Folklore and Strange Tales: At the Start, You Retrieve the Sea-Suppressing Black Iron

Chapter 128 Green Flame Licks the Bottom of the Pot, Cracks the Meal Ticket Counter; Red-Clad Vengeful Corpse Follows the Bloodline

A hemp rope stood upright on the soup noodles, with black soup dripping from the end of the rope.

While Tieguai Li was watching the pot, Sun Daqiang slid down and crawled out from under the chopping board, scrambling to the back of the stall.

"Don't listen to her nonsense, her mother died a long time ago."

He pulled the little girl out, her mouth still stained with blood from the cloth strip.

Sun Daqiang snatched the bunch of keys from her hand and stuffed them into her apron pocket.

Tong Kexin's eyes blazed with anger, and she slammed the long spoon against the edge of the pot.

"You, surnamed Sun, are you using a child to cover up your debt?"

Sun Daqiang pushed the girl behind him and shouted at the vendor.

"This is my family matter! What right do you outsiders have to interfere?"

Grandpa Li picked up the stir-fried liver spoon, his hand trembling slightly.

"Daqiang, did you take the property ownership certificate?"

"My brother's gone, my sister-in-law's gone, what's wrong with me taking it? What does she, a child, know?"

Cheng Xiaojin stood three steps away from the pot, a short rolling pin tucked under his arm.

"She doesn't understand, but you do. You understand so well that you used her mother's hanging rope to make soup and feed it to the Seventh Gate to the dead."

Sun Daqiang's eyes twitched, and he glanced towards the end of the street. The end of the street was dark, and Boss Lin's men did not show up.

But Cheng Xiaojin heard it.

Under the eaves opposite Boguzhai, a black copper coin was gently spinning.

The copper coin, with the character "Lin" engraved on its back, was pasted into the crack in the beam, specifically to determine the direction of this pot of dirty soup.

He couldn't touch it, so he didn't take it.

"Han Shaobai."

"exist."

"Your ledger has stall receipts signed by Sun Daqiang, right?"

Han Shaobai immediately patted his chest, "Yes, there is a handprint too."

"Give it to him, don't let him renege on the debt."

Sun Daqiang cursed and reached out to grab the ledger.

Tieguai Li stepped forward and blocked it, his steel prosthetic leg bracing against the table leg.

"Robbing me? Did you even ask about my leg?"

Sun Daqiang grabbed the boning knife from the cutting board and pointed the tip at Tieguai Li.

"Crippled man, don't push me."

Tieguai Li stared at the knife. "Your knife is so weak it's hard enough to even pick a sheep's bone. You think you can pick mine? I'm afraid you can't afford to pay for the leg repair."

The green flame at the bottom of the pot grew higher and higher, the old broth covered half of it, and the other half climbed up the pot to the edge of the cutting board.

Tang Wanqing flung out a red thread, intending to wrap it around the pot, but the thread turned black as soon as it touched the green flame.

She immediately hung up.

"Mix black oil with ash from Southeast Asia, and don't stick the red thread to the pot."

When Zhou Banxian arrived at the street corner, he turned on his compass, and the needle pointed directly at the broken meal ticket cabinet.

A cold draft seeped through the cracks in the cabinet door.

"The cupboard can't hold up anymore. Thirty-six mouths of food are all dirty. The seventh one will eat first."

Cheng Xiaojin identified the contents of the pot by listening to the sounds; besides hemp rope, there was also wood ash.

And there's also a footstool.

The wooden stool that the widowed sister-in-law stepped on when she hanged herself was burned to ashes and boiled with the ashes of the rope to make soup.

With ethical blood debts and the black oil of Southeast Asia, it's no wonder the dilapidated meal ticket cabinet was pushed open.

He looked at Tong Kexin, "We can't smash the pot."

Tong Kexin had just picked up the long spoon when she heard this and stopped abruptly.

"This pot smells terrible."

"It's been smashed; resentment fills the nightclub."

"What should we do then?"

"Force out the base ingredients."

Tieguai Li frowned.

"How do you force me?"

Cheng Xiaojin tapped the broken bottle of liquor under the cutting board with the tip of her shoe.

"Inferior liquor burns on the green flame, old broth is pressed against the edge of the pot, and aged vinegar goes down to the bottom of the pot."

Han Shaobai immediately rummaged through his bag.

"I have vinegar! There are two bottles left over from Huguo Temple."

Tieguai Li glanced at him.

"How much kitchen stuff do you actually have in your bag?"

Han Shaobai handed the vinegar to Tong Kexin.

"Having hung out with you guys for so long, I feel like I'm walking into an armory when I go to the supermarket now."

Tong Kexin took the vinegar and went around to the side of the pot.

Sun Daqiang panicked and grabbed the little girl to block her way.

"If anyone dares to touch the pot, I'll throw her in!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the surrounding vendors erupted in chaos, with Aunt Wang, who sells steamed buns, grabbing the lid of her steamer basket.

"Are you even human?"

Old Zhao, the shoe repairman, slammed the awl onto the stall.

"Your sister-in-law used to help your brother run his stall. When you gambled and went into debt, it was she who paid it off for you!"

Sun Daqiang's face twitched.

"Shut up, all of you!"

The little girl was crying so hard she couldn't breathe, but she was still clutching the hem of his apron, trying to snatch the keys.

"That's my house key. Mom told me to keep it."

Sun Daqiang slapped her back.

As Cheng Xiaojin moved his shoe, three scrap iron nails slid out along the ground and got stuck on Sun Daqiang's heel.

He stepped back, tripped, and slumped against the cutting board.

Taking advantage of the situation, Tieguai Li grabbed his wrist holding the knife and pressed it down onto the table.

The boning knife slipped from his hand and plunged into the pile of sheep bones.

"Kexin, vinegar."

Tong Kexin pulled out the bottle stopper and poured half a bottle of aged vinegar down the bottom of the pot.

As soon as the acidic fumes hit, the green flames shrank inward.

Huguosi Old Broth was then poured along the edge of the pot, and red oil was used to seal the edges.

Han Shaobai gritted his teeth and poured the remaining bit of cheap liquor onto the broken bricks, igniting a flame and causing the black broth in the pot to boil even more violently.

The knot of the hemp rope was forced out of the soup, still attached to a piece of charred wood.

When Grandpa Li saw the wooden block clearly, he took half a step back.

"I went to the courtyard the day she hanged herself, and this small stool was right under my feet."

The little girl stopped crying for a moment, her eyes fixed on the wooden block.

"Mother----"

The crack in the broken meal ticket cabinet door widened by half an inch, and the sound of splintering came from inside.

Tang Wanqing placed the Bagua mirror in front of the cabinet door; the mirror surface turned black.

"quick."

Cheng Xiaojin looked at the neighbors.

"Does anyone know her?"

Grandpa Li raised his hand.

"I."

Aunt Wang also took a step forward.

"I know her too. Her name is He Xiulan. She's better at making mutton soup than the Sun brothers."

Old Zhao, the shoe repairman, said, "When the baby turned one month old, she delivered soup to the whole street."

Cheng Xiaojin nodded.

"Call her by her full name!"

Sun Daqiang struggled and cursed.

"What are you shouting for? The person is dead!"

Tieguai Li pressed his wrist down.

"If you say another word, I'll make you eat the cutting board."

The neighbors started shouting.

"He Xiulan!"

"Xiulan, the child is here!"

"Don't let that guy surnamed Sun use you as dirt!"

The black and red resentment in the pot swirled upwards, while the green flames were forced to the bottom by the old broth and aged vinegar, leaving only a green rim.

Suddenly, the knot in the hemp rope split open in the middle, and a red figure stood up from the soup noodles.

The red clothes clung to her body, a broken rope hung around her neck, and her face was covered by moisture, with only her two eye sockets looking at Sun Daqiang.

The little girl reached out to go over, but Tong Kexin hugged her tightly.

"Don't touch her, your mother is covered in evil spirits right now."

The red-clad vengeful corpse raised its hand, its five fingers elongated, black oil dripping from its nails.

Sun Daqiang's legs went weak, but he still stubbornly insisted on his words.

"Sister-in-law, it's me, Daqiang. I've collected your body, and I'll raise your daughter for you—"

The rope around the red-clad vengeful corpse's neck tightened, and its head tilted half an inch to the side.

Cheng Xiaojin heard a woman cry, caught in the green flames at the bottom of the pot.

It wasn't all hatred; there was also the frustration of having one's house, stall, and children taken away, and even being burned alive and boiled into soup after death.

Over there, the door of the dilapidated meal ticket counter was pushed open from the inside to a width of one hand.

A black Buddha's belly was visible through the crack in the cabinet.

Zhou the fortune teller cursed, "The cabinet is about to be opened!"

Tang Wanqing pressed all the copper coins against the cabinet door, and her fingertips were cut by the yin energy, causing bleeding.

"I can't hold on for long."

Cheng Xiaojin looked at Sun Daqiang.

"Take out the key."

Sun Daqiang covered his apron pocket and took two steps back.

"Impossible, get lost!"

The red-clad vengeful corpse had already extended its fingers in front of his face.

His eyes darted around, and he reached out and grabbed the little girl by the back of her collar, forcefully pulling half of her body out of Tong Kexin's arms.

"Xiulan, this is your own daughter! If you dare touch me, I'll take her down with me!"

Tong Kexin's long spoon hit his arm, and Sun Daqiang, despite the pain, still held the child tightly in front of him.

The red-clad vengeful corpse's hand froze in mid-air.

The hemp rope around her neck began to dig deeper into her flesh, and black oil dripped down the knots.

Cheng Xiaojin pulled the short rolling pin from under his arm and handed it to Tieguai Li.

"Don't beat the corpse, beat the person."

Tieguai Li accepted it.

"where?"

"Numbness in the wrist."

Sun Daqiang tightened the straps around the child's neck.

"Who dares to go?"

Cheng Xiaojin used the tip of her shoe to lift half a sheep bone, which rolled along the ground to Sun Daqiang's feet.

While Sun Daqiang was looking down, Tieguai Li struck his wrist with his staff.

Click! Sun Daqiang let go.

Tong Kexin snatched the little girl back and protected her behind her.

The red-clad vengeful corpse let out a scream, and a rope sprang from its neck, coiling around Sun Daqiang like a live snake.

Sun Daqiang turned and ran.

A woman's voice came from inside the broken meal ticket locker.

"key."

The little girl shuddered and stared at Sun Daqiang's apron pocket.

"Mom wants the keys."

"Give her the key."

As soon as Cheng Xiaojin finished speaking, Sun Daqiang gripped the apron pocket even tighter with both hands, crumpling the fabric into a greasy crease.

"Give it to whom? To the dead? This house is mine now!"

The broken rope around the neck of the red-clad vengeful corpse dragged on the ground, and black oil dripped onto the blue bricks, causing them to bubble instantly. Her feet didn't touch the ground, but her body slid forward half a foot.

Tang Wanqing threw out the red thread.

The red thread wound around the broken rope, and just as it touched the knot, it passed through, and the copper coin fell to the ground, rolling to the front of the broken meal ticket cabinet.

Tang Wanqing pulled her wrist back and tucked the remaining red thread back into her sleeve.

"The Obsessive Corpse will not eat the Dragon-Suppressing Thread."

Zhou Banxian's acupuncture needles spun wildly, and his face was tense and unpleasant.

"She only recognizes blood feuds. If Sun Daqiang is to die here, the seventh door will suffer a violent death, and the cabinet door will have to be opened outwards."

Tieguai Li held the wrench horizontally in front of his chest.

"Then knock him out and take him to the police station."

Upon hearing the words "police station," Sun Daqiang grinned.

"Sure, I have the property deed and the stall transfer agreement. She hanged herself, what's it to me?"

The little girl trembled in Tong Kexin's arms, her hand reaching towards Sun Daqiang's apron pocket.

"The key, my mom gave it to me."

Sun Daqiang glared at him, his eyelids twitching twice.

"You worthless brat, if you yell at me again I'll beat you up."

Tong Kexin lifted the long spoon, with half a drop of old soup still clinging to the rim.

"Try drawing one."

Cheng Xiaojin didn't look at his face, but stared at his hands.

That hand was oily, with dust under the fingernails, but the palm didn't have many calluses from heavy work.

The mutton soup stall was mostly run by his older brother and sister-in-law. He took over the stall but didn't inherit the skills, which is why he dared to add ashes to the pot.

The neighbors gathered around the crowd, making it even denser.

Several vendors wanted to pack up their goods, but Grandpa Li simply laid his frying liver ladle across the stall.

"Whoever leaves is guilty. The Seventh Gate relies on thirty-six mouths to feed. If there's one less mouth tonight, no one can have peace of mind."

Aunt Wang placed the steamer lid on the stall.

"I'm not leaving. If Xiulan doesn't clear things up, I won't be able to sell my steamed buns in peace tomorrow."

Sun Daqiang spat at the crowd.

"You're all pretending to be good people? Why didn't you stop her when she died?"

These words disrupted the chorus of curses on the street.

Cheng Xiaojin looked up.

"Because you locked the door when she died."

Sun Daqiang's face twitched.

"You're talking nonsense."

"Did Uncle Li knock on the door the night your sister-in-law hanged herself?"

Grandpa Li's lips trembled, and he spun the spoon handle halfway around in his palm.

"I heard the child crying, so I knocked on the door. Daqiang said his sister-in-law had gone back to her parents' home."

"Has Aunt Wang smelled the smoke?"

Aunt Wang gripped the lid of the steamer tightly, the edge of the lid hitting the wooden table.

"Something was burned in her room that day; I even asked her about it."

"What was burned were the stool and the end of the rope."

Cheng Xiaojin tilted his ear, listening to the rattling sounds coming from the remaining ashes at the bottom of the pot.

"Boss Lin gave you black oil, and told you to boil old ash into the nightclub's live food. You think that once the seventh door opens, no one will come after you for your house, your stall, or your kids?"

A fierce glint appeared in Sun Daqiang's eyes.

Do you have any evidence?

Han Shaobai held up the account book, his wrist still stained with ink.

"When he signed the stall, he used his sister-in-law's stall stamp. I've seen that stamp; it's missing a piece on the edge."

The little girl cried and shouted.

"The seal was in my mom's closet; he pried it open!"

Sun Daqiang turned around and grabbed the child.

Tong Kexin sidestepped and blocked, the long spoon striking the back of his hand with a crisp snap.

The red-clad vengeful corpse moved forward another half foot.

Sun Daqiang retreated to the edge of the pot, his back stung by the residual heat of the green flame, causing him to grimace and reveal his yellow teeth.

His eyes darted around, and suddenly he lunged at the little girl.

Tieguai Li had been watching him closely. He swung his wrench across the table, slamming it down and cutting off his path.

Sun Daqiang crouched down and crawled under the corner of the table, grabbed the girl's sleeve, and forcibly pulled her in front of him.

The long spoon in Tong Kexin's hand was half an inch away from landing on his face, so she had to pull it back.

"Sun Daqiang!"

Sun Daqiang grabbed the girl, his throat rumbling with gasps.

"Sister-in-law, look carefully, this is your daughter. If you want to kill me, you'll have to get past her first."

The little girl's face turned red, and her two hands were still clutching at his apron pocket.

"key----"

The vengeful corpse in red stopped in front of the pot.

Those hollow eyes were staring at the child, the rope around his neck was tightening, and black water was seeping from the hem of his red clothes.

Tang Wanqing whispered, "She wants to disperse the control."

Cheng Xiaojin didn't look at the vengeful corpse, but only at Sun Daqiang's feet.

His heels were pressed against the pile of sheep bones, and the inside of his right foot was on half a glass bottle. If he took another half step back, he would fall.

"Young Master, money."

Han Shaobai was stunned for a moment.

"Should we give it back to him now?"

"Smash it in his face."

Han Shaobai immediately pulled out a wad of banknotes from his pocket and threw them at Sun Daqiang's face.

The money and banknotes were scattered, obscuring half of Sun Daqiang's face.

At the same moment, Cheng Xiaojin flicked an abacus bead with the tip of her shoe.

Those were the small copper beads that had been hanging on Han Shaobai's old account book, which had fallen to the ground when the rope broke.

Without using his hands, Cheng Xiaojin flicked his shoe, sending the copper bead bouncing off the ground and hitting Sun Daqiang's ankle as he stepped on the glass.

Sun Daqiang's foot slipped and he lost his footing.

The girl slid to the side.

Tong Kexin reached out and pulled the child back into her arms, placing a long spoon behind the child to block the evil aura of the vengeful corpse.

Tieguai Li rushed forward and slammed his wrench into Sun Daqiang's knee.

Sun Daqiang knelt down, and the keychain in his apron pocket clattered out.

The little girl rushed over, grabbed the keys, and hugged them to her arms.

The red-clad vengeful corpse's fingers fell, and the broken rope wrapped around Sun Daqiang's neck, lifting him half a foot off the ground.

Sun Daqiang tore at the rope with both hands, his face turning purplish-black.

"Help me! Help me!"

Zhou Banxian was so anxious that he almost dropped the compass.

"We can't let him die!"

Tieguai Li grabbed a wrench to break the knot in the rope.

When the wrench touched the ground, sparks flew out, causing his hand to split open.

"This rope is harder than iron."

Tang Wanqing used her red thread again, wrapping it around Sun Daqiang's waist and dragging him backward.

Even with the red line stretched taut, Sun Daqiang was still being hoisted upwards by the broken rope.

Cheng Xiaojin stared at the vengeful corpse.

"What she wants isn't her life, it's justice."

Tong Kexin protected the girl with one hand, and pointed at the neighbors with a spoon in the other.

"Have you all gone mute? Where did your swearing go?"

Her voice was hoarse from the smoke from the pot fire, yet each sentence resonated more deeply than the last.

"Sun Daqiang ate the childless heir, burned his sister-in-law's rope, stole the children's room, and used his own niece as a shield to die. Who can pretend they didn't see it tonight?"

Grandpa Li first slammed the frying pan onto the blue brick.

"Sun Daqiang has lost all conscience!"

Aunt Wang followed up with a string of curses.

"Xiulan's property deed is for the child, what right do you have to take it?"

Old Zhao, the shoe repairman, threw the shoe last in front of his stall.

"Your sister-in-law ran your brother's stall for three years, and you still haven't paid off your gambling debts, yet you dare to claim it as yours?"

The young woman selling sweet soup stood under the lamp, her face pale.

"Sister Xiulan borrowed my stove. She wasn't being suicidal; she was forced into a corner."

One sentence after another, neither in sync nor elegant.

There are dialects, sobbing voices, and old grievances that neighbors usually keep to themselves.

These words from the living fell into the night lights, and the green flame at the bottom of the mutton soup pot was squeezed down to the size of a bean.

The black and red malevolent aura emanating from the red-clad vengeful corpse began to emanate outwards.

The broken rope had loosened by half an inch.

Sun Daqiang had just caught his breath when his eyes rolled around and his hand reached into his pocket.

Cheng Xiaojin tilted his ear and heard the rustling sound of yellow paper rubbing against his clothes.

"Brother Li, to your right."

Just as Tieguai Li was about to move, Sun Daqiang had already taken out a yellow talisman, the black oil on it still wet, and pressed it against the forehead of the vengeful corpse.

"You want justice? I'll make sure your soul is shattered!"

Han Shaobai's account book and copper abacus were still hanging on his waist.

Cheng Xiaojin flicked the tip of her shoe, and three abacus beads flew out.

One shattered the left corner of the yellow talisman, another pierced through the black oil characters, and the last one smashed into Sun Daqiang's nose.

The yellow talisman broke into several pieces, and black oil dripped onto the blue bricks, emitting a burnt smell.

Sun Daqiang screamed and fell back to the ground, the broken rope still around his neck.

The red-clad vengeful corpse looked down at him, blood and tears dripping from its empty eye sockets.

The little girl, clutching the keys, moved half a step away from behind Tong Kexin.

Tong Kexin grabbed her, but Cheng Xiaojin shook her head.

"Let her speak."

The girl looked up, tears streaming down her face, the bunch of keys in her hand rattling.

"Mom, I'm not going with Uncle."

The red robes on the red-clad vengeful corpse flipped slightly.

The girl moved forward again.

"I've got the key back."

Sun Daqiang lay on the ground, covering his nose and still cursing.

"You little brat, how dare you!"

Tieguai Li stepped on his back.

"If you shout again, I'll get you some socks."

Cheng Xiaojin crouched three steps away, watching the girl.

"Don't touch the black rope on your mother's body, put the key on the ground, and kowtow."

The girl did as she was told, placing the key on the blue brick and kneeling down to kowtow.

The red-clad vengeful corpse reached out, intending to touch her head, but stopped in mid-air.

Black nail polish dripped down, reaching about half a foot away from the girl, before being pushed back by a burst of heat.

Tong Kexin's small aluminum kettle was still steaming.

The aroma of Huguosi Old Soup stood between the mother and daughter, forming a living line.

Cheng Xiaojin looked at the broken rope, and his ears suddenly twitched.

There was a sound coming from the knot.

It was Boss Lin's black copper coin spinning under the eaves, carrying a faint metallic clang from the direction of Deshengmen.

Shen Jiulou didn't make a move; Boss Lin was cleaning up the mess.

When he failed to get the vengeful corpse to kill, he had the rope drag the child into the house.

Cheng Xiaojin looked up.

"Tang Wanqing, the cabinet door!"

A black thread peeked out from the crack in the broken meal ticket locker door, close to the ground, and was quietly wrapping around the bunch of keys.

The little girl was still kneeling, her hand only half an inch away from the black line.

Cheng Xiaojin's expression changed.

The black thread wasn't meant to wrap around the key.

It is the shadow of a tiny, newly sprouted heart-shaped nail in the child's shadow.

"Don't let her shadow fall into the crack of the closet."

No sooner had Cheng Xiaojin spoken than Tong Kexin's long ladle was placed across Xiaoxing's feet. The hot soup at the bottom of the ladle, clinging to the blue bricks, actually burned the black line back half an inch.

Tang Wanqing flipped the Bagua mirror down, the edge of the mirror pressing against the cabinet door crack, but the black line went around the back of the mirror, sticking to the shadow of the key and sneaking inside.

Han Shaobai was holding the ledger upside down. "How...how can it turn?"

Tieguai Li shoved the wrench into the ground.

"This thing is even slipperier than debtors."

Cheng Xiaojin touched the blue brick with his toes and didn't take a step forward.

"Shaobai, spread out the account books."

"Where should I set up my stall?"

"In front of the cabinet door."

Han Shao's face turned green.

"Brother Cheng, there's my dad's official stamp on this when he checks the accounts. If I get it dirty, I'll get a beating when I get home."

Tieguai Li snatched the account book and slammed it down in front of the tattered meal ticket counter.

"Whether your dad hits you or the seventh gate hits you, you choose."

As soon as the ledger touched the ground, a cold wind flipped two pages, revealing stall names, amounts of money, and handprints, all with a rustling sound.

Cheng Xiaojin tilted his ear to the side.

The thing inside the seventh gate eats people's hearts and also recognizes the accounts of the mortal world.

"Brother Li, abacus beads."

"Want more?"

"It has to have a money-grubbing vibe, the more vulgar the better."

Han Shaobai pulled off the small copper abacus from his waist, his face twitching.

"Brother Cheng, I picked this thing during my baby's first birthday celebration."

"If the baby picks an abacus during the first birthday celebration, you deserve to pay for it."

Cheng Xiaojin flicked the tip of her shoe, and an abacus bead rolled to Xiaoxing's shadow. The bead was stained with the ink from the account book, rolled past Lao Tang's seal, and stopped in front of the black line.

The black line touched the top, but I didn't dare cross it.

Tong Kexin lowered her head and asked Xiao Xing.

"What's your name?"

"Sun Xiaoxing".

"Whose surname do they take?"

"My dad."

Sun Daqiang lay on the ground with a broken rope around his neck, still cursing as he turned his face away.

"Her father's surname is Sun, so she should belong to the Sun family!"

Tieguai Li stepped on his lower back.

"Shut your pot-bottom mouth."

Cheng Xiaojin looked at Xiaoxing.

"What's your mother's name?"

He Xiulan.

"Who makes the mutton soup at your stall?"

"My mom."

"Who gave you the key?"

"My mom."

Cheng Xiaojin nodded.

"Then tell me, whose keys are these?"

Xiao Xing looked at the key, then at the red-clad figure by the pot.

The red-clad vengeful corpse stood beside the remnants of green flames, drops of black nail polish dripping from its fingernails. With each drop, the broken meal ticket cabinet exhaled a breath of cold air.

Xiaoxing gripped the key tightly, bracing herself up with the tendons on the back of her hand.

"It belongs to my family."

Sun Daqiang shouted at the top of his lungs.

"You good-for-nothing!"

Tong Kexin slapped the back of a spoon against his mouth.

"If you scold the child again, I'll use you to feed the pot."

Grandpa Li picked up the frying spoon for liver.

"Xiao Xing, this stall was run by your mother, Grandpa Li is your witness."

Aunt Wang took a step forward, holding the steamer lid.

"I can also testify that Xiulan said when she was alive that she left the key to her daughter."

Old Zhao, the shoe repairman, inserted the awl into the sole of the shoe.

"That night, Sun Daqiang locked the door. I knocked on the west window, but no one answered. The next day he said she went back to her parents' home. I'll take responsibility for this."

One by one, the words of a living person fell, and the pages of the account book were no longer turned.

The black thread recedes towards the seam of the cabinet.

Cheng Xiaojin listened for a moment, but his brows did not relax.

"not enough."

Zhou Banxian held the compass.

"Not enough? If you keep shouting, your voice will crack."

"Justice needs to be championed, and it also needs to be suppressed."

Tong Kexin asked, "What are you betting on?"

Cheng Xiaojin looked at the mutton soup pot.

"Live rice".

Han Shaobai slapped his forehead.

"This food is dirty, want to get another bite?"

"If we can't change it, and there's one less mouth to feed the thirty-six mouths, then there will be a crack in the seventh door."

"What should we do then?"

"Recognize dirty food as human food."

Tieguai Li stared at the dark soup, while Cheng Xiaojin raised his chin and pointed to the side of the pot.

"One spoonful of old broth, half a bottle of aged vinegar, a bit of cheap liquor left to burn, and three more things from the mortal world."

Grandpa Li immediately asked, "What is it?"

"The food the child ate, the seal the sister-in-law used, the money the neighbors gave as gifts back then."

Han Shaobai flipped through the account books, his fingers trembling.

"The document might be in Sun Daqiang's pocket."

Tieguai Li stepped on Sun Daqiang's lower back and pressed down.

"Did you hear me? Hand over the seal."

Sun Daqiang gritted his teeth.

"no."

Tieguai Li bent down and took out a small cloth bag from the inside pocket of his apron.

The cloth bag contained a stall stamp, a door key, and a piece of paper folded into three sections.

Han Shaobai snatched it to look at it, his face gradually turning ugly.

"The transfer agreement was signed by He Xiulan."

Xiao Xing cried out.

"My mom doesn't know how to write this, so she said she'd give me the job and teach me how to make soup when I grow up!"

Aunt Wang leaned closer and slapped the table.

"The character is wrong. When Xiulan writes the character 'Lan,' the bottom horizontal stroke always flicks upwards."

Grandpa Li also watches it.

"The handprint is also wrong. Xiulan has a cut on her right index finger, so the handprint should have a broken line."

Sun Daqiang became anxious.

"You guys don't know anything!"

Tieguai Li pressed his face down onto the blue brick.

"You know, you know that they even dare to press the handprints of dead people."

The broken rope around the neck of the red-clothed vengeful corpse twitched, and Sun Daqiang immediately shut up.

Cheng Xiaojin stared at the document.

"Don't tear it."

Han Shaobai stopped.

"Should we keep him to send him in?"

"Also, press it in a pan."

"what?"

"Fake documents, fake fingerprints, fake stall owners—these are all fabricated accounts of people's hearts. Burn them to make it easy for him, then soak them in a pot so that the workers can see who's dirty."

Tang Wanqing glanced at Cheng Xiaojin.

"If you put the paper in the pot, the resentment will be released."

"So first look for the food the child ate."

Tong Kexin squatted down and asked Xiao Xing.

Have you eaten tonight?

Xiao Xing shook her head.

"My uncle wouldn't give me any food, saying I looked like a beggar and was ruining his business."

Tong Kexin propped her tongue against her cheek and turned to walk towards the steamed bun stall.

Aunt Wang simply lifted the steamer basket.

"Hot steamed buns, pork and cabbage, Xiulan used to love buying these."

Xiaoxing looked at the steamed buns, tears streaming down her face.

Tong Kexin broke the steamed bun in half and held it to her mouth.

"Take a bite, don't be afraid of it being hot."

Xiao Xing took a small bite, chewed it twice, and then burst into tears.

"My mom used to buy them for me too."

The black water on Hongyao's resentful corpse slowed down.

Cheng Xiaojin said, "Put the remaining half on the side of the pot, don't throw it in."

Aunt Wang took out an old red cloth, and after taking the bus, an old ten-yuan note was revealed, with the corners rolled up and oil spots on the surface.

"When my child turned one month old, Xiulan gave me a bowl of mutton soup. I said it wasn't much money, but she said that the kindness of neighbors doesn't matter."

Grandpa Li took out two old tax coins.

"I didn't bring any old money, so I'll use this to make up the difference."

Old Zhao, the shoe repairman, pulled out a crumpled five-yuan note from his drawer.

"She repaired my shoes before and didn't charge me, so this is on me."

Han Shaobai pulled out a handful of large bills, then stuffed them back in, exchanging them for two ten-yuan notes.

Tieguai Li glanced at him.

"You've improved."

Han Shaobai wore a bitter expression.

"Brother Cheng said not to talk about money late at night, because I'm afraid we'll end up talking too much about it."

Cheng Xiaojin didn't laugh.

The sound of fingernails came from inside the cabinet.

This time, Lin knocked, three short knocks followed by one long one, as if urging the workers to hurry.

The edges of Tang Wanqing's Bagua mirror were blackened, and the copper coins could not hold the cabinet door down, sliding out one by one.

The fortune teller was sweating profusely, his compass needle stuck to the cabinet door and wouldn't turn back.

"Hurry up, they can't wait inside."

Cheng Xiaojin looked at Tong Kexin.

"Press the old broth on the rim of the pot, don't pour it on the vengeful corpse."

"Use aged vinegar at the bottom of the pot."

"Fake receipts were soaked in, and the stall stamps were pressed onto the ledgers."

Han Shaobai held the seal.

"Press where?"

"Use Sun Daqiang's name."

Sun Daqiang struggled to his feet on the ground.

"You dare!"

Tieguai Li slammed a wrench on the chopping board, cracking a hole in the wooden board.

"I don't know if he dares, but I dare to keep you quiet."

Han Shaobai dipped the stall stamp in ink and pressed it heavily onto the three characters "Sun Daqiang" in the ledger.

The missing part of the seal faces the name, clearly and unmistakably missing.

The black line inside the cabinet door retracted slightly.

Tong Kexin poured a spoonful of broth onto the edge of the pot.

The aged vinegar was then poured in from the bottom of the pot.

Han Shaobai gritted his teeth and threw the fake document into the pot.

As soon as the paper touched the soup, the black characters floated to the surface, swirling around the knotted hemp rope.

The vengeful corpse of Hongyao raised its hand.

Xiao Xing knelt in front of the key, holding half a steamed bun.

"Mom, I've eaten."

The neighbors placed the gift money one by one next to the ledger.

"Xiulan, the child is being looked after."

"Xiulan, there are witnesses at the stall."

"He Xiulan, give the key back to the child."

The black characters in the pot began to fade.

Sun Daqiang suddenly looked up, his face pressed against the blue bricks, and grinned.

"You think that's all?"

Cheng Xiaojin pulled his shoes back.

"Brother Li, press his mouth shut."

It's too late.

Sun Daqiang bit his tongue, and blood spurted onto the green flame at the bottom of the pot. The green flame leaped to the front of the broken meal ticket cabinet, and the cabinet door was pushed open by two palms.

The black thread in the cabinet no longer tangled around the key; instead, it clung to the blue bricks and headed straight for Xiaoxing's chest.

Cheng Xiaojin heard the tiny heart-shaped nail make a soft sound.

The vengeful corpse Hongyao turned its head and uttered its first complete sentence to Xiaoxing.

"Swallow the key!"