Chapter 33: Push and Pull

"Sorry, I was just taking a shower."

Shen Siyuan sent a WeChat message back to Jiang Tingyu.

But Jiang Tingyu did not reply immediately; it was unknown whether she hadn't seen it or if it was a deliberate manipulative tactic.

For a couple who like each other, if one party's WeChat message isn't replied to in time during a chat, it is a very hard-to-endure, mind-twisting thing.

If one party has fallen in love, they will fall into a passive state of anxiety over gains and losses, falling into the other's trap.

But since Shen Siyuan wanted to manipulate the other party, he naturally calmed his mind, opened the game directly, and started battling someone.

After about two or three minutes, he finally received Jiang Tingyu's reply again.

However, Shen Siyuan did not switch out to reply; instead, he finished one round, and only then leisurely switched out of the game.

"Do you want to come to my aquarium tomorrow to watch my performance?"

"Sorry, I was just playing a game. I'm afraid I can't make it tomorrow; I went back to my hometown today and probably won't be back until tomorrow night."

Shen Siyuan bluntly told the other party that he was playing a game and hadn't replied to her message, wanting to give her the feeling that she wasn't that important.

Saying he went back to his hometown was telling the other party a result, and also a probe.

If Jiang Tingyu, upon hearing this, merely expressed regret and said she could only come to watch his performance next time and so on, it would mean that although this Miss had feelings for him, they weren't deep.

But if, after hearing this, Jiang Tingyu became curious about where his hometown was and if it was fun.

In this situation, Jiang Tingyu was either a player, wanting to string Shen Siyuan along.

Or she had truly fallen in love but didn't want to date right now, yet didn't want to miss Shen Siyuan; she was in a wavering state, so she wanted to first "tie down" Shen Siyuan, and then slowly consider whether to be together.

"Oh right, I heard you mention it yesterday at dinner; your hometown is in Qingshui Town. Is it far from here? How long does the ride take?"

Seeing this, the corners of Shen Siyuan's mouth curled up; this was getting interesting...

So Shen Siyuan followed her lead and started chatting with her.

And he expressed that when he had time, he would invite her to come play.

Just as the two were chatting heatedly, Shen Siyuan directly said: "Relatives introduced me to a match; I came back for a blind date."

Jiang Tingyu was obviously silenced by this WeChat message of his; only after a long while did she reply with another WeChat message.

"You just went on a blind date with me yesterday, and tomorrow you're going to see another Miss; are you in such a rush to find a girlfriend?"

This sentence was actually a bit inappropriate, but it precisely showed that Shen Siyuan's behavior made her feel somewhat uncomfortable in her heart.

Moreover, she used "ah" at the end instead of "ma"; this tone made it sound more tactful; obviously, she didn't want to cut off contact with Shen Siyuan directly like this.

"No choice; you didn't take a fancy to me, so naturally I have to look around more. Besides, it's not me who's in a rush; it's my mom and dad who are," Shen Siyuan said.

He directly put the pressure on the other party; if Jiang Tingyu really wanted to string Shen Siyuan along, she would have to seriously consider whether she could hold him, whether chatting alone was enough, and whether she needed to take the next step; she would feel urgency in her heart and weigh the gains and losses...

Shen Siyuan was actually very good at reading people's minds; if Jiang Tingyu wasn't a player, her actions like this weren't actually that scummy.

Most people who have been hurt in love are extra cautious when entering another relationship, constantly probing; this is human nature, and Shen Siyuan wasn't surprised.

The two chatted for a while longer, and Shen Siyuan actively ended the conversation.

This also showed that Shen Siyuan didn't care much about the relationship between them.

If Jiang Tingyu stopped there, the two probably wouldn't have any further contact in the future.

But if Jiang Tingyu contacted him again proactively, she would sink deeper and deeper, and eventually, because she had invested too much emotion and the sunk cost was too great, she would be reluctant to give up, thereby causing her to pay an even greater price.

Thinking this way, Shen Siyuan was actually quite scummy.

However, Shen Siyuan actually had quite a bit of good feelings for Jiang Tingyu; after all, she was so beautiful; how could he have no thoughts?

If Jiang Tingyu really wanted to treat the feelings between them seriously, Shen Siyuan would also get along well with her.

"Right here?"

Under the moonlight, the old Daoist Priest and Yu Youcai stood outside Shen Siyuan's courtyard, carefully examining the building before them.

Yu Youcai nodded.

"Your nephew is quite wealthy," the old Daoist Priest said.

"He only made some money in recent years; in previous years he lost a lot, and I even put my retirement savings into it."

"You two have a very good relationship."

The old Daoist Priest turned his head; it was rare for someone to be willing to give their retirement savings to a nephew.

"I have no children in my life; he is like a half-son to me. Jianjun is a filial child; when I die, that father and son will wear hemp mourning clothes for me," Yu Youcai said with considerable pride.

The old Daoist Priest nodded slightly, then said: "You go in; I'll wait for you outside."

Upon hearing this, Yu Youcai went straight through the courtyard gate and walked inside.

As for the old Daoist Priest, why didn't he go in? Was it because he didn't want to?

Naturally not; it was because he couldn't get in.

A house is equivalent to private territory; if people live inside, their Qi connects into a whole; unless one possesses direct bloodline kinship with the owner before death, one cannot enter the house without the owner's consent; otherwise, all ghosts and monsters will be blocked outside the house.

This was also why, that day, Lu Guanchang only lingered outside Jiang Wenxin's door but did not enter the house; it was also because he simply couldn't get in.

As for why Yin Xingyue could follow Watching Dou Dou and enter Shen Siyuan's house, it was because that house didn't belong to Shen Siyuan at all; he had rented it.

This is also why, when some people stay in a hotel, they first knock three times on the door, then turn sideways to open it; this is to tell some "people" inside the room that someone has moved in, asking them to make space.

These customs actually have some basis in reason.

Yu Youcai entered the house, went upstairs with ease, and went straight into Shen Siyuan's room; obviously, this wasn't his first time here.

But upon entering the house, he was startled, because Shen Siyuan was sitting on the bed looking at him.

"Grand-uncle," Shen Siyuan said somewhat strangely; why had he come looking for him in the middle of the night?

"You knew I was coming?" Grand-uncle said with some surprise.

Shen Siyuan nodded; not only did he sense Yu Youcai entering, he also knew there was another ghost waiting outside the courtyard gate.

As the master of the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, even though the Ten Thousand Souls Banner was mostly destroyed, he still had this ability.

This was also why, that day, he could immediately discover Yin Xingyue following behind Watching Dou Dou.

"Your situation is a bit strange; perhaps something is wrong somewhere. I found an old Daoist Priest to take a look for you; he knows a great deal. Do you want to meet him?" Uncle Grandfather said.

Hearing that he was a Daoist Priest, Shen Siyuan's interest was piqued.

Since this world has ghosts, they, as Daoist Priests and Monks, are the most qualified to speak on the matter; perhaps they could unravel some of the doubts weighing on Shen Siyuan's heart.

So he stood up directly and said, "Then I will go meet him."

But he soon sat back down and said, "Better to have him come in and talk; it's late at night, and it wouldn't be good to wake my parents and the others."

Seeing that Shen Siyuan agreed, Yu Youcai turned around, went downstairs, and called for the old Daoist Priest to come in.