Chapter 48

Outside the window, night deepened.

Luo Qingchen walked slowly along the second-floor corridor, his mind turning over the matter.

When he reached the last private room, Qingmei appeared in the doorway, draped in pink gauze. She struck a seductive pose, beckoned to him with a finger, and said enticingly, "Guard Luo, want to come in and have some fun? It's free. If you're a virgin, I could even pay you."

Then she giggled to herself.

Luo Qingchen ignored her, turned, and walked toward the end of the corridor.

Qingmei stopped laughing and cursed from inside the room. "What are you pretending for? I bet you're a eunuch!"

Luo Qingchen made a round of the second floor, then went down to the first-floor hall.

He stood in the shadows of a corner for a while, then went back upstairs and stopped outside the first private room.

Zhao Yun had finished bathing.

Now she sat quietly at the dressing table, draped in blue gauze as she combed her long hair.

Luo Qingchen stood at the doorway, at a loss for words.

Zhao Yun seemed to spot him in the mirror. Turning around in surprise, she said, "A-Chen, what are you doing standing at the door? If you want to talk to me, just come in."

Luo Qingchen only looked at her. He didn't go inside.

The room still held the mist of her bath, along with a somewhat pungent floral scent.

The young woman sat at the table, her long hair loose and her shoulders bare. Her eyes gleamed with amusement as she looked at him. "A-Chen, I'm not Qingmei. I'm not going to eat you. Come in."

Only then did Luo Qingchen enter the room.

But he stopped by the door and didn't go any farther inside.

The smile on Zhao Yun's face faded slightly. In a soft voice, she asked, "A-Chen, are you wary of me too?"

Luo Qingchen fell silent for a moment. "A-Yun..."

"I know. In a place like this, you have to be wary of everyone."

Zhao Yun lowered her head slowly, bitterness showing on her face.

"A-Chen, it isn't just you. I'm the same, and so is everyone else in this place. It's a den of man-eaters. One careless mistake, and you'll be doomed beyond redemption."

Luo Qingchen looked at her with complicated feelings. "A-Yun, haven't you ever thought about leaving? No matter how hard it is outside, it has to be better than here, right?"

Zhao Yun was silent for a long time. Then she raised her head and looked at him with a mournful gaze. "A-Chen, it's too late... It's already too late..."

Luo Qingchen was about to say more when a sudden clatter of hurried footsteps came from downstairs.

Then Zhou Qingyang's voice rang out. "Surround this entire building, inside and out! The outer walls, windows, latrines, wine cellar—don't leave anything unchecked! Don't let a single fly get out!"

"Sister Sun, get every girl and guest in the building out at once, along with all the maids and servants! The girls and guests are to stand outside their own rooms. The maids and servants are to gather in the hall. Not one person is to be missing!"

Sun Ping's trembling voice rang out. "Yes!"

The building's silence shattered in an instant. Panicked footsteps and the girls' anxious questions sounded everywhere.

Luo Qingchen stood in the room as if he couldn't hear the commotion outside.

Zhao Yun rose from the dressing table and said softly, "A-Chen, hurry downstairs. Something seems to have happened in the building again."

Luo Qingchen glanced at her once more, then silently nodded.

As he lowered his head and walked out, Zhao Yun suddenly called after him. "A-Chen, live well."

Luo Qingchen stopped outside the door and turned to look at her.

Her eyes were full of warmth, and a smile bloomed across her face.

For a moment, Luo Qingchen seemed to see that summer again: a group of childhood friends running and playing together along Windchime Street, paper windmills in hand, while her face shone with a brilliant smile.

"Brother Luo! Brother Luo!"

Just then, Zhang Jiu's voice rang out from downstairs.

Luo Qingchen snapped out of his memories, looked away, and left.

By the time he went downstairs, the hall was already packed with people.

The maids, servants, and even the cooks from the kitchen had gathered there, all looking panicked and bleary-eyed with sleep.

"Brother Luo, come here!"

Zhang Jiu beckoned from a corner.

Several people from the Town Guard Bureau stood there, including Zhou Qingyang.

Luo Qingchen went over.

Zhang Jiu hurriedly asked, "Nothing happened in the building, right? Is there someone in every room? Did you notice anything unusual?"

"Nothing," Luo Qingchen replied.

Zhang Jiu lowered his voice. "That Heart-Plucking Monster should be somewhere in our Hundred Fragrance Pavilion. We followed the blood trail here. That beast is incredibly cunning. It went around the Black Forest before coming back."

Luo Qingchen asked, "Hadn't everyone in the building already been checked?"

Zhang Jiu gave a cold snort. "That beast was hiding deep before. It used some trick to fool us. But tonight, it's badly wounded. There's no way it can escape!"

Just then, Zhou Qingyang turned to him. "Head Zhang, tell us again what you just told me. We'll inspect everyone carefully, one by one."

Zhang Jiu's expression changed at once. He hurriedly lowered his voice. "Captain Zhou, hadn't we agreed not to say it? I..."

"We have to say it!"

Zhou Qingyang fixed his gaze on him, his voice low and firm. "Only if we announce it in front of everyone will that Demonic Beast lose control of its emotions and show a weakness! Head Zhang, everyone already knows what happened. What are you afraid to say? And I promised you I wouldn't pursue anything you did before!"

Zhang Jiu stammered, his face still full of reluctance.

Zhou Qingyang's expression darkened, his voice turning icy. "Head Zhang, if we waste any more time and that monster recovers, we won't protect you anymore!"

At that, Zhang Jiu trembled and hurriedly said, "I'll tell you! I'll tell you!"

He gritted his teeth, stepped forward, and pointed at a young maid in the crowd. "She... On her first night here, I... I raped her, then threatened her with her younger brother to keep her quiet. After that, I lied and said I'd find a way to bring her brother up here first... In the end, her brother died..."

Everyone was stunned.

The maid named Xiaohong froze when she heard him. Then her eyes reddened, and she collapsed to the floor.

Zhou Qingyang immediately went over and stared at her. "In that case, this young maid must be harboring a deep grudge. If that demon wants to possess someone, all it has to do is tempt her in a dream."

Then he waved his hand. "Men! This young maid is highly suspicious. Strip her naked and examine her carefully!"

"Yes!"

Two people from the Town Guard Bureau immediately stepped forward.

"Riiip!"

They tore the young maid's clothes to shreds right there.

The young maid screamed and burst into tears.

Zhou Qingyang immediately drew the blade at his waist and stood ready for battle.

The others in the hall trembled at the sight, too frightened to make a sound.

Sun Ping didn't speak either.

She was just a lowly maid, no different from livestock. No one would care about her.

The two men finished examining her quickly, but found no wounds.

Then Zhou Qingyang took out the Demon Detecting Stone, walked over, and held it against the young maid's trembling body. After examining her again, he ordered coldly, "Take her to the side and keep an eye on her. Don't let your guard down yet!"

"Yes!"

The two men immediately dragged the young maid to a corner nearby, not caring whether she was dressed.

She huddled there naked, sobbing softly and trembling in terror.

Zhou Qingyang looked at Zhang Jiu again. "Head Zhang, next!"

Under the crowd's stares—some furious, some shocked—Zhang Jiu forced himself forward and pointed to someone else.

It was a woman who did heavy labor.

Zhang Jiu said, "I sold her son to the Blue Flower Pavilion over at the mining site. The miners killed him..."

The Blue Flower Pavilion was full of male prostitutes.

By then, the girls upstairs had heard the commotion and gathered at the second-floor railing, looking down at the scene with varied expressions.

"I never thought this Guard Zhang was such a beast in human skin..."

One of the girls cursed under her breath.

Luo Qingchen raised his head and looked upstairs.