IMMFBCG Chapter 43

Chapter 43: New Love

Uncle Wang didn’t follow them over to play the role of a third wheel. Instead, he waited until he saw them approach before opening the car door to take the suitcase from Yu Qi.

However, Yu Qi sidestepped and replied in a neutral tone, “I’ll handle it.”

Uncle Wang glanced at the pink suitcase that was completely at odds with Yu Qi’s temperament but said nothing. He simply smiled and nodded before heading to the trunk to open it.

Yue Xue noticed that there was also a black suitcase inside and couldn’t help but ask, “Yu Qi, are you going on a trip?”

“No…” Yu Qi looked at Yue Xue and continued, “I’m going to be staying at Xuanzhen Temple for a while.”

Uncle Wang explained from the side, “Recently, there have been more and more strange occurrences. The Daoist Association is worried about him being alone with the Yu family, so they suggested he stay at Xuanzhen Temple for some time.”

In the past, even though various restless spirits would be drawn to the Yu family’s mansion, they didn’t encounter strange incidents one after another like they did now. Not to mention, the twin spirits he encountered before were particularly eerie.

It seemed that after the incident with the Rong Ghost Well, Yu Qi had begun to face more bizarre events around him.

After careful consideration, the Daoist Association suggested he stay either at Taihe Temple or Zhenwu Temple for a while. They had prepared for a long discussion, but unexpectedly, Yu Qi agreed quickly.

However, he chose to go to Xuanzhen Temple instead of one of the well-known temples.

Yue Xue appeared to be taken aback for a moment. “Huh?”

She instinctively looked at Yu Qi.

Yue Xue’s reaction was somewhat flat, and Yu Qi, fearing she might think he was being abrupt, tightened his grip on the suitcase slightly, appearing a bit at a loss.

Then he raised his eyes to meet Yue Xue’s gaze as if wanting to say something, “I…”

Yue Xue snapped back to reality and smiled brightly, “That’s great! Don’t worry, at Xuanzhen Temple, no one will dare to bother you—uh, I mean, there are no ghosts!”

When Yu Qi was met with her dark eyes, it felt as though something gently brushed against his heart, and all negative emotions dissipated in an instant.

He lowered his eyelids to conceal the ripples in his gaze and suddenly smiled faintly, “I know.”

Yue Xue said, “Then let’s hurry back.”

As she spoke, she seemed to remember something and asked, “By the way, does my senior brother know about this?”

When Yu Qi heard the word “back,” a hint of warmth appeared in his dark eyes as he explained, “I already told Master Bai on the way here.”

When Bai Ziang received the call from the Daoist Association, he was somewhat surprised. He didn’t realize this was Yu Qi’s intention and couldn’t fathom the true reason behind Yu Qi staying at Xuanzhen Temple.

Xuanzhen Temple’s foundation was unstable. Despite the effort they had put in over the past few months, it had only gained a faint standing among the faithful and still couldn’t compare to other major Daoist temples.

Yue Xue nodded lightly. “Okay, then let’s go back.”

Yu Qi placed the suitcase in the trunk alongside the black one, creating a strange yet harmonious juxtaposition between the two colors.

With that, he smiled gently, “Alright, let’s head back.”

Uncle Wang resumed his position in the driver’s seat and smiled with satisfaction at the harmonious figures reflected in the rearview mirror.

After receiving the call, Bai Ziang arranged for Xu Zhou to prepare a guest room in the side hall.

Initially, Master Bai intended for Yu Qi to stay in his room, but Yu Qi told him it wasn’t necessary to make it such a hassle; he could stay in the side hall.

Bai Ziang considered this and thought it made sense, as it was indeed his room and it was normal for Yu Qi to prefer not to stay in someone else’s.

Fortunately, Xuanzhen Temple had enough guest rooms.

The guest room next to Yue Xue’s happened to be spacious enough, so Bai Ziang prepared it for Yu Qi.

When Yue Xue and the others returned to the temple, it was still early. Plus, since it was a weekday, there weren’t many visitors, and the three of them didn’t draw much attention as they walked in.

When Uncle Wang came in carrying the suitcase, he sighed in relief upon seeing the room’s decor. The room was simply furnished without unnecessary items, looking clean and tidy, which was the type that Yu Qi would like.

Uncle Wang took out the clothes and hung them in the closet for Yu Qi.

At first, he wanted to ask a housekeeper to take care of Yu Qi, but Yu Qi declined.

Yu Qi reassured him, “Don’t worry, Uncle Wang, I’m not that fragile.”

He took the sheets and skillfully spread them out.

The bed was neatly made, smooth, and free of wrinkles.

Yu Qi was not a sheltered flower. Shortly after his parents passed away, Yu Zhu brought her family to live in the Yu household. At that time, Yu Qi was still young, and Yu Zhu, under the guise of caring for her nephew, replaced all the household servants with her people, trying to take control of Yu Qi.

But she could only use petty tactics in daily life; the Yu family had no power over her.

It was from that time on that Yu Qi developed the habit of taking care of himself.

Uncle Wang looked at the tidy bed and clearly recalled those past events, sighing, “Alright, if anything happens, remember to call me.”

He couldn’t be away from the Yu family for too long. While Yu Qi stayed at the temple, he entrusted the Yu residence to Assistant Zhou for safekeeping.

Though Yu Zhu seemed more settled lately, no one knew when she might cause more trouble.

Yue Xue put away her luggage and stepped out of the room. She glanced at Bai Liu’s room and noticed a bulge in the bedding, so she asked Xu Zhou, “Junior brother, is Bai Liu back to work?”

Xu Zhou, who had been hanging clothes, wiped his hands and paused to talk with Yue Xue. “It’s been busy over at the Underworld lately. Junior brother’s body has been in this state recently.”

Yue Xue knew what Bai Liu had been busy with lately. The Underworld’s ghost messengers were injured, and some malevolent spirits had escaped, so he was probably occupied with recapturing the six escaped spirits.

Yue Xue recalled how, in the beginning, Bai Liu would howl when dragged off to work.

Now he was able to handle things on his own.

Yue Xue smiled and said, “Bai Liu has grown up.”

Hearing this, Xu Zhou looked at her with a smile, realizing she was a few years younger than Bai Liu yet expressed such sentiments.

Xu Zhou chuckled and shook his head.

After Yu Qi dropped Uncle Wang off, he happened to see Yue Xue chatting with Xu Zhou in the backyard.

She was in loungewear, her long hair casually tied back with a hair tie, exposing her smooth forehead. A few rebellious strands had escaped and fell in front of her forehead, but it didn’t look messy; rather, it gave her a playful vibe.

When Yue Xue heard footsteps, she looked ahead.

Yu Qi approached her and stopped beside her, saying, “Yeah, someone needs to keep an eye on the house.”

Yue Xue was aware of his aunt’s situation, so she didn’t ask further and simply nodded.

Yu Qi, however, pulled out an apple from somewhere and handed it to her, saying, “Here, this is for you.”

Yue Xue took the apple, curious as she looked at him and examined him closely. “You didn’t seem to have anything earlier? Where did this apple come from?”

After thinking for a moment, Yu Qi replied, “I can do magic.”

Ye Xue widened her eyes slightly, “Really?”

“Not really.” Yu Qi seemed to be joking with her, smiling as he softly explained, “You can’t see it because I’m already holding it.”

The apple in Ye Xue’s hand was a new variety, much smaller and less conspicuous than those available on the market.

Ye Xue laughed in surprise, “I didn’t know you joked around; I thought you were serious!”

Yu Qi pondered, “Birds of a feather flock together?”

Ye Xue laughed heartily, “Should I be glad you didn’t say ‘guilt by association’?”

For some reason, Xu Zhou felt a bit out of place listening to them from the side.

He silently moved a bucket aside and continued hanging up clothes.

Even though there was now an extra resident at Xuan Zhen Guan, the atmosphere remained the same as usual.

Yu Qi mostly spent his time with Ye Xue, and they were quiet together most of the time.

When Bai Liu finally returned from working overtime, he noticed there was suddenly another person in the temple. He stared at Ye Xue for several moments but ultimately said nothing, letting out a deep sigh before returning to his room.

That night, however, Yu Qi was awakened by a faint sound of crying.

He opened his eyes, almost thinking he had left his body again, but when he felt the tangible sensation of reality, his consciousness gradually returned, and he realized someone was crying outside.

He threw on a jacket and stepped out of his room.

The sobbing was barely audible, echoing mournfully and sending shivers down his spine.

Yu Qi saw a figure crouched by the wall, crying softly. When he could finally make out the person’s silhouette, his pupils suddenly contracted.

In the moonlight, the figure cast no shadow.

How this soul managed to slip past the imposing presence of the Three Pure Ones was a mystery, as it was able to quietly enter the temple.

Only Ye Xue and Yu Qi were residing in the area where the ghost was located, and the other rooms were far enough away that the others probably hadn’t heard the crying.

Yu Qi raised his hand slightly, not wanting to disturb Ye Xue’s rest.

Just as he was about to use his wrist beads to set up a formation, the door to a nearby room swung open.

Ye Xue, wrapped in a coat, stood at the door urging, “Android, are you done crying? Once you finish, hurry up and go to bed. I’m waiting to sleep.”

Yu Qi paused his hand and slowly turned to look at Ye Xue.

Only then did she notice the young man in the shadows. Taking a closer look, she exclaimed in surprise, “Yu Qi, were you also unable to sleep because of the noise?”

“…” Yu Qi didn’t quite understand their conversation and explained, “I was asleep, but I was awakened.”

The ghost crouched in the corner, realizing they were chatting as if he weren’t there, stopped crying for a moment before wailing again, “I can’t show my face to anyone! Ye Daozhang, you need to talk to Bai Liu! He keeps making fun of me!”

The reason he hadn’t mentioned his name for so long was because of this.

Both of his parents were terrible at naming; the name “Android” was something they randomly came up with while looking through a dictionary. On the day he was born, his parents struggled for a long time to come up with a name and finally decided to use the Xinhua Dictionary. They picked a random number, flipped to that page, and whatever name caught their eye was chosen.

As a child, Android didn’t understand the significance of his name, but when he grew older, he sought to change it.

What he didn’t expect was that the human world and the underworld operated differently. The underworld only recognized the name given at the time of death.

He had used the name Android for eighteen years, and just when he changed it to escape the stigma during college, he had a car accident and found himself back to square one.

He had kept his name a secret for so long because Bai Liu was such a loudmouth that everyone in the temple now knew it.

The ghost of the car accident understood that Bai Liu listened to Ye Xue the most, and since he could now come and go freely in Xuan Zhen Guan, he came to the temple every day, determined to get Ye Xue to agree to help him.

Otherwise, in a short time, not only would everyone in the temple know, but all the ghosts within a ten-mile radius would know he was called Android.

He was planning to be a leader among ghosts, so how could he go by a name that sounded so weak?

Yu Qi clearly didn’t understand where the ghost was coming from. Seeing Android wailing nonstop, he asked Ye Xue, “Is he the one who has been worshiped?”

Ye Xue nodded.

Yu Qi paused, “Are you sure it was just a car accident that disfigured him?”

It felt as if his brain had been run over by a car.

Ye Xue burst into laughter.

Their conversation didn’t reach the ghost’s ears, or perhaps he was too absorbed in his crying to notice the sounds around him.

Ye Xue could no longer tolerate him, yawning as she said dismissively, “Forget it; keep crying if you want. After all, it’s not me who will get hit later.”

The ghost of the car accident was momentarily stunned, and he stopped crying, sniffling, “Daozhang, you’ve changed! You weren’t like this before! Have you found another fox spirit outside?”

Ye Xue replied with a couple of “uh-huh,” “Yes, yes, I have a new love. He’s younger and better looking than you.”

Android was left speechless at Ye Xue’s lack of cooperation, saying, “… Fine! I’ll come back to cry tomorrow.”

With that, he dove into the wall and vanished.

Ye Xue felt incredibly sleepy and yawned again, tears forming at the corners of her eyes. Her obsidian eyes looked a bit moist, as if mist was spreading beneath them.

Yu Qi stared at her in surprise, then recalled her earlier words, his lips tightening slightly.

Ye Xue said, “He’s cried enough today; he’ll probably come back tomorrow night to wail. Let’s go back and get some sleep.”

Yu Qi stood still.

Ye Xue looked over at him in confusion.

He lowered his eyelids, squeezing his fingertips tightly.

Although this behavior seemed somewhat childish, Yu Qi couldn’t help but ask, “New love… who is it?”

Ye Xue was taken aback for a moment, then after a while, she understood what Yu Qi meant. She smiled and pointed at him, teasing, “Isn’t my new love you?”

Yu Qi’s breath caught for a moment.

When Ye Xue saw that Yu Qi didn’t respond, she looked at him again.

The young man still stood there, motionless, as if he had merged with the shadows.

She was too tired to think about anything else, rubbing her eyes as she said, “Then I’ll go rest now. If Android comes back to make a scene, I’ll just beat him up again.”

Yu Qi remained silent for a long time before responding softly, “Mm…”

Ye Xue waved her hand and went straight back to her room.

The young man stood in the shadows, his expression unreadable.

After a long time, he recalled the girl’s earlier words, slowly brushing his hand against his chest, feeling a bit dazed.

His heart raced as if it were about to leap out of his chest at any moment.