"No, you can't do this! I object!"
Min Ziqiong's mother waved her hands, trying to refuse.
But at this moment, there was no room for refusal.
Min Ziqiong's father took the lead, spitting a mouthful of saliva fiercely at his wife.
The gesture seemed less about helping his wife prove her innocence and more like an act of revenge.
"Min Daqiang, do you want to die!" Min Ziqiong's mother was furious, enduring the nausea and cursing.
Min Ziqiong's father quickly explained, "Old woman, I'm helping you! It's better for me to spit than for others to! It's also better than inviting a celestial master to capture you!"
"Old woman, think about our bright future, think about the number one hundred and twenty. Just endure this little setback!"
It had to be said that Min Ziqiong's father knew his wife best.
With a single sentence, he managed to suppress Min Ziqiong's mother's rage.
She closed her eyes.
"Come on! Use whatever tricks you have!"
"This old lady isn't afraid!"
Then came the continuous sound of spitting.
In the blink of an eye, Min Ziqiong's father spat out a mouthful of saliva.
"Look, Ying Chen! My old woman is fine! She's human, not a ghost! Do you believe me now?"
Ying Chen, standing nearby, nodded, then shook his head. "I can believe it, but not entirely. If Auntie can pass the other two verification methods, I will completely believe it!"
"Simple! I'll call the small supermarket down the mountain to send up a string of firecrackers and a rooster!"
Min Ziqiong's father said.
Then he went to the distance and made a phone call.
Soon, car lights flashed. It turned out that an employee from the small supermarket had indeed brought a string of firecrackers and a large rooster.
It was unknown where they found a rooster so late at night.
After receiving them, Min Ziqiong's father, fearing that the supermarket employee would discover the situation in the courtyard, quickly sent the employee away.
Then he trotted back to the villa courtyard.
"Here we go! Which one first?"
Ying Chen took the firecrackers and saw that they were 5000-shot ones!
Min Ziqiong's father seemed afraid his wife wouldn't suffer enough.
Since Min Ziqiong's father didn't care, Ying Chen cared even less.
So he directly wrapped the firecrackers around Min Ziqiong's mother's neck.
Seeing this, Min Ziqiong's mother was terrified. "Ying Chen, what are you doing? Are you crazy? Someone will die!"
Ying Chen, however, explained in a serious tone, "If it's not like this, it won't have any effect in driving away ghosts. Don't worry, close your eyes and cover your ears later. You definitely won't die!"
After speaking, Ying Chen directly started to light them.
Upon hearing Ying Chen's words, Min Ziqiong's mother subconsciously relaxed.
However, she didn't grasp the implied meaning of Ying Chen's words.
Ying Chen said no one would die, but he didn't say no one would get hurt!
Bang bang bang bang!
The firecrackers instantly exploded in a series, and fierce sparks bloomed around Min Ziqiong's mother's neck.
The thick smoke engulfed Min Ziqiong's mother entirely.
Min Ziqiong's mother, with her eyes closed and ears covered, let out one scream after another.
Although her psychological defenses had collapsed and she wanted to remove the firecrackers from her neck, she dared not loosen the hands covering her ears.
She was afraid that if she let go, the firecrackers would deafen her!
Only then did she realize that Ying Chen had tricked her.
Ying Chen telling her to cover her ears was not for her own good, but clearly to prevent her from reaching out and removing the firecrackers!
Thus, it continued for a full two minutes before the 5000-shot firecrackers finally finished.
When the smoke cleared, Min Ziqiong's mother's face was black, her hair was disheveled, and she was covered in bloodstains, resembling a severely wounded soldier just carried off the battlefield!
Seeing this, Min Ziqiong's father couldn't help but feel heartache.
"Old woman, you've suffered. Don't worry, only one last test remains!"
"After this, we can enjoy our wonderful life!"
With that, Min Ziqiong's father picked up the rooster and held it in front of Min Ziqiong's mother.
The sharp beak, the blood-red comb, and the bulging eyes caused Min Ziqiong's mother, who had just opened her eyes, to close them again.
At the same time, she screamed, "Take it away, take it away! You know I'm most afraid of these feathered, sharp-beaked animals!"
But Min Ziqiong's father did not take it away. Instead, he brought it closer. "Old woman, just endure it. You've gone through so many tests, you can't give up now and fail at the last one!"
At the same time, Min Ziqiong's father looked at Ying Chen. "Ying Chen, what are you standing around for? Quickly cut off the rooster's head!"
Ying Chen held a knife he had just taken from the kitchen. "Then I'll cut it off! Please open your eyes, Auntie, otherwise I'll have reason to suspect your true form is a ghost, and you dare not face this scene."
Min Ziqiong's mother could only open her eyes tremblingly.
The moment she opened them, she saw Ying Chen's hand move, knife falling!
With a *swish*.
The rooster's large head, along with a spray of blood, flew towards Min Ziqiong's mother's face!
"Ah!"
Min Ziqiong's mother let out a pig-like scream.
Then her eyes rolled back.
With a *thump*, she fell to the ground.
She had fainted from fright!
"Success! The evil spirit in Auntie's body has been driven away!" Ying Chen said with great joy upon seeing this.
He seemed genuinely happy for Min Ziqiong's mother.
Min Ziqiong's father, however, looked skeptical.
He felt something was wrong, yet it also seemed to make some sense.
But at this moment, he couldn't ponder it further. He quickly picked up Min Ziqiong's mother from the ground, patting her face and shouting, "Old woman, wake up, wake up! You've passed the test! We can get down to business!"
"Old woman, are you alright? Don't scare me! Wake up!"
"Old woman, one hundred and twenty, have you forgotten your favorite number?"
"We're about to touch it!"
Min Ziqiong's mother, who had been unconscious, suddenly opened her eyes upon hearing the number one hundred and twenty.
"Where? Where? Give it to me quickly! It's all mine!"
"It's all yours, it's all yours... Well, you should get up first. We haven't gotten it yet, have we? We'll get it after we're done with our business." Min Ziqiong's father said somewhat awkwardly.
Only then did Min Ziqiong's mother stand up from the ground.
At this moment, she no longer looked like a noble lady. She resembled a seasoned beggar who had been wandering for decades!
Her clothes were torn by the willow branches, her face and neck were covered in wounds from the firecrackers, her hair was messy like a bird's nest, and from head to toe, she dripped with unhealed blood and a strong, foul odor.
She looked utterly pathetic.
But Min Ziqiong's mother's attention was clearly not on this. She looked at Ying Chen impatiently. "Well? Can you prove I'm not a ghost now? Can we discuss business now?"
Ying Chen nodded. "You can be proven. Tell me, why have you come?"
"Why else? Isn't it because of the fake recipe you gave us! I didn't expect, Ying Chen, that someone as seemingly upright as you would also lie! You used a fake recipe to fool us. Believe it or not, if you don't hand over the real recipe, we won't be done with you today!"
Ying Chen looked surprised. "So you two are here for this matter! But..."
"You two seem to have overlooked one thing! Since it has been proven that Auntie is not a ghost, it means Auntie was not dead at the time."
"And since Auntie was not dead, it means I committed no crime."
"Since I committed no crime, why should I stoop to their level and be afraid of you?"
"..." Min Ziqiong's parents were both stunned.
They had never expected that Ying Chen, after all this effort and trouble, had been waiting for them with this!