A piercing, tooth-aching ring erupted in Xie Chongyang’s ears. Just as he covered them to speak, the surroundings plunged back into silence.
Old Zhang had turned off the speakers.
“Aha, you guys are finally here! I was just about to show off my skills,” Old Zhang said with a grin. He held up his soldier-and-horse jar, preparing to stuff both the withered Lady and the injured blue living soul inside.
From the distance, a voice echoed through the air, “Wait!”
The two turned to look. One of the Underworld messengers they had encountered at the City God Temple was floating toward them in a hurry, clutching a soul-hooking chain. A smile broke across his fierce, malevolent face. “Oh, you can all see me? That makes things easier. Hand this little ghost over to me.”
Xie and Zhang exchanged a look. Old Zhang bowed with a polite smile. “Could you wait a moment? She did not have such heavy resentment before. We wanted to ask if she encountered something.”
“She probably just bumped into something dirty,” the messenger said dismissively. “These ghosts lingering in the human world should have been taken down long ago. It was fine when we could not find them, but now that I have laid eyes on them, there is no reason to delay further.”
Old Zhang knitted his brows in hesitation. “This is,”
He was about to use his silver tongue to haggle with the messenger, but the other party took the initiative. “How about this? After they are taken down, they will be thoroughly interrogated before the Hall. Come to the City God Temple in fifteen days to offer incense and inquire. Whatever is confessed, I will tell you.”
Old Zhang understood the subtext: it would be best to burn some extra incense and paper ingots for him then. He agreed with a smile, “We shall do as you say.”
“Mm. You have helped perform many good deeds; your name will not be forgotten in the Ledger of Merit.” Satisfied, the messenger hooked the Lady, whose malevolence had been suppressed, and departed, leaving behind only the blue living soul.
“It is a pity the other living souls ran off,” Old Zhang said with a sigh as he pinched his fingers in a calculation. “Tsk, they went in all directions. It looks like I have to make a trip to the hospital to call them back.”
Once Xiao Tao confirmed the identities of the unlucky grave robbers, they would have their birth charts. Calling their souls directly would be much faster than searching the streets.
Cui Renwang watched the direction where the messenger had vanished and let out a long breath. His body swayed slightly.
Old Zhang quickly supported him. “Oh, look at you! I told you not to always use these improper methods to draw talismans just for convenience. How much blood do you even have? Is it not better to buy some yellow paper and cinnabar?”
Cui Renwang let the words go in one ear and out the other. He frowned as he surveyed the surroundings.
Earlier, the blue living soul had fled to avoid living people, unknowingly leading them to a small path. Aside from the streetlights, the lights in the surrounding buildings were mostly dark. He was not sure of the situation, but fortunately, there was little human presence, so it had not attracted much attention.
He asked, “Did they arrive here by chance, or is there something here?”
“Who knows,” Old Zhang sighed. “It is a pity I did not get to ask. I still feel she encountered something. The Underworld messengers do not wait for anyone. We can only ask in fifteen days.”
“Mm.” Cui Renwang lowered his eyes and muttered, “When will the Underworld start promoting anti-corruption campaigns?”
“Shh!” Old Zhang glared at him. “Watch your mouth! Are you not afraid of the messengers hearing you? They are very petty!”
Cui Renwang glanced at him sideways. “Are you not afraid they will hear you saying they are petty?”
Old Zhang was speechless. He patted Cui Renwang and said, “A child’s words carry no harm.” Then he patted himself. “A man’s words are kind when death is near.”
Cui Renwang was surprised. “Are you dying?”
“Sooner or later.” Old Zhang was philosophical about it. “Alright, you two have been busy all day. You are off the clock. Tell Xiao Tao to go home quickly too!”
He turned around and saw Xie Chongyang still staring at the strangely broken streetlight. He clapped his hands in realization. “Oh, the streetlight!” He patted Xie Chongyang. “Do not worry, Little Cui is rich. He will pay to fix it.”
Cui Renwang was silent.
Xie Chongyang slowly knitted his brows. “I saw a face just now.”
Interested, Cui Renwang asked, “You saw it?”
Xie Chongyang snapped out of it and answered firmly, “It could not have been a ghost!”
Cui Renwang asked, “Then how do you explain it?”
Xie Chongyang thought seriously. “Wait, let me think.”
“Fine.” Cui Renwang nodded slightly. “Tell me when you have made up a story.”
Xie Chongyang said, “What do you mean, made up?”
Cui Renwang had already returned to the car. He looked even more lethargic than before, his face as white as paper. He asked, “Can you take me back to the hotel? I am a bit sleepy.”
“Look at this.” Old Zhang immediately stepped forward, grabbing his wrist to check his pulse while continuing to talk. “I told you, alright, fine! You do not want to hear it! I am telling you, with your talent, why not study properly under me? We have a type of practice now that does not require full monkhood and allows for marriage.”
Cui Renwang glanced at him sideways.
Old Zhang let go of his hand with regret. “What is wrong? Do you really not want to call me Master?”
“Call you Master?” Cui Renwang stared at him. “It was so dangerous just now.”
“How was it dangerous!” Old Zhang dismissed the idea, striking a pose like a Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King as he held up his jar. “Just wait until I summon the five armies. This tiny resentful ghost is nothing.”
Cui Renwang rolled his eyes, withdrew his hand, and ruthlessly closed the car door, shutting out Old Zhang’s nagging.
“I am telling you, you really need to control your sugar intake! Also, relax and do not just stay cooped up at home. Get more sun! Thinking too much is the worst!” Old Zhang poked the car window to give his instructions. “Otherwise, I will prescribe you two doses of medicine that are more bitter than life itself and have Captain Xie hold your nose to pour them down!”
Xie Chongyang was shocked. “Old Zhang, you can check pulses too?”
“Of course!” Old Zhang pointed to himself proudly. “I am an old practitioner of traditional medicine. If I were willing to see patients, I would definitely be a specialist.”
“It was not in your file, was it?” He slapped his thigh with regret. “Ah, I was careless. I should have written it under special skills.”
Xie Chongyang was silent.
Old Zhang glanced at Cui Renwang in the car, pulled Xie Chongyang a step aside, and lowered his voice. “Hey, Little Xie, I have a favor to ask. When you are not working, can you find ways to take Little Cui along with you?”
Xie Chongyang agreed without hesitation. “Sure.”
“I am telling you, this kid,” Old Zhang was about to launch into a long explanation but suddenly stalled. “Ah? Sure?”
“Yes.” Xie Chongyang nodded firmly. “Sure, no problem. I will take him for meals, get him some sun, and control his sugar, right?” He was a bit amazed. “Old Zhang, you even know about sugar control.”
Old Zhang’s mouth moved, but he finally recovered. “Uh, well, it is good that you agreed, but I should still explain.”
Cui Renwang was already resting his eyes in the passenger seat. “This child has a special destiny. He has too much yin energy, and his life chart is light. The more he deals with ghosts and gods, the thinner his human essence becomes. If he is not careful, he might truly step over the Naihe Bridge and go to the Underworld in his sleep. Letting him experience more of the human world’s emotions and desires to gain some human essence is good for him.”
“Alright.” Xie Chongyang agreed immediately. Following the logic, he thought for a moment and said, “But in that case, would it not be better for him to stay away from all this and not get involved at all?”
“You said it yourself, in that case.” Old Zhang threw up his hands. “You do not know how stubborn he can be. Even if you do not let him get involved, he will still find a way to do it behind your back. Rather than letting him act recklessly on his own, it is better for me to watch him, teach him a few tricks, and help him out.”
Xie Chongyang ignored the unscientific parts and understood the core message. “Alright, I understand! Do not worry, I will try my best to bring him along!”
“Aha! That is great.” Old Zhang nodded in relief. Suddenly, his expression shifted into a kind smile that looked like a swindler’s. “By the way, good child, do you want to be a Taoist?”
Xie Chongyang shook his head firmly without a second of hesitation.
“Sigh.” Old Zhang put his hands behind his back and sighed. “Why did Old Zhao get all the good candidates? Your birth chart is also very suitable for being a Taoist. I am going to the hospital now.” He mournfully climbed onto his electric scooter, took the now-silent Bluetooth speaker, and rode into the night toward the Third Hospital.
Uncertain, Xie Chongyang returned to the car and confirmed with Cui Renwang, “So, does this mean the case is over?”
“Mm,” Cui Renwang replied. Since it was the ghost from the tomb that was caught, it was normal for Xie Chongyang to be confused.
Xie Chongyang gathered his thoughts. It was originally just a small grave-robbing case that only seemed special because the three thieves acted strangely and one had escaped. Now the runaway had been found. As long as the people in the hospital woke up, it would indeed be completely over.
With that in mind, he looked at Cui Renwang out of the corner of his eye, intending to ask a few more details. Cui Renwang still seemed concerned about some invisible detail, something about a change in the Lady. However, Cui Renwang was pale and frowning, looking to be in a poor state.
“Hey!” Xie Chongyang said with concern. “What is wrong?”
Cui Renwang’s eyelids lifted slightly as he answered lazily, “I am sleepy.”
Xie Chongyang was silent. This did not look like sleepiness; it looked more like he was about to faint! He asked seriously, “Do you really not need to go to the hospital?”
“No.” Cui Renwang closed his eyes. “If I go to the hospital, I can only say I am a bit tired. I will be fine after some sleep. Thank you for the ride.”
He seemed to not want to talk anymore. Xie Chongyang frowned. “It is nothing.”
As soon as the car stopped in the hotel parking space, Cui Renwang opened his eyes. “Thank you.” He got out of the car after thanking him politely, but Xie Chongyang followed him out.
Cui Renwang was slightly surprised. “What? You are escorting me for such a short distance? Are you worried I will faint in the hotel lobby?”
Xie Chongyang looked at him with a complex expression. “Wait a moment before you go up.” He walked quickly to the hotel front desk, said something, and soon returned with something in his hand. He unceremoniously grabbed Cui Renwang’s right hand.
“What are you doing?” Cui Renwang looked down and saw him putting a bandage on the finger he had bitten.
Cui Renwang was silent.
Xie Chongyang muttered, “You actually bit through your own finger in one go. I thought it was all a lie in television dramas. I tried it when I was a kid and could not bite through at all.” He suddenly looked up at Cui Renwang’s mouth and asked with a hint of curiosity, “Is it because your teeth are particularly sharp?”
He seemed very curious. Cui Renwang even suspected he might ask him to open his mouth to check his teeth. He wanted to give a sharp retort, but the slight tightening of the bandage on his finger reminded him that he had just accepted a kindness, so the words got stuck in his throat.
Cui Renwang took a deep breath and looked away. “Yes, I am very sharp-tongued.” But it was not a good time to demonstrate.
Xie Chongyang laughed again, still holding his finger. Captain Xie had lived a straightforward life and did not think anything was inappropriate about two men holding hands and smiling in a hotel lobby late at night.
Cui Renwang withdrew his hand expressionlessly and checked his phone. He let out a slight sigh of relief and said to Xie Chongyang, “A message from Old Zhang. The four people in the hospital have all woken up.”