Chapter 13
“Using the mouth is definitely out of the question.”
Shang Tingzhi couldn’t do it, nor did he have the intention.
Although he had witnessed a more thrilling performance than a royal film last night, he was only indulging in the moment and didn’t bother to learn any techniques.
No, the current issue wasn’t about his skills or losing face.
The crucial point now was that he couldn’t possibly perform such an act for another man.
“This won’t work; think of something else,” Shang Tingzhi said to Xia Leyang, who was eagerly looking at him. “Whatever you want, I’ll buy it for you.”
This statement sounded unconvincing even to Shang Tingzhi himself because how could the young master of the Xia family be short of money?
As expected, Xia Leyang, unwilling to relent, grabbed his sleepwear and said, “You said you would compensate me within your means. How is this beyond your capabilities?”
Shang Tingzhi closed his eyes and, with no other choice, took a deep breath. Xia Leyang had been pestering him for nearly half an hour, and he believed that if he didn’t agree to Xia Leyang’s request, this person could pester him all night.
After considering it, Shang Tingzhi compromised, “How about… I use my hand to help you.”
“I have hands of my own, don’t I?” Xia Leyang grumbled discontentedly. “What kind of compensation is this?”
Unable to back down any further, Shang Tingzhi furrowed his brows and said sternly, “At most, I’ll use my hand. Anything more is off the table.”
“You!” Xia Leyang glared at Shang Tingzhi angrily. He knew that Shang Tingzhi couldn’t refuse him, so he turned over and curled up at the edge of the bed, muttering, “I get it now. You and that female ghost are in cahoots, treating me like an emotionless tool, using me and then tossing me aside.”
Veins popped on Shang Tingzhi’s forehead. “I don’t…”
Ignoring Shang Tingzhi, Xia Leyang, with his back turned, continued grumbling, “Why is it so difficult for me? Sent over by the family to settle debts, and at night, I have to be your tool for releasing… desires.”
“Xia Leyang!” Angry flames rose in Shang Tingzhi’s heart. “Stop talking nonsense.”
“Humph,” Xia Leyang snorted but didn’t say anything more. However, he exuded an aura of anger.
Helpless, Shang Tingzhi tried to mend things. “Come over and sleep, don’t fall off.”
Xia Leyang, still wrapped in the thin blanket, didn’t move. Shang Tingzhi had no choice but to reach over and pull him up. However, unlike previous nights, Xia Leyang directly slapped his hand away.
“You sleep on your own. Why bother with a tool?” Xia Leyang grumbled.
Shang Tingzhi sighed. Damn that female ghost.
The next morning, Shang Tingzhi received an email reply from the homeowner, stating that the house had not been rented to anyone before and that Shang Tingzhi was the first tenant in decades.
This was strange.
It was widely known that a single woman had lived in the Gu Family Mansion. How could the homeowner not know about it?
Shang Tingzhi came from the study to the living room and told Xia Leyang about it. Xia Leyang, who had been wearing a sour expression all morning, finally looked at him directly.
“In other words, the homeowner didn’t know about that single woman?” Xia Leyang asked curiously.
“The old mansion has been in a state of abandonment for a long time, and the owner lives abroad, not paying much attention to the house,” Shang Tingzhi reiterated the homeowner’s words.
“But if someone moves into his house, he should at least know, right?” Xia Leyang puzzledly asked.
“There’s only one possibility,” Shang Tingzhi explained.
Xia Leyang quickly understood Shang Tingzhi’s meaning. “You mean, that single woman broke in herself?”
“Yes,” Shang Tingzhi nodded. “Housing management in the last century was not very standardized, and with the house abandoned for a long time, if someone broke in and stayed, no one would bother.”
“This woman is quite bold,” Xia Leyang shook his head, expressing genuine admiration. Even if she had nowhere else to go, moving into a house with a history of a massacre?
Shang Tingzhi didn’t agree. Since he woke up this morning, his head had been dizzy and uncomfortable, showing signs of a fever. Now he was trying to speak less to conserve energy.
“Don’t you find it strange?” Xia Leyang continued, “Where did this woman come from, and why did she commit suicide?”
“After so many years, there’s no way to find out,” Shang Tingzhi said.
Actually, he wanted to suggest waiting for the female ghost to come out again and asking her. However, when he thought about saying that, it might trigger Xia Leyang, so he decided not to let Xia Leyang pursue it any further.
But unexpectedly, Xia Leyang took the initiative and suggested, “Why don’t you ask the female ghost?”
Shang Tingzhi pursed his lips with a complex expression. “Are you sure?”
Seeing Shang Tingzhi’s reaction, Xia Leyang thought about the consequences of the female ghost coming out again, so he turned his head and huffed, “Never mind.”
Understanding that Xia Leyang was still upset, Shang Tingzhi adhered to the principle of speaking less to avoid mistakes and wisely refrained from continuing the conversation.
In the afternoon, Shang Tingzhi returned to the bedroom for a nap. Xia Leyang, busy with something on the ground floor, didn’t follow him upstairs.
Shang Tingzhi had hoped that a short nap would refresh him, but when he woke up, his head felt even more heavy and dull.
Xia Leyang was still not around.
Grabbing a few books from the bedside table, Shang Tingzhi intended to return them to the bookshelf in the study. However, an unexpected event occurred at this moment.
At the end of June, the weather was as scorching as a furnace, hot enough to fry eggs on the ground.
Wearing a sports sun hat and holding a small fan, Xia Leyang braved the midday sun and joined a group of elderly people in the People’s Park in the old city area.
Xia Leyang wasn’t bored without reason; he was actually here to inquire about the situation at the Gu Family Mansion.
Most of the people living in the old city area were elderly, and many of them had impressions of the events from the past. Unlike Xia Leyang, these individuals had plenty of idle time and were eager to chat with anyone.
“I remember it very clearly. That woman liked to wear white dresses,” a middle-aged woman spoke casually about the single woman who had committed suicide, as if it were just a topic for post-dinner conversation. “At that time, I was still young and used to imitate her.”
“Was she a local?” Xia Leyang asked.
“No, no, no. She spoke Cantonese,” the woman said. “Back then, Cantonese songs were popular, right? She sang every night in that house, scaring the hell out of people.”
“Why did she dare to live there alone?” Xia Leyang asked again.
“Let me tell you, young man,” an elderly man chimed in, making a small gesture with his pinkie. “She was one of those.”
Xia Leyang took a quick look and immediately understood the old man’s meaning. “A mistress?”
“That’s right. I heard occasionally a man would come here at night,” the old man squinted, giving Xia Leyang a knowing look.
“So, she committed suicide due to love troubles?” Xia Leyang asked.
“Why else?” the middle-aged woman shook her head, smirking. “Probably some mistress who got dumped in the end.”
This result surprised Xia Leyang. He thought the residents around here would attribute the woman’s suicide to the supernatural events in the haunted house. Unexpectedly, it was attributed to love troubles.
A bit anticlimactic.
Xia Leyang, using the small fan to cool himself, lost interest in the gossip all of a sudden.
The elderly men and women turned their attention to Xia Leyang. As a new face, they were curious about his background, especially when they found out he lived in the Gu Family Mansion. They were keen on inviting him and Shang Tingzhi over for a visit, although they didn’t explicitly say it, Xia Leyang could tell they wanted Shang Tingzhi to help them with feng shui.
Xia Leyang was about to mention that the services of their feng shui master were not cheap when his phone suddenly rang. Checking the screen, it was Shang Tingzhi.
“Hey, do you have time in your schedule lately? I found you some business,” Xia Leyang said.
The voice on the other end sounded strange, with heavy breathing. It didn’t seem like Shang Tingzhi’s usual self.
“Where are you?” Shang Tingzhi asked.
“I’m at the People’s Park nearby. What’s up?” Xia Leyang replied.
“Come back quickly,” Shang Tingzhi gasped heavily. “I’m pinned under the bookshelf.”
Xia Leyang immediately stood up from the leisure chair in the park, leaving the elderly people with a casual “We’ll chat later.” He quickly ran back to the Gu Family Mansion.
Shang Tingzhi had managed to crawl halfway out from under the bookshelf by the time Xia Leyang returned.
To be honest, Shang Tingzhi didn’t know what happened. He had merely placed the books on the shelf without pulling or pushing, and yet the bookshelf inexplicably toppled over.
In that split second when he was pinned, his first thought was that Xia Leyang must have run out again. He struggled to take out his phone and called, confirming that Xia Leyang was indeed not at home.
“Are you okay?” Xia Leyang hurriedly entered the study, lifting the double-door bookshelf and then removing the books one by one that were pressing on Shang Tingzhi.
“I’m fine,” Shang Tingzhi said, supporting his upper body with one hand while the other helped Xia Leyang clear away the books.
“Why are you so careless?” Xia Leyang frowned. “Could it be another ghost messing with you?”
“I don’t know,” Shang Tingzhi shook his head. Last time, he felt something pushing him when he fell down the stairs. This time, he wasn’t sure if there was something pushing the bookshelf.
“Let me help you.” Xia Leyang placed Shang Tingzhi’s arm over his shoulders. “Did you get hurt anywhere?”
“I should be fine,” Shang Tingzhi replied.
“Are you running a fever again?” Xia Leyang pressed Shang Tingzhi’s forearm with one hand and supported his waist with the other. “You feel so hot.”
“Blame you,” Shang Tingzhi said weakly.
“What?” Xia Leyang looked puzzled. “How is it my fault?”
Shang Tingzhi pursed his lips. “You didn’t let me hug you.”
Xia Leyang still didn’t understand, but since they were on the stairs, and he feared they both might fall if he distracted himself, he waited until he helped Shang Tingzhi into the bedroom before asking, “What do you mean, not letting you hug me?”
“Last night,” Shang Tingzhi said. With both of them close, Shang Tingzhi felt more comfortable, but his head was still a bit dizzy. He lay down on the bed, and the hand that had been holding Xia Leyang’s shoulder didn’t let go.
“Lie down properly. Why are you lying on top of me?” Xia Leyang crawled out from under Shang Tingzhi’s shoulder, then helped Shang Tingzhi lie straight. “You got a fever just because I didn’t let you hug me?”
“Mmm,” Shang Tingzhi responded listlessly, then stubbornly pulled Xia Leyang back into his embrace. “Let me hug for a while.”
“Hey, what are you…”
Xia Leyang struggled for a while in Shang Tingzhi’s arms. Unable to break free, he had no choice but to give up and let Shang Tingzhi hold him.
At this moment, Xia Leyang suddenly remembered something. Why did Shang Tingzhi always take advantage of him?
Even with strangers like the old men and women, there was a mutual courtesy. How come Shang Tingzhi didn’t seem to understand the concept of repaying kindness?
The determination to “吸唧唧” (suck) resurfaced in Xia Leyang’s mind. While Shang Tingzhi was nursing his fever, Xia Leyang silently planned a mischievous idea.
For Shang Tingzhi, Xia Leyang was indeed a panacea. After holding Xia Leyang for a short while, Shang Tingzhi, who had closed his eyes, found that his head was no longer hot, his body was no longer sore, and he had returned to his energetic self.
In the evening, the two of them reorganized the study once again and tried different methods to secure the bookshelf.
By now, Xia Leyang had no choice but to believe that something mysterious was happening. He had figured out a pattern: first, he and Shang Tingzhi couldn’t live elsewhere, or it would bring disasters to others. Second, he couldn’t leave Shang Tingzhi alone, or Shang Tingzhi would encounter problems.
“What kind of situation is this?” Xia Leyang, while rearranging the bookshelf, complained to Shang Tingzhi without understanding. “I’m a youth of the new era, and I’m being led into superstition by you.”
“It might not be a bad thing,” Shang Tingzhi, looking at the books in his hands, said casually. “Your ideological consciousness has improved.”
Xia Leyang rolled his eyes. He didn’t want this kind of enlightenment at all, but he didn’t dare to oppose his dad.
As night fell, after Xia Leyang finished washing up, he willingly crawled into Shang Tingzhi’s bed. However, he only squeezed to the edge of the bed and refused to move to the center.
Shang Tingzhi lay in bed, tugging at the quilt, and said to Xia Leyang, “Come over and sleep.”
Xia Leyang didn’t move. He turned over, facing Shang Tingzhi, and rolled his eyes, saying, “Do you want to hug me?”
Shang Tingzhi didn’t act coyly, “Mm.”
“Then, if I let you hug me, how will you repay me?” Xia Leyang asked.
“?”
Seeing Shang Tingzhi’s lack of response, Xia Leyang straightforwardly said, “I want 吸唧唧.”
After a day, Xia Leyang heard these three words again, and Shang Tingzhi was really getting on his nerves. Shang Tingzhi, with a swift motion, caught Xia Leyang off guard.
Xia Leyang felt a cool sensation on his lower body. Lowering his head, he realized that it was Shang Tingzhi’s hand…
“Not your hand, I mean your mouth, right?” Xia Leyang didn’t expect Shang Tingzhi to take direct action, instinctively struggling and grabbing Shang Tingzhi’s arm.
“It’s all the same,” Shang Tingzhi, with anger, held down Xia Leyang, who was still struggling. “I’m making you comfortable. Is that enough?”
“Damn, be gentler…” Xia Leyang, feeling pain, couldn’t help but shed a tear at the corner of his eye. “You hurt me, I don’t want it anymore, let go!”
Shang Tingzhi paused for a moment, and in fact, Xia Leyang had told him he didn’t want it, so he could stop now. However, glancing at Xia Leyang, who was crying while looking at him, he inexplicably wanted to tease him, so…
He sped up the movements of his hand.
