Chapter 3 – Nameless Corpses (1/2)
Chapter 3 – Nameless Corpses
The rain continued to fall all day long, finally petering out when nightfall arrived.
At this time, in the front courtyard, the Ji family was receiving the noble guests from the capital. Meanwhile, Ji Yunshu was tidying the paints in her sandalwood box. Every color in the box had been personally mixed by her. As she carefully cleaned and organized them, the glossy paints caught the eye, getting brighter with each passing day. Without a doubt, these colors would last for more than a thousand years without fading.
After around the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, Luan’er hurriedly ran into the room and exclaimed, “Miss! The county magistrate wanted you to make a quick trip to the east suburbs. He mentioned that an abandoned house in the east suburbs had caught fire, and many have perished from the resulting conflagration. Right now, their deceased families are waiting for the corpses to be identified, so they can retrieve and bury them. Unfortunately, since their corpses were charred beyond recognition, they want you to go and have a look.”
“When did it happen?”
“Two hours ago.”
Ji Yunshu let out a groan. Nevertheless, she unhurriedly closed the lid of the sandalwood box, changed into men’s clothing, lit a small lantern, and went out again.
Whenever she went out for work, she never brought Luan’er with her. Her maidservant stayed behind, since Ji Yunshu needed someone to protect the courtyard in her absence.
Traveling at night wasn’t easy. Fortunately, the east suburbs weren’t very far. When she arrived at her destination, the sight of a collapsed residence still billowing out smoke greeted her. The air was suffused with the smell of burning wood. Most of the villagers were carrying lanterns outside. Some of them wailed, while others repeatedly sighed.
Once she approached, she could see that more than 10 corpses were neatly lined up on the ground. All of the skin and flesh on the corpses had been utterly burnt to a crisp; not even one corpse could be recognized.
When the county magistrate saw Ji Yunshu arrive, he hurriedly went to her. His voice was low, but very articulate, “Yunshu, come see. If the situation wasn’t too grave, I wouldn’t want to alarm you. This much work in the first month of the lunar year, don’t mention you feeling unlucky, everyone is crying out in grievances right now!”
“It’s getting late. The earlier we wrap everything up, the earlier we can go back.”
“Good, good, good.”
The county magistrate ordered people to carry a table over and to prepare a dozen sheets of paper. He also ordered the yamen runners to form a security perimeter around the area.
While she observed the corpses lying on the ground, Ji Yunshu’s almond eyes widened with shock, but she quickly lowered them to conceal her emotions from prying eyes. Although she had become accustomed to witnessing such scenes, to go as far as to say that she was now completely apathetic would be a complete lie.