The ghost had been brought into the house, and Master Bai was furious, but dared not retaliate, fearing that the ghost would devour him.

He kicked his son a few times in exasperation before demanding, "What happened? Tell me!"

Bai Langping dared not hide anything any longer and recounted the whole story of how he obtained the pen: "Father, you always made me study, wanted me to pass the imperial examination and bring glory to the family, and wanted the direct line of the Bai family to look up to our branch. You studied harder than me. But I'm not cut out for it. I'm not smart. I wanted to pass the exam too, but I didn't have the ability."

"By chance, I heard that Linglong Pavilion was auctioning a wolf-hair brush used by a former top scholar of the previous dynasty, so I bought it for good luck. The people at Linglong Pavilion talked about it in a very mysterious way, saying that the brush had a spirit and that a spirit lived inside it. I bowed and kowtowed to him three times and said that if he helped me pass the imperial examination, I would worship him."

“That night…” Bai Langping pointed at Zhou Kuixing with eyes full of fear, “I dreamed of him. He said that as long as my family worshipped him until he became an immortal, he would help me pass the imperial examination, and I agreed. From then on, I dreamed of him every night. He taught me how to read and how to write articles…”

Master Bai sighed heavily, and even considered beating his son to death.

Bai Langping kowtowed to Yuan Qi: "Young Taoist priest, do you have any way to make him leave my house? I'll pay any amount of silver. Please, young Taoist priest..."

Yuan Qi sneered, revealing a maturity beyond his years: "Although he is only a ghost, neither a god nor an immortal, he was the top scholar of the previous dynasty and the God of Literature descended to earth to undergo tribulation. He is not so easy to send away. Since you promised to worship him until you become an immortal, you should keep your word."

The Bai family looked at each other, none of them wanting to make offerings, thinking Zhou Kuixing was just a minor ghost. Yuan Qi was simply trying to get more money from them for incense money.

Madam Bai stepped forward and said, "Young Taoist priest, please trouble you to ask him to leave. We are willing to pay whatever it takes."

Zhou Kuixing threw down the fruit in his hand and coldly rebuked, "No way, he means what he says. I'm not so easily fooled."

Zhou Kuixing continued, "Madam Bai, your son has passed the imperial examination and become a Jinshi. If your family continues to offer incense to me, I will surely bless your family with peace and prosperity, and that your descendants will produce many talented people. Otherwise, I will take back what I have given away."

A chilling wind blew around him, and the Bai family members got goosebumps from the cold.

The Bai family couldn't understand why Yuan Qi was helping a ghost, and their eyes inevitably held a hint of resentment.

Yuan Qi guessed what the Bai family was thinking, looked around and said, "I can take him away, but your son's career will be over, and you and your son may even face imprisonment."

She wasn't exaggerating. The faces of the Bai father and son had been changing. From the moment they stopped worshipping Zhou Kuixing, their faces showed signs of imprisonment. Even Bai Langping's face showed signs of an early death.

Although Yuan Qi was young, the Bai family had all witnessed her abilities and dared not doubt that she was exaggerating. At most, they thought she just wanted more money for incense oil.

“You don’t need to worry. He’s not a bad person. As long as you make offerings to him sincerely, your family will definitely get better and better.”

The Bai family members looked at each other and could only nod.

Madam Bai asked in a dilemma, "Is my grandson crying day and night because of him?"

Yuan Qi hummed in agreement: "It's because of him..."

Madam Bai immediately changed to a reproachful expression: "Then why did you say he wasn't a bad person? If he wasn't a bad person, why would he harm my grandson?"

Yuan Qi was actually a little unsure how to answer the question.

Zhou Kuixing came over and replied, "Your grandson's birth chart is weak, so he can see me, but others can't. Naturally, I only speak to your grandson. He's easily frightened and cried. If I wanted to kill him, he would have died long ago. If I weren't lacking in merit and unable to return to my immortal position, why would I care about your meager offerings?"

The Bai family members' expressions softened. Although this person was a ghost, he was still the reincarnation of the God of Literature, a legitimate deity.

After discussing it, the Bai family decided to properly worship Zhou Kuixing.

Zhou Kuixing snorted, looking quite arrogant.

He also explained to Yuan Qi, "If I hadn't been accidentally killed by my classmate, I would surely have been a good official who brought blessings to the region, accumulating a lot of merit, and would definitely have been able to return to my immortal position. Why would I have stayed in the mortal world for a hundred years?"

He then circled around in front of Yuan Qi: "Did you see the golden light of merit emanating from my body?"

Yuan Qi shook his head.

Zhou Kuixing said with annoyance, "It's a little less, but there's still some. Take another look."

Yuan Qi didn't really want to talk to him.

He then spoke to the Bai family about the room and location for the ancestral worship, as well as precautions regarding how to offer incense.

Finally, Yuan Qi instructed that the boy's birth chart indicated he was prone to encountering ghosts and evil spirits, and that he should always carry the jade pendant with him and not take it off. He also mentioned that their worship of Zhou Kui Xing would offer some protection to the boy; in short, it was a sure-fire way to make money.

Yuan Qi received one thousand taels of silver.

Zhou Kuixing was enshrined in a sunny main room, and the wolf-hair brush he used to reside in was placed on the altar. He was in a good mood, thinking that he would guide Bai Langping on how to be an official and how to benefit the people. If Bai Langping had accumulated merit, he would also have accumulated merit, and he would be able to return home in a few decades.

A ray of golden light of merit flew into Yuan Qi's spiritual platform.

Yuan Qi finished work early today, strolled around the streets for a while, and then returned home.

As soon as she entered the house, she heard that something had happened in the inner quarters: Du Haitang had hanged herself, and the servants found her when they brought tea in the afternoon.

Xiangli Mingzhu then had his servants buy a thin coffin, collect the body, and carry it out to be buried somewhere random.

Yuan Qi wasn't one to meddle in other people's business, but she still found it strange and concluded that Du Haitang had died a violent death.

When I saw Du Haitang yesterday, she didn't look dead, but she's dead today. She must have been murdered.

As for why she was murdered and who killed her, that's a matter for the Jiang family or the government, and she has no intention of interfering.

Shen Xun had been waiting for her for a long time. As soon as she returned, she flew into the house with her: "Du Haitang was strangled to death. The one who did it was Wang Mama, who was by Xiangli Mingzhu's side. Wang Mama even told her that she shouldn't have given birth to the child without telling the madam, and told her not to worry that her child would be raised well."

Yuan Qi took off the cloth bag and placed it on the table, then poured himself a glass of water and drank it: "What does this have to do with me? I'm not interested in the Jiang family's affairs."

She glanced at Shen Xun: "I didn't expect you to still be such a gossip."

Shen Xun chattered: "It was the sparrows in Haitang Xiaozhu who told me that Du Haitang didn't want to die and wanted to grow up with her son. She begged Wang Mama for a long time, but Wang Mama still wouldn't let her go. Several people held her down together, and she died a really tragic death."

Shen Xun also spread her wings and exaggeratedly described it: "At that time, her tongue was so long that even birds were afraid of it."