Chapter 327: Chapter 327: The Clinking of Chopsticks on Bowls to Demand Repaynt_1
The living room was a ss, cluttered with all sorts of junk.
Qin Sisi glanced around, found nothing unusual, and went straight through the living room intending to head into the bedroom. But upon pushing, she found out that the bedroom door was also locked.
Ye You was obliged again to pick the bedroom lock.
"Click," the lock popped open. The sound wasn’t loud, but it seed especially jarring in the silent late-night hours.
Qin Sisi cautiously moved to the side to avoid being bumped into if soone suddenly opened the door from inside.
After waiting in silence for a mont, finding no signs of movent, Qin Sisi took a deep breath. Just as she was about to push open the door, suddenly a white shadow drifted out and blocked her way.
Caught completely off guard, Sisi was spooked. She froze in place, peering intently at the white shadow up close under the light of the Ziwei Heaven Fire.
The door hadn’t been opened. The shadow had passed right through it, emitting a heavy cold chill, making it apparent that it was a ghost.
It was the ghost of a man in his sixties or seventies. His white hair was tousled, his beard long and unkempt, resembling a pair of dried shrubs in its ssiness and filth.
His clothing was worn and ragged, an old cotton jacket and trousers that had lost their original color. In so places, the stitching had co apart, revealing the blackened cotton lining within.
If he was indeed the old man the inn’s landlady had ntioned, the one who’d starved to death half a month ago. It wasn’t just hunger but exposure to the bone-chilling winter weather with such inadequate clothing.
So pity rose in Qin Sisi’s heart. Still, she needed to confirm whether the old man was the cause of his daughters-in-law’s headaches and stomachaches, so she didn’t reveal herself imdiately.
Attracted by the noise of the opening door, the old man’s ghost had erged to investigate.
Qin Sisi was hidden in the Invisible Bubble, unseen and unheard.
After scrutinizing the surroundings for so ti and finding nothing unusual, the old man’s ghost looked puzzled, then drifted back into the bedroom.
Qin Sisi breathed a sigh of relief, then after a mont of waiting, she quietly approached the door. Gently pushing it open just a crack, she peered inside. From her arms, Ye You also lifted his head to look inside.
With the light from the Ziwei Heaven Fire, Qin Sisi and Ye You could see the scene in the bedroom clearly.
There were two people sleeping in the bedroom bed.
You could tell gender from the hair; one had a crew cut, the other had relatively longer hair.
The elderly man’s ghost wasn’t doing anything horrifying. He was just sitting cross-legged above the body of the person with long hair, suspended in mid-air, holding a chipped bowl and a pair of chopsticks.
The old man’s ghost looked sad and helpless as he kept knocking the bowl with the chopsticks, making a "ding-dong" sound. Periodically, he would emit soft whimpering sounds as if suppressing his sobbing.
Qin Sisi watched for about twenty minutes. The old man continued like this, with no changes.
Qin Sisi and Ye You exchanged glances, then carefully backed out of the room.
Back in the living room, Qin Sisi whispered to Ye You, "What is this ghost doing? It’s so strange."
Ye You contemplated for a mont, then asked, "In your culture, does knocking a bowl with chopsticks hold any special aning?"
Qin Sisi pondered it for a bit, then replied, "I think my mother once ntioned that knocking a bowl with chopsticks is a sign of begging for food."
Upon hearing this, both of their eyes lit up.
Ye You said confidently, "That’s right. He’s the old man who starved to death. His own family cruelly allowed him to die of starvation. The resentnt in his heart kept him from resting in peace, so he ca late at night to beg his sons and daughters-in-law for food."
Qin Sisi added, "But he’s probably more reluctant to harm his sons, so he haunts his daughters-in-law in their dreams. The persistent chill from the ghost makes them uncomfortable all night, naturally leading to physical discomfort."
Ye You looked at Qin Sisi and nodded approvingly.
Qin Sisi thought for a mont, then asked, "But doesn’t he have two daughters-in-law?"
Ye You responded, "We should not disturb him now. Let’s wait here, and we may soon find the answer."
Qin Sisi nodded, found a relatively clean spot on the couch in the living room, and sat down.
About an hour later, the old man’s ghost floated out of the bedroom and drifted outside.
Seeing this, Qin Sisi quickly got up and started to follow.
Ye You reminded her, "Only ten more minutes, be careful."
"Okay," Sisi responded quietly, picking up her pace to keep up with the old man’s ghost.
The old man’s ghost didn’t leave through the main gate. Instead, he floated directly over the wall towards the neighboring house.
Qin Sisi had no choice but to summon the Wings of Rainbow and fly over the wall to follow.
The old man’s ghost drifted through the yard and straight into the living room of the next house.
As Qin Sisi was about to follow him in, Ye You stopped her and pointed at the bedroom window nearby.
Qin Sisi ca closer to the window and noticed that the curtain hadn’t been drawn properly, leaving a thin crack. It allowed her to see onto the bed.
Just like in the neighboring house, the old man’s ghost circled the bedroom several tis before settling cross-legged above the sleeping woman. He brought out the chopsticks and cracked bowl again and began knocking the chopsticks against the bowl.
The "ping-ping-ping" sound echoed again, sounding exceptionally crisp in Qin Sisi’s ears.
But the two sleeping people were not roused from their dream. They were ordinary people and could either not hear the noise made by the ghost or would only hear it within their dreams.
The question plaguing Qin Sisi finally found its answer: the old man indeed had two sons and two daughters-in-law.
He spent the first half of the night at one son’s house, and in the second half, he visited the other son. He was fair in haunting, and that’s why both daughters-in-law fell prey to him.
Sisi asked with confusion, "Since he used the sa thod, why did one daughter-in-law suffer from abdominal pain and the other from a headache?"
Ye You explained, "Everyone’s physical condition is different. When evil spirits invade the body, the weakest part will first feel the discomfort.
One daughter-in-law might have a weaker digestive system, and the other may have more sensitive nerves in the head. This is why the two won have different symptoms."
Qin Sisi nodded, understanding.
At this point, the Invisible Bubble’s effective duration had ended, and Qin Sisi and Ye You beca visible, with their sounds no longer muted.
Sisi moved slightly to the side to avoid being spotted by the old man’s ghost in the bedroom, then she mouthed a question to Ye You, "Shall we catch it?"
Ye You gave an affirmative nod, a resolute look in his eyes.
If they had run into the ghost by coincidence, it was an unexpected gain. How could they let a ghost that made itself so available slip away?
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