Under an abandoned bridge in the suburbs, Ma Chunhua was happily changing her makeup with her newly acquired cosmetics.
The bridge archway is located in a low-lying area, sparsely populated, cool, and secluded. It is also quite far from the city center, so apart from beggars and homeless people, no one would come here.
After scaring away several homeless people who used to live here, Ma Chunhua made this place her home, leaving some offerings that were not easy to carry with her.
At first, when she didn't have any cosmetics available, she could only write down her favorite makeup looks and sketch them in her mind again and again. Now that she finally had the opportunity to put them into practice, Ma Chunhua was overjoyed and tried it out to her heart's content.
Unfortunately, the paper craft shop owner's products were rather stiff and rigid, with many repetitions, clearly mass-produced products made without care.
"There wasn't even a mirror. We were so careless," Ma Chunhua muttered to herself, cupping her face in her hands. She planned to go find Ruan Bei again in a few days, once he had forgotten about the jewelry.
She realized that the child cared a lot about his family. She didn't need to do anything else; she just needed to threaten him with his family, and he would give in.
When the time comes, she'll want even more cosmetics and have the paper shop owner customize them for her based on the originals!
Mirrors, small and large, full-body mirrors, matching new clothes and shoes, oh right, and a dressing table too, she wants one, it can't be worse than her sister's.
Just as she was enjoying her thoughts, a sense of crisis suddenly struck her. Before Ma Chunhua could react, a clear voice suddenly rang out: "Bind!"
A spell of the word "bind" followed the sound, and spiritual power transformed into an invisible rope, binding Ma Chunhua to the spot.
She struggled to turn around, only to see a handsome young man, not very old, with indifferent eyes and a scrutinizing gaze as he looked at her.
A thought raced through her mind. Ma Chunhua concealed the fierceness in her eyes and adopted a pitiful demeanor—
Ordinary celestial masters can't see them, their eyes won't focus. This little celestial master's gaze fell on her face, so he must either have been born with the ability to see ghosts or have used an eye-opening talisman.
The former is exceptionally talented and not to be trifled with, while the latter must have a powerful sect backing her up, otherwise they wouldn't waste talismans on an ordinary ghost with little ability. She is equally not to be trifled with.
“My lord…” Ma Chunhua’s voice was sweet and coquettish: “I don’t know how I have offended you, my lord. Please be merciful and let me go.”
Qin Gu ignored him and looked the female ghost up and down with great interest.
In conclusion, she's just average-looking, only plain pretty. In terms of looks, she's definitely not as good-looking as Xiao Bei, who can be both cool and sweet, and is just the right amount of beautiful in every way.
She put on a slapstick performance, but the people in front of her watched her like she was watching a monkey show, their expressions remaining unchanged, leaving Ma Chunhua extremely embarrassed.
"grown ups?"
"The cosmetics are nice." Qin Gu suddenly nodded his chin at the cosmetics she had placed aside.
Ma Chunhua was puzzled and was about to put on a smiling face and say a few words in agreement when she suddenly remembered where all these things came from, and her smile froze on her face.
Seeing that she understood, Qin Gu revealed a cold smile: "Are the things working well? Are you happy bullying my child?"
Ma Chunhua trembled like a leaf; if she weren't still tied up, she would have run away right now.
Her smile vanished, replaced by a mournful expression. "My lord," she cried, "I know I was wrong. I shouldn't have threatened and frightened Xiao Bei..."
"Is 'Xiao Bei' what you call him?"
Qin Gu interrupted her unhappily: "Don't downplay the issue. You're the one who hurt Xiao Bei's arm, aren't you? You've got some nerve! I worry about him for ages when he bumps or scrapes himself, and you actually dared to slap some yin energy into his arm!"
He got angrier and angrier as he spoke, and grabbed a handful of Five Thunder Talismans. Not to mention a handful, even just one talisman could be enough to strike Ma Chunhua dead with lightning if thrown out.
Ma Chunhua almost fainted!
Her legs went weak and she knelt down immediately, wishing she could kowtow to Qin Gu a few times just to be spared.
"Now you know you're scared? Why didn't you do this sooner?"
"I was wrong, I was really wrong, please forgive me, sir, please... Waaah..." Ma Chunhua cried with snot and tears streaming down her face, but of course, there were no tears or snot, just dry sobbing, her face scrunched up, her beauty almost completely ruined.
Qin Gu thought for a moment, then took out his phone and snapped a few photos of her, making her look as ugly as possible, intending to take them back to show Ruan Bei. This female ghost was really not pretty; she was extremely ugly.
After the photo was taken, it just showed an empty bridge arch, but if you showed it to someone like Ruan Bei who has the ability to see ghosts, the ghostly figures inside would be clearly visible.
Having made enough of a stain on his past, Qin Gu had no intention of wasting any more time on Ma Chunhua, and pulled a small sword out of his bag.
It's more like a dagger than a sword. The blade and hilt are less than half an arm's length long, and the blade is only two fingers wide. It's not sharpened and looks old and dull.
"Sir, please spare me..."
Ma Chunhua was so frightened that she kept crying. She wanted to run away but couldn't. She watched helplessly as Qin Gu walked towards her step by step, feeling that her life was over.
"Shut up, you're so noisy."
Qin Gu impatiently shouted and stabbed Ma Chunhua in the arm with his sword.
Ghosts are gatherings of yin energy. In theory, no matter what kind of injury they suffer, as long as there is sufficient yin energy to replenish it, they can heal quickly. Even if there is no replenishment, some can be transferred from other parts of the body, at worst they will be a little "thinner".
However, after Qin Gu pulled the sword out, the sword wound on Ma Chunhua's arm left a flat, hollow hole that could not be healed.
Ma Chunhua cried out in pain. The ghost was injured, but the effect was on the soul!
"If it weren't for Xiao Bei pleading for you, I would have just killed you today." Qin Gu sheathed his sword and said coldly.
Ma Chunhua was immediately overjoyed. She had initially thought the child was soft-hearted and easy to bully, but thankfully, he had survived.
After finishing his business, Qin Gu prepared to head home, but after taking a few steps, he remembered something else.
"Where's the jewelry you promised?" This female ghost is trying to extort money from Xiao Bei. Xiao Bei doesn't care, and he doesn't mind helping her collect the debt.
Ma Chunhua: "..."
With a tearful face, she said tremblingly, "I lied to him, I don't have any jewelry..."
"No?"
Qin Gu raised an eyebrow, looked at her more closely, and immediately understood: "No wonder."
Qin Gu didn't care about her meager possessions, since she was a penniless wretch and couldn't squeeze any money out of her, so he simply let her go.
On Ruan Bei's end, although the thought of telling Kun Kun about her rebirth brought back a flood of unpleasant memories from her past life, making her feel down.
Fortunately, he was quite focused on his studies and concentrated during class, so time passed quickly.
After school in the evening, Qin Gu came to pick him up, bringing him some hot oden as a late-night snack.
Qin Gu helped push the bicycle for him, while Ruan Bei sat sideways on the back seat, happily eating with his legs crossed.
Dong Yangyang shamelessly ate half a portion, feeling obligated to help, and kept calling him "Brother Qin."
Ruan Bei chuckled as he chewed on a piece of radish. Qin Gu asked him what he was laughing at. Ruan Bei swallowed the food in his mouth and laughed, "Brother Qin sounds like a love song, my love brother, hahaha."
Qin Gu glanced at him sideways, curled the corners of his lips, and said nothing.
Dong Yangyang laughed even louder than him. As she laughed, she met Qin Gu's smiling face, her scalp tightened, and she silently turned her head away, stuffing her mouth with delicious oden.
After returning home, Ruan Bei first went home to tell his mother that he would sleep at Qin Gu's house that night.
They often let each other stay overnight. Without saying much, Mrs. Ruan packed a plate of washed, fresh cherries for them to take up and eat.
Ruan Bei's schoolbag had been taken away by Qin Gu at some point. He took the plate of cherries, and the two walked upstairs side by side.
Because he had planned to have a good talk with Qin Gu in the evening, Ruan Bei spent his evening self-study time doing his homework. He finished most of today's homework, but he still didn't know how to do the questions. He would ask his teachers and classmates at school tomorrow.
As for why he didn't ask Qin Gu, well, only the child knows who the childhood sweetheart is. He doesn't even write out the steps on the exam paper, does he not know how? Of course not, he just felt that those processes could be simplified.
How can someone like that explain the problems? It's too much of a burden for both of us.
Boys shower quickly, and the two of them took turns showering in less than half an hour. After drying each other's hair, they were clean and refreshed, and sat down facing each other to begin the main event of the evening.
Ruan Bei held the plate of cherries, stuffed several into his mouth, and kept trying to find the right words to say them, unsure of how to begin.
Seeing his predicament, Qin Gu took the initiative to start the conversation: "I dealt with that female ghost this afternoon."
Ruan Bei's eyes lit up: "Did you hit her? Let Ma Chunhua become a one-armed person too!"
"I hit him."
Qin Gu showed him the photo: "She started crying before I even did anything, and she cried so ugly. I just poked her arm."
After looking through the photos, Ruan Bei happily enjoyed the thrill of revenge. "You dared to bully me? I have powerful backers!"
“This ghost is a poor ghost. She’s lying to you about trading jewelry with you,” Qin Gu said.
Ruan Bei ate another cherry, and casually stuffed two more into Qin Gu's hand, saying vaguely, "But she said she's a rich girl."
Qin Gu snorted and sneered, "It's all fake. She's a ghost from about fifty years ago. You can calculate when that was. Where would a rich young lady come from?"
"Fifty years?!" Ruan Bei was shocked. So it wasn't Sister Ma, but Grandma Ma?
Going back fifty years, when Ma Chunhua died, it was roughly the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China, a time when the country was relatively poor and the people were not very wealthy overall.
Of course, there are also families with good financial conditions, but those families wouldn't name their child Chunhua, would they? He thought that Grandma Ma was probably a village beauty when she was alive.
"But, but Uncle Ran said that ghosts can no longer remain in the mortal world after the forty-seventh day after death."
Qin Gu laughed and said, "If all ghosts followed the rules like this, what would be the point of having us celestial masters? Some ghosts are still attached to their own desires and are unwilling to be reincarnated for various reasons, so they stay in the mortal world. If they don't do evil, that's fine, but once they harm ordinary people, it's time for us to take action."
Ruan Bei was a little confused: "Doesn't the underworld care? Just let them stay?"
Qin Gu stroked his chin and raised an eyebrow, saying, "Who knows? Maybe they can't manage it all."
Ruan Bei sighed with regret, "If only I had known earlier, Uncle Ran could have stayed." Anyway, what Aunt Ran cared about more was that Uncle Ran could stay with her.
"No, that won't work." Qin Gu rejected his idea: "These ghosts who are still in the mortal world have already missed their chance to be reincarnated. If the Ran couple want to cultivate for the next life, Ran Yusheng cannot stay. Besides, there is a difference between humans and ghosts. Even if they stay, they cannot stay together for long, and it would be harmful to both of them."
Ruan Bei sighed, unsure how to judge the situation. If he stayed, at least they could meet again, but who knew what the next life would bring? But that was rather unfair to Uncle Ran.
But it's no use saying all this now, Ran Yusheng has already left.
"Kunkun, do you know any ghost messengers? I want to inquire about Uncle Ran's situation." Ruan Bei remembered Aunt Ran's entrustment, which she hadn't taken seriously at the time, but now it seemed possible to fulfill.
"I don't know you, but Xiao Bei, you can."
"Um?"
Qin Gu reached out and stroked the corner of his eye: "Have you forgotten what I said? The ability to see ghosts and spirits can help you communicate with them. If you encounter a ghost messenger trying to capture your soul, you can try to greet him."
"You can do that?" Ruan Bei exclaimed in surprise.
"Of course you can. The work of ghost messengers and celestial masters is similar. They both deal with ghosts. We can't see them, but you have the ability to see ghosts and communicate with them. If you greet them, they won't do anything to you. At most, they'll just ignore you."
Ruan Bei pondered for a moment and said quietly, "They are permanent employees, while you are temporary employees without official positions."
Qin Gu: "...Don't talk to other celestial masters like that in the future." It wouldn't be good if you got angry and beaten up.
Ruan Bei chuckled to himself: "I'm not stupid, that's why I told you!"
"Then tell me, didn't you say you had something to tell me?" Qin Gu took the opportunity to steer the conversation toward the topic of their talk that night.
Ruan Bei's smile froze instantly. He remained silent for a moment, then put the fruit plate on the table, wiped his hands clean, grabbed a pillow and hugged it to his chest. He unconsciously curled up into a very insecure position.
"Hmm...where should I begin? Kunkun, do you know about rebirth?"
"Rebirth?"
Qin Gu, being a member of the new generation, even if he didn't read many novels, understood the meaning of this word and immediately felt a sense of empathy: "Xiao Bei, you..."
"I've been reborn, Kunkun."
Qin Gu showed no surprise. His brows furrowed slowly as he took Qin Gu's tightly clasped hands into his own. He spoke softly, as if afraid of startling him: "So, how was your past life?"
Ruan Bei pursed her lips, and after a while whispered, "Not good."
Qin Gu frowned even more deeply, and suddenly asked, "Am I dead?"
"Huh? What are you saying?" Ruan Bei was speechless: "How can you curse yourself like that?"
Qin Gu's face was filled with anger, though it was unclear who he was angry at. He said, "If I hadn't died, why didn't I protect you?"
Ruan Bei's eyes instantly reddened.
He didn't want to cry. Before deciding to confess, he had prepared himself mentally and even rehearsed his story several times, intending to recount his past life in a calm and understated tone.
His grievances can be glossed over; there's no need to mention them. He's already feeling bad, so why make Kunkun suffer along with him?
But I couldn't hold back anymore, and the tears were completely out of control.
After Qin Gu finished speaking, Ruan Bei was already in tears. His expression didn't change much, but large tears fell, immediately staining a small patch of water on the pillow.
Qin Gu's eyes reddened as well. He didn't know what Xiao Bei had experienced in his past life, but he knew it must have been something extremely sad and heartbreaking.
With a stern face, he pulled Ruan Bei into his arms and held him tightly. He didn't say anything to comfort him, nor did he ask what he had been through. He just gave him a hug, patted his back gently, and whispered in his ear, "Cry."
As if it were a signal to allow release, Ruan Bei burst into tears, his tears soaking half of Qin Gu's shoulder, trembling uncontrollably as he cried.
"Kunkun, Kunkun..." Ruan Bei sobbed uncontrollably, unable to speak in Qin Gu's arms, calling his name again and again, which made Qin Gu's heart ache and he could hardly breathe.
"I'm here, Xiao Bei, don't be afraid. I'll stay with you, I'll always stay with you."
Qin Gu didn't even know when he started to shed tears. He gently patted Ruan Bei's hand, but tasted blood in his mouth.
"I didn't wait for you... I'm so tired... What will happen to my sister? I left her all alone..."
Ruan Bei was incoherent. Sometimes he would have nightmares, dreaming that his sister was crying at his grave, and that Kun Kun was standing in front of the Lu family villa, looking dejected, with boundless hatred in her eyes.
He couldn't fall back asleep for a long time after waking up. He was overjoyed to have a second chance, but in his previous life, he had died. How could his sister have survived alone? Kunkun came back and must have been heartbroken to hear the news of his death.
These unspeakable emotions, mixed with the deep wounds of past lives, were completely revealed and released in the embrace of the sleepy woman.
She didn't know how long she cried, but finally, exhausted, Ruan Bei relaxed and nestled in Qin Gu's arms, sobbing softly.
Qin Gu maintained the same posture the whole time, his arms around Ruan Bei never loosening. Ruan Bei cried, and he stayed with him, never saying anything like "Don't cry." If he wasn't really wronged, Ruan Bei wouldn't have cried like this. He had been holding it in for too long and needed to vent.
In the end, Ruan Bei calmed down on his own. After crying, he felt much better. Kun Kun, who silently accompanied him, also gave him more courage and support.
Anyway, Kunkun wouldn't mind his sloppiness, so Ruan Bei blew his nose, didn't wash his face, and leaned back down, resting his chin on Qin Gu's shoulder, and told him everything he had experienced in his past life.
A customer died unexpectedly at the restaurant; the father died, the mother was in a car accident, and the whereabouts of the child are unknown.
He was taken back by the Lu family, where he was ostracized and bullied. He had no one to tell him about his grievances, and he felt hopeless about the future. Day after day, he waited for Kunkun to return.
Qin Gu unconsciously clenched his teeth, his face as if coated with a layer of ice.
Even though he was just listening to others' stories, the aggrieved party, Ruan Bei, did not deliberately describe his embarrassment and helplessness at the time. He even occasionally complained that those people were not very bright.
Even just listening to it, Qin Gu found it hard to accept.
What gives them the right?!
Such a good boy, spoiled by his whole family, he's a child they've grown up with, why should he be tormented and humiliated by those so-called blood relatives?!
Some wounds may really need to be exposed to the sunlight to heal. As Ruan Bei spoke, he became more and more cheerful, and his mood was not as heavy as he had imagined. It was as if those festering wounds were gradually cleaned and treated as he poured out his heart.
Or perhaps the outburst of tears earlier had taken away some of the negative emotions.
Qin Gu was filled with grief and anger, his heart ached as if it were bleeding, and his mind was buzzing with rage. Fortunately, he was still able to concentrate on listening to what Ruan Bei was saying.
In the past few years, Ruan Bei had experienced many changes. Later, he felt there was really nothing to say. He was just being harassed by Lu Sibai's admirers. Different people, same routine.
He waited for Kunkun to come back, worked hard to make money, and wanted to leave the Lu family openly and honestly. His life was arduous, hopeless, and unremarkable.
Qin Gu heard a lot of important information in the middle, but he couldn't calm down and ask questions right now, so he just kept it in mind and asked Ruan Bei about it one by one after he finished speaking.
In the end, Ruan Bei said, "Then Lu Sibai got engaged to Qin Shen, and I was reborn."
Qin Gu remained silent for a moment, calming himself down, before asking, "You just came back like this?"
If nothing unexpected happens, how could someone be reborn inexplicably?
Ruan Bei whispered, "I'm dead."
Qin Gu's voice was hoarse: "...What... happened?" He couldn't bring himself to say the word.
Author's Note:
Oh, when I say Ma Chunhua's identity, I mean her simple identity, not some kind of internet celebrity.
Also, let me clarify that Lu Sibai is not reborn, transmigrated into a book, has a system, is not the protagonist of the world, and is not a child of the world. The Lu family and those admirers are not collectively stupid, although from Ruan Bei's perspective, it seems like a group of mental patients have collectively escaped (hahahaha, this is a comment from a cute little one, so apt really).
I won't go into details due to spoilers, partly due to mystical reasons, and this article only contains this one element.
Furthermore, there are many more relationships based on character design and perspective.
Think about it this way: the Lu family's insults and humiliations were actually the truth in their eyes. They looked down on the Ruan family and Xiao Bei. They even gave them money, probably thinking that giving money was enough.
As for favoritism, Lu Minghai is career-driven. He sacrificed his love and marriage for money to advance his career (mentioned in Chapter 1), marrying Feng Zhihui purely for financial gain. His favoritism towards Lu Sibai, of course, is primarily because Qin Shen likes him; the Qin family is incredibly wealthy, and a marriage alliance would be much more pleasant.
Feng Zhihui, everyone should take a look at the rich mother in "Autumn in My Heart". When I was young and ignorant, I was greatly shocked and I still haven't forgotten her after all these years.
Lu Siyuan, perhaps his unspoken love has driven him to the brink of madness. The person he likes and his brother, with whom he has little affection, are on completely different levels.
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