White temples
"You haven't been found yet?" Wen Ya frowned.
Shi Lu was stunned for a moment before she realized what she meant. She smiled, but her smile was full of bitterness and her usual submissiveness: "Yes, I've been trapped in that dark pit all this time, never seeing the light of day. Of course, there's never been a sunrise like this."
Shi Lu seemed to understand why Wen Ya and Si Mucheng had traveled so far, although she didn't understand why they couldn't use the divine artifact if they had it. But the two of them had indeed come for her.
"Sister, I'm not greedy. I just want to see my father and know that he's alright. That's all I can do. My father is the only one I can't let go of."
Wen Ya remained silent.
Finally, the sun broke through the clouds, and its warm light shone brightly on the earth.
Wen Ya looked up at the blinding, scorching sun and thought to herself, "I really shouldn't stay with Si Mucheng for too long, otherwise I'd start meddling in other people's business too."
She finally spoke: "It's okay, you can see your father, and you can see the sun like this again."
Si Mucheng didn't actually sleep for very long; he woke up before lunch.
When he woke up, he was still groggy and for a moment didn't know where he was. He blinked in confusion, moved his hand, and then touched the soft blanket on his body. He was stunned.
"You're awake."
A cool voice rang out, and Si Mucheng finally reacted. He sat up abruptly and looked behind him. Wen Ya was sitting on a chair in front of the small terrace, with a small table next to her. Light behind her outlined her figure, so he couldn't see her expression clearly, but he saw her head tilt slightly, her long hair sliding down her shoulder. She said calmly, "Not awake yet?"
"No..." Si Mucheng opened his mouth, then realized his voice was slightly hoarse. He didn't dare admit that he had been staring blankly, so he just cleared his throat and said, "I'm hungry."
"..." Wen Ya realized that she really had no way to deal with him. This person would eat as soon as he woke up, and then get sleepy again. He was like an ox every day, with great strength and energy, just like an energetic husky.
"...I just ordered food, it should be served soon." Her voice carried a hint of helplessness.
Si Mucheng chuckled, then noticed the blanket covering him and realized he hadn't had time to cover himself with anything when he went to sleep. He grinned and said, "Xiaoya, did you cover me with this blanket?"
Wen Ya held a book in one hand and rubbed her forehead with the other, casually saying, "The air conditioning is on in the room. If you catch a cold, I won't have the energy to take care of you. Also, why are you being so disrespectful?" Even her maternal grandfather rarely called her Xiao Ya, but she was always very outgoing. However, she used to call him "Master" properly, but now she's becoming more and more unruly.
Si Mucheng, however, was not offended. He stood up, stretched, and thought to himself, "Sleeping on this sofa is still too uncomfortable. I can't even stretch my legs out. But there's nothing I can do. There's only one room left, and I can't let Wen Ya, a girl, sleep on the sofa... I don't know how long I'll be staying in Li City. I hope there will be a room available at the hotel later..."
Wen Ya noticed his movements and remembered her original plan, so she said, "I'll go out and look for a small hotel or something nearby. Those places should have rooms."
Si Mucheng paused in his actions: "Why? Don't you live here?"
When they first set out, they agreed that Si Mucheng would decide on the accommodation and travel expenses. He already understood that Wen Ya didn't want to fly; otherwise, he would have flown directly from Yucheng to Lishi instead of going through all that trouble. So, he was certain that he wouldn't compromise on accommodation.
Wen Ya said, "One room is inconvenient."
“How could that be! I’ll just sleep on the sofa,” Si Mucheng disagreed. “No, don’t even think about secretly improving on your own. I’m going to follow along.”
Wen Ya: ...
Well, the husky has become a leech.
Si Mucheng definitely wouldn't let her stay alone; this young master might actually follow her to a hotel. Wen Ya pressed her temples; thankfully, the food arrived at the room, and the topic was dropped.
During the meal, Si Mucheng caught a glimpse of the ghostly girl outside the terrace. "She" was gazing into the distance, seemingly looking at something, so he asked Wen Ya, "So Shi Lu mentioned 'her' obsession?"
Wen Ya nodded, but said, "But I plan to go and take a look around her school this afternoon."
According to Shi Lu, the incident happened on her way home after evening self-study.
Hearing her words, Si Mucheng knew she must have other ideas, and asked curiously, "What's wrong?"
Wen Ya lowered her eyes: "'She' seems to have been dismembered, and her body has never been found."
Si Mucheng's eyes widened, his reaction exactly as Wen Ya had predicted: "How could this be! Holy crap... that means the murderer hasn't been caught yet? Otherwise, how come the body can't be found?? This means... not only did Shi Lu's soul not find peace after she died, but her body wasn't even properly buried either??"
That's roughly the idea.
"Can we find it? With Shi Lu here, 'she' can guide us, right?" Si Mucheng asked with a serious expression.
Wen Ya put down her bowl: "I asked 'her,' but 'she' didn't know the exact location. Before she died, she was first drugged and then locked in a place that resembled a warehouse. After that, she was tortured to the point of near death and watched helplessly as she was cruelly dismembered and buried in the ground. Her remnant soul was also buried with her."
Si Mucheng couldn't believe it, yet he felt a pang of pity: "...And then she was trapped underground?"
Wen Ya nodded: "But it's strange. Logically, ghosts should be trapped in places of death, so why can't Shi Lu move at all? Unless..."
"Unless what?"
"Unless it's suppressed by a talisman or a magical artifact."
Si Mucheng asked in surprise, "Is the murderer a member of the Taoist sect?"
“Not necessarily.” Wen Ya looked at him. “It’s also possible that he was guilty and killed someone, but was afraid of ghosts and gods, so he went somewhere and sought a way to suppress the spirit. By accident, he managed to suppress Shi Lu’s soul underground, where it never sees the light of day.”
Si Mucheng exclaimed indignantly, "Cowardly and wicked!"
Before he could finish his meal, Si Mucheng was so angry that he couldn't eat anymore. He put down his chopsticks, stood up, and said, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"
Wen Ya looked at him, raised an eyebrow, and sure enough, even a fool could guess what he was thinking. That inexplicable sense of justice led him to meddle in so many other people's business.
The two of them braved the scorching sun of the day and arrived at Lishi No. 2 Middle School, where they stared at each other in bewilderment as they looked at the tightly closed school gate.
Si Mucheng: "I was careless... It's summer vacation now."
Wen Ya remained silent for a while, then turned and looked at a small shop on the side of the street.
Lishi No. 2 Middle School is located in the old town of Lishi. It has been established for a long time and there are many shops on the street. They have all kinds of shops, but the most common ones are food shops, such as fried skewers shops, stir-fry shops, and beverage shops. However, now that the students are on holiday, the shops are a bit deserted.
Wen Ya chose the convenience store because it was the only one without air conditioning. So the glass door outside wasn't closed to prevent the cold air from escaping. There was a recliner by the door, and someone was lying on it, fanning themselves with a palm leaf fan.
After a moment's thought, she walked over and said, "Auntie, I have something to ask you."
The person lying on the recliner looked at Wen Ya speechlessly, raised an eyebrow, and spoke in a rough voice: "What do you mean 'big sister'? Call me 'big brother'!"
Wen Ya: ...
The man had long hair tied in a low ponytail. He was thin, and his gaunt face and deep nasolabial folds made him somewhat androgynous. At first glance, one might mistake him for an older woman with a troubled expression. However, once he began to speak, he began to resemble a middle-aged man.
Wen Ya hesitated to call out to him.
Si Mucheng witnessed the whole thing and immediately stepped forward, smiling broadly: "Big brother, big brother, I'm so sorry, we didn't see clearly, we were offended."
He was tall and imposing, his figure completely obscuring the man and the recliner, making the man feel incredibly intimidated. He quickly sat up straighter, then looked Si Mucheng up and down, and said awkwardly, "What are you doing?"
Si Mucheng maintained his smile: "It's like this, I have a younger sister who just finished her high school entrance exam and got into No. 2 High School. My aunt asked my sister and me to come and check out the school and see what it's like."
Wen Ya raised an eyebrow. Well, he's making things up again. When it comes to lying, she should call Si Mucheng her master.
The man paused for a moment: "Out-of-towner?"
Their accents were hard to hide. Si Mucheng nodded: "That's right. The whole family moved here and we don't know anyone here, so we came to you to ask for help."
The man clicked his tongue, lay back down, and fanned himself: "Your sister is pretty good. No. 2 High School is excellent; this year's top liberal arts student in our city came from No. 2 High School."
Si Mucheng and Wen Ya had already seen the banners and congratulatory notices hanging at the school gate. Si Mucheng remained calm and continued smiling, "So, how's the school's atmosphere? We're from a small town, and we're worried about my sister being bullied at school..."
The man waved his fan: "Going back a few generations, who wasn't from the countryside? No way. No. 2 Middle School has a long history in Lishi, it's an old school. Everyone there is serious about studying, there aren't that many messy things."
Si Mucheng looked relieved and said, "Then I'm relieved. It's my little sister's first time staying in a dormitory, I hope she can get along well with her roommates."
“Accommodation!” The man nodded. “Accommodation means being confined to the school, under the school's supervision, which might be safer.”
The speaker may not have meant anything by it, but the listener took it to heart. Although Si Mucheng and Wen Ya couldn't quite figure out the deeper meaning behind the man's words, the fact that Shi Lu had the accident on her way home from evening self-study meant that the story of a missing student would definitely spread.
Si Mucheng's smile faded, and he lowered his voice, speaking in a cryptic tone, "Big brother, I heard something before. Did any students from No. 2 Middle School go missing on their way home from school?"
A look of surprise flashed across the man's face: "Oh, you've all heard about this?"
"Is that really true?"
"Well, this matter... it's been about two years, and there's still no news about that child."
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