Chapter 57 Paper Doll Murder
She saw the woman's lifespan value; it was only 5%. Something bad was likely to happen tonight.
But with so many people and the capital city being so vast, where could she possibly begin her search...?
Tu Miaoling suddenly grabbed her arm, pointed to the riverbank, and saw many young women releasing river lanterns. She couldn't resist wanting to try it herself.
"We also went to release river lanterns, it looked like a lot of fun."
Tao Tao followed her gaze and became interested. She had burned many paper lanterns, but had never released a river lantern before. She nodded.
"Young lady, look at the river lanterns."
The stall owner rubbed his hands together, speaking gently and looking at them with a kind expression.
The two stood in front of a stall selling river lanterns, choosing from various styles, including lotus-shaped, boat-shaped, and those with a candle in the center. They were not only beautiful, but there were also quite a few designs.
"Tao'er, how about this one?"
Tu Miaoling picked up a lotus lantern and asked her with a smile.
"Not bad, it looks pretty good."
The two chatted and laughed.
"Fortune telling, fortune telling... If it doesn't work, you don't have to pay..."
In the crowd, a young Taoist priest dressed in a dark blue robe held a flag and walked slowly while calling out to customers.
Some young women, seeing that the Taoist priest was handsome, couldn't help but go up to him and flirtatiously reach out to touch his face.
"If it really doesn't work, you don't have to pay?"
Xuanling tilted her head back to avoid the hand that was reaching out to her, and then quickly retreated, a hint of disgust flashing in her eyes.
He chuckled a few times and said, "Of course it's true. I am Xuan Lingzi, the last disciple of the abbot of Zixia Temple."
"When it comes to predicting good or bad fortune, and calculating one's future and marriage prospects, I wouldn't say it's 100% accurate, but it's still about 99% accurate."
The two young women exchanged a smile, then turned to look at him with provocative eyes.
"This young man is so handsome, I'm willing to pay even if his predictions are inaccurate."
She bit her red lips, blinked, and took out a few copper coins from her purse. "Please, sir, divine my marriage. If you are satisfied with the result, I will give you more money."
The woman accompanying them chimed in, "Yes, yes, I'll have my fortune told later too."
Xuan Lingzi tore open the bag on his satchel and gestured for her to throw it in.
He gazed at her face, closed his eyes, and calculated with his fingers. He opened his eyes shortly afterward.
"Girl, though you are surrounded by beautiful women, you have few good men."
"You need to carefully observe whether the man who is being attentive to you is of good character and what the neighbors think of him. Honest advice is hard to hear, so you should always ask your friends and relatives for advice and never believe sweet words."
The woman was taken aback, and her expression immediately became serious: "Thank you, Master."
He was right. Recently, there was indeed a man who was very nice to her, so nice that she developed feelings for him in just a few days.
There were just too many men who were interested in her; he was only slightly special in her eyes.
Seeing her expression, the other knew that this young Taoist priest had some skill and couldn't wait to know the outcome.
"Don't worry, don't worry, let me calculate..."
Tao Tao and Tu Miaoling picked out their favorite river lanterns, paid for them, and headed towards the river.
As they passed each other, Xuan Lingzi caught a glimpse of a familiar face out of the corner of his eye. After the fortune-telling woman left, he turned around and hurriedly chased after her.
Tao Tao looked at the person in front of her with a puzzled expression, then suddenly asked in surprise, "Eh? What are you doing here?"
Xuan Lingzi smiled and said, "Boss Tao, it's been a long time. How's business?"
"So-so, it's alright."
She didn't say much, just laughed it off.
"And you?"
"We're doing alright, but you're not staying for the Ghost Festival... eh?"
He was halfway through his sentence when he suddenly noticed the lantern she was carrying, and he was immediately at a loss for words, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
"What kind of hobby is this? Making lanterns out of paper figures?"
"What's wrong with that? That's called innovation. If I hadn't injured my hand, I would have definitely made a batch and made a lot of money."
Upon hearing that she was injured, he glanced at her bandaged hands and frowned.
"Didn't I tell you back then that there was going to be bloodshed? Didn't you notice?"
Tao Tao smiled helplessly: "Thank you for the fortune telling. I will definitely listen to you next time."
After talking for a while, she suddenly remembered Tu Miaoling beside her and quickly introduced her: "I forgot to tell you, this is my good friend, Tu Miaoling."
Then he turned to her and said, "This is a Taoist priest who does fortune-telling on West Street. His name is... oh, what's your name again?"
She turned to Xuan Lingzi and asked, "It's been so long, if we hadn't run into each other this time, I still wouldn't know his name."
"I am Xuan Lingzi, a Taoist priest from Zixia Temple."
He smiled and cupped his hands in greeting.
Tu Miaoling nodded and smiled, which was her way of greeting her.
Where are you going?
Tao Tao held up the river lantern in her hand and said, "We're going to release river lanterns, do you want to come?"
Releasing river lanterns symbolizes commemorating the deceased and praying for blessings; it's something almost everyone does during the Ghost Festival.
Xuan Lingzi thought that since he hadn't gone to the Taoist temple to worship today, releasing river lanterns was also a way to accumulate good karma.
"Fine, I have nothing else to do anyway."
The dim yellow candlelight flickered in the wind by the river, casting shimmering shadows on the water. When someone put one down, it created a tiny ripple.
Tao Tao and Tu Miaoling squatted on the shore, with Xuan Lingzi standing beside them.
The two lit the candle in the center of the river lantern, placed it on the river, and gently stirred the water. The small river lantern gradually drifted away with the ripples.
Suddenly, I heard a soft chanting sound.
Tao Tao looked up and saw Xuan Lingzi making a hand seal and muttering scriptures with his eyes closed.
Time passed slowly, and only when there were fewer pedestrians on the street did she say goodbye to Tu Miaoling and go home.
Hearing a sound coming from the courtyard, Tao's mother, who was asleep, put on a robe and got up to check. She frowned slightly and asked, "Tao'er, why are you back so late?"
She turned her head and smiled ingratiatingly, "Mother, I won't do it again next time. You should go to bed now."
After her mother went inside, she casually placed the paper lantern on the table and went to take a bath.
Half an hour later, the light in the room went out.
As the dark clouds gradually enveloped the cold moon, a faint, blood-red moonlight could be seen peeking through the gaps, scattered almost imperceptibly across the deserted courtyard.
A chilly wind suddenly blew, causing the branches and leaves of the camphor tree in the yard to rustle.
Suddenly a dark shadow swept past, and the paper lantern on the stone table disappeared.
Yang Residence on Chengbei Street.
The maid on night watch stood in front of the door, dozing off from time to time. Recently, the lady had been having nightmares and couldn't sleep well, so she called the maid to keep watch.
Suddenly, a wisp of smoke drifted in from somewhere, and the maid who had been half-closing her eyes collapsed shortly afterward.
With a creak, the sound of a door opening suddenly rang out in the quiet night.
At some point, the maid struggled to open her eyes a crack, and in her hazy vision, she saw a "person" standing in front of her.
She was a child in stature, but her cheeks were flushed like paper, and her dark eyes were terrifying like a ghost.
Upon realizing that the figure in front of her was a paper doll, the maid couldn't help but scream in terror.
But less than two seconds later, she felt a sharp pain in the back of her neck and fell into a coma.
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