Since all these rules and superstitions are outdated, what's wrong with me indulging in some me

Last night, at the bottom of the lake, in that coffin.

But her eyes were closed at that time.

Now, her eyes are open, and they are normal eyes.

These eyes don't look like the black holes with no whites I saw yesterday.

The numbers on her forehead were glowing.

It wasn't gray light, it was golden light.

99.

No one spoke in the hall.

No one was even breathing.

Everyone froze in place, like a group of statues frozen in place. Their eyes were fixed on the woman in the doorway, her pupils reflecting her white dress and the golden 99.

Shen Ye dropped the wine glass from his hand.

The wine spilled all over the floor, the deep red liquid spreading across the snow-white tablecloth like a blooming flower.

Shen Ye's body was trembling, his lips were moving as if he wanted to say something, but his throat seemed to be choked by something, and he could only utter some indistinct, broken syllables.

"wave……"

He finally managed to squeeze out two words.

His voice was so hoarse it was almost inaudible, as if he had spoken for the first time after walking in the desert for seven days and seven nights.

The woman at the door turned her head and looked at him.

Her eyes were normal. Dark brown, exactly the same as Shen Ye's. The light from the crystal chandelier reflected in her pupils, illuminating Shen Ye's pale face.

She looked at Shen Ye for three seconds.

Then she laughed.

The smile was very faint, so faint that it was just a slight curve at the corner of the mouth.

But that one moment caused Shen Ye's tears to completely burst forth.

"Ah Shen," she said.

But Shen Ye seemed to have been pierced by something. His knees bent, his hands braced on the table, his body arched into a strange shape, and his shoulders heaved violently.

Lu Changsheng sat in the chair, without moving.

He looked at the woman at the door, then at Xiao Yuheng, and then at Shen Ye.

Then he felt a gaze upon him.

How can one know the fish's...

She looked up from behind the elegant and noble woman, her eyes meeting Lu Changsheng's for a fleeting moment. That moment was so brief, so fleeting, that no one else would notice, but Lu Changsheng understood the message conveyed—

Be careful.

He nodded slightly, so slightly that it was almost invisible.

An Zhiyu withdrew her gaze.

Xiao Yuheng stood up from the main seat.

His movements were slow, as if in slow motion. He walked around the table, step by step toward the door. Each step was steady, each step resonating with the heartbeats of everyone in the hall.

He walked up to the woman and stopped.

The two people stood facing each other, with less than a meter between them.

Xiao Yuheng looked at her, his gray eyes reflecting her white dress and dark brown eyes.

"Niao Niao," he said.

The voice was very soft, so soft that it sounded like a secret that only the two of them could hear.

The woman looked at him, and the smile on her lips deepened.

"younger brother."

Xiao Yuheng reached out and grasped the woman's hand.

"You're back," Xiao Yuheng said.

"I'm back," the woman said.

People in the hall started clapping.

It wasn't just one person, it was many people. Applause rang out from all directions, starting sparsely, then growing more frequent and louder, until finally the entire hall was filled with applause.

Everyone stood up.

Everyone was applauding.

Everyone wore that standard, well-trained, and perfectly timed smile.

Xiao Yuheng took the woman's hand and led her to the head of the table.

The woman paused as she passed by Shen Ye.

She turned her head and looked at Shen Ye. His face was streaked with tears, and his lips were trembling, reflected in her deep brown eyes.

"Ah," she exclaimed again.

Shen Ye extended his hand.

His hands trembled so badly that he almost touched the woman's face several times before pulling back. It was as if he dared not touch her, as if he was afraid that the touch would shatter her, as if he was afraid that all of this was just a dream, and that touching her would wake him up.

In the end, it was the woman who took the initiative to approach her.

Her cheek pressed against Shen Ye's palm.

Cool, smooth, porcelain-like cheeks.

Shen Ye's hand froze for a moment, then tightened suddenly. But the woman didn't flinch; she simply closed her eyes and quietly rested her hand in his palm, like a child who had finally found her home.

"Seven years." Shen Ye's voice was squeezed out of his throat, muffled, hoarse, like a mix of crying and laughing, "Seven years...where have you been..."

The woman opened her eyes, and Shen Ye's face was reflected in her deep brown pupils.

"I've always been here," she said. "You just can't see me."

Shen Ye's body stiffened abruptly.

He released his grip, took a half-step back, and stared intently at the woman's face.

"What did you say?"

The woman did not answer.

She turned her head and looked at Xiao Yuheng.

"Sit down first," Xiao Yuheng said. "We'll talk after we sit down."

He led the woman to the head of the table. The woman sat down next to him; that seat had originally belonged to the woman who scored 83 points, but now she had automatically moved aside, a perfectly measured smile on her face, without any sign of displeasure.

No, it's not "automatic".

It is "被" (bèi).

Lu Changsheng noticed a detail—the moment the woman walked in, the number on her forehead dropped from 83 to 81, then from 81 to 79. She didn't argue, not because she didn't want to, but because she knew she couldn't win.

99 points and 79 points.

This isn't a gap, it's a chasm.

Shen Ye sat down again.

His eyes were still red, and tears still clung to his face, but his expression was no longer one of utter despair. He looked at the woman opposite him, at the wife he had searched for seven years, his lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he said nothing.

"Everyone," Xiao Yuheng's voice rang out, neither too loud nor too soft, just enough for everyone to hear clearly, "this is my older sister, Xiao Qingniao."

He paused for a moment.

"He is also the true owner of this ancient castle."

The hall fell silent again.

The silence was different from before. The previous silence was passive, forced, and suppressed by some external force. This silence was active, voluntary, and everyone had chosen not to speak.

Because everyone knows what that sentence means.

Xiao Yuheng is the owner of this ancient castle because he has a score of 96.

Xiao Qingniao scores 99 points.

Lu Changsheng picked up the wine glass in front of him and took a sip. The wine went down his throat, spicy and scalding, like a line of fire burning from his throat to his stomach.

He put down his wine glass and looked at Xiao Qingniao.

The woman was beautiful, but her beauty resembled that of a doll, devoid of life. Although her every move was perfectly executed, it was so perfect that she didn't seem like a human being.

The more I looked at it, the more something seemed off.

"Mr. Lu," Shen Ye seemed to sense something was amiss, but he leaned close to Lu Changsheng's ear and whispered, "What state is Niao Niao in right now?"

Lu Changsheng looked at the woman, then glanced at Shen Ye, who was watching him nervously, and smiled slightly.

"Didn't you already guess? She's not a living person," Lu Changsheng said.

Shen Ye's face turned pale.

It wasn't pale, but a white like paper, devoid of any blood.

"What did you say?" His voice was so low it was almost inaudible.

Lu Changsheng looked at the woman.

"She is a vengeful spirit," Lu Changsheng said.

Shen Ye's pupils suddenly contracted.

"impossible."

His voice seemed to be squeezed out from the depths of his throat, each word carrying an almost desperate stubbornness.

"She has body temperature, she can talk, she can touch me—" Shen Ye's hand was still suspended in mid-air, his fingertips still lingering on the cool, smooth touch of Xiao Qingniao's cheek. "A vengeful spirit can't be—"

"A vengeful spirit couldn't possibly do that?" Lu Changsheng picked up where he left off, his tone flat. "How many vengeful spirits have you seen?"

Shen Ye opened his mouth, but no words came out.

Lu Changsheng didn't continue speaking because Xiao Yuheng's gaze had already swept over.

Those gray eyes still held a smile, but that smile had changed.

Lu Changsheng picked up his wine glass and took another sip.

What exactly does Xiao Yuheng want to do?

Xiao Yuheng and Xiao Qingniao are siblings, and Shen Ye is Xiao Qingniao's husband.

In other words, Xiao Yuheng is Shen Ye's brother-in-law.

Lu Changsheng's gaze shifted back and forth between the three people, his mind racing.

Xiao Qingniao had been missing for seven years, and Shen Ye had been searching for her for seven years.

Over the past seven years, Xiao Yuheng has become the master of this ancient castle, while Xiao Qingniao has been sealed at the bottom of the lake behind the castle. But today, she was suddenly brought out by Xiao Yuheng.

Lu Changsheng didn't believe that Xiao Yuheng didn't know Shen Ye's purpose this time.

However, if Xiao Qingniao, who is neither human nor ghost, were brought in front of everyone, anyone with eyes could see that something was wrong, let alone her husband Shen Ye.

What exactly does Xiao Yuheng want to do?

Lu Changsheng lowered his eyelids, concealing the turbulent emotions in his pupils. This step was indeed beyond his expectations.

The banquet was still going on.

Waiters carried trays between the long tables, refilling every empty glass. Food was served one course at a time: steaming roast meats, exquisite desserts, and fruit platters arranged in flower shapes.

No one touched their chopsticks.

All eyes were fixed on Xiao Qingniao.

Xiao Qingniao sat in the main seat, her posture elegant and composed. Her fingers lightly touched the rim of her wine glass, her deep brown eyes sweeping over every face in the hall, a faint smile playing on her lips.

That smile was perfect.

It's so perfect it's unreal.

Lu Changsheng noticed a detail: although Xiao Qingniao's eyes could move, focus, and follow the speaker, her pupils did not change.

In a normal person, the pupils contract or dilate when the light changes, and the focus adjusts when looking at objects at different distances.

Xiao Qingniao's pupils were empty.

It always has the same size and the same focal length, as if it were painted on.

"Mr. Lu."

Xiao Yuheng's voice came from the main seat, interrupting Lu Changsheng's observation.

"What are you observing?"

Lu Changsheng raised his head and met Xiao Yuheng's gaze.

"I'm looking at Madam," Lu Changsheng said calmly. "Madam is very beautiful."

Xiao Yuheng smiled, the corners of his mouth widened, and fine lines appeared at the corners of his eyes.

"Sister is indeed very beautiful." Xiao Yuheng turned his head and looked at Xiao Qingniao beside him, lowering his voice as if talking to himself, "She has been since she was little."

Xiao Qingniao turned her head and met Xiao Yuheng's gaze, a slight smile curving her lips.

"My little brother is still so good at talking."

"Everyone," Xiao Yuheng stood up, raised his glass, "let's raise a toast together to welcome Niao Niao home."

Everyone stood up at the same time and raised their glasses.

"Welcome home—"

The voices were perfectly synchronized, as if they had rehearsed countless times.

Xiao Qingniao also stood up, raised her wine glass, and took a small sip.

The wine clung to her lips, giving them a faint sheen. Lu Changsheng noticed that her Adam's apple didn't move.

She didn't swallow it.

Lu Changsheng stared at Xiao Qingniao's throat. Her fair neck was smooth and still, without the muscle movement that should occur when swallowing.

The wine merely moistened her lips and then remained there, like a thin layer of glaze.

The next second, Lu Changsheng saw something even more wrong.

The golden number 99 on Xiao Qingniao's forehead flashed once.

It wasn't a normal, steady flickering light, but rather an unstable, intermittent flickering like a light bulb about to burn out.

When it first flickered, the lights in the hall dimmed for a moment.

It's not an illusion.

Lu Changsheng saw that the flame in the wall lamp simultaneously shortened, as if pressed down by an invisible hand. The candlelight on the crystal chandelier also flickered, and several of them went out, leaving behind a wisp of smoke.

During the second flash, someone shouted.

The sound was short and sharp, like something was choking someone. Lu Changsheng looked in the direction of the sound and saw a servant standing in the corner covering his forehead, his face full of terror.

The numbers on his forehead are changing.

It wasn't rising, it wasn't falling, but flickering, like a TV with a bad signal, the picture jumping back and forth between stable and snowy.

"My numbers... my numbers are gone—"

Another voice came from the other end of the hall. A maid's eyes widened, and her finger trembled as she pointed to her forehead.

The number dropped to 0.

The third flash.

This time, it wasn't just one person who disappeared from the numbers.

There were more than a dozen people.

Lu Changsheng quickly scanned the group. Without exception, all those whose numbers had disappeared from their foreheads were among the lowest-scoring servants, all scoring below 40.

"Look, the housekeeper—"

Someone shouted.

Lu Changsheng turned his head.

The butler stood by the door, and for the first time, a change appeared on his perpetually expressionless face.

It wasn't fear, it wasn't panic.

It is pain.

His features were contorted, veins bulged on his forehead, and sweat poured down his temples like rain. His hands gripped the door frame tightly, his knuckles white from the force, and his fingernails dug into the wood grain.

The numbers on his forehead were jumping wildly.

65——57——48——39——

It wasn't flashing; it was a crash.

Every second it was falling, like a kite with a broken string, plummeting rapidly from the sky.

The butler's knees buckled.

He couldn't hold on any longer, his body slid down the door frame, and finally knelt on the ground with a thud. The sound of his knees hitting the stone slab echoed in the hall, dull and jarring.

But no one helped him up.

Because everyone is struggling to protect themselves.

Xiao Yuheng stood quietly beside Xiao Qingniao, his face still bearing an impeccable smile as he looked down at the noisy crowd.

The fourth flash.