Chapter 2: The Crimson Tail Feather

That night, Wen Yao returned from outside, bringing back many snacks. She excitedly opened box after box and said to Di Jiang: “Shopkeeper, these are all bought from the newly opened snack shops in Dongshi. They’re all good things, try them quickly.”

Di Jiang had been bored all day and indeed found her mouth craving taste. Just as she was about to reach out, a bright flash passed before her eyes. It then directly pounced onto the snack boxes, eating left and right with great relish.

It was that six-colored bird.

“What is this thing!” Wen Yao was startled and reached out to shoo it away without seeing clearly.

However, the bird was extremely agile and had a voracious appetite. Soon, an entire pack of preserved fruits was consumed, leaving not even a crumb.

“Shopkeeper! What is this thing?” Wen Yao looked grave, her face flushed with anger.

“Uh...” Di Jiang thought for a moment, unsure how to explain. Finally, she hardened her heart and said: “Prince Rui’an said it’s a bird that kills people.”

“Prince Rui’an? The prince came?” Wen Yao’s face lit up with joy. She searched through the front hall and back, then said disappointedly: “Where is the prince?”

“He came for a while in the afternoon and left quickly,” Di Jiang said. Seeing Wen Yao’s disappointment, she consoled her: “But don’t worry, with this bird here, he should come again soon. For these few days, you can keep this bird company.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

Wen Yao was overjoyed. She rushed out of the pharmacy and bought a birdcage from outside. When the bird was full and immobile, she threw it over its head. The bird was trapped in the cage, unable to escape.

Wen Yao, holding the birdcage, sneered: “Little bird, little bird, it’s all up to you to see the prince again.”

Wen Yao’s mind was entirely on Prince Wu Rui’an. She didn’t pay attention to Di Jiang’s words about the ‘killer bird,’ thinking it was just a prop to attract Wu Rui’an. Any danger was completely forgotten.

After all, she wasn’t human. A killer bird?

Who cares, it’s not like it’s a demon bird.

Wen Yao took it to the backyard. When Shuxiang saw the bird, she glanced at it briefly and pretended not to see it.

Wen Yao hung the birdcage on the banyan tree branch. Zhuchai, passing by, was quite excited. The gleam in his eyes seemed to say: “Such a fat bird? Should we add cumin or chili powder? No, no, stir-frying would be better...”

The bird shrank its neck, feeling that this family was somewhat abnormal, and its life seemed to be under unprecedented threat...

The next day after court, Wu Rui’an pulled a cart full of case files to Jian Su Medical Clinic.

“Is Your Highness moving house?” Di Jiang exclaimed in amazement upon seeing it.

Wu Rui’an shook his head and said: “These are the case files of four deceased ministers. Their deaths were similar; they all died from excessive blood loss, and each household kept a blood-drinking bird. Thus, this case is collectively referred to as the Blood-Drinking Bird Case. These are the detailed investigation records of those cases from back then. I’ve read half of them overnight, and the remaining half, I brought to read with you.”

After Wu Rui’an finished speaking, Di Jiang noticed the heavy dark circles under his eyes and couldn’t help but smile, nodding: “Alright, let’s do as His Highness says.”

Di Jiang called for Wen Yao and Shuxiang, moved the case files to the backyard, and sat opposite Wu Rui’an. Each picked up a volume and began to read carefully.

Only then did Di Jiang realize that the Blood-Drinking Bird had once held a superlative status, popular for a time in the past decade.

The high-ranking officials in the capital sought one desperately, even willing to spend thousands of gold coins. However, this bird was rare, highly priced, and rarely seen. The total number seen by everyone was just a few.

When young, the bird was about the length of a palm, cute and docile. As it grew larger, the biggest one reportedly reached half a person’s height, comparable to a peacock.

In the homes of the deceased officials, the Blood-Drinking Birds had grown crimson tail feathers, reaching two meters in length, strutting proudly, and incredibly beautiful. But at the same time, their temper became very violent, biting anyone they saw. Eventually, they had to be locked in cages or killed on the spot.

The records stated that after the Blood-Drinking Birds died, their bodies continued to bleed for three days without stopping, once turning the lake in the rear garden of a Ministry of Rites official red.

During that period, Taiping Prefecture seemed to have experienced a bloodbath. Rumors spread that it was due to Empress Chen taking the throne from the Wu family, causing a calamitous star to descend from heaven. Only later, when Empress Chen invited the National Master to burn the Blood-Drinking Birds on-site, did the matter come to an end.

However, the records noted that the ashes of the Blood-Drinking Birds rising into the sky were also blood-red.

“Does it really have such power?” Di Jiang was internally shocked. She turned to look at the bird, hanging on the tree, trapped in the cage, looking utterly clueless. She felt the description and reality were far apart.

“It’s probably still a baby. When it grows up…” Wu Rui’an gestured, pointing to the table. “It should be longer than this table.”

“It should be quite plump.” Di Jiang nodded, deciding to discuss with Zhuchai tonight to entrust the bird to him for raising. Once it grew up, they could hold a barbecue party in the garden.

A bird larger than a sheep, skinned and placed on a spit, should be enough to feed the whole family. Perhaps they could even invite Prince Rui’an, so there would be no worry about it harming others.

Amitabha, truly compassionate Buddha…

Wu Rui’an pointed to the terrifying portrait of the deceased Minister of Revenue and said to the dazed Di Jiang: “Shopkeeper Di, the National Master is still in seclusion, and Zhong Xu is missing. There are no reliable Taoist experts to protect you. Why don’t you move to the prince’s mansion? The royal aura in the mansion will allow me to rest assured.”

However, Di Jiang seemed not to hear what he said. She drooled and grinned ferociously, lost in thought.

“Shopkeeper Di?” Wu Rui’an shook her shoulder to bring her back to reality.

“Hmm?” Di Jiang snapped out of it and said: “What did Your Highness just say?”

Wu Rui’an repeated his words solemnly.

Di Jiang finally opened her mouth slightly, raised the corner of her lips, and smiled: “Don’t worry, if anything unusual happens later, I’ll invite Your Highness to a roast chicken dinner.”

“When is this, and you’re still thinking about roast chicken?” Wu Rui’an sighed and threw the death portraits of the three officials in front of Di Jiang, urging: “Look, they all died from excessive blood loss, and no wounds were found on their bodies! I don’t want to see you again in the morgue of Dali Temple!”

Wu Rui’an’s loud shout startled Wen Yao who was diagnosing in the front hall.

Wen Yao hurriedly lifted the curtain but saw both of them sitting well on stools. Now even more puzzled, she asked: “What happened? I heard Your Highness shouting from the front, and I thought you two were arguing…”

“No, we were telling jokes.” Di Jiang waved her hand.

Wen Yao ‘oh’ed and retreated.

Wu Rui’an took a deep breath, calmed himself, and after a while, sighed softly: “I know, Shopkeeper Di is not afraid of ghosts or monsters. But now is different from the past. The National Master has been in seclusion for a long time, and the thousand demons and hundred ghosts in Taiping Prefecture are stirring again. We’d rather believe it exists than not, and must prepare for the worst!”

“It won’t happen,” Di Jiang said softly.

“Hmm?” Wu Rui’an narrowed his eyes, gazing at Di Jiang with concern.

“Nothing will happen,” Di Jiang shook her head earnestly. “These officials may not have died at the hands of the bird. More terrifying than birds is the human heart.”

“What do you mean?” Wu Rui’an frowned.

“Do you think it looks like a killer?” Di Jiang pointed to the birdcage above her head.

At this moment, it was eating corn, and when it saw Wu Rui’an looking up at it, it raised its head.

It paused for a moment, and then slowly... swallowed the corn kernel in its mouth.

The human and the bird stared at each other, but its claws still quietly grabbed another corn kernel from the basin and sent it to its mouth unnoticed.

This was a true glutton.

After watching for a long time, Wu Rui’an covered his forehead and said: “As I said, it’s still a baby. When it grows up, it may not...”

Wu Rui’an suddenly paused mid-sentence.

At this moment, the image that emerged in his mind was a bird twice the length of two tables, so fat it could barely walk, still hugging a bowl and eating. This was vastly different from the Blood-Drinking Birds described in the case files.

Once this image was deeply ingrained in his mind, it couldn’t be erased...

“Your Highness, instead of guarding against a bird, it’s better to investigate who might be controlling this bird behind the scenes.”

“Control?” Wu Rui’an frowned: “You mean this bird is being manipulated by someone?”

Di Jiang nodded and pulled out two volumes from the pile of case files. She said: “In these two confessions, they both mentioned the same person. This person is a black market bird seller. Although the names are different, the descriptions are generally the same: all around six feet tall, with dry yellow hair and a black mole on the back of the right hand. This is the third similarity between the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Justice officials’ cases, besides their similar death appearances and keeping birds. I privately believe this is not a coincidence.”

Di Jiang sipped her tea and continued: “Even if he’s just a black market merchant, this person is undeniably connected to this bird. After all, such birds are rare, and no one knows what species it is. He might be the creator of this bird? Even if he isn’t, finding him and following the clues might reveal the reason behind it.”

“Exactly!” Wu Rui’an clapped his hands and immediately walked out, waving as he went: “Wait until I find this person and bring him to apologize to you! How dare he touch my friend, I’ll make him regret it!”

Wu Rui’an was full of confidence and immediately arranged for people to investigate the matter and reported to the court, requesting a retrial of the old case.

The officials who died at the hands of the Blood-Drinking Birds held high positions, with extensive networks of relationships. Many officials had received their favors, so naturally, there were more supporters.

However, Chen Zhao disagreed and vetoed his proposal outright, saying: “This case involves a wide range of people. If we dig it up again for investigation, it will only cause greater turmoil. To stabilize public sentiment, this matter must remain buried.”

Not only did Wu Rui’an fail to gain Chen Zhao’s support, but he was also reprimanded, leaving him deeply frustrated.

With limited resources at his disposal, he personally joined the investigation. Eventually, on a late evening half a month later, he traced the black market merchant ‘Lai San’er’ to a thatched hut at the back of Li Family Village, thirty miles south of Taiping Prefecture.

Unfortunately, when Wu Rui’an arrived, Lai San’er had already been dead for some time. His entire body had turned into a desiccated corpse.

He had always been heavily infused with yin energy when alive, so no one dared approach the house.

He had always lived alone, with no relatives or friends. Over time, everyone forgot about his existence.

And this thatched hut indeed appeared to have been unoccupied for a long time. So how long he had been dead there, no one knew...

While Wu Rui’an was examining Lai San’er’s desiccated corpse, the bird at Di Jiang’s house suddenly became restless. It paced back and forth in the cage every day, refusing to eat anything fed to it.

Until one morning half a month later, when Zhuchai got up, he found that it had pecked open the birdcage and disappeared.

Inside the cage, aside from overturned corn kernels, there was a small down feather.

The feather was entirely crimson, vivid and glaring.

Upon seeing it, Di Jiang’s face darkened, and she muttered: “This is bad.”