Chen Zi was playing with the newly acquired antique in his hand. After wiping it clean, he carefully placed it in the showcase.
He had never been interested in metaphysical culture. Hearing what was said, he just nodded perfunctorily at Zhu Hui.
"Let's talk about it later. I've just found an old porcelain figurine. I'm going to pick it up tomorrow." He paused for a moment, his eyes falling on Zhu Hui's slightly puffy face. "Instead of focusing on these useless ghost stories, you'd better manage your figure. Since you don't go to work and stay at home all day, you should have plenty of time to exercise. You know, your figure wasn't like this when we first got married."
Zhu Hui was taken aback and swallowed back the words she was about to say. She silently pursed her lips.
...
Inside the Qingxin Taoist Temple, Zhu Hui looked at the young master in front of her in surprise.
Yu Nian smiled kindly. "What do you seek, Madam?"
Zhu Hui's lips were dry. She looked at Feng Chengyuan and the others beside Yu Nian with some embarrassment.
Yu Nian understood. After exchanging a look with Feng Chengyuan, Feng Chengyuan led Ming Mingzhong and He Zhiping out and gently closed the door behind him.
Only then did Zhu Hui heave a sigh of relief.
"Master, do you have any talismans that can help people lose weight? I don't know what's wrong with me these days. I've been controlling my diet and I'm so hungry that I feel dizzy, but my weight is still increasing rapidly."
Yu Nian carefully observed Zhu Hui. Her limbs were still slender, but only her face was puffy.
Yu Nian noticed the diamond ring on Zhu Hui's left ring finger and asked, "Miss Zhu, what do you and your husband do for a living?"
"My husband and I were classmates in college. We both majored in literature. But he is very interested in antiques. After graduation, he became an antique collector. And I... became a full - time housewife, taking care of his daily life."
Yu Nian frowned. "Antiques?"
Zhu Hui nodded, a hint of bitterness flashing in her eyes.
"My husband is so obsessed with antiques. Every day when he comes home from work, he spends much more time with antiques than with me."
Yu Nian nodded thoughtfully. He placed two fingers on Zhu Hui's right middle finger and his eyes darkened.
Zhu Hui looked puzzled. "Master, what are you doing?"
"The middle finger has three joints. The root represents gods, the middle joint represents immortals, and the tip represents ghosts. I was just checking your ghost pulse. The pulse at the tip of your finger is beating erratically. You must have encountered something evil. Come with me."
Zhu Hui followed Yu Nian blankly into a quiet room in the backyard of the Taoist temple. The moment the door closed, Zhu Hui suddenly felt a chill running down her back.
Before she could react, Yu Nian slapped a talisman on her shoulder. After a few soft "hissing" sounds, a wisp of sticky hair fell onto Zhu Hui's neck.
Zhu Hui was stunned. She felt a cold gaze staring straight at her, making her legs feel as heavy as lead and unable to move.
Zhu Hui turned her head tremblingly. A female ghost with a hideous smile was sitting firmly on her shoulder and neck, staring down at her.
The moment the female ghost locked eyes with Zhu Hui, she let out a strange "ho ho ho" laugh. Pieces of flesh on her face kept falling off as she trembled. The whole ghost was in a mess, with half of her intestines hanging out, swaying in the wind.
Zhu Hui's pupils suddenly dilated. She let out a shrill scream and desperately beat herself in an attempt to break free from the female ghost.
Yu Nian grabbed Zhu Hui's arm and whispered, "Don't be afraid."
Zhu Hui's panicked expression successfully pleased the female ghost. Her scarlet eyes sparkled with excitement. She reached out her hand to strangle Zhu Hui's neck. "Wow ya ya - give me your life -"
But before the female ghost could finish her sentence, a slender hand accurately grabbed her by the back of the neck and yanked her off Zhu Hui's neck.
The movement was so skillful and swift that neither Zhu Hui nor the female ghost had time to react.
The stinking smell from the female ghost wafted in the air. A look of disgust flashed across Yu Nian's face.
"When was the last time you took a bath?"
Female ghost:???
She was not an ordinary ghost, but a century - old powerful ghost attached to a bronze mirror. This mortal not only grabbed her so roughly but also dared to despise her?
Just as the female ghost was about to get angry, Yu Nian slapped a yellow talisman on her. The female ghost cried out in pain. Her body had stiffened, and only her neck could still move.
The female ghost was still not willing to give up. She raised her head to bite Yu Nian, but Yu Nian neatly rolled her into a ball and finally tied a bow with her intestines.
Yu Nian picked up the female ghost like a gift and held her out in front of Zhu Hui.
Zhu Hui waved her hand in a daze. "I don't want it."
Female ghost:...
Seeing the female ghost being beaten up by Yu Nian, Zhu Hui's initial fear turned into joy of surviving a disaster.
For some reason, she suddenly felt that ghosts were not so scary anymore.
Yu Nian said calmly, "You haven't really gained weight. It's all the female ghost's doing. She has been lying on you all day, interfering with your magnetic field, which has led to the disorder of your weight."
Zhu Hui looked puzzled. "But I have no grudge against this ghost. Why does she haunt me?"
"This may have something to do with your husband. Think carefully. Has he ever collected anything like a bronze mirror?"
Zhu Hui was taken aback. "My husband did collect a bronze mirror some time ago. He wipes it every day like a treasure..."
Yu Nian nodded. "This female ghost has been dead for a long time. The bronze mirror is where her soul is attached. You should know more about antiques than I do. The antique market is always in a chaotic state. There are not only fake goods everywhere but also many things of unknown origin. Just like this bronze mirror. In ancient folk burial ceremonies, people had the custom of using bronze mirrors to suppress the four corners of the coffin bed. While the bronze mirror can ward off evil spirits, it also suppresses the soul of the tomb owner. The longer the tomb owner is trapped, the stronger the resentment will be, and finally the soul will be attached to the mirror. After a long - term change of eras, these evil things are resold by tomb robbers and put on the antique market. People who can't tell the difference buy these antiques home. Instead of protecting the house, these things will bring disasters."
Zhu Hui's face turned deathly pale. "Master, now that the female ghost has been captured, am I safe?"
Yu Nian looked at Zhu Hui's bluish eye sockets and the faint aura of bad luck around her and said calmly, "Not yet."
"... What?"
"The antiques your husband bought should all be from tomb robbers. They are of unknown origin and evil. The magnetic field in your home has been disrupted. Although only some minor and annoying unlucky things have happened to you so far, one day, these things will endanger your lives."
Zhu Hui was stunned. Thinking of the row of antiques in the cabinet at home, she suddenly felt cold all over.
"Master, what should I do?"
"Find a geomantically - auspicious place and bury them."
Zhu Hui nodded, but then her expression darkened as if she had thought of something. After a while, she dialed Chen Zi's phone number.
After a long ring, the phone was finally answered.
Chen Zi's tone was impatient. "Why are you calling suddenly? I'm busy."
Feeling Yu Nian's gaze, Zhu Hui lowered her head shyly. After she told Chen Zi what had just happened, there came two cold laughs from the other end of the phone.
"What nonsense! Zhu Hui, are you going crazy staying at home all day? Don't you know how much money and effort I've put into antiques? If you really think the home is not a good place, just go back to your mother's for a few days. Stop making so many excuses!"
After a "beep" sound, the phone was hung up.
Zhu Hui slumped her shoulders, at a loss.
Yu Nian reached out and patted her on the back and said calmly, "Don't go home for now. Stay in the Qingxin Taoist Temple for the time being. Don't worry. He will come crying and begging for you soon."
Zhu Hui was stunned. "Master, why are you so sure?"
Yu Nian picked up the teacup on the table and took a sip. With a gentle smile, he said, "No matter how much people try to teach, it may be in vain, but life experiences will teach a lesson that one will never forget."