Edited—

They arrived at the hospital. Lin Jue said she had already contacted medical staff to rush over overnight with equipment. If conditions permitted, the professional medical personnel would transfer the few children still in comas out of the hospital as quickly as possible.

Everyone’s expressions were rather grave. Clearly, because of this unforeseen disaster, they felt the sorrow of seeing a rabbit die and a fox grieve.

“The Xu clan avoided it for a hundred years but ultimately couldn’t escape it.” Outside the hospital, Lin Jue lit a cigarette. Zhou Jiayu also asked for one. Amid the curling smoke, she spoke, “In recent years, their paper-controlling arts have grown increasingly proficient. These paper people even developed their own consciousness. This kind of ability—any family would envy it.”

It was a pity that fortune and misfortune were interdependent. Within the clan’s strength lay hidden the killing intent of the Heavenly Dao.

Zhou Jiayu stroked Xiao Zhi’s back, letting him lean against his chest. Xiao Zhi wasn’t crying anymore. His expression could even be called calm. But only someone who had seen his previous state would understand that his calmness was missing a kind of innocent flavor. It was as if he had grown up overnight.

Zhou Jiayu’s mind was somewhat chaotic. He thought of that man with the mysterious identity whom he had met with Lin Zhushui on the hotel rooftop. He felt that that person had an inseparable relationship with Xu Jinghuo’s abnormalities.

There was also that passage from Xu Jinghuo—the method of creating jiangshi, the body of a merman, the contract of yin spirits. Thinking about it carefully, they were all connected to the things that had happened before.

The tree spirit and Yan Hongxiu, the haunted school, the streamer Xiaomi who encountered ghosts during a live broadcast—all could be confirmed as Xu Jinghuo’s handiwork. Zhou Jiayu exhaled a puff of smoke and briefly explained his thoughts.

“It would be best if we could find him.” Lin Jue said, “I also feel there’s someone behind him. But even if someone instigated him into doing bad things, he has still stained his hands with quite a few human lives. What should be paid back must be paid back.”

Zhou Jiayu let out a light sigh and nodded.

They kept watch at the hospital because they were afraid someone would exploit a loophole and try to make a move on the few Xu children. Sure enough, after going to the already burned Mount She and seeing that not a single Xu remained, people quickly set their sights on the few children in the hospital.

Zhou Jiayu saw Lin Zhushui sitting in the hospital room, driving away everyone who came, never giving them a good expression the entire time. As long as someone dared to open their mouth, they would absolutely receive a round of cold mockery.

That Daoist Zhang they had met on the mountain earlier also appeared in the hospital room. The moment he entered, he called out with a thick-skinned face, “Mr. Lin.”

This person clearly had the appearance of an immortal, but when he saw Zhou Jiayu standing behind Lin Zhushui, the greed in his eyes was completely undisguised. He smiled and said, “Mr. Lin, the situation of these few children doesn’t look good. Our Daoist school has a method…”

Lin Zhushui said coldly, “When your Daoist school gets sick, don’t you go to the hospital?”

Daoist Zhang said, “We do go…”

Lin Zhushui said, “You can’t even cure your own illness, and you still want to treat others?”

Daoist Zhang: “…”

One had to admit that even Zhou Jiayu was seeing Lin Zhushui tear into someone this fiercely for the first time. His mouth could almost be said to show absolutely no mercy. Daoist Zhang’s face turned green and white, like an overturned palette. Finally, he squeezed out a sentence: “Mr. Lin, isn’t it a bit too much for you to want to monopolize the Xu orphans?”

Lin Zhushui directly stood up, walked in front of him, and raised his chin at a cold angle.

Daoist Zhang was quite a bit shorter than Lin Zhushui. His face was forcibly holding up, but his feet involuntarily retreated a few steps. Just looking at his aura, he was already somewhat deficient.

“Monopolize?” Lin Zhushui said, “They are all people. What do I have to monopolize them with? Daoist Zhang, you can eat your meals recklessly, but you can’t speak recklessly. If you say the wrong thing, you have to take responsibility.” The last few words of this sentence were almost squeezed out from between his teeth.

Daoist Zhang gritted his teeth and said, “But your disciple has clearly already learned the art of controlling paper…”

Lin Zhushui said, “Jiayu, come here.”

Zhou Jiayu, holding Xiao Zhi, walked to Lin Zhushui’s front and looked at Daoist Zhang with an unfriendly expression.

Daoist Zhang grew even more hollow-hearted from being stared at by Zhou Jiayu, but he still clung to his pride and refused to give up.

Then Lin Zhushui said a sentence: “Xiao Zhi, someone wants to snatch the Xu clan’s people.”

The moment these words came out, Xiao Zhi, who had been staying obediently in Zhou Jiayu’s embrace, jumped to the ground with a swoosh, rolled up his sleeves, and charged toward Daoist Zhang.

Right now, Xiao Zhi’s height was only about 1.2 meters, like a half-grown child. Daoist Zhang completely didn’t take him to heart—until he was knocked down by Xiao Zhi with one punch and then dragged out of the hospital room like garbage.

Zhou Jiayu saw with his own eyes that after Xiao Zhi dragged him out, he casually threw him into a corner, spat on the ground, then put his hands on his hips and came back.

Zhou Jiayu: “…” Just who did he learn that spitting action from?

Lin Zhushui stroked Xiao Zhi’s head and praised, “Not bad.”

Xiao Zhi nodded happily upon hearing this, called out “Dad” to Lin Zhushui, then happily climbed onto Zhou Jiayu’s shoulder to lie down, even rubbing against Zhou Jiayu’s neck.

Afterward, Lin Zhushui directly tore all pretenses with the others. He drove away everyone who came. As long as someone dared to open their mouth, he dared to have Xiao Zhi make a move.

Later, no one dared to come in anymore. They just watched eagerly from the doorway.

Lin Jue had originally been at the hospital discussing the transfer, but when she returned to the hospital room, she saw several major feng shui families all standing in line outside the door, poking their heads to look inside.

Lin Jue: “…” She actually even saw Xu Ruwang outside.

“What are you doing? Why aren’t you going in?” Lin Jue patted Xu Ruwang. “Also, what’s with your hairstyle? You look like a hooligan.”

The moment Xu Ruwang heard Lin Jue’s voice, he happily turned his head. “Miss Lin.”

Lin Jue said, “What’s with that expression?”

Xu Ruwang said, “Isn’t it because Mr. Lin keeps throwing people out? I’m afraid if I go in, I’ll get thrown out too.”

Lin Jue: “…Where’s your master?”

Xu Ruwang said, “Master is still on the mountain.”

“Come in.” Lin Jue waved at Xu Ruwang. “Don’t say things you shouldn’t say.”

Xu Ruwang nodded happily, then followed Lin Jue into the hospital room. Honestly, as a gay man, the moment he entered the room and saw Zhou Jiayu and Lin Zhushui, he felt that the atmosphere between the two seemed somewhat off. However, Xu Ruwang felt he was overthinking it. Although Zhou Jiayu was indeed the same as him, the matter of being together with Lin Zhushui was a bit too unbelievable.

“Xu Ruwang.” Zhou Jiayu saw him come in and greeted him. “Why is your hair getting longer and longer?”

Xu Ruwang said, “…If we don’t talk about hair, we can still be friends. How are these few children?”

“Still in a coma.” Zhou Jiayu glanced at Lin Zhushui. Seeing that he had no intention of driving Xu Ruwang out, he continued, “They inhaled toxic smoke. The medical facilities in this small town aren’t enough. They need to go to a hospital outside for treatment.”

“Sigh.” Xu Ruwang sighed, found a seat nearby, and sat down.

Lin Jue and Lin Zhushui discussed some details about leaving again, saying the medical personnel would probably arrive that evening. They had already bought train tickets and could leave under the cover of night. The sooner this matter was handled, the better. After all, the Xu clan matter was still fermenting. If too many people set their sights on them, it would really become difficult to handle.

Zhou Jiayu suddenly remembered something and asked, “Sir, why didn’t the branch they gave me wither?”

Lin Zhushui said, “Didn’t I previously tell you to carry that branch on you at all times?”

Zhou Jiayu said, “Yes…”

Lin Zhushui said, “The conditions for the Ancestral Tree’s growth are extremely harsh. It requires a continuous supply of the purest yin energy. That’s why the Xu clan chose Mount She, a place isolated from the world. And if you want a branch to not wither, it must also be nourished by yin energy.”

Only now did Zhou Jiayu understand. It turned out it was because of his constitution that the branch hadn’t withered. He just didn’t know if such a small branch could help the Xu clan with anything…

The medical personnel Lin Jue contacted quickly arrived. Then they began using professional methods to transfer the few children who had fallen into comas.

During this period, Lin Zhushui, Zhou Jiayu, and the others kept watch nearby to prevent any unexpected situations from occurring.

In the end, they successfully transferred the children onto the train and left Mount She. Xu Jian also left with them. Lin Jue asked him why he didn’t stay a while longer.

Xu Jian said he hadn’t expected to find anything in the first place. He just wanted to know how the Xu clan had perished. After all, a powerful feng shui clan had been exterminated just like that, leaving behind only a few children. This inevitably made one feel disheartened.

“They touched a bottom line they shouldn’t have touched.” Lin Jue had been smoking all day. She lit another one now. “The Heavenly Dao has always been petty.”

Xu Jian let out a long sigh.

Zhou Jiayu sat beside Lin Zhushui. He could clearly see a hint of weariness between Lin Zhushui’s brows. Although this weariness was very faint, it was also very rare to see on Lin Zhushui’s face.

Zhou Jiayu said in a small voice, “Sir, are you tired?”

Lin Zhushui said, “I’m alright.”

Zhou Jiayu remembered that Lin Zhushui hadn’t slept much these past few days. He said, “If you’re sleepy, you can lean on my shoulder… I can keep watch. I’m not sleepy.”

Having said such words, Zhou Jiayu had originally thought Lin Zhushui would refuse. He hadn’t expected that Lin Zhushui would actually nod, then naturally lean against his shoulder. That faint sandalwood scent once again lingered in his nose. Zhou Jiayu took the extra coat nearby and gently draped it over Lin Zhushui.

Lin Zhushui’s breathing gradually became even. Zhou Jiayu sat up straight, trying to make Lin Zhushui as comfortable as possible. Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at Lin Zhushui, looking at his straight nose bridge, his thin pale lips, and his slightly trembling eyelashes. For a moment, he felt a kind of happiness that was difficult to describe in words.

Lin Zhushui’s height was, after all, somewhat tall. Leaning against Zhou Jiayu’s shoulder, he had to bend his waist. After Zhou Jiayu discovered this, afraid he would be uncomfortable, he gently called out “Sir,” then used his hand to lift him up and embrace him, letting his head rest in the crook of his own arm.

Lin Zhushui sensed Zhou Jiayu’s movement but didn’t move, letting him do as he pleased.

Zhou Jiayu watched as Lin Zhushui switched to a more comfortable position. This position didn’t require bending at the waist, while he could hug Lin Zhushui. Lowering his head, he could see his face even more clearly.

The night gradually deepened. The others were either catching up on sleep or keeping watch in the neighboring train car. Zhou Jiayu felt that Lin Zhushui seemed to have fallen asleep, so he carefully lowered his head and did something he had wanted to do for a long time—he secretly kissed Lin Zhushui’s long eyelashes that looked like they could hold a matchstick, then foolishly grinned.

Happiness wasn’t a complicated matter. Being with the person you loved, hearts connecting, holding them in your embrace—this alone was enough to make one envious to the extreme.

The next morning, the train safely delivered the few children to the terminal station.

The professional medical personnel transferred them into the intensive care unit. The hospital Lin Jue arranged for them was confidential, just because she was afraid those people would seek them out again.

“They may still need some time before they wake up.” After doing a detailed examination, the doctor informed them, “We won’t know about aftereffects until after they wake up. But if there was oxygen deprivation, the brain may have suffered damage.”

In this matter, even Lin Zhushui couldn’t do much more than provide funds to let them enjoy the best medical resources, hoping these children could pull through.

After this matter was handled, they returned to the Lin family.

Everyone rested well for a few days after coming back this time. Zhou Jiayu was also a bit tired. He collapsed onto the bed and fell into a deep sleep, going straight from the afternoon until the next morning, when he woke up hungry.

After washing up, he went downstairs and saw several people sitting in the living room downstairs, looking at him with eager eyes, like baby birds longing to be fed.

Zhou Jiayu: “…What do you want to eat?”

Shen Yiqiong said pitifully, “Shiniang, we want to eat lamb.”

Zhou Jiayu: “????” For the sake of food, don’t you even want your face anymore, Shen Yiqiong?

He was a bit helpless, but still went to the kitchen and made a lamb hot pot, then stewed a big pot of chicken soup to prepare for nourishing the yellow weasel and all of them.

This time after Xiao Zhi came back, he had matured quite a bit. He didn’t rub the yellow weasel’s fur anymore. He just sat on the sofa with a deep expression, looking like he was contemplating.

Zhou Jiayu felt sorry for him and also fed him a bit of food. Xiao Zhi could eat things, but it wasn’t a necessary condition for survival. Zhou Jiayu was afraid of burdening his body, so he normally didn’t feed him. But these past few days, Xiao Zhi looked too dejected. Zhou Jiayu also couldn’t bear it, so he prepared a meal for him too.

So they saw Xiao Zhi holding a bowl and also sitting at the table, eating bite for bite with the yellow weasel. They looked quite harmonious.

The lamb had been air-freighted in that day. The meat was plump, tender, and fresh—perfect for a hot pot.

When eating, Lin Zhushui also came over and sat beside Zhou Jiayu, occasionally even picking up some dishes for Zhou Jiayu.

Zhou Jiayu ate happily, feeling that even drinking soup was sweet.

The Xu clan matter clearly wasn’t over yet. In the following days, Lin Po kept running over here, looking like he was discussing something with Lin Jue and the others.

After Lin Zhushui learned of this, he directly called Lin Po before him and said one sentence: “Have everyone with opinions come find me.”

Lin Po smiled bitterly upon hearing this. “Uncle, how would they dare?” He glanced at Xiao Zhi, who was currently lying on top of Zhou Jiayu’s head pulling Zhou Jiayu’s hair. “Xiao Zhi has also become quite famous among them—”

“If they don’t dare, then get lost.” Lin Zhushui said, “Tell them, don’t think I’ll give the Lin family this face.”

Lin Po had nothing to say and could only leave with his tail between his legs.

Zhou Jiayu had previously felt that the relationship between Lin Zhushui and the Lin family was a bit strange. Lin Zhushui didn’t seem particularly close to the Lin family members, and the Lin family’s attitude toward Lin Zhushui was more one of reverence.

Zhou Jiayu asked Lin Jue and learned that what happened to Lin Zhushui’s parents back then had something to do with the Lin family too. Later, Lin Zhushui moved out of the Lin family main residence. Originally, according to the rules, the few disciples Lin Zhushui took in should also take the surname Lin. But Lin Zhushui truly didn’t like the Lin family, so he chose to let his disciples take his mother’s surname.

That’s why the situation occurred where Lin Zhushui’s surname was Lin, while his several disciples all had the surname Shen.

However, in the following days, Zhou Jiayu saw people coming to pay visits. It seemed the allure of the Xu clan’s paper-controlling arts was truly enormous.

Lin Zhushui’s temper had never been very good to begin with. Encountering these people who pounced like vultures, trying to get a share of the spoils, he was even more lacking in good expressions. He directly instructed security to block them all.

This situation continued for more than half a month, until news came from the hospital saying that the few children in comas had finally woken up.

Zhou Jiayu followed Lin Zhushui to the hospital room and saw the few remaining Xu clan members.

After waking up, their expressions were all very calm, even numb. Zhou Jiayu was very worried seeing this.

Lin Zhushui also got straight to the point, asking them what they were thinking.

“I want to go find a new Ancestral Tree.” The slightly older boy among them had a serious expression. He said, “As long as we are still here, the Xu clan isn’t considered extinct.”

“Alright.” Lin Zhushui said, “I can give you help, but you must promise me one thing.”

“What thing?” the boy asked.

Lin Zhushui said, “I will find a suitable teacher for you. You must study there until you reach adulthood before you can leave. At that time, I will provide you with funds and information. As for what you want to do with them, you can choose for yourselves.”

The boy nodded, more or less agreeing to Lin Zhushui’s proposal.

These children were clearly suppressing the emotions in their hearts. Their deliberately strong appearance was truly heart-aching.

And these emotions, when they saw Xiao Zhi in Zhou Jiayu’s pocket, still poured out. Xiao Zhi carefully crawled out from Zhou Jiayu’s pocket. Before he could even speak, those few children began silently shedding tears when they saw him, clearly thinking of the paper people they had once possessed.

The Xu clan and paper people had been connected for a hundred years. Now the affinity had ended. One didn’t know whether these children before them could continue this affinity in the future.

Afterward, Lin Zhushui did as he said and found teachers for these children. Of course, there was more than one teacher, and what they taught wasn’t limited to feng shui and mysticism.

Zhou Jiayu would also frequently bring Xiao Zhi to see them, wanting Xiao Zhi to give them some comfort and support.

After the Xu clan incident, Lin Zhushui didn’t take on cases for a period of time. Instead, he had been investigating matters related to Xu Jinghuo. What exactly he found out, Zhou Jiayu didn’t know. He only knew that during the period around late December, Lin Zhushui disappeared for a few weeks. Before leaving, although he also told Zhou Jiayu he had matters to attend to, he didn’t tell him exactly how long he would be gone, nor did he say what he was going to do.

During this time, someone happened to come seeking help, brought over by Lin Po.

“Zhushui isn’t here.” Lin Jue said, “Can’t help.”

Lin Po showed helplessness and could only ask when Sir would be able to return.

“Who knows.” Lin Jue said, “Maybe late December, maybe January…” She shrugged, her eyes turning among the few disciples. “Otherwise, why don’t you all give it a try?”

Shen Yiqiong silently shrank into a ball upon hearing this and carefully asked whether it was a ghost haunting or a feng shui reading.

Lin Jue laughed heartily and said, “Shen Yiqiong, you idiot. If it were a feng shui reading, would we need to trouble Lin Po to bring them here?”

Shen Yiqiong showed a pained expression, saying he really just wanted to be a feng shui master at most, treating reanimated corpses and such. Ghost hauntings were too stimulating and a bit too much for him to bear.

Shen Musi also laughed upon hearing this and said, “Then you should go even more and take a look. As Lin Zhushui’s disciple, how can your development not be well-rounded?”

“Guan’er, are you going?” Lin Jue didn’t let Zhou Jiayu off.

“I’ll go.” Zhou Jiayu thought about it and still decided to go take a look. He couldn’t always hope for Lin Zhushui to protect him. They were all adults, not conjoined twins. Without Lin Zhushui accompanying him, did he have to stay behind closed doors? Besides, he had previously been thinking about protecting Lin Zhushui.

“Then let’s go together.” Lin Jue said, “Anyway, with me here, nothing major will happen.”

So Lin Jue had Lin Po bring the distressed party in. The distressed party was a middle-aged man in his forties. His forehead was full, his eyes bright and spirited, and he even had a protruding Fuxi bone in the middle of his forehead pointing toward the sky—truly a face of wealth and nobility. However, Zhou Jiayu could see faint black energy surrounding his body. But Zhou Jiayu was used to seeing this kind of black energy. Generally, people of this type would have more or less some of it on them. The black energy on this person wasn’t particularly special either.

“Miss Lin, hello.” He sat on the sofa, his attitude somewhat reserved.

“What’s the situation at your home? Explain first.” Lin Jue said, eating the freshly pickled plums.

“My surname is Jiang, Jiang Xutao. My family is in the building materials business.” Jiang Xutao briefly introduced himself. “Three months ago, I bought a second-hand house. I didn’t expect that the house seems a bit off…”

Lin Jue spat out the plum pit and interrupted him: “If you have anything you want to ask, just say it directly.”

Shen Yiqiong said, “What’s off about it?”

Jiang Xutao said, “In that house, every night, you can hear someone forcefully knocking on the walls…”

“The walls?” Shen Yiqiong said, “Did you ask the next-door neighbors? Could it be the neighbors doing it?”

Jiang Xutao smiled bitterly: “That house is a standalone villa. Where would neighbors come from?”

Zhou Jiayu said, “But since Mr. Jiang can sit here, your status must be extraordinary. Why would you buy a second-hand villa?”

The moment these words came out, Jiang Xutao’s expression changed slightly. Then he let out a light sigh: “To be honest, actually, besides the building materials business, Jiang also does a bit of something else.”

“Something else?” Zhou Jiayu pressed.

Jiang Xutao seemed somewhat embarrassed, but after gritting his teeth, he still said it. He said, “That is, acquiring low-priced haunted houses… and reselling them.”

The moment he said this, no one spoke.

Zhou Jiayu had heard before that there were people who did this kind of business, but this was the first time he had seen one. Judging from Jiang Xutao’s clothing and appearance, this person wasn’t lacking in money. He hadn’t expected him to be involved in this kind of thing.

Lin Jue raised an eyebrow. “So this villa is also a haunted house? But aren’t you selling them? Why did you move in yourself?”

Jiang Xutao said, “Sigh, that’s a long story…”

Lin Jue poured herself a cup of tea, leaned back comfortably on the sofa, and conveniently picked up the yellow weasel to stroke its smooth fur. “No rush. Here, you can speak slowly—”

Clearly it was a snowy day, yet Jiang Xutao reached out to wipe the sweat from his forehead. He swallowed a mouthful of saliva and said with difficulty, “Actually, living in this house was just a coincidence. It’s just that after we moved in, we discovered… we can’t move out anymore.”

“Can’t move out?” Lin Jue’s interest was instantly piqued upon hearing this. She sat up straight. “Interesting. Tell us carefully?”

Only then did Jiang Xutao slowly recount the situation of that house.

__

Author’s Note:

Zhou Jiayu: So who exactly did Xiao Zhi learn that spitting action from? Shen Yiqiong, get out here—

Shen Yiqiong: It wasn’t me; I didn’t, I never spit—

Zhou Jiayu: I’m asking you what you normally have Xiao Zhi watching??

Shen Yiqiong guiltily averted his eyes.

Zhou Jiayu rolled up his sleeves.