Mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty

Chapter 59 The Secret in the Bamboo Forest
The old man took a breath and wiped his tears with his hand. He covered his heart, and tears began to flow again: "The Taoist priest said that my heart was not sincere. If I was sincere, this would not happen... The mountain god is punishing me... If my heart gradually becomes sincere in the future, I will be fine... I went to the mountain god temple to make a scene, telling the villagers that this old Taoist priest was a liar, but not only did the villagers not listen to me, they beat me up and threw me out... My daughter learned about the situation and came back from her husband's house. Seeing her mother like this, she insisted that I was deceived and wanted to report it to the police... I had no choice. I was afraid of the old Taoist priest's revenge, so I had to threaten her with death to stop her. She left in anger, severed the father-daughter relationship with me, and never came back..."

Yan Mingzhang and Rong Wanyin looked at each other, puzzled. What method did this Taoist priest use to "bring the dead back to life"? Why did this person end up in such a state?

Yan Mingzhang thought for a moment and asked, "Old man, you said he saved other people. I wonder how they are doing?"

The old man replied, "It's not like I didn't have my doubts before, but the Taoist priest said that saving lives goes against the laws of life and death and will bring divine punishment, so I can't easily tell others about it. I asked other families, but they all refused to mention it. I saw that you were all noble people from the city who had seen the world, so I wondered if there was any other way. That's why... I didn't care about divine punishment or not. Speaking of other families, I've never seen anyone who was saved come out again. They all hid in their houses, closed in. The families in these families all looked sad and miserable, without the joy of their loved ones' resurrection. I guess the situation is similar..."

Rong Wanyin asked, "Do you know which families they are? We can go and ask around..."

The old man looked a little embarrassed. "Well... well, if I really have to be punished by heaven, I'll give up my life. There are three people in the village. Besides my wife, they are, in chronological order, the five-year-old grandson of Old Li's family under the big locust tree at the village entrance, the husband of Tofu Xishi by the well, and the eldest son of the village chief. Old Li's grandson died a year and a half ago. He ate peanuts and got an acute illness. He broke out in a rash all over his body. By the time the doctor from the neighboring village arrived, it was already too late... That poor child... Later, he was sent to the mountain god temple. The plan was to bury him in the next few days, but later, when his family went there again, the child could actually move. Although he couldn't speak, his family naturally took him back with joy, thinking it was the appearance of the mountain god."

Rong Wanyin felt something was wrong and interrupted the old man, asking, "Old man, didn't you say that the mountain god started healing people after the Taoist priest came? How come…"

The old man pondered for a moment, as if remembering something: "Thinking carefully, the incident with Old Li's family happened first, and then Taoist Xuanji came seven or eight days later. Because the time was close, I overlooked it for a while."

Yan Mingzhang counted on his fingers, "So, lightning struck the mountain god temple first, then the woman in red came first. The first person to be cured was Old Li's grandson. Taoist Master Xuanji came later. It was only after he arrived that you found the stone with the inscription in the river. Tofu Xishi and the village chief's family were the second and third to be cured. Taoist Master Xuanji used the excuse of sculpting a golden statue for the mountain god to collect the golden plate for treatment. Your family was the last one to come, right? Between the Taoist priest's arrival and the time he treated the old woman, he also cured three or five people from other villages."

The old man thought about it, nodded, and said, "That's right."

Rong Wanyin pondered for a moment. "We need to clarify a few questions now: First, based on what the old man said, it couldn't have been Taoist Xuanji who treated the patient. So who was it? Could it have been the woman in red? Second, how did they get the patient into this state? Third, Taoist Xuanji must have heard something and discovered something mysterious, so he rushed to the village and took advantage of the opportunity to make money. What's his relationship with that woman? Fourth, are the other people who were treated like the old woman? We need to find out. Fifth, what exactly is this sweet, camphorwood-like smell? Is it related to the treatment?"

Yan Mingzhang nodded in agreement. "That's true. There's one more thing you just said, which gives me a guess. If it was that woman who did it, wouldn't the first person to be saved be the child in her arms? If it was her, how could Taoist Xuanji make a crazy woman listen to him? Could it be that there's some kind of relationship between them?"

The old man wiped his face briefly, as if he had made up his mind. "We can't let that man harm anyone again. Please help our village get rid of this scourge. If there's anything I can do to help, I'll do my best. It'll be considered as a way to accumulate merit for our old woman. What a sin..." Yan Mingzhang bowed deeply and said respectfully, "Old man, you are very understanding and you work for the benefit of all living beings. We are outsiders, and it would be inconvenient for us to ask around in the village. Please ask for your help and see if the people who received treatment in these families are in the same situation as the old woman. Thank you very much."

The old man gritted his teeth and shed a tear: "The girl is right, it's time to let go... I'll go and find out later."

Everyone followed the old man out of the room, and the old man went to the village to inquire. Everyone returned to the room, and Yan Mingzhang said to Changfeng Moyun, "Changfeng, you have good martial arts skills, so go to these families and see for yourself the condition of the patients. Moyun, you go to the town and take a few more brothers with you. Split into three groups. The first group will go and find out which gold shop has taken on a big job making gold plates, saying they need it urgently and would prefer to have it ready. If there is one, find out about the origins of the Taoist priest. The second group will go to the surrounding Taoist temples to see if any have suffered a disaster. The third group will go to see if there are any shops selling Taoist robes, whisks, and other items that were purchased by people who were not Taoist priests a year ago."

Rong Wanyin knew Yan Mingzhang was serious and said with joy, "Then what should I do?"

Yan Mingzhang smiled at her and reached out to touch her head: "Let's go meet the woman in red."

Su Zhan was speechless. Looking at the two people being so close, he complained, "Hey, hey, hey, there's a living person breathing here! Can you please stop ignoring me?"

Yan Mingzhang scratched his head and said with an awkward smile: "Let's go together..."

Su Zhan sneered, looking unhappy: "Humph, I'm not going. I'm going to take a hot spring bath and eat some delicious food. It's so comfortable. Why do you have to go find some crazy woman? I'm not crazy."

Yan Mingzhang smiled, looked at Rong Wanyin and said, "Then let's go!"

Su Zhan was shocked, his eyes widened: "Hey, hey, hey, are you really leaving? You're really not taking me with you? Wait for me!"

Su Zhan quickly packed up his things and followed closely. He didn't dare to be alone in this haunted place! Who knows what will happen next! This is too scary!