Chapter 83: The Mass Deaths of the Night Watchmen

Su Zhenzhen roughly understood why the old lady was gossiping, and General Huo also remembered a large group of people listening in.

This is actually a disguised form of performing for money.

However, those traveling performers sell their skills in breaking rocks on their chests, while this old lady sells her silver tongue.

The people living in this alley are kind-hearted. Even though everyone is struggling financially these days, several men who can't afford to get married are still willing to support the old lady and help her earn a living.

"Girl, that young widow at the end of the alley..."

Su Zhenzhen interrupted the old lady, "Grandma, I want to hear more about that woman surnamed Ge and her stepson."

Last night, those two middle-aged men clearly called that woman, Aunt Ge.

Some viewers in the live chat were unhappy.

[Female lead, let her finish telling her story about the young widow first.]

[I've already heard that Aunt Ge and her stepson are having an affair.]

Su Zhenzhen knew it wasn't a good time to shout at the sky, so she took out five coins from her pocket and stuffed them into the old lady's hand.

"Tell me about the Ge family first, in great detail, from beginning to end. After you're done, tell me about the young widow. I'll buy you a steamed bun later."

The comments section has been largely calmed down; as long as there's gossip to listen to, people are willing to wait a little longer or a little later.

The old woman stroked the copper coin in her hand, her wrinkled face softening slightly. "Girl, you're a good person."

Usually, the neighbors would at most give her a bite to eat; this was the first person to give her money.

Su Zhenzhen sat down on the ground opposite the old lady. "Grandma, I'm still waiting to hear your story."

"Okay, tell me a story, the one surnamed Ge, right?" The old lady thought for a while and started from the beginning, trying her best not to let Su Zhenzhen's five coins go to waste.

There was a scholar in the alley who happened to be favored by the emperor, who valued those from humble backgrounds. He thought that if he studied for a few more years and passed the imperial examinations, he would eventually be able to make a decent living.

Unexpectedly, natural disasters and man-made calamities continued, and the imperial court was busy with disaster relief in various places, so the imperial examination was delayed.

The scholar was depressed and lost his appetite day after day. His old mother saw this and thought, "This won't do. Even if he doesn't become an official, life still has to go on."

Thinking that perhaps his son's wife died young and he had no one to care for him, if he could find him a wife and the two of them could make a good life together, then all his worries would disappear.

So the old mother asked someone to act as matchmaker, but the scholar was too weak to carry anything and had a son to support, so no decent girl wanted to marry him. The matchmaker searched and searched and finally found a widow.

The widow was young and beautiful, and still able to bear children. The only downside was that the neighbors said she was promiscuous, and that her husband died young because of her nightly torment.

The old mother didn't care about any of that. A woman who could bring herself into the house to warm the bed and live a good life was a good wife. It didn't matter if she was promiscuous in bed, as long as she could get her son to settle down and stop thinking about becoming an official or studying. That would be the best outcome.

The widow entered the house and became the bride. But the scholar still harbored resentment and refused to consummate the marriage.

The old lady smiled so hard her eyes narrowed into slits. "That widow Pan is just someone who can't stand being alone. Her husband won't sleep with her, so she goes to sleep with her son. Several times, the two of them have been seen pulling and tugging at each other in the streets and alleys. People who don't know the situation would think they're a young couple with an old man and a young woman."

Su Zhenzhen asked curiously, "Is the scholar aware of such a huge green hat?"

"Oh dear, don't even mention it." The old lady gestured with her chin. "He's the kind of guy who's ruined his brain from studying too much. All he ever thinks about is getting ahead in one step, and he doesn't care about anything else. His mother got sick from all the stress about it, so she just turns a blind eye to her grandson and daughter-in-law's little affair. Anyway, at least the good stuff didn't go to outsiders, and at least they've continued the family line."

Su Zhenzhen nodded, then asked, "I just heard you say that the mother and son got together before the scholar's funeral. Is that true?"

"Of course, many people saw it besides me. The scholar didn't have any relatives, but everyone in this alley is kind-hearted. Also, remembering how kind his mother was when she was alive, we thought we'd go and help out, since it's difficult for an orphan and a widow to manage many things. Who knew that when we pushed open the door and went in, the two of them were shamelessly rolling around together in broad daylight, with the scholar's coffin right next to them."

Su Zhenzhen now understood why she wasn't sure last night whether Aunt Ge was the deceased's wife or mother; the two of them gave off a very strange vibe. They were different ages in appearance, yet their behavior was very intimate.

In particular, Aunt Ge said that Chang Yuan got up at night and went out to check when he didn't come back, which shows that the two slept together at night.

This also indirectly shows that what Granny Ba said is basically true.

"How did the scholar and his mother survive after he died?"

"He didn't have any skills to make a living to begin with, and then this happened. The young man was too ashamed to face anyone, so he found a job as a night watchman."

Grandma Ba suddenly leaned closer mysteriously, "Girl, the night watchman has to be out late at night. That vixen Widow Ge couldn't resist and, while her son was out, she hooked up with two more neighbors. But I didn't see it with my own eyes; it was something a few grown men mentioned while they were bragging, so I'm not sure if it's true or not."

Su Zhenzhen raised an eyebrow; now all the clues really did match up.

No wonder the neighbors came over immediately when Aunt Ge shouted at the top of her lungs last night; it turns out they have a special relationship.

Remembering what one of the men said last night about the previous cases being left unsolved, Su Zhenzhen wondered if there were other murders, so she asked, "Grandma, has anything major happened in the alley lately?"

Granny Ba looked left and right, covered her mouth and lowered her voice, "Girl, you're not from the capital, are you? In the past month, six people have died, all of them night watchmen. They either fell and died at night, or they walked into the river and drowned in a daze. The authorities haven't been able to find out anything. Everyone says they've been walking at night and encountered ghosts."

Ghostly Encounters? Su Zhenzhen can tell at a glance whether there are ghosts in the capital. These days, not just any ghost can do evil.

Besides, even if you really did encounter a ghost, what ghost could possibly stab someone in the heart with a knife?

"What do the families of the deceased say? Under the emperor's rule, in broad daylight, what demons and monsters dare to commit evil?"

Grandma Ba waved her hand. "Don't even mention it. Who with a family would do the job of a night watchman? They don't earn much money all year round, and they're out at night and sleeping during the day, their lives turned upside down and they're no longer human. They don't have any close relatives or friends, and their neighbors don't need to go against the government. They just do whatever the government says."