novel[Extra: The Pianist] Ghosts do not need doors opened for them, ah!
| ← Ch.080 | Ch.082 → |
Translator: reiyu; Editor: fraise
Ji Xuan's eyes had been very dark, so dark and deathly they seem to have been painted over, but now the tears slipping from his eyes seemed to have dissolved some of that darkness. His gaze grew clearer and clearer, his recollections awakened by the sentimental melody and slowly washing clean the bloodstained soul that had been imprisoned by hatred.
He extricated himself from the murky depths of infinite suffering. The memories of the past that had been buried in chaos now leaped over several decades of time's rushing river and ran towards him.
"Jingyun... Jingyun?" Ji Xuan seemed to awake from a dream and took an unsteady step toward Lin Feiran.
Gu Kaifeng, the wife-protecting demon, immediately stepped between Ji Xuan and Lin Feiran.
"I'm not." Somewhat nervously, Lin Feiran put his hands around Gu Kaifeng's waist, then stuck his head out from behind Gu Kaifeng so that Ji Xuan could look at him.
Indeed, when Ji Xuan's gaze landed on Lin Feiran's face he showed an expression of strong disappointment.
Lin Feiran immediately said, "Can you hear me now? Shall I take you to find He Jingyun?"
Ji Xuan first nodded stiffly to indicate he could understand. When he heard the next line, he showed a smile that could only be described as terrifying, and hissed, "You'll take me to... Where is Jingyun? Who are you?"
His regrets seemed to have been partially dispelled, but clearly it was not enough. Ji Xuan had only regained his faculties, but the wound on his neck and the look of death upon his face had not changed.
Since regaining his senses, he had not yet tried to leave the house, so of course he would not know that spirits would be imprisoned by their regrets.
"Come with me. We'll go first, " Lin Feiran said.
He thought Ji Xuan would probably be able to walk out. Going by the clues he had already found, Lin Feiran guessed that the deaths of the other ghosts in the Ji Mansion likely had to do with Ji Xuan. His lover had died in shame and he had been forced into marriage by his family; the sorrow, hatred and despair Ji Xuan must have felt when he killed himself was unimaginable. But when he had killed himself, he probably was not aware that people could turn into ghosts after their deaths, and he did not know that He Jingyun's spirit would have remained in the human world. So Ji Xuan's strongest regret was probably not missing someone, but hatred... And for these past decades, Ji Xuan must have been sealed in the Ji Mansion by hatred. Once he put down his hatred, his remaining regrets would probably be centered on He Jingyun.
Lin Feiran got up and walked in front, Gu Kaifeng behind him, and Ji Xuan right at the back. When Ji Xuan had heard that they were going to see He Jingyun, his entire mind seemed to be occupied by this matter and he did not say anything more. Lin Feiran was anxious so he walked fast. Ji Xuan quickly followed, and occasionally raised a hand to keep his head on straight.
After all, his neck did not seem so reliable any more...
The two living people and a ghost went from the basement back up to the first floor. Perhaps out of fear of Ji Xuan, the whole first floor was empty of ghosts aside from Ji Xuan. A servant loitered near the door to the servants' room, but the moment he saw Ji Xuan he seemed like a living person who had seen a ghost. He screamed, then crawled to the corner as if he had wet his pants, knelt on the ground and kept kowtowing and begging for mercy."Eldest young master, I was wrong! I was wrong! Don't harm me, eldest young master!" The servant kowtowed violently several times, then straightened up and hit his own face, so hard that a fresh red mark of five fingers appeared on his sheet-white face. As he hit himself, he kept crying out in fear, "I'm not a person! I'm not a person!"
This ghost, who had been killed by Ji Xuan, was clearly also imprisoned by fear and his own death. He still thought he was alive.
"I want you to pay Jingyun back his life." Ji Xuan's eyes had gone red, the clarity in his gaze slowly receding. He walked, straight-backed, toward the servant. With one hand he caught hold of the servant's throat and picked him up like he would have a chicken. Then, his fingers tightened slowly around the servant's neck, and he strangled the struggling and kicking servant to death one more time. The servant's ghost was still twitching as he slid from Ji Xuan's hands. A moment after his death, he 'came alive' again, saw Ji Xuan, and repeated the scene from a moment ago...
Over and over.
Seeing that Ji Xuan was going to strangle the ghost again, Lin Feiran hesitated, then whispered, "... He's already become a ghost."
Ji Xuan was stunned, and his calm expression returned. He nodded slowly and repeated, "Yes, he is already a ghost."
"You killed all of them?" Gu Kaifeng asked.
"I killed them, " Ji Xuan repeated again. He looked at his own hands without recognition, murmuring to himself, "Aside from my parents... They died of grief.."
Their only son had killed himself in such a terrible manner the night before his wedding, and the people who lived in the house were killed by the ghost one by one. The house was thick with ghostly energy, and the basement often emanated the soft sounds of piano playing... it would be strange if they had no grievances when they died.
In the face of this dark and terrifying scene, Lin Feiran unexpectedly remembered a story that had made the rounds of the Internet a while ago.
Ghosts usually don't harm people, because people killed by ghosts will also become ghosts, and when the two ghosts meet each other, it will be very awkward.
But the eldest young master Ji did not seem to feel awkward at all. Not only did he not feel awkward, he even tyrannically strangled a ghost to death again...
After leaving the Ji Mansion, they saw that the car Gu Kaifeng had called earlier was already waiting by the door.
Gu Kaifeng opened the back door and let Lin Feiran get in first, then opened the passenger door to let Ji Xuan into the front seat, then he circled around to the other side and sat in the back with Lin Feiran.
The driver thought that it was strange that Gu Kaifeng opened the front door, waited a while, then went to the back door again, but he was not at all aware that a powerful ghost was now sitting by his side...
How pitiful, really!
The car drove towards the school. The school was usually closed to outsiders, and was very strict about the hours when students could go out. However, it was Sunday. There were students living on campus, so the school left the gates open all day Sunday in order to let them go out and buy necessities without much trouble. Lin Feiran and Gu Kaifeng, accompanied by the powerful ghost, swaggered through the front door and past the supervising guard, going straight to the prop room.
Gu Kaifeng pulled out the key and opened the door. Lin Feiran scratched his nose and said tactfully to Ji Xuan, "Do you know how He Jingyun passed away?"
"I know." Ji Xuan's voice was sorrowful."His hands were ruined by attackers... then he received a wedding invitation my family sent, and killed himself. I've been to his grave to make him offerings..." Ji Xuan paused, gritting his teeth. Then he said hoarsely, "At that time I was under house arrest. My father locked me in the basement and told the thugs to watch me... I didn't think they'd be so cruel..."
I guessed right, Lin Feiran thought. Internally, he felt both pity and a sense of relief.
At least Ji Xuan hadn't let down the man waiting inside for him.
"Are you prepared?" Gu Kaifeng asked. He opened the prop room door a small crack and said, "He doesn't look too good right now. You..."
But Ji Xuan had already gone through the door.
Ghosts did not need doors opened for them, ah!
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