Chapter 257: Jia Zhangshi Was Deceived

Jia Zhangshi walked up to the small house.

She saw the door tightly closed.

She knocked with her hand.

Less than a minute passed.

A middle-aged man in gray homespun clothes pulled open the door, sized up Jia Zhangshi, and asked, "Comrade, who are you looking for?"

Jia Zhangshi was stumped by the question.

"Who are you looking for?"

She really didn't know; she didn't know whether the person was male or female, old or young, what their surname or given name was.

In a flash.

Jia Zhangshi displayed a rare flash of shrewdness.

"I came with that woman just now; I had a stomach upset and went to the toilet, letting her go in first. After I finish, I'll come back and we'll leave together."

"What woman? I don't know what you're talking about. Sorry, you've got the wrong person."

The middle-aged man said this and was about to close the door.

Jia Zhangshi was also getting anxious.

She hurriedly spoke the woman's name.

"We really came together; her surname is Liu, the head of the household is named Jia Ren, and we all call her Jia Liushi."

The middle-aged man's expression eased considerably; he stopped closing the door, looked left and right, and pulled Jia Zhangshi inside.

He closed the door and carefully bolted it.

Taking this opportunity,

Jia Zhangshi surveyed the interior layout.

To the north,

there was a counter, behind it a row of medicine cabinets; to the east stood a table and several chairs; on the west wall, a cloth curtain hung over a middle door.

The middle-aged man lifted the cloth curtain and led Jia Zhangshi inside.

The outside is arranged like a pharmacy.

The inside is set up like a temple.

On the wall hung a painting of the Three Pure Ones; beneath it stood a table bearing two plates of offerings, in the center of which sat a bronze incense burner with three lit incense sticks.

Before the table lay a straw mat; seated on it was an old man with white hair and beard, dressed in Buddhist robes.

In front of the table lay a futon, on which sat an old man with white hair and beard, dressed in Buddhist attire.

this old man sat in a meditative posture with eyes closed, nurturing his spirit.

"Com... Master."

Jia Zhangshi had just begun to shout "comrade".

This was the current popular form of address.

As the syllable "zhi" of "comrade" lingered in her mouth, Jia Zhangshi suddenly realized the other's identity—these two words could not describe him—so she changed the word to "master".

While the 'zhì' in 'comrade' was still turning in her mouth, Jia Zhangshi suddenly thought of the other's identity, which could not be described by those two characters, so she changed the word to 'great master'.

Then she saw the master wave at her.

"You need not speak your purpose; you already know it."

Jia Zhangshi's eyes widened round.

Truly worthy of being a master.

Without her saying a word, he had already guessed her intention.

A faint hope rose in her heart.

If the master before her made her purpose clear, Jia Zhangshi would dispel all her worries.

"You have encountered a matter, or perhaps a great affair concerning your life; the world is vast, yet you happen to dwell in this ominous house. That evil obstacle, angry at its own unclear death, cannot depart and seeks a substitute. Among your five family members, only your eight characters match hers—this is why I sought you out."

"You have encountered a matter, or rather a matter concerning your life; the world is vast, yet you have happened to dwell in a haunted house. That evil obstacle, angry at its own unclear death, cannot leave; it seeks a substitute. Among your five family members, only you have the eight characters matching hers; this is the reason you were sought."

Jia Zhangshi fell to her knees with a thud before the master.

She ignored the pain.

Bang, bang, bang—three heavy kowtows.

To show her sincerity, Jia Zhangshi gritted her teeth, exerted all her strength, and slammed her head hard into the ground.

To demonstrate her sincerity, Jia Zhangshi gritted her teeth, exerted all her strength, and heavily knocked her head against the ground.

"I, the old woman, don't understand."

"Your maiden name is Zhang Xiaohua; your husband's surname is Jia, given name Jia Dalin. You were destined for twins, but because you owed a debt in a past life, you lost one son, whose suffering repaid that debt, clearing the karma. Your other son is named Jia Dongxu; his destiny carries a calamity—marital misfortune. If he avoids it, he can live to eighty-eight. Observing your appearance, your son Dongxu must have already gone elsewhere. This is what you meant by time, fate, and fortune—none can be lacking."

"Your original name is Zhang Xiaohua; your husband's surname is Jia, given name Jia Dalin. You were originally destined for twins, but because you owed a debt in your previous life, you lost a son, repaying the debt with the pain of losing a son, thus resolving the karma. Another son is named Jia Dongxu; his fate bears a calamity, that of a wife's calamity. If avoided, he can live to eighty-eight years. Observing your appearance, your son Dongxu must have already gone elsewhere. This is what you meant by time, fate, and luck—none can be missing."

"This is fate. You were originally destined to die, but because you kindly helped that woman, even though you gained a five‑cent profit, your fate still changed. Your coming shows we have affinity; without it we would not have brought that woman here. People live for the living, die for the dead; souls return to the underworld. The house you now reside in, however, has an extra soul unwilling to return. That soul resents you occupying its dwelling and vents its anger upon you, causing your frailty and illness. This ailment cannot be cured by doctors; the only remedy is to send away the clinging soul."

"This is the decree of fate. You were originally destined to die, but because you kindly helped a woman, even though you gained a five-cent profit, your fate was still changed. Your coming represents that we have affinity; without affinity, we would not have brought that woman here. People live for the living, people die for the dead; souls naturally return to the underworld. The house you now reside in, however, has an extra soul unwilling to return. That soul resents you for occupying her house, venting its resentment upon you, so you are weak and prone to illness. This illness cannot be cured by doctors; the only solution is to send away the soul entangling you."

She accepted the master's explanation.

Having entered without a word, the master clearly explained Jia Zhangshi's background and even revealed the secret that Jia Dongxu was her second son.

Upon entering without saying a word, the master clearly explained Jia Zhangshi's whole story and even revealed the secret that Jia Dongxu was Jia Zhangshi's second son.

If the master lacked genuine ability, could he have revealed such a secret?

"Please, Master, save me."

"You will save yourself; there are two ways. First, find that wronged deceased, gather their remains and bring them home, day and night perform rites to accompany them; after three years, your calamity can be resolved."

"You will save yourself; there are two ways to save you. First, you find that wrongfully deceased person, gather their remains and bring them home, day and night perform rites and accompany them; after three years, you can resolve your calamity."

Jia Zhangshi's heart turned cold halfway.

Long Laotaitai's funeral arrangements were handled by the neighborhood office; where could she go to find Long Laotaitai's remains? She certainly couldn't go to the neighborhood office and speak plainly with them.

At that time.

Jia Zhangshi was the first to be arrested.

Crucially, she also had to spend day and night with Long Laotaitai's remains for three years.

Don't even mention three years.

Just three days.

Jia Zhangshi couldn't bear it either.

After Old Jia Dalin and Young Jia Dongxu died, Jia Zhangshi didn't dare face their corpses alone.

Relatives all panicked.

Moreover, Long Laotaitai was an outsider with a grudge.

The second method is the Money Substitute Method, as the saying goes, 'Money can buy a ghost to push a mill.' You can offer present-day money beneath the Three Pure Ones, using their divine power to transmute it into nether currency; then, officials of the Underworld will come to collect the soul, and your tribulation will be resolved.

Fate is urgent.

If life is gone, what use is more money?

Jia Zhangshi certainly didn't want the Jia family's money to end up benefiting the Yi family's brat, Huaihua.

At that moment, they pulled out fifty dollars from their pocket and handed it to the master.

You said before, 'Money should be offered beneath the statue of the Three Pure Ones; once your tribulation is resolved, you may retrieve the money intact.'

Jia Zhangshi blinked.

That was a bit different from what she had imagined.

According to Jia Zhangshi's supposition, giving away the money would be as good as losing it, yet she hadn't expected to be able to get it back; hearing the master's meaning, the amount given would be the amount returned.

Master, do you mean my money can be retrieved in the future?

As the ancients had Lin Xiangru return the flawless jade to Zhao, so too Jia Zhangshi returns the money in full; saving a life outweighs building a seven-story pagoda.

Master, may I ask how much money I should produce?

The Money Substitute Method has no fixed amount of money; it depends on the circumstances. The yin spirit entwining you carries deep resentment, requiring one thousand nether coins to resolve. The subtlety of this must not be spoken loosely, lest it leak to the heavens; you must comprehend it yourself—go!

Having been ordered to leave, Jia Zhangshi departed the small hut with a dazed head; the money on her person was naturally no longer in her pocket.