Strange Tales of the Ghosts

The farmer died in a pile of blood. His house was flipped inside out, yet that Old Master Qian never found the little fox. The little fox disappeared; he even sent his servants into the mountain to look for it, but they found no traces of the little fox.
Time flew, and twenty years later, Pingshan Town was rather prosperous and was more lively than usual as the son of a big household, Young Master Qian, was having his wedding. The Qian Family was wealthy and authorized, they made a relatively big scene for the wedding. They were taking the daughter of another big household in and hung bright red silks and satins on both sides of the streets.
“Congratulations, Old Master Qian,” Wang, the owner of a medicine shop, approached Old Master Qian with his wife and bowed with hands at the front. He passed a big box covered with satin to Old Master Qian, “Just a little token to show my respect.”
“You are too courteous, Owner Wang. Please head in.” Old Master Qian dressed in a silk satin robe, looking moderately luxurious and stylish. It was his son’s wedding day, and he was happy because his daughter-in-law was the Zhou Family’s daughter, whose family owned the biggest shop in town. This alone was enough to make him stay pleased for some time.
The sun was shining bright. Seeing that it was almost time, Qian Dagui casted a glance at his butler, Lai Fu, and whispered, “Why aren’t they here yet?” Of course, Qian Dagui meant why the escort team wasn’t back yet.
Butler Lai Fu had followed Qian Dagui for years, and he had always been cautious with things. He watched their Young Master leave with his own eyes, he couldn’t do anything but smile, “Patience, Old Master, I think Young Master will be arriving soon.”
“He better be on time and not cause me any trouble, or I’ll make you responsible for it!” Qian Dagui swung his sleeve back and continued to welcome the guests.
Time slowly passed, and the Young Master still wasn’t back when it was also the lucky hour. The first person who was worried was Butler Lai Fu. Although he watched the Young Master leave with his own eyes, he wasn’t exactly sure. Their madam passed away at an early age and Old Master Qian only had one son, he certainly sought a good marriage for his son. The Zhou Family’s Young Lady had good looks and high morals, yet their Young Master was dissatisfied. They all said that marriage was a significant matter decided by the parents and matchmaker, this marriage was arranged naturally and the Young Master was forced to accept it. Lai Fu watched the street anxiously. The more he recalled the Young Master’s smile before he left home, the more he grew restless. Old Master Qian spoiled his only son and gave him everything he ever wanted, which caused the Young Master to be selfish and willful. It shouldn’t be a problem if their Young Master couldn’t resist money and beauty like other young masters, but their Young Master was never interested in any girls through all the years up to now, nor did he enjoy drinking with friends outside. Did he plan to…… Lai Fu was terrified at the thought. He was afraid that if his Young Master decided to run away from home, Old Master Qian would probably take his life, or at least skin him alive. Lai Fu had no choice but to send someone to the Zhou Family to see what was happening, yet the escort team returned before the essence stick burnt in half. Everyone crowded over happily at the sight of the escort team, then they realized that the groom was not on the horse after they lit the firecrackers.
“Where is the Young Master?” The bustler quickly asked the matchmaker who went to the Zhou Family together.
The matchmaker avoided eye contact and whispered in response, “He ran away!”
“But…” Lai Fu heard that he ran away and imagined what kind of reactions the Zhou Family would have. He rushed to the palanquin without caring about manners and lifted the curtain up; it was empty. The others saw it at the same time, all the people who were playing music stopped, and Old Master Qian stood by the entrance with his face pale as paper.
“Old Master…” The butler ran to him and lowered his head as he was too scared to say anything else.
Old Master Qian slapped him and urged furiously, “You idiot! Go look for him!”
“I’ll be on my way!” The butler felt like he was brought to life again at Old Master Qian’s words. It was still early; if he could find their Young Master, he would be able to make up for the problem. He gathered all the servants and left together.
Old Master Qian held his cool. His son ran away from the marriage, and it probably agitated the Zhou Family. He didn’t panic and temporarily changed the wedding to his birthday party despite it wasn’t until the eighth of next month. The guests didn’t say anything to save him some face as they had already given him their gifts, they sat down by the tables anyways.
The Qian residence was lively, yet Lai Fu was running around with sweat on his head. He asked whether people saw his Young Master at every single person he met on the street. The Qian Family was a large family and they weren’t strange with the name, but all the villagers said they didn’t see him. The ground was burning hot, Lai Fu wiped off the sweat on his head with his sleeve and ordered the servants, “Young Master must have left the town, but he shouldn’t be far yet. Let’s go after him!”
The servants didn’t dare to procrastinate after the order was given. They all depended on the Qian Family to make a living; if Young Master Qian left, the Old Master would definitely be furious at all of them instead. So, although they were all steaming hot and thirsty, no one dared to slow down.