TRYMBPIETM 124: When I went in the Past (6)

Song Yuzhi took the lead, with Yu Minfeng carrying the camera at the rear. The five of them walked into Linghe Village like this.

The villagers were very friendly, as if the conflicts that had occurred a few days ago with the film crew had never happened. They followed alongside them, smiling and chatting with them.

“Are you here to find someone?”

“Every now and then, someone comes to our village looking for someone. You must be the same.”

“Who are you looking for? We can help you find them.”

Even though they had already started filming by now, the five of them felt uneasy as they listened to the villagers’ overly enthusiastic words.

Song Yuzhi had one hand in his pocket, gripping the multi-functional short knife for self-defense. His expression was neutral as he calmly replied, “Yes, we are here to find someone.”

He wasn’t exactly brave, but after filming a version of “Wanxiang,” he was very familiar with the opening plot, so he quickly got into character.

In the movie, the male lead, Yu Yan, was a tough character who could cry while delivering devastating blows to ghosts. He had seen some things, so the villagers’ strange behavior didn’t faze him.

So, no matter how tragic things might get for him in the future, he remained rational at this moment.

The villagers stared at him for a while without commenting on his reaction.

They just nervously chuckled a few times and repeatedly asked, “Do you need our help? We in Linghe Village are very helpful.”

Song Yuzhi kept walking without stopping.

He caught a glimpse of the hungry smiles on the villagers’ faces out of the corner of his eye, and a strong sense of nausea rose in his stomach.

When they filmed in Linghe Village last time, he didn’t recall them being so odd!

Song Yuzhi frowned, unsure if he should answer according to the script.

In “Wanxiang,” Yu Yan came to Linghe Village after receiving a commission.

The client met him and told him that his sister had gone missing. The last place she was seen, according to the police and private detectives, was a small shop in Linghe Village.

The client’s sister had been missing for too long, and the client had already lost most hope. But he still wanted to see either the living or the body, so he commissioned the somewhat well-known Yu Yan to investigate.

“I heard you can see the souls of the dead,” the client said in a heavy tone. “If you truly have that ability, I hope you can help convey any grievances my sister may have.”

Yu Yan couldn’t refuse such a commission.

First, because the reward offered was generous, and second, because such commissions often led to some merit.

And merit was the method of cultivation recorded in the half-book left to him by Daoist You Ling.

According to the script, when the villagers asked Yu Yan who he was looking for, Yu Yan was supposed to take out a picture of the client and tell the villagers that his employer had been in a car accident nearby and needed him to investigate the scene.

But now, with the film suddenly starting in such a strange manner, Song Yuzhi didn’t have a picture or anything like that!

Song Yuzhi pulled out his phone, preparing to find any random picture to cover up.

But before he could take the phone out, the villagers cut him off with their words: “Why aren’t you answering? Oh, is it hard to answer?”

An old man took out a cheap cigarette, lit it, smacked his lips, and looked at them sideways. “I know, you’re here looking for that beautiful woman, right?”

Song Yuzhi shuddered, and the phone he had just grabbed fell back into his pocket.

Ling Jiao vaguely sensed something was wrong, adjusted her hair, and asked, “What woman?”

The old man’s eyes darted around, and he chuckled, “The one called Mrs. Chi, that woman. The way she dresses, she looks like someone from the big city. When she came to the village, a lot of people noticed her.”

Chi Qingning was stunned, not understanding why his mother suddenly appeared in the script.

“Why are they paying attention to my mother?” he asked, feeling an ominous premonition brewing in his heart. He instinctively found an excuse. “She’s just here to check the filming location.”

The old man paused for a moment, then turned around to scrutinize Chi Qingning, his eyes filled with barely concealed surprise. “She’s here to check the filming location? Oh, you mean the place where they’re filming TV shows at the north end of the village, right?”

Chi Qingning nodded.

The old man let out a sinister laugh. “We didn’t know about this before. She fell down on the flat ground and hurt her leg. When we saw her so frantic, we thought she was investigating something.”

His tone was light, but there was a hint of disdain.

“However, she really hasn’t been seen for several days. I’ve been saying she’s been cursed.”

Chi Qingning froze completely, instinctively squeezing out the words from his throat, “What?”

The old man smirked. “Cursed, meaning she encountered something evil. Isn’t it hard to understand? She didn’t seem to encounter anything, just looked at the crew, then started running around, hurt her leg, was taken to the health center, but refused to go to the hospital, insisting on staying at the health center. Doesn’t that seem like she’s cursed?”

He spoke in such a serious manner. “Who would refuse to go to the hospital after getting hurt?”

“She stayed at the health center for more than a day, and then she suddenly disappeared. Her leg was still injured. You tell me, how could she disappear unless she’s cursed?”

At this point, he chuckled again, his little eyes fixed on Chi Qingning.

“The crew you mentioned, they’re also looking for her. They’re also looking for her.”

The old man mumbled these words, his speech gradually becoming disordered, his expression growing more frantic.

Ling Jiao shivered.

But Chi Qingning had no energy to focus on anything else.

In almost terror, he raised his voice, trembling all over. “What are you talking about? How could my mother disappear? You’re lying! She even said she was going to check on her leg!”

The old man smiled foolishly, without answering.

The other villagers also grinned, their neat smiles sending a chill down everyone’s spine.

Chi Qingning could barely control his emotions anymore. He called out sharply and, in a somewhat neurotic manner, growled, “You’re all in on this together, trying to scare me for the film, right? My mother is fine, she’s already been sent to a hospital outside, right?”

“You guys have played this kind of trick in variety shows already; I won’t be scared by you!”

Fu Wenan quickly reached out and pressed his hand on his shoulder, patting his back to calm him down. “Qingning, calm down. Maybe they just said it casually.”

Chi Qingning’s shoulder trembled slightly, but his back slowly relaxed.

A somewhat hoarse voice came from ahead.

“What he’s saying is true. Madam Chi has been missing for more than 48 hours. We’ve already reported it to the police, but we haven’t found any leads yet.”

Chi Qingning’s body shuddered heavily, and he suddenly raised his head.

Shen Wenxing stood not far away in a small plaza, his uniform wrinkled and his expression tired.

He met Chi Qingning’s gaze and felt a pang of sympathy, but still, according to Chi Qingzhou’s instructions, continued, “We’ve been looking for her, but there are no clues yet.”

“It’s impossible, it’s a lie!”

Chi Qingning’s mind was in chaos for a few minutes before he slowly understood Shen Wenxing’s words.

He let out a sharp, pained scream, desperately refusing to believe the reality.

“If my mom is missing, why didn’t Director Fang say anything before? Why didn’t anyone from the crew mention it earlier? Besides, my mom isn’t an ordinary person! Even if she’s missing, what does that prove?!”

He instinctively widened his eyes and stared fiercely at Shen Wenxing, silently threatening him to swallow back those ominous words.

Shen Wenxing opened his mouth but couldn’t find the words to say.

He didn’t know how to respond.

Chi Qingning, seeing this, felt like he had grasped a lifeline, and repeated again, “Right, last time when we were filming the variety show, someone said my mom was special. She must be fine!”

To say that Chi Qingning didn’t have any feelings for his family after all these years at the Chi family would be a lie.

But to say he had a deep affection for them would be a lie too.

The only person in the Chi family who ever made him feel some warmth was Fan Tao.

Not long ago, when Chi Qingzhou was brought back to the Chi family, and he was tangled with his biological parents and gambling-addicted brother, Fan Tao was the only one who came forward to help him.

Chi Xiaoyuan and Chi Jianming would say they cared about him, feeding him well, but when it came down to it, they would give him no help in times like these and would ask him not to embarrass the Chi family.

Not to mention how, when he was a child, they would look at him with strange eyes just like Chi Shuhong.

Many things from his childhood were blurry, but he still woke up in the middle of the night from nightmares of bloodletting.

He vaguely felt that when he was young, his father and uncle had drawn blood from him many times. After each painful moment, only Fan Tao would bandage his wounds.

Even though he had a clear premonition that Fan Tao did it just to prevent others from finding out, he still couldn’t bring himself to hate Fan Tao.

She was the only one in the Chi family who was kind to him.

…But that wasn’t all.

Maybe in the past, Fan Tao was the only good person in the Chi family, but now, there was another good person.

Even if this person’s way of doing things was hard to explain.

Chi Qingning took a heavy breath, the shadow of Chi Qingzhou flashing in his mind, and his collapsing emotions slowly began to stabilize.

Fu Wenan hugged him, continuously comforting him. “It’s fine, Aunt Yao ( Fan Tao) will definitely be fine. Don’t worry, I’ll stay with you. I’ll go find her with you, okay?”

“Find her?” Chi Qingning repeated the words, his expression frozen.

“Yes, we’ll find her together!” Fu Wenan quickly added. “Just like when we walked back from the Minghe Slope villa to the main house when we were little, I’ll always be with you until we find her.”

Minghe Slope villa?

That place sounds so familiar.

Where was it again? It seems to be… the suburban villa where the Chi family once lived?

Chi Qingning froze for two seconds and suddenly screamed aloud.

The word acted like some sort of spell, suddenly unlocking the memories that had been blurry for so long.

He remembered!

He remembered what happened three years ago!

That day was the third month after Chi Qingzhou returned to the Chi family. Chi Jianming inexplicably drove a car and brought him and Chi Qingzhou to the villa that hadn’t been lived in for more than ten years.

Chi Jianming’s tone was unusually gentle, constantly mentioning how Chi Qingzhou had never seen the home they lived in when they were younger and how he hoped to bring some warmth and memories to Chi Qingzhou.

Although Chi Qingning thought Chi Jianming’s behavior was strange, he didn’t suspect his intentions.

At that time, the Chi family’s business was in trouble, and it seemed like Chi Jianming intended for Chi Qingzhou to marry someone in order to save the company.

Chi Qingning, with a hint of mockery in his heart, deliberately talked to Chi Qingzhou as he happily walked into the villa.

Then, he saw a strange altar set up in the villa’s hall.

His older brother, his uncle, and some relatives of the Chi family who had attached themselves to them all looked at him and Chi Qingzhou eagerly. Before they could react, they rushed forward and pinned him down.

He sensed something was wrong, screaming and struggling wildly, but was ultimately dragged to the altar and had his back cut open, bleeding profusely.

His mother, Fan Tao, was holding a jar engraved with strange patterns, collecting his blood while speaking to his father and older brother. “Qingning has strong luck, and Qingzhou’s fate is unique. Using Qingning’s blood to activate Qingzhou’s fate will reverse the Chi family’s decline.”

Someone asked from behind, “Does Qingning’s luck only benefit the closer relatives of the Chi family, or…?”

Fan Tao smiled and replied, “The first to benefit will certainly be Qingzhou’s blood relatives, but once the luck grows, it will cover all Chi family members.”

After asking about how and when the luck would grow stronger, the Chi family relatives frowned, somewhat dissatisfied.

They didn’t want to wait five or six years to enjoy the benefits and began protesting to Chi Jianming.

Chi Jianming said, “Actually, there is a way to expedite things. After all, Qingzhou has a unique fate. Here’s the plan: while reversing the decline, I can transfer your bad luck to Qingzhou, so you won’t face any significant troubles in the future.”

Though this result didn’t exactly match the immediate good luck the relatives were hoping for, the shortened path to wealth made them reluctantly agree.

Chi Qingning was terrified. He wanted to scream, but the massive blood loss had left him too weak to make a sound.

Fan Tao gently reminded, “In the future, the Chi family’s luck will need Qingning’s effort too. Don’t really leave him with any side effects.”

Chi Xiaoyuan, holding down Chi Qingning, appeared regretful but let go.

The bleeding gradually stopped, and in the extreme cold, Chi Qingning heard his good older brother’s voice: “To transfer luck between them, it’s better to send them into the entertainment industry. I remember Qingning wanted to be a star. Why don’t we promote him? It will fulfill his wish.”

Chi Jianming and the others didn’t object.

The more good luck Chi Qingning could gather from different people through his celebrity status, the more powerful it would be for the Chi family.

Chi Jianming even added, “In the future, let’s see if he has someone he likes. If we find a well-off background, someone with enough luck from a prominent family, we’ll help him connect.”

The Chi family relatives all agreed, sounding even more excited than Chi Jianming.

Chi Qingning trembled violently, wanting to push Chi Qingzhou beside him to see if he was still alive, but he no longer had the strength to move.

Despair exploded in his heart. He was completely broken, wishing he could get up and fight the Chi family.

But just then, he heard a faint laugh from beside him.

Chi Qingzhou’s voice was clear and mocking: “Is this the ritual to transfer bad luck? Haven’t you finished yet? If the situation were different, I would really want to help you guys.”

The villa fell silent.

He didn’t know how long it took, but he began hearing screams, one after another.

Those sounds were so familiar, each one filled with fear, but they filled him with satisfaction.

He wanted to laugh, but his mind was continuously dragged into darkness, sinking further.

Footsteps grew closer.

He felt someone crouch in front of him.

Chi Qingzhou’s voice was calm: “Are you about to die? That won’t do. My plan hasn’t even started yet.”

A surge of hope suddenly exploded in his heart, intense surprise, longing, and gratitude blending into the most intense emotions.

“Tsk,” Chi Qingzhou sighed impatiently. “Brother, have you misunderstood something? You should hate me. If you don’t hate me, how can the script I wrote continue? Don’t you agree, 66594?”

A mechanical voice answered tremblingly, “Yes, yes, Mr. Chi. Everything you said makes perfect sense.”

“Am I really that scary?” Chi Qingzhou’s voice was full of confusion. “I just forcibly removed you from Ah Shang’s soul. I didn’t harm you. Why are you so afraid of me?”

The mechanical voice replied, “That’s because Mr. Chi is so commanding that I can’t help but admire you.”

“Admire? Your system has such human emotions?”

“Yes, Mr. Chi. I have an emotional module, so I can feel and generate human emotions.”

“That’s quite interesting. Oh, alright, now open the mission module for me. I need to use your reward distribution channel to guide the bad luck.”

“Alright, I’ll open it now! It’s ready, Mr. Chi!”

“What’s the mission?”

“Uh, save the fake young master.”

A cold hand was placed on Chi Qingning’s back.

Chi Qingning heard Chi Qingzhou laugh softly, his tone much gentler now.

“I know you’re still conscious. This isn’t good. Rest easy for a bit, brother. When you wake up, you’ll still be the Chi Qingning who looks down on me, the little koi fish of the Chi family.”

“And I’ll still be that kind, young man who just returned to his family from the small town.”

“If you really want to thank me, you’ll forget today’s memory until one day I bring it back, right?”

…No.

Chi Qingning silently replied in his heart.

Who wants to lose their memory?

But Chi Qingzhou saved him, saved him without holding any grudges.

Even if it was for some purpose.

He wasn’t a good person, but he knew how to be grateful.

…Alright.

I’ll listen to you, everything you say.

When I open my eyes again, I’ll be the brother who hates you.