Chapter 17: Women Thanks to the fan "Uneven Eyes" for the reward of the treasured sword, and gratitude to "Never Leave."

Chen Zhiqiang felt a bit wronged, but under the weight of Chen Yetian’s authority, he still slowly knelt down in the direction of Bai Ranhe and his daughter. He said, “Uncle Bai, I’m sorry. I failed to protect Xiaoli. I shouldn’t have gone to look for help first. Even if I couldn’t defeat that infant spirit, I should have gone down with it.”

Before Bai Ranhe could say a word, Chen Yetian slapped Chen Zhiqiang hard across the face, the crisp sound echoing along the riverbank. “You fool! If you haven’t mastered your skills, don’t go out messing with ghosts and spirits. You almost got your Xiaoli sister killed!”

Crying, Chen Zhiqiang said, “Grandpa, I was wrong. This stretch of riverbank is a path Xiaoli takes every day. I was just afraid that infant spirit would harm her, so I tried to deal with it...”

“Silence!” Chen Yetian raised his hand, ready to slap Chen Zhiqiang again, but Bai Ranhe quickly grabbed his arm. “Old Chen, let it go. Zhiqiang meant well. He just needs to be more careful next time.”

What a performance! I knew the grandfather and grandson were putting on a show for Bai Ranhe. After all, not only did Chen Zhiqiang fail to act impressive, but at the crucial moment, he abandoned Bai Xiaoli and ran. Only by acting out this little drama for Bai Ranhe could they minimize the damage.

“Xiaoli, this is a limited-edition lipstick I bought for you. Think of it as my apology.” Chen Zhiqiang took a lipstick out of his pocket, its packaging alone showing it was expensive.

But Bai Xiaoli wasn’t buying it. She just snorted coldly at Chen Zhiqiang and turned to leave, leaving him awkwardly kneeling there.

After exchanging a few words with Chen Yetian, Bai Ranhe hurried after his daughter. Once the Bai family had left, only Chen Yetian and his grandson remained by the riverbank.

Still fuming, Chen Yetian glared at Chen Zhiqiang. “Useless fool! Next time, even if it kills you, you must protect Bai Xiaoli. Do you understand?”

Chen Zhiqiang rubbed his stinging cheek and stood up. “Isn’t that a bit much? She’s just a woman. Even if she’s the richest man’s daughter, I can’t risk my life for her, can I?”

“Idiot! Do you realize that if Bai Xiaoli dies because of you, our family will be utterly destroyed?” Chen Yetian’s rebuke startled Chen Zhiqiang.

Hearing Chen Zhiqiang’s words, I was surprised too. The Bai family may be the wealthiest in Duhe City, but could they really wipe out the city’s top Feng Shui family? Or was their power even greater than I thought?

Chen Zhiqiang complained to Chen Yetian, “Grandpa, didn’t you say you’d already stripped the infant spirit of its mind? Why was it still so fierce?”

“That shouldn’t have happened—unless its body was taken over by another infant spirit’s consciousness... But why would it come after you specifically...” Chen Yetian frowned deeply.

I didn’t listen to the rest of their conversation. Instead, I swam straight home along the Yellow River. After wringing out my clothes, I fished out my keys to unlock the door. Strangely, a gentle push opened it. The door hadn’t been locked.

Had someone been here?

I was certain I’d locked it when I left. Glancing at the time, it was past midnight. It wasn’t a Saturday, so there was no way Pilin’er had come home. Had I been robbed?

I quickly checked the shop; nothing was missing. Only then did I feel a bit more at ease, though my confusion deepened. Was my memory faulty? Had I really forgotten to lock the door?

Yet I had a nagging feeling things weren’t so simple. I found a piece of hemp rope in the shop, mixed some cinnabar and dog’s blood, and twisted them into a red cord. I tied three knots—one at each end, one in the middle—and hung it above the door.

This was a soul-warding cord. With it there, no evil spirit could enter.

After all that, I was exhausted. I lay down to rest, thinking back over the day’s events. Bai Xiaoli was beautiful, clever, and quirky—exactly my type. After Chen Zhiqiang’s blunder and my own timely rescue, I’d gotten off to a strong start in pursuing her.

Perhaps I’d been thinking about it too much, because that night, I had a strange dream. A woman I’d never met appeared. She had a lovely face and wore a white dress, but beneath it were a pair of incongruous embroidered shoes—strangely eerie.

In the dream, the woman glared at me, furious, and berated me for being shameless: for getting her pregnant and shirking responsibility, for wanting to marry someone else.

Her anger grew, and she grabbed a pillow, pressing it over my face. “Heartless man!” she shouted. “You want to marry someone else? I’ll kill you and drag you down with me!”

I jolted awake. I’d been lying face-down on the pillow, my nose blocked, which explained the poor sleep and the nightmare. Not thinking much of it, I rolled over to go back to sleep. But then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw the cord above the door—now snapped in two, glinting in the moonlight.

The red cord broken—evil had entered.

A chill ran through me. I sat up straight, scanning the room intently.