Chapter 49
Chen Yiyun was taken aback for a moment, then grabbed Tang Yunxian’s arm, his face full of smiles. He said, "Any problem that money can solve ain't really a problem! If my wife and child's illness can be resolved, just name your price!"
Yu Xinya and Tang Long, standing by their side, were struck dumb, looking like statues. After a considerable time, Yu Xinya stutteringly said, "Yunxian, let's stop joking around with Uncle Chen, you don't know anything about Feng Shui..."
In reality, Tang Yunxian was quite knowledgeable about Feng Shui. Beyond his studies in university, he often frequented the library to read ancient texts related to Feng Shui. His classmates had even mocked him for being superstitious.
Even he didn't understand why he was so interested in this particular field, as if it were somehow destined. However, he had never put this knowledge to practical use; it was all armchair theory so far.
"Mom, let me give it a try." Tang Yunxian winked at his parents, "I haven't been to Uncle Chen's house for a while now, I could take this opportunity to visit Chen Xiao."
Chen Xiao was Chen Yiyun's son, whom Tang Yunxian had met once before and their relationship was lukewarm at best.
Tang Long found it difficult to reject his request in front of Chen Yiyun and could only say with a laugh, "Alright, but don't cause any trouble at Uncle Chen's house. Don't mess around with medical treatments or Feng Shui. Uncle Chen is highly capable, he will surely be able to invite an expert!"
Seeing that Tang Yunxian's own parents didn't trust their son's ability, Chen Yiyun became somewhat disheartened. However, everything Tang Yunxian had said was absolutely true, not a single word was false. This made him start to doubt whether Tang Yunxian did indeed possess some special talent.
Chen Yiyun, harboring both trust and doubt, decided to also invite a Daoist Feng Shui master later on for reassurance. Nonetheless, on the surface, he showed trust towards Tang Yunxian and said, "I trust you. You must be a promising young man. Make sure you come to my house next Saturday.”
Tang Yunxian grinned, "See you then, and thank you for your trust, uncle."
The reason Tang Yunxian was so confident was because he saw a shadow of darkness between Chen Yiyun's brows, an indication of poor Feng Shui at his home. But this shadow seemed recent, meaning someone had probably rearranged things at his home not long ago.
However, this was not the reason for the illness in his family. After all, the illness had been there for a while, and only Chen Yiyun was unaffected.
The most likely truth was that there was something else in their home that was causing the illness.
So, Tang Yunxian asked Tai Sui, "Is it possible that there's a haunting in Chen Yiyun's house?"
The Tai Sui's response was, "We won't know until we see it for ourselves, although I believe it's highly possible."
Regarding Tang Yunxian's intention to make money from this situation, Tai Sui showed disdain, "Your Tang family is wealthy, do you really lack such a small amount of money?"
"The money of my family was earned by my parents." Tang Yunxian defended, "The money I earn is my own."
Cheng Xuyuan gave a silent sigh, not expecting this reincarnated emperor to be such a money lover.
However, Tang Yunxian's journey to making money turned out to not be as smooth as anticipated.
When Tang Yunxian arrived at the Chen residence on Saturday morning, a young man with a buzz-cut was present as well.
Tang Yunxian instantly realized that this man was a legitimate Daoist master brought over by Chen Yiyun – in other words, Chen Yiyun did not trust Tang Yunxian's ability to cure his family's sickness at all.
Chen Yiyun was somewhat uneasy as he said to the buzz-cut man, "He Zhen, didn't I ask you to come in the afternoon...”
"Afternoon?” He Zhen's austere face bore an unhappy expression, "You said the condition of your family members worsened, so I came earlier. What's the matter, you've asked someone else as well?"
After uttering that, his gaze unkindly landed on Tang Yunxian.
At this moment, the system’s voice rang in Cheng Xuyuan's mind, "He Zhen is the second lead who falls in love with the female protagonist later on. In the novel, he is a very upright character, who is devoted to ridding the world of all demons. Be careful around him."
"What a nuisance this He Zhen is!" Cheng Xuyuan grumbled, "There are so many demons in the world, he has wider reach than even Monk Fahai!"
AI System, "You can think of him as Fahai."
Cheng Xuyuan, "No wonder he's got a buzz-cut."
In order not to make the atmosphere more embarrassing, Tang Yunxian quickly said, "Uncle Chen, both of us are here to help your family with the illness. Let's go in first."
Chen Yiyun was taken aback, subsequently a trace of embarrassment showed on his face and he nodded fervently, "Yes, yes, yes, what Mr. Tang said is right, let's go inside first and stop standing foolishly at the gate."
He Zhen remained silent, maintaining a stern expression as he entered the courtyard of the Chen residence.
Once they entered the main gate, both of them noticed something was amiss.
The fountain in the middle of the courtyard had obviously been moved and was faintly tilting toward the front door.
Anyone with a shred of Feng Shui knowledge would know that a fountain is a symbol of gathering wealth and energy. Generally, it would be designed to slightly lean towards the building direction, creating an embracing effect to accumulate wealth.
But this fountain contradicted its function by inclining its spray towards the main gate, which was simply baffling.
Tang Yunxian glanced around in the Chen house and noticed many other anomalies, his eyebrows immediately furrowed. He asked Tai Sui, "It seems like this house has been deliberately tampered with by someone, but what benefits would that bring to them?"
"Destroying others' Feng Shui will hurt one's own Yin virtue." Tai Sui, a demon with three thousand years of knowledge, replied, "Yet indeed, many mortals think that by doing this, they will become blessed with fortune. From ancient times to the present, there are fools everywhere."
Tang Yunxian fell into deep thought.
"Come come come, the two of... young talents, please have some tea." Chen Yiyun initially wanted to address them as masters, but felt that Tang Yunxian didn't look much like a master. Addressing them this way might even offend He Zhen.
As soon as He Zhen sat down, he unceremoniously picked up the tea cup and took a sip, then opened his mouth to ask, "Did you hire a Feng Shui master to modify this house?”
"You noticed it too?!" Chen Yiyun said, amazed and his mouth agape, "I won't lie, last month I suspected that there was a problem with the Feng Shui in this house, which led to my immediate family being bedridden for a long time. So, I sought advice from an old classmate, who recommended a Feng Shui master to me. He gave me a lot of suggestions about what to do with my house... "
"Old classmate?" Tang Yunxian seized on this keyword, "Are you on good terms with him?"
Chen Yiyun replied without hesitation, "Our relationship is rock solid, there's no chance he would deceive me!"
He Zhen did not spare his feelings, speaking coldly and firmly, "Perhaps, but you can never truly know what's in another's heart."
"No way!" Chen Yiyun waved off the concern laughingly, "That kid and I were classmates back in university, he even encouraged me to start my business."
Seeing how insistent Chen Yiyun was, it was hard for Tang Yunxian to upset him. So, he merely responded, "The fountain in front of the house should gather wealth, but redirecting it towards the door actually dispels wealth; the paintings on the wall were changed to depictions of fierce beasts, which might seem capable of warding off evil, but it attracts malicious spirits; the living room is filled with plenty of creeping plants that seemingly purify the air, but in reality, they are filled with Yin energy..."
Shocked at these revelations, Chen Yiyun found them hard to believe, "No... it can't be, all these were suggested by that Feng Shui master..."
The flow of the conversation continued as He Zhen pitched in, "Sofas should not be placed under a cross beam; plants need to block off any sharp corners to remedy Sha Qi (attack energy). Your modifications to the house brought so much Sha Qi, even the greatest blessings wouldn't be able to offset it."
Chen Yiyun began shaking somewhat as he asked tremulously, "Then...what should we do..."
During their conversation, Chen Yiyun's wife, Li Lingyu, came downstairs with their son, Chen Xiao, who just started high school and was not yet an adult. Both of them looked frail and ill.
"Honey, do we have guests?" Li Lingyu didn't look too well, but she managed a smile, "Is Yunxian also here? It's been a while."
Chen Xiao also politely greeted the two.
With just one glance, He Zhen and Tang Yunxian could discern the dark energy between the brows of Li Lingyu and Chen Xiao; as if the Feng Shui had been damaged or as if they were bound by malignant entities. Judging from the current situation, it was likely a combination of both.
This dark energy was similar to what was on Chen Yiyun. However, Chen Yiyun had a stronger Yang Qi (positive energy), so these negative entities hadn't harmed him yet, but it seemed like it was only a matter of time.
Chen Yiyun said to Li Lingyu, "I asked them to come and assess the Feng Shui here."
Chen Xiao, who was quietly standing aside, suddenly interjected, "Dad, can't you stop focusing on these feudal superstitions? Feng Shui, what Feng Shui? Who in this day and age still believes in this stuff!"
"You silly boy…" Chen Yiyun was at a loss for words, frustrated.
Li Lingyu gave Tang Yunxian a strange look and hesitated before asking, "Does... Yunxian also understand Feng Shui?"
Chen Yiyun was also uncertain, but having seen Tang Yunxian's confident demeanor earlier, he affirmed, "Yunxian is highly educated and knows a lot. Master He is also an expert, successful at such a young age."
"But the Feng Shui master that came last time was also an expert." Li Lingyu was still not entirely assured, "After his visit, not only did my illness and Xiao's not improve, they got even worse..."
Before the Feng Shui was altered, they both had already fallen ill, suggesting that the malicious entities were not recent arrivals. Tang Yunxian came to this conclusion.
So, Tang Yunxian made a request, "Uncle, auntie, may I take a look upstairs?"
Chen Xiao looked at Tang Yunxian incredulously and exclaimed, "Yunxian, you can't be superstitious like my parents! There's no such thing as Feng Shui; it's all just a scam."
"Silly child." Tang Yunxian smiled, his elongated eyes showing no impurities, "I'm a firm believer in Marxist materialism, and I would never be superstitious."
Afterward, Tang Yunxian and He Zhen were led by Chen Yiyun and Li Lingyu to the second floor, where they examined the bedrooms.
Chen Xiao followed them dubiously.
"Mrs. Chen, look at this huge painting hanging over the bed," Tang Yunxian pointed at the big and luxurious framed oil painting, "I'm afraid this could cause a bloody disaster."
"A bloody disaster?!" Both the husband and wife's eyes widened.
Chen Xiao furrowed his brows and grumbled, "Yunxian, didn't you say you're not superstitious?"
Tang Yunxian chuckled, his light-colored lips curling up. He gently explained, "Look here, Xiao. If this oversized oil painting were to fall from the wall and hit the head of someone lying on the bed, wouldn't that be a bloody disaster?"
Chen Xiao was stunned into silence.
Tang Yunxian continued, "So, everything I've said is based on scientific evidence."
Next, Tang Yunxian and He Zhen circled the area. They discovered many items maliciously displaced, silently appalled at the sinister intentions of the puppet master behind this scene.
After a while, Tang Yunxian was able to confirm that there were evil entities in this room. The changes in Feng Shui had made these entities increasingly rampant, unscrupulously harming Li Lingyu and Chen Xiao.
He then said to Chen Yiyun, "Uncle Chen, why don't you rest for a bit? Master He and I need to discuss some strategies."
He Zhen gave him a cold glance.
Chen Yiyun nodded repeatedly and said, "I'll prepare lunch for you." With that, he led his wife and child downstairs.
He Zhen asked, indifferently, "What do you plan to do?"
Tang Yunxian, with a smirk, said, "Of course, my plan is to lure the snake out of its hole and strike it down. However, I'm still not sure what exactly this entity is. I might need your help."
He Zhen raised an eyebrow and asked provokingly, "What's the matter, can't you handle it?"
Caught off guard by this hostility, Tang Yunxian asked Tai Sui, "If a monster appears later, you'll help me beat it, won't you?"
After a moment of silence, Tai Sui replied, "Of course, I'll help. If you die, I'll suffer, too."
"That's comforting."
With that, Tang Yunxian smiled and confidently told He Zhen, "If Master He is unwilling to help, then we'll just have to handle it ourselves, like the Eight Immortals crossing the sea."
However, He Zhen suddenly stepped closer.
His eyes, sharp as an eagle's, were fixed on Tang Yunxian's chest. He asked in a low voice, "Brother Tang appears to have noble life horoscope configuration. Why would he associate with evil spirits?"
Taken aback, Tang Yunxian could only stutter, "…?!"
He Zhen continued his interrogation, "Brother Tang, surely you must know that signing a contract with an evil spirit comes at a high price?"
In response, Tang Yunxian had a difficult time swallowing his saliva.
After a moment, he finally regained his composure and said, "Master He, not all demons in this world are evil. Some are righteous and kind..."
"Nonsense!"
Interrupting him, He Zhen looked through him, his gaze piercing through his chest as if he had already seen through everything.
He Zhen slightly tilted his head, a cold glint passing over his handsome face. He looked down at Tang Yunxian, his eyes filled with anger and scorn. His towering figure created an oppressive atmosphere. Amazingly, his very short buzz cut gave off a discernible essence of Buddhism at that moment.
After a while, He Zhen's voice rang out like a biting chill, causing a shiver to run down Tang Yunxian's spine.
"Demons are monsters, there is no distinction between right and wrong. One day, I will eradicate all the monsters in this world by ripping off their skin and reducing their bones to dust," He Zhen said coldly. "I won't spare the powerful monster attached to you either."
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Author's Note:
He Zhen is the second male lead.
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