The "Secret" of Wangchuan Lake and the "Secret" of the Lotus Porcelain Vase

The next morning, Lu Ye and Qi Chen arrived at Wangchuan Garden with their diving equipment. Zhou Mingyuan was already waiting for them by the lake, holding an old map. "This is the map of Wangchuan Lake my grandfather left behind. It shows the topography of the lakebed and a hidden reef area. Be careful."

Qi Chen took the map and examined it carefully. The lake's terrain was complex, with a hidden reef in the center, exactly where the white shadow had been seen yesterday. "Let's dive to the reef first," he said. "Her body or belongings might be hidden there."

The two put on diving suits and slowly descended into the lake. The water was freezing, biting even through the suits. Visibility underwater was poor, relying only on the beam of their flashlights to discern their surroundings. The lakebed was covered in weeds and silt, like a giant net waiting to devour everything.

"There's something over there!" Lu Ye suddenly shouted, and the flashlight beam swept across the reef area. He saw a white object next to the reef, like a piece of clothing.

The two swam over and found a white cheongsam, just as Zhou Mingyuan had described. A lotus flower was embroidered on the collar, bleached white by the lake water, but the delicate stitching was still visible. In the pocket of the cheongsam was a small sachet filled with dried flowers in the shape of a lotus, just like the one on the porcelain vase.

"This is her dress!" Lu Ye said excitedly, and carefully put the cheongsam and sachet into the waterproof bag.

The two continued their search of the reef. Qi Chen's flashlight beam swept across the bottom of the reef and spotted a small crevice that seemed to hold something. He swam over and parted the mud with his hands, revealing a small blue-and-white porcelain vase, identical to the one in Wangchuan Pavilion, except for a crack in the lotus flower, as if it had been broken and glued back together.

"Another porcelain vase!" Lu Ye said, "These two porcelain vases must be related, they might be a pair."

The two returned to shore, carrying the cheongsam, sachet, and porcelain bottle. Zhou Mingyuan's face paled when he saw these things. "This cheongsam... belonged to my grandmother! Her name was Su Manqing, a Kunqu opera actress from the Republic of China. In 1931, she disappeared in Wangchuan Garden. My grandfather searched for her for a long time but couldn't find her. Later, he said she had run away from home."

"Su Manqing?" Lu Ye said in surprise, "She has the same surname as Su Qingyuan. Could they be sisters?"

"They are cousins," Zhou Mingyuan said. "My grandmother and Su Qingyuan's father were brothers. When Su Qingyuan passed away, my grandmother was very sad and disappeared not long after. My grandfather kept this a secret for fear of affecting the family's reputation."

Qi Chen picked up the two porcelain vases and examined them carefully. He discovered that the lotus flowers on the vases could be pieced together to form a complete lotus. "These two porcelain vases are a pair," he said. "The lotus flowers on them might contain clues, such as text or patterns."

The two put the two porcelain bottles together, and sure enough, a line of small words appeared in the center of the lotus: "On the seventh day of the seventh month, at Wangchuan Pavilion, the lotus flowers are blooming, please come again." The handwriting was beautiful and consistent with the handwriting on the note in the rouge box. It was Su Manqing's handwriting.

"This is an agreement she made with someone," Lu Ye said. "On the seventh day of the seventh month, they will meet at Wangchuan Pavilion. The other person might be her murderer."

Zhou Mingyuan's body trembled violently: "My grandfather... He and my grandmother had a bad relationship back then, and they often quarreled. After my grandmother disappeared, he remarried very quickly. Could it be..."

"It's possible," Qi Chen said, "Let's go to the ancestral hall in the main house. There might be your grandfather's diary or letters there that can provide clues."

The three of them walked into the ancestral hall, where the tablets of Zhou Mingyuan's grandfather and grandmother were enshrined. On Su Manqing's tablet was written "ran away from home in the 20th year of the Republic of China", without the date of death, as if it was deliberately concealed.

Qi Chen's flashlight beam swept across the altar in the ancestral hall and found a small secret compartment at the bottom of the altar. Inside was a small diary with "Zhou Tingshen's Diary" written on the cover. Zhou Tingshen was Zhou Mingyuan's grandfather.

Lu Ye carefully took out the diary and opened it. It recorded the life of Zhou Tingshen and Su Manqing in detail. On the page of July 1931, it was written: "Manqing discovered my secret. She wanted to leave me and tell others, but I couldn't let her go. On the seventh day of July, at Wangchuan Pavilion, we ended our relationship." The date was the sixth day of July, the day before Su Manqing disappeared.

"Secret? What secret?" Lu Ye asked, and continued to flip through the pages. On the page from June 1931, he saw the answer: "I embezzled the family's public funds and invested in stocks. I lost a lot of money. Manqing found out and asked me to return the money, otherwise she would tell the family."

"So that's how it is," Qi Chen said. "Zhou Tingshen embezzled public funds and was discovered by Su Manqing. He asked her to meet him at Wangchuan Pavilion, hoping to convince her to keep it a secret. When that didn't work out, he killed her and sunk her body into Wangchuan Lake, making it look like she'd run away from home."

At that moment, a faint sound of Kunqu opera emanated from Wangchuan Pavilion, like a woman reciting the line "A Dream in the Garden" from The Peony Pavilion. The voice was melodious yet tinged with sorrow. The three of them immediately rushed inside. On the stone table inside, two porcelain vases had joined themselves together. The lotus flowers atop them glowed a pale blue, revealing Su Manqing—dressed in a white cheongsam, clutching a Kunqu opera fan. She was singing in the pavilion. When she reached the line "So many vibrant flowers, now abandoned to dilapidated wells and ruined walls," tears fell, and her figure gradually faded.

"Grandma Manqing..." Zhou Mingyuan's voice trembled as he bowed deeply to the figure. "I'm sorry. It's our family that has wronged you. We will clear your name and let you rest in peace."

Su Manqing's figure nodded slightly in the light and continued singing until she finished singing "Dream in the Garden". Then she bowed to them and slowly disappeared into the air, leaving only a faint lotus fragrance, as if saying "thank you".

Lu Ye and Qi Chen stood in the pavilion, watching Su Manqing's figure disappear, and felt relieved - another wronged soul found the truth and cleared his name.

"We handed Zhou Tingshen's diary to the police," Qi Chen said. "Although he has passed away, we want to clear Su Manqing's name and stop her from being smeared as a 'runaway.'"

Zhou Mingyuan nodded, tears in his eyes. "I will. I will also erect a monument in Wangchuan Garden and engrave the story of Grandmother Manqing on it, so that future generations will know that she was an upright and brave woman who should not be forgotten."

The three men spent two more days at Wangchuan Garden, sorting through Su Manqing's belongings, including the two porcelain vases, the cheongsam, the sachet, and the diary, and handed them over to the police and the cultural relics department. Based on the diary and the belongings, the police confirmed Zhou Tingshen's murder and restored Su Manqing's reputation, clearing her name.

The afternoon we left Wangchuan Garden, the sun was shining brightly, filtering through the trees and into the garden. The waters of Wangchuan Lake shone golden in the sunlight, as if celebrating the vindication of Su Manqing. Standing at the garden gate, Lu Ye and Qi Chen watched Zhou Mingyuan erect a monument by the lake, their hearts warmed.

"Another story has ended," Lu Ye said, "where will the next story be?"

Qi Chen looked at the sunset in the distance: "I don't know, but we know that as long as there are souls in need of help, we will keep going."

On the day the Wangchuan Garden stele was erected, Lu Ye and Qi Chen made a special trip there. The stone tablet was made of white marble, inscribed with "Su Manqing's Tomb," and below it, a line of smaller characters read: "A Kunqu opera actor of the Republic of China, upright and courageous, in the year 2024, his injustice was redressed." Next to the stele stood the two joined blue and white porcelain vases, each containing a fresh lotus flower that Zhou Mingyuan had picked from the lake.

"Grandma Manqing," Zhou Mingyuan knelt before the stele, holding a bouquet of lotus flowers in his hand, "your grievances have finally been cleared, and you can rest in peace."

Lu Ye and Qi Chen stood aside, watching Zhou Mingyuan pay his respects, their hearts at peace. Just then, a breeze blew, and the lotus flowers by the lake swayed gently, as if responding to Zhou Mingyuan's words. The lotus fragrance in the air also became stronger, as if Su Manqing was expressing her gratitude.

"We should go now," Qi Chen said softly, "The story of Wangchuan Garden has ended."

Lu Ye nodded, bowed to the stone tablet, and then followed Qi Chen out. When he reached the garden gate, he looked back at Wangchuan Pavilion. He felt that Su Manqing was still there, wearing a white cheongsam, holding a Kunqu opera fan, and singing "A Dream in the Garden". But this time, she had a smile on her face, no longer sad.

The two returned to the city and rested for a day. The next day, they received a call from the cultural relics department, saying that the stories of Jingyuan and Wangchuanyuan had been compiled into materials and placed in the Republic of China exhibition area of ​​the city museum for future generations to visit. They also invited them to attend the opening ceremony.

On the day of the opening ceremony, many people came to visit, including many young people who were interested in the history of the Republic of China. They gathered around the relics of Su Qingyuan and Su Manqing and listened to the tour guide tell their stories, their eyes full of admiration and sympathy.

"Look," Lu Ye pointed at a group of young people, "their stories are being remembered, and that's enough."

Qi Chen nodded, looking at the diary and porcelain vase in the display case, his eyes filled with satisfaction: "Not only have they been cleared of all charges, but they are also remembered by future generations. This is the best consolation for them."

After the ceremony, the two men walked out of the museum. The sun was shining brightly, and the streets were bustling with people. Lu Ye suddenly felt that what they were doing, though ordinary, was deeply meaningful. They not only helped the wronged souls resolve their obsessions, but also allowed forgotten stories to be brought to light and those who had been slandered to regain respect.

"Where are we going next?" Lu Ye asked. He was already looking forward to the next story.

Qi Chen pulled out his phone and opened an email. Inside was a letter for help from a small town in the south: "There's a town called 'Wuzhen'. There's an old bridge there called 'Wanghun Bridge'. Lately, people have been seeing a woman in red jumping from the bridge, but no one has ever found her body. The locals are very scared and would like us to go and take a look."

"Soul-Watching Bridge? The woman in red?" Lu Ye's eyes lit up. "That sounds like a great story. When do we set off?"

"Tomorrow morning," Qi Chen said with a smile, "let's go prepare first. There's a lot of water in the southern town, so we might need diving equipment. Also, the grudges of women in red are usually very strong, so we should bring more soul-calming talismans and soul-calming bells."

Lu Ye nodded, his heart filled with anticipation. He knew that Wuzhen's Wanghun Bridge would be a new story, hiding new secrets and obsessions, waiting for them to discover and unravel.

At night, Lu Ye lay in bed, looking out the window at the moonlight, thinking of Su Qingyuan and Su Manqing, Jingyuan and Wangchuanyuan, and the innocent souls they had helped. He suddenly felt that although life was short, justice and courage were eternal. Those upright and brave people, even if forgotten and slandered, would eventually receive the respect and innocence they deserved.

The next morning, the two packed up their belongings and boarded the train to Wuzhen. As the train slowly started moving, Lu Ye looked out the window at the scenery, his heart filled with hope.