Grave Moving Brigade - Chapter 11

Chapter 11 – Ms. Gao’s Baby

Chen Ling couldn’t understand why a man like him was being favoured by someone.

Besides, the ancestor of the Jiang family had been dead for who knows how many years. An old cucumber is still an old cucumber even if it is painted green, but he is only twenty years old.

The age span… is too big!

Chen Ling was so frightened that his voice became hoarse: “What does he like about me? I have done everything properly, isn’t that enough?”

Zhao Xunchang was worried. He didn’t want his beloved disciple to be taken away by the old spirit, but based on previous situations, the opponent’s skills should not be underestimated.

“Maybe it’s like other evil spirits, attracted by the Yin energy in you. Or maybe…” As if to give Chen Ling some strength, Zhao Xunchang pressed his hand on his shoulder, “Maybe it’s because he’s been lonely for a long time, and he wants to find a companion.”

Chen Ling thought it would be better for his master to keep his mouth shut.

Facing those sad eyes, Zhao Xunchang wanted to bite his tongue, and then changed his words: “Of course, these are just guesses made by your uncles and I. By the way, your junior uncle criticised us for being unserious at the time, saying that it could be just a pure coincidence.”

Chen Ling did not feel comforted at all.

Zhao Xunchang was anxious: “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid. Master will give you another treasure. With it, I guarantee that no spirit will dare to approach you. If anyone dares to approach, you will smash him to death!”

“What treasure?” Chen Ling still couldn’t muster up the energy, and he looked as depressed as a bean sprout that lacked water.

Zhao Xunchang: “…”

Zhao Xunchang had always been generous to his own people. After bringing his apprentice into the house, he mysteriously dragged out a large box from under the bed.

There were all kinds of things in the box. He bent over and searched for a long time, and finally found an old wooden seal in the bottom. He rubbed it carefully for a few times, and then casually threw it into the hands of his little apprentice as if he didn’t care.

Chen Ling held it carefully, took a closer look, and his dark eyes widened slightly: “Huang Shen Yue Zhang!”

Huang Shen Yue Zhang is a Taoist seal, which uses the power of Huangdi, one of the Five Emperors of the Central Plains, and the power of Yuezhang, a spirit god of the underworld, to deter ghosts. Wearing it alone can protect one from evil spirits, and applying red ink or cinnabar on the talisman could enhance the effect of the talisman paper.

The heart that was shattered by reality was glued together again. Chen Ling held the small seal and looked at it over and over again. His eyes were full of stars and he was reluctant to let go.

This time, he was coaxed.

Zhao Xunchang breathed a sigh of relief, but his heart began to bleed uncontrollably again.

Unable to control his hands from snatching the seal back, he turned his back, out of sight and calm in mind, and shouted fiercely: “If you want to study, go back to your room and study. Don’t be here to bother me.”

Chen Ling smiled until his eyes narrowed into slits, and returned to his room with the seal in his hands. He rummaged through the boxes and found a birthday present his mother had given him.

The gift was a custom-made necklace with a long, sturdy chain. It had once been used to hang a jade Buddha. The jade Buddha had helped him ward off a disaster and then it broke into pieces. Thus, the chain had been left unused since then.

He passed the hole at the top of the seal through the necklace and hung it around his neck, then tucked neatly into the clothes.

With such great treasure on himself, Chen Ling’s mood instantly revived. He picked up his vest and shorts, and prepared to go into the bathroom to take a bath and relieve his fatigue.

After they rented the courtyard, they hired someone to install the bathtub for themselves. For the sake of comfort, they specially chose a double massage bathtub.

Chen Ling turned on the massage function, and lay down in it comfortably, tilting his head back, squinting his eyes, lowering his Dharma seal, and resting it quietly on his chest.

The mist gradually filled the small bathroom, and the warm heat lulled people to sleep.

Chen Ling felt his eyelids becoming heavier and heavier. After struggling for a few times, he obediently closed his eyes.

He was not sleeping soundly, just dozing with his eyes closed. The chirping of insects on the other side of the wall and the sound of water in the bathroom made him feel as if he was in the mountains.

There are flowers and grass, insects and birds in the mountains and forests, stunning waterfalls, and gurgling streams. The stream water is so cold that people can’t help shivering…

His tightly closed eyes suddenly opened, Chen Ling quickly sat up from the bathtub, clutched the seal hanging on his chest, and looked around vigilantly.

The water under his feet was hot, but the coolness that had slipped across his shoulders before was so real that it was definitely not an illusion.

The coolness came again, and the window above the opposite side was blown open by the wind, and the old loose-leaf doors made a creaking sound.

Chen Ling sighed and rubbed his brows in amusement. It turned out that the window was not closed, so it was a cool breeze. Not in the mood to continue bathing, he stepped out of the bathtub, quickly wiped off the water on his body, picked up his clothes and ran out of the bathroom.

That night was peaceful and Chen Ling slept well. He did not get up and did not have any dreams. However, at the crowing of the cock, he was awakened by a sharp cry.

The crying was miserable and very loud.

Chen Ling rubbed his sleepy eyes and yawned loudly. He quickly realised that the sound came from the villa where Gao Qing lived.

The crying was so loud that not only him, but even Zhao Xunchang, who was usually very calm after falling asleep, was woken up. The crying had woken up several other families.

Chen Ling changed his clothes, put on his shoes and went out to check. When he was almost at Gao’s villa, he saw an old lady crossing her arms and cursing something in the direction of the villa in an annoyed manner.

The woman’s husband tugged at her sleeve and whispered, “Don’t curse so harshly. Mrs. Gao isn’t making the child cry on purpose.”

“I doubt she knows how to take care of a child!” the aunt complained. “It was better before. Earlier, we were far away and couldn’t hear clearly. What happened today? The noise almost made me deaf.”

Chen Ling walked over and said, “Good morning, Aunt Song.”

Seeing that it was a young man who had just moved in, the auntie’s tone became a little better, and she changed the target of her complaints: “Crying so early? It’s almost annoying. The child must be hungry because he is crying so hard.”

Chen Ling thought thoughtfully: “Maybe you are right.”

The decibel of the crying was abnormally high. When Chen Ling arrived at Gao Qing’s villa, he was already covered with goosebumps.

After being tortured outside the door for about half a minute, Gao Qing came to open the door. As the door was opened, a sharp voice rushed out from inside, accompanied by a gloomy cold air.

Gao Qing’s hair was messy and her complexion was very bad. When she saw that it was Chen Ling, her eyes sparkled and her mouth curved uncomfortably. She said softly, “Mr. Chen, it’s you. What’s the matter?”

Chen Ling: “I’ve been hearing your child crying, and I want to ask if you need help.”

As he spoke, he looked over the woman in front of him and found that there were more marks on her arms. Fresh blood stains criss crossed on her fair skin, making it hard to ignore.

Knowing that the other person was looking at her, Gao Qing stretched out her arm and said, “My baby’s nails are too long and I haven’t had time to trim them. I’ll just trim them when he behaves.”

The big rooster in the village crowed and the sun rose from below the horizon.

Chen Ling looked back at the red sky, said “oh” faintly, and pretended to leave: “Since there is nothing else, I will leave first.”

“Don’t.” Gao Qing hurriedly stopped him and pleaded earnestly, “I’m just about to go mix milk powder for the baby and can’t look after him. If it’s convenient, can Mr. Chen help me go upstairs and take care of him?”

Chen Ling smiled and agreed: “Okay.”

He came at night the previous day and the lights were on, so he didn’t feel anything. But when he went up to the second floor early in the morning, Chen Ling found that the windows at both ends of the corridor and the doors of the other rooms were sealed. There was only one open door, silently inviting guests to come in.

The crying sound came from it.

Chen Ling walked over. The windows in the room were blocked by blackout curtains. There was a table lamp in each corner. The light was dim, making the centre of the room that was not illuminated seem even darker.

The crib in the middle of the room was the source of the noise. The crib swayed from side to side, the toys hanging from the top turned, and peaceful music played.

If one listens carefully, one could hear laughter mixed in with the music and crying.

“Are you hungry?” Chen Ling stood still. “Your mother is mixing milk powder for you downstairs. She will be up soon.”

A pair of chubby little hands stretched out from the crib and scratched in the direction of Chen Ling. Because he couldn’t reach him, the owner of the crib got angry and deliberately raised his voice.

The horrible cry shattered a desk lamp, and a corner of the room was instantly swallowed up by darkness.

Chen Ling looked at him coldly: “It’s so noisy.”

The crying seemed to be against him, becoming more and more shrill, as if it could pierce his eardrums. The faint giggling sound began to gain emphasis, as if it was coming from countless mouths at the same time.

What’s strange is that despite such a loud noise, Gao Qing, the mother living downstairs, seemed to not be able to hear it and had no reaction at all.

Chen Ling took two steps inside, and the scene inside the crib was completely exposed to his vision.

It was a little baby with a blue complexion, pale nails, black eye sockets with large pupils, and only a small part of the white of the eye. The mouth was open and crying, with a bloody red colour, and the deep part of the throat was dark.

Chen Ling took a closer look and said speechlessly: “Are you crying fake tears? There’s not even a tear.”

The crying stopped suddenly, and the baby’s mouth opened exaggeratedly to both sides, almost reaching his ears. Chen Ling didn’t know if it hurts to open its mouth so wide.

“Where is Xiaobao?” Chen Ling asked coldly.

The baby’s pupils gradually dilated, filling up the entire white of his eyes. His two hands, which were hanging in the air, suddenly fell on both sides of the crib, and he sat up straight with the force.

He wrinkled his nose, and his tongue stirred in his mouth, making a hoarse, strange sound: “Brother, I’m so hungry, so hungry…”

Chen Ling took a half step back and took out the vibrating Sanqing Bell from his pocket. He shook it and the baby screamed. Dark red blood oozed from his eye sockets. His eyes were gloomy and resentful, filled with endless greed.

Downstairs, Gao Qing put the bright red meat, liver, heart and plasma into the blender and pressed the switch.

The sharp blade turned, and thirty seconds later, the thick red juice was poured into the bottle and carefully held by a slender hand.

Gao Qing had a rare genuine smile on her face. She twisted her waist and stepped up the stairs step by step.

She shouted, “Good boy, mommy is here.”

Chen Ling heard voices coming from outside, and a piece of talisman paper slipped from his sleeve into the palm of his hand. The baby was very cunning, and although he was not hit by the talisman paper, he started crying again.

The crying this time was different from the previous ones. Every cry was full of resentment, pity, and fear, as if someone had caught him and beaten him severely.

Chen Ling was stunned, but then he understood.

At such a young age, he still had no morals and actually wanted to frame someone else!