Yu Daochen walked along the main road towards the neighboring village where Zhu Futing lived.
Upon reaching the village entrance, Yu Daochen spotted a small shop and walked towards it, a smile on his face. "Grandpa, how do I get to Zhu Youcai's house?"
The shopkeeper glanced at Yu Daochen and fanned himself. "You mean Zhu Youqian's house? Just keep going straight."
Yu Daochen frowned. "Isn't his name Zhu Youcai?"
The shopkeeper snorted, a hint of jealousy in his tone. "That Zhu Youcai, besides being rich, has nothing else. Even his only son, Zhu Futing, drowned in the fish pond ten years ago. So, Zhu Youqian, right?"
The shopkeeper sighed after speaking, a touch of schadenfreude in his voice. "Pity he worked hard his whole life only to end up with nothing."
Yu Daochen felt a bit puzzled. Judging by the shopkeeper's tone, he seemed to harbor a deep animosity towards Zhu Youcai.
"Grandpa, your tone suggests you have a strong grudge against Zhu Youcai," Yu Daochen said.
The shopkeeper snorted coldly. "It's not just me. Everyone in this village has a grudge against him."
Yu Daochen's interest was piqued. "Grandpa, what do you mean?"
"If it weren't for his family, so many people in the village wouldn't have died," the shopkeeper said, then stopped. "Go on, go on, don't disturb my business."
Seeing this, Yu Daochen directly took out two red banknotes and placed them on the table. "Grandpa, please tell me what happened."
Upon seeing the money, the shopkeeper's stern expression instantly turned into a smile. "Heh heh, since young brother wants to hear, I'll tell you."
The shopkeeper pocketed the two red banknotes as he spoke.
"Ten years ago, a fairy maiden came to our village. She was incredibly beautiful and was known as Fairy Ma."
"Fairy Ma? Could it be Ma Meiling?" Yu Daochen's heart filled with doubt.
"At that time, Zhu Youcai was just an ordinary villager. He didn't have this aquaculture farm like he does now."
"Fairy Ma came to the village and stayed at Zhu Youcai's house. About a week later, Zhu Youcai's son, Zhu Futing, spread the word that Fairy Ma had calculated through astrology that there was gold in the small mountain in the neighboring village."
"At first, everyone thought it was fake. After all, if it were true, why would they bother sharing it with others?"
"However, the very next day after the news spread, Zhu Futing returned to the village carrying a sack full of gold nuggets. Seeing this, everyone became excited. A sack full of gold nuggets – what a concept! The entire village was in an uproar, and the matter even caused a stir in two neighboring villages."
"The next day, led by Zhu Futing, over two hundred people from the neighboring village and our own went to dig for gold. At that time, there was no technology, and they just randomly used dynamite. They dug for over a month, almost emptying the mountain, yet they found no gold at all."
"Just as everyone was about to give up, the mountain suddenly collapsed. All two hundred people who went were buried inside and not a single one came out, except for Zhu Futing who survived."
"The families of the deceased came to confront them, only to discover that Fairy Ma had already fled. If it weren't for the police's intervention, Zhu Futing's family would have been beaten to death by the villagers."
"It's strange, but a year after that incident, Zhu Youcai's family suddenly became wealthy. Their mud houses were replaced with small villas, and they built many fish ponds. However, good times didn't last. Just as Zhu Futing finished building his fish ponds and his business was booming, he suddenly fell into a fish pond and drowned."
"Everyone said it was retribution for Zhu Youcai."
Yu Daochen's brows furrowed. According to the shopkeeper, this pile of corpse ponds was indeed Ma Meiling's doing, and Zhu Futing was likely also killed by Ma Meiling. But who were the Ma Meiling and Zhu Futing he encountered?
"He truly deserved it," the shopkeeper said, getting more animated.
Yu Daochen felt a bit speechless. Following the direction indicated by the shopkeeper, he walked towards Zhu Youcai's residence.
After about ten minutes of walking, Yu Daochen stopped and looked at a prosperous small villa beside him. Even now, no one in the village could afford to build such a villa, which showed how much money Zhu Futing's family had back then.
Yu Daochen frowned as he saw the gate was open, then slowly pushed it open and walked in. The courtyard was vast, with many different kinds of trees planted. However, at noon, it gave off a chilling feeling.
"Young man, who are you?"
Yu Daochen flinched, then quickly turned his head towards the direction of the voice, his hand instinctively reaching for the Kang Long Rod at his waist.
Upon seeing clearly, Yu Daochen finally relaxed. It turned out to be Zhu Youcai.
"Sorry, Grandpa, I came to the wrong house. I'll leave now," Yu Daochen said with a smile, looking at the bewildered Zhu Youcai.
Someone who could stand beside him so silently without being discovered must be from the same profession, and with considerable strength.
Just as Yu Daochen turned to leave, Zhu Youcai's bewildered gaze shifted, replaced by a sinister smile. "Young Master Yu, are you in such a hurry to leave?"
Yu Daochen stopped. It seemed his guess was correct; he was indeed from the underworld.
Yu Daochen suddenly turned around, took a deep breath, formed a hand seal, and a burst of flames erupted.