Chapter 58 Plague: Velvet

The corpse was eerily clean.

With this strange and insidious plague spreading in southern summer, who among us could truly sleep soundly last night?

Tang Yu tossed and turned, repeatedly dissecting Xia Nanwang's words in her mind, but felt increasingly confused.

First, there are those who have been in contact with the infected person.

People from the southern border regions, or those who travel between the two borders, will die first; if they do not have "excessive" contact, they will be safe.

This isn't hard to figure out. Perhaps these people were secretly poisoned with Gu in the Southern Frontier and brought the Gu source into Xia Nan. Although there are strict border checks, the Gu techniques in the Southern Frontier are indeed powerful, and the guards might not be able to find any clues.

Yes, the Gu worms need food.

Whether it was the Blood Well in the past or the Gu People later, once the host is completely dead, the Gu worms will be eager to find the next host, which also aligns with the saying "avoiding too much contact will prevent any problems".

But to what extent is it "too much"? And why are some, like the grandfather and grandson in Ghost Cry Village, able to remain unharmed?

Secondly, there are two types of death.

The two deaths were strikingly different: one had a fist-sized gash in the chest and abdomen, with the internal organs completely devoured; the other had no wounds at all, having bled to death.

If, as the two deceased sorcerers said, there were two different kinds of Gu, why must their deaths be in a specific order?

Could there be a secret connection between the two types of Gu worms?

Thirdly, there is the distribution of the epidemic.

Tang Yu had inquired about this with the King of Xia Nan in detail, hoping to find out its origin. However, she unexpectedly discovered that the epidemic was evenly distributed in spots throughout the entire territory of Xia Nan.

Logically, an epidemic should spread outwards from its source like ripples, rather than spreading randomly without any connection.

This approach is somewhat contrary to common sense.

Tang Yu had no desire to sleep anymore, so she got up and walked towards the window.

The night had passed, and the faint light of dawn pierced through the clouds, scattering across Xia Nan, yet it could not dispel the darkness that shrouded the city.

These illogical details are pointless to ponder now; she will eventually have to examine the body and, incidentally, see where the trouble originated.

Under the arrangement of King Xia Nan, the three were led to the entrance of the inn by an old servant from the mansion.

But he only reached the doorway before the old servant refused to take another step forward, his face filled with unconcealed fear. He hurriedly bowed and left, as if staying any longer would lead to contracting the plague.

It should have been a lively morning, but the main street was deserted, so quiet that the three of them could only hear each other's breathing.

The inn's doors and windows were tightly shut, and there was no one guarding the entrance; only a few white seals with black lettering were pasted diagonally across the door cracks.

The four characters "Feiyun Inn" on the door plaque are written in gold powder with vigorous strokes, clearly the work of a master. The eaves and brackets are also made of fine materials, with exquisite carvings of flowers, birds, and beasts on the wooden beams, demonstrating the owner's dedication to the business. It is clear that those who stay at this inn are definitely wealthy people.

But now, the place where merchants once stayed is an empty shell, and it has become a place that everyone avoids like the plague, which is truly regrettable.

"Go in."

Tang Yu stepped forward first and tore off the seal that had long lost its meaning.

The wooden door was pushed open with a creaking sound, and a cloud of dust rushed out, along with a faint, musty smell in the air.

Even though all three of them had handkerchiefs covering their mouths and noses, they still couldn't help but frown in disgust.

Surprisingly, the inn was not messy or cluttered at all. Ignoring the thin layer of dust that had accumulated due to the lack of visitors for a long time, it could even be described as extremely clean and tidy.

The tables and chairs were neatly arranged, and everything was in its place, as if the innkeeper had simply closed for a trip and would perhaps return in a few days to reopen the inn and welcome guests again.

Feeling somewhat heavy-hearted, the three of them split up and conducted a simple search on the first floor.

Tang Yu found a guestbook under the counter, which contained brief information.

As she was carefully examining the document, she suddenly noticed a rustling sound coming from the shadows in the left corner.

Startled, I hurriedly retreated behind the cabinet. Upon closer inspection, I discovered that they were several grayish-brown rats.

They seemed to be startled by Tang Yu as well, darting out from the corner of the cabinet, squeaking in panic, and quickly darting to the wall, disappearing into the shadows on the other side.

Wang Shanyue rushed over upon hearing the noise, and breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing that it was just rats. He smiled and comforted them, "Don't be afraid. There must still be food stored in the inn, and since everyone has left, it's only because these rats have come here."

Looking in the direction where the rats disappeared, Tang Yu sighed softly, her helplessness tinged with a hint of mockery: "This inn is now deserted, but these little guys seem to be living more and more carefree lives."

These little lives, living in this inn shrouded in death, do not evoke a sense of vitality, but rather add to the desolation and sorrow.

At this moment, Xiao Fangliang approached, looked around, and asked, "Nothing seems amiss here. Shall we go upstairs to check again, or go directly to the backyard?"

Tang Yu collected her thoughts, considered for a few seconds, and said, "Naturally, we'll go check on the body first."

The group went to the backyard, where the weeds were lush and the doors and windows of all the houses were tightly closed, except for one house, which, like the front door, was sealed with an official seal.

According to King Xia Nan, before they knew it was caused by Gu poison, the bodies of the dead in the inn were taken away by the government for examination and disposal.

But as more and more people died, the coroner couldn't keep up with the examinations, and the constables had no time to investigate the scene, so they temporarily placed the newly deceased in the inn.

Later, when the plague broke out, the officials dared not approach the corpses anymore, but they also could not dispose of them casually, so they simply sealed the corpses in the abandoned woodshed in the backyard.

I imagine this is the house right in front of me.

Before they entered, Tang Yu raised her hand to stop them and took out two clean white handkerchiefs from her person, handing them over: "Just to be on the safe side, cover your mouth and nose with another layer, just in case."

Then she took out a porcelain bottle, uncorked it, and inside was a transparent liquid with a somewhat pungent smell.

She sprinkled it evenly around the two of them, and also sprinkled some in front of the door. The liquid had a strong alcoholic smell, and you could also faintly smell the sourness of the aged vinegar mixed with the coolness of mint, which instantly suppressed the stuffy atmosphere around them.

“Last night I specially made ‘Cleansing Evil Dew’ with strong liquor and medicinal herbs. Ancient prescriptions say it can prevent and cure epidemics.” She tore off the seal, pushed open the door, and stepped into the room to continue sprinkling it. “Although I don’t know how effective this will be for that Gu worm, it’s better than nothing.”

Once everything was ready, Tang Yu waved for the two to enter.

The woodshed was dimly lit, and several corpses, hastily covered with white cloth, were laid flat on a pile of dry hay.

Tang Yu stepped forward and lifted one of the pieces.

Surprisingly, the body, which had been left there for nearly half a month, not only did not have the expected strong stench of decay, but was also well preserved.

The flesh was dry and wrinkled, clinging tightly to the bones; the body was entirely grayish-white, without any external injuries or bloodstains. The deceased's expression was serene and composed, which was rather chilling.

This scene is exactly the second way of dying that King Xia Nan had described.

After examining it carefully, Tang Yu frowned more and more, muttering, "Something's not right..."

"What's wrong?" Wang Shanyue leaned forward to take a look and asked curiously.

“After a person dies, the blood only stagnates, it doesn’t disappear. Over time, the blood accumulates in the lower part of the body, forming large dark purple patches, which is what people often call livor mortis.” Tang Yu said, turning the corpse over through the white cloth and pointing to its back. “But look at this corpse, it not only has no wounds, but the veins are not green, and there is not a trace of livor mortis.”

After listening, Wang Shanyue scratched his head and looked at Xiao Fangliang, clearly still not understanding.

"This indicates that the body has lost all its blood and has become a mummified corpse."

Xiao Fangliang explained softly, “Judging from the weather in the southern border region, although it is late autumn and the weather is getting cooler, there is still some dampness. Although the body has been here for less than half a month, it should show signs of decay. But right now... there is no decay, no maggots, and not even lividity.”

The corpse was eerily clean.

Tang Yu nodded, her tone even colder: "Do you still remember yesterday, when King Xia Nan mentioned that when the body was discovered, it had only lost its color and the flesh was still relatively plump. It was only after several days that it shriveled up and became the dried corpse with withered skin clinging to the bones it is today?"

In other words, his blood continued to flow even after he died, which is truly strange.

"Could it be a Gu worm, constantly sucking blood from his body?" Wang Shanyue had a sudden inspiration.

“I had the same guess.” Tang Yu frowned slightly and replied in a deep voice, “But blood vessels and meridians are important conditions for the survival of Gu worms. Whether it is the dead in the blood well or the Gu people, there is still blood flowing. Unless necessary, Gu worms will not completely drain the host.”

Tang Yu took out silver needles from her sleeve and tested several acupoints on the corpse, her expression growing increasingly solemn.

"How is it?" Xiao Fangliang asked.

"As I suspected, no Gu worms survived in the body."

She casually lifted the white cloth covering another corpse next to her, revealing another perfectly preserved mummy.

Xiao Fangliang sensed her intention to search and patted Wang Shanyue's shoulder lightly, "Go and see if there are any corpses with bloody holes in their bodies."

Wang Shanyue responded and quickly lifted the white cloths one by one to examine them. Finally, he found a corpse with its abdomen cut open.

This is the first form of death described by King Xia Nan.

The three of them stepped forward, and Tang Yu was responsible for examining the hideous wound closely.

Unlike other well-preserved remains, this body with a bloody hole showed obvious signs of decay near the wound, with the skin and flesh turning black and hard. However, there were no signs of livor mortis and almost no blood left on the body.

Tang Yu took out the autopsy gloves she had borrowed from the Prince's Mansion, put them on, and bent down to examine the blood hole carefully, inch by inch.

A moment later, without the slightest hesitation, he reached into the abdominal cavity with his left hand.

Even through her gloves, her fingertips could feel a slippery texture, clearly solidified adipocere and leathery necrotic tissue. These signs indicated that this body had died much earlier than the previous "mummy."

After probing inside the abdomen for a while and finding nothing amiss, Tang Yu slowly withdrew her hand.

However, her expression changed slightly when her gaze fell on her left hand.

The gloves were covered with a pale yellow waxy coating and dark green rotting flesh.

She sensed something was off, hesitated for a moment, then raised her other clean hand, gently wiped off some remaining meat paste with her index finger, and then rubbed it between her fingertips.

Against the white background of the gloves, one can barely discern, upon close inspection, some extremely fine filaments mixed in with the dark tissue debris.

They are extremely delicate and soft, with an inconspicuous bluish-gray color, somewhat like dandelion seeds, but lacking that pure white lightness. Instead, they are darker in color and have a tougher texture.

"What is this?" Xiao Fangliang leaned closer to examine it, his face showing doubt. "It doesn't look like clothing fibers, nor does it resemble the fluff of plants."

“I don’t know.” Tang Yu shook her head, her brows furrowed. “But it’s embedded in the rotting flesh deep inside the wound… I have a feeling that this thing is definitely related to their cause of death.”