Doted By The Regent King
Chapter 254: Revisiting the Mortuary

Chapter 254: Chapter 254: Revisiting the Mortuary

I was awake the whole night until dawn.

When Liu Jin got up, rubbing his eyes, he was startled to see his young lady sitting on the edge of her bed, seemingly lost in thought.

"Miss? You’re up so early?" Liu Jin climbed out of bed, saying, "Allow this servant to assist you with washing up."

Wufu nodded, saying, "Liu Jin, if nothing unexpected happens, we should be able to return today or tomorrow."

Liu Jin was stunned for a moment, his eyes lighting up: "Miss, has the Flower-Picking Thief been captured?"

"Not yet, but it won’t be long now." Wufu smiled, yawned, and then instructed, "Go fetch some water and call for breakfast."

"Yes."

After briskly washing and eating breakfast, Wufu set out towards the outskirts of the city; since she had already seen that thing at Coffin Guy’s home, she felt no need to wait until evening to act.

After all, investigating was the same during the day or night—it was better to strike quickly and end it swiftly.

The mortuary outside the city was built on a slope of a small mountain. With the mountains as its backdrop, the Mortuary was surrounded by overgrown weeds, with only one well-trodden path, cleared of grass to its bare soil on either side.

Under the cover of an ancient tree, Wufu, who had disguised herself and was wearing a mask, watched the Mortuary from a distance.

It was unclear how long this Mortuary had been standing, with its black tiles and white walls. The walls had turned gray and were covered with green moss, appearing extremely dilapidated.

By the entrance of the Mortuary hung two tattered white lanterns. Above the door plaque, there was also an Eight Trigram Diagram and several Yellow Talismans affixed, bearing symbols that Wufu did not recognize. But without a doubt, she knew they were talismans intended to expel ghosts and ward off evil spirits.

The Mortuary was built next to the mountain, and with no human habitation around, the sky was growing dim. As the mountain wind blew, the pair of tattered white lanterns swayed, giving off an added sense of mystery and eeriness.

Wufu touched her arm, thinking that even during the daytime, if it were night, the place would be the perfect setting for a spooky story.

She watched for a while before silently approaching and standing behind a pillar, listening to the sounds inside.

Smoke rose faintly from the west side above the Mortuary; it was early morning, perhaps Coffin Guy was lighting a fire for breakfast.

Wufu quickly entered through the wide-open gates of the Mortuary and found herself in a large hall. In the center stood an earthen Daoist statue, gazing down imperiously, with incense offered on the table before it. Below the statue, a row of wooden coffins, while to the west, some bodies laid on wooden tables without coffins, merely wrapped in broken mats or covered with white cloths.

Next to the tables was a smaller one, neatly arranged with various tools. As Wufu leaned in closer, she saw knives, needles and thread, hooks...

These were tools used by Coroners for inspecting corpses.

A breeze lifted a corner of the white cloth, and Wufu could see the pallid face of the corpse, which made her throat tighten uncomfortably.

The putrid stench invaded her nose, nearly causing Wufu to vomit. She held her breath, pressed her hands together in a praying gesture towards the body, and then pulled back the white cloth.

It was a male corpse; it appeared to have been dissected, with a long, neat suture running from the chest to the abdomen.

Wufu’s pupils contracted slightly as she remembered the case file mentioning that each female body had signs of being stitched up with meticulous stitching.

She pulled the white cloth back over the body, pinched her nose, and moved from the east side to the back.

Behind the hall, after descending the steps, there was a small wooden cabin. A chopping sound echoed from the west, presumably the kitchen.

Wufu sneaked into the little cabin, which was tidily kept, with a wooden plank bed neatly made, and two baskets at the foot of the bed, on top of which lay two grey garments.

This room was probably where Coffin Guy resided in the Mortuary.