CHAPTER 49: CHAPTER 48: THE LITTLE MUTE

Zhu Yu had to admit, Lu Qing had persuaded her.

Putting aside her deep-rooted beliefs, considering their current situation and the state of Qingshui County, Lu Qing’s approach was undoubtedly the best option.

"I understand now." Having figured it out, she nodded at Lu Qing with a smile, "Just like throwing a jar, the force being too strong or weak isn’t difficult; it’s finding that ’middle ground’ that’s the hardest.

If I were a commoner in Qingshui County, knowing Li Wencai’s henchman was beaten to death at the government office, my heart would be delighted, too."

Lu Qing also smiled, returning to his usual relaxed demeanor, and called out towards the door, "Come in."

Rune pushed the door open from outside, closed it gently behind him, and greeted Zhu Yu.

Zhu Yu then realized that Rune had quietly returned the previous night, but to not disturb her rest, Lu Qing had told him to rest first and report his findings in the morning after Zhu Yu woke up.

Stealing a glance at Lu Qing’s calm face beside her, Zhu Yu felt slightly surprised.

Originally, she thought he merely wanted to use her skills in autopsy, but now it seemed she had underestimated herself.

Rune was still wearing the coarse clothes from his investigation, his hair covered with an old cloth, and after days of traveling, his face was scraggly with a disheveled appearance, looking like an honest and simple farmer, completely unlike the sharp and capable figure he typically was beside Lu Qing.

Zhu Yu silently mused, perhaps this was what people meant by "clothes make the man," although some might not resemble a Crown Prince even in dragon robes, others could change their entire demeanor with just an outfit.

"Sir, Chief Historian, I have uncovered everything." After ensuring the Fu Lu was guarding outside, Rune began to speak to Lu Qing and Zhu Yu, "The pair of brothers who sought and gained wealth learned of the Ghost Temple’s efficacy from a mute beggar.

They imitated him and made a fortune, but just that one time, further attempts yielded no ’Ghost Immortal’s manifestation.’"

"What about the mute beggar’s background?" Lu Qing asked.

"Sir, the story of this mute beggar is quite lengthy and involves the old shopkeeper at the food establishment," Rune replied, "I discovered that the mute young beggar was not originally a beggar, but a child from a well-off family in the village, with the last name Cao. He was born unable to speak. Later, his family fell apart, with most of his family dying off, leaving only this mute child to survive alone."

Zhu Yu, sensing from Rune that there might be more hidden about the young mute’s family, asked, "Could it be that the downfall of the young mute’s family wasn’t caused by a natural disaster, but by human actions?"

"Yes, Chief Historian, that’s exactly it," Rune quickly replied, "Not only was it human-caused, but it’s also linked to the old shopkeeper found dead in the tree hollow."

"Tell me in detail!" Zhu Yu immediately sat up straight. She had been quite bored recently, and now she was fully attentive.

Lu Qing, without drawing attention, gave a quick glance at the now-energized Zhu Yu beside him, his gaze showing more certainty, then turned also to look at Rune, waiting for him to continue.

"I found out the young mute’s family owned some farmland. Although not wealthy, it was enough to feed the family. They had a sweet water well, provide exceptionally clear and sweet water, along with an ancestral secret recipe for brewing wine. Regularly, they would make some wine with grain and water from their well to sell in the county city.

The wine from the young mute’s family was clear and refreshing, though they didn’t produce much, it sold very well. Even at a slightly higher price than other small distilleries, every batch sold out quickly. Some restaurants and inns even offered to buy their wine exclusively for sale.

At that time, several large distilleries were willing to pay a high price for the family’s ancestral wine recipe, but the young mute’s grandfather refused them all.

Many in the community were envious, and when Lu’s began their dominance in Qingshui County, someone leaked the recipe’s secret to the now-deceased old shopkeeper, who in turn informed the head of Lu’s.

Lu’s tried to buy the recipe but failed, so they incited a local ruffian to steal from the young mute’s family. The grandfather discovered them, and in their struggle, the grandfather was knocked to the ground, hitting his head on a rock, resulting in a fatal wound.

The young mute’s father and brother took the ruffian to the county government, but County Magistrate Li at Qingshui let the ruffian off with just a few lashes.

Soon after, one day, the young mute and his sister were gathering firewood in the mountains, and when they returned at dusk, they found their house burned down, with their parents and uncle unable to escape, perishing in the fire, leaving only the two of them to depend on each other.

Not long after, a man from a neighboring village took a fancy to the young mute’s sister, attempting to take advantage of the situation to forcibly marry her. The young mute tried to stop them but was beaten half to death. His sister, with a strong temperament, saw her brother nearly beaten to death, and with no one left to protect them, chose to jump into the well out of shame and anger, ending her life.

After that, no one dared think about the sweet water well anymore after someone died in it. The young mute barely survived, becoming a little beggar, marking the true end of his family line."

Rune, not usually one to show his emotions openly, couldn’t help but express regret while recounting his findings to his master.

"Let me take a guess," Zhu Yu recalled the bodies in the mountain cave, "The ones who informed the old shopkeeper, those who accidentally killed the young mute’s grandfather while attempting to steal the recipe, and those who tried to forcibly marry the young mute’s sister, driving her to death, are all dead?"

Rune quickly nodded, "Indeed! The body behind the idol in the ruined temple, which you personally examined, was the wealthy neighbor from the village who sought to marry the young mute’s sister."

Zhu Yu understood now. That night in the inn, plagued by these mysteries and unable to sleep, she had turned over every possible scenario and reached the most plausible explanation, which Rune’s investigation now fully confirmed.

The old shopkeeper, having passed the information along and being an accomplice, was naturally guilty.

However, evil as it was, the old shopkeeper’s hands weren’t directly stained with the blood of the young mute’s family.

Thus, he couldn’t escape death but could be found in the tree hollow in the most eerie way, causing great shock while avoiding a fate of an exposed corpse left in the wilderness.

Compared to the others who directly killed the young mute’s family, he got off relatively lightly.

But a young mute, who couldn’t speak and was not very strong, how could he pull off luring those who ruined his family to the Ghost Temple to be murdered and dispose of their bodies in such a remote and exhausting mountain cave?