Early the next morning, Old Lady Zhang bought some visiting gifts and set off with Gu Qingyun toward her older brother's home. Her brother lived in Xigu Village, Daoxiang Town, Yangtao County.
Surrounded by endless rolling mountains, Xigu Village was fortunate to have a favorable location. Whether in flood or drought, it had suffered neither, making it a fine place.
After asking for directions several times along the way and bumping through the rugged journey, the two finally arrived at the village where the Zhang family lived. Just as they were about to enter, a voice called out from behind to stop them:
“Young fellow, don't take that road. Take this newly built one of ours.”
Gu Qingyun nodded in thanks and turned her horse onto the other path.
Hearing the sound of approaching hooves, a child inside caught the commotion and walked out of the courtyard.
“Great-Grandpa, it's a horse! Such a big horse!”
Gu Qingyun stopped right before the gate of the Zhang family's home. Looking down at the excited little girl, she smiled faintly.
“Little one, is this the Zhang family residence?”
The little girl nodded shyly.
“Yes, it is.”
With that, she turned and ran inside.
“Grandpa, someone's here!”
Gu Qingyun dismounted in a stride, helped Old Lady Zhang safely off the horse, and looked up at the gate of the small farmhouse courtyard.
Today was her granduncle's milestone birthday, yet there was neither red silk draped outside nor any festive characters pasted up, nor even a single red lantern hanging. It was truly rather strange.
Old Lady Zhang was in no mood to notice any of this. The last time she had returned to her maiden home had been over ten years ago; even her memory of her eldest brother's face had grown somewhat dim.
Shuffling footsteps echoed from within the courtyard, and quite a few people emerged—men and women, old and young.
Old Lady Zhang looked at the old man in front, who was seven or eight years younger than her.
“Zhu-zi, we haven't seen each other in so many years. How have you aged so much?”
The old man smiled wryly.
“Aunt, how could anyone not age? I'm not that much younger than you, and I toil in the fields every day. It's only natural. Aunt, who is this?”
Zhang Zhuzi looked at the imposing youngster, who wore a saber at her waist and clothes that were clearly expensive, appearing completely unfamiliar.
“This is my Qingyun, the youngest daughter of my third son's family.”
“Greetings, Cousin Uncle,” Gu Qingyun greeted him.
“I didn't expect Cousin He's daughter to be so grown up already. And what a handsome appearance,” Zhang Zhuzi stammered slightly.
He introduced everyone in the Zhang family one by one as he supported Old Lady Zhang from the other side, guiding her into the courtyard.
“Aunt, if my father knew you'd come, he'd be overjoyed.”
...
Walking into the main room of the courtyard, they saw an elderly man. His hair was completely white, his eyes already clouded, and he wore a brand-new padded jacket, sitting at the head of the room leaning on a cane.
Gu Qingyun bowed respectfully.
“Granddaughter Gu Qingyun congratulates Granduncle on your longevity. May Granduncle enjoy health and fortune, as enduring as pine and crane.”
The old man's gaze fell upon Gu Qingyun. With a kindly tone, he came forward and helped her up.
“Good child, quickly get up. You must be tired from the long journey.”
He stepped in front of Old Lady Zhang and studied her face closely.
“Little Sister, we've both grown old. I thought I might never see you again; we live so far apart.”
With that single sentence, Old Lady Zhang's eyes welled with tears.
“Eldest Brother...” Choking back a sob, she could say no more.
The brother and sister, both past half a century of life, sat together chatting about everyday matters. The others tactfully refrained from interrupting them, while Gu Qingyun quietly found a corner to sit in.
In the eyes of the others, with her striking attire, the youngsters of the family did not dare approach to strike up a conversation with her.
Only when it was time to eat, seeing that the Zhang family had set out only five tables, and that gathered around them were only her grandmother, her siblings, and their descendants, did Gu Qingyun sense that something was amiss.
Perhaps her confusion was too apparent, for the Zhang family cousin sitting next to her plucked up the courage to say:
“Cousin Qingyun, something terrible happened in our village over the past few days. Grandfather originally intended to host a banquet, but this matter is far too grave. To protect our lives, we had no choice but to cancel the celebration.”
Seeing that Gu Qingyun's expression remained calm, the younger generation sitting nearby all opened up and joined in the conversation.
“Cousin, you have no idea how sinister this is. Did you see two paths when you came here? That new road was built just in the past few days; no one can go on the old one.” The speaker was Zhang Zhuzi's eldest son.
He swallowed hard and shuddered all over.
“Everything used to be fine, but seven days ago, Zhang Musheng's mother died of illness and was buried on the desolate hill near that road. Two days ago, someone saw her wandering along that path, got frightened out of their wits, and fell ill as soon as they got home.”
From their words, Gu Qingyun pieced together the general picture. Zhang Musheng's grandmother was a paternal cousin to her own grandmother.
Though called cousins, it only amounted to her grandmother's grandfather and that family's grandfather having been brothers; after three generations, they were no longer considered close kin.
The deceased Aunt Zhang had lived a bitter life. Her parents-in-law had passed away long ago, and her husband was lazy, spending any bit of money he got on wine, completely neglecting his wife and sons.
Through hardships and toil, she had raised three children. Who could have imagined that her elder two sons took after their father, callous and coldhearted?
Worn down by long years of hard labor, her body grew frail, and she fell gravely ill. It would have cost only a few taels of silver to treat, but the family had no money. When the two sons tried to borrow, no one would lend to them, and so she died of her illness at home.
Her youngest son was filial at heart, doing odd jobs away from home, but by the time he found out, his mother had already passed away.
The members of the Zhang clan had not realized Zhang Musheng's mother was so severely ill. The truth was that Zhang Musheng's two older brothers had borrowed silver several times before, and every time, they never paid it back.
No one's money blew in with the wind; after a few times, no one would lend them money anymore, nor would they associate with their household, avoiding entanglement.
Who could have known Aunt Zhang's illness would strike so fiercely, taking her life in just two short days? Having no silver, the Zhang family could not hire a specialist in funeral rites to inspect the burial site, so they simply arranged a hasty funeral and buried her.
Ever since Aunt Zhang's death, strange occurrences plagued the village. At night, dogs constantly barked wildly, and people walking back late at night saw her wandering beside the road, frightening them straight into illness. After conferring, the villagers bypassed that stretch of land and built another road.
Hearing this, Gu Qingyun sighed.
“Even if people saw her, there shouldn't be any need to be terrified to this extent. You could simply pretend not to see.”
Zhang Xiaohe had not expected her cousin to be so bold. With a pale face, she said:
“Cousin, if it were only that, it would be fine! But that aunt is terrifyingly ferocious. On the second night after her burial, she dragged her eldest son down with her. It happened to rain that day, leaving a small puddle on that road, and Cousin Zhang Tiesheng drowned in it just like that. The day after his death, Aunt's husband hanged himself directly from a tree beside that road. Yesterday, Zhang Musheng's second brother dropped dead suddenly at home. Now only Zhang Musheng is left in their family.”
Gu Qingyun's eyes narrowed. To be so ferocious so soon after burial, it seemed the burial site was ill-omened; she had already transformed into a malevolent fiend.
Seeing the people at the table so frightened that they could barely hold their chopsticks, Gu Qingyun smiled and reassured them:
“Don't be afraid. Every wrong has its perpetrator, and every debt its debtor. It won't fall upon your heads.”
Who would have thought that as soon as she said this, the faces around the table turned even paler, and some even had tears welling in their eyes.
“Cousin, yesterday the clan called over a mortuary master. He took one look and fled, saying Aunt Zhang will only stop after dragging nine people down with her. Any of us in the clan could be dragged down by her.”
Gu Qingyun: “...” She had never seen one this ferocious.
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