The more you believe me, the more real it becomes.

Chapter 19 Is the young master trustworthy?
The group of men were also stopped by Qian Youcai, who asked them to come with him to the old house to find out what was going on.

So that people would know that it wasn't the Qian family's feng shui that was bad, causing their descendants to be unfilial and their ancestors to lament.

Beforehand, the men naturally didn't want to get involved in such matters.

Qian Youcai first gave a cold laugh, then waved his hand.

Seven or eight fierce warriors stepped forward together.

Just when everyone thought Qian Youcai was going to bully others by taking advantage of his power, the few thugs simultaneously took a bag from their waists and threw it forward.

Large amounts of copper coins mixed with broken silver were scattered in all directions.

Qian Youcai's voice followed:
"Young master, I have plenty of money. Are you coming or not?"

In that case, who wouldn't go?

"Come on, come on!"

"Young master, we're all coming!"

And so, Qian Youcai led a large group of people into his old house.

Upon seeing the Second Young Master arrive, the steward hurriedly stepped forward to greet him.

But seeing that Qian Youcai had money, he waved his hand and said:

"Move all the tables and chairs to the front of the hall. Prepare torches and lanterns for the whole night. Also, serve me the best wine and meat."

"Young master, what brings you here?"

Qian Youcai turned around and pointed at Du Yuan and the men, saying:

"Hmph, I'll make this old fox die a death sentence, and I'll let these roughnecks know that my Qian family has no shady dealings whatsoever; all they have is an old fox who's after money!"

The manager was confused, but Qian Youcai was the master, and he naturally obeyed the master's orders.

The courtyard in front of the main hall was quickly filled with seven or eight tables. Each table was set with strong liquor to keep you alert and cooked meat to accompany the drinks.

The meat is mostly local-style chicken and duck, and as for the beef commonly seen in novels, it is not actually available.

After all, oxen are valuable!

Even so, it still stirred the men's hearts.

Being able to eat meat, and eat so well, is truly a rare privilege for them.

So for a time, they enjoyed themselves immensely with wine and meat.

Du Yuan did not drink alcohol. He did not like drinking because he believed that alcohol could lead to promiscuity.

They were just eating duck meat on the side, the method of which they didn't know.

It tastes delicious and is rich but not greasy.

It can be said that the deliciousness of duck meat is brought out to its fullest potential.

Qian Youcai, who was standing to the side, took a sip of the warm wine and said:
"You old fox, don't you want to drink to bolster your courage?"

Du Yuan's spirits lifted and she said:

"I possess supernatural powers and a righteous heart; why should I need to bolster my courage?"

Qian Youcai sneered:
"Heh, I mean when the truth comes out and we're about to send you to see the authorities, don't be so scared you faint!"

Du Yuan waved her hands repeatedly and said:
"It's still early, don't make boastful claims."

Sitting with the warriors, Qian Youcai laughed even harder:
"You old Taoist priest may not know, but I do know that the imperial court is very dissatisfied with you swindlers and cheats lately!"

Du Yuan laughed freely:

"Oh, that has nothing to do with me, after all, I'm different from others!"

"Hmph, just you wait and see, you old Taoist priest!"

"I eagerly await your arrival, Young Master Qian."

Du Yuan wasn't afraid that the man had really made a mistake, because even if the matter was false, it didn't matter, since he was the real deal!
From the very beginning, this was a guaranteed income for Du Yuan, regardless of drought or flood.

If it's true, everyone's happy; if it's false, he'll just keep going.

It's just a matter of choosing different ways of saying things depending on the situation.

Moreover, Du Yuan did not believe that the man was lying, because she had seen that look of fear in his eyes before in Qiaoshui Town.

So there's probably something really going on here.

As the bright moon hangs high in the sky.

Everyone perked up and looked toward the wide-open hall.

However, nothing happened for two or three hours after dark.

So the crowd, whose drinking mood had come and gone several times, looked suspiciously at the man who had spoken first and Du Yuan.

Meanwhile, Qian Youcai, who was sitting at the very front, stared at Du Yuan and the other person with a cold smile.

The man himself was also puzzled, because it was almost dawn (3 to 5 a.m.), and there was no movement in the lobby at all.
Seeing the suspicious looks from everyone, including his companions, the man was sweating profusely.

At this moment, Qian Youcai suddenly said, "Rough man, it's almost dawn, why haven't we seen those gods and ghosts you mentioned yet?"

Looking at the martial artists behind Qian Youcai, who were eager to fight, the man almost knelt down in admiration.

He could only look left and right at the lobby, scratching his head in frustration.

Finally, there was a sentence:
"Second Young Master, I truly did not lie!"

"Hmph, you haven't lied yet."

After Qian Youcai snorted coldly and frightened the man to his knees, he stopped looking at him and instead turned to Du Yuan, saying:
"You, Taoist priest?"

Du Yuan laughed:

"There are over twenty strong men here, their yang energy is naturally abundant. Moreover..."

Du Yuan's gaze then swept over the brightly lit main hall and courtyard, and she said:
"A hunter once encountered a 'ghost wall' on his way home at night! He wandered around in circles for two or three hours without being able to get out of the same spot, which was about ten feet in length!"

"Fortunately, although this hunter never paid tribute to the mountain god, he would still deliberately let go of animals with cubs and keep the unripe mountain products, which can be considered as paying respect to the creatures of the mountains."

"Therefore, although the mountain god did not personally come to his rescue, he still sent a gentle breeze to blow away the miasma on his mind."

"It reminded him that he happened to still have a tinderbox in his hand. When the tiny flame, no bigger than a soybean, finally rose, the path ahead appeared before him. Only then did he realize that ghosts were afraid of human smoke and fire!"

This story, neither too long nor too short, drew the men closer, all eager to hear this tale they had never heard before.

Even the few martial artists unconsciously craned their necks.

After all, they usually hear the same stories told by storytellers countless times.

This is the first time I've ever seen something so fresh!

The brutes' behavior made Qian Youcai feel ashamed.

He then slammed his hand on the table and said:

"Still dare to talk nonsense? Fine, I'll go along with you one more time. You two go out and seal the courtyard gate. We can't let this Taoist priest escape in the dark!"

"And you all, turn off the lights and put out the fire!"

The master spoke again, and the warriors immediately took action.

The two warriors who were chosen at the beginning stretched their necks the longest and, in order to show off, deliberately flashed their unsheathed swords as they passed by Du Yuan.

Du Yuan chuckled and shook her head at the sight.

Once the gates were closed, all the lights were turned off.

All that remained was the bright moonlight illuminating the world.

After looking around, Qian Youcai, still not hearing You Tan's angry outburst, said:
"Noble Phantasm, do you have anything to say now?"

"Ugh!"

"Hey, you old Taoist priest, how dare you sigh?"

Qian Youcai was about to lash out when he saw the thugs behind him tugging at his sleeve.

This made him turn around impatiently and say:

Why are you tugging at my sleeve?

The warrior, who had been as fierce as a bear during the day, was now trembling like a leaf. His Adam's apple bobbed violently, his cloudy pupils stared intently into the depths of the main room, and cold sweat still clung to his bushy beard.
"Young master, there's something sighing behind us!"

"Um?!"

Qian Youcai's eyes widened instantly.

Looking back at the main hall where his ancestors were enshrined, he heard a voice coming from the empty room:
"well--!"

After a moment of stunned silence, Qian Youcai still managed to feign composure and said:
"Light the fire, raise the lamp!"

The warriors had already burst into tears:
"Young master, we've already tried, but we can't light a fire!"

Qian Youcai looked to his side in astonishment and saw two martial artists frantically striking flints. Even though sparks were flying everywhere, they still couldn't light the torch that should have been lit immediately with the oil coating!

At that very moment, Qian Youcai felt a tingling, needle-like sensation shooting through the back of his neck. This was because he had heard with perfect clarity from the main room:
“You——!”

With a crash, Qian Youcai suddenly fell to the ground.

In this terrifying moment, a lamp was handed out from behind Qian Youcai, illuminating a small patch of space.

Qian Youcai was overjoyed, grasping at this lifeline like a straw:

"Who, who lit the lantern? I, the young master, will reward them handsomely!"

The idea that ghosts and monsters, as Du Yuan had described, also feared human life had truly taken root in their hearts at this moment, becoming their last glimmer of hope.

As your gaze follows the lights upwards.

Qian Youcai's exclamation caught in his throat—the young Taoist priest who had just been saying that "ghosts and monsters are afraid of fire" was now casually hooking the lantern handle with two fingers.

With a half-smile, and a look of disdain for all living beings, he said to him:
"Is the young master trustworthy now?"

(End of this chapter)