The town of Qingniu was accustomed to strangers due to the frequent visitors coming to offer incense at Lingwu Temple. However, the group from Dayang Town arrived with such a menacing air that they immediately caught the attention of the Qingniu townspeople.

“Look at those people. Where are they from? They seem to be here to cause trouble.”

“Oh my, isn’t that the eldest son of Old Master Li from Dayang Town? These must be the Li family from Dayang!”

Old Master Li from Dayang Town was immensely wealthy and a scholar. He didn’t even have to kneel before the county magistrate, which made him quite extraordinary in the eyes of common folk.

“What are the Li family up to?”

“Who knows? Let’s follow and see.” The people of Qingniu, including some temporary visitors, were naturally curious and eagerly followed behind the group.

Jiang Zhan excitedly came to find Jiang Si: “Fourth Sister, something’s happening outside. Let’s go take a look!”

“What’s going on?”

“I’m not sure yet, but a group of people from another town has arrived. I have a feeling their intentions might be related to Lingwu Temple!”

Jiang Si suppressed a smile: “You’re right, Second Brother. Let’s go see.”

They blended into the crowd, following the group straight to Lingwu Temple.

As Lingwu Temple was in town, more and more curious onlookers joined along the way. By the time they reached the temple gates, the procession had become quite impressive.

The monk guarding the gate was startled: “Amitabha Buddha, the temple is not receiving guests today. Please return another time, benefactors.”

The leader, a handsome man in his twenties dressed in fine clothes but with a fierce look in his eyes, raised his voice: “We’re here to find someone. My sister came to offer incense at Lingwu Temple and hasn’t returned. My father is worried and sent me to bring her back.”

“Amitabha Buddha, there was an incident at the temple today. All the pilgrims who were staying here have checked out and left. Your sister is not in the temple—”

“My sister came to offer incense at Lingwu Temple. Now she hasn’t returned, so shouldn’t we come to look for her here? You never stop anyone from coming to offer incense and donate money, but now when someone is missing, you’re preventing us from entering. What does this mean? Could it be that something has happened to my sister here?”

The gate-keeping monk was momentarily stunned by the young man’s questions.

Taking advantage of this, the leader quickly bypassed the monk and rushed in, calling out: “Quickly, follow me!”

In the blink of an eye, the gate-keeping monk was pushed aside, and a group of people swarmed in.

In the end, only the onlookers were left looking at each other in bewilderment.

After a while, someone said, “I say, aren’t these people from Dayang Town here to cause trouble in our Qingniu Town? It’s too cowardly of us to just stand by and watch!”

“Right, we can’t let them cause trouble on our turf. How dare they offend the esteemed monks of Lingwu Temple!”

Before the gate-keeping monk could steady himself, another group of people pushed their way in.

Looking at the now trampled threshold, the gate-keeping monk could only fight back tears.

“Who are you, ruffians? This is sacred Buddhist ground—” Some monks came to stop them, but before they could finish speaking, they were pushed aside. The group’s purpose was clear as they headed straight for the back mountain.

Lingwu Temple was backed by green mountains, and although the back mountain was not open to pilgrims, its layout was simple. The people from Dayang Town took advantage of their disregard for rules and quick movements. Before the temple monks could react, they had already rushed to the back mountain.

By the time the warning bell rang and the monks ran out, it was too late. Even the onlookers had followed.

In an instant, the once quiet back mountain was filled with a sea of people.

“It’s here!” The leader rushed towards a well near the vegetable garden.

The ground around the well was dark red, clearly blood stains from the monk who had died in an accident, not yet fully cleaned.

“Start drawing water!” The leader pointed at the well mouth, and immediately someone began turning the handle on the well frame.

A middle-aged monk stepped forward from the crowd: “Benefactor, how can you act so recklessly in this sacred place? Do you not fear punishment from the Buddha?”

The people drawing water hesitated.

The leader sneered: “My sister is missing. The Buddha and Bodhisattvas are compassionate and surely won’t blame me for searching for my sister. She’s a devout woman who often comes to donate to Lingwu Temple. Now she’s gone missing here, and instead of helping, you’re obstructing us. Could it be that you have something to hide?”

“Amitabha Buddha, benefactor, you’ve gone too far—”

“We haven’t damaged a single blade of grass or tree here. We just want to check if there’s anything in this well. Please, masters, allow us this courtesy.” The leader was eloquent, and with a wave of his hand, he said, “What are you waiting for? Hurry up!”

In the crowd, Jiang Zhan pulled at Jiang Si, his voice low but excited: “I told you there was a female ghost in the well, but none of you believed me!”

A female ghost had come to chat with him, which was terrifying!

A buzz of discussion rose from the crowd of onlookers.

“What does the Li family mean by this? Could Miss Li have fallen into the well and drowned?”

“I think Miss Li might have been harmed. Why else would she be in this well on the back mountain?”

Someone else had a sudden realization: “No wonder a monk had an accident. Maybe it wasn’t an accident at all, but he witnessed Miss Li being harmed…”

Jiang Si nodded secretly.

Very good, indeed. The eyes of curious onlookers were always sharp.

A group of people burning with the fire of gossip could spin a grand tale from a handkerchief dropped at someone’s doorstep, let alone a situation like this.

A bucket of water was drawn up, and people craned their necks to look.

There was nothing!

Another bucket of water was drawn up.

…

The creaking sound of the rope rubbing against the well echoed in people’s ears, monotonous and boring.

Some people were already eyeing the Dayang Town group with unfriendly gazes.

Lingwu Temple was the pride of Qingniu Town. If someone had gone missing here and they came to search, it would be understandable. But if they were here to cause trouble, that was another matter entirely.

Seeing the situation turning unfavorable, the young leader made a quick decision and ordered one of the men who had come with him: “Go down and take a look.”

By this point, he was somewhat regretting his actions.

But he had to come. His sister was the apple of their parents’ eyes, and she had been ill recently, almost worrying their parents to death.

The man immediately took off his outer garment, revealing a muscular upper body.

The customs in Da Zhou were quite open. Even in big cities, encountering some uninhibited people wasn’t unusual, so the man’s act of taking off his clothes didn’t cause a commotion. Some women even giggled lightly.

Jiang Zhan hurriedly tried to cover Jiang Si’s eyes with his hand.

Jiang Si calmly pushed his hand away: “Second Brother, don’t be silly.”

Jiang Zhan couldn’t help but glance at Yu Jin, only to find him staring at the man, seemingly unbothered by Jiang Si watching a man undress.

Yu Jin thought to himself: Heh, after seeing A-Si randomly waving a kitchen knife at a man’s backside, this is nothing.

The man who had removed his outer clothing tied himself to the rope and slowly descended into the well. After an unknown period, the rope held tightly in the hands of the others suddenly moved.