After making arrangements with the two ghosts, Xia De returned to the lawn in front of the entrance to the underground catacombs in the cemetery to wait.
He waited for over half an hour. There was a simple farewell ceremony in the underground catacombs, and the guests who came to the funeral all understood Old Mrs. Wotsent's feelings.
While Xia De stood under the tree, someone finally approached him. It was Old Mrs. Wotsent's business partner, who owned a coal processing factory in the south of the city.
He knew Xia De's identity, so he asked Xia De if he could help with some troublesome permit documents:
“To improve the air quality in the city, Tobesk recently imposed restrictions on the operating hours of factories like ours that emit exhaust fumes. Mr. Hamilton, do you know how much money this will cost me?”
The middle-aged fat businessman, wearing a tie, coughed. It wasn't a pretense; his lungs seemed to genuinely have a problem:
“If you ask me, there's no evidence that the city's fog is harmful to humans, nor is there any evidence that these dense fogs cause illness. I even believe this 'industrial smell' can make children stronger. Mr. Hamilton, I won't let you help for free.”
He coughed again, his face turning red, his lungs sounding like a broken bellows.
Xia De certainly needed money, but he wouldn't take such ill-gotten gains, especially since he had no connections to pull strings at the City Hall. So, he tactfully refused the fat businessman's request. The latter seemed to think Xia De was dissatisfied with the compensation, so he could only grumble and walk away, quietly complaining about the greed and shamelessness of the 'noble lords'.
“What kind of people are there?”
Xia De thought to himself, gaining a deeper understanding of the madness and ignorance of this era.
During the wait, the already gloomy sky finally began to drizzle. People on the lawn could only hurry back to the small chapel to wait, while Old Mrs. Wotsent's servants waited in place with umbrellas for the group to return.
The rain grew heavier, so by the time the Priest, the gravekeeper, and Mr. Wotsent's relatives returned to the chapel, Mrs. Worsent simply offered a few words of thanks and declared the funeral over.
The guests departed, and Old Mrs. Wotsent and the gravekeeper stood by the church pulpit, discussing matters concerning the management of the catacombs, where she would also be laid to rest after her death.
Meanwhile, Johns Wotsent, Mr. Wotsent's younger brother and the focus of the funeral, stayed behind to chat with Xia De. In fact, even if he hadn't come to Xia De, Xia De would have sought him out, as he needed some reason for his conversation with Old Mrs. Wotsent later.
There was no particular connection between Xia De and this middle-aged man, but the younger Wotsent still valued Xia De's status, revealing in his words that he knew Xia De was quite favored by Duchess Jialinna. Besides thanking Xia De for coming today, he also half-complained about his family affairs, as a way to draw Xia De closer:
“Before this funeral, we hadn't had contact with that woman for over ten years. Father and Mother always believed she was responsible for my brother's death. Even after her brother died from illness, our family has never been willing to forgive her.”
But in Xia De's view, both the man who had an affair and the woman who killed while drunk were at fault. Fortunately, this was someone else's family matter and none of his business, so he didn't need to bother judging.
“Perhaps this will also be a Balance. I just need to observe, not to think.”
This thought popped into Xia De's head.
Echoing Johns Wotsent's words, the two exchanged business cards. Xia De then learned that this noble descendant, who had not inherited a title, besides his own businesses, also held a position in the City Hall's tax department.
Since he still had to wait for his compensation, Xia De had ample reason to stay. However, the rain was getting heavier, making Xia De a bit worried about how he would get back. Then he started wondering if the windows at home were closed and if the cat at home would be scared by the rain.
Summer is the rainy season in Tobesk, and such sudden downpours are quite common.
The damp smell mixed with the scent of earth drifted in from outside the church with the wind, but it also dispelled the heat of midsummer.
Seeing that Old Mrs. Wotsent's conversation had not yet ended, Xia De rose from the bench and went to the church entrance, watching the rainwater falling from the eaves, like a curtain blocking the church door. This heavy rain would at least cool Tobesk for a while. The Outsider's first Summer in this world seemed not much different from the Summer in his hometown.
Only when almost everyone had left did Old Mrs. Wotsent finish her conversation with the gravekeeper. She sat on the front-row bench in the church and spoke with Xia De.
“I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting so long. I was just discussing matters after death, and I ended up chatting a bit longer with the gravekeeper here.”
The old woman smiled apologetically, her voice still so slow, and the wrinkles on her face bunched together when she smiled.
She motioned for a nearby servant to hand the compensation to Xia De, who thanked her while accepting it. The 20 pounds in cash went directly into his pocket, while the special rhode cards were played with in his hand:
【Carson Rick Southern Folk · Moon Dance Festival】, Suit: Sun 4.
When drawing this card, if you hold a Moon suit card and the sum of points does not exceed 7, then if you bust this round, the total points are adjusted to 1.
Apart from 【Origin · Silver Moon】, among all the special rhode cards Xia De had seen, the function of this card was already quite useful. Holding this card allowed one to confidently gamble luck with an opponent, and in gambling games where busting doubled the loss, it could also help one lose less.
Xia De had heard about the 【Carson Rick Southern Folk】 series of cards from Baron Lavende. This series of rhode cards was issued over fifty years ago, and the price of a single special card would definitely not be less than 70 pounds.
“You are truly too generous.”
Xia De put away the card and expressed his gratitude to the client; the compensation far exceeded his efforts.
“My husband also enjoyed rhode cards when he was alive. This is part of his old collection; it didn't cost much in pounds when he bought it. Rather than having it taken by those who divide the inheritance after I die, it's better to give it to a young man like you.”
Old Mrs. Wotsent said, her cloudy eyes seemingly recalling past days.
Meanwhile, the two ghosts beside Xia De began discussing rhode cards again, so Mr. Wotsent, whose image was already not great in Xia De's mind, gained another label: “likes to gamble.”
Having put away the card, Xia De casually said, as if unintentional:
“Speaking of which, Mr. Johns Wotsent, Mr. Wotsent's brother, just said a few words to me.”
“What did he say?”
The old woman asked alertly. Xia De looked at the servants and guards standing nearby, so Mrs. Worsent told them to prepare umbrellas and the carriage for the return trip.
There were a few other people in the church, such as two young Priests cleaning, and the Priest watching the rain at the church entrance. But these people were far away, so Xia De could speak freely:
“He just said... I'm sorry, I shouldn't be saying this, but the Wosente Family seems to believe that Mr. Wotsent's death back then...”
He shook his head:
“I have no other meaning; it's just that since the topic came up, I'm telling you. They seem to believe that you and Mr. Mason murdered Mr. Wotsent together.”
The old woman sat there expressionless:
“They've thought that for so many years. Perhaps this resentment will only disappear when it accompanies me into the grave.”
Xia De glanced at the two ghosts standing by, listening intently:
“Mr. Johns Wotsent mentioned to me that after what happened back then, Count Wotsent, besides pressuring Leedweich Field, also hired a private Detective to investigate.”
“But they obviously didn't find anything.”
“Yes, but...”
Xia De praised his own acting skills in his heart, then looked around twice before lowering his voice and saying:
“But I just heard from Johns Wotsent that he plans to hire a Detective again to investigate what you found behind the wall in the basement. He seems to believe there's some crucial evidence behind the wall that you've hidden.”
“Your Excellency Hamilton, does he want to hire you?”
The old woman asked, using a respectful address.
Xia De nodded with a serious expression:
“He didn't directly ask for my opinion, but he has such an intention. He believes I can easily gain your trust, making me more suitable for this job than other Detectives. But I won't do such a thing. My current scope of business only includes finding people, finding pets, marriage investigations, delivering cards and letters, transporting goods, Coldwater Port proxy shopping... You are my current client, and I cannot harm your interests, so...”
He lowered his voice even further:
“If there really is any evidence, please make sure to hide it well.”
“Your Excellency Hamilton, I thought you would directly ask me if there was any so-called evidence.”
Mrs. Worsent's voice rose slightly.
Xia De shook his head:
“I didn't take that side's commission and then come here to deceive you by saying I didn't, thereby tricking you into revealing so-called evidence. After all, this matter has nothing to do with me. Besides, thirty years have passed, and you are almost 70 years old this year. Even if there is a so-called truth, what then?”
This was the truth. Xia De only wanted to satisfy his curiosity; he had no intention of sending anyone to prison. Thirty years had passed, two of the three involved parties were dead, and moreover, the deceased himself was wrong for having an extramarital affair. If Xia De had encountered this matter thirty years ago when it happened, he probably would have reported the so-called truth. But now, none of that mattered.
“Yes, what good would the truth do?”
Old Mrs. Wotsent said, then sighed deeply.
Xia De waited patiently until the old woman spoke again:
“When I went to the underground catacombs just now, I also visited my brother. In a blink of an eye, so many years have passed; it truly has been so many years.”
The ghost Mr. Mason looked at his sister with sad eyes.
