Chapter 40

Zhenbao thought it was just a hallucination caused by his nightmares, but after waking up, the voice still echoed, now and then, near and far, faint and loud, calling from a distance:

"Come... come and play with me... hehe... it's so much fun... come..."

It sounded like children calling their friends to play. Zhenbao, feeling very sleepy, had no intention of getting involved. He buried his head under the pillow, pressing the heavy pillow over his ears and mumbled, "Go to sleep, go to sleep, don't care about anything..."

However, this only worked for a moment. Soon, the voice penetrated the thick wheat bran, piercing into his mind as if someone was calling from deep within his soul. His physical body had no resistance to it at all...

"Calling the soul?"

Zhenbao suddenly sat up!

The concept of "calling the soul" has its own meaning in rural areas. In "Chuci" (The Songs of Chu), the chapter "Zhao Hun" (Calling the Soul) is related to this custom:

If a child is frightened to the point where their soul leaves their body, a "calling the soul" ritual is performed to bring the soul back, thus curing the illness and dispelling the disaster. The methods vary by region, but most involve burning incense and paper money under the eaves, at the head of the bed, or at the place where the child was frightened. The child's clothes are waved over the flames, and a knife or scissors is clapped on the ground. Rice grains are scattered in all directions, and the following words are spoken: "Rice from the east, rice from the west, rice from the south, rice from the north, rice from all directions. On a certain month and day, a certain child comes back! Please invite the Nine Heavens Fairy and the Soul-Calling Child to bring the child's soul back!"

However, the "calling the soul" Zhenbao was referring to was not this. It was a term used in certain practices, meaning that someone or something calls the soul of another without directly shouting their name. Only the person themselves, wandering spirits, mountain spirits, and other supernatural beings can hear it; living people cannot know about it at all!

At this moment, Zhenbao was like a wandering spirit!

The one calling the soul was usually a resentful or vengeful ghost, using it as a trick to deceive the living. Zhenbao, hearing the call, felt a sudden excitement in his heart and thought to himself, "I wonder how my master is doing in his search for the monster. Has he found it? I wonder if this call is from the thing my master is looking for. Since it can call out, it hasn't been discovered by my master—why don't I go and check? It might really be it!"

With this thought, his drowsiness disappeared. He got up, put on his coat, and followed the sound.

Zhenbao walked around the wall, and finally, the sound seemed to be coming from inside the wall. After looking around, he found a dog hole that connected the inside and outside. The hole was very narrow, and even for a child like Zhenbao, it was quite difficult to pass through. At this moment, he remembered the breathing technique his master had taught him. He expelled all the air from his lungs, contracted his chest and abdomen, and barely managed to squeeze through.

As soon as he stood up and dusted off the dirt, he hadn't even had time to mark the wall when the voice suddenly changed, laughing and floating away to the back. Zhenbao quickly picked up a stone and placed it at the entrance of the hole, then followed the sound.

Zhenbao hurriedly followed the sound around the inner courtyard. The voice kept echoing ahead, guiding him like a beacon. After several turns, he finally arrived at the door of an isolated old house. Having learned from past experiences, he was cautious and thought to himself, "Could this be like what my master said, a ghost or monster luring me here to harm me? I need to be careful and not fall for it, or I'll just cause trouble for my master!"

He searched his pocket and found a talisman, holding it in his hand and making a hand sign as his master had taught him. He moved quietly, crouching and carefully observing. The door was slightly ajar, and there was a faint trembling. The voice kept coming from inside, and he could hear another person's murmuring...

Zhenbao didn't dare to enter rashly, so he just peeked inside.

What he saw was completely unexpected!

The room had nothing but another door, which was old and black with a broken copper ring. The room was covered in spider webs and dust, and the windows and beams were full of insect holes, as if they could be crushed with a light touch.

The door was now wide open, and inside...

There were countless coffins, and a person!

The person was the second young master, Qin Lu! He was sitting in one of the coffins, the lid of which was pushed to the side. In his arms, he tightly held a young woman, about seventeen or eighteen years old, with a dazed and vacant look in her eyes. He was murmuring something, gently caressing her face, and looking at her with deep affection, as if they were lovers in a secret rendezvous...

The woman was beautiful, with delicate features and a graceful demeanor, far surpassing the average young lady.

But that was only in Qin Lu's eyes. To Zhenbao, it was a completely different scene!

In Zhenbao's eyes, Qin Lu was not holding a young woman but a dried, blackened skeleton in tattered funeral clothes, with only a few withered yellow hairs left. The skeleton had been gnawed by rats and ants, and the bones were incomplete. When he held it, it made a creaking sound, almost breaking, but it still moved occasionally...

The skeleton even raised its bony hand to clasp Qin Lu's right hand, with deep affection!

Zhenbao took a quick look, and the skull turned its hollow eye sockets toward him, scaring him so much that he quickly pulled his head back. His heart was pounding, and he was drenched in cold sweat.

He held his breath for a while, and when the laughter from the room resumed, he tiptoed back... By memory, he found the dog hole and crawled out, then ran back to the servant's quarters—where he met his master, August.

※

Zhenbao told his master about what he had seen at the dog hole, expecting his master to take him inside, but to his surprise, after a moment of thought, August led him back, saying, "Let's go back to sleep!"

"Ah?" Zhenbao immediately protested, "Master, why don't you go and save him? The second young master is in danger!" In Zhenbao's simple mind, Qin Lu had helped them many times and was undoubtedly a good person. He was worried about his safety, but August just smiled and shook his head:

"Danger? What danger is he in?" Seeing the confusion in his disciple's eyes, he stopped and explained, "The situation Qin Lu is in is related to the abnormality in his shadow. It's likely caused by past karma. This situation can cause many things, but it won't harm Qin Lu's safety—think about it, if Qin Lu were in danger, it would have happened already. Why would it wait until now?"

"Ah?" Zhenbao's eyes widened, "Really?"

"Why not?" August, thinking about the bats and the strange occurrences in the courtyard, felt a slight stirring in his heart and said, "Perhaps this ghost is actually helping the second young master. Don't worry, Bao'er, everything will be clear soon!"

"But I remember that the second young master's mother is ill. Could it be because of this?"

"There's more to it! Bao'er, we can't rush this. Do you remember the master who wouldn't let us stay at the inn? He was invited to handle this. We'll pretend that you're still sick and stay one more day to see what happens, okay?"

Zhenbao, reassured by his master's certainty and happy to stay one more day, readily agreed—what's the harm in pretending to be sick for one more day?

So, the two returned to their room, lit the fire basin, and climbed back into bed to rest.

Zhenbao quickly fell asleep, but August did not. He quietly got up, took out a package, and from it, he retrieved yellow paper, writing brushes, cinnabar, glutinous rice, and other items. He mixed the ink and began to write talismans.

After a short while, the new talismans were completed. August carefully stuck them on the doors and windows, and also on the corners of the beds where he and Bao'er were sleeping.

He recited, "All! Six Ding Six Jia! Earth and Mountain Deities! Command!"

He pointed his finger like a sword, and the talismans flashed a strange red light before disappearing!

He then put the items back into the package, placed a red string and copper coins by his pillow, and finally went to sleep...

It was the hour of Yin!

At this time, not only were Zhenbao and August asleep, but everyone in the Qin family mansion and the entire Kunshan village was also asleep, with only a few people still active. However, the bats in the sky suddenly became active!

The bats, as if receiving an order, scattered in all directions, landing on the roofs of the houses in Kunshan village. They cautiously sniffed around the beds of the sleeping people...

After a few sniffs, the bats flapped their wings and flew away again!

Among the flying bats, a few had traces of blood at the corners of their mouths and bloated bellies. These bats flew straight into the tent in the courtyard, and then...

August, who was sound asleep, suddenly opened his eyes, hearing the crackling sound outside the window. His face changed, and he sat up!

He didn't say anything, but held a handful of coins in his hand, focusing on the window. He only relaxed when the sound outside stopped—though he couldn't help but think of the unscrupulous Kong Feng, wondering, "I wonder how he is. Could he... No, he probably isn't! The bats seem to choose based on the八字 (eight characters of birth), so he shouldn't be that unlucky!"

Despite his words, he still got dressed and went out to check—

As soon as he opened the door, he heard a heart-wrenching scream:

"Help! Murder—!" The voice suddenly stopped, as if someone had clamped their throat!

The voice was from the two guards who were on duty that night! [bookid=3008771, bookname=《都是地府惹的祸》]

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