43 THE SINISTER TREE 5

"hey, miss, why is the village rice field was left unattended and let the weeds grow all over like that?"

The woman still kept her steady pace, without even look at the paddy, and a monotone voice she answers "Your Grace, that field was unused for a very long time."

So she answered, but when they went past another paddy, Crown Prince Lam saw the same thing. In fact, all of the rice paddies are like that, all are over growing by weed. Furthermore, at this time of the year is when the harvest time begin, yet from when they reached the top of the hill, the Crown Prince saw no paddy is being harvest, neither any piles of straw, one use to see lying around the paddies at harvest time.

After a while, they get off their velelies and enter the village's gate, the gate was built in tri-gate style, arching shape, with the middle arch is the taller and wider than the two auxiliary side gate, a typical Varlann village's gate design. The gate was made of ready available bamboo, look poorly maintain with a lot of wear and tear went unfix in a long time, the thing slightly swaying in the wind, and cracking like a rusty door hinges, making Crown Prince Lam nervous and worry that it going to collapse on them in any moment. The atmosphere inside the village is no better, Crown Prince Lam can clearly hear the Brocade Cloak Guards whisper with each other. "why are this village is so quiet?" "these people make my skin crawl." They said.

Right now, even Emperor Tu have to admit the creepy strangeness of this village. His face now shows anxious and worry, and exchange a worrying looks with his son, then the peasant women spoke.

"we're here, please get inside, the elders are waiting."

They tied the velelises outside the common house and step inside. According to Varlann's village culture, these kind of building is the entire community property, use for meeting, discussing the village's important affairs, festival activities and feast, also is the ceremony hall, and where the village's guardiant mascot lie. The common house sat right next to the giant cepirdar tree's trunk, the building is rectangle, about 15 lias long and 7 lias wide, curved roof with fish scale tiled, its column painted red, the paint is faded and peeling, the building had molded brick wall at two end. The common house looks filthy and shabby, inside is dark, but with a little sunlight left Crown Prince Lam can saw there is people inside it. When they came inside, a group of 6 village elders kneel down to greet Emperor Tu and Crown Prince Lam

"stand up, I am here for urgent state matter, no need for formality." Emperor Tu said.

With a weird monotone voice, the elders say their thank simultaneously and stand up.

"I've been told that, one week ago, there's an imperial convoy had passed and took a rest stop at this village, do you elders have any information about them? Do tell me everything yours know, even the smallest detail, this is important matter." Emperor Tu asked.

An old man about 60 of age, with white beard and a wrinkle emaciated face, step before Emperor Tu, interlocking his finger, bow and spoke with a creepy monotone voice.

"Your Majesty, it is true that an imperial convoy, had took a rest stop at our village a week ago, after that they continue on their way to the north, we do not notice anything abnormality."

"nothing? When we on our way to here, we found a corpse of a man belong to the convoy, the body only about 30 kelias, south of here, do you know anything about that?" Crown Prince Lam said.

"maybe they ran into something after leaved the village?" the old man spoke "we don't know anything about dead body or what had happened to them after they leaved."