After all, their Demon Suppression Guard function is to encircle and suppress evil spirits, so they are a bit far away from ordinary people.
Although these villagers have heard about Demon Suppression Guard, few of them are qualified to see Demon Suppression Guard perform its tasks with their own eyes.
Some villagers who had heard about the deeds of Demon Suppression Guard looked at the three Su Fei with a light of hope in their eyes.
Some people stepped back subconsciously, with panic on their faces that could not be concealed. They were obviously frightened by the recent disappearances and lost their judgment.
Several shops on both sides of the village road were open, and the clerks stood listlessly at the door, looking around from time to time.
Several children were held tightly by their adults, looking at them curiously but not daring to step forward.
On the drying field in the distance, several villagers were hurriedly packing up the dried rice, moving very quickly. They were afraid that they would not be able to finish the work before dark, because Hu Family Village was not peaceful recently, and the dark night represented danger.
Su Fei nodded to the villagers with a gentle expression, trying to ease their panic.
Hu Jing and Qiu Xu also paid attention to the expressions of the villagers along the way and whispered to Su Fei.
"Centurion Su, it can be seen that the villagers are really panicked. They are even worried about farming. This monster must have committed crimes too frequently and has disturbed the whole village."
Su Fei nodded slightly and spoke in a low tone.
"Well, Xiao Ma said that more than a dozen villagers have disappeared in just a few months. Anyone would be panicked. Let's speed up and go to the center of the village to find the village chief. As the head of the village, he must know the most detailed situation. He can also help us ask the villagers for more clues."
The three of them rode Crimson Flame Horse and walked slowly through the neat streets. The horses' hooves stepped on the bluestone road, making a soft "dah" sound, which attracted many villagers to stop and watch.
Not long after, they arrived at the center of the village, where there was a green brick house that was more impressive than other houses. There was a wooden sign hanging at the door with the words "Hu Family Village Chief" written on it. There were also some herbs drying at the door.
Su Fei read the information before coming and found out that the village chief of Hu Family Village is called Hu Guangnian, and this should be his residence.
Su Fei reined in the horse, dismounted, walked forward, and knocked on the door gently with a gentle voice.
"Is there anyone inside? We are from the Demon Suppression Bureau. We are here to investigate the disappearance of the villagers. We are here to visit Hu Family Village Chief Hu."
Soon there was a sound of footsteps in the house, and then the door was opened, and an old man with gray hair and an old face poked his head out, his eyes full of vigilance and eagerness, he looked at Su Fei and asked in a slightly urgent voice.
"Are you from the Demon Suppression Bureau? You are finally here. Are you here to help us catch the monsters and find the missing villagers?"
The old man is Hu Guangnian, the village chief of Hu Family Village. These days, he has been worried all day long. While comforting the villagers, he sent people to secretly watch for traces of the demon, but he has no clue. At this moment, when he heard the three words "Demon Suppression Bureau", most of the vigilance in his eyes disappeared in an instant, and was replaced by strong hope.
Su Fei nodded slightly, raised his hand and showed his Demon Suppression Bureau Centurion token. The token glowed with a cold metallic luster and had the characters "Demon Suppression Bureau Centurion" engraved on it.
"Village Chief Hu Don't worry, we are indeed Demon Suppression Bureau's people. I am Demon Suppression Bureau centurion Su Fei. These two are my subordinates, Hu Jing and Qiu Xu."
"We received the order from the Demon Suppression Bureau and came to kill the evil spirits causing trouble, find out the truth behind the missing villagers, and restore peace to Hu Family Village so that everyone can farm with peace of mind and live a stable life."
Hu Guangnian saw the Centurion Token, his face suddenly showed excitement, he quickly opened the door, bowed and saluted, his tone was a bit choked.
"That's great, Centurion Su, you guys are here. We Hu Family Village have been through a lot of suffering these past few months. Please come in quickly. Please come in quickly. I will tell you everything in detail."
Su Fei, Hu Jing and Qiu Xu followed Hu Guangnian into the house. The furnishings in the house were simple but neat. There was also a ledger recording the information of the missing villagers on the table. Apparently Hu Guangnian had never given up looking for the missing villagers.
Hu Guangnian first poured water for the three of them, and then also poured a glass of water for himself.
Hu Guangnian first picked up the porcelain water cup on the table, took a sip of water with trembling hands, barely suppressed the choking and panic in his heart, and spoke slowly.
"Centurion Su, this matter started two months ago. The first one who disappeared was Old Man Zhang from the west end of our village."
"Then Old Man Zhang is over sixty this year. He is a simple and honest man. He makes a living by farming. Apart from his fondness for a few sips, he has no other problems."
"Old Man Zhang has a close friendship with Fa Xiao, and we go there for drinks every now and then. That night, he went to Fa Xiao's house for a drink with his home-brewed rice wine."
"Old Man Zhang did not go home that night. Old Man Zhang's wife did not take this matter to heart at first."
"I thought Old Man Zhang had fallen asleep at Fa Xiao's house. After all, this had happened several times before. But until noon the next day, the sun had risen above the head, and Old Man Zhang still hadn't come home, not even coming back for lunch. Then his wife panicked and hurried to Fa Xiao's house in the east of the village to find Old Man Zhang's Fa Xiao."
"In the novel, Old Man Zhang didn't drink too much that day and his mind was still clear. Faxiao watched Old Man Zhang walk out of his house and return home."
"If you publish a novel, let her collapse on the ground on the spot. Old Man Zhang left last night. It only takes half a stick of incense from the east end of the village to the west end of the village. Even if she walks slowly, Old Man Zhang should be home by now. How is it possible that she is still not there by noon the next day?"
"The two of them panicked and quickly summoned their neighbors. Together they searched along the road from Fa Xiao's home to Old Man Zhang's home, from Fa Xiao's home at the east end of the village to Old Man Zhang's home at the west end of the village. I searched through the grass, ditches, and field ridges along the way, and couldn't find even the slightest trace. It was as if Old Man Zhang disappeared out of thin air. There were no footprints, no remains, nothing, and nothing unusual was found."
Having said this, Hu Guangnian paused for a moment, and then continued to speak in annoyance.
"At the very beginning, our village lost a person Old Man Zhang. Whether it was a big or small thing, I didn't pay much attention to it at first. I just thought it was because Old Man Zhang was old and accidentally walked at night. He fell into the mountain stream outside the village, or was picked up by some wild beast. After all, there are mountains and forests outside our village, and strange animals occasionally appear."
"But I never imagined that this was just the beginning."
Hu Guangnian's body was trembling slightly, with a look of deep fear on his face.
"Ever since Old Man Zhang went missing, someone in our village will go missing every five, six, seven or eight days.
Hu Guangnian clasped his fingers.
"First is the tofu seller Zhang Erya. That girl is only eighteen years old. She is fair and fair. I have watched her grow up."