I endured the humiliation and humiliation while being besieged by the ghost story elder sister.

"Aww~ What a comfortable sleep~ The air conditioning on the plane is so nice and cool~"

Fanxia also opened her eyes, stretched and said this, then looked to her side, her attention focused on Ximiao outside the window.

To be honest, she didn't feel at all the excitement and emotion that Ximiao felt about being able to go home.

His reaction to her now seemed very indifferent, which made her wonder what was wrong with Xi Ling.

However, before I could even ask the question, the flight attendant's voice rang out again, recounting the precautions for disembarking.

This forced Fanxia to swallow the question back down, wondering if she might have misunderstood...

then.

After getting off the plane and retrieving their checked luggage at the terminal, they hailed a taxi and headed to the address that Ximiao had given them.

"By the way, Mio, while there's still some time, tell us about your family!"

Sitting in the back row, Arisa looked at Nozomi, who was squeezed between her and Honoka, and asked, wanting to take this opportunity to gather some information so as to leave a good impression on Nozomi's family.

Strangely, Hio hesitated, holding her head, as if she was trying hard to recall the situation of her family.

But after a long while, Xi Ling finally spoke.

"It seems that I only have one older sister who loves me very much. She didn't come to Xijing with me because she was busy taking care of the family shop."

"Eh~ Is that so?"

For some reason, after hearing what Mio said, Honoka and Arisa's expressions were rather intriguing, as if they were thinking about something.

Meanwhile, Aunt Ashi, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, looked rather serious.

Soon, the taxi stopped in front of a somewhat old mansion.

"Gentlemen, this is... the address you mentioned..."

Even the driver's expression turned grim. He urged the passengers to get out of the car quickly, and after unloading the suitcases from the trunk, he floored the gas pedal and disappeared from everyone's sight in an instant.

"What is he doing? Are we that scary?"

Just now, before they all got on the bus, they were all smiling, but after Ximiao told him their destination, he stopped smiling.

However, they didn't dwell on this matter for too long, and instead turned their attention to the eerie mansion next door.

"Mio, are you sure this is your home?"

"Yes, that's right, is there anything strange about it?"

As if she couldn't see the eeriness of this house, Xi Ling tilted her head and looked at the group of people beside her, whose foreheads were constantly covered in cold sweat, and said.

Strange? This is a very strange question!

Anyone with a normal mind can tell at a glance that this is definitely a haunted house, yet Xi Ling claims it's her home...

Thinking of this, Ami, Arisa, and Honoka exchanged glances and decided to follow Nozomi inside to find out what was going on.

Several people dragged their heavy suitcases into the courtyard. They saw Ximiao, who seemed to know her way around, take out a key from under a flowerpot by the door and open it.

The doubts in their hearts lessened somewhat, and they felt that this place was indeed Xi Ling's home.

But as Ximio opened the door, a chilling aura wafted out. The people following Ximio were all too familiar with this aura.

However, it seems that no one is inside. Perhaps the people inside have gone out. They did see that there were several pairs of women's shoes in the entrance hall. They were probably the gentle and considerate older sister that Ximiao mentioned.

"Alright, let's each find a room we like and unpack our luggage. I'm going to take a shower first—I'm so uncomfortable from all this sweat."

Ximiao acted very strangely, picking up her clothes and heading towards the bathroom.

After that, only Arisa, Honoka, and a few others remained in the living room, staring at each other, waiting for the other to explain what was going on.

After pondering for a while without reaching a conclusion, the two had no choice but to turn their attention to Ami, who was the most senior among them. Listening to her was surely the right thing to do.

After sensing that her daughter and Fanxia were both looking at her, she couldn't help but sigh before slowly explaining.

"It seems that some of Ximiao's memories have been altered in his current situation. Judging from the current situation, the other party has probably altered all the information about Ximiao's family members... And the culprit is probably the older sister he mentioned."

"We know that, but what about this room?"

No matter how you look at it, this place doesn't seem like a suitable place for people to live. It's really a bit scary that Ximiao has lived here for so long without getting sick or suffering any disasters.

After an unknown amount of time, Xi Ling, wrapped in a towel, came out of the bathroom and saw Fan Xia and the others gathered in the living room as if they were having a secret gathering.

Xi Miao was a little curious, so she tiptoed over to listen to what they were talking about.

The result was quite simple: after chatting there, we went to the beach to see what to do. From what we saw online, this place could be considered a tourist attraction.

During the summer vacation, there will probably be a lot of tourists coming here, and the beach will be packed with people, which is just a worrying thought.

Upon hearing their words, Ximiao, who was eavesdropping behind them, couldn't help but sneer.

"You don't need to worry about that. This place is, after all, my territory. I have a secret base for that."

"Eh?"

Chapter Three: The Meeting

"Miss Baqi? Miss Baqi! I'd like a cart noodle dish and a small portion of curry fish balls. Oh, and please settle the bill for this bottle of oolong tea I'm holding as well."

In a convenience store or grocery store with the air conditioning blasting, elderly men and women who have just finished their farm work invariably come here to enjoy the air conditioning and grab a bite to eat.

After all, there's still a while before lunchtime, so I might as well come here to enjoy the air conditioning, chat with friends, and maybe even support the business here.

Behind the cashier, a tall figure was cooking noodles and scooping fish balls, but despite her work, she seemed distracted and lost in thought.

If you ignore her almost towering height, just her figure and pretty face alone would attract countless suitors.

Unfortunately, most guys feel inferior when they see a girl who is much taller than them, which is why they never even manage to strike up a conversation with her.

Except for that arrogant little kid from many years ago...

After a while, having finally managed to get rid of the group of elderly people, Hachiko quietly found a chair and sat down... She rested her left hand on the counter, propped her head up, and sighed helplessly.

With one or two hours left before closing time, she could already sense that the boy she longed for had returned, but she couldn't go to see him right away.

It's tough...

Meanwhile, back home after a long absence, Ximiao took Fanxia and the others on a tour of her house. Of course, this was at their request, and Ximiao didn't know what was so interesting about it.

However, unable to resist their repeated requests, Xi Ling, who was wearing a shark onesie pajama, led them upstairs.

Apart from the room of the older sister that Ximiao mentioned, which they did not go to, the other rooms were empty or had been turned into storage rooms, and there was no indication that anyone lived there.

As for Nozomi's parents and the like, they are even more unsettling, as they exude an eerie atmosphere.

Moreover, Ximiao herself couldn't find a single photo of herself with her older sister to show to everyone.

a long time.

In the living room, the air conditioner was on, and the group of people sitting around the kotatsu were whispering about something. Meanwhile, Ximiao was busy preparing dinner in the kitchen.

He opened the refrigerator and found that it was fully stocked with all kinds of ingredients, even more complete than what he had bought when he was in the apartment.

"Sister Baqi, you've prepared so much! It's amazing!" Ximiao muttered softly, but she didn't hold back and took out the seafood from the container, planning to cook them a seafood feast tonight and give Baqi a surprise as well.

Little did she know that her older sister, Yashiro, already knew that Hiyo had returned, and was even wondering what kind of expression she would make.

Meanwhile, in the living room, while watching TV and eating oranges, Fanxia spoke softly to Arisa.

"What should we say tonight?"

"Eh?"

"Since you don't want it, then I'll go sleep in Mio's room." Before Arisa could react, she said this.

Looking at the sly expression on Fanxia's face, Arisa couldn't help but click her tongue, and then said in an annoyed tone.

"The situation is so strange right now, how can you still be talking about these things? What are you trying to do?!"

"Even if the older sister that Mio mentioned is suspicious, judging from the current situation, she doesn't seem to have any intention of harming Mio. What's there to worry about?"

Fanxia said nonchalantly, as long as she was thick-skinned enough, she could get rid of Arisa and have Nozomi all to herself. Wouldn't that be wonderful?

Just as the group was playing around in the living room, they suddenly heard the sound of a key opening a door from the entrance hall.

Then, a series of unhurried footsteps came from the corridor, causing Fanxia and Arisa, who were playing around in the living room, to pause for a moment.

As for Aunt Ashi, who was already prepared, an indescribable power had gathered in her hand hidden inside the kotatsu, ready to strike at the slightest sign of trouble.

As the footsteps drew closer, everyone held their breath, waiting for the owner of the footsteps to arrive.

Ximiao, who happened to be busy in the kitchen, was wiping her forehead, which was covered in sweat, when she heard footsteps coming from the corridor. She was immediately delighted.

After finishing what they were doing, before Honoka and Arisa could even react, Nozomi suddenly lunged at the tall, somewhat intimidating voice that had just emerged from the corridor.

The woman caught the unusually happy Ximiao and hugged her tightly. It was clear that Ximiao was practically buried in her arms.

The other three people who saw this were stunned and at a loss for what to do.

All I could hear was Ximiao saying, "Long time no see~ Yashiro-neechan~"

"That's right, why didn't you come back to see me during the New Year, Mio? Could it be..."

While gently rubbing the soft, light golden hair of the girl in her arms, the woman raised her head and looked at the three people sitting around the kotatsu.

A chill ran through them, but it came and went quickly, disappearing as soon as Mio wrapped her arms around Hachiko's neck.

What could be heard was Himiko explaining softly to the woman called Hachi.

"Winter break was too short~ and round-trip train or plane tickets were too expensive, not worth it, so I didn't come back to see you, Sister Baqi~"

"Oh, I see. If you don't have enough living expenses, just tell me. Why do you have to struggle on your own? The little shop in your family makes a pretty good living."

The two exchanged pleasantries for a while before reluctantly letting go of each other, their eyes practically glaring at each other. This made Fanxia and Arisa quite unhappy, but they didn't know what to say.

After all, the other party's current status is much closer than that of the two of them.

After Xiling returned to the kitchen to continue her work, Yashiro changed her clothes and came to the living room. Without thinking, she sat down in the only remaining empty space next to the square kotatsu.

Her beautiful, dark blue eyes swept over the three people in front of her. After confirming that none of them were normal humans, she slowly spoke.

"May I ask what brings you here?"

Of course, this was said in a volume that Nozomi couldn't hear.

In fact, when she saw that Xi Ling had brought three women she didn't recognize back home, Ya Zi was angry, but when she thought that the women might be in Xijing taking care of Xi Ling, she held back.