After begging for mercy, the two old people gradually calmed down.
They had died.
Their eyes were wide open, the corners cracked, staring straight at the ceiling.
Blue veins were exposed on their necks, and the skin beneath the blood vessels appeared black.
Both hands and feet were curled under their bodies, as if bound by invisible ropes. Their shouts before death were like wails before an execution.
Doctors and nurses came in very quickly, but there was no time left for the two old people.
Neither the horrifying amount of bleeding nor the state of the two old people at that moment left any meaning for further rescue measures.
Next, they dispersed the crowd watching outside the ward and quickly had orderlies clean the room.
Relatives were then called to the office to handle subsequent matters.
Li Sanjiang saw his great-grandson and doubtfully pulled Li Zhuoyuan aside, asking, “Shouldn’t you be with your grandpa going to pick me up by the river? How did you end up here?”
Xue Liangliang at this point took out his student ID and handed it over, saying, “Uncle, I am a student at Haihe University. I was originally working by the river and brought a sick classmate to the hospital. Xiao Yuan knows the way, so I just let him lead. I’ve already told Xiao Yuan’s grandpa and them.”
“He knows the way?” Li Sanjiang pointed at Li Zhuoyuan while looking at Xue Liangliang, “He hasn’t been back to his hometown for long, and he hasn’t even been to the city area. What kind of road does he know?”
Xue Liangliang said, “Actually, I quite like this child. I just thought I’d take him out to play along the way.”
Li Sanjiang took Xue Liangliang’s student ID, looked at it carefully for a bit, then returned it to him, considering this reason believable. After all, at the moment, the gold content of university students was still very high.
At this time, the middle-aged man and woman who were in the ward earlier walked out of the doctor’s office and came straight to Li Sanjiang.
Li Sanjiang sighed at them and said, “My condolences.”
Li Zhuoyuan guessed that they should be Sister Yingzi’s uncle and aunt.
However, this couple now seemed to have no reaction to their mourning pain, or rather, they had more urgent matters pressing them. They each grabbed one of Li Sanjiang’s hands and said in low and excited voices:
“Grandpa Sanjiang, please, save me, save me.”
“Yes, Grandpa, help us, it’s really too terrible.”
Li Sanjiang glanced at Li Zhuoyuan beside him, indicating that they should go together to the balcony on each floor and talk.
Li Zhuoyuan didn’t bother following. Third Aunt was still in the doctor’s office going through procedures, and Sister Yingzi was sitting alone on a bench, looking lost.
Having just witnessed such a terrifying scene and experienced the departure of two relatives, the blow was naturally very big.
Li Zhuoyuan sat over and started comforting her. In the process, he also conveniently asked about the course of the matter.
Yingzi’s grandfather and grandmother worked on a private aquatic farm. Half a month ago, while clearing mud around the field, they actually dug up a small coffin.
This coffin was completely red, and they didn’t know how long it had been soaked below, but it hadn’t rotted at all. Instead, it became even more brightly red from the soaking.
The old couple called the boss over and said that according to local customs, this small coffin must be offered incense and sacrifices before being pushed into the river.
But the boss was an outsider and didn’t believe this. He just called two workers and together with tools pried open the coffin.
Inside the coffin was the corpse of a female child, about eight years old, wearing a black cotton jacket and embroidered shoes. She should have been buried in winter. When they first opened it, she actually looked a bit ethereal and hadn’t rotted at all.
It made everyone almost think that this was someone’s newly buried family member!
But who knew that in just a few breaths, the originally tender corpse suddenly began to gray and wither. The skin and flesh quickly dissolved, leaving only a skeleton wrapped in the black cotton jacket.
The female corpse had a set of jewelry on her body: a jade hairpin in her hair, rings on her fingers, and a gold ring on her neck.
Besides, inside the coffin was also a porcelain bottle stuck with a talisman paper, plus a piece of carved black wood.
On the carving, the first line were big words:
“Corpse body towns evil spirits, merit helps fly ascend.”
Below, another line of small words and a signature followed:
“Person who sees this character, must not profane the body, must not touch its things, quickly seal the coffin wood, throw it into the river, only then avoid great disaster.
—— Bai Family Lady”
Yingzi’s grandfather and grandmother immediately begged the boss to quickly seal the coffin cover back as said above and push it back into the river, but the boss was determined. He thought the several pieces of jewelry inside the coffin must all be valuable things, and that porcelain bottle was even more likely to be a treasure. He just took everything away. As for the coffin and the corpse bones inside, he found a place near the river bank, dug a pit, and buried them.
Then, the terrifying things just started to happen.
First, the boss strangely disappeared. Then, Yingzi’s grandfather and grandmother began to continuously have nightmares. In the dreams, they saw that female child coming for revenge. Immediately after, both of their bodies started to show discomfort and they were admitted to the town health center. Next, they even developed suicidal tendencies.
That day, the two old people took advantage of Third Aunt going home to get a meal. They made a fuss with Yingzi about wanting to eat orange crystal soaked in water to send her away, then secretly ran towards the rooftop wanting to jump off the building. Luckily, Great-grandpa just happened to catch sight of it and stopped them.
But after this commotion, the town health center was unwilling to let them continue staying. After all, if the two old people were really seeking death in the health center, the trouble inside that center could be big. Therefore, they were only transferred to the city people’s hospital.
However, the symptoms of the two old people became even worse. Cooperating with the doctor’s sedatives and the family’s strict guarding, they were just barely prevented from continuing to self-harm.
But who knew, they could actually, in this unbelievable and terrible way, end their lives at the same time.
After listening to Yingzi’s narration, Li Zhuoyuan asked:
“What about those two workers who helped the boss open the coffin?”
“That… I don’t know, I haven’t heard them mention them.”
“Sister, your southern grandpa and southern grandma, were they still somewhat clear-headed at first?”
“Except when they were having an episode, they were all normal. Just moments before they spat blood, they were still chatting with me about finding a boyfriend after I got into university.”
At this time, Third Aunt poked her head out of the doctor’s office and waved towards this side:
“Ying Hou, come help Mom fill out a form.”
“Coming, Mom.”
After Yingzi left, Li Zhuoyuan just noticed that at some point, Xue Liangliang had actually sat so close. He was deliberately eavesdropping.
Facing Li Zhuoyuan’s gaze, Xue Liangliang not only didn’t blush, but instead said with some excitement, “I can hear you, you’re deliberately leading the conversation.”
“I’m comforting my sister.”
“Phew… you scared me. You don’t know, just now at the ward door listening to those two old people shouting ‘Bai Family Lady’, my heart was in my throat. I thought it was because of my smashing the god statue that I harmed people again, or maybe it was because I just happened to send the victim Zhao Hequan to this hospital today, triggering something that harmed them, alas.”
Li Zhuoyuan realized that Xue Liangliang had also noticed the words engraved on the base of the god statue.
“Brother Liangliang, rest assured, the timing doesn’t match, and the age doesn’t match either.”
The coffin dug up from the aquatic farm was half a month ago. Xue Liangliang and Zhao Hequan smashed the god statue yesterday. The two matters are not connected.
“Age doesn’t match, that’s not certain, is it?” Xue Liangliang said doubtfully, “Before, transportation was not convenient, so when they made the statue, it might not have been that accurate. Who knows, the god statue we dug up by the river, its body could be a small girl, couldn’t it?”
Li Zhuoyuan shook his head, “Not the same one.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
Because he had seen that woman. Although her body state was very similar to the god statue, perhaps enlarged and amplified, it was impossible for her to be an eight-year-old girl in any way.
“But, they are both called Bai Family Lady.” Xue Liangliang thought, “Could that Bai Family Lady be a collective name, for example, a professional group? Like those from a Daoist school, all unified as XX mountain Heavenly Master kind?”
Li Zhuoyuan nodded and added, “It could also be a surname.”
He didn’t know why, but Li Zhuoyuan’s mind floated to the spirit hall in Liu Yumei’s east room, which was filled with the tablets of the Qin and Liu families.
“Are they all surnamed Bai?” Xue Liangliang crossed his fingers, “This is very possible. Bai Family Lady, according to the local dialect, can indeed be understood as the woman of the Bai family, a kind of respectful honorific for someone with ability.”
Li Zhuoyuan responded with a sound, and his gaze looked towards the direction of the balcony. Great-grandpa and Yingzi’s uncle and aunt hadn’t finished talking and come out yet.
Xue Liangliang reached out and gently pushed Li Zhuoyuan’s arm below, carefully asking, “Well, about what your sister said, do you have any other ideas?”
“There’s quite a bit of concealment and fabrication.”
“Right, that’s correct.” Xue Liangliang became energetic again, “You really heard it. The boss disappeared, and her grandfather and grandmother had nightmares and their bodies were abnormal, but about how those two workers who helped the boss pry open the coffin are, why wouldn’t she know? Unless…”
“Unless, those two who helped the boss pry open the coffin, were these two old people.”
“Your sister is just repeating what she heard. Everything she heard and told you was what the adults in the family said. Those two old people who just passed away, in their narration, beautified and covered themselves up too much.
After all, if it were truly as they said, before they died, why would they beg for mercy? This clearly shows they knew they had done something wrong. Otherwise, they would have shouted injustice.
So, change the statement a bit, and it’s probably that those two old people fished the coffin out, and then called the boss over to open the coffin together.
Perhaps, it was even the boss who fished out the coffin, and the boss didn’t plan to pry it open, but was instigated by these two old people together to open the coffin.
At the very least, they were absolutely deeply involved in it, not that sensible and innocent.”
Li Zhuoyuan looked at Xue Liangliang and blinked.
Xue Liangliang awkwardly waved his hand, “I’m not saying I’m innocent, but no matter what, I smashed the god statue for the engineering progress, not for personal gain. Worker Luo has already made it clear with that Bai Family Lady.”
“Brother Liangliang, actually there’s still the most important point.”
“Xiao Yuan, quickly say, which point?”
“Sister Yingzi can actually say out the words engraved on that piece of board. So at the very least, she must have seen a handwritten copy.
But how could the two old people, in that short time after opening the coffin, not only understand the words above but also memorize them word for word and recite them for people to copy onto paper?”
“Your meaning is…”
“Yes, the two old people must have taken some things, at the very least, that piece of carved wood, is in their home.”
After listening, Xue Liangliang nodded heavily, then carefully sized up Li Zhuoyuan and asked, “Xiao Yuan, are you really an elementary school student?”
“Actually, I am a university student by Weiming Lake.”
“Hehehehe… cough cough!” Xue Liangliang was teased into coughing with laughter. He reached out and patted Li Zhuoyuan’s back, encouraging him, “Good, having this ambition is already great!”
Li Zhuoyuan could only laugh.
“However, Xiao Yuan, have you heard of the Bai Family Lady?”
“Brother Liangliang, I’ve spent much less time in Nantong than you.”
“Oh, that’s right. Then I’ll go to the city cultural history museum and check some materials to see if there are any records in the local chronicles.”
“Brother Liangliang, you’re already not involved. Why are you so concerned about this matter? Could it be for your classmate?”
“Um, shouldn’t I be?”
“I don’t think you like him very much.”
“This has nothing to do with whether I like him or not. Everyone has their own life path choice. I can only follow my own judgment and walk the path I choose. Ultimately, who is right and who is wrong can only be proven by history.
Alright, the doctors should be going to work. I’ll go get the report. If there’s no problem with the report, I won’t come looking for you. I’ll go check the materials at the cultural history museum first.
You live in Shinnan Siyuan village, right?”
“Yes.”
“Where do I get off the car? Since your great-grandpa is here, I won’t send you back. I’ll come find you in the evening.”
“Pass Shijia Bridge, get off at the second intersection and walk inside, then ask for Li Sanjiang’s home.”
“Are you sure you can ask?”
“Yes, Great-grandpa is very famous in the village.”
“Okay, if there’s no car in the evening, I’ll call a taxi over.”
Li Zhuoyuan curiously asked, “Brother Liangliang?”
“What, still something?”
“You seem to be quite wealthy.”
He said he came from the countryside of Anhui, but in terms of clothing and some living habits, he wasn’t constrained at all.
“Oh, I contracted two small shops and a stationery store at school. In addition, I also gathered a group of classmates to form a team and take on some design projects from professors or outside the school.
There are indeed many opportunities in big cities and universities, and it’s also easy to make money. It wasn’t possible when I was back home. Without these objective conditions, I still mail money to my parents back home every month.
Actually, logically, I could have skipped this kind of internship, but I don’t want to give up this kind of frontline exercise opportunity.”
“Brother Liangliang, you’re amazing.”
“You too, smart little friend.” Xue Liangliang let his forehead lightly touch Li Zhuoyuan’s forehead. Seeing Li Sanjiang and them coming back, he got up and left.
“Great-grandpa.”
“Where did that university student go? Did he leave?”
“He went to see his classmate.”
“Okay.” Li Sanjiang nodded, “Let’s go.”
“Where are we going, Great-grandpa?”
“Go get things.”
Yingzi and Third Aunt stayed at the hospital to continue processing the matters. Her uncle Zhou Hai and aunt Chen Xiaoling led Li Sanjiang and Li Zhuoyuan back home. To save time, they called a motorcycle waiting at the hospital entrance.
The rural house was very spacious, with an artificial river in front of the dam. Going south for a bit, one could see the river surface.
Entering the house, Chen Xiaoling went to pour water, while Zhou Hai took out a cloth bag. He opened it, and inside were a hairpin and a carved piece of wood.
Li Sanjiang picked up the carved wood and frowned slightly as he looked at the words on it.
Li Zhuoyuan crowded over and read it.
It was exactly the same as Yingzi’s narration, word for word.
“Confused… truly confused…” Li Sanjiang put down the carved wood, patted his leg, “These days aren’t that hard, how could they suddenly become so completely irrational when they lacked nothing?”
*Thump!* *Thump!*
Without the restraints of the hospital, Zhou Hai and Chen Xiaoling knelt directly in front of Li Sanjiang, almost kowtowing, shouting and begging Li Sanjiang to save them.
It turned out, they had also started having that dream.
After witnessing the end of the old couple today, their fear was almost overwhelming.
“Go, let’s go see the farm first. Do you still remember where the corpse bones were buried?”
“Remember, remember.” Zhou Hai nodded immediately, “The two of us personally dug the pit and buried it.”
“Heh.” Li Sanjiang let out a cold laugh.
The farm was not far from the Zhou family’s home. Leaving the village and walking along the river bank for a while, they arrived.
The farm was very small. Besides the boss, there were only two employees, who were just Zhou Hai’s parents.
Therefore, in the initial narration, they not only beautified and covered themselves up to Third Aunt and Yingzi but also didn’t tell the truth to Li Sanjiang.
“Dig it up,” Li Sanjiang said.
“Don’t we wait until evening?” Zhou Hai asked.
It was daytime now, and very few people passed by here, but there was still a risk of being seen.
Li Sanjiang nodded, “Then I’ll go back to the village and sleep first, and come again tomorrow. You secretly dig out the corpse bones tonight.”
“That won’t do, that won’t do, Grandpa, I’m afraid, I don’t dare.”
“You know fear too!” Li Sanjiang almost roared, “When it’s broad daylight you don’t dig, you have to wait until it’s dark to do things, huh!”
“Okay, okay, okay, we’ll dig, we’ll dig.”
Zhou Hai and Chen Xiaoling each took a shovel and started digging.
During this time, Li Sanjiang asked, “That boss disappeared, did you report it to the police?”
“No.” Zhou Hai answered after turning up a shovel of soil, “We didn’t dare report it to the police. We were greedy and afraid that if we reported it to the police, the matter wouldn’t be hidden, and we’d still have to hand over the things.”
“What about the boss’s family?”
“His hometown is in the south. He came here alone to contract the farm and didn’t bring his family.”
Li Sanjiang suddenly spoke in a low voice and asked, “You two didn’t swallow the boss’s share, did you?”
Zhou Hai immediately cried out, “Grandpa, I can’t do such a thing!”
Chen Xiaoling immediately nodded in agreement, “We wouldn’t dare do anything like killing someone, wouldn’t dare.”
“Okay.” Li Sanjiang didn’t ask any more questions. He believed these two people wouldn’t go that far. He immediately got up and quietly prepared his offering table.
Li Zhuoyuan helped on the side.
Soon, the coffin was dug out.
Li Sanjiang took a look and also breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. The coffin was buried closed. After opening it, the corpse bones inside were still complete and hadn’t been messed up.
This could be considered… a million times fortunate in misfortune.
Li Zhuoyuan approached the coffin and looked at the corpse bones inside. It was indeed a female child.
Li Sanjiang performed the ritual and then burned paper.
After completing a set of procedures, Li Sanjiang asked, “Where are the other things, especially that bottle?”
“Those were taken by the boss.”
“Where does he live?”
“He just lives in the farm, in that room. After he disappeared, we went to look for him. Later, Mom and Dad had problems with their bodies, and we also realized it was because of the things inside the coffin. We also searched his house, but we didn’t find those things, especially not that esteemed bottle.”
Li Sanjiang’s eyebrows furrowed. Originally, according to his plan, if all the things were put back, and after another sacrifice, the coffin was sealed well and pushed into the river, this matter would be considered over.
After all, the requirements on the carved wood were clearly stated. Now that at least two, possibly even three, lives had been sacrificed, it could be considered as seeing blood. That thing, no matter how resentful it was, should vent its anger.
But the premise was that all the things must be put back. Or, losing the jewelry and such could be overlooked, but that esteemed talisman paper bottle absolutely could not be omitted.
The words on it were written clearly: just use the corpse body to suppress those evil spirits!
Li Zhuoyuan at this time spoke up and asked, “Uncle and Aunt, does the boss have any other connections here?”
Li Sanjiang immediately snapped out of it and asked, “Right, right, are there any other people he knows? I heard that southern bosses like to keep mistresses.”
Chen Xiaoling shook her head, “Haven’t heard of any.”
Zhou Hai scratched his head, “Seems there are, there are two. One is a widow living in Jiwei Port town, and one is a woman from a singing house in the city.”
“Can we find them?” Li Sanjiang asked.
Zhou Hai shook his head, “I just heard my parents chatting about it while eating, but I don’t know where those two people specifically live, and I can’t find them.”
Li Sanjiang took out his cigarette box, pulled out two, threw one to Zhou Hai, and said:
“Report it to the police, let the police find them.”
“What?” “What?”
Zhou Hai and Chen Xiaoling were both stunned.
“I said report it to the police. Report the disappearance and report this matter.” Li Sanjiang pointed at the coffin, “Let the police go find them and ask if the things are with them. I estimate that boss isn’t around either.”
“But we…”
“Grandpa, if we report it to the police…”
“You didn’t kill anyone, what are you afraid of! Heh, even if none of the things in this coffin were missing, and I smoothly sent the coffin back into the river today, I would still call you to report this to the police.
This kind of matter, facing it publicly, will be much better, and you will also be much safer.
If you’re unwilling to report it to the police, that’s up to you, as long as you’re not afraid of falling to the same end as your parents today.”
“We’ll report it, report it to the police!” Zhou Hai made up his mind.
“Okay, fine. Move the coffin and the offering table into the house first. Before the police take over publicly, don’t extinguish the candles, and don’t put out the paper ash. Compensate as much as you can.
You guys arrange the tasks yourselves.”
“Got it, Grandpa. Xiao Ling, you go report it to the police, I’ll stay here and look after the offering table.”
“Okay, fine.”
Next, Li Sanjiang took Li Zhuoyuan and sat on the steps at the door, smoking non-stop.
“Great-grandpa, aren’t we going home?” Li Zhuoyuan asked.
Li Sanjiang pointed at the house behind him, “If I leave now, Zhou Hai will be in there alone with that coffin. I’m afraid he’ll be scared to piss his pants.”
After a pause, Li Sanjiang continued, “Last night, your great-grandpa, I, also had a dream.”
“Huh?” Li Zhuoyuan finally realized the seriousness of the matter, “Great-grandpa, you also had a dream?”
“I dreamt that on the rooftop of the town health center, that female doll was standing in front of me, asking me why I wanted to help them, and what right I had to help them. She also told me that since I intervened, I should die with them.”
Li Sanjiang took a deep drag on his cigarette and slowly exhaled through his nose:
“Damn it, this old man was also scared by today’s scene.”
Li Zhuoyuan nodded understandingly. That scene today was indeed scary.
Moreover, he felt that the esteemed Bai Family Lady dug up at the river work site and this female child Bai Family Lady, although they might all be from the same family, were obviously different in temperament.
The Bai Family Lady at the river work site could listen to self-apologies, accept self-sacrifice, and even listen to Worker Luo’s nagging.
It could be said, she was very reasonable.
But this Bai Family Lady was much more ruthless from the start, killing people as if drinking water.
“Actually, what does it have to do with me? She’s blaming me for coming to the health center that day and saving those two old people, but I can’t just watch them die, can I?
Forget it, I’m not contaminated much. When the police arrive, I’ll make a statement and absorb some public energy. That one will probably not bother me again.”
Li Zhuoyuan understood. So Great-grandpa’s plan was this.
It was no wonder. The previous encounters, whether it was the little Huangying or the cat-faced old lady, were all within a controllable range, but they were far less fierce than this Bai Family Lady. Great-grandpa also couldn’t control her.
Li Zhuoyuan suddenly furrowed his brow. He thought of the content in “Jianghu Strange Records” and discovered one example that was very similar to this Bai Family Lady.
That was a Xuanmen person, using themselves as a vessel, sealing themselves up to cultivate, seeking an alternative way to become an immortal by transcending the physical form.
This kind of dead person possesses some Daoist magic powers from their previous life. Although they are not as overbearing and terrifying as ordinary dead people, they are the most difficult to handle because they can understand what means living people are using against them.
Combined with that line of words on the carving: Corpse body towns evil spirits, merit helps fly ascend.
This matched completely. Even if she was formless, she was still dead, and formless… even more unknown how to deal with.
Li Zhuoyuan felt that Great-grandpa did the right thing. It was better to report it to the police.
The police came, and many of them, because this event had seemingly led to two deaths and one disappearance. Although the cause of death of the two old people was not murder, the circumstances of the matter were fundamentally different.
The police controlled the scene, and Zhou Hai was temporarily taken into custody as a suspect.
Li Zhuoyuan followed Great-grandpa to the police station to make a statement. It was already dusk when they finished and came out.
Li Sanjiang specifically hugged the door of the police station, as if worried it wasn’t enough. He temporarily embraced some more public energy, and even kissed the police station sign.
This action stunned everyone in the guard room.
But seeing that this old man wasn’t causing trouble, they only pushed open the window and asked:
“Old comrade, what are you doing?”
Li Sanjiang continued to kiss while shouting back:
“Showing respect.”
After doing these things, Li Sanjiang was too lazy to go back to the hospital to find Yingzi and her mother, and also refused Chen Xiaoling’s invitation to stay at her home tonight.
He, Li Sanjiang, just wanted to go home now.
Calling a taxi back was too expensive, because at this point, taxi drivers might not be willing to take you to the countryside unless you added more money.
Li Sanjiang just flagged down a tractor on the road and asked where they were going.
Li Zhuoyuan originally thought this kind of luck-based behavior was no different from finding a needle in a haystack, and was just preparing to sit down and wait slowly. Who expected that the second tractor Great-grandpa flagged down was actually delivering stone piers to Shigang town.
This was excellent, providing a direct, smooth, albeit bumpy, ride.
Great-grandpa gave the driver a cigarette, then waved for Xiao Yuan to get on the vehicle.
The tractor moved forward with a “da da da,” and Li Zhuoyuan and Great-grandpa sat in the back, feeling the evening breeze.
When they passed the city area, they also witnessed the noise of the city.
Midway, Li Sanjiang took a very short nap, then woke up. He was very happy and proactively said to Li Zhuoyuan:
“Xiao Yuanhou, your great-grandpa just had another dream in a daze. In the dream, I vaguely saw that female doll again, but I couldn’t see her clearly, she was very fuzzy. She was also speaking, but I couldn’t hear her clearly either.
See, she’s getting farther away from me. Your great-grandpa is almost out of trouble.”
“Great-grandpa, you are truly amazing.”
Li Zhuoyuan had once doubted Li Sanjiang’s ability, but after the cat-faced old lady’s sentence “Your great-grandpa has already shown mercy,” his doubts were dispelled again.
Moreover, Great-grandpa seemed to have a way no matter what he encountered, and his methods were all effective.
“What’s amazing? It’s not for your grandpa Han Hou’s sake that I wouldn’t have come here. This money I also didn’t have the nerve to ask for, and I even added danger to myself for nothing.
A loss, a loss to my maternal grandma’s house.”
“Next time call me Grandpa and not again…”
“No, it’s not like I encounter such unlucky and dangerous things every time. Your great-grandpa relies on this to make a living, and it’s not possible to eat big meat every meal. Occasionally, I also get a tooth knocked out by a stone in the rice.
Alas, I was just thinking about coming back this time and continuing to bring you good luck, but now I don’t dare. She hasn’t left cleanly yet, and your great-grandpa doesn’t want to implicate you.”
Saying that, Li Sanjiang knocked on the iron sheet in the back and shouted to the tractor driver:
“Old brother, find a small restaurant up ahead. Brother, how about I treat you to a couple of drinks?”
“How could I let you do that?”
“Sigh, why be so polite? Find a place up ahead to stop, eat, and then go.”
“Okay.”
The tractor stopped in front of a small restaurant. After getting off and going in, Li Sanjiang first ordered a catty of yellow wine, two cold and two hot dishes, and also ordered a portion of egg fried rice specifically for Li Zhuoyuan.
After Li Zhuoyuan finished eating his rice, he just sat on the side and waited. Great-grandpa and the driver then chatted animatedly.
Li Sanjiang ordered another catty of wine to be heated and at the same time ordered a can of Jianlibao for Li Zhuoyuan.
*Pop!*
The sound of it opening and fizzing.
Li Zhuoyuan took a sip and Li Sanjiang asked, “Is it good?”
“Yes, it’s good.”
“Then shall we buy a box to bring back later?”
The driver laughed, “Old brother, you’re really generous to the lad.”
This year, drinks like beer bottles filled with lemon soda were expensive because the bottles had to be recycled. Ordinary people could afford to drink it poured out, but to be able to drink it from a bottle was still too expensive in the eyes of most parents.
“Hey,” Li Sanjiang touched Li Zhuoyuan’s head, “Isn’t earning money just for the lads to spend? Could it be that I’ll take it into the coffin later?”
He didn’t tell the driver that this was his great-grandson from the clan.
“That’s the truth. My grandson at home is just in high school. I still have to keep driving the car to earn his university tuition. As long as he can get in, we will try our best to support him.”
“Alas,” Li Sanjiang sighed helplessly, touching the back of Li Zhuoyuan’s head, “It’s a pity. My grandson here is smart, but he just doesn’t like to focus on studying.”
Li Zhuoyuan silently took another sip of soda.
It was almost eight o’clock in the evening when dinner finished. There was no drunk driving check this year, so the driver’s face was flushed. He took out the crank handle and inserted it into the tractor engine, then quickly turned it. The tractor started again.
“Come on, get on the car, we’re going home!”
Getting back into the car and heading home, Li Zhuoyuan looked up at the stars in the sky and began to think. He wondered if Xue Liangliang had already arrived at Siyuan village.
He felt he should ask more about the god statue matter at the river work site. Since the dead person was in the coffin at Jiwei Port, the separated god statue… was also dead.
After all, although that stretch of river was newly dug, it seemed to have been a waterway before.
Li Zhuoyuan vaguely felt that this Bai family seemed to specialize in doing this kind of thing.
…
When Li Zhuoyuan wasn’t home, Qin Li had returned to her usual spot, sitting on the bench inside the door, with her feet on the threshold, looking straight ahead.
Beside her, Liu Yumei was stirring a piece of paper, drawing clothing samples with a pen.
She drew very well, very vividly. Although it seemed very unprofessional compared to the current clothing making process, the old tailors in those small clothing workshops could understand it.
Her granddaughter was still at the age of growing, and clothes needed to be replaced every season. Liu Yumei’s happiest thing was every morning, her granddaughter dressed up beautifully. This way, her mood could be beautiful all day.
At this time, Liu Yumei noticed Qin Li beside her. She turned her head and looked towards the small road between the wheat fields.
Liu Yumei put down her brush and stood up straight.
She saw a young man wearing a blue shirt, holding a stack of books, walking up the dam.
After watching him for a while, Qin Li retracted her gaze and continued to look straight ahead.
This young man seemed to be dirty, but not obviously dirty.
“Excuse me, is this Li Sanjiang’s home?” Xue Liangliang asked.
“Right, yes, he’s not home now, and I don’t know if he’ll be back tonight. Are you looking for him?”
“I’m looking for Xiao Yuan, Li Zhuoyuan. Does he also live here?”
Hearing Li Zhuoyuan’s name, Qin Li’s gaze looked towards him again.
“He’s not home either,” Liu Yumei answered.
“He should be back tonight, I’ll wait for him. Um, sorry to bother you, where’s the toilet? I need to use it.”
“In the back of the house.”
“Okay, thanks.”
Xue Liangliang put the stack of books on the table, then ran to the toilet.
These books were all borrowed from the cultural history museum. Currently, the management of these things was not strict.
Liu Yumei casually flipped open a volume and saw that after the recorded paragraph was marked with a bookmark, her eyebrows furrowed, her gaze slightly condensed, and she murmured:
“Bai family?”
Immediately, she covered the volume back up and picked up her brush to continue drawing clothing samples. But as she drew, she felt a bit restless. So she stopped writing and recalled that the young man had said he was looking for Xiao Yuan, saying to herself:
“How could this Xiao Yuan be connected to the Bai family?”
Just at this time, the sound of a tractor came from a distance.
The driver didn’t let people off by the village entrance, but drove directly in and delivered them to the doorstep.
After parting ways, Li Sanjiang brought Li Zhuoyuan up the dam.
Just then, Xue Liangliang finished using the toilet and came back.
“Hey, how did you get here?” Li Sanjiang was very surprised.
“Grandpa, Brother Liangliang came to tutor me.”
“Oh, good, that’s good. Then let him sleep in your room tonight. Young man, have you eaten?”
“Ate, ate.” Xue Liangliang hurriedly answered.
“Okay then.”
Li Zhuoyuan then walked to Qin Li’s front. Qin Li stood up, reached out her hand, and proactively grabbed Li Zhuoyuan’s hand.
Immediately, her eyelashes began to flutter, and her body also started to tremble slightly.
Li Zhuoyuan was surprised, how could she still tremble when he held her hand this time…
“A Li, let go!”
Liu Yumei’s stern voice spread. Seeing A Li not listening to her, she only shouted to Li Zhuoyuan:
“Xiao Yuan, let go!”
Li Zhuoyuan pulled his hand back.
A Li made a gesture as if she still wanted to grab Li Zhuoyuan.
“Xiao Yuan, say goodnight to A Li. I want to take A Li to rest.”
“Okay, Grandma Liu.” Li Zhuoyuan looked at A Li, “It’s too late, rest. We’ll look at books together tomorrow morning. Goodnight.”
Xue Liangliang then hugged those volumes and pulled Li Zhuoyuan’s hand, saying, “Come on, let’s talk in your room. I found something incredible.”
Watching Li Zhuoyuan’s retreating figure, Qin Li slowly lowered her raised hand.
Liu Yumei sighed and coaxed her granddaughter:
“Be good, he’s already out of trouble. He’s better than that young man.”
…
“Ho, what kind of books are these on your desk?”
As soon as he came in, Xue Liangliang saw several stacks of ancient books on Li Zhuoyuan’s desk.
“This is my interest and hobby.”
“Really?” Xue Liangliang flipped through the book, “Xiao Yuan, with this hobby, you can study liberal arts in the future and go into archaeology.”
Li Zhuoyuan shook his head, “I haven’t thought about it.”
He didn’t want to be an alumni with his mother.
“Then what major do you want to study? Could it be the same as me, choose water conservancy and apply to Haihe University?”
Li Zhuoyuan thought for a moment and said, “It’s not impossible.”
It was related to water.
This university seemed to be the right major for him.
“Then you have to study well. Haihe University is not easy to get into.”
“Yes.”
It was indeed not easy to get in. The old professors were probably unwilling to let him transfer schools.
“Come, look at what I found. You wouldn’t know if you didn’t check, but once you check, you’ll be scared.” Xue Liangliang opened a volume, “This Bai family is really a surname. The local chronicles from the Ming and Qing dynasties record many matters about the Bai family people, all related to eliminating strangeness and quelling chaos, but they are all about the Bai Family Lady, no Bai Family Grandpa.”
Li Zhuoyuan asked, “Is it only passed down through females?”
“I guess so. It should be that the family only passes it down through females, and then they marry in a son-in-law. However, this custom is quite rare in this area.”
Li Zhuoyuan said while looking up the volume, “Brother Liangliang, keep going.”
“The scope of activity of this Bai family should not be limited to the current area of Nantong. I suspect there are traces of their appearance throughout Subei. However, one point can be determined: the main family of the Bai family is in Nantong.
Look at this passage in this piece. It records a place called Bai Family Town. This should be where the main family of the Bai family is located, probably to the west of East Sea Yingzhou.”
“East Sea Yingzhou?”
“That’s Chongming Island.”
“Oh, then is this Bai Family Town in Shanghai or Nantong?”
Chongming Island is located at the mouth of the Yangtze River and can be considered the gateway of the Yangtze. Most of the island belongs to Shanghai, and a part of it belongs to Nantong.
Xue Liangliang said with some hesitation, “The description of the location here is very strange, as if someone specifically examined it, but there might have been a problem when it was written down. I followed the direction it recorded and really found it on an old map, and discovered… discovered that it should be in the river.”
“In the river?”
“That’s right, it should be in the Yangtze River now.”
“This… is the record wrong?”
“But this is the only record of the address of Bai Family Town that I can currently find.
Moreover, next, I discovered a very strange matter.
After the Yongzheng year of the Qing dynasty, there were no more records about the Bai Family Lady in the local chronicles.
The Bai family,
The Bai family people,
Bai Family Town,
In historical records, it was as if overnight…
They disappeared.”
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