Three days had passed, and this wandering ghost had been haunting them for the entire three days.
Since they entered the next level, from dawn till dusk, without a moment's respite, this ghost had taken great delight in playing tricks on the three of them.
The trouble was that this ghost was extremely sly. It only did some childish things like pulling their hair or stepping on their feet, and then disappeared without a trace. By the time they tried to catch it, it was already too late.
Once, they finally managed to catch it. Just as Nian Nian was about to get rid of this ghost, she found that she couldn't.
This wandering ghost wasn't afraid of any talismans.
Later, they noticed that there was a faint glow of merit shining on the ghost.
Killing a ghost like this would incur the wrath of heaven.
So for this level, they had only one option, which was to negotiate with this ghost to send them to the next level.
But no matter how they communicated with it, the ghost remained tight - lipped.
It just loved playing tricks on them.
After three days, the three of them simply let it be.
They could only wait patiently, hoping that the ghost would speak up on its own.
"Can you just get out of here?"
Zhang Zicheng couldn't bear it any longer and roared.
This was already the third time he had tried to light a fire with his lighter.
They were human beings and they needed to eat!
Every time he took out his lighter to heat up the food, this ghost would come over and blow out the flame.
It repeated this again and again, enjoying itself.
Even the most good - tempered person would be grinding their teeth in anger by now.
The ghost knew it had done something wrong. It looked at Zhang Zicheng pitifully, like a child who had broken an adult's thing.
After being yelled at, it scurried away in a flash, whining about why the other person had been so mean to it as it ran.
It was just too curious. The clothes these three people wore and the things they took out were all so strange, things it had never seen before.
That's why it couldn't help but get closer.
Zhang Zicheng was utterly speechless looking at the ghost's behavior.
It was just an ordinary wandering ghost, but it could be so much of a headache.
Finally, the food was heated up.
The ghost's eyes were glued to the delicious - looking food, but ghosts couldn't eat.
It could only look at the three of them pitifully.
It stared at them until they felt extremely uncomfortable, and then said, "I want to eat too."
"You can't eat this kind of food. I've got another portion. I'll stick a talisman on it, and then you can eat it."
Xiao Tuan Zi thought this wandering ghost in front of her was a bit pitiful.
She didn't know why, but she just felt sorry for it.
Overwhelmed by compassion, Nian Nian took out a few more dishes from her small satchel, stuck a talisman on each plate, and placed them in front of the ghost.
"Hehe! Thank you!"
After a good meal, both the three of them and the ghost were very happy.
Looking at the satisfied - looking ghost, Shen Weixun asked helplessly, "What on earth do you want us to do so that you'll send us out?"
"Send you to the next level? It's not impossible, but I have a wish."
"Then just say it quickly!"
Zhang Zicheng almost gritted his teeth as he said this.
It was so annoying that the ghost had been so fussy for three whole days without stating its conditions earlier.
"Actually, it's nothing much. You know, I died so suddenly. I was hit by a carriage and flew out. And then I was gone."
The ghost rambled on and on.
"I get it. You want us to find the person who drove the carriage and avenge you!?"
Zhang Zicheng didn't have the patience to listen to its rambling and quickly interrupted.
"No, I don't want revenge. I'm already dead. Why should I drag the person who's living a good life over to accompany me?" The ghost shook its head and said.
"Then what on earth do you want?"
Zhang Zicheng was speechless again.
Negotiating with this wandering ghost was really the most difficult problem he had ever encountered.
Shen Weixun said nothing. Nian Nian blinked her big, curious eyes and watched the man and the ghost.
Just listening to them made them feel exhausted, so they both tacitly chose to keep quiet and pushed the problem onto Zhang Zicheng.
"It's just that although I'm dead, I don't want the people around me to be sad, especially my mother. I was wondering if you could pretend to be me and take care of my mother until the day she dies and give her a proper burial."
The ghost grinned sheepishly and said.
"You should have said so earlier. It's just such a small thing. I thought it was something really big the way you were being so secretive."
Zhang Zicheng rolled his eyes and said.
"But we don't look like you, and you're already dead. How can we pretend to be you?"
Shen Weixun pointed out the crucial point.
"You don't need to worry about this. I've already mastered the method to control the rules of this space. The time in this space has been frozen on the day I died. My mother doesn't know that I'm dead. She's still waiting for me to go back at home."
The ghost said proudly.
Shen Weixun raised his eyebrows. He didn't expect this most unremarkable wandering ghost to have such great abilities. Then he asked, "Your mother can't be so confused that she can't even recognize her own son, can she?"
"Hehe, you know, this space is just a pre - set small world. My mother here isn't really my real mother. I can tamper with her memories. Although she's not my real mother, I still want to love and be filial to her."
The ghost scratched its head and explained.
"But we don't have that much time to waste with you. We need to go to the next level as soon as possible. Who knows how long it will take to accompany your mother until she dies? This condition is a bit too much."
"You don't need to worry about this. For you, this will just be a momentary thing. I'll speed up the passage of time in this space. You just need to accompany her."
It seemed that this wandering ghost had mastered the control of its territory to a very high level.
Since it wouldn't waste their own time, the three of them naturally had no objections.
"Okay, we agree to your condition. You pick someone to play your role."
Shen Weixun nodded and said.
"It's him."
The ghost pointed at Zhang Zicheng. With this strange combination of a little girl, a young boy, and an adult man, it didn't have much of a choice.
It couldn't possibly choose the little girl or that young boy who clearly wasn't of the right age and looked inexperienced.
The gazes of the two people and the ghost all turned to Zhang Zicheng.
Since the ghost had specifically chosen him, Zhang Zicheng could only nod in agreement.
The unlucky second senior brother had officially appeared on the scene.
Just giving an old woman a proper burial wasn't a difficult thing. It wasn't a problem for him.
The ghost happily led the three of them out. Along the way, it rambled on and on, telling them every little detail of its time with its mother and some small details of daily life. It repeated these things several times, afraid that Zhang Zicheng would slip up.
"Okay, we're here. This is my home!"
The ghost put its hands on its hips and said cheerfully as it looked at the small thatched cottage in front of them.
The thatched cottage looked very small. There was a small yard surrounded by a fence. Inside the yard, there were a few small vegetable plots with lush green vegetables growing on them. A gentle breeze blew by, making the whole scene seem very peaceful.
"Go in quickly. Mother has been waiting for a long time." The ghost smiled and gave Zhang Zicheng a push, sending him into the yard.
Creak! The old wooden door made a harsh sound. A kind and gentle voice came from inside the thatched cottage, "Is that, Zhu Zi?"
"Eh, Mother! I'm back." Zhang Zicheng was stunned for a moment before he realized that the voice was calling him. He quickly replied.
"Come in quickly. What are you standing there for, being silly?" The woman came out of the thatched cottage and greeted him with a smile.
The ghost's mother looked a bit old. There was a thick layer of calluses on her hands, which clearly showed the marks of long - term hard work.
Zhang Zicheng was led into the thatched cottage by the ghost's mother. The cottage was very warm and clean. Even though the furnishings in the room were old and a bit shabby, they were spotless, which showed that the owner had taken good care of them.
"Go and wash your hands and come and eat. After dinner, go and read books. Try to do well in the provincial examination in a few days."
The mother was stirring something in the big iron pot. She scooped up the dinner with a ladle and placed it on the table. While taking good care of her son, she couldn't help but nag at him.
"Mother, let me help you."
Zhang Zicheng reached out his hand, wanting to do some housework. After all, he had promised to be filial to this old woman and give her a proper burial, so he wanted to do his best.
Before Zhang Zicheng's hand could reach the rag, the woman casually blocked it. She mumbled, "Eh, a gentleman should stay away from the kitchen. How can I let you do this kind of thing? Hurry up and eat and then read your books well. If you get a good reputation in the exam, your mother will surely enjoy a good life."
"Eh, okay."
Zhang Zicheng saw the ghost floating in from outside. It winked at him and shook its head. He roughly understood what it meant, so he didn't insist anymore.