Chapter 98 The World of Murals
Zhou Wei immediately stepped forward and kicked over the heavy offering table.
The wooden table crashed to the ground, raising a cloud of dust and revealing a yellowed silk scroll hidden in a secret compartment.
Upon seeing this, the paper figure immediately let out a shrill scream and raised its two claws to rush forward and snatch the thing.
Fu Qinghuai reacted swiftly, the black mist swirling around the silk scroll and delivering it to Xie Xun. The latter unfolded the scroll, quickly scanned it, and his expression changed drastically.
"This is... a marriage certificate?"
Xie Xun looked up at Fu Qinghuai, his tone grave, "To enter into a ghost marriage, one must possess a pure Yin constitution..."
Before he could finish speaking, the yellowed silk scroll suddenly burst into flames without any fire!
The eerie green flames leaped and instantly ignited the faded murals on the walls of the ancestral hall, making the figures in the murals appear even more sinister.
"Oh no!" Lin Huairou exclaimed, but it was too late.
The figures on the wall seemed to come alive, and a thick, dark red liquid spread down like blood. Everyone felt dizzy, and Xie Xun's vision went black. When he opened his eyes again, he found himself lying on a carved bed.
The air was filled with a strong smell of medicine and incense.
He tried to get up, but felt weak all over. Looking down, he saw that he was wearing a silk moon-white long robe. Glancing at the bronze mirror by the bedside, he felt that his face looked even paler because of the robe.
He was exactly like... a sickly young master.
Xie Xun frowned. Just then, the door was pushed open.
"Young Master, you're awake?" A clear yet somewhat timid voice came from inside.
Xie Xun looked up and saw Lin Huairou dressed as a maid, carefully carrying a bowl of medicine, her eyes filled with a completely unfamiliar respect.
She wasn't acting; she seemed to genuinely remember nothing, or rather, she wasn't Lin Huairou at all.
"Where is this?" Xie Xun asked tentatively, his voice hoarse.
"Young Master, are you delirious? This is the Xie residence."
The maid, Lin Huairou, looked at him with concern. "Have you forgotten? Master has already agreed to the marriage with the Governor's Mansion in order to bring you good luck. Today... today is the day you and Commander Fu will get married."
"Actually, it's all the second young master's fault. If he hadn't gambled, he wouldn't have offended the commander..."
The Governor's Mansion? Marshal Fu? The Second Young Master?
Xie Xun's mind raced. It seemed that Fu Qinghuai held a very high status in this illusion, probably similar to his status in the mirror last time.
But who is this second young master?
"Where's my dad... my father? And my younger brother?" Xie Xun continued to probe for information.
"Master and Young Master Can are in the front hall."
Lin Huairou answered honestly, "Butler Zhou is also guarding outside."
It seems that Liu Xiuyuan, A-Can, and Zhou Wei have also entered, and they have probably lost their memories as well.
Just then, a slightly frivolous footstep came from outside the door, accompanied by a magnetic male voice with a smile, which sounded quite pleasant.
"Is my fiancée inside? Let me take a look for my brother first."
The curtain was lifted, and a man walked in.
He was wearing a well-tailored suit, and his hair was slicked back. It was Fu Qinghuai!
Xie Xun felt a sense of relief, but then he saw that the peach blossom eyes were filled with a wicked air, and there was a cynical smile on the corner of his mouth. He lacked the deep sense of oppression that Fu Qinghuai had, but instead had more of the frivolity of a playboy.
The familiar feeling faded, and Xie Xun felt a chill in his heart.
He is not Fu Qinghuai.
"Second Master, why are you here?" Lin Huairou was clearly a little afraid of him and quickly bowed.
The man, known as Second Master, waved her away, but his gaze seemed glued to Xie Xun, scrutinizing her from head to toe.
Finally, the gaze lingered on Xie Xun's face, which appeared even more delicate due to his illness.
"Tsk, big brother is really lucky."
He approached step by step, leaned down, almost touching Xie Xun's ear, his warm breath brushing against her, "Such a beauty, even her sickly appearance has a unique charm. I heard you have a pure Yin constitution? It's so boring being with my brother, that fiend, why not... come with me?"
As he spoke, his hand naturally landed on Xie Xun's shoulder, his fingertips even darting suggestively inside Xie Xun's clothes.
Xie Xun felt a physical aversion the moment he got close.
Even if the face looks exactly like his, it still disgusts him.
He suddenly raised his hand, using all the strength he could muster at that moment, and forcefully slapped away the unruly hand.
"Get out of here."
"hiss."
Second Master winced in pain, withdrew his hand, and a hint of ferocity flashed across his face, but it was quickly replaced by a playful smile. "Quite the fiery temper, isn't it? I like it."
He rubbed his wrist. "Don't forget, you're on our Fu family's turf now. I, Fu Qingyan, have never failed to get what I want."
Fu Qingyan?
Xie Xun remembered the name.
As expected, a clone is a clone, and a remnant soul is a remnant soul; even the name seems to be a derivative of the original.
"You are not him."
Xie Xun stared at him coldly, his eyes sharp, as if he could see through the skin to the twisted spirit inside. "If you dare to use this face to do such disgusting things again, I won't hesitate to make you disappear completely."
Fu Qingyan's smile froze, and a hint of annoyance at being exposed flashed deep in his peach blossom eyes.
He stared intently at Xie Xun, as if he wanted to skin him alive and tear him apart. "Good, very good, extremely good!"
"Xie Xun, I'll remember you. Wait, we... will have a long future ahead of us!"
He uttered those words with a sinister air, then turned and strode away.
The room fell silent for the time being.
Xie Xun leaned against the headboard, his face solemn.
The situation was more complicated than he had imagined: all his teammates had lost their memories, the enemy was watching them closely, and Fu Qinghuai was nowhere to be found.
Behind this seemingly auspicious wedding lies a conspiracy orchestrated by the Liu family's human-skin lantern and Fu Qinghuai, their wicked alter ego.
He must find a way to wake up the others and locate Fu Qinghuai as soon as possible.
From the moment he arrived at the ancestral hall today, he felt that Fu Qinghuai was acting a bit strange, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what was wrong with him.
He was not one to sit idly by and wait for death; this illusion had to be broken as soon as possible.
Despite his frail health, Xie Xun, supported by Lin Huairou, walked out of the room.
He needs information, and he also needs to figure out the rules and flaws of this illusion as soon as possible.
After passing through several corridors, the noise from the front hall gradually became clearer.
The hall was brightly decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers, yet it inexplicably exuded an eerie festive atmosphere.
Liu Xiuyuan, dressed in a silk robe with his hair slicked back, was rubbing his hands together and speaking obsequiously to a man in military uniform, his forehead covered in sweat.
Ah Can, dressed in an ill-fitting suit with his hair slicked back, was being held down in a chair by two men who looked like servants. He was still shouting defiantly, "Let me go! I... I didn't lose! Master Fu cheated!"
Zhou Wei, dressed in a dark housekeeper's long gown, stood to the side, his brows furrowed, looking at the chaos before him with complete disapproval and worry that didn't fit his usual persona.
Seeing Xie Xun come out, Zhou Wei quickly stepped forward, his tone full of concern, "Young Master, why did you come out? You're not feeling well, you should go back to your room and rest."
Xie Xun remained unmoved, silently scanning the entire room with his gaze.
Upon seeing him, Liu Xiuyuan immediately adopted a pained expression, "Xun'er! My son! What are you doing out here? Go back quickly, your father will take care of things at home!"
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