Chapter 45 Ghost in the Painting
"Do you think it's very likely that she's hiding Ming Jiuyou in her home?"
Xuanwu said, "Yes, we tracked his aura, but then it disappeared. He might have concealed his presence after going inside. They could do that. It's also possible that Ming Jiuyou was just passing through—"
Yu Xiaoluo nodded. "Your tracking isn't very effective. From now on, just stake out outside Shangguan Peiyu's house. Report to me after three days, whether there's anything unusual or not."
Little Fairy: "I don't want to go, I want to stay with your master."
Little Pearl: "Master, I want to go with you too. We don't need so many people—demons—to stake out the spot. Just send Little Haha and Xuanwu; they're boys, they're not afraid of hardship or fatigue—otherwise, why are all the doormen and security guards in the human world men?"
this--
Yu Xiaoluo thought Xiaozhuzhu's words made sense, so she agreed, "Okay, then it's like this. Xiaohaha and Xuanwu will go to stake out the place, and you two will stay with me and help me decide what jewelry and clothes would suit me best."
Xuanwu and Little Toad: "Master, we want to stay with you too—"
Yu Xiaoluo opened the window, casually tossed them both out the window, and then closed it. "Alright, babies, my mother bought me lots of pretty things today, look—"
But before she could properly enjoy the view with her two babies, there was a knock on the door, followed by her older brother's voice, "Luo Luo, are you asleep?"
"No, brother, is there something you need?"
"Um."
Yu Xiaoluo opened the door, and Yu Jiangbai looked a little serious. "Luoluo, you're famous now, and several people have asked me to find you. They've all run into trouble. I refused some of them, telling them to come back when your restaurant opens. But I really can't refuse Lao Hei. He's Lao Hei from the Eagles team, and he's even acknowledged you as his brother. He's run into some trouble recently. He's downstairs right now."
"Oh, it's Brother Hei. I'll go see him." Yu Xiaoluo felt good about the brothers in the Eagles team. It was only right for a younger sister to help her brothers when they encountered trouble.
Old Hei was venomed by a snake last time, but Yu Xiaoluo saved him and he recovered after a few days of rest. However, he's been having some bad luck lately, getting into trouble again while dealing with some antiques.
He works for an auction house, so he frequently comes into contact with antiques and calligraphy and paintings.
Old Hei was sitting in the downstairs living room. When he saw Yu Xiaoluo and her brother come over, he stood up and said, "Luoluo, it's been several days since I last saw you. You've become even more beautiful."
"Brother Hei—" Yu Xiaolu called out sweetly, purely the sweetness of a younger sister to her older brother.
Old Hei affectionately patted her hair, and then everyone sat down.
Yu Xiaoluo carefully examined Lao Hei and noticed that his forehead was dark and he had a heavy aura of yin energy, which made her become serious.
"Brother Hei, where's the talisman I gave you?"
Old Hei sighed helplessly, "When my wife was washing clothes, I put them in the washing machine and they were turned to shreds. It's my fault for not taking them out first."
"Oh, have you been exposed to anything bad lately?"
"You noticed? I've acquired a few antiques and a painting these past few days, but I don't know what the problem is. I've been having nightmares about it."
"What nightmare?"
Old Hei took a sip of tea and slowly began to recount his dream. "In my dream, there was a woman wearing a red ancient wedding dress with a veil over her head. She was frantically tearing at the veil, but she just couldn't get it off. She kept calling my name, telling me to open the veil, or she would kill me. I ignored the dream the first day, but I had the same dream again the second and third days, and I felt myself getting weaker and weaker. But I couldn't help her open the veil, could I?"
Yu Xiaolu pondered for a moment, "Did you receive something and start acting like this before you had this dream?"
“That day I acquired two antiques and a painting. I also suspect it’s related to a few other items. Those items were locked up in the shop, and I didn’t dare to take them with me.”
"Let's go take a look."
So the three of them went to Lao Hei's shop together.
——————
Old Hei's antique shop is quaint and elegant. It's filled with a dazzling array of priceless antiques and collectibles, all encased in transparent glass cases, gleaming softly.
They walked up to a cabinet, and Lao Hei pointed to a very exquisite Qing Dynasty yellow-ground enamel plum blossom bowl and a gold-bodied cloisonné enamel inlaid ewer, saying, "These are the two I acquired the other day."
Yu Xiaoluo glanced at them and said, "They're fine."
"That calligraphy and painting is over there."
Old Hei led them to the other end, where the calligraphy and painting section was located. He pointed to a slightly yellowed painting of a beautiful woman hanging in a glass case and said, "This is it."
It was a painting of a beautiful woman dressing up. The woman in the painting was dignified and elegant, with a calm expression. She was holding a bronze mirror and pursing her red lips, while the maid behind her was combing her long, flowing hair.
Behind them, a section of the red wedding dress was visible on the cabinet.
This painting is shrouded in a gloomy atmosphere, tinged with a dark red hue, and exudes a strong sense of resentment.
"This is the painting."
"This painting is the work of Huang Zu, a calligrapher and painter from the Qing Dynasty. How could there be a problem?" Old Hei was a little puzzled.
"There is a female ghost in this painting. She died tragically and is full of resentment. Moreover, her soul is sealed in this painting and suffers torment every day. The origin of this painting should not be honorable. If I'm not mistaken, it was probably given to me by a tomb raider."
Old Hei was a little embarrassed. "In our line of work, we only look at the quality and authenticity of the goods when we receive them. We never ask about their origin. That's the default practice."
“I’ll summon her.” With that, Yu Xiaoluo took out a soul-summoning talisman and chanted a spell. Suddenly, the talisman was shrouded in dark mist and kept changing shape.
Soon, the shape coalesced into the form of a woman, a woman wearing a wedding dress and a veil. However, her hands were desperately tearing at the veil, but the veil remained unmoved.
"Ah, let me go, let me go, Wen Ruqian, you treacherous hypocrite who started this affair and then abandoned me!" the female ghost screamed desperately, screaming hysterically.
Both Lao Hei and Yu Jiangbai had their third eye opened by Yu Xiaoluo, so they could see it.
Old Hei saw this and exclaimed, "Yes, it's her! Her voice is exactly the same!"
Hearing the voice, the female ghost raised her head, stopped flailing her hands, and said in a chilling voice, "Let me go, let me go, or you will all die, you will all die! I will tear you to pieces!"
"Miss, how did you die, and how did you get trapped here? Tell us so we can help you." Yu Xiaoluo looked at her gently.
"Who are you? Why should I believe you? Why?! You all deserve to die! You all deserve to die! You're all bad people, you're in cahoots with that beast Wen Ruqian, aren't you!"
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