Zombie Life Begins in Hongxi Village

What surged in Ren Ming's heart was not the joy of reuniting with his daughter, but a complex emotion mixed with embarrassment, shame, anger, and rejection.

More than a decade ago in Yueyang, he got completely drunk that night. Afterwards, he gave her twenty silver dollars and never looked back. He couldn't even remember what the fisherman's widow looked like.

Now that an illegitimate daughter has suddenly appeared, and she's just a little girl, how is he supposed to acknowledge her?

If it were a son, he would grit his teeth and accept it.

After all, the Ren family's vast fortune needs an heir, and having a son is better than having no successor at all.

But Qingqing is a daughter, and he already has Zhuzhu, and he and Zhuzhu have a very good father-daughter relationship.

Once this illegitimate daughter is acknowledged, how will the family property be divided? What will happen to Zhuzhu?

"What?! Dad, you really have an illegitimate daughter outside?!" Ren Zhuzhu flung open the curtain and rushed in, staring at Ren Ming with red eyes.

She overheard everything that was said outside the door.

Ren Ming's expression changed drastically. He quickly stood up and denied it urgently: "Zhuzhu, nothing of the sort! Don't believe everything you hear."

He turned his head and gave Lin Yi an awkward smile.

"Ayi, although I have business in Yueyang, I absolutely have not been messing around outside."

"If she were truly my woman, how could I let her wander outside? I would have married her long ago. There must be some misunderstanding."

"Mingming—" Ren Tingting was about to speak when Lin Yi grabbed her wrist.

Lin Yi didn't look at Ren Ming or Zhu Zhu. She simply picked up her teacup, took a sip, and remained calm as if nothing had happened.

He knew perfectly well that Qingqing was Ren Ming's daughter, but both father and daughter made it clear that they didn't want to acknowledge her.

He couldn't very well force Ren Ming to the ground and make him agree to a blood test to prove their kinship.

Besides, forced relationships are never sweet. Even if she reluctantly accepts it, given Ren Ming and Zhu Zhu's current attitude, Qingqing won't have a good life in the Ren family. Instead, she'll only feel more wronged.

"Perhaps I'm mistaken," Lin Yi said casually, putting down her teacup.

"Yes, yes, yes, you must be mistaken, Ayi." Ren Ming felt like he had been granted a pardon and echoed repeatedly, not even bothering to wipe the sweat from his forehead.

"There are so many people in this world who look alike. In the provincial capital alone, I've seen two girls who look somewhat like Zhuzhu."

That Qingqing just happened to look like Zhuzhu, that's all.

Ren Zhuzhu's expression softened somewhat.

She was a smart woman, and she knew very well that the girl named Qingqing was most likely her father's illegitimate daughter. Otherwise, why would Lin Yi, a great general, bother to fabricate such a lie to extort her family?

But since her father flatly denied it, she was happy to accept the situation. The Ren family's assets belonged to her alone, and no one could take a share.

Ren Tingting didn't say a word the whole way after leaving the Ren residence.

She walked with her head down on the bluestone path, her steps heavy and quick.

Lin Yi walked beside her without saying a word, simply following at a leisurely pace.

Ren Tingting stopped abruptly after turning the corner, turned around, and her eyes were slightly red.

"How could my uncle do this? He doesn't even acknowledge his own daughter!"

And Zhuzhu, she…”

Lin Yi reached out and ruffled her hair. Her palm was warm, and the pressure was just right, suppressing her indignation and confusion.

"Alright, that's enough. Didn't you say you'd consider her your sister? If they don't, then you can."

Ren Tingting looked up at him, her lips moved, but in the end she didn't say anything more, she just nodded gently.

Lin Yi was so open-minded because he had prepared himself from the beginning for Ren Ming to deny everything.

Moreover, Qingqing's concentration of special bloodline is very high, comparable to that of Ren Tingting now.

He had simply been influenced by Buddhism while following Master Ikkyu, and the Yin energy deep within his bloodline had been suppressed by Buddhism and had not been unleashed.

Ren Ming's rejection of this daughter is actually a good thing for Lin Yi.

He was happy to accept this "talent" with outstanding bloodline and talent, especially since he also got Master Ikkyu as a buy-one-get-one-free deal.

Back at the inn, Lin Yi told Qingqing everything about Ren Ming's attitude.

After hearing this, Qingqing was stunned for a moment, then covered her face with her hands, her shoulders trembling violently, and tears silently slipped through her fingers.

She wasn't greedy for the Ren family's wealth; she simply longed for family, for the knowledge that she wasn't a rootless duckweed, and for the existence of people in this world connected to her by blood.

Now that she has finally found her biological father, he refuses to acknowledge her.

Master Ikkyu stood up, and the kind face that had always resembled his years of chanting Buddhist scriptures vanished completely, replaced by undisguised anger.

Having lived to such an old age, he had seen all sorts of storms, but seeing his apprentice, whom he had raised with his own hands, being treated so disrespectfully, still stirred up anger in him.

"This humble monk will go find that Master Ren and have a proper talk with him."

Qingqing reached out and grabbed his sleeve, shaking her head with tears streaming down her face.

"Never mind, Master. Since he doesn't acknowledge me, I'll just pretend I don't have a father."

After she finished speaking, she seemed to have all her strength drained away, leaning back in her chair with her hands hanging limply at her knees.

Ren Tingting felt sorry for Qingqing and went over to hug her tightly, gently patting her back.

"Qingqing, your uncle may not acknowledge you, but I will. From now on, you are my sister, Ren Tingting's sister. Come back to Yun County with me, and let's see who dares to bully you."

Qingqing looked up at Ren Tingting. There was no politeness or perfunctoriness in Ren Tingting's eyes, only a genuine and undeniable sincerity.

Qingqing's eyes reddened again, but she didn't cry anymore. Instead, she nodded vigorously.

"elder sister."

Ren Tingting's heart softened when she heard her call her "sister," and she hugged her even tighter.

As Master Ikkyu watched this scene, he slowly put down his staff, put his hands together, and chanted a Buddhist mantra. The anger on his face gradually subsided, replaced by a relieved smile.

With her sisters and someone to rely on, Qingqing can finally rest easy, even if this old man passes away one day.

That evening, at the Ren family ancestral graves.

Nintendo's grave has been dug long ago, and the coffin has been placed next to the tomb. All that's left is for Nintendo's remains to be buried.

Ren Ming, Lin Yi, Ren Tingting, Ren Zhuzhu, and several of Ren Ming's concubines were all present. Incense and offerings were placed in front of the grave, and piles of paper money were burned.

In an attempt to curry favor with the handsome Lin Yi, Captain Cao of the security team shamelessly brought several security guards with him.

As the person who personally sent Nintendo to study in Japan, Lin Yi knew that Nintendo would never come back.

However, in order to evade responsibility for losing the body, Mama's apprentice, Ahao, conspires with his junior apprentice, Aqiang, to impersonate Nintendo to complete the task.

To be honest, in the original series, Captain Cao arrested Ma Ma Di and his two apprentices and wanted to execute them. Although it seemed like he was just being unreasonable, in reality, they were not wronged at all.

It was precisely because of their dereliction of duty that Nintendo's zombie apocalypse killed so many people.

A moment later, a clear, crisp sound of a corpse-driving bell came from afar.

Ah-Qiang, ringing a bell, led Ah-Hao, disguised as Nintendo, hopping and skipping out of the night.

When A-Qiang saw the heavily armed security guards, his eyes visibly wavered, and his steps slowed down.

He suddenly had a very bad feeling, but since he had come this far, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and go for it.

Ah Qiang cleared his throat, adopted the posture of a professional Taoist priest, and bowed to Ren Ming, saying, "Master Ren, the old master has been delivered. The journey was smooth, the body is intact, and he can be placed in the coffin at any time."

Without saying a word, Ren Ming knelt down and kowtowed to the "corpse" covered with yellow talismans, his voice trembling with tears:

"Father—your unfilial son has kept you waiting for so long!"

Ren Zhuzhu and several concubines also knelt down, and there was a sound of weeping in front of the grave.

Ren Tingting instinctively wanted to kneel down as well, but Lin Yi pulled her back.

She glanced back at Lin Yi. Although she didn't know why he had stopped her, she didn't ask any questions. She simply took a step back and stood next to Lin Yi.

Ren Ming knelt on the ground, raised his head, and looked over with some displeasure, thinking to himself, "Even if you are a great general, you shouldn't be so impolite."

Lin Yi said in a calm and indifferent tone, "Uncle, aren't you going to check the goods? It wouldn't be good if you knelt on the wrong one."

A-Qiang and A-Hao both felt a jolt in their hearts at the same time.

Ah Qiang, being quick-witted, immediately adopted a offended expression and let out a heavy snort:

"Don't you trust Maoshan? Sir, everyone has their own expertise. I don't blame you for not understanding the matter of corpse driving, but you can't just say things like that."

"Old Master Ren's soul is still unsettled. If he's disturbed by a living person, he'll immediately turn into a zombie—and the first thing he'll bite will be you, his blood relatives! Can you bear that responsibility?"

These words were spoken with such force that Ren Ming was terrified, kneeling on the ground, unsure whether to advance or retreat.

The concubines were even worse off; they started backing away as soon as they heard the words "zombie resurrection."

Ren Tingting was not intimidated.

She had witnessed Lin Yi treating Old Master Ren like a grandson, throwing him around.

"Hmph, if it's a real corpse that's turned into a zombie, then there's still you, the Taoist priest, right? Don't we, as family members, even have the right to verify its identity? Your constant excuses, are you hiding something?"

"This—it just won't work! My cultivation is not high enough. If I turn into a zombie, not only will I not be able to save you, but I will also suffer!" Ah Qiang was forced to speak incoherently, and sweat had already begun to bead on his forehead.

At this point, everyone realized that something was wrong.

Ren Ming stood up, patted the dirt off his knees, and his eyes turned cold.

Ren Zhuzhu stared at A-Qiang for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Aren't you that A-Qiang guy? Where's Brother Hao?"

Ah Qiang's expression changed drastically.

He never expected to meet Zhuzhu here... Could Zhuzhu be the granddaughter of Old Master Ren?

This is bad!

"Uh, he... he went to deal with another group of corpses, he didn't come with me." Ah Qiang forced himself to make up a lie.

Ren Ming's face was ashen. He pulled Zhu Zhu behind him and coldly said to A Qiang:

"Please tear off the talisman, Taoist priest. I want to see if it is my late father who has returned."