Without a doubt, this boy clearly knew something as well.
Compared to the shrewd and slippery Village Chief Zhu, this naive and unworldly child before them was obviously much easier to extract information from.
In the flash of a thought, the Suited Man had already changed his earlier idea.
He subtly gave the Long Dress Girl a meaningful look, signaling her to be the one to talk with this boy.
Perhaps it was because he appeared too domineering, and coupled with a child's sharp intuition, no matter how friendly he tried to act, it would only make people feel he had ulterior motives.
The experience of being shut out by Ah Wang gave the Suited Man a bit of self-awareness.
He was good at verbal sparring with adults, but dealing with children... he might genuinely not be very good at it.
But the Long Dress Girl was the complete opposite of him. Her image was graceful, her temperament gentle. Just softening her voice a little made it easy for people to let down their guard. She was the perfect choice to coax information from the boy.
The Long Dress Girl naturally understood the Suited Man's intention. She stepped forward, bent slightly at the waist, a gentle smile appearing on her face as she softened her voice and asked, "Little friend, what's your name?"
Sure enough, seeing that it was a gentle and pretty older sister asking him, the boy's expression unconsciously relaxed.
"My name is Zhu Yu," the boy answered.
"Zhu Yu, that's a very handsome name. Can you tell this older sister, what happened to Ah Wang? How did you think to ask us for help?"
Zhu Yu hesitated for a moment, but as if he remembered something, that trace of hesitation vanished. "I secretly overheard my grandpa and grandma talking. They said that in the sacrifice two days from now, Spirit Medium Grandma wants to use Ah Wang as an offering to the Mountain God!"
The players were shocked, exchanging glances.
This village... actually used live human sacrifices?
Zhu Yu continued sadly, sharing what he knew. "Spirit Medium Grandma said that if they don't do this, the Mountain God will no longer protect the village. But Ah Wang is my good friend. I don't want him to be used as an offering."
The Long Dress Girl asked softly, "In past village sacrifices, has there ever been this kind of... situation requiring a human offering?"
Zhu Yu shook his head. "This is the first time. Spirit Medium Grandma said Ah Wang is the reincarnation of a heavenly calamity star, descending upon our village. Sooner or later, he'll bring disaster to the villagers. As long as they offer him to the Mountain God, they can not only completely destroy Auntie Mei Chan but also bless the village with favorable weather and peace for years to come."
Xu Xi, standing at the back, couldn't help but think upon hearing this: So this is the reason the Village Chief strongly opposes this sacrifice? Because he can't bear to let Ah Wang become an offering?
At that moment, he heard Zhu Yu cautiously ask, "Sister, can you please not destroy Auntie Mei Chan?"
Everyone was stunned again.
The Long Dress Girl tentatively spoke, "But your grandpa and the villagers all say it's Auntie Mei Chan causing trouble in the village."
Zhu Yu pouted. "Auntie Mei Chan was clearly really nice. Every time I went to play with Ah Wang, she would make delicious food for me. And I even made a wish to Auntie Mei Chan, and nothing happened at all! They're just lying! It's definitely not Auntie Mei Chan harming people."
Making a wish?
Why were there more and more questions?
"Why would you make a wish to Auntie Mei Chan?"
Zhu Yu answered without much hesitation. "Those uncles and aunties all said not to make wishes to Auntie Mei Chan, or something bad would happen. But I did it, and nothing happened at all."
The baseball cap young man couldn't help but exclaim with admiration, "Kid, you've got guts."
The Long Dress Girl asked a few more questions, including the big fire three years ago, the specific details about Ah Wang's mother's deeds, the old man knocking on doors at midnight, and the abnormal wheat fields.
Unfortunately, Zhu Yu didn't know much about those things. It seemed Village Chief Zhu and the villagers had intentionally kept the children from knowing.
"It's definitely not Auntie Mei Chan harming people. Please don't hurt Auntie Mei Chan, okay?" Zhu Yu was still begging the players to spare Ah Wang's mother by the end. "Oh right, and Ah Wang too!"
The Long Dress Girl comforted him with a smile, reassuring him, "Don't worry. We, your older brothers and sisters, will definitely investigate the truth first before making any decisions. If it has nothing to do with Auntie Mei Chan, we naturally won't take action. We'll also think of a way to handle Ah Wang's situation."
Besides, even if it really was Ah Wang's mother's doing, they couldn't do anything to her for now anyway. As for Ah Wang... having come this far, it went without saying that they were determined to stop this live human sacrifice.
After hearing the "masters'" guarantee, Zhu Yu became much happier. He turned and wanted to run toward the courtyard gate. "Then I'll go help you call my grandpa back."
"Little friend, wait!" The Suited Man immediately called out to stop him.
Zhu Yu looked back at him, puzzled.
The Suited Man smiled and said, "No need to call your grandpa. We'll wait for him to come back tonight before talking to him. Do you know where Spirit Medium Grandma lives? And where does the village usually make offerings to the Mountain God?"
Although Zhu Yu didn't understand why the masters didn't want him to find his grandpa anymore, he obediently stopped and told them Spirit Medium Grandma's residence and the location of the Mountain God Temple.
"Good, we understand. Little friend, you should first..." Just as the Suited Man was about to send Zhu Yu away, he heard a male voice suddenly interject from behind.
"Little friend, in these past three years, have you ever seen Auntie Mei Chan?"
The other five people were stunned upon hearing this.
What kind of underworld question was this?
When they turned to look, they discovered this question was actually asked by the hoodie-wearing young man who had barely spoken at all.
Just moments ago, Xu Xi suddenly realized something they hadn't paid much attention to before.
What exactly did Ah Wang's mother turn into after her death? There didn't seem to be a concrete image at all. Village Chief Zhu only briefly mentioned it was a ghost causing trouble, but couldn't provide more specific details.
However, after he asked, he also realized his phrasing might be a bit off.
Asking a child under ten if he had seen a dead person... that seemed a bit scary.
Fortunately, Zhu Yu was rather thick-skinned. Perhaps it was also because he believed in his heart that Auntie Mei Chan wouldn't harm him, so he wasn't scared. He thought seriously for a while before shaking his head. "No. When I made my wish, Auntie Mei Chan didn't appear. My wish didn't come true either."
After thinking a bit more, he added, "My grandpa hasn't seen Auntie Mei Chan either."
Xu Xi nodded. "I understand. Go play."
Zhu Yu waved to the group and ran off to find his playmates.
After the boy ran far away, the Suited Man looked at Xu Xi with a meaningful gaze. "You suspect that Ah Wang's mother's ghost might not have existed from the very beginning?"
Huh?
Xu Xi didn't react for a moment.
The Long Dress Girl also seemed to have gotten a new train of thought, her expression brightening with realization. "I was feeling a bit strange just now. That so-called Spirit Medium wants to use Ah Wang as an offering to the Mountain God. No matter what, Ah Wang's mother wouldn't just stand by and watch her son be used as an offering, right? But for half a month, nothing has happened in the village."