Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Old Matters

It looked like a piece of cloth. Damp, and when twisted, water dripped from it.

After wringing it out, Bai Zhengliu intended to unfold the cloth to see if it could provide any clues. Just then, he heard Wang Shi raise her voice and call out, "I was just about to come find you! An Bo, what exactly is going on here?"

Bai Zhengliu's eyes shifted, and he quickly tucked the cloth into his sleeve. When he looked up again, he found himself face-to-face with the hurriedly approaching "An Bo."

Just as Wang Shi had described, the steward, An Bo, was a thin, middle-aged man with a serious expression. On normal days, his presence would command respect.

But now, An Bo’s condition was clearly poor. Not only did he look pale, but there were dark circles under his eyes, and his lips were cracked.

As soon as he saw Fu Ming, drenched to the waist, his pupils constricted slightly, and he asked in disbelief, "She's here? She’s back again?!"

With that, Fu Ming stood up from the ground and said, "What kind of place is this? I'm not staying! Miao Miao, Zhengliu, Mei Daxia, we’re leaving now! We came here to make a little money, but it’s not worth risking our lives!"

He was truly horrified by what had just happened. He was simply comforting Gu Miao by the pool, and then, for no reason, his shoes became soaked. Before he knew it, he slipped and fell into the water.

It was only because Fu Ming had practiced martial arts for a few days that he didn't drown right away. Instead, he had some strength left to struggle.

In his panic, the Ninth Prince didn’t notice the change in the grip Gu Miao had on him. He only felt that the three people around him were loyal and caring. Even Mei Daxia, despite the situation with Miao Miao, didn't try to harm him.

Fu Ming was deeply moved and naturally wanted to leave in peace with them. A thought crossed his mind, and he decided to follow An Bo's earlier suggestion.

Upon hearing his words, An Bo didn’t get angry. The middle-aged man sighed deeply, his posture seemed even more hunched than before, and said, "In that case..."

Everyone present looked at him. Including Wang Shi, who had raised her voice earlier to remind Bai and Mei, she now walked over and stood with the two young men.

An Bo said, "You may leave now."Fu Ming froze.

The others were also stunned.

It’s that simple? Just saying a word, and we can leave?

An Bo continued, "What the young master says is true. The mess in our house was caused by us. We are deeply grateful for your help, but if you are unwilling, it’s only natural."

A trace of sorrow appeared on his face. But at this moment, no one had the mood to pay attention to his reaction.

Fu Ming furrowed his brow. Gu Miao, standing to the side, couldn’t help but speak, "The outside of your house looks like that, how can we go out?"

An Bo turned to look at him, a surprised expression on his face, "Young master, I don’t quite understand your words. Yes, something happened in the house, but what’s wrong with the outside? When I went out to look for the young master, this young lord, and this lady this morning, wasn’t the street just outside?"

"Although the outside is a bit quiet, it’s nothing to be surprised about. Recently, we’ve had multiple funerals at home, and others say that the Chang residence is unlucky, so they avoid it. Even those who need to go out from here now have to deliberately take a detour. Apart from that, everything else is no different from usual."

Fu Ming and Gu Miao’s pupils shrank slightly. Wang Shi couldn’t help but speak, "You’re talking nonsense! Outside, clearly—"

Bai Zhengliu interrupted her, "Ahem!"

Wang Shi immediately snapped back to attention, shivering uncontrollably.

Did she actually have the courage to argue with the fox deity? Was she truly seeking death?

Wang Shi nervously took a step back, while An Bo didn’t seem to care about her reaction. He simply displayed an expression that said, "It’s dangerous here, we understand if you want to leave." After a moment, a faint smile even appeared on his face.Everyone felt a chill in their hearts. But as they focused and looked again, An Bo had returned to his sorrowful expression.

With the butcher’s matter hanging over them, who would dare step into the strange white fog outside? But if they didn’t leave, were they really going to stay in a place where a female ghost appeared?

"Enough," Bai Zhengliu said flatly. "Since we’ve come to your Chang residence, we are here to resolve the matter."

Upon hearing this, An Bo turned to the young man holding a knife.

Bai Zhengliu pressed his lips into a tight line, and his tone deepened immediately, "But you, as the housekeeper, along with that little servant this morning, do you really want us to resolve this matter?"

An Bo furrowed his brows and responded with irritation, "Could there be any doubt?"

Bai Zhengliu sneered.

Fu Ming and the others watched in horror, feeling as if they couldn’t comprehend why he would adopt such a "harsh" attitude toward someone with an unknown identity, someone who might not even be human. Mei Yinghan, however, seemed to have figured something out, and followed up with words to support Bai Zhengliu.

"Enough, Bai brother," he said. "I don’t think An Bo and the others intended to hide anything."

Bai Zhengliu frowned.

Mei Yinghan turned to An Bo and spoke gently, "Usually, you hide certain matters for the sake of face. But now, we’ve come this far, what’s the point of continuing to conceal things?"

An Bo’s face twitched, as if he were unsteady on his feet. "What... what is the hero Mei saying? I can’t understand."

Now even Fu Ming and the others could tell that An Bo was putting on a front.

He "resisted stubbornly," so Bai Zhengliu continued to sneer and said, "Is this the attitude of the Chang family when entrusting someone to handle matters? You only say someone’s dead, but don’t explain what exactly is harming them, and just watch as we boldly barge in? Don’t you know if it’s your mistress involved? Are you truly so unaware? Fine! It looks like your residence really should invite someone more capable!"He glanced around at the others and said, "Let's go!"

The others, hearing this, all felt bitter: Didn't they just say they couldn’t leave? And look at the housekeeper’s attitude earlier—does he really care if we leave?

He probably even hopes to watch the show!

However, what they didn’t expect was that An Bo, who had shown no reaction to Fu Ming’s words earlier, actually appeared somewhat flustered upon hearing Bai Zhengliu’s tone.

"Hero Bai, wait! Please don’t go!" he called out. "Can’t we talk things over properly?"

Bai Zhengliu stopped and glanced at him. "Well, that depends on you, An Bo."

An Bo wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Please don’t call me that, please don’t. You’re embarrassing me." After a pause, he lowered his voice. "This isn’t the place for a conversation. Let’s go to the courtyard first."

This time, Bai Zhengliu didn’t argue.

The group of six began moving toward the southeast.

An Bo, Bai Zhengliu, and Mei Yinghan led the way, with the remaining three following behind.

Gu Miao had earlier decided to abandon Fu Ming, but now that he saw Fu Ming was fine—just frightened and physically unharmed—he let out a sigh of relief.

The two of them walked arm in arm, and Gu Miao quietly said, "What exactly does Bai brother intend to do?"

Fu Ming didn’t know either. But he had made an observation. "Zhengliu might have a way of dealing with those filthy things. You and I should stick close to him and not wander off."

Gu Miao murmured an "Mm" in acknowledgment. Then he remembered how close Fu Ming’s way of addressing Bai Zhengliu was, and a hint of jealousy arose in his heart.What kind of suffering has he gone through? He meets an elder brother, becomes a lover, yet appears so stiff and serious. Every day he spends with him, Gu Miao can't help but think back to when he roamed the jianghu alone. How well Fu Ming treated him, and how much fun it was being with him. But his elder brother... sigh!

Later, when Gu Miao meets Fu Ming and Bai Zhengliu again, even though he feels guilty toward Bai Zhengliu, he can't help but be drawn to Fu Ming. Especially when Fu Ming tells him that Bai Zhengliu only knows how to practice the sword and is fundamentally different from him. Gu Miao listens, feeling mostly sympathy.

Now? He finally sheds the shackles and gets together with Fu Ming. But his elder brother is angry with him, and Fu Ming keeps mentioning "Zhengliu."

Gu Miao feels his life is full of misfortune.

He feels heartbroken. At the same time, the two people walking ahead have already heard An Bo mention: "The young man who fell into the water earlier, did he see something?"

Bai Zhengliu glanced at him lightly. "Didn't anyone else see it?"

An Bo, in an awkward manner, gritted his teeth as if struggling for a moment before admitting, "Everyone who saw something... they’re all dead. We only heard a few words from them before they died. They all called out 'madam.' Because of this, we concluded that the one causing the trouble is the madam..."

He vaguely skipped over the last two words.

In short, one sentence: Neither he nor the young servant, Ping Ge, intended to deceive the heroes. It's just that some things, they hadn't thought of before, which led to a gap in information.

Bai Zhengliu said, "Enough with that. Just tell us everything you know clearly, or don't blame us for leaving."

An Bo sighed again, and finally began to recount everything in detail.

The first half of the story was the same as what he had told them in the morning: The previous master of the house, Old Master Huang, was a wealthy merchant. He met Old Master Chang and hit it off with him. He really liked this young man, so he made him his son-in-law.

On one side was the favor of being appreciated, and on the other was the handsome young man. When they had just married, Old Master Chang and Miss Huang were very much in love. Anyone who saw them would say they were a match made in heaven.

But unfortunately, the good times didn’t last.The second year after their marriage, Old Master Huang fell seriously ill and passed away, and Huang Residence was turned into Chang Residence.

At this time, a woman came to the door, claiming to be Old Master Chang’s lawful wife. She had worked hard at home, helping Old Master Chang with his studies. She had never expected that Old Master Chang would say he was going to the capital to take the exams, but then never returned.

She originally thought her husband had died. While it was painful, she dried her tears and continued to care for her husband’s elderly parents.

But then, a villager who had returned from the city told her that her husband was not dead, but had become the favored son-in-law of a rich family in the city. Now, he traveled in a sedan chair, and his new wife was young and beautiful, far outshining the woman, a rough farm girl. Upon hearing this, the woman felt as if struck by lightning.

She made arrangements at home and came to the capital to find her husband, hoping to get an explanation.

At this point, An Bo awkwardly tugged at the corner of his mouth.

It looked like he wanted to offer a polite smile, but knowing how his master had acted unethically, he couldn't bring himself to smile.

An Bo had no choice but to compose himself and continue speaking.

"Our young miss was spoiled by Old Master since she was a child, so her temperament became somewhat arrogant. Old Master— I mean, Old Master Huang— was very clear when he first chose a son-in-law. He said that Miss was like this, and that the son-in-law would need to bear with it. At that time, Old Master Chang even swore by the heavens that he would never take a concubine and would make sure Miss lived happily."

And what happened? While he never took a concubine, he had already been married before!

Before they knew this, Miss Huang was willing to play the role of the gentle wife in front of her husband. After all, the chicken soup she served to her husband was made by the servants, and she only had to say a few words of concern. But now? The true wife of her husband came to their door, and after all that the Huang family had given, Miss Huang was left as an unknown concubine. How could she not be angry?

An Bo smiled bitterly. "During that time, the house was full of storms and turmoil. When I think back to it now, I feel a chill in my heart!"

Wang Shi, who had been quietly listening to the conversation, couldn’t hold back any longer and said, "Your master has really behaved poorly in this matter!"After speaking, Wang Shi took a deep breath. How could she always be so forgetful, speaking ill of the Fox Immortal?

Wang Shi felt frustrated, but An Bo only sighed. "Who can deny that? But the master's affairs are for the master to handle. If Old Master Huang were still alive, Madam might still have chased Old Master Chang out. But since Old Master Huang is gone, Madam is just a woman, what can she do?"

In any case, in An Bo’s memory, the issue was eventually resolved.

Old Master Chang found a courtyard in the residence and placed his wife, Liu Shi, whom he had married in the village, there, along with some servants to wait on her.

In that courtyard, everyone who saw Liu Shi had to call her "Madam."

At the same time, Liu Shi could only stay in that courtyard and absolutely could not appear in front of Miss Huang.

At this point, Liu Shi accepted the situation, but Miss Huang did not.

She argued with Old Master Chang every few days, demanding that he send Liu Shi away. Old Master Chang, though pained by her constant complaints, felt guilty toward his wife. No matter what Miss Huang said, he listened. Meanwhile, when Miss Huang went to cause trouble for Liu Shi, he pretended not to notice.

From demanding that Liu Shi serve her water—this wasn’t just any ordinary request; during her washing routine, Liu Shi had to kneel and hold the basin high. If the water wobbled even a little, Miss Huang could knock the basin over and say a few words about how Liu Shi had been disrespectful.

Later on, Miss Huang no longer even bothered with excuses and had Liu Shi kneel in the courtyard every day. She also ordered that Liu Shi be treated as the lowest servant in the house. Any dirty or laborious tasks were given to her.

Miss Huang wanted Liu Shi to leave on her own.

But Liu Shi stubbornly endured.

She didn’t even feel the hardships she was going through. No matter how dirty or tiring the work was, it couldn't compare to the burden of managing a household while serving two elderly people. Miss Huang thought that giving her stale steamed buns was an insult, but for Liu Shi, those were the only buns she might see in an entire year.

Liu Shi treasured them deeply.Miss Huang became even angrier because of Liu Shi’s situation. Moreover, as she continued to torment Liu Shi day by day, the other servants in the household gradually began to sympathize with Liu Shi. After all, what had she done wrong? If we were to talk about mistakes, wasn’t it the master who hid the fact that he was already married?

Of course, the servants dared not speak these words aloud. However, it didn’t stop them from secretly sending things to Liu Shi. In places where Miss Huang couldn’t see, they would also let Liu Shi kneel less and endure less hardship.

Until everything was discovered by Miss Huang.

An Bo let out a bitter laugh. "At that time, Madam had another quarrel with the master, and the entire household was stirred up. We, the servants, didn’t know exactly what happened. All we knew was that after that day, Liu Shi disappeared, as if she had never been there. Also, the courtyard where Liu Shi had lived had a well, and the master ordered someone to come and seal the well."

He paused for a moment and added.

"—The water in that well seemed to connect directly to the pond in the northern courtyard. But this detail... we only thought of it after Madam was gone."

The author has something to say:

Today has been a tense day for Jiang Jiang.

The pandemic seems to have suddenly gotten much worse. Every group I open has people talking about how they've tested positive or how their family members, colleagues, or classmates have tested positive.

And I have to commute for hours on the subway every day during rush hour—people squeezing, squeezing, squeezing everywhere. I’m just calmly shedding tears.