The Ghosts of Julu

[Brother Dun]

"There has always been relatively isolated ghost sightings ever since the massacre of Zhang Han's army by Xiang Yu," stated the Elder. He nodded with satisfaction as the scroll verified what he had stated. "The lands of Julu were relatively spared by Qin when they decimated Zhao. After Li Mu was arrested and forced to commit suicide, the Zhao resistance fell apart. The sole major flashpoint was the sack of the capital city of Handan. The sightings however have increased in the last six months. It has increased substantially from perhaps one or two sightings a month . . . to something along the lines of ten to fifteen every week. The vast majority of the deaths can be ruled as accident. A man getting caught in the tether of a run away horse. Fires sparking even under impossible conditions. Men falling for hunting traps far removed from the standard hunting hotspots."

The scholar nodded at the elder's words. A trace of skepticism had begun to form, the cause of the deaths seemed more like either random happenstance or perhaps a murder of sorts, rather than a paranormal event. However, he would have to investigate the sightings, and perhaps see if the Elder had anyone else who could help him get on with his investigation. "Elder Ling," he said, pausing a moment, "Is there perhaps anyone who you have already had investigate these events? As a city Elder, you would most certainly have the power to do so, is there anyone other than myself and the other travelers from abroad? Or do you think there is a particular person in the city, who has dealt with much of these paranormal happenings? Where would you say I should start looking?"

[Li Dao Wen]

Folding his arms across his chest, Xun Jiang gave a grunt at the mention of powerful retainers. Having looked all around him earlier, he could have laughed instead of snorting; could there be anything in the god-forsaken land of Julu who could match him in combat? And this man Wen Xu, he looked pretty strong too. His cautious stance in the matter fueled the giant's excitement for the kill.

Truth be told, he didn't care a bit about the ghost problem or the bidding of the governor. It was the prospect of killing that drove him to come to Julu, like a shark led on by chum. Still he let Wen Xu do the talking. Judging him as the more agreeable conversationalist between the two of them, he waited for his own opportunity to speak. After Wen was done asking, he began to talk.

"I will infiltrate the personal retinue of this Elder Jia by feigning loyalty to him. I believe that he may be the wealthiest, but also the most foolish among them. We should separate and attempt to break the ties of these men piecemeal."

[Shen Feng]

"It is hardly a random occurrence," replied Elder Ju, shaking his head. "That poor man was hardly the first . . . and I doubt that he will be the last. Unfortunately, things like that seems to occur at least twice or more a week. If you noticed his severed stump . . . something must have cut off the arm . . . Only some kind of sharp blade can be able to sever the arm so thoroughly. I can't be entirely sure what kind of blade it was . . . but I don't think that it was . . . an accident. There is more to this than we know . . ."

Stifling a curse at stubbing his toe, Elder Ju continued. "I can't put my finger on it . . . but I think one of the other elders could be up to the business. The governor seems to be alright . . . but I know that some of my peers are quite greedy. A significant amount of land has changed hands in recent times . . . A number of small landholdings have been gobbled up. I can't seem to figure out who has done the purchasing . . . but I can tell you that the Elders Jia, Ju, Kuang, and Xie own over 80% of the farmland in a two hundred li radius around this city."

Feng nodded as the elder mentioned the severed arm and asked if he had noticed it, resisting the urge to make a sarcastic reply. Of course he'd noticed, given that he was attempting and failing to staunch the bleeding from the wound when the elder had arrived.

"Alright, so someone is buying up land. Maybe to make a play for power? Huh. Actually, that could explain a lot. Rumors of ghosts, and incidents like the one we just had, would worry people and make them want to leave town, thus selling their land at lower prices just to get out. Once whoever's arranging all this has the land he wants, then the 'incidents' he's arranging come to an end, and he has control of much of the town and outlying region, perhaps enough to challenge the governor." Feng grinned as he finished, confident in his conclusion. "Now, you say that four elders own most of the land. Would they be working in conjunction, do you think? Or is one arranging this and the others are merely benefitting by coincidence?"

[OneEyedDrgn]

Shrugging, the man faded out of view, leaving a puddle of wine mixed with fresh blood on the ground.

"Hong'er! Hong'er!" called a voice from the distance. "Young Master! Young Master!" called a number of other voices. Within a few minutes, a dozen torch-carrying soldiers appeared around the campfire. The elderly leader regarded Liang Zhuwen who was seated at the fire. "Where is Hong'er?" he demanded in an angry voice. "Where is my son!?! I know he was here . . ." The last bit was said with him pointing at the stain on the ground.

Zhuwen looked at the whole scene in silence. So the man had actually been a ghost? Zhuwen wasn't surprised, he had been skeptical, but he hadn't removed all the possibility that these ghosts actually existed. As he pondered what to do now...

The warrior looked at the old man casually, and then looked at the puddle that was there.

"I dunno," he replied. "He just... disappeared."

Zhuwen stood up from his seat, crossing his arms.

"So like... I'm a bit confused here. If these rumors are right, these ghosts are dead soldiers from a year ago, form that battle with Xiang Yu. And I'm guessing this Hong'er is your son, and died in battle a year ago. So mind telling me why you're all out here looking for him, and acting as if he's alive?"

[Cao Chao]

Nodding, De Man gave his name and place of birth. He could not help but think the setting was rather ominous, if only because of the rumors and how the townspeople reacted to them. He only asked two major questions, pausing in between them for a response before he was ready to carry out the task at hand.

"Where will I be staying?"
"You said seven or eight volunteers, will I be meeting them?"

"You'll be staying here," replied the foreman, waving a hand at the small valley beyond his shoulder, "Till tomorrow morning. Keep an eye on the burial grounds and make sure that nothing comes out of the ground."

"There's only two others here at this point," continued the foreman, flicking a look at a pair of men standing at the top of a hill in the distance. "The others haven't arrived just yet."

Wei nodded as he listened to the Elder Kuang carefully. He scratched his head several times as the elder explained. After the elder finished, Wei began speaking.

"So..... it was not the ghosts that killed that lady's son as well as other people, right? I understand that some cunning folks may use supernatural beings as a tool to attract followers, fame, and wealth. However, killing people and blaming the ghosts is over the line. In that case, has anyone ever tried to reveal this secret to the public and bring that killer to justice? If this continues, the killer may just kill more people and continue to blame the ghosts. Elder Kuang, if you know who the killer is, please let me know."

Wei then waited for the reply. Seeing what had happened with the lady and her son, he could not allow this crime to continue any longer.

"That is my belief," replied the Elder, nodding his head, glad that Shangguan Wei understood what he had said. "There is something outside of the supernatural at work here." Pausing, the elder shook his head. "Unfortunately, I have no inkling . . . no idea who is involved. The power situation here in Julu is in flux. There are multiple factions, some overtly working towards their goals, while others do so from hiding, but irregardless of who is involved, the situation has grown increasingly dire. Day by day, the populace are growing restless. Something needs to be done."

Pausing briefly, the elder continued, "There is an event tonight that maybe able to shed some light into this entire mess . . . The administrator of this city has called for volunteers. If you're willing, I want you to go to the burial grounds as my representative. There you will figure out some of this . . . mess"

Mai Zu had introduced herself from the start, using the most proper etiquette she could muster. Hearing the man talk poorly about his daughter, she tucked a bit of hair behind her ear. It was quite disappointing to hear, how much a father could detest his daughter. She spoke when he was finished.

Mai Zu: "Elder Guo... Whether she is your daughter or not, and whether she has disgraced her family or not, is not the issue. I gave her my word I'd come to see you about this issue. However, I was already on my way to speak with the elders about the notice they sent out. It seems to me that your daughters husband's ghost, the son of a bitch that he probably was, isn't the only ghostly issue going on around here. I'd like to help you and the rest of the elders who put out that notice. If your daughter's wishes are fulfilled as well, consider that a bonus for me... and if I may, if he moves on, perhaps you can forgive your daughter and move on as well. But I need information and help from you, to get started at least."

"Hmmph, I could care less about the ghosts," replied Elder Guo rising form his haunches to regard the woman that his daughter had brought home, "Within my blood runs the blood of the Zhao royal family, rulers of these lands before the kingdom was destroyed by the Qin. The existence of these ghosts are merely but coincidental good fortune that will permit me the opportunity to attempt to restore my family's kingdom. There are far more important matters at hand than worrying about some frakking supernatural nonsense. There is simply put more at stake in this matter."

Nodding his head as he quickly kept a mental log of everything that the man said Wen Xu realized one of the seven he did not mention. "So what of this Elder Jiao? You said nothing of him?" Once the man had answered that question he would then ask, "So of these men who has the weakest of retainers? Also where might they live?" Should the foreman have answers to these questions as well he would wait for their replies.

Finally once he had finished speaking he would ask one last question before making a decision. "Will we have anybody to assist us in removing these elders from power? Either way which do you believe we should go after first?"

"Elder Jiao is mad," replied the foreman, shaking his head, "Quite mad. He was a brilliant man once, gifted with the talent of foresight. His talent of divining the future through the Book of Changes was otherworldly and gained him substantial respect and fame in this city and throughout these lands. Alas . . . fate is not something that wishes to be known. The Heavens drove him mad."

"You will have the power of the city's administration," continued the foreman, arching his eyebrow and looking at Wen Xu, "But this task that has been given to the two of you, is one that requires the utmost secrecy. The governor does not wish that his hand in these affairs be known. Your job is to complete the mission and to ensure that his hand is unseen, but felt nevertheless."

The scholar nodded at the elder's words. A trace of skepticism had begun to form, the cause of the deaths seemed more like either random happenstance or perhaps a murder of sorts, rather than a paranormal event. However, he would have to investigate the sightings, and perhaps see if the Elder had anyone else who could help him get on with his investigation. "Elder Ling," he said, pausing a moment, "Is there perhaps anyone who you have already had investigate these events? As a city Elder, you would most certainly have the power to do so, is there anyone other than myself and the other travelers from abroad? Or do you think there is a particular person in the city, who has dealt with much of these paranormal happenings? Where would you say I should start looking?"

"It has only recently reached such a level that engenders discontent and unrest amongst the populace," replied Elder Ling, shaking his head, a hint of sadness in his voice, "A level sufficient to force us Elders and the city administrator to take notice and try to take action. It has only the last month or so that the situation has reached crisis levels. Before this, it seemed nothing more than a minor annoyance that everyone hoped would go away . . . Unfortunately, it did not go away. It steadily got worse as the months wore on."

"Now the administrator has called for volunteers to help," continued Elder Ling, "You should go on behalf of Elder Jia."

Folding his arms across his chest, Xun Jiang gave a grunt at the mention of powerful retainers. Having looked all around him earlier, he could have laughed instead of snorting; could there be anything in the god-forsaken land of Julu who could match him in combat? And this man Wen Xu, he looked pretty strong too. His cautious stance in the matter fueled the giant's excitement for the kill.

Truth be told, he didn't care a bit about the ghost problem or the bidding of the governor. It was the prospect of killing that drove him to come to Julu, like a shark led on by chum. Still he let Wen Xu do the talking. Judging him as the more agreeable conversationalist between the two of them, he waited for his own opportunity to speak. After Wen was done asking, he began to talk.

"I will infiltrate the personal retinue of this Elder Jia by feigning loyalty to him. I believe that he may be the wealthiest, but also the most foolish among them. We should separate and attempt to break the ties of these men piecemeal."

"Nay, we do not want them to die," replied the foreman, shaking his head, a cruel smile on his face. "We want them to be broken by utilizing the measures that we approve. We want their efforts to undo this madness to be stopped. Better they be left alive to see how far they've fallen and who was ultimately victorious. They will never recover from such a psychological blow . . ."

Feng nodded as the elder mentioned the severed arm and asked if he had noticed it, resisting the urge to make a sarcastic reply. Of course he'd noticed, given that he was attempting and failing to staunch the bleeding from the wound when the elder had arrived.

"Alright, so someone is buying up land. Maybe to make a play for power? Huh. Actually, that could explain a lot. Rumors of ghosts, and incidents like the one we just had, would worry people and make them want to leave town, thus selling their land at lower prices just to get out. Once whoever's arranging all this has the land he wants, then the 'incidents' he's arranging come to an end, and he has control of much of the town and outlying region, perhaps enough to challenge the governor." Feng grinned as he finished, confident in his conclusion. "Now, you say that four elders own most of the land. Would they be working in conjunction, do you think? Or is one arranging this and the others are merely benefitting by coincidence?"

"It is unlikely, the four elders who own the land have long been at loggerheads with one another," replied Elder Ju, shaking his head, "At one point or another, the family of the elders controlled this city for Zhao, with the sole exception being the noveau riche Elder Jia. It is unlikely that their generations of hatred and distaste have been resolved in a concerted attempt to seize this city. Though given the state of affairs, I don't know what to discount. If they have indeed working in cooperation . . . then we will have our hands full."

"In the meantime, the governor has called for volunteers to stand watch tonight at the valley where the burial grounds are located. You should go there and see as my representative." Handing over a small pendant, he continued. "This pendant will identify you as my representative and give you access to locations that you normally would not be permitted to enter. Take it and stay at the burial grounds. That's a start . . . and then let's go from there."

Zhuwen looked at the whole scene in silence. So the man had actually been a ghost? Zhuwen wasn't surprised, he had been skeptical, but he hadn't removed all the possibility that these ghosts actually existed. As he pondered what to do now...

The warrior looked at the old man casually, and then looked at the puddle that was there.

"I dunno," he replied. "He just... disappeared."

Zhuwen stood up from his seat, crossing his arms.

"So like... I'm a bit confused here. If these rumors are right, these ghosts are dead soldiers from a year ago, form that battle with Xiang Yu. And I'm guessing this Hong'er is your son, and died in battle a year ago. So mind telling me why you're all out here looking for him, and acting as if he's alive?"

"I have been trying for nearly a year now to put him to rest . . ." replied the elderly man, tears forming at the corners of his eyes, "To make him understand that he should be on the journey to the afterworld . . . or maybe even to his next life. But every single time, he disappears before I can do anything. I'm powerless . . . incapable of stopping his comings and goings . . . All I want is him to finally be able to rest without continuing his hauntings . . . to help him overcome whatever is keeping him here."

[Wen Xu]

"Elder Jiao is mad," replied the foreman, shaking his head, "Quite mad. He was a brilliant man once, gifted with the talent of foresight. His talent of divining the future through the Book of Changes was otherworldly and gained him substantial respect and fame in this city and throughout these lands. Alas . . . fate is not something that wishes to be known. The Heavens drove him mad."

"You will have the power of the city's administration," continued the foreman, arching his eyebrow and looking at Wen Xu, "But this task that has been given to the two of you, is one that requires the utmost secrecy. The governor does not wish that his hand in these affairs be known. Your job is to complete the mission and to ensure that his hand is unseen, but felt nevertheless."

"Well then, sir. I believe I shall seek out this Elder Jiao. You say was a skilled seer and so I will go to him and learn of my futures. During this time I will try to convince him of the strength of the Chu cause." Looking over to the other warrior Xu asked, "And what are your plans?"

[Zhou Kahn]

"Hmmph, I could care less about the ghosts," replied Elder Guo rising form his haunches to regard the woman that his daughter had brought home, "Within my blood runs the blood of the Zhao royal family, rulers of these lands before the kingdom was destroyed by the Qin. The existence of these ghosts are merely but coincidental good fortune that will permit me the opportunity to attempt to restore my family's kingdom. There are far more important matters at hand than worrying about some frakking supernatural nonsense. There is simply put more at stake in this matter."

Zu sat there for a moment. This whole situation was ridiculous. But she mentally shrugged and then addressed his comments.

Mai Zu: "Well is there anything I can do for you instead? You say you want to restore your family's kingdom. If these ghosts can offer you an opportunity, maybe I can assist you as well?"

[Shen Feng]

"It is unlikely, the four elders who own the land have long been at loggerheads with one another," replied Elder Ju, shaking his head, "At one point or another, the family of the elders controlled this city for Zhao, with the sole exception being the noveau riche Elder Jia. It is unlikely that their generations of hatred and distaste have been resolved in a concerted attempt to seize this city. Though given the state of affairs, I don't know what to discount. If they have indeed working in cooperation . . . then we will have our hands full."

"In the meantime, the governor has called for volunteers to stand watch tonight at the valley where the burial grounds are located. You should go there and see as my representative." Handing over a small pendant, he continued. "This pendant will identify you as my representative and give you access to locations that you normally would not be permitted to enter. Take it and stay at the burial grounds. That's a start . . . and then let's go from there."

"I shall do that. Thank you for your aid, Elder Ju." Feng nodded, thinking things through in his head. They may not be working in conjunction, but chances were one of them at least had ulterior motives. "I shall report back to you should I find any information of note."

After asking the Elder for directions to the burial grounds, Feng bowed before him graciously and departed. He headed towards the burial grounds, making a note to keep his wits about him. People were having limbs severed and incidents were occuring to be blamed on 'ghosts', and he had little desire to become a victim of such an act.

[Suicide Fox]

Nodding firmly and without much to do, De Man begins to prepare himself for the night ahead.

[Brother Dun]

"It has only recently reached such a level that engenders discontent and unrest amongst the populace," replied Elder Ling, shaking his head, a hint of sadness in his voice, "A level sufficient to force us Elders and the city administrator to take notice and try to take action. It has only the last month or so that the situation has reached crisis levels. Before this, it seemed nothing more than a minor annoyance that everyone hoped would go away . . . Unfortunately, it did not go away. It steadily got worse as the months wore on."

"Now the administrator has called for volunteers to help," continued Elder Ling, "You should go on behalf of Elder Jia."

The scholar nodded his head, "Very well Elder Ling, you have been quite helpful."

Pausing a moment to give the man a respectful bow, the scholar of Xianyang left the library and went off to meet the city administrator. Stopping outside of the administrative complex, the scholar smiled and bowed to the guards on duty, "Greetings gentlemen, my name is Zu Yanghei. I am here to speak with the Magistrate, I have been brought in to help deal with these supposed 'hauntings' by Elder Jia."