A Secret (GL) - Chapter 9

But as she rose into the air, she saw a massive golden Sanskrit character shimmering above the temple. The golden light was faint—invisible if one didn’t look closely. As she drifted nearer, waves of Sangharama chants poured into her ears, physically pushing her back and preventing her advance.

Both the barrier and the chants were gentle; they merely blocked her approach without causing her any harm.

Barred from entry, Gu Shuge began to feel an increasing sense of panic.

This panic was strange. Even if she couldn’t get in, Shen Juan would eventually come out once her business was finished. She could just wait here—so why was she so anxious?

As Gu Shuge tried to think, her mind became clouded. It was as if she were a kite flying in mid-air whose string had suddenly snapped; her thoughts were no longer under her control. Dark, wicked ideas began to sprout one by one.

A thought emerged: perhaps Shen Juan hadn’t entered the temple to find a way to see her, but rather to find a master to exorcise her.

After all, she was a ghost. Who wouldn’t be afraid of a ghost?

“What are you waiting here for? You should run. Shen Juan is asking a master to subdue you—preferably to scatter your soul so you can never haunt her again!”

She vaguely heard a low, deep voice, every word carrying a vibrating echo. A sharp pain throbbed in her temples, but she instinctively argued back: “I’m not haunting her!” She had stayed far away; she hadn’t haunted Shen Juan at all.

“You aren’t haunting her now, but who knows about the future? After all, Gu Yian is dead.”

Gu Shuge’s head felt like it was splitting open. She drifted back to the ground and clutched her head, murmuring, “I’m dead too.” But the malice continued to spread.

Her soul was still here; she could still do something. Now that her brother was dead, it was only natural for her to possess Shen Juan. After all, she loved her. Red streaks began to climb into the whites of Gu Shuge’s eyes, making her look like a vengeful spirit possessed by a demon.

“Shen Juan is the one who killed you,” the malice whispered again. It hit Gu Shuge like a thunderclap, making her flinch, followed by an even more intense headache. She argued back in terror: “No! I was murdered by someone else.”

“Exactly! She is the one who murdered you. Who else could it be? She was sick of you! She didn’t like you when you were alive, and even after killing you, she isn’t satisfied—she wants to find a monk to wipe you from existence!”

The words “doesn’t like you” seemed to turn into white maggots, desperately burrowing into Gu Shuge’s brain and crawling over her body. She was consumed by a towering rage; the crimson in her eyes turned a terrifying shade of deep red, and resentment began to steam off her body like black mist.

Inside the temple.

The monk pondered for a long time before finally sighing. “When a person dies, the lamp goes out. This means all things are irreversible. For a soul to linger in the human world is, by nature, a violation of Heaven’s will. Buddhism emphasizes letting nature take its course. When encountering spirits, we can only offer salvation and transition. To force a manifestation leads to unpredictable consequences. I have not mastered my craft well enough; I cannot help you.”

He refused to do it.

Shen Juan didn’t speak. She took another check from her bag, placed it on the low table, and pushed it toward the monk.

The monk looked at the amount. He was clearly tempted, but after a moment of thought, he resolutely shook his head. “I cannot help. I cannot.” He stood up and went into an inner room. A moment later, he returned with a book.

The book had a red cover and yellowed pages. The text was printed in an ancient style with traditional characters. It looked like something scavenged from an antique stall.

The monk gave the book to Shen Juan. “Senior Brother Jingyun once studied this book. Perhaps it will be effective; you may take it and try. But summoning a soul to manifest is a dark art. I advise you to think twice before acting. If you insist on doing it, you must bear whatever consequences follow.”

Shen Juan accepted it.

The monk returned the talisman pouch to her and said with a smile, “Usually when people encounter ghosts, even if it’s a loved one, they are terrified and beg for the spirit to stop haunting them. Yet you, Benefactor, are not only unafraid but wish for the ghost to manifest. I truly don’t know how to judge this.”

Shen Juan took the pouch and tucked it away safely. Hearing the monk’s words, she managed a slight curve of her lips. “Actually, I hope she will haunt me.”

The monk was stunned. He then shook his head, chanted a prayer, and reminded her: “This talisman is a spiritual artifact. Having been used once, it should have become an ordinary object. However, I just sensed it briefly and found spiritual energy still swirling around it. It likely has another purpose. Keep it for now; once Senior Brother Jingyun returns, you can ask him to know the truth.”

Shen Juan thanked him for the reminder, stood up, and took her leave.

Passing through the front hall, she bought some incense, candles, and Buddhist scriptures. After a moment’s thought, she bought one of everything the temple offered—divination blocks, various spiritual charms, and more.

Outside the temple, Gu Shuge was still struggling. Her mind was slipping away, but she knew subconsciously that these thoughts weren’t her own—they were likely “heart demons” or dark impulses trying to turn her evil. She fought to maintain the last shred of her sanity. For every sentence the voice spoke, she offered a rebuttal to prevent her consciousness from being swallowed whole.

“Shen Juan doesn’t like you.”

“She does. She’s better to me than anyone.”

“She’s only good to you because she wants something.”

“She isn’t. I have nothing she wants.”

“She and your brother were together long ago. They kept it from you.”

Gu Shuge had managed to answer the previous taunts, albeit with difficulty. But at this one, the malice spread uncontrollably.

If Shen Juan and her brother had been in love for a long time, why was she so good to her? Why did she let her misunderstand? Did she find it amusing to watch her make a fool of herself?

As the thought arose, Gu Shuge was struck with horror. She shook her head violently, trying to shake the thoughts out, and argued back: “No! She was already prepared to tell me.”

In the conversation she had overheard that day, her brother had clearly expressed his intention to let her know.

As soon as she spoke, the malice began to fade and her sanity returned. Gu Shuge’s brow furrowed tightly. She stood up from the ground and saw Shen Juan emerging from the temple.

The headache was dissipating. With every step Shen Juan took toward her, Gu Shuge’s mind became clearer. The blood-red color receded from her eyes, and the black mist in her mind vanished as if blown away by a gentle breeze.

Shen Juan must have driven away my wicked thoughts.

Gu Shuge’s eyes lit up, and she ran toward Shen Juan. As a result, she slammed into the temple’s barrier, bounced back, and fell.

She scrambled to her feet. Shen Juan had just reached her, carrying a yellow cloth bag. She walked past Shuge without a sideways glance.

Gu Shuge was stunned for a moment before following behind her.

As she walked, she began to feel an aftershock of fear. What were those thoughts just now? I’ve never thought those things. Moreover, how could Shen Juan be sick of her or afraid of her haunting her? Shen Juan didn’t even know she loved her.

She looked ahead. Shen Juan was carrying the yellow bag, walking down the stone steps with steady, firm strides. Just looking at her back provided a immense sense of security.

Gu Shuge felt she was no longer afraid. Those wicked thoughts were all slanders against Shen Juan. But she was absolutely, positively certain that Shen Juan was the best person in the world. Even if those thoughts appeared again, she had the confidence to resist them.

It took thirty minutes to walk up the mountain, but the walk down seemed slightly faster.

Shen Juan opened the car door, sat inside, and placed the yellow bag on the passenger seat.

Gu Shuge stopped in her tracks, thinking somewhat petulantly: That’s my seat. She moved sluggishly, preparing to pass through the door and sit in the back. But Shen Juan suddenly picked up the bag and moved it to the back seat, clearing the space beside her.

Happy now, Gu Shuge quickly claimed the passenger seat.

Before starting the car, Shen Juan glanced at the seat beside her before putting her hands on the steering wheel.

By the time they reached home, the sky was pitch black.

Shen Juan casually made a bowl of oatmeal to make do for dinner. Gu Shuge watched from the side in a hurry—an entire day and just a bowl of oatmeal? How could that be enough?

But she could only fret in vain.

The house had already been cleaned by the servants. Because the windows were open, a cold wind blew in, making it a bit chilly. Shen Juan closed the windows, took a book out of the bag, and sat on the living room sofa to read.

She read one page and then made a phone call.

The call was answered quickly. She said into the phone: “I need to find a monk practicing at Guangping Temple on the outskirts of Yanjing. His dharma name is Jingyun—white eyebrows and a white beard.”

After the person on the other end spoke, she paused and said: “That’s all the leads I have.”

A monk? Gu Shuge thought pensively. She moved closer and put her ear to the phone. A man’s voice came through: “Understood. I’ll arrange it immediately.”

It was Lin Mo’s voice.

Lin Mo continued: “Chairman, news of Miss Gu’s death has spread throughout the entire group. Today, the three ‘Directors Gu’ already caused a scene once. They’ll definitely be back tomorrow and the day after. Don’t you think you should take charge of the overall situation first?”

The three “Directors Gu” were her three uncles. The Gu Group was a family business, and her three uncles held some shares, though not many.

In ancient times, there was the system of primogeniture; in England, the eldest son had absolute inheritance rights. This was because family resources could not be fragmented—divided strength is weak strength. The past generations of the Gu family had followed this; the majority of the shares were inherited by the eldest son, with very little given to the other children.

The main branch, in turn, had the responsibility to care for the collateral branches, doing their best to assist other family members in their lives and careers.

Gu Shuge had never liked these three uncles because they were very mercenary and opportunistic. But they hadn’t done anything particularly evil. So she and her brother had both turned a blind eye and fulfilled their duty to help them.

Who would have thought that just one day after her passing, they couldn’t wait to move from the collateral branch to the main branch? They should have at least waited until her funeral was over.

Shen Juan replied: “Let them cause a scene.”

Then she hung up.

She wasn’t affected in the slightest and continued to read. Gu Shuge fumed for a while, but seeing that Shen Juan wasn’t angry, she sat beside her, calmed her heart, and read along.

The book was full of supernatural topics: the differences between vengeful spirits, evil ghosts, and fierce ghosts; how to escape a haunting; the three things ghosts fear most; “Don’t be afraid when haunted”; and “Teaching ghosts how to be ghosts after their souls are scattered”—things of that nature.

Gu Shuge was terrified as she read. Just the descriptions of the magical treasures and the tragic fate of a ghost whose soul is scattered made her spine tingle. She couldn’t help but steal several glances at Shen Juan, thinking: Is this the book she brought back from the temple? Why is she reading this?

She thought in fear and confusion for a while before a sudden flash of inspiration hit her. She figured it out.

First, she ruled out the possibility that Shen Juan wanted to drive her away.

That left very few possibilities. She was basically certain of the truth: Sister was worried that Shuge would encounter an evil ghost and be unable to fight back, so she was studying it herself to help Shuge if she was ever bullied by other ghosts.