Chapter 44 Lin Jingzhi's Past
Mr. Qian did not say anything final, but pointed out a clear way for him - as long as Lin Jingzhi could produce a stone of rice, Miss Qian could become his bride.

It's easier said than done. Lin Jingzhi, who was penniless, couldn't even fill his own stomach, so where could he find a stone of rice?
So, he shamelessly ran around Chang'an City, begging for rice from every shop and promising to return it in the future.

As a result, without exception, as soon as he finished speaking, he was chased out by the rice shop guys like a plague god.

Lin Jingzhi, feeling disheartened, was walking alone on a deserted path. Suddenly, Xu Luo's words "Just do good things and don't worry about the future" kept buzzing in his mind like a mosquito.

He couldn't help but laugh at himself. As a poor scholar who didn't even know what to eat tomorrow, what good could he do?

Lin Jingzhi walked to the edge of a lake with a heavy heart. The lake water reflected the coldness, echoing the coldness in his heart.

He thought that his life was lonely and miserable, so it would be better to end it here and turn into a ghost in the lake.

He was walking towards the water in a trance, when suddenly, he caught a glimpse of something strange. He looked closely and couldn't help but scream. Not far away, he saw two skeletons lying quietly. Although their appearance was horrible, from the remaining clothes, he could vaguely tell that they were a man and a woman.

Lin Jingzhi thought to himself: "Could this be a lover who committed suicide for love?"

He shook his head and sighed, muttering, "Never mind, let's do something good!" "Since we have met, let me send you off for the last time. It would be nice if we could be a pair of ghost couple." So he found tools and buried the two skeletons on the spot.

The breeze blew by, and Lin Jingzhi's mood seemed to be soothed. Looking at the lake, the death determination in his heart had disappeared without a trace. After a sigh, he turned around and walked towards his wooden house with a staggering gait.

Back in the bleak wooden house, Lin Jingzhi picked up a bowl of water, drank it all, and then lay down on the couch, snoring loudly. Time passed silently like flowing water.

The night was like ink, dyeing the whole world deep. Lin Jingzhi slowly woke up from his dream. A chill wind that penetrated his bones made him sit up suddenly. He hugged his shoulders involuntarily and muttered, "Is the sky kidding me?" Before he finished speaking, he heard a low murmur in his ears, the voices of a man and a woman, which seemed particularly clear in the silent night.

"Thank you so much for burying my wife and I together." The woman's voice was as gentle as water, but with a hint of resentment. "I don't know what unfulfilled wish you have, but my wife and I are willing to fulfill it for you."

Lin Jingzhi was stunned and his face turned pale as paper in an instant. He opened his mouth in surprise: "You, who are you?" He saw two blurry figures standing beside his bed, looking ambiguous in the dim light.

"Don't be afraid, benefactor." The male voice sounded, with a hint of strange intimacy, "It is you who helped me and my husband to reunite today."

Lin Jingzhi's mind quickly replayed today's details, and he tried hard to recall and piece together the reason for this strange scene. At this time, he noticed the figure of the woman.

She has a graceful figure, eyes as deep as pools, lips slightly parted with a hint of temptation, chest rising and falling gently with her breathing, and that jade-like neck glowing faintly in the night, making one want to take a closer look.

"Today's healing?" Lin Jingzhi frowned, his mind swaying between fear and temptation, trying to sort out this chaotic night. Lin Jingzhi's face instantly became more terrified than seeing a ghost. Just today, he ran away from Chang'an City in disgrace, and he kept repeating a sentence in his mind: "Just do good things, don't worry about the future."

I wanted to walk to the river and end it all, but unexpectedly I came across two piles of bones, lying there alone, silently telling the desolation of the world.

"This world is so absurd!" Lin Jingzhi shook his head and sighed, wondering if he would be as miserable as this if he became a lonely soul in the wilderness one day? Thinking of this, he buried the two corpses together, which was considered a good deed.

Unexpectedly, just as he buried it, he saw two figures approaching. Lin Jingzhi shrank back in fear, his mouth twitching: "You, you are..."

"Don't be afraid, benefactor. We are ghosts, but we are not the ones that harm people." The two ghosts, one male and one female, were vaguely recognizable, and the male ghost's voice sounded a little desolate.

"We were engaged when we were little, and we were about to start a family," the ghost continued, her voice soft, as if she still had the tenderness she had in her life, "but who would have thought that we would be murdered by villains as soon as we left the city gate, and our youth was ruined just like that."

"Yes, if our benefactor had not been buried today, we, the ill-fated couple, would still be wandering in this wilderness." The male ghost said, with gratitude in his tone.

At this moment, Lin Jingzhi noticed that the female ghost had deep eyes. Although she was a ghost, he could still feel that she must have been a stunning beauty when she was alive. When her lips parted slightly, there seemed to be a hint of temptation. Her chest rose and fell, and although she was lifeless, she still showed a different kind of beauty.

He quickly shook his head to dispel the inexplicable thoughts in his mind, and listened to the ghost couple continue to tell their story.

"Today we are here to repay your kindness..." Hearing the words of this pair of ghosts, Lin Jingzhi's mood unexpectedly calmed down. He was no longer as frightened as before, but instead felt an indescribable sadness. Think about yourself, didn't you also have childhood sweethearts and made vows to each other?
Unfortunately, the family fell into poverty, his parents passed away, and even the arranged marriage came to nothing.

He couldn't help but feel a little jealous of the ghost couple. Even though they were separated by the Yin and Yang, at least they could still meet again. But he was afraid that he would never have the chance to meet the young lady of the Qian family again.

Seeing Lin Jingzhi's sad face, the two ghosts asked him the reason. Then Lin Jingzhi told them how the Qian family had made things difficult for him and asked him to take out the one stone of rice as a condition for marriage, otherwise there would be no marriage.

"Alas, I'm so poor now that even the mosquitoes in the pot fly out in search of food. Where can I find a stone of rice?" Lin Jingzhi looked helpless.

The two ghosts were speechless after hearing this. After looking at each other, they suggested, "My benefactor, the Qian family is really hateful. Although we have become ghosts now, we can't just let it go.

How about this, let's go to Qian's house tonight and teach Mr. Qian a lesson to help you vent your anger, how do you think?

Hearing this, Lin Jingzhi smiled bitterly, "Revenge? But what's the point?"

His gaze seemed to penetrate the night and fell on the illusory Miss Qian. He imagined the temptation in her eyes and the tenderness on her lips, but it could only turn into a long sigh.
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(End of this chapter)