Chapter 260: The Vengeful Ghost Protects His Wife

The mourning hall for Sun Huang was set up on the afternoon of the twenty-third day of the twelfth lunar month.

With the end of the year approaching, so as not to affect the New Year celebrations of relatives and friends, the coffin was kept for only three days, and the funeral procession took place on the morning of the twenty-sixth day of the twelfth lunar month.

As Sun Huang's coffin was lowered into the grave, many people took Liu Eying's hands, comforting her. Liu Eying merely held Sun Huang's spirit tablet, her face cold and silent, while tears rolled down her cheeks like streams of water...

Duan Rong was also in the funeral procession. Before Sun Huang's grave, he burned some paper money and set off a few strings of firecrackers, a meager tribute to this old Escort Head.

Duan Rong returned to the city from the graveyard in the suburbs, his heart feeling as if it were shrouded in a layer of dark clouds.

Recently, a series of unpleasant events had occurred, disturbing his peace of mind.

Duan Rong did not return to the Escort Agency; instead, he turned his steps and headed toward a teahouse.

The second floor of the teahouse offered a wide view. Sitting by the window sipping tea could relieve the congestion in his heart. Moreover, with many major events having occurred recently, Duan Rong also wanted to hear some of the public opinion and gossip from the streets.

Duan Rong stepped into the teahouse. On the first floor, there were only four or five tables of customers scattered about. With the end of the year near, there were fewer people at the shops on the street, but he had not expected the teahouse to be this deserted.

Duan Rong sighed softly. It seemed his wish to hear public opinion would likely go unfulfilled. With so few customers, he probably wouldn't hear anything.

Duan Rong slowly walked up to the second floor, only to find even fewer customers there—just three tables.

Duan Rong shook his head slightly, chose the seat with the best view, and sat down.

As soon as Duan Rong sat down, a waiter came over to greet him. Duan Rong ordered a pot of tea soup and a plate of fruit.

This tea soup was not clear tea, but a thick broth made with ginger, jujubes, and other ingredients. In the deep winter weather, it was quite warming and nourishing, and very popular among customers.

Drinking the steaming, thick tea soup and looking out the window at the rows of rooftops under the winter sun, Duan Rong's mood gradually calmed down.

After finishing a bowl of tea soup, Duan Rong's heart suddenly stirred, and he released his Divine Sense, instantly enveloping the entire teahouse.

Since he was already here, even though there weren't many customers, he might as well listen in.

Duan Rong poured himself another bowl of tea soup and sipped it while looking out the window. Wherever his Divine Sense passed, the conversations of the eight tables of customers on both floors were gathered into his mind.

Customers at three of the tables were chatting about the recent Filthy Blood Case. They spoke with such conviction that the case-closing notice clearly had some effect; Shen Yanliu's prestige among the common folk had evidently risen a notch. In the mouths of those customers, this County Magistrate was practically omnipotent.

Duan Rong couldn't help but chuckle silently. He didn't know if the claims about Shen Yanliu deploying secret agents everywhere were true. But the story that a secret agent had disguised himself as a Miscellaneous Servant to enter Wei Yutian's residence and ultimately discovered Wei Yutian's identity as a member of the Filthy Blood Sect was complete nonsense.

Duan Rong picked up his cup, intending to finish the last bit of tea soup at the bottom, but his hand paused just as he raised it. He actually set the cup back down, and his previously gentle gaze instantly turned cold and sharp.

In the corner behind him, three people were sitting at a table, and their conversation actually mentioned Sun Huang and Liu Eying.

These three men looked decent enough in appearance.

One had a square face, one looked somewhat frail and scholarly, and the third had thick eyebrows and large eyes, looking quite capable.

The square-faced man was named Wang Chun, and he was a neighbor of Sun Huang's family.

The other two sitting opposite him were pickpockets from the market, leaders of their respective street districts, with over a dozen men under each of them.

Wang Chun said, "Are you two doing it or not? Give me a straight answer."

The frail-looking pickpocket said with some hesitation in his eyes, "Although Sun Huang is dead, he was, after all, a man from the Yuanshun Escort Agency. If this matter blows up, the Yuanshun Escort Agency might investigate."

Wang Chun said, "Look at how timid you two are! If I didn't need someone to keep watch, I wouldn't even bother with you."

In truth, Wang Chun wasn't looking for them to keep watch; he was looking for a channel to fence stolen goods.

Since these two were pickpocket leaders he had known for a long time, he had sought them out to instigate this matter.

Wang Chun said, "Sun Huang worked as an Escort for over ten years and as an Escort Head for nearly twenty. He lived a frugal life. I'm certain the family assets he accumulated over the years must be a large sum of money."

As soon as Wang Chun said this, the expressions of the two men changed.

Wang Chun naturally noticed their change in expression and continued, "The end of the year is almost here, and I see you two aren't exactly short on money. Turning down such a good business opportunity—if you two won't do it, I'll find someone else."

After saying this, Wang Chun kept a cold face and drank his tea in silence.

The thick-eyebrowed, large-eyed pickpocket glanced at the frail one beside him, then turned to Wang Chun and smiled, "Brother Wang Chun, you've brought us a path to wealth. If we keep stalling, we'd be too ungrateful. We'll do it."

Wang Chun glanced at the frail pickpocket and said, "Rat, what do you say?"

The frail pickpocket smiled and said, "It is indeed a path to wealth, and the risk is manageable. We can do it!"

"That's more like it! That's how brothers should talk!" Wang Chun's eyes darted around, and he lowered his already quiet voice even further, saying, "The New Year is almost here. There's no time like the present. You two get ready; we'll strike at the Hour of the Ox tonight."

Wang Chun's father had already passed away, his mother was bedridden year-round, and he himself had no proper job, spending his days drifting around the market.

As the saying goes, poverty breeds wicked schemes. Although Sun Huang's family had suffered a tragedy, Wang Chun's own family was barely able to put food on the table with the New Year approaching, so he didn't care about anything else.

After the three finished their discussion, they left the second floor of the teahouse.

Duan Rong sat there, glancing at their retreating backs, and sighed expressionlessly, "It's the New Year, and she has just lost her husband. Of all the people you could target, why did you have to pick her?"

Duan Rong had long known that those pickpockets liked to use this teahouse to scout their targets.

He had never wanted to meddle in such trivial matters, but since this involved Sun Huang, and considering how Sun Huang had looked after him in the Escort Team, he could not ignore it.

He couldn't just stand by and watch Liu Eying, lonely and helpless, be bullied...

At the Hour of the Rat, Duan Rong, dressed in his Escort attire, flashed out of Liu Lu like a ghost. Duan Rong released his Divine Sense, evaded the patrols of the guards within the Yuanshun Escort Agency, vaulted over a secluded wall in the Middle Courtyard, and landed lightly in a dark, shadowy alley.

Upon landing, Duan Rong darted into the shadows by the alley like a civet cat.

Using the shadows for cover, he moved swiftly and soon arrived outside the wall of Sun Huang's house.

Duan Rong stood outside the alley of Sun Huang's house. The surroundings were completely silent, and there wasn't a single cloud in the cold night sky; only a crescent moon emitted a pale, sickly light.

Duan Rong looked up by the moonlight and discovered that next to the courtyard wall was Sun Huang's kitchen. The chimney protruding from the roof looked like a person standing there in the moonlight.

Duan Rong leaped, landing on the kitchen roof like a large bird.

He lowered his body and peered into the courtyard, startled to see that the window of a bedroom next to the main hall was glowing with a yellow light.

"Did I arrive too late? Have those people already started?"

Duan Rong remembered them discussing the Hour of the Ox at the teahouse; he had arrived nearly an hour early.

Duan Rong stood there, his Divine Sense suddenly expanding and sweeping into the bedroom.

Inside the bedroom, it was quiet. Liu Eying was lying on the bed, and the wick of the lamp at the head of the bed had already burst from burning too long.

This meant the lamp had been burning for a long time.

Duan Rong's heart stirred; he instantly understood that Liu Eying had fallen asleep with the lamp lit.

Perhaps she couldn't bear the desperate, miserable darkness, and the dim light could perhaps offer her a sliver of warmth...

Duan Rong leaped, and like a falling leaf, he landed lightly in the courtyard.

His Divine Sense Envelopment covered the courtyard, seemingly searching for something, when suddenly he looked toward a black ceramic jar under the window sill where a yellow light shone.

That ceramic jar was almost as big as a wine jar; it was originally used by Sun Huang to store spiced beef, but because of the funeral banquet for Sun Huang, the spiced beef had all been taken out by Liu Eying to entertain guests.

At this moment, the ceramic jar was already completely empty.

Duan Rong walked over slowly; as he neared the window sill, the yellow light from the window paper shone upon his face.

Duan Rong's face at this time was not his usual dark complexion, but pale as paper, as if a layer of white ash had been smeared on it.

But even more terrifying was that this face was not Duan Rong's face at all, but Sun Huang's face.

At this moment, he wore the attire of an Escort, standing before the window sill, as if Sun Huang had returned from the dead to see his wife...

After leaving the teahouse, Duan Rong bought some things and returned to Liu Lu, testing the Proficiency-level Disguise Technique he had previously devoured from the Spirit Tool of Fang Jingbao's Jade Thumb Ring.

Duan Rong had considered it; he could repel this group once, but there was no guarantee others wouldn't target Liu Eying, so he had to set a trap to help Liu Eying completely clear away the hidden dangers.

Duan Rong stood there, and suddenly the bones all over his body made a slight 'Crack! Crack!' sound; he actually shrank himself, bit by bit, into that ceramic jar.

In the silent dead of night, by the widow's window, this action of Duan Rong's was indescribably eerie...

In less than two breaths, Duan Rong had already shrunk into the ceramic jar and vanished from sight.

In the cold night courtyard, the yellow light from the window cast a mottled patch on the ground, also illuminating the ceramic jar under the window sill.

The surroundings were completely silent, with the occasional call of a wild cat heard in the distance...

About an hour later, a faint rustling sound suddenly came from the courtyard wall beside the gate, and then a black shadow appeared on the wall.

The person wore a night-traveling suit and had their face covered; they lay on the wall to look, saw a patch of yellow light in the courtyard, and immediately pulled their head back and climbed down from the wall.

Outside that stretch of wall, faint whispers immediately sounded, like ghost talk in the stillness of the night.

Then another black shadow climbed onto the wall; his eyes rolled around, looking over every part of the courtyard, then he fixed his gaze on the window emitting the yellow light. He climbed over the wall, then tiptoed across the courtyard and walked to the window emitting the yellow light; he pinched a dagger from his sleeve, stabbed the window, and poked a hole in it.

The man leaned toward the hole and looked into the room, seeing Liu Eying sleeping on the bed, the wick of the lamp at the head of the bed already drooping...

He straightened his waist and beckoned to the two heads poking out from the wall side.

Two black shadows climbed over the wall, looked left and right as they crossed the courtyard, and stood beside the man.

The one who came over later suddenly took out a stick of incense, while the other took out a Fire Folder and blew it alight.

The man lit the incense on the Fire Folder and inserted it through the hole in the window; the incense was made of some unknown substance, for it burned rapidly, burning away section by section at a speed visible to the naked eye.

In just a few breaths, the small bedroom was filled with faint smoke.

One person's two large eyes flickered; he leaned toward the hole to look inside and whispered, "This Mishang is very powerful. Let alone a woman, even a burly man would sleep soundly once affected, and wouldn't be able to wake up for several hours."

Upon hearing this, Wang Chun felt a surge of joy in his heart, not expecting things to go so smoothly.

But just at this moment, a low, hoarse voice suddenly sounded in the silent night.

"You scoundrels, drugging my wife, what is your intent?"

Wang Chun's scalp went numb; he looked at the two men beside him and said with hidden anger, "At a time like this, don't crack jokes." He thought it was these two deliberately trying to scare him.

Hearing this, both men looked nervous and waved their hands at him.

Just then, that voice sounded again. "I am asking you a question, why do you not answer?"

This time, all three shuddered; they confirmed the voice was not emitted by any of them.

"Who?" Wang Chun asked with a terrified expression, his teeth chattering.

Seeing no other figures around, yet the voice sounded right beside them, the three felt their hair stand on end.

Just then, a faint 'Crack! Crack!' sound of bones rubbing together rang out, and then a black shadow emerged from the black ceramic jar beside them, growing larger in circles!

It was just like a ghostly sorcery.

The three men's breathing stopped; they saw a person wearing Escort attire with a pale face standing before the window, the yellow light of the window shining right on his face.

It was Sun Huang's face, a pale face without a drop of blood!

Wang Chun peed himself instantly!

The scene before them was truly too eerie and terrifying; a black shadow rising from there, from a black ceramic jar, and standing before the window with a pale face.

"Whoever touches my wife, I will kill them!"

Duan Rong grabbed the man with thick eyebrows and large eyes; it was he who had just stuck the Mishang through the hole in the window.

The three were already frozen stiff with fear, and being within arm's reach, Duan Rong grabbed that man up, channeled his Internal Breath, and with a 'Puff!', crushed the man's neck; meat paste mixed with blood squeezed out from between Duan Rong's fingers.

Wang Chun had already been scared into losing control of his bowels and collapsed on the ground.

The one called Rat was also scared out of his wits; seeing the vengeful ghost grabbing Huang Geng, he suddenly bolted, wanting to escape.

But just as his figure moved, Duan Rong suddenly flicked his sleeve, and a patch of faint Medicine Powder, propelled by his Internal Breath, sprayed onto the head of the man called Rat.

That man's figure stiffened, and he fell to the ground...

To Wang Chun, that scene was Sun Huang's ghost waving his hand, and Rat instantly falling to the ground.

Wang Chun was already terrified beyond measure; his liver and gallbladder were split with fear, and he nearly died of fright! He knelt on the ground, kowtowing like he was pounding garlic!

"Grandpa Sun Huang! Grandpa Ghost! I was wrong, I was blinded by greed... Please, for the sake of my father, spare me this once, I will never dare to do it again..."

Duan Rong looked expressionlessly at the incessantly kowtowing Wang Chun, suddenly flicked his sleeve again, and the Medicine Powder scattered; Wang Chun's body stalled and tilted, and he fainted away.

(End of chapter)