The Autumn Wind Pavilion’s Secret

A few minutes later, Ming Zhong led Fu Ziqing to the edge of a small grove.

A winding, narrow path snaked deep into the grove.

The dense canopy of trees cast deep shadows, making it impossible to discern where the path ultimately led.

Ming Zhong stepped forward first, treading on the pebbles that lined the path as he entered the grove.

Fu Ziqing followed close behind him.

After a few steps, she floated to his side, then tilted her head to ask,

“Do you usually have a habit of venturing into small groves?”

This particular grove was secluded, far from Ming Zhong’s usual daily route.

“Just on the 30th of last month, right before the May Day holiday, Wang Dongdong and I were passing by here, and that guy insisted on dragging me along…”

Ming Zhong replied casually, but as he spoke, he abruptly fell silent.

Fu Ziqing took two steps forward, then turned to face him from his front-left, blinking her eyes.

She then spoke,

“He dragged you into a grove…”

A strange smile slowly spread across her face.

“What did you do?”

Seeing Fu Ziqing’s smile, Ming Zhong knew she was undoubtedly imagining something peculiar.

He wondered if girls from Senior Sister’s generation already saw every interaction through a ‘fujoshi’ lens.

He quickly interjected,

“Senior Sister, please don’t get the wrong idea.”

“Oh, I’m not getting the wrong idea.”

Fu Ziqing’s smile remained, and she tilted her head as she continued,

“Let me guess… hmm… you two must have been hiding in the grove, watching ‘that kind’ of movie.”

“0v0!”

Ming Zhong froze in his tracks, his eyes widening dramatically.

He then feigned composure and continued walking, though his ears were steadily turning crimson.

Fu Ziqing watched him, and soon, a blush began to creep across his face as well.

Fu Ziqing found this amusing and said,

“Oh, why are you so shy? Isn’t it quite normal?”

She then raised an eyebrow and added,

“Could it be that you were watching something with two men?”

“Absolutely not!”

Ming Zhong blurted out.

“Hmm, well, that’s still considered normal. But even if you were watching ‘that kind’ of film, I wouldn’t discriminate against you.”

Fu Ziqing spoke with a serious expression,

“However, even those ‘normal’ little movies should be watched sparingly. Hmm, after all, you’re still underage and your body is developing, so keep the frequency within a reasonable range.”

Ming Zhong stared at Fu Ziqing, nodding dumbly.

After a few seconds, he quietly said,

“I rarely watch those kinds of things…”

Fu Ziqing scoffed,

“With your antique black-and-white screen phone, you couldn’t watch them even if you wanted to.”

“……”

Ming Zhong was speechless.

As they spoke, they had already reached the depths of the grove.

Suddenly, the path opened up into a clearing, revealing a small pond and a stone pavilion.

The pond’s surface was blanketed with fallen leaves, emitting a faint scent of decay.

The stone pavilion, too, was covered in creeping ivy, its vines dangling from the roof and almost completely obscuring it.

Fu Ziqing’s gaze fell upon the pavilion, and she suddenly remarked,

“Autumn Wind Pavilion. When I died, this place had only just been built. I remember it was specially constructed for the school’s 80th-anniversary celebration.”

“Yes, I heard that it was quite lively here at first, with people coming and going. But then more and more trees were planted around it, and it gradually became deserted.

“I also heard that a student unfortunately fell into the water here, which made even fewer people come. It’s pretty much fallen into disuse now.”

Ming Zhong added from beside her.

Fu Ziqing then asked,

“So, that day, you two ran into this Autumn Wind Pavilion to watch ‘little movies’?”

“……”

Ming Zhong scratched his head, remaining silent, which was essentially an admission.

“You certainly know how to pick a spot.”

Fu Ziqing quipped.

She then added, sounding curious,

“Since you knew something happened here, and you can see ghosts, you still dared to come?”

“At that time, I didn’t know I could see ghosts yet. Although I had already heard that strange sound at three in the morning, I just dismissed it as auditory hallucinations from study stress and didn’t pay much attention.”

Ming Zhong explained.

As he spoke, he added with a hint of helplessness,

“And I even warned Wang Dongdong back then, telling him someone had died here, but he insisted it would only make it more thrilling.”

“What a character.”

Fu Ziqing remarked, raising an eyebrow.

She then walked to the edge of the pond, gazing at the water’s surface covered with withered leaves.

“This water isn’t deep at all. How could someone drown here?”

“I heard that student was reading here alone, walking along the pond’s edge as they read.

“They accidentally stepped on a snake and were bitten. Frightened, the student fell into the water and, somehow, couldn’t climb out, thus meeting their eternal slumber here.”

Ming Zhong recounted the rumor he had heard, then added,

“I also heard that person was the top student in their grade.”

Fu Ziqing sighed,

“It seems they’re not just a water ghost, but also an unlucky one.”

She stood by the pond, gazing at the surface. In her eyes, the water, once somewhat clear, gradually turned murky and dark.

“That day, Wang Dongdong and I were in the Autumn Wind Pavilion, watching… I suddenly heard the sound of water. At first, I didn’t pay attention, because at the time… uh… the woman in the movie was also swimming in a pool…”

Ming Zhong was recounting his experience from that day. Hearing this, Fu Ziqing, though still staring at the pond’s surface, couldn’t help but ask,

“Swimsuit theme?”

“Uh…”

Ming Zhong’s expression shifted slightly. Senior Sister seemed quite knowledgeable.

“That’s not the point!”

He quickly steered the conversation back on track, continuing,

“Later, I heard the sound of water getting closer and realized it wasn’t coming from Wang Dongdong’s phone. So I followed the sound with my eyes.

“Even though the ivy blocked my view, I was sure I saw someone… a person lying face up in the pond!”

Ming Zhong’s voice dropped slightly.

“They were lying perfectly stiff. I thought, How could a normal person lie so straight on the water? I knew something was wrong with that person.

“I told Wang Dongdong to look, but he couldn’t see anything and even scolded me for scaring him and ruining his mood.

“At that point, I definitely didn’t dare to stay there. I grabbed Wang Dongdong, insisting we leave. Wang Dongdong felt annoyed and called me a coward.

“But with my persistent urging, he put away his phone and left the pavilion with me…”

Ming Zhong paused for a moment before continuing,

“As soon as we stepped out of the pavilion, I saw that person, who at some point, had moved from lying on the water to lying on the shore!”

As he spoke, he pointed to a patch of overgrown ground by the pond for Fu Ziqing.

“They were lying there, and then suddenly sat bolt upright, just like a zombie from a horror movie! I saw that person was dripping wet, with pale, swollen skin, wearing glasses.

“Beneath the glasses, their eyes were white and decaying. I saw them reach out to us, and I was so terrified that I grabbed Wang Dongdong and ran…”

With that, Ming Zhong had finished recounting his experience from that day.

He remained silent for a while, presumably calming himself, before quietly asking Fu Ziqing,

“Senior Sister, have you found them?”

Fu Ziqing frowned, her gaze fixed on the water’s surface.

“It’s a bit strange. The water is permeated with ghost energy, but I haven’t detected the ghost itself.”

Ming Zhong looked at the water and asked,

“Are they hiding?”

He then looked at Fu Ziqing and said,

“They must be afraid of Senior Sister, so they’re hiding.”

Ming Zhong’s words held some logic, yet Fu Ziqing’s brows remained furrowed.

Hiding was certainly possible, but where?

When she wasn’t visible, she would enter her own spatial realm.

She had previously thought that every ghost possessed a unique space as a refuge, but she had noticed that the female ghosts from Huai Xiang Yuan, even when on the verge of being dispersed by her, never retreated into such a space.

Could it be that those female ghosts were simply too low-level to possess their own exclusive spaces?

If that were the case, then this ghost here should be far more… potent than the female ghosts from Huai Xiang Yuan.

“Delicious!”

Fu Ziqing blurted out her true thoughts.

“Hmm?”

Ming Zhong was taken aback.

“I said, this ghost should be quite delicious.”

Fu Ziqing turned to Ming Zhong, then suddenly leaned in and whispered into his ear,

“You’ll have to work hard for a bit, okay?”

With that, under Ming Zhong’s stunned gaze, Fu Ziqing abruptly vanished.

“Senior Sister…”

Ming Zhong softly called out.

He then understood Senior Sister’s meaning.

He stood calmly by the pond for a moment, listening to the rustling of leaves in the gentle breeze.

Afterward, Ming Zhong walked towards the Autumn Wind Pavilion.

Reaching out, Ming Zhong pushed aside the dangling vines and entered the Autumn Wind Pavilion, finding a relatively clean stone bench to sit on.

Knowing that Senior Sister was undoubtedly watching over him, Ming Zhong felt no fear, even though he was alone.

After sitting alone with his head bowed for a moment, Ming Zhong suddenly looked up slightly.

Splash…

Hearing the familiar sound of water, Ming Zhong knew the ghost had emerged.

He tilted his head, and through a gap in the vines, he saw a person lying flat on the water’s surface.

Shaking his head, Ming Zhong rose with a faint smile and slowly walked out of the pavilion.

Ming Zhong approached the pond’s edge and looked at the water.

Splish-splash…

Splish-splash…

Ripples spread across the water, and the person lying on the surface slowly glided towards Ming Zhong.

A pale, swollen face, adorned with old, gold-rimmed spectacles.

Beneath the cold lenses, a pair of equally cold eyes stared fixedly at Ming Zhong.

The wind that blew carried an inexplicably low temperature, along with a putrid stench.

The ghost, previously lying on the water, sat upright, still staring intently at Ming Zhong.

A moment later, it raised both hands and slowly drifted towards Ming Zhong.

Despite knowing Senior Sister was present, in the current atmosphere, Ming Zhong instinctively took a step back.

After that single step, Ming Zhong steadied himself and stood firm, a smile gracing his lips.

“You, the top student in your grade, don’t seem to have retained your excellent intelligence after becoming a ghost.”

The ghost seemed to understand Ming Zhong’s words, as it suddenly halted mid-air.

The next moment, Fu Ziqing’s figure appeared behind Ming Zhong.

She slowly walked to stand in front of Ming Zhong, a faint smile on her face.

The ghost’s face contorted in terror, and its form began to fade.

Fu Ziqing narrowed her eyes.

It seems this ghost truly possesses a phasing ability similar to hers, but…

“Too slow.”

As Fu Ziqing’s cool voice fell, the ghost before her, whose form had been fading, solidified once more.

Fu Ziqing floated directly in front of the ghost, which immediately let out a terrified shriek.

Fu Ziqing bared her teeth in annoyance and said,

“Do I look that scary?”

Having said that, she was about to dispatch the ghost when she suddenly tilted her head.

“What is this?”

She suddenly sensed something incredibly alluring within the ghost’s mind.

Thus, she directly caused the ghost’s head to explode, and a wisp of pure black mist materialized before her eyes.

Fu Ziqing reached out, caught the wisp of black mist, and then brought it to her lips, inhaling.

“Mmm~”

“So yummy, so yummy~”

Fu Ziqing’s eyes narrowed in contentment.

Before her, the evil spirit instantly disintegrated.