Yun Niang was so furious she could hardly catch her breath. Never had she imagined her judgment of people could be so poor!
Shen Mingshu gently tugged at Yun Niang’s hand, pouting with grievance as she whimpered, “Mother, I’m so scared…”
Yun Niang wrapped an arm around her shoulders, patting her back soothingly. “Don’t be afraid. I will never let you marry that rotting corpse in a ghost wedding.”
The villagers nearby couldn’t stand it any longer and spoke up in Yun Niang’s defense. “Zhang Cuilan, have you no shame? Bullying an orphaned mother and daughter with no relatives here, trying to force her daughter into a ghost wedding with a corpse! How could our Huaihua Village have someone as wicked as you?”
“You poisonous woman! Who knows whose daughter you’ll set your sights on next!”
“Burn that corpse now! Before she gets any ideas about my girl!”
“Burn it!”
“Set it on fire!”
The crowd was incensed. Zhang Cuilan, seeing the furious faces around her, began to tremble with fear.
Just then, the village chief’s voice rang out. “Enough arguing! Master Chen Yang has arrived!”
The crowd parted, and Shen Mingshu turned to see an elderly man with a goatee and a middle-aged man in a dark blue robe, holding a horsetail whisk, walking toward them.
The goateed man was the village chief, who respectfully gestured for them to proceed. “Master Chen, this matter concerns the corpse. We must defer to your judgment.”
Chen Yang strode past the crowd without so much as a glance, his gaze lingering on Shen Mingshu for a brief moment before he approached the bed.
He flicked his whisk repeatedly, circling the bed three times before his expression turned grave. “This is bad. The corpse is on the verge of turning into a revenant. If a suitable maiden isn’t wedded to it tonight, it will rise and slaughter the entire village!”
“What?!” The village chief paled, hastily clasping his hands in supplication. “Master Chen, you must help us!”
Chen Yang swept his gaze over the crowd and announced loudly, “Households with daughters who have reached the age of fifteen, any born in a yin year, yin month, yin day, or yin hour, are eligible for the ghost wedding.”
At his words, those with daughters averted their eyes nervously.
Zhang Cuilan scrambled forward on her knees, pointing at Shen Mingshu. “Master Chen, she’s a full yin girl! Born in a yin year, yin month, yin day, and yin hour!”
Yun Niang shielded Shen Mingshu, her voice icy with fury. “That’s a lie! My Shenshen is no full yin girl! Zhang Cuilan, stop spouting nonsense!”
But Zhang Cuilan insisted, “She is! You told me so yourself! You were driven out of your home and came to Huaihua Village because your daughter’s birth was inauspicious!”
Yun Niang’s eyes nearly bulged from their sockets in rage.
Back then, when the villagers gossiped about her raising a daughter alone, only Zhang Cuilan had spoken to her more than a few times. Over time, she had half-truthfully shared why she had settled here. Never had she imagined it would become Zhang Cuilan’s justification for this relentless persecution.
Hearing this, Chen Yang flicked his whisk and declared, “If she’s a full yin girl, then she’s the ideal candidate. If the ghost wedding is completed tonight, I can dispose of the corpse properly, ensuring peace for the village hereafter.”
Yun Niang’s eyes reddened as she shouted, “I refuse! Why should my daughter be wed to a corpse? She’s a living, breathing person!”
Leng Feng couldn’t stand such a situation either and said in a deep voice, “Yun Niang, why don’t we leave now? It’s better than wasting words with them.”
Yun Niang immediately nodded, “Shenshen, let’s go!”
Chen Yang sighed, “If they insist on leaving, then we’ll have to choose another girl from another household.”
“However, if she’s not a Pure Yin girl, the corpse might not be satisfied. If I can’t control him then, the entire village will have to pay with their lives. Alas!”
The village chief quickly interjected, “Stop them! Don’t let them leave!”
The villagers, who had earlier joined Shen Mingshu and Yun Niang in condemning Zhang Cuilan, now spontaneously blocked their path.
“Yun Niang, you were taken in by our village out of kindness. Now that we need you, how can you just walk away?”
“Your daughter is a Pure Yin girl, an ill omen to begin with. Helping Master Chen deal with this corpse will bring her blessings in her next life.”
“Yun Niang, if you leave now, what will become of us?”
Yun Niang listened to their clamoring, clutching Shen Mingshu tightly in her arms, and angrily retorted, “Why don’t you offer up your own daughters? Even if they’re not Pure Yin girls, couldn’t you pool together a few from each family to make up for it?”
“What kind of talk is that, Yun Niang? Your daughter alone is enough. Why should we sacrifice our daughters as well?”
Furious, Yun Niang kicked at them, “Your daughters’ lives matter, but my Shenshen’s doesn’t? Get out of my way, all of you!”
“How can one life compare to many? Besides, without a Pure Yin girl, if Master Chen’s ritual fails, the entire village will perish!”
“Yun Niang, you can leave if you want, but Mingshu must stay!”
Leng Feng drew his sword and pointed it at the crowd, coldly rebuking them, “The laws of the Great Yu Dynasty explicitly forbid using living people for ghost marriages! You’re toying with human lives!”
The village chief frowned at the drawn sword and scrutinized him, “Who are you? There’s no one like you in Huaihua Village!”
“Drawing a sword to kill, are you? Go on! Have the guts to strike me down!” He thrust his neck forward.
Leng Feng hastily withdrew his sword, afraid of accidentally cutting his throat.
“Yeah! Go ahead and kill us!”
“Who do you think you are? Try laying a hand on us!”
Leng Feng had never encountered such a situation before. His fists clenched so tightly they creaked, “A bunch of unruly peasants!”
These villagers were not only stubborn but shameless, and worst of all, they blindly believed every word of that so-called mystic, Chen Yang.
After a moment of thought, Shen Mingshu raised her voice, “I’m willing to stay for the ghost marriage, but you must let my mother leave Huaihua Village first.”
Yun Niang was stunned, “Shenshen! What nonsense are you saying?”
Shenshen gave her a reassuring look and continued, “Everyone, since the auspicious hour is still far off, could you let us go home to pack our things and allow my mother to leave as soon as possible?”
The village chief readily agreed, “Fine! As long as you stay, your mother can go wherever she wants!”
To prevent Shen Mingshu from sneaking away, over a dozen villagers stood guard outside her house.
Inside the room, Yun Niang hugged Shen Mingshu, sobbing, “Child, how could you agree to a ghost marriage? They’re only bullying us because we’re a widow and an orphan!”
Shen Mingshu said gently, “Mother, I’m also a mystic. These villagers can’t do anything to me. I asked you to leave first because I was worried they might threaten your life to control me if a fight broke out.”
“Moreover, I’ve noticed something unusual about that corpse. After more than a decade, its original appearance is still recognizable, it might truly be at risk of turning into a revenant. And that Master Chen… I suspect arranging a ghost marriage isn’t his real purpose at all…”