Zhao Yi left the gravely injured Chen Jing and the exhausted Xu Ming in place. He stood up, pulled at the wrinkled, shedding skin on his body, and then skillfully tied butterfly knots at several torn spots.

At first glance, it seemed like he was tidying his clothes, but if one looked closer, they would see the constantly squirming, tender flesh beneath these “clothes.”

He glanced at the Liang sisters. They were seriously injured but, understanding his silent cue, helped each other up, signaling they could still move.

The prerequisite for the “Outside Team” to be called so smoothly was that both sides had truly developed an unspoken understanding.

Even though the prefix “former” was now added, Zhao Yi interpreted “former” as “senior,” emphasizing a certain level of experience.

For example, the person named Li could sit on the doorstep, but Zhao Yi knew he had to stand up and take charge of what came next.

“Fan out and search this mansion. Although I don’t think anyone could have escaped, it’s necessary to spiritually cleanse this residence.

When I drank tea with Zhou Ruiyao during the day, you should have seen the Zhou family members present at the table. Those are the true core of the Zhou family.

I want to see their corpses, even if they are just fragmented remains. Observe their clothing and accessories, pick up a piece of a corpse, and bring it to me for inspection.

As for the Ding family, they are unfamiliar with the internal environment of the Zhou residence and don’t understand organ traps, so the possibility of them surviving is almost nil. Therefore, we only need to find the corpse of Ding Qinglin, the head of the Ding family.

Now, act!”

“Understood!”

“Understood.”

Chen Xiyuan: “Understood!”

In the large courtyard of the ancestral hall, there were many corpses, but many experts from the Zhou and Ding families, including Zhou Ruiyao and Ding Qinglin, had turned and fled directly after witnessing a large number of organ puppets rush out and begin their slaughter.

But they couldn’t escape. The Zhou family had previously transformed their protective formation to target inwards to ensnare their enemies. Now that the formation was controlled by their opponents, it was like they had woven their own cage.

Coupled with the numerous organ puppets, which outwardly wore the skin of the Zhou family ancestors but were essentially the coldest killing machines, screams and self-detonation sounds were heard sporadically from outside at first, but now, it was completely silent.

Even so, the inspection process could not be skipped. Zhao Yi knew Li’s style and habits too well.

“Puchi!”

Chen Xiyuan opened a can of Jianlibao, pulled out a straw from the side of her bag, and inserted it. With a sip of her red lips, a radiant smile bloomed.

Drinking and looking around, she seemed to be on a leisurely autumn outing.

Until a voice appeared behind her.

“Miss Chen is in a good mood.”

It was Zhao Yi.

Chen Xiyuan frowned slightly. Even though she knew that Zhao Yi’s reputation in the jianghu mainly stemmed from taking the blame for her younger brother, she still disliked him.

“Didn’t Young Master Zhao say we should search separately? If you’re on the same path as me, isn’t that a waste of manpower?”

Zhao Yi raised his hand, making a gesture as if counting on his fingers. “Miss Chen can inspect her part, and I’ll calculate mine. We’re just going the same way, not necessarily on the same path.”

Chen Xiyuan glanced at him, shrugged, and continued on her way.

Zhao Yi’s finger-counting was fake. He had long sensed a special fortune emanating from this Dragon King Chen family girl.

Instead of searching blindly himself, following her might prove unexpectedly efficient.

However, Zhao Yi was certain that in the past, facing such a scene, Miss Chen’s mood would have been somber, certainly not beautiful. But now, she was truly relaxed and at ease.

Li was really teaching her.

The most difficult thing for people to resolve is the conflict between spiritual perception and objective reality, achieving a smooth and agreeable state of mind.

In the Luoyang Ancient Tomb Museum, when they first met, Zhao Yi felt she shouldn’t have been on the river at all. No matter how strong she was, she would eventually die and lose.

Now, even if she still had a naive side, her maturation speed would be incredibly fast.

Zhao Yi truly couldn’t understand if Li thought Walking the River was too unchallenging, so he deliberately cultivated a competitor.

Yes, yes, you, Li, are confident and can control this Miss Chen.

But I’m still waiting for the day that the Mandate of Heaven strikes, causing you, Li, to choke to death while drinking Jianlibao.

Then, after you die, I’ll have to deal with the big silly girl you’ve trained to be on the right track?

During their progress, besides the corpses on the ground, they could also see the immobile organ puppets of the Zhou family ancestors standing there.

They had completed their instructions, cleared their targets, and then stopped, with no further movements.

Chen Xiyuan finished her can of drink, put the empty can back in her backpack, stretched, and looked up at the sky.

At this moment, the last sliver of darkness in the sky was being discarded by the dawn.

Then, she saw a head hanging in a tree branch, obscured by green leaves. The owner was Ding Qinglin.

That position would have been hard to find if one hadn’t happened to look there, as the dead emit no aura.

Chen Xiyuan kicked her foot, and a stone flew up, scattering the branches. The head fell, and after she caught it, she turned and looked at Zhao Yi.

Zhao Yi took it and inspected it.

Chen Xiyuan: “Is it the real thing?”

Zhao Yi: “Hmm, it’s Ding Qinglin.”

Chen Xiyuan: “Was his head blown off into the tree during a puppet’s self-detonation?”

Zhao Yi shook his head. “If his body had been dismembered by an organ puppet’s self-detonation, this head couldn’t have been preserved so perfectly; at the very least, his nose would be flattened and eyes askew. Look at the wound marks at the bottom of the head; it’s clearly a neck that was instantly constricted and exploded. This isn’t how organ puppets fight.

Moreover, Ding Qinglin’s skills were quite good. Before he died, he could have taken down two or three opponents with him. But there are no obvious signs of a struggle around here.”

Chen Xiyuan: “I really didn’t observe that carefully.”

Zhao Yi: “That’s related to your usual fighting style.”

Chen Xiyuan: “So, he wasn’t killed by an organ puppet. He was ambushed? Ambushed by his own people? What would be the purpose of ambushing a teammate while fleeing?

The main objective is to escape with one’s life. All behavioral logic revolves around that main objective. So, did Ding Qinglin’s existence affect that person’s chance of survival?

Or perhaps, that chance of survival could only be given to one person, not two, so Ding Qinglin could only be…”

As Chen Xiyuan spoke, her gaze began to re-examine her surroundings.

Zhao Yi: “There should be a secret door here that can hide from the organ puppets’ detection, preventing further pursuit. And this secret door must have been built later, independent of the original Zhou family’s protective formation system.

The only one who would know about such a place in the house, could escape with Ding Qinglin, and possessed the ability to successfully ambush with a single strike, is…”

Chen Xiyuan: “Your Old Madam.”

Zhao Yi: “That’s how my reputation gets damaged.”

Chen Xiyuan: “I actually think you enjoy it.”

Zhao Yi: “Miss Chen, what you see is merely my stoicism.”

Chen Xiyuan: “Where is she?”

Zhao Yi walked to the tree, patted its trunk, and said, “Miss Chen, would you please exert some force on this tree? Yes, just smash it open.”

Chen Xiyuan walked over. Instead of using her flute to smash it directly, she bent down, embraced the base of the large tree with both hands, and activated her domain.

“Kacha Kacha Kacha!”

The large tree was pulled up by Chen Xiyuan.

As the tree’s roots separated from the ground, the tree and a small surrounding area collapsed like dominoes. The previous landscape changed, revealing a deep, dark entrance leading downwards.

“I’ll fight you to the death!”

Zhou Ruiyao’s sharp voice emanated from below. Immediately, a black figure rushed out, severely injured, with one arm replaced by a wooden python body.

When this hiding place was discovered, it meant she had no chance of survival, because only this place within the entire Zhou residence could shield her from the perception of the protective formation, preventing the organ puppets from locking onto her.

Zhao Yi: “Back off!”

There’s no need to fight her here; she’s already a dead woman walking.

Chen Xiyuan rapidly retreated. With her domain acting as a barrier, Zhou Ruiyao’s speed was severely hampered, preventing her attacks from reaching her opponent.

The moment the large tree was pulled out by Chen Xiyuan, all the previously immobile organ puppets within the Zhou residence, both near and far, sensed it and swarmed towards them.

Zhou Ruiyao’s eyes filled with despair. Before she could even think of a way to overcome the strange obstruction in front of her, she was embraced by three organ puppets. Without any hesitation, the three organ puppets immediately self-detonated.

“Boom! Boom! Boom!”

Zhou Ruiyao, her body riddled like a sieve, fell to the ground. She tried to lift her head with difficulty, wanting to express her unwillingness and resentment.

But immediately, more organ puppets rushed towards her, stifling her final “monologue” before death.

After she completely lost all signs of life, the surrounding organ puppets straightened up again, standing motionless.

Zhao Yi took out his pipe, bit it between his teeth, lit it with a flick of his finger, and took a deep draw.

Although most of the Zhou family members had been sent away beforehand, Zhou Ruiyao’s death meant the death knell had sounded for the Zhou family.

Similarly, Ding Qinglin and the Ding family experts all died here, which also meant that the Ding family would soon become prey for the jianghu’s fish to tear and devour.

This was impossible to keep secret. When his Jiujiang Zhao family’s ancestral home first had trouble, the guests who came to celebrate birthdays the day before transformed into hyenas, eager to tear apart and devour flesh, the very next day. This was jianghu efficiency.

What’s more, once they left this door, Zhao Yi would actively help spread the news throughout the jianghu.

Such a dirty job would definitely be done by him, Zhao Yi, as his younger brother, Li Zhuiyuan, would certainly need to maintain his innocent image.

Chen Xiyuan: “You know, if she had personally escorted her son to Old Madam Liu to confess and hand her son over to be dealt with as she saw fit, and the entire Zhou family was also left to Old Madam Liu’s discretion. Would the Zhou family not have met this end?”

Zhao Yi: “Isn’t that Ah You and me?”

Chen Xiyuan: “Ah, I understand about you and me, but was Ah You’s family that fierce back then?”

Zhao Yi: “Indeed, Ah You’s grandfather and master were incredibly formidable back then, almost fighting their way directly into the Dragon King’s home.”

Chen Xiyuan: “Wow.”

Zhao Yi: “They quickly stopped, then handed Ah You over to be dealt with. For a while, Ah You would have nightmares about that day, imagining his grandfather and master not stopping, smashing the courtyard gate where the Old Madam lived, and then Uncle Qin or Aunt Liu visiting his family’s temple.”

Chen Xiyuan: “I can understand that.”

Zhao Yi: “But the Zhou family is different. Firstly, Zhou Ruiyao was like that muddle-headed elder in my family, thinking that with the decline of the Qin and Liu families, they could be looked down upon. Secondly, if Zhou Ruiyao had arrived to confess with her crippled son, wouldn’t she have offended the forces behind the scenes who truly plotted against Uncle Qin?

Old Madam Liu actually knew which families were secretly plotting, but she held her tongue and didn’t completely fall out with them. If Zhou Ruiyao had truly torn that veil, her Zhou family would have been doomed.

Simply put, if you don’t have the foundation and strength, don’t sit at a poker table you’re not qualified for. Since you sat down, it means you’re willing to accept the outcome of your family’s ruin.

Let’s go down and see what’s going on in there.

Opening an independent area outside of the protective formation is a great taboo. I’m really curious what made Zhou Ruiyao do such a thing.”

Zhao Yi led Chen Xiyuan down the steps.

It wasn’t very deep, nor was it pitch black. At the bottom center was an open sarcophagus, its four walls shimmering with an emerald green glow, providing just enough visibility.

Chen Xiyuan looked at the four walls and said, “These are murals.”

“Mm.” Zhao Yi nodded, then used his thumb to extinguish the pipe in his mouth. His thumb trembled, not from pain, but from lingering fear. “Damn it, good thing Li came to seek revenge quickly!”

Because Zhao Yi had seen these murals before.

Under the Yulong Snow Mountain, on the first floor of that pagoda, there were murals like these, telling the story of a goddess’s arrival, construction, gathering, prayers, and eventual ascension.

However, the murals here were clearly carved recently and were much simpler and cruder than those on the first floor of the pagoda. The characters depicted were blurry black shadows.

Additionally, these murals here had two more panels than those on the first floor of the pagoda.

One panel depicted a collapsing snow mountain, with several black figures being swept away in the avalanche. Zhao Yi knew that one of those black figures was himself.

The second painting was inside a cave. There was a long opening above the cave. Inside, several black figures faced an empty stone bed, while at the opening above, a black figure lay there, peeking down.

The ascension under the Yulong Snow Mountain was a scam. The person who built that place attracted people dreaming of ascension for a thousand years, only to incinerate them all with rock fire, even including his own descendants.

He used others’ dreams of ascension to create an opportunity for his own resurgence.

Zhao Yi remembered that after the Lijiang incident, Li, on his way back, went straight to this guy’s tomb, but arrived a step too late and found it empty.

Li had described that guy’s physical body as incredibly hard, capable of moving through solid mountain rock.

Clearly, these murals here were carved by that guy, and he had even added two new panels from an observer’s perspective.

And this sarcophagus…

Zhao Yi walked to the open sarcophagus. There were no burial objects inside, but the inner walls had bloody pits and unevenness.

This indicated that the guy had once laid here. It was likely his physical condition wasn’t fully restored, and he came to the Zhou family to use their organ trap techniques to help him adjust his body.

Zhou Ruiyao and her son truly had guts. The son plotted against the Dragon King’s family, and the mother dared to cooperate with such a terrifying, unknown entity.

Zhao Yi jumped into the sarcophagus and inspected the indentations inside, finding one particular indentation that was very fresh.

This indicated that the guy had been lying there very recently.

“Hoo…”

Zhao Yi felt a chill down his spine.

The Zhou family itself wasn’t formidable, arguably not difficult to deal with, but if this guy suddenly appeared during their operation, he and Li would undoubtedly be in trouble.

One must know, this was a ruthless individual who had laid plans for a thousand years, only wishing to open his eyes once more.

Fortunately, he had not yet fully recovered, or perhaps it was temporarily inconvenient for him to attract the attention of the Mandate of Heaven, so he deliberately avoided the gaze of those who walked the river.

Li Zhuiyuan’s curse on the Zhou family had caused this guy to sense it and leave directly.

If it weren’t for that, he and the others would have directly gone to seek revenge and would have encountered him.

“Li, your ‘beating the grass to startle the snake’ move really paid off big time.”

When Zhao Yi returned to the ancestral hall courtyard with Chen Xiyuan, he just happened to see Zhou Tingfeng tremblingly pressing his thumb onto a piece of paper.

Beside him, there was a pen and a box of ink paste.

Li Zhuiyuan carefully folded the paper and put it in his pocket.

Zhou Tingfeng rested his head on the doorstep, a sinister smile on his face. He knew the Zhou family was finished, so if more forces could follow in the Zhou family’s footsteps and be buried with them… that would be the greatest comfort right now.

Li Zhuiyuan took a bottle of water from his bag, twisted open the cap, and carefully washed his hands.

Zhao Yi walked over and informed him of his previous discovery.

Li Zhuiyuan nodded, motioning for Chen Xiyuan to take him to see. Zhao Yi stayed here to distinguish the body parts that Run Sheng and the others would bring back later.

Back in the underground space, Chen Xiyuan leaned her face close to Li Zhuiyuan and asked:

“Little brother, is he very scary?”

“Mm.”

“Then if he fully recovers, will he come to find you?”

“Mm.”

“If you sense he’s coming, let me know in advance, and I’ll come help you.”

“Mm.”

“Why are you so calm?”

“He avoided me, which proves that at this stage, he won’t come looking for me.”

“But that’s only at this stage.”

“In the future, more than just him will come looking for trouble.”

Li Zhuiyuan walked around the walls, re-examining the murals.

The young man agreed with Zhao Yi’s judgment. Rather than avoiding him, the figure was avoiding the gaze of the Mandate of Heaven falling upon him.

In this world, there truly existed a small number of special beings whom the Mandate of Heaven both granted merit and wished to see utterly disappear.

That person, who had buried a large number of “heretics” harboring dreams of immortality, was essentially building a ladder for his own eternal life, a way of exploiting loopholes in the rules of the Mandate of Heaven.

So, was it truly just a coincidence that his “beating the grass to startle the snake” this time almost brought him face to face with that figure?

When he was on the river before, he was playing a game of chess with the examiner as a student. So when he started “Walking the River on Shore,” could the Mandate of Heaven not introduce “student” figures into it?

You cannot avoid its existence; it is omnipresent.

Li Zhuiyuan decided that after returning this time, he needed to take the time to extensively revise the underlying logic of the “Zhuiyuan Secret Scroll.” The shore was not absolutely safe, and he could not let his guard down.

When they returned to the ancestral hall courtyard to meet up, Zhao Yi had just finished confirming the deaths of the key Zhou family members.

Next, only one thing remained.

Chen Xiyuan excitedly said, “Treasury, treasury, treasury!”

Zhao Yi: “Why is Miss Chen so excited?”

Chen Xiyuan: “Before I met little brother, I didn’t know that people who ‘walk the river’ could be so poor.”

Zhao Yi: “That’s true.”

Chen Xiyuan: “So I’m very grateful to little brother for letting me experience the joy of accumulation and harvest.”

Zhao Yi couldn’t understand. He had to sacrifice his looks to deceive the opposite sex, but how old was Li? How did he manage it?

It was as if this Miss Chen would nod without hesitation if Li asked her to relight the lamp and admit defeat one day.

Zhao Yi: “Let’s go, move the goods!”

Chen Xiyuan: “This is called returning things to their rightful owner.”

Zhao Yi: “Right, right, right!”

Li Zhuiyuan didn’t even need to lift a finger; Zhao Yi alone dispelled the formation and restrictions in front of the Zhou family’s treasury.

This impressed Chen Xiyuan greatly.

Zhao Yi: “Miss Chen, no need to be surprised. It’s only by Li’s side that my brilliance is somewhat overshadowed.”

Chen Xiyuan: “Then if we meet on the river in the future, I’ll find a chance to beat you to death.”

Zhao Yi: “…”

Valuable treasures are often small and easy to transport; these are also the capital for the Zhou family to make a comeback in the worst-case scenario.

Therefore, the treasury was not overflowing with treasures; it could even be described as somewhat “boring.” There were many remaining items, but they were mostly special materials that were inconvenient for quick transport, such as organ trap materials and building materials.

However, these were precisely what Li Zhuiyuan needed most right now. With them, his dojo could complete another round of upgrades.

Everyone at this moment transformed into diligent laborers, except for the injured and the minors.

They used the most primitive methods, carrying bundles and pieces of material on their shoulders, transporting them out and throwing them into the small cliff beneath the drawbridge outside the Zhou residence.

Below, there was a river that could float the materials to a certain point downstream, where everyone would then organize and load them onto trucks.

Chen Xiyuan was the most enthusiastic, going back and forth tirelessly. With her domain active, she ran back and forth, her hair soaked with sweat, but the satisfied smile on her face grew brighter and brighter.

Even Run Sheng, who was usually the most frugal, was far behind her in this moving competition.

Finally, when Li Zhuiyuan said there were enough materials and they could stop, Chen Xiyuan, panting with her hands on her knees, still felt she hadn’t had enough.

The materials moved out were enough for Li Zhuiyuan to upgrade his dojo twice, and there was an abundance of organ trap materials, enough for the young man and Ah Li to use for several years.

There were still many things left in the treasury, but even secular building materials that are left outside for too long without proper maintenance will cause problems. These special materials, in particular, require professional hands for regular upkeep. Therefore, bringing back too much without enough caretakers would be a waste. This is why high-ranking jianghu forces need so many subordinate disciples.

Li Zhuiyuan was truly lacking in this aspect right now. If one day he wasn’t lacking in this, then he wouldn’t lack such materials either.

Zhao Yi took the others to leave first, to collect the materials thrown downstream. Li Zhuiyuan, however, led Chen Xiyuan back to the ancestral hall courtyard.

Zhou Tingfeng still lay on the doorstep, a sickly, twisted smile on his face.

Li Zhuiyuan stood outside the doorstep and waved inside.

In the darkness, the Buddha’s figure appeared.

The side effects of the Black Book’s secret technique were clearly manifesting on the Buddha. His shriveled body was now extensively festering and decaying.

He deserved release.

Li Zhuiyuan had come to bid him a final farewell.

Without extra words, the two faced each other again, hands clasped in prayer.

A Buddhist radiance rippled from the young man, like a monastic spirit child; the Buddha exuded an ominous aura, like a Netherworld Asura.

But Li Zhuiyuan did not believe in Buddhism; he purely regarded Buddha as a means. And this Buddha, even now, had not caused any resentment to appear on the organ puppets, proving that his Buddhist purification was still playing a positive and stable role.

The Zhou family’s discerning eye in selecting him back then was truly good.

“Amitabha!”

“Amitabha!”

Li Zhuiyuan turned and left, waving as he walked.

Chen Xiyuan, seeing this, also followed suit, waving goodbye.

It wasn’t until she noticed that the previously still organ puppets in the Zhou residence began to move and take their positions that she realized she had misunderstood. Her little brother was issuing commands.

The two walked out of the Zhou family’s main gate, crossing the drawbridge.

Li Zhuiyuan stopped, and snapped his fingers.

The next moment, all the organ puppets within the Zhou residence collectively self-detonated.

Their previous placements had been meticulously arranged to ensure that the destructive power of the self-detonation was fully unleashed.

Inside the ancestral hall’s threshold, the Buddha lowered his head, looked at Zhou Tingfeng, and then he too exploded, transforming into the largest, most intense ball of heat, instantly engulfing and melting Zhou Tingfeng.

“Boom! Boom! Boom…”

Chen Xiyuan watched as dust flew and flames soared from the Zhou residence in the distance. The ancestral home of the organ trap Zhou family, from this day forward, was reduced to ruins.

Zhao Yi led the group to retrieve all the materials from the downstream collection point. By noon, the truck convoy Zhao Yi had pre-booked arrived.

This was a large order. The owner of the transportation company personally brought the trucks. The first thing he did upon arriving was to tell Zhao Yi that the previously paid deposit could not be refunded or deducted.

Mainly for insurance, Zhao Yi had paid a sum of money in advance, asking the convoy to wait in the adjacent town for a week, but only one day had passed.

Zhao Yi patted the owner’s arm, indicating that there was no need for a refund, then told the owner to leave the trucks, take the drivers to the opposite hillside for a barbecue, and they would be responsible for loading the cargo themselves.

In this desolate wilderness, with only a dirt road leading here, no factories or residential buildings in sight, the owner felt a little uneasy, fearing that Zhao Yi was involved in illicit businesses, and hesitated.

At this moment, the owner saw Li Zhuiyuan behind him, and his eyes lit up.

Li Zhuiyuan recognized him. He remembered that time when he returned from out of town and caught up with his great-grandfather taking his grandparents to Wolf Mountain to burn incense. He met them at the foot of Wolf Mountain.

The young man treated his great-grandfather and grandparents to a meal at a restaurant near Wolf Mountain. His great-grandfather’s hearty and uninhibited demeanor in the restaurant deeply touched a middle-aged man at the next table, who proactively toasted his great-grandfather and introduced himself.

That middle-aged man was the current convoy owner, named He Shen, whose main business was transportation from the Yangtze River Delta to the Western Regions.

There was a connection of being from the same hometown… even if it involved illegal activities, it didn’t seem so objectionable anymore.

Having just left school, all his documents were in his bag. Li Zhuiyuan took out his own, and those of Tan Wenbin and Lin Shuyou, to show He Shen, telling him that they were an exploration team from the school and needed to transport these newly discovered mineral and slab materials back.

Even though He Shen hadn’t attended university, he knew this reason wasn’t very solid. If they were really transporting minerals, they should be going to Jinling, not Nantong.

However, given Zhao Yi’s generous spending, he was willing to play dumb. After reminding Zhao Yi to cover the tarpaulin well, he took his drivers to eat and rest. Once the loading was complete, he would immediately bring his people back and, without a word, get in the car and start the engine.

The injured Chen Jing and the Liang sisters were arranged to sit in a small pickup truck, driven by Lin Shuyou, while everyone else followed the large trucks as escorts.

Li Zhuiyuan sat in He Shen’s car, with Chen Xiyuan beside him.

Sister Chen had been intentionally taking the position of the young master’s personal bodyguard. Due to absolute recognition of her personal strength, even Run Sheng wouldn’t compete with her for it.

After an initial period of caution, He Shen began to actively strike up conversations. From a truck apprentice to now a convoy owner, his personal experiences and road observations were extremely rich.

He proactively sought out Li Zhuiyuan for conversation. Most of the time, He Shen was talking, and Li Zhuiyuan would occasionally respond with an interaction while listening.

Soon, Li Zhuiyuan didn’t even need to respond politely, because Chen Xiyuan took over this task, especially when He Shen talked about his elopement story with his Western Regions wife back then. Chen Xiyuan’s eyes lit up, and she kept asking for details, while He Shen was quite proud of his beautiful love that had lasted until now, and was happy to tell it.

The two of them barely stopped talking after that.

Li Zhuiyuan fell asleep during the “night He Shen and his wife decided to elope” and woke up just as it was “noon when He Shen’s wife confirmed her second pregnancy.”

During each stop for rest, Zhao Yi was either on the phone or releasing “paper pigeons,” sending the latest news about the Zhou and Ding families to the jianghu.

Driving through fatigue and continuous travel, the convoy arrived in Nantong as night fell, entering Siyuan Village.

Li Zhuiyuan directed He Shen to drive the cars to Big Beard’s house.

The young man asked Chen Xiyuan to go into the peach orchard first and play a piece with Qing’an.

Then he told Brother Run Sheng and the others to unload all the materials and temporarily store them in the peach orchard.

“Ghost!”

One of He Shen’s drivers, while urinating in a corner, casually looked back and saw Xiao Yingying approaching with tea and snacks.

This driver was usually fond of gambling and women. Not long ago, he was scammed, then lost a large sum of money gambling. He was in a low period of luck, and it was night. This unintentional glance caught a glimpse of Xiao Huangying’s “true form.”

Frightened, his body convulsed, and without even having time to zip up his pants, he fell straight backward.

The person was not seriously injured, just fainted. He Shen had already settled the final payment with Zhao Yi and dared not delay. He and the other drivers drove away and took the man to the township health center.

After the goods were properly organized, Li Zhuiyuan told everyone to rest early and to “move bricks and build walls” in the morning.

Zhao Yi slept at Big Beard’s house. He stood on the dam, hands on his hips, watching the young man and the others disappear into the night.

The promised internal reference hadn’t been obtained yet. He had just returned, and it was already dark, so there was no rush. But if he went to get it tomorrow morning, it would mean he’d have to work as a bricklayer for Li for another day.

Walking into the house, Old Man Tian asked with concern, “Young master, shall I cook you some late-night snack?”

“Hmm, a little would be good.” Zhao Yi saw Benben crawling on the clean tiles in Xiao Yingying’s room.

Ignoring Benben’s resistance, Zhao Yi picked up the child, pretending to flick his little bird to tease him, and hummed:

“I am a painter, a master of my trade…”

Tan Wenbin and the other two went to sleep first. Li Zhuiyuan then went to Cui Cui’s house.

Before Chen Xiyuan officially left, Grandma Liu would not move back with Ah Li.

The young man walked onto Cui Cui’s dam and stood downstairs.

Before long, the door to the room on the second floor opened, and Ah Li walked out.

The two, one upstairs and one downstairs, looked at each other.

Then, Li Zhuiyuan turned and left. He had specifically come to tell Ah Li that he was back safely and would pick her up in the morning.

Ah Li stood on the balcony, watching the young man’s figure in the moonlight.

After he was completely out of sight, she walked into the bedroom, lay back on the bed, closed her eyes, and began to anticipate tomorrow’s sun.

After Li Zhuiyuan returned home, he first took a shower. When he came out, he happened to see his great-grandfather emerge from the room, yawning, likely to use the restroom in the night.

“Xiao Yuan Hou, when did you get back?”

“Great-grandfather, I just got back.”

“Are you hungry?”

“No, I ate on the way.”

“Then go to bed early, you must be tired.”

“Mm, good night, great-grandfather.”

Li Zhuiyuan returned to his room, turned on the desk lamp, quickly reviewed the blueprints he would need in the morning, then took out the “Zhuiyuan Secret Scroll” and opened it.

Just as he was about to pick up his pen, he sensed his great-grandfather at the screen door of his room.

“Xiao Yuan Hou, you’re not asleep yet?”

Li Zhuiyuan walked over and opened the screen door:

“I still have some things to finish writing. I’ll go to sleep once I’m done. Great-grandfather, has the travel date been set?”

“Ay, yes, it’s tentatively set for the day after tomorrow. I was thinking if you didn’t come back tomorrow, I’d call you, so if you couldn’t make it, I could ask them to push it back further.”

“Then the day after tomorrow will be fine, great-grandfather.”

“Mm, good. That…”

“Great-grandfather, has something happened?”

“Xiao Yuan Hou, it’s like this. Your mother called, looking for you, but you weren’t home.”

Li Sanjiang knew his great-grandson felt nothing for his mother. Every time his mother was mentioned, his great-grandson’s mood would drop.

Besides, he had seen both Zhuang Zhuang and his great-grandson with those big old mobile phones. For the mother not to even know her son’s number and have to call Aunt Zhang’s place.

Li Sanjiang originally didn’t want to bring it up, pretending Li Lan hadn’t contacted them. Anyway, his great-grandson’s life was the same with or without her; it was better without her. But after much thought, Li Sanjiang decided to tell him.

“Mm, I know, great-grandfather.”

“Then use your mobile phone to call your mom back.”

“Mm.”

“Go to bed early.”

Li Sanjiang returned to his room.

Li Zhuiyuan sat back at his desk, revised the “Zhuiyuan Secret Scroll,” rubbed his slightly sore wrist, glanced at the old-style mobile phone on his desk, but didn’t touch it.

He left his seat, got into bed, and went to sleep.

The next morning, after Li Zhuiyuan woke up and washed, he went to Cui Cui’s house to pick up Ah Li.

As everyone sat on the dam eating breakfast, Aunt Zhang from the small shop ran to the village road opposite the rice paddies and sang a plains folk song:

“Xiao Yuan Hou, your mother called you, oh!”

Li Sanjiang buried his head in his porridge. Sure enough, Xiao Yuan Hou hadn’t called his mother back last night.

Ah Li’s gaze turned to the young man.

The young man smiled at her and gently patted the girl’s hand. The girl grasped the young man’s fingers.

In the past, Li Lan’s calls had caused Li Zhuiyuan a great deal of distress, and that night’s distress ultimately fell upon Ah Li as well.

Li Zhuiyuan continued to smile.

Ah Li slowly released his hand. She realized her worry was unnecessary; the young man had actually moved on long ago.

The girl lowered her head and began to carefully peel a salted duck egg for the young man. By the time the young man returned, the porridge would have cooled down just right for eating.

Li Zhuiyuan stood up: “Great-grandfather, I’m going to answer the phone.”

“Mm, good, go ahead.”

Li Zhuiyuan walked down the dam.

Li Sanjiang frowned, put down his chopsticks, and silently lit a cigarette.

“Oh, little ancestor, good morning.”

Zhao Yi, wearing a hat folded from newspaper, carrying a bag of tools, met Li Zhuiyuan on the path.

“Old Man Tian and the others will be here shortly to help with the construction. Little ancestor, give me the blueprints first. I’ll figure it out and get busy.”

Li Zhuiyuan pulled the blueprints from his pocket and handed them to Zhao Yi, saying, “That book, let Tan Wenbin go to my room and get it for you to copy.”

Zhao Yi shook his head. “No rush. First, I’ll finish your work, Ancestor, then I’ll listen to your teachings.”

The two passed each other.

Zhao Yi let out a sigh of relief. He rarely called Li “Ancestor,” but on his way just now, he had heard Aunt Zhang calling that Li’s mother had called.

Other children might be overjoyed to receive a message from their mother, but he knew that with Li, there was only “anger.”

He was just one step away from the internal reference he had longed for. It was better to be obedient. It would be a huge loss if he upset Li at this moment.

Li Zhuiyuan walked to the small shop. Aunt Zhang smiled and pointed to the telephone receiver on the counter, which hadn’t been put back.

The young man picked up the receiver, put it to his ear, and said:

“It’s me, Li Zhuiyuan.”

The sound of high heels fading away came from the other end of the line. Clearly, it was Li Lan’s secretary who had helped make the call.

A moment later, a woman’s voice came through the receiver:

“It’s me, Li Lan.”

Aunt Zhang leaned her arm on the counter, knitting a sweater, watching the young man talk on the phone with his mother. This was probably something every elder loved to do, as they felt the scene would be very heartwarming.

In the past, Li Zhuiyuan had been drawn into the coldest, most biting whirlpool by a circle of such warm, well-meaning gazes and expectations.

But now, Li Zhuiyuan was too lazy to maintain the so-called mother-son warmth in front of outsiders. He even found deliberately exposing Li Lan’s superficiality to be uninteresting.

Next, Aunt Zhang’s eyes grew wider and wider as she listened. Accidentally, a knitting needle pricked her finger.

Li Zhuiyuan: “Li Lan, is there something you need?”

Li Lan: “You’re my son. Can’t I call you if I miss you, even if there’s nothing wrong?”

Li Zhuiyuan: “Li Lan…”

Li Lan: “What, does your mother disgust you?”

Li Zhuiyuan: “No.”

Li Lan: “That’s good then.”

Li Zhuiyuan: “Li Lan, your secretary probably didn’t notice to check the account you’ve been sending money to Grandpa and Grandma. Ask her to check it sometime. Since last year, a sum of money has been deposited into that account every month. That’s my alimony to you.”

Li Lan: “I’m so lucky to be supported by my son so early.”

Li Zhuiyuan: “Next time, unless you’re critically ill and need a relative to sign for surgery, don’t contact me again.”

Li Lan: “Okay, Mom remembers, but that’s for next time, not including this time, right?”

Li Zhuiyuan: “Get to the point.”

Li Lan: “Son, come pick me up.”

Upon hearing this, Li Zhuiyuan immediately pressed a button on the phone to display the caller ID. The number’s origin… was actually Nantong.

Li Lan:

“Mom, I’m home.”