Strange Story of Strange House

Back at Gu's house, Lin Chi bypassed Hanmei and went directly to Mrs. Gu, his employer, "Excuse me, Ma'am, in Qingcheng, red flowers bring bad luck, have you heard of it?"

"Slightly heard."

"I found out about this incident by chance in the past few days. I don't know if it's true or not. However, the day I first arrived at the mansion, I had the honor to meet Miss Xinning face to face. At that time, she was holding a large bouquet of red Bana flowers."

Mrs. Gu frowned when she heard this, Lin Chi saw this, and asked: "Madam asked me to settle the matter, I should do my best, but Han Mei is a servant after all, how dare you tell me about the affairs of the master's house, although I doubt it Miss Ning has something wrong, but she can't do anything about it, so I have to come to bother Madam."

Mrs. Gu sighed: "Xinning is my younger sister's child. My younger sister married out of town and has only twin daughters under her knees. My younger sister is in poor health and misses me. A year ago, she asked two maids to visit me in Qingcheng." , Who knew that something happened on the way, Mu Xuan accidentally fell into the water and died, leaving Xinning alone. Xinning was distraught, and I was worried, so I kept her by my side."

"I only met Miss Xinning once, and I have no chance to see you again. I hope my wife will allow me to see Miss Xinning again. If there is nothing wrong, it will be the best. If something happens, we can solve it as soon as possible."

After all, she was a beloved niece, and Mrs. Gu was also afraid that something might happen to the only remaining seedling, so she immediately made a decision, dismissed the servants, and took Lin Chi to Dongyuan.Xinning lives in the innermost courtyard of Dongyuan, and Dongyuan generally does not allow outsiders to enter, which is one of the reasons why Lin Chi never saw Xinning again.

Along the way, Lin Chi imagined countless ways to find clues from Xin Ning, feeling unspeakably disturbed, but when he saw Xin Ning, he found that all his ideas were in vain, and there was nothing strange about Xin Ning. Covered exposure to sunlight.

——In the courtyard where Xin Ning lived alone stood two identical girls, one in a long black dress and the other in a white cheongsam.

Lin Chi turned his head and asked Madam Gu: "Miss Mu Xuan, are you sure you're gone?"

"...This." Mrs. Gu was obviously stunned by this scene. She looked at this and then at that, unable to say a word for a long time.

Seeing this, the girl in white walked up to Mrs. Gu awkwardly, bowed and saluted: "Auntie, why are you here?"

"Xinning, what's going on?"

"Auntie, this is Mu Xuan, don't you remember?" Xin Ning smiled, "Mu Xuan looks like me, Auntie should remember it when she sees her."

"Xinning! What nonsense are you talking about!" Mrs. Gu interrupted her sharply, "Mu Xuan's funeral was organized by me myself!"

When Xin Ning heard this, the smile on his face faded instantly: "I don't understand what Auntie is talking about..."

"Xinning, be more rational. I know you don't want to part with Mu Xuan, but she's gone!" Mrs. Gu was heartbroken, "Come to my aunt, master, go and have a look quickly, don't let the evildoers use Mu Xuan to deceive the letter." rather."

Mrs. Gu looked defensively at the girl in black who hadn't spoken since she entered the door. The girl in black tilted her head when she saw this, and asked suspiciously, "Auntie, are you afraid of Mu Xuan?"

"Mu Xuan is dead!" Mrs. Gu said sharply, "I don't care who you are! Stay away from my trust!"

The girl in black tugged at her long skirt, with an aggrieved expression on her face: "But Auntie... I am Xinning! The one standing behind Auntie is Mu Xuan."

!!!

Before he had time to delve into the authenticity of the girl in black's words, Lin Chi grabbed Mrs. Gu and brought her to his side, separating her from the two girls far away.The girl in white smiled when she saw this, walked lightly to the girl in black, and reached out to hold her arm.

"You..." Lin Chi looked at the two sisters who were almost stuck together in front of him, and frowned, "You are the ones playing tricks on the Gu family, right?"

"It's Mu Xuan who is playing tricks!" The girl in white pinched the tip of the girl in black's nose affectionately, "Mu Xuan is really naughty."

"Obviously you are Mu Xuan," the girl in black shook her head lightly, "Mu Xuan is really bad."

Lin Chi frowned: "There is a price to be paid for bringing the dead back to life. What is your price?"

"It's blood..." The girl in black was taken aback, "What else?"

"Half of Xinning's lifespan is still left." The girl in white added with a smile, "We know why you came here. Those four men deserved to die, and they are obviously going to marry their cousin soon, and they still have evil intentions towards Mu Xuan."

"They coveted something they shouldn't covet." The girl in black turned her face to look at Lin Chi, her dark and lifeless pupils looked a little scary, "The things of the Lord of the River are also something they can covet?"

"He Lord returned Mu Xuan to Xin Ning, and he was reborn with kindness. If he stole his things, he deserved to die." The girl in white agreed.

River Lord again?

What role did Qingcheng play in this matter?

"You two, who is Mu Xuan!"

Lin Chi's question obviously confused the two girls. They looked at each other and pointed at each other: "She is Mu Xuan."

"..."

"What did Mu Xuan do?" Lin Chi changed the way of asking, trying to help Mrs. Gu distinguish her two nieces by letting the two girls talk more.

"Mu Xuan knocked on the doors of those men's rooms in the middle of the night, and killed them with a knife when they were addicted to desire and defenseless." The girl in black said.

"Mu Xuan sprinkled white manjusawa in their pool of blood, and let their blood dye the flowers into Xinning's favorite red." Said the girl in white.

"Let's play a game." The girl in white suddenly smiled softly and suggested, "Guess, who is Mu Xuan between us sisters? If you guess right, our sisters will leave here and never set foot in Qingcheng again. If you guess wrong, you, and the remaining three men, will all die here today."

"He Lord's things are not to be coveted." The girl in black suddenly showed a strange smile, "The coveter, die."

"..." Lin Chi's heart sank, but the current situation could not allow him to refuse. In desperation, he had no choice but to seek help from Mrs. Gu, who knew the two sisters well.

Mrs. Gu obviously couldn't make up her mind: "These two girls are usually cheerful, but I see that the one in black is more gloomy..." Dead people are more gloomy than living people after all, Lin Chi recognized her With the implication, he looked at the girl in black.Her dark and lifeless eyes stared straight at Lin Chi, which made people feel a little apprehensive.

"Have you chosen?" The girl in black tilted her head, "Are you sure I am Mu Xuan?"

Guess wrong and you die...

So who is Mu Xuan...

Is it pure white clothes?

Or gloomy black?

Is the gloomy one necessarily undead?

As an aunt, Mrs. Gu chose black clothes. Is she trustworthy?

Lin Chi raised his hand hesitantly, and slowly pointed at the girl in black. Just a second before he said "sure", the half-understood words of the flower seller suddenly echoed in his ears.

——Young people, some things can’t just look at the appearance. Red flowers are as good as red flowers, and white flowers are as good as white flowers. Sometimes, pure white is the darkest.

After all, this is a puzzle, and it is impossible that there are no clues at all. Does the old man's words that puzzled him imply the choice here?

He no longer has time to hesitate, trusting his sixth sense is his only choice... In the blink of an eye, Lin Chi waved his finger at the girl in white: "You are Mu Xuan!"

Under Mrs. Gu's surprised gaze, the woman in white raised a bright smile: "You guessed it right, yes, I am the dead Mu Xuan."

She pulled the gloomy Xinning into her arms: "I drowned in the Qingcheng River. My sister found the owner of the river and made a deal with him. I would spend half of my life in exchange for me being by her side. But you are right." , The price of bringing the dead back to life is too great. I keep killing people and use their blood to nourish this body. My sister also became what it is now because of supporting me.

"Later, my uncle wanted to recruit a son-in-law... Heh! The Gu family is obviously owned by the river owner. If the river owner can't take it for the time being, can someone else take it? Killing who is not killing? These greedy things, death is not worth it!

"We will abide by the agreement and leave here. It's just that the Gu family is in trouble, and it's not just our sisters who are messing around."

After Mu Xuan finished speaking, she took Xin Ning's hand and gave her a gentle smile: "Sister, we are leaving."

Xinning looked puzzled: "Where are we going?"

"Didn't you say that you want to go out for a walk and see what the water town in the south of the Yangtze River looks like? I'll take you there right now."

"Okay." Xinning nodded obediently, and bowed to Mrs. Gu, "Auntie, thank you for taking care of me during this time."

After the figures of the two girls completely disappeared from sight, Mrs. Gu came back to her senses: "This..."

Lin Chi sighed, but still had to deal with his employer: "Ma'am, the two cousins ​​have left, so the rest of the young masters will be fine."

Mrs. Gu was obviously frightened, and she didn't notice the loopholes in Mu Xuan's words. She was relieved when she heard Lin Chi say that nothing would happen again, and muttered: "...Really, that's good, then good……"

The matter should have come to an end, but Lin Chi couldn't let go of what Mu Xuan said before leaving. Who else is disturbing the muddy water of the Gu family?Why is Sammei's attitude towards Xinning so weird?What role did Qingcheng play in this matter?

After Xinning left, nothing happened again, Master Gu was relieved, and started preparing for Gu Qingcheng's wedding with peace of mind.The groom was Gu Yihao. After considering all aspects, Master Gu finally chose this one from the three remaining candidates.

In order to thank Lin Chi, Mrs. Gu specially invited him to Qingcheng's wedding.Lin Chizheng couldn't let go of this matter, and he was extremely happy with Mrs. Gu's invitation.

On the day of the wedding, there were a lot of guests, and the scene was very lively.As the auspicious time approached, the sound of gongs and drums shook the sky from far to near, and the sedan chair after the tour of the city stopped firmly in front of the Gu family's door. Han Mei helped Gu Qingcheng out of the sedan chair slowly, the newlyweds covered their heads, Wearing a red wedding dress, although she couldn't see her face, her figure alone was enough to see her beauty.

On this day of great joy, everyone's face was filled with smiles. Lin Chi's eyes followed the new couple, crossing the brazier to pray to heaven and earth... It wasn't until his gaze fell on Han Mei's face that Lin Chi realized something was wrong——Han Mei His smile was as bright as when we first met, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.

Han Mei has always loved her master the most, but this is not the expression a maid should have when a young lady gets married!

Wait...Master?Miss?

Lin Chi and Han Mei were not close friends, but when Han Mei talked about Gu Qingcheng with Lin Chi, she used two different titles, "Master" and "Miss".Combined with Han Mei's weird behavior at the moment, Lin Chi made a bold guess——Han Mei's "master" and "Miss" are probably not the same person!

— This is where our lady lives.

——Miss, this is Mr. Lin, invited by Madam.

——Sir, the yard where I live is right in front of me. I got some good tea from the young lady earlier. Why don't you go in and taste it, sir?

——My master likes plum blossoms the most. He always said that plum blossoms bloom the most in the cold winter, so I am called Hanmei.

——Meeting the master is the luckiest thing in my life.

Lin Chi's eyes lit up, and he immediately found the housekeeper of Gu's house. The housekeeper respected this sorcerer who solved the serious problem of Gu's house, and he answered every question.Lin Chi didn't go around in circles, and went straight in: "Han Mei just entered the mansion, did she serve the eldest lady?"

"No, Han Mei was bought by the young master, and later the young master had an accident, so the young lady asked her to come by her side."

"Young master...why didn't he disappear?"

"This..." The housekeeper hesitated for a moment, "The young master went out with the eldest miss and fell into the water... For this reason, the eldest miss blamed herself for a long time, complaining that she didn't take good care of her younger brother, and that was the first time the young master went out... "

"Didn't your master and wife blame her?"

"I must have complained. The young master is the treasure of the whole family, but the palms and backs of the hands are full of meat. The young master is gone. What's the use of complaining about the eldest lady?"

Lin Chi nodded, and a thought flashed in his mind: Is it true that no one resents Gu Qingcheng for not taking good care of his younger brother?

Before he had time to think about it, there was a sudden commotion in the crowd.Lin Chi squeezed into the crowd and took a closer look. Han Mei was holding a knife and was resting on Gu Qingcheng's neck.

"Don't move!" Han Mei snapped, "If you come again, I'll kill her!"

"Han Mei! How dare you!" Gu Yihao stared at Han Mei viciously, his eyes were about to split open. Gu Qingcheng was the beautiful woman he had worked so hard to marry, and he just missed the door. How could he be willing to fall here? .

"Do I dare, come here and try." Han Mei sneered, obviously not paying attention to him.

"Han Mei! What are you doing! Let the lady go!" The housekeeper and the guards wanted to rush up to rescue Gu Qingcheng several times, but they were forced back by Han Mei's cold eyes and the sharp blade on Gu Qingcheng's neck.

"You know, I wanted to ruin your marriage. How can a person like you deserve to be happy! It's a pity that I didn't get what I wanted, so I had to send you to hell on your happiest wedding! Does it feel good?" Han Mei sneered, she completely lost her youthful and innocent appearance at the beginning, the knife placed on Gu Qingcheng's neck was slightly forceful, and blood soon oozed from her neck.

"Ah!" Gu Qingcheng screamed in dismay, "Hanmei, let me go! I have treated you well, why are you treating me like this?"

"That's a good question. I also want to ask you for my young master. Does he treat you well? Why do you treat him like that?! Do you know how much he looks forward to traveling with you? Ten years old, still so young, I finally had the opportunity to go out with your sister... You take him to the Qingcheng River, let him pick red flowers for you, and watch him fall! I beg you Save the young master, why are you unwilling, why do you want my young master to be drowned alive!"

"Gu Qingcheng! Damn you! I knelt in front of the young master's grave and swore that I would definitely make you pay the price!" As soon as the words fell, Han Mei burst out with infinite potential, and when everyone was caught off guard, she slammed the dagger He stabbed hard into Gu Qingcheng's chest.

"Hahahahahahaha! Young master, Han Mei has avenged you!" After finishing speaking, Han Mei drew out the dagger and stabbed herself again, the lives of the two young women withered instantly.

It's embarrassing to have a beautiful face and dry bones.

Gu Qingcheng covered the wound on her abdomen, blood gushed out, but it couldn't stain her bright wedding dress red.When she was in a daze, she was picked up by someone, but still with the last bit of strength, she turned to look at Han Mei.

She wanted to ask Han Mei, if she had been with her for ten years, had she ever treated her harshly?Ten years of master-servant friendship, can't compare to a Qingcheng?

She wanted to explain that when Qingcheng had an accident, she hesitated. The appearance of this younger brother took away the love she should have had. She thought that if Qingcheng was gone...but she finally chose to save him !Because of that moment of hesitation, she woke up from the dream countless times in ten years, isn't that enough?

She opened her mouth, but before she could speak, a large amount of blood gushed out of her mouth, staining her flowery face, and her words were also cut off...

She still remembered that Hanmei was bought by Qingcheng, and the dirty little girl followed Qingcheng timidly and was taken back to Gu's house.Without Qingcheng, what was waiting for her was Goulan Restaurant.

She still remembered that Han Mei looked at Qingcheng with such bright eyes, like the sparkling Qingcheng River in the afternoon. After Qingcheng died, she asked Han Mei to be with her out of guilt, but Han Mei never looked at Qingcheng with that kind of eyes. pass her.

There was noise and chaos in her ears, but she felt that her eyelids were getting heavier and heavier. In a trance, she returned to the Qingcheng River ten years ago. Her younger brother accidentally slipped into the river and was thumping non-stop. She is swimming with Sammy who is only six years old.

"Miss, please! Save the young master!" Little Hanmei kept begging.

Did she agree?

She agreed, and she immediately ran around to ask for help, but that day she got rid of the guards, and the Qingcheng Riverside was deserted in the afternoon, and no one could save her brother.

She ran quickly across the long embankment. She had never run such a long way before, so she soon felt tired.Thinking of going back the same way, she couldn't help feeling resentful—since she had this younger brother, her parents would love him even more... If the younger brother was gone, wouldn't her parents only like herself?

Gu Qingcheng paused in place, and the world fell silent for a moment, only the thought that even he thought was terrible was left stirring in his heart.It wasn't until the footsteps of a group of people passing by woke her up that she suddenly came back to her senses.

——What the hell am I thinking!He is my brother!

She hurried over and stopped the group of people: "Save my brother! He fell into the river..."

But when they came to the river, the only one they rescued was Hanmei who fell into the river in danger, and her younger brother, who was still struggling in the water before, had long since disappeared.

--it's over?The younger brother is gone... The younger brother who would lie softly on his lap and call sister, is gone...

It has been so many years since the incident, but Gu Qingcheng still shy away from bringing it up, not only because of regret, but also because when she recalls that incident, she always thinks of herself who was vicious and terrible that afternoon.

If he hadn't hesitated, if he had tried his best to save his younger brother, would Qingcheng not have died?After that, she became the only daughter of her parents again, but her parents didn't love her more than before, instead they blamed her for not taking good care of her younger brother.

When the news of Qingcheng's death came, her mother almost cried her eyes out. Until now, they still miss Qingcheng...Close your eyes, Gu Qingcheng asked herself, do you regret it?

In this life, do you regret it?

Do you regret not saving your brother?

——Regret, so if I could do it all over again, I probably, no, I would definitely save Qingcheng without hesitation.

***

With the blade still stuck in her stomach, Han Mei was lying on her back, no one cared about her for a while.The wound was still oozing blood, but she didn't feel any pain at all, but it was a little cold, so cold that she shivered, and couldn't help but think of the coldest winter in her memory.

In that winter, she lost her mother who had depended on her since she was a child, and she has no one to depend on ever since.At the age of six, she sold herself to bury her mother, and knelt beside her mother's corpse. Her little heart was filled with uneasiness about the future.In her future life, she could not see a glimmer of light. The old bustard in Rouge Lane came once and said that she would buy her, but she still wanted to wait and struggle for a while...

She met Qingcheng when she was in despair.

Han Mei had never seen such a beautiful person before, he was not very old, with the light behind his back, and the sunset glow gently wrapped around his body, at that moment, Han Mei really thought that he had met the fairy who had descended from the earth in his mother's mouth.

Qingcheng asked suspiciously: "Why are you kneeling here and crying?"

Han Mei tremblingly talked about her affairs, Qingcheng smiled, summoned servants to give Han Mei some broken silver, and helped her bury her mother.

He was an ignorant young master who did what he wanted and gave her a little favor, but he didn't expect that he would become her whole world from then on.

When Qingcheng left, Hanmei stopped him timidly: "Master, do you need a maid? I'm willing to do anything!"

Qingcheng was slightly surprised, then nodded with a smile: "Okay, then follow me."

On the way back, Han Mei got into a luxurious carriage that she had never seen before. She was so cramped that she didn't know where to put her hands and feet. Qingcheng saw that she was really nervous, so he started a conversation with her: "What's your name?"

"My mother called me a girl, but she didn't name her."

"Oh." Qingcheng raised the curtain and saw the plum blossoms along the way. The plum blossoms were so blooming, not inferior to the spring flowers. He smiled, "I like this kind of strong flowers." There are several plum blossoms in the corner, and Ling Han blooms alone. I know it's not snow, because there is a dark fragrance.'”

Hanmei couldn't understand Qingcheng's words at this time, but it didn't prevent her from remembering Qingcheng's smile at this moment.She and Qingcheng only had a relationship of master and servant for a short two months, but that smile was so beautiful, she firmly remembered it for the rest of her life.

Qingcheng said: "Plum blossoms are the most blooming in the cold winter, why don't you call them Hanmei."

She had failed herself and Gu Qingcheng, but she hadn't failed Qingcheng's original smile.

***

Gu Qingcheng was attacked, and the Gu family was in chaos. Lin Chi took advantage of the chaos and took away Han Mei's body.As soon as he left Gu's house, he saw Lou Qi approaching with money. Lin Chi hurriedly greeted him, "Lou Qi, here!"

Unexpectedly, the man shook his head, and said in a low voice: "You have misunderstood the person, I am Qingcheng."

Lin Chi was taken aback, and when he came back to his senses, Qingcheng had already taken Hanmei's body from his arms: "I spent two months with her, but she was a master and servant with Qingcheng for ten years, and I never let her go." In my heart, I don't want her to stab this knife for me."

"Knowing that someone still misses me, it feels so good. The grievances that have been carried for ten years are gone in an instant." Qingcheng smiled slightly, "Thank you for bringing her out, I will take her back right away, and see you again."

Lin Chi watched Qingcheng leave with Hanmei in his arms, unable to tell what he felt in his heart. A moment of evil thought cost so many people their lives.

The only good news is that Han Mei finally returned to her favorite master.