My Partner Always Wants to Dig My Grave - Chapter 47

As the group cautiously descended along the cliff wall, the surrounding candle flames seemed to sense something, illuminating the bottom of the cliff in the next moment. This allowed them to see the winding bloodstains and scattered arrows on the ground.

The blood trail stretched far, as if someone had been dragged away recklessly, a sight that was deeply unsettling.

Guan Yue frowned, her voice filled with concern.
“Are we really going to have to drag a corpse back? Wouldn’t that give us nightmares?”

Nian Nian crouched down, examining the bloodstains and scattered objects on the ground, then teased Guan Yue lightheartedly.
“Shouldn’t Professor Guan have seen even more dead bodies?”

Guan Yue shot her an annoyed glare and retorted,
“Even if I’ve seen many, it’s because they had research value. A freshly dead body is only useful for forensic dissection, it holds no academic value for us.”

Si Wan cut off their conversation, saying,
“Let’s focus on finding the person first.”

As she spoke, her peripheral vision caught sight of scattered yellow talismans on the ground, inscribed with red characters that seemed to sting her eyes.

Instinctively, she stepped on one, grinding it under her toe until it was crumpled and torn beyond recognition. Only when the talisman was completely destroyed did Si Wan feel slightly relieved.

Just as they were about to move forward, a faint, eerie moan echoed through the air.

Nian Nian’s expression darkened as she stepped in front of the other two, cautioning them seriously,
“Be careful, professors.”

Si Wan’s brow furrowed tightly. Her gaze fell upon a distant figure, its fluttering crimson robes inexplicably calming her. She stepped past Nian Nian and walked toward the figure.

Seeing this, Nian Nian frowned and called out,
“Professor Si…”

Nian Nian’s outstretched hand failed to stop Si Wan. Instead, Guan Yue pulled her into an embrace, pointing excitedly at the bloodied figure crawling toward them, her fear overshadowed by fascination.
“Just like in those movies, yes, a blood corpse! Oh right, are you going to take it back for research? I’d like to see it too.”

Nian Nian sighed helplessly at Guan Yue’s enthusiasm. Glancing at the crawling figure, she replied,
“I’m afraid not. Even forensic experts can’t dissect a living person.”

Hearing that the person was still alive, Guan Yue clung even tighter to Nian Nian, more frightened than when she thought she’d seen a “blood corpse.”
“It would be better if they were dead.”

As Si Wan walked forward, she paid no attention to the ground beneath her and accidentally stepped on the crawling person’s hand. The sickening crunch of breaking bones sent chills down everyone’s spine.

Si Wan’s gaze remained fixed on the figure in red. Without looking back, she spoke indifferently,
“My apologies.”

The person on the ground was too weak to utter a curse, only able to watch helplessly as Si Wan came to a stop.

Suddenly, a figure threw itself into Si Wan’s arms. The playful glint in its eyes vanished, replaced by a tone of grievance that tugged at the heartstrings.
“Si Wan, that old Taoist priest bullied me.”

Hearing Sheng Zhen’s words, a shadow flickered in Si Wan’s eyes, revealing a deeply concealed murderous intent. An unconscious aura of oppression emanated from her, chilling to the bone. The scholarly demeanor masked by her gold-rimmed glasses was replaced by the fierce aura of a battlefield.

No longer caring whether anyone might see, Si Wan wrapped her arms around the other, feeling the cold emanating from them. Only then did she relax, soothing softly,
“Don’t be afraid, Nan’an. I’m here.”

Something flickered in Sheng Zhen’s eyes as she buried her face deeper into Si Wan’s shoulder, muffling a soft “Mm” in response.

“Who bullied you?” Si Wan spoke gently, as if afraid of startling her.

Sheng Zhen pursed her lips and replied unhappily.

“Old Taoist, come here.”

The last two words weren’t directed at Si Wan. After the commanding tone, Sheng Zhen moved her hand slightly, as if tugging on something.

The next moment, the sound of a heavy object being dragged across the ground echoed, drawing Si Wan’s gaze.

A man bound with ropes lay on the floor, the other end of which was held firmly by Sheng Zhen. Forcibly dragged over, he knelt trembling before them, his hunched body shaking slightly. His graying hair was disheveled, and his clothes were stained with blood of unknown origin.

The two women looked down at him, studying him carefully for a moment. Suddenly, the man lifted his head. A crooked yellow talisman covered half of his face, while the exposed half revealed eyes gleaming with unsettling excitement and fervor.

“It… it…”

His aged voice was incoherent, his murky eyes fixed intently on Sheng Zhen, who was being held by Si Wan. His madness was terrifying.

“Please, sell her to me…”

Hearing his words, Si Wan’s expression turned icy. As the man stretched out his bloodstained hands, trying to approach, she immediately kicked him away.

The merciless force sent him flying over half a meter away.

Though wracked with pain, the old Taoist continued to stare fixedly at the two, his frenzied gaze treating Sheng Zhen as if she were already his possession.

“Please, I’m dying. Only a thousand-year-old ghost can help me attain immortality and enjoy endless life.”

“Superstitious nonsense,” Si Wan said coldly, though her arms tightened protectively around Sheng Zhen.

Just then, Guan Yue and Nian Nian, having finished dealing with the bloodied man, approached. Guan Yue asked in confusion, “Si Wan, who are you talking to?”

Only after speaking did Guan Yue step closer and notice the deranged old Taoist on the ground. With a tone of displeasure, she remarked, “Another one? How dare you attempt tomb robbery right under everyone’s noses? Don’t think your age will exempt you from legal consequences.”

Nian Nian calmly crouched down to examine the old Taoist. He had several arrow wounds, though they were less severe than those of the bloodied man, Liu Jin. However, due to his frail and elderly condition, his breathing was shallow and labored, it seemed unlikely he would survive being taken out of the ancient tomb and sent to a hospital.

After her examination, Nian Nian frowned briefly, then reached out and peeled off the unknown yellow paper stuck to the old Taoist’s forehead. The crude and abstract drawing on it was clearly not the work of the same person who had created the talismans they had seen earlier.

“What is this? It’s so poorly drawn, it can’t be from the same person as before.”

Si Wan and Guan Yue looked over. The familiar drawing on the yellow paper was unmistakable. Instead of answering, Si Wan glanced at Sheng Zhen, the instigator of the situation.

But Guan Yue, upon seeing it, quickly stepped forward and snatched the paper from Nian Nian’s hand. Her face flushed with embarrassment as she spoke awkwardly, “What do you mean, poorly drawn? I just doodled it. It wasn’t meant for you to see anyway.”

It was the yellow paper Guan Yue had hastily drawn and slipped into the bag when she brought Si Wan a new pair of gold-rimmed glasses. Coincidentally, Sheng Zhen had taken it and stuck it on the old Taoist’s forehead.

Before Guan Yue could hide the paper, Nian Nian spoke thoughtfully, “Why is your thing here?”

Nian Nian’s question made Guan Yue freeze mid-action, her gaze shifting toward Si Wan.

Si Wan stepped forward, steering the conversation away from Guan Yue. “Right now, the priority is getting these two out. Any later, and we won’t be sending them to the hospital, we’ll be sending them to the medical examiner.”

Reluctantly acknowledging the urgency of the situation, Nian Nian had no choice but to set aside her curiosity about the yellow paper.

The group worked through the night to drag the trespassers out of the tomb. The old Taoist, already on the brink of death, babbled incoherently before losing consciousness from blood loss. By the time they reached the hospital, his body had gone cold.

Later, due to the night’s unexpected events, Si Wan and Guan Yue decided to give everyone a full day off to rest.

Unable to sleep, Si Wan sat in front of her computer, scrolling through the artifacts recently excavated from Sheng Zhen’s tomb. Each item stirred a strange sense of familiarity within her.

Sheng Zhen, pained to see Si Wan neglecting her rest, drifted over and blocked the computer screen. Cupping Si Wan’s face, she frowned and said, “Rest. You’re exhausted, why must you always worry me like this?”

Her concern felt hauntingly familiar, as if Si Wan had experienced it before.

Snapping back to reality, Si Wan shook her head gently. “I’m not tired yet.”

Si Wan was human, and Sheng Zhen despised how she never seemed to treat herself as one.

A flicker of displeasure crossed Sheng Zhen’s eyes as she leaned in closer. Her cold aura enveloped Si Wan, and her breathtakingly beautiful face filled Si Wan’s vision, making it impossible to look away, as if her entire world had narrowed to Sheng Zhen alone.

Feeling her cheeks warm, Si Wan tried to turn her head to hide her reaction, but Sheng Zhen’s grip tightened, leaving her no room to retreat.

Before Si Wan could gather her thoughts, cool, soft lips pressed against hers. The chill radiating from Sheng Zhen did nothing to cool the heat rising in Si Wan’s face.

Logically, Si Wan knew this was wrong, but the intensity in Sheng Zhen’s downcast eyes paralyzed her, shattering her resolve and pulling her deeper into the moment, like sinking into quicksand, unable to resist.

Outside, the rustling of leaves in the gentle breeze only added to the chaos in Si Wan’s mind.

Sitting stiffly in her chair, Si Wan kept her eyes lowered, not daring to look at Sheng Zhen or acknowledge the way Sheng Zhen was toying with a strand of her hair.

After a long while, the blush on Si Wan’s face faded slightly. Breaking the silence, she spoke words that made Sheng Zhen pause. “This isn’t right.”

As her thoughts cleared, Si Wan grew more certain of it.

Not only was Sheng Zhen a female ghost, but she also had someone she loved, someone who had died a thousand years ago, someone who shared Si Wan’s name but was not her.

Sheng Zhen narrowed her eyes, her demeanor unconsciously regal, like an emperor looking down upon an ant. “What isn’t right?” she asked patiently.

Struggling to ignore the lingering sensation on her lips, Si Wan replied, “You have someone you love. You can’t just kiss me like that.”

Her words were rational, yet she still couldn’t bring herself to meet Sheng Zhen’s gaze.

Sheng Zhen studied Si Wan for a moment, as if seeing someone else through her face, then sighed and let out a soft, cold laugh. Her fingers, which had been playing with Si Wan’s hair, now lightly tapped Si Wan’s chest. “Are you going to be the heartless one now?”

Hearing Sheng Zhen’s words, Si Wan was somewhat bewildered, as if she couldn’t quite grasp why Sheng Zhen would say such a thing.

“I saw it,” Si Wan spoke up.

“What?” Sheng Zhen responded.

Si Wan pressed her lips together slightly, then lifted her gaze to meet Sheng Zhen’s eyes. A ripple of emotion stirred in her eyes, and as she spoke, she felt her throat dry and uncomfortable.

“The person you like, I saw them in my dream.”

…