47. Still Not Leaving?

“Quick, take it away! I refuse to spend the night with a corpse,” a man shouted loudly.

Fear was plain in their eyes, as if terrified that they might be the next to die.

The women trembled slightly with fear; after all, the doppelgängers of that ghost bride were all female.

If they stayed here, wouldn’t they become lambs led to the slaughter?

“Hurry up and take it away, this is just bad luck.”

“Exactly, a perfectly good archaeological trip disrupted like this—it's so annoying.”

The village chief immediately directed several strong men to approach and carry away the girl who was already dead.

There was a strange gleam in their eyes, perhaps from excitement.

Just as they were about to touch the corpse, Chi You’s voice rang out: “Wait.”

Instantly, all eyes turned toward her.

Everyone furrowed their brows in unison.

“What are you doing?” someone stepped forward to question Chi You. “Do you want to spend the night with the corpse?”

That person rolled her eyes at Chi You. “You’re an outsider; don’t meddle in this.”

Chi You looked at the girl, who wore a pale pink jacket, arms crossed arrogantly, black eyes full of disdain toward Chi You.

Judging by her demeanor, she was likely from a wealthy family.

“You’d better shut up and let the dead rest in peace.”

The woman confronting Chi You was Xie Pei, who had always disliked her.

Perhaps she thought Chi You was trying to seduce the man she liked.

At this moment, Xie Pei’s senior brother frowned and said, “Pei, be quiet.”

Feeling dissatisfied, Xie Pei pouted, “Hmph, you’re just protecting her.”

“I’m not protecting her,” he sighed, then looked toward Chi You and asked, “Do you have questions?”

Chi You ignored their group and scanned the crowd, noticing that Jiang Pan was not among them.

Instead, she saw many others involved in the mission and even recognized an old acquaintance.

Approaching the corpse, she crouched slightly, intending to examine how the woman had died.

Hua Xiaoman, seeing her, was also surprised; she hadn’t expected to meet her in this mission.

Just as Chi You’s hand was about to touch the dead woman, someone grabbed it.

An icy chill spread from her hand throughout her body. The man looked at her coldly and said frostily, “Don’t touch.”

Chi You raised her eyes to him and smiled lightly. “Why not?”

“She died under unclear circumstances, and I need to know how.”

Xie Pei interrupted impatiently, “Isn’t it said the ghost bride took her as a substitute?”

Her tone was dismissive, as if the dead person didn’t matter.

Chi You glanced at her, then smiled and warned, “If you don’t figure it out, you might be the next to die.”

At that moment, a thunderclap roared from the sky, lightning flashing as if splitting the heavens.

Instantly, the lanterns around them went out.

Startled, Xie Pei jumped and clung to her senior brother, screaming shrilly, “Ah—”

Chi You withdrew her gaze, pulled out her phone, and turned on the flashlight.

Raindrops began to fall softly from the sky. Her eyes landed on the man still clutching her wrist unwillingly.

“Your hand has no warmth at all, just like this corpse,” Chi You said with a smile.

Upon hearing the word “corpse,” the man immediately let go, his face filled with panic.

“What nonsense are you talking about?” he retorted sharply.

“Isn’t it true?” Chi You met his gaze and smiled gently. “Your hand is completely cold, like ice.”

He suddenly stood up, his face a mix of terror and anger. He pointed at Chi You, about to say something, but upon meeting her teasing smile, he immediately withdrew his words.

“We were only trying to help by taking the dead away, and you slander me like this?” The man began lecturing Chi You about morality.

“In that case, you can just sleep with this female corpse,” Chi You said.

The man snorted coldly and waited for the group to beg him to take the body away.

After all, humans abhor spending time with the dead.

Sure enough, the crowd began to stir, people stepping forward to point at Chi You and curse, “Can you stop causing trouble? If you want to sleep with the corpse, I don’t.”

“Exactly, it’s so unlucky.”

“Just let them take it away.”

Even the lead teacher spoke up, complaining that Chi You was wasting time.

The rain fell steadily, soaking the clean floor.

Raindrops dripped onto everyone, and the village chief and others grew anxious at the sight of the corpse getting wet.

They worried it would be bad if the body was soaked.

“Hurry, take it away!” The village chief ignored Chi You and ordered the strong men to quickly remove the ghost bride.

But Chi You refused to let them.

As someone reached out to touch the corpse, she pulled out a yellow talisman and pressed it onto the body.

“What’s the rush?” she asked with a smile.

“If I check and you don’t allow it, I’ll just stick a few talismans on it,” she said.

Hua Xiaoman approached and asked, “What’s the purpose of those?”

“To prevent her from becoming a vengeful spirit,” Chi You replied with a smile, then held out the talisman. “Do you want one?”

The young man closest to her quickly stepped back, clearly afraid of the talisman.

The village chief frowned at Chi You. “Are you here to cause trouble?”

“Not at all,” Chi You said as she stood, smiling. “She was taken as a substitute by the ghost bride. Don’t you think she needs a few talismans?”

“What if her grudges are too heavy and she turns into a vengeful ghost?” Chi You spoke convincingly, and the others nodded in agreement.

“Then put more talismans on her,” someone suggested.

“All right,” Chi You agreed without concern for the rain, sticking a few more talismans onto the corpse.

“Take her away now,” Chi You said after finishing.

Now they were in a dilemma.

It was raining, and the ghost bride’s body was covered with talismans.

If they touched it, wouldn’t their true forms be revealed?

“Hmm?” Chi You noticed their hesitation and smiled. “Why aren’t you moving?”

“Weren’t you in such a hurry just now?”

“Are you not in a hurry anymore?”

Hua Xiaoman echoed, “Come on, move quickly. Everyone thinks it’s bad luck.”

The young men looked at the village chief, their faces filled with conflict and silent plea.

The village chief stared coldly at Chi You and Hua Xiaoman, sharp-tongued as always. If the ghost bride chose her, she’d be the one to suffer.

Xie Pei, seeing the village chief and others still unmoving, grew impatient.

“Aren’t you going to take her away?”