Chapter 24

The missing legitimate grandson of Attendant Zhang actually returned home?

This news surprised Qin Shaoyou and the others.

According to the information they had gathered, none of the missing children in Mianyuan County had been found yet.

So how did the legitimate grandson of Attendant Zhang manage to return?

Could it be that the reason for his disappearance was different from the frequent cases of missing children in Mianyuan County?

Or did the culprit behind the rampant child abductions in Mianyuan County finally slip up?

Qin Shaoyou hurriedly bowed and asked, "May I ask, sir, when did your young master return?"

Seeing that he was polite, the gatekeeper cooperated and replied, "Not long ago."

"Specifically when?"

"Probably around the third watch of the afternoon."

"How did he return?"

"He wasn't found."

The gatekeeper shook his head and corrected Qin Shaoyou, "My young master returned on his own."

"On his own?"

Although Qin Shaoyou's expression didn't change, he was suspicious.

According to their understanding, Attendant Zhang had only one legitimate son, who, due to his dedication to his career, married and had children late, making the legitimate grandson very young, only about six or seven years old.

A six or seven-year-old child, after being abducted, actually returned home on his own?

How did he manage to do that?

The gatekeeper noticed Qin Shaoyou's surprise and puffed out his chest, saying proudly,

"My young master is not like ordinary children. He has been smart since he was little and has always been taught by the old master. He is wise and clever, no less than an adult."

This gatekeeper was quite talkative. Without Qin Shaoyou asking, he voluntarily described the scene when Attendant Zhang's legitimate grandson returned.

"At the time, I was feeling sad about the abduction of the young master. Suddenly, I heard a knock on the door. At first, I thought it was the officials coming to report the progress of the investigation to the old master. But when I opened the door, I saw the young master standing outside, which excited me greatly."

Qin Shaoyou noticed a problem, "When your young master knocked on the door, didn't you recognize his voice?"

The gatekeeper replied, "I didn't recognize it because he was so frightened that his voice was hoarse."

Qin Shaoyou nodded and continued, "Did he say how he was abducted?"

"He did. He said that last night, a strange old man appeared in his room. At the time, the wet nurse and the maids were all asleep, but he was awake. The old man claimed to be a deity and said he would take him to a fairyland to play."

"He agreed?"

"He said he was a bit dazed at the time, and the old man's words had a magical quality that made him agree involuntarily. Then the old man took out a scroll and led him into a world within the painting. There, he saw many children playing happily."

"Could they be the children who have gone missing in Mianyuan County recently?"

"Probably. My young master said he saw a child he knew, who had also gone missing recently."

Hearing this, Qin Shaoyou quickly analyzed in his mind:

First, it can be determined that the case of missing children in Mianyuan County has nothing to do with the Black Shadow.

Because the Black Shadow's method of abduction is usually direct and violent, and the purpose is just to eat, not to create a world within a painting.

So, could this series of cases be the work of child kidnappers? Or some other kind of demon or ghost?

And why did they abduct the children?

Is it purely for profit? Or for some other purpose?

Also, if the children in the painting are indeed the ones abducted from Mianyuan County, what about the wild dogs with despair and pain in their eyes that have appeared in and around the city?

Are they still the result of animal transformation magic?

Qin Shaoyou temporarily set aside these questions to sort out later and continued to ask, "Sir, how did your young master escape from the world within the painting?"

"That's where my young master's extraordinary nature comes in."

The gatekeeper puffed out his chest even more, as if he were praising himself rather than his young master.

"After entering the world within the painting, he realized something was wrong and quickly regained his composure, silently reciting the sixteen-character heart transmission, which restored his clarity. Then he found that the old man was gone, and he had left the world within the painting, appearing in the main hall of an abandoned temple in the eastern part of the city.

According to his recollection, there were people talking in the courtyard outside the hall. Afraid of being discovered, he escaped through a dog hole in the corner of the hall and made his way back by memory.

The old master immediately informed the county office and the Night Watch, and they have probably already sent people to the abandoned temple in the east of the city, though it's unknown if they caught the criminals."

Since the county office and the Night Watch were already aware of the abandoned temple in the east of the city, Qin Shaoyou wasn't in a hurry to go there.

He was curious about the sixteen-character heart transmission that helped Attendant Zhang's legitimate grandson escape.

Was it a spell? Or some kind of mystical technique?

The monk Ma and the other strongmen were also puzzled.

But Zhu Xiuzai, who had read some books, provided an explanation:

"Sir, the sixteen-character heart transmission is a passage from the Book of Documents: 'The human heart is perilous, the way of the heart is subtle; only by being precise and single-minded can one truly hold to the middle way.' It is said to be a sacred method passed down from Yao and Shun, a great law for governing the world and a key to personal cultivation."

The gatekeeper looked at Zhu Xiuzai, somewhat surprised, "You've read books? Why haven't you taken the imperial exams?"

Zhu Xiuzai smiled bitterly but didn't answer.

The gatekeeper didn't press further and said to Qin Shaoyou and the others, "You should read more books in your free time. Even if you don't take the exams, reading more books can make you more enlightened and wise."

Qin Shaoyou keenly noticed the disdain in the gatekeeper's eyes.

Damn, am I being looked down upon?

Do you really think I haven't read many books? Although I haven't read the Book of Documents, what kind of novels haven't I read—immortal cultivation, urban, fantasy...

Besides, is knowing the sixteen-character heart transmission so impressive?

Do you know what 3-4-5 triangle is?

Do you know how to fill a tank while water is being drained?

Have you heard of hydrogen, helium, lithium, beryllium, boron, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, fluorine, neon?

Have you memorized 'How are you, fine thank you'?

The knowledge I have could make you speechless on the spot.

While Qin Shaoyou was inwardly criticizing, Zhu Xiuzai raised a question, "Did your young master escape the world within the painting and the abductor just by reciting the sixteen-character heart transmission?"

"What's so strange about that?"

The gatekeeper didn't think it was unusual, "Not to mention the divine nature of the sixteen-character heart transmission, just the fact that my young master has been studying Confucian classics since he was young and cultivating a righteous spirit makes him extraordinary. It's not surprising that he could break the spell in the painting, right?"

Good grief, it seems this gatekeeper is a die-hard fan of Attendant Zhang's legitimate grandson...

Qin Shaoyou asked a few more questions but still had doubts about how Attendant Zhang's legitimate grandson escaped.

He wanted to see the young master in person to understand the situation better.

"Sir, please help us convey a message. Say that a constable from Luocheng wants to see your young master and ask a few questions."

To his surprise, the gatekeeper flatly refused.

"No! My young master is still shocked and needs to rest. He can't be questioned by you."

Zhu Xiuzai and the others frowned.

If this were an ordinary family, they would have gone in to investigate directly.

But this is the family of an Attendant, even if he is retired, they can't enforce the law too aggressively.

"Can we just see him, without questioning him?"

Qin Shaoyou had to settle for less, hoping to use his "Keen Eyes" talent to find some clues from Attendant Zhang's legitimate grandson.

The gatekeeper also flatly refused, "Really, no. My young master has been complaining of a headache since he returned. The old master said he needs to rest. Don't make it difficult for me. Go to the county office or the Night Watch to get more information. They might have already solved the case and caught the criminals."

Pausing, the gatekeeper added, "I have other things to do. Gentlemen, please..."

This was a polite way of dismissing them.

Qin Shaoyou and the others had no choice but to bow and thank the gatekeeper.

The gate of the Zhang residence then closed.

Zhu Xiuzai looked at the tightly closed red gate and turned to ask, "Sir, what should we do next?"