At this moment, there was a knock on the door behind Lin Feiran, and Gu Kaifeng’s mother could be heard, “Kaifeng, Feiran, we are going to the company. You guys make sure to get your homework done this morning, you hear?”

Gu Kaifeng halted abruptly. Gritting his teeth, he straightened up and replied, “Got it, Mom.”

Lin Feiran took this opportunity to push Gu Kaifeng away. Opening the bedroom door, he smiled and said, “Goodbye, Auntie.”

She nodded, the corners of her lips curling into a smile as she turned and walked away.

Lin Feiran’s heart was beating ferociously; his thoughts were somewhat disoriented and his face felt a bit hot. He felt like Gu Kaifeng’s interrupted actions just now were very strange, but he dared not think too deeply about them. He bent over and picked up the obedient Xia Xia, who had remained near his feet the entire time, and teased him a couple of times. Still looking down at Xia Xia he asked Gu Kaifeng, “Where’s the leash? I’ll keep him tied up to prevent him from running away.”

Gu Kaifeng had no choice but to go search for the leash, and finding it he fastened it on Xia Xia’s collar.

Lin Feiran changed his clothes and checked for his phone and wallet. He then looped the leash around his own wrist twice before he picked Xia Xia up and gave him a kiss, “Today you’re hanging out with Bro Ran~.”

Xia Xia barked cheerfully.

“See you this afternoon.” Lin Feiran rushed past Gu Kaifeng, waving his hand with an earnest expression. “Stay home and diligently do your homework. If you have difficulty, you can reference mine... but you can’t look at my literature workbook.”

Lin Feiran felt embarrassed with his answer for the classical Chinese poetry appreciation!

Gu Kaifeng was leaning on a wall in the front hall, arms crossed as if hugging himself. “Got it,” he smiled gently, “See you this afternoon.”

Lin Feiran carried Xia Xia and left the estate. He called a taxi and, about two hours later, reached his family’s ancestral home.

There did not appear to be any changes since he last returned. Green hills and clear water stretched into the distance. The bird on the peach tree in front of the door flapped its wings and hopped from branch to branch, settling on the ridge of the roof. The air carried the faint scent of the dying embers of burned incense, which was dispersed by the wind blowing from the banks of the lake. Lin Feiran pushed open the door to a familiar courtyard. Within the courtyard came the sound of Da Huang’s vigilant barking.

Xia Xia whimpered, scared by the sight of a dog several times his size. His small claws clung to Lin Feiran’s shoulder, wanting to scrabble his way up. Lin Feiran used one hand to comfort Xia Xia and the other to rub Da Huang’s head. He looked around inside the courtyard and felt relieved when he noticed that there was a fresh steamed bun and an unfinished meat bone in Da Huang’s food bowl. Pushing open the door to his ancestral home, Lin Feiran inhaled the cool air in the house and walked in.

Grandpa is definitely still here, Lin Feiran thought.

Inside his ancestral home, Lin Feiran closed the door to keep Da Huang outside. Carrying the still frightened Xia Xia, he walked up to the second floor and entered his grandpa’s room. Lin Feiran put Xia Xia on the floor and tied one end of the leash to the bedpost, moving a bit away so that Xia Xia could not bump into him. He looked at the bed that his grandpa slept on when he died. At this moment, Lin Feiran felt at ease.

Lin Feiran was scared of ghosts to the extent that he could not possibly be more afraid. The terror persisted despite him having seen ghosts for weeks now, and each time he saw them his heart would tremble. However, if it were his grandpa and grandma, Lin Feiran believed that even if they looked scary, he would not be afraid.

Time elapsed in seconds then minutes. After approximately five minutes had passed, a sudden cold chill like freezing water washed through Lin Feiran’s body. Lin Feiran took a deep breath and looked up to see two figures sitting on the bed by the window. Their translucent bodies swayed and shimmered, seeming as if they would dissolve into the brilliant rays of light that penetrated through the window.

Lin Feiran’s breath caught in his throat. His eyes turning red, he called out in a hoarse voice, “Grandpa! Grandma!”

Under the light, the two translucent old people were no different from other ghosts. They were also pale and lifeless, but their two deathly pale faces wore kind smiles. Grandpa nodded towards Lin Feiran and got to his feet with his hands clasped behind his back as he said to his grandson, “RanRan came to see Grandpa and Grandma.”

His movements, expressions, and intonation were just like when he was alive, as if they were meeting each other under normal circumstances.

“Grandpa, I missed you...” Lin Feiran’s voice was filled with emotion. He dashed to his grandpa, trying to touch his arm and hug him.

His grandpa stepped back, waving his hand, “Don’t, you’ll get chilled.”

Lin Feiran turned to look at his grandma who was standing next his grandpa. His grandma passed away early, so Lin Feiran forgot many details of their time spent together. Nevertheless, their reunion still brought him a keen sense of poignancy and his eyes shimmered with tears as he called out, “Grandma.”

His grandma smiled and nodded, “Ai, good boy.”

Lin Feiran turned his face away, clenched his teeth, and sniffled. The grievances and fears that he had suppressed over the past few days instantly burst out, and big drops of tears fell like rain. Lin Feiran pursed his lips and sobbed wretchedly like a spoiled child, “Grandpa, I have been scared to death this past half-month, what is going on...”

“RanRan,” Grandpa sighed, “this is something beyond Grandpa’s control.”

Lin Feiran took out some tissues and blew his nose, lamenting through his tears in an inarticulate and incoherent manner, “My dormitory is full of ghosts and I am almost scared to the point of losing my sanity....sob... fortunately I have this classmate — I can block out those sights the moment I touch him so I have been sticking around him every day, 24 hours a day. I am afraid to be away from him... Today, I borrowed his dog...”

Grandpa turned to look at Xia Xia, “This dog’s Yang energy is pretty dense.”

“Woof?” Xia Xia watched Lin Feiran talking to the air with a dumbfounded expression!

“Is it really Yang energy?” Lin Feiran wiped his tears. “My classmate’s Yang energy is also strong. Grandpa, what’s going on with my body?”

Grandpa sat back on the edge of the bed and slowly recounted, “Actually, if you want to ask what this thing is and how it came about, even Grandpa cannot clearly explain.”

“......” Lin Feiran instantly collapsed.

“This was also transferred to me by my father when he passed away,” Grandpa continued. “This thing has been passed down in the Lin family for many generations. Because living people are restricted on what they can disclose, no one is able to explain it clearly. I only know that this thing recognizes its own master. Back then, your great grandfather had three sons, including me, and two daughters. I am the fourth in line, with an older brother and two older sisters ahead of me. Whether appropriate or not, this thing settled on me of all people. I felt this was because I do not have conflicts with these things. You see, this time was also the same. It did not settle on your dad but settled on you.”

Lin Feiran sniffled and nodded his head, “...En.”

He dared not imagine what it would be like if the Yin-Yang eyes settled on his dad...

Grandpa said, “My personal thoughts are that this is a type of Yin constitution. Whoever has this type of constitution will have half their foot in the underworld; that’s why they have the ability to see, hear, and touch ghosts.” He paused, “Actually, when your great-grandpa had just passed away, I was even more frightened than you. During this time, my mother and siblings all thought I went crazy. However, I did have a benefit in that your great-grandfather stayed by my side to accompany me. Even so, it took me quite a few months to adapt to this ability. RanRan, you are very brave and very steadfast. You are much stronger than Grandpa.”

Lin Feiran immediately felt wronged and bitterly stated, “Great-Grandpa accompanied you, so why didn’t Grandpa accompany me?”

Thinking about it, if some of the ghosts he saw were his own relatives, then he would have been less afraid.

Grandpa sighed and pointed at their ancestral home, “Grandpa cannot be more than one kilometer away from here. There are three types of souls that do not enter the cycle of reincarnation, and they are categorised by the degree of their lingering attachment. The first kind only has a slight longing for the world; they don’t feel much for the human world, so they are able to go anywhere. When their attachment to the world disappears, they can enter the cycle of rebirth.

“The second kind has a stronger attachment. When they died, they still had unfinished business. These souls would continue to remain in the place where their attachment lies and cannot go far until someone resolves it for them. Then they would have the ability to change into the first kind of spirit.

“The third kind is those who either died a violent death or committed suicide — they have the strongest grievances and can’t stray too far away. These souls will maintain the appearance they had at their time of death. For instance, a person who dies after he was suddenly hit by a car would retain the bloody appearance from his time of death because of his hatred. He hates how he had died so suddenly, and he hates the person who hit him with the car. If there comes a day when he no longer harbors any hatred and can come to terms with his death, he’d be able to regain his normal appearance.”

Grandpa took a pause before continuing, “The things that Grandpa talked about are human souls. Humans have many desires so they have deeper lingering attachments. Even a heartless person would not have a heart as blank as a sheet of paper. But animals are not the same. You should have noticed that there are particularly few animal souls in this world; their lingering attachments fade quickly, so most of them are able to enter the reincarnation cycle shortly after their deaths.”

Lin Feiran seemed to half understand, and nodding his head he asked, “Grandpa is the second type? What about Grandma? What lingering attachments do you have?”

“Mine ah, this.” Grandpa revealed a smile that Lin Feiran was very familiar with. Like a mischievous child, he surreptitiously tugged on Lin Feiran’s grandma’s sleeve.

In a half embarrassed and half bashful manner, Lin Feiran’s grandma shook off Grandpa’s hand, complaining, “You should act more dignified in front of our grandson.”

“......” Lin Feiran was caught off guard and was fed a big mouthful of dog food! In his weakened state, he suffered double damage!

“Grandpa didn’t stay away from you on purpose.” Saying this, Grandpa felt it was still a bit inadequate, so he added, “I also missed you, but our subjective wills don’t have the last say in deciding what our attachments are. I felt that I had to see my grandson, but it was useless. As long as the strongest desire in my heart is not resolved, I cannot leave. Your Grandma also cannot leave because her lingering attachment is here. When she was approaching death, her wish was to stay in this room and continue to accompany me.”

Lin Feiran calmed down. Wiping his tear-covered face, he asked,“Grandpa, you were actually able to see Grandma the entire time, right? I remember you always used to be alone talking to yourself. You were actually talking to Grandma?”

Grandpa grinned and nodded, confessing, “This old lady followed me around every day. As soon as I drank just two extra sips of wine or ate some roasted chicken, she would grab my ear and scold me. Now it’s great! She doesn’t need to nag since there are no more of those! All I get is a bunch of steamed bun offerings on my grave; who likes to eat that?”

Grandpa had always been unhappy when he did not have meat. The corners of Lin Feiran’s lips curved upwards as he rushed to say, “Then I will go buy some alcohol and roasted chicken for you. Would you be able to eat them?”

“No hurry,” Grandpa waved his hand, “focus on yourself first.” As he spoke Grandpa stood up, pointing to the bed below him, “Lift up the mattress and open the bed board. There’s something underneath.”

At a glance, it appeared there would be some sort of secret inheritance. Grandpa must have put in MAX effort to leave him a legacy!

Lin Feiran clumsily lifted the mattress, set it aside, and found a loose bed board underneath that seemed to open like a cabinet door. Digging his fingertips into the small crack, he lifted the board and discovered a small notebook. The book looked awfully old-fashioned: it had a bright red cover embossed with the portrait of a leader above a slogan that encapsulated the feelings of a bygone era. Lin Feiran picked it up and opened it carefully, the pages yellow and brittle with age. Glancing through, he found it was full of records of magic spells and the like.

What ‘black donkey hoof wards off evil’? What ‘draw a cup of chicken blood and splash it in the southeast direction at maoshi? .....

“What is this?” Lin Feiran asked.

“The contents were passed down by your great-grandpa, I copied them myself.” Grandpa looked at the book with nostalgia. “The notes recorded inside... can be thought of as magic and stuff. However, most of them are for exorcising particularly resentful and malicious spirits. You don’t have to learn them; even if you do, about eighty percent are useless. Grandpa also does not expect you to pass this down, just take it and keep it with you just in case.”

Lin Feiran made a weak sound of agreement.

Inheriting his deceased grandpa’s secret manual for exorcising ghosts or whatever originally should have marked the beginning of an upgrade streak. Wouldn’t it be reasonable to say that Grandpa’s manual was a golden finger that would blast open the path to exorcising ghosts and spirits with the utmost ease? That would just feel awesome, awesome, and even more awesome! However, Lin Feiran was terrified of ghosts, and just hearing the two words “malicious spirits” was enough to make his heart jump in fright. If he could simply live a normal life even while seeing ghosts every day, then he would be more than satisfied.

Lin Feiran placed the palm-sized book into his pocket. “Grandpa,” he asked, “Am I unable to tell these things to others? Each time I try to speak, the words won’t come out. I can’t even write about it.”

Grandpa shook his head, “You can’t do anything about it, and there is no way to convey it to others. If there were a way, why would I not tell your Dad? That stinky boy!”

Lin Feiran lowered his head in disappointment, thought about it, and said in a depressed tone, “In fact, I haven’t seen ghosts that often since that day. My classmate has very strong Yang energy; if I touch him once, I can go for five minutes without seeing the ghosts. The same goes with his dog, so I have to either stay close to him or his dog every day. Yesterday, I even stayed over at his house. Do you have any ideas on how I could stop being like this? It’s terrible for me to always be bothering others like this every day.”

Moreover, Gu Kaifeng seems as if he’s a little... Lin Feiran’s heart suddenly jumped. Shaking his head vigorously, Lin Feiran tried to disperse that blush-inducing thought.

“Yang energy can temporarily decrease the effects of your Yin constitution.” Grandpa stroked his beard. “Since your friend’s Yang energy is so strong, there should also be residual Yang energy in the things he used. It’s just that the Yang energy is too little, so you can’t see it. Still, it should be able to temporarily suppress your Yin energy.”

The things that Gu Kaifeng used are also effective? Lin Feiran’s eyes brightened as a door to a new world opened!

If that’s the case, then I have to think of some ways to take one or two of Gu Kaifeng’s things and secretly send them back once the Yang energy is consumed. Isn’t this so much better than sticking to him 24 hours a day?

“However,” Grandpa coughed heavily, before continuing solemnly, “Grandpa recommends that you don’t do this. The best method is for you to gradually adapt and get used to it. Otherwise, don’t tell me you’re going to follow this classmate your entire life...” Pausing, Grandpa confirmed, “Is the person you spoke of a male student?”

Lin Feiran was startled. He heard the implications of Grandpa’s words and blushed slightly, “Yes, a male classmate.”

“Then are you planning on taking a pet everywhere in the future? You’ll bring a dog to school or to work?” Grandpa asked.

Lin Feiran deflated, as the little hope he had left completely vanished, “No.”

It truly was impossible. In the future, he still had university and then work. How could it be possible to guarantee he would not see ghosts under all circumstances?

“It is normal for you to be afraid now. It is also a good thing to have a person with such strong Yang energy shield you in the beginning.” Grandpa softened his tone, “However, you cannot be too dependent on him. Eventually, you will need to face this alone.”

Lin Feiran nodded weakly. He said, depressed, “Got it, Grandpa.”

Afterwards, Lin Feiran chatted with Grandpa for a long time and listened as Grandpa shared some anecdotes from his past. He hadn’t known that his Grandpa used his Yin constitution to do so many things. As he listened, he began to understand why his Grandpa had wanted his Dad to inherit his “legacy.”

“.... The Heavens must have their own reason for why people like us exist. Perhaps right now you don’t want to understand and feel this is burdensome. Later you will understand.” The two continued chatting and at the end of the conversation, Grandpa placed his hand about one centimeter above the top of Lin Feiran’s head. Patting the air above Lin Feiran’s head, he murmured, “Just do good things, don’t ask about the future.”

Confused, Lin Feiran nodded, “En.”

Before heading back, Lin Feiran took Xia Xia with him to the village’s delicatessen. He bought some of Grandpa’s favorite foods that he hadn’t dared to eat when he was alive due to bad health: roasted chicken, pig head meat, duck neck...

After he finished there, he went to buy 500 grams of liquor, and then he went to Grandpa’s grave. Following Grandpa’s method of making an offering to spirits, he placed the items in front of the tomb. Then, he silently pictured Grandpa’s image in his head while he lit two incense sticks and prayed.

“This time, you can eat without restraint.” Lin Feiran picked up Xia Xia — who was staring attentively at the meat while drooling — and smiled at the empty space in front of him. “From now on, I will frequently take time to come back and give you delicious food.”