Feng Jingcheng and Nan Yuanman exchanged a glance.
“Hearing a baby cry doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a ghost. Maybe your boyfriend’s family keeps a fox?” Feng Jingcheng guessed. “Oh, I meant the kind of animal, a fox, not a fox spirit.”
After all, a fox's loud call sometimes sounds like a baby crying.
"Or could it be the sound of the neighbor's child crying?"
Xie Shuyao shook her head, her eyebrows furrowed: "Keeping a pet is impossible. Bai Yu has asthma, and any furry pet will trigger his asthma."
"Besides that, I also talked to the neighbors. They don't have any children, and I asked them if they heard any strange noises at night, and they said they didn't..."
When Xie Shuyao first heard those strange sounds, she didn't associate them with ghosts.
Firstly, she had never actually encountered any supernatural events, and secondly, she still had doubts about the existence of ghosts.
So her initial idea was to first thoroughly investigate Zhou Baiyu's house, inside and out.
After confirming that he didn't have any pets and that his neighbors hadn't had any children, Xie Shuyao felt something was off.
She immediately moved back to her own home from Zhou Baiyu's house, but something even more frightening happened.
She would be awakened in the middle of the night by that shrill cry.
Xie Shuyao's face paled slightly as she continued, "That crying was very shrill, like...like someone had been abused and hurt, so I was wondering if something had happened to someone in Baiyu's house before, and then it started haunting me..."
"Yuanman, after we finish eating, could you come with me to take a look? If... if it really is a ghost from there haunting me, please help me get rid of it."
Nan Yuanman sat upright in her seat, her two little hands obediently placed on the table. She tugged at the edge of the table, tilted her head to look at Xie Shuyao, and nodded: "Okay."
She blinked, glanced at the small black cloud perched on Xie Shuyao's shoulder, its tail held high, rubbing against her cheek, and asked, "Sister, have you ever owned a cat before?"
Xie Shuyao didn't immediately realize why the topic had shifted to her own cat, but she still nodded honestly: "I have had one."
"I found a black and white cat named Tuantuan on the roadside on a rainy day. When I found her, her eyes were not open. She had been abandoned by her mother cat because she was weak. It took me a lot of effort to save her."
As Xie Shuyao spoke, a faint sadness and nostalgia appeared on her face: "Unfortunately, a year ago when I was away on a business trip, Bai Yu came to feed her. When he opened the door, she mischievously ran out and we still haven't found her."
Xie Shuyao also had a big fight with Zhou Baiyu over this matter, and even suspected that he deliberately let Tuantuan get lost, because he has asthma and had suggested that she give Tuantuan up for adoption.
Xie Shuyao was unwilling at the time. She had been raising Tuantuan for almost four years, and Tuantuan had accompanied her through many low periods. To her, Tuantuan was already considered family.
She didn't want to send Tuantuan away because of a man who might not even be with her for the rest of his life.
The two had a cold war, which ended when Jason Chow gave in.
After Tuantuan went missing, she broke up with Zhou Baiyu. However, Zhou Baiyu felt guilty and sad. He even hired many professional cat search teams to search in many places, but they still couldn't find Tuantuan.
He did his best, sincerely apologized to her, and even went to a pet store to bring her a black and white cat that looked just like Tuantuan, saying he wanted to raise it with her.
Seeing all that he had done, Xie Shuyao gradually came to believe that he hadn't done it on purpose, and forgave him after Zhou Baiyu apologized for the eighth time.
After that, Jason Chow went abroad, and as she became increasingly busy, her longing for Tuan Tuan gradually faded.
"Of course, I've sent many people to look for her over the years, but perhaps my fate with Tuantuan has come to an end. No matter how many people searched, they couldn't find her." Xie Shuyao lowered her eyes, her expression bitter.
The little black ball that had been perched on her shoulder suddenly became agitated. Its tail swished rapidly, and it rubbed its cheeks eagerly, as if trying to say something to her, but it couldn't make a sound.
Nan Yuanman looked at the little black ball of fur and was about to speak when Zhou Baiyu's voice came: "I'm back. What are you guys talking about?"
Zhou Baiyu walked over with a smile, pulled out the chair next to Xie Shuyao and sat down. Looking at the empty table, he ruffled Xie Shuyao's hair with a mix of helplessness and affection: "Yaoyao, why don't you order first?"
"It's almost 1 p.m. now, and the kids are starving."
Xie Shuyao subtly changed the subject, smiling as she said, "I was just talking to Yuanman about what she wants to eat. This place has pretty good kids' meals. I wonder if Yuanman will like them."
Zhou Baiyu smiled kindly at Nan Yuanman: "If you can't choose, you can order anything to try."
Nan Yuanman blinked and asked with a grin, "How did you know, Uncle? Do you often bring little kids here to eat?"
Zhou Baiyu said casually, "It's not often. I have a little nephew who really likes the kids' meals here. I just don't know if they'll suit your taste."
"After you've finished your studies, you can come to my house and play with my little nephew when you have time."
Xie Shuyao was just thinking about what excuse she should use to take Nan Yuanman to Zhou Baiyu's house when he unexpectedly handed her a ladder.
Nan Yuanman nodded happily, shaking his head: "Okay, okay, I'm free this afternoon, I can come to your house to play."
Do you have a large coffin at home?
Zhou Baiyu was stunned for a moment: "A large coffin? There isn't one."
Nan Yuanman asked with some regret, "If there's no large coffin, is there a vegetable garden? Can we grow vegetables there?"
Jason Chow: "...No, not either."
Before Nan Yuanman could continue with his outrageous remarks, he quickly added, "However, my brother's house has a swimming pool and a children's castle, which was built specifically for my nephew and his little guests. There are many fun things inside."
"Wow!" Nam Manganese said rather casually, "I'm so excited!"
Zhou Baiyu: "..." Was it his imagination? Why did it sound so perfunctory?
Xie Shuyao asked curiously, "I know about the swimming pool, but I don't see the children's castle?"
“The children’s castle is in the back garden of the villa. Every time you come here…” Zhou Baiyu paused for a moment before continuing, “Of course I didn’t see it.”
Xie Shuyao also remembered that she always spent time with Zhou Baiyu whenever she came to see him. Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she quickly picked up her water glass to cover her embarrassment: "Ahem, I see."
"Come on, let's order and eat first." Xie Shuyao quickly picked up the menu: "After you finish eating, call your little nephew and ask him to bring Yuanyuan to your house for a good time."
Jason Chow readily agreed: "Okay."
The meal was a pleasant one for both host and guests. Feng Jingcheng was quite good at sweet-talking people when he wanted to win someone over, and he quickly became sworn brothers with Zhou Baiyu.
After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Zhou Baiyu called his nephew and drove ahead with Xie Shuyao, while Feng Jingcheng and Nan Yuanman followed in their car.
As soon as they got in the car, Feng Jingcheng asked, "Yuanman, there's something wrong with Zhou Baiyu, isn't there?"
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