CHAPTER 26: CHAPTER 26: ERADICATING EVIL AND SETTLING DEBTS—A TASTE OF RELIEF, A HINT OF SORROW

The entire Lin Mansion seemed to fall into silence at this moment.

The classmates from the County School stood by the corridor, looking at each other in silence.

Everyone seemingly couldn’t fully process that the person they had just been attending class and chatting with yesterday had suddenly died.

Even though they had received news early in the morning that Lin Qi had suddenly fallen ill, the impact from illness to death was still vastly different.

Especially since they had just seen Lin Qi’s father invite a reputed person into the mansion.

After who knows how long, Xu Wenyuan forced himself to say with a bitter tone, "Today was originally our admired brother’s twenty-second birthday. Yesterday, he even told me that he was determined to get a place in the coming provincial exam this year.

He said his family had been urging him to marry for two years, but he was not willing until he earned the title of a scholar to seek out a fair lady. Who would have thought, who would have thought..."

Who would have thought what?

A student sighed and said, "Never thought life could be so unpredictable."

Indeed, life is unpredictable.

Chen Xu stood at one end of the corridor.

At this moment, though he seemed to stand amongst the crowd, he felt as if he was wandering on the other side of the mundane world.

Here and now, perhaps no one could be more qualified than he to say the words "life is unpredictable".

Chen Xu recalled that when he was on Little Peak Mountain before, he had mentioned the strange head-swapping incident he encountered the previous night, and Mr. Zhou told him, "Your opponent’s evil technique power is limited, so just one head transplantation would likely require significant preparation to conclude at the most crucial moment."

Therefore, Lin Qi had actually been setting this up for several years.

He chose Chen Xu, seemingly getting close to him and befriending him on the surface, but secretly practicing an evil technique to steal his fortune.

Ever since Chen Xu became a child student and took part in the provincial exam that year, Lin Qi employed various tactics.

After years of wearing him down, Chen Xu’s fortune grew weaker while his bad luck grew stronger, repeatedly failing in exams and falling into depression.

Finally, Lin Qi, last night at midnight... or rather early this morning, during the transition of midnight, tried to seize the fruits of his victory and perform the last step of the head transplantation technique—

He wanted to cut off Chen Xu’s head.

Fortunately, he failed.

At this moment, the students who were lamenting Lin Qi’s untimely death, dying precisely on his twenty-second birthday, did not know that today also happened to be Chen Xu’s birthday.

Only, Chen Xu was turning eighteen.

If the two’s birthdays hadn’t coincidentally fallen on the same day, there might not have been that inexplicable link, and Lin Qi might not have initially set his sights on Chen Xu.

Chen Xu had a smile at the corners of his mouth, and although he felt a pang of emotion, it did not prevent him from feeling happy at this moment.

Precisely because life is unpredictable, he must strive upwards to gain the ability to fully control his destiny!

Lin Qi died, and the Food Cauldron Celestial Book unexpectedly provided an information prompt: [You rid evil and cleared debts, gaining one tael of satisfaction, three parts melancholy, entered the Fire and Smoke Kitchen, rewarded with 100 Fireworks Value points.]

Chen Xu used the technique taught by Mr. Zhou to kill Lin Qi so thoroughly, and even the Celestial Book rewarded him!

At this moment, there were changes again in the various values concerning Chen Xu on the Celestial Book.

Primarily, within just a short time of not looking, Chen Xu’s accumulated likes increased again.

Only, this time the increase was small; it seemed that Granny Lai’s meat and spring onion pancakes were nearly sold out.

[Accumulated Likes: 656]

[Free Attribute Points: 17]

[Fireworks Value: 399]

Seeing his accumulated likes steadily approaching 1000 points, Chen Xu felt full of expectations for the future.

This anticipation made him feel a stir in his heart, yet his gaze remained calm and powerful.

The feeling of killing for the first time was quite good.

A moment later, suddenly from Lin Qi’s room came a mad cry: "Lin Chongliang, it’s you, it must be you who harmed our Qi’Er! If it weren’t for you suddenly coming back, how could my Qi’Er have died?

Coming home rarely, yet you harmed my son the moment you returned, why didn’t you just stay away?"

Madam You wailed in agony: "You should die, you scoundrel, boo hoo hoo..."

Madam You’s abrupt cries indeed startled the students from the County School.

In a scholar’s family, regardless of the family’s status, they always paid attention to etiquette and demeanor in the past.

And the Lin Family was a prominent local family in Jichuan County; a person of Madam You’s status certainly wouldn’t suddenly speak so outrageously.

Her cries, even though they were slightly distant, made the students on the corridor feel extreme embarrassment; for a moment, they didn’t know whether to continue mourning for Lin Qi or quickly avoid Madam You’s wailing to prevent causing the elder to lose face.

Xu Wenyuan awkwardly remarked, "Aunt must be overwhelmed with grief to the point of mental confusion. Our admired brother... suddenly fell ill, how could we blame Uncle? Should we maybe go and comfort her?"

The other students looked at each other, and someone quietly advised Xu Wenyuan, "Don’t be foolish, listen carefully, does Aunt seem to be scolding Uncle? She clearly has something particular to say."

Xu Wenyuan was taken aback but quickly realized.

Indeed, no wonder Madam You suddenly blurted out like that.

She wasn’t scolding Lin Qi’s father, she was clearly using sarcasm to scold Daoist Xuanjing!

Yet, Daoist Xuanjing was a renowned person from Qi Yun Temple, Madam You lacked the courage to directly point fingers at him.

The students looked at each other you at me, then at each other.

Originally, they came to visit the sick, possibly also to see Lin Qi one last time.

By all rights, with Lin Qi having died from illness just now, they should stay to console Lin Qi’s father and mother and help arrange his affairs.

But who would’ve thought the situation would become so awkward?

Some matters, regardless of the closeness of relationships, should not be meddled with; they had already done enough as fellow students.

At that moment, one of the students suddenly said, "Everyone, our admired brother has suddenly fallen ill, the Lin Family must be busy with many things. If we stay here, I’m afraid it will only add to the chaos. We might as well leave for now and wait for the Lin family to announce the funeral before we come back to pay respects and bid our admired brother a final farewell."

With that, the person cupped his hands and turned to leave.

The others promptly followed, with one saying "Indeed, indeed," while another echoed, "Just so."

Xu Wenyuan looked somber, and although hesitant, he still followed the majority.

As for Chen Xu, he didn’t need to mention it; he simply followed behind the crowd, and after they explained the situation to the Lin Mansion’s steward, he left the Lin Mansion with them.

They came in a group, and they left as a group.

Only, among them, Lin Yuan and Wang Mochuan and a few others were missing; but at that moment, no one mentioned them, and everyone tacitly parted ways once outside the Lin Mansion.

Xu Wenyuan did want to send Chen Xu off, as Chen Xu still had a limp.

In reality, Chen Xu’s right leg had essentially fully healed after Mr. Zhou’s gifted medicine.

Only, to avoid unnecessary trouble, he continued to feign a limp for the time being.

Chen Xu declined Xu Wenyuan’s good intention, hired a carriage for himself, and the wheels clattered as it carried him back to his small home on Ping’an Lane.

At his doorstep, Chen Xu saw someone both expected yet unexpected.