Deer Antler Alley in the southern market of Yuhe Ward—a large gate with mottled black lacquer opened diagonally toward the southwest, with a plaque above reading “Lin Mansion.”
Mo Zi wasn’t in a hurry to get off the carriage. She had Zan Jin circle around Lin Mansion’s perimeter wall and discovered the location was truly excellent. The alley where the mansion’s back wall stood connected directly with Yuhe Ward’s largest street, Tongyu Street. Standing at the back wall corner, one could hear the din of voices—the ward market’s bustling traffic transmitted fully into one’s ears. No wonder it wasn’t secluded. From the wall corner walking to Tongyu Street was just diagonally across. Though not at the center of Tongyu Street, nearby there was a large silk shop, a jewelry store with magnificently luxurious décor, and quite a few exquisite small shops. Not necessarily crowded with endless passersby, but customers never stopped, and judging from their clothing, they wouldn’t be ordinary common people.
Whether Lin Mansion’s commission wasn’t as good as Willow Garden’s, or Xiao Ma genuinely believed Willow Garden better suited Mo Zi’s requirements, he chattered endlessly beside Mo Zi, but none of it was praise.
“I’m telling you, young sir—seeing you so young yet in charge, you must be a capable person. However, you’ve just arrived and are unfamiliar with people and places. This Lin Mansion—I see you’re quite interested, but to speak frankly, who opens a restaurant in a private residence? Fine, even if it could be opened, this place…” Xiao Ma suddenly lowered his voice, covered his mouth with his hand, and leaned toward Mo Zi’s ear.
Before Mo Zi could dodge, Cen Er grabbed Xiao Ma. “What secrets? Let me tell you, there’s no one here who can’t listen. Just say what you have to say.”
Xiao Ma’s eyes darted around. “I’m just afraid others will hear and report me to the authorities, getting my professional license revoked.” The Great Zhou legal code stipulated that anyone engaged as a middleman in property transactions needed to register with authorities and obtain an official permit.
“There’s no one within twenty zhang.” Zan Jin suddenly spoke.
Mo Zi discovered he was indeed quite useful. She’d always thought him long-winded. Then she realized that if she actively spoke to him, his answers were especially lengthy. But if she left him aside—see, silent until now. Moreover, though she didn’t know how strong his martial arts actually were, when he said there was no one nearby, she believed him.
“This place has bad feng shui.” Xiao Ma also looked around himself.
Ancient people took feng shui and fortune-telling very seriously. Every trade had its own taboos, and residences were extremely particular about feng shui. Even getting married required matching horoscopes—in short, one set of beliefs after another.
Cen Er indeed took it seriously and asked, “How is the feng shui bad?”
“In just a few decades, over a dozen households have changed hands. You tell me—is that good feng shui? This Lin family moved here ten years ago. They also knew the feng shui was terrible, but Old Master Lin didn’t believe in such things. Said his own horoscope was strong—actually he was just being cheap. Five years ago, he suddenly fell seriously ill, kicked up his legs twice, and was gone. Lady Lin cried for a month, gradually refusing water or food. She followed Old Master Lin to the Yellow Springs. Before dying, her closed eyes opened again. She said four words—’family broken, people dead’—then breathed her last.” Xiao Ma saw Cen Er’s expression change and made his tone even more ominous. “But that’s not even the strangest part. The Lin couple had a pair of children—a son clever and quick-witted, a daughter learned and reasonable. Everyone said the Lin son would pass the scholar examination. Who knew that less than half a year after Old Master Lin and Lady Lin died, the Lin son became infatuated with a songstress from Wuyou Pavilion. Disregarding clan elders and his sister’s opposition, he insisted on marrying her. Marry her he did, but then couldn’t live peacefully. Don’t know where he met a bunch of bad friends. Every few days causing trouble at home, throwing silver around by the handful. Also listening to his wife’s words, partnering with people in business, selling off all the family’s rental farmland and property. Result—lost everything clean, and now owes a mountain of debt. Forget passing scholar exams to become an official—he’s even sold the family books to bookshops.”
Cen Er exclaimed in surprise.
Xiao Ma seized the moment for his “closing statement.” “Gentlemen, if this Lin Mansion doesn’t have bad feng shui, then it must be haunted.”
Mo Zi smiled.
Xiao Ma happened to see this. His expression turned serious. “Brother Mo, you’d better believe it. Right across on Tongyu Street there’s a very famous feng shui master and fortune-teller, Master Dugu. Earlier this year when Young Master Lin truly had no options, he invited him to look. With one glance he said this plot was extremely yin land, the house built was a yin residence connecting to the underworld ghost realm. Inevitably wandering souls and ghosts absorb living people’s yang energy, so people living here don’t live long, let alone have prospects.”
“I imagine this feng shui master must have helped Lin Mansion catch demons and expel ghosts, so from then on it should be peaceful.” Mo Zi naturally didn’t believe in yin residences. Feng shui and supernatural beliefs existed both ancient and modern—believers believe, non-believers don’t. And feng shui could also be explained from a scientific angle—just environmental effects on human psychology.
“Master Dugu said there was no solution except to move the residence and relocate the courtyard, finding another dwelling.” Having said this much, Xiao Ma urged Mo Zi again, “Brother Mo, in our line of work, we can’t help but speak well of things. But I still have a conscience—which family had deaths, which family had disasters, I definitely tell buyers. After all, buying a house isn’t like buying food—real gold and silver, easily hundreds or thousands. Otherwise, I wouldn’t care if it’s yin or yang—sell it to you, clap hands and part ways, take my share and leave.”
These words sounded quite honest. When viewing Willow Garden, he’d exaggerated the advantages with some small lies common in business, but otherwise not bad.
Mo Zi re-evaluated this person in her heart, but she didn’t believe in feng shui or hauntings and had her own ideas. “Xiao Ma, you said the trouble is just feng shui?”
Where was the feng shui issue? Though she couldn’t blindly guess how the Lin family elders died, the Lin family son was simply blinded by lust. The wife he married was very troublesome—both befriending the wrong people and easily trusting others’ words. Completely because he himself was useless, he’d squandered the family fortune.
Hearing Mo Zi speak so dismissively, Xiao Ma knew his painstaking effort was wasted. He thought—these people insist on courting bad luck, why should he keep stopping them? So he no longer urged.
“It’s not just this trouble.” This place would be strange if it wasn’t haunted—constant incidents.
“What else?” This time the trouble had better be more normal.
“After Young Master Lin heard Master Dugu’s words, plus he originally owed a huge debt, he wanted to sell the house. Because he found several brokers, naturally some lied with eyes wide open, deceiving several people to come view the estate. Result—halfway through viewing, they were chased out by Miss Lin. Miss Lin said whoever wants to buy the house, she’ll die in front of them. I heard she really held a rope—if people walked one more step into the garden, she’d throw the rope over a beam, tie a knot and hang it around her neck. After such a scene, who dares buy? One after another left in a huff.” Xiao Ma shook his head, appearing helpless. “The brother wants to sell, the sister would rather die than agree. She’s not a married woman who’s left the family and taken another surname—she’s still Miss Lin of Lin Mansion. Young Master Lin can’t be too forceful either. So day drags on after day. After dealing with debt collectors, he asks us to find buyers. But his asking price isn’t cheap, and there’s never been anyone truly wanting to buy.”
Mo Zi thought—what Xiao Ma said before about being precarious and frightening actually wasn’t trouble at all. This Miss Lin was the real big trouble. Just like demolition relocation—if one household refuses to move, you can’t really demolish the house regardless of lives, can you? She couldn’t do such a thing.
Though she took it seriously in her heart, Mo Zi didn’t retreat. “Regardless, let us look inside first.”
Seeing Mo Zi insist, Xiao Ma shrugged. “Then I’ve warned you—don’t let Miss Lin scare you off later.” At this point, more words were useless.
Circling to Lin Mansion’s main gate, Xiao Ma went forward to knock, but knocked for ages with no response.
“Such a large mansion, not a single person?” Cen Er was quite concerned about the feng shui talk, but since Mo Zi decided to look inside, he couldn’t very well object.
“This mansion originally had twenty or thirty servants. When the master couldn’t pay wages, who’d still be willing to work? Those not sold for life all ran off. Now only a few signed death contracts remain who really can’t leave. But don’t expect them to work properly either.” Xiao Ma turned to tell Cen Er while his hands didn’t stop—bang bang knocking directly.
“There’s someone behind the door.” Zan Jin said beside Mo Zi. “Been sneakily peering through the crack for ages.”
Mo Zi gave Zan Jin a thumbs up and silently said “good.”
Zan Jin was so pleased his eyebrows flew up.
Mo Zi walked to the door and called through the crack, “We’re not here to collect debt, we’re here to look at the house…”
Before finishing, the door creaked open. A young man wearing an old diagonal-collared robe of smoky blue brocade nervously looked around outside the gate, pulled Xiao Ma with one hand, pulled Mo Zi with the other, and made eye signals at Cen Er and Zan Jin.
“Quick, quick, come in.” The man pulled in two, then pulled the other two who were about to enter.
“Young Master Lin, debt collectors still coming to the door daily?” Xiao Ma’s expression was calm, as if long accustomed and not surprised.
“Isn’t that obvious? I haven’t repaid the money—of course they come daily to demand it.” Appearing refined, his speech was crude—this man was Lin Mansion’s eldest young master.
Hearing Young Master Lin was clever and quick-witted as a child, but now Mo Zi only saw a down-and-out wastrel young master. People really couldn’t take one wrong step, because one wrong step might lead to every step wrong. Marrying a wife was the same—marry wrong and one’s entire life turned upside down. And clearly wrong but still refusing to admit it—probably beyond saving.
“Xiao Ma, these three are—?” Young Master Lin’s complexion wasn’t good, eye circles both green and black, clearly those carefree days had been far from him for a long time.
“Young Master Lin, that’s also obvious. Since I brought people to your house, naturally they’re interested in your property.” Xiao Ma sarcastically returned the favor.
“It’s just been so long without anyone coming, I barely dare imagine. Xiao Ma, speaking of good people, in the end it’s only you.” For money, a dignified young master humbled himself to this degree, even flattering a small broker.
“Young Master Lin, I don’t deserve it. If the deal succeeds, I also benefit.” Xiao Ma was matter-of-fact, then changed tack. “However, Miss Lin won’t scare off my clients today, will she?”
“No, no. Your timing is really fortunate—my wife took my sister out. Won’t return until after lunch. You can look slowly.” Young Master Lin chuckled like a sneaky rat stealing oil.
Mo Zi felt an inexplicable disgust for this person rise up, and she would soon know why.
**[Author’s Note]**
Thank you everyone for giving me time to catch up on work progress.