Fortunately, ghosts are not subject to such restrictions and can roam freely. Fortunately... this ghost is actually quite obedient.
In a daze, Cheng Jinchang's voice rang in my ears: "Lord Gongcao, I've found out over there."
"Hmm?" Xu Zhengyang frowned. He opened his eyes, looked at the ghosts respectfully prostrate on the floor in front of the bed, and asked calmly, "Who are they? Where are they?"
"In the western suburbs of Fuhe City, between Xiaowang Mountain and Qinghe River, there is a villa—oh no, a courtyard house. But after their car drove in, the people in the car got out, went back inside to make a few phone calls, and then rested. They didn't have any contact with anyone else."
"A courtyard house? Who still lives there?" Xu Zhengyang asked.
“An elderly man, around seventy or eighty years old. There were also two middle-aged women, probably doctors or caregivers. I saw a doctor’s coat hanging on a clothes rack next to one of the women’s beds, and a medicine box on the table next to her. There were also many medicines and supplies in the cabinet.”
Is there anything else?
Cheng Jinchang raised his head, his face showing some fear, and said, "There were soldiers on guard in the courtyard, with guns in their hands. Lord Gongcao, I... I was quite scared at the time. Although I knew they couldn't find me, I was still afraid. My whole body ached. Maybe... maybe ghosts are afraid of masculine energy?"
"Oh." Xu Zhengyang nodded, then waved his hand thoughtfully, putting Cheng Jinchang back into the county register.
It shouldn't be Zou Mingyuan.
So this must be Li Bingjie's family, but... what kind of family is she? Her mother, well, she's a company CEO, the super-rich kind. But who is this old man? Li Bingjie's grandfather? And why is a soldier standing guard for him?
Without a doubt, he must be a very important person.
Is it really Li Bingjie's family? Why didn't Cheng Jinchang see Li Bingjie and Li Chengzong?
If it wasn't Li Bingjie's family investigating and monitoring her, then who was it?
Xu Zhengyang really couldn't think of anyone else.
Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind, and Xu Zhengyang's eyes widened abruptly as he sat up abruptly. He cursed under his breath!
Those who serve in the military will naturally become involved with the government...
Could it be that his recent behavior has attracted the attention of the relevant authorities? That would be really bad! Xu Zhengyang shuddered; this was truly terrifying.
If that were the case, wouldn't I be arrested one day? Promoting superstitious beliefs and misleading people... that's a crime!
Or, use yourself as a guinea pig, and seriously study how it works and how you can do something so incredible.
Really?
Xu Zhengyang wiped the fine sweat from his forehead.
Then, he thought of Li Bingjie again, and Li Chengzong, that burly man who exuded a fierce aura—a typical bodyguard! Hmm, if the old man and the people monitoring and investigating him were all Li Bingjie's family members, or if these people monitoring him were arranged by Li Bingjie's family… that would make sense. First, Li Bingjie's family is wealthy; someone who can drive an Audi A8 every day can't be poor, right? Second, while a powerful family can certainly hire bodyguards, being addressed as "Miss" by so many people is practically extinct in today's society. So there's only one possibility: Li Bingjie's family has a very powerful background.
Thinking of the burly figures and cold, hard faces of those who were monitoring and following him, he realized they bore a certain resemblance to Li Chengzhong.
Therefore... Li Bingjie's family members are the prime suspects.
It's almost certain! Because Xu Zhengyang really couldn't have imagined that anyone else would pay so much attention to him.
As for the concerns of the relevant departments, Xu Zhengyang put them aside for the time being: Don't be too self-important and overestimate yourself. If you're just a mud crab that hasn't caused any huge waves, who will notice you?
Thinking of this, Xu Zhengyang put on his slippers, got out of bed, casually picked up his undershirt and put it on, then walked out with small steps.
Gently open and close the door, then walk to the middle of the courtyard.
Outside, the moonlight was like frost, and the air was cool and comfortable.
Xu Zhengyang looked up and glanced at the roof of the house in the distance, then walked to the gate, gently unscrewed the door bolt, and stepped out without closing the gate.
Lighting a cigarette, Xu Zhengyang strolled out of the alley and onto the main street, just like someone casually taking a walk.
He looked up at the rooftop again.
There, it was dimly lit. The moonlight was blocked by the dense foliage of a towering poplar tree in the courtyard, casting a dark shadow on the roof. And there was a person in the shadow. Even now, Xu Zhengyang knew that someone was there, and he had looked very carefully, but he still couldn't tell that someone was hiding there.
Xu Zhengyang sighed and slowly walked towards the house, puffing on his cigarette.
Standing under the eaves, Xu Zhengyang leaned against the wall, facing outwards, calmly smoking.
There was no unusual movement on the roof; even if you listened carefully, you couldn't hear anyone breathing.
Along the walls on both sides of the street, clumps of wild grass grew tenaciously, and tiny insects, whose names I did not know, chirped softly, making the peaceful and tranquil atmosphere of the rural night even more apparent.
"Come down," Xu Zhengyang suddenly called out softly.
There was no movement.
Xu Zhengyang took a drag of his cigarette and said, as if talking to himself, "Go back and tell your boss... stop spying on me and following me. I'm very angry and annoyed!"
There was still no movement.
"Is there any point in hiding it now?" Xu Zhengyang squinted and looked up.
Of course, from his current position, he could only see the eaves protruding about half a foot.
The reason Xu Zhengyang chose to stand against the wall with his back against it was because he was very cautious. Who knew if this guy would fly into a rage and attack him after he discovered him? So he needed to choose a place and posture that would ensure his safety as much as possible.
There was finally some movement on the roof.
Xu Zhengyang, whose expression appeared calm, had become alert, his muscles tense.
The person no longer seemed to be deliberately avoiding Xu Zhengyang, so the sound was somewhat loud, but still relatively quiet, at least... it wouldn't disturb anyone who was sleeping.
The dark figure nimbly leaped from the corner of the house onto the low gate wall of the neighboring courtyard, then gracefully jumped down and stood on the street, meeting Xu Zhengyang's gaze.
"Have you remembered what I said?" Xu Zhengyang said softly.
The man didn't speak, but looked at Xu Zhengyang for a few seconds, then stepped past him and walked out of the village.
Its body, as strong as a javelin, cast a long, dark shadow in the moonlight.
Volume Two, Gong Cao, Chapter 74: Unexpected Gains
No one can predict what will happen in the future. Not even what unexpected event might occur in the next second.
So Xu Zhengyang dared to stand on the street and directly face that man who looked exceptionally fierce at first glance, not because he believed that the other party would not make a move, or because he was absolutely confident that he could beat him. On the contrary, he even had a feeling that the three of them could not beat one of the other party, even though they had not fought.
Besides, even if you can beat someone, can you beat a bullet?
Heaven knows if this subordinate of that old man, like those guards standing watch inside and outside the courtyard, carried a gun.
The reason Xu Zhengyang dared to confront them directly was because this was Shuanghe Village, Huaxiang, within Cixian County—his undisputed territory. He carried the ghosts of Cheng Jinchang and his wife with him, ready to summon them to possess people at any time. Let alone one person, even if a dozen or so came, as long as there were enough ghosts throughout the county, Xu Zhengyang could gather a horde of ghosts in seconds to stage a coup d'état, possession, and seize control.
Fortunately, the other party did not have any conflict with Xu Zhengyang.
After being discovered while secretly monitoring Xu Zhengyang, the man didn't utter a sound, only staring coldly at him for a while. Then he left on his own, as if he hadn't done anything and wasn't afraid of what Xu Zhengyang might do.
Annoyed, Xu Zhengyang had no intention of arguing with them. He was fairly certain that these people monitoring and following him were sent by Li Bingjie's family. Given the current situation, there was no deep-seated hatred between them, and Xu Zhengyang felt it unnecessary to escalate the conflict to a point of irreconcilable hostility.
Because he didn't want to lose Li Bingjie as a friend.
Moreover, he was certain that the other party's surveillance of him was not malicious, and they wouldn't be monitoring him every day. They would only check on his behavior at certain times that they considered specific. It was probably for Li Bingjie's sake; they cared about her and didn't want this aloof and indifferent person to associate with bad people.
Clearly, under the current circumstances, Xu Zhengyang has not done anything wrong and is a good person.
At least in Xu Zhengyang's heart, he believed he was a good person.
As for treasure hunting, since the other party already knows, there's no point in hiding it. It's not some heinous crime. People are selfish; who doesn't want to earn more money to provide a better life for their family, who doesn't want to escape poverty? Besides, Xu Zhengyang has never actually dug up graves or robbed tombs. Whoever has the ability and luck can dig and collect what's buried in the ground.
Well, even if Li Bingjie's family believes she committed grave robbing, they probably wouldn't care too much. Otherwise, they would have called the police long ago, and they certainly wouldn't have let Li Bingjie keep coming to "chat" with them.
However, now that Xu Zhengyang knew they were spying on him, it was necessary to warn them not to do it, as what they were doing was immoral, disrespectful, and very irritating. Indeed, Xu Zhengyang was furious and angry.
Who is Xu Zhengyang?
He didn't have a brilliant mind or any so-called wisdom, but he possessed the shrewdness of a small business owner.
So as soon as the person monitoring him left, Xu Zhengyang immediately returned home, greeted his mother, then grabbed a shovel, tied it to his motorcycle, and took a burlap sack filled with cotton. He then drove his motorcycle into the vast night to continue his treasure-hunting operation.
If I set off now, no one should be monitoring or following me anymore.
As expected, the other party made no further moves in the following days.
However, Xu Zhengyang was not careless. He summoned the ghosts of those who had died within the county less than seven days prior to guard his home. If any unexpected situation arose, even if Xu Zhengyang wasn't home, he could immediately receive a notification from the ghosts, check the situation through the county register, and then grant the ghosts the ability to possess other spirits via telepathic communication… For Xu Zhengyang, communicating with the souls within Cixian County, even from thousands of miles away, was far more convenient than contacting them by phone.
Although ordinary ghosts can only live for seven days, there are hundreds of thousands of people in the county, and people die every day. Therefore, this kind of unusual bodyguard will never run out of supplies.
Even if a dozen or so robbers suddenly break into the house, wouldn't it be easy for two ghosts to possess two of them and start fighting amongst themselves? What's more, sometimes there are even more ghosts, and a mass suicide tragedy wouldn't be a problem.
That way, the house will be very safe.
That night, his mother Yuan Suqin's words reminded Xu Zhengyang, so he had to do it this way; this selfish behavior was not excessive.
...
If there's anything else that's happened in the last few days, it's the theft of priceless jade from the "Tianbaozhai" antique market in Fuhe City.
A piece of jade worth 3.5 million!
It's a shocking case. It's said that the perpetrators left no trace or clue. Even the police suspect that Zou Mingyuan filed a false report to frame Yao Chushun and Xu Zhengyang, the owners of Guxiangxuan.
During police questioning, Yao Chushun and Xu Zhengyang confirmed that the priceless antique jade was indeed sold to Zou Mingyuan by their Gu Xiang Xuan shop on the morning of the theft. However, they argued that it was unlikely they would steal it back immediately after receiving payment… This reason wasn't really a valid excuse, but it left the police with a difficult situation. They genuinely believed Yao Chushun and Xu Zhengyang. Further investigation confirmed that neither of them had the opportunity to commit the crime.
What's going on? You, Zou Mingyuan, claim you've lost a priceless treasure, but the police thoroughly examined the crime scene and found absolutely no clues. All the fingerprints recorded were either yours or those of your shop's employees. Furthermore, the safe showed no signs of forced entry, and the windows and doors were all intact. You yourself, Zou Mingyuan, said that the sandalwood box containing the priceless jade hadn't been touched; it even had a lock on it, and it was perfectly safe.
There's absolutely no way to tell that your place has been hacked.
Could it be that Zou Mingyuan is using this as an excuse to smear Gu Xiang Xuan's reputation?
Very likely! The local police are well aware of the feud between Zou Mingyuan and Yao Chushun, and with the newly opened Gu Xiangxuan, it is the only antique shop in the entire Fuhe City that is qualified to compete with Tianbaozhai. Yao Chushun's name alone is enough.
so……
This momentous case was raised high, then gently put down.
Zou Mingyuan was so angry that he fired all the employees of Tianbaozhai and replaced them all.
So what? Three and a half million, gone...
Yao Chushun was extremely gloating. He said to Xu Zhengyang, "Zhengyang, do you think that precious jade might have been stolen by someone arranged by Gu Sifang? On the day of the theft, only a few of us knew that Zou Mingyuan had bought the precious jade. There were no outsiders."
"No," Xu Zhengyang said calmly, shaking his head.
"That's just that damn Zou Mingyuan deliberately pulled this stunt to smear our reputation," Yao Chushun said, cursing.
"No, he did lose that jade." Xu Zhengyang remained calm.
"Hmm?" Yao Chushun looked at Xu Zhengyang with suspicion, wondering if it really was you who did it.
Xu Zhengyang noticed the confusion in Yao Chushun's eyes, smiled faintly, then reached into his pocket, pulled out the county register, and tossed it onto the table, saying, "It's here."
"Holy crap, how the hell did you do that?"
"There are seven pieces of jade in total. I still have some, hehe."
"Don't talk nonsense. You might be able to fool Baldy Gu and Zou Mingyuan with this, but do you think I don't know that your family heirloom is unique?"