As Song Xingwen opened the door and stepped inside, Huo Ning’s brow furrowed the moment she crossed the threshold.  

The house was shrouded in a musty, stagnant aura, with lingering negative energy that refused to dissipate. Anyone living here would inevitably suffer continuous misfortune.  

And if she wasn’t mistaken, the Song family had been living in this house for over a decade.  

Despite being virtuous people with the protective glow of accumulated merit, the Songs had still faced years of bad luck.  

If it were an ordinary family, they likely would have been broken and ruined within three to five years.  

Grandma Song took Huo Ning’s hand.  

“Ningning, the feng shui issues you mentioned earlier—can they be resolved?”  

Bai Ye and Song Xingwen also turned their eyes to her.  

Huo Ning pressed her lips together lightly. “It’s possible, yes.”  

“But there’s no real need for it.”  

Everyone was taken aback.  

Huo Ning explained, “This place isn’t convenient in terms of transportation. For one thing, it’s too far from the city center—it’s hard to even get a taxi at night.”  

“Besides, I can neutralize the feng shui’s negative energy, but there’s nothing I can do about that pond.”  

“It stinks so badly, and it’s not good for Grandma’s health to breathe in that smell all the time. It also affects her mood and sleep.”  

Neutralizing the foul odor from the pond alone wouldn’t be difficult.  

The real problem was that she couldn’t stop the villagers from continuing to dump garbage into it.  

Huo Ning had no intention of wasting time arguing with the villagers over these issues every day.  

And aside from Song Zhen, neither Grandma Song nor Song Xingwen seemed like the type to pick fights with others.  

Huo Ning sighed and advised, “Putting everything else aside, even Zhenzhen has trouble coming home during holidays—it’s just not convenient.”  

She wrapped her arm around Grandma Song’s. “Grandma, this house makes me uneasy. Plus, it’s too far from Jiangcheng. Sometimes when I want to visit you, the distance makes it hard—it’s scary for a girl like me to take a taxi all the way out here alone.”  

Grandma Song, being older, disliked upheaval.  

If it wasn’t absolutely necessary, she didn’t want to move.  

After all, she had lived here for over a decade and was familiar with all the neighbors.  

Moving meant adapting to a new environment all over again.  

Elderly people develop a sense of belonging after living in a place for so long.  

But hearing her granddaughter speak in such a pitiful tone, saying she’d be afraid to visit, Grandma Song’s heart melted instantly.

Come to think of it, Zhenzhen had repeatedly urged her to move to a better environment.  

If Ningning was afraid to take a taxi here alone, then Zhenzhen—also a young woman—must feel the same way.  

Grandma Song sighed softly, realizing just how slow she had been to notice this. Age really was catching up with her.  

“Xingwen, let’s move.”  

Song Xingwen nodded. “Alright.”  

Ever since the Song family’s decline under his watch, forcing Grandma Song and Zhenzhen to suffer alongside him, he had carried deep guilt.  

Now that the house itself was problematic and required moving, refusing would make him utterly heartless.  

He turned to Huo Ning. “We’ve lived here for over a decade, so there’s a lot to pack. Moving might take several days.”  

“Do you need to head back first?”  

He was worried that their relocation might interfere with Huo Ning’s work.  

But Huo Ning shook her head. “It’s fine, we can take our time. No rush.”  

The house had serious issues, and under the guise of packing, she could thoroughly inspect for any other hidden problems.  

Since they’d still be staying here for a few days, she hung a mirror above the front door.  

It was the simplest and most direct way to counteract the “reverse bow” sha qi (negative energy).  

Normally, she wouldn’t recommend this method—it could easily spark disputes among neighbors.  

But since there were no houses opposite the Song residence, hanging a mirror was no big deal.  

Just as they were discussing this, Song Xingwen’s phone rang.  

He answered the call, and after hanging up, his expression turned grim.  

Bai Ye’s heart sank, suspecting something bad had happened.  

Before he could ask, Song Xingwen spoke to Grandma Song, “Mom, another incident happened at the Liu family at the village entrance.”  

Grandma Song was startled. “That’s the fourth one this year!”  

“Who was it this time?”  

Song Xingwen sighed heavily. “Yes, the fourth. This time, it was the Liu family’s eldest daughter-in-law. Apparently, she was playing cards last night and tripped on her way back, hitting her head on a rock.”  

Huo Ning stood quietly, listening without comment.  

Bai Ye, however, glanced at her, their eyes meeting briefly.  

“Ever since the Liu family moved into that small villa at the beginning of the year, they’ve been plagued by constant tragedies. I wonder if—”  

Song Xingwen suddenly turned to Huo Ning mid-sentence.  

“Ningning, could it be a feng shui issue?”  

Huo Ning shook her head and shrugged. “Hard to say.”

If a family keeps encountering frequent misfortunes, there’s definitely a problem.  

But whether it’s due to feng shui—that’s really hard to say.  

Song Xingwen fell into thought but didn’t press further.  

About an hour later, Auntie Zhou from next door dropped by with some homegrown vegetables and started gossiping with Grandma Song about this and that.  

Though it was called a chat, Auntie Zhou did most of the talking, while Grandma Song occasionally nodded in response.  

Huo Ning wasn’t great at handling such situations. After pouring tea for Auntie Zhou, she was about to excuse herself when the woman suddenly grabbed her arm.  

“Young lady, you look unfamiliar, but you’re quite pretty. Are you one of Grandma’s relatives?”  

Huo Ning’s lips twitched as she silently pulled her arm back.  

Grandma Song glanced at Auntie Zhou. “This is my Ningning.”  

She then turned to Huo Ning. “By the way, Ningning, you’ll be staying in your cousin’s room tonight. Go ahead and tidy it up first.”  

Seizing the opportunity, Huo Ning immediately agreed and slipped away faster than anyone could react.  

“Hey—”  

Auntie Zhou tried to stop her but was too late, watching helplessly as Huo Ning disappeared into the bedroom and shut the door.  

She rubbed her nose and frowned. “Grandma, your granddaughter’s face… those sores are gone?”  

Grandma Song nodded. “Yes, they’ve been gone for a while now. I was shocked too when I first saw her.”  

She knew her granddaughter had been a pretty child, but after contracting a strange illness, the marks on her face had never faded.  

Now, for some reason, they’d suddenly cleared up.  

According to Huo Ning, she’d met a master who not only cured her skin but also taught her some extraordinary skills.  

But Grandma Song suspected there was more to the story.  

Still, if Huo Ning didn’t bring it up, she wouldn’t pry.  

Auntie Zhou pursed her lips. “Now that her face is fine, why isn’t she looking for a partner?”  

“That Bai family boy seems nice—wasn’t he always hanging around your Ningning before?”  

“Don’t take this the wrong way, but back when your granddaughter had those marks, I thought she wasn’t good enough for that Bai boy. Now that she’s pretty, they’d look well-matched. But who knows if your Ningning would even consider him anymore?”  

After all, Auntie Zhou had heard plenty of stories about beautiful girls chasing after rich men.  

She figured that with a granddaughter as stunning as Grandma Song’s, the Song family could probably trade her looks for a few houses.