I become a god in another world

Chapter 666 The Road to Nanyuan
Chapter 666

Once Zhang brought up the topic, Zhao Fusheng and the others were almost certain of the feng shui master's identity.

"My lord," Meng Po said softly, gritting her teeth.

"As we escort the coffin back to its hometown, Lord Yu previously mentioned the location of the burial site—"

Because the Chang family members were still alive, Meng Po didn't speak clearly, only vaguely, but even so, everyone understood the meaning behind her words.

Yu Lingzhu's heart tightened as she recalled that the feng shui master Chang Er had hired mentioned burying an unknown object under Old Madam Chang's grave. After much speculation, it was concluded that this might be a ghost corpse, a coffin, or other ominous object.

In short, it refers to things that are associated with evil and misfortune.

"Is this feng shui master still around?" Yu Lingzhu immediately felt murderous intent towards the feng shui master.

She was indeed foolish in her actions back then.

Perhaps they trusted the Chang family too much and had no suspicion of the people Chang Erjie found. Little did they know that their negligence back then would lead to such terrible consequences.

Now, by a twist of fate, everyone has stumbled into a time several decades ago. She desperately wants to rush to Changjiao County and kill this feng shui master.

Zhang then said:

"The Dong family's house is now very haunted, and the feng shui master is still around."

Since things had come to this point, Zhang simply stopped hiding anything:

“Your second sister has been making a huge scene lately, saying that if we don’t save her, she and her two children will probably die. She’s been coming back to her parents’ house every day to cause trouble. But how can we get involved in this? Dong Da is a liar. If we get involved, wouldn’t that just tarnish your reputation, Lingzhu?”

She complained incessantly:
"But this second sister is really ignorant. In order to get the master's approval, she found a few prostitutes from somewhere and gave them to the master as his concubines."

These are words that Zhang would never have been able to say more than thirty years ago.

She was full of grievances, but because of the Chang family, she could only complain indirectly.

Now that the matter was out in the open, he could no longer suppress his grievances and wanted to seek justice from Yu Lingzhu:

"We originally agreed to build a manor in Nanyuan for you to stay in when you return to Wuqing County. Now the masters are saying they want to leave it to those mistresses. Isn't that bullying us?"

The second sister-in-law also took the opportunity to complain:
"He even said he wanted to divorce his wife."

At this point in their conversation, tears welled up in their eyes.

"We've been married for decades, and we've been through a lot together. It's really hurtful to hear someone say something like that."

Yu Lingzhu already knew about these things, so she could only comfort her two sisters-in-law.

Zhao Fusheng watched coldly from the sidelines, and only after both sides had cried for a while and calmed down a bit did he interject:

"I'd like to learn about the ghost cases in Changjiao County."

she asked:
"Do you know what Gao Shen's wife's surname is? Which well did she jump into? Where was Gao Shen's body dumped after he died? What strange things happened to the Dong family?"

Zhao Fusheng raised a series of questions.

Zhang was stunned by her questions, and after a long while, she finally managed to piece together a plan and answered:

"Gao Shen's wife's surname was Tang, and I heard her name was Tang Min. She jumped into the old well on Zhangliu Road behind their house. There was a big willow tree next to the well. After Gao Shen died, his body was dumped in the wild. But strangely, when the Dong family went to check the next day, they couldn't find the body. Bloodstains appeared all over the Dong family's house. People who stepped on the bloodstains had dreams at night, and then strange things started to happen frequently."

The second sister-in-law also shivered:

"My husband's older sister came back with her children and grandchildren the day before yesterday. I heard that her sister-in-law had an accident. She had a dream that night, in which she was stabbed and woke up in fright."

When I woke up, I thought it was a dream, but during the day, the place where I was slashed in the dream actually started bleeding. Within half a day, the wound festered, and I died in excruciating pain the next night.

Zhang clapped his hands:
"There's nothing we can do about it. If there really were a murderer, the servants could catch him, but... but this is a dream, being hacked in a dream, who can cure that?"

"We reported it to the Demon Suppression Division, but the local Demon Suppression Division is under the jurisdiction of Dong Da, and his subordinates are a bunch of incompetent fools. The day before yesterday, my eldest sister-in-law came back to ask my husband to help mediate and find someone from Wuqing County to go and treat him." My second sister-in-law also said.

The two of them talked back and forth, and eventually they explained the ghost case in Changjiao County clearly.

Zhao Fusheng and Yu Lingzhu looked at each other in bewilderment.

It was initially thought that the ghost cases in Changjiao County were related to the drought and Gao's wife, but it turned out that when the vengeful ghost of Gao's wife revived, there seemed to be another ghost case in between.

"Look what I just said—"

Upon seeing Zhao Fusheng and Yu Lingzhu remain silent, Zhang immediately slapped her thigh:
"Lingzhu, your return is quite opportune. If you were investigating the case in Changjiao County, your second sister might have come looking for you again—"

She hesitated, then said, "We've been too talkative."

Yu Lingzhu understood the implication in her words and quickly assured her:

"Don't worry, sister-in-law. If my second sister comes looking for me, I will not mention a word about what you told me."

Upon hearing this, the two sisters-in-law of the Chang family immediately smiled.

"By the way, we've been talking for so long, why hasn't the hot water arrived yet? I'll go and urge them." Zhang stood up and gave her sister-in-law a wink.

She went out first, and her second sister-in-law followed suit, making up an excuse to go out as well.

After the two left, Yu Lingzhu sent the maids and servants away, leaving only her own people. Only then did she look at Zhao Fusheng:
"Fusheng, what should we do about this?"

The situation in Wuqing County is becoming increasingly complicated, and even the timeline is starting to become bizarre.

Everyone felt as if they had returned to the six months before Old Madam Chang's sudden death, coinciding with a ghost case in Changjiao County.

"We now face several problems," Meng Po analyzed.
"First, Chang Hao shouted that there were ghosts; second, the timing was strange; third, the case in Changjiao County; fourth, the feng shui master and the problems of the Chang family."

Zhao Fusheng nodded:
"You can't get fat in one bite; you have to solve things slowly."

Yu Lingzhu gritted her teeth:
"In my opinion, we should deal with the feng shui master first."

She believed that the root of the Chang family's troubles lay with this feng shui master surnamed Zhang, and that everything would be fine once this person was dealt with.

These words made Zhao Fusheng glance at her. Yu Lingzhu noticed her gaze and couldn't help but ask:
"Am I wrong?"

Zhao Fusheng said:

"This only addresses the symptoms, not the root cause." She looked at Yu Lingzhu:
"The feng shui master fueled the fire and did bad things, and I will settle accounts with him sooner or later. But the root of the problem in Wuqing County still lies with the Chang family. Putting aside whether the past can be changed, even if time really reverses, if the Chang family is still the tyrant of Wuqing County after removing the feng shui master, it will still be difficult to avoid the absurd thing of ghost sacrifice to accumulate merit and exchange for reincarnation."

Yu Lingzhu's eyes flickered.

She may not be unaware of this principle, but even now, she still refuses to believe that the Chang family's existence is the root of all evil in Wuqing County.

"Then what do you suggest we do now?" After a long pause, Yu Lingzhu sighed and asked.

"Our primary purpose in entering Wuqing County is to investigate the Chang family's affairs. As for the other related ghost cases, those are already established facts and there's no need to rush," Zhao Fusheng said.
“I even suspect that the disorder of the timeline, the fact that Old Madam Chang is not dead, and Chang Hao’s shouting about ‘ghosts’ are all forms of interference. So today, we will continue to interact with the Chang family as usual, see Old Madam Chang first, and then try to go to the old house in the south of the city, dig up the foundation, and see if there is any body of Old Madam Chang underneath.”

Meng Po nodded:

"Your idea is correct. We should go straight to the heart of the matter. Once we find Old Madam Chang's body and see what is buried under her body, the root cause will be clear, and the illusion will be dispelled."

In this way, people will not be distracted by other events.

Once the ghost case in Wuqing County is solved, the previous cases in Changjiao County will naturally come to light one day as well.

Everyone nodded.

Just then, Chang's two sisters-in-law came in.

Accompanying them were servants carrying hot water and towels.

The crowd filed inside, and Zhang looked at them, smiling as she said:
"You were listening to everyone talking so enthusiastically outside, why did you suddenly stop talking when you came in?"

Yu Lingzhu already had a plan in mind, and upon hearing this, she said:

"We were just discussing the itinerary."

She said, half-jokingly:
"After washing up later, I plan to see the old lady and then go to the south of the city to see how your newly built garden is progressing."

Upon hearing this, Zhang's face turned ashen at a visible speed.

"Seeing that the old lady is not in a hurry, she has been taking care of Chang Hao and worrying about her children and grandchildren lately, and her health is not good. She is currently recuperating. If she knew that you had come for Dong Fugui's case, she would probably be anxious and upset, and even lose her appetite."

The second sister-in-law nodded stiffly as well:
“That’s right, it’s getting late, it’s almost dark—” As soon as she finished speaking, it was as if a dark cloud had suddenly swept across the sky, quickly blocking out the light. The sky instantly turned gloomy, the light outside the window disappeared, and night fell.

This scene was extremely strange, but the Chang family seemed completely unaware.

Yu Lingzhu's hand trembled as she took the handkerchief.

The handkerchief had been soaked in hot water and was still a little hot when it landed in her hand, but it felt like she was holding a piece of ice in her palm.

"Wipe your face, Lingzhu."

Zhang called out earnestly.

Yu Lingzhu paused, only to see Zhao Fusheng already wringing out his handkerchief to wipe his face. So, she steeled herself and wiped her face without hesitation.

After washing up, Sister-in-law Chang said:
"The food may already be prepared. I'll lead you there."

Zhao Fusheng asked:

"Where are the others in our group?"

"There's a problem—"

Just as Sister-in-law Chang was about to speak, she suddenly heard a scream from outside:

"Lord Zhao! Lord Zhao!"

Zhao Fusheng's expression turned cold as she recognized Wu Ciping's voice. She immediately stood up to rush out, but Zhang Shi stopped her.
"Sir, please don't be in such a hurry—" Before she could finish speaking, Zhao Fusheng had already reached out and grabbed her:

"Are the guests visiting from your Chang residence?"

She was strong. The moment Zhang was grabbed, she felt as if her life force had been seized, and no matter how hard she tried, she could not pull her hand back.

Zhang was somewhat frightened. Seeing Zhao Fusheng's face approaching, she tilted her head back and hurriedly said:

"This person is not a guest; he is a spy who has infiltrated the adult group—"

“Yes, Steward Cheng of the Prefectural Office recognized him as being from Bailici Village in Wuqing Prefecture.” Chang Ersao also quickly stepped forward and took Zhao Fusheng’s hand. “This man has a criminal record and harbors ill intentions—”

"No," Yu Lingzhu quickly said upon seeing the conflict escalate.
"We entered the prefecture by taking a detour through Baili Temple. We encountered some problems along the way, but fortunately, this village chief Wu from Baili Temple helped us find our way, and we were able to enter the city smoothly."

Her words caused Zhang's expression to shift between light and shadow, and after a long pause, she finally said:

"It was a misunderstanding. I'll go and explain to the master so as not to offend our distinguished guest."

After she finished speaking, she looked at Zhao Fusheng.

Zhao Fusheng loosened his grip, and Zhang's hand was finally freed. The two sisters-in-law hurriedly left, and the screams outside ceased.

The group didn't dare to delay and quickly followed them out of the room. They breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Liu Yizhen and the others still in the outer courtyard.

In no time at all, it was already dark at the Chang residence.

Bright red lanterns hung along the winding corridors, one lit every two or three zhang (approximately 6.6-7 meters), illuminating the courtyard in a crimson glow, giving it a somewhat eerie feel.

Before the two sides could even exchange a word, the sound of footsteps could be heard from the covered walkway.

The group quickly gathered and looked in the direction of the sound. After a few breaths, they could vaguely see a green dot flashing and stopping in mid-air. Behind the green light, a shadow wriggled and took shape, walked under the lantern, and turned into a woman carrying a lantern.

She was dressed in a black robe, appeared to be around forty years old, had a pale face, and looked at people with a deep-seated resentment.

"Guests, the meal has been prepared in the Peony Hall. Please go ahead, gentlemen, as they have some matters to attend to and will arrive later."

Zhao Fusheng looked at Yu Lingzhu:

"do you know?"

Yu Lingzhu swallowed and shook her head:
"The Chang family has many servants, but logically, those who serve me in the mansion should be acquaintances, yet this person is truly unfamiliar." After saying this, she asked:

"What should we do now?"

She had already realized something was wrong; she felt that the Chang family home was eerily quiet after nightfall, making her uneasy.

"Let's go to the Peony Hall first—"

Zhao Fusheng hesitated slightly, deciding not to break ties with the Chang family for the time being:
"We'll try to act together later. If that doesn't work, then we'll have to split up."

She said:
"One group stayed behind to distract the Chang family, while the other group went to the garden in the south of the city to examine Old Madam Chang's body."

Zhao Fusheng's words filled everyone with fear and unease.

Given that Wuqing County itself is haunted, the Chang family is very likely the haunted family's stronghold. Staying or going to the haunted tomb would be extremely dangerous.

The woman carrying the lantern stood on the corridor, coldly watching the crowd with a smile, as if she were ignoring their whispered discussions.

After Zhao Fusheng and the others went up into the corridor, she seemed to come back to life, carrying a lantern and leading the way.

After walking a few steps, the night grew deeper, and Yu Lingzhu could only hear the suppressed breathing of the others and the 'tap-tap' of their footsteps; the atmosphere was somewhat somber.

She couldn't help but ask:
"Who are you? Where is the old lady?"

"The old lady is currently in the South Garden, looking after Young Master Hao," the woman replied coldly without turning around.

“Nanyuan?” Yu Lingzhu trembled.

"Where is Nanyuan?" Wang Zhiyi asked in a low voice.

Yu Lingzhu then said:
"Nanyuan is...it was a garden built later—"

Because of the woman's presence, Yu Lingzhu didn't explain herself clearly, but even so, everyone realized that the so-called Nanyuan should be the mansion that was later renovated by a feng shui master to accommodate both yin and yang.

"Could we go and see Grandma Chang?"

Zhao Fusheng asked.

"Hehe." The woman chuckled.
"You don't need to look, the old lady is everywhere, and she might be watching you right now."

Her words sent chills down everyone's spines. Wu Ciping instinctively crossed his arms over his chest, a look of horror on his face.

"Although the old lady is sharp of hearing and sight, we are guests from afar, so we should pay our respects to the hostess."

Zhao Fusheng changed the subject:
"Why don't we skip the Peony Hall for dinner and go to the South Garden first? We can talk to the old lady there."

The woman shook her head:

"The old lady doesn't want to see you right now. Young Master Chang Hao is not feeling well, and she won't see any guests."

“Then let’s go to Nanyuan first. The old lady can see us whenever she’s free,” Zhao Fusheng added.

The woman's steps never stop:

"can not go."

Yu Lingzhu was already on guard, and upon hearing this, she asked:
"why?"

"Only the old lady can find the road to Nanyuan. When she doesn't want to see anyone, no one will go there," the woman replied stiffly.

Her words were strange, and she spoke calmly and without emotion.

Yu Lingzhu gradually lost her temper and rebuked him upon hearing this:

“Nonsense. I’ve lived in the Chang family for many years and I know the way to Nanyuan well. If you don’t lead the way, I’ll go by myself. I’m going to ask the old lady how dare the servants of the Chang family speak to their masters like that.”

The woman did not argue after being scolded; she simply carried her lantern and hurried on.

‘Dong dong dong——’

Her footsteps grew faster and faster, and because she was walking so fast, her figure even left afterimages.

　I have something to do tomorrow and will be taking a day off, so please don't refresh the page.

　　(End of this chapter)