious when he came in, and the door bolt was broken."

Grandma Zhang's face looked a little ugly, and Wu Xiang advised: "The rain will stop tomorrow. We will help you repair the house. Your grandparents will go to the next door to rest first. Anyway, it is not easy to live here."

Grandma Zhang hesitated for a moment, looked around the room again, and seemed to see nothing wrong, then nodded, "Since that's the case, we both did not refuse. The house is really old and will leak in a while. The roof was repaired earlier."

Grandma Zhang found a foot basin and continued it underneath, and then took her grandson to her house.

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

Bo Ruoyou didn't take his gaze back just now. After a few moments, she stroked the back of her hand to relieve the chilling feeling, "It's a disease. I should have seen it on a medical book, but I just forgot it."

Wu Xiang frowned, "It's very common for people to have legs and feet to get sick when they get old, but I've never seen this before."

Seeing Bo Ruoyoulu thinking hard, he comforted: "It's okay, it has nothing to do with the case, so there is no need to think hard."

But Bo Ruoyou felt that he couldn't figure it out. When he was studying medicine in his childhood, he had only learned simple pharmacology and read a lot of medical books. Later, when he did coroner, he only learned the art of identifying the causes of trauma and death related to coroner. Therefore, his mind was really a little empty at this moment.

After returning to the wing room, it was only in the middle of the night that everyone felt a little sleepy. The place where the kang was against the wall was given out. Bo Ruoyou had a thin quilt on his body and fell asleep against the wall. The others lay on the kang and the ground, and it took the middle of the night. The next morning, when the first rooster crow sounded, Bo Ruoyou woke up instantly.

The others also woke up one after another. At this time, the rain outside finally decreased. The drizzle was drizzling, and there was even fog in the mountains. Two "creaks" sounds came from the main entrance. Wu Xiang went out to see, but saw Grandma Zhang walking out with a bag. Before he could make a sound, Grandma Zhang had already disappeared outside the door.

Wu Xiang hurriedly ordered a yamen operator to follow him.

When Bo Ruoyou saw Grandma Zhang leave, he went to find Zhang Yu. When he found him, he saw him feeding chickens behind the eaves.

There is a messy animal house behind the house, with a lot of firewood and grass, and more than ten chickens kept in it. Zhang Yu held a small dustpan with broken brown rice in it. He was spilling the brown rice into the chicken house handfuls. It rained, and the vile smell of chicken manure was everywhere. Bo Ruoyou didn't mind, but she walked up with her skirt. Zhang Yu saw her a little alert at first, but seeing her kind-hearted look, she thought of eating her bean cake yesterday, and her expression quickly calmed down.

Bo Ruoyou smiled and said, "When my mother-in-law is not at home, are you here to feed 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--"
To be continued...