“This…” Lee Lu looked happy. Even though the ghosts rarely killed consecutively, if someone were to accompany her, it was the best. Lee Lu pressed her lips and looked at Chen Xiaomeng with anticipation.
Chen Xiaomeng slowly stood up. Actions speak louder than words.
“Thank you, Miss Dragon Lady.” Lee Lu leaned forward, her eyes glowing.
Chen Xiaomeng said lightly, “Don’t need to thank me. You should thank Mr. Yi.” Then, she turned naturally to Jiang Cheng and smiled, “After all, Mr. Yi is such a gentleman. He wouldn’t let us two girls go on a risk on our own, right? He would, of course, accompany us.” Chen Xiaomeng blinked, “Am I right, Mr. Yi?”
“Of course.” Jiang Cheng puffed up his chest. Then, Jiang Cheng removed the wooden stick that blocked the door. As the door opened, the night breeze surged in, cutting like slashes. They didn’t expect the temperature difference between night and day to be so different. Jiang Cheng covered his face with one hand and used his other hand to hold the door still. He turned to tell Lee Lu and Chen Xiaomeng, “Get moving. Don’t go too far. I’ll help you keep watch.”
“Are you going to stand here? Is that how you’re going to help us?” Chen Xiaomeng raised her voice.
“What else do you expect?” Jiang Cheng said innocently. Then, he took another step into the house.
Lee Lu was about to pee on the spot. She didn’t have time to argue with them. She hugged her clothes and dashed out. Then, Chen Xiaomeng followed her. She glanced at Jiang Cheng before leaving.
The two didn’t go far. They found a spot with bushes. The courtyard had been abandoned for so long that the wild grass had reached a person’s waist. Jiang Cheng strained his eyes to look at where they were. Lee Lu shook several times before kneeling down. Only her head was exposed above the grass. Chen Xiaomeng stood about 3 meters away, between Lee Lu and Jiang Cheng.
Half a minute later, Chen Xiaomeng gasped audibly as if she noticed something. Lee Lu was already very anxious. When she heard Chen Xiaomeng, she froze. “What… what is happening?” Lee Lu asked worriedly.
When Jiang Cheng heard Chen Xiaomeng, he didn’t turn to where Chen Xiaomeng was looking but continued staring at Chen Xiaomeng… Until he heard Lee Lu’s screams.
“Fire!” She didn’t suppress her voice. It was piercing in the night. Then, rapid movements came from the room behind Jiang Cheng. Yu Man, Zhou Rong and Bei Qian appeared. They gathered behind the wooden door and tried to look out. None of them had the intention of leaving their room. Through the corner of the broken window, they saw sparks down the distance. Zhou Rong’s eyes trembled. “That’s the Qian Family Ancestral Hall.” He was certain.
“Why is it on fire?” Bei Qian saw that the fire was getting stronger. There was a crash. He believed it was because the structure of the ancestral hall was charred, causing the building to crumble. “But that place should be abandoned. Why would there be a spark over there?” he mumbled to himself. They passed by the ancestral hall that afternoon. All the houses near it had been abandoned. The timing of this fire…
Chen Xiaomeng and Lee Lu ran back. Lee Lu’s ankle was sprained, so she limped. The fear on her face was palpable. Zhou Rong turned to the direction of the village. This fire was huge, but there was no response from the village. This made him suspect that no human was staying in the village.
The next day, as the sun rose, the group came to the burned Qian Family Ancestral Hall. The sprawling building became unrecognisable overnight. There were ashes scattered everywhere. Only the original brick structure remained. However, they were as black as charcoal.
There were lingering embers. A burst of wind picked up the ash. No one was around. Clearly, the villagers didn’t want to have anything to do with the Qian Family. Zhou Rong chose a relatively clean path, avoided the dangerous bricks and led the group forward.
They stood in the ruins. The ancestral hall was larger than they thought. It was around 200 cubic metres.
They habitually spread out to look for clues. Lee Lu was the only exception due to her injury. A hint of sadness appeared in Yu Man’s eyes as she stood there. It was as if she was standing in a sea of fire. Heat waves undulated around her. A few twisted human shadows flickered in the sea of flames. Their blood-curdling screams echoed in her eyes.
The fire from one year ago took several of her best friends and the man she loved and loved her the most.
For a girl from a broken family, being bullied was very common. She drank, smoked and got tattoos… She broke a bottle to fight with the students from the other school.
The teachers and even the headmaster had given up on contacting her family. They knew that she had an alcoholic father and a sick and mentally unsound mother. She didn’t like her home. She hated the small room under the stairs with a lot of flyers. She hated her mother’s helpless and murky eyes. She hated everything.
However, that didn’t stop her from being an ace student. She was often in the top 5 of her school. Compared to the ‘bad students’ she hung out with, she was already the valedictorian.
They couldn’t understand. Why would a girl who skipped classes, had boyfriends and got into fights study so well? When did she even find time to study?
They were in fights together, skipped classes together and were punished together.
They would never guess what this girl who chewed on gum while she was being lectured by the headmaster was thinking…