Chapter 88: Meeting Again

I was startled as well and turned toward the doorway. Bai Xiaoli came rushing in, wearing a long red dress, her face etched with anxiety. The moment she saw me with a bandage wrapped around my neck, she looked so panicked she was on the verge of tears.

“Yang Xi, what happened to you? I kept calling you, but you never answered. I was worried sick.”

I stumbled back in alarm too, and it was only when I saw Granny Wan behind Bai Xiaoli that I finally confirmed the person in front of me really was her.

“Yang Xi, what happened to your neck? Let me look.”

Not noticing anything wrong with me, Bai Xiaoli threw her arms around my neck. A faint, delicate fragrance drifted from her body, something the female ghost before had not possessed.

“Wait, she’s not the ghost?” At last, Lu Jiu also sensed something amiss. After sizing Bai Xiaoli up and down, a look of confusion spread across her face.

When Bai Xiaoli heard Lu Jiu’s words, a flash of resentment crossed her expression. Clenching her fist, she said, “It was that ghost who hurt you, wasn’t it? Tell me what she looks like, and I’ll avenge you.”

I froze for a moment, looking at Bai Xiaoli. From the way she was acting, it seemed she had learned a great deal from Granny Wan over the past few days, and even her words carried a bit more confidence.

Lu Jiu was just about to say that the ghost looked exactly like Bai Xiaoli, but before she could finish, I stopped her. I comforted Bai Xiaoli and said, “It’s all right. That ghost has already been dealt with by this Daoist Master Lu, so nothing will happen.”

Only then did Bai Xiaoli notice Lu Jiu. She quickly thanked her and even insisted on paying her. This time, Lu Jiu had surprisingly shed her usual money-grubbing demeanor. I knew she did not dare accept Bai Xiaoli’s money. After all, the millennia-old female ghost looked exactly like Bai Xiaoli; if she took Bai Xiaoli’s money, Lu Jiu feared that ghost might haunt her.

Throughout all this, Granny Wan remained standing silently at the doorway, lost in thought about something.

With red-rimmed eyes, Bai Xiaoli looked at my pale face and said, “Yang Xi, why don’t you come stay at my place? I’m afraid some evil thing will set its sights on you again. My home is on a site chosen by your grandfather; no malign spirit can get in or cause trouble. Besides, we’re going to get married anyway. I’ll tell my father later.”

I knew Bai Xiaoli cared about me deeply, but there was no way I would move into the Bai family home. So I quickly shook my head and pulled Lu Jiu over, saying, “It’s fine. This is a Daoist priest from the Pure Brightness Path, and he’s staying with me. With him here, no evil spirit will dare come in.”

Bai Xiaoli fell silent for a long while before saying, “All right then. I’m sorry to trouble you, Daoist Master.” She looked at Lu Jiu and spoke sincerely.

Lu Jiu, who was usually full of nonsense, was so frightened in Bai Xiaoli’s presence that she did not dare utter a word. She merely nodded, said, “You two talk,” and seized the chance to slip outside, where she stood with Granny Wan.

After that, Bai Xiaoli stayed and chatted with me for a while, telling me that over these days she had learned a great deal from Granny Wan about rites for summoning the departed, as well as some feng shui and occult techniques, and that from now on she would no longer be afraid of being bullied by others. Then she told me how much she was looking forward to the day we would be married.

Before I knew it, it was already deep into the night. Seeing that I was growing sleepy, Bai Xiaoli told me to rest well. She had originally wanted to stay with me, but I refused, saying that since we were not yet married, we could not spend the night together. Only then did Bai Xiaoli leave.

After Bai Xiaoli went out, Granny Wan came in. With a face full of tenderness, she touched my cheek and asked, “Child, does it hurt?”

Her eyes were filled with kindness, and it warmed me deeply. I shook my head and said it was much better now.

Granny Wan turned to glance behind her. Bai Xiaoli was still chatting with Lu Jiu, and then I heard Granny Wan ask, “The one who wanted your life was a female ghost who looked exactly like Bai Xiaoli, wasn’t it?”

I froze and stared blankly at Granny Wan. From her expression, it seemed she knew that ghost. So I asked, “Granny Wan, you know her, don’t you? What exactly is she? Why doesn’t she want me to be with Bai Xiaoli?”