Although there were some minor incidents involving "cat poop" and "getting into bed," Xu Gui still managed to gain the trust of Grandpa Jiang.
"...Although your calculations aren't very accurate," Grandpa Jiang coughed lightly, glancing at Xu Gui, and said, "But since you're Xiaoxia, I'll take you there to see."
Hearing this, Xu Gui humbly asked, "Was it because the two things I mentioned weren't interesting enough? Well, I also calculated other things, I can tell you about them..."—Her expertise was definitely not a problem.
"Cough cough cough!" Grandpa Jiang suddenly coughed loudly.
Fu Xia turned her head to suppress her laughter, then straightened her expression and turned back, saying seriously, "We don't know what's going on with Grandpa Li's grandson yet, let's go over there first...right, Grandpa Jiang?"
Grandpa Jiang, who had been clutching his chest and bending over coughing, suddenly straightened up again.
"You talk too much," he said to Fu Xia without looking at Xu Gui, "Then let's go now."
With that, the old man took the lead, while everyone in Xu Gui's livestream was practically dying of laughter:
[Grandpa Jiang: I hate people who can't read the room!!]
[Grandpa Jiang: Speak up for me! This unscrupulous streamer is abusing the elderly!]
[I'm dying of laughter, you guys are so talented! I think Grandpa Jiang's face turned green, but Xu Gui still has that "I definitely didn't miscalculate" look on his face. If Grandpa Jiang hadn't coughed in time, he might have embarrassed himself again.]
[Okay, now over five million people know that Grandpa Jiang ate cat poop and had his bedmate crawl into his bed. He probably thought Xu Gui was a novice, but he's a master, exposing his shortcomings right away.]
[Wow, there are already over five million viewers in the livestream? Our Gui Gui is a top influencer now!]
…
Amidst the heated discussions in the livestream, Xu Gui and the others followed Grandpa Jiang to Grandpa Li's house.
With Yuan Lu's subtle reminder, Xu Gui finally realized that Grandpa Jiang wasn't questioning her professionalism; he was simply too ashamed to admit to all the embarrassing things he'd done.
Upon hearing this, Xu Gui exclaimed, "I knew it! I would never be wrong!"
She quickly caught up with Grandpa Jiang, whose back looked somewhat disheveled, and asked him about the situation of Grandpa Li's grandson. He said he was possessed, but what exactly was the possession?
"Isn't he really sick?" Xu Gui asked.
Grandpa Jiang shook his head, saying, "It doesn't look like it. What illness would make someone cry and laugh at the same time, or eat raw meat from the refrigerator in the middle of the night? You didn't see the child's condition. Sigh, a perfectly healthy child, and now he doesn't recognize anyone. His voice is so high-pitched. What else could this be but possession?"
Fu Xia looked at Xu Gui and asked, "Could it be schizophrenia?"
She had watched Xu Gui's live streams and remembered one episode where a boy developed schizophrenia, with a female personality splitting into his body, hence the woman's voice.
So, perhaps Grandpa Li's grandson was in a similar situation?
Hearing this, Grandpa Jiang said uncertainly, "It shouldn't be, right? Old Li took the child to see a doctor, but they couldn't find anything wrong... Actually, when the child is normal, he's quite normal, it's just that he occasionally goes crazy, urinating and defecating indiscriminately. Schizophrenia wouldn't cause this, would it?"
Fu Xia: "...Urinating and defecating indiscriminately." This certainly doesn't seem like schizophrenia.
"I heard from Old Li that his wife suspects his eldest grandson is possessed by chicken essence!" Grandpa Jiang said softly.
Fu Xia subconsciously asked, "Can chicken essence possess someone? Isn't that just a seasoning?"
Grandpa Jiang rolled his eyes at her, annoyed, and said, "I'm talking about roosters and hens that have become spirits, demons, not chicken essence seasoning!"
"..." Fu Xia smiled awkwardly and said, "Haha, I see."
Fu Xia then asked, "Then why do you say he's possessed by chicken essence?"
Grandpa Jiang explained, "Because that child crows loudly at their door every morning... I think what's possessing him isn't an old hen, but one of those big roosters that crow in the morning!"
Hearing this, Fu Xia couldn't help but look at Xu Gui and asked, "Do you have any thoughts?"
Xu Gui shook his head: "I'll only know after seeing the child's condition, but... I did some calculations with Grandpa Jiang, but I didn't find anything about his friend's grandson having any strange illness."
Xu Gui was puzzled.
Hearing this, Fu Xia's focus was on something else. She asked in surprise, "You could even calculate that? Grandpa Jiang and Grandpa Li's grandsons aren't related at all."
These are two unrelated people!
"How could they not be related?" Xu Gui said. "There's Grandpa Li involved…"
Grandpa Li was Grandpa Jiang's best friend, and Grandpa Li's grandson was the grandson of Grandpa Jiang's best friend. Naturally, a connection existed between them, albeit a weak one. Xu Gui could still deduce a little something from this connection.
Fu Xia: "So, you can also use my connections to predict my friends, my parents, my teachers?"
Xu Gui nodded. Fu
Xia couldn't help but exclaim, "Xu Gui, you're amazing!"
Her praise was genuine. Xu Gui tried to be humble, but couldn't help showing a hint of pride. She said, "It's alright, this is my livelihood after all!"
She was a Xuan Turtle; if she wasn't good at fortune-telling, she'd probably be expelled from the Xuan Turtle clan, just like that oddball Gui Ling. She was a Xuan Turtle, but Gui Ling couldn't tell fortunes, and the Third Elder almost mistook her for a turtle from another clan.
Xu Gui's thoughts drifted a little, but not for long, because they had already arrived at the Li family's house.
Although the houses in Peony Garden are all detached, their styles differ, some Chinese, some Western. The Li family's house is a Chinese-style dwelling, with a classic and elegant appearance.
Grandpa Jiang and Grandpa Li knew each other well, so he was familiar with the Li family's place.
A member of the Li family opened the door and led Xu Gui and the others inside. Grandpa Jiang asked, "How is Old Li? Is he home?"
The maid nodded, "Yes, he's upstairs with Xiao Hao."
Xiao Hao was Grandpa Li's grandson, Li Zihao.
Hearing his name, Grandpa Jiang couldn't help but ask, "Xiao Hao, how is he? Hasn't he gotten better?"
The maid shook her head with a worried expression, saying, "No, he just had a scene, crying and laughing, pointing at his mother and saying she's a monster, and then giggling..."
The scene was probably a bit strange and eerie, because as the maid spoke, she couldn't help but rub her arms, and you could see goosebumps on her skin.
Grandpa Jiang couldn't help but sigh.
The viewers in the live stream couldn't help but discuss:
[Judging from what the maid said, could this family's child really be possessed?]
[Prosperity, democracy, and harmony; feudal superstition, retreat! I believe in science! I don't believe in feudal superstition!]
[You've all watched Xu Gui's fortune telling, and you still believe in science? I think out of the more than six million people in this live stream, not a single one truly believes in science.]
[Hey, didn't you see Xu Gui's fortune-telling banner? It says "scientific fortune-telling" on it, how can this not be scientific?]
[Hehe, why don't you guys say that metaphysics is also a kind of science, right?]
[I'm more inclined to think that the child is sick rather than possessed. Wasn't that Wang Xingxing before? Look at what his family said, like he turned into a woman and spoke in a woman's voice. In the end, it was proven that he was sick. So, I also tend to think that the child is sick, it's just that this family doesn't understand.]
[Let's see what Xu Gui has to say.]
*
Xu Gui and the others were sitting in the Li family's living room. The servants brought them drinks. After Xu Gui took a couple of sips of the frozen juice and commented that the juice didn't taste as good as the lychee soup that Lu Baiyi cooked, someone finally came over.
"Old Jiang..."
"Old Li!"
The two old men, Jiang and Li, greeted each other. Then, looking at his friend's gray hair, Grandpa Jiang said with a touch of sadness, "Old Li, you look like you've aged quite a bit."
Grandpa Li, feeling a pang of heartache upon seeing him, was speechless .
Grandpa Jiang asked him, "How is your grandson's health now? Is it any better than before?"
Speaking of his grandson, Grandpa Li's face darkened. He sighed, shook his head at his friend, and said with a bitter smile, "No, it seems even worse than before. When he's well, he's perfectly fine, like a normal person, but when he gets sick, he doesn't recognize anyone."
The old man's eyes reddened as he spoke.
Hearing this, Grandpa Jiang couldn't help but sigh for him and asked again, "What's wrong with this child? Is he really possessed?"
Grandpa Li said, "I don't know. The doctor can't figure it out either. He said his mental and physical condition is very good... Is that what you call very good?" His voice rose slightly at the end.
Grandpa Jiang told him to calm down, and continued, "These days, doctors are all quacks."
He then sat down with Grandpa Li and asked, "So, what are you planning to do now? You can't just let the child stay like this, can you?"
Grandpa Li whispered, "My wife has a shaman in her hometown who can perform rituals, and we're planning to ask her to take a look. There's also Master Liaowu from Qingcheng Mountain; he's a very powerful person. My son has already gone to ask them."
Grandpa Jiang looked at him and said, "So, you're already completely convinced the child is possessed? You're already asking for help."
Grandpa Li sighed and said, "I don't want to believe it either, but this is just so strange. You think it's only our Xiaohao who's like this? Several of the kids who were with him are like this now."
Grandpa Jiang exclaimed, "Are there other kids too?"
Grandpa Li nodded and whispered, "The kids who were close to Xiaohao, the He family, the Lin family, several of them, all got into trouble. I heard that the Lin family kid started barking like a dog, and even wanted to eat feces. If his parents hadn't found out, he really would have eaten it."
In comparison, their Xiaohao only ate raw meat, which seemed healthy and normal.
Hearing about eating feces, Grandpa Jiang said, "Ugh..." He couldn't help but feel disgusted, after all, it was too disgusting.
"It's a good thing he didn't eat it," he muttered, otherwise, when the child recovered, thinking about this, he would probably want to die.
Grandpa Li said, "So, look at their condition, what else could it be but possession?"
Grandpa Jiang nodded and said, "They're not quite normal..."
Grandpa Li looked at him and said, "Did you come here today specifically to ask me about Xiao Hao?"
Hearing this, Grandpa Jiang remembered the purpose of his visit. He slapped his forehead and said, "Look at me, I forgot..." He turned his head and saw Xu Gui and the others sitting close to him, listening intently.
Even the cameraman couldn't help but lean in with his camera, listening very carefully.
Grandpa Jiang: "..."
Grandpa Li glanced at him and smiled, saying, "I was just about to ask, these people, and this thing..."
He pointed to the camera on Yang Haolin's body, "What are they doing?"
Grandpa Jiang coughed lightly and said, "This is Xiao Xia from Fu Jun's family, and these are her friends... Especially this one, Xu Gui, Master Xu, she's someone I specially invited to save your Xiao Hao." Grandpa Li
looked at Xu Gui, then at his friend: "Master, her?"
Grandpa Jiang nodded: "That's her."
Grandpa Li's expression became somewhat subtle.
Grandpa Jiang said, "Don't let Master Xu's young appearance fool you. In their line of work, talent is sometimes more important than age. Miss Xu is a very talented person; she's quite famous online, a true master."
Sitting to the side, Fu Xia, with a demure expression, thought: "These words sound so familiar! "
Grandpa Li glanced at Xu Gui again and said to his friend, "Old Jiang, I know what you mean, but our Yu Xing has already gone to see a master, so let's not trouble this Master Xu, shall we?"
Grandpa Jiang scoffed, "What are you saying? Would I lie to you? If Miss Xu wasn't truly capable, why would I introduce her to you?"
Grandpa Li: That's true.
He couldn't help but glance at Xu Gui again.
"Just let Master Xu give it a try," Grandpa Jiang said again.
Hearing this, Grandpa Li thought for a moment and said, "Then, let's give it a try?"
Hearing this, Grandpa Jiang was delighted and said, "Trust me, Master Xu is truly amazing, otherwise I wouldn't dare bring her here."
His current confident demeanor completely betrayed his previous dismissive and casual attitude towards Xu Gui.
Hearing this, Grandpa Li finally gave Xu Gui a proper look, carefully examining her, but no matter how he looked, he couldn't see anything special about her.
However, since his friend had said so…
"Then, would you please trouble Master Xu to take a look at my grandson?" Grandpa Li said.
Xu Gui readily nodded, "Sure."
Hearing this, Grandpa Li stood up and said, "Then I'll take you to my grandson's room. He caused a scene today and is sleeping now. His mother and grandmother are with him."
Xu Gui and the others followed Grandpa Li. Fu Xia approached Xu Gui and whispered, "Xu Gui, have you figured out what's wrong with Grandpa Li's grandson?"
"…" Xu Gui nodded with a subtle expression.
Fu Xia asked, "Then is he really possessed?"
Xu Gui's lips twitched slightly, and she shook her head, saying, "No."
"Huh?" Fu Xia looked at her in surprise, "No? But several children are like this, and one child is even eating feces. Isn't that possession?"
Xu Gui still shook her head, "Really, no."
Hearing this, Fu Xia was genuinely puzzled. "If it's not possession, then what is it? Is it really an illness? But several children are like this, could it be an infectious disease?" Seeing her
wild guesses, Xu Gui simply said, "Don't think about it anymore. Anyway, it's not what you think."
Fu Xia: "The more you say that, the more curious I become."
...
The group followed Grandpa Li to Li Zihao's room.
As mentioned before, Li Zihao's mother and grandmother were both in the room, so Xu Gui and the others saw them as soon as they entered. Grandma Li looked kind and loving, and Li's mother was elegant and beautiful, but both of them looked unwell and slightly tired, perhaps because the child was unwell.
Seeing Grandpa Li return with so many people behind him, Grandma Li looked at him questioningly.
Grandpa Li naturally introduced them first. Yang Haolin moved his camera away, but after asking the Li family's opinion and hearing that they didn't mind, he moved the camera back.
Grandma Li was very kind to Xu Gui and didn't say anything questioning, only saying, "I'll trouble Master Xu to take care of my grandson... He's such a young child, suffering like this at such a young age, it breaks our hearts to see him like this."
Xu Gui's expression couldn't help but be a little strange upon hearing this.
She walked to the bedside and looked at the child lying there. Babies sleep a lot, and even with so many of them speaking in hushed tones, it was still a bit noisy, but they managed not to wake anyone. The child's little face was rosy and chubby, and he looked very healthy.
Fu Xia looked him over and whispered, "Judging from this, the child seems fine."
He looked even healthier than most children, with abundant and vigorous blood and energy; he looked perfectly healthy.
"Well, Master, what's wrong with my Xiao Hao?" Li's mother approached, her brows furrowed with worry. "I heard that several of the children he plays with are like him."
She hadn't believed in possession by evil spirits, but if it wasn't possession, how could she explain what was happening to her child?
She asked Xu Gui, "Can my Xiao Hao's illness be cured?"
Xu Gui nodded, "Yes, it can be cured. Don't worry, he's not possessed, he's just sick."
"Sick?"
"Not possessed?"
the Li family said in surprise, then saw Xu Gui nod very firmly, "That's right, he's not possessed, he's just sick."
The Li family exchanged glances, and Grandpa Li asked, "Is this illness easy to cure?"
Xu Gui smiled and said, "It's very easy to cure... First, you should wake the child up."
Li's mother said, "But he just fell asleep, and he was restless all night. Can't we let him sleep a little longer?"
Xu Gui said, "...It's not impossible."
Grandpa Li looked at Xu Gui and asked, "How about we go downstairs for some tea? Our pastry chef is very skilled at making pastries."
Since the family had said so, Xu Gui naturally had no objections.
The group went downstairs and sat down in the garden. A breeze made it less hot. After Xu Gui and the others were seated, the Li family's servants brought out refreshments and fruit. Grandpa Li looked at Xu Gui and tentatively asked,
"I heard Miss Xu is quite famous online?"
Xu Gui replied uncertainly, "I guess so? I have ten million followers online."
"Ten million?" Grandpa Li exclaimed in surprise.
Xu Gui nodded and said, "My main profession is fortune telling, and my side job is being a celebrity." Both professions are very lucrative; she's truly a genius.
"Fortune telling?" Grandpa Li was bewildered. "A celebrity?" Wait, can those two things be combined?
Xu Gui nodded.
Grandpa Li's expression was strange. He spoke softly, "Let me ask, what exactly is wrong with my grandson? Miss Xu, you said he's sick, but what kind of illness is it? Is it difficult to treat?"
Xu Gui shook her head, sincerely saying, "Actually, this illness is quite easy to treat."
Grandpa Li smiled, seemingly casually asking, "Then, if Miss Xu were to treat my grandson's illness, how much would it cost to cure him?"
Hearing this, Xu Gui thought for a moment, then said with some heartache, "How about five thousand?"
Grandpa Li's expression immediately changed: "Fifty million?"
He looked at Xu Gui coldly, a sense of oppression emanating from her, and said coldly, "Miss Xu, this is an outrageous demand!"
Xu Gui: ?
"No, I meant five thousand!" she said.
"..." Now, it was Grandpa Li who remained silent, his cold expression crumbling. "Five, five thousand yuan."
Hearing Xu Gui's words, Fu Xia couldn't help but turn to look at her, her expression full of surprise. After Grandpa Li and Grandpa Jiang left, she pulled Xu Gui aside and whispered, "Why are you charging so little?"
Xu Gui had already asked for three million yuan for Qiao Xinyue's mother's matter.
Hearing this, Xu Gui sighed and said in a deep voice, "You don't understand. If I charge too much, I feel a little guilty."
Fu Xia: ???
Meanwhile, Grandpa Li pulled Grandpa Jiang aside and whispered to him.
"Are you sure this Master Xu isn't a fraud?" he asked Grandpa Jiang—it's no wonder he was suspicious; he really felt that this Master Xu didn't seem reliable at all.
Being young was one thing, but charging such a low price was another, and most importantly, he was a celebrity, and so beautiful... Fortune telling and celebrities, how could they be related?
Anyway, in Grandpa Li's eyes, this so-called Master Xu was clearly a fraud.
Grandpa Jiang reiterated, "If she were a fraud, would I have the nerve to introduce her to you? Don't worry, she's really capable. Besides, she was introduced to me by Fu Xia, and you know that girl, she's very reliable."
Grandpa Li scoffed, "Maybe she's the one who fooled Fu Xia? Fu Xia is young and inexperienced; a few sweet words from someone can easily win her over."
"Fu Xia is young and easily fooled, but I'm not young anymore, am I?" Grandpa Jiang retorted.
Grandpa Li looked at him and whispered, "Maybe you're getting senile?"
Grandpa Jiang: !!
He glared angrily at him, and Grandpa Li quickly said, "Haha, just kidding, I'm just joking with you."
Grandpa Jiang was indignant. He turned to see that Grandpa Li seemed very suspicious of Xu Gui, and after thinking for a moment, he revealed a little information.
"Don't worry, I tested her before bringing her to you. I had her do my fortune telling." He was too embarrassed to talk about the shameful things, so he could only mumble, "I... well, I encountered some problems before that I've never told anyone, but she figured them all out for me."
"So, she's definitely reliable, probably better than any of those sorcerers or masters you go to."
Grandpa Li glanced at him sideways. "You have so much faith in her, are you sure no one knows about those things?"
Grandpa Jiang was certain: "Definitely no one knows!"
After all, they were shameful things; how could he dare tell anyone? The fact that the maid crawled into his bed might have been spread by the other servants, but no one would know about him drinking cat food or that stuff. He was certain he hadn't told anyone.
Seeing his friend's unwavering confidence, Grandpa Li frowned slightly and sighed, "Alright, since you put it that way, I'll trust her one more time... I'm only doing this for your sake. If I get fooled, just wait and see how I laugh at you later."
Grandpa Jiang, however, was very confident: "Don't worry!"
The two old men whispered amongst themselves for a while, then returned, their expressions perfectly normal, showing no trace of the quiet chatter they had just exchanged about Xu Gui.
Grandpa Li, all smiles, even invited Xu Gui and the others to have some snacks and tea.