Corpse Retriever.

Chapter 6

The summer heat begins to subside at this time of day, and even the wind blowing from the rice fields brings a little coolness.

Li Zhuiyuan faced the rice fields, closed his eyes, and took several deep breaths.

"Little Marquis Yuan, what's wrong? Does the master smell?"

"No, Master, I'm smelling the rice."

"Oh, do you smell it?"

"I can't smell it. It's different from what is written in the article. They said the rice smells really good."

"Silly boy, your timing is wrong. Wait until after you've applied fertilizer or pesticides and then smell it. I guarantee the smell will be much stronger!"

"Grandpa, you're kidding me."

"Hahaha." Li Sanjiang twisted his neck and continued walking along the field path with the child on his back. "They don't have much smell now, but after they are harvested, dried in the sun, shelled, steamed and made into rice cakes, hot white steam will rise from them. That fragrance, won't you be able to smell it from far away?"

"Master, you are right."

Li Sanjiang stopped and turned to look at the rice fields. "Actually, what you read in the article is not wrong. Farmers like us can see that the crops in the fields are growing well, there is grain in the warehouse and rice in the pot. We don't have to worry about going hungry. This makes us feel at ease. We can stand anywhere, close our eyes, take a breath, and it will taste sweet."

"understood."

"No, you don't understand, Xiao Yuanhou. You have never really been hungry, so you can't really understand that feeling. We haven't been able to eat to our heart's content for many years.

However, no matter what, it cannot be compared with the period before liberation."

"Huh?" Li Zhuiyuan asked in surprise, "Before liberation, did people have enough to eat?"

"Yes, before liberation, everyone had enough to eat and no one went hungry."

"Grandpa, what you said seems to be wrong."

"Because animals are not considered human beings."

"what?"

"Xiao Yuanhou, before liberation, your great grandfather also went to Shanghai."

"Then, Master, do you know Xu Wenqiang?"

"Who is Xu Wenqiang? I don't know him. Your great grandfather went there by boat, which was very convenient. After all, there is only a river between Nantong and Shanghai.

At that time, I thought, Shanghai is a big city, it must be easier to find a job, and it would be better than farming for the landlord at home.

I was lucky, I found a job right after I got there."

"What kind of job is Grandpa looking for?"

"The Corpse Carrying Team."

"Does Grandpa work in a funeral home?"

“Oh, there was a funeral home at that time, but ordinary people couldn’t go there. You had to walk in sideways with your front foot and run out with your back foot. You couldn’t afford to die.

I was a member of the corpse-carrying team. At that time, the municipal government allocated some funds to take the lead, and some wealthy businessmen also donated money. Our job was... to collect corpses early in the morning every day, carry the corpses from the streets and alleys, and send them to the nearby charity cemetery for disposal.

When the situation is good, there are a few donated coffins available. But they are not one coffin for each person, but many people squeezed together, making the coffin packed to the brim.

Grandfather, I still remember that one time, many kids as old as you were taken in, and it took a lot of effort to squeeze them in.

Alas, I can’t move it. I can’t move it.

Do you know what that means? "

"Is it because the coffin is too heavy to move from the outside, or because it's stuffed too tightly inside, so it can't move either?"

"That's right. Only when times were good could we have coffins. When times were bad, the bodies were just rolled up on straw mats. When there was no time to burn or bury them, they were just thrown into mass graves in the suburbs, giving them room for stray dogs.

If it’s winter, wow, it’s really tiring.

When you go out on the street early in the morning, you can see many families huddled together, frozen stiff.

Xiao Yuanhou, that's big Shanghai. It was a big city at that time. It was very rich. If anyone there let a little money slip through their fingers, it would be enough for an ordinary family to feed themselves.

But your great grandfather was really busy from the beginning of the year to the end of the year. There was so much work to do that he could never finish it.

At that time, I was thinking...

There were so many foreign cars on the streets, and it was right in the foreign concessions, with dance halls and theater buildings everywhere, and people coming in and out were all gentlemen in Western-style dresses and wealthy ladies, but in the alleys between the cracks in the walls, people were starving to death every day.

After thinking for a long time, I finally figured out a truth.

They all have a pair of eyes, a nose and two legs to walk on, but only a small group of people can be considered human beings. The others... no, the others, are all damn cheap animals.

Oh, that's not right, livestock are also valuable, and when they are hungry they are fed with a handful of fodder, but they are not even worthy of a coffin, and the only reason their bodies are collected after they die is because the higher-ups think they are an eyesore to the city."

Li Zhuiyuan hugged Li Sanjiang's neck a little harder and put his face against his grandfather's back: "Did your grandfather learn these skills at that time?"

"I guess so. Back then, after carrying corpses for a day, I could only earn enough to keep myself fed for the day. Now, if I fish one out, I can enjoy a good life for a while.

It is better to be liberated. People are finally human and valuable now. "

"My grandfather also said that when he was a farmhand for a landlord, he was beaten with a whip."

"Listen to the nonsense of Marquis Han. As soon as his hair grew back, we were liberated. Those landlords were also... Hey, Marquis Xiaoyuan, you are not talking about Marquis Han?"

"It's Grandpa Bei."

"Hahaha, your dad's dad from Beijing?"

"Well, he said that if he hadn't really had no way to survive, he wouldn't have followed the team to join the revolution."

Li Sanjiang suddenly paused and turned his head to look at the child behind him:

"What?"

"what happened?"

"Did your Northern grandfather ever fight in a war?"

"Ah."

"Are you still alive?"

"Alive."

"Did you hit the Japs first?"

"I fought later."

“Tsk, tsk, tsk!”

"What's wrong, Grandpa?"

"Little Yuanhou, are you on good terms with your Grandfather Bei?"

"During the holidays, I would go back to eat with my parents."

"What about normal times?"

"Don't go."

"Ah, you're not going to move?"

"Grandma Bei and Mom don't have a good relationship."

Li Sanjiang: “…”

"My uncle and his family live with Grandpa Bei and Grandma Bei. Mom, Dad and I live outside. Mom doesn't allow me to go to Grandpa Bei's house. Even when Dad occasionally comes home, he does it secretly and doesn't dare let Mom know."

"What is this Lord Lan thinking about?"

Li Sanjiang didn't understand. He knew that it was normal for mother-in-law and daughter-in-law to have conflicts, but it also depended on the mother-in-law!

If you don't curry favor with and serve your parents-in-law like these, what else do you want?
But on second thought, Li Sanjiang suddenly felt that this was something Li Lan would really do.

A golden phoenix suddenly emerged from a room full of honest mud dogs.

If Li Weihan's ancestral grave was not next to his own, he would really suspect that Li Weihan's ancestral grave was on fire, and the smoke would not be enough.

When she was little, the girl was sweet-mouthed, well-behaved and lovable. When she grew up a little, she could scold her four brothers so that they were afraid of her. No matter how unreliable the idlers or gossipy old women in the village were, they did not dare to make fun of her. Just a look from her, even with a smile on her face, could make people shiver in their hearts.

I remember that year when she brought her boyfriend home, Han Hou and Gui Ying were so reserved that they were too embarrassed to look at him. Li San Jiang had seen the world, so he stared at him for a long time and even took the initiative to talk to him.

At that time, he noticed that the man was disciplined to the point where he could only nod like a chicken pecking at rice in front of Lan Hou. If you didn't know, you would have thought that the man with the fair and tender face was the poor wife who had just been abducted into the village by human traffickers.

Li Sanjiang also knew about Marquis Lan's divorce, otherwise Marquis Xiaoyuan would not have been temporarily placed here. Normally, when a man and a woman divorce, everyone would emotionally stand on the woman's side first, but Marquis Lan's divorce... Li Sanjiang actually felt a little sympathetic to the man. He had been able to endure it for more than ten years. It was not easy.

"Xiao Yuanhou, did you change your last name?"

"Ah."

"Ugh."

Li Sanjiang sighed, "You're divorced, but you even changed the boy's surname back. If you didn't change the surname, even if they were divorced, Xiao Yuanhou would still be that family's boy."

"Little Marquis Yuan, listen to Grandpa's advice. When you return to the capital, find more opportunities to get close to your Northern Grandfather and Northern Grandma. Do you understand?"

"No."

"If you are obedient, Grandpa will not harm you."

"I can't go. Mom will be unhappy if I go."

"you……"

"If mom is unhappy, she won't want Xiaoyuan."

"Ah... what you said is wrong. You are mother and son. Your mother likes you no matter what time it is."

"No." Li Zhuiyuan said in a low but sure voice, "If I make my mother unhappy, she won't want me anymore. I understand her."

Li Sanjiang had no choice but to change the subject: "Xiao Yuanhou, did you bring your homework? Ask your grandma to bring the homework and books back tomorrow."

“I didn’t bring it back.”

"Ha, you are such a clever little ghost. You deliberately didn't bring the book back so that you can have fun in the countryside during the summer vacation, right?"

"Yeah, it's fun."

"You still have to study hard so that you can have a better life in the future. After these few days, let your sister Yinghou come to give you extra lessons. You should learn from her well."

"it is good."

"That's good."

The grandfather and grandson chatted all the way and walked to a river. There were farmlands beside the river. They walked along the path along the river for a while and suddenly felt enlightened.

The dam of Li Sanjiang's family is several times more spacious than that of Li Weihan's family.

There are three houses, the middle one faces north and south and is a newly built two-story building. However, unlike the square architectural style of Cuicui's house, Li Weihan's new house is very wide, extending from east to west, forming a long strip.

However, although there is a second floor, there are only a few separate rooms on it, and it looks like a large platform with a few building blocks placed on it.

There are two bungalows on the left and right sides of the new house, facing each other.

"Grandpa, your house is so big."

"Of course not." Li Sanjiang said with pride in his tone.

In addition to corpse recovery, he also runs a paper-making business, which requires a large area to store raw materials and finished products. In addition, he also rents out tables, chairs and plates.

Anyone nearby who wants to hold a wedding or funeral has to rent the shed from him. Although the fee is not high, he has already recovered the cost. Now it is a hen that lays eggs steadily.

So, the first floor of his new house was equivalent to a large warehouse, and there were only three rooms on the second floor, which was as empty as a rooftop. He didn't care anyway, as he was single and it was enough for him to live in.

Li Sanjiang put Li Zhuiyuan down from his back, took his hand and walked into the middle room. Looking inside, he felt that the space was very large, like a small factory.

The western half was neatly stacked with tables and chairs, and large baskets filled to the brim with all kinds of dinner plates and bowls;
The eastern half was lined with paper figures, paper houses, paper horses... Li Zhuiyuan also saw a Santana made of paper.

A woman of about the same age as his mother, dressed simply, was coloring. She held the paint tray in her left hand and the brush in her right hand, and she painted quickly and fluently.

The woman noticed the person coming, turned around, looked at Li Zhuiyuan, and asked:

"Uncle, who is this child? He is so fair and tender."

"Ting Hou, let me introduce you. This is my great-grandson, Li Zhuiyuan. Zhuiyuan, this is your aunt Ting Hou."

"Aunt Ting."

Li Zhuiyuan felt that the generation order seemed a little wrong, but in front of people who were not related, everyone had their own opinions.

"Hey, good boy." Liu Manting put down her things and walked over. She bent down and touched Li Zhuiyuan's face with both hands. "So cute."

Li Zhuiyuan took half a step back to avoid him, with a shy smile on his face.

"Uncle, you've never brought your kids here to play before."

"Ha, no child dared to come and play with me before." Li Sanjiang took out a cigarette from his pocket. "Ting Hou, this kid has to stay with me for a while, you help him clean up the room. Oh, by the way, Xiao Yuan Hou, are you afraid of sleeping in a room by yourself?"

"Don't be afraid, Master."

"Well, it's okay. The old master sleeps next to you anyway, haha. Okay, Ting Hou, I'll leave it to you. I'll go get a porcelain jar first."

Li Sanjiang lit a cigarette and went to the toilet.

"Come on, Xiaoyuan, go upstairs with auntie."

There were so many things piled up on the first floor that even the staircase was mostly blocked, making it difficult for first-time visitors to find it.

Li Zhuiyuan noticed that there were steps going down from the staircase and asked, "Auntie Ting, is there another step below?"

"Yes, there's a basement down there, about the same size as this one."

"Is it the same thing?"

"No, they are all your great grandfather's things. Your great grandfather couldn't bear to throw them away, so he dug a layer specifically to store them."

"Oh, I see."

"Also, Xiaoyuan, my name is Liu Manting. You can call me Aunt Liu from now on."

"Aunt Liu, you're not from here?"

"No, I'm from another place, and I'm doing paper-making for your grandfather."

"Aunt Liu, are you alone?"

"Aunt's husband is here too. He rents your great-grandfather's land and helps out with the farm work on weekdays, making paper-cut tables and chairs. He should be back from the fields soon. When you see him, you can call him Uncle Qin.

In addition, my aunt's daughter and mother-in-law are also here, in the bungalow on the east side that you saw when you came in. Your uncle and I live on the west side.

My aunt's whole family is here, making a living by working for your grandfather.

Before liberation, we all had to call you Young Master."

Perhaps because he had just heard Li Sanjiang's story about the corpse-carrying team on the way here, Li Zhuiyuan felt a little uncomfortable with this joke and shook his head subconsciously:
“That’s feudal dregs.”

"Huh?" Liu Manting was stunned for a moment. It was indeed surprising to hear such words coming out of a child's mouth.

"Aunt Liu, just call me Xiaoyuan."

"Okay, Xiaoyuan. I heard your grandfather talk about you. Are you back from Beijing?"

"um, yes."

"Are you used to living here?"

"Get used to it. It's nice here."

"Don't you feel bored?"

“No, there are a lot of fun things here.”

"That's good. Auntie colors paper figures every day and her hands are numb from painting."

"Auntie is very good at painting, very professional."

"What kind of major is this? Auntie was forced to do this. How can she know how to draw?"

However, the way you hold the palette and paintbrush is exactly the same as the teacher at the art academy.

"If Xiaoyuan wants to draw, you can help Auntie. Coloring is not difficult."

"Okay."

This is the first time since I returned to my hometown that I have communicated with others entirely in Mandarin, without so many Nantong dialects and so many "hou"s.

Even my brothers and sisters who have gone to school only use Mandarin when they help "translate" for me at first, but when they turn around and speak themselves, they naturally switch back to dialect.

Coming to the second floor, Liu Manting opened a door. The furnishings inside were simple, with an old-fashioned bed and a wardrobe. Apart from that, there was not even a stool. But it was very clean inside, and it must have been cleaned regularly.

"Xiaoyuan, you live here. Your grandfather lives next door to you. Please stay here for a while. I will bring you a washbasin, towel and spittoon."

"Thank you for your hard work, Aunt Liu."

"This child is so polite."

Liu Manting went out, and Li Zhuiyuan looked around his room and walked out. There was really... nothing good to see.

The second floor is a large terrace with three rows of clotheslines in the middle, and no balconies or guardrails around it.

Walking to the side, you can see the dam in front and the small river and farmland in the distance.

Li Zhuiyuan thought that he could put a chair here and it would be very enjoyable to sit here and daydream.

On the ridge of the field not far away, a middle-aged man carrying a hoe was walking towards here. The man was very tall, and clear muscles could be seen in the places that were not covered by the white vest. In the afterglow of the setting sun, his muscles were very shiny and textured.

He should be Aunt Liu’s husband, Uncle Qin.

It seems that Uncle Qin was not a farmer before.

Although farmers are generally strong, due to their eating habits and other lifestyle factors, few of them can grow such tiger back muscles, and they are usually thin.

Move your eyes down and look to the left.

"Ok?"

When I came in earlier, I couldn't see the door of the bungalow on the east side because the firewood pile on the dam blocked my view. Now that I am standing on a high place, I can see it.

Inside the central door of the bungalow, sat a little girl about the same age as himself.

She wore a red embroidered top and dark-colored pants with white patterns on the bottom. Her hair was combed into a whorl and she wore a pair of light green embroidered shoes on her feet.

This outfit is very retro, without any modern elements, but it doesn’t look old-fashioned at all.

Because this is not a piece of cloth that a mother would just make for her daughter. Her clothes are full of details and must have taken a lot of effort and thought. The overall combination is very harmonious, and she wears them with the dignity of a lady from a noble family.

The most important thing is that the girl has a fair face, eyebrows like a crescent moon, and although her face is oval, she has just the right amount of baby fat. She is like a meticulously crafted work of art. You can't find even the slightest thing that needs to be changed in her, as if any unnecessary action would be a blasphemy and a sin.

At this moment, she was sitting on a bench inside the doorstep, with her feet on the doorstep, looking straight ahead. The last stubbornness of the setting sun before it went down the mountain drew a line of light and shadow, which just happened to be across the doorstep in front of the house, exactly where her feet were standing.

Li Zhuiyuan lowered his head. It was impolite to stare at someone, although... she was really pretty.

She should be Aunt Liu's daughter.

When I looked up again, I found that the other person was still maintaining the same posture, looking forward.

Logically speaking, since I was standing high up on the second floor and a big man like me was looking at her, she should have noticed it, or at least glanced at me.

Could it be that I was too absorbed in daydreaming?
Li Zhuiyuan raised his hand and waved. He was sure that this action would attract the other party's attention, but... it didn't.

The girl still sat there, her feet on the threshold, motionless, without looking up, turning her head, or even blinking.

Is he a blind person?

Li Zhuiyuan called out, "Hello."

The girl still didn't respond.

Still deaf and dumb?

A strong sense of regret rose in Li Zhuiyuan's heart.

Children of this age have very pure hearts and do not yet have the thinking of adult men and women. Even Li Zhuiyuan is the same.

He was simply heartbroken. If the girl in front of him was disabled, it would be like a beautiful thing being cut with a bloody cut. No matter whether it was a man or a woman, everyone would feel deep regret.

"Xiaoyuan."

Aunt Liu's voice came from behind. She walked to Li Zhuiyuan and said with a smile, "Xiaoyuan, she is Aunt's daughter, Qin Li."

Li Zhuiyuan nodded.

"Okay, Xiaoyuan, go inside first, and I'll help you put your things in order."

Li Zhuiyuan was a little surprised because Aunt Liu only introduced her daughter's name without any follow-up. Generally speaking, she should ask about her age and distinguish between brothers and sisters, and then add: You can play together in the future.

There weren't many things, and after they were neatly arranged, Aunt Liu clapped her hands and said, "The toilet is at the back of the first floor. You can use the spittoon in the room at night."

"Okay, I understand, Aunt Liu."

"Then Auntie will go cook. I'll call you when it's ready."

"Ah."

Walking out of the room again and returning to the second-floor rooftop, Li Zhuiyuan's eyes unconsciously looked there again.

The girl was still in the same posture as before, still looking straight ahead, as if she was frozen there, never moving.

At this time, he saw Uncle Qin walk to the threshold, squat in front of the girl, and speak to her gently.

But from beginning to end, the girl remained in the same posture, not even a glance away from her father.

The feeling given is that although she is there, she has no sensory contact with this world.

Uncle Qin noticed Li Zhuiyuan and waved: "Hello, little friend."

Li Zhuiyuan responded: "Hello, uncle."

"Xiao Yuanhou, come down to eat!" Li Sanjiang's voice came from downstairs.

Li Zhuiyuan was a little surprised. Was it so fast?
After going downstairs, in the space between the paper figures on the first floor, two square wooden stools were put together to serve as a dining table, on which were placed a plate of braised pork head, a plate of braised pig ears, a plate of cold seaweed salad and a plate of fried peanuts.

No wonder they prepared it so quickly, they must have all been bought from the market during the day.

"Sit down." Li Sanjiang opened the bottle of white wine and filled himself a large glass.

Li Zhuiyuan sat down on the small stool opposite him and looked at the big bowl of rice piled high in front of him.

"Grandpa, I can't eat so much."

"Oh, of course Grandpa knows." Li Sanjiang smiled, "You eat first, the rest is mine."

"Oh."

Li Zhuiyuan started to eat.

Li Sanjiang handed over the wine glass and asked, "Xiao Yuanhou, would you like to drink some?"

Li Zhuiyuan shook his head: "Children can't drink alcohol."

"Yes, that's right." Li Sanjiang just joked, took the cup back and took a big sip, then picked up several peanuts and put them into his mouth, "In the Hanhou family, there are no such delicious dishes, right?"

"The pickles my grandma made are also delicious."

"Ah."

Li Sanjiang put a piece of pig snout into Li Zhuiyuan's bowl.
"Your grandparents are stupid. They have to spoil those brats. If it were your great-grandfather, I would say that it is enough to take care of their son for this lifetime. They also have to take care of their grandchildren. Their mother has been a slave to her children for most of her life.

Actually, if your grandfather didn't have so many children and so many mouths to feed, and didn't need to drink water, he could still have a little wine every night."

Li Zhuiyuan ate in silence without responding.

"You are different." Li Sanjiang waved his hand. "Your mother gave money. Your uncles are the real ungrateful ones. They are a bunch of shameless people."

Li Zhuiyuan continued to eat.

"The soup is here." Aunt Liu brought a bowl of loofah and egg drop soup and placed it on the wooden stool. "You guys eat."

Then she left, and Li Zhuiyuan realized that Aunt Liu and her family did not eat with Grandpa.

"Little Marquis Yuan, there is something I have to remind you. When you live here in the future, you can go to other places, but don't go to the east room."

The east room is where the girl sits.

"why?"

"Marquis Ting's daughter is in the east room." Li Sanjiang poked his forehead with the end of his chopsticks. "That little girl has a problem here. Don't get close to her. It will be bad if she scratches or bites you."

Scratches and bites?

Li Zhuiyuan found it hard to imagine that the little girl named Qin Li would be associated with these behaviors.

"Don't take it lightly. When her family first moved in with me two years ago, I gave that girl some candy. But as soon as I put the candy in her hand, she threw it away. Then she scratched and bit me like crazy. Even a dead person wouldn't be as ferocious as her."

"I understand, Master."

That’s great. It turns out she is neither deaf nor blind.

"Well, eat. After you have eaten well, Grandpa will give you a vegetarian meal."

Li Zhuiyuan finished his meal first and put down his chopsticks. Li Sanjiang then stopped drinking and took the bowl to eat.

The toilet was behind the house. Li Zhuiyuan walked out first and walked around the dam. He happened to see the little girl being led by an old lady and standing up and walking to the dining table inside.

She should be Aunt Liu's mother-in-law.

In this old lady, Li Zhuiyuan seemed to see the shadow of his own northern grandmother, both of whom had a sense of grace and elegance.

The little girl sat at the dining table without picking up her chopsticks, while the old lady beside her kept whispering persuasion.

When Li Zhuiyuan came back after going to the toilet, he saw the little girl started to eat. She only ate from her own bowl, and the old lady took a small plate to pick up food for her.

He could notice the old lady's eyes glancing at him, but she didn't say hello to him. Li Zhuiyuan hesitated for a moment and didn't go over to say hello.

When he returned to the house, Li Sanjiang had already finished his meal and Aunt Liu was cleaning up.

"Xiaoyuan, the shower room is in the innermost room upstairs. Auntie has already poured hot water for you. It may be a little hot, so add some cold water yourself."

"Thank you auntie."

When we got to the second floor, Li Sanjiang, who had eaten and drunk his fill, was already lying on a rattan chair that he had brought from somewhere, holding a toothpick in his left hand and a cigarette in his right hand, humming a little tune and burping.

Li Zhuiyuan's gaze lingered on the rattan chair.

"Ha, I'll ask Li Hou to go to the market and buy one for you tomorrow."

Li Hou should be referring to Uncle Qin.

"Okay." Li Zhuiyuan smiled. He really wanted it.

"The bathing place is over there." Li Sanjiang pointed, "You wash first and then I will."

"understood."

The bathroom is very narrow and should have been a temporary addition later. There is a rubber water pipe connected to a water tank.

Li Zhuiyuan tested the water temperature and it was a little hot, but there was no need to add cold water.

When he came out of the shower, Li Sanjiang also stood up: "Go to my room and wait for me."

"Ok."

At this moment, it was completely dark outside and the moon was hanging in the sky.

Li Zhuiyuan took another look at the east room. The door of the bungalow was closed and the lights were on inside.

He opened Li Sanjiang's door and walked in. Li Zhuiyuan reached out and found the rope on the wall beside the door and pulled it down.

"Tick."

light is on.

The furnishings in my great-grandfather's bedroom are exactly the same as my own bedroom, with an old bed and a wardrobe.

However, in the area in the middle that should have been empty, there was a circle of dense patterns and a row of small candles, and an open old book was placed on the ground next to it.

Li Zhuiyuan picked up the book and found that it was not printed but handwritten.

The cover says "Ginshasa Sutra".

When I flipped through the contents, I found that they were basically array pattern diagrams and some annotations. The drawings were very sloppily drawn, the annotations were written very casually, and most importantly, the handwriting was really ugly.

It's far inferior to the handwriting of Grandpa Xu, who studies Chinese in the staff quarters and is good at making Dongpo pork.

Soon, Li Zhuiyuan found the same formation diagram in the book and on the ground, with the words "Formation to Change Luck and Overcome Evil" written on it.

The effect is to transfer the evil spirit from one person to another person, and it is also marked: it may hurt others.

Li Zhuiyuan looked at the picture in the book, and then looked at the one his great grandfather had drawn on the ground.

"Why do I feel like... there are some discrepancies in the drawings?"

However, the pictures in the book are also hand-drawn, so they are crooked, so it is not easy to compare.

"It's also possible that Grandpa didn't draw it wrong, but the picture in the book is not standard."

It is really difficult to compare two freehand painting schools, even if they are painting the same thing.

At this time, Li Sanjiang came in after taking a shower. He was shirtless and wearing only a pair of blue shorts.

Seeing Li Zhuiyuan reading a book, Li Sanjiang couldn't help but laugh and said, "Ha, you can understand it, Xiao Yuanhou."

Li Zhuiyuan nodded: "I understand."

"Okay, okay, you understand. Our little Yuan Hou is the smartest."

Li Sanjiang touched Li Zhuiyuan's head, took the book from his hand and threw it aside.

The book was filled with sloppy traditional Chinese characters written with a brush, and some of them were connected. In order to understand it more clearly, he had to consult a retired rural teacher from the next village several times. The teacher liked calligraphy.

Later, Li Sanjiang stopped going because the last time he went to his house to see him, Li Sanjiang brought his own paper figurines;
It was given for free, no money was charged, and the children thanked me repeatedly.

So, how could he possibly believe that Li Zhuiyuan, a ten-year-old child, could understand these things.

"Okay, Xiao Yuanhou, sit there and don't move."

Li Zhuiyuan obediently sat in the designated position, and Li Sanjiang bent down to light all the candles on the ground, then took out three black ropes and tied them around Li Zhuiyuan's wrists, ankles and neck respectively. After he sat down, the other ends of the three black ropes were tied to the same positions on himself.

The candlelight flickered, and Li Sanjiang began to mutter something. He read very quickly, still in Nantong dialect. Li Zhuiyuan could not understand him even if he listened carefully.

But I felt that the tone was very similar to the little tune that my grandfather used to hum when he was lying on the rattan chair after his meal.

After reciting for a while, Li Sanjiang finally stopped. He smacked his lips, probably because his mouth was a little dry, but it was not suitable to go out to drink water at this time. He could only cough dryly to clear his throat, then reached behind his back and touched it. When he took his hand back, there was an extra talisman in his hand.

Li Zhuiyuan was a little curious. The grandfather was only wearing a pair of shorts. Where was the talisman placed before?

After bringing the talisman to the candle and lighting it, Li Sanjiang began to wave the talisman paper.

"Fizz!"

When his hands were about to be burned, Li Sanjiang slapped the talisman paper between himself and Li Zhuiyuan.

"Snapped!"

In an instant, all the candles went out and the incandescent bulbs in the room flickered a few times before returning to normal.

Li Zhuiyuan looked left and right, then lowered his head to look at the black rope tied around his body:

Is this the end?
It seems like I don’t feel anything.

"All right!"

Li Sanjiang stood up, walked to Li Zhuiyuan, lowered his head, and used his teeth and hands to pull to break the excess parts of the three ropes, but black rope loops were still left on Li Zhuiyuan's neck, wrists and ankles.

"Little Yuanhou, don't untie these three knots tonight. Just sleep like this. I will cut them off for you at breakfast tomorrow."

"Okay, Master."

"Well, go back to bed."

"Good night, Master."

"Good night."

Li Zhuiyuan stood up and just walked to the door of the room, he heard a "thump" behind him. Turning back, he found Li Sanjiang holding his foot and falling to the ground.

He had helped me bite off the rope before, and just now I must have fallen accidentally when I was trying to bite off the rope around my ankle.

Li Sanjiang crossed his legs, put one hand behind his head, and waved the other hand towards Li Zhuiyuan:

"Go to bed now."

"Oh."

Li Zhuiyuan returned to his bedroom and lay down on the bed. He didn't feel very sleepy before, but as soon as he touched the bed, he immediately felt sleepy.

He covered his stomach with a thin blanket and fell into a deep sleep.

next door.

"It should be done, right?" Li Sanjiang said to himself. "It must be done. The light bulb is flashing. It can't be that the circuit is bad."

Then, Li Sanjiang glanced at the book thrown on the ground and doubted himself: "No, the person who wrote this book should not have seen a light bulb at that time, right?"

But soon, Li Sanjiang found new evidence: "What am I thinking? The candles are out, so it must have worked."

After saying that, Li Sanjiang stretched, walked to the bed and lay down.

"Oh, I'm really exhausted today. Let's go to sleep... go to sleep."

He had too many things to do today, including luring corpses, retrieving corpses, and drawing battle formations. He is old and can't hold on any longer.

As soon as his head hit the pillow, he started snoring.

However, while sleeping, Li Sanjiang turned over, mumbled a few times, and then his brows gradually frowned.

He was dreaming.

in dreams,

He found himself sitting on a white marble platform, surrounded by towering palace walls and magnificent palaces.

There is a doorway on the right side in front of me, and a large open area on the left side, extending all the way to the pond and the Dragon Bridge.

“Damn it, is this the Forbidden City?”

Li Sanjiang had never been to the capital, and naturally had never been to the Forbidden City, but he had seen it on calendars and on open-air movie screens. Isn't this where the emperor lived?

Hey, it’s interesting that I would have this dream.

Li Sanjiang subconsciously wanted to touch the cigarette in his pocket. Isn't this the time to have a cigarette?
But when he reached down to touch, he grabbed something furry. When he looked down, he saw an orange cat lying on his legs.

The orange cat seemed to have just been sleeping and was woken up. It turned over with some dissatisfaction.

"go away."

Li Sanjiang pushed the orange cat away ruthlessly.

The orange cat rolled over after landing on the ground, then stood up and yelled at him in dissatisfaction:
"Meow!"

Li Sanjiang didn't care. He reached out and patted the cat hair left on his legs, then took out the cigarette box again, took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth, then took out a match and lit it for himself.

Just at this moment, a dull friction sound of "creaky..." came from the front, which should be the palace gate being opened.

Li Sanjiang took a puff of his cigarette and said, "I remember hearing that you have to buy a ticket to go to the Forbidden City. Will I be caught evading the ticket and fined?"

Then, Li Sanjiang slapped the back of his head and said, "I'm in a fucking dream. I didn't buy any tickets!"

Blowing out a beautiful puff of smoke, Li Sanjiang smiled proudly and said:

"This is really a good deal. To go to the Forbidden City, people have to take a long train to Beijing and buy tickets to enter. This time, I just treated it as a tour in my dream."

The friction sound of the palace gate finally stopped, and footsteps were heard from the three doorways in front.

"boom!"

"boom!"

"boom!"

Dull and neat.

Li Sanjiang leaned forward slightly, wondering: Do we have to queue up and walk in step to visit the Forbidden City?
But soon,
Li Sanjiang was stunned, because what came out of the three doorways were not tourists, but three rows of people wearing Qing Dynasty official uniforms, wearing top hats with peacock feathers on their heads, and with pale faces. They jumped out in the same rhythm.

"boom!"

"boom!"

"boom!"

The cigarette in Li Sanjiang's hand had slipped out of his hand at some point.

Suddenly, they all stopped beating and fell into stillness and silence.

next moment,
They all turned left on the spot and faced Li Sanjiang.

(End of this chapter)