Driven to Desperation
"So it turns out reporting to the County Office is useless. My poor child!" Su Li cried uncontrollably, slumping on the steps in front of the County Office, sobbing.
The group of women, seeing her cry so bitterly, rushed to comfort her. One thing led to another, and soon everyone was sharing their grievances together.
Su Li spoke first: "I took my just-turned-one-year-old son to the temple to offer incense. By the time we returned, it was late. We were in the carriage, and my son said his stomach hurt and needed the latrine, so I took him out and let him relieve himself in the roadside weeds. But just as I turned away for a moment to fetch something, my son disappeared..."
Lily Evans knew what Alexander Hayes was capable of. Now that this had caught his attention, the day the case would be solved was surely near.
The floodgates opened, and the women began recounting the scenes of losing their children.
Su Li listened without betraying her emotions, occasionally asking a question or two. The women remembered the events vividly, describing them in clear detail.
The more Su Li listened, the darker her expression became.
After a while, Su Li wiped her tears and said, "Since reporting to the County Office is useless, I’ll go home and have the servants search again."
With that, Su Li stood up, turned around, and got straight into the carriage.
"Did you learn anything, my lady?" Alexander Hayes asked.
Lily Evans frowned, her expression grave. "The places where these women lost their children are scattered across villages in every direction around the capital—very spread out. Yet the process is eerily similar: in the blink of an eye, the child is gone. The kidnapper moves incredibly fast, clearly possessing great martial skill. And when people search for the children, all they ever find are traces of blood and torn pieces of clothing. The way the clothes are shredded looks exactly like they were ripped apart by an animal's claws..."
Lily Evans paused, her eyes sharpening. "Your Highness, listening to those women describe what happened, I noticed a very suspicious pattern. After each child goes missing, the whole village mobilizes to search. Every time they find the bloodstained, shredded clothes, someone in the crowd spreads the rumor that I'm a monster who drinks blood. They make sure everyone believes the child was taken and killed by Princess Lily Hayes! The kidnapper is meticulous: they steal the child, then slip into the crowd at night to push the villagers to blame me. This person is calculating and ruthless. They've killed so many children—it's clear they're trying to drive me into a dead end!"
"This is outrageous!" Alexander Hayes was furious. "Whoever did this isn't human—they're a beast! If I ever get my hands on this monster, I'll make them regret ever being born!"
Lily Evans knew what Alexander Hayes was capable of. Now that he was involved, it was only a matter of time before the case was solved.
Just as the two returned to the Prince of Qin's Manor by carriage, the head constable from the Capital Constabulary rushed in, his face pale with anxiety.
"What's happened now?" Alexander Hayes immediately sensed trouble.
"Your Highness, it's terrible! While you and Princess Lily were outside the city, the Capital Constabulary received two new reports—more missing children! But this time, the families aren't ordinary farmers. One is the youngest legitimate son of a third-rank official, and the other is the daughter of a first-rank minister. Both families are now blocking our offices, demanding we catch the culprit immediately! I had no choice but to come to the Prince of Qin's Manor for help!"
"What? Even the families of high-ranking officials in the capital are losing children now?!" Lily Evans felt her heart skip a beat. She knew this was a terrible sign...