WangXian Forever Book 8

Chapter 17 Plans

Lan Zhan was looking concerned.

"What is it, my love?" Wei Ying asked him, as they filed out of the now widow's home.

Lan Zhan pointed at the darkening sky.

"I think we should gather more evidence, and go into the city at a later date. We have promised the children to return before their bedtime."

Wei Ying nodded.

"That's true, we did. Plus if the city has more than one wine house...obviously...of course it'll take more time to find the right one. Shall we just move onto the next village and call it a night?" He looked around to see what the others thought.

"We don't mind." XiChen told them, grabbing Jiang Cheng's hand.

"I do not need to sleep." Wen Ning agreed.

"Neither do I." Hui Gai sized him up.

"It's not a competition." Wei Ying grinned at both of them.

He held Wen Ning's and Lan Zhan’s hands and they teleported to the next village. Hui Gai appeared seconds later holding Jiang Cheng by the scruff of his neck and XiChen's hand.

Wei Ying smirked at the difference in how he carried them.

"This village is called Mao Pao Xiao Xi. Bubbling Brook." XiChen told them, brushing off his robes. "It's smaller than Lui Xing with only three hundred residents, but the number of deaths was significantly higher at forty."

"Oh? Why do you think that is?" Wei Ying asked him.

"At this point, A-Xian, I really don't know. We have already made progress with your help. Perhaps we ought to ask if any of these people frequented a brothel in the last few weeks, and if so, which one was it?"

Wei Ying was pretty sure the Truth Trap had worn off his Brother-in-Bond, but that statement had him rethinking it.

"Um...we can't exactly openly ask that question..." Wei Ying said, quickly. "Even if that's what we want to know...we might have to find another way to ask."

"Let's see." XiChen seemed adamant his way was better.

Mao Pao Xiao Xi looked very similar to Lui Xing except that the houses were a little bit smaller than that village. A few of the houses had goats tied up in their front yards, with cute little vegetable patches in places.

The moon was out, three quarters full and shining brightly in the night sky as the rest of the stars came out. In the centre of the town, a bubbling Brook really did pass through the middle of this village, with a quaint curved stone bridge curling over it to give people dry passage over the waters.

The tiny Brook wasn't too deep, and Wei Ying thought a person could jump over it if they wanted to.

XiChen aimed for the grandest looking house, hoping someone important lived there, someone who could direct them to where they needed to go.

A man opened the door, dressed in stone gray robes. His eyes widened when he took in their robes and understanding dawned as to who these people might be.

"May we come inside? Or would you prefer to come outside?" XiChen asked him pleasantly.

"What's this about?" He bristled.

So, not the friendly welcome they were hoping for.

"We're investigating the recent bouts of Sleeping Sickness in the nearby area." XiChen told him.

"And we need your help." Wei Ying added quickly, trying to salvage what looked like an already disastrous meeting.

"With what? From what I heard, people are dying left, right and centre...what are you going to do about it? In fact..." He scratched his scrawny beard. "What can any of us do, exactly?"

"We can try and find out if there's a cause, even better if it's preventable, and then steps can be taken to ensure it doesn't happen again." XiChen sounded defensive.

The truth was, the further they got away from the big cities, the more there was a backward way of thinking to deal with, often too much of a hindrance.

"Nah...I don't think it's necessary. What are you going to do anyway, even if you do find the cause? And if it's that easy, why haven't you done anything about it until now?" The stupid leader went on.

"I see your point." XiChen said, pretending to think. "And you're right. We could absolutely leave this village alone and let the gene pool cleanse itself. It's not a bad idea at all."

Wei Ying swallowed his laughter with difficulty. His XiChen-Ge could be savage if he wanted to be. It seemed the Truth Trap wasn't done with him quite yet...

Even Lan Zhan sported a twinkle in his eyes, trying hard not to look at anyone.

Hui Gai couldn't believe there were people like this around still. He raised a brow towards his friend and Wei Ying just shrugged. You couldn't help people if they refused it, after all.

"I changed my mind, XiChen-Ge. Maybe your way is better." He said, instead.

XiChen nodded imperceptibly.

"At least tell me this then: have you or any of your villagers visited any brothels recently?" He asked.

The leader blushed a bright red, even in the pale moonlight, the difference in his complexion was obvious.

"That's a bit of a personal question, ain't it?" He replied, astonished at the forwardness of this stranger dressed in white.

"Nevertheless, I am asking it. I'm sure a man of your intellect would have no trouble responding. So?" XiChen smiled coldly at him.

"Well...yes...we all go...the men that is. Now and again. Just to let off some steam, you understand." The leader admitted.

"I see. And do you go to the same place every time or does it vary?"

"It varies. Sometimes there are more of us so we don't always fit. Luckily there are more than a handful of places willing to accommodate our needs." He grinned, his bad teeth fully on display.

Wei Ying had to stop himself from making a face.

Jiang Cheng had no such qualms. He scowled at the man standing in front of his husband.

"Do you have anyone in your village right now, suffering from the sleeping sickness? Anyone we can go and see?" He demanded.

"Well, as a matter of fact, this house has one such fellow. It's his third night sleeping, so if you're going to find anything out, it'll be there." He pointed to his neighbour's home.

"Right then, let's get started." XiChen strode towards that house, everyone else following him.