This town has children. Or rather, it once did.
Nan Yue ran her fingers over the two outfits. They were soft and exquisite, unlike the other clothes that had been embraced by time and faded with age.
It was as if... someone had worn them recently.
Nan Yue returned the chest to its original state. She couldn't be bothered to wonder if the three people staying there had bothered to open it and look for clues.
A normal person wouldn't overlook any place that might hold mission clues, but looking at these scavengers this time, whether their quality was too low or their dependency too strong, they might very well have ignored this chest.
There weren't many clues in the dressing table, only a photo that had fallen into a hidden compartment, which Nan Yue only noticed due to her careful inspection.
The photo was black and white, long since blurry, but one could still faintly discern the gentle beauty of the woman in an old-fashioned cheongsam.
Nan Yue thought for a moment and put the photo on her person.
She left Li Maocai's room, intending to check He Jiang's room, when she heard a 'click' and He Jiang's door opened.
Nan Yue and Dongfang Yuelai, who was about to come out, stared at each other.
Nan Yue:...
Compared to Nan Yue's slight awkwardness, Dongfang Yuelai seemed to possess an elegance that remained unshaken no matter the circumstance.
She even stepped aside, saying, "Do you want to go in?"
Nan Yue: ...Why does that sound so strange?
She hesitated for a moment. "Thank you."
Dongfang Yuelai stepped aside for her, and the two smoothly exchanged places.
The room He Jiang and his group stayed in was clearly the one originally occupied by the scholar himself. It was much larger and even had a desk.
The books on the desk were scattered and messy. Although Nan Yue knew the mission world was fictional, it still pained her to think of books preserved for so long being treated so carelessly by He Jiang and his group.
There weren't many clues. Nan Yue couldn't understand the Four Books and Five Classics, and the room was very clean. Nan Yue suspected that anything of value had already been taken by Dongfang Yuelai.
Nan Yue looked at the neat small regular script in the books, which was consistent throughout.
Zhengqing. It should be the owner's name, Xu Zhengqing.
Of course, Nan Yue also knew that ancient people had courtesy names, so Zhengqing might just be his style name.
When Nan Yue left, Dongfang Yuelai also came out. Soon after, the voices of others could be heard outside, and the two exchanged a glance before parting ways.
The others hadn't rested well last night, and with the sun high in the sky, they all thought about returning to catch up on sleep.
Gu Xiang Kai and Zhu Xi Ning hadn't returned yet, so Nan Yue followed the road down the hill.
Along the way, she met an old woman carrying a vegetable basket, and Nan Yue went to ask her for directions.
"Granny, excuse me, could you tell me where the town chief lives?"
The granny's eyesight wasn't great. Her cloudy eyes stared at Nan Yue for a long time before she finally smiled.
"You're asking about Xu Defu? Just go up this road, and the house at the very top is his."
Nan Yue walked in the direction the granny pointed, feeling as though the woman was watching her back the entire time.
After walking for a while, Nan Yue saw the house. It looked very ordinary, even more dilapidated than other houses she had passed along the way.
A corner of the roof tiles was missing, and the door had a large gap, with plenty of dust in the wood grain.
The townspeople didn't have the habit of closing their doors during the day, so every household had their doors open for ventilation. Because of this, Xu Defu also saw Nan Yue.
"Oh? Teacher Nan?"
Nan Yue wasn't surprised that an NPC knew her name. She gracefully replied, "Just wandering around. I didn't expect you to live here?"
Nan Yue feigned a surprised expression, curiously examining the house.
Xu Defu didn't seem embarrassed at all and invited Nan Yue to come in and sit.
"We're all townspeople, we've lived together since childhood, so everyone knows each other's circumstances."
"I think a house is just a place to sleep. I'm alone and don't need to support a family, so this is perfectly fine."
Inside, it was even more rudimentary, with only some pots, pans, a bed, and a chest piled with clothes.
"Please excuse the mess."
"Lunch is ready, let's eat together."
Nan Yue smiled and shook her head. "I just finished eating and came out for a walk. The townspeople are all too kind, and their cooking is excellent."
Xu Defu chuckled at her words. "People here are just warm-hearted."
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Nan Yue left. The smile vanished from her face the moment she stepped out the door.
Xu Defu was lying.
He was a man of great composure from start to finish; his speech, demeanor, and attire were all impeccable. How could such a person live in such a slovenly place?
Even though the clothes he wore weren't designer brands, they were perfectly ironed. As he walked, he would smooth out any creases on his cuffs. Xu Defu didn't seem like the type of person who could tolerate living in such a place year-round.
Nan Yue was almost certain that Xu Defu's actual residence was not there.
Why was he lying?
Why did he move out of his original house?
Was it because of the upcoming annual sacrifice?
Or was it because... of the arrival of their group of outsiders?
Could it be... that the scholar's residence was originally Xu Defu's home?
If so, everything would make sense, and those inconsistencies would have an explanation.
The scholar's courtyard was the best living arrangement in town, with the best location, so it was most logical for the town chief to live there.
Of course, there was also a plausible explanation for Xu Defu letting them have the house: the town chief was so hospitable that he was willing to give up his courtyard.
But a normal person, if that were the reason, would state it clearly, and certainly wouldn't hide it and claim to live in a dilapidated house.
Moreover, for people like them, who were here for field research, wasn't this a bit too hospitable?
Where there's something abnormal, there's usually trouble. Nan Yue leaned towards the idea that there was something wrong with that house.
The town chief gave it up now because he knew about the problem, so these outsiders were sacrificial lambs he had brought in.
Gao Suqi, who died last night, was the first unlucky one.
Nan Yue wandered aimlessly along the road. The town was a bit noisier during the day: men working in the fields, women hanging laundry, smoke rising from chimneys, and the occasional grunts from livestock.
But there were no children.
Not even pregnant women.
Nan Yue knew that in the rural areas of the mission world, there were many strange customs, such as women having lower status than men, leading to boys being more preferred.
Also, a thriving population was considered good in rural areas, so women were usually alternating between pregnancy and childbirth.
But this town, let alone children, didn't even have a single pregnant woman.
A woman was sitting on a small stool by the roadside, basking in the sun and shucking corn. Nan Yue watched for a while, quickly learned how, and without caring about getting dirty, sat cross-legged to help the woman.
The woman was a little surprised, then laughed heartily as she thanked Nan Yue, even inviting her to dinner that evening.
Nan Yue hadn't eaten lunch, but thankfully, enduring hunger was common in missions, so her condition wasn't affected at all.
"Hey, sister-in-law, why are there no children in our town?"
Rate on N.U.
