"You were in the kitchen and didn't see..."
Seeing that everyone's eyes were on her, the shopkeeper's wife quickly said, "I saw an old man come in this afternoon, dressed in rags like a beggar."
"He ordered a bowl of noodles but barely ate, and then he asked me what the kitchen girl's name was and where she was from. I ignored him, and when I went to the kitchen, he had already left..."
Hu Ma tensed slightly and asked, "Did you tell him when he asked?"
The shopkeeper's wife's face turned a bit red, and she hurriedly shook her head, saying, "No... I didn't say."
"I wasn't blaming you." Hu Ma softened his tone and said, "If you did tell him, it's okay, but you need to let me know."
Ordinary people weren't very vigilant in this area, not knowing that some sinister things could cast Magic just by hearing a name.
"I really didn't say..." The shopkeeper's wife blushed and said, "When he asked, I told him Xiang has someone in her heart, and he shouldn't keep thinking about it. Just because she's working as a maid here doesn't mean she won't be the mistress someday!"
"...No wonder she blushed!" Hu Ma was speechless. Are people in this world so gossip-prone? But he understood that since such a strange person existed, the incident with Xiang must have something to do with him.
Could demon people have infiltrated the area around my Manor?
"Let's go find him!" Just as he was pondering, the waiters outside shouted angrily, "How dare he mix among us to harm people? Does he not want to live?"
"If he came at dusk, he probably hasn't left town yet. We can definitely find him."
They had some experience with the jianghu, knowing there weren't many who dared roam at night in this world.
Even among those familiar with the Path, few dared to walk at night. Since he was here this afternoon, he was probably still in town.
But just as they were getting riled up, ready to light torches and head out to find him, Hu Ma slightly furrowed his brow. He saw that Little Hongtang had already jumped down, crouched by the window to look outside, then turned back and pulled at his sleeve, pointing continuously at the wall outside. He immediately understood.
Walking quietly to the door, he suddenly said, "No need."
Zhou Datong and the others were slightly stunned. Hu Ma said, "The person is already here."
As he spoke, he made a slight bow toward the place Little Hongtang was pointing and said, "Friend listening in by the wall..."
"...why not come out and meet us?"
His words were very polite, but with this bow, a slight breeze moved beside him.
CRASH!
While Hu Ma spoke politely and acted discreetly, those around couldn't see what was happening. But suddenly, there was a loud noise outside the wall. A figure jumped up as if its rear end were on fire and sped away into the distance.
"Still trying to escape?" Hu Ma hadn't expected the other party to react so quickly, but after his bow, he had already leaped out, preventing the man from widening the distance.
Using the Ghost Ascending Stairs technique, he leaped over walls and courtyards as if walking on flat ground. With a flash in the night, his figure had already drifted out and appeared behind the man.
He grabbed the dung fork he had just snatched from Zhao Zhu and aimed to thrust it into the man's back.
However, the man reacted extremely fast too. Sensing the danger, he simply stopped running. He suddenly halted, stretched out his hands, and took off his robe. The robe, as if alive, slipped off him and flew toward Hu Ma.
PFFT! Hu Ma couldn't tell what kind of trick this was, but, being cautious, he spat a True Yang Arrow and simultaneously thrust with the fork.
He felt a slight weight, as if he had pierced through someone. But when he focused his gaze, he saw the fork had only pierced a black, tattered robe, while the man himself had reappeared over ten feet away, turning to face him.
Hu Ma kicked up a spray of sand, raising the fork for another thrust.
But at this moment, the man suddenly shouted sternly, "Wait a moment! Do you know who she is, daring to target her?"
At this shout, the fork in Hu Ma's hand stopped just an inch from the man's face, the robe still hanging on it. With a slight frown, he said, "I really don't know who she is. Do you know?"
"I..." The man's voice was rather bitter and carried a hint of sobbing. "Of course, I know! This is our family's young lady..."
"I've... I've been looking for her for several months now..."
"Young lady?" Hu Ma sized up the man. He could see that his clothing material was decent but tattered, evidently not changed for a long time.
His body also showed multiple injuries, suggesting he had been in fights. One leg was broken; if it weren't for this, Hu Ma might not have caught him so easily. Frowning, he asked, "Who are you?"
"I..." The old man's voice still sounded agitated as he shouted, "My surname is Zhou! I am the housekeeper of the Li Residence at Big Stone Cliff, and you..."
"Don't think you can act recklessly just because you have the Blood Food Gang's backing! I only urge you to hand the young lady back to me safely so I can take her home."
"Otherwise, when the Old Master comes looking..."
"...never mind your little Manor, even your Red Lantern Lady might not be able to bear the consequences!"
Seeing that his agitated emotions weren't feigned, although his words were strange, Hu Ma retracted the fork and said, "What nonsense are you spouting? If you're really the housekeeper of Xiang's family, why didn't you come openly instead of sneaking around?"
"Hearing that your family calls itself a Residence, like some prominent household, yet you act so timidly and furtively. It's quite unbecoming."
"I..." The old man, who had been extremely agitated, was stunned for a moment by Hu Ma's scolding. "What do you mean, 'show up openly'?" he stammered. "If I showed up openly, wouldn't I be falling right into your trap?"
"What's going on?" At this moment, Zhou Datong had already approached with a rope, saying to Hu Ma, "Shopkeeper, shall we tie him up?"
"The child's urine is ready. If he remains uncooperative, should we splash it on his face first?"
After what had happened last time, they had become much more mature and were now adept at using child's urine for important tasks. Hu Ma's usual teachings had also taken effect; they were aware of the dangers in the jianghu. Consequently, when encountering people from the jianghu, they avoided using names, referring to each other only as 'Shopkeeper' or 'brother.'
Of course, in the current situation, it hardly mattered, since the old man had likely already inquired about Hu Ma's name in the area.
But having this awareness was a good thing.
"No need for now. He just seems a little confused," Hu Ma said, giving the old man a glance. "A month ago, I sent a message to your family, telling them to come pick her up. Why did only you come?"
"She seems to be under a spell now. Could that also be your doing?"
"A message? What message?" The old housekeeper was even more bewildered. "The young lady is indeed under a spell, but it wasn't your doing?"
"What nonsense is this?" Zhou Datong kicked him and cursed, "Our Shopkeeper found Xiang! If not for him, she would have been thrown into the river long ago to feed the old turtles."
"After finding her, our Shopkeeper took good care of her, ensuring she lived comfortably. At most, she just had to sweep the tavern yard, wash clothes and dishes, buy groceries, wipe tables, and cook..."
"...we never made her do rough chores like cleaning toilets or fetching water!"
"Found her?" This old housekeeper grew even more puzzled, unable to keep up with the conversation, his expression filled with confusion.
Just then, Zhao Zhu came over with a bucket, holding it far from his face.
He said, "Shall we pour the child's urine or not? It'll get cold if we wait any longer."
"No need, no need..." This time, the old housekeeper hurriedly waved his hand without needing anyone to tell him and said, "You're... you're really not deceiving me, are you?"
Hu Ma, already somewhat impatient, also vaguely sensed this might be a misunderstanding. He said, "Half a year ago, I found this girl. I intended to send her back, but she didn't remember anything and couldn't tell me where her home was."
"Now that she's finally recalled a place, I sent a message to your family, requesting someone to come pick her up. So, you didn't receive the message?"
"Ah..." The old housekeeper finally understood. He looked at Hu Ma with disbelief, and then at the bucket of child's urine Zhao Zhu still held, still warm...
Realizing he had wronged someone, tears of joy welled up in his eyes, and he suddenly kowtowed, crying out, "A benefactor, truly a benefactor..."
"I didn't expect our young lady to have such good fortune, to encounter such good people..."
"Damn it..." Hu Ma was startled and quickly stepped aside.
Another one kowtowing...
What's with this? He wasn't afraid of much, but he was wary of kowtows that weren't genuine—those used as a pretext for a sneak attack.
One had to be wary of such insidious tricks, especially since he himself knew a similar maneuver.
However, stepping aside from this kowtow, he discerned that the old housekeeper really seemed to harbor no ill will. So he shook his head and said, "Come inside first. Let's clear things up."
"Our young lady is so fortunate..." Inside the shop, the old housekeeper finally relaxed and wept, "It's because I'm old and useless. I was taking the young lady to see the lanterns and lost her."
"I was too ashamed to return to the Old Master, so I left a letter at home and went out, desperately searching. By God's grace, I actually found my way here. When I saw you treating our young lady like a maid, I just assumed you had kidnapped her."
"In the shop, I quietly tried to talk to the young lady, but she didn't recognize me. That's when I knew someone had cast a spell on her. I didn't dare alert you by acting rashly, so I left during the day..."
"I was planning to return at night to inquire further, to see how I could save her, but I didn't expect..."
"So, he didn't come to pick her up because of the message I sent to Big Stone Cliff, then..." Hu Ma understood the misunderstanding now. He frowned and said, "Then her current state... it wasn't your doing either?"
The old housekeeper was shocked. "I... how could I dare harm our young lady?"
Hu Ma pondered briefly and then stood up, saying, "Well, come over here and see if she really is your young lady, and find out what's wrong with her."
After causing such a scene, the old housekeeper finally got the chance to look at the girl up close. He hurried over. But one look, and he was suddenly shocked. He quickly circled Xiang's bed, his voice already tinged with dread:
"Young lady... my young lady, has she... has her spirit been taken away?"