Su Yan knocked on the door, and when Sister-in-law Yang opened it, she saw the two brothers from last time standing there.
"Su Yan, what brings you and your older brother here?"
"Sister-in-law Yang, my brother and I work for the government. Do you know what happened in Pear Blossom Village a few days ago?"
"Is it that poisoning case?"
Su Yan nodded, "It's that case. My older brother and I originally wanted to go to the village to find out more about the Zhao family, but they kicked us out..."
Before she could finish speaking, Sister-in-law Yang pulled Su Yan inside. She looked around cautiously, and after confirming that no one was around, she quickly closed the door, as if afraid of being seen, acting all sneaky.
"Sister-in-law Yang, what's wrong?" Su Yan didn't understand why Sister-in-law Yang was reacting so strongly.
"Brother Su Yan, since you helped my sister-in-law repair the house and tidy up the yard, I don't want to hide it from you. This poison wasn't administered by a human, it was administered by a ghost," Sister-in-law Yang said mysteriously.
"A ghost?" Su Yan and Shen Yao looked at each other, quite surprised by this result.
How did we end up talking about 'ghosts' again?
"Sister-in-law Yang, there aren't that many supernatural or ghostly things in the world, unless someone is just pretending to be a ghost."
Seeing that Su Yan didn't believe her, Sister-in-law Yang said with even more certainty, "You really shouldn't disbelieve me. Let me tell you, none of the Zhao family members are good people. They killed an innocent girl, and now they've come for revenge."
"Girl? It's that girl." Su Yan was even more confused. How did another girl suddenly appear?
Sister-in-law Yang pulled Su Yan into the house and explained everything to her in detail.
Six years ago, Zhao Wushuang, the daughter of Zhao Xiucai in Lihua Village, was of marriageable age. Zhao Wushuang was beautiful, and many men coveted her beauty.
But Zhao Wushuang didn't fancy the uncouth men in the village; instead, she fell for a down-on-his-luck scholar on his way to take the imperial examination.
Later, Zhao Xiucai died of illness, and Zhao Wushuang's birth mother also died early. In addition, the scholar had to go to the capital to take the imperial examination, so Zhao Wushuang gave the scholar the travel expenses from her home to go to the capital to take the examination.
After the scholar left, the Zhao family members, under the cover of night, broke into Zhao Wushuang's house, their faces covered. The woman's painful screams continued throughout the night.
Zhao Wushuang was deeply in love with the scholar and waited for his return while enduring torment until a year later, news came from Pear Blossom Village that the scholar had become the top scholar in the imperial examination.
Fearing retaliation from the scholar after he became an official, the Zhao family plotted to kill Zhao Wushuang. As for whether she lived or died, Yang Dasao was not sure.
After hearing this, Su Yan trembled with anger. She slammed her hand on the table and said indignantly, "How can there be such a shameless person in the world?"
Sister-in-law Yang sighed regretfully, "Everyone in the village says it's Zhao Wushuang's vengeful spirit, which is why the Zhao family doesn't dare to see you."
Su Yan clenched her fists in anger, her fury like a flood about to burst its banks. She could already imagine what kind of life Zhao Wushuang was living in Pear Blossom Village.
It takes immense courage to be able to cry out to heaven and earth in vain, to encounter a group of man-eating demons, and to live and wait anxiously for someone to return.
"Revenge? I think they feel guilty. They knew that the Zhao family members were doing such a thing to an orphan girl, yet they did nothing to stop them and even condoned their behavior. That is just as despicable."
As if touched on a sensitive spot, Sister Yang's heart softened, and tears streamed down her face.
"Zhao is so pitiful. Not only is she bullied by men, but she's also frequently beaten by the gossipy women in the village. But I'm in a difficult situation myself, so I can't help her. Waaah..."
“Sister-in-law Yang, it’s not your fault…” Su Yan stepped forward to comfort Sister-in-law Yang.
Although it was just a past event, Su Yan had already guessed the murderer's motive, which was clearly aimed at the man who had bullied Miss Zhao.
After leaving Sister Yang's house, Shen Yao noticed that Su Yan was in a sullen mood.
"What? You actually sympathize with Zhao Wushuang's plight?"
Su Yan nodded, her eyes already red-rimmed. "Lord Shen, those were fifty-six beasts! Miss Zhao is so pitiful."
Shen Yao stepped forward and gently patted Su Yan's shoulder to comfort her, "Don't cry. We must investigate the case thoroughly and give Miss Zhao justice."
Upon hearing this, Su Yan immediately wiped away the tears in her eyes. "Yes... I not only want to investigate, but I want to investigate thoroughly and clearly, so that the world can see the ugly face of the Zhao family."
"Aren't you going to speculate about the poisoning case anymore?"
“Investigate… Of course I’ll investigate. I haven’t forgotten what a coroner should do.”
Looking at Su Yan's stubborn little face, Shen Yao couldn't help but smile. This was the first time he had seen Su Yan so emotional; she was usually cold and aloof.
"Lord Shen, how can you still laugh? Miss Zhao is so pitiful... Waaah... You have no compassion at all."
Shen Yao looked helpless. He was someone who had crawled back from the battlefield amidst piles of dead bodies, and he might have become numb to life and death. But Su Yan's words made him seem a bit heartless. However, he really couldn't bring himself to cry.
I had no choice but to change the subject and distract Su Yan. “I think the murderer is very likely seeking revenge for Zhao Wushuang. The most urgent thing is to find the survivors who bullied Miss Zhao back then. I guess the murderer will definitely strike again.”
Su Yan thought Shen Yao's words made a lot of sense. If there were still survivors, they could follow the clues and catch the murderer.
"But aren't all members of the Zhao family over the age of thirty dead?"
"There are indeed no more people over thirty, but there is one person left who is thirty years old."
Su Yan immediately perked up, "Who is it?"
"Zhao Liangde, I heard he started showing symptoms half a month ago, and he's probably going to die soon."
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go check it out quickly. If it's dead, we won't be able to ask any questions." Su Yan pulled Shen Yao along and hurried towards the village.
Shen Yao revealed a motherly smile, letting Su Yan hold his hand.
The two arrived at Zhao Liangde's door. Su Yan felt sympathy for Zhao Wushuang's plight and felt extreme disgust for the former abuser, so she suppressed the urge to tear the door down.
Seeing that Su Yan was still indignant, Shen Yao, who had finally managed to appease her, didn't want to ruin everything, so he had no choice but to go up and knock on the door himself.
Zhao Liangde's father and brother have already died. If Zhao Liangde dies, the remaining widow and her children will face even greater hardship.
Before the door could even open, a familiar voice sounded behind me.
"Young Master Zhao, Lord Shen, what are you doing here?"
As soon as the two turned around, they saw Hua Hanyun carrying a medicine box and leading Banxia by the hand.
"Dr. Hua, what are you doing here?"
"I am a doctor, so naturally I am here to see a doctor."
Su Yan tapped her head and laughed, "Look at me, I'm totally dumbfounded. Is this for Zhao Liangde to see?"
Hua Hanyun nodded. "That's right! Weren't you supposed to be investigating a case? What are you doing here?"
Shen Yao interjected, "We came to ask Zhao Liangde about the situation. How is he doing now?"
Hua Hanyun sighed, "This disease is difficult to cure, and I am helpless. I can only try my best to alleviate the patient's suffering."
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