64 Staying Awake in the Dark

Ming Cheng got changed behind the privacy screen quickly enough, as soon as he was warm enough and his tiny fingers were no longer shivering and slightly blue.

He then burrowed under the blankets of the bed afterwards and rolled around a bit, rubbing his arms with his hands to try and warm himself up again to try and heat up.

The ghost was facing away from Ming Cheng the entire time. She looked directly at the door, her fists clenching and unclenching sporadically and every now and then. Her fingers also twitched whenever her hands were lax, only done slightly and less often than the other actions that she took.

Ming Cheng was sure that her face was moving as well as she kept on staring at the door.

She looked angry, but Ming Cheng wasn't quite sure why.

Even if the ghost didn't know that Ming Cheng could hear every single word that she said, surely she wouldn't take too much offense to being told to keep safe.

It was a kind thing to say and something that shouldn't particularly invite annoyance.

After all, Ming Cheng couldn't just come out and say that she needed to stop talking or making any noise as long as she wasn't in his direct sight so he could figure out if the voices that he was hearing came from the outside world or was from her.

At least now he knew how she screamed and cried so he could recognise it at a later date if needed.

"Ming Cheng, I will keep you safe. I need to keep you safe. You have a difficult and dangerous life up ahead, and I need to know that you will survive it and succeed," the ghost eventually told Ming Cheng, her voice low and serious, tinged with a hint of anger as well.

The tone was something serious that Ming Cheng had heard almost too many times coming out of the mouths of those larger than him, often making threats and demanding that work be done for them if Ming Cheng did not want to suffer any sort of unknown and horrific pain.

He was far too used to threats in that tone of voice to instinctively understand what the ghost was saying to him.

Repeating her statement again in his mind, Ming Cheng finally understood and realised that he was being threatened and forced into living a good comfortable life and was being warned of the future.

Did the ghost threaten him into letting her take care of him?

The future...

Did the ghost possess some sort of untold and mystical knowledge?

Was she a seer or someone with prophetic powers before she passed away?

Oh.

The ghost, in her own way, cared for Ming Cheng in some capacity.

But why?

Why would a random ghost care for some street boy?

Did she have some sort of connection to Ming Cheng that he had no idea of and that was why she wanted to protect him so and take care of him in the palace?