Chi Yan only considered the innocent possibilities, as what came to mind first was the crystal clear memory of how he was pushed of the stairs, and the tiny hand prints that marked his skin.
However, he was perplexed as he had never taken off the bottle of ashes, and they were clearly effective, as evident from how it had protected him from the ghost at the university. What kind of thing could lay hands on him with Ye Yingzhi"s ashes nearby?
Still, when he connected the dots on how he had been sleeping really well this past month, yet wake up feeling lethargic, he could no longer stay calm. He stayed up all night, wakeful and conscious of any sensation around him, yet nothing strange happened.
Since the next day was coincidentally a weekend, once morning came, without any delay, Chi Yan quickly got ready and drove out to the temple. Upon reaching, his heart sank when he was told that Priest Zhang and his disciple had returned to their hometown with little chances of coming back.
Chi Yan was in a panic. He had visited the neighbouring temples before, and there were more scammers than people who could really help. Moreover, out of the real deals, only Priest Zhang had managed to help him. The temple staff saw his anxiety, and knew he was a regular, thus he offered, "We have a new priest here, Priest Liu. He has a pretty good reputation, and is honest. You can try asking him."
Out of options, Chi Yan decided it would be no harm to ask Priest Liu, and quickly agreed to see him.
A tall and thin middle-aged man, Priest Liu looked much younger than Priest Zhang. Chi Yan could tell right away that he was a straight-forward person. His first question upon seeing Chi Yan was, "What problems are you facing?", his disposition not like a detective trying to solve a case.
Chi Yan thought about it, and said "My electricity bill exceeded by a lot this month," and started to explain the discrepancies.
He was halfway through his explanation when Priest Liu broke him off, "Well, you should be checking with the Public Utilities office, why are you here? Call them up and find out what"s the issue, whether there"s someone stealing your electricity."
Anxious, Chi Yan quickly told him the marks on his body.
Priest Liu gave him a weird look, "Young lad, you are single right?" Chi Yan nodded.
"I"ve seen similar cases like yours before. You should be going to the hospital. Hmm, though that might not be any more of use. You are just suppressing yourself too much, thus you are seeking release in your dreams. Your best bet is to quickly find a partner."
Chi Yan couldn"t help but blush at Priest Liu"s meaning between the lines, feeling shy and anxious, and extremely awkward. Was he insinuating that the marks were made by Chi Yan himself in his sleep? This priest had no EQ!
Chi Yan stopped asking, feeling that Priest Liu would not be able to give him any reliable suggestions. But to prove that he wasn"t just someone finding trouble where there"s none, he brought out what Priest Zhang had told him to do, "…previously Priest Zhang had advised me to carry around someone"s ashes. I was just afraid that this method was losing effectiveness."
He wanted to check with Priest Liu when this method might no longer be effective so he could be prepared for it. He didn"t expect for Priest Liu to interrupt him again.
Frowning, Priest Liu said, "Who told you to do such a dark deed? Everything else aside, don"t you think it"s unlucky to carry around someone"s ashes and to set up an altar for him at home? If you want my advice, it is to quickly return the ashes and remove the spirit tablet from your house."
Already disappointed with Priest Liu"s responses to his first two questions, Chi Yan definitely had no intention of taking his advice to get rid of the ashes. Without Third Master"s ashes, Chi Yan knew he would have already been killed multiple times in the past few months. Seeing how Priest Liu was so ignorant, Chi Yan decided to take his leave.
With good intentions, Priest Liu advised him again, "A young man like you should read up more scientific knowledge, and not be so superst.i.tious."
Even though Priest Liu wasn"t of much help, his words still consoled Chi Yan. The issue with his electricity bills probably was not of a supernatural nature, and he should go check with the electricity provider. As for the marks… Chi Yan"s face reddened. Though he didn"t think he was someone who would do something like that, he started to consider the possibility that they could have been made by himself unconsciously. He thought about how there were even people who sleepwalked, so this didn"t seem implausible.
Even so, Chi Yan continued to be on tenterhooks for the next few days and only started to relax after nothing happened. Also, any discomfort he felt in the mornings had decreased, and he wondered if he had just been too tired due to the heavy workload before the upcoming Chinese New Year holidays.
Soon Chi Yan was distracted by another thing – his uncle was asking him to return to Shiming City to spend the holidays.
Even though his uncle was his only relative, they weren"t very close, and he thought it would be awkward for him and his aunt if he went back on Chinese New Year"s eve. Moreover, his aunt had the intention of setting him up with her niece, and he wouldn"t be able to avoid that this time. Just the thought of the blind date gave Chi Yan a headache.
But in the end, Chi Yan couldn"t not go back. His grandparents had pa.s.sed away there, and being raised by them, he had the responsibility to visit them over the New Year. Thus Chi Yan planned to go on the fifth day, and just stay for a night, using work the next day as an excuse. His aunt and uncle wouldn"t be able to force him to stay.
In the past, his grandmother made a huge fuss over the festival, decorating the house to the nines, making sure his uncle and family joined them for reunion dinner. Growing up with these traditions, Chi Yan was influenced by them, and even though he lived alone now, he never failed to spruce up the house, giving it a festive look.
Chi Yan"s grandma had a habit of hanging up the "Prosperity" sign on the Chinese New Year eve, and Chi Yan followed it to a tee. The Chinese believed that the prosperity sign could help invite luck and chase away bad luck. As Chi Yan put up the sign on the front door, he hoped that the sign could help keep ghosts at bay too.
However once the door closed behind him, a gust of wind blew and a corner of the sign flapped in the wind, though it was not obvious unless one looked closely. It was known that the prosperity sign should not be put up when the family was still in mourning. This should even be more observed by Chi Yan, given that he was living with someone whose mourning period had yet to pa.s.s.