Chapter 35 Flower Slave

After hearing that the body was missing, Ming Huashang and Ren Yao looked at each other, both feeling a chill and a haunted feeling. The swaying locust trees outside the house were like countless pairs of ghost claws, hovering over the Wei family.

All the abnormalities started after Wei Baixuan's death. Ming Huashang vaguely felt that the key to the problem was the missing body. She hesitated for a moment and asked hesitantly, "Is it possible that the second lady is not dead, and you are seeing the body wrongly?"

"This was seen by the eldest son himself." The maid opened her eyes wide and said in horror, "After they broke open the door that day, the servants saw the second lady lying on the ground with blood still flowing from her neck. They were all terrified. Only the eldest son walked in, looked carefully, and said that the second lady was dead, and sent someone to quickly pass on the message. The difference between the living and the dead is so great, how could the eldest son be wrong?"

That's right, Wei Moyuan also learned to make puppets, so it's impossible for him to not be able to tell the difference between a fake person and a real person. Ming Huashang suddenly realized something and asked, "Wei Moyuan sent a servant to pass the message, what about him?"

This question stumped the maid. She bit her lip and said uncertainly, "I don't know. The eldest son should be guarding the door, right?"

Ming Huashang asked, "That is to say, after Wei Baixuan was found dead, no one except Wei Moyuan knew what happened at the scene. When Manager Wei went there, the body had already disappeared?"

The maid hesitated and said, "I think so."

Ming Huashang nodded slowly and asked, "How many days was Wei Baixuan locked up in the workshop?"

The maid knew it clearly and remembered it without much effort: "On February 14, the Second Lady quarreled with the First and Third Ladies, and then quarreled with the shopkeeper, who locked her up in the workshop. It was a big fuss, and everyone was terrified, so I remember it very clearly. The next day, which was the evening of February 15, the person who delivered the food found that the food was not touched. He did not dare to ask the shopkeeper, so he went to the First Ladies for advice. The First Ladies took the key and went to the workshop to persuade the Second Lady to eat well. Unexpectedly, he talked for a long time, but no one answered. He pushed the door but it would not open. The First Ladies felt something was wrong, so he asked someone to break the door open, and found that the Second Lady was dead."

"Is Wei Baixuan the only one in the workshop for these two days and one night?" Ming Huashang asked.

"Yes." The maid said, "The shopkeeper was angry, and the servants dared not rush to him to offend him, so no one dared to approach the workshop for those two days, and we all took a detour."

No one dared to approach the workshop, which meant that if someone entered the workshop during this period, no one would be able to detect them.

Ming Huashang asked: "I just heard you say that Wei Moyuan took the key to the workshop, and there was a lock on the door?"

"Yes." The maid sighed, "I don't know what the second lady said to the shopkeeper, but the shopkeeper was very angry and had her locked in the workshop to reflect on her mistakes. No one was allowed to plead for her. It was only because the eldest son was so close to the shopkeeper that he dared to force the door open."

Ming Huashang thought that Wei Yanqing was indeed a qualified businessman. Not only did he make his apprentice reflect on his mistakes behind closed doors, he also locked him up in the workshop and made puppets while he was locked up. It really wasted no spare value.

Ming Huashang asked: "What does the lock outside the workshop look like? Who has the key?"

"The shopkeeper makes a living from his skills, and he is very afraid of being stolen by others, so the locks used in the workshop are the most strict, and the windows are also tightly sealed, leaving only one window for delivering food. After all, sometimes the nobles need food urgently, and the workshop has to work overnight, so the shopkeeper will lock the door of the workshop to prevent outsiders from disturbing or stealing his skills, and send someone to deliver food inside." The maid explained everything, "As for the key, the shopkeeper, the eldest son, the second lady, and the third lady all have it."

The workshop is different from the warehouse. The workshop is often used, and for convenience, each apprentice is equipped with one. Ming Huashang was a little confused. It seems that although the workshop is locked, it is not a strict secret room. There are many people who have the conditions to avoid sight and sneak into the workshop, and it is not certain who it is.

Ming Huashang said, "It's a pity that Wei Baixuan died so young, but life must go on. After her death, what arrangements will be made in the mansion? For example, how will the marriage of Wei Baixuan and Wei Moyuan be handled, and who will inherit the workshop?"

The maid shook her head: "The shopkeeper hasn't said it yet. However, the eldest son and the third lady have always been in love. They couldn't say it openly before because of the second lady. After that, they should be able to be together naturally..."

Before the maid finished speaking, Ren Yao's eyes suddenly fixed and he turned his head sharply: "Who?"

Ming Huashang and her maid were both startled. The maid thought it was another ghost and stepped back in fear. However, Ren Yao had already strode to the window and forcefully opened the back window.

Outside the window there was a row of locust trees, standing empty and silent. Not far away a flower slave was walking towards them with tools in his hand. He was startled to see the window suddenly opened.

Ming Huashang and her maid also followed. Ming Huashang was shocked when she saw the other person's face. He walked with a limp and his face was covered with uneven scars. The most serious one went through the bridge of his nose and almost went across his entire face. It looked very scary.

When the maid saw that it was him, she asked unhappily, "What are you doing here? Who asked you to come here?"

The flower slave bent his waist and lowered his head and said, "This old slave is here to trim the flowers and trees."

Ming Huashang asked: "Who is this?"

"Our flower slave is responsible for taking care of the trees, flowers and plants in the yard." The maid turned to the flower slave and put on an impatient look, "Old and ugly thing, be careful not to scare the distinguished guests, get out of here!"

Hua Nu bowed to the maid, looking very obedient, picked up the scissors and other things and left. Ming Huashang looked at Hua Nu's back and suddenly stopped her: "Wait."

The maid was a little surprised: "Madam Cui, this is just a lowly flower slave..."

"No problem, I'll ask you something." Ming Huashang asked with a smile, "Old man, when did you come here?"

Hua Nu stopped, lowered her head, and said, "The shopkeeper Wei asked me to prune the garden. I just came here after pruning the front part."

Ming Huashang looked up and saw that the flowers not far away were growing neatly and there were broken branches and leaves on the ground. They looked like they had just been pruned. Ming Huashang asked again, "When you came over, did you see anything outside our window?"

"No." Hua Nu said, "The window was opened when I just walked over, and I didn't see anyone."

The maid said, "There are many trees in the yard. Maybe it was a bird. Did you hear it wrongly?"

Did I hear it wrong? Ren Yao frowned and looked the man up and down, with suspicion in his eyes. Ming Huashang asked: "What happened to the wound on your face?"

Hua Nu lowered her head even lower and said, "I accidentally fell while hurrying on the road."

Ren Yao didn't believe it: "Even if he fell down while hurrying, he would only have a few scratches. How could he fall like this?"

Hua Nu lowered her head and looked submissive, with an unspeakable gloom in her calmness: "My lady, you are talking about the situation where you are not in a hurry. If you are in a hurry, you will fall like this."

Ming Huashang and Ren Yao both thought this person was very strange. The maid pointed and said angrily, "We have a distinguished guest today, so you don't need to trim your hair. Let's go, stay away from here."

Hua Nu silently bent down, picked up the things and limped away. The maid said with disgust: "Madam Cui, don't take it to heart. This person is just like this, old and ugly, out of place, always with a gloomy look, extremely evil. The shopkeeper is too kind to invite this person into the house."

Disgusting? Ming Huashang keenly felt that something was wrong. This was a word that clearly carried an emotional connotation. Why did the maid describe Hua Nu in this way?

Ming Huashang asked: "What happened? Did he do anything?"

The maid looked a little embarrassed and stammered, "Not really. He, he...he is a toad wanting to eat swan flesh!"

Ming Huashang felt that there was something fishy going on and asked softly, "Why do you say that?"

The maid hesitated: "The dead are the greatest, I shouldn't talk about the Second Lady's private affairs, but this person has bad intentions..."

Finally, the maid seemed to have hardened her heart and finally said, "Madam Cui, I only say these words to you, please don't tell anyone else. That old and ugly flower slave just now actually coveted the second lady!"

Ming Huashang raised her eyebrows slowly. The maid thought she didn't believe it, so she quickly added, "It's true. He always follows the Second Lady and often stares at her. He even bought things for her from outside the mansion a few times. The Second Lady was so angry that she broke everything and didn't allow him to appear in front of her. That ugly guy didn't even think about it. How could he compare with the eldest son? He really overestimates his own abilities. It's so funny."

Ming Huashang seemed to be thinking about something. The maid naggled a few more words. Seeing that Ming Huashang had no intention of speaking, she said with interest, "Madam Cui needs to rest, so I won't disturb you. I'm outside. If you have anything to say, just call me."

After the maid closed the door and left, Ren Yao said, "The Wei family is really complicated, with all the emotions going on. I am completely confused. Second Mother, what do you think is going on?"

After Ming Huashang sorted out her thoughts, she spoke calmly: "All the strange things started after Wei Baixuan's death, so let's analyze her first. Assuming there is no ghost, when Wei Baixuan was locked up in the workshop, Wei Zhanggui, Wei Moyuan, and Wei Zhuyan, who had the key, could contact her. These people are all suspects."

"When she died, her neck was still bleeding, which shows that the murder happened not long ago. At that time, the doors and windows were closed, and the door was bolted inward. The only passage was the window where meals were delivered. The murderer had no way to leave, so I guess the murderer did not leave the scene at all. Wei Moyuan was the first to arrive. He sent everyone away, perhaps because he was worried about the second sister, or perhaps he wanted to protect someone. When everyone came back, the body was gone. If there are no ghosts in this world, then the body must have been moved away."

Ren Yao was puzzled: "Why move the body?"

"Hide the evidence." Ming Huashang said, "For example, now we can't see the body, so all our inferences can only be based on guesswork. The murderer is smart enough to destroy the most important evidence first, and then blame it all on the ghost's words, so he can escape."

Ren Yao was surprised: "You mean, the haunting in Wei's house was also caused by the murderer?"

"Not sure." Ming Huashang said, "I have never seen a haunted scene, so I am not sure what kind of mentality the other party has in arranging all this. Oh, if only I could go to the place where Wei Baixuan was killed and take a look."

"The maid just said that Manager Wei invited a Taoist priest to perform a ritual. I'm afraid the place has been destroyed."

Ming Huashang sighed: "Then we can only fall back to reasoning. Who are the people who want to kill Wei Baixuan?"

Ren Yao thought as he spoke, "It's true for Wei Moyuan. Wei Baixuan told the shopkeeper Wei about his affair with Wei Zhuyan, and the shopkeeper threatened to drive them away. In order to get revenge and seize the family property, he might take a desperate risk. He led people into the workshop right after Wei Baixuan was killed. Maybe he staged it himself to clear himself. The same is true for Wei Zhuyan. Wei Baixuan was about to take away everything from her, and she might kill for love. And Wei Moyuan sent everyone away just to cover for her; I think that strange Hua Nu just now is not simple either. If he really likes Wei Baixuan, will he take advantage of her being locked up in the workshop? He even colluded with Wei Moyuan, and he first injured Wei Baixuan, and then Wei Moyuan rushed in at the right time to announce Wei Baixuan's death. Then Wei Moyuan sent everyone away, and Hua Nu took the opportunity to take away the still-living Wei Baixuan and locked her up to satisfy his own selfish desires..."

Ren Yao felt uncomfortable while talking, Ming Huashang added: "I think you overlooked the shopkeeper Wei. This person is not a simple person. Everything in the Wei family seems to have nothing to do with him, but in fact, everything that happened was caused by him."

Thinking of this, Ren Yaojian felt that the Wei family was filled with ghosts and could not stay there any longer. She thought about it, but still felt puzzled: "No matter who the murderer was, after killing Wei Baixuan, their goal was achieved. Why did they still have to play tricks in the Wei residence? What good would it do for them to scare Wei Zhuyan crazy?"

Ming Huashang raised her eyebrows and looked at Ren Yao with a half-smile: "Sister Ren, do you really think Wei Zhuyan was scared silly?"

Ren Yao took a deep breath and said, "What do you mean by that?"

Ming Huashang recalled in detail the scene when Wei Zhuyan encountered a ghost: "After we heard the scream, we rushed over immediately, only to see Wei Zhuyan beating a puppet. She kept saying that she saw the ghost of Wei Baixuan, but no one could prove it except herself. Later, the puppet's head was kicked away by Jiang Ling..."

Ming Huashang paused, and the two of them thought of someone unpleasant at the same time, and tacitly skipped over it. Ming Huashang continued, "When the puppet head flew out, Wei Zhuyan looked at it in surprise, and she stopped crying all of a sudden. I pulled the head back, and she subconsciously said thank you to me. When the shopkeeper Wei got angry, she fell into madness again."

Ming Huashang shook her head gently and looked at Ren Yao: "Sister Ren, do you think she is really crazy for someone who can control her emotions so easily?"

Ren Yao frowned deeply and said incredulously: "So, you think she is playing crazy and pretending that she saw a ghost? Then what is her purpose in doing this?"

There was too little evidence and Ming Huashang was not sure, but what was certain was that Wei Zhuyan must have done it to protect someone.

According to the maid's narration, Wei Zhuyan was a very proud and beauty-loving person. The person who made her voluntarily let her hair down and act crazy and stupid must be a very important person to her.

"Let's find evidence." Ming Huashang sighed, "Without evidence, all our guesses are castles in the air. It would be best if we could find Wei Baixuan's body. Such a big person can't just disappear out of thin air. And Hua Nu, I always think this person is weird."

Ren Yao was puzzled and asked: "Isn't he just a servant who takes care of the flowers and plants? What's so strange about that?"

Ming Huashang shook her head slowly: "I can't explain it, I just have a feeling that something is wrong."

Ming Huashang was talking to Ren Yao when suddenly a maid's voice came from outside the door: "Madam Cui, are you feeling better?"

Ming Huashang knew that Ming Huazhang must have sent someone to ask. She had already found out the information she needed, and her heart disease was cured at the right time: "Much better. Did my brother give any instructions?"

"Yes." The maid said, "Mr. Cui said it was time to go, so he sent me to ask if my lady was ready."

Ming Huashang and Ren Yao stood up together: "Okay, let's go now."

Ming Huashang walked out of the guest room and ran into Ming Huazhang and the other two in the main hall. Ming Huazhang heard the footsteps and looked at Ming Huashang with his dark eyes. He said, "Master Wei, please stay. We are sorry to have troubled you today. We will leave now."

Wei Yanqing said enthusiastically: "What are you talking about, Mr. Cui? It is a great honor for my humble home to have you all here today!"

Ming Huazhang just smiled faintly and said, "Shopkeeper Wei, please prepare the things I need as soon as possible. I need them urgently."

Wei Yanqing's smile faded a little, and he said, "Don't worry, my dear, I will definitely fulfill your mission."

They had been struggling for so long, and when they left the Wei family, the golden crow had set in the west and the sky was already glowing with rosy clouds. Ming Huashang caught a glimpse of a stall owner packing up his stall and hurriedly said, "Brother, wait a moment."

Before Ming Huazhang could say anything, Ming Huachang had already rushed to the stall. The stall owner looked up, saw Ming Huachang and smiled, "Madam, you haven't gone home yet? I thought the cheese would not taste good after being left out for a whole day, so I just made two portions for you and was just worrying about how to give them to you."

Ming Huachang was going to the Wei Mansion today, so she couldn't bring anything with her, so she left two portions of cherry cheese at the stall. The stall owner was also an honest man, and he didn't deduct anything from her. Instead, he made her two fresh portions.

Ming Huashang was touched and said sweetly, "Thank you, shopkeeper. Your skills are so good, and your business will surely prosper in the future. If I can't get a number in the future, please help me."

The stall owner smiled and said, "Thank you for your kind words. Please come and patronize my business more often in the future."

"must."

After saying goodbye to the stall owner, Ming Huashang ran towards Ming Huazhang carrying two paper bags. Jiang Ling was originally wondering what Ming Huashang was doing, but when he saw her coming back with the things, he suddenly remembered: "She actually still remembers it?"

Ming Huashang ran closer and just happened to hear Jiang Ling's words. She said, "Of course. How could I forget something I gave to my brother?"

Ming Huashang handed two paper packages to Ming Huazhang and Xie Jichuan respectively. "Brother, Brother Xie, this is cherry cheese. It's very delicious. Would you like to try it too?"

Ming Huazhang knew that Ming Huashang came late today because she went out to eat. He was not surprised at all, but was surprised that she still remembered him.

When Ming Huashang skipped towards the stall, he felt some subtle, indescribable emotion in his heart. Then, he saw Ming Huashang coming back with two paper bags.

Ming Huashang stopped in front of Ming Huazhang, expectantly waiting for her brother's reaction. However, she waited for a long time, but Ming Huazhang did not reach out to take it.

Ming Huachang gradually became a little uneasy. Is Ming Huazhang so hard to please? I saw him like eating cherries today, why does he not like them now?

Xie Jichuan didn't understand Ming Huazhang's feelings at all and took it with a smile: "Thank you, sister. Jingzhan doesn't like sweet food, so I'll take this for him."

As Xie Jichuan was talking, he actually reached out to take it. Ming Huazhang could no longer bear it and knocked him on the arm, saying, "There's still blood on your clothes. Go back and clean yourself up first, and don't touch other people."