Tong Huanyou knocked on the door.
“Is anyone home?”
How strange. Shouldn’t the male and female leads have arrived long ago already? And Yu Qingci had clearly come before her too. So where was everyone?
With a creak, the door slowly opened.
“Who is it?”
A pale-faced woman stepped out and looked toward Tong Huanyou weakly.
“Whose young miss are you? I don’t think I’ve seen you before.”
Tong Huanyou quickly explained,
“I came looking for Brother Zhang.”
The woman froze briefly.
“My husband went up the mountain with two immortal masters not long ago. Is there something you needed?”
Tong Huanyou started to answer.
“I wanted to—”
Before she could finish speaking—
The woman suddenly broke into a violent coughing fit, as though she might cough up her internal organs.
Tong Huanyou’s heart tightened immediately. She hurried forward to support her.
“What’s wrong with you?!”
Blood dripped from the woman’s lips onto the ground, blooming like a shocking crimson flower.
Her eyes were filled with agony as her limp hands weakly gripped Tong Huanyou’s arm.
“Cough—cough cough!”
The sight frightened Tong Huanyou badly.
She quickly supported the woman into the inner room.
After entering, she carefully helped her onto the bed before hurriedly pouring a cup of water.
“How are you feeling?” she asked worriedly.
The woman accepted the bowl and drank a few sips. Only then did her coughing gradually subside.
Looking apologetically at Tong Huanyou, she said weakly,
“Did I scare you?”
Tong Huanyou pulled out a handkerchief from her sleeve and gently wiped the blood from the woman’s lips.
“No, no. I’ll go fetch a doctor for you.”
But the woman grasped her wrist and slowly shook her head.
“There’s no need. This body of mine is already halfway buried.”
As she spoke, she weakly lifted her gaze toward a spot outside the bedroom door.
Following her line of sight, Tong Huanyou noticed a stone being worshipped in the main hall.
The woman smiled faintly.
“Little miss, could I trouble you to light an incense stick for me?”
Tong Huanyou nodded.
“Of course.”
She walked into the main hall and found three incense sticks beside the offering table.
After lighting them, she bowed symbolically a few times, though her attention unconsciously drifted toward the stone.
Rather than a simple rock, it looked more like part of a broken statue. Intricate carved patterns were still visible upon its surface.
“Why do you worship this stone?” Tong Huanyou asked curiously after returning to the bedroom.
The woman explained weakly,
“That is my guardian deity.”
Tong Huanyou looked puzzled.
“A guardian deity?”
“My father once told me that anything capable of saving your life at a crucial moment is a guardian deity.”
“When Auntie was little, I was terribly mischievous. One time, I ran into the forest to play and accidentally fell off a cliff. Thanks to this stone, I survived.”
“So afterward, I brought it home and have worshipped it ever since.”
Just then—
Bang!
The door suddenly burst open.
A large man rushed frantically inside.
With a worried expression, he hurried to the bedside and anxiously asked,
“Wife! I saw blood outside! Are you feeling unwell again?”
The woman coughed lightly twice before comforting him.
“I’m alright. Thanks to this young miss here.”
Hearing that, the man turned and finally noticed the girl standing nearby.
Seeing this, Tong Huanyou greeted him politely.
“Hello, Brother Zhang.”
Brother Zhang stared at her for a moment before suddenly saying,
“You’re the eldest miss from the Tong residence?”
Tong Huanyou froze briefly.
“Ah… haha… yes, that’s me.”
She hadn’t expected the original host to be this famous.
Madam Zhang also looked startled.
“So you’re Miss Tong. We’re truly grateful that your household has supported our business all these years.”
Tong Huanyou waved her hands repeatedly.
“No need to thank me, no need!”
At that moment, Brother Zhang’s expression shifted slightly as he looked at her sympathetically.
“This morning, the two immortal masters hired by Master Tong already came asking about Miss Tong.”
Tong Huanyou paused.
Looks like the news about the original host being targeted by evil spirits had already spread.
Upon hearing this, Madam Zhang’s gaze toward Tong Huanyou also gained a trace of pity.
“Those two immortal masters looked highly skilled. I’m sure they’ll help you survive this calamity.”
Tong Huanyou rubbed her nose awkwardly.
“I hope they can at least save my little life.”
“Well, since Brother Zhang has returned, I should probably take my leave now.”
For some reason, she constantly felt as though something inside this room was secretly watching her.
It made her deeply uncomfortable.
“Then let me escort you out,” Brother Zhang said as he prepared to rise.
Tong Huanyou quickly stopped him.
“No need, no need! Brother Zhang, you should stay and take care of Sister-in-law. I can leave by myself.”
“Alright then. I truly can’t leave my wife right now.”
“It’s fine, really.”
Tong Huanyou waved as she spoke.
Yet as she passed through the main hall, her gaze unconsciously drifted once more toward that strange stone.
“Your wish…”
An ethereal voice suddenly echoed inside her mind.
The shock made her entire body jolt violently as she hurriedly rushed out of the courtyard.
What she didn’t know was that atop the Zhang family roof, that dark-clothed figure had witnessed her panicked expression completely.
Sunlight illuminated the silver threads woven into his robes, making them shimmer faintly like fireflies.
The next second, he leapt gracefully down from the rooftop.
“Where the hell did that black-hearted bastard run off to… this is killing me…”
As she walked back, Tong Huanyou increasingly felt chills crawling through her heart.
It was as though a pair of eyes watched her every step from behind.
She didn’t dare turn around at all.
Her heartbeat grew faster and faster, sweat beginning to form on her forehead as her pace unconsciously quickened.
Suddenly—
A hand landed on her shoulder.
Tong Huanyou’s heart nearly stopped as she screamed at the top of her lungs.
“AAAAAHHH!”
Before she could react, another hand swiftly covered her mouth.
A low voice sounded above her head.
“You’re so noisy.”
Her eyes widened instantly.
The person behind her was actually Yu Qingci.
Anger exploded inside her immediately.
After wrenching herself free, she blurted out,
“Are you insane?!”
“Hm?”
Yu Qingci tilted his head slightly, narrowing his eyes.
Tong Huanyou instantly shivered.
“I-I’m the insane one! Me! I’m the crazy one!”
Yu Qingci snorted coldly.
“You certainly didn’t seem this timid yesterday. Don’t tell me… you’re afraid of ghosts?”
Finally calming down slightly, Tong Huanyou let out a long breath.
“That’s different. If I die by your hands, at least it’d count as dying beneath a beautiful flower—worth it even as a ghost. At least you’re handsome enough to make the view enjoyable.”
“But dying at the hands of some terrifying ghost? That’s suffering physically and mentally.”
“You’re even picky about how you die,” Yu Qingci remarked with a raised brow before casually continuing forward.
“Hey, that was basically me complimenting you. Couldn’t you tell?”
Tong Huanyou hurried to catch up.
But the moment she lengthened her stride, she accidentally pulled at the scabbed-over wound on her knee, causing sharp pain that made her suck in a breath.
Sensing the disturbance behind him, Yu Qingci stopped and glanced sideways at her mockingly.
“So, has Miss Tong become more timid… or simply older?”
Tong Huanyou rolled her eyes irritably.
Then she lifted her skirt slightly with one hand and pointed at the wound on her knee with the other.
The freshly formed scab had split open again, thin streaks of blood seeping out.
She stared directly at Yu Qingci as though silently saying—
Big brother, care to explain whose fault this is?