novelhk Chapter 154 The Mad Scholar
Chapter 154 The Mad Scholar
"Mr. Mu Feng, I'm sorry to bother you."
As dusk fell, a charcoal fire burned in a small house in the center of Aru village, filling the air with a warm glow that was enough to dispel the sudden chill of the desert night.
Village Chief Uncle Anpu looked somewhat solemn. He welcomed Candice and Mu Feng into the house, then glanced around warily before gently closing the door.
"Uncle Anpu, Village Chief, may I ask what this is...?"
Mu Feng was puzzled. Looking at the middle-aged man's nervous expression and overly cautious movements, he felt that this ostentatious display meant either a secret plot or a murder to silence him.
Oh no, is this aimed at me?
Uncle Amp sighed deeply, turned around and sat back on the wooden stool, his face showing worry and anxiety.
"Mr. Mu Feng, you must be a scholar from the Academy of Teachings, right?"
Mu Feng immediately became wary. He knew that the desert people were not exactly friendly to the rainforest people, and even less so to most of the proud scholars of the Order Academy.
That's why, when he took the unconscious Farusan to stay overnight in Aru Village, he deliberately removed the Void Terminal to hide his true identity in order to avoid unnecessary trouble.
But now it seems that his disguise may not have escaped the eyes of this experienced village chief.
"So, what do you mean?"
Mu Feng asked tentatively. So far, the other party didn't seem to have any ill intentions, which gradually calmed his newly raised vigilance.
Seemingly sensing the other party's wariness, Uncle Amp smiled wryly and gestured to Candice, who was sitting to the side, to bring tea to the two of them, trying to ease the tense atmosphere a little.
"Rest assured, Aru Village is different from other areas of the desert. Although most people believe in the Red King, they do not have serious prejudices against the inhabitants of the rainforest."
"And since you come from the Order of the Church, you should have heard of the 'mad scholar,' right?"
As Village Chief Anpu quickly got to the point, Mu Feng's expression gradually turned serious when the sensitive term "mad scholar" appeared.
"Have heard a little bit."
Uncle Amp nodded, his expression still somewhat anxious, like the crackling fire in the fireplace.
"That makes it easier to explain."
"To be honest, although some people in the village strongly opposed the arrival of the mad scholars, many others gradually came to regard these poor people as their own family."
"But recently, several mad scholars have disappeared without a trace."
At this point, Uncle Amp seemed to hesitate, glancing at Candice beside him before continuing the previous topic.
“Without exception, all the missing scholars left the village alone and then disappeared without a trace, which has never happened before in Aru Village.”
“You are a scholar of the Order of the Church, and you know more about the behavior of the mad scholars than we do. Perhaps you can determine the reason for their disappearance.”
"Plus……"
Uncle Anpu hesitated once again. He closed his eyes, his face showing some struggle and pain.
"Although I am reluctant to doubt it, it is indeed possible that this matter is related to the people in the village."
After saying this, the village chief looked older. He picked up his teacup and gulped down several mouthfuls, his expression solemn:
"Mr. Mu Feng, as a personal request, we hope you can help us investigate this disappearance case."
Mu Feng sighed helplessly; they were treating him like a scoundrel.
Liver surrogacy project: King of the Red Earth and Three Holy Ones, sincerely offering 300,000 Mora.
"Aqiu."
At that moment, Yingmei, who was enjoying a five-hundred-year-old baby-like sleep in an unknown cave in Mondstadt, sneezed and lazily turned over, her head resting on her arm.
Strange... I feel a little heavier now.
Never mind, I'll just go back to sleep.
Ying tugged uncomfortably at the blonde hair pressing down on her head, then drifted back into her sweet dream.
In her dreams, she was a being who could defy the heavens and kick the abyss, and even her brother, the Sky Emperor, had to kneel before her and sing "Conquer." Cricket Teyvat was merely one of the many in her vast harem as she traveled the starry sea.
What's that word again? Pioneering!
Once her five-hundred-year lifespan is over, she can immediately ascend to heaven in broad daylight with her unreliable older brother, conquer all the beautiful girls in the world, and thus reach the pinnacle of her life.
Five hundred years east of the river, five hundred years west of the river, never underestimate a poor young girl!
Oh, and there's one more thing that Ying is very dissatisfied with.
In her dreams, there was always a masked red thing laughing and joking, which made her so angry that she almost hit the mask with a small leather boot.
……
Meanwhile, the culprit had no idea that he had unintentionally disturbed Yingmei's sleep.
He was naturally well aware of the mad scholar's whereabouts.
Vitality Home, southeast of Aru Village.
On the surface, it was a hospital for demonic scale disease, but in reality, it was a secret human research base of the second executive officer of the Fools, "Doctor," where inhumane live experiments were being conducted.
Given that the Academy was unable to reach a cooperation agreement with the Doctor, it's likely that the Doctor has shifted his focus to the desert region.
Besides deceiving desperate patients with the Demon Scale Disease, these neglected mad scholars naturally became invaluable experimental subjects in the eyes of the Fools.
For the well-equipped Fools, taking away a group of mindless lunatics silently was not difficult at all.
By exploiting the discontent of some residents of Aru Village towards the mad scholar, coupled with hefty bribes, there are bound to be some weak-willed individuals who will choose to betray their conscience.
Mu Feng sighed inwardly. In the end, it was all because of that old bastard Hazard who betrayed his students after they had served their purpose. In the end, it was his student who had to clean up the mess.
There's simply no student in the world more competent than him. (JPG)
That being said, when it comes to investigating the internal affairs of Aru Village, it seems that no one is more suitable than himself, an outsider who has suddenly arrived and knows nothing about the internal situation of Aru Village.
As for why he was chosen...
Mu Feng turned his gaze to Candice, who had remained silent to the side. The wheat-skinned girl immediately turned her head slightly, unintentionally avoiding his gaze.
The case is solved; it really was that girl.
There are bad people among the masses.
Just as Mu Feng's lips twitched slightly, wondering if he should give Miss Candice a surprise from Liyue's Jueyun Sands for her breakfast tomorrow, Uncle Anpu, the village chief, spoke up once again.
“Your help is very important to us. Regardless of the outcome, we will provide you with a commission fee of 300,000 Mora from a special fund secretly allocated by the Council of the Church.”
Oh, so it's... 300,000? A young master's robbery?
Mu Feng's expression instantly transformed into one of righteous indignation, adopting an expression that seemed to condemn evil above all else:
"Uncle Anpu, Village Chief, don't worry, we can set off tomorrow."
Uncle Amp: ...
Candice: ...