If the child has been to Lingyun Taoist Temple and eaten the flesh of the Taisui there, it would indicate that the Taisui in the rice jar and the one in the Taoist temple should be of the same kind.
"I don't know about that!"
The witch Dong was taken aback for a moment, her eyes lit up, and she showed an expression of sudden realization.
"But now that you mention it, I really think it's possible. Didn't this thing come out of the child's mouth? It must have eaten something dirty. Let me call and ask right now!"
She pulled out her phone from her pocket, squinting as she tapped on the screen, finding the relative's number and dialing it.
"Hello, dear brother, I've found a master for you to take a look at your child's issue... we're all family, so no need to stand on ceremony..."
"The master asked if the child had eaten anything dirty... oh, oh, I see..."
"Okay, don't worry, I'll ask about it right away."
The witch Dong put down the phone and looked at Lu Fei with a bit of embarrassment.
"Mr. Lu, it's hard to explain over the phone. They want to invite you to see the child. Could you please make a trip? They are waiting for you at home."
"No problem, I'll go right now."
Lu Fei got up readily and asked Hu Zi to pack things immediately.
"That's wonderful!" Mrs. Dong was both surprised and delighted, "I was worried that I wouldn't be able to invite you, but I didn't expect Mr. Lu to be so approachable."
"Aunt Dong, you're being too formal. We are all people of the mystical world; there's no need to stand on ceremony," Lu Fei said with a smile, "Besides, our Sinisterium Pawnshop is in the business of dealing with evil objects. When business comes knocking, shouldn't we pay extra attention?"
"I had no idea your Sinisterium Pawnshop was so good!"
Mrs. Dong looked Lu Fei up and down, her eyes full of admiration.
"It's rare to find a young man as outstanding and honest as Mr. Lu, not to mention how handsome and neat he is."
"Hey, Mr. Lu, you don't have a partner yet, do you? Do you want Aunt Dong to set you up with someone?"
"When Aunt Dong has free time, she also acts as a matchmaker and knows many beautiful girls. How about..."
She enthusiastically took out her phone.
"Aunt Dong, everything is ready. Let's get down to business first." Lu Fei was at a loss between laughter and tears, and he quickly changed the subject.
"Oh, right, we should focus on the business at hand. Look at my forgetfulness."
Then, Lu Fei had Hu Zi take the rice jar and drove to Aunt Dong's relative's house.
The family lived in an old residential area.
They appeared to be of average means, not wealthy by any stretch of the imagination.
"Eating a piece of Taisui meat from Lingyun Temple costs at least six figures. This family couldn't afford it." Standing in the dimly lit hallway and looking around at the worn and aged walls, Lu Fei shook his head.
Could it just be a coincidence that the two objects look similar?
Or, could it be that the Taisui from Lingyun Temple is beneficial to people, while the one in the rice jar is an evil Taisui?
"Brother, open the door quickly. I've brought the person for you."
Dong Shenpo knocked on the door.
An elderly couple, around sixty years old, respectfully invited the three of them in.
The interior decoration of the house was quite old, and could even be described as somewhat simple. However, it seemed to have been recently tidied up and cleaned, as the floor was not completely dry yet.
"Master, Sister Dong, please have some tea!"
The old woman poured tea for them.
"Sister-in-law, when I saw you a few days ago, you didn't have so many white hairs. You are only fifty years old..." Dong Shenpo held the old woman's hand, her face full of sympathy.
"No matter what, since this has happened, you must try to be more open-minded."
"Zhigao is gone, and there's no meaning in my life now. If it weren't for the need to take care of my elderly mother, I would really want to follow Zhigao," the old woman said, shaking her head numbly.
"Don't say such discouraging words! Zhigao was a good child and definitely wouldn't want to see you like this. You both need to stay strong," Dong Shenpo encouraged.
"All we want now is to get to the bottom of this. Otherwise, if Zhigao's death remains unclear, we will never be at peace for the rest of our lives."
The couple's hair was completely white, and they looked old and haggard.
"There's definitely no problem; I've invited a top expert for you! Don't look at how young Manager Lu is; he's one of the best masters in our line of work." Fortune-teller Dong gave a thumbs up.
Zhao Hao's father asked in a low voice, "Compared to you?"
"I'm not even qualified to compare with him!" Fortune-teller Dong said emphatically, "Brother, you can rest assured! I watched Zhao Hao grow up; I wouldn't deceive you, would I?"
"Good, good, Xiuhua, you've gone through so much trouble!" Zhao Hao's father forced a smile and respectfully bowed to Lu Fei, "Manager Lu, if you can find out how my son Zhao Hao died, we will be grateful to you for life."
"Uncle, you're too kind. This is simply part of my duty," Lu Fei supported him, "Where is the child? Let me take a look first."
"In the room."
Zhao Hao's mother quickly pushed open the bedroom door, and a cold draft immediately hit them.
In the bedroom, where the bed should have been, there was a chilling ice coffin.
Inside the ice coffin lay a young man around twenty years old, thin in stature, with his ashen skin covered in frost.
The cold air made the temperature in the room drop significantly.
"We paid for this ice coffin, and until we understand what happened to our child, we will not let him be buried."
Zhihao's mother wiped the surface of the ice coffin with her sleeve, gazing deeply at her lifeless son inside, a faint glimmer of hope still lingering in her dim eyes.
"What if, what if he could come back to life?"
The person was thoroughly dead, how could he possibly come back to life?
The shaman Dong sighed deeply, but she didn't try to persuade them, knowing it was futile at such a time.
"Hold on a moment."
Lu Fei walked up to the ice coffin and examined the body inside carefully.
Although the body was covered with frost, and the cold air in the ice coffin enveloped it like a white mist, the body looked extremely emaciated, like a mummy.
The skin clung tightly to the bones, as if all the moisture in the body had been drained away.
Originally, having a corpse at home was a terrifying thing, but all Lu Fei saw now was desolation.
The hearts of parents all over the world are truly pitiable.
"The body had lost its moisture, and that piece of flesh, suspected to be a too-sui, needed water."
"It seems that it wasn't the corpse coming back to life, but rather that the flesh inside the body, which lacked water, was searching for water."
"The child's thirst was also because that piece of flesh required a large amount of water."
Withdrawing his gaze, Lu Fei stated his conjecture.
"I knew it was that strange thing causing the trouble! But what exactly is that thing?" Zhihao's parents exchanged a glance, glaring at the rice jar on the table with hatred.
Lu Fei asked, "Have you two eaten anything special, or been to any particular places, before the child fell ill?"
"He usually goes to school and returns home on weekends. This child has always been very sensible, knowing that the family's financial situation is not good. He eats in the cafeteria during weekdays and at home on weekends, never spending money recklessly outside. How could he have eaten something so dirty?"
Zhihao's mother, with a face full of sorrow, simply couldn't believe it.
Zhikang's father thought hard and suddenly said, "He went to a mountain with his classmates before, doing volunteer work picking up trash. I wonder if it has anything to do with it?"