A master of comedy!

Chapter 26 Exploring the Well
At noon, the sun blazed overhead, its heat intense.

If they waited another quarter of an hour, it would be the perfect time for the executioner to behead the criminal. At that time, the yang energy between heaven and earth would be at its peak, and even the most vicious criminal would not be able to become a vengeful ghost after death.

Faced with such power of heaven and earth, all demons and monsters must stay far away.

"Boom boom boom!"

It was at this moment that Yu Zhensheng and his apprentice knocked on the door of the Zhu residence.

When the servants saw that it was Doctor Yu, they quickly invited him in. Zhou Sheng followed discreetly behind, but his eyes were constantly scanning the surroundings.

The mansion is very grandly renovated. It is a three-courtyard house with artificial hills, flowing water, pavilions, and towers, giving it a feel of a Jiangnan garden.

Zhou Sheng didn't understand feng shui, but he possessed supernatural abilities and had an extraordinary spiritual sense. As soon as he stepped into this place, he felt a strange sense of oppression.

It seemed colder than outside; it wasn't the kind of cool, refreshing air that's permeable from north to south, but rather a kind of shady, cellar-like coolness.

He wasn't surprised; a place that could support rampant soldiers was unlikely to be a bright place.

"Please rest for a moment, and allow me to inform the master."

The servants of the Zhu family had an arrogant air about them, but they still respected the renowned Physician Yu from Qinggu County. After all, no one could guarantee that they would never get sick.

The two sat down; the rosewood chairs and the finest crimson robes exuded the extravagance of the Zhu family mansion.

A moment later, a hearty laugh was heard.

"Dr. Yu, thanks to your acupuncture treatment this morning, my wife's dizziness has improved a lot."

Zhou Sheng's eyes flashed, and he knew that the person speaking was Zhu Zong, the magistrate of Qinggu County.

He looked closely and saw a middle-aged man wearing an expensive silk robe, a jade thumb ring, and a silver pipe walking towards him with a smile.

The man was probably in his forties, with a refined appearance, a long beard, and a build that was neither too fat nor too thin. He always had a smile on his face.

Zhou Sheng quickly glanced at it and then looked away.

He couldn't sense any trace of cultivation on the other person, only a slightly heavy yin aura.

Could it be that the other party's skill far surpasses that of himself?
With this in mind, Zhou Sheng adjusted his breathing, suppressed his sharpness, and became even calmer and more composed, revealing no flaws whatsoever.

"Magistrate Zhu is too kind. Acupuncture can only provide temporary relief. To cure the root cause, medicinal treatment is still needed. I had matters to attend to at your residence this morning and was unable to examine your pulse in detail. May I examine your wife again now?"

Yu Zhensheng clasped his hands in a respectful greeting, his face beaming with a warm smile.

"Of course, then I'll have to trouble you, Doctor Yu!"

Magistrate Zhu led the two to his wife's room, chatting with Yu Zhensheng along the way. Just as they were about to arrive, he suddenly changed the subject.

"This must be Doctor Yu's esteemed disciple, but I've heard that your disciple rarely helps out at the clinic, and instead prefers... opera singing?"

Zhou Sheng felt a chill run down his spine and looked up to meet Magistrate Zhu's eyes, which seemed to be both smiling and not smiling.

Was it a test? Or simply curiosity?
"Alas, my apprentice is useless. He has never been interested in medical books since he was a child. Instead, he likes to sing opera. I even asked Old Xu to help him practice his singing, but he hasn't made any progress."

Yu Zhensheng shook his head and smiled, his expression natural and his response smooth.

"Old Xu, is he the one who plays the violin and busks in the red-light district?"

Magistrate Zhu countered with a question.

"Magistrate Zhu also knows him?"

"Hehe, Doctor Yu is not good at judging people. Although that old man Xu's skills are good, his character is not good. Some time ago, he even came to my house to steal things and was beaten out with sticks."

“Even the maid he sent into the manor once stole my wife’s jade hairpin, which shows that they are all in cahoots.”

He paused, looked deeply at Zhou Sheng, and patted him on the shoulder.

"As the saying goes, if you can't become a famous minister, you can become a famous doctor. Young man, with such a good master, don't go astray and end up like that old man Xu, doing the lowest of the low."

Zhou Sheng remained expressionless, slowly raising his eyes, his voice unusually calm.

"The magistrate's words are well-deserved; Danshan will remember them."

"One must never go astray, otherwise Heaven will be watching what one does."

Magistrate Zhu stroked his beard and smiled, "This young man is teachable."

……

Not long after, the three entered the lady's room.

The magistrate's wife lay on the bed, her figure obscured by a curtain.

She stretched out a snow-white wrist, with a thin, embroidered handkerchief resting on it.

"Dr. Yu, thank you for your trouble."

Her voice was clear and gentle, with distinct pronunciation, which made Zhou Sheng raise his eyebrows slightly.

After years of studying opera, he could sense that this was a very suitable voice for singing opera, and if he were to play a female role, the streets would be packed with people.

This is no longer entirely a natural voice; it has definitely been honed and trained.

Otherwise, it would never be so smooth and round as jade.

Could it be that the magistrate's wife also enjoys opera, or perhaps she was once an opera singer?
Yu Zhensheng stepped forward to take her pulse. After a moment, he opened his eyes and said, "The pulse has stabilized. Madam's dizziness is caused by years of overwork and depletion of qi and blood. Recently, she seems to have suffered some kind of fright, which greatly depleted her vital energy. She needs acupuncture and tonics. She should recover in a month or so."

After saying that, he turned around and said, "Danshan, bring me the golden needles."

Zhou Sheng immediately opened the medicine box, but after searching for a while, he said with a bitter face, "Master, it seems I forgot to bring the gold needles."

Yu Zhensheng glared at him and scolded, "You fool, you're always so careless, hurry up and go back and get it!"

Magistrate Zhu asked, "Won't ordinary silver needles work? I have silver needles in my household."

"You don't know, gold needles are softer and more suitable for areas with thinner skin or shallower acupoints, which can reduce damage to the body. Your wife is already exhausted, and using silver needles would be like adding fuel to the fire."

"I see. Then I'll have to trouble you, young man."

Magistrate Zhu smiled very politely at Zhou Sheng, seemingly without any airs and very approachable.

Zhou Sheng nodded, then turned and left.

After leaving the Zhu residence, he calculated that it was exactly noon, the time when the yang energy was at its peak. He immediately turned back, climbed over the wall, and entered the Zhu residence again.

The goal is clear: that ancient well.

Because Uncle Xu once said that after Cuicui went mad, the words she said most often were, "The lady is not a lady, the well is haunted, don't kill me..."

There's something strange about this well!
Sure enough, when he came to the well again, he noticed that there was still a trace of yin energy there.

The wellhead has been sealed with thick bluestone slabs.

You should know that there are no evil corpses now, which means that the yin energy in the well comes from something else!

Without hesitation, Zhou Sheng stepped forward and moved the bluestone slab. His arm muscles bulged, and the weight of over a thousand pounds made him feel somewhat strained.

Looking down, the ancient well was bottomless and extremely dark, its walls covered with mottled green moss and emitting a creepy smell.

He took out the incense ash he had prepared for Master Huaguang and sprinkled it down, seeing nothing unusual in the well.

This indicates that the object in the well is not dangerous and is likely just an inanimate object.

Without further hesitation, Zhou Sheng took off his outer clothes and trousers, leaving only his inner shirt, took a deep breath, and jumped inside.

With a splash, he fell into the icy well water.

First, he sank into the water, and then he floated up again.

Something seemed to be darting around, and Zhou Sheng casually reached out and caught a furry animal that made a squeaking sound.

It's a rat!

And there are quite a few.

If it were an ordinary person, they would definitely be scared half to death at this moment, but Zhou Sheng has seen many vengeful ghosts and spirits, so he is naturally not frightened by rats.

He tossed it aside, took a deep breath, and then dived down.

Cui Cui's madness must have stemmed from accidentally witnessing the Zhu family's secret. She said the well was haunted, so there must be something hidden underwater.

That thing might be the secret that the Zhu family is desperately trying to hide.

Because of his training since childhood, Zhou Sheng had abundant and plentiful internal energy in his dantian, and he quickly dived to the bottom. At the same time, his eyes had already adapted to the darkness underwater.

Sensing the yin energy, he began digging somewhere.

The mud was mixed with withered branches, decaying leaves, and rotting rat carcasses; even if you held your breath, you could smell a stench ingrained in your very bones.

Soon, he dug something up.

It's fluffy, smooth, and feels like seaweed.

Upon pulling it out, it was a woman's long hair, with a head hanging from it, already soaked and rotten, making it impossible to recognize her face.

Zhou Sheng frowned, carefully examining the head and staring intently at the rotting eyes, but found no trace of a remnant soul.

What must have terrified Cui Cui was this head.

But since there was no lingering soul or resentment left in its head, it couldn't possibly climb out of the well to harm people.

What exactly is missing in this process?
Do we still have to ask the Luoshu (Lo Shu)?
He frowned slightly, because he needed to accumulate energy to deduce the true formula for the immortal mica robe, so Zhou Sheng did not intend to use the Luo Shu lightly.

Otherwise, why would he bother going through all that trouble to go down the mine?
"Forget it, let's go back first."

He lifted his head, preparing to climb out of the well.

However, as soon as he surfaced, he was startled, and his scalp tingled.

But looking up, there was no light at all, only utter darkness, as if abandoned and forgotten by the entire world.

The heavy bluestone he had moved, I don't know when...

It was covered up again.

……

　Thank you Ruoxingkong (I can't type one of the characters) for the 100-yuan donation. It's a very familiar name; I can tell you're an old friend!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)