Friendly accommodation

This was a response I hadn't expected.

After all, according to Xiaoling, these houses have been vacant for a long time. Their former or former owners are no longer here, and only an old man they have never met remains. They should be left empty.

“Perhaps this is how rumors spread,” Meng Yan said, gesturing with his hands.

Yue Lang sighed and continued to plead, "There are no vacant houses in the other villages, so I and..."

He winked at Meng Yan, then quickly turned around and coughed softly, "My wife and I have nowhere to go. We hope you can take pity on us. We are new to this place and cannot understand the language. We really have nowhere to stay."

His face suddenly flushed red. After he finished speaking, he didn't dare to turn around and look at Meng Yan. He just stared at the crack in the door, waiting for the old man to respond.

The latch was pried open, the wooden block rattled, and the clanging of the iron chains followed closely behind. Yue Lang couldn't help but frown.

Meng Yan was also surprised; it was the first time she had ever seen a chain wrapped around the door.

"you……"

An elderly man with completely white hair opened the door. Wrinkles stretched from the corners of his eyes to his fingers. His expressionless face held a pair of murky eyes that were sunken deep and lacked any light, even at midday. He glanced at the two people outside the door. His mouth seemed not to move, but his voice climbed up to their ears along with his gaze.

"They came on purpose."

The four words drilled into his mind, sending shivers down his spine, and Yue Lang was caught off guard and bit his teeth.

"Sincerely." Meng Yan moved his hand, drawing the old man's attention away.

Upon seeing her gesture, the old man was momentarily dazed, then laughed without emotion: "You two have come from afar, enduring wind and rain, and you've even lost your luggage."

Yue Lang coughed and glanced at the sky. They had arrived in such a hurry that neither he nor Meng Yan had thought of this. They had forgotten to complete the whole act.

"It's all about taking a chance, sir. It's not good to carry it around all the time and add to the burden. We were just lucky to run into you, and you were kind enough to open the door for us."

"Is that so?" He took a step back and was about to close the door when Meng Yan reached out and stopped him.

The old man strained with both hands, his wrinkles deepening, but the door remained unmoved in the girl's hands. It seemed that with just a little more force, the door could be opened completely.

This is not an illusion; Meng Yan can indeed do it, and effortlessly at that. However, she does not intend to do so, keeping everything within a reasonable range.

"Then your luck is absolutely terrible." The old man was tricked when he opened the door and blocked when he closed it, so his mood was no longer as calm as it had been at the beginning.

"That's not necessarily true, sir!" Yue Lang suddenly pulled out a talisman and slipped it to the old man through the crack in the door. "A professional Taoist priest, well-versed in feng shui, always has good luck."

"You're just joking, don't you know that if you get close to people with bad luck, you'll also be tainted by their bad luck?"

“I’ve never heard of that before. My master didn’t teach me. I’ll ask him about it for you later.” He answered smoothly.

No sooner had he finished speaking than Meng Yan grabbed his hand and handed it over to him through the crack in the door. In his bewilderment, Meng Yan waved his hand and said, "I'm so sorry to bother you, but I'd like to ask again, do you have any spare rooms?"

"You really want to sleep, Miss Yan," Yue Lang exclaimed.

Not sleepy and not picky about the bed, Meng Yan nodded. She just didn't want to continue another night of coastal sightseeing. Moreover, the old man in front of her, whose identity was unknown, was different from the rumors. She didn't like seeing people burdened with false accusations, even if he himself thought so.

But if the old man refuses, she immediately takes Yue Lang away.

The old man glanced at the hands pressed down on either side of the door, rolled his eyes at them, and released his hands. "Yes, come in if you don't mind."

Meng Yan: "He's a pretty nice person."

Yue Lang: "Yes, I think so too."

The two entered the room without any hesitation, whispering behind him, completely unaware that the old man had already rolled his eyes to the heavens.

As they had observed from the outside, the houses were interconnected and shared a courtyard. The corners and crevices were regularly cleaned, and the interiors were bright and tidy. Even when no one lived there, the houses were spotless and orderly.

Looking through the bright windows into the rooms, each room is decorated very differently, seemingly made to suit the owner's preferences. Unfortunately, fate has not been on their side, leaving them empty for many years.

Meng Yan surveyed the courtyard without making a sound, but suddenly a head fell beside her shoulder. A clear voice drifted into her ears through her hair as he whispered, "It's a copper rope, not an iron chain."

When the old man turned around, he was already some distance away from Meng Yan, as if they had not spoken since he stepped into the courtyard.

Copper rope. Meng Yan repeated the word to himself, it sounded quite unfamiliar.

She had some knowledge of iron chains, as they were occasionally used in mechanisms or repairs. But copper was different. It was soft and easily deformed, and was rarely used as a raw material unless it was a decorative object with a fixed shape, let alone for making chains. Yet, Yue Lang could tell its material just by looking at it when he first entered the room, so he must have known its function as well.

"Apart from the main house, no one lives in the other rooms. Go to whichever room you like, but don't make a mess of things."

Unexpectedly, the old man, who seemed stern and unapproachable, was actually quite easy to talk to. He readily lent out such a large house, which made the two uninvited guests feel rather uncomfortable.

After a pause, the old man muttered to himself, "It's messy now, I'll just put it back together."

Meng Yan opened her eyes wide and met Yue Lang's gaze, both seeing shock in each other's eyes: So good?!

Although it is impolite to visit the house of the deceased, since they have come here, the homeowner who can communicate has agreed, and they really need a place to stay, they can disregard the usual taboos and start choosing a suitable house.

Even if you encounter some strange or bizarre tales at night, there's still a Taoist priest here, isn't there?

A loud crash was heard; a Taoist priest, not paying attention, bumped his head into the wooden door that Meng Yan had casually closed.

Hearing the sound, Meng Yan turned around and saw him pitifully covering his head in injury. She patted the door, as if to avenge him.

"Miss Yan, which room do you like?" The person behind her, though feeling wronged, still asked for her opinion.

"I'm fine with anything," Meng Yan said sincerely. As long as he doesn't have to sleep on the streets, it doesn't matter where he sleeps.

"Everyone says that young ladies are particular, and I was hoping to hear your opinion."

Putting aside her meaning, judging from Yue Lang's words alone, is she planning to stay in one room tonight?

It has to be said that he and I often share similar ideas. Considering the disruption to the elderly man's life, Meng Yan initially wanted to suggest sharing a room, but he hesitated for a long time, unsure how to express it. Fortunately, Yue Lang had the same idea, which saved him a lot of trouble.

"Then let's switch this time, I'll listen to you." Meng Yan shrugged.

Aside from the main house where the elderly lived, there were four empty rooms in the courtyard. The left and right side rooms were adjacent to the main house, and the east and west wing rooms were separated from them by a section of the courtyard view. Although they were all empty, it was not difficult to guess the original owners based on the furnishings inside.

The west wing room was furnished with a screen and curtains. The tables, chairs, beds, and windows were decorated with mother-of-pearl carvings, and the curtains were adorned with moon-white pearls. A wind chime made of seashells hung by the window, tinkling softly as people passed by. A simple flower was placed in a jade vase on the table, its fragrance still lingering, likely changed daily by the old man. This room was quiet and elegant, fitting the rumored tastes of the old man's future daughter-in-law.

The east wing features a carved red dragon made of wood, with seaweed and shells carved at its base. A picture of the ocean hangs on the wall, and the bookshelves are decorated with cascading waves. The edges of the tables and chairs are not as rounded as those in the west wing, giving them a sharper feel. Behind the door, in a dark corner, is a fishing rod rack, still covered in dust, with the fishing line looking brand new. It must be the old man's son's house.

As for the side rooms, they were too close to the main house and it would be inconvenient to disturb them, so Meng Yan and Yue Lang didn't go to see them. They only guessed from the adjacent rooms that these two rooms should be used for storage and meals.

This makes the choice much simpler; either the east or west wing is fine.

"But which place should we choose?" Yue Lang leaned against the old tree in the courtyard, his gaze wandering, his teeth grinding against his lips.

Meng Yan stood on tiptoe in front of him, picked a newly fallen leaf from his head, and after realizing he was looking at her, she made the most of it and patted the leaf on Yue Lang's eyes.

"I really can't choose, Miss Yan!" He plucked the leaf, twirled it a few times, and tossed it into the wind with a whoosh.

Seeing that he looked so worried that his complexion had dropped several shades, Meng Yan couldn't help but poke his shoulder: "Do you know how to play rock-paper-scissors?"

"meeting!"

"I'll go west, you go east, one game to decide the outcome, sleep with the winner."

"Okay!"

Yue Lang followed Meng Yan into the long white beaded curtain.

The bed wasn't big, but thankfully there was a beaded curtain to separate it. Although it was on the coast, the room was extremely dry. One person could sleep comfortably on the bed, while the other could sleep on the floor or the table. It was better than not sleeping at all.

It wasn't until the man lay motionless on the bed that Meng Yan remembered he hadn't slept all night. He lifted the curtain to cover him with a light blanket, only to find that the man was lying in such a good position that the entire blanket was pressed under him. He didn't move, and the blanket couldn't move either.

"..." Go to sleep.

Having failed to get anywhere, Meng Yan closed the curtain.

The two of them had left their belongings at Xiao Dong's house. Meng Yan wanted to go and get them, but when he got to the front door, he caught a glimpse of a copper chain on the ground. It was thin and light, but its shape was well preserved, so it could not have been used as an ordinary chain.

Thinking of this, she removed her hand from the latch, turned around, and walked towards the main room.

"Is there anything else?" the old man asked impatiently as he opened the door.

Meng Yan gave him a sweet smile and waved, "I haven't knocked on the door yet, old man."

The old man wasn't annoyed that he'd been caught peeping through the window; he simply looked up at her and repeated, "Is there anything else?"

"Saying goodbye, and returning soon."

Meng Yan did indeed appear somewhat innocent and harmless. When the old man saw her, he was stunned for a moment before he realized that the girl had seen everything inside the house through the crack in his door.

The shrimp is innocent, the crab is harmless.

He timed it perfectly, slammed the door shut, and an aged voice came from inside the sturdy wooden door: "Go on, don't close the door, no one will come."

.

The scorching sun beat down on the sandy surface, scorching the pedestrians on the road—except for Meng Yan himself.

She yawned wearily, shielded her eyes from the sun, and headed back to Xiao Dong's house. When she got near Xiao Ling's house, she poked her head out of the window and waved to Meng Yan.

"Yan Yan is back! Where's Yue Lang?"

Actually, Xiaoling said quite a long string of words, but Meng Yan could only understand those. Just then, she suddenly noticed something was amiss.

Is the old woman's accent more similar to hers and Yue Lang's?

“I’ve come to collect my belongings. The others have already rested in the west of the village, so we won’t be coming back to stay tonight.”

Xiao Ling chattered on and on, then she and Meng Yan stared at each other and smiled.

Oh dear, I forgot that Yue Lang isn't here, and Yan Yan can't understand the local dialect.

Meng Yan took it as her advising him to be more careful, replied with a few words to reassure her, then waved goodbye and went to Xiao Dong's house to retrieve their luggage.