He Hua was focused on answering questions and didn’t notice what He Sui’an was writing. When Qi Buyan mentioned it, she looked over and found that most of the characters were indeed missing strokes.
He Sui’an gazed at them with her bright eyes.
She put down her brush and looked at her own writing: “This is the only way I know how to write. I can read the characters that Miss He Hua wrote and those in books, but I can’t write them well.”
Qi Buyan responded with an “Hmm.”
He didn’t seem to care much and had only asked out of curiosity.
He Hua, having just met them, wouldn’t interfere too much. Seeing that Qi Buyan didn’t pursue the matter, she wisely refrained from asking further questions.
They arrived at the study at dawn and didn’t leave until noon.
Before leaving, He Hua offered to see them off, but He Sui’an politely declined, saying she would visit again when she had the chance. He Hua just smiled silently.
The street was bustling with people, unlike the previous day’s desolation.
It was noisy.
The townspeople were gathered around a notice, discussing it animatedly. Several yamen officers stood straight by the notice wall. He Sui’an pulled Qi Buyan closer to take a look.
The notice summarized the two recent incidents of madness in Fengling Town.
The government’s explanation was that it was a contagious disease. Anyone encountering it must report it to the authorities. Hiding someone infected and endangering Fengling Town would be a crime punishable by death.
The people believed it.
There were few other plausible explanations.
But He Sui’an knew it was false. This wasn’t a disease. Though it could spread from person to person, the root cause was the Yin Corpse Gu. To resolve this issue completely, all the Yin Corpse Gu had to be eradicated.
A woman holding a child said, “So it’s a disease. I wondered why those people bit everyone they saw. It’s terrifying!”
“Indeed.”
An old man with white hair chimed in, “The crops are bad this year, and now there’s a plague. Are they trying to kill us common folk? I hope the government can handle this disease properly.”
A man pointed at the word “hiding” on the notice, puzzled, “The government is afraid we’ll hide people with the disease.”
“Ridiculous.” He sneered, “Who would dare? Not afraid of being bitten and turning into monsters?”
The old man stroked his beard silently.
The woman frowned and glared at the man.
She said, “It’s obvious you’re a loner. If you had a family member, you wouldn’t ask such a question. If your family got sick and turned into monsters, could you bear to let them be killed?”
The man’s face turned awkward, and he remained silent.
In the crowd, He Sui’an felt a gaze on her. She looked around to find its source and saw Su Yang with her two personal guards.
He Sui’an’s intuition told her that Su Yang’s appearance here today was no coincidence; she specifically came to find her and Qi Buyan.
Su Yang’s guards moved.
Zhong Huan, always cold and expressionless, made his way through the crowd to them. He spoke in a wooden tone, “The Princess wants to see you. It’s about the King Yan’s tomb. Midnight the night after tomorrow, at the haunted house. Please be there.”
Su Yang wants to see them?
And the meeting place is the haunted house with an entrance to the King Yan’s tomb. But didn’t Su Yang forbid them from approaching the haunted house and entering the King Yan’s tomb before? He Sui’an was quite surprised.
Qi Buyan listened calmly and responded with a smile, “We will be there.”
Having received the desired answer, Zhong Huan, who was taciturn, said no more than necessary. He turned to leave the crowd but was stopped by He Sui’an. He halted like a wooden figure and asked, “Anything else?”
He Sui’an handed him a red pouch she had picked up from the ground, “Is this yours?”
The pouch was red, quite out of place for him.
So she asked somewhat hesitantly.
Zhong Huan blinked slowly a few times, took the pouch from He Sui’an’s hand, dusted it off, and put it in his chest pocket. He thanked her awkwardly, “It’s mine. Thank you.”
He Sui’an waved it off, “It’s nothing.”
Zhong Huan nodded, “Hmm.”
Qi Buyan seemed not to be listening to their conversation, playing with the bell bracelet on his wrist.
Nearby, the townspeople continued discussing the plague. Zhong Huan quickly returned to Su Yang’s side, bent down, and whispered a few words in her ear. During this, Su Yang glanced at them a few times.
Seeing He Sui’an staring at her, Su Yang was slightly surprised and nodded politely.
He Sui’an smiled warmly.
To be honest, He Sui’an quite liked Su Yang. She was clear about her grudges and wasn’t someone who couldn’t distinguish right from wrong. Her occasional cold demeanor seemed more due to not knowing how to interact with outsiders.
Facing He Sui’an’s friendly smile, Su Yang’s eyes flickered. She felt a strange sensation inside, increasingly convinced that she had made the right decision this time.
Zhong Kong stood with his sword, looking hesitant to speak.
Zhong Huan remained expressionless.
Su Yang didn’t linger on the street and returned to Su Manor, with Zhong Kong and Zhong Huan following her.
The first thing Su Yang did upon returning to Su Manor was to go to Su Ruilin’s room. He maintained his usual fatherly demeanor and asked with concern, “Ah Yang, why have you been going out so often these past few days?”
Su Yang stared at Su Ruilin, her cool face showing a hint of emotion. “Father, was it you who had the government post the plague notices?”
Su Ruilin tried to take her hand to calm her.
“Yes.”
Su Yang questioned, “Is this what you meant by giving an explanation to the people of Fengling Town?”
He was silent.
“Why?” She took a deep breath. “You know it’s not a plague. You’re hiding the truth from everyone and won’t allow me to lead people into the King Yan’s tomb. What are you really planning?”
Outside the door, Zhong Kong and Zhong Huan overheard the entire argument between the father and daughter.
Zhong Kong anxiously looked at his elder brother Zhong Huan, silently asking what they should do. Zhong Huan didn’t even glance at Zhong Kong, dutifully guarding the door.
Zhong Kong whispered, “Brother.”
Zhong Huan curtly replied, “Shut up.”
“Oh,” he muttered resentfully.
Inside, Su Ruilin gazed at his daughter, who would become stubborn once she decided on something, feeling somewhat helpless.
“Ah Yang, I…”
“Father,” Su Yang interrupted.
She struggled to suppress her emotions, closing her eyes deeply before opening them again. “I have matters to attend to now. I will come to pay my respects another day.”
With that, Su Yang left the study, not giving Su Ruilin a chance to refuse.
Su Ruilin watched her leave, sighing heavily, as if he had aged several years in an instant, sitting like a withered lantern.
*
Meanwhile, He Sui’an nestled in the upper room of the inn, taking off her top to apply medicine to the wound on her waist and abdomen and re-bandaging it. It didn’t hurt anymore, but the sight was alarming, and it would likely leave a scar.
If possible, He Sui’an naturally hoped not to have a scar, but it seemed unlikely.
She touched the wound on her waist and abdomen, thinking optimistically that it was fortunate the Yin Corpse Gu was hidden there. If it had been on her face or head, it would have been more troublesome.
After bandaging the wound, He Sui’an put on her ruqun and outer clothes, intending to find Qi Buyan. The books He Hua gave were temporarily placed in his room, and she wanted to read them.
She needed to finish those books before entering the King Yan’s tomb to be able to adapt to any situation.
After all, there were many mechanisms in the tomb.
And the methods to solve those mechanisms might be found in the books. Many tomb mechanisms were closely related to the life experiences of the tomb owner, and the King Yan’s tomb was likely no different.
It was still early, and Qi Buyan probably wasn’t resting yet, so He Sui’an wasn’t worried about disturbing him at this time.
She knocked on the door and said, “I want to come in and look for a book. Are you in there?”
“The door isn’t locked,” Qi Buyan replied.
Taking this as permission to enter, He Sui’an pushed the door open and walked in. Today, Qi Buyan wasn’t sitting by the window but was half-reclined in a chair, with his Gu at his feet.
He Sui’an lightly pressed her now dry throat, feeling a persistent thirst over the past few days, often waking up at night to drink water.
She had just drunk a cup of water before coming here and now felt thirsty again.
Water seemed unable to quench her thirst.
Without thinking much, He Sui’an walked to the table to pour herself some tea. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of Qi Buyan’s exposed, fair neck and felt an impulse to bite it. She tried to look away but couldn’t.
Qi Buyan noticed that He Sui’an hadn’t spoken since entering and looked up at her.
Upon seeing her eyes, he paused feeding his snake.
Her eyes had an unusual red tint.
Could it be that there were two Yin Corpse Gu inside He Sui’an initially, one of them being a Zi Gu, which behaves differently and has a different activation time compared to an ordinary Yin Corpse Gu?
If this was the case, after so many days, it would be impossible to remove it externally; the Zi Gu would need to come out of her body on its own.
This would be very difficult.
“Do you feel like biting someone?”
Qi Buyan suddenly asked.
He Sui’an instinctively nodded, then shook her head, changing her mind, “I don’t know. I feel very strange and uncomfortable. I might not be able to read today. You should go ahead without me. I’m going back to my room.”
As she spoke, she couldn’t control herself from looking at Qi Buyan with a predator’s gaze.
He laughed.
Qi Buyan stood up, walked over to He Sui’an, and brought his neck close to her lips, gently pressing the back of her head to draw her nearer. The veins under his skin were visible: “Bite.”
He Sui’an was beginning to realize something was wrong.
“Is the Yin Corpse Gu still inside me?”
“Yes, it’s a Zi Gu. It’s more potent than a regular Yin Corpse Gu,” Qi Buyan said, his fingers brushing against her hair. “Sorry, it hid too well, even I didn’t notice.”
“Bite me.”
“After you bite me,” he showed no fear that she might tear his throat, “Don’t go out and bite others. So, bite me, He Sui’an.”
He Sui’an’s lips trembled slightly. She wanted to refuse but uncontrollably opened her mouth and bit into Qi Buyan’s neck, her teeth sinking into his flesh.
Quickly, blood trickled down the side of Qi Buyan’s neck, staining his fair skin red.
She felt her thirst quenched and instinctively began to suck.
With a sudden surge of strength from who knows where, He Sui’an pushed the unsuspecting Qi Buyan onto the table. There was a hint of surprise in the boy’s eyes.
