Strong Winds Return Home

This time around, Wan Yuan’s ghost appeared in the early morning, still floating in the air with a pale face, and frightened a couple who got up early to set up a stall.

Liu Xian’an asked: “Was it really the ghost screaming?”

“She didn’t scream, and only floated motionlessly in the air. The screaming you heard in your dreams was the proprietress selling rice cakes.” Liang Shu said, “It was already dawn at that time. After hearing the commotion, neighbors came out left and right with shovels and axes, but the female ghost didn’t continue to rush forward, and only fell headlong into an alley.”

“Fell?”

“Fell.”

According to witnesses, it looked like a kite with a broken string. Because of the strong sunlight and the crowds during the day, everyone gathered their courage to chase after it and see, but there was not even one hair of the ghost in the alley. There was only a bloodstained note on a wall full of sigils.

“This is it,” Liang Shu said, picking it up from the side.

Liu Xian’an was eating cake, and when he saw such a thing suddenly, he almost choked. Liang Shu patted his back for him and asked: “Do you understand it?”

“I don’t understand. I’ve never studied spells, and I’m also unable to study them.”

There may also be great masters in the world, but there were more charlatans like Yin Die. It was hard to tell whether this group of people could read or not, so there was really no need to waste time analyzing it. Liu Xian’an only glanced at it: “Dressing up as a ghost and leaving notes to scare people is not Yin Die’s work.”

“Why not?”

“Although Yin Die is a liar, he is also a professional liar. Since he has already made a name for himself in the Southwest, things like writing spells should come easy to him.” Liu Xian’an said, “But the brushwork in the prince’s hand is very amateurish. The circles are not even round, and there is such a big “double happiness” character with a cross through it. The curse is too obvious.”

Liang Shu put away the spell talisman: “Since it isn’t Yin Die, who do you think is pretending to be a ghost?”

Liu Xian’an thought for a moment: “It’s hard to say.”

“It’s hard to say, but you can tell me.” Liang Shu lifted the pot to help refill his tea. “Let’s see if we’re thinking the same thing.”

“The prince also has suspicions?”

“Yes.”

Liu Xian’an dipped his finger in the tea and sketched out a name on the table. This was a secret way of speaking in the jianghu that he had read of in idle books and stories, and he felt that it was very suitable for such a moment. And Second Young Master Liu’s calligraphy was very beautiful, flying like a lonely cloud, his fingers slender and jade-like. Liang Shu propped his head up on one hand to admire it. He wasn’t in the mood to discover who the ghost was — it could be seen that there was an element of losing one’s head over desire, and not doing one’s proper work.

Those hands were so white.

Liu Xian’an waved a hand in front of him: “Your Highness?”

Liang Shuo grabbed his fingertips and cleared his mind of obscene thoughts: “Let’s go find him.”

. . . . . .

Huaizhen City had been haunted again and again, but no one was killed. Like the story of “the wolf is coming,” it could still make people panic when it happened again and again, but the effect was greatly reduced after three times. Especially since the ghost couldn’t even fly well, falling straight down in full view of the public, and had no ability to eat people.

Even Aunt Mou Cuihua didn’t look too scared anymore. She was sitting under a tree at the corner, cracking melon seeds and conversing with her neighbors about the haunting. Liu Meng’s mother was also standing amongst the crowd. When Mou Cuihua saw her, she asked in a troubled voice: “Liu-jie, Master Yu is going to set up a banquet, why aren’t you helping today?”

“Yesterday, I served until midnight, and was frightened by Wan Yuan’s ghost in the morning and didn’t sleep well, so the Madam let me come back and rest.” Aunt Liu asked, “What does that spell talisman mean?”

“It means don’t let the river god get married. There is a bright “double happiness” symbol, and there have been no other happy events in our city recently,” someone said. “But I saw that the people in Yu Manor are already hanging colorful streamers by the river. They aren’t afraid, so that means everything will be business as usual tomorrow. After all, they spent a lot of money to hire a wizard. Madam Yu and Young Master Yu have both ordered that Master Yu’s health be the top priority in everything.”

“But this…..” Aunt Liu was still afraid. “What if that ghost comes out again?”

“It came out and came out, then came out a third time, and nothing happened. Aunt Liu, you didn’t see it yesterday. She was quite scary when she floated around in the dark at midnight, but this morning when the sky was bright, looking at that ghost again, it wasn’t frightening at all. With a pale, anxious face, it was kind of funny.”

Aunt Liu smacked him: “Nonsense, be careful not to be overheard by the ghost.”

Nobody took it seriously. They just laughed and discussed the next day’s Many-Color Festival and banquet, as well as when to get up early to reserve a seat and watch the show. Mou Cuihua’s voice was so loud that it could be heard across the street. Liu Meng felt agitated at the sound and dropped his work, and was about to get up and fetch his mother back so that she wouldn’t join in, but the courtyard door was pushed open.

There was a bang, and no small amount of commotion. Liu Meng was taken aback at first, but after seeing who had come, he said with dissatisfaction, “You fancy rich people, do you usually break into private homes like this? I still have things to do, and there’s no tea at home, so you should hurry up and leave.”

“What?” Liang Shu said, “If you’re in such a hurry to drive away guests, could it be that you heard about the ghost in town last night, and you want to catch it again?”

“I say, why are you two always pestering me?” Liu Meng wondered. “Yu Manor hired a great wizard to catch the ghost, why don’t you go find him?”

“If we looked for him, we couldn’t be sure about the haunting.” Liang Shu tossed something over to him. “It’s quicker to find you.”

Liu Meng caught the bundle in one hand. The knot was loose, and a worn dress spilled out of it. His face immediately paled, and he looked up at the two of them vigilantly. Liang Shu said: “This is from the box under your bed. If I’m not mistaken, you went to the old Wan family house that day to find more old things, so that the female ghost could be more like Wan Yuan.”

Liu Meng threw back the bundle: “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“The wardrobe in the Wan home was dilapidated, and the doors were all missing, but the backboard looked brand new. This bag of clothing should have been inside.” Liang Shu said, “You have a sideshow troupe under you, and there are so many doll kites piled up in the yard. It should be easy to make a female ghost.”

Liu Meng glanced at the courtyard warehouse. “There are many people who can make kites.”

“But there are not many people who know the content of the conversation between Yin Die and Yu Zhong last night.” Liang Shu closed the courtyard door behind him. “At that time, apart from Yu Zhong and his confidants, there were only three people in that room. And Aunt Liu was in charge of boiling water.”

Liu Meng frowned: “You also—”

Liang Shu continued: “The previous hauntings were all in the middle of the night, which means that you know these sideshow things can’t scare people, and you had to rely on the dark sky in the middle of the night to deceive people with tricks. But last night, Yin Die set a time with Yu Zhong to hold a Many-Color Festival tomorrow. You had no time to wait until the next midnight, so you could only take a risk.”

Liu Meng didn’t make a sound, still not wanting to admit it, and just stood there with his neck straight. Liang Shu warned: “If you continue to be stubborn, I can only ask the government to send people to search. At that time, if any incriminating things are found, you and your parents may no longer have a foothold in Huaizhen City.”

“If you can mobilize people from the government, then aren’t you also an official?” Liu Meng gave him a fierce look. “Since you’re an official, why don’t you arrest those big villains who are doing evil things instead of coming to make things difficult for me?”

“Who are the big villains doing evil things?”

“It’s—”

“A-Meng!” An anxious shout came from outside the door, and Aunt and Uncle Liu ran in together while pushing a cart. The two had apparently heard a few words of the conversation in the courtyard, and scolded their son, “What nonsense are you speaking of!”

“I’m not talking nonsense. Father, Mother, they already know.” Liu Meng said angrily, “I’m dead anyway, might as well be straightforward. Maybe I’ll be born as a hero in the next life.”

Aunt Liu turned pale when she heard this, and Liu Xian’an supported her, persuading gently: “Auntie, don’t worry. We just want to find out the truth, to give Wan Yuan a share of justice and Huaizhen city a share of peace.”

“Yes……yes.” Aunt Liu was at a loss. “We……I came up with this idea. I was confused, it was me who was confused. It has nothing to do with this father and son.”

“What do you mean it had nothing to do with me? I did everything and also painted the ghost, and the kite frame is still down in the cellar.” A-Meng said, “A man must bear the consequences of his own acts.”

“Good, a man should bear the consequences of his own acts.” Liang Shu nodded. “Sit, ba, sit down and tell us the whole story.”

At this time, firecrackers were exploding in the city, and some of the programs held for the Many-Color Festival were being staged in advance all the way from east to west. And amongst this bustle, Yu Zhong was accompanying Yin Die, pasting talismans on the treetops and under the eaves along the way. A Second Young Master Liu had said, his calligraphy was truly professional, his pen like a snake, and the prices were very expensive. Yu Zhong’s heart bled all the way, and he became more and more convinced that this liar was behind the haunting. He truly itched with hatred.

The steward repeatedly urged when there was no one around: “Young Master, don’t reveal your emotions on your face! Don’t reveal them, ah!”

“To hell with that.” Yu Zhong cursed his mother. “When will this grandson die?”

The steward comforted: “Soon, soon.”

Yu Zhong said again, bullshit, this fucking bottomless pit is just forty this year, in his prime to make money.

He was so angry that he inadvertently lost his temper: “Otherwise, I could poison him to death.”

The steward smacked his lips: “Killing him is possible, but Yin Die lives in a den of poisons, and ordinary drugs are probably useless. If he finds out and tells the Master, then this……just bear with it, ba.”

“If I bear it any longer, the family will go broke,” Yu Zhong said. “Of course I wish for my father to live, but to be honest, looking at him like that with his bone marrow sucked out by women and a skull on his thin neck, it isn’t a question of if I want him to live, but if he is able to live, right?”

The steward just laughed, hehe, and didn’t dare to answer. Yu Zhong’s mind was already whirling, and looking at the densely packed talismans on both sides of the streets, he muttered, post them, even if you post them all over the city, as long as you die, I won’t have to pay you a fart.

Thinking of this, he felt much more carefree, and even helped Yin Die post them for a while.

When night fell, the riverside was full of lights. Liu Xian’an bent down to pass under a string of multicolored ropes. He looked at the people singing and dancing nearby, and at the burning lights, and said to Liang Shu: “It would be nice if there were no strange talismans that bother the eyes, and if the common people were just celebrating the harvest and peace.”

“The harvest and peace.” Liang Shu held his hand and let him slowly move across the stepping stones in the water. “Don’t worry, they will, and it won’t be too far away.”

Liu Xian’an made a sound of acknowledgement. His foot slipped, and Liang Shu held him up by the waist: “The path here is uneven, be careful.”

“I’m already careful.”

“You’re careful, but you still can’t walk steadily.”

Liang Shu sighed pretentiously. Then I will suffer a small loss and spend the effort to carry you, ba.