CHAPTER 2118: CHAPTER 2116: MISSING PERSONS

"But Wu Wanqing is very cunning. She pretended to be Lanlan to deceive all of us. I discussed with Second Brother that we must attack her Divine Sense unexpectedly, injuring her it, so that Lanlan would have a chance to wake up. That’s why I didn’t dare to tell Aunt, for fear that she would be sad and inadvertently reveal a flaw, making it inconvenient to take action."

Jiao Yunyun looked worriedly at the unconscious Lanlan and asked, "When will she wake up? Will she be Lanlan when she wakes up?"

"She should be. Let’s hope she wakes up soon, otherwise I really can’t explain it to Aunt." Bai Ruozhu said.

A figure rushed in from outside the room, looking anxiously at Lanlan, "What happened? What’s going on?"

Bai Ruozhu couldn’t help but laugh at the pale-looking Morning Wind, "You are really nervous about her."

Morning Wind was a bit embarrassed, then asked again, so Bai Ruozhu explained the original situation to him. After hearing it, Morning Wind looked enlightened and mumbled, "No wonder she hasn’t been paying much attention to me these past two days."

Bai Ruozhu thought about Wu Wanqing’s words earlier, feeling a bit sorry for Morning Wind, but luckily he didn’t hear it.

Fortunately, after waiting for two quarters of an hour, Lanlan slowly woke up. Her eyes, clear and transparent, still carried a hint of grievance.

Bai Ruozhu immediately confirmed that this was definitely Lanlan because no matter how much Wu Wanqing pretended, she could never have such clear eyes.

Lanlan’s eyes turned red. She got up and said, "Sister Ruozhu, Brother Zepei, thank you! If it weren’t for you, I might never have woken up. These two days, although I couldn’t regain control of my body, I could see everything outside. I was so anxious, but I couldn’t drive that Wu Wanqing away, I could only cry on the side."

Her voice choked as she spoke, and she looked at Jiao Yunyun, "Nanny, I made you worry. I’m sorry."

"Silly child, it’s good that you’re awake." Jiao Yunyun patted Lanlan’s back to comfort her.

Lanlan furtively glanced at Morning Wind, somewhat not daring to speak to him. Morning Wind also wanted to speak, but couldn’t find a way to cut in, leaving them in a silent standoff.

Bai Ruozhu hurriedly gave Second Brother a look, and the two quickly helped Jiao Yunyun out, leaving the space for Lanlan and Morning Wind.

They hadn’t gone far when they heard Lanlan’s cautious voice from the room behind them, "Morning Wind, you’re not mad at me, are you?"

"Why would I be? It wasn’t you!" Morning Wind said hurriedly.

"I mean when you told me not to be reckless, I still called out the Poisonous Insect. I was too headstrong." Lanlan’s voice was small, sounding regretful.

"You wanted to protect everyone, I wasn’t blaming you, I was just scared I might never see you again." Morning Wind’s voice was very soft but held no hesitation.

At this time, Bai Ruozhu and the others had walked away, and they couldn’t hear the rest, but Bai Ruozhu felt rather happy inside. It’s good that these two cared for each other and could talk openly.

When Jiao Ling returned and learned the truth, her face turned white and then green with fright. She then said embarrassedly, "I’m such an incompetent mother, I didn’t even realize she was an impostor."

"Mother, we spent the most time together, she observed you the longest, so her speaking and actions were mimicking how I interact with you. It’s normal that you were deceived." Lanlan said quickly.

Jiao Ling patted Lanlan’s head and said, "Next time, don’t let the Phoenix Poisonous Insect out, Mother’s heart can’t take another scare."

"Mother, there will definitely be no next time. I will cherish the time I have with you." Lanlan said, secretly glancing at Morning Wind again.

Fortunately, in the following days, Lanlan’s condition stabilized. Her ability to suppress the Phoenix Poisonous Insect also extended, so she didn’t have to soak in the medicinal liquid all the time. She could go out and play, more like a normal girl.

Bai Ruozhu also found an opportunity to bring three children out from the Space. As soon as Dengdeng came out, he was like an unleashed pony, running around the Peach Blossom Forest a few times.

Lin Ping’er and Nanny Zhang lovingly doted on the children in various ways. The two younger ones still couldn’t talk, so they kept pulling Little Dengdeng asking questions. Fortunately, Little Dengdeng was clever, he always remembered Bai Ruozhu’s instructions to say it was the secret realm of the Astrology Tower, not to be disclosed, etc.

It was at this time that three people from the clan disappeared one after another.

In the past, these matters were handled by the Disciplinary Hall. Now that Elder Su became the clan leader, the Fifth Elder was elected as the elder of the Disciplinary Hall, and he led people to investigate everywhere, tirelessly busy, yet found no clues.

"Could it be remnants from the Second Elder’s faction?" Bai Ruozhu thought of this as soon as she heard about it.

"We investigated, and there are no personnel who escaped. Those who defected to the Second Elder are still in jail, with no chance of committing any crime. Now, we don’t know if these three were detained by someone or if they met with misfortune." The Fifth Elder sighed and said.

"When was the last time others saw them? Do these three have any special characteristics or connections? Before they disappeared, did they behave strangely?" Bai Ruozhu asked several questions in a row, suspecting methods akin to modern criminal investigation.

"We didn’t ask in such detail. Let me have someone check with those around them again." The Fifth Elder immediately ordered his subordinates to investigate.

Bai Ruozhu figured that once they did a more detailed investigation, they might find some leads.

"Do you think they might have hidden with Fo Lanying in the mountains?" Fifth Elder abruptly asked, "Considering her skills now, it’s normal for her to avoid night patrols, and taking someone away isn’t impossible. Could it be she kidnapped someone to practice some evil skill?"

Since Fo Lanying became more demon-like, coupled with the Second Elder defecting to the monster, the Fifth Elder inevitably suspected Fo Lanying.

Bai Ruozhu didn’t harbor much dislike for Fo Lanying anymore. Instead, she felt a bit of sympathy for her defection at the crucial moment.

She thought for a moment and said, "Everything has to be based on evidence. If she really did it, we definitely can’t let her get away, but if she’s not guilty, we can’t wrong an innocent person."

The Fifth Elder suddenly understood a lot and hurriedly nodded, "You’re right. I let my biases affect my judgment. The Disciplinary Hall should be the fairest and strictest, everything should be based on evidence. I will investigate thoroughly, not letting the wrongdoer escape, nor will we wrong the innocent."

Bai Ruozhu nodded with a smile. No wonder Fifth Elder could take over the Disciplinary Hall; like Elder Su, he was upright and willing to take their advice.

In the following two days, the Disciplinary Hall’s people were busier yet still couldn’t find any leads. Then word came that another family’s daughter-in-law was missing!

Now all the elders had to treat this issue seriously. The vitality of the Jiuli Clan was already badly hurt; with a person disappearing every two days, not knowing if they were dead or alive, how many people would the Jiuli have left?

Bai Ruozhu, unsettled by the news, decided to take a trip to She Mountain, feeling the need to talk with Fo Lanying.

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Delivering ten thousand words~ begging for monthly tickets while acting cute and rolling around~