Jiang Nuo glanced at the completely transformed manor, exclaimed, "Well, well!" and walked closer with an arm around Si Yan.
"This is a misunderstanding. We came specifically for the young master's birthday banquet. If you don't believe us, call Master Li out. He invited us."
The other guests: ?
Was that a thing? Why hadn't they heard about it?
Hearing this man correctly state their master's surname, the servants hesitated.
To be safe, they still sent someone inside to fetch him.
Jiang Nuo acted as though they were already old friends. He looked at the servant holding a gun and asked familiarly, "Brother, it's the young master's birthday today, but I imagine your madam isn't too happy."
"How did you know?!"
The man was a gossip too. He quickly told the men behind him to lower their weapons. Since this man even knew about something like that, he must know their employers.
"Let me tell you, our madam has been crying every day lately. We're puzzled too. We don't know what she's crying about."
Jiang Nuo leaned closer with an inscrutable air. "I also know your young master never seems to get enough to eat, and he only stops crying when his older sister holds him."
"Whoa! Incredible!"
Sure enough, it was a little ghost collecting a debt.
It looked like today wouldn't be peaceful.
Master Li came out with the servant, and both sides were startled.
"Oh my god..."
Yang Xiaoxiao covered her mouth, still feeling a lingering fear.
Wasn't this the old ghost?!
Jiang Nuo smiled and waved at Master Li. "Master Li, you specifically invited us to the banquet. How could you not come out to welcome us?"
This man had come far too quickly for this!
But... that was a good thing too.
Master Li smiled and pushed open the gate.
"Please come in."
His expression was sinister.
As though once they went inside, they would never come back out.
They stepped into the courtyard.
Although this was their second time taking this path, the guests only felt more frightened. The servants they saw everywhere were all ghosts.
Who wouldn't be scared?!
Tian Dong was the sole exception.
He noticed that after entering the manor, he felt increasingly energetic. Even his legs, which had still been aching faintly a moment ago, were fine now.
Yang Xiaoxiao also noticed that the stench coming from him had disappeared. Thinking perhaps she had imagined it, she didn't dwell on it.
The main courtyard bustled with activity. Many guests sat there, their faces all wearing the same wooden, rigid expressions.
Like puppets incapable of moving.
Opera singers warbled onstage. Although red silk hung everywhere, it looked like an absurd ghost opera.
A chill wind blew past, making all the guests shudder. The camera operators could only steel themselves and keep filming.
Jiang Nuo, however, adapted perfectly well, so he found an empty table and sat down. Naturally, the guests followed close behind, terrified of being left alone.
"Brother Jiang... how can we... get out of here?"
Yang Xiaoxiao asked him quietly, trembling with fear.
"Kill the life-claiming little ghost and broadcast the truth."
Jiang Nuo flashed a brilliant smile at the camera.
Otherwise, the ghost domain wouldn't allow the cameras to keep filming.
He patted the cameraman on the shoulder. "So, thank you all for your hard work."
"They're coming!" Chu Xiu hurriedly alerted the others.
The female ghost didn't have so much resentment yet. Madam Li looked utterly withered, frighteningly thin and pale, her knees buckling as she walked with the child in her arms.
Mr. Li, the male ghost they had seen before, also looked afflicted by a strange illness. His Zhongshan suit hung so loosely on him that it resembled a cloak.
Yet the child in her arms was fair and plump, with rosy cheeks, darting eyes, and a lively smile.
Like a ghost doll.
The moment the banquet guests saw the child, they began showering him with praise, as though they had suddenly received some command.
Then they began criticizing Madam Li for being too frail, questioning whether she could raise the child to adulthood.
The child seemed to understand and immediately began bawling.
His cries were shrill and piercing.
Everyone present began shedding tears, as though they felt his pain.
"Hurry up and feed him milk! Don't just stand there!"
One banquet guest urged loudly.
The nanny hurried over with a bowl of milk, but it was barely half full, nowhere near enough.
"If there isn't enough milk, mix in blood!"
Someone else shouted.
The guests looked over in astonishment. What kind of thing was that to say?!
"Yes! Mix in blood! It has to be blood from his closest kin!"
The banquet guests began clamoring.
The nanny obediently went to the kitchen for a knife and handed it to Madam Li as though this were routine.
"It's not enough again, Madam. It's never enough."
The nanny held out the bowl to catch it.
Holding the knife, Madam Li cast a haunting glance at the camera.
As though she were saying:
Do you see? This is the truth.
Everyone on the other side of the camera shuddered.
Oh my god, I'm going to have nightmares tonight! This is terrifying!
Waaah, this is so awful! Jiang Nuo just said it was a life-claiming little ghost. What sins did this family commit?!
Damn that scriptwriter! What kind of garbage plot is this?!
"Jiang... Jiang Nuo, aren't we going to do anything?" Chu Xiu asked timidly.
Seeing Madam Li slit her wrist to draw blood, she scrunched up her face, unable to bear watching.
Lin Yu also fell silent, truly unable to understand how things had turned out like this.
"It's not time yet."
Holding Si Yan, Jiang Nuo watched the scene with keen interest, as though enjoying a good show.
Yet his gaze met that of the little ghost in the swaddling clothes, and he gave a faint, provocative smile.
"This little ghost really is... cute."
The little ghost bared his teeth at him, looking utterly vicious.
Jiang Nuo pulled a face right back.
Suddenly, someone pinched his cheek. He looked down at the person in his arms with wide eyes. "What are you doing?"
Si Yan's condition had improved considerably, but he still refused to leave his arms. He barely used any strength to pinch his cheek.
"Nuonuo is cute too."
Jiang Nuo blinked.
He grabbed Si Yan's hand and dumped him into the empty seat beside him. "If you're better, sit by yourself."
That single "Nuonuo" gave Jiang Nuo goosebumps all over.
Si Yan: "..."
He glared at the little ghost in the swaddling clothes onstage.
This is all your fault.
Inexplicably glared at again, the little ghost looked even more vicious. He opened his mouth, snapping rows of densely packed, deathly white teeth at Si Yan as though threatening him.
Si Yan rolled his eyes.
Ugly thing.
The madam onstage had already filled the entire bowl with blood, which mixed with the milk. The nanny brought it to the little ghost's mouth, and he all but lunged to drink it.
The more he drank, the paler Madam Li became.
Yet the relatives below grew increasingly rosy, as though the drink had gone into their stomachs instead.
"Heeheeheeheehee!"
Having drunk his fill of blood, the little ghost patted his belly and demanded that his older sister hold him, babbling constantly toward the corner.
The little girl in the corner stepped out.
She wore a little Western-style dress, her mouth stretched into an enormous grin. Tilting her head, she smiled at the guests, her eyes like black grapes without any whites.
"Hello. Hurry up and eat. The food is delicious."
Her voice was eerie too, like fingernails scraping across glass, sending a chill through everyone who heard it.
The moment she finished speaking, a spread of food suddenly appeared on the previously empty round table.
Every dish looked, smelled, and tasted enticing, but they were all meat dishes.
The banquet guests ate with grease coating their mouths. Some even reached out and grabbed the food with their hands.
Strangely, the guests suddenly began to feel hungry.
"Can we... eat this?"
Tian Dong stared covetously at the meat on the table, almost drooling.
Although he asked, he had no intention of waiting for an answer and reached straight out to grab a large chunk of meat.
Then he began wolfing it down.
Jiang Nuo glanced at the others. "You want to eat too?"
Chu Xiu nodded, utterly lacking in self-control.