Corpse Retriever.

Chapter 16

The cat-faced old lady stared at Li Zhuiyuan in shock.

She couldn't believe that the words just now came out of the mouth of the child in front of her.

Her hands unconsciously let go of the shoulders that she had previously grabbed, and her body took a small step back.

At this moment, she even began to wonder:
Why, compared to him, I am like the little kid who only knows how to throw tantrums?
Myself and him,

Who is the one who is dead?

He spoke confidently and decisively, and he did not stop, he continued:

"For the disabled one, we need to pay attention to the injured part. It is recommended that he be half paralyzed. According to the conditions here, it is impossible to give him a wheelchair, and no one will take time off from work to push him around to relieve his boredom.

After becoming paralyzed, he could only lie in bed, curled up in a dirty mattress, and needed someone to take care of him when he was eating, drinking, defecating, and urinating.

He needs to be able to speak, he needs to be able to cry, and his hands need to be able to pick up things and smash them to vent his anger.

This way, there will be excitement, strong interactivity, and a rich experience.”

The cat-faced old lady nodded, and her hands unconsciously went to smooth out the boy's clothes that had been wrinkled by her earlier. However, her hands were dirty, and she made the boy's clothes even dirtier. She even felt a little cringe because of this.

"The one who got the disease, be careful, it can't be a terminal illness from the beginning.

If it becomes a stubborn disease that recurs repeatedly, you can spend a lot of effort and cost to control it temporarily, but it will never be cured.

The severity of the disease must be controlled so that it cannot be fatal, but can still cause people to suffer excruciating pain.

It is also necessary to control the frequency of the disease. After each cure, let him rest for a while so that he can experience the value of health.

But this interval cannot be too long, otherwise he will not have a complete cycle of available labor and will not have the opportunity to create value for his family.

In this way, he and his family will fall into a vicious cycle of internal friction amid repeated torture of the disease and investment in treatment, which will more easily trigger family conflicts, tear off the disguise, and reveal the ugliness of human nature. "

The cat-faced old lady took two steps back silently, folded her hands in front of her, and asked:
"Are...any more?"

"The most important thing is that the one who is driven crazy cannot be completely crazy. If she is completely crazy, it would be too easy for her. It would mean that she would not know anything about it, which would be like giving her a break, and that would be meaningless.

To become indirectly crazy, she would have to be normal for most of the day and only go crazy for a short while, but her madness must be highly aggressive.

I think her family would have used coercive control measures on her, just as she did on her mother.

Give her enough time to be awake to swear, wail, curse and be hysterical.

She should repent, we don't need to understand her or put ourselves in her shoes, but rather treat her repentance as a source of happiness and enjoy it."

At this point, Li Zhuiyuan nodded to himself:
"That's all the details that need attention for now. Do you have any additional suggestions?"

Cat-faced old lady: "No...no more."

“In fact, this plan originally had some risks. What if there really was a filial son among the descendants of these three people?
However, that shouldn't be the case. Judging from the old lady's grandchildren, they all think that she lived too long and sucked away their good fortune and ruined their future.

This kind of children should still give people peace of mind."

The cat-faced old lady: "Yes, I feel at ease. I feel very at ease."

"So what do you think of this plan?"

"Ah? Okay, very good, very good. I will do as you say."

At this time, Li Zhuiyuan saw that black gas began to rise from the cat-faced old lady, a bit like the dry ice evaporating on the stage.

"What's wrong with you?"

The rising black gas began to converge rapidly.

"It's because this plan is so good. It's so good that just thinking about it... my resentment is actually beginning to dissipate."

"Then can you still hold on?"

"Yes, I have a lot of resentment. I think that when the three of them get their due retribution, I will be completely free."

"So, you've actually been in pain all along?"

“Every moment is like being burned in hot oil, enduring torture.

If I couldn't speak, if I didn't have thoughts, I might feel much better, but unfortunately... I have them, and the pain would be multiplied several times."

"Pitiful."

“No, not pitiful, people like us… No, it’s me.

It is not easy for something like me to exist and be born.

Even though I feel fear and dread every time I look up at the sky, I am grateful… for Him.”

Li Zhuiyuan looked at the old lady with a cat face in front of him. In fact, he was not looking at the old lady, but the black cat.

The old lady worked hard to raise three children and also helped them raise their grandchildren.

But in the end, the one who was truly grateful for the old lady's kindness and even endured the great daily torment for her revenge was the ugly and disabled old cat she had taken in.

Perhaps, the biggest difference between humans and animals is that humans’ lower limit can be lower than that of animals.

"It's just that, are you sure that you won't get into trouble if you tell me this... and remind me of these things?"

"Me?" Li Zhuiyuan shook his head. "How could anything happen to me? I'm clearly doing good deeds."

"Doing good?"

"correct."

Li Zhuiyuan pointed at the three Niu brothers and sisters who were still kneeling in the room and continued to explain:

"You, a damned wicked man, wanted to kill them, but I saved their lives. Isn't that a good deed?"

The cat-faced old woman opened her mouth, revealing a mouthful of rotten teeth.

"Can... can it be explained this way?"

“In fact, I haven’t gotten started yet. I’m still reading basic books. I don’t know if my explanation is correct. If I want to know the result… I can only wait until I go back and continue reading the book.

I am still young, and my performance in this area is not good yet, so I need to study hard. "

Cat-faced old lady: "You... still want to continue studying?"

"Yeah, I want it."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome. I advised you to do this for my own selfish reasons.

My great-grandfather and his kin came to the Niu family to observe vegetarian feast. If these three people all died in an accident today, then the reputation that my great-grandfather and his kin relied on for their livelihood would be ruined.

Grandpa, he is really good to me."

"In fact, your great grandfather has already raised a hand."

"what?"

Cat-faced old lady: "Don't worry, I know what to do."

Li Zhuiyuan smiled innocently like a child: "Thank you, grandma."

At this time, shouts were heard from afar. It was Taiye and his men who had found this area.

Li Zhuiyuan waved to the cat-faced old lady and walked onto the road.

"Xiao Yuan Hou! Xiao Yuan Hou! Where are you, Xiao Yuan Hou!"

Hearing the shouts of the figures in the distance, Li Zhuiyuan felt very comforted and enjoyed himself. When he first came to his hometown, he was not used to having the word "Hou" added after his nickname.

But usually it is the elders who call me like this, and this interjection in the local dialect carries the affection and love of the elders in the family for me.

Professor Xu from the Chinese Department of the Family Compound is from Guangdong. He once said that with economic development and population mobility, dialects will gradually fade out of history.

Pan Zilei, Ziyingzi and others now speak Mandarin at school.

Therefore, Li Zhuiyuan knew that when the old people gradually passed away, these calls of "Xiao Yuan Hou" would only be something he could dig out and savor in the depths of his memory in the future.

"Grandpa! Grandpa!"

Li Zhuiyuan raised his hand and began to respond.

Li Sanjiang and Runsheng ran over, followed by Uncle Shan, Liu Jinxia and some villagers.

"Little Marquis Yuan, are you okay?" Li Sanjiang touched Li Zhuiyuan from head to toe to confirm that his great-grandson had no missing limbs.

Runsheng's face was covered in sweat and he was smiling happily.

The two of them had previously captured Niu Fu and Niu Rui respectively, but after a while, they discovered that there were actually two bundles of straw under them.

When he looked up again, Xiao Yuanhou was gone, so he hurried out to look for him.

Uncle Shan was injured, but he felt he could still help. Liu Jinxia didn't plan to come out, but she didn't dare stay in the shed alone.

As for the villagers behind him, many of them heard the shouting and volunteered to help find the boy, and more villagers gathered here later.

I have to say that the folk customs here are still very simple, but no matter how good the fruit trees are, they cannot avoid bearing some crooked fruits.

Some villagers had already started shouting that the Niu family was missing. When the families of the three siblings of the Niu family saw that they had not returned for such a long time since midnight, they also started to go out to look for them.

"Grandpa, it's over there, in the old house." Li Zhuiyuan pointed softly in Li Sanjiang's arms, making sure only the grandfather could hear it.

Li Sanjiang nodded, pushed Li Zhuiyuan to Liu Jinxia's side, and raised a peach wood sword. His figure suddenly became much taller.

Li Zhuiyuan saw clearly that it was the one he brought with him.

"Come on, we have more people, follow me, kill them all, and save them!"

Li Sanjiang took the lead and rushed to the old house. Runsheng followed without saying a word. Uncle Shan stomped his feet and bit his lip to follow.

The villagers at the back were a little timid. They were willing to help find the boy, but they were really afraid of something that could kill them.

But there were so many people, so no matter how much hesitation they had, they slowly followed forward.

But when Li Sanjiang and the other two rushed in, they heard a burst of shrill cat calls and fighting sounds from the old house, mixed with the old lady's screams and curses.

Some villagers recognized that it was the voice of Old Lady Niu.

But didn’t Old Lady Niu already die, and has she been dead for half a year?

Faced with such a situation, even the bravest villagers did not dare to move forward and could only stand there and wait for the result.

Fortunately, the screams gradually stopped. After a while, Li Sanjiang carried one child and Runsheng carried two children as they walked out from under the old locust tree in front of the dilapidated house.

"The people have been rescued!"

"Oh my god, the Niu family is really here!"

"Death was collected!"

Li Sanjiang threw Niu Lian off his back, and with a "bang", Niu Lian fell directly onto the gravel road.

Runsheng followed suit and loosened his arms. Niu Fu and Niu Rui slid to the bottom, rolled over and lay steadily.

A group of villagers immediately gathered around to look at the novelty, asking questions all over. This would be a topic of conversation after daybreak, and an important experience to show off to other people in the future when they leave the village. Then they could light a cigarette and pretend to be mysterious:

"Well, what you just said is nothing. Let me tell you about something that happened in our village..."

The three brothers and sisters of the Niu family suddenly disappeared, and then all appeared in the old house, and are now unconscious. Isn't it obvious that they have encountered evil?

Everyone looked at Li Sanjiang and others with admiration and respect, and kept giving them compliments, saying that they really had great abilities.

Who can guarantee that they will have a smooth life without encountering miasma? Even if they don't encounter it, what about their family, relatives and friends? As long as they are not stupid, they will treat people with special abilities politely.

Uncle Shan looked at Li Sanjiang, who was standing at the front and being praised by everyone, and his lips itched with indignation.

As soon as he rushed in, he saw an old lady with a cat face standing at the door of the old house. Li Sanjiang stopped with the peach wood sword in hand, waiting for himself and Runsheng to go forward first.

As a result, the old lady with the cat face suddenly became crazy and threw herself in front of Li Sanjiang, and even threw herself on the peach wood sword in Li Sanjiang's hand, piercing through it.

Then there were ghosts howling, wolves howling, cats meowing and old ladies shouting, and finally... it was gone!

At that time, Uncle Shan even wanted to slap himself twice to see if he was blind. A corpse demon that could bewitch him and others and make them pee like a dog... was killed just like that?
Li Sanjiang himself was a little surprised. He even stretched out his hand and flicked the peach wood sword in his hand, and sighed:
"It should be real mahogany. The quality of the state-owned furniture factory is indeed trustworthy."

……

"Make way, make way!" Li Sanjiang pointed at the three people lying on the ground. "They are possessed by evil spirits and haven't woken up yet. Go get some golden juice from the nearby porcelain jars, heat it up, and pour it over them."

In fact, Li Sanjiang knew that Blind Liu was the best at exorcising evil spirits, but firstly, Blind Liu was injured and in poor condition, and secondly, he knew exactly who these three were, so it was their turn.

At that moment, the villagers were divided into two groups. One group was responsible for carrying the three brothers and sisters of the Niu family back to the shed for the vegetarian ceremony, while the other group went to get the porcelain jars to prepare the gold juice. The latter were obviously more excited and walked with the wind.

The shed was suddenly filled with people. Some villagers who were originally sleeping were awakened by the noise or by their neighbors calling out to come over to watch the fun.

It is deserted during the day when fasting is held here, but it becomes crowded in the second half of the night.

Uncle Shan and Liu Jinxia sat on chairs respectively, and were asked about their well-being by the villagers.

In the eyes of the villagers, these two must have been injured in the fight with the dead!
One child was sharp-eyed and noticed Uncle Shan's wet pants. He was scolded by his parents, who said that they were soaked by the water from Sidao's body after the fight with him.

Another villager who passed by the cemetery came to tell the news that Old Lady Niu's grave had been dug up and there was nothing inside.

This news immediately pushed the discussion atmosphere in the shed to a climax, which was even more lively than showing an open-air movie.

The busiest person was Li Sanjiang. He continued to hold the peach wood sword high, walk around and wave it, performing rituals.

His movements were not so standard, nor smooth and elegant, and looked much worse than those of the Taoist priests and monks in the funeral troupe. However, the villagers knew that the funeral troupe was just putting on a show to bluff people, and the old man in front of them was the one with real skills.

Li Sanjiang chopped here and stabbed there, walked and stopped, stopped and walked, muttering some old words.

These words were pronounced vaguely, and to Li Zhuiyuan's ears, they sounded a bit like the song "Generals of the Yang Family" that his great-grandfather used to listen to on the radio while sitting on the terrace in the evening to enjoy the cool air.

Li Sanjiang had had enough sleep, and with so many people around him watching and cheering him on, he danced even more vigorously.

When a foul smell came, Li Sanjiang decisively stopped:

"Okay, the ghost atmosphere has been eliminated, the evil spirit has been cleared, everyone can rest assured, everything will be fine here from now on."

Everyone applauded together.

Li Sanjiang stood with a sword behind his back, with a reserved smile.

He himself knew that the previous set of action performances were meaningless, but he didn't charge any extra money, so it couldn't be considered as promoting feudal superstition for profit. It was purely to seek peace of mind for the villagers and for emotional value.

The golden juice was brought in a plastic bucket, steaming and still hot.

Many villagers nearby began to dry heave after smelling the odor, and some even vomited. But even so, no one wanted to avoid and leave!

Especially those who rushed to stand in the inner circle, the smell was the strongest, but they still pinched their noses and watched carefully, while those in the outer circle kept jumping around, afraid of missing the famous scene.

This is really the case. It smells bad but looks good.

Li Sanjiang's stomach was churning, but he still forced himself to drink more.

A few nosy villagers had already wrapped wet cloth strips around their noses. They first pried open the mouths of the three brothers and sisters of the Niu family, and then carefully poured the liquid into them with a large spoon used to scoop from the pig trough.

This hand was not shaking at all, it was really steady, not a single drop of food fell or spilled;

Just like filling a kettle with hot water, you can hear a "dripping" sound.

Niu Fu, the first one to be force-fed, woke up and began to vomit on the ground.

Next came Niu Rui and Niu Lian.

Soon, the three siblings started vomiting together, and their own children brought them clean water for them to rinse their mouths.

The surrounding villagers were all smiling and praising it, saying that although the smell was unpleasant, it was really effective.

When the three brothers and sisters of the Niu family had stopped vomiting, or had gradually adapted to the situation, they ran to Li Sanjiang and knelt down crying, hugging Li Sanjiang's legs and wailing in gratitude.

They still had some memory of what happened, and they saw their mother coming to take their lives. If Li Sanjiang and others had not been fasting here today, they would have been taken away by that heartless and cruel mother.

They were crying for their escape from death, so their tears were particularly sincere. Niu Lian even uttered a lot of words, praising Li Sanjiang as her own adoptive parent.

Her two brothers repeated the last syllable of their sister's words, just like they did when they cried at the funeral during the day, and joined in the harmony.

Li Sanjiang tried to comfort them while pushing them away. Firstly, he disliked the strong smell on them. Secondly, he felt unlucky to be their adoptive parent. This was not gratitude at all, it was clearly a curse on him!
However, with the three brothers and sisters of the Niu family speaking out after waking up, the villagers added another layer of glory to Li Sanjiang and others, including the mountain uncle Liu Jinxia.

After this, if people in this village or nearby villages encountered any trouble, they would go to Siyuan Village to look for the Li family's corpse retriever.

After some crying, talking and arguing, Li Sanjiang received the balance payment from the three brothers and sisters of the Niu family.

In fact, the balance was not much to begin with, because the rule for this kind of thing is that most of it is paid in advance, but this time the balance was extra heavy, it was really not a small amount.

It seems that the three brothers and sisters of the Niu family are only stingy with their mother, but they are very generous with their own lives and outsiders.

Uncle Shan was holding the red envelope so tightly that he couldn't hold back his lips, revealing his dark tooth holes.

But when he turned around, he found that what Li Sanjiang held in his hand was much thicker than his own, and he felt chest tightness again. It was like this every time, every time!

Liu Jinxia was fine. She wasn't very happy or sad, but she still felt a burning pain on her face. She didn't know if it was because she wasn't as thick-skinned as Shan Daye or if that boy named Runsheng was particularly ruthless to her.

The three brothers and sisters of the Niu family wanted to recognize Li Sanjiang as their godfather, but Li Sanjiang rejected them without hesitation.

For this reason, Li Sanjiang even came up with a set of fate theories, saying that he was born to be childless and lonely, and was not suitable to have a godparent.

Liu Jinxia was familiar with this set of rhetoric. People in this field all had a certain business image.

Before leaving, Li Sanjiang also specifically reminded the three brothers and sisters of the Niu family in public:
"Everything a person does is accounted for by God. This time I violated the rules and saved you, which is considered to be against God.

Next, you should do good deeds, be kind and sincere, and work hard to accumulate virtue. If your heart is not sincere and your thoughts are not pure, I am afraid that you will encounter some misfortunes in the near future.

That is beyond my control, and I can only help here.”

This is actually just the official jargon of the industry, which is to first reap the current profits and fame and then distance oneself from future matters.

However, these words were recalled by the villagers soon after, and they once again gave a thumbs up to Li Sanjiang's ability, and some even called him the respectful title of "Old Immortal Li".

So much so that later on, the families of the three brothers and sisters of the Niu family once again respectfully invited Li Sanjiang to "treat them".

However, this is all a story for later, so let’s not discuss it for now.

Anyway, it was already past four in the morning when the mess was finally over.

Runsheng pushed the cart out, and Li Sanjiang, Shan Daye and Liu Jinxia sat down one by one. Li Zhuiyuan was about to get on, but he heard the bell behind him. He turned around and saw that it was Uncle Qin.

"Grandpa, I'm going to take Uncle Qin's car."

"Go, go, go back and rest early."

Li Zhuiyuan came to the 28-inch bicycle, and Uncle Qin picked him up and put him on the front bar. Then he pushed himself a distance and stepped on the pedals to climb onto the bicycle.

Feeling a little sleepy, Li Zhuiyuan simply leaned on Uncle Qin's chest and took a nap.

Uncle Qin looked down at the boy in his arms, somewhat surprised that he hadn't asked him if he had been there all along.

This resulted in the speech I had prepared being of no use.

When I returned to Siyuan Village from Shigang, the sky was already turning pale.

"Uncle, you should go to bed early."

"Well, you should go to bed early too."

Li Zhuiyuan ran into the house, went to the second floor, and went straight to take a shower.

In the east bedroom, Qin Li, who was originally sleeping, heard the noise coming from the dam and sat up.

"Go to sleep. Don't go to see him now. He just came back and must be very tired. Let him have a good rest. If you go to see him now, he will have to devote his attention and energy to you.

Once or twice is fine, but if it happens too many times, no one can stand it and will get annoyed."

Qin Li looked at Liu Yumei with confusion in his eyes.

"Good boy, grandma won't lie to you. If you want to play together for a long time, then both of you have to feel comfortable and happy when you are together. Do you understand?"

Qin Li lay back down.

"By the way, don't be too anxious to go into his room and wait for him tomorrow morning. Wait until he wakes up before you go. It would be best if you could ask him to come down and pick you up."

Qin Li, who was lying on the bed, began to tremble her eyelashes.

"Okay, okay, wait until he wakes up and walks out of the bedroom, then you go up."

Qin Li closed her eyes and began to sleep.

Liu Yumei covered her granddaughter with a quilt, then walked to the middle room, opened the door, and saw Qin Li standing at the door.

After coming in, Qin Li whispered what happened today. Liu Yumei nodded, and Qin Li left.

"Hey……"

Liu Yumei turned sideways and looked towards the place where the tablets were enshrined. She had the habit of chatting with the tablets every day, but today, just as she was getting into the mood, she was interrupted by a smell.

It’s the cracked duck egg placed on the mourning hall. In this weather... it’s already starting to stink.

……

When Li Zhuiyuan finished taking a bath, his grandfather and the others had not returned yet, so he went into the bedroom and lay down on the bed to sleep.

When I woke up, it was almost noon.

He looked towards the chair in the bedroom, but didn't see the figure, and felt a little disappointed.

I don’t know what she is wearing today.

I stood up, took the washbasin, and pushed open the door. She was not standing at the door, nor was she on the bench in the northeast corner where I was reading.

Li Zhuiyuan walked to the edge of the terrace and looked down.

The girl was wearing a chest-length skirt today, with a red top and a goose-yellow skirt. Her hair was draped over her shoulders, making her look more lively and playful than usual.

She was still sitting on the threshold, with a pair of embroidered shoes on the doorstep.

The girl sensed something, raised her head and looked towards the second floor.

"Hold on, Ari!"

Qin Li stood up and walked into the house.

Liu Yumei was left behind, covering her head and sighing.

Qin Li came to Li Zhuiyuan on the second floor and looked at him.

"I came home late last night and overslept."

After explaining, Li Zhuiyuan began to wash up, then took Qin Li's hand and went downstairs. It was almost time for dinner and he was hungry.

It was very lively downstairs. Li Sanjiang, Shan Daye and Liu Jinxia had already started drinking wine with a plate of peanuts and a bowl of jelly fish head.

The wounds of Liu Jinxia and Shan Ye were bandaged and plasters were applied on their faces.

They didn't go to the clinic. People in their line of work don't easily go to the clinic, especially Liu Jinxia. Many people still come to her for "treatment."

However, Liu Jinxia has always been sensible in doing things and knows her own weight. Every time she gives people a drink of the magic water she mixes with boiled water, sugar and black sesame paste, she will ask the family to take the patient to the health center for further treatment or to continue taking medicine, saying that she is just cooperating with the doctor.

Li Zhuiyuan knew that the person who applied the medicine to them should be Aunt Liu. The last time Aunt Liu applied medicine to her great-grandfather, her skills were very good.

"Where's Brother Runsheng?"

"Runsheng." Uncle Shan burped and was just about to speak when he saw Runsheng and Uncle Qin coming back from the fields outside.

Runsheng, go farm.

Looking at him carrying a hoe and sweating barefoot, Li Zhuiyuan suddenly felt like he was a freeloader, although he was indeed like that.

"It's time to eat, it's time to eat!"

Aunt Liu invited everyone to eat.

Liu Yumei and her group sat at one table, Li Sanjiang and her group sat at another table, Li Zhuiyuan and Qin Li sat at a small table, and... Runsheng sat at a table alone.

His table was in the loneliest corner. In front of him was a large rice bowl with dishes poured from the big table in it and a large incense stick as thick as an arm stuck on top.

Runsheng smiled with great satisfaction, not sure if it was because of the food or the incense and candles, or maybe, in his eyes there was no difference at all.

So, it’s not that everyone is isolating him, but that the big incense stick would irritate his eyes if he got close to it, and he couldn’t eat at all.

Li Sanjiang also joked to Uncle Shan:

"Hehe, look, Marquis Runsheng's appetite is getting bigger and bigger. From now on, when we eat, we have to burn pagoda incense directly!"

Uncle Shan grunted twice and then buried his head in eating his porridge.

Now he doesn't want to eat liquid food, but can eat dry food because he has lost his teeth.

After dinner, Li Zhuiyuan took Qin Li back to their old place on the second floor to read.

At this time, a tricycle came up on the dam. The person riding it was Li Juxiang, and the person sitting behind it was Cuicui.

"mom."

"Milk."

As soon as the mother and daughter came in, they ran to Liu Jinxia. Seeing Liu Jinxia like this, they were very anxious and concerned.

It seems that Liu Jinxia treated her injuries and took a nap after returning here in the morning. She was afraid that her family would worry, so she did not go home first.

"Mom is fine, she's fine. Grandma is fine, why are you crying? Don't cry."

Liu Jinxia comforted her daughter and granddaughter.

Cuicui wiped away her tears and stopped crying, but her eyes were still wandering here.

"Go play with your brother Yuanhou. He's up there." Liu Jinxia pointed upwards.

"Okay."

"Don't play for too long. We'll take your grandma home soon. Come over to play with Xiao Yuanhou in a couple of days."

"I got it, Mom."

Cuicui walked up the stairs and came to the second-floor terrace, where she saw Brother Xiaoyuan and a girl in beautiful clothes sitting together reading a book.

She seldom went out to play in the village on weekdays. Li Sanjiang's house was a place that the villagers seldom went to when they had nothing to do, and Qin Li never went out at all, so she had only heard from her grandmother that there was a farmhand living with Grandpa Sanjiang, with his mother and daughter.

Today was the first time Cuicui met Qin Li.

"Cui Cui, you are here."

Li Zhuiyuan stood up and greeted Cuicui.

Qin Li also turned sideways. She didn't look at Cuicui, but continued to look at Li Zhuiyuan.

When Cuicui saw the girl's face, she covered her mouth but still screamed out:

"Wow, it's so pretty, so beautiful!"

Before, I just thought the clothes were pretty, like the kind I’d seen on TV. But now that I’ve seen the person in person, I realize that he’s so beautiful.

Even after hearing Cuicui's praise, Qin Li still didn't even look at her, because Cuicui was just tough and not dirty.

Li Zhuiyuan walked up to Cuicui and introduced her, "Cuicui, this is Qin Li, Grandma Liu's granddaughter."

"Hello, my name is Cuicui, Li Cuicui."

Qin Li followed Li Zhuiyuan and saw Cuicui approaching her on her own initiative. Her eyelashes began to twitch.

Li Zhuiyuan held her hand and she calmed down, but still did not respond to Cuicui's enthusiasm.

Cuicui felt a little embarrassed.

"Cui Cui, Ah Li is shy. She's not targeting you. She's like this to everyone else."

"Is it!"

A smile appeared on Cuicui's face again. She was very happy to hear that A'li didn't hate her, but hated everyone.

After all, everyone else in the village just hated him, but Ari treated him the same as everyone else!
Li Zhuiyuan put away his books temporarily, took out some snacks, and everyone started chatting.

In fact, only Li Zhuiyuan and Cuicui were chatting, while Qin Li didn't say anything.

And because Cuicui was next to them, Li Zhuiyuan had to hold Qin Li's hand all the time, otherwise she might get angry.

While eating, Cuicui's eyes kept wandering between Brother Xiaoyuan and Sister Qin Li, mainly looking at Sister Qin Li because she was so pretty.

As for other thoughts, she didn't have any. She didn't even have the possessiveness between friends. Things like you must play with me and you can't play with her were not in Cui Cui's mind at all.

She was very happy to meet another friend today. Especially when she heard Brother Xiaoyuan introduce that Qin Li had always been alone and had no friends in the past, she felt very sad. She felt that this beautiful sister was much more miserable than herself.

Soon, Li Juxiang's voice came from downstairs, and they were going home.

"Goodbye, Brother Xiaoyuan, goodbye, Sister Ali, I'll come and play with you in a couple of days."

Li Zhuiyuan waved to Cuicui, then took A'li's hand and waved too.

He could sense a slight resistance from Ari.

After Cuicui left, Li Zhuiyuan looked down at Qin Li in front of him and said:

"I know you've adapted to the darkness of self-isolation, but I still suggest that you try to get out and feel the outside world. After experiencing it, decide whether to go back."

Qin Li didn't say anything, but just looked at Li Zhuiyuan seriously.

After experiencing that inexplicable feeling several times recently, Li Zhuiyuan felt more and more that A'li's present might very well be his future.

No, looking at my mother's current condition, my future will only be worse than A-Li's.

Next, it’s quiet time for reading.

With his previous reading experience and the practical experience of having seen two deaths in real life, Li Zhuiyuan now reads "Jianghu Zhiguai Lu" at the speed of quickly flipping through a comic book.

For every article and every page, I would look keenly to capture the key words and special points to form memory cognition, and then quickly turn the page.

Once you have the right reference for comparison and consideration, the rest will fall into place, which means you can just add or subtract some things on the basis.

Li Zhuiyuan found the feeling he had when he was flipping through newly published textbooks in the past.

Finish flipping through one roll quickly and then switch to the next.

Finally, before Aunt Liu called for dinner, Li Zhuiyuan finished reading the 42nd volume of Jianghu Zhiguai Lu.

In the lower right corner of the last page of the last volume, there are a few lines of small words:

[This book is the result of my spiritual journey through the heavens and earth, and through rivers, lakes and marshes. Ordinary people may read it as a strange story, a joke, or to supplement their tea time; but if they truly enjoy reading it, it is a sign of misfortune.

I can only wish you good luck from afar.

——Wei Zhengdao. 】

Li Zhuiyuan leaned back on the rattan chair, put one hand behind his head, and sighed in his heart:

The author of this book is really an interesting person.

As for what the author said at the end, Li Zhuiyuan could understand it. Ordinary people have never seen anyone fall dead, so they just treat it as a ghost story. If they have really seen it...it's just bad luck.

At this moment, Li Zhuiyuan felt a soft little hand reaching behind his head and touching his fingertips. It was Qin Li.

Li Zhuiyuan smiled at her, then closed his eyes and prepared to take a nap. After dinner, he could go to the basement to find new books.

Well, it seems that it is more comfortable when the pillow is not my own hand.

Qin Li looked carefully at the boy with his eyes closed in front of her, from his hair, to his forehead, to his eyes, to his nose, to his mouth. Then she turned her gaze back and began to count his eyelashes one by one.

During dinner, Uncle Shan said that he would let Runsheng push him to the town clinic to get dentures tomorrow, and then he would push himself home. After two days, he would let Runsheng come to Li Sanjiang.

After he got some business, he asked someone to call Runsheng back to retrieve the body.

Li Sanjiang was so angry that he slammed his chopsticks and cursed:

"So you keep your mule in my house, and when you need it you take it away, and when you're done you leave it here to eat grass?"

It would be fine if he only ate ordinary fodder, but this guy's appetite exceeds that of everyone else!

In the past, when Tinghou cooked, the rice was just a shallow pot. When he was around, she had to cook a separate pot for him.

Uncle Shan sucked on his water pipe, glanced at Li Zhuiyuan who was eating with a pretty girl at a small table, and said with a smile: "I say, Marquis Sanjiang, you are already this old, you have to look to someone to take over. If you don't look to Marquis Runsheng, do you look to this little Marquis Yuan?"

"You fart!"

"Oh, am I talking nonsense? Listen to me first. I know that you asked Xiaoyuan Hou's grandfather to take care of you in your old age and see you to the end of your life. I believe that you, Sanjiang Hou, will not be wrong in judging people, but you have been used to a comfortable life all your life. You don't want to think that when you are really old and lying in bed, you will have to suffer again, or start selling your belongings, right?
What if all your belongings are sold and you are still alive? Will you just eat porridge and congee every day?
Yes, if the Marquis of Han has something to eat, you will have to eat it too, but you don’t even look at the life the Marquis of Han is living now.

If you want to live a comfortable life when you are old, you need someone to take care of you sincerely, and you also need to..."

Uncle Shan rubbed two fingers towards Li Sanjiang.
"There has to be income. Marquis Runsheng can only eat a little, but he is good at recovering corpses. This guy is much more capable than me.

Besides, you, the Marquis of Sanjiang, don't lack this little rice. You can give him less vegetables and less meat, but just give him enough rice, right?"

"And what about the incense?"

At this time, Aunt Liu, who brought the soup, smiled and said, "I know how to make incense in a traditional way. Not only will it be enough for him to eat, but we can also open up a small business."

"Uh..." Li Sanjiang rubbed his nose and suddenly felt that this was not bad, but he turned to Shan Da Ye and asked, "If Run Shenghou is given to me, what will you do for your retirement? You are not going to come to me and take advantage of my retirement, are you?"

"Don't worry, I won't die a good death."

"What are you talking about?"

"To be honest, I've seen through it all. I don't have the luck you have, to die peacefully in bed."

"What nonsense are you talking about? If you let Marquis Runsheng break your legs now, won't you just lie on the bed and die peacefully?"

Uncle Shan: “…”

After a lot of cursing, talking and pushing the blame around, the matter was accepted as the default.

Li Zhuiyuan was very happy. Looking at Runsheng, who was drooling while waiting for the incense and candles to burn out, it was so wonderful. As long as Runsheng was there, he would have an extra channel to practice his reading and studying.

After dinner, Li Zhuiyuan sent Qin Li back to the east room, then took out a flashlight from the cabinet drawer and reinstalled the batteries.

According to rural custom, the batteries of flashlights must be removed after use to prevent power consumption.

Li Zhuiyuan had no plans to ask his grandfather to replace the light bulb in the basement for the time being. He felt that coming in with a flashlight would give him a treasure hunt vibe.

Following the light of the flashlight, he came to the box that he had opened for the first time. There were still quite a few books in it. He planned to clear them out one box at a time.

He placed the flashlight on his left hand and reached in with his right hand, rummaging around like he was searching for a lottery ticket. Finally, Li Zhuiyuan found two stacks of books.

These two stacks of books are very thick and have hard covers, similar to book covers, which organize all the volumes of a set of books together.

Two piles of books were taken out and placed on the ground.

Each set has eight books, and each book is not too thick. There are no words on the cover. Li Zhuiyuan first took out a book from each set and found that there were no words on the cover of each book.

He could only open it and take a look at the contents. When he shone the flashlight on it, Li Zhuiyuan was stunned.

It was handwritten, and the characters were good, very beautiful small regular script, but the problem was that the font was too small, like an ant's leg, and it was densely packed on both sides...

So, although the book is not thick, its content is incredibly rich.

I'm afraid I'll need a magnifying glass to read this book.

I looked at another set and it was the same font and just as small.

Could these two sets be written by the same author?

Li Zhuiyuan searched carefully with a flashlight and finally found two white stickers on the inside of the two covers. The names of the two sets of books were written on them.

They are:
"A Detailed Explanation of Yin-Yang Physiognomy" and "Theory of Deducing Fate".

One is a fortune teller and the other is a fortune teller.

Li Zhuiyuan tapped the flashlight gently, and the light occasionally flashed across his small, contemplative face.

"Hmm...it seems to be of no use?"

(End of this chapter)