Nine Chapters of Strange Cases

Chapter 387 Murals in the Tomb
The coffin nails were knocked off by the cane, rolled on the roof tiles, and made a crisp sound.

The white-haired golden man twisted his wrist, and a row of silver needles shot out from his cane.

Zhou Zhao rolled to the right and landed on the doghouse of the house below. The little yellow dog sensed the intrusion and rushed out barking excitedly. The chickens in the yard, who were eating chaff, were startled and flapped their wings and flew around wildly.

A three-year-old child, who was digging for earthworms and playing in the mud in the yard, was slapped by a chicken wing and burst into tears.

Hearing the noise, the grandmother, who was preparing lunch inside, dropped the pot lid she was holding and rushed out, yelling, "What are you brats yelling about!"

Zhou Zhao felt somewhat embarrassed as she listened to the commotion behind her caused by her kick.

Before she could apologize, she climbed back onto the roof beam and circled behind the white-haired golden figure. With a turn, three more coffin nails flew toward her back.

He then took a deep breath and chased after them.

"Changying, don't worry about me, go after them."

As Zhou Zhao spoke, she shook her fingers. Her body had not yet fully recovered, and her lightness skill had not returned. Killing those Jurchens was fine, but if she wanted to catch up with a top-notch lightness skill master like Grand Commandant Huo, she was still a bit lacking.

Knowing that her Gu worms were leading the way, Su Changying did not hesitate and quickened her pace to catch up with Grand Commandant Huo.

Zhou Zhao followed Su Changying's retreating figure, leaving Chang'an City and entering a dense mountain forest.

"My sister cooks bean rice, but there's no rice in the beans; my brother comes to chop firewood, but there's no firewood in his basket..."

This forest is some distance from Chang'an City. As far as the eye can see, there are towering fir trees reaching into the clouds. It is winter now, and the ground is covered with a thick layer of fallen leaves. Every now and then, a squirrel will kick down a pine cone, which will fall to the ground with a thud.

As Zhou Zhao listened to the woodcutter's mountain song, she looked down at the red worm in her hand. Since entering the mountains, the red worm had lost track of Grand Commandant Huo and was now clinging to her fingers, motionless.

Su Changying has also disappeared without a trace.

Zhou Zhao's eyes flickered. Huo Taiwei was being chased so closely that he didn't have time to take off his robes as he walked. Besides, he didn't know that his clothes had been tampered with.

Although she didn't catch up, she hadn't lost track of them before, so there wasn't a situation where the red worms were too far away to detect them.

There is only one possibility: there is some secluded and isolated place in this mountain, and Commander Huo has already entered it, so the Gu worms can no longer track him down.

“Young lady, why are you here all alone? There are big tigers in this mountain, and it’s also a burial ground. It gets dark early in winter, so you’d better go down the mountain soon.”

As Zhou Zhao was thinking, he saw that the woodcutter had already arrived.

The man was short and stocky, with a tanned face, wearing coarse linen clothes, and a water gourd hanging from his waist.

He carried a load on a shoulder pole and held a gleaming wood-chopping knife in his hand. Although his life was hard, he looked cheerful all the time.

"Uncle, whose cemetery is this?"

Seeing that Zhou Zhao was polite, the woodcutter stopped carrying his load, picked up the water gourd from his waist, opened it, took a sip, and smacked his lips.

"It's the Huo family's burial ground, but nowadays, which mountain isn't a mass grave for thousands? The Huo family is kind-hearted. If there's nowhere else to bury someone, they can find a quiet corner and bury them quietly, as long as it doesn't disturb the family."

"Young lady, if you get lost, you can come down the mountain with me."

Zhou Zhao smiled and stepped aside to make way for the woodcutter. "Where is the Huo family's cemetery?"

The woodcutter pointed and said, "Over there, where the holly is planted."

The paths here are all narrow and winding, and he couldn't turn around while carrying firewood.

Seeing that she was unwilling to go down the mountain, the woodcutter did not try to persuade her further, and bravely continued singing as he walked down the mountain.

"My mother raises white silkworms, but we have no silk thread at home..."

Zhou Zhao did not linger; he leaped and disappeared from the spot.

The woodcutter didn't hear any footsteps. He turned around and saw that there was no young woman behind him at all; there was no one there.

A chill ran through him, and he nearly dropped the carrying pole. "My goodness! These mountains aren't just infested with tigers, they're teeming with monsters too..."

As he spoke, he scrambled down the mountain.

Following the direction pointed out by the woodcutter, Zhou Zhao saw a circle of holly bushes and arrived at the Huo family's cemetery.

The largest tombstone at the head of the tomb bears the name of Grand Commandant Huo.

Zhou Zhao frowned, walked through the rows of graves, and headed towards the mountain wall behind, where a nebula pattern was painted.

She stood before the stone wall, bent down, and picked up a broken tassel that had fallen to the ground; it was the one that Su Changying wore on her jade pendant.

As she thought about it, she raised her hand and pressed it against the location of the Purple Star.

The stone wall trembled slightly a few times, and a tomb door opened up.

The red worms in his hand seemed to have caught a whiff of something and came to life. They stretched their necks and urged Zhou Zhao to chase after them into the tomb.

Zhou Zhao took a light step and rushed in.

Torches were lit on both sides of the tomb passage, and the further we went, the clearer the sound became; someone was singing.

The tomb passage was long and its destination was unknown. Zhou Zhao followed the sound and walked along it, passing three forks in the road. Then, what came into view was an extremely strange scene.

Inside this large tomb stood a small building.

The second floor of the small building had no roof; instead, it was an octagonal gilded cage in which a dancer dressed in a red dress embroidered with gold peonies was dancing barefoot.

The girl looked to be about sixteen or seventeen years old. The bottom of the gilded cage was covered with thorns, which pricked her feet and caused them to bleed profusely.

But she seemed completely oblivious to the pain, spinning around with a captivating smile, never tiring.

Zhou Zhao looked at that familiar face, and his breathing became a little unsteady.

This face looks exactly like Princess Changyang.

That's Jiang Yan.

No wonder Fan Yin believed the lie of "switching babies" after seeing this face.

Why is Jiang Yan here? What is the meaning behind Grand Commandant Huo's arrangement?
As Zhou Zhao was thinking, she suddenly felt a slight breeze behind her. Without hesitation, she turned around and thrust her dagger forward. A masked man in black instantly fell to the ground, blood gushing out.

"Jiang Yan?"

The dancer named Jiang Yan's eyes flickered, but she did not respond and continued dancing.

The red worm in her hand stirred. Zhou Zhao pricked up her ears and listened. She could vaguely hear fighting sounds. She glanced at Jiang Yan, walked around the golden birdcage, and headed forward.

Beyond the birdcage, there was no way forward.

Before them was another smooth stone wall.

On that stone wall, there is a mural.

A young boy, dressed in mourning clothes, sat amidst a mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood. He was barefoot, his feet dripping with blood. Before him lay the body of a woman.

The woman was stunningly beautiful, with her eyes wide open, clearly indicating that she had died with her eyes open in despair.

Her belly was high, clearly indicating that she was already several months pregnant and about to give birth.

Above this mountain of corpses and sea of ​​blood, countless bodies hung from their necks, white ribbons draped around their necks, each with a狰狞 (zhengning, meaning ferocious or hideous) expression.

In the entire painting, the only living person is the little child.

(End of this chapter)