Accusation

In Hibiscus City, business was booming at Rong Tianding's deity painting stall.

This went on for several days.

On the one hand, the haunting had left people in a panic; on the other, Daoist Mu of the Universal Cloud Daoist Temple had been put out of action, causing sales of deity paintings to multiply.

Rong Tianding counted so much money every day that his hands went limp, but when the county yamen's constables came, his arms and legs could not help but truly go weak.

Rong Li might have been a local tyrant in the East Market, but commoners did not fight officials. Even the biggest gang of thugs had to obey the county yamen and know what they could and could not do.

"Young Master Rong, the county yamen has received a murder case that is said to have some connection to you. Please come with us."

The county constable spoke politely.

The constable was a local too, merely earning his living at the county yamen. Unless he was pursuing a criminal, he treated prominent locals with great courtesy.

Even so, his words drew a crowd around the painting stall, and some began whispering about the matter.

"Other than selling paintings at the East Market, I paint at home. I haven't murdered anyone or set any fires," Rong Tianding said, his face grim. "Surely that has nothing to do with the county yamen?"

"Something happened to someone over at Ten-Li Slope, and it's said to have something to do with your paintings," the constable explained politely. "From what I understand, someone was carrying one of your deity paintings while traveling at night, and ended up being killed!"

"What?"

A chill ran through Rong Tianding's heart.

He, Zhang Xuezhou, and the others had been betting that there were no ghosts at Ten-Li Slope. Once the matter blew over, that would be the end of it.

But he had never expected someone to actually lose their life because of it.

For a moment, Rong Tianding's hands and feet turned icy and weak, and he cast a pleading glance toward the pork stall.

"Someone was killed traveling at night with a deity painting, and that makes it our Tianding's business? Why doesn't Master Li mention that the person was wearing clothes from a cloth shop? How come the cloth shop isn't involved? The person was carrying a lantern while traveling at night too, so why isn't the lantern maker involved? And the person was wearing shoes, so you should go after..."

Rong Li frowned for several seconds before shouting at the top of her voice.

Her sophistry did have some effect. At least the whispering among the crowd in front of the stall died down considerably, and Rong Tianding felt much calmer.

"Household Head Rong, this is a summons from the county yamen. I think you should let your son come with us," the constable said helplessly. "The county yamen has only summoned Young Master Rong for questioning. It hasn't said he's guilty of anything!"

Only after the constable surnamed Li had pleaded and persuaded him did Rong Tianding calm down and pack up his stall.

"Cousin, we're in serious trouble," Rong Tianding said anxiously.

"They're looking for a murderer, and you haven't killed anyone. What are you afraid of?" Zhang Xuezhou said with a frown. "Surely the county yamen can't convict you of murder?"

"You have a point!"

Rong Tianding thought it over carefully and decided there was nothing wrong with what Zhang Xuezhou had said.

In the past, plenty of Daoists had sold talismans and divine water, but he had never heard of any of them being beheaded by the county yamen because their products did not work.

Besides, the nature of the matter had yet to be established. He was only tangentially involved, so there was no need to panic too much.

At the end of the day, Rong Tianding was like many of the thugs who entered the station for the first time: his lack of experience had frightened him. But after going in three or five times, those thugs would feel as though they were coming home.

If Rong Tianding wanted to keep selling these superstitious paintings in the future, Zhang Xuezhou thought he ought to visit the county yamen more often.

But what if there really is a ghost?

Remembering the white-clad woman's resentful face, and the woman's scream he had heard beside his ear when he was awake, Zhang Xuezhou could not help feeling his heart beat like a drum.

If there were no ghosts at Ten-Li Slope, they were merely selling objects of feudal superstition. If there really were ghosts there, what they were selling amounted to something that robbed people of their money and their lives.

Zhang Xuezhou could not help trembling inwardly.

But in the blink of an eye, Zhang Xuezhou came back to his senses.

Ordinary people lacked the ability to sense Law Power and most likely could not even see ghosts.

If they did not make an enemy of a ghost, how could it harm them?

Moreover, Daoist Mu had told him that ghosts were weaker than humans and found it difficult to survive while wandering around outside. The occasional ghostly occurrences were all caused by very weak yin entities. Even if no one dealt with these sinister things, many yin entities would eventually perish on their own.

But Zhang Xuezhou also remembered Daoist Mu mentioning that Ten-Li Slope might have a formidable yin entity, and that might be a different matter.

This made him frown slightly.

Although his cultivation had reached Realm Entry and he had cultivated the Supreme Purity True Technique, which healed and suppressed injuries, aside from those things he was not much different from an ordinary person.

If he encountered any dangerous attack, Zhang Xuezhou would have trouble withstanding it too.

For a time, everyone had their own thoughts as they followed the constable and Rong Tianding to the county yamen.

The county yamen was a key institution through which the imperial court governed the city, handling all manner of affairs related to good governance and harmony among the people, including city defense, waterworks, disaster relief, and much more.

Handling commoners' grievances was only a small part of its work.

But when a matter concerned oneself, even the smallest grievance had an enormous impact.

Inside the old but imposing red building, a pale-faced corpse lay on display, while an old man, a woman, and two children knelt on the floor, sobbing.

"My lord, the painter Rong Tianding, whom Wang Baotian of Dragon Gate Village at Ten-Li Slope has accused, has been brought here!"

The constable surnamed Li led everyone into the yamen and reported that he had completed his assignment.

In the main hall, a black-robed official holding a set of bamboo slips raised his head.

He straightened the tall mountain-shaped hat on his head, swept his gaze over Rong Tianding, who had answered the summons, then turned it toward Rong Li, who was making a commotion outside the county yamen.

"Rong Li, there is no need for a commotion. I summoned Rong Tianding only in response to the complainant's appeal. No serious crime is involved!"

The official's words calmed Rong Li somewhat, and she immediately called back in a loud voice.

"Lord Bao, we don't take kindly to using the dead to swindle people in Hibiscus City! I hear someone bought a painting for protection and something happened, so now they want to squeeze money out of the painter. If someone who eats pork has an accident in the future, how am I supposed to make a living?"

After questioning the constable surnamed Li repeatedly and adding her own understanding, Rong Li had roughly guessed what the matter was about.

That allowed her to seize the initiative as she roared outside the courtroom.

"And what about people who sell ironware? If someone buys ironware and dies fighting with it, wouldn't the blacksmith be in terrible trouble? Once Hibiscus City sets that kind of precedent, people will surely keep following it..."

"Enough!"

Lord Bao raised a hand, his head aching.

Two kinds of women gave him the worst headaches. One was the mournful, miserable sort who wept; the other was a shrew like Rong Li.

The former annoyed him, while the latter left him unable to get a word in.

And today, both kinds had gathered.

"My lord, we've been wronged! If my husband hadn't bought that deity painting to protect himself, he would never have dared go out after nightfall to look for the sheep!"

Beside the corpse below the bench, the miserable woman's sobs turned into loud wails.

"Your husband died looking for sheep after dark, so go after the sheep! What are you coming after us for?" Rong Li shouted.

"My lord, we bought the deity painting... boo-hoo-hoo!"

"Your family bought clothes too, and you bought lambs! You bought so many things, so why are you singling out our goods? Do you think the Rong Household is easy to bully?"

"Constables!"

Lord Bao frowned and shouted, and eight constables immediately answered, staffs in hand.

"No one may speak unless I question them. If anyone disrupts the court again, administer punishment with the staffs!" Lord Bao said.

"Yes, sir!"

The constables answered loudly and brought their wooden staffs down together, producing a perfectly synchronized clap.

The wooden staffs, each as thick as an arm, were a powerful deterrent. A dozen or so blows from one would leave a person half dead, and even a light punishment would require at least two days of bed rest.

Everyone was frightened for a moment. Even Rong Li merely opened her mouth without uttering a single one of her ready retorts.