A jinx, me? But I bring good fortune to my whole family!

Gu Jianguo opened the door a crack and saw Li Dashan standing outside, rubbing his hands together and looking flustered, with rain dripping down the brim of his hat.

"Village chief, it's so late, is there something you need?"

Li Dashan grinned, forcing out an ugly smile. He peeked into the doorway, his voice low and filled with cautious reverence.

"Jianguo, I...I just came to check on things. Nuannuan...that child, were you alright?"

His attitude was completely different from that of the bossy village chief he used to be.

Gu Jianguo's heart skipped a beat, and he stepped aside to let him into the house.

As soon as Li Dashan entered the room, he saw Nuannuan nestled in Gu Jianguo's arms, only her big eyes showing, and his legs almost went weak. He didn't dare to look at her for long and hurriedly took out a crumpled packet of brown sugar from his pocket and placed it on the table.

"This... help the child calm down. Today's events... we really owe her so much." Li Dashan stammered, "Everyone in the village speaks highly of your family!"

"Wow! Human cub, did you hear that? This old guy's scared of you too!" Little Green thought to Nuannuan, hands on hips with smug satisfaction.

Gu Jianguo pushed the brown sugar back, his face expressionless: "Village chief, the child is young and doesn't know any better; he's just being silly. It was just a coincidence today."

He needs to lower his tone.

The title of "living Buddha" is too heavy for their family to bear.

Li Dashan couldn't believe it. He chuckled dryly twice, rubbing his hands together, hesitant to speak. Finally, he gritted his teeth and leaned closer.

"Jianguo, I know your family is special. In the future... in the future, if anything happens in the village, I'll have to ask for your help. If you need anything, just ask. As long as it's within my power, Li Dashan will do it without hesitation!"

These words are tantamount to a declaration of loyalty.

After seeing Li Dashan off, Gu Jianguo locked the courtyard gate tightly, leaned against the door, and let out a long sigh.

Su Xiulan walked over, looking worried: "Husband, what should we do?"

"When soldiers come, we'll block them; when water comes, we'll dam it." Gu Jianguo picked up Nuannuan and kissed her forehead. "Go to sleep first. If the sky falls, Daddy will hold it up."

……

The next day, at the town hospital.

The ward where Gu Dacheng was staying was packed with people. Sun Cai'e's eyes were swollen, but her face was full of smiles. She held Su Xiulan's hand and kept repeating the same few words.

"Sister-in-law, I'm not human! I used to be a troublemaker! Hit me a couple of times, curse me a couple of times!" she said, raising her hand to slap herself in the face.

Su Xiulan quickly stopped her: "Sister-in-law, what are you doing! It's good that Dacheng is alright."

"It's all thanks to Nuannuan!" Sun Caie cried out. "That's not my niece, that's my own daughter! If anyone dares to say a bad word about her, I'll be the first to tear their mouth apart!"

On the hospital bed, Gu Dacheng's face was pale, but his spirits were not bad. He looked at Nuannuan, who was being held in his mother's arms, his eyes filled with gratitude and curiosity.

"Thank you, little sister." His voice was still a little weak.

Nuannuan peeked her little head out from Su Xiulan's arms, holding a piece of pastry in her small hand, and handed it over: "Brother Dacheng, eat."

Gu Dacheng took it, feeling a warm glow in his heart.

Gu Jianping sat beside him, watching this heartwarming scene, and his eyes reddened again. He stuffed all the subsidies and gifts issued by the mine into Gu Jianguo's hands, and when Gu Jianguo refused, he insisted on putting them into his arms.

"Third brother, take this! This is what you deserve! Da Cheng's life was given to him by Nuan Nuan!"

This family's attitude took a complete 180-degree turn.

The other ward at the end of the corridor, however, was deserted.

Grandma Gu lay sprawled on the bed, her face contorted as she listened to the faint laughter coming from next door.

"Laugh! Laugh! They're all possessed!" she mumbled incoherently, drool dripping from the crooked corner of her mouth.

Gu Jian'an was peeling an apple when his hand trembled and he almost cut himself.

"Mother, keep your voice down. My eldest brother's family is..."

"Does he even respect me as his mother anymore?!" Old Mrs. Gu's voice suddenly rose, trembling with anger. "That little jinx, no, that little devil! He's bewitched their whole family!"

A living Bodhisattva?

Pooh!

She didn't believe it! The whole village was blind! It must have been the witch doctor she had hired earlier who had worked! It was the witch doctor who had summoned the mountain god and saved her grandson!

Yes, that must be it!

Old Mrs. Gu's eyes burned with a frenzied jealousy. How could she let that little devil steal the credit!

Just then, the ward door was pushed open a crack, and a shifty-eyed figure peeked in.

It's the witch doctor, Wang.

She had heard about the miracle at the mine and ran away from the village overnight. But when she found out what had happened, she discovered that all the credit had been stolen by a five-year-old toddler, and she had become the laughingstock of the whole village. She was so angry that she almost died on the spot.

She was unwilling to accept it! How could such a great opportunity to make a name for herself be given to a little girl!

"Old sister!" Granny Wang rushed to the bedside, squeezing out two tears. "I was so worried about you when I heard about Dacheng's accident! I stayed up all night last night performing rituals to invoke the mountain god!"

Grandma Gu's cloudy eyes lit up instantly!

"Are you telling the truth?"

"Absolutely true!" Granny Wang slapped her thigh, spitting as she spoke. "That wild boar king was the mount sent down by the mountain god! Those pangolins were divine soldiers who opened up the mountain! I invited them all! If I hadn't spent ten years of my cultivation, none of those hundred-plus people would have survived!"

The two hit it off immediately!

Having received the imperial decree from Old Lady Gu, Granny Wang, clutching the few coins Old Lady Gu had given her, immediately went back to war.

She ran straight to the still-uncleared mine ruins and started yelling at the top of her lungs.

"Fellow villagers! Don't let these evil spirits blind you!"

Her shout drew the attention of the families still gathered in the mining area.

Granny Wang cleared her throat, adopting the air of a highly accomplished sage: "Yesterday's miracle wasn't some child's prank. It was an act of magic I performed here, expending all my life's cultivation, that finally moved the mountain god to manifest!"

"Those wild boars and pangolins are divine soldiers and generals that I, this old woman, summoned!"

She sang so eloquently that everyone around her was stunned.

Is it really that amazing?

Just as some people began to waver, a weak but clear voice came from behind the crowd.

"You...you're talking nonsense!"

A miner, who had just returned from the hospital and was being helped by others, pointed a trembling finger at Granny Wang.

"I...I was trapped at the bottom of the well, and when I was about to suffocate, I clearly heard it! It was a little girl's voice! She was calling, 'Little mouse, hurry and find a hole!'"

As soon as the miner spoke, another man who had been rescued next to him chimed in.

"Yes! I heard it too! I thought I was dying and hallucinating! It was just a little baby's voice!"

The crowd suddenly erupted into noise.

The family members all realized what had happened!

They witnessed Nuannuan calling out to the crow, and they witnessed the Wild Boar King being completely submissive to Nuannuan!

This old witch, she actually came to steal the credit from her benefactor?!

"You damned liar! You still dare to come here and spout nonsense!"

"Shameless old man! It was you who played tricks yesterday and almost got my man killed!"

An old woman rushed up and spat on Wang the fortune teller's face.

"Pah! You call yourself a divine warrior? I think you're just a jinx!"

"Hit her! This liar almost killed our whole family!"

The crowd started talking at once, and their tempers flared up instantly. Spit and rotten vegetable leaves rained down on Wang the fortune teller.

The old woman was so frightened that she ran away in a panic, covering her head and looking utterly pathetic.

He didn't get any credit and instead got a severe beating.

The news quickly reached the hospital.

After hearing Gu Jian'an's account, Old Mrs. Gu was so angry that she almost had another stroke.

Her attempt to steal the credit failed, and she and Granny Wang became the biggest laughing stock in town!

She lay on the bed, trembling, staring venomously at the ceiling.

A living Bodhisattva?

She wants to turn this living Buddha into an irredeemable monster!

Suddenly, she thought of something.

The old cadre surnamed Liu who came from the city to visit Gu Jian'an!

Yes! That's him!

Grandma Gu struggled, grabbing Gu Jian'an's arm so tightly that her nails almost dug into his flesh, and squeezed out a few words from her throat.

"Go...go to the city...and invite that old Liu here!"

"I told you... I told you the third son's daughter is a bewitching demon who knows sorcery!"