Understandably so — after something like this had happened, who would still be in the mood for visitors? Now the entire villa was rife with whispers, with rumors circulating that the snake ghost was searching for a scapegoat. Even though the guests were all well-read individuals who did not believe in ghosts or spirits, at this moment they were all somewhat unsettled.
One uncanny incident followed another. Could it truly be a ghost? In no time, reports of illness were appearing everywhere. Every door and window was closed shut, visitors turned away, everyone afraid that they might accidentally look into someone’s eyes and become a scapegoat.
Ming Huazhang met with a closed door at Princess Taiping’s residence. As he walked out of the palace, Ming Huashang asked, “Second Elder Brother, what do we do now?”
Wei Zi had been Princess Taiping’s personal attendant. The Princess was the most likely candidate to be chosen as the next target. But Princess Taiping was unwilling to cooperate — she did not want to so much as see them, let alone speak with them.
Ming Huazhang thought for a moment. “That grove is rarely frequented. As her most capable attendant, Wei Zi would not normally have gone somewhere like that without reason. Ask those who shared quarters with Wei Zi last night — they may know something.”
The mood in Feihong Garden was one of panic. When Ming Huazhang and his companions arrived at the courtyard where the maidservants lodged, the servants inside screamed in fright and hastily slammed their doors. But Ming Huazhang was resolute. He stopped at one door, raised a knuckle and rapped against the door panel, saying, “I am Ming Huazhang of Zhenguo Duke’s household. I have a few questions to ask. Please open the door.”
Jiang Ling had followed along to watch the spectacle and added his voice: “Yes — it’s us, we’re not ghosts. It’s not like we’re going to eat you. Open up!”
When a young lord of Zhenguo Duke’s household and the heir of Marquis Jiang’an had come calling, the maidservants dared not give offense. A moment later, the door reluctantly opened a thin crack. “This servant respectfully greets the young lord and young miss.”
Behind the crack was a graceful maidservant. Her manner of greeting was poised and lovely, but her eyes remained fixed on the ground the entire time — she would not lift them even to look at the young man whose reputation as a jade beauty was known throughout Luoyang.
Ming Huashang found it faintly amusing. This was probably the first time a woman had given Ming Huazhang such a cold reception. Ming Huazhang himself appeared entirely unaffected by it, and asked calmly, “Did Wei Zi live here?”
At the name, the maidservant trembled even more. She pointed with a shaking finger in a certain direction. “Wei Zi was favored and did not share quarters with us. She has a room of her own.”
Ming Huashang followed the gesture and turned her head. Ahead, a room stood with its doors and windows tightly shut, and in broad daylight it gave off an eerie air. Ming Huazhang continued, “Has anyone touched her room?”
The maidservant shook her head vigorously. Now that Wei Zi had become a ghost, who would dare touch her things? Ming Huazhang asked, “Last night — you saw her return to her room?”
The maidservant nodded. “That’s right. Yesterday, after that… incident occurred, the Princess was distressed, and Wei Zi waited on her in attendance. She did not come back until the first quarter past the Hour of Pig. I saw Wei Zi go into her room with my own eyes — anyone else here can vouch for it.”
“After she went in, did she come out again?”
“No.” The maidservant kept her head bowed. “Wei Zi was proud and did not like to be spoken to. We all knew her temperament and dared not approach her uninvited. Last night she returned with a dark expression and did not come out after she went in. We did not dare ask, and kept our distance.”
Jiang Ling stood in the back and, in what he evidently believed was a quiet voice, said to Ming Huashang, “She went in and never came back out, yet this morning she was hanging in the grove. It must have been the ghost.”
Ren Yao brought up the rear. She had not wanted to come at all, but she was even more afraid of being left alone, so she had steeled herself and followed along. Hearing Jiang Ling’s words, she made no effort to hide her contempt and rolled her eyes enormously.
Jiang Ling sucked in a sharp breath and rolled up his sleeve, ready to pick a fight with Ren Yao. “What do you mean by that? I’ve been showing consideration for you as a woman — don’t be so ungrateful…”
“Enough. Speak less. Don’t interrupt.” Xie Jichuan, still wearing the smile of a refined young nobleman, stepped between them and caught Jiang Ling. For all that Xie Jichuan looked slender and scholarly, when he seized Jiang Ling — notorious for riding horses and raising leopards, known for growing tall without growing sense — he pulled him back with a single effortless hand.
Ming Huazhang paid no attention to the scuffle behind him. His expression was calm and intent, like freshly fallen snow, unmarred and clear. “After she went inside, did any of you hear anything out of the ordinary?”
The maidservant seemed puzzled. She thought for a moment and gave a small shake of her head. “There should have been… nothing. Last night was completely quiet. This morning at the fourth watch the mountain road was blocked, and we were roused to serve and pass along messages. We didn’t notice anything unusual.”
The maidservant never once dared raise her head, and her body trembled in fine, continuous shivers throughout her answers. Ming Huazhang could see that they believed utterly in the ghost, so he did not press them further. “Might I go and look inside Wei Zi’s room?”
The maidservant hesitated. Princess Taiping had expressly forbidden it — but the person standing before her was Ming Huazhang, and she dared not refuse. She could only say, “The young lord may look from the doorway. Beyond that, this servant has no authority. The Princess has given orders that no one is to speak of the deceased. Please do not put this servant in a difficult position.”
Ming Huazhang understood. Two maidservants of the Princess’s household had died in succession — one of them Taiping’s own close attendant. The Princess was certainly in a foul mood right now, and the last thing she wished to hear was anything related to death.
Ming Huazhang thanked her. Even addressing a maidservant, his bearing and expression were the same as when facing Princess Taiping or Prince Wei — measured and appropriate, making no distinction between high and low. He walked to Wei Zi’s door and pushed it gently open.
Ren Yao did not dare go near. Xie Jichuan had not moved either, so she took the opportunity to stop as well. She had absolutely no desire to know what lay inside — yet a certain brainless fool was giving a startled, running commentary of everything he saw. “Oh, completely clean. The bedding isn’t even folded. I knew it was the ghost — otherwise how could there be no sound at all!”
Ming Huashang poked her head out from beside Ming Huazhang and looked carefully into the room. It was true — the room was unsettlingly serene, with various small objects scattered casually about. Ming Huashang could easily imagine the owner setting them down without a second thought. There was no sign of a struggle or fight anywhere in the room. The bedding was turned back on one side, the other half trailing to the floor, as though the owner had risen hastily and would be back to sleep soon.
Had she not known in advance, Ming Huashang could not possibly have imagined this was a dead woman’s room. Everything looked so natural — as if Wei Zi were perfectly alive, had simply risen in the night, and had suddenly vanished.
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