Chapter 138 - 137: White Immortal

Chapter 138: Chapter 137: White Immortal

The small villa only had three floors, plus a basement.

Gugu first led Gu Qingyin to her bedroom on the second floor. It looked much like any other child’s room, decorated in shades of pink and filled to the brim with dolls.

Next, they went to Gugu’s private study. There was a small bookshelf, about one and a half meters tall, which Gugu could reach the top of by standing on a little stool. Beside the bookshelf was a desk and chair for studying, while the other side of the room had a rug and some construction toys.

Gugu pulled Gu Qingyin over to open a box of Legos with her and eagerly began to assemble them.

Mao Mao, who had never seen anything like it, was surprisingly happy to help assemble the pieces from the side.

Gugu couldn’t talk, and Mao Mao couldn’t speak human language. But miraculously, the two could communicate by making "ah-ah" sounds and gesturing to each other.

Gu Qingyin watched them for a moment before quietly slipping away.

Huo Yunjing appeared silently behind her and led her up to the third floor. At the end of the hall, a small staircase led up to a locked door.

"It’s an attic. The household god is in there." Huo Yunjing flicked a finger, and the lock clicked open. He stepped forward and pushed the door open.

The attic was dimly lit but looked reasonably clean. The air was thick with the scent of incense.

To the right of the entrance, a memorial tablet rested against the wall. It was covered with a sheet of yellow paper inscribed with the words, "The Altar of the White Immortal." To its left was written, "Blessing both family and fortune," and to its right, "Ensuring peace through all four seasons."

Below the tablet were offerings of fresh fruit and pastries, along with an incense burner. The stick of incense inside had nearly burned to ash, leaving only a tiny, glowing ember.

A dark light glinted in Gu Qingyin’s eyes. Her gaze swept past the memorial tablet and settled on a corner of the room.

In a dark corner hid a small, spiky ball about the size of an adult’s fist. Who would have thought that this rather cute-looking thing was the White Immortal?

Gu Qingyin lowered her gaze to study the little hedgehog, which cowered and squeezed itself further into the corner. She blinked, perplexed. ’This White Immortal... Why is it so timid?’

"Come out and talk."

The White Immortal trembled but didn’t move.

Gu Qingyin frowned. "If you don’t come out, don’t blame me for getting rough."

Huo Yunjing stepped forward at the opportune moment, his cold ghost energy pressing down on the creature. The White Immortal was so frightened its quills shot up, and it cried out in a childish voice, "I’m coming out, I’m coming out!"

Gu Qingyin froze. ’That voice... it’s clearly a little girl’s. Did the White Immortal graft Gugu’s voice onto itself?’

The White Immortal turned around on the spot, its small, beady eyes darting between Gu Qingyin and Huo Yunjing. Using the childish voice, it asked, "Why... why are you looking for me?"

"To correct an unfair transaction," Gu Qingyin said. "You took your voice from a little girl, but she was an unwitting party. A deal like that shouldn’t exist."

The White Immortal backed away warily. "Her parents agreed to it."

Gu Qingyin looked down at it. "The person herself didn’t consent, so the deal is invalid. Go settle your accounts with whoever gave you permission."

Of course, the White Immortal was unwilling. It tried to argue but was cut off by Gu Qingyin. "You have two choices. Either give the voice back to the little girl, or..." Gu Qingyin’s gaze turned frigid as she spat out a single word. "Die!"

Terrified, the White Immortal scrambled backward. "I’ll switch! I’ll switch it back, I’ll switch it back!"

The aura around Gu Qingyin instantly softened, and a slight smile touched her lips. "There’s no time like the present. Let’s do it today."

The White Immortal didn’t dare to resist. It said sullenly, "We have to wait until tonight... when the little girl is asleep."

Gu Qingyin raised an eyebrow. "I’ve got nothing but time. I don’t mind waiting until tonight."

The White Immortal was on the verge of tears. It really couldn’t bear to part with this lovely voice. ’Waaah!’

Gu Qingyin left, and Huo Yunjing followed behind her like a loyal underling. As he closed the door, he shot one last, icy glare at the White Immortal.

The White Immortal couldn’t help but shudder again. ’I can’t live in this house anymore! They’re bullying a poor hedgehog!’

Back in the study, Gugu and Mao Mao were still engrossed in assembling a Lego set—a medium-sized Strawberry Bear.

In the time Gu Qingyin had been away, they had already finished the Strawberry Bear’s feet. Gugu was now working on its belly and the tip of the strawberry it held in its arms.

Gu Qingyin sat beside them, watching. She took out her phone, recorded a video, and sent it to Huo Xingye with a question: "Did you guys play with toys like this when you were little?"

Huo Xingye: ...Something similar. We mostly built model airplanes, though. Nothing so girly, and nothing this small.

Gu Qingyin couldn’t help but laugh. An image of three little boys huddled together, building with Legos, popped into her head. She imagined they might even get into a fight over the instructions.

At that thought, she typed another question: Did the three of you fight a lot when you were kids?

Huo Xingye must not have been busy, because he replied almost instantly: We rarely fought. They were very well-behaved.

Gu Qingyin raised an eyebrow after reading his reply. ’He’s definitely looking back with rose-tinted glasses.’

Meanwhile, Huo Xingye was multitasking in a meeting, listening to the proceedings with one ear while texting Gu Qingyin with the other. When she didn’t respond right away, he sent another message.

—They didn’t know any better when they were little, so they were especially obedient.

Gu Qingyin’s eyes crinkled with laughter as she read it.

’I really wish I could find the Candle Dragon and have it send me back in time. The triplets must have been so much fun when they were little.’

Before the Strawberry Bear was finished, a knock came at the study door. The butler pushed it open and said politely, "Ma’am, the young master has returned. He is waiting for you downstairs."

Gu Qingyin stood up and gave Mao Mao a look.

Mao Mao immediately stood at attention and gave her a salute.

The corner of Gu Qingyin’s eye twitched. ’Who in the world did it learn that from?’

Downstairs, Huo Xingjie sat on the sofa, riddled with anxiety.

Huo Yunzheng had been hospitalized, in the room right next to Mrs. Huo. Apparently, this had happened right after he saw Gu Qingyin off.

Old Madam Huo suspected that Huo Yunjing was following Gu Qingyin, and that Huo Yunjing had punished Huo Yunzheng for his insolence toward her.

Old Madam Huo had even told him to come back and ask the household god if it could deal with Huo Yunjing. But he had returned last night and waited for a long time, and Guoguo’s mother never came home.

’Guoguo’s mother was the one who brought the household god here; he couldn’t communicate with it at all. If she didn’t come back, there was nothing he could do!’

Last night, he had made countless calls to her. The last one had been answered by a man. In a fit of rage, he had smashed his phone and stormed out to distract himself.

He hadn’t thought it was that urgent, but he never expected Gu Qingyin herself to show up at his door today!

As Gu Qingyin came downstairs, she saw Huo Xingjie sitting on the sofa, nervously wringing his hands. ’How does someone like this find the courage to make a deal with a household god? He’s really willing to risk his life for money.’

Hearing footsteps, Huo Xingjie instinctively shot to his feet, a fawning smile plastered on his face. "Matriarch."

Gu Qingyin smiled. "There’s something I’d like to discuss with you."

"Matriarch, you’re too kind." Huo Xingjie bowed slightly, his face a mask of smiles. "If you needed something, you could have just sent someone to let me know. There was no need for you to come all this way yourself."

Gu Qingyin walked to the sofa and sat down. "I’m quite fond of Gugu. I’d like for her to stay at the main house to celebrate the New Year. I hope you’ll agree."

Huo Xingjie didn’t think much of it and nodded eagerly. "Of course, no problem. It is Gugu’s honor to have earned your favor."

"And one more thing..." Gu Qingyin added with a smile. "I may need to stay the night. I hope I’m not imposing."

Hearing this, the smile on Huo Xingjie’s face completely froze.