Chapter 22: Logging

The ginkgo tree’s trunk concealed a tree hollow that was nearly impossible to spot unless one looked closely.

Xiao Su Huan stuck her head out to look inside and then reached her small hand into the hollow, as if searching for something.

Suddenly, her chubby arm grabbed something with force, and in the next moment, a long, double-headed red snake appeared in front of Su Huan. It bared its teeth and glared at her, its blood-red vertical pupils terrifying, and its sharp fangs deadly.

“Yi ya yi ya?”

Su Huan innocently looked at the double-headed red snake, her eyes showing a trace of confusion.

If a cultivator were present, they would have seen the intense golden light of merit radiating from Su Huan’s body.

But whether the double-headed red snake had insufficient cultivation or was simply too dim-witted, it didn’t notice anything wrong. Instead, when Su Huan spoke to it, it suddenly exhaled a puff of black gas, rushing toward her.

This black gas was formed from Yin energy, capable of killing ordinary people on contact.

Su Huan coughed a few times as the black smoke choked her, and immediately, she looked at the double-headed red snake with displeasure. She slammed it to the ground, knocking it unconscious.

The ginkgo tree had been well-nourished and was originally a wealth-bringing object, but over time, the spiritual energy it emitted had attracted this double-headed red snake. The snake had treated the place as its den and practiced its cultivation here, killing people to gather Yin energy. This not only altered the feng shui of the house but also brought a curse upon anyone living here, causing infertility.

Rather than killing this demon outright, it would be better to suppress it in a Taoist temple, depriving it of its cultivation and making it atone for the lives it had taken.

“Little sister!”

Suddenly, a terrified scream came from the front.

Su Huan quickly tossed the unconscious double-headed red snake into her space and turned around, extending her empty little hand to her older brother, who was rushing toward her with a brick. She blinked her eyes at him, “Yi ya?”

Su Yan was shaken, quickly picking her up to carefully check her. Then he circled the tree a few times, but after finding no trace of the double-headed red snake, he sighed in relief and hurriedly carried Xiao Su Huan back to the house to inform Grandma Su about what had just happened.

After hearing the story, Grandma Su felt both proud and terrified at her granddaughter’s bravery. She hurriedly comforted her and checked her for injuries. Finding her unharmed and not scared, she finally felt a bit relieved.

At noon, after the family finished eating, Grandma Su convened a meeting in the main room and informed them about Su Huan almost being bitten by the snake. After some discussion, they decided to cut down the ginkgo tree.

Su Er, Su San, and Su Si went outside to measure and borrowed a saw from the village chief.

When the village chief heard they had bought the haunted house, he was so shocked that he was worried for them. He decided to come along to watch.

Soon, news of the Su family buying a haunted house and planning to cut down the tree spread throughout the village. Nearly every household in Qing Shui Village sent someone to observe the Su family cutting wood.

“Hei xiu, hei xiu!”

The men sawed the tree, while the villagers whispered amongst themselves. The brothers cheered each other on, creating a lively scene.

Inside the eastern wing, Su Huan watched the ginkgo tree sway. She was eager to go outside to see, but since she had slipped away earlier, Liu Yingying and Li Sumei were now keeping a close watch on her, not allowing her to leave. They only permitted her to look at the courtyard scene from the window.

After about two hours, the massive ginkgo tree finally fell, crushing a small room in the west wing.

Though a small room was sacrificed, everyone felt it was worth it to eliminate such a big hazard.

Just as everyone was celebrating, a loud exclamation came from the crowd. “Look, what’s that!”

Su Er looked into the hole left by the fallen tree and saw that the roots of the ginkgo tree were completely rotten and stinking. There were bones reflecting a ghostly white light in the sunlight.

“How could there be bones under this tree? Did someone die here?”

The villagers were frightened and quickly withdrew from the courtyard.

The Su family had just moved into the house, and now the news that a corpse had been dug up spread, making the place not only unlucky but also likely to make the villagers view them as ominous, isolating them.

Su Er and Su San exchanged looks and hurried to calm the crowd. “Don’t be scared! This ginkgo tree just attracts some snakes and pests. Maybe the bones sticking to the roots are from a snake!”

Grandma Su quickly brought out Su Er’s and Su San’s wives to calm the situation. “We are just refugees, and today, everyone has come to visit. I, Su Zhang, am very happy. But it’s getting late, so please head home. Once we’ve finished tidying up, we’ll invite everyone back for a proper housewarming feast.”

The village chief, Wang Baorui, also said, “Everyone should go back now. They still need time to clean up. Don’t scare yourselves into illness.”

Hearing this, the crowd settled down a little. After saying their goodbyes to Grandma Su, they went home. However, they didn’t believe the snake bones story, as they had clearly seen human bones on the tree roots!

After the villagers left, Grandma Su thanked the village chief.

The village chief waved his hand, his face full of unease, and said to Grandma Su, “This house is truly unsettling. You’ve definitely been tricked by your sister-in-law. Old sister, I suggest you move out quickly. Everyone thinks this place is cursed, and even if you host a housewarming feast, few people will come.”

Grandma Su instinctively looked toward the room where her little granddaughter was and met Su Huan’s curious gaze. Smiling, she turned to the village chief and said, “I’ve taken your advice to heart, but we bought this house, so we intend to live here. Whether it’s unlucky or not, time will tell.”

Seeing that she was determined, the village chief didn’t say anything further, sighed, and shook his head as he left, as if he had already seen the tragic future of the Su family.

Under the ginkgo tree, there were over a dozen white bones, the remains of people who had died in this house over the years. As night fell, the Su family planned to wait until morning to send Su Er and Su San to report the matter to the authorities.

As for the children, Grandma Su ordered them to stay in the eastern wing and not to go into the front yard for now.

That night, the Zhang family.

Zhang Lao Da finally returned with his bundle, shaking the snow off his body.

Zhang Li Shi took a bite of her steamed bun and looked up at him. “Did you take care of everything?”

Zhang Lao Da quickly took out the house deed and land deed from his bundle and placed them in front of her. “It’s done. The deeds have been transferred to the Su family. Mother, are we really letting them live in such a big house?”

Zhang Li Shi nodded and handed the deeds to Qian Cui Miao, instructing her to deliver them to Grandma Su.

After hearing her son’s words, her cloudy old eyes showed some disdain. “You’re soft-hearted? Don’t you want to watch your aunt’s family die there?”

Zhang Lao Da shook his head. “Of course not. I just don’t understand why you really helped them find a place to live.”

Zhang Li Shi sneered and shook her head. “How did I end up with such a stupid son? If the Su family dies off, the fat sheep and their remaining money will all be ours, right? We’re relatives, and when it’s time to ‘collect the bodies,’ who else in the village is qualified to help? Do you think I’m so easy to talk to? The eight hundred taels for this second-hand house wasn’t easy to part with, and now we’re selling it to them for two hundred taels? All that money will go into our pockets!”

Hearing this, Zhang Lao Da’s face lit up with realization. “Mother, you’re so clever!”

The mother and son laughed.

On the roof, Su Lao Wu, who had been following them all day on Grandma Su’s orders, overheard everything they said. Trembling with anger, he clenched his fists tightly, suppressing his rage as he quietly left. He hurried back home to inform Grandma Su of what had transpired.