Chapter 245: Chapter 245: Evil Ghost (5)
Lady took a sip of tea from Nanny Fang’s hand, leaned back on the pillow, and said in bewilderment, "...I clearly heard it just now." Nanny Fang laughed and said, "Though the mansion can’t be said to have tight security, the maids patrol seven or eight times a night. If there really were such sounds, something must have happened, and someone should have come to report it to you by now!"
Lady thought this made some sense and nodded. Nanny Fang said, "Why don’t you get some more sleep? It’s not yet dawn." As she spoke, she helped Lady lie down again. Just as Lady closed her eyes, the face of Aunt Liu, who died in childbirth ten years ago, appeared before her. With her hair down, she wore the pink jacket she wore when carried into the mansion, tears streaming down her face as she reached out to her, crying, "Madam, the servant and Fourth Young Master have come to pay respects to you."
Lady’s eyes moved from her to her feet, and sure enough, she saw Aunt Liu holding a child. But the child had no hands or feet, hovering halfway in the air, floating towards her... a face as pale as paper, without any features, only a pair of hollow eyes, like an endless abyss sucking her whole being in...
She screamed and threw the tea cup in her hand, and the scene shifted to become Madam Wang. She ate lard-mixed rice every day, and the once enchanting figure was now as thick as a barrel, with delicate features buried in layers of fat. Only small slits of eyes looked at her, not with a smile but with a murderous fury. Madam Wang dragged her fat body out of nowhere, brandished a sharp knife, and stabbed her in the chest...
"Help!" Lady shouted and woke up from the dream, realizing it was just a dream. Still frightened, she clutched her chest, her inner garments drenched...
The next day, Third Miss, Fourth Miss, and Eighth Miss came to Zhui Garden to pay respects, except Sixth Miss. Lady asked Daihe, "Why didn’t Sixth Miss come?"
Daihe smiled and replied, "Chunyan came early in the morning to say that Sixth Miss was startled last night and came down with a high fever this morning, so she specifically came to tell you." Lady nodded and didn’t think much of it, but after speaking, Daihe murmured to herself, "I didn’t hear any sounds. Why did only Sixth Miss hear it?"
Lady was startled and called Daihe back, "What are you muttering to yourself about?" Daihe turned around, hesitating for a long time, unsure if she should speak, and Nanny Fang furrowed her brows, "Lady is asking you something."
Daihe, head lowered, replied, "Chunyan said that last night in the middle of the night, Sixth Miss heard strange screams in the courtyard, which were so terrifying, so... Sixth Miss might have been scared and fell ill this morning." After a pause, she added, "I found it strange too. I got up to use the toilet in the middle of the night and didn’t hear any sounds."
Lady’s expression changed, and even Nanny Fang felt her heart skip a beat, scolding Daihe, "What nonsense, where would screams come from in a good courtyard? Sixth Miss must have heard wrong last night!" Lady, however, gestured for Nanny Fang to stop talking, her face full of fear and unease.
Tong Xiyan saw Lady like this and went forward to hold her hand, "Mother, what’s wrong? If you’re worried about Sixth Sister, I’ll go see her in a while and call a doctor back if she’s seriously ill." Sixth Sister was supposed to sleep in her room last night, but after leaving Lady’s place, neither of them felt like talking and went back to their rooms separately. How did she suddenly fall ill overnight?!
Lady seemed not to hear Tong Xiyan’s words, her eyes blankly staring at the beam overhead, her expression somewhat distorted...
Everyone saw Lady like this, all wearing puzzled expressions.
That night, Lady was the same again, waking up from a dream just like the previous night. She sat up in shock, grabbed Nanny Fang’s hand, and instructed, "Quickly, go check on Sixth Miss’s place quietly so as not to alarm others!" Nanny Fang, having followed Lady for so many years, understood her meaning, quickly got dressed and, without as much as lighting a lantern, hurried to Zhiqu Courtyard with two young maids.
Zhiqu Courtyard was also brightly lit. Chunyan and Sixing were bustling in and out with hot water and dirty clothes, and Sixth Miss’s cries could be heard from the room... Nanny Fang quietly observed, breaking into a sweat... Could it be that Sixth Miss and Lady had the same dream?
Nanny Fang stumbled back to Zhui Garden, where Lady anxiously asked her, and Nanny Fang said, "The courtyard is chaotic, and the maids are bustling around in their nightclothes fetching and carrying, even taking out soiled garments... Sixth Miss seems to have been genuinely scared."
Lady furrowed her brows tightly, clutching Nanny Fang’s hand, "Bring your bedding and sleep with me!" Nanny Fang nodded solemnly, went out, brought her bedding, and laid it on the footrail beside the bed, falling asleep in her clothes.
In the morning, Sixth Miss indeed did not come to pay respects, with Chunyan bringing the message again. Lady, pale, leaned against the bed, feeling as if all strength had been drained from her body, as Nanny Fang sat by the bedside, "Lady, I wonder if... we should invite Master Puning to come over?"
Lady pondered for a moment and finally nodded, "Yes, things haven’t been going well in the mansion lately. Having her over would give us some peace of mind." Nanny Fang nodded and arranged for a few maids, planning to run to Puji Temple today, but unexpectedly, Nanny Cai from the second gate rushed in saying, "Nanny Fang, Master Puning is here. She said she was passing by our mansion and came to see Lady."
Nanny Fang’s face lit up with joy, and she hurried out to greet Master Puning personally. Master Puning, still in her gray nun robes, saluted Nanny Fang and said, "I passed by your mansion and came over on purpose to have a look." Nanny Fang smiled and stepped aside, walking alongside Master Puning along the path, "To be honest, I was just about to send the maids to Puji Temple to invite you over."
"Oh?" Master Puning’s eyes flashed as she asked, "What matters require my presence?!" Nanny Fang waved away the little maids following behind, looked around, and in a low voice described how Lady had suddenly fallen ill, plagued by nightmares at night, and how Sixth Miss was also frightened: "It’s been like this for two consecutive nights!"
Master Puning’s expression changed, and she solemnly looked around before grasping her Buddhist Dust, not hurrying to Zhui Garden, but quickly making her way to the garden, standing on the central axis of Tong Mansion, calculating with her fingers. Seeing Nanny Fang’s puzzled expression, she asked, "Master, have you discovered anything?"
Master Puning’s expression was grave, furrowing her brows, "I fear it is not something unclean, but that Lady and Sixth Miss are being haunted by an evil ghost!"
Nanny Fang was shocked but puzzled. With so many people in the mansion, why were only Lady and Sixth Miss haunted by the evil ghost? As the thought crossed her mind, she heard Master Puning say, "Take me to Lady’s room for a tour!"