Since it was pouring outside, Feng Jin couldnât inspect the surrounding grounds, but he still continued with his inspection of the mansionâs interior.
âMr Feng, is there anything wrong?â Having seen Feng Jinâs gloomy manner, the old manâs heart couldnât help but start to race.
There hadnât been much light last night, so he hadnât been able to scrutinise this young man in much detail. His impression had merely stopped at good-looking and indifferent.
However, in the light of morning, he was startled to realise that this young man wasnât the compassionate type, so he truly didnât know whether or not he had made the right choice in inviting him.
âHas anyone gone missing as of late?â Feng Jin shot a reproving glare at Shi Sheng, who stood afloat behind the old man, motive unclear.
âNo,â the old man answered swiftly. âThere are only so many people in the mansion. We all know each other, so I can say for sure that no one has disappeared. Is there any reason why you ask this, Mr Feng?â
The old man looked at Feng Jin in confusion. âWhat does the Sirâs illness have to do with whether or not anyoneâs gone missing?â
âAsk him if anyoneâs left,â Shi Sheng reminded Feng Jin.
Feng Jin gave her a subtle glare. âHas anyone left the mansion after Qi Mo fell ill?â
The old man sighed, âHow could they not leave? Everyoneâs afraid with the current situation as it is. A total of four people have left.â
Once he finished, the old man added, âthe last one to leave did so yesterday afternoon.â
Feng Jin nodded. âTell the servants not to come out at night, no matter what they might hear.â
He placed a particularly heavy emphasis on the last few words.
The old man nodded his head in acquiescence, despite not really knowing the reason behind Feng Jinâs request. The old butler subsequently asked about Qi Moâs condition before leaving to make arrangements.
âQi Mo can still be saved?â âI didnât reckon that guy had much longer to live.â
Feng Jin fell silent for a moment, before speaking, âYes.â
Shi Sheng raised a brow.
âEr⊠you can see her too?â An Su stood behind a pillar, only half of her body visible.
Feng Jin knew who An Su wasâhe knew the identity of everyone related to Nalan Ying.
He calmly disregarded her presence and headed upstairs, with Shi Sheng gliding after him. An Su could only remain at her original spot, awkwardly rubbing her nose. âDunno why, but I find that ghost a bit cute⊠Not because of her appearance, but her personality⊠Of course, sheâs very pretty too!â
Feng Jin hadnât seen what she had: that ghost had drawn a turtle[1]Â on the Butlerâs back.
âŠâŠ
Shi Sheng once again got to see the woman from last night around noon.
She appeared very dignified as she had her meal at the dining table. An Su was seated to her right, and was currently chatting with her.
The womanâs voice was mellow and warm, completely contrary to the person from last night who had broken down in hysterics.
Shi Sheng floated across the table from them. Upon seeing her, An Suâs expression changed.
âRecently, Iâve been stuck here with no one to talk to. This rainstorm was quite timely! Now I have Ms An to help relieve my boredom⊠Ms An? Why is your complexion so poor? Are you feeling uncomfortable?â
An Su came back to her senses and hurriedly shook her head. âNo, Iâm fine. ItâsâŠprobably just the cold.â
The woman studied the scene outside the window before nodding in agreement. âIt is rather cold. I still have some new clothes that I havenât worn. If you donât mind, I hope you can make do with them.â
âOf course I wouldnât mindâŠâ An Su cast occasional glances at Shi Sheng from the corners of her eyes as she chatted with the woman.
She saw Shi Sheng make a fork stand up.
An Su tried to communicate with Shi Sheng by blinking, but the latter appeared oblivious to her efforts as she made the fork slowly âwalkâ closer to the woman.
The woman shifted her gaze, only to see the fork that was now making its way towards her of its own accord.
âAH!â The woman shot to her feet, causing her chair to fall to the floor behind her. She retreated with a fearful expression. âDonât look for me, it wasnât me⊠It wasnât meâŠâ
âMadam Qi,â An Su called out to her.
But the woman appeared to have been completely scared out of her wits. She turned and ran upstairs, followed soon after by the servants that had been drawn there by her scream.
âMs An, what happened?â The old man asked her pleasantly, but there was doubt in his eyes.
An Su subconsciously looked at Shi Sheng. She was still seated calmly on her chair, having already put the fork down.
âMs An?â The old man followed An Suâs gaze but was only met with thin air.
âJust now⊠Madam Qi and I were chatting. I donât know what she saw, but she suddenly started screaming.â
An Su covered for Shi Sheng about the incident with Madam Qi. Although she didnât have a clue why the former had done so, she felt as though Shi Sheng didnât have any intention of hurting Madam Qi.
After comforting An Su a bit, he chased after his Madam up the stairs. Only then did Shi Sheng get up. As she passed by An Su, she spoke, âPeople with a clear conscience have no need to fear that ghosts will come knocking on their door.â
An Su really wanted to retort with, âArenât you a ghost? Madam Qi didnât offend you in any way, so why are you scaring her?â
But An Su lacked the guts to do so.
She climbed upstairs alone as Shi Shengâs words constantly repeated themselves in her head.
The moment she entered her room, she felt her back freeze over. A chill rushed up her spine and to her scalp, causing her hairs to stand on end. She couldnât help but quiver at the sensation.
It was eerily quiet. She almost felt as if sheâd entered a world separate from her own.
A frigid touch seemed to slowly make its way up her spine, and then over her shoulders, finally coming to rest on her neck.
âNalan Ying, stop fooling around.â An Su thought it was Nalan Ying.
Nobody answered her.
Her neck was gripped by bitingly-cold fingers.
âItâs not Nalan Ying!â
Even as the thought flashed through An Suâs mind, it was already too late; the grip on her neck tightened, cutting off her oxygen supply. An object both firm and arctic in temperature pressed against her back.
âMmm! MhmmâŠâ An Su struggled fiercely, but the one holding onto her simply increased the strength of their grip. She was unable to wrestle free.
An Su felt as though sheâd turned to ice. The pulsing pain that came with oxygen-deprivation pounded at her. Her eyes filled with scarlet threads and her vision turned blurry.
âFeng Jin⊠I donât wanna eat thisâŠâ
An Su only managed to hear some snippets of Shi Sheng speaking before she fainted.
When she awoke once more, not only was Shi Sheng present, the Butler and the man called Feng Jin were there as well.
âYouâre awake, Ms. An?â The old butler deftly passed her a glass of water before questioning her in a slightly doubtful tone, âMay I ask why you fainted in your room?â
âIâŠâ An Su opened her mouth, and looked at Shi Sheng, who was currently floating at the end of her bed, before finishing in a whisper, âI think I met a ghost.â
The one that had attempted to strangle her was definitely a ghost.
But she was certain that it hadnât been the ghost currently floating in front of her. The one that attacked herâŠhad a very peculiar stench.
The old manâs expression changed suddenly, his tone turning stern, âDo not joke around, Ms An. How could there be a ghost here?â
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âUncle Butler, Iâll be honest with youâI have yin-yang eyes, so I can see ghosts.â An Su smiled bitterly. If she had any choice in the matter, she definitely wouldnât want this ability.
Great power came with great responsibility.
âIf I couldnât see them, would I have to be on edge all the time, afraid of seeing a ghost behind me the moment I turn around?â
The old man stiffened and stared at An Su. Perhaps it was out of shock, or some other unknown reason, but he only managed to react after a very long time.
[1] I donât know if this is relevant, but turtles are often likened to⊠male genitalia.