Yin Shou Shu

Chapter 391 Bad Woman

Ran Qing's sincere answer and her heartfelt gratitude towards Aunt Liu made Mo Li click his tongue in approval.

Seeing that Ran Qing didn't hate her mother, the girl was not happy at all. Instead, she inexplicably pouted and said, "...You are very filial to this old woman."

The girl's words were sarcastic and somewhat sour.

Coupled with the strange relationship between the mother and daughter, the atmosphere in the room suddenly became somewhat tense.

Ran Qing didn't know what to say for a moment.

Zong Shu stood awkwardly to the side, seemingly an outsider.

Seeing the atmosphere become tense, he, who was always taciturn and not good with words, was forced to step in and smooth things over.

"Uh... that..."

Zong Shu scratched his head uneasily and said, "So Li Hongye really is the murderer who killed Aunt Liu? But she also helped us in secret... So should we still help the ghost raiser kill her?"

Zongshu subconsciously asked the question that was troubling him the most.

But he immediately regretted asking the question.

I feel like saying it like this is a bit too blunt...

But after hearing Zong Shu's abrupt question, Ran Qing remained silent for two seconds.

He then slowly said, "Indeed, Li Hongye is most likely the murderer who killed Sixth Aunt. She is my enemy who killed my master, not those ghost-raising people."

Mo Li's words make a lot of sense. Li Hongye couldn't have known the future, and she couldn't have targeted Aunt Liu from the very beginning.

Ran Qing's initial analysis was too subjective.

But one thing is certain: Li Hongye is definitely involved in the deaths of her sixth aunt.

Those pale, ghostly figures inexplicably targeted Aunt Liu, and just as the final night was drawing to a close, they suddenly rushed out and harassed her, killing her.

Furthermore, Li Hongye is suspected of being able to influence and control the pale white ghosts, causing them to hunt down the ghost-raiser...

Even if Li Hongye didn't initially target Aunt Liu, once Aunt Liu performed the ritual to awaken Ran Qing's spirit and showed signs of taking Ran Qing as her disciple, Li Hongye, now a vengeful ghost, certainly wouldn't let such an opportunity pass.

"...There's even an even more disgusting possibility."

Ran Qing said expressionlessly, "Li Hongye wasn't the only one who retained her sanity after death. Her mother, who became a blood corpse, might also be with her."

"Just to mislead me, Li Hongye's mother never appeared."

"They treated me like a pawn."

The ancient ghost money of those who raise ghosts can give a certain degree of rationality to the vengeful ghosts that people become after death.

Li Hongye, coincidentally, seemed to retain her rationality after her death.

So, if her mother died alongside her, why was Li Hongye the only one who remained rational?

After Ran Qing finished speaking, Mo Li and Long Zongshu looked at each other in bewilderment.

Mo Li hesitated for a moment, then asked, "You...you're not going to go find Li Hongye, are you?"

She already knew Ran Qing's personality very well.

But for Ran Qing to go find Li Hongye alone now... is too dangerous.

If Li Hongye really was secretly manipulating everything and could control and influence that group of ancient Luo ghost soldiers.

So, relying solely on Ran Qing and the other two to search for them would undoubtedly be suicide.

In response to Mo Li's concerns, Ran Qing shook her head and said, "I need to find out what's going on, but I won't go to Li Hongye."

"There is another party who may have known about the tragic deaths of Li Hongye's family."

"But we've been ignoring this person who knows the truth all along."

Ran Qing's words surprised both Mo Li and Long Zongshu.

Long Zongshu scratched his head, somewhat bewildered: "There's another person in the know? Who is it?"

Mo Li frowned, deep in thought, but couldn't think of anyone else to ask. Those involved in this matter were either the ghost-raiser or Ran Qing and the other two.

Are there any other people in the know?
Faced with the confusion of her two companions, Ran Qing said slowly and expressionlessly, "Have you ever wondered why Li Hongye's father's surname is Lu and his name is Lu Baiyin, but her surname is Li?"

"Also, Li Hongye's father passed away ten years ago and became a corpse."

"Why are there two old women, a man and a woman, living in Li Hongye's house, pretending to be her parents?"

Ran Qing's question left Long Zongshu even more bewildered. Li Hongye was in the next class, and Zongshu knew nothing about her family situation.

Mo Li, on the other hand, looked astonished, clearly having guessed something.

Ran Qing slowly said, "...That's right, Li Hongye also has a father; her family is a blended family."

"Her stepfather's surname is Li, and his name is Li Wanjun. He teaches at Zhongshan Primary School and is a primary school teacher."

"I saw him once from afar at the parent-teacher conference last year."

“That disguised body of the old woman is exactly the same as his.”

"Since the old woman can transform into his appearance, she must have eaten his flesh and blood. He should already be dead."

"But judging from the condition of those two old women and the changes that have happened to the Li family, Li Hongye's stepfather, Teacher Li, should not have been dead for too long."

"If I go to the house he lived in and find the clothes he wore, I should be able to summon his ghost and ask him about the situation..."

Summoning spirits and questioning ghosts is a skill that spirit mediums rely on for their livelihood.

For Ran Qing, this was a perfect match for her major.

Moreover, Li Hongye's stepfather would not participate in raising evil spirits and refining corpses, because he had no blood ties or emotional bonds with Lu Baiyin's family of three.

Although it was a blended family and he had lived with Li Hongye and her daughter for many years, judging from the fact that Li Hongye and her daughter fed him to a paternal grandmother, it is highly likely that the mother and daughter had no feelings for him...

Upon hearing Ran Qing's account, Long Zongshu's face turned pale.

He said somewhat uneasily, "Li Hongye... her mother is too terrifying."

"She married with her daughter and even harmed someone else... What did this teacher, Ms. Li, do to deserve this?!"

Long Zongshu instinctively felt indignant.

Mo Li glanced at Ran Qing with concern, wanting to say something but remaining silent.

Ran Qing glanced at her and said, "...You mean to say that perhaps Li Hongye isn't a good person either, right?"

Ran Qing's expression was somewhat cold.

"I've thought of that too."

"She killed her sixth aunt and, together with her mother, killed her stepfather."

"Even if she's innocent and was forced into it, but..."

Ran Qing took a deep breath and gritted his teeth, saying, "Zong Shu recognized me as Ran Jianfei's son the first time we met in high school."

"Then what about Li Hongye? Haven't you recognized her after living with me for two years?"

"And in the beginning, it was she who took the initiative to approach me..."

As Ran Qing spoke, he recalled the scene of that playful girl taking the initiative to approach him and get to know him.

That was once the happiness and sweetness he cherished in his heart.

But at this moment, as Li Hongye's situation was gradually revealed.

The sweet scene of the girl taking the initiative to get closer suddenly turned sinister and dangerous.

Ran Qing said with a cold look in her eyes, "So, I'm going to find that poor Teacher Li and get some answers from him!"

"I want to know whether her mother forced her to do all this, or whether the mother and daughter did it together!"

(End of this chapter)