"Huang San, are you trying to turn my house into a weasel den?"
As I kicked open the main door, my vision blurred, my chest felt tight, and blood surged towards my head, giving me the sensation of my skull about to burst like a fountain.
When I left, the courtyard was clean and level, with only a small pile of charcoal enclosed by bricks, prepared for Bai Ling'er to roast lamb. Now, the entire courtyard had transformed into a zoo. Weasels, large and small, scurried about like mice. Fortunately, there was no foul odor.
Even so, veins throbbed on my forehead. The courtyard was covered in earthen mounds, resembling the nests built by African termites, almost completely occupying the small yard.
Turning to ask Bai Ling'er if she had agreed to this, I found she had vanished without a trace. Only the stunned Sister Zhang and the somewhat bewildered Zhang Dabiao remained.
This was utterly humiliating.
At my shout, the little weasels, who had been hopping around the yard, scattered like startled mice, disappearing into the earthen holes. Pairs of small eyes peered out from the burrows, glinting yellow as they stared at me.
The larger weasels I had seen before quickly emerged from the holes. Upon seeing me return, they showed no fear. Instead, they lined up, stood on their hind legs, and clasped their front paws together in a greeting.
"Husband... Brother, is he a great immortal master? How can there be so many spirit beasts in the house? What profound cultivation must he have!" Sister Zhang, after her initial fear when Bai Ling'er appeared, had already adapted. After all, she wasn't an ordinary wife. She was simply curious about the sheer number of weasels.
It's important to know that weasels are very common in the north, but it's not common to see them in such large numbers. Most people might never see more than a few in their lifetime. After the initial fear, curiosity set in, but with Zhang Dabiao present, there was no need for fear. After all, his mission was to hunt fox spirits, and he had likely witnessed more strange occurrences than I had.
My face was ashen. I ignored their bows and kowtows, directly asking them where Huang San was and demanding they call him out immediately, or I would skin them and make them into a padded jacket.
Faced with my threat, the weasels seemed flustered and chattered "squeak, squeak" in a flurry, as if trying to explain something to me. However, I couldn't understand animal language, and they were not my household spirits, so I had no idea what they were saying.
"Bai Ling'er..."
"Yes, I'm here!"
Bai Ling'er reappeared before me, obediently. She had shed her previous aggrieved demeanor and was now exceptionally well-behaved, a stark contrast to her usual arrogant and overbearing self. If one didn't know her past disposition, they would surely be deceived by her.
Gritting my teeth, I looked at Bai Ling'er and asked, "You agreed to all of this, didn't you?"
"Wh-what do you mean I agreed? Huang San acted entirely on his own. How could I possibly agree? This has nothing to do with me..."
Bai Ling'er paused several times while speaking. If she claimed this had nothing to do with her, it would truly be a ghost's work.
My relationship with Huang San could only be described as a partnership. We weren't close enough for mutual protection or to be considered household spirits. Moreover, my home was not a place that wild spirits or malevolent entities could easily enter.
After all, the ancestral shrine still housed our Grandmaster. Even if no one were home, wild spirits and malevolent entities could not easily step foot inside. The fact that Huang San could now walk in so boldly and even build nests in my home meant only one thing: someone inside had consented.
My master was not home, and I was out on business. The only one capable of making such a decision was Bai Ling'er. Although she was not the head of the household, she was my spirit pet, the future Ghost Emperor. If she were to invoke my name to invite the Grandmaster, it was not impossible for Huang San's disciples to be allowed entry.
With everything understood, I turned my gaze to Bai Ling'er. The usually casual and arrogant Bai Ling'er now flinched under my gaze, her tail unconsciously twitching back and forth.
These were her tell-tale signs of panic, which I had seen many times in Molu Village, and they were precursors to her lying.
"Tell me the truth, no lying!"
Bai Ling'er flinched at my shout and then said indignantly, "If you want me to talk, just talk! Why shout so loudly? Huang San is lying in the ancestral shrine. If you have something to ask, go ask him yourself. Don't ask me." With that, she vanished in a flash, and no matter how much I called her, she didn't respond.
"This little one, truly..."
"Alright, we've already experienced her temper in Molu Village. You should check what exactly happened at home."
Zhang Dabiao had stayed with me in Molu Village and was no stranger to Bai Ling'er, so he understood her very well. His words not only failed to alleviate my embarrassment but made my face flush even more.
"Brother Zhang, please come in with Sister-in-law. Look at my..."
"Haha... We are brothers, no need for such formalities. Your sister-in-law is not an outsider. You go handle your business, we'll tidy up ourselves."
After settling them in the west room, I turned and went to the ancestral shrine. As soon as I entered, I smelled a pungent odor, the smell of congealed blood, a scent mixed with the tang of gore.
I saw Huang San lying on the prayer mat, his eyes tightly closed, his chest and abdomen occasionally rising and falling. If I hadn't looked closely, I would have thought he was dead. There were no visible wounds on his body, and his aura was extremely weak, as if he could die at any moment.
Perhaps sensing my return, Huang San coughed a couple of times and opened his eyes.
"Young Master Song, you're finally back. I thought I would never see you again. Cough cough..."
My anger, which had been simmering, subsided significantly upon seeing Huang San looking as if he were on his deathbed. I quickly asked him what had happened and who had injured him to this state.
Logically, it shouldn't be easy to injure Huang San given his cultivation. Furthermore, according to his description, there were no external enemies. How could he be on the verge of death within a few days of my departure?
"Young Master Song, please don't ask. I accidentally offended someone. It's fortunate I wasn't killed. If I had nowhere else to go, I wouldn't have brought all my disciples and grandchildren to your home. If they bother you, I'll have them leave right now. Cough cough..."
Having interacted with Huang San for some time, I knew he was a man of character. Although not human, his actions were more human than some people. He wouldn't beg for help unless he was pushed to the brink, including asking me.
I frowned, unable to imagine who had the ability to injure him and force him to seek refuge in my home.
Huang San's face showed a look of struggle. After a moment of thought, he finally uttered three words: "The Hu family."