C52 (1/2)
On the morning of the next day, Zhang Nan drove Wang Zili's car and arrived at Zhangze Town alone.
The Zhangze Town was located in the suburbs, and the development and construction of the house were quite backward. Zhang Nan who was used to living in big cities had his eyes on the old houses on the ground, and the feeling of it returned to thirty years ago. He casually found an empty seat, parked his car, and followed Cheng Qiuna's instructions to go to Xu Juan's home.
Along the way, people passing by would occasionally pay attention to Zhang Nan. One of them looked unfamiliar, while the other looked out of place in his black suit and sunglasses.
Zhang Nan understood, the people who lived in the villages all year round were usually stubborn and conservative, thus he came to Zhangze Town for investigation, and did not plan to bring Wang Zili along.
After walking for a while, Zhang Nan saw a bus stop not far away. There was an alley opposite the bus stop, and inside the alley was a light blue, three-story building.
It was Xu Juan's house.
Zhang Nan realized that compared to the other houses in the town, the decorations on the small building in Xu Juan's house were much more exquisite. Xu Juan's family could be considered to be relatively wealthy here.
Approaching Xu Juan's home, Zhang Nan saw that the door was wide open and there was a table placed in the middle of the hall. There were fruits and tea on the table, and a group of people sat around it.
Other than that, when Zhang Nan saw the few women bustling about, he thought that they might be cooking.
Just as Zhang Nan wanted to enter, an old lady pushed him on the shoulder and asked: ”Who are you?”
Zhang Nan paused before replying, ”I am Xu Juan's friend.”
”A friend from Juan?” The old lady was surprised, she then turned around and shouted at a middle-aged lady: ”Chen Sang! Chen Sang! They are looking for Juan! ”
Very quickly, the middle-aged woman called Chen Sang came over. He sized Zhang Nan up and asked the same question: Who are you?
”I am Xu Juan's friend.” Zhang Nan replied once again.
”Xu Juan is not here.”
”I know she's not here.”
”Then what did you come here for?”
”I'm here to take a look.”
”Come take a look?” What are you looking at? ” Chen Sang looked at the large group of people behind him and asked puzzledly.
Zhang Nan could tell that the lady was a little lacking in willpower, he decided to not waste time, and asked: ”Who are you to Xu Juan?”
The old lady who was listening at the side answered, ”She is Juan's mother, and I am Juan's aunt.”
Zhang Nan nodded, thinking: So it's Xu Juan's mother, I found the right person.
Just then, Zhang Nan saw that among the group of people that were discussing, there was a round-faced old man in his seventies who was shouting loudly: ”No matter what, that girl must come back, this matter must be done!”
”What do I need to do? That stubborn temper of his, he's been out for a few years already. Have you ever seen him come back?” Another middle-aged man with sparse hair answered loudly, as if he was arguing with someone.
Zhang Nan could hear the discussion about Xu Juan and immediately asked Chen Sang, ”What are they talking about?”
”Aiyo, you didn't even explain what you were doing!” Xu Juan's aunt pushed Zhang Nan's shoulders again.
Zhang Nan thought that this old lady was really rude, just as he was about to reply, he saw Chen Sang calling for the middle aged man who had thinning hair. The middle aged man was followed by a few other people.
”Who is this person?” The middle aged man looked at Zhang Nan and asked.
”She said that she's a friend of the Juan, I wonder what is she doing here.” Chen Sang said.
”Well, she's the father of the Juan, tell him what you want to do.” Xu Juan's aunt explained on the side.
Zhang Nanxin thought: I might as well explain everything to them.
”I am Xu Juan's friend, and I know that her deadline is approaching, so I came here to look for a way.” Zhang Nan said.
Hearing Zhang Nan say that, especially the words ”the time limit is almost up”, everyone was startled. Xu Juan's father immediately asked: ”Xu Juan made you come, right?”
Zhang Nan hesitated and immediately replied: ”Yes.”
He knew that he was lying, and did not tell Xu Juan about him coming to Zhangze Town.
”Call me and ask.” Xu Juan's father said to Xu Juan's mother, Chen Sang.
Chen Sang immediately ran into the building, and could not help but feel a bit nervous.
”What are you doing, how did you get to know Xu Juan?” Taking this opportunity, Xu Juan's father continued to ask. He naturally felt that the man in front of him was eccentric, and her age was also much older than Xu Juan.
”My fortune telling.”
Actually, Zhang Nan wanted to explain his real identity as a psychic, but he was afraid that the people in front of him would find it hard to understand.
”fortune-teller!” Xu Juan's aunt could not help but laugh out loud, ”Juan's life is worth it, we all know what her next life is.”
Other than Xu Juan's father who still had a stiff expression, the few people spectating at the side were also making fun of Zhang Nan.
After a while, Chen Sang came back and said to Xu Juan's father: ”Juan told him to come here, and she even asked us to take care of him.”
Zhang Nan heaved a sigh of relief, secretly grateful for Cheng Qiuna's help, as he had already notified Xu Juan beforehand.
Father Xu Juan snorted, then turned and left, muttering as she left, ”If you are not coming back, just letting others come over, you might as well die outside!”
Zhang Nan was not concerned about his father's attitude at all. He only wanted to know what the Xu Juan family was discussing.
”We're cooking. You'll have it together later!” After confirming that Zhang Nan was his friend, Aunt Xu Juan's attitude became a lot more amiable. With that, she went back to the kitchen.
”Aiyo, Juan is really something. I asked her why didn't she come back herself. She said that she's busy with work, but I don't know when she's working!” Chen Sang complained to Zhang Nan.
”Auntie, can I ask what your family is discussing?” Zhang Nan ignored Chen Sang's complaints and directly asked.
”Not only our family, even several families have come. Isn't it just a matter of the Juan? ”You also know that her fate is not good. That day is almost here …” Chen Sang became sad as she spoke.
”What are you going to do?” Zhang Nan asked in a different way.
”We didn't think we could do anything in the past, but a while ago, Juan's Ah Ge was our family's son, her name was Xu Yao. When he was working outside, he found out that there was a Mage who was especially capable, able to exorcise ghosts and deal with things. After that, he asked someone to look for him, stuffed the red packet, and treated him to a meal. Only then did the mage come over. That's why we wanted that mage to be unable to save Juan. After all, Juan is still young, only twenty years old! ” The more Chen Sang spoke, the more excited she became.
Zhang Nan felt a little suspicious. He thought, if they felt that Xu Juan was an Innate Ranker who was desperate, why did they need to invite a mage that knew how to drive ghosts?
”So that's how it is. Where is the Mage?” Zhang Nan asked.
”Xu Yao went to pick him up early in the morning, but he hasn't arrived yet. We'll set up a table for you and treat you guys to a good meal first. ”
”That's true.” Zhang Nan replied indifferently.
”Let's not talk about that anymore. I'm going to the kitchen now. Find a place to sit and we'll call for you when dinner is ready.” Chen Sang slowly walked forward.
”Go ahead.” Zhang Nan forced a smile.
Since he understood the situation, Zhang Nan decided to wait and see.
Not long later, a white truck stopped in front of Xu Juan's home. A young man in his twenties came down from the truck and quickly ran to the front door and opened it, shouting: ”She's here, she's here!”
Then, a bunch of people who were originally sitting inside the building drinking tea came running out like a swarm of bees. Zhang Nanxin thought: This guy must be Xu Juan's brother, Xu Yao.
He saw a man in his forties or fifties slowly alighting from the passenger seat. He had a shaved head, wore glasses, and was wearing a dark yellow Taoist suit. In his hand he held a long object wrapped in red cloth. Zhang Nan could tell at a glance that it was a peach wood sword. It was used by Mages to guard their homes against evil.
A group of people gathered around the shaman, giving way to him, and almost all of them had looks of surprise on their faces. Then, with Xu Yao's support, the mage walked into the building.
”Quick, quick, quick, bring the dishes over!” Seeing that the main guest had arrived, the group of women in the kitchen were especially agitated. Chen Sang ordered loudly.
Zhang Nan slowly followed behind the group. The hall was extremely crowded, and many people who were not already present ran over to watch the commotion. The mage slowly sat at the head of the large table. A peach wood sword was lifted off the red cloth and placed on the table.
The mage looked around for a moment and then said, ”I think that your living quarters are rather weak. In addition, the hall's wide and narrow doors are also tailing less rooms at the end of the alleyway. It's easy to use evil techniques, but unlucky!”
”Yes, yes, yes, we don't know anything about this. Master, please take a look for us.” Xu Juan's father's attitude changed drastically. Not only was she smiling, she even politely lit a cigarette for the mage. However, the mage simply waved his hand, indicating that he didn't want to smoke.
”What's the mage's surname?” Zhang Nan saw that the round faced old man who was arguing with Xu Juan's father had also came over to ask.
”My name is Ouyang.” The mage replied coldly.
”Oh, oh. Master Ouyang, look at my granddaughter. Is she still alive?”
Zhang Nan could tell that this old man was actually Xu Juan's grandfather.
”Not necessarily. It depends on the situation.” Master Ouyang remained cold.
”I say, Grandpa, don't be anxious. I came all the way here by car and started asking questions the moment I arrived. I have to make him eat a good meal before we can talk, right?” Xu Yao could not help but say to Xu Juan's grandfather.
”Right, right, right! Bring the dishes here and eat first!” Xu Juan's father shouted.
Actually, those women were already standing at the door with food in their hands, but they didn't dare to come in. Hearing Xu Juan's father's call, they all started to move.
Not long later, a table was filled with dishes and wine. There was pork, beef, chicken soup, steamed fish, all kinds of vegetables, all kinds of everything. Zhang Nan thought that the Xu Juan family had invested a lot this time.
When Zhang Nan sat down, Xu Yao noticed this stranger dressed in strange attire, and asked: ”Who is this?”
Chen Sang, who was pouring wine for Master Ouyang, replied, ”Oh, a friend that I invited here, a fortune-teller.”
”What did the fortune-teller come to our house for?” Xu Yao asked bluntly.
”Xu Juan asked me to help.” Zhang Nan replied.
”Help? For what? We invited them ourselves, so there's no need. ” Xu Yao sneered.
”No matter what, I am still a friend. My attitude should be better.” Chen Sang advised her son, Xu Yao.
”What's your name?” Xu Yao asked Zhang Nan at the end.
”Zhang Nan.”
When everyone was seated, the feast started immediately. Master Ouyang first explained some feng shui theories to everyone, as well as his rich experience. During this time, everyone also rushed to toast to Master Ouyang, their faces were filled with admiration. Zhang Nan just sat down and continued eating. He did not drink a single drop, but of course, no one poured him a cup.
Halfway through the feast, Xu Juan's father finally spoke of proper business, and asked: ”Mage, you say our house is heavy with Evil Qi, then is it related to the evil fate of our young lady?”
”I was on my way here when Little Xu told me about the situation here …” Master Ouyang's face was flushed red as he replied indifferently, ”Normally speaking, this place would not only be an accident for your family's young lady, but all the other young ladies in the town would also be in trouble. I think... If the problem is your town, that black fish probably won't be able to hold it down … ”
Zhang Nan was startled when he heard it, and thought: Hei Yu? What is a black fish?
”That's right, otherwise the girls on our side wouldn't have died one after another. But it's not a solution to this if we keep on doing this!” An old woman complained.
”Teacher Ouyang, do you have any ideas?” Xu Yao asked.
”There must be a way. Why did you call me here?” Master Ouyang glared, obviously unhappy.
”Yes, yes, yes. Our son doesn't know how to speak. Master, don't be angry.” Chen Sang quickly comforted the Master Ouyang.
”I'm finishing my meal later …” The Master Ouyang continued, ”I will first take a look around, especially going up the mountain …”
”Alright, I'll lead the way.” Xu Yao said.
Zhang Nan thought again: There's a mountain here?
”And then... Right now, there are two girls here. One is from your family, while the other is from another family. Master Ouyang asked.
”Yes, the other one is our Qianqian. He was born two days earlier than Juan.” A middle-aged woman dressed in rustic clothing said.
It was only then that Zhang Nan found out that not only Xu Juan, there was also another girl in the town who was about to die.
”Then when the time comes, I will help this Qianqian out, and see if I can expel the Evil Qi from her body.” The Master Ouyang said.
”Right, right, right. We have to do what we have to do.” The middle-aged woman revealed a happy expression.