 He returns home two months later to find his brother had died and his body had been cremated.Not believing his sister-in-law's account that his brother was claimed by a sudden illness, he conducts a private investigation.He learns that Pan is having an affair with a local merchant Ximen Qing (), a well-off scoundrel who has seduced the woman with the help of the tea house owner Granny Wang (), who lives next door to the Wus.