Chapter 28

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The old window frame reflected the shadow of a person lying down, muttering something faintly, then shifting into a different position.

Nie Honglian’s lips curved into a smile as she brushed the young man’s hair.

In the past, she was merely an opera singer. No matter how much fame she gained by singing on the stage, she still had the same longings a young girl ought to have in her heart.

“I am nothing but an opera singer.”

She often reminded herself of this. The best possible future for her was to be favored by someone, marry as a concubine, and if she bore a child, she could rely on that child for the rest of her life.

Her parents, when they sold her into the opera troupe, probably had the same thought in mind.

But in the end, it all came to nothing. She killed the maids and servants of the Chen Residence, turning herself into a vengeful ghost. But she could feel that if she kept on killing, she might forever become a wandering, lonely soul.

Yet the young man before her had killed Chen Yaoke first. She knew why and felt grateful in her heart. Perhaps, before reincarnating, staying by his side and helping him with a few things had become the thought rooted in Honglian’s heart.

Gradually…

She also began to enjoy watching him bob his head while riding on a donkey, watching him toss and turn in bed, watching him sit at the desk and read by the light of the oil lamp…

In the fenced courtyard, a thin mist began to rise. There was the creaking sound of the wooden door as Li Jinhua got up in the night to go to the outhouse. Half-asleep, she saw through her son’s window that the light was still lit.

“…Even if you have some money, it doesn’t mean you can waste it like this.”

The woman muttered under her breath as she walked down the yard. But as she stepped into the warm yellow light cast from the window, she suddenly stopped, thinking she was seeing things. She rubbed her eyes vigorously, and then…She felt a shiver run through her body and started trembling uncontrollably.

In her view, half of the window frame revealed a vague silhouette of a woman sitting on the desk, her head lowered, watching Liangsheng. As if sensing the woman’s gaze, the figure slightly turned her delicate face, shrouded in an eerie green light. Terrified, Li Jinhua quickly ran back to her bedroom, diving under the blankets and clutching her husband tightly. She trembled nonstop, but couldn’t help lifting a corner of the quilt, peeking toward the window.

Outside, the wind rustled through the branches, making them sway with a soft rustling sound. A shadowy figure appeared outside the window, slowly drifting past.

Li Jinhua’s face turned pale. Instinctively, she bit down on the blanket and reached out to shake her husband awake. “Laoshi, wake up quickly! There’s a ghost…”

Outside the window, Nie Honglian paused. Since she had been seen, she thought about talking to the woman. Just as she was about to push the window open and float inside, the faint light of dawn began to creep across the sky, and the sound of a rooster’s crow echoed through the village.

Her pale hand lowered as she sighed softly. She turned and floated toward the kitchen, then soon drifted back out.

Inside the room, Lu Laoshi had already been shaken awake. He glanced toward the window, then lay back down.

“There’s no such thing as ghosts. Let me sleep a bit longer.”

The sky was gradually getting lighter. Roosters crowed and dogs barked intermittently, and soon there were the sounds of people stirring. The wind in the small courtyard had also died down. Only then did Li Jinhua dare to get up. She swiftly dressed and cautiously peeked outside a few times, but there was nothing there.

“Could it be that my old eyes are just playing tricks on me?”

She grabbed a bundle of firewood and walked toward the kitchen. But just as she entered, the firewood slipped from her hands with a loud clatter. Steam rose from the stove, and the fire burned brightly, someone had already started cooking breakfast for her.

“Mom, did you start cooking the rice so early?” Lu Xiaoxian asked sleepily as she yawned, stepping out of her room and standing there groggily.

Li Jinhua didn’t know how to respond and seemed somewhat flustered. “Go wash up, then wake your brother.”

“Okay!”

The young girl went to the well, scooped a ladle of water from the bucket, then turned her head toward the opposite house and shouted: “Brother, wake up!”

Inside the room, the figure slumped over the desk stirred. He sat up, stretched lazily, and the thin outer garment on his back slipped to the floor.

Lu Liangsheng picked it up, glancing to the side at the toad.

“Did Master drape this over me?”

Turning his head to think for a moment, Lu Liangsheng first blew out the oil lamp. By now, the daylight had fully brightened the room. He realized that he had spent the entire night slumped over the desk, but surprisingly, his body felt fine. Opening the door, he snatched the wooden basin from Lu Xiaoxian’s hands, ignoring the little girl’s attempt to swat him in annoyance. He splashed water on his face and rubbed it, feeling a slight oily residue on his fingertips.

He figured that when his cultivation reached higher levels, such minor troubles would no longer bother him.

“Hey, Liangsheng, you’re up early today.”

Suddenly, someone spoke from outside the courtyard. Lu Liangsheng was about to use a water-repelling spell to clean the remaining water off his face, but upon hearing the voice, he loosened the fingers forming the spell’s sign and looked toward the courtyard fence. An old woman stood there holding an oil-paper package.

Before the young man could invite her in, she entered the yard on her own, smiling warmly, as though she were a frequent visitor. She strolled over to the eaves just in time to see Li Jinhua coming out of the kitchen. Enthusiastically, the old woman handed her the oil-paper package.

“Sister-in-law, I’m from the northern village. I came uninvited today because I have something to discuss.” The old woman cast a glance at the young man in the courtyard, clicking her tongue approvingly.

Li Jinhua, having seen her share of such things, immediately understood the situation when someone brought a gift and came knocking at her door.

“Our house is small, and we don’t have a place to properly host guests. If you don’t mind, we can just talk here.”

“No worries, no worries. I don’t mind at all,”

The old woman replied, smiling as she followed Li Jinhua to sit down. She complimented Lu Xiaoxian with a few sweet words before bringing up the main topic.

“I’m here today with news of a big happy event…”

Her voice reached the side room ahead of them, and at the mention of the words “happy event”, a figure floated down from the hanging painting on the wall. It hid in the shadows of the wall, quietly listening.

“…Yesterday, your son visited the northern village. There’s a young girl there who took a liking to him. She’s fallen in love, but she’s too shy to say anything. Her parents came to me before dawn today to ask if I could arrange a marriage proposal…”

The mention of a “marriage proposal” caused the figure behind the wall to frown slightly. What should have been good news left Nie Honglian feeling inexplicably irked in her heart. She found herself growing increasingly annoyed with the matchmaker, and her red lips curled slightly. She thought of something and glanced at the Toad Daoist on the bed.

She placed a finger to her lips in a “shh” gesture, her figure gradually fading as she passed through the earthen wall into the adjacent room.

Meanwhile, under the eaves outside, the matchmaker continued enthusiastically, “That girl’s family is quite good.” “She’s also pretty, and she would be a perfect match for your Liangsheng.” “After all, building a family and establishing oneself in life begins with marriage.”

Lu Liangsheng gave an awkward chuckle. He had little interest in matters of marriage. Grabbing the hoe from the house, he called out to Li Jinhua: “Mom, I’m heading to the fields.”

Of course, he wasn’t going to till the land, he was searching for a place to set up the formation’s core.

“The young man must be feeling shy. Sister-in-law, please say something…” The matchmaker watched Lu Liangsheng’s back as he left the courtyard. She continued speaking, about to move on to the next part of her speech, when her words suddenly cut off. She stood frozen, staring blankly at the window in front of her.

Li Jinhua had been overjoyed to have a matchmaker visit with a marriage proposal The joy of the situation had largely dispelled the fear she had felt earlier in the morning after encountering a ghost. She was waiting for the matchmaker to continue speaking when she noticed that the woman’s face was covered in fine beads of cold sweat, her expression growing increasingly strange.

Just as Li Jinhua was about to ask, “What’s wrong?” the matchmaker suddenly let out a piercing scream. She pointed frantically at the window behind Li Jinhua, unable to utter a single word. The stool beneath her inexplicably tilted, and the matchmaker fell heavily onto the ground.

Scrambling to her feet, she bolted out of the courtyard as fast as she could. Within the blink of an eye, she had disappeared from sight.

Li Jinhua stood up, turning to glance behind her. There wasn’t even a shadow in the window, but her heart skipped a beat.

…Could there really be a ghost?

The thought made her quickly press her palms together and offer a prayer to the surrounding spirits.

Meanwhile, in the room, Nie Honglian had floated back through the wall, feeling much more content. She watched with a self-satisfied grin as the matchmaker fled in terror, her face full of smug delight. “How could a vulgar woman like that be worthy of Gentleman Lu? Hmph!”

Feeling pleased with herself, she gracefully returned to the painting.

The only one left baffled was the Toad Daoist, still sitting by the bed, tilting his head in confusion as he tried to figure out what had just happened.

As the sunlight rose higher into the sky, most of the villagers had already headed out to the fields. From the muddy path leading outside the village, the sound of horse hooves echoed from a distance. A group of constables in black robes galloped toward the village. They dismounted and approached the farmers working in the fields, clasping their hands in greeting.

“Excuse me, is Lu Liangsheng from Lu Family Village up ahead?”

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