Silver Jade Ghostly Cry

  Tonight's wind is unusually strong, blowing against the doors and windows of the common people's homes with a loud "whoosh", swirling up the remaining yellow autumn leaves to hit the faces of passersby, who hasten to wrap their coats tightly around them and hurry along. Mu Zhen, the young master of the Mu family, arrived at the entrance of the Yun Wang Fu in this somewhat eerie night atmosphere.

  The young servant, Tong Ya, carried a wind lamp and followed Mu Ze to the front of the Yun Wang Fu. At this moment, Mu Ze stopped in front of the black-painted gate with not a single lantern lit, which seemed like an entrance leading to the underworld. Thinking about the rumors from before, Tong Ya couldn't help but take a step closer to Mu Ze, feeling somewhat anxious and uneasy: "Young Master... why don't we head back?"

  No sooner had Tong Ya finished speaking than he was hit on the head with a folding fan by Mu Zhuang, who looked resentful and said, "Tong Ya, look at you, go knock on the door."

  "Master..." Tong Ya rubbed his slightly sore head, which had been knocked by Mu Zhen, and looked at the black lacquered gate of Yun Wang Fu, then at Mu Zhen, with a face full of tears and fear.

  "Alright, I won't bother you anymore. Later when we return to the manor, you can pick up your belongings and leave. I'll find a new servant with more courage and ability." Mu Ze's tone was filled with even more disdain as he flipped his fan at Tong Ya's head, then turned to walk towards the door himself.

  "Master, master, you can't drive Tong Yan away. Tong Yan has no father or mother and grew up in the Mu estate since he was a child. If you drive him away, he'll end up wandering the streets... Master..." Tong Yan suddenly looked frightened and heartbroken as he grasped Mu Zhan's sleeve, speaking pitifully, almost to the point of tears, fearing that Mu Zhan would indeed expel him from the Mu estate in a fit of anger.

  "Stop, stop, stop, I'm so annoyed! Tong Ya, did you enter the wrong womb? Mu Ze let out a helpless sigh and tapped Tong Ya's head with his folded fan. "Are you going to knock on the door or not? If not, then let go, I'll do it myself. What kind of karma have I accumulated to end up with someone like you as my apprentice, who looks more like a girl... Ah—"

  Tong Ya was so frightened that he immediately let go of Mu Ze's sleeve, nodding repeatedly with force, "Go, go, go! Tong Ya will go knock on the door right away, Young Master mustn't get angry, Tong Ya is going now!"

  Tong Ya nodded and rushed towards the tightly closed door, just as he stepped onto the top step of the stone stairs. The tightly closed door suddenly made a creaking sound and opened! Tong Ya was so frightened that the wind lamp in his hand fell to the ground, then turned around and rushed back to Mu Ze's side at incredible speed, hiding behind him.

  "Master Mu, are you looking for the master or a servant?" The half-open door revealed a person holding a red lantern with a smile on their face, their polite words laced with obvious mockery.

  The teasing words of Ting Feng made Tong Ya so ashamed that she wished to dig a hole and bury herself, but Mu Zhen was not affected at all. Instead, he smiled with a good mood, put his hands behind his back, and walked forward slowly, saying in a leisurely tone: "This young master has always disliked doing things like ordinary people, so naturally the little servant I find must also be different from ordinary people."

  Looking at Mu Ze, who was born with a noble aura, he was handsome and elegant, but somehow gave off an air of being a rascal.

  Mu Ze hadn't even reached the door when he lightly waved the folding fan in his hand, and without seeing anyone touch the half-open large door, the half-open door leaf was completely opened, with an effortless feeling. Mu Ze smiled and raised an eyebrow at Ting Feng, clicking his tongue in praise: "Ting Feng, when did you become a godly calculator, knowing even what time I would come over?"

  "Master Mu, Shen Suanzi is my family's elder, not Listening Wind. Master Mu has praised the wrong person." Listening Wind smiled humbly and slightly bowed his head to make a "please" gesture to Mu, "The old master has ordered people to prepare wine and dishes, and they are waiting for Master Mu at 'Silver Jade'."

  "That cold-faced man actually even calculated that Young Master Ben hasn't eaten yet, when did he become so considerate?" Mu Zhen laughed and walked in as if returning to his own home, "Then Young Master Ben will give him this face."

  "Master!" - Tóng Yá, still standing outside the door, saw this scene and immediately rushed back to the front of the door. He wanted to step across the threshold but hesitated and only dared to stand stupidly outside the door, calling out to Mù Zhuāng who was walking calmly inside.

  Mu Ze heard Tong Ya and thought it sounded like a terrible thing, but he didn't stop in his tracks or turn back, instead waving his hand and saying loudly: "This Ghost King's residence is full of man-eating monsters at night, for your own life, you should head back to the residence first."

  Tong Yan's little heart skipped a beat, and he was just about to rush into the mansion to drag out the young master of Yun Wang Fu, who looked so scary no matter how you looked at him. But before he could lift his foot, the half-open door that had been completely open suddenly slammed shut with a loud bang, completely blocking his line of sight.

  Just as Tong Yan was anxiously waiting outside the mansion, Mu Ze was strolling through the Cloud King's Mansion with ease, seemingly familiar with every path and door within the compound. In no time at all, he arrived in front of the "Ghostly Gate" that Ting Feng had mentioned earlier.

  "Silver Jade" is a name that sounds pleasant to the ear, but in fact it refers to an artificial lake that occupies nearly one-third of the area of Yunwang Fu. On evenings with moonlight, the entire surface of the lake shimmers like silver, as if scattered with pearls and jade all over the ground, hence the name "Silver Jade". The residence of Baili Yunxiao is located right in the center of this lake.

  There is no bridge or passage, the residence of Bai Li Yun Xiao is isolated in the center of Yin Yu Lake. If you want to go there, you can only take a small boat. The name of his residence is surprisingly vastly different from the lake's name, Silver Jade, and just hearing it makes one feel a chill - its name is Gui Li (Ghostly Sharpness).

  The residence of Baili Yunxiao, as well as its name, was just like him - eerie and out of place with the entire royal family and even the entire imperial capital. No wonder there were rumors in the streets about the "Ghostly Prince".

  "Look, look, living in such a haunted place surrounded by water on all sides, and still calling it 'Ghostly Manor', always wearing that ghost mask, never appearing during the day only at night, it's strange if people don't think you're a ghost." Mu Zhen sat at the bow of the small boat, Ting Feng stood behind him rowing, the boat rippled towards the Ghostly Manor on the lake. Mu Zhen pointed to the lake and then to the courtyard with dark red lanterns hanging from the eaves, complaining, "Even going back to sleep is such a hassle having to take a boat, that cold-faced man is really idle, that's why I didn't want to come to this Ghost King Manor."

  "Master Nuo, you're back to saying the same thing again. I'm not annoyed, but my ears are about to grow calluses." Feng Wu's face was filled with helplessness, which is why he didn't want to meet this young master who always found fault and talked excessively, yet he couldn't afford not to obey his words.

  "You're the only one in this ghostly Wang Fu who's still somewhat human, I won't bother with you, who else would I bother with? Suffocate yourself?" As he spoke, the small boat was about to reach the lakeside shore. Mu Zhen lightly tapped his toes on the surface of the boat and landed steadily on the shore without getting wet, swaggering towards the Octagonal Pavilion in front of him.

  Suddenly, a black shadow appeared in front of Mu Zhen just as he was about to approach the pavilion, accompanied by a sharp aura that pressed towards his throat.