Since it was pouring outside, Feng Jin couldn’t inspect the surrounding grounds, but he still continued with his inspection of the mansion’s interior.
“Mr Feng, is there anything wrong?” Having seen Feng Jin’s gloomy manner, the old man’s heart couldn’t help but start to race.
There hadn’t been much light last night, so he hadn’t 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 wasn’t the compassionate type, so he truly didn’t know whether or not he had made the right choice in inviting him.
“Has anyone gone missing as of late?” Feng Jin shot a reproving glare at Shi Sheng, who stood afloat behind the old man, motive unclear.
“No,” the old man answered swiftly. “There 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?”
The old man looked at Feng Jin in confusion. ‘What does the Sir’s illness have to do with whether or not anyone’s gone missing?’
“Ask him if anyone’s left,” Shi Sheng reminded Feng Jin.
Feng Jin gave her a subtle glare. “Has anyone left the mansion after Qi Mo fell ill?”
The old man sighed, “How could they not leave? Everyone’s afraid with the current situation as it is. A total of four people have left.”
Once he finished, the old man added, “the last one to leave did so yesterday afternoon.”
Feng Jin nodded. “Tell the servants not to come out at night, no matter what they might hear.”
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 Jin’s request. The old butler subsequently asked about Qi Mo’s condition before leaving to make arrangements.
“Qi Mo can still be saved?” ‘I didn’t reckon that guy had much longer to live.’
Feng Jin fell silent for a moment, before speaking, “Yes.”
Shi Sheng raised a brow.
“Er… you can see her too?” An Su stood behind a pillar, only half of her body visible.
Feng Jin knew who An Su was—he 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. ‘Dunno why, but I find that ghost a bit cute… Not because of her appearance, but her personality… Of course, she’s very pretty too!’
Feng Jin hadn’t seen what she had: that ghost had drawn a turtle[1] on the Butler’s back.
……
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 woman’s 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 Su’s expression changed.
“Recently, I’ve 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?”
An Su came back to her senses and hurriedly shook her head. “No, I’m fine. It’s…probably just the cold.”
The woman studied the scene outside the window before nodding in agreement. “It is rather cold. I still have some new clothes that I haven’t worn. If you don’t mind, I hope you can make do with them.”
“Of course I wouldn’t mind…” 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 ‘walk’ 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.
“AH!” The woman shot to her feet, causing her chair to fall to the floor behind her. She retreated with a fearful expression. “Don’t look for me, it wasn’t me… It wasn’t me…”
“Madam Qi,” 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.
“Ms An, what happened?” 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.
“Ms An?” The old man followed An Su’s gaze but was only met with thin air.
“Just now… Madam Qi and I were chatting. I don’t know what she saw, but she suddenly started screaming.”
An Su covered for Shi Sheng about the incident with Madam Qi. Although she didn’t have a clue why the former had done so, she felt as though Shi Sheng didn’t 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, “People with a clear conscience have no need to fear that ghosts will come knocking on their door.”
An Su really wanted to retort with, “Aren’t you a ghost? Madam Qi didn’t offend you in any way, so why are you scaring her?”
But An Su lacked the guts to do so.
She climbed upstairs alone as Shi Sheng’s 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 couldn’t help but quiver at the sensation.
It was eerily quiet. She almost felt as if she’d 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.
“Nalan Ying, stop fooling around.” An Su thought it was Nalan Ying.
Nobody answered her.
Her neck was gripped by bitingly-cold fingers.
‘It’s not Nalan Ying!’
Even as the thought flashed through An Su’s 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.
“Mmm! Mhmm…” 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 she’d 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.
“Feng Jin… I don’t wanna eat this…”
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.
“You’re awake, Ms. An?” The old butler deftly passed her a glass of water before questioning her in a slightly doubtful tone, “May I ask why you fainted in your room?”
“I…” 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, “I think I met a ghost.”
The one that had attempted to strangle her was definitely a ghost.
But she was certain that it hadn’t been the ghost currently floating in front of her. The one that attacked her…had a very peculiar stench.
The old man’s expression changed suddenly, his tone turning stern, “Do not joke around, Ms An. How could there be a ghost here?”
“Uncle Butler, I’ll be honest with you—I have yin-yang eyes, so I can see ghosts.” An Su smiled bitterly. If she had any choice in the matter, she definitely wouldn’t want this ability.
Great power came with great responsibility.
‘If I couldn’t see them, would I have to be on edge all the time, afraid of seeing a ghost behind me the moment I turn around?’
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 don’t know if this is relevant, but turtles are often likened to… male genitalia.