Chapter 79 "Before, that child said they..."
“Before, that child said that the empty house they were staying in was protected by a formation, and they couldn’t escape no matter what. Your people got lost when they followed them to the vicinity last night. Perhaps the place that expert was going to was that empty house. It seems that there is a formation around the house, which is why they can’t get in.”
"really?"
"If we can find that house, we should know."
"Fortunately, although our people can't get in, we've kept guarding outside. It's said that the person hasn't come out yet and should still be inside. In that case, as long as we catch this person, we'll have some clues. I'll go find someone to break the formation immediately."
As Ji Jiayu spoke, he was about to leave in a hurry when Lu Hun stopped him and said, "It's too late. It's been a whole night. He might be coming out soon. They're no ordinary people to be able to set up such a large formation. Even if your men are highly skilled, they probably won't be able to stop him. So, I'll go with you directly."
Lu Hun left a message for Wei Yin with his maid, and after a day's trip with Ji Jiayu, he called Po Jun to come along. Little did they know that no sooner had they left the Wen family's old residence than the He family's carriages and horses appeared at the door. Someone delivered a visiting card to see Wei's father. The sun was shining brightly that day, and Wei's father was airing books outside the study with Old Master Pei. When he heard that the He family grandfather and grandson had arrived, his brows furrowed. He wondered what the He family was up to, but out of courtesy, he quickly had someone invite them in.
However, the purpose of the He family's visit was not unexpected for Mr. Wei. It was because the old man He had suddenly learned about his grandson and granddaughter-in-law's divorce that he was surprised and puzzled, and came to ask for clarification. Mr. Wei made some excuses, and the old man He seemed to have been persuaded. He appeared very easy to talk to and would no longer interfere in his children's and grandchildren's marriages, which put Mr. Wei at ease. After talking and drinking tea, Mr. Wei went to see the old man He off. However, the old man He said that he still wanted to see his granddaughter-in-law, Wei Yin, and ask her for her own opinion. Mr. Wei thought it was only right and prepared to see him off himself. The old man He said it was not necessary and asked Mr. Wei and He Wenqing to stay and help Old Master Pei air out his books.
He Wenqing spread out his books outside to air them out, while Wei's father accompanied Pei Lao in the study to check if the books had been damaged by insects or rodents.
Old Pei, however, held the book, his face deep in thought.
"Why does Elder Pei look so gloomy? Is it because you were tired from airing the books today and are feeling unwell?" Wei's father asked, puzzled.
Old Pei shook his head, looking in the direction of He Wenqing, "I just feel something is strange."
"strangeness?"
"Hmm." Old Master Pei's eyes were sharp as he said, "I don't know the old man of the He family very well. Only his son and grandson have come to me to become my disciples. He usually doesn't care much about these trivial matters and rarely shows his face. Even when his own son died last time, he didn't care about it at all. But this time, he actually went out in person to talk to Wei Yin about He Wenqing and Wei Yin's matter."
Father Wei paused for a moment, then said, “I remember when my daughter-in-law and He Wenqing got married in the capital, he was far away in the desolate state and had no intention of coming. In previous years, when the in-laws visited each other, we rarely saw him.”
"I've suddenly remembered something," Elder Pei said. "Do you still remember He Wenqing's father?"
“I remember,” Wei’s father replied quickly. “He and I were both Jinshi in the same year. We had some things to talk about. He was an upright and unrestrained person. We were mentored by the same person. Our mentor valued us both very much. He was supposed to be directly selected into the Hanlin Academy, but for some reason, he suddenly changed his personality, resigned from his post, and never went to the court again. Later, I heard that he became a womanizer, spending his days drinking and gambling, and spoiling his concubines over his wife in his mansion.”
Old Pei sighed, "You don't know, after he resigned from his official post and returned to the desolate state, he came to see me, saying he wanted to drink with me, but he got himself completely drunk, looking like he had been deeply affected and was utterly dejected. When he was half-drunk, he even grabbed my hand and said, 'Teacher, teacher, the sky I've seen in the past twenty years is fake, fake. All the things I once believed in are fake, all fake. All that talk of benevolence and morality, in the end, it's all absurd and laughable...'"
"What does he mean by that?" Wei's father asked, puzzled.
"I don't know. This child won't say anything except for these few words." Old Pei said quietly, "Although I don't understand what happened to him at that time, it seems that something in his heart collapsed."
Wei's father didn't understand what Pei was saying, so he smiled and said, "When the He family came to ask for my hand in marriage, I hadn't made up my mind yet. But I thought that He Wenqing's father was a person worth befriending, so I didn't say anything."
“That child used to be a very upright and polite person, and I liked him quite a bit,” Old Master Pei said solemnly. “But this Old Master He always makes me feel a little uncomfortable.”
Father Wei grew increasingly uneasy upon hearing this and hurriedly said, "I'll go check on Yin'er."
Wei's father came out in a hurry, which made He Wenqing very suspicious. He was about to follow him when Old Pei called him back, so he had to give up.
Wei's father anxiously entered Wei Yin's room, just in time to find Wei Yin and Old Master He having finished their conversation and coming out. Wei Yin appeared normal, and upon seeing her father's sudden arrival, she said, "Father, you've come at the right time. Please see the old master off."
"No need," Old Master He smiled kindly. "You and your daughter can talk. I'll just walk around by myself."
After he left, Wei's father pulled Wei Yin aside and looked at her, asking, "What did this old man say to you?"
"What's wrong, Father?" Wei Yin asked, puzzled. Seeing her father's unusually tense expression, she smiled and said, "He just asked me why I wanted to divorce He Wenqing. After I told him, he didn't say anything else."
"That's good." Father Wei breathed a sigh of relief. "It seems that Father and Elder Pei were overthinking things."
"Where is your little lover?" Mr. Wei asked, glancing around her.
"Father, don't talk nonsense." Wei Yin glared at him. "He's sensitive, and he'll be upset and overthink if he hears this."
After seeing Wei's father off, Wei Yin was about to turn back to her room when she heard the child sobbing inside. The child was lying on the bed, and the white linen clothes he was wearing had long been changed, leaving him in ordinary children's clothes. Usually, Po Jun was the one looking after the child, but today Lu Hun had taken Po Jun out. Wei Yin hesitated for a moment before approaching the ghost child.
The child buried his head in the blanket, his little body trembling inside. Usually, this child was quiet and obedient, following Po Jun well. What was wrong with him today?
The child was timid, so Wei Yin didn't dare to raise her voice. She only asked cautiously, "What's wrong? Why are you crying?"
The child, trembling, pulled the blanket down a little after hearing Wei Yin's voice. Seeing that it was the older sister who was often with that brother, she became a little braver and choked out, "Just now... just now when I was sleeping, I seemed to hear that bad thing's voice again. I'm scared..."
Wei Yin learned from Lu Hun that the child was the sibling who had been dug up, and that he seemed to have been harmed by someone before his death, and immediately understood.
He reassured her, "It's okay, it's okay, you just had a nightmare, don't be afraid."
The child looked around and saw that there was no one else in the room. Even the few servants in the mansion had been sent away and kept away from this place. He slowly calmed down and nodded.
Wei Yin brought him some food and told him to eat and then go back to sleep. The child was a little more familiar with her and boldly asked her where Po Jun was. Wei Yin coaxed him again, saying that Po Jun had gone out on business and would be back later. Only then did the child reluctantly fall asleep.
After that, Wei Yin returned to her room.
Lu Hun and Ji Jiayu were busy with something, and they didn't return until nightfall. Wei Yin guessed that it was probably because of the child.
I blew out the lamp and went to bed.
The moon was nowhere to be seen in this weather, and the room was completely plunged into darkness. There was no light at all, except for a faint glimpse of a pair of eerie green eyes that suddenly opened in a corner of the room. But it was only for a moment before they disappeared and the room returned to darkness, as if that moment had been a hallucination.
A long time passed.
The person who was sleeping gradually fell into a deep sleep, and their breathing became even.
Suddenly, the eerie green thing in the corner shone brightly again. This time, it was clear that it was indeed a pair of eerie green eyes. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be the eyes on the little yellow talisman figure.
Suddenly, the little man straightened up and stood up on his own.
The jade pendant around Wei Yin's neck emitted a faint red glow.
The little paper figure looked exactly like a woman, with hands and feet. It stood on the ground, its eerie green light fixed on Wei Yin on the bed.
Immediately, the little figure moved. It tiptoed to the foot of Wei Yin's bed, then hugged the bedpost and huffed and puffed as it climbed up. With great effort, it finally reached Wei Yin's chest. Wei Yin was fast asleep and didn't notice it at all. The little figure then tiptoed up and stuck tightly to Bao Yu. Upon closer inspection, it was discovered that there was a strange red sticky substance on its body. When the substance touched Bao Yu, the red light on the jade was instantly extinguished, leaving it dull and lifeless.
It climbed down from Baoyu and crawled into her back, sticking tightly to her back.
After the paper figure calmed down, cold sweat began to bead on Wei Yin's forehead, her face filled with fear. After a long while, she suddenly woke up from her dream, crying out, "Mother!"
Hugging the blankets, he stared blankly at the pitch-black surroundings.
The next moment, Wei Yin heard several soft calls from outside the door.
"Yin'er, Yin'er."
Wei Yin looked up blankly, staring at the doorway.
The woman's voice came again, "Yin'er, it's your mother. Come, open the door for your mother."
It seems to possess a bewitching, seductive power.
Upon hearing the woman's words, Wei Yin, without any hesitation, absentmindedly threw off the bedding, put on his shoes, and got out of bed.
The door creaked open as Wei Yin pushed it open, but the outside was deserted. Only the pine trees in the courtyard swayed in the wind; there was no other sound.
As Wei Yin stared blankly at the doorway, the sound came from outside the courtyard again.
"Yin'er, come here, open the door for your mother again."
Without saying a word, Wei Yin walked in the direction of the sound.
Just then, the ghost child heard the commotion and cautiously peeked out of the room. He saw Wei Yin standing blankly at the door, and then inexplicably about to walk outside. He quickly called out to her, "Sister, aren't you going to sleep?"
Wei Yin turned around and said, "Can you hear my mother outside the courtyard? She said she wants me to open the door for her. I'm not talking to you anymore, I'm going to open the door for my mother."
The ghost child frowned: "But sister, no one knocked on the door at all. Are you sure you didn't hear wrong?"
"I didn't mishear, Mother is calling me." Wei Yin suddenly became very angry and glared at the ghost child.
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