The Husband I Snatched Is Not Right!-Chapter 266 - 263: Dark Arts

At night, no stars can be seen in the sky.

The stalls outside the Goddess Temple have long been dismantled. The street is empty, with no trace of passersby, as if the hustle and bustle were just a fleeting illusion.

At the temple gate, servants from the Zhu Mansion stand guard, patrolling back and forth.

Old Master Zhu, no longer amiable, looks back darkly at the temple, the only spot lit amidst the ink-like darkness.

"Have the mothers of those two children been settled?"

The steward quickly replied: "In response to the master, they are resting in the dormitory. I personally watched them drink water laced with sleeping drugs. Now they are in a deep sleep, oblivious to any commotion outside, so they won’t ruin our young master’s plans."

Old Master Zhu nodded with satisfaction.

It’s no wonder he’s cautious.

These paupers, once they catch a whiff of benefit, are like leeches sucking blood.

If they can’t sleep in the middle of the night, especially the biological mother of the sick child, they might sneak out, and it wouldn’t be good if they noticed anything suspicious.

He glanced at the sky and instructed the steward to guard outside, not allowing outsiders to approach. Only after ensuring everything was in place did he step inside.

Inside the Buddha hall, dedicated to the golden statue of Guanyin, incense is burning.

Mr. Zhu, with a serene and devout expression, kneels with his hands together. Beside him are two boys dressed similarly to him.

One is energetic yet restless, glancing around with bright eyes.

The other is sickly and dazed, unable to kneel steadily.

But Mr. Zhu, showing compassion, places him to lie down.

The rhythmic knocking of the wooden fish seems to dissipate anxiety. A dozen monks sit around them, chanting tongue-twisting Buddhist scriptures.

Old Master Zhu pushes open the door and enters.

The boys look over, see it’s him, and quickly turn their heads back, kneeling properly like Mr. Zhu.

Unruly wild children.

Old Master Zhu shifts his gaze, exchanges a glance with Mr. Zhu, then steps inside.

There is a side room there.

It is used by monks to explain fortunes for incense worshipers on ordinary days.

He lifts the curtain and enters. As his figure passes, the curtain falls back down.

Inside, it’s eerily dim, with an elder in black robes sitting. Half of his face is shrouded in darkness, and his exposed hand is as rough as tree bark.

Old Master Zhu respectfully steps closer, pouring him a cup of tea.

"He Wizard, everything outside is almost ready. What do you think..."

The wizard washes his hands and takes a Yellow Talisman.

He bites his finger, squeezing out blood.

He drips a few drops into the prepared porcelain bowl.

The porcelain bowl also contains blood, belonging to Mr. Zhu, mixed with vermillion inside.

His gaze steadily falls on Old Master Zhu, his voice sharp, hoarse, and unpleasant: "Including the two outside, how many children in total?"

Old Master Zhu thinks for a moment.

"Two every year since my son’s sixth birthday, almost forty children."

Wizard: "I said from the beginning, overuse of this method will drain your son’s vitality, making the effects increasingly poor."

Old Master Zhu remains nonchalant: "Your reward will be substantial."

The wizard says no more.

He picks up a pen made from chicken feathers, dips it in the blood, and writes talismans on the Yellow Talisman, also inscribing a string of small characters on the back. He includes Mr. Zhu’s birth date and eight characters.

After finishing, he burns the birth dates of the two boys and throws them into a stone bowl on the table.

Next to the stone bowl are nine tiles.

He mutters and swings a wooden sword, watching the dates almost burn out. He sticks the Yellow Talisman to the wooden sword, stirring it in the stone bowl. The Yellow Talisman ignites but burns very slowly.

The wizard circles the fireball incessantly, chanting something.

At this moment, outside, the sound of the wooden fish grows louder, the chanting overshadows the wizard.

There is no wind, yet the windows rattle loudly.

The wizard summons runes in the air with the wooden sword.

Stroke by stroke, it is exceedingly difficult.

On the last stroke, the Yellow Talisman burns out.

The stone bowl’s contents are already ash from the previous burning. He solemnly places Mr. Zhu’s eight characters inside.

Finally, the wooden sword shatters tile fragments.

As the last tile splits in two, the birth date suddenly bursts into flames.

The smile on Old Master Zhu’s face grows larger, appearing distorted in the firelight.

The talisman paper and birth date ash are mixed with water by the wizard, divided into three cups.

The boys kneeling outside are unaware of what’s happening inside.

He is very sleepy.

But his mother said he was blessed, that’s why he was chosen by the Zhu Family, and he must cooperate. Once this year passes, they’ll buy him a lantern to play with tomorrow.

Old Master Zhu comes out with a tray.

Mr. Zhu finally moves, getting up to receive it.

The boy, as Mr. Zhu approaches, cranes his neck to look over. Besides the snacks, there are three cups of dark liquid.

He knows what it is.

It’s spirit water.

All chosen boys are required to drink it.

In previous years when he was sick, his mother would make him drink incense ashes, saying it was blessed by the Bodhisattva.

Although he thought it was useless, illness still required medicine.

But if his mother said so, it must be true.

After all, seeing doctors cost so much money.

The spirit water Mr. Zhu gives can’t be compared to what’s at home.

The incense ashes are from a day’s worth of offerings by worshipers, with so many monks chanting to consecrate them.

Drinking it would surely be good for his body.

Mr. Zhu gently pats the head of the sickly boy beside him, smiling, "Hungry? Have some snacks to fill your stomach first."

"Is your name Sixth Son?"

The boy nodded vigorously.

Mr. Zhu’s demeanor is as gentle as a spring breeze.

"You’ve worked hard today."

"This spirit water..."

He looks at him steadily.

"You’re willing to drink it, right?"

Though the boy doesn’t know why Mr. Zhu asks, he nods anyway: "Yes." 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

"Good child."

The boy accepts it and is about to drink when the side room window is kicked open, and someone breaks in.

The wizard is gagged and bound by officials and taken out.

Mr. Zhu’s expression suddenly changes.

Old Master Zhu’s mood worsens.

The doorway is flooded with officials and soldiers.

No sound of the Zhu Family’s servants outside warning them, indicating they were controlled long ago.

The leading official is the New County Magistrate of Wuyang City, who kicks open the door, likewise knocking down Old Master Zhu.

His sharp gaze sweeps around, finally landing on the wizard.

"We’ve received reports that the Zhu family is using court-forbidden sorcery to deceive the public and endanger lives."

Clearly, the Government Office had long assigned officials to monitor them.

The County Magistrate’s expression is unfavorable.

Being assigned to Wuyang City is much better than those small places like Bize County.

He was once quite pleased with himself.

After taking office, he thought this was a remarkable place.

Even considered the Zhu family outstanding.

Not long ago, he praised the Zhu family before He Yushi and even requested a favor from him, asking him to personally inscribe "Benevolent and Charitable" for the Zhu family.

He’s just a joke.

"Arrest them all! Take them back for questioning."

"Yes!"

With this order, the officials behind him filed in one after another.

Simultaneously, an officer came to report: "Sir, the two women can’t be awakened, most likely drugged."

The County Magistrate’s face is grim.

Though not confirmed as court-forbidden sorcery.

Yet the Zhu family and the black-robed elder’s behavior is indeed out of the ordinary.

Not to mention just started the tenure, needing achievements.

The mere mention of forbidden sorcery, should he not investigate, it would surely cost him his official hat.