Zuo Zhu ran five laps until she was completely exhausted and collapsed onto the grass. “I cannot run anymore. Just eat me if you want, I will not struggle.”
Huo Fu glanced at her with mild disdain, not expecting her to run ten laps in one go.
He treated it like watching a donkey at a mill, pulling a little at a time as long as it moved.
Suddenly, he became interested and squatted to look at her face full of despair. “Are you not curious whether I am human or ghost?”
Zuo Zhu was not curious at all. She even rolled over on the ground. “Probably a ghost.”
“But I have warmth in my body and a shadow. How can it be impossible that I am human?”
Zuo Zhu rolled her eyes. “Do you even need to ask? In such a strange place, full of ghosts, if you were a good person, could you survive?”
Ask, ask, ask. What is there to ask? Your identity and background are exactly as I set them.
You were kidnapped as a child into this village, abused by your foster parents, and at the brink of death, you erupted into a dual personality—half-human, half-ghost. Daytime you are human, nighttime a ghost, and both forms are incredibly strong.
Huo Fu’s expression darkened immediately. He reached out and pinched her cheek. “What did you just say?”
Zuo Zhu immediately cowered, cupping his hand with both of hers, looking at him sincerely. “I mean I can tell at a glance that you are a good person. Even at night, you are a good ghost. I am already captivated by your charm. Whether human or ghost, I like you. Do not belittle yourself.”
Huo Fu shook off her hands and sneered. “Like me for what? My gaping mouth when I eat people?”
You know that gaping mouth is not attractive, right?
Zuo Zhu did not dare argue and kept her face sincere. “It is fine. Everyone reacts that way when they are hungry. That is normal.”
Who gets a gaping mouth like that when hungry?
Huo Fu gave her a strange look, lost interest in teasing her, stood up, and turned toward his home.
Zuo Zhu breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing him leave, she was happy she did not have to run anymore.
Running was painful, and if she lost too much weight from overdoing it, she might be on the verge of death.
Shaking, she walked back to her companions, arriving just at noon.
The four of them were sitting at a table preparing to eat. Two were Lin Tianming and Liu Minmin, and the other two were a couple, the man named Qin Shou and the woman Zhao Siyu.
Liu Minmin looked at her with complete disdain.
Lin Tianming greeted her as usual and told her to eat quickly.
Zhao Siyu was serving Qin Shou, not paying attention to Zuo Zhu.
Qin Shou, who had been eating with his head down, lifted his gaze and leered at her figure.
Zuo Zhu sat down, picked up her chopsticks, and jabbed them at his eyes, startling him into recoiling.
“If you look again, I will poke your eyes out,” Zuo Zhu said calmly.
Qin Shou was furious. “You little brat. What are you acting for? Did you not just sleep with a poor villager? You are shameless, and now you tell me I cannot look?”
Zuo Zhu was slightly surprised he knew so quickly. She glanced around and saw Liu Minmin watching eagerly and immediately knew who had said it.
She brushed her hair back, a little embarrassed. “So you all know. Fine, I will not hide it. But there is no need to speak so harshly. Brother Huo is handsome and skilled at handling ghosts. Who would not admire him?”
“He really does look fierce. My legs are still shaking,” she said shamelessly, glancing at Qin Shou with contempt. “I advise you to stop leering. I am Brother Huo now. If you look again, he will gouge out your eyes.”
Lin Tianming was speechless.
Liu Minmin was speechless and disgusted.
Qin Shou dared not act boldly. He had seen Huo Fu disperse all the strange ghostly apparitions and rescue them from the ghostly maze.
If Zuo Zhu’s words were true, he definitely could not offend Huo Fu.
He glared at Zuo Zhu with resentment.
Zuo Zhu did not care. Huo Fu was her creation; fabricating a little gossip did not matter. She did not mind if her creation wanted to swallow her.
The meal passed without much taste for anyone except Zuo Zhu, who enjoyed it.
After running such a long time in the morning, she needed to replenish her energy or she might lose too much weight.
After eating, the four dispersed. Lin Tianming and Liu Minmin wandered the village, trying to uncover the secrets behind so many ghosts.
He was not afraid of encountering ghosts like Qin Shou, thinking that if he did not actively seek a way out, death was inevitable.
Before going out, he asked Zuo Zhu if she wanted to join him.
Zuo Zhu, teasingly, said, “No. I have Brother Huo. He will protect me.”
Lin Tianming was speechless.
Liu Minmin scolded, “Zuo Zhu, you are shameless!”
Zuo Zhu smiled slightly. “Thank you for the compliment.”
She had no intention of investigating the village secrets. They were all her own creation. Even if she knew them, she could not escape. With Huo Fu standing there, who could oppose him?
Lin Tianming finally left with Liu Minmin. Qin Shou peeked cautiously from his room door and then retreated.
Soon, he could be heard scolding Zhao Siyu inside, followed by her cries.
Zuo Zhu lay on her bed, listening to the commotion, smirking, and rolled over to sleep.
When she woke again, it was already dusk.
Lin Tianming and Liu Minmin had returned and were sitting in the yard, clearly in a bad mood.
Zuo Zhu walked over and heard Lin Tianming say, “I always feel that the people in this village are very strange.”
Liu Minmin said in confusion, “Not really. They seem normal to me.”
Lin Tianming shook his head, unsure how to describe the feeling.
“Do you feel that they all wear evil faces but force a smile at you?” Zuo Zhu said casually, walking toward the well.
“Yes,” Lin Tianming finally understood the unease in his heart and looked at Zuo Zhu in surprise. “How did you know?”
“Maybe a woman’s intuition is more accurate than a man’s,” Zuo Zhu rubbed her hands and peered into the well. “I think there was a frozen watermelon in there.”
Lin Tianming thought it was not so mystical. But if it were true, why did Liu Minmin not notice?
He did not pursue further and nodded. “There was one before.”
Hearing this, Zuo Zhu grabbed the rope by the well and began pulling.
It was hard work. She thought this watermelon was very heavy.
When she had finally pulled it halfway up and looked down, there was no watermelon in the bucket. Instead, a drenched female water ghost with hair all over appeared.
Zuo Zhu expressionlessly let go of the rope. The bucket slammed back into the well with a bang, and the ghost fell in like a capsized boat and disappeared.
The loud noise naturally drew the attention of Lin Tianming and Liu Minmin.
Liu Minmin scolded angrily, “Why are you always startling us like this?”
Zuo Zhu felt slightly apologetic. “Sorry, there was a water ghost in the bucket. I was startled too.”
Lin Tianming was stunned.
Lin Tianming could only think, “Were you really startled?”