Chapter 55

In the back yard of the magistrate's residence, Yang Tingyong woke up at the hour of Chen (7-9 AM), got up as usual, and put on his official robe with the assistance of his wife. Today was not a working day, so he didn't need to dress so formally, but the county of Hebian had been plagued with troubles lately, and his position as magistrate was far from stable. He had to be prepared at all times.

Looking at the mandarin duck pattern on the robe, Yang Tingyong sighed deeply. He wondered how long he would be able to wear this official robe.

The magistrate's wife, of course, knew his concerns and comforted him, "Sir, evil cannot overcome righteousness. With the demon being so rampant and fearless, there will surely be a great person to subdue it."

Yang Tingyong felt his wife's sincerity and patted her hand, but he could only smile bitterly. There were definitely great people, but the question was whether he could still hold his position until one of them appeared.

Just then, hurried footsteps came from outside the room, heading straight for his chamber.

Yang Tingyong's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that the demon was causing trouble again? In recent days, almost every day someone reported such incidents, and the demon's ferocity always made him tremble with fear.

As he was thinking, the voice of the old servant Wang Fugui came from outside the room, "Sir, Sir, there's great news! A great person has come to the county and exorcised the evil spirit from the haunted house last night."

Great news? A great person? These two words instantly struck Yang Tingyong, leaving him stunned.

"Sir, this is wonderful news," his wife reminded him, her face beaming with joy.

Yang Tingyong snapped out of his shock, a surge of excitement rising from his heart, making it pound and causing a slight dizziness. When he came to his senses, he still had some doubts and rushed out of the room, saying to the servant Fugui who was waiting, "Is it really a great person? It's not just some trick, is it?"

Such so-called great people had come in waves. At first, they all seemed very capable; some could shoot arrows a thousand meters, and some could temporarily suppress the spirits in the haunted house, but they all ultimately failed and met their end.

Several times he had felt hope, only to be disappointed again and again, which made him deeply realize the power of the demon. Ordinary great people were useless; only a truly great person could help.

At this question, Wang Fugui hesitated, "I think so. The evil spirit in the haunted house has been completely exorcised. The ghosts of Hu Guangyong's family are still on the street, but they are all dead."

Yang Tingyong's hope dimmed slightly, but since the evil spirit had been exorcised, the person must have some real skills. He definitely wanted to meet him.

"Since that's the case, go and bring this great person to the county office... No, I'll go and see him! Where is he now?"

At this moment, it was better not to put on airs as a magistrate. If the person was truly a great person, it would be counterproductive to offend him.

"I heard he is still at Hu Guangyong's house, where many people have gathered," Fugui said cautiously.

Hu Guangyong's house was the haunted house. Yang Tingyong hesitated for a moment but then gritted his teeth, "Alright, I'll go and see him. Wait, call all the constables to come with me."

The haunted house was too dangerous, and although the constables were of little use, their presence would provide some psychological comfort.

Hebian County was not large, and the sedan bearers, pushing themselves to the limit, arrived near the haunted house in about twenty minutes.

The most striking thing here was the group of corpses standing stiffly at the entrance of the house, each with a fierce and terrifying appearance. Even though they were motionless, the resentment on their faces was still clearly visible, making them quite frightening.

The magistrate lifted the curtain and took a distant look, feeling a chill in his heart.

He still felt somewhat guilty about Hu Guangyong's case. Initially, he had only wanted to give him a lesson and humble him, but he never expected Hu to be so resolute, crashing into the wall and dying that very night, which was truly unexpected.

"Stop, stop at the street corner. Don't approach yet; let me observe carefully," Yang Tingyong finally dared not rashly approach the haunted house.

Although it was daytime, the corpses were motionless, and many people were gathered around, with no sign of the corpses attacking anyone, the saying "there is a cause for every wrong and a debtor for every debt" still lingered in his mind. Hu Guangyong had died because of him, and he felt uneasy, fearing that approaching rashly might bring him bad luck.

In the crowd ahead, a homeless man was standing in the middle, vividly recounting what he had seen and heard the previous night.

"When I saw the two Taoist priests, I knew the spirits in the house were in trouble. I saw clearly that the male priest waved his hand, and the whole street lit up like daytime. The spirits had nowhere to hide and fled from the house, only to be killed one by one by the female priest with her sword. It was amazing, truly amazing."

A burly man didn't believe it and asked, "If they were killed one by one with a sword, why are there no wounds on the spirits' bodies?"

The homeless man sneered, "Butcher Guan, you really lack knowledge. Do you think the priests use weapons like your butcher's knife? Those are things that materialize out of thin air. They can pierce people without leaving holes, but they can pierce spirits with perfect accuracy."

This explanation did make some sense, as there were indeed legends of great people who could condense swords out of thin air. The crowd nodded in agreement.

The magistrate, hearing this, said to a constable, "Go and ask where the two priests are."

The constable took the order and left.

The homeless man, seeing that everyone was paying attention to him, was feeling quite pleased. Suddenly, he was pulled by someone and was about to get angry, but then he saw the other person's coat, which was that of a soldier. His body trembled and he softened, smiling obsequiously, "Sir, what do you need?"

"Where are the priests?"

The homeless man pointed to the door of the haunted house, "They went in last night and haven't come out. They seem to be putting up talismans to subdue the spirits inside."

The constable nodded, released the homeless man, and returned to report to Yang Tingyong.

Yang Tingyong listened carefully and thought for a while. He still felt it was inappropriate to enter the house, so he took out a name card from his sleeve and handed it to the constable, saying, "Take my card and go into the house. Find the priests and tell them that the magistrate of Hebian County invites them to come out for a chat."

Seeing the constable's face turn pale, he knew he was afraid, so he pointed to another constable, "You go with him. It will be easier to support each other."

The constable, unexpectedly chosen, trembled and almost fell. "Oh, my goodness, I have to do this ghostly task. This magistrate is really killing me, using others' lives as a joke."

But the magistrate was a respected seventh-rank official, and he was just a lowly constable, so he dared not resist. The two constables, each with a pale face, shakily entered Hu Guangyong's house with the card.

The magistrate waited patiently outside. After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the two constables ran out, their steps quick but their fear much less evident.

"What's the situation in the house?" Yang Tingyong asked urgently.

"The house is full of talismans to subdue spirits. It's warm and full of vitality, not at all like a haunted house," the constable said, his face full of disbelief.

"Are the priests there?" Yang Tingyong breathed a sigh of relief.

The constable's face turned difficult, and he stammered, "The priests are there, but they refuse to come out. They said..."

"What did they say? Tell me the truth!" Yang Tingyong became increasingly anxious.

"They said, 'Since the magistrate has come, why not come in for a chat?' and then they dismissed us," the constable said.

Inside the house, Bai Tingxuan, seeing the constables leave, said doubtfully, "Sun Ran, isn't this inappropriate? What if it angers the magistrate?"

Sun Ran smiled, "If he could come to the house himself, it means he is already at the end of his rope and will seize any opportunity. Although he may be unhappy, he won't act out and will come in personally."

"What's the benefit of doing this?" Although the magistrate might yield, angering him didn't seem like a good idea.

Sun Ran smiled faintly, "The magistrate is a seventh-rank official and has pride. Our most important task is to protect the magistrate's safety. Compared to exorcising the demon, this is a minor matter. To protect him well, we need his cooperation. If he is too proud, it won't work. I am gradually wearing down his pride. When he enters the house, it is the first step of his submission, acknowledging our authority. With the first step, there will be a second, and gradually he will get used to our arrangements."

Regardless of whether we can exorcise the demon, Yang Tingyong, this VIP, must not be harmed. This is the top priority. If he doesn't cooperate, our work will be difficult.

By showing our pride, we are also telling Yang Tingyong that we are capable people, not mere servants who can be summoned and dismissed at will.

"I bet he will come in within ten minutes," Sun Ran said with a smile.

"I won't bet with you," Bai Tingxuan refused, not wanting to engage in a bet with no chance of winning.

Outside the house.

Yang Tingyong was very unhappy.

In this era, Confucian culture was the mainstream, and Daoist practices were considered secondary, with a low social status. He was a graduate of the imperial examination and a magistrate known as a "hundred-li marquis." He felt that his actions had already been very respectful, but the other party still didn't appreciate it. If it were any other time, he would have had any Taoist who acted so arrogantly beaten with thirty strokes.

This was not due to Yang Tingyong's personal arrogance but the prevailing values of the entire Ming Dynasty.

"I am the orthodox, the father and mother of the county. You, a Taoist, are like my son in the county I manage. How dare you not listen to your father? It's outrageous." This was Yang Tingyong's subconscious thought.

However, now that he needed help, Yang Tingyong had no choice but to grit his teeth and say, "Alright, let's go into the house!"

The constables went in and were fine, so he should be fine too. He wanted to see what kind of person dared to disregard him, the magistrate.