God's Gift

"A few nights later, people in the Fang residence heard the night watchman's noise one after another. They went out to look for him, but they couldn't find him at all."

"All I could hear was that sound - the weather was dry, be careful with fire."

"The sky is dry and everything is dry, be careful about the fire."

"The sky is dry and everything is dry, be careful about the fire."

The storyteller repeated it over and over again, as if to recreate the scene at that time. But gradually, his voice became strange, like the long, twisted, and strange creaking sound of an old, heavy wooden door when it opens and closes.

"The sky is dry, the things are dry, be careful...fire is candle"

"The sky is dry, the earth is dry...be careful, fire, candles..."

As the storyteller repeated these words, he picked up something and rubbed it continuously, like a rat gnashing its teeth. The sharp and piercing sound pulled the ears of the tea drinkers and kept tearing their heads, giving them a splitting headache.

"Can you tell the story properly?" A tea drinker could no longer bear it and loudly stopped the storyteller who was still repeating the same voice.

As soon as this sound came out, the grinding sound suddenly disappeared, and the storyteller's voice returned to normal, as if nothing had happened, and he continued:

"Then there was the sound of suona. The servants of the Fang Mansion saw a figure passing by the window. When they went out to check during the day, they found a pile of paper money on the ground."

"Within two days, a fire suddenly broke out in the Fang Mansion. More than a hundred people in the Fang Mansion died in the fire. No one was spared."

"This is because Su Jinlan turned into a fierce ghost and went looking for the people of Fang Mansion and wiped out the entire Fang Mansion."

The story should have ended here. Everyone present was a little horrified, but the storyteller suddenly changed the subject and whispered, "But this is not the end..."

"Then Su Jinlan's enemies are not only the Fang family. No one in Gusu City saved her. They are all her enemies, and everyone present here is the bloodline of those people."

The atmosphere of horror continued to spread in the teahouse. It was cloudy and rainy outside the window. The heavy rain blocked the light. The cold and damp smell filled the air, almost suffocating it.

The storyteller lowered his voice a lot, uttered a sinister laugh, and said word by word:

"No one of you can escape..."

As soon as these words came out, everyone started to make a commotion and shouted, "Who are you cursing, old man?"

Someone rushed onto the stage and went behind the screen to catch the mysterious storyteller, but as soon as he got behind the screen, a scream was heard, followed by a crackling sound of objects breaking and falling to the ground, as well as the gnashing of teeth sound that had just occurred.

The scene inside the screen could be seen from the second floor. The person who went to check first had already fallen to the ground, his eyes rolled back in fear, and foam kept coming out of his mouth.

"Why?"

Fang Ling walked to the handrail, bent down and looked down, trying to see the storyteller's appearance, but the storyteller was sitting upright with a hat on his head, so his face could not be seen at all.

Fang Ling was about to turn around and go downstairs to check, but Ning Jin grabbed her hand.

Ning Jin looked at Fang Ling and said softly, "That person is weird. Let's let the store owner check it out first. I'm a little scared."

When Fang Ling heard this, he immediately sat down and assured Ning Jin: "Then I won't leave, don't be afraid."

"Okay." Ning Jin lowered his eyes and raised a smile.

At this time, everyone else also reacted and walked behind the screen. They saw the storyteller sitting upright with his head down.

One of them took a step forward, reached out and touched the storyteller, who fell to the ground with a thud. Only then could everyone see his face clearly.

It was a completely burnt face, with all the facial features burnt into one piece. When it landed on the ground, a piece of black charcoal fell from his face, revealing the white bones inside.

And the gnashing of teeth that everyone heard did indeed come from the storyteller.

It was just that the remaining yellow teeth in his burnt mouth were constantly grinding.

If you listen carefully, it really does sound like the sound of a mouse gnashing its teeth.

"what!!!"

The people who came to check were shocked by the scene before them. They immediately lost their minds and ran away screaming.

Fang Ling frowned and couldn't help but stand up and look down, but the storyteller was no longer there.

Fang Ling widened his eyes in astonishment. He looked around carefully but couldn't find the storyteller. He was about to go downstairs to check but was stopped by Ning Jin again.

"Then the gentleman should have left."

"So fast?" Fang Ling looked downstairs in confusion, and said in a confused voice, "I don't know what they were arguing about just now."

Ning Jin's eyes fell on the steaming teacup on the table. A pointed leaf of tea was floating in the cup. She picked up the cup, slowly emptied it in her hands, and said:

"No one else downstairs seems to be unusual, so it shouldn't be a big deal."

After Fang Ling heard what she said, he immediately looked at the other tea drinkers in the hall. They were all sitting in their seats, drinking tea quietly, without any signs of panic.

"Seriously."

"It shouldn't be a big deal." Fang Ling saw this scene and didn't bother himself any more. He turned around and sat down.

But he did not notice the eerie silence in the building. The tea drinkers drank their tea in silence, and the people at the table did not communicate with each other. They were like puppets with dull and lifeless eyes.

When Ning Jin saw Fang Ling sitting down, the coldness on his face turned into a faint smile, and his eyes looking at Fang Ling were as gentle as ever.

Fang Ling was unaware of this. Thinking about the story just now, he said to Ning Jin in shock:

"I don't know whether what the gentleman said is true or not. If it is true, then the Fang family is too vicious. They are eating people alive."

Ning Jin put down the teacup in his hand, but he was not as shocked as Fang Ling. He looked at Fang Ling with interest and asked:

"Then do you think Su Jinlan in this play should kill the entire Fang family?"

Fang Ling had not thought about this question carefully before, but when he heard Ning Jin's question, he lowered his head quietly, frowned, and began to think seriously.

Perhaps this question was really difficult for him, and he did not answer it for a long time.

Ning Jin did not urge him. The sound of rain outside the window was like jade beads falling, hitting the roof tiles one by one. A gust of wind blew in through the window, bringing a bit of coolness.

"From my perspective, it is indeed not right to exterminate the entire Fang Mansion. Although there are evil people in the mansion, there should also be innocent and ignorant people."

Hearing Fang Ling's expected answer, Ning Jin's face showed no surprise. A gentle smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. Just as he was about to pour tea for Fang Ling, he heard Fang Ling's next words.

"But this is only about me after all, and I am not the Su Jinlan who was killed by the people of the Fang Mansion."

"Su Jinlan was stranded outside when she was young. It must have been very difficult for a helpless little girl to survive. But after she was finally found by the Su family, they did not give her a shelter. They even believed the rumors and treated her coldly and sold her to the Fang family for their own glory."

"She was abandoned time and time again. No one helped her when she was alive, and she was treated so cruelly when she died. She must have been filled with hatred."

Fang Ling paused for a second, shook his head, and continued:

"I have never experienced the pain she has gone through, and I cannot empathize with her. How can I say whether what she did was right or wrong?"

"If I really thought she was me, I would not be so careless. I would definitely want to skin them alive and tear their tendons apart. I wouldn't care about whether they are innocent or not."

After Ning Jin finished listening to Fang Ling's words, she held the teapot in her hand for a long time. She lowered her eyes and looked at the wooden table. The smile on her lips remained unchanged, and she still said nothing.

He just tightened his fingers around the base of the teapot.

After Fang Ling finished speaking, he looked at Ning Jin with some doubts and asked, "What would you do if it was Ajin?"

Ning Jin then slowly put down the teapot, pretending to be thoughtful, and replied with a smile:

"I do not know either."