Chapter 19: Relocating the Grave (7)

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Unlike the other travelers, Jiang Shengsheng and her companions were assigned to stay at the village chief’s residence—a courtyard much like a guesthouse. The front courtyard was occupied by Chief Shi and his wife.

Chief Shi had two sons; the other three had perished years ago in a devastating flood. One of those sons was Shi Kai.

Shi Kai was overly enthusiastic toward Jiang Shengsheng. Noticing her embarrassment, he scratched his head awkwardly. “There aren’t many girls as pretty as you in the village, so...” He shrugged.

“You can’t hit a smiling face,” Jiang Shengsheng replied vaguely.

Just then, Xia Junyao emerged from tidying up the room, his expression dark and serious. He briskly walked over, grabbed Jiang Shengsheng away from the awkward conversation, and led her to their room.

Behind them, Shi Kai slowly rose from a crouch, his face expressionless as he stared after them. After a long moment, a sinister smile crept across his lips.

“So, an unfaithful woman, huh? I’ll cleanse her sins for the master, using the purest soul to satisfy him...” he thought, praying for favorable winds and timely rain in the coming year.

The image of something uncovered in a dusty wooden box flashed through his mind. Shi Kai curled his lips wickedly.

A traitor fleeing from Stone Village, thinking he could escape the master’s control? What a foolish delusion!

Once the guest room door was locked, the smile on Xia Junyao’s face vanished instantly, his brows darkening ominously.

Turning back, he wore a look of grievance, pitifully restraining Jiang Shengsheng while rubbing his head against hers in a seemingly weak but actually possessive gesture. “Baby, what were you talking about with him? Don’t talk to him... no, don’t think about him. Always, always think about me.”

The faint scent of her hair floated before his nose. Xia Junyao’s dark eyes locked onto Jiang Shengsheng’s long, thick eyelashes, his voice low and husky, tempting her to surrender willingly.

Just the two of them would be enough.

Those outside were disgusting. He and Baby belonged to each other—why did there have to be careless dogs trying to seduce her?

What if he locked Baby away, forever caged, adorning her slender wrists with delicate golden chains, imprisoning her in a world of only him? Would Baby be angry...?

But he hadn’t pounced on Baby like a mad dog. Shouldn’t a good dog be rewarded?

Hmm, then perhaps a lighter golden chain would do.

Madness flickered in his dark eyes.

Unaware of his thoughts, Jiang Shengsheng, seeing the big cat expose its fluffy belly and meow pitifully, quickly turned around and hugged him tightly. “Alright, alright, I’ve been thinking about you all along.”

Not enough. It was still not enough!

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Every inch of his body screamed wildly. Xia Junyao covered his face, heat flushing the tips of his ears.

***

“So, want to take a walk together? We haven’t been back in years,” Qi Yiqing said, leaning casually against the wall with arms crossed, tilting his head toward Jiang Shengsheng.

Ignoring Xia Junyao’s dagger-like glare, Qi Yiqing smiled innocently.

Truly annoying.

At this moment, the two men, who despised each other, strangely shared the same train of thought.

Jiang Shengsheng did not refuse. She wanted to hold Xia Junyao’s hand and stroll slowly through Stone Village, showing him the place where she was born.

However, Qi Yiqing disagreed.

Ridiculous. He had only used the pretext to get close to her. He wasn’t about to watch Xia Junyao use techniques to deepen their feelings without interference.

Where others wanted to go was none of Jiang Shengsheng’s concern nor desire.

So Qi Yiqing trailed lazily behind the young couple, his sharp eyes fixed intently on Jiang Shengsheng’s graceful figure.

The scenery of Stone Village was truly beautiful.

As Xia Junyao frowned more and more, Jiang Shengsheng gradually sensed something was off—the villagers they passed shunned them.

The women glanced at Jiang Shengsheng and Qi Yiqing with complex expressions of sympathy and pity. The men narrowed their eyes, scanning Jiang Shengsheng up and down as if appraising the value of a commodity.

The suffocating pressure made Jiang Shengsheng increasingly short of breath.

Unconsciously, they arrived at the back door of the ancestral hall.

The back door faced a secluded path leading up the rear mountain. Qi Yiqing suggested they climb the mountain to take a look.

Since they were already there, Jiang Shengsheng hesitated before looking at Xia Junyao. Under his raised eyebrow, she nodded. “Alright, let’s go see.”

She always felt Xia Junyao and Qi Yiqing were hiding something from her.

Being ostracized felt unpleasant, but luckily Jiang Shengsheng was easygoing and cheerful, soon shaking off her gloomy mood.

The mountain path was steep. The three helped each other up, mostly supporting Jiang Shengsheng.

At the end, they saw a strange shrine embedded in a cave.

Two brightly painted stone statues of children stood with hands clasped in greeting. Their twisted features seemed to faintly smile absurdly, endlessly watching visitors.

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“Ding-ling, ding-ling—”

The blood-red bell rang on its own, despite the still air. The three stood silently before the shrine.

Qi Yiqing’s playful smirk faded as he stroked his chin, his gaze deepening.

“Do the villagers still worship some kind of deity?” Jiang Shengsheng asked curiously, standing on tiptoe to peer through the door crack.

Suddenly, her eyes lifted and locked with the enormous stone statue’s indistinct face.

In that moment, Jiang Shengsheng thought she saw the twisted head transform into a handsome face, a conspicuous red mole at the brow center.

“Baby? Baby, are you alright?” A man shook her shoulder. Snapping back to reality, Jiang Shengsheng rubbed her brow, fatigue creeping into her eyes, and yawned.

“Ding-ling, ding-ling—”

The bell rang again.

A chilling wind howled from the shrine, ruffling Qi Yiqing’s dazzling red hair. He squinted, raised his hand, and severed the red cord suspending the bell beneath the eaves with a single swipe.

Drawing back his icy gaze, Qi Yiqing hurried to Jiang Shengsheng’s side and solemnly warned Xia Junyao, “If you hear anything strange tonight, blow the bamboo whistle.”

He pulled a bamboo whistle about the length of a finger bone from his pocket and tossed it to Xia Junyao.

Fearing Xia Junyao’s lovesick jealousy might cause trouble for the little NPC, Qi Yiqing earnestly repeated, “Remember, you must blow the whistle. It’s about her.”

Holding the limp, listless Jiang Shengsheng, Xia Junyao clenched the bamboo whistle tightly. “What’s going on?”

Qi Yiqing’s hand paused as he reached for the shrine’s door.

He turned and pointed to the massive stone statue inside. “Tch, a stray dog got a whiff and is fixated on her. Keep an eye on her.”

Then he abruptly diverted his path, to avoid killing them one by one.

“What dog? Where would a dog come from?” Jiang Shengsheng murmured groggily, blinking in confusion.

Xia Junyao scooped her into his arms. “If you’re tired, just sleep. I’ll carry you down the mountain.” He hesitated briefly, then continued, “There’s no dog. You’re so tired you’re hearing things. Rest easy.”

Watching the girl’s shoe tips sway in the air until they blurred into a dark spot in his vision, Qi Yiqing roughly pushed open the door.

He raised his hand, fingers grasping the air as a radiant longsword materialized tightly in his grip. The sword’s tip pointed at the shrine’s central statue, his voice as cold as ice: “Insignificant wild god, who gave you the nerve to use your filthy eyes to look at her...”

At the same time, the red cord lying on the ground vanished into thin air, leaving only the blood-red bell stained with dust.