Nine Chapters of Strange Cases

Chapter 181 Life Money

As Zhou Zhao explained, he kept staring at Ju Niang. He thought she would break down, but to his surprise, she just silently shed tears and remained very calm.

"Are you certain that your father, He Bian, and Chen Tao died in the tomb? And do you know who the master is?"

Wu Qingshan is young, and from his testimony just now, it can be seen that Ju Niang was already an orphan when she met Wu Heng.

Wu Qingshan had never met her maternal grandfather; she only knew little about him.

Ju Niang's eyes held a hint of sadness, and although her voice was low, it was surprisingly powerful.

"Those of us in this line of work are destined for this fate. I've been prepared for it since I was young. If my family never returns, it means I've encountered a powerful patron and been sealed in a tomb."

It wasn't just us who made funerary objects; the uncles and elders who built large tombs and set up traps did the same. Some even blindfolded themselves with ropes, put them in sacks, and carried them into the tomb, returning them the same way they went in—those were truly kind and considerate.

Ju Niang sighed softly, "Back then, my father told me that I wouldn't have to lift a finger for three years after doing this job. Before he left, he worshipped the ancestral master, originally intending to only take Senior Brother Chen Tao with him, leaving He Bian to pass on the craft to me. However, the master was in a hurry, so He Bian went with him too."

This is standard practice; each family keeps one member to ensure the family line continues. You might not understand, but to us, it's just like birth, aging, sickness, and death—it's all fate. No one would seek revenge against the owner; you can't fight city hall… especially since they paid a ransom.”

Zhou Zhao frowned. "Payment to buy life?"

Ju Niang nodded. “Sticky families, worried that the resentment of living people being buried alive would arise, would send money to buy their lives afterward. Just six months after my father and his fellow disciples left, three small gold ingots were slipped under the door of my house in the middle of the night.”

"As for who the master is," Ju Niang hesitated for a moment, "my father didn't tell me. This is also one of the rules of the trade. If you don't know who the enemy is, the living successor can forgive himself for not taking revenge. But if you know but can't take revenge... those with a fiery temper will fight like an egg against a rock, and those with a weak temper will resent themselves for life, which is not good."

The families who can build such large tombs and require funerary objects as burial goods are not people like them who can be defeated.

"I know this sounds ridiculous to you gentlemen, but it is the only way we have survived through generations of blood and tears."

As Ju Niang spoke, her eyes were filled with melancholy.

“I’m a rough man, I’m not afraid of your laughter. I know that being a mistress is really shameful. But when my father and my fellow disciples left and never returned, I was left alone and wanted to have a heir. Wu Heng and I are compatible. He is handsome and generous. Even though he knew what I was planning, he readily agreed.”

Back then, my son wasn't called Wu Qingshan. He took my surname, Jiang, and was named Jiang Qingshan. If he hadn't been so exceptional, he would have stayed with me, running that little shop and carrying on the family tradition.

But Wu Qingshan was exceptionally talented; he was so wonderful, like the most beautiful flower blooming in her life.

For the first time, she felt resentment and unwillingness. She couldn't bear to see her blue robe, like that of her father and brothers, remain forever in the dark and sunless tomb on a certain afternoon.

"It was my greed that led to Wu Heng's death. But I swear to God, I absolutely did not kill him. How could I have killed him?"

"Does He Bian and Chen Tao have any successors or descendants?"

Ju Niang came to her senses, took a deep breath, and shook her head at Zhou Zhao. "No, they haven't arranged marriages yet, nor are they at the age where they can take on apprentices. He is an orphan, and Chen Tao has a younger brother named Chen Ming, but Chen Ming is learning seal carving from his father and wouldn't know any of our lineage's skills."

Zhou Zhao looked thoughtfully at Ju Niang in front of him.

There is no such thing as "this won't work" or "that won't work" in this world.

If Ju Niang isn't the murderer, then no one else in Chang'an City possesses this ability. Therefore, one of Jiang Ju's father and two senior brothers must still be alive, and that person is very likely the murderer who killed Wu Heng.

Of course, Ju Niang may not be entirely innocent.

Zhou Zhao pondered for a moment, then his eyes flickered. "Are those three gold ingots still there?"

Upon hearing this, Ju Niang reached around her neck and pulled out a red string with two round and square half-ounce coins threaded through it. However, these coins were not made of bronze but of gold, and the words "half-ounce" were engraved on them.

"I gave Chen Tao's one to his father. These two are my father's and He's, and I always carry them with me."

He had grown up with her since childhood. If it weren't for the accident, she might not have had any connection with Wu Heng or Wu Qingshan later on.

Zhou Zhao took it and weighed it in his hand; it was indeed half an ounce.

Zhou Zhao placed the object in front of Jing Yi, but instead of questioning Ju Niang, he asked, "Did someone bring Shenxiao's ball to you a month ago?"

Ju Niang was taken aback. She didn't understand why Zhou Zhao knew even this, but she still nodded.

"That's right. In fact, all six of these balls were made by me. Wu Heng came to me back then to make balls. I made six in total, which is auspicious in the sense of the six directions. The heavens, earth, east, west, south and north are embroidered on the surface of the balls. That was when Shenxiao was at its most majestic."

Later, Shenxiao disbanded due to an incident, and the six balls were distributed among six people. Wu Heng received the "Heavenly" ball. The remaining people who didn't receive any balls received money.

"Why did Shenxiao disband?" Zhou Zhao interrupted.

Ju Niang was silent for a moment, then said, "I don't know. It must be because Wu Heng injured his leg and can no longer play Cuju. He's a sharpshooter; without him, Shenxiao wouldn't be Shenxiao."

Zhou Zhao gave her a deep look. Standing opposite her, all she could see was the whorl of hair on Ju Niang's head.

"After you got those six balls, did you notice anything unusual? How were they different from when you made them before?"

Ju Niang breathed a slight sigh of relief and looked up. "Yes, I discovered that the balls had been taken apart before. Although they were still sewn with the same thread as mine, the stitching was different in condition. I found it a bit strange at the time, but I didn't think much of it. A ball can't be played with forever. Even if the leather is still good, the stitching can still break."

"Are the six balls different in weight?"

Ju Niang paused, then shook her head. "There's no difference. Of course, it's also possible that I just didn't notice."

Zhou Zhao listened, and his heart skipped a beat.

All six balls have been disassembled, and all six balls weigh almost the same. What does this indicate?
Zhou Zhao thought for a moment and looked towards the door.

The other five balls in Ji Yun's mansion have all been retrieved, and Chen Jiyuan, like a fool, hung all five balls on his body.

"Sister Zhao, the ball is back."

In that instant, everyone looked at Chen Jiyuan with pity.

Chen Jiyuan felt a chill on the back of his neck. He scratched his head in confusion, took the ball off his neck, and handed it to Zhou Zhao.