Chapter 800: Side Story 4: 37

Not only did Xiao Jiu notice it, but even Hui Moqiong couldn't help praising the old residence's feng shui.

It's really thriving!

Soon, Xiao Jiu saw the old man's great-granddaughter-in-law.

The great-granddaughter-in-law surnamed Gu, named Gu Ya.

Although the Gu family in Zhe region is not as powerful as the Meng family, it is not weak either, considered a suitable match.

Gu Ya is 28 years old; she has been married into the Meng family for two years, and this is her first pregnancy.

But Gu Ya's overall condition is indeed not right.

She is too thin, her complexion pallid, her eye sockets sunken, her hair disheveled, and her eyes filled with terror.

She fears light, fears seeing people; even her beloved biological parents, she now fears them.

When Xiao Jiu gently pushed the door open and entered Gu Ya's room, she saw her curled up in the corner of the bed like a frightened fawn, her whole body trembling.

Her belly was slightly swollen, not like she was near full term, but rather like she was three or four months pregnant, just beginning to show.

The room had no lights on; the faint light came from the living room. Fortunately, Xiao Jiu is a cultivator with good eyesight, otherwise she wouldn't have been able to see Gu Ya clearly.

Xiao Jiu gestured behind her, then lifted her foot into Gu Ya's room, closed the door, and turned on the light.

The moment the light came on, Gu Ya screamed.

Outside the door, Gu Ya's mother immediately knocked, asking about the situation inside, her voice hoarse, tinged with sobbing and worry.

Hui Moqiong immediately advised: "If you want your daughter to recover quickly, you must trust our shopkeeper completely; she will not harm your daughter."

The old man also came over to advise.

Xiao Jiu heard the suppressed, restrained sobbing outside the door.

Inside the room, Gu Ya screamed while continually shrinking her body toward the bed corner, pulling the blanket over herself, curling into a small ball, trembling like a sieve.

Xiao Jiu did not go over immediately; she gave Gu Ya time to calm down, while also scanning the whole room, sensing its aura.

Very clean.

It's unclear whether it's due to Gu Ya's emotions, but Xiao Jiu actually felt a hint of fear.

Fear?

Xiao Jiu tried to catch that fleeting emotion, but couldn't grasp it.

She is essentially an outsider, just arrived in Zhe region; she shouldn't have such emotions arise.

Is it an illusion, or... something else?

Gu Ya stopped screaming, but she didn't lift her head, remaining curled at the foot of the bed.

Xiao Jiu walked over step by step, then leaned in, gently reaching to touch the blanket.

Gu Ya let out a fearful whimper; Xiao Jiu then softly coaxed: "Gu Ya, I am the shopkeeper of Yin Dang Hang in Wufu Town, Jiangcheng. You can call me Xiao Jiu. I have subdued countless evil spirits, destroyed many malevolent entities, gone to the underworld, and fought great demons. No matter what person, thing, or event that frightens you, or any unclean thing, believe me—I can help you resolve it."

Gu Ya gave no response, still trembling.

Xiao Jiu exerted a bit of strength with her hand and yanked the blanket open.

As Gu Ya cried out, trying to bounce up and dodge again, Xiao Jiu had already flipped onto the bed, one arm around Gu Ya, holding her close, the other pulling the blanket back over to cover both of them.

Gu Ya is really too thin; the bones on her body feel somewhat sharp.

She instinctively rejected Xiao Jiu, wanting to push her away.

But she is so frail she simply cannot do it.

No matter what, Xiao Jiu is a cultivator; restraining an ordinary person is utterly easy for her.

Gu Ya struggled for a while, found it useless, and finally had to relent.

Time passed second by second.

Under the blanket's hidden space, Xiao Jiu continually held Gu Ya, letting her feel her body heat, heartbeat, and strength.

People all have a psychology of admiring strength.

The weaker and more helpless one is, the more the inner self actually craves power.

At such times, one longs for a savior to descend from heaven.

Xiao Jiu is not a savior, but at this moment she wants to be Gu Ya's reliance.

Gu Ya has gone far too long without feeling another's body heat.

She is always very afraid.

But she clearly was not like this before.

She was born into a wealthy family in Zhe region, the family's only daughter, a cherished jewel.

From childhood she was very intelligent and talented in many arts.

She was confident and generous; whether at school or after work, she shone brightly in her field.

Later she married into the Meng family, and her life has been an uphill path.

After marrying into the Meng family, she began consciously preparing for pregnancy.

This child arrived amidst the whole family's expectations.

But since she became pregnant with this child, her whole self has changed.

Changed to the point where even she feels unfamiliar with herself.

When Xiao Jiu felt the time had come, she first told Gu Ya with certainty: "Gu Ya, since I have come here today, I am confident I can help you; no matter what happens, you can speak to me without reservation."

"You are very afraid; this fear comes from the child in your belly. So, can you tell me what the child is afraid of?"

Xiao Jiu's speech is skillful.

She continually hinted to Gu Ya that she could help her.

She also hinted to Gu Ya that it is not she who is afraid, but the child; first dispel her fear, then arouse her maternal instinct.

To be a mother is to become strong.

For the child, Gu Ya would also become strong.

After a long while, Xiao Jiu finally heard Gu Ya's trembling voice say: "I don't know what I'm afraid of. At first, I kept dreaming; as soon as I fell asleep, I felt a pair of eyes staring at me intently."

"Back then, I wasn't sleeping in the same bed as my husband; every time I woke from a nightmare and met my husband's eyes, I would be startled and traumatized. Later, my husband, and even all my family, dared not come near me."

Xiao Jiu coaxed gently: "Eyes? What kind of eyes?"

Gu Ya found it hard to describe for a moment.

Xiao Jiu then changed the question: "Or put another way, do you feel those eyes belong to a person? Or not to a person?"

"Not human!" Gu Ya said firmly, "Those eyes are huge, huge, their gaze filled with greed, as if they wanted to swallow me in one bite… and… and their pupils are not like human pupils…"

Xiao Jiu's heart skipped a beat: "The pupils aren't like a human's? Exactly what are they like? Vertical pupils? Horizontal pupils? Double pupils? Or heterochromatic pupils?"

Liu Junyan's pupils are vertical pupils.

Gu Ya's body began to tremble violently again, and she said in a shaking voice: "It… it's vertical pupils! There's a vertical line in the middle of the pupil."

Xiao Jiu began to feel uneasy; could Gu Ya have seen Liu Junyan's eyes?

She could only steady herself and ask further: "What about the iris color? What color is it?"

"Mandarin duck colors." Gu Ya said firmly, "One eye is green, the other is red, scared… scared…"

Gu Ya desperately burrowed into Xiao Jiu's embrace, constantly shouting "scared," as if she were being stared at again.

Xiao Jiu held Gu Ya tightly while quickly calculating in her mind.

Although the pupils were vertical, the iris colors were one red and one green—mandarin duck colors—so it definitely wasn't Liu Junyan.

The one staring was targeting Gu Ya's unborn child, and this staring had clearly been going on for more than just a day or two.

Nor was it just a ten-month pregnancy.

But rather from the moment the Jin Luopan was buried in the Meng family ancestral tomb…