After sitting and chatting in the main room for a while, and having another cup of tea, Zhang Xianyu suggested they first take a look inside the house.
Chen Xifa was naturally more than willing.
He quickly led them on a tour around.
The two-story house had clearly been built some years ago, exuding a worn, somewhat old-fashioned air.
The first floor was laid out with two rooms and a living area, without much decoration—just whitewashed walls.
The master bedroom by the main door was where Chen Xifa’s elderly mother lived.
Since she was old and had trouble going up and down stairs, she stayed downstairs.
The other room contained two beds with bedding laid out—presumably prepared for their guests.
On the left side of the building was a single-story annex that served as the kitchen and dining area, where the family usually ate.
The second floor was where Chen Xifa and his wife lived with their two daughters.
The place was modestly renovated—not fancy, but tidy.
The master bedroom belonged to the couple, while the smaller room was for their twin daughters.
Zhang Xianyu peeked into each room and didn’t find anything unusual, then decided to check the third floor.
Though called a third floor, it was really just a storage attic with only a half story.
One had to bend over to walk inside, and everything was covered in dust.
Just as Zhang Xianyu finished looking around and was about to head down, out of the corner of her eye she saw a shadow dart past.
She immediately turned her head warily and asked, “Who’s there?”
At her voice, everyone’s attention shifted toward the water storage barrel.
The third floor was low and cramped, and there weren’t many places to hide—only behind the water barrel.
Behind it, a shaky, pitch-black head peeked out.
Before Zhang Xianyu and the others could react, Chen Xifa’s anger flared.
He stormed forward and yanked out the shadow hiding behind the barrel.
With a loud smack, he struck the child’s bottom.
“What are you doing up here?”
The little kid he was holding was dirty and thin.
Chen Xifa slapped her a few more times, but she didn’t make a sound—just stared back with dark, heavy eyes.
“Brother Chen, the child hasn’t done anything wrong. Don’t hit her anymore or you’ll hurt her,” Chen Yang stepped forward, unable to bear it and blocking Chen Xifa.
Chen Xifa stopped when pulled back.
He pinched his eldest daughter under the arm and led them downstairs.
Once back in the main room on the first floor, Chen Xifa put the child down and scolded her with a frown, “Where’s your sister? Where has she gone off to this time?”
“She went to find Grandma,” the child replied timidly, lowering her head.
Chen Xifa’s hand twitched and he grabbed the child again, smacking her several times.
“Didn’t I tell you to watch her?!”
Then, hastily, he ran toward the back of the house.
Zhang Xianyu and the others, unsure what was happening, followed.
Behind the house was a vegetable garden.
An elderly woman with graying hair sat with her back to them at the garden’s edge.
Although she heard the noise, she didn’t turn around.
On her lap lay a little girl. Upon hearing them, the girl looked up with a bright smile and called out loudly, “Baba!”
Chen Xifa didn’t respond. Instead, he called out “Mama” from the back door.
Only then did the old woman turn her head, revealing a pair of blind eyes.
“My mother is old, and her eyesight has deteriorated—she’s blind, so she looks a bit frightening,” Chen Xifa explained awkwardly, rubbing his hands nervously as he went to support the old woman back inside.
The little girl hopped along cheerfully behind them, full of energy.
She looked almost identical to the child they had seen upstairs, but the girl upstairs had a timid expression and was rather unlikable.
This little one smiled brightly, was clean, lively, and adorable.
Chen Yang took out a lollipop and handed it to her, asking her name.
“Chen Zhaodi,” she replied with a bright smile after unwrapping the candy.
“Do you have an older sister?”
Chen Yang asked again.
“Yes, her name’s Chen Pandi,” the little girl said as she bounced ahead, the lollipop making her speech a bit slurred as she exaggeratedly called out for her sister.
Chen Yang remarked that the two sisters had very different personalities.
Zhang Xianyu watched Zhaodi’s joyful figure and shook her head silently before following along.
After Chen Xifa had settled his elderly mother, he came to greet them properly.
His wife, Hu Fenglan, was busy in the kitchen preparing a table full of dishes.
They sat down and chatted for a while longer until the food was ready, then began to eat.
The two younger girls were not seen at the table.
Zhang Xianyu asked about them, and Chen Xifa said they were eating in the kitchen because the kids made too much noise and wouldn’t come to the table.
His wife was taking care of the elderly mother in the kitchen, so only the four of them sat at the table.
Zhang Xianyu didn’t press further.
During the meal, when drinking, Chen Xifa, knowing Chen Yang and Zhang Xianyu were Taoist priests, wanted to ask them to divine their fortunes.
The middle-aged man smiled warmly, “Sorry to trouble both of you Grandmasters.”
Chen Yang shook his hands apologetically, “I’m not good at that. My master never taught me.”
Zhang Xianyu, however, carefully studied Chen Xifa’s face for a moment and said, “You have no children destined by your fate.”
Chen Xifa’s cheerful face instantly stiffened.
After a long silence, he forced a wry smile and said, “Fate can always be changed. Having children or not isn’t set in stone. Please, little Grandmaster, help us think of a way.”
Zhang Xianyu looked at him and suddenly said, “Haven’t you already tried once to change it?”
Chen Xifa was left speechless, forced out a few dry chuckles, then raised his cup.
“Forget it, we didn’t invite you here for that anyway. Let’s drink, keep drinking.”
After lunch, the three of them wandered around the vicinity of the Five Team.
Since nothing seemed unusual during the day, Zhang Xianyu said they would take another look at night.
With half a day to kill, they strolled along the village road, with Lin Wushui tagging along to see the countryside.
Of course, Lin Wushui’s appreciation of rural scenery was just an excuse.
What he really wanted was to stay close to Zhang Xianyu.
No matter what they were doing, being with her made him feel at ease.
Zhang Xianyu was unaware of his thoughts and was mostly listening while Chen Yang spoke.
Chen Yang said, “Why did you come to do this task driving a luxury car? The pay probably doesn’t even cover the maintenance.”
He had noticed the car earlier—a perfectly good vehicle, now covered in dust and dirt.
If it weren’t for the emblem on the hood, it would have been impossible to tell what kind of car it was.
Zhang Xianyu glanced at Lin Wushui and sighed, “It’s not my car. A friend wanted to come along to see the countryside.”
Chen Yang glanced over at Lin Wushui, who had barely spoken all along.
He wore a shirt, vest, and pants, topped with a long coat.
His handsome face was cold and unapproachable—clearly a wealthy man who wasn’t easy to get along with.
Sensing this, Chen Yang wisely dropped the topic and returned to the main matter, asking Zhang Xianyu if she had discovered anything.
Zhang Xianyu thought for a moment.
“This family is quite strange.”
Chen Yang was puzzled.
“Strange how?”
Zhang Xianyu glanced back toward the second-floor balcony, where a small figure was watching them.
The child quickly hid back inside the room as soon as she noticed Zhang Xianyu looking.
From this distance, it was unclear whether it was Zhaodi or Pandi.
Raising her chin, Zhang Xianyu said, “Don’t you think Chen Xifa’s attitude toward his two daughters is a bit odd?”
Chen Yang thought carefully but couldn’t find anything unusual.
Zhang Xianyu explained bluntly, “When we saw Pandi on the third floor just now, Chen Xifa instinctively stepped back before grabbing her.”
“I didn’t notice that,” Chen Yang admitted after recalling the scene.
Also, when Pandi said her sister had gone to look for Grandma, Chen Xifa’s reaction was strange—he was scared and anxious.
That’s why he rushed to the back of the house looking for her.
But when he found the child, he didn’t dare approach her at first and only helped after she left.
“Normal fathers aren’t like that.”
Hearing this, Chen Yang thought it over and finally agreed, “Why do you think that?”
Zhang Xianyu also wondered and said calmly, “We’ll see tonight.”
The three walked farther and farther until they reached the bridge by the Five Team, then turned back.
On the way, they ran into a group of women heading to the teahouse.
Since Lin Wushui had arrived in a car, he naturally drew attention, so the women knew they were guests invited by the Chen family.
They glanced over the three casually, and one couldn’t help but say, “Auntie advises you all to stay away from the Chen family. They’ve done many wicked things and are now paying the price.”
Zhang Xianyu’s expression shifted slightly.
“What kind of things have they done?”
“One of those two daughters…”
Another woman started to speak but was quickly cut off when her companion shot her a warning look.
The first woman added, “Anyway, just avoid their house as much as possible.”
With that, the group hurried away, as if saying more might cause trouble.
“Two daughters?”
Chen Yang was still confused.
“What’s wrong with their two daughters? The Chen family seems fine to me—what wicked things could they have done?”
Zhang Xianyu smiled faintly and threw the question to Lin Wushui.
“Did you notice anything?”
Lin Wushui’s handsome face was serious as he nodded.
“I saw some things.”
“Yeah, I still have questions too. Let’s see tonight.”
Chen Yang was utterly baffled, “What have you seen, then?”
Night fell, and the Chen family had all gone to sleep.
Zhang Xianyu and the others rested in the spare room downstairs.
Since there were only two beds, Zhang Xianyu and Lin Wushui squeezed onto one.
The Chen family’s conditions were like this—nothing luxurious—so it was expected that the accommodations wouldn’t be comfortable.
Zhang Xianyu didn’t plan to sleep much anyway, so she leaned against the headboard, chatting with Chen Yang now and then, completely unaware of the expression on Lin Wushui’s face beside her.
The bed was only one and a half meters wide—normally enough for two people—but both Zhang Xianyu and Lin Wushui were tall.
There was only one quilt, so to avoid cold drafts, their shoulders touched, thighs pressed together.
Zhang Xianyu didn’t mind—back in middle school, she used to share a bed with Zhang Jianguo for warmth.
Lin Wushui, however, was uneasy.
He felt a strange warmth spreading through his body.
It was winter and they were in someone else’s home.
Both had only taken off their coats, still wearing their clothes underneath, but now lying so close, even through several layers of clothing, Lin Wushui felt a heat rising all over.
Sweat beads broke out on his back.
He bent his legs awkwardly and shifted subtly to the side. But as soon as he moved, the warm quilt let in a cold draft.
Zhang Xianyu quickly turned her head and looked at his flushed face, asking curiously, “Are you hot?”
Cold wind blowing.
Lin Wushui swallowed hard and nodded expressionlessly, “Yeah, a bit hot. I’m going outside for some air.”