Soul Seizing

Hearing Liu Yue's words, an inexplicable force suddenly tightened around Qiu Yan, making his whole body sink as his thoughts cleared.

Not good! This is the backlash of Karma involving blood ties! Of the three great Karmas, I have always fixated on the fruits of gratitude and enmity. The Karma of aspirations is beyond my reach for now, but I have indeed neglected blood ties!

The power of Karma was mysterious beyond measure, entangled in every aspect of life. Like countless invisible cords, it linked people to people, people to all things—impossible to cut, impossible to sort out. Setting everything else aside, Fortune alone was enough to make one tremble in fear. One careless step, and one would stray onto the wrong path, with no way back.

As a deity, Qiu Yan's true self was even more sensitive to such things. Naturally, he did not dare neglect it in the slightest. He hurriedly asked what had happened, then followed Liu Yue toward the Pan Household.

Thus, under the backlash of Karma, Qiu Yan struggled to suppress his discomfort as he hurried onward with Liu Yue. Before long, they arrived at the Pan Household. Without pausing, he followed Liu Yue through a side gate.

The Pan Household had many servants. Along the way, quite a few servants and maids saw the two of them. Their gazes swept over Qiu Yan's coarse clothes, and most showed surprise before promptly ignoring him.

Only when Liu Yue and Qiu Yan reached the entrance to the inner residence did someone step forward to stop them.

"Stop! Liu Yue, who is this person you have brought? Don't you know the household rules? Is the inner residence somewhere just anyone can enter?" The ones blocking their way were two burly men with broad backs and thick waists. Their temples bulged high, and sharp glints flickered in their eyes. One look was enough to tell they were not men to be trifled with.

"Brother Zhang, Brother Li," Liu Yue hurriedly cupped his hands, "this is my cousin. He has come to see Sixth Miss."

"Your cousin?" The two men looked Qiu Yan up and down. "If that is the case, go on in. Be quick about it. You may stay for no more than half an incense stick's time. Don't make things difficult for us brothers."

"Yes, yes. Many thanks to you two brothers for accommodating us."

Only after dealing with the two men did Liu Yue lead Qiu Yan into the inner residence.

This was a small garden, lush with greenery. The flowers, grasses, and trees were all tended by dedicated hands, their pruning ingenious and refined. But neither man had any mind to admire the scenery. They hurried onward.

The inner residence was large. After turning several corners, their destination finally came into view—a room in a corner.

The moment they pushed open the door, they heard low sobbing. Qiu Yan looked inside and saw three people: two women and one man. The man was no longer young. He was Qiu Yan's maternal uncle, Liu Huai. Beside Liu Huai, a middle-aged woman was bent over the bedside, her shoulders trembling as she wept bitterly. The remaining person was a maid standing by in attendance.

Hearing the door open, Liu Huai turned toward the sound. Seeing Liu Yue and Qiu Yan, he beckoned them over.

The two walked closer. The middle-aged woman turned around. Upon seeing Qiu Yan, she seemed to want to speak, yet could not; her sobs choked off her words.

The instant he saw her face, memories surged up within Qiu Yan. He immediately recognized this middle-aged woman as this body's aunt, Liu-shi. Then his gaze passed over his aunt and fell upon the bed. There, he saw a pale face—a young woman of delicate features, her eyes closed, covered by a quilt and lying utterly motionless.

At the sight of that lovely face, a succession of memory fragments flashed rapidly through Qiu Yan's mind. The fragments shifted and changed, finally gathering into a vivid smiling face touched with faint shyness. Yet in the next instant, that smiling face overlapped with the pale face on the bed.

This woman was Qiu Yan's cousin, Pan Rongniang.

Vaguely, the force of Karma tightened once more.

Qiu Yan suppressed the discomfort in his body. He noticed Pan Rongniang's faint, intermittent breathing and the weak spark of life within her. She was clearly clinging to her last breath.

"What exactly happened? What happened to make Cousin end up like this? Did you call a physician to examine her?"

Over the past several days, he had received no word that Pan Rongniang had fallen gravely ill.

At his question, Liu Huai, Liu Yue, and Liu-shi all shuddered. Then they shook their heads in unison, saying nothing further.

Seeing this, Qiu Yan understood. So there is something hidden here. One wave has not yet settled before another rises. Yet with Karma entangled, I cannot simply ignore this. The previous owner of this body seemed to harbor some affection for this cousin. If I let this continue, who knows how much trouble the backlash of Karma will bring. As he thought, he looked toward the maid at the bedside.

The maid's face was filled with panic. When Qiu Yan had questioned them just now, she had clearly wanted to speak. Now, noticing his gaze, she finally could not hold back any longer and burst into tears. "It was Young Master Tang, who came as a guest to the household. He... he asked Master for Miss. Miss was taken to his room. It was no more than half a cup of tea's time before she came out again, but when she did, she was already like this..."

Hearing the maid speak the truth aloud, Liu-shi, who had been suppressing her emotions, could endure no longer and began wailing. "My poor child! Yan'er, Rongniang often spoke of you in ordinary days. Since you have come to see her, surely if she knew, she would also..." Her remaining words dissolved into sobs.

Human ties are the hardest to sever. With a silent sigh, Qiu Yan said nothing. Memories concerning his aunt and cousin rose endlessly in his mind.

Qiu Yan's former self had not seen his cousin for several years. But when he was young, while Qiu Yan's mother was still alive, he had often seen her.

Qiu Yan's aunt, Liu-shi, had suffered greatly after becoming another man's concubine. She did not wish for her daughter to repeat her path, and had always favored Qiu Yan. In her eyes, if Qiu Yan stopped single-mindedly pursuing official success and settled down to live a proper life, then with some help from her elder brother, he could establish a modest family estate. If her daughter married Qiu Yan, she would be his principal wife—far better than becoming someone's concubine.

This time, when Liu-shi heard that Qiu Yan's household had suffered misfortune and that he was staying with Liu Huai, she began entertaining the idea again. Unfortunately, before she could do anything, an unforeseen calamity arose.

"The physician has already come. He said she cannot be saved and told us to prepare for the funeral." Since Qiu Yan now knew the reason, Liu Huai no longer remained silent.

Upon hearing this, Qiu Yan stepped forward, bent down, and carefully examined Pan Rongniang. A flash of white light flickered through his eyes, then his expression abruptly changed.

"She was perfectly well last night. She only spent the time of a cup of tea in that Young Master Tang's room before falling unconscious. How could there be any sense in that?" the maid wept beside them.

Half a cup of tea's time was seven or eight minutes by the reckoning of his previous life, ten minutes at most. In such a short span, one naturally could not do much. Yet Pan Rongniang had somehow ended up in this state. No wonder the maid kept repeating herself.

At that moment, Qiu Yan suddenly straightened up, but Liu Yue had already pressed a hand onto his shoulder.

"Cousin Yan, do not act rashly. Young Master Tang's status is extraordinary. He is not someone we can afford to provoke."

Liu Huai and Liu Yue had feared from the start that Qiu Yan would act impulsively after learning the reason, which was why they had been unwilling to tell him. Now that they saw his movement, how could they dare relax in the slightest?

Qiu Yan shook his head. "Uncle, Cousin, do not worry. I know what is important. This concerns a human life and cannot be handled carelessly. We should report it to the authorities and let the government uphold justice."

"This..." Liu Yue froze at first, then shook his head as well. "You are thinking too simply. Though this is Young Master Tang's first visit to Yuan Ning, over the past few days he has been accompanied on his outings by the prefect and the sons of several officials. He clearly has deep connections with the yamen. If you accuse him, I fear their retaliation will fall upon us before the case ever goes to trial."

Qiu Yan continued, "The prefect and constables live on public pay. They are imperial officials appointed by the court, not household officials kept by some clan. Even if there are personal connections between them, how could they act like dogs, obeying another's instigation and control, then turn around and bite the person who reported the crime?"

"What a joke!"

The instant Qiu Yan finished speaking, a mocking laugh came from the doorway. Then a youth strode in with great sweeping steps, his manner arrogant. His somewhat childish face bore an overbearing air.

Qiu Yan recognized this youth as well. He was none other than Third Young Master Pan, whom he had seen outside the Pan Household gates the other day.

Third Young Master Pan looked at Qiu Yan with a mocking expression. "You want to report this to the authorities? Utter nonsense! Stop causing more trouble for the Pan Household. Do you think things are not chaotic enough already?"

As he spoke, his tone gradually hardened. Turning toward Liu Yue, he said, "Liu Yue, I see that you have studied for a few years and know how to read. I intended to cultivate you, but look at the things your family has done! Young Master Tang taking a liking to Sixth Sister is her good fortune. It would have been one thing if she merely refused, but she even dared resist? Let me tell you plainly: Pan Rongniang ended up like this because she did not know what was good for her. She tried to resist and assassinate Young Master Tang!"

Then Third Young Master Pan's voice grew increasingly stern and low. "You should count yourselves fortunate that Young Master Tang is broad-minded and declined to pursue the matter. I also spoke many good words for your Liu Household. Otherwise, do you think you would still be standing here weeping and complaining? Have you not considered your own status? Still, preserving your entire family is already the limit. The Pan Household cannot keep you any longer. Pack up and leave."

These words left Liu Huai and Liu Yue drenched in cold sweat. They hurriedly thanked him again and again.

"Enough. It is enough that you remember it in your hearts. Our Pan Household has inherited poetry and scholarship for generations, and we have always placed kindness first. Later, go to the accounts office and collect this month's wages and provisions before you leave. Our Pan Household asks for no repayment," he said, waving a hand. Then he glanced back at Qiu Yan. "But you had best keep your people under control and do not cause any further trouble. Otherwise, even the Jade Emperor himself will not be able to save you! You still want to report this to the authorities? Have you studied yourself stupid?"

With that, he ignored the stunned people in the room and strode away.

Watching Third Young Master Pan's departing back, Qiu Yan gave a cold smile, a chill glinting in his eyes.

What a fine display of favor and intimidation! Driving people away, casually pinning crimes on them, cutting off their livelihood—yet still making the victims feel gratitude and reverence. This method of controlling subordinates is still somewhat crude, but its beginnings are already apparent. In the future, he may well become another Yuanwai whose "good name spreads far and wide."

His investigations over the past few days had taught Qiu Yan that Pan Yuanwai of the Pan Household was renowned far and wide as a benevolent gentleman. But now, having witnessed the conduct of the Pan family firsthand, Qiu Yan could not help shaking his head. He understood a little more, then looked once again at Pan Rongniang on the bed.

Reporting this to the authorities is naturally useless. I know that well enough! Her soul has been seized. Unless it is brought back, she will never awaken! I wonder what background this Young Master Tang has, to be able to strip Rongniang's soul from her body! Such methods show that he is accomplished in Nature Cultivation's Soul Dao. He is no ordinary person!

P.S. I have something to do today, so there is only this one chapter.