【Texture】(105, 106)

page views:1 Publication date:2023-03-23

Author: Wandering Traveler
, March 3, 2016, first published on sis,
Chapter 105:
In the car, Xu Yue was driving while anxiously muttering to herself. I
didn't find her behavior uncomfortable, because her voice was very pleasant. In this situation, her rambling chatter
actually sounded like a musical rhythm to my ears, giving me a certain pleasing feeling.
However, after listening carefully to what she was muttering, I couldn't help but turn my head to look at her in surprise.
This girl's mutterings didn't contain any dissatisfaction with her own financial loss; instead, she was more
worried about her cousin-in-law who had stolen her savings certificate and property certificate. She was more worried about her cousin-in-law being deceived and exploited by bad people than about her own
potential financial loss.
Realizing this, I was speechless. This girl seemed to be what some people in society now ridicule
as a "saintly hypocrite." Her love and compassion were overflowing to the point of being without principle. Realizing this, I
couldn't help but speak up and remind her.
"Xu Yue, what makes you so sure your sister-in-law deceived you because she was instigated and manipulated by someone else? The way she
pushed you away after getting out of the elevator was so smooth.
Maybe stealing your deposit slip and property certificate was her own plan..."
This girl was drugged and taken to a hotel after dinner last time and almost raped. Considering we're somewhat
acquainted,
I felt it was necessary to remind her of things like how you can't judge a book by its cover, and the treacherous nature of people.
"My sister-in-law is a good person!"
At this moment, Xu Yue's mind seemed a little foggy due to her emotional state. Faced with my questioning, she
didn't know how to refute me, only repeatedly telling me how kind her sister-in-law was,
how good her relationship with her cousin was, and how much she had taken care of her in the past.
I smiled faintly, unconvinced. However, as Xu Yue recounted her cousin's past
, I realized that her cousin's behavior this time was indeed hard to understand.
From Xu Yue's account, I learned that her cousin's family was very well-off, practically wealthy
. They also took great care of their younger sister. According to Xu Yue,
she received financial assistance from her cousin when buying her current house and car. Especially
regarding the car, it was her cousin who persuaded him to cover the shortfall.
The reason was that her cousin believed that as a beautiful single woman, Xu Yue was bound to be targeted by men with ill intentions
, given the current state of public safety. Having a car would at least provide
some protection.
From these details, her cousin's sister-in-law, as Xu Yue described, seemed to be a kind, family-oriented,
and socially adept woman. However, this only made her behavior today even more
perplexing.
Xu Yue's cousin's family is wealthy; he provides his wife and daughter with a fixed monthly allowance of 50,000 yuan. This amount
is enough to live comfortably even in a big city, let alone in our second- or third-tier prefecture-level
city. Therefore, theoretically, they shouldn't be short of money. Furthermore, Xu Yue's savings aren't
much, only around 100,000 yuan, and her apartment is small, costing less than 300,000 yuan when she bought it. Even with
rising property prices over the years, the estimated value wouldn't exceed 500,000 yuan. In other words,
the total value of everything Xu Yue's sister-in-law took from her wouldn't exceed 600,000 yuan. At
most, that's just a year's living expenses for her and her daughter. If they were frugal, they could save that much money in a little over a year at most.
Why would they resort to such deception to extort money from Xu Yue?
"Does your sister-in-law usually spend money like crazy?" I asked, frowning. Because Xu Yue's
words were rambling and disjointed. To deduce the reasons behind her behavior today, I
decided to guide Xu Yue to discover the truth through conversation.
"Luxury goods and jewelry are of course something she buys; every woman acquires some. But she's restrained
; the truly expensive items were all bought for her by my brother as gifts. However, since she stays home with the children, she's
naturally a bit bored, so she plays cards and such..." At this point, Xu Yue suddenly seemed to realize something
.
"I know! She must have lost money gambling and then borrowed money from loan sharks. Afraid my brother would scold her, she
decided to borrow money from me to tide her over..."
Realizing this, Xu Yue quickly affirmed her "reasonable conclusion.
" "...That must be it. It seems that after we find her, besides getting the property certificate back,
we should give her the bank deposits for emergencies..."
Just as she finished speaking, Xu Yue's phone beeped with the sound of text messages being sent and received. Xu Yue didn't think much of it, pointed to
her phone in the glove compartment under the handbrake, and said to me, "Brother Yan, I'm driving. It's inconvenient for me. Could you
check who sent me the text messages and what they are? The unlock code is xxxxxxxxx."
I picked up her phone and entered the unlock code as she instructed. Then I saw
a text message from someone she had labeled "Big Brother".
"Did you receive my previous text message? I'm sending you this message suddenly for no other reason than to let you know something.
Your sister-in-law has been acting strangely these past few days, constantly asking me for money. When I ask her why, she keeps
giving vague answers. So I haven't been paying attention to her or sending her any more money. I'm worried she won't get it from me, so I'm coming to
you. That's why I'm giving you this heads-up. Don't lend her money without a legitimate reason
. Wait until I get back and find out why she needs the money. If you have time, could you also help me find out what's going on with her? Let me know immediately if anything happens."
After I finished reading the message, Xu Yue's face quickly showed a regretful expression.
"Do you need me to reply for you? How should I reply?" she asked, looking at the message from her cousin.
It seems that Xu Yue's cousin is a shrewd man, very knowledgeable about his wife and his sister. He had predicted...
What would happen was clear; although the other party had anticipated it, the news came a step too late.
"What's done is done, so don't tell my brother the actual situation. Telling him will probably affect
his work and business. Just reply to him for me, 'I understand,' that's enough."
I shook my head, then, as Xu Yue requested, replied to her cousin with "I understand," before
putting her phone back in its original place. I began, "Your older brother is more perceptive than you; he already anticipated something
might have happened at home. Unfortunately, it was too late. By the way, does your sister-in-law like to gamble?"
Seeing my question, Xu Yue paused, then, as if answering me, yet also talking to herself,
said uncertainly, "Your question reminds me. My sister-in-law has been playing cards for years,
with the same few fixed partners, and the stakes aren't high—usually ten or twenty yuan. There's never
been any big wins or losses. My brother gives her more than she spends, and she even has a surplus each month
… So, borrowing money at high interest rates seems a bit…"
I added, stroking my chin. "...That doesn't make sense, does it? To be honest,
I've dealt with housewives like your sister-in-law before. Unless they're addicted to gambling, very few people would
associate with or have contact with people who lend money to gamblers. Your brother is such a shrewd man, would
n't he know whether his wife gambles or not? When I was a reporter, I dealt with all sorts of people, including those from gambling companies! These
days, they value personal relationships in business. Most of the time, unless the amount is huge, they
don't want to go too far. You said it yourself, your sister-in-law only wins or loses ten or twenty yuan at a time,
how much could she owe anyone? Let alone borrow money from gamblers. So, your previous suspicions aren't very reliable.
Besides, your brother's text message made it very clear. Your sister-in-law's problems only started in the last few days.
Think about it carefully, has anything changed for your sister-in-law in the last few days?"
Xu Yue frowned, carefully recalling as she drove.
"...Changes? Let me think... My daughter started kindergarten in the second half of the year. Besides picking her up and dropping her off, my sister-in-law
is mostly at home doing housework, watching TV, and occasionally going out to play cards. It seems like
nothing has changed... Wait, I remember now..."
Xu Yue seemed to have finally remembered something and said. "...About two weeks ago, she came to
our club during the day and told me she was bored at home and wanted to do some exercise or something.
So I contacted the owner and got her a membership card. She only worked out for half a day and then stopped coming
. I called her, and she said the workout here was too intense, she couldn't handle it and wanted to
try something gentler. Our club charges by the class, so if she didn't come, we wouldn't deduct
money, and the membership card wouldn't go to waste, so I didn't force her to continue. A day later, she called me
and said she'd joined some kind of yoga class. She'd
be going there from now on. I thought yoga was good, and the intensity might be more suitable for her age. So I let her go."
"Yoga?"
Hearing that word again, my facial muscles twitched involuntarily.
"You mean Tantric yoga?" I asked tentatively.
Xu Yue, as a fitness instructor, was quite familiar with this industry. It was precisely for this reason that
she was clear about the actual situation of so-called "Tantra Yoga" in China today. So, when I mentioned the
term, her expression immediately changed.
"...Oh dear! Now that you mention it, it might actually be true. A few days ago, a colleague of mine told me that someone
was incredibly bold. They actually opened a Tantra Yoga studio openly in the city, and it had only just opened not long ago
. I was even joking with her that it would be shut down sooner or later..."
"That stuff is already notorious in big cities. We're a small city here,
not many people know what it's all about... Wait, that's not right! Xu Yue, which way are you driving?" As I spoke, I
noticed that Xu Yue had actually driven the car to Lijia Village in the eastern suburbs of the city.
"That's right... My brother's family lives here!"
"Wh-what?" I blinked, asking in disbelief. "Your brother is so rich,
why did he settle down here? Didn't he consider buying a more upscale residence in the city center?"
"How do you know my brother doesn't have a house in the city? He and my sister-in-law originally had a house there. This
house was bought four years ago, when my sister-in-law was pregnant. He deliberately bought it here for the peace and quiet, so it would be convenient for
her to have a healthy pregnancy. After our daughter was born, he and my sister-in-law got used to it and have been living here ever since
."
Hearing Xu Yue's explanation, I realized what was going on and quickly understood why my cousin Xu Yue had acted this way.
Li Family Village was originally a quiet little village on the outskirts of the city. However, with the extension of transportation and
the continuous expansion of the city, it has long been incorporated into the current administrative divisions of the city, becoming what is now known as
an "urban village" in many cities. So, although the name sounds rustic and there are no high-rise buildings, it has many advantages such as convenient transportation and a quiet environment
. Therefore, it has attracted some wealthy people to buy property here. Xu Yue's cousin
, a shrewd businessman, had probably long recognized the potential for land and property appreciation in this area. Coupled with his wife's need
for a quiet environment, he moved his residence here four years ago.
Xu Yue stopped the car on the main road. I got out and followed her into the undeveloped village
housing complex. The stone-paved streets and narrow alleys reminded me of my hometown, Qingyuan Town.
After walking for a few minutes, a detached rural courtyard came into view. Xu Yue noticed
the old padlock hanging on the wooden door and stamped her foot.
"Oh no, my sister-in-law hasn't come back at all! I was wondering why I hadn't seen a taxi going back
! It seems we can't find her to talk to her face-to-face. We have to go back to the city to report it lost and to file a police report..." As
she spoke, Xu Yue reached out to pull me away. But when she pulled, she noticed my serious expression.
I stared at the small courtyard, showing no intention of leaving with her.
Xu Yue was somewhat puzzled by my behavior, while I found myself in a predicament.
"Yin energy..." In Xu Yue's eyes, the rural courtyard her cousin had bought locally 　　was no different from
the other farmhouses scattered around. But in my eyes, this farmhouse, covering three or four hundred square meters 　　, was filled with eeriness and danger. 　　The reason was simple: through my Crimson Lotus Eyes, I clearly saw the 　　extremely dense and black Yin energy gathering and condensing above the house. Not only that... the walls surrounding the entire courtyard 　　were covered with ghostly marks invisible to the naked eye... 　　"Brother Yan, what's wrong? Why do you look so scary?" 　　Xu Yue noticed my expression and asked in surprise. 　　I tried hard to suppress my twitching eyebrows and make my expression appear calm. 　　"Ah...it's nothing!" I said, quickly making up my mind and thinking fast 　　about what to say. 　　"...Xu Yue, since your sister-in-law hasn't come back here, we'll have to go back to the city to report the loss to the police station and 　　cancel the bank deposit slip. Originally, I should have gone with you to do these things. But I suddenly remembered 　　something important that needs to be taken care of. So, I'm afraid we'll have to part ways here." 　　"W-what did you say?" 　　Xu Yue's beautiful eyes widened in disbelief. She couldn't understand why I would suddenly suggest that we 　　separate. 　　"Actually, you can get things done quickly by yourself when you get back. First, go to the bank to report the loss, then 　　go to the police station to report it. The police station might require you to answer questions from officers, which will take 　　time. So that's for later. Reporting the loss at the bank is simpler; after explaining the situation, they'll 　　process it immediately. So don't get the order wrong. Okay, I just remembered the things I need to do are in Lijia Village, so 　　I'll head over now..." 　　With that, I turned around immediately, not giving Xu Yue time to react, and quickly disappeared into the nearby stone-paved alley 　　. 　　Xu Yue was clearly shocked by my sudden "rude behavior," and didn't react for a long time. It wasn't until 　　I had run quite a distance into the alley that she remembered to catch up and ask what was going on. But it was obviously 　　too late. After quickly turning a few corners in the village streets, she completely lost track of me. 　　Ten minutes later, I hid at the corner of a house by the roadside, watching Xu Yue drive away alone, looking dejected 　　. Then I turned around again, using the direction of the gathering yin energy in the distance to 　　locate Xu Yue's cousin's house. 　　Passing a farmhouse, I saw a sickle in the corner where farm tools were piled. 　　Realizing no one was home, I slipped inside and stole the sickle… 　　"I wonder what happened to Xu Yue's sister-in-law's family. But it must be related to that intense yin energy and 　　the ghostly spots on the walls. Maybe those things are what's causing her 　　strange behavior…" 　　I hid the sickle inside my clothes, pretending to be nonchalant as I walked along the stone path, 　　thinking. 　　Although leaving on my own was very wrong, considering the danger, I had no choice but to resort to this 　　tactic—sending Xu Yue away and acting alone. 　　Reaching the courtyard wall, I gazed at the still swirling, malevolent aura above and 　　let out a long sigh. 　　I didn't know why I was acting this way. Logically, whatever supernatural 　　things happened in Xu Yue's family was their own business, none of my concern. I really didn't need to step in and defend her 　　. 　　But on the other hand, my conscience told me I couldn't just pretend I knew nothing and walk away. 　　In the past, I was an ordinary person, ignorant and powerless—that was one thing; but now, I understood 　　the power within me… The power of the Red Lotus had unconsciously instilled in me a strange, 　　indescribable sense of mission. Driven by this sense of mission, I finally decided to enter the courtyard 　　and investigate. 　　The courtyard wall wasn't high, only a little over two meters—a standard "guard against honest people, not thieves" design! Its 　　primary function was soundproofing and protecting the residents' privacy, rather than theft prevention. This was almost identical to my old house in Qingyuan Town. 　　So I easily jumped over the wall on the side of the main gate into the courtyard. 　　Once inside, I looked up and froze... 　　"W-what's going on? This courtyard...it looks so familiar?" 　　A stone table sat in the center of the courtyard, flanked by two side rooms, with the main gate facing 　　the main hall. I suddenly realized that the layout and furnishings of this courtyard were 　　almost identical to my ancestral home in Qingyuan Town. 　　Of course, it wouldn't be accurate to say they were exactly the same. The size of the houses seemed 　　smaller than my Yan family's ancestral home, and the orientation was slightly different. 　　After my initial shock, I immediately laughed at myself. The reason was simple: I suddenly remembered that the layout of my ancestral home 　　was a fixed style of housing in this area. Historically, Li Family Village and my hometown, Qingyuan Town, had always 　　been under the jurisdiction of the same prefecture, so it wasn't surprising that the house structures and layouts were similar. 　　In fact, in Qingyuan Town alone, there are several ancestral homes belonging to so-called "wealthy families" with 　　layouts identical to my Yan family 　　's ancestral home. The only differences are the placement of some furnishings and items. Having understood this, I quickly banished the absurd thoughts from my mind and used 　　the power of the Crimson Lotus to observe the entire courtyard. 　　After observing for a while, I focused my attention on the main house. Through the Crimson Lotus Eye, 　　I noticed that billowing black, malevolent energy flowed from the two doors leading to the inner room in the main hall, running 　　along the floor.

"Hmm, it seems the problem is inside the main house... Go in and find the source of this yin energy, and figure out how to resolve it!
If I can't handle it, I'll just call Ye Tong and have him come help. By the way,
it seems I have to pay him according to the rules, but that's okay, I still have 250,000 with him,
we'll just deduct the agreed price from that..."
I pondered how to completely resolve the problem in the courtyard, while cautiously walking towards the main hall
. As I passed the stone table in the courtyard, I reflexively lifted my leg, stepping over
several small bonsai trees placed on the ground beside the table. After taking a couple more steps, I couldn't help but blink, realizing something was wrong
...
I suddenly realized that after entering the courtyard, I hadn't actually noticed these bonsai trees placed
beside the stone table at all. The stepping motion when passing the side of the stone table was simply a habitual reaction that I had unconsciously developed . And this habit had unintentionally prevented me from being 　　tripped by
the unnoticed bonsai trees on the ground . 　　Unconsciously, I felt my breathing quicken. Standing in the center of the courtyard, I observed 　　the courtyard before me once more. 　　"The west wing is on the left, and there's an empty earthenware jar on the eaves near the main entrance..." As I thought of this, 　　the empty jar in the same spot came into view. 　　"The east wing is on the right, and the room near the main hall is a guest room, with two potted boxwoods at the entrance..." 　　When I turned my head, the two potted boxwoods at the entrance of that room came into view. 　　My eyelids twitched uncontrollably... 　　"This, this is impossible... How can the furnishings and layout of this courtyard be 　　exactly the same as the furnishings and layout of my old house in Qingyuan Town in my childhood memories?" 　　When I realized that the scene in my memory matched the furnishings in the courtyard at this moment one by one, and there was almost no surprise 　　, I stood there dumbfounded, as if I had lost my soul. 　　"The main hall, that's right, the main hall! I remember that in my family's main hall, unlike other families in the area, there wasn't an 　　ancestral tablet. Instead, there was a hanging scroll with the four large characters 'Dao Fa Zi Ran' (The Way Follows Nature) written by my great-grandfather. Could 　　it be the same here?" 　　When I first entered the courtyard, I vaguely saw a hanging scroll hanging on the screen wall between the two back doors in the center of the main hall 　　, but it was far away, and I only glanced at it briefly and couldn't see it clearly. Now, when I looked up and focused my gaze 　　on the screen wall in the main hall, my mouth couldn't help but open wide! 　　"...This, how is this possible? This calligraphy... I've recognized it since I was a child. This hanging scroll... how did it end up 　　in this courtyard?" 　　At this moment, I felt like a walking corpse, slowly stepping into the main hall before me, 　　finally standing in front of the hanging scroll with the four large characters "Dao Fa Zi Ran" written in a flamboyant style. 　　What I saw with my Crimson Lotus Eye—the pervasive yin energy in the house, the ghostly marks on the walls— 　　was all unimportant to me… 　　“Chu Nan Mo Xue…” 　　Looking at the signature on the lower left of the scroll, I was certain. The scroll hanging on this screen 　　was indeed the one my great-grandfather had written and once displayed in the main hall of our old house in Qingyuan Town! 　　My great-grandfather used several pseudonyms during his lifetime. “Chu Nan Mo Xue” was one of them, 　　and many of the manuscripts he left behind in my family also bear this signature. 　　"Could it be that I've unknowingly teleported to my ancestral home in Qingyuan Town? Honglian has this 　　ability? But isn't teleportation unique to Setsuna? And even for Haruhi, who possesses Setsuna's ability, 　　teleportation is strictly limited; she can only teleport a maximum of five times in a short period, and each teleportation 　　is within ten meters. In other words, even Setsuna couldn't have teleported instantly from Lijia Village to my 　　ancestral home in Qingyuan Town. Those two places are tens of kilometers apart..." 　　I stared dumbfounded at the hanging scroll before me, my mind a complete blank. 　　"No, this is still the farmhouse that Xu Yue's cousin bought in Lijia Village!" 　　After a long while, I confirmed this again. I remembered that when I returned to the old house last time, 　　all the original furnishings and decorations had been removed. Only the empty rooms and courtyard remained, along with 　　the stone table in the courtyard, empty flowerpots, the tables and chairs in the main hall, and the bed frames in the rooms. 　　How could these familiar things from my childhood appear in 　　my cousin Xu Yue's house in Lijia Village? These things were all part of the Yan family's estate… 　　I blinked, my thoughts involuntarily drifting back to the memories of the tragedy that befell my family twenty years ago 　　. 　　After I woke up in the hospital, my uncle took me back to his home in the city to live under his care. 　　He handled the aftermath at the ancestral home. 　　As a cultured man, he was well aware of the value of the manuscripts left by my great-grandfather and grandfather. Therefore 　　, he soon went to the ancestral home, cleared out most of their books and manuscripts, and packed them up 　　to take home. Besides these, there were other valuables such as jewelry. After my uncle and aunt 　　passed away, these items were inherited by me and A-Guang respectively. A-Guang was a rough man and had no 　　interest in books and manuscripts, so when dividing the ancestral inheritance, he only kept the personal belongings of his grandmother, my grandfather's childhood sweetheart, as 　　a keepsake. Most of the family belongings, including books, manuscripts, and my grandmother's jewelry 　　, eventually ended up in my hands. 　　However, this "Tao follows nature" hanging scroll, which stands before me, is not among them. Not only this scroll, 　　but also many decorations and old-fashioned appliances that I remember once displayed in the ancestral home are gone, including my grandmother 　　's beloved old gramophone… 　　My uncle did tell me about the whereabouts of these items before he passed away. 　　He spent several days cleaning out the old house, sorting and 　　packing everything up, intending to transport it all back to his residence in the city. At that time, there weren't any 　　professional moving companies in the area, so he used personal connections to find a tractor in the county to transport the things.

It was loaded onto the trailer of a tractor and brought back...
but some accidents happened during transport. Back then, there were no provincial highways, national highways, or expressways. The
only way to get from Qingyuan Town to the city was via the old road through Huaqiao Town. A section of this old road ran along the cliffs of the Qingjiang River
. The tractor was not only slow, but also extremely bumpy. When it reached that cliffside section
, due to the bumps and the fact that the items weren't properly arranged before loading,
several boxes and packages placed at the rear of the trailer were thrown off and rolled down the cliff into the Qingjiang River. Among these were
the boxes and packages containing this hanging scroll and some calligraphy and paintings. Of course, Grandma's favorite
gramophone was also among them.
My aunt, I'm sure, also adored that gramophone and complained about it several times, blaming my uncle for being
unreliable. A perfectly good antique gramophone, worth a considerable sum today, just fell
into the river…
Knowing the reason for its loss, yet seeing it reappear in this house before me now
gave me an extremely surreal feeling.
"The scroll is here… Could it be that the gramophone will also appear? I remember the gramophone was always
placed inside the right-hand door, in Grandma's bedroom."
Thinking this, I instinctively turned to go inside the right-hand door to investigate. Just then,
I heard a rustling sound coming from outside the courtyard wall. Startled, I ran out of the main hall and quickly
hid behind the side of the left wing.
Chapter 106
Because this traditional courtyard layout is quite open, with no obstruction in the center of the courtyard, basically everything is visible once you enter,
except for the corners partially hidden by the three houses. Therefore, after hiding, I
didn't peek out from the corner. I only heard the sounds of a body colliding with the courtyard wall and objects hitting the ground
.
It was undoubtedly a person who had climbed over the wall. Because the landing was relatively quiet, the climber
had clearly adjusted their landing posture to minimize the noise.
The person didn't linger in the courtyard, seemingly only briefly surveying the area before
heading towards the main hall. I began to move, eventually ending up behind the left wing. At the same time, I
muttered to myself…
“The one who didn't open the door and climbed over the wall like me shouldn't be Xu Yue's sister-in-law. Could it be a thief?
This is quite a coincidence. Why did they have to come and steal when I was here?”
However, I quickly made up my mind. A thief entering at this time might not be a bad thing for me.
This courtyard was shrouded in yin energy; who knows what terrifying ghosts or monsters might be lurking there? Letting this
thief go in and “lead the charge” for me wouldn't be bad. If he could enter and exit safely, I could naturally go in again
to investigate. If he bumped into something, he could be my scapegoat…
That was my thought, but the footsteps coming from the courtyard made me a little suspicious.
The person who came in didn't seem to be trying to conceal their actions. The sound of their footsteps wasn't low either, and to
me, the footsteps sounded a bit unusual, with a slightly fragmented rhythm, not like a man's, but more like a woman's walking rhythm.
"…A female thief?"
Realizing this, I finally couldn't suppress my curiosity and secretly peeked out from the back corner of the left wing
. I saw the person who came in, walking straight into the main hall without looking to either side.
"Xu Yue? Why is that girl back? Oh my god, there might be something unclean in the main room.
She's going to be in trouble for barging in like this…"
When I saw that the person who climbed over the wall was actually Xu Yue, I was instantly filled with extreme regret!
"That was so careless. Why didn't I plant a flame on that girl before to pinpoint her
location?"
Regret aside, strictly speaking, the blame shouldn't necessarily fall on me. The advice to "be cautious about planting Crimson
Lotus Flames" was given to me by Wang Lie on my way to Muli County after leaving Xia Yu City, after confirming I had mastered
the method…
The reason was simple. While the main function of the Crimson Lotus Flame was to help the user of Crimson Lotus abilities locate
and track targets, it still contained the power of a small Crimson Lotus Flame. Once implanted,
it would inevitably cause some degree of harm to the recipient's body, a
fact unavoidable for both demons and monsters, and ordinary humans. Although the damage from a single instance was negligible,
if a Crimson Lotus Flame remained in an ordinary person's body for a long time, it would eventually cause
serious physical discomfort. Moreover, compared to demons and monsters, ordinary people had a lower tolerance for Crimson Lotus Flames
. Therefore, Wang Lie believed that unless absolutely necessary, it was best not to
implant flames into the bodies of ordinary people. The purpose, naturally, was to avoid potential harm to innocent individuals.
Furthermore, there was a limit to the total number of Red Lotus flames a user could implant into another person at once. The exact number that could be released at once depended on the user's mastery and 　　control
of their Red Lotus power . Additionally, there was the Red Lotus's so-called aptitude and potential. 　　According to him, among the historically documented Red Lotus users, the strongest could release 　　eighty-one Red Lotus flames simultaneously. That is, this strongest Red Lotus could track eighty-one targets at the same time. The 　　weakest, however, could only track thirty-six targets simultaneously. The strength of a Red Lotus user could largely 　　be determined by the number of Red Lotus flames they could release, but regardless of the number, 　　the number of flames a Red Lotus could release seemed to always be a multiple of nine. 　　After understanding this, I immediately and secretly began experimenting within the team to test the maximum number of Red Lotus flames I could release 　　. Upon testing, I discovered that thirty-six flames were my limit. This meant that 　　my Red Lotus form seemed to be roughly equivalent to the weakest Red Lotus in history. 　　Dejected, I told Wang Lie about this. Wang Lie was intrigued by my secret experiment with releasing flames.

Fa was somewhat annoyed, but he still comforted me. He told me that
the flames those two Crimson Lotuses could release were the results of their strongest periods.
The number of flames a Crimson Lotus can release simultaneously throughout its life is not fixed. The weakest Crimson Lotus could only release a maximum of nine flames at first
, but later, with experience and mastery of the Crimson Lotus's abilities, it eventually reached thirty-six. The
strongest Crimson Lotus also didn't initially release eighty-one flames; similarly, it
only achieved that power through understanding and mastery of the Crimson Lotus. At this moment, my understanding of my own Crimson Lotus is still
incomplete. Under these circumstances, being able to release thirty-six flames already proves that my potential
definitely surpasses that of the "weakest Crimson Lotus" in history. Because in his view, once I fully master
the Crimson Lotus power within me, the number of Crimson Lotus flames I can release will inevitably
increase from the current thirty-six. However, he couldn't predict how many I would ultimately reach.
Wang Lie wasn't one to speak carelessly, nor would he say nice things just to encourage or comfort someone. Realizing
this, I immediately regained some confidence. If Wang Lie's assessment was correct, I might still be far from being the
"strongest Crimson Lotus," but I certainly wouldn't be labeled the "weakest Crimson Lotus" in the future.
However, regardless of whether it's the strongest or the weakest, there's a limit to the number of Crimson Lotuses that can be released simultaneously. This made me realize
that I couldn't waste the available flames carelessly anymore. Because I haven't yet mastered
the method to eliminate released flames. If I easily wasted all thirty-six flames,
I wouldn't be able to implant new ones when I encountered someone who truly needed them. I would have to wait for the previous thirty-
six flames to disappear on their own over time before I could implant another.
For these two reasons, I'm now extremely cautious in using Crimson Lotus flames. And precisely because of
this caution, although I considered implanting a flame into Xu Yue's body before leaving, I
ultimately decided against it.
Unexpectedly, this girl returned, reappearing in the courtyard, catching me
completely off guard and putting me in a dilemma.
Should I immediately stop her from entering the main room?
There might be unknown dangers there. But if I stopped her, how could I explain to her that
I had secretly climbed over the wall into her cousin's house?
While I was still struggling with this dilemma, Xu Yue had already stepped into the main hall and disappeared from my sight.
Xu Yue seemed to sense some movement coming from the main room. She then
spoke softly towards the two side doors in the main hall.
"Is anyone home? Who's home? Sister-in-law, is that you?"
When there was no response from inside, Xu Yue called again. "Who is it? Is it Brother Yan?"
As she called out, the sound of her footsteps reached my ears…
Hearing Xu Yue's last question, I was completely speechless.
I thought I had climbed over the wall and entered without anyone noticing. Now it seems Xu Yue
is much smarter than I thought, actually guessing that I might have entered this courtyard.
Thinking about it again, I understood. This must have been caused by my previous unusual behavior
.
It's understandable; before arriving at this courtyard, my behavior was perfectly normal. But upon seeing
the courtyard, I immediately made an excuse to slip away from her. Although Xu Yue
seems a bit naive in terms of personality and psychology, her intelligence is unquestionable. After driving away, she probably only thought for a moment
before realizing that my sudden unusual behavior must be related to the rural courtyard her cousin had bought. So she
turned back, ran back, and followed me, climbing over the wall into the courtyard.
My purpose in coming in was to investigate the reason for the gathering of yin energy in the courtyard. She returned to confirm
whether I had secretly entered her cousin's house as she suspected, and also to find out my
reasons for doing so.
Judging from the sounds coming from the main hall, I knew she would go straight to the inner room behind it, so
I finally couldn't resist and crawled out from behind the left wing.
If it were a thief or something, I wouldn't mind having them "roll the plates" for me. But it
was Xu Yue who came in; how could I let her be the scapegoat?
So, I quickly rushed to the outside of the main hall, and peeking out, I only saw Xu Yue's
back as she turned into the left side door. I immediately ran into the main hall, and then heard a muffled sound coming from the side bedroom of the main room inside the left door.
Without any hesitation, I rushed into the left side door.
The layout of this courtyard house was almost identical to my old house in Qingyuan Town.
A narrow passageway led from the side gate, with two small doors on either side at the end of the passageway, each containing two rooms. The room on the
left, closer to the courtyard, was smaller; I remember it being used as a study in my ancestral home. The larger room on the right
was likely a secondary bedroom, the one I lived in during my childhood. So, almost without
thinking, I turned right and entered what was theoretically the secondary bedroom after rushing to the end of the passageway.
Then, I was utterly stunned by what I saw…
Xu Yue was sitting on the floor near the entrance of this room. The dull thud from before must have been from her
falling to the ground in extreme terror. And the reason for her condition was now
laid bare before my eyes.
A rope hung from the old-fashioned beam. Hanging from the rope was a completely still corpse.
The corpse was small, apparently a minor. Her bright red children's clothes,
especially the matching bright red shoes, were jarringly eye-catching.
Xu Yue heard the sound behind her and abruptly turned to look at me.
"Yan... Brother Yan?"
I didn't respond, but stepped forward, positioned myself beside her, raised my scythe, and
slashed fiercely into the space in front of me…

A red trail, like the blood left by a human body after 　　being slashed, quickly appeared in the space where the scythe blade had cut !
Of course, this was only what Xu Yue saw.
But in my Red Lotus vision, besides the various furnishings and the young
girl's corpse hanging from the rafters, a surging tide of blood was churning within the room. Before Xu Yue, a blurry red blood-red figure was slowly
approaching her.
Faced with this situation, I had no choice but to rush to Xu Yue's side without hesitation, grabbing
the scythe and slashing at the red blood-red figure.
Whether it would have an effect, I didn't know; the slash was merely an instinctive reaction. However,
as I swung the scythe, I had already considered my next move. If the scythe's physical attack was ineffective against this monster,
I would immediately drag Xu Yue out of the house and try to escape through the courtyard.
But to my surprise, my slash actually had an effect.
In Xu Yue's view, I had slashed a bloody mark in the void, and in my vision, my
scythe had brutally cut a long gash in the chest of the red blood shadow.
After being injured, the blood shadow's blurred face revealed a gaping maw, and I could even see its
gleaming fangs.
However, upon noticing the golden halo emanating from the pupils of my eyes, the blood shadow immediately
retreated several steps, then rolled into the surging tide of blood, merging its entire body into it. Then,
the crimson tide throughout the room seemed to come alive,
rushing outwards from both sides of where Xu Yue and I were at an astonishing speed…
Moments later, apart from the still-pervasive black aura, there was no
trace of the blood tide left in the room.
The heavy stench of blood that I had smelled upon entering the room also quickly dissipated.
I didn't have time to speak to Xu Yue; I immediately turned and rushed out of the house. I saw a trail
of blood, its tail, disappear into the main hall along the passageway. Without hesitation, I gave chase.
What it was, I didn't know. But it was clear my scythe could harm it. Realizing
this, I was no longer afraid; the thought of annihilating it completely sprang to mind.
Driven by this thought, I followed the blood tide into the main hall.
I initially thought it would escape to the courtyard in the center, but unexpectedly,
it quickly turned a corner after entering the main hall and surged into the side door on the right. I followed relentlessly.
Passing through the same passage, the blood tide rolled into the master bedroom on the left. But when I entered the room, I was astonished to see the blood tide 　　disappear
into the gaps between the blue bricks on the bedroom floor . 　　I immediately rushed to the floor and knelt down to examine it. Then, I quickly came to a 　　conclusion: there seemed to be a hollow space beneath these blue bricks, and I could vaguely feel air circulating in the gaps. 　　Hearing footsteps behind me, I immediately turned around. I saw Xu Yue had also followed me to the door of this room. 　　Seeing me turn to look at her, Xu Yue said with a tragic expression, "It's Nannan... the one who hanged herself is my niece, 　　Nannan!" 　　I nodded calmly. On the way here, Xu Yue had told me about her 　　little niece who had just started kindergarten. Her words were full of love and heartache. And when I entered that room and saw the hanging 　　body, I had guessed this. Now, Xu Yue's words confirmed my guess. 　　"Should we call the police?" 　　Xu Yue asked, her whole body trembling, for my opinion. 　　I shook my head and said, "You've seen everything. The police can't handle this. And even if 　　the police come, we won't be able to explain it..." 　　As I spoke, I quickly surveyed the scene in the master bedroom in front of me. 　　Then, the muscles on my face began to tremble uncontrollably. 　　"...Just as I suspected! Only the old-fashioned gramophone is missing." 　　Although it was only a quick glance, I had already seen 　　everything clearly—the furnishings and everything in the main house. 　　Just as I had predicted. In this courtyard, the style and placement of the furniture, the various 　　decorations, furnishings, and items were almost identical to the old house in Qingyuan Town where I lived in my childhood 　　. The only difference was that the furniture here seemed newer, not as old as in the old house 　　. Also, the old-fashioned gramophone, which was the signature feature, was missing from the master bedroom where my grandmother used to live, 　　while the other rooms had more books, paintings, and tea sets. 　　Realizing this, I asked Xu Yue, "I remember you said this house was 　　bought by your cousin four years ago?" 　　Xu Yue was completely lost at this point and somewhat confused by my sudden question, but 　　after witnessing my unbelievable actions, she clearly saw me as the 　　only hope for solving the strange things happening in her cousin's family. So, trembling, she answered my question. 　　"No, that's right! When he bought this place, I even accompanied him to see it..." 　　"Did your cousin design the decorations and furnishings?" 　　Xu Yue shook her head vigorously. 　　"No, no. It was like this when my brother and his family moved in. My brother really liked 　　the retro style of this house, so he didn't make any changes at all. And when he bought the house, 　　he bought the furniture, furnishings, and decorations all at once, which cost him at least an extra 　　100,000 yuan..." 　　"Phew..." 　　I couldn't help but let out a long sigh. Then she asked, "Have you ever met the original owners of this house 　　?" 　　"The original owners?" 　　Xu Yue gasped, clearly struggling to suppress her fear and dread. After a moment's thought, 　　she replied, "It seems the original inhabitants were a widow and her daughter. I came with my brother to look at the house..."

"Back then, I didn't see the mother, only the daughter. I remember the girl was about fifteen or sixteen years old
, a very pretty girl... Hmm, right, she seemed to have a rather noticeable mole on her eyebrow
... By the way, Brother Yan, why are you asking these questions? Is it related to the present?"
"A mole on her eyebrow?"
Hearing Xu Yue's words, my pupils couldn't help but dilate slightly. At the same time, I pointed to
a spot slightly above my right eyebrow and asked,
"Is the mole here?"
Xu Yue was clearly startled by my expression and took a step back, trembling. But after hesitating for a moment,
she nodded in response. "Okay, that seems to be it! I was curious
that a mother and daughter would live here , so when I accompanied my brother to look at the house, I paid a few extra glances at the girl... By
the way, Brother Yan, why are you asking all this?"
"Damn it... It's like finding a needle in a haystack! I've finally caught you red-
handed..."
I thought to myself as I stood up and spoke to Xu Yue.
"Xu Yue, you ask me why? I don't know how to explain it to you! But, there's something strange about the courtyard your cousin bought
. It's completely enveloped in Yin energy. Until we find the cause and eliminate this Yin energy
, no one can live there anymore."
Xu Yue's eyes were wide open, staring blankly at me, her face completely bewildered...
I sighed and continued. "We've known each other for quite some time now. Let me tell you directly,
I'm different from others; I possess some abilities that others might consider special. And some of my friends
are the ones who handle these strange things happening to your cousin's family. You saw it yourself; your
niece has probably been dead for a while. You should know that her death has nothing to do with me
. I left under some pretext because I noticed something strange about the courtyard your cousin bought, and I wanted to
investigate after you left. I did this because I didn't want you to get involved in this kind of thing…
" "
…But this is my cousin's house! Nannan is my niece! How can I stay out of this?"
Xu Yue's emotions immediately surged upon hearing this.
Hearing her voice rise sharply, I hurriedly went to her side and forcefully slapped her
shoulder, my expression fierce as I snapped at her to stop. "Why are you shouting so loudly? Do you want to
attract all the neighbors around here? I'm warning you, doing this won't help! It will only involve more irrelevant people
, and might even cause widespread social panic. Can you take that responsibility?"
As I said this, I suddenly understood the behavior of Wang Lie and his group! At this
moment, I suddenly felt truly integrated into their circle.
This was the first time Xu Yue had seen me speak to her so sternly. Coupled with her already extremely
unsettled state, she suddenly fainted right in front of me...
I didn't notice at first, until her body suddenly collapsed and her head was about to hit the stone bricks on the ground, then
I quickly caught her.
Then I carried her to the courtyard and placed her on the stone table. The main house was completely covered and shrouded in Yin energy
, and letting her lie there would inevitably expose her body to the corrosive and harmful effects of this energy. Furthermore, there was a
hanged little girl's corpse inside ... If she knew she had slept there, who knows how terrified she would be when she woke up
?
Although the courtyard was also filled with yin energy, it was much thinner, so letting her lie there would at least
protect her from too much harm.
After settling her in, I stroked my chin, pondering what to do next.
Although I had successfully driven away the blood shadow monster that could merge with the invisible blood tide, the current
situation in the courtyard didn't allow me to simply leave with Xu Yue.
Because I had just discovered that the true source of this yin energy in the courtyard was actually
the cracks between the blue bricks in the master bedroom.
Even after the blood tide monster disappeared from there, dense yin energy continued to flow from the cracks. From this, I
deduced that there was probably something else beneath those blue bricks in the master bedroom.
Originally, I planned to persuade Xu Yue to leave before trying to pry open the blue bricks to investigate. But Xu Yue
's fainting immediately disrupted my plans.
Before Xu Yue entered, I unexpectedly activated Honglian's X-ray vision again, and used
it to discover what appeared to be an artificial passage leading downwards beneath those blue bricks. However, the X-ray vision
only lasted for a very short few seconds. Therefore, I didn't have time to truly see
the specifics of the artificial passage below. I was
unsure how long it was, where it led, or how long it would take to investigate.
Xu Yue had fainted, and I didn't feel comfortable leaving her here alone, so I went down to check. But it wouldn't
be appropriate to take her away first and then come back.
Judging from the speed and spread of the yin energy, I estimated that in a few hours, the yin
energy in this courtyard would spread to the surrounding houses. If it wasn't eliminated at its source as soon as possible, it would inevitably
affect the other residents of Li Family Village. Therefore, it was necessary to deal with the situation here as quickly as possible
.
After confirming this, I immediately dialed Ye Tong's number.
"Little Leaf?"
"What Little Leaf? Yan Ping, how come you're just like Wang Lie and Lao Han now!
Calling me Little Leaf? Let me tell you... if you call me Little Leaf again, I'll get angry! You're Little Leaf, your whole family
are Little Leaf..."
"...Okay, okay, okay! I was wrong... I was wrong! But now I've run into some trouble. I don't know
how to deal with it. Do you have time? Come over to Lijia Village right away!"
"Lijia Village? What are you doing there? What happened?"
I organized my thoughts and, in the shortest amount of time,
explained to him the changes in Xu Yue's cousin's family and the situation in this courtyard.
"Damn, this is happening in broad daylight? You're right, it definitely needs to be dealt with immediately
... But I'm afraid I can't get there in time. I'm currently taking the girls to Yunxiao Mountain for some exercise
..."
"Exercising?"
"Of course, zombies can't stay at home all day long. If they stay there too long, their muscles will stiffen and
atrophy. So I bring them to Yunxiao Mountain for a day or two every month to exercise.
If I leave now, I'll have to get them all back and settle them in first! By the time I get to Lijia Village, it might not be until tomorrow
morning..."
"What are we going to do? You can't come back... Wang Lie, Lao Han, and the others are still in Xichang! You know my abilities
, how would I know how to handle this mess!"
I was a little anxious after hearing Ye Tong's reply!
Ye Tong probably understood my current situation and quickly reminded me on the phone. "Don't panic! We're
not here, but there are other people in the city who should be able to get over and help you."
"Who?"
"Xiao Li Jing is taking the college entrance exam next year, he's probably studying hard at home right now! He should be able to get over
there in time to help you deal with the trouble. Wait a minute, I'll send you his contact number..."
Update Note:
I've had a lot of work after the New Year, so I haven't had much free time to write. Maintaining
two chapters a week is already a very difficult result. In fact, for the past two weeks, I've even been working
overtime on weekends, and the four chapters I've released were almost all written during work breaks. Fortunately, the specific plot
has already been conceived, so I'm still able to update on time. I hope my readers
can understand.
After all, writing is just a hobby for me. Work is about making a living...

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