TRYMBPIETM 125: When I went in the Past (7)

The sudden memory brought a tremendous shock to Chi Qingning.

Although it was something he had experienced before, now recalling it, he stood from a third-person perspective.

He clearly realized that the dislike and fear he had always felt toward Chi Qingzhou were deeply genuine, but the sense of dependence that arose in the face of death seemed more like a Stockholm syndrome.

If he could distinguish this, how could Chi Qingzhou not see it?

This was also why Chi Qingzhou only vaguely erased his memory, easily awakening the true reason for his inner disgust.

Perhaps for Chi Qingzhou, this was very convenient, but for Chi Qingning, it was no different than a bolt from the blue.

So, he had once had the opportunity to change Chi Qingzhou’s impression of him!

He had once almost become the perfect younger brother in the worldly sense, and with Chi Qingzhou’s personality, he surely wouldn’t be harsh toward such a younger brother!

Such a good opportunity, such a good opportunity…

And he had so easily let it slip away!

Chi Qingning truly felt like crying but had no tears.

He instinctively looked around, trying to find Chi Qingzhou, who was hidden somewhere: “Where’s my second brother? He should be nearby, right? Ling Jie, Yu Ge, did you meet him when you came in?”

Ling Jiao: “Ah? No, why?”

Yu Minfeng: “I didn’t either. Were you hoping to find your second brother to…?” He paused. “Look for your mom?”

Chi Qingning’s expression froze, not daring to speak the truth, and slowly nodded.

Fu Wenan, seeing this, felt heartbroken and continued gently comforting him: “Since Chi Qingzhou is here, Aunt Yao should be fine. After all, she’s his mother too.”

Chi Qingning nodded in response.

The villagers, seemingly having seen enough excitement, came closer again when the group fell silent, their eyes full of greed.

“Oh, if you want to find someone, then it means you have a request. I wonder if making a wish will work.”

“It works, right? Didn’t Old Huang from the east side lose his daughter? He went to the mountain god temple and made a wish to bring her back.”

“Oh, right, that happened.”

They chatted amongst themselves for a while, then turned to Chi Qingning and the others with eager smiles, offering suggestions like well-meaning people.

“Young man, your mom went missing? People from our village have searched all over, every nook and cranny, but didn’t find anything special. How about you visit our village’s mountain god temple and pray?”

“Our mountain god temple has been around for five or six hundred years, very effective!”

“The mountain god is powerful. Some people in our village also went missing, and their families made wishes and found them again.”

“It won’t cost anything, you can just stop by and pray, it might work!”

Chi Qingning took a cautious step back, wanting to say that he didn’t believe in their mountain god, but quickly thought of Chi Qingzhou’s special abilities, making him hesitate for a moment.

Shen Wenxing, having already been warned by Fang Mingge and Chi Qingzhou, calmly replied, “We’ll go when we have time.”

Fu Wenan patted Chi Qingning’s back, feeling that it wouldn’t hurt to let Chi Qingning find some comfort, and gently persuaded, “Since it’s effective, it wouldn’t hurt to pray for Aunt Yao’s safety.”

Song Yuzhi, Ling Jiao, and Yu Minfeng exchanged looks, feeling like this scene was playing out like a script.

Song Yuzhi, the male lead, didn’t have an issue with it, but Ling Jiao and Yu Minfeng felt somewhat awkward.

In the script, finding someone and making wishes was part of their scenes.

The two had already worked with Chi Qingning once and weren’t entirely convinced that Chi Qingning was doing this to steal the scene, but Fu Wenan wasn’t necessarily aware of the industry norms!

No matter whether Fu Wenan was from a wealthy family or not, he was certainly not part of the industry.

A wealthy person who didn’t understand the industry rules might sometimes unknowingly add extra scenes for their loved one. This was no surprise.

The two stared at Chi Qingning, his face hidden behind Fu Wenan’s arm, making his expression unreadable.

Reluctantly, Ling Jiao stepped forward to speak with the villagers as the script instructed.

“Is the mountain god temple really effective?” Ling Jiao asked, “If we got separated from the filming crew, can we also make a wish to find them?”

The villagers’ murky gazes instantly focused on Ling Jiao.

In that moment, cold sweat suddenly broke out on the back of Ling Jiao’s neck, and fear almost made her scream.

The old man grinned: “Looking for someone? You want to find someone?”

Yu Minfeng nodded, holding the camera: “Yes, we lost contact with other staff. Old man, can you tell us where the mountain god temple is?”

The old man’s eyes swiveled, and his pupils shifted to the side, the whites of his eyes suddenly taking up most of his gaze.

He stared at Yu Minfeng in this strange manner and let out an even more ear-piercing laugh.

“You lost contact, huh? Then go make a wish. The mountain god will fulfill all your wishes.”

Yu Minfeng shuddered, his throat tightening in terror. He took two steps back, suddenly finding it hard to breathe.

Shen Wenxing stepped forward without hesitation, positioning himself between the two, and said once more: “Got it, we’ll go if needed.”

The old man clicked his tongue, reluctantly withdrawing his gaze.

He unwillingly pointed the way to Shen Wenxing, muttering: “Ah, it’s still early. You can take a walk around the village before heading to the mountain god temple.”

No one responded to his words.

Yu Minfeng and Ling Jiao came to their senses and hurriedly thanked him.

Shen Wenxing shook his head. “Let’s go. We’ll head to the mountain god temple.”

Song Yuzhi was surprised. “Are we really going?”

Both Ling Jiao and Yu Minfeng showed expressions of reluctance.

The villagers’ behavior earlier was too strange, and they really couldn’t help but overthink it.

If the mountain god temple was problematic, wouldn’t going there now be walking into a trap?

Shen Wenxing spoke with the same tone as in the script. “Teacher Song, you should know as well. Since we’ve already asked for directions, we must go.”

Song Yuzhi opened his mouth, unsure how to respond.

Shen Wenxing added, “Don’t worry, we won’t be alone. When you go inside the temple, we’ll stay outside and keep watch. There will also be someone protecting you.”

Everyone hesitated for a moment, but it was Chi Qingning who, after a brief consideration, was the first to step forward and agree with Shen Wenxing’s suggestion.

He believed that since Chi Qingzhou had arranged them into this situation, there must be a purpose behind it.

Given Chi Qingzhou’s ability and the special circumstances in hid memories, he probably wouldn’t just leave them unprotected.

Chi Qingning’s reasoning convinced most of them.

They quickly discussed the order of action and proceeded in the direction the old man had indicated toward the mountain god temple.

The villagers who had been encouraging them to visit the temple were taken aback.

They hadn’t expected these people to act so decisively, so they quickly stepped forward to persuade them, suggesting they first search for people in the village before going to the temple to pray.

Seeing this, they felt even less inclined to stay in the village.

After casually dismissing the villagers’ suggestions, they quickened their pace, almost running toward the mountain god temple.

The villagers’ faces suddenly changed, and they hurriedly chased after them, but were stopped by thick fog just as they were about to leave the village road.

The white mist obscured the group’s figures, their eyes filled with unwillingness and distortion.

Chi Qingzhou stood on a hillside near the village, looking down at their ferocious faces, and smiled lightly.

He turned his head and waved to a regular crew member, handing him a small glass bottle about ten centimeters tall.

“I still have something to do with Director Fang. Could you please pass this bottle to Teacher Shen Wenxing for me?”

The crew member hesitated before taking the bottle, glancing at Fang Mingge for confirmation.

Fang Mingge nodded at him.

The crew member gave a forced smile and took the bottle, holding it in his hand.

“Um… Teacher Chi, does this bottle need to be handed to Teacher Shen right away?”

Chi Qingzhou replied, “The sooner, the better.”

The crew member agreed and quickly turned to leave, glancing back at Fang Mingge’s urging gaze.

As he walked farther away, he examined the transparent glass bottle closely. “Huh, this is just an empty bottle. What do we need to send an empty bottle for?”

Did Teacher Shen forget to take some props?

After thinking for a moment, the crew member figured it was quite possible, so he quickly tucked the bottle away and sped up, jogging toward the mountain god temple.

Where he couldn’t see, the thick ghostly aura inside the bottle churned and boiled, as though sensing some delicious prey, the pressure unmistakably building.

…

Fang Mingge watched the crew member leave and appeared somewhat hesitant.

He turned back and asked, “Teacher Chi, with this arrangement, do you think the things in the mountain god temple will really come out?”

He was a legitimate cultivator and could see the ghostly aura in the bottle. Naturally, he didn’t believe that any fierce ghost would dare to confront someone holding a bottle with that level of ghostly power.

Chi Qingzhou remained calm, even smiling slightly, showing a demeanor that was reminiscent of a few months ago when he appeared particularly well-behaved.

“Director Fang, you don’t understand my younger brother. His fate and meridians are quite unusual. He was forcibly injected with fortune by Qing Zhi, creating an illusion of great prosperity. He was also bled by our parents to activate his fate chart, causing a significant loss of fortune.”

“He carries countless karmic debts, along with a strange fortune deliberately nurtured. For ghosts, this is an opportunity to quickly consume incense offerings. For him, it is also an opportunity to eliminate karmic debts.”

He smiled.

“My younger brother has his faults, but he does not deserve to die.”

“He doesn’t have to sink with the Chi family’s ship. This is his last chance to pay off all his karmic debts.”

Fang Mingge’s eyes flashed with understanding.

He lowered his voice and asked cautiously, “Since he still has a chance to pay off his karmic debts, will the Paranormal Control Bureau take over the Chi family’s affairs?”

Chi Qingzhou’s smile deepened. “I’m not good at face-reading or divination, so I can’t say for sure. But I think if my father and brother recognize their mistakes, the Paranormal Control Bureau may take over.”

Fang Mingge nodded in realization.

He sighed quietly, “Then it seems they’ll have to suffer the consequences.”