Chapter 24: To Be with a Ruler Is to Be with a Tiger

“Can you give me a little time?” Ning Zhe looked up and smiled at Feng Yu: “I need to be alone to think clearly about what just happened and what we should do next.”

“I’ll follow your lead…” Feng Yu hesitantly stepped out of the ancestral hall, pulled her skirt down, and sat on the threshold at the main gate, occasionally glancing back worriedly at Ning Zhe, who leaned against a pillar, lost in thought.

Not long after, a buzzing vibration suddenly came from his thigh—his phone was ringing, but not with a call; it was a text.

Feng Yu unlocked the screen and saw the sender was: Zhang Yangxu.

“Huh?”

Meanwhile, inside the ancestral hall, Ning Zhe sat before the Snake God, reorganizing everything he had done that morning: his logic for stealing the Snake God’s offerings was simple—one sentence summed it up: 【When someone mistakes me for the Snake God, I become him.】

This was a rule—even gods must obey it.

When the traces left by Ning Zhe’s theft of the offerings were discovered, if even one villager thought, “This was eaten by the Snake God,” the rule would activate, allowing him to steal a portion of the Snake God’s “identity” through the mistaken belief of the believer.

From the Snake God’s reaction, Ning Zhe knew he had succeeded.

“At least one person mistook me for the Snake God. As more traces of consumed offerings are found, the number of such people may grow further.”

Ning Zhe quickly assessed his current state: “Right now, I’ve stolen at least one believer’s perception of the Snake God’s identity. Considering this, the hallucinations I just saw when my vision went black may be side effects of acquiring the Snake God’s identity.”

So those hallucinations—the faceless woman, and the song she hummed—were the Snake God’s memories?

Was that it? Ning Zhe couldn’t be sure; everything must be left to time to prove: “Now I’ll see whether more people mistake me for the Snake God, allowing me to steal more of his identity.”

The success of this attempt brought Ning Zhe no great joy, because uncovering this rule and successfully stealing the Snake God’s identity was not the end of this strange event.

On the contrary, it was merely the first step in Ning Zhe’s attempt to decipher the world’s underlying rules.

“Now that I have the Snake God’s identity, I can act more freely, do certain things.”

After clarifying his situation, Ning Zhe stood straight and walked out of the ancestral hall. He still didn’t understand what the hallucination meant, nor the meaning of that mournful tune—but that didn’t stop him from knowing exactly what he would do next.

As soon as he stepped out of the ancestral hall, Ning Zhe saw Feng Yu sitting on the threshold, staring blankly at her phone.

“What are you looking at?”

“Ah! Ning Zhe… n-nothing.” Feng Yu shook her head frantically, shoved the phone into her pocket, and stood up. “I was just wondering—if we keep going like this, can we really solve the mystery and leave He Family Village?”

“I’m not sure. But besides trusting me, do you have any better option?” Ning Zhe asked.

“That’s true.” Feng Yu shook her head, pushed aside her chaotic thoughts, hesitated, then pulled the phone out of her pocket again, unlocked the screen, and handed it to Ning Zhe: “Here.”

Ning Zhe took the phone and saw a chat interface—the sender was: Zhang Yangxu.

“Zhang Yangxu just sent me a text,” Feng Yu said. “You can read it yourself.”

Ning Zhe gave a quiet “hmm” and sat beside Feng Yu on the ancestral hall’s threshold; together they read the chat history between Zhang Yangxu and Feng Yu:

Zhang Yangxu: 【Ye Miaozhu is dead.】

【She ran off alone to the He Family Mansion and was killed by a ghost.】

【If Ning Zhe hadn’t deliberately provoked her emotions, Ye Miaozhu would never have been alone—and wouldn’t have died.】

【Ning Zhe did it on purpose.】

【He’s probably figured out some special rules in He Family Village. He provoked Ye Miaozhu on purpose to make her isolated, to draw the ghost’s attention.】

【This man is a madman. He doesn’t care about anyone’s life or death.】

【Are you sure you still want to stay by his side?】【Ning Zhe used Ye Miaozhu’s life to test his theories before; he’ll use yours to achieve his other goals later.】

【He doesn’t care about anyone’s life. You’re not special to him.】

Feng Yu: 【I know what you mean, but I don’t know who you are.】

【Are you Zhang Yangxu? Or are you a ghost?】

Zhang Yangxu: 【You can ask me questions to test whether I’m truly Zhang Yangxu.】

【Or we can meet in person.】

Feng Yu: 【I don’t know you. I don’t know what questions would distinguish you from a ghost.】

【Also, why did you send me a text?】

Zhang Yangxu: 【What do you mean by that?】

Feng Yu: 【I mean—why did you choose to send me a text instead of calling?】

【This kind of thing would be better said over the phone.】

【You know Ning Zhe is beside me, so you’re afraid to call, right?】

Zhang Yangxu: 【Isn’t that obvious? You’re always with him.】

Feng Yu: 【No, if that were true, you wouldn’t even send a text.】

The conversation ended there. “Zhang Yangxu” did not send another message.

After reading the chat history, Ning Zhe returned the phone to Feng Yu: “How did you know he was a ghost?”

Feng Yu took the phone and said: “Because you’re extremely perceptive and sensitive. Zhang Yangxu knows you well—he knows what kind of person you are.”

“While you were with me, he never dared act, because you sat beside me like a tiger guarding its prey—any slight movement would be noticed. Under those conditions, not even a phone call was possible, let alone a text.”

“But this short time was different.”

Feng Yu continued: “Just now, you were in poor condition. Though we were still together, I sat outside while you were alone inside the ancestral hall thinking. In that situation, a phone call would have reached you—but a text wouldn’t.”

Ning Zhe thought for a moment, then smiled: “You’re getting smarter, Auntie.”

“I’m learning from you,” Feng Yu whispered.

“But why compare yourself to prey? Don’t you trust me at all?” Ning Zhe asked.

Feng Yu nodded: “Actually, the ghost is right. You don’t care about anyone’s life or death. You’re cold and heartless—even more terrifying than a ghost.”

“Then why are you still with me?” Ning Zhe laughed.

“Because this is my only path to survival,” Feng Yu lifted her head, her gaze slightly unfocused as she looked into Ning Zhe’s eyes. “If you’re a dangerous tiger, then that ghost is a venomous snake hiding in the dark, waiting to strike and devour both you and me.”

A strange metaphor…

“But you won’t hand your prey over to it, will you?” Feng Yu asked.

“Who knows?” Ning Zhe did not answer her question.

The only thing certain now was that Zhang Yangxu was very likely dead.

(End of Chapter)