Chapter 18: First Seven

The crowd was startled. "What happened?"

"The boat the opera troupe was taking to cross the river capsized. Everyone was on board, right at the Laoniu Bay Ferry, about ten-plus miles from here."

"When did this happen?"

"Not long after that woman drowned."

First, the opera troupe's star performer—who was also the daughter of the troupe leader, Bai—drowned, and then the entire troupe died from drowning as well. Anyone who wasn't a fool could see something was wrong.

But seeing it was one thing; in this situation, no one dared to say it out loud. To be able to build such a large family business in these chaotic times, the Master Feng family was likely not a benevolent bunch.

Master Feng's health seemed poor; after chatting for a few more sentences, he showed signs of fatigue. Seeing this, Liu Guanjia called over servants and maids to help Master Feng to the inner hall to rest.

"Everyone, the master is overcome with worry because of the Second Young Master. If you have any questions, please ask me instead." Liu Guanjia sighed softly. "To be honest, our master's health is getting worse by the day. It's all because of that incident; he hasn't been able to sleep soundly at night."

Yang Xiao: "Heh."

"Please follow me, everyone. You will understand once you take a look." Mentioning his master, the usually grim-faced Liu Guanjia revealed a rare moment of genuine emotion. He led the group to the other side of the hall, which looked like a bedroom from the outside.

A Bagua Mirror was embedded at the top of the door frame. The bronze-colored surface was slightly dusty, but the design was ancient and the shape was regular; one could tell at a glance that it was a rare antique.

Pushing open the door, it was indeed a bedroom. A carved wooden bed sat diagonally across from the door. The bed curtains were lowered, and one could vaguely see a person lying inside.

After receiving Liu Guanjia's tacit approval, the group stepped forward and slowly lifted the curtains. The sight inside shocked them all: what lay on the bed was actually a Paper Person!

The Paper Person was covered with a thick embroidered quilt and rested on a wooden pillow. All the items on the bed were no different from those used by a living person. More importantly, the Paper Person's appearance was clearly modeled after Master Feng. Creating a Paper Substitute for a living person was the greatest of taboos!

"Faking death?" Yang Xiao examined the Paper Person's features and saw some of the tricks involved.

Hearing this, Liu Guanjia turned around and nodded at Yang Xiao. "You are right. That woman is too fierce. The manor has sought out many masters and Daoists, but none could do anything, so we had to resort to this desperate measure."

Shi Dali stared at Liu Guanjia and said in a muffled voice, "But don't you know that using this method will damage a living person's fortune?"

"There is no other choice; the master's life is what matters." Liu Guanjia cupped his hands toward the group, his expression solemn. "Everyone, since you have accepted the Feng family's silver, please do your best. Resolve the matter with that woman as soon as possible. Once it is done, the Feng family will surely reward you handsomely, and it will also be a meritorious deed for you all."

Having heard such talk too often, no one felt anything. No one cared about merit; everyone just wanted to survive.

"Liu Guanjia, how much longer can this Paper Substitute deceive her?" Kuang Hongyi asked the critical question.

Liu Guanjia held up three fingers. "Three days at most."

The layout of the bedroom was quite eerie. A sachet embroidered with an evil ghost hung on the left side of the wooden bed, while an old pair of scissors with a broken blade hung on the right. A pair of bright red satin embroidered shoes was placed by the bed, but the tips of the shoes had been severed by a sharp object and were nowhere to be found.

Taking a step back, a strange pattern was arranged on the central square table using copper coins and incense candles; it looked like some kind of exorcism array.

A silver thread hung from the ceiling beam, with a bell dangling from it. The bell was covered in a layer of copper rust and was of a rare square shape. Ever since they entered, the copper bell would sway slightly from time to time, yet it emitted no sound at all.

Staring at this bell, Yang Xiao focused his mind slightly. He had seen something similar in an old book he had picked up at a second-hand book stall.

This type of bell was called a Coffin Ringer. It was very rare and was usually hung on the corner of a coffin with a silver thread. It was rumored that grave robbers would not disturb a coffin if they saw one, as ordinary dead people did not use them. They were usually reserved for those with immense resentment or those who died violently with incomplete remains.

It was said that this thing was extremely sinister. The soul of an unborn fetus was sealed inside using a secret method, and the opening was then sealed with Corpse Wax.

This bell usually did not ring; it only rang when it sensed the baleful aura of a vengeful spirit or ghost, at which point the shrill, miserable crying of an infant would emerge from within.

After staying for a while longer, the group left. Standing outside the courtyard and feeling the sunlight on their bodies, they felt as if they had come back to life. That modified fake bedroom was filled with an eerie atmosphere; inside and outside the room were two completely different worlds.

After giving a few more instructions, Liu Guanjia allowed the group to walk around the manor freely. They could even leave the manor if they wished, but they had to return before sunset.

Furthermore, they must be accompanied by servants if they left the manor. Liu Guanjia's reason was that there was a war outside and too many refugees, and he was worried about their safety.

After saying this, Liu Guanjia left. Everyone looked at each other, then left the courtyard and went to a secluded spot.

With no outsiders around, it was easier to speak. "What do you think?" Kuang Hongyi asked first after confirming no one was eavesdropping.

Ke Long sneered. "Isn't it obvious? People came to perform opera, and the most beautiful star performer drowned. As if that wasn't enough, the entire troupe died shortly after. How convenient—they wiped out all the witnesses so you have nowhere to investigate."

"Do you think this makes sense? Master Feng took a fancy to the Bai troupe's star performer, Xi Yao, and lured her over under the guise of performing opera. Xi Yao was strong-willed and refused to submit, so Master Feng killed her in a fit of rage—or perhaps Xi Yao threw herself into the lake to avoid being shamed. But the rest of the Bai troupe was also in the manor at the time. Fearing that the news would ruin his reputation, Master Feng decided to finish the job..." Xu Su raised his hand and made a throat-slitting gesture. "Then he announced to the outside world that the boat had capsized."

This was a relatively standard speculation, but Shi Dali shook his head. "I don't think so. Don't forget, this is Feng Laotaiye's 'First Seven' memorial. The ancients valued rules above all else, and the Feng family is considered a prominent local family; they wouldn't mess around on such an important occasion."

"Heh, you can't be sure of that. There are plenty of wolves in sheep's clothing. You know about losing control after drinking, right? These capitalists are the ones who play the dirtiest games." Ke Long curled his lip.

Yang Xiao noticed that he seemed to have great hostility toward capitalists, perhaps related to his personal history. According to what Ke Long had said before, his father seemed to have run a factory.

After a moment of silence, Kuang Hongyi spoke again. "I agree with Brother Shi. After all, this is Feng Laotaiye's 'First Seven'. Besides, if Master Feng really just wanted to force himself on this Xi Yao, there was no need to invite the entire troupe. That would only make things more troublesome."