Even now, talking about it still gave Jiang Zhong goosebumps.
"It was a little girl's crying. Two nights later... when the servants were cleaning, they found children's footprints on the walls. They were filthy, and there was human blood on them."
"Grandma said something unclean might have gotten into the house, and that we should bring someone in to exorcise it, but..."
At this point, Jiang Zhong suddenly glanced at the nanny, who averted her eyes. His voice grew cold. "She was the one who talked Grandma out of it. She absolutely refused to let anyone come in and investigate."
The nanny shrank back again at his words, rubbing her hands as she defended herself. "No, I just thought the old madam was being a little superstitious. Maybe the cleaning just hadn't been done properly."
"Really?" Jiang Zhong sneered, pressing her further. "Then why did all sorts of inexplicable paper toys start appearing in the house afterward? Why did images of our deaths flash in the mirrors?"
He looked at Jiang Nuo, his tone grave. "I discovered that. At midnight, the mirrors would start flashing. Sometimes they showed us looking as we would in death, even Grandma. But never the nanny."
Jiang Nuo nodded in understanding and gave an "Oh."
"That really is pretty eerie."
He studied the nanny thoughtfully, raising an eyebrow, but said nothing.
Xu Tian felt as though she were listening to some outlandish fantasy. None of this could possibly happen, so why did everyone here seem completely unsurprised?
Ghosts and all that simply didn't exist.
Her gaze swept around the reception room. There was clearly nothing there. These people had to be putting on an act!
She cast a sidelong look at Si Yan, feeling displeased.
She hadn't expected such a famous award-winning actor to play along with a flop like Jiang Nuo. He really didn't care about his reputation at all.
What's with that look on Xu Tian's face?? I don't get it. What's she doing?
LMAO, does she think this is fake? She'll be crying when the ghosts show up.
Could Jiang Tong's resentment have been so strong after he died that it attracted a bunch of ghosts? What they're describing doesn't sound like something one ghost could do.
Then why is the nanny the only one who hasn't been targeted? That's really weird...
The livestream viewers couldn't figure it out, and neither could several of the people present.
Si Yan glanced out the window, which faced the rear lawn and courtyard. The landscaping was quite beautiful.
"Nuonuo, the yin energy over there is very strong."
He spoke softly to Jiang Nuo, practically whispering into his ear.
The robotic bee failed to pick up that sentence at all.
Jiang Nuo followed his gaze, his eyes immediately narrowing slightly as a flicker of interest crossed their depths.
Then he looked back at Si Yan, his voice rather less quiet.
"Scared?"
Si Yan answered immediately. "Yes. Nuonuo has to protect me."
"Cough, cough, cough...!"
Wang Ping nearly choked to death on his water. He quickly pulled out a few tissues to wipe his mouth and gave the others an apologetic smile.
"Sorry, that was careless of me."
"Let's go take a look, then."
Jiang Nuo turned to Jiang Zhong. "Does anyone live in the back courtyard?"
"Yes. That's where Tongtong lived before he died."
Jiang Zhong stood up immediately. It was getting dark now, and he was a little worried. "Grandma, you should go rest."
"No, no. I can't sleep peacefully anyway. All my dreams are about Tongtong. I'd rather come along and find out what's going on."
Old Madam Jiang rejected the suggestion and followed behind the others, supported by Jiang Zhong.
Jiang Nuo hadn't finished his hot tea, so he simply carried it along, taking an occasional sip. He looked like he was on a sightseeing visit, without the slightest tension.
The moment they stepped into the courtyard, a cold, sinister chill swept over them.
Before them stood bamboo enclosed by a small fence. To the right was a stream built with landscaping rocks. Its source was probably running water diverted in from outside the villa.
A little bridge spanned it, making for an elegant sight, but the bamboo's position clashed directly with the direction of the stream's flow. Anyone walking onto the bridge could easily disappear beneath the tall bamboo.
To the east lay a dense bamboo grove, with no enclosing wall, stretching all the way beyond the villa's garden.
As a result, not only could sunlight not reach the area, but anyone who wasn't careful could fall into the water.
"The water flows sluggishly, gathering qi without letting it circulate. This is truly terrible feng shui."
Wang Ping sighed repeatedly. Worried that he might have misread it, he checked several times, but the result was the same.
"Well... Mr. Jiang Zhong, has your courtyard always been like this?"
That shouldn't have been the case. Although this family was now surrounded by death energy, their fate was one of great wealth and status. How could their home have feng shui like this?
"No. We changed the layout at the beginning of this year. The rockery used to be at the other end of the bridge, and the bamboo grove was fenced off too. Tongtong said he wanted to look at the bamboo while painting, so we opened a path."
Jiang Zhong spoke as he recalled it, then asked, "Is there something wrong with this bamboo grove?"
Wang Ping glanced at Jiang Nuo. Seeing no sign that he intended to speak, he continued explaining.
"This should originally have been fairly good feng shui, but the bamboo grove and the end of the bridge are in the wrong positions. Sunlight can't reach it either, so it suppresses the vitality of the people here instead. The courtyard is clearly spacious, but this particular spot feels incredibly cramped, with faint signs of stagnant qi."
Jiang Zhong and the others only half understood his explanation and couldn't quite follow it.
Jiang Nuo took another sip from his teacup and said quietly, "He means your courtyard has too much yin energy. It attracts ghosts easily."
That explanation was much easier to understand.
Jiang Zhong sucked in a breath.
"You're talking nonsense!"
Daoist Priest Hu suddenly offered a different opinion. He flicked his sleeve with a cold snort and stroked his beard, casting a sidelong look at Jiang Nuo.
"Water nourishes all things, and bamboo gathers qi. These are clearly signs of good feng shui!"
"You young brat, you really haven't got any skills at all. All you know is how to parrot others! You'd throw away your dignity for money!"
Jiang Nuo tilted his head at him.
He flung the tea in his hand, still hot enough to scald his mouth, straight at him.
Daoist Priest Hu cried out as it scalded him and stared at Jiang Nuo in disbelief. "What are you doing?! Are you insane?!"
Si Yan's phoenix eyes narrowed abruptly as he glanced at Daoist Priest Hu.
No one had expected this turn of events. Jiang Zhong had nearly been caught in it too, only avoiding it by dodging quickly.
Everyone's gaze settled on Jiang Nuo.
Jiang Nuo slowly smiled. "Don't insult me. I get angry easily."
I'm dying, hahahahaha! Well done, God Nuo!
Sweating bullets now, haters?!
Does Jiang Nuo have mania?! He's seriously sick! I'm gonna puke!
Heh, so he's threatening the audience now?! Who does Jiang Nuo think he is?!
Anyone who hasn't maliciously insulted him naturally has nothing to worry about. You're so nervous, commenter above. Did he hit a nerve?~
In the end, Old Madam Jiang put a stop to the farce. She glanced with displeasure at the blustering Daoist Priest Hu, privately thinking, How could that Daoist priest be so impetuous? He has no composure at all.
Still smiling, Jiang Nuo pointed to the empty space in front of the bamboo. "Put a mirror there in a bit. It has to be a full-length mirror."
"Why?" Jiang Zhong asked instinctively.