Chapter 21: Moving into the Haunted House

Zhang Lishi led the Su family to the front gate of the courtyard but didn’t enter. She merely acted as though she had a sore back and handed the key to Zhang Hongzhuang, saying, “Hongzhuang, you take your sister and the others inside to look at the house. I’ve walked this far and my back hurts terribly, so I’ll wait outside for you.”

This house was built by Yun family’s old master a century ago, but after the Yun family moved in, their descendants went mad, died, or met untimely deaths. No one was normal.

The only surviving younger son was sent to a Taoist temple over a decade ago by Madam Yun, where he was renamed and raised.

Such a dangerous, unlucky place, the people of Qingshui Village avoid it like the plague, let alone dare to move in.

Su Laoer gave her a cold glance and snorted, taking the key to open the door.

Su Laotai didn’t acknowledge Zhang Lishi, instead holding Little Su Huan in her arms, comforting Zhang Hongzhuang, “Don’t be afraid, we have the amulet Five Ya gave us. Nothing will happen.”

The others in the Su family felt reassured by her words.

None of them expected that the amulet Five Ya casually drew would actually bring them such a sense of security when worn, even though it was more psychological comfort. Still, the Su family members felt confident and followed Su Laotai into the Yun family’s courtyard.

The second entrance courtyard was well built. Even after so many years, the wall tiles hadn’t fallen off or rotted; only the main door, corridor, and windows had paint peeling off, giving it a patchy, unattractive look.

Through the windows, they could still see that the furniture inside the rooms was covered with oilcloth, preserved in good condition.

Su Huan, firmly held by Su Laotai, gazed around with her dark eyes, observing the courtyard.

All the rooms in the courtyard were arranged with the front high and the back low, and the northeast corner was missing, indicating an obvious feng shui issue. But this problem seemed intentionally created later on, not something inherent from the beginning.

The idea was quite clever, though—the missing northeast corner could lock in the intense Yin energy of the house, preventing it from drifting out and harming people.

Su Huan’s gaze shifted to the ginkgo tree in the courtyard, a hundred-year-old tree that provided shade and shelter.

It seemed that the source of this Yin energy came from here.

If a person lived in such an environment for a long time, they could fall ill at best, or at worst, drop dead.

It made sense now why the village chief had said there were no empty houses and avoided selling them this one—this place had indeed experienced some troubling incidents.

A cold wind blew past, and Su Laoer, standing beside Su Laotai, looked at the copper mirrors hanging on the doorframes, covered in dust, as well as the yellow talismans sealing the windows. He couldn’t help but rub his arm, feeling goosebumps. “Mother, let’s go. This place really seems to be cursed! Who puts so many copper mirrors and talismans on their doors?”

The wind in the courtyard felt especially eerie, as though it could chill a person’s bones through their clothes, which was very uncomfortable.

Su Laosan tightly pursed his lips and scanned the surroundings. “What Second Brother says is true, and I’ve felt like something’s been watching us since we stepped in.”

Su Laosi crossed his arms nonchalantly. “It’s nothing supernatural. You’re all just scared. Those copper mirrors and talismans are probably just meant to scare people. I think this place looks pretty good. It’s big and spacious, and if we move in, the four of the Yan family—Yan He, Yan Qi, Yan Xing—will each have their own room. Otherwise, as the kids grow, it’ll be bad for all of us to keep squeezing together. By the way, I think the room next to the hall is perfect. We can make it into a nursery like the Wang family, where Five Ya can crawl and play.”

It seemed like Uncle Si was very satisfied with the place, even though they hadn’t moved in yet. He was already planning who would stay where.

Liu Yingying couldn’t help but tug at him, scolding, “What time is it, and you’re still joking around?”

“Who’s joking? Fifth Ya, what do you think?”

Su Laosi turned to ask Su Laowu.

Su Laowu also seemed pleased with the house. “It’s big, we can store a lot of grain, and the yard is flat. If we cut down the tree, it’d be convenient for drying skins, fur, and bacon.”

Of the four sons, two agreed, and two disagreed.

It was time for the daughters-in-law to weigh in. The third and fourth wives opposed, while the second and fifth wives agreed.

Finally, the grandsons spoke up. Yan He, Yan Qi, and Yan Xing all agreed. The Yan family opposed, and they, like Su Laoer and Su Laosan, felt something was off with the place and didn’t trust it.

With more agreeing than opposing, Su Laotai was ready to make a decision. But before she could, Su Laoer raised his hand. “Wait! Mother, Uncle is one of our own. He also disagrees with us living here, right?”

As he spoke, he winked frantically at his uncle, Zhang Hongzhuang. Zhang Hongzhuang quickly nodded. “Right, Sister, I oppose you living here! This place is unlucky!”

Su Laosi then stood up, saying, “Wait, we haven’t heard Five Ya’s opinion yet!”

He smiled and pulled out a sweet pastry, approaching Little Su Huan. “Little niece, tell Fourth Uncle, do you want your grandma to buy this big house?”

The sweet pastry!

Su Huan’s eyes lit up, and she reached out to grab it, nodding. “Eeya eeya~”

Su Laosi immediately laughed. “Ha, did you see that? Fifth Ya agrees to live here!”

Su Laotai had actually been waiting for Su Huan to speak. Seeing her nod, she finally relaxed, smiling as she handed Su Huan to Liu Yingying. Then, she said, “Okay, you all go ahead and move the luggage in. Let’s get the east wing room sorted. We’ll sleep there tonight. Lao Wu, Lao Wu’s wife, you two come with me to find your aunt and buy the house.”

“Alright, Mother!”

“Sister…”

Zhang Hongzhuang wanted to say a few more words, but seeing Su Laotai had made up her mind, he could only give up and followed her out to discuss money with Zhang Lishi.

In the end, the house was bought by Su Laotai for two hundred taels.

Seeing the money handed over so quickly, the Zhang family’s attitude toward the Su family shifted considerably.

As Zhang Lishi was leaving with the money, she smiled. “Sister, I’ll have your nephew visit Young Master Yun’s place right away. By tomorrow at the latest, I’ll have the deed and land contract back for you. It’s getting late, so you should rest early!”

After saying that, she grabbed the still-worried Zhang Hongzhuang and headed home.

Zhang Laoda, Qian Cuimiao, and Zhang Laer also smiled at Su Laotai in a flattering way before following Zhang Lishi out.

“Mother, we got the house for two hundred taels, even though Aunt wanted eight hundred. Don’t you think she’s not losing out?”

Su Laowu asked, looking at Zhang Lishi’s retreating figure in confusion.

Su Laotai narrowed her eyes and motioned for Su Laowu to lean in. After whispering a few words to him, Su Laowu nodded. “Don’t worry, Mother. I’ll handle it.”

After that, he went back inside to grab a chopping knife for protection and quietly followed the Zhang family.

“Let’s go back as well.”

Su Laotai smiled and led Li Sumei back to the house.

From today on, this house belongs to the Su family.

After spending the morning, Su Laoer, Su Laosan’s wife, and the four grandsons cleaned out the east wing and kitchen. Su Laoer, Su Laosan, and Su Laosi went up the mountain to chop more than a hundred jin of firewood. They came back and chopped the wood for the stove, heating the kang and the ground bed.

The faint smoke rose into the sky, and the once silent haunted house of Qingshui Village finally began to show signs of life today.

While everyone was busy, no one noticed that the six-month-old baby was crawling towards the ginkgo tree in the center of the courtyard with bright, curious eyes…