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墨書 Inktalez
In Lingnan, people love to drink soup, especially the nourishing baby soup, which is considered particularly delicious and restorative. It is said that this baby soup requires selecting infants around six to seven months old, supplemented with health-preserving herbs, and is simmered slowly. Its high price makes it inaccessible to the common people.
The killing of the yellow weasel sparked a heated discussion in Luoyang City. However, after the discussions subsided, the families who had lost their children remained deeply worried. They all hoped that the court would help them find their missing children. Chang Tai, having heard about the baby soup from somewhere, also felt uneasy; he imagined a large pot in front of him, simmering with the missing children.
Such speculation was not something Chang Tai could share in detail with his colleagues. After some thought, he decided to seek out Xing Ruyi.
"I have heard such rumors as well," Xing Ruyi said. "But isn't the risk of selling babies from here to Lingnan too great?" Knowing that Chang Tai had been busy with the case of the missing children and had not rested well for days, she prepared some calming tea for him. "Moreover, Brother Chang just mentioned that making baby soup requires infants around six to seven months old, while most of the missing children in the city are around two to three years old. These children already possess some independence; although they cannot survive on their own and have awareness, it is not strong enough for them to be suitable for being sold but rather for being made into soup."
"Does Fox Demon mean that these children have been sold elsewhere?" Chang Tai tapped his fingers on the table, falling into deep thought again.
"Fox Demon is merely speculating. Right now, we are in a prosperous era where people generally live peacefully and happily. Whether rich or poor, households usually do not lack children. When there are instances of buying and selling, they often involve relatives of officials who either sell them into slavery or into brothels as prostitutes. Such children are not easy to sell for a good price."
"What about beggars?" Chang Tai thought of Tiger and recalled the deeds committed by the yellow weasel. The disappearances of children in Luoyang City were intricately linked to this yellow weasel; despite his efforts to cover it up, he had never denied his involvement.
"Brother Chang's thoughts have crossed Fox Demon's mind as well. I have sent people to nearby prefectures and counties to investigate. Although there are beggars, they are mostly orphaned and destitute."
"There are no children being sold?"
"None! Moreover, those beggars tend to be older and capable of begging for themselves. While there may be someone controlling them from behind, it is not like the yellow weasel; rather, it is the beggar leaders. Aside from withholding some food rations, they do not impose harsh demands on those children."
"If it's neither baby soup nor selling nor begging, where would those children be taken by the yellow weasel? Could it be that like Tiger, they are already gone?"
Chang Tai's words caused Xing Ruyi's heart to sink. She had entertained such speculation herself, and it was even worse than she thought. Foxes are demons skilled at locating living beings, while she possessed ghostly powers that made her adept at finding souls in this world. Yet despite Fox's extensive search through the human realm and her inquiries among the underworld officials, they found nothing.
“Yin Chensi has gone out to investigate; hopefully, he can bring back some useful information.” Xing Ruyi glanced outside, where the western sky, a deep blue, was tinged with an eerie red.
“Brother Chang, do you know what lies west of Luoyang City?”
“Are you referring to the western suburbs or further west?”
“The western suburbs. Is there something different over there?” Xing Ruyi narrowed her eyes, sensing a hint of something unusual in Chang Tai's earlier words.
“Well, not much is different. West of Luoyang City, less than five miles away, there used to be a village. The villagers mostly had the surname Wei and made a living through iron smelting. Later, for some unknown reason, a high heat occurred in the village, and overnight, houses collapsed. The villagers either died or were injured, and some have not been found to this day. After the fire, the court investigated for a while, and the final conclusion was that a certain household in the village accidentally caused flames to leak during smelting, which led to the fire. As for those missing people, they were all presumed dead.”
“How come I’ve never heard of such a thing?”
“I heard it from the previous captain. If I recall correctly, it’s been over ten years now. At that time, neither of us had come to the Divine Capital; even if we had, we were just children and wouldn’t remember such events.”
“And now? Is it still in ruins over there?”
“No! It’s an arsenal under court management!”
“An arsenal! How could it be built so close to the capital?”
“This matter is indeed quite strange. About four or five years ago, I was already serving as a constable in the capital. One day while patrolling the streets, I saw a Taoist leading a group of soldiers heading out of the city. Coincidentally, one of those soldiers was someone I knew well, so I asked him a few questions. That’s when I learned that the village in the western suburbs was often haunted, and this haunting had reached the ears of the Holy Empress. The Holy Empress, concerned for her people and feeling uneasy about it, summoned monks from White Horse Temple to chant scriptures. Unexpectedly, halfway through the chanting, one monk died with blood flowing from his seven orifices. This caused widespread panic; even passersby began to avoid the village by taking detours of ten miles around it. The Taoist claimed to come from Zhongnan Mountain and went by the name Moxuyou; he volunteered to exorcise the spirits. The Holy Empress had no particular feelings toward Taoists but couldn’t think of another solution at that moment and reluctantly agreed.”
“So what happened next? Did they end up exorcising spirits and discovering an arsenal?”
"This is the Epilogue. According to the accompanying Soldier at the time, the Taoist performed an extremely grand Ritual. Although the process was somewhat dangerous, fortunately, everyone ended up safe and sound. After the Ritual, the Taoist slept for seven nights, and upon waking, his first words were to request the Holy Empress to issue a decree to build an Arsenal at the site of the ritual, and that the Blacksmith could only be a descendant of the Wei Family. Even if they were not a descendant of the Wei Family, they at least had to have the surname Wei."
"Did the Holy Empress agree?"
"Of course she did. Firstly, the rumors about ghosts in the village spread wider and wider, causing great panic among the people; secondly, the death of the monk from White Horse Temple was too strange, which made the Holy Empress quite wary; thirdly, building an Arsenal would be considered a good thing for the court. And there’s a fourth point, but it belongs to rumors, and its truth cannot be discerned."
"What is the fourth point?"
"It is said that the Taoist had informed the Holy Empress that the village was a place of hidden darkness, and due to the many restless souls there, it became a Ghostly Abyss that living people could not approach. The Blacksmith, whose fate is tied to fire and wields deadly weapons, is therefore the only one who can get close. The choice of the surname Wei is because it was originally a village of Wei Family people; sharing the same surname provides protection against unnecessary disasters. Most terrifyingly, that Taoist also told the Holy Empress that weapons forged in the Ghostly Abyss are Ghost Weapons, and using Ghost Weapons can create Ghost Soldiers."
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