Chapter 92 – The Abandoned House Lives a Female Ghost that Reaps Lives
Strings of tears fell from Murong Zhining’s eyes. “I thought my fate was bitter, but compared to hers, it’s nothing.”
Chiyun Yuexuan quickly pulled her into his arms and glared at Cai Sang. “Can’t you just stop for a while and wait until she has finished eating?”
Murong Zhining tearfully looked up at Chiyun Yuexuan. “Can we help her find her family?”
Chiyun Yuexuan soothed her lovingly, “Alright, whatever Ning’er wants to do, I will unconditionally support you.”
The fool at the other table happily imitated, “Alright… Support…”
Murong Zhining wiped her tears and chuckled aloud.
Wu Siyuan, eating with his head low, occasionally glanced at Cai Sang. Chiyun Yuexuan could as if see through his mind. “Cai Sang, General Wu is going to be a princess’ husband, but I know that he has you in his heart. If you want, I will help you and make him take you in.”
Cai Sang blushed. “A maid of low status like me dares to ask for nothing. To be highly regarded by general Wu, I’m grateful to just be a concubine. Let’s leave this to later after General Wu marries the princess.”
Wu Siyuan also blushed. “Although I’m going to marry a princess, you know my heart. I can’t marry you as my first wife, but I assure you that I’ll treat you as such.”
Chiyun Yuexuan gave Wu Siyuan a punch. “That can only be said in private. Don’t you want your head anymore? Cai Sang would understand even if you don’t say it, but you just have to.”
The fool laughed cheerily. “Understand… Understand…”
Murong Zhining took Cai Sang’s hand and said, “I have never taken you as a maid. You’re my sister. When you get married, General and I will send you out with dignity.”
Cai Sang shyly buried her face in her hands. “I’ll wait for Princess to get married before considering my own marriage.”
Chiyun Yuexuan affectionately looked at Murong Zhining. “Although I can’t wait to marry you, I’ll still wait for you to recover your memory first.”
Cai Sang rolled her eyes at him. “If Princess regains her memory and refuses to follow you, will you let her go?”
Chiyun Yuexuan shot back an angry glare. “Audacious! How could Princess refuse to follow me when I’m so nice to her? Besides, she received the betrothal gift from my grandmother last night.” He turned to Murong Zhining with an ingratiating smile. “Wifey, tell them you won’t change your mind.”
Murong Zhining playfully looked up at the ceiling. “No one can say for sure about the future. Who knows if I’ll change my mind tomorrow? I can’t guarantee.”
Chiyun Yuexuan’s eyes were full of forlorn. “Whatever, I’ll persistently pester you if I have to. Want to marry me or not, you’ll have to marry me in the end.”
Murong Zhining glared at him. “Don’t you want your general dignity anymore?”
Chiyun Yuexuan muttered discontentedly, “When does a princess’ husband ever have dignity? At least I get to marry a princess I like…” He quickly stopped his speech knowing he had made a bad slip of tongue.
Wu Siyuan put down his chopsticks. “Enjoy your meal. I’ve finished, I’m going out for some air.”
Murong Zhining glared at Chiyun Yuexuan and admonished, “General, can you think before you speak?”
Chiyun Yuexuan scratched his head, “I can’t keep a calm head in front of you. When did General Wu become so dramatic, though? Cai Sang, go comfort him.”
Cai Sang blushed. “General Wu is fine. Just let him be.”
Murong Zhining gave her a push. “Go. Even the strongest man has his weak moments, and it’s during those times that the one he loves can give him the strength he needs most.”
Chiyun Yuexuan deliberately leaned his head on Murong Zhining’s shoulder. “I’m very weak right now and need Princess to give me strength.”
Murong Zhining apathetically pushed him away.
The Zhuang Estate looked particularly ghastly at night. The weed-covered courtyard ran a chill down the spines of the guards guarding it. The two guards chatted loudly to boost their courage.
“Why is this yard so spooky? Main Escort Du went to the basement with General Chiyun today. He said there were many bodies down there.”
“You mean that lad Du Youtian? Word’s that he is the elder brother-in-law of General Chiyun. Being involved with Grand General, ahh, he’s not far away from quick promotions.”
“I heard that General Chiyun is a prince.”
“That Du Youtian will be big in the future, we should start currying favor with him now. We can’t even be Captain of Five yet, and he’s already a main escort.”
Just as the two guards were talking, they felt a chill behind them. They turned around in horror to see that behind the weeds had suddenly stood a woman in white with long, disheveled hair. The woman’s face was deadly pale and streams of blood ran down from her eyes.
The two men cried out in terror, “Ghost!”
Du Youtian was patrolling with a group of guards when he heard the shout. He went to outside study. “Who was shouting there? What ghost?”
A guard pointed to the weeds behind him. “Main Escort Du, there was really a… a ghost just now. Both I and Zhang Wenzhi saw it.”
Du Youtian went to the weedy wall corner and poked through the weeds to look inside. “Look at your two’s embarrassing performance. Even if there is a ghost, it’s still afraid of people. All evils have to make detours from soldiers’ upright energy. Persevere for another two hours and I’ll send people to take your post. Get your spirits up.”
Du Youtian then continued to patrol the area with his squad. The guard named Zhang Wenzhi stared at the weeds in apprehension. “Li Hao, did you see it clearly just now? Was it really a female ghost in white? Could you have been seeing things?”
Li Hao said, “Old Zhang, are you trying to boost your courage that way? You saw it yourself, it WAS a female ghost.”
Zhang Wenzhi poked his spear at the weeds several times. “Don’t scare yourself. Main Escort Du is right, even ghosts are afraid of soldiers. You’ve followed General Chiyun to battle and even lain in piles of corpses, how can you still be scared of ghosts? If there really is a female ghost, I’ll strip her naked tonight.”
Early morning the next day, Chiyun Yuexuan brought Murong Zhining and several soldiers to the Zhuang Estate. He originally didn’t want to take her for fear that she would be frightened, but Murong Zhining insisted on following him out of curiosity.
The instance they arrived at the Zhuang Estate, Du Youtian went up to them with a panicked face. “Reporting to General Chiyun. Last night during my patrol at the third period (23pm – 1am), Zhang Wenzhi and Li Hao who guarded the study shouted that there was a ghost. I brought people to check but found nothing out of place and let them continue to stand guard. Two hours later when it was time to switch people, Zhang Wenzhi and Li Hao were found dead outside the study.”
Chiyun Yuexuan frowned. “Such a serious thing happened and you didn’t go to report at the General Estate right away?”
Du Youtian looked extremely frightened. “There was a female ghost last night. We all saw it and were frozen stiff and unable to move. It was not until the morning that we regained our senses and General already arrived.”
Chiyun Yuexuan stepped into the courtyard. “This is sheer nonsense. I’ll never believe in ghosts and gods. I’ll personally check it.” He looked at Murong Zhining and said, “I’ll have you sent back lest this will scare you.”
Murong Zhining ran up to him and grabbed his hand. “I’m not afraid. My heart is steadfast when I’m with you. Let’s go. I also want to see it.”
Murong Zhining looked at the two bodies on the ground. Their eyes were wide open, as if they had seen something extremely terrifying. Their necks were bitten by some sharp teeth, looking so bloody and mangled that one couldn’t bear to look straight.
Chiyun Yuexuan held Murong Zhining’s hand tightly and entered the study. The carpet was full of footprints, impossible to tell when they had appeared. Chiyun Yuexuan exchanged glances with Murong Zhining before calling a few guards and once again went down to the underground passage.
Chiyun Yuexuan ordered the guards to cut through the brick wall at the end of the passage. As expected, the passage continued behind the brick wall. After pondering for a while, he ordered to call it a day.
Chiyun Yuexuan brought a table to the courtyard, arranged tribute goods on it and called out, “Listen, wild spirit in the courtyard, for every grievance, someone is responsible, for every debt, there’s a debtor. Since you have already claimed two lives, stop pestering me and my soldiers.” Then he ‘panickedly’ led everyone out of the Zhuang Estate.
In the assembly room of the General Estate, Murong Zhining pestered Chiyun Yuexuan, “I want to go with you to the Zhuang Estate tonight and catch ghosts.”
Chiyun Yuexuan pinched her cheeks. “How did Ning’er see through my plan? Ahh, how did I get myself such a curious wife? Are you not afraid of ghosts?”
Murong Zhining smiled obsequiously. “You could have moved the treasures in the basement today, but you deliberately left them and pretended to leave in fear to lure out the ghost, right? I’m afraid, but as long as I’m with you, my guts somehow get bigger.”
Chiyun Yuexuan began to act the despicable, “Ning’er really wants to go? Then you have to please your husband.”
Murong Zhining swiftly got behind him and massage-punched his back. “You got it.”
Chiyun Yuexuan pulled her to the front and sat her down on his lap. “Think I’m so easy to dismiss?” With that, he pressed his lips onto hers. Blushing red in embarrassment, Murong Zhining closed her eyes and her eyelashes fluttered as she let his lips linger softly between her own.
At night, Chiyun Yuexuan and Murong Zhining followed by Du Youtian and another soldier, all dressed in night-walking clothes, appeared under the city tower wall where there were two half-a-man-tall openings leading outside – the outlet for water when it rained. They were blocked with iron bars to prevent people from sneaking in and out of the city at night.
Du Youtian pried open the padlock with his short knife, then lit a torch and entered the hole at the front. Ever since Chiyun Yuexuan had recognized Du Youtian as his brother-in-law, he had regarded the guy as his confidant and brought him everywhere.
Chiyun Yuexuan also bent down and led Murong Zhining to follow Du Youtian. The four walked along the tunnel, frightening the weasels inside to fleeing in all directions with shrill shriek that painted this dark place even more eerie.
After they proceeded along with difficulty for half an incense stick of time, a junction of many branches appeared in front. Relying on his good sense of direction, Chiyun Yuexuan directed Du Youtian through twists and turns until they finally arrived at a hole hidden under thick weeds. Du Youtian again pried open the iron net with his short knife.
Du Youtian moved his torch around to check inside the hole, ready to jump down. Murong Zhining cried out with concern, “Big brother, be careful…”
Before she could finish her words, Du Youtian had already made the jump. This underground tunnel was connected to the one in the basement of the Zhuang Estate, slant and not very deep.
Chiyun Yuexuan also followed suit. Landing, he opened his arms towards Murong Zhining. “Ning’er, don’t jump, you might twist your ankles. Just sit on the ground and slide down.”
Murong Zhining sat down as told. Chiyun Yuexuan held her legs tight so that she slowly slid down the tunnel.
Du Youtian walked ahead while the other guard walked behind Murong Zhining and Chiyun Yuexuan. When the four arrived at the smashed brick wall below the Zhuang Estate, they crept to the stone chamber containing the treasures.
Chiyun Yuexuan glanced at the pile of gold ingots and nodded. “There is indeed a ‘ghost,’ I’m going to catch it tonight.”