They waited for a very long while. Heavy emphasis on the very. Heng Xīnyán stood, her eyes watching Bàolì Hua with a meaningful glance that made the latter's lips twitch as she knew what the female in pink was thinking.
The silence was loud between them and Heng Xīnyán's lips curved into a swallow smile. Taking a chestnut out of her sleeves, Heng Xīnyán bit into it under Bàolì Hua's dark eyes. She paid the female in green no mind as she crewed on the nut slowly, her heart was comforted, knowing that Bàolì Hua was scammed.
Her lips twitched… how badly she wanted to laugh but under Bàolì Hua's cold eyes, she couldn't help. A giggle slipped out of her tightly closed lips and Bàolì Hua stood angrily, her face red with shame.
"Heng Xīnyán, you dare?!" Bàolì Hua glared at the female who smirked.
"I dare!" She stated slowly, biting into another chestnut. Her eyes were filled with joy. Her lips mocked Bàolì Hua as it curled into a smile that barely hid her intent to laugh out loud.
Yet, soon her smile froze on her lips.
"Miss! I apologize if I took too long," The woman came back, her face was relieved knowing that Bàolì Hua waited on her despite her taking too long to return.
Heng Xīnyán watched this scene. Her heart was unable to recover from this terrible blow.
"My brother thinks that no one would be interested in his old house," she smiled at Bàolì Hua, holding her hands.
Bàolì Hua sent a smug smirk in Heng Xīnyán's direction. Watching as the female's face darkened, she laughed lightly from pure joy. She then smiled down at the anxious woman, "Sister, it's okay. Where is your brother?"
The woman sighed in relief, turning she ushered over the old man who looked like he had one foot in his death bed. Yet, once he opened his mouth, it dispelled that façade.
"Are you ladies sure, that your parents want my house?" His stern voice asked, with authority. Heng Xīnyán nodded obediently, "Yes, uncle. We are sure."
The man snorted, "Follow me then. When you see it, you will change your mind." His voice held scorn and Heng Xīnyán looked at Bàolì Hua with faint worry. Bàolì Hua gave the elderly lady, one last smile before following the old man with Heng Xīnyán.
"My family has lived in this village since the start of Ghost Cult," the old man stated after a long silence. The two females behind nodded, looking like they were paying keen attention but they were just memorizing the path to the house that the old man took them to.
As the small wooden buildings in the village slowly changed to bigger houses with large courtyards. Both Heng Xīnyán and Bàolì Hua were confused. They looked around sensing that this neighborhood must be the famous rich area of the village. However, for Heng Xīnyán these houses couldn't compare to the Clan houses that she had seen in the mortal realm previously.
Finally, arriving at the house. That was fenced by tall block walls that were cracking and held green moss on them, the females watched as the old man looked up at the paifang that still stood strongly despite looking a few decades old.
Entering the courtyard, Heng Xīnyán finally asked the question that burnt her insides from keeping it in, "Uncle… why do you want to sell this house?" She looked at the old man dressed in dark blue keenly.
"The feng shui of the house was destroyed when my son decided to make a well in the main courtyard," the old man mentioned, he stood on the cracking stone pavement that led to the wooden house's entrance.
"Why didn't you fix it?" Heng Xīnyán asked, her eyes looking around the house, letting her spiritual energy roam the house's surroundings, she realized that the flow of spiritual energy from the outside of the courtyard was blocked. The situation was strange and Heng Xīnyán frowned, noting down the strange aura she sensed in the house courtyard.
"He listened to some quack Taoist, making it difficult to undo the error he made," the old man continued, "Since then… many accidents started happening in this courtyard but the major one was when my son committed suicide in his room."
Heng Xīnyán frowned, "Suicide?"
The old man nodded, "Since then… I invited a master to fix the feng shui as well bless my son, but he may it worse." The old man's back faced him, rubbing his face, he turned towards them. "I'll take ten gold coins for this house."
Heng Xīnyán and Bàolì Hua who had exactly ten gold coins: "…"
"Why so cheap?" Bàolì Hua blurted out and Heng Xīnyán's eyes twitched.
The old man laughed heartily, "For you, it is cheap?" He rubbed his beard in thought and Heng Xīnyán coughed, "Since, uncle says ten gold coins…" She nudged Bàolì Hua who unwillingly extended her pale hands with the coins. The old man collected them with a straight face yet the stingy Bàolì Hua's heart burnt so much that her dark eyes sent a glare at the old man's smug-like face.
"Let, me get the title of the house, come with me," the old man left the courtyard and the females followed him.
"But uncle… You didn't tell us why you sold it at such a low price," says Heng Xīnyán. The old man muttered, "That house is cursed… No one wanted to buy it, even those who entered the village. At first, I sold it at twelve thousand golds."
Heng Xīnyán saw black upon hearing the price and Bàolì Hua had to catch her before she fainted. Patting her cheeks lightly, Heng Xīnyán smiled stiffly. "Uncle… were you planning to rob people?"
The old man chuckled, "No. That was the value of the house at that year."
Heng Xīnyán forced out a word, "Oh." The old man nodded. "Yes. But as the years passed by it gradually depreciated and lost its value. Added with the rampant impure feng shui being in disorder, I decided to just leave the place be until you two came."
Heng Xīnyán nodded, "Oh okay, uncle."
The old man turned to look at them, "Worry not! I will invite another master to check the house before you move in."
However, Heng Xīnyán shook her head, "Don't worry about that, uncle. We got everything under control. The house is ours now, it's our responsibility."
The old man sighed, his grey beard shaking lightly, "Such kind young lady, you be. But I will collect karma debts if I do that."
Heng Xīnyán's lips twitched.
"Uncle, why not help us renovate the place? You won't have any karma debts then," Bàolì Hua suggested and the old man nodded. Turning he spoke, "That would be good! I know a lot of quack carpenters!"
Bàolì Hua was speechless. Knowing that he made a slip of tongue, the old man remained silent throughout the journey to his home.