Chapter 48 Tang Clan Ghost: Hysteria

Perhaps... it's hysteria.

Working backward from the results, everything becomes crystal clear. But deducing the truth from those initial, fragmented clues is far more difficult.

"Of course, there was also some element of coincidence involved."

Tang Yu smiled gently and said calmly, "That day when I returned to Yunling Mountain, I happened to chat with my father and learned that my aunt had no grave because her remains could not be found back then. This matches my guess, which means that perhaps by some coincidence, my aunt did not die. That's why I went to investigate the medicine pavilion and the storage room at night."

“But…” Si Huo looked at Tang Yu, puzzled, “Didn’t you say you didn’t suspect me? Then why did you go to the medicine pavilion?”

Tang Yu smiled faintly: "I only confirmed that Doctor Si is not a 'female ghost,' but I never thought that you were unrelated to this matter."

She changed the subject: "Ever since I guessed that the 'ghost' might be my aunt, I've had even more questions about you."

What question do you have?

“For example…” Tang Yu asked gently, looking directly at Si Huo with a probing gaze, “What role did you play in all of this?”

Si Huo slightly twitched his fingertips, but did not utter a word.

Tang Yu continued, following the train of thought: "It was precisely because I didn't know whether you were friend or foe that Xie Xingzheng and I sneaked into the medicine pavilion at night, just to confirm that you hadn't tampered with the medicine. We checked the dregs, and there were no hallucinogenic ingredients or poisons in them."

She paused, a hint of emotion flashing in her eyes, "Coincidentally, I happened to run into you that night as you rushed over to pick up the medicine. And it was these medicines that cleared up many of my doubts."

Tang Yiqing couldn't help but ask, "What kind of medicine is it?"

“They are all sedatives,” Tang Yu replied.

The others looked at each other, some puzzled.

Tang Yiqing frowned slightly and asked, "What's so strange about that? Doctor Si has been working so hard these past few days, and everyone can see how tired he is during the day. It's perfectly reasonable for him to go to get some calming medicine at night, isn't it?"

“No.” Tang Yu shook her head. “That’s actually the strangest thing.”

She lowered her eyes, recalling the events of the previous night, as she walked over to Si Huo's side.

"At first, I had the same thought as Sister Yiqing, but something always felt off. It was thanks to General Xie's words that I was enlightened. He asked, 'Since the little miracle doctor is so sleepy during the day that he can fall asleep standing up, why does he still come to look for calming medicine at night?'"

She raised a finger: "This is the strange thing."

“And the second strange thing.” She slowly raised her second finger, “The little divine doctor is really too tired. Since I brought people back to Tang Sect, apart from Yangyang, she does need to treat Xie Xingzheng. But it’s only two people, it shouldn’t be enough to make her stay up all night, right? And she also said herself that she is very familiar with Xue Jin, so it shouldn’t be considered difficult.”

"This..." Tang Yiqing was stunned, only then realizing that something was wrong.

“Since she doesn’t need these medicines herself, why rush to pick them up in the middle of the night?” Tang Yu slowly raised her eyes and asked, “Who exactly is this medicine for?”

“It’s for my aunt!” Tang Yiqing blurted out.

“Exactly.” Tang Yu nodded. “Once you understand this, not only will many questions be answered, but many details will also connect. For example, her fatigue is because, in addition to seeing patients during the day, she also needs to see another, more difficult patient every night.”

“I’ve always wondered why, if Auntie missed Xiaoge, she didn’t just reveal her identity and return to the Tang Clan? If she had something she couldn’t say, she could have easily arranged for her to disguise herself and re-enter the inner sect after the sect leader recognized her. That way, she could stay by Xiaoge’s side at any time. Why did she have to become a ghost?”

After voicing all her questions, Tang Yu sighed, "And in the end, it was those tranquilizers that made me realize that perhaps my aunt's illness was neither caused by injury nor poison. Maybe... it was hysteria."

Upon hearing this, everyone in the hall gasped in shock.

Hysteria is a more palatable term. But to put it bluntly, those afflicted with this condition are avoided like the plague, and are referred to as—

madman.

Tang Yu took a deep breath to calm herself, her tone remaining steady: "Because it's hysteria, that's why Doctor Si has to stay by her side every night. That night, perhaps my aunt had another attack, and she rushed to get medicine because there wasn't enough. Because it's hysteria, my aunt doesn't actually recognize people; she's just acting on instinct, which is why she wanted to get close to Xiao Ge but was also afraid of others seeing her face. Because it's hysteria, the sect leader had to admit there was a 'ghost' and ordered that everyone be forbidden from leaving their rooms late at night."

Tang Chen sighed, his eyes filled with sorrow, and gave a bitter smile: "What you said is almost exactly true. Your intelligence is just like your father's."

He spoke slowly, his voice trembling slightly: "When the Tang Clan first encountered a ghost, I chased after her myself. My little sister is familiar with all the secret passages and mechanisms in the Tang Clan, so others naturally couldn't catch her, but as the sect leader, how could I not catch her? At that time, I guessed a thing or two from her figure and Shadowless Steps, but before I actually saw that face, I couldn't believe it really was her."

After a brief pause, Tang Chen seemed to be suppressing the surge of grief in his chest.

"Twelve years ago, she left her three-year-old daughter, Xiaoge, at the gates of the Tang Clan and then disappeared without a trace. I knew she was determined to die, so I immediately mobilized everyone in the Tang Clan and even spent a lot of money to seek help from secret agents in the martial arts world, but all to no avail. It took a whole year for your mother and me to accept that my little sister may have already died in some unknown corner."

He lowered his eyes and looked at the pale face in his arms. A tear silently slid down and hit her cheek, leaving only a faint watermark.

"When I saw that face clearly, countless questions flashed through my mind..."

I want to ask, if she's not dead, why doesn't she go home?

I wonder, is it worth dying for a hypocrite who is all talk and no action?

I'd like to ask, how has she been all these years?

Tang Yu's nose tingled slightly, and a wave of sadness washed over her. Back in the storage room, she had seen a few fragments of records, and combined with the events that had transpired, it wasn't difficult to piece together her aunt's past.

The third young lady of the Tang family, who has been pampered and treated gently by her family since childhood, embarks on her first journey into the world, full of dreams.

She believed that wandering the martial arts world was about chivalry and righteousness, and settling scores with gusto; she believed that friendships formed in the martial arts world were full of sincerity and loyalty; she believed that the love between people in the martial arts world was a blend of chivalry and romance, a beautiful dream of becoming a couple after many ups and downs and countless trials.

Not to mention, in the Tang Clan, all she witnessed was genuine and unwavering love. It was her eldest brother, who remained unmarried after losing his wife and longed for her every night; it was her second sister, who disregarded societal norms, found true love, and even sacrificed an arm for love, ultimately retiring from the martial world together.

At that age when she was just beginning to experience love, she naturally believed in love to the fullest.

Then she meets a seemingly handsome and charming man who not only saves her from danger but also shows her gentleness and tenderness, making promises and offering affection. How could she not be moved by such an "outstanding" man?

But being upright and proper can be a disguise, and sweet words can also be faked.

By the time she realized it, it was too late.

The so-called sweetheart turned out to be nothing more than a selfish, despicable, and philandering heartbreaker.

The once pampered third young lady of the Tang family had her hope of living severed by the darkness of human nature and the cruelty of the world.

Despair, shame, pain.

Overwhelmed by negative emotions, she forgot that she had family to confide in.

If she forgets, she can go home crying.

Looking back, my aunt was already trapped in a predicament of her own making.

After entrusting her last remaining concern—Tang Ge—to the Tang Clan, she found a secluded place to live out her remaining days.

For a moment, no one spoke in the room.

The wind whistled in through the window cracks, carrying a damp chill and the melancholy of the night.

Suppressing his grief, Tang Chen continued, "But all those questions choked in my throat when I saw her terrified and bewildered eyes. She didn't recognize me, nor did she recognize herself. She couldn't even speak, only able to utter mournful 'woo-woo' sounds, as if begging me to let her go... But how could I possibly hurt her?"

"Let me explain," Si Huo's voice rang out, unable to bear letting Tang Chen, who was already choking up, continue speaking.

“I met her by chance when I was practicing medicine in a village in Mianyang.” Si Huo’s tone was calm, but with a hint of heaviness. “According to that old woman, she saved Tang Jue, who was covered in wounds, when she was washing clothes on the riverbank more than ten years ago. After she woke up, she could not speak and did not remember anything. She was mentally impaired.”

She recalled, "I took her pulse and figured she must have suffered a major accident and then injured her head by jumping off a cliff, which is why she forgot her past and was often confused. As for her voice, it was from crying back then."

Tang Yu asked softly, "So, you took your aunt to the martial arts tournament?"

Si Huo shook his head: "No."

"I stayed in the small fishing village for a long time, and after I took good care of her health, I didn't know whether I should treat her amnesia. I was afraid that if I could restore her memories, she might suffer even more..."

Si Huo sighed and continued, "It just so happens that the Cangwu Mountain where the martial arts tournament is being held is not far away, so I thought I would go and sound out the Tang family. But I didn't expect that she would come looking for me herself. And on the night Tang Yang had his accident, the Tang Clan searched everywhere. When I asked, I immediately guessed that the white-clothed female ghost was Tang Jue."

Tang Yu pondered for a moment before whispering, "I think Auntie originally came to find you. But somehow, she unexpectedly saw Xiao Ge, which triggered some memories, causing her to forget her purpose and instead sneak into the two people's house, leading to the 'ghost' incident."

Si Huo gently bit his lip, his fingertips tightening slightly, and sighed helplessly: "This is my fault. That's why I was so busy treating Tang Yang. The next day, the Second Elder sent someone to take the two of them back first, while I rushed back to the small fishing village to find her. But I misunderstood; she didn't go back. Instead, she followed Tang Ge all the way back to the Tang Clan. If it weren't for the Clan Leader's letter, I'm afraid I would have had to go back to Cangwu Mountain to search several more times."

"A letter?" Tang Yu's heart skipped a beat.

Tang Chen nodded: "It is the letter you showed Yi Qing."

Tang Yu murmured, "So... the 'change in condition' mentioned in that letter didn't actually refer to Yangyang."

“That’s right.” Tang Chen agreed, and explained in a deep voice, “Although Yangyang’s poison is difficult to cure, with some effort from the Second Elder, it shouldn’t be a problem to suppress it for the time being. The one who really needs Doctor Si is your aunt.”

His expression was somber, his voice heavy with suppressed pain: "After the shock, her madness worsened. Whenever she woke up, she would cry and scream, smashing things and injuring people. If we tried to awaken her memory, it would only make her more agitated. I couldn't bear to imprison her any longer, so I could only protect her in secret. In this helpless situation, I used Yangyang's illness as an excuse to invite Doctor Si to the Tang Clan. As for what happened after that, you all know."

Tang Yu lowered her eyes and thought about it carefully, and felt that everything made more sense.

After receiving the letter, Si Huo must have set off in a hurry, either leaving the letter behind or having it stolen en route. This is why the letter was used a second time by the people of Southern Xinjiang to lure her back to the Tang Clan.

This also shows that these people have never taken their eyes off themselves or anything related to them.

The events that occurred in Sichuan must have been under their surveillance, which is why they were able to make arrangements so quickly.

Perhaps due to the influence of the Tang Clan, they only intervened once when a few people entered Sichuan. But it's likely that there are still people from the Southern Frontier watching all this from the shadows, waiting for their chance.

Surrounded by a massive conspiracy, Tang Yu felt a chill run down her spine.

At the same time, she also felt that there seemed to be a subtle sense of unease somewhere.

The night was eerily quiet; the room was completely silent except for the low murmur of the night wind and the flickering candlelight.