0p0 Chapter 386: Summoning Ghosts
Chapter 386: Summoning Ghosts
A group of ghosts of varying shapes, shades, and shapes blinked and stared blankly at Lu Xuan.
A middle-aged male ghost in the first row, wearing a torn coarse cloth shirt and trouser legs rolled up to his calves, wiped his nose and looked at her cautiously: "Master, you called us here, are you going to recruit us in batches?"
"Take you in?" Lu Xuan shook his head, "That's not the case."
The ghosts, who were worried and anxious, felt their shoulders drop and breathed a sigh of relief.
But after looking at the ghosts in front of him, Lu Xuan wanted to sigh.
She casually pointed at eight or nine ghosts in the direction of the scene, looked at them with some annoyance, and said, "You guys, this has nothing to do with you, hurry up and leave."
The ghosts that were chosen looked at each other, some happy at first, then wondering if there was something good going on. So one of them asked in confusion, "Master, why did you let us go?"
Lu Xuan pouted and rolled his eyes at him. "I'm looking for a male ghost, not a female one. You female ghosts are getting in the way here, so while I don't want to take you in, get out of here!"
When the female ghosts heard this, they patted their chests, looked at each other, and quickly ran away in a flash of gray smoke.
After the female ghost left, the remaining ghosts were no longer so calm.
She also dismissed twenty or thirty souls who looked too old or too young. In the end, only a few souls remained, with healthy limbs, the right amount of ghostly aura, and appearances that matched those of the craftsmen executed by the Ministry of Works fifteen years ago.
The remaining ghosts trembled, but Lu Xuan pointed at a well-dressed male ghost at the edge and said, "Start with you, count!"
The male ghost had a simple and honest face. He swallowed his saliva, but did not dare to refute. He only said fearfully: "One."
"two!"
"..."
"Thirteen!"
There are only thirteen left?
Lu Xuan folded his arms and began to ask questions.
"The souls I'm summoning today are those who died fifteen years ago. Preferably, they've been wandering around without ever returning to their own graves. I remember there were over a hundred of them, but how come there are only about ten of you now?"
The middle-aged male ghost gave her a somewhat resentful look, but his spirit honestly stepped back and muttered softly, "Aren't you the Shenji Sect recruiting us? And you're asking why there are only a dozen of us left? How can there be so many who meet the requirements for you to recruit?"
Hearing his muttering, Lu Xuan yawned and hooked her finger, and the man's soul suddenly appeared in front of her. "Explain clearly, what do you mean by our Shenji Sect is recruiting? This is the first time I've come here in this life... How could I have been recruiting you all the time?"
The cloth-clothed male ghost also felt aggrieved, "It's not you, it's a left protector from your sect. About a hundred of our brothers have been taken in..."
Left protector?
Lu Xuan choked and suddenly remembered that he was talking about Jiang Yuanfeng.
This man!
In his previous life, he clearly did not touch the ghosts in the mass grave. Why was he so proactive in this life and took the initiative to collect these souls?
Now she had no doubt at all that the souls in the mass grave were not just about whether they were related to the palace affairs that Sun Songnian mentioned, but that they were definitely related!
"The man you are talking about is a traitor and has been expelled, so you should just recognize me as the only one in the Shenji Sect."
Glancing at him, Lu Xuan said, "I'm not here to take you in today, but to help you fulfill your wish so that you can reincarnate soon. However, I also have some questions for you, and I hope I can explain them clearly."
When they heard that Lu Xuan came to send them to reincarnation and even to help them fulfill their wishes, these ghosts changed their previous fear and apprehension and finally showed joy.
"Ask, ask, ask. If you have any questions, we will answer them all!"
"That's right, we'll answer whatever the Sect Master asks!"
"I can't wait to answer the Sect Master's question..."
Lu Xuan laughed in silence.
It turns out that these ghosts who have been trapped for more than ten years just want to fulfill their wishes.
"How did you die before?"
A dozen or so male ghosts looked at each other in bewilderment. None of them expected the sect leader to ask this question.
"We were all recruited by the imperial court to build the palace roads, and then we were buried alive by those unscrupulous officials from the Ministry of Works!"
As soon as the first sentence was answered, the color of these souls turned visibly red.
"Those despicable officials were so shameless when they recruited us. They said that if we signed up and passed the selection, we would not only receive 100 taels of silver immediately, but we would also receive another 100 taels after completing the work in a year or two. When I heard such a high reward, I gave the initial 100 taels to my wife and followed the Minister of Works directly into the palace."
"The palace road was already built, and everyone thought they could go home after receiving their pay. But who would have thought those corrupt officials would actually lead us, along with their soldiers, directly to a mass grave and order us to be buried alive! This is truly outrageous!"
As the leading male ghost spoke, the ghost group had already turned red.
The crowd was filled with outrage and anger.
Lu Xuan nodded, looking at them with a frown in thought: "Then do you still remember what kind of palace way you practiced? Was it because you didn't practice the palace way well, and the emperor was furious and killed, or was there some other reason?"
One ghost couldn't take it anymore, its soul practically aflame. "We were clearly wronged, yet they're still blaming the poorly completed palace tunnel. These people are truly heartless. When it was finished, the Emperor, the Minister of Works, and three other officials all came to see it together, all beaming with joy. The Emperor was clearly very pleased with the tunnel! He even arranged many of the things inside himself, yet they're using this as an excuse to evade rumors outside. It's simply unjust!"
"Yes, it's against the will of heaven!" After hearing this, the other ghosts followed suit.
"The emperor laid out the tunnel himself?" Lu Xuan was skeptical.
"That's right, we were waiting there to distribute the silver, and we heard the Minister of Works say it himself!"
The ghost wiped away his tears as he spoke, "I just feel sorry for my wife. She's been waiting for me to come back for so many years. She cried so much in her early years that now her eyes can't see clearly..."
"Master, you don't know. Before I even got home, my family went to the government office to report the case, thinking we were missing, and asked the authorities to look for us. I originally thought that with so many people buried together, there would definitely be news. But I didn't expect that the officials protected each other, and the government office didn't even mention the fact that we were buried. After searching for a year, they couldn't find us, so the case was dropped. Who would still remember us?"
Lu Xuan listened to their words carefully and nodded continuously, "This matter of yours happens to be the truth of something that this sect master has been trying to find out. I will remember it."
Another cry echoed, "I originally thought that no one would know about us anymore, and no one would know about the injustice of this matter. I didn't expect to meet the Sect Master today. Now I just hope that the Sect Master can redress our grievances, help us get revenge, and get back the justice that belongs to us!"
"Yes! Revenge!"
More than a dozen ghosts raised their hands in response, and the shouts were deafening.
Lu Xuan was also a little angry after hearing this. He bit his lip and nodded, but his eyes were full of determination: "Don't worry, I will remember everything you said. I will avenge you! However, your enemies may not be the officials in the Ministry of Works you think. Because the Minister of Works and the two left and right assistant ministers died before you did. Even the official who buried you alive was also under orders."
The ghosts were a little surprised. The strong male ghost said, "If it's not that dog official, then who is it?!"
Lu Xuan's face was solemn, and he said in a deep voice: "Your real enemy is the emperor!"
"What, Your Majesty?!"
All the ghosts said in unison.
Lu Xuan nodded, "Yes, he was the one who ordered the construction of the palace, and he was also the one who wanted to execute you."
There was a loud thunder above their heads, and these ghosts looked at each other. Everyone knew that even if they were ghosts, if they tried to murder a real dragon, their souls would be torn to pieces, and even the good deeds of their ancestors would be exhausted.
So for a moment, everyone was silent.
Seeing no one responding, Lu Xuan smiled and said, "I've already said before that I, the Sect Master, will avenge you. What's wrong? You don't trust me?"
The red color on the ghosts faded away, and their eyes lit up.
"Will the Sect Master really avenge us?"
"Nonsense! The Sect Master is very capable, of course he has a way to redress our grievances!"
"The Sect Master's word is as good as gold. Why would you resort to the reputation of the Shenji Sect to discredit it?"
"That's right. Even if you're the emperor, you can't take human life so lightly. Doesn't that mean our lives aren't worth living? What's more, we have wives and children who have been bullied for half their lives!"
"..."
After some discussion, a ghost shouted, "We believe in the Sect Master. What does the Sect Master need us to do?"
Lu Xuan smiled and nodded: "Do you still remember the palace path and the entrance? Can you take me to have a look?"
"Of course we all remember the palace path. Just follow us and we'll take you there right away!"
Hearing this, Lu Xuan's arms loosened and her expression instantly brightened. A dozen souls said they would take her over.
Lu Xuan raised his hand and said, "Wait."