Crossing the Mountains

Chapter 8: Open the coffin to see you

It was late at night. There was no couch in the hut, only a straw mattress and a thin blanket next to the coffin.

Tan Huaike just found it funny. The person was dead, what was the point of doing all this? Could it be that they really wanted this couple, separated by life and death, to spend a night together and have a child soon?

The evening meal was really small, and after sharing some with Pei'er, Tan Huaike soon felt hungry. She didn't bother to be polite with her husband, but greeted the tablet and ate most of the nuts and snacks on the altar.

Feeling thirsty, she remembered that she had not yet drunk the wedding wine.

There were two empty cups on the altar. Tan Huaike scooped two spoonfuls of wine into the cups, placed one cup in front of the tablet, and held the other cup himself. Recalling the posture taught by Tan Jiafang's mother-in-law Lou, she put her arm through the tablet of her husband and drank the wedding wine in a proper manner.

After drinking, she smacked her lips and savored the wine, saying, "The wine from Daxuan is so fragrant. Is it a sweet wine brewed from rice? Hmm, it tastes very different from the fruit wine in the western border, but both are quite delicious." She scooped another cup and said, "My dear, you are not lucky enough to enjoy it. I...I will drink a few more cups for you. At least it will warm you up so that you can sleep well even if you are close to the coffin."

After drinking so many cups, the wine jar was empty. Tan Huaike felt sleepy and lay down on the straw mattress to sleep.

The candlelight flickered, but it was not a red candle, but a white candle.

Not long after, there was a rustling sound in the coffin, followed by groping and pounding along the edge of the coffin lid - bang, bang, as if something inside was about to jump out.

Tan Huaike was born with a very good alcohol tolerance and did not get drunk. In addition, he was alert and a light sleeper, so he opened his eyes when he heard the noise, but he still lay quietly, without calling out or getting up.

At first, she wasn't sure where the sound was coming from. She thought it was the wind blowing the window open, but after a closer look, she broke out in a cold sweat—the thumping noise was actually coming from her husband's coffin! What was going on? He wouldn't die with regret, would he? He really wanted to spend the night with her?
Tan Huaike suppressed his inner fear.

She was very scared, but she told herself that the more scared she was, the calmer she had to be.

She couldn't leave the Qinglu. If she did, it would give the Shentu family an excuse to harass her. They would have a legitimate reason to divorce her and kick her out. Then she would never be able to turn things around. So no matter what came out of the coffin, she would fight to the death in this small Qinglu.

If it really was a ghost, she hadn't done anything against the will of heaven or earth. She had married into the family to serve a ghost, so it shouldn't have killed her. At most, it would have eaten some of his offerings, and at worst, it would have knelt down and kowtowed a few times. Tomorrow, she would have asked Pei'er to get some more nuts and snacks for him to offer to calm him down.

If it's not a ghost... then what is it?
Boom, boom.

The movement in the coffin continued, and the coffin lid was jumping up and down, and it seemed that it could no longer be held down.

Tan Huaike no longer sat there waiting for death. He rolled down from the straw mattress quietly and curled up in a corner where it was convenient to peek. He was on full alert while thinking about countermeasures.

If it wasn't a ghost, then Madam Shentu was testing her? Testing her loyalty to her son's tablet? Or was she deliberately trying to scare her, hoping to find a way to erase her existence? Then she'd say she was frightened mad, possessed, and had been given a few doses of medicine to kill herself, arranging a ghost marriage for her son? That shouldn't be the right thing to do. Even if she really wanted to do that, why rush into it? Would a haunted house on wedding night really be good for the Shentu family's reputation?
Bang, bang, squeak, crack.

But who could say? Perhaps this night was all about her demise? With her background, no one would care if she truly died... Was it a waste of all the ways she'd devised to make a living, only to find they wouldn't be used in the end? She'd underestimated the wickedness of human nature. Could this Qinglu be her final resting place?

These speculations made Tan Huaike fall into despair. He couldn't think of how to fight back for a while. He could only hold a candlestick in his hand. No matter whether that thing was a human or a ghost, he would fight to the death if he couldn't do anything!
Crack——

The coffin lid was pushed open completely, and a human head slowly rose from inside.

His long, messy black hair covered his face, revealing only his pale, cold jaw. He was dressed in red, like a Shura that had crawled out of the fire of karma. His tall body was unusually stiff... Further down, his veined hand was dragging a long spear. In the candlelight, the mottled spots on the spear were not rust, but bloodstains.

Tan Huaike covered his mouth tightly.

No way! Is it really a ghost? Is it her husband who died with his eyes wide open?

The ghost turned his stiff neck, walked out of the coffin, stepped onto the altar, bent down, picked up the forgotten cup of wedding wine, and drank it all in one gulp.

Tan Huaike: “…”

The wedding wine has already been drunk. Is this ghost really here to marry me? After finishing the wine, the red ghost stretched out his limbs and turned his head to look around, obviously looking for something.

Tan Huaike shrank even tighter, pulled the green curtain next to him to cover himself, and silently said to himself, "He can't see me", as if this would bring him more luck and courage.

Unfortunately, this chapel was too small, and her silhouette as a living person was too conspicuous. Soon the red ghost discovered her, nimbly turned over the altar, and walked towards this corner step by step.

Bah, bah, bah.

The blood-stained halberd tip dragged on the ground, leaving a trail of winding wood chips, and then slowly rose up, pointing at Tan Huaike's throat.

The red ghost's hoarse voice was like rusty iron rubbing against gravel: "You are... my wife?"

Tan Huaike tried to look him in the face, but her messy hair obscured his face. Facing the sharp spear, she opened her mouth in fear and replied in a trembling voice, "I am... no, not really... I..."

The Red Ghost snorted coldly: "My soul has already returned to the underworld, why do you still want to marry into the Shentu family?"

Realizing that this ghost could communicate, Tan Huaike felt a glimmer of hope again. She raised her eyes and made the most innocent and pitiful expression: "I, I have no choice... If my husband doesn't want to sleep with me, I... I will just sleep far away..."

The red ghost took another step forward, lifted her chin with the tip of his halberd, and muttered, "She's really a Hu woman... For such a small amount of money and store, the Tan family is really..."

Tan Huaike could no longer control himself, and tears fell, splashing on the tip of the halberd.

She said in a mournful voice, "I beg you to show mercy, my lord, and spare my life... Although killing me would allow me to remain with you in the afterlife, we never knew each other in life, so what's the point of being a ghost couple? It would be better to keep me in the mansion to serve the old lady, as it would be a way for you to show your filial piety..."

The red ghost tilted his head and looked at her: "You are very sharp-tongued...but why do I feel that you have ulterior motives?"

Tan Huaike defended herself: "I, I just..."

Gululu.

Um? what sound?
Gulu, gulu.

The red ghost froze.

Tan Huaike heard it clearly. This was the sound coming from the red ghost's stomach.

She couldn't help but ask, "Are you hungry? Can ghosts get hungry too?"

The Red Ghost paused and said, "The final battle was too sudden. I didn't have time to eat before I died. Isn't it normal to be hungry?"

"Of course, of course." Tan Huaike nodded in agreement. "Would you like to eat some of the offerings, my dear? They're over there. There are dates, peanuts, sour apricots, and chestnuts. They're delicious. I saved some for you."

"You're smart." The red ghost retracted his halberd and turned to walk towards the altar.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Tan Huaike rushed forward with the candlestick tightly in his hand, knocking the red ghost off balance with all his strength, and then he turned the tables and pressed the sharp candlestick against his throat.

Tan Huaike shouted, "Who are you? Why are you hiding in my husband's coffin and playing tricks on me?"
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　Next chapter: What is the purpose?
　　Thanks to Jiang Jiang Jiang Jiang Han, Xia Xi Chan Ming, and Ke Ke Ke for the recommendation votes~
　　

(End of this chapter)