Chapter 17 The Real Task

Jiang Cheng stroked his chin, his expression doubtful and hesitant. "That's what you think?"

"That's right, Doctor!" The fatty suddenly felt a sense of being respected, and his train of thought was on the same frequency as the doctor's.

"You think this is a deception, that Yu Chengmu and A Biao aren't inside?"

"They're not!"

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely sure!"

"Good! In that case… let's go in quickly, they must be inside, hurry, pick up the pace!" Jiang Cheng waved his hand and took the lead, rushing inside.

Wu closely followed the doctor's pace.

Next was Du Moyu.

Leaving the fatty alone, bewildered in the wind.

"Wait for me!"

Not long after entering the courtyard, everyone was surprised to find that all four of the side rooms they had been staying in were lit up, as if someone had lit the candles inside in advance.

Wu's figure also disappeared, and Jiang Cheng regained his shadow.

Du Moyu saw the lit side rooms and couldn't help but feel a little scared. "What's going on? It's impossible for every room to have someone in it."

Jiang Cheng didn't take it to heart. If there was any danger, Wu would have acted first, so he believed that this Wu family mansion, and their rooms, were safe.

Du Moyu naturally followed Jiang Cheng to their side room. Pushing the door open, there was no one inside.

On the table was a candlestick, with a white candle burning faintly.

What really attracted their attention was a letter pressed under a teacup.

The letter was left by the village chief, and its contents were somewhat disorganized, jumping from one topic to another, making it difficult to read, as if it had been written in great haste.

Jiang Cheng roughly sorted it out. The letter revealed that the village chief had suddenly become enlightened, his IQ soaring, and he had belatedly seen through the yinhangren's (underworld people) plot, realizing that the Wu family's eldest daughter had been murdered.

He further deduced that they, the corpse捞尸人 (lao shi ren - corpse retrievers) who had been brought here, had also been set up.

The village chief expressed his deep regret in the letter, and specifically mentioned that if they could return alive tonight, they must go to him. The entire village would give them a hero's welcome.

The fatty, looking at the letter, was furious, cursing that the village chief was no good, probably colluding with the yinhangren, and now that he saw the yinhangren were finished, he was switching sides, turning around to try to get close to them.

Originally, if the fatty hadn't said it, Jiang Cheng would have thought the village chief was indeed suspicious, but for some reason, after the fatty's analysis, Jiang Cheng suddenly felt that the village chief might be innocent.

He was just an NPC, how could he have any bad intentions?

"Are you sure, Fatty?" Jiang Cheng looked up at him, as if making a final confirmation.

The fatty glared, panting with anger, without saying a word. This scene felt familiar.

The most important part of the letter was the last few lines. The village chief subtly reminded them that even if the yinhangren failed, the Dahe Niangniang (River Goddess) was an objective reality.

So their final task was how to deal with the River Goddess.

Thus, the problem returned to the original two options: seal the coffin for burial, or hold a wedding ceremony.

"Seal the coffin for burial… we chose this path tonight, it seems difficult." The fatty showed an ugly expression. If it hadn't been for Wu's strength tonight, they would all have died here.

Whether the yinhangren succeeded, or the River Goddess regained the skeleton, the fate of these people would not be good.

"I think so too." Du Moyu stroked his chin. "The 'seal the coffin for burial' option can be temporarily excluded."

Du Moyu and the fatty, one on the left and one on the right, one standing and one sitting, sang in harmony, both stealing glances at Jiang Cheng's reaction. Without sealing the coffin for burial, there was still the option of holding a wedding ceremony.

Sensing the two hidden gazes, Jiang Cheng frowned, feeling a sudden sense of panic. "Why are you looking at me?"

"Doctor," the fatty paused, "you don't want to see your brothers in a difficult position, right?"

Du Moyu nodded like a chicken pecking at rice, echoing, "Actually, it's just going through the motions. After all, you'd be husband and wife, the River Goddess wouldn't be cruel to you, she loves you too much."

Du Moyu's voice was persuasive. "Think about it, Brother Jiang, once the ceremony is over, the task will be completed. We can pack up and go back to our own world. No one will mention this matter again, no one will know you have a wife here. Just rest assured."

"Yes, yes, yes, we won't tell anyone when we get back." The fatty nodded repeatedly. "We'll never tell."

The two looked at Jiang Cheng with anticipation and pleading.

The fatty was genuinely doing it for Jiang Cheng's good. After all, there would definitely be a battle with the old chairman in the future. If he could subdue the River Goddess as a helper, that would be a great asset.

Du Moyu's thoughts were much simpler, he just wanted to live.

Jiang Cheng slowly rolled up the letter, then put it away. Then he stood up and raised the chair. His attitude was firm, wanting him to marry her off? No way!

Absolutely impossible!

His reputation must not be ruined here!

Early the next morning, Jiang Cheng, the fatty, and Du Moyu set off to find the village chief. Because of what happened yesterday, Jiang Cheng was very dissatisfied with these two traitors and didn't pay much attention to them on the way.

The village chief was eating breakfast. When he saw Jiang Cheng and the others, he was shocked.

In the first second, he spat out the food in his mouth.

In the second second, his eyes turned red.

In the third second, before Jiang Cheng and the others could question him, he rushed over and knelt on the ground with a thud, crying bitterly.

It was all apologies, all saying that the yinhangren were too cunning, that the Wu family's daughter, himself, and the villagers were all victims. In short, he cleared himself of all responsibility.

Making the fatty unable to vent his anger.

"By the way," the village chief suddenly said, "did you see the person I sent to deliver the message?"

"See my ass!" The fatty puffed out his cheeks, his expression fierce.

The village chief swallowed nervously and explained in a low voice, "In the dungeon of the night watchman's residence, we found some plans he left behind. That paper figure named Lu Jianli, actually… they actually used this paper figure to deceive the Wu family's daughter."

Jiang Cheng and the others already knew this information, so they told the village chief to get to the point.

"Let me put it this way, the River Goddess will come looking for you again tonight." The village chief lowered his voice. "At the third watch (approximately midnight to 2 AM), she will come to ask for the letter that Lu Jianli once wrote to her. As long as you give her the letter, nothing will happen."

"The letter…"

Jiang Cheng immediately realized that this thing was in Yu Chengmu's hands, it was the cloth wrapping the Soul-Suppressing Bell!

It seemed that to get through this night, they had to get their hands on the letter in Yu Chengmu's possession.

Forcing their way in would definitely not work. The mission would not leave such loopholes. Under normal circumstances, as long as the door was closed, and the people inside didn't open it, even ghosts couldn't enter.

It seemed they could only find a way to trick them into opening the door.

There was a noise outside the door. Looking in the direction of the sound, two people walked in, carrying bamboo baskets in their hands. "Village chief, Old Man Yu won't open the door, he just told us to read the letter to him outside the door, through the door."

"We said we were not only delivering the letter, but also bringing them food, he… he even scolded us, told us to get lost, said that no matter who came today, he would never open the door! He also said… he also said…" The villager carefully glanced at Jiang Cheng and the others.

"What else did he say?" The fatty asked.

The villager lowered his voice, saying in an unnatural tone, "Old Man Yu also said, let me tell you, to give up on that idea, opening the door is impossible, tonight, even if the River Goddess or the King of Heaven comes knocking, it's useless."

"He told… told you to wash your necks clean and wait for death." The villager's voice got softer and softer.

Hearing this, Jiang Cheng narrowed his eyes. "So… that's how it is."