Chapter Forty-Six: The Bride Weeps (16)

In an instant, the entire village was in an uproar, with everyone rushing in a flurry to the riverbank to help.

"Cursed object?" Su Man narrowed her eyes as she watched their retreating backs.

"I know, I know!" Huang Mei quickly raised her hand and whispered, "When we just arrived yesterday, I heard them mention it. They said that this village once produced a notorious exorcist who almost destroyed the place. Later, the villagers united and finally managed to eliminate that wicked exorcist. Anything related to him is now called a cursed object."

Upon hearing this, the first face that appeared in Su Man's mind was Miao Sheng's.

"Did you hear them mention the name of that exorcist?" she asked.

"No, that's a forbidden topic in the village!" Huang Mei shook her head repeatedly, motioning for Su Man to lower her voice as well. "If the villagers found out we were talking about this, they'd do anything to kill us."

Just remembering the cold, sinister voices she’d heard made Huang Mei shudder involuntarily. Whoever had spoken those words was certainly not a good person.

Su Man said nothing.

Suddenly, a desperate cry pierced the air. "Help me! Save me!" Lin Qi’s anguished shout rang out. "Su Man, save me! Huang Mei, help!"

Both women swept their gazes across the scene—the bridge was now empty, Lin Qi’s figure nowhere to be seen.

Leaning on the railing, Su Man looked down and saw Lin Qi bobbing up and down in the water, clearly on the verge of drowning.

Huang Mei came closer, spotted Lin Qi, and muttered in annoyance, "Why did he go into the water? Does he have a death wish?"

Su Man didn’t answer, debating whether or not she should try to rescue Lin Qi. He was in the middle of the river, and without going in, it would be impossible to reach him. But if even the villagers wouldn’t enter the water, she certainly didn’t think she could do it.

Still, even if she didn’t go into the river, she ought to at least get closer and see what was happening.

Yet before either of them could move, startled cries erupted behind them. Lin Qi’s desperate screams abruptly ceased. Following the sound, Su Man saw him standing bewildered in the water; the river only reached his waist.

By the time they reached him, Lin Qi had already climbed ashore by himself, clutching his soaked jacket, standing there in nothing but his shirt. He wiped the water from his face, staring in a daze at the other bodies now floating lifelessly in the water.

The villagers, still shaken, kept their distance and stared at him in fear, seemingly unable to fathom what had happened—why he alone was able to climb out.

"What happened?" The others might have been too afraid to approach, but Su Man was not.

"I...I don’t know," Lin Qi replied, regaining his senses at the sight of Su Man and instinctively lowering his voice. "I was on the bridge about to take a photo when someone—damn them—pushed me from behind, and I fell into the river."

He’d thought he was a goner, but, "The water wasn’t deep. When I struggled, my head went underwater, and when I opened my eyes..."

He paused, glancing around furtively before whispering, "Guess what I saw? There were heaps of bones down there."

"I panicked and struggled, and then I just stood up."

Standing up had startled him so much—he’d truly thought he was doomed.

Su Man wanted to ask more, but out of the corner of her eye, she saw the villagers approaching with the village chief, faces grim. She fell silent.

Someone must have already briefed the chief on what had happened, for he said nothing upon arrival. He merely ordered several young men behind him to go into the river and haul out the bodies.

The corpse of the tourist who had previously been acting strangely stopped moving after attacking those young men and floated lifelessly as well. He was dragged out with the others.

Su Man watched closely—retrieving the bodies was genuinely difficult for those young men; it wasn’t an act.

All five—four villagers and the tourist—were lined up on the bank.

The chief examined the four villagers first, then calmly told their wailing families, "They’re not dead, just in a state of suspended animation. Quick, take them to the ancestral hall."

The families forgot their grief in their hurry, dragging and carrying their loved ones away. As for the tourist, the chief didn’t need to say anything—Su Man could immediately tell he was dead beyond doubt. He hadn’t drowned; he’d been murdered. A savage wound marked his neck, the skin swollen and pallid from the water.

The chief glanced at the body, then ordered wearily, "Go fetch the other tourists to identify the body."

A messenger headed to Chang Gui’s house. Lin Qi sidled up to Su Man and whispered, "I know who it is."

"It’s Zhang Li." He pointed to the prominent mole on the dead man’s nose. "He’s the only one with a mole that big."

While they spoke, the villagers reported the earlier events to the chief, casting wary glances at Lin Qi.

Su Man thought for a moment, then told Lin Qi and Huang Mei to return first.

Lin Qi was eager to go—not only did he need to change his soaked clothes, but the chief’s frequent, suspicious looks made him want to flee.

Huang Mei hesitated, but finally agreed, telling Su Man to be careful before following Lin Qi. She trusted that Su Man had her reasons.

After they left, the chief approached with his men, watching their retreating figures but not stopping them. He turned to Su Man, his tone conversational, "What did you hear? What did you see? What did that fat one say to you?"

"I heard everything I was supposed to hear, and saw everything I was supposed to see," Su Man replied boldly. "In fact, I’d like to know what exactly the so-called cursed object is. Chief, can you tell me?"

She stared at him intently, knowing whether or not he answered would reveal much.

"Cursed object..." The chief didn’t answer immediately; instead, he suddenly smiled. "You seem to know quite a bit."

He shot a glare at the villagers standing nearby, their heads bowed, clearly blaming them for their loose tongues.

"Is it such a difficult question to answer?" Su Man smiled as well, her tone light but confident. "The thing that was stolen from you yesterday must be the so-called cursed object, right?"

It wasn’t hard to deduce—one of the three main suspects had died, and whatever they could have come into contact with was likely the cursed object.

The chief’s face darkened, his gaze turning hostile.

Su Man, as if she hadn’t noticed, launched another seemingly irrelevant question, "By the way, where’s the tour guide Chang Gui? He said he was going to ask you what was stolen, but now it’s like he’s vanished."

Her question was casual, as if she had just remembered to ask in passing.

The smile had vanished from the chief’s face. "Chang Gui’s legs are his own—he doesn’t need to report to me, nor to you. As for the cursed object, that’s a matter for our village, not for outsiders like you."