Chapter 35: “The Show Is About to Begin.”

“Who are you calling dirty?”
Chen Younan hadn’t expected that Tu Shanjiu—who looked mild and easy to manipulate—would actually dare to speak to him like that.

“Obviously I’m talking about you.”
In Tu Shanjiu’s eyes, the thick black aura surrounding Chen Younan looked like it was about to consume him.

She tilted her head slightly, narrowed her eyes, danger flashing within them. Her voice carried the chill of ice shards:
“Once, twice—but no third time. The fact that you made it out of your room alive is already proof of your good fortune. If you don’t shut that filthy mouth of yours, I won’t mind letting that skin-flaying ghost peel you first and collecting her afterward.”

The glass conservatory fell silent for a moment.

Then—
A burst of roaring laughter erupted.

It was louder than the heavy metal music playing just minutes ago.

No one laughed harder than Chen Younan himself.

“Hahaha! I’m dying here—skin-flaying ghost? I could say I’ve seen a skin-painting ghost too!”

With Chen Younan taking the lead, others chimed in, laughing without restraint.

“I’ve never seen a ghost—what now? But I have seen a monster!”

“Me! Me! I’ve never seen a ghost—Xie Shao, ask your sister-in-law to catch one for us, let us have a look!”

Everyone speaking belonged to the Chen family’s camp.

Before the political landscape in Southern City reshuffled, the Chen family was the undisputed top-tier aristocratic clan.

Even now, with the Xie family rising to wealth and influence and gaining some distance from other families, the Chen family still had solid foundations—an ancestral legacy and strong connections.

That rope still had a lot of grasshoppers tied to it.

That was why Chen Younan could so brazenly oppose Xie Jingting.

Of course, their rivalry was mostly low-level—tit-for-tat bickering, minor humiliation—never anything that would jeopardize the families’ interests. Competition, after all, fosters growth.

That’s also why the Chen elders never restrained Chen Younan.
Let the younger generation handle their own business.

Coincidentally, Old Master Xie thought the same way. He’d even told Xie Shiyu to stay out of it. Consider it a trial run for Jingting before he stepped into society.

Tonight’s party may have included some neutral or even pro-Xie guests, but the overwhelming majority still sided with the Chens. In terms of momentum, the Chen camp definitely held the upper hand.

But what no one expected—
Was that after all the mockery and laughter… Xie Jingting and Xie Jingzhou started laughing too. Loudly.

Chen Younan immediately stopped laughing and snapped,
“Are you nuts? We’re laughing at you!”

Tu Shanjiu didn’t laugh. She didn’t answer him either.

She just found it all boring.

A bunch of children playing “you push me, I trip you” games.

Calmly, she took a lollipop out of her pocket, unwrapped it, and popped it in her mouth.

Xie Jingting noticed—and wanted one too.

He’d had one back at the hotpot restaurant. That particular lollipop from Tu Shanjiu had tasted amazing—he even felt invigorated afterward.

He’d gone on to try several different brands but none matched the flavor of hers.

But he was too embarrassed to ask. A grown man liking lollipops? That wasn’t manly at all.

Tu Shanjiu didn’t know about the ridiculous internal dilemma Jingting was having about masculinity and candy, but she did notice him swallowing hard while staring.

Suppressing a smile, she pulled two more lollipops from her pocket and handed them to the brothers:
“Here. Thanks for covering your sister-in-law earlier. Consider this a little treat while you enjoy the show.”

Chen Younan’s right eyelid twitched.

Why did this scene feel so familiar?

Just like at the hotpot restaurant… similar posture, similar words—and then Tu Shanjiu had exposed his secret in front of everyone!

So this time…

Sure enough, in the very next second, Tu Shanjiu turned around and said to him, her tone challenging:
“The skin-flaying ghost is in your room. Weren’t you all begging to see a ghost? Well—let’s go. I’ll show you how it’s different from the skin-painting ghost you claimed to have seen.”

As soon as she spoke, the people from the Xie side—who hadn’t had a chance to make a move—immediately backed her up.

“Yeah! Let’s go look and find out!”

“I bet they’re all bark. If they actually saw a ghost, they’d probably wet themselves!”

“Let’s see who’s bluffing now. What, you too scared?”

“Come on, didn’t Young Master Chen say he saw a skin-painting ghost before…”

Honestly, even the ones saying this didn’t fully believe it.

Their words were bold, but they thought—if Tu Shanjiu messed up, they would be the ones playing the ghost.

Horror movies made ghost possessions look easy enough to act out—
Roll your eyes, shake a little, hop around weirdly.

They could handle that.

No matter what, they had to maintain the upper hand in terms of momentum.

Chen Younan had a flaw—he couldn’t resist a provocation.

Last time he lost his favorite silver Maserati in a race was also because Xie Jingting goaded him into it.

Now, listening to these taunts, he was getting fired up again.

Clenching his teeth, he said, “Fine! What’s there to be afraid of? But my bedroom isn’t open to just anyone. What if there’s no ghost in there?”

Xie Jingting was just about to respond, offering to agree to a forfeit if there wasn’t—but Tu Shanjiu cut in first.

“There’s no if. But since you want a wager, fine. If there’s no skin-flaying ghost in your room, I’ll eat poop standing on my head.”

Chen Younan curled his lip. “Forget it. I don’t need you to do that—I want Xie Jingting to eat it.”

He wasn’t stupid enough to go after Xie Shiyu’s fiancée directly. Banter was one thing, but if this escalated, he’d be in serious trouble.

Xie Jingting sucked on the lollipop and replied with one word:
“Deal.”

Chen Younan’s bedroom was on the third floor of the main building.

The Chen elders were all out tonight, so nearly twenty people marched in a procession upstairs.

The butler noticed and hurried after them, afraid they’d ask for something he couldn’t find.

Chen Younan’s bedroom was massive—nearly half the third floor belonged to him.

He led the group to the ornate double-door entrance.

“This is my room,” he said. “Don’t forget the terms of our bet.”

He reached for the handle—

“Wait.” Tu Shanjiu’s voice interrupted.

Chen Younan sneered, turning to her.
“What, chickening out already? No worries. As long as Xie Jingting shouts ‘I’m a little puppy’ three times, we’ll call the bet off.”

Tu Shanjiu ignored him. She slowly took a talisman from her pocket and pressed it to the door.

There were a lot of people here. She wanted to teach them a lesson, sure—but she wouldn’t let any of them actually get hurt. Otherwise, she’d lose merit points. Not worth it.

This talisman was one she had created herself.

A defense charm, modified from an ancient protective formation.

It shielded the entire main building—and it also had the ability to trap the skin-flaying ghost inside.

Once it was stuck, it wouldn’t escape.

After applying the charm, she clapped her hands.
“So, since it’s a bet, what happens if you lose?”

Chen Younan was just about to say he wouldn’t lose—

But Tu Shanjiu didn’t give him the chance.
“Here’s the deal. To be fair—if you lose, you eat poop standing on your head.”

Chen Younan was a die-hard materialist. He didn’t believe in ghosts, period. So without hesitation, he agreed:
“Fine.”

Tu Shanjiu smiled with satisfaction, lips curving into a cold grin.

“The show is about to begin.”