Chapter 29

Chapter 29

Li Zhuoyuan slept very soundly, without dreaming, getting up at night, or even changing his sleeping posture. He simply closed his eyelids and then opened them, and the long night was over.

Habitually, he turned his head to the side. Unsurprisingly, the girl was sitting on the chair near the door.

But soon, Li Zhuoyuan noticed something was wrong because the girl hadn't changed her clothes.

She was still wearing the black training suit from yesterday, and the stains from working hard were still clearly visible.

This meant that the girl hadn't gone back to the east room to sleep last night. She had sat here the whole night.

Li Zhuoyuan roughly guessed why the girl would do this. It was because he had severely overdrawn his energy yesterday, and she was worried that he might suddenly die in his sleep.

This kind of reason, which is difficult for outsiders to understand, is the girl's purest and simplest idea.

Although she had never spoken in front of him since their first meeting, Li Zhuoyuan found that he could read her more and more.

He got up from bed and walked in front of the girl.

The girl's face was still exquisite, with no signs of fatigue.

Perhaps she often stayed up all night like this in the past. In her world, the concept of day and night alternation was already blurred.

Otherwise, Liu Yumei wouldn't often remind him to coax A Li back to the east room to sleep every night.

The girl lifted her head and gazed at the boy.

In her eyes, Li Zhuoyuan saw a nearly complete version of himself.

He had analyzed why the girl treated him especially differently.

It all originated from the night the cat demon old lady came. The girl stood on the dam, lifted her head, and looked towards him standing on the second-floor balcony.

He should be the first person to walk into her dream.

This was definitely not a beautiful dream, because her eyes could see the terrifying hidden side of this world.

At ten years old... no, it should be even earlier when she was younger, she was already like this.

It's hard to imagine how a babbling toddler faced such an environment, looking around, filled with infinite ugliness and evil.

She should have cried, feared, and screamed, but this world didn't change because of her emotions. Finally, she chose to change herself and completely seal herself off.

Autism, obsessive-compulsive disorder, aphasia, and so on, these symptoms were all just surface manifestations. The true inner cause was that she rejected all contact with the outside world.

Although it was somewhat embarrassing, it was a fact that his appearance that night was like a beam of light suddenly appearing in the long-term darkness for the girl.

He was like a balcony sealed with a glass window. She stood on the balcony, carefully contacting and perceiving the outside world through him.

Perhaps, he happened to carry all her enthusiasm and expectations for this world at this moment.

But at the same time, wasn't she the same for him?

Mom already disliked him, and Dad couldn't endure this family anymore. Whether it was Grandpa Nan or Grandpa Bei, he wasn't their only grandson.

But at least in front of this girl, her eyes were full of him.

Li Zhuoyuan reached out his hand, wanting to help A Li tidy up the slightly messy hair by her ear, but the girl first stretched out both hands, hugged his neck, and then put her face against his chest.

Ever since she saw him make this action to Li Sanjiang that day, she remembered it and liked this action.

She always secretly imitated, clumsy yet cute.

Li Zhuoyuan could only reach out and pat her head, continuing to recite that line:

"A Li wants whatever I'll buy it for you. I have money, plenty of money."

Although this line was somewhat unfitting for the scene, the girl was very satisfied.

She moved away from the boy's chest, looking at him with bright eyes.

Li Zhuoyuan knew she was just expressing a kind of joy, celebrating his "recovery from serious illness."

Yes, in her eyes, he, exhausted from staying up all night yesterday, had just gotten sick.

Li Zhuoyuan smiled at A Li, silently thinking in his heart:

"Actually, we are alike, both not lightly sick."

...

He got up later than usual today. Others had already had breakfast.

When Li Zhuoyuan led A Li's hand downstairs, on the dam, Liu Yumei was just lowering her head, drinking tea.

Li Zhuoyuan didn't dare to look carefully at Grandma Liu's expression. Anyway, it wasn't too good.

Aunt Liu put the breakfast ready, walked over, her gaze hinting.

Li Zhuoyuan understood and said to A Li, "Go with Aunt Liu to wash up and bathe. If you're tired, just sleep."

A Li obediently turned and walked towards the east room. Aunt Liu followed and closed the door.

Li Zhuoyuan sat down and started to have breakfast.

While eating, Li Sanjiang just walked back from the toilet behind the house, came to the front, bent down, looked carefully for a while, and said, "Little Yuan Marquis ah, your complexion is much better than yesterday."

"Too grandpa, please sit. I have some things I want to tell you a bit. I was too tired yesterday, didn't get to say."

"Lack pocket money?" Li Sanjiang touched his pocket, took out a denomination that was basically impossible for village children's pocket money to appear, and placed it beside Li Zhuoyuan's porridge bowl. "Just tell your too grandpa if you lack money to spend, too grandpa I have plenty of money."

Li Zhuoyuan was not in a hurry to take the money but said:

"Too grandpa, the night before last at Old Zhao's banquet, you weren't drinking alone. You were drinking with two people. One is called Brother Leopard, the video hall boss the police checked the day before yesterday. He's already dead. The other is called Zhao Xing. You didn't notice under the lamp's shadow, he's just Old Zhao's son. The funeral the day before yesterday was held for him. They are not living people. Finding you to drink is to ask for your help..."

"Wait, wait!"

Li Sanjiang interrupted Li Zhuoyuan, reached out and covered his forehead, then put his palm on his own forehead to compare the temperature, and said puzzledly:

"Oh, seems a bit feverish, talking nonsense."

"Too grandpa, what I said is true. Those two found you to drink to let you help go to a place called Old Jiang's family in Shi Port Town, to deal with a Taosui placed in the pond's water tank. If you don't agree, they will come to find you trouble again. You'd better be careful recently."

"Little Yuan Marquis ah, your meaning is, too grandpa that night, with two..." Li Sanjiang suddenly lowered his voice, "With two dead people drinking, and even drank until midnight?"

"Um."

"Ah, it's too grandpa's fault, too grandpa shouldn't have told you that dream yesterday, this made you have a nightmare at night. Daytime thoughts, nighttime dreams ah."

"I didn't, too grandpa, what I said is true. I have already prepared some things that can be useful, at that time can help you solve..."

"Okay, okay, too grandpa believes your words. Come, wait until you finish breakfast, grandpa will take you to Zheng Datong to measure your body temperature and then give you an injection."

Li Zhuoyuan smiled and said, "Too grandpa, you're actually not scared by the story I made up, you are so amazing."

"Hey, you little sparrow, still want to scare too grandpa me. I drink with people until midnight, I won't know? Runsheng Marquis didn't even see, only you saw? The story you made up has too many loopholes, it can't withstand scrutiny."

"Um, next time I'll make up a better one."

"Spend more effort on your studies, and ponder less about these mysterious things. Right, starting tonight, too grandpa will continue to transfer luck for you."

Li Sanjiang patted the boy's shoulder, no longer mentioning going to the clinic for an injection. He turned and walked into the house, went upstairs. He wanted to take advantage of the daytime to catch up on sleep and replenish his energy.

What if he dreams again tonight and has to lead those zombies for a drill in the Forbidden City?

Li Zhuoyuan lowered his head, picked up the salted duck egg that was already half-eaten, and muttered while turning and looking:

"Shouldn't be ah, how does it just not make sense?"

"It's right that it doesn't make sense."

This was Liu Yumei's voice.

Li Zhuoyuan stood up and walked over: "Grandma Liu, what did you just say?"

"The tea has cooled, brew another pot, put less tea leaves, today my mouth is bland."

Li Zhuoyuan nodded and started to brew tea. He understood the meaning in Liu Yumei's words. In this home, when saying some special things, you need to speak lightly and stop, not say everything through.

Just that kind, where they all understand each other in their hearts, playing some dumb riddles.

Liu Yumei leaned back slightly in her chair, looking at the boy, and said:

"Don't you feel that your too grandpa is sometimes a bit silly? Some things, he just can't see clearly. Some words, he just can't listen to."

Li Zhuoyuan nodded.

"Child, this is very normal. People get old, they are all like this.

At your age, you are full of vigor, with an instinctive curiosity towards new things, but normal people in middle age are somewhat resistant to accepting new things and will naturally become conservative.

When they get old, most just believe in one thing, which is to follow their previous habits, like rolling a hoop, continuing to roll down until they roll into a coffin.

They often become very stubborn and obstinate. If you say they are wrong, they will feel you are young. If you say they shouldn't do this, but they have lived to this age according to their own set of rules.

Right and wrong are not important to them. Being able to live to old age is itself the best proof and a skill. Did you understand?"

"Somewhat understood, but still want to listen more."

"Heh." Liu Yumei picked up the teacup, took a sip, and asked, "Tang Yin has a poem 'Peach Blossom Hermitage Song'. Have you read it before?"

"Read it before."

"The last two lines."

"The world laughs at me for being too crazy, I laugh at the world for not being able to see through. Remember the five tombs of the heroes, no wine, no flowers, hoeing as fields."

"Yes ah, you laugh at him for not understanding, he laughs at you for not understanding life."

"Grandma Liu, your meaning is that my too grandpa deliberately pretends to be deaf and can't listen to words?"

"No, your too grandpa may not be as good at acting as you, little guy."

"Grandma is joking."

"How do you feel about your too grandpa?"

"Too grandpa is very story-like. Sometimes I feel like I understand, but sometimes I find myself confused."

"You are seeing things too complexly. Think things a bit simpler, don't involve so many twists and turns."

"Grandma Liu, you've circled me in again."

"Your too grandpa is actually just your too grandpa. There's nothing special about him. The only difference from others is probably that he's relatively rich, no, he's too rich."

"Too rich?" Li Zhuoyuan started to think, what did 'money' refer to here?

"This person ah, the more money they have, the easier it is to get carried away, they will be self-righteous, and will not listen to words.

But there's no way, who let him have money, right?

Sometimes ah, having money just allows you to do as you please. Many things can be settled with money.

But spending money to pull strings is, after all, not something that sees the light of day. Sometimes even the person himself doesn't know exactly where the money was delivered. Anyway, that matter develops to a certain time or a certain link, and it just gets settled inexplicably. The person himself also feels that this difficulty passed confusingly.

And those around him, time after time, all come to understand, and just hate him so much it makes their teeth itch.

Not really hate, just can't stand it yet are helpless. In the end, they are also numb and have accepted it."

Li Zhuoyuan asked: "Grandma Liu, then if you live together with a rich person, can you also pick up money to get rich?"

Liu Yumei looked meaningfully at the boy in front of her. She knew the boy understood.

"Sigh, how could there really be money all over the ground for you to pick up? Occasionally, in the corner nook of the dam, you might dig out a few cents. You don't know how long you have to save just to buy a piece of candy for our A Li."

Li Zhuoyuan took out the bill too grandpa had just given him and asked, "Then too grandpa, also doesn't know he has so much money?"

"He should just feel he has a little bit of small money, but he didn't expect to be rich to that extent, rich enough to be greasy oh."

"Then too grandpa, can he actively spend this money himself?"

"Hehehe..." Liu Yumei covered her mouth and laughed, "You ask this a bit too bluntly. He doesn't even know he has so much money, how can he actively spend it?"

"But this money, is still spent?"

"Correct, it is spent."

Li Zhuoyuan drank the tea in the cup in one gulp. The doubts about his too grandpa that had lingered in his heart were finally resolved at this moment.

The money mentioned in the conversation just now refers to luck and fortune.

People with thick fortune often turn danger into safety and extreme adversity into prosperity.

According to Grandma Liu's saying, think things a bit simpler: that too grandpa is just too grandpa, a very ordinary corpse fisher in Si Yuan Village.

To some extent, mountain grandpa's business ability seems even more professional than too grandpa's.

Therefore, when fortune acts on too grandpa, it will appear very strange.

Because too grandpa himself truly knows not many things, and too grandpa's tools are all some useless shelf goods. Without enough carriers, that so-called good luck will be hard to rationalize in its presentation, instead becoming more and more excessive and absurd.

For example, last time at Niu family's underworld birthday, Liu Blind and mountain grandpa were both bewitched and fell into that miserable state, but too grandpa was actually leaning there sleeping, completely unaffected.

Another example is the drinking the night before last. Too grandpa just happened to drink and vomit, then slept. The next day, he just felt he had a dream.

Most recently, just now, when he faced too grandpa and formally stated the things from the wine table the night before last, too grandpa simply didn't listen and thought he was naughty making up nonsense.

This is actually very unreasonable. No matter what, it shouldn't be such an arbitrary attitude.

It can be understood occasionally, but happening every time is not just a coincidence.

So, is he avoiding it?

No, is it, that something is influencing too grandpa to avoid, to seek the safest transition.

Too grandpa is not silly, nor is he pretending to be silly, but there is an invisible hand in the dark that will fiddle with him at specific times, which makes his behavior look a bit silly.

With this logic, reversing back to the things that happened before, it seems everything can be explained through.

Why does he sometimes feel too grandpa is profound and sometimes feel too grandpa is unreliable? Why do Liu Blind and mountain grandpa always show that kind of hateful yet helpless attitude towards too grandpa? They have known too grandpa for decades. Perhaps, as Liu Yumei said, they are numb and have accepted it.

Li Zhuoyuan finds it hard to imagine that a person's fortune can be this good.

He suddenly remembered that he had once calculated his too grandpa's life grid. That was his first attempt, combining deduction with physiognomy. The result was a completely reversed appraisal for too grandpa.

That time really hit him hard. It was his first time experiencing the frustration of learning. But what if he actually didn't calculate wrong?

After all, afterward, he looked at the physiognomy of people like Xue Liangliang and Zhao Hequan, and the results were quickly verified as correct.

But if he didn't calculate wrong for too grandpa, then how thick is too grandpa's fortune to completely cover... even reverse this life grid?

Li Zhuoyuan asked, "Then too grandpa, has he never suspected?"

Liu Yumei picked up a piece of pastry, gently bit a mouthful, and answered:

"Who will actively suspect that they have a problem in this regard just because they live a lifetime without illness or disaster, often walk by the river yet never get their shoes wet? Who will actively dig and reflect on the reason why they live so smoothly, and after digging out this secret, what? Change back? Is he sick?"

Li Zhuoyuan realized that he had indeed asked a very stupid question. Who would feel that their good luck is a disease?

However, he soon thought of another thing: "Then this money, will it be used on others?"

"What meaning, you also want to pick up money?"

"No, I'm just giving an example. For example, will the effect of this money influence me?"

Liu Yumei pursed her lips, her gaze flickering. She seemed to want to avoid this question.

Li Zhuoyuan then continued: "Several times, when picking up dirty money, my first reaction was always to hide from too grandpa, not tell him the truth, and only after a while, I realized I shouldn't hide from him. But when I really told him about the dirty money, too grandpa never believed me.

Too grandpa doesn't believe me, I can understand that now; was my change in reaction before influenced by something?"

"Want me to tell you?"

"Yes, Grandma Liu."

"But I'm afraid you'll regret knowing."

"How so?"

Liu Yumei's fingertip lightly rubbed the edge of the teacup, her gaze falling on the bill the boy had just taken out:

"Some things, already in the dark, have been marked with a good price and the transaction has been completed."

Li Zhuoyuan's mind was immediately shocked. He looked at Liu Yumei in disbelief.

Liu Yumei continued: "You say, ever since you were brought home by your too grandpa, what's the difference between you and Runsheng and his grandpa?"

Li Zhuoyuan stared blankly at the ground, his mind quickly flashing through a series of events.

Too grandpa didn't hesitate to drag his still injured body to go to the Niu family to earn money. In the end, it was himself who went and communicated with the cat-faced old lady, helped the cat-faced old lady design a revenge plan, and also let the cat-faced old lady 'die under' too grandpa's peach wood sword.

Too grandpa was invited to Jiu Wei Port to exorcise Yingzi's grandpa and grandma. He then went to work by the river, then got spots with Xue Liangliang, and finally met too grandpa after going to the People's Hospital.

Next, the two key figures who truly handled the White Family Town event, Xue Liangliang and Uncle Qin, were both found by him, while too grandpa just went home and slept.

The night before last, too grandpa and those two not-human guys drank until midnight. Finally, too grandpa thought it was just a dream. Runsheng didn't see it. The only one who witnessed the whole thing was himself, and then he disregarded rest and worked overnight to make tools, preparing to counterattack.

These three things are all directly related to Too Grandpa, but the final handlers seem to be himself?

Looking at it this way, there is indeed no difference between himself and Mountain Grandpa.

"I know, you little rascal, you seem to be able to see dirty money. Tell Grandma, when did it start?"

Li Zhuoyuan recalled that it started after meeting Little Oriole... No, to be precise, it became more obvious and intense after he led Little Oriole on the Yin Road under the guidance of Too Grandpa.

In the "Zheng Dao Fu Mo Lu," this characteristic displayed on his body is very similar to "Zou Yin" (walking the Yin).

When a living person is contaminated with too much Yin world energy, it is easy to get confused between the Yang world road and the Yin world road, seeing things that should not be seen. The book also specifically noted: Those with deep thoughts are particularly affected.

Li Zhuoyuan looked up at Liu Yumei, didn't answer her last question, but asked: "So, is this the reason why Uncle Qin wanted to return to his hometown and leave here?"

"Dirty money, it always has to be spent somewhere. Either you bury your head and treat yourself as an ordinary person, or you wait to be inexplicably pushed out to bear the disaster and take the blame.

I know you little rascal, you've been reading something these days. You are quite obsessed with this dirty money business."

"Grandma Liu, why are you specifically telling me this today?"

"Because you, this little rascal, have a sharp mind. Even without a master's teaching, just by reading books yourself, you learn things surprisingly fast. I'm afraid if I don't remind you soon, you might find a way to break your too grandpa's something."

"But, why would I do that?"

"That's not what I need to worry about. I just know that you, this little rascal, might soon have the ability to do this. I still have to continue living here with A Li, and I don't want you to ruin the scenery and atmosphere here."

"Can it be broken?"

"Yes." Liu Yumei said with certainty, "No matter how rich you are, when you encounter a real tough opponent, money is useless. His Li Sanjiang's money is only enough to show off in this small town. This is the first point."

After a pause, Liu Yumei continued: "Older people are old, and they have been living according to their own habits and rhythm. If someone disrupts this rhythm, then the old person themselves will also be in disarray. It is possible that they could have continued to live a long life, but ended up with a short time left to live. This is the second point."

"Then I just now..."

"Your too grandpa is already a rare case of genuine confusion within his true confusion. You, this little rascal, want to wake him up and forcibly correct him. This is inherently a destruction of his living habits, it's just that you haven't succeeded yet. If you wait until you learn more knowledge, master more abilities, and show a higher level, no longer just talking about it, then you can truly correct him.

So, you know what to do, right?

Old children are like little children when they are old. Just coax him more. Isn't this what you, this little guy, are best at?"

Li Zhuoyuan covered his face with both hands and slowly rubbed it.

Liu Yumei sipped her tea while observing the boy's reaction. When the boy's hands left his face, what was in front of her was a clean, lovely face with a childlike smile.

It made her want to reach out and pinch his cheek, but rationality and emotion were in clear conflict at this moment.

"Grandma Liu, where's Brother Runsheng?"

"He went to the fields to collect peanuts early this morning. He should be back soon. What do you need him for?"

"I ordered some things and need Brother Runsheng to accompany me to pick them up."

"And then?"

"Then of course I'll do what I need to do."

Liu Yumei sat up, leaned close to the boy, and stared carefully into his eyes: "You still want to continue?"

"Otherwise?"

"Don't you feel uncomfortable, wronged, or scared?"

"No, I just know that Too Grandpa really loves me."

Even if he seemed to be taking the blame for Too Grandpa.

But, first of all, he chose this path himself; secondly, every time, it was his active concern for Too Grandpa and a voluntary decision. No one was forcing him.

Most importantly, Too Grandpa himself doesn't understand these things. He truly dotes on his great-grandson immensely.

So what if everything was priced and the transaction was completed?

He, Li Zhuoyuan, was willing.

Li Sanjiang was still Li Sanjiang. Even knowing these things, Li Zhuoyuan's attitude and impression of Too Grandpa hadn't changed. No, there was a slight change. He could now feel at ease coaxing him in the future, like a child coaxing an old child.

Liu Yumei tried hard to observe. She wanted to see even a hint of extra emotion on the boy's face, but she didn't succeed.

But how... is this possible?

Even between biological parents and children, when it comes to such matters, even if they don't immediately fall out, they will inevitably feel awkward.

But the boy in front of her, in an instant, only retained a few simple logics, cleanly eliminating all unnecessary emotions.

This is too terrifying. Does this child have no emotions in his bones?

"There's something Grandma wants to ask you, about that time the paper figures at home were ruined by the rain. Your too grandpa was seriously injured then, right? Before that, what did he do?"

Li Zhuoyuan blinked his clear eyes and shook the teapot:

"Grandma, the tea is finished."

"Then brew another pot."

"Can't drink anymore, already full."

Li Zhuoyuan gently patted his stomach and stood up, putting away the tea set.

Just then, Runsheng came back carrying a hoe.

"Brother Runsheng, come with me to Old Carpenter's house to pick up some things."

"Alright."

Runsheng walked to the well, drew a bucket of water to rinse his feet, and then pushed a cart following behind Li Zhuoyuan to Old Carpenter's house.

Old Carpenter was already waiting, and the things were all ready.

"Grandpa, about the wages, my too grandpa said he'll settle it later."

"Settle what wages? This is me, an old man, giving Uncle Sanjiang his early burial money."

"Then you'd better find a notebook and write it down, so you don't forget after a long time. May you live a hundred years."

After saying that, Li Zhuoyuan bowed seriously to Old Carpenter.

"Heh heh, you little sprout, where did you learn these ways? Your mouth is quite sweet."

Old Carpenter took out a red envelope that he had already prepared from his pocket and handed it to Li Zhuoyuan: "Here, take it and buy candy to eat."

"I haven't paid you yet, how can I still accept your money?"

"One thing is one thing. You came suddenly last time, and Grandpa didn't have time to prepare either. It's the first time a junior has come to visit, and it's something that should be given. It's the rule."

"Thank you, Grandpa."

Li Zhuoyuan accepted the red envelope. Over there, Runsheng had already moved all the things onto the cart.

After returning home, Li Zhuoyuan and Runsheng carried the things upstairs together.

To Li Zhuoyuan's surprise, A Li, who had taken a bath and changed her clothes, was actually waiting in his room.

After the assembled things were moved in, she naturally began to assemble them.

"Little Yuan, what are these things? Some of them look familiar, like items from our sect."

Runsheng squatted near the door after moving the things. He couldn't get too close to A Li.

"Yes, they are things from the sect." Li Zhuoyuan replied, "Brother Runsheng, you go downstairs and watch some TV and have a rest for a while. I'll trouble you to go out with me later."

"Alright, just call me."

After Runsheng left, Li Zhuoyuan and A Li began to assemble together. This was the simplest job, and also the most rewarding part.

Soon, all the things were assembled.

A Li's hands gently intertwined. She looked at the things she and the boy had made together, and then looked up at the desk, where there were still many blank drawings.

"I will continue to draw in the future, and I'll need to ask A Li to help me make them. My hands are clumsy, and I really can't make them without A Li's help."

The girl's eyes were bright, as if they held stars.

He got two bottles of Jian Li Bao for the girl and had her sit and rest, while Li Zhuoyuan began to pack up his set of tools.

There were a total of six instruments, plus four small items.

Luosheng Umbrella, completely black, the book says it can isolate miasma when opened.

Yellow River Shovel, with multiple uses that can be switched. When he first saw the design drawing, Li Zhuoyuan couldn't help but think of the Luoyang Shovel, but their main focus is different. The Yellow River Shovel is mainly used for underwater and wet muddy areas by the river.

Seven-Star Hook, can extend seven sections, used by corpse fishers to hook floating bodies on the water. However, each section has a special design, alluding to the Big Dipper, and can counteract the different states of floating bodies.

Next are the Soul Returning Basket and the Homesickness Net. These two, plus the Seven-Star Hook mentioned above, are actually the same as some of Too Grandpa's belongings, but their internal workings are completely different from Too Grandpa's set.

Too Grandpa's things can only simply hook still floating bodies. Real moving dead bodies cannot be restrained.

The last item is the Sanqing Fan. It has a grand name. According to the requirements in the book, Li Zhuoyuan carved runes on each fan blade, and then added various mixed materials at the bottom of the embedded grooves.

The use of this thing is mainly to fan himself.

When encountering floating bodies skilled in bewitching people's minds, like the cat-faced old lady, he would pat his face or head with the fan, and then according to need, open the hidden clasp and release special powder mist to quickly sober himself up from delusion.

The four small items are specially made black dog blood ink pad, black canvas, a Bagua plate, and a stack of talismans drawn by Li Zhuoyuan himself.

The black canvas has an interlayer, filled with wooden scrolls. Each wooden scroll has a special texture, which A Li carved out one by one with a small carving knife. When dealing with floating bodies, he can wrap himself in it or try to cover the floating body's head with it. The former can have a warding off evil and protective effect, while the latter can cause damage to the floating body. Anyway, that's what the book says.

The Bagua plate is relatively simple, made of wood, with no decorative patterns, not at all high-end. The needle inside was ground by Li Zhuoyuan himself. He tested it and it was not accurate.

But it was inaccurately standard. Li Zhuoyuan just needed to mentally calculate and correct it himself.

As for the stack of talismans, Li Zhuoyuan was least confident. It was his first attempt at drawing these, and most likely, they would be useless.

And even if they were useful, would he have to run up to a floating body, stand on his tiptoes and jump to stick it on the opponent's forehead?

Li Zhuoyuan pressed his fingertip on a talisman and flicked it outwards. A talisman floated about a meter away, then drifted back and landed on the ground behind Li Zhuoyuan.

This effect is even worse than playing cards.

Let's test if the talismans I drew have any effect. If they have even a little bit of effect, then next time I'll find something with a similar material to playing cards to draw on.

But anyway, this set of tools and small items is complete.

Next, is to test their effect.

Li Zhuoyuan went out and called Runsheng back up. He was going to give Runsheng a few things to use, such as the Seven-Star Hook and the Yellow River Shovel. Only someone with great strength can truly utilize them. Even if they have no special additional effects at all, Runsheng can still use them to hit floating bodies.

A Li, who remained in the room, bent down and picked up the talisman on the floor.

She placed the talisman in her right palm and pressed her left index finger on the talisman, drawing her fingertip across it.

"Swoosh!"

The talisman flew out and stuck perfectly in the center of the door frame.

At this moment, Li Zhuoyuan led Runsheng in. To keep her distance from Runsheng, A Li simply took off her shoes and got onto the bed.

The girl hugged her knees, sitting in the corner of the bed, watching the boy explain the functions and uses of the tools to Runsheng.

After listening to the explanation and practicing himself, Runsheng said in shock, "Little Yuan, many of these things are similar to what my grandpa has, but they only look alike, the difference is huge."

"Mine, should be the most professional."

"I can feel it, good stuff, really good stuff."

Runsheng had experience in retrieving bodies and had actually fought with floating bodies. He felt that the tools were comfortable to use, so they must be convincing.

"Let's go, Brother Runsheng, let's find a place to test them."

"Alright!"

Leaving aside everything else, Brother Leopard and Zhao Xing, those two guys who became chang, dared to come to the door and threaten him. So he would go find them and settle this account first.

Runsheng went downstairs first with the things. They couldn't be carried all at once when they were disassembled parts, but now he could carry all the tools by himself.

Li Zhuoyuan walked to the bed and said to A Li, "I'm going out for a bit, A Li be good, go back to your room and sleep well, okay?"

After giving the instructions, Li Zhuoyuan walked out of the bedroom.

After the boy left, A Li lay down on the bed and obediently began to sleep well.

As Li Zhuoyuan passed by Li Sanjiang's bedroom, the door happened to open. Too Grandpa rubbed his eyes, having just taken a nap. He planned to relieve himself, then go back to sleep.

"Little Yuan Marquis, are you going out?"

"Yes, Too Grandpa, Brother Runsheng and I are going out to play."

"Oh, going out to play." Li Sanjiang habitually reached for his pocket again. Although he always emphasized the importance of the child's studies, he could never bear to refuse the child's request to play.

"Too Grandpa, you already gave me pocket money this morning."

"Then take some more." Li Sanjiang took out the change from his pocket. Villagers usually didn't carry large bills in their pockets because it was inconvenient to break them.

"Too Grandpa, thank you."

"Hey, what are you being so polite for?"

Before Li Sanjiang could finish speaking, he felt his waist being hugged, and the boy's face was pressed against his belly, his eyes closed.

Li Sanjiang reached out and stroked the boy's head, confused: "What's wrong with you?"

"Too Grandpa, you are so good."

"Hehe, okay, okay, Too Grandpa will go back to the room and get you a few more whole ones."

"No need, Too Grandpa, it's enough, I'm going out to play now."

"Remember not to come back too late, I still have to transfer luck tonight."

"Got it, Too Grandpa."

Waving goodbye to Li Sanjiang, Li Zhuoyuan's expression returned to calm as he descended the stairs.

He hadn't lied when he faced Liu Yumei this morning, because he only needed to know that Too Grandpa genuinely cared for him. Everything else didn't matter.

To put it bluntly, if he really cared about this, what essential difference would he have from the Niu family's three siblings?

Furthermore, there was one thing Li Zhuoyuan deliberately concealed from Liu Yumei.

Grandma Liu lives here and described herself as picking up coins in the corner. Then, Too Grandpa transferring luck to him is equivalent to a large sum of money transfer?

If this old lady knew, she would probably be furious to death.

People, the older they are, the more they cherish their lives, and the more they fear death.

Too Grandpa, at such an old age, is willing to pay the price of reduced lifespan to transfer luck to him. Just this point alone is enough for Li Zhuoyuan to be willing to do anything for him as a junior.

He was never forced to get involved. Every time he was active, so there was no resentment.

As he reached the last step of the stairs, Li Zhuoyuan suddenly stopped. He suddenly remembered the "Jinsha Luo Wen Jing" he had seen in Too Grandpa's bedroom.

He had discovered at that time that the arrays Too Grandpa drew always had some discrepancies with those in the book.

So, if Too Grandpa was highly skilled and drew very accurately, maximizing the array's effect, and transferred luck to him directly like that, with Too Grandpa's fortune so thick that it could even change his life grid... then wouldn't he be overloaded and burst?

Cold sweat instantly seeped from his forehead.

Was that, the backlash of good fortune that even the Qin family avoided and feared getting involved with?

"Phew... that was close."

But thinking about it in reverse, didn't he also get infected with Too Grandpa's good luck? If he hadn't lived here with Too Grandpa, how could he have found so many good books in the basement, and how could he have met A Li?

Since he became familiar with A Li, the cold, detached feeling in his heart has appeared less and less frequently.

"Misfortune is what fortune relies on, fortune is what misfortune hides."

Li Zhuoyuan shook his head. He didn't plan to think about these things anymore. It was enough to just be happy being himself.

When he reached the dam, Runsheng had already ridden out on the tricycle. All the tools were on the cart and covered with a plastic sheet.

"Ding ding ding!"

Runsheng jingled the bell on the cart. He used to not feel there was anything wrong with the tools he had, but now that he had seen good things, he had an impulse like a wild boar urgently wanting to taste fine grains.

Li Zhuoyuan got on the tricycle.

Liu Yumei and Aunt Liu stood at the entrance of the dam.

"Little Yuan, don't blame Grandma for being talkative, Grandma just wants to remind you one last time: think clearly, once you go, there's no turning back."

Li Zhuoyuan patted Runsheng's back:

"Brother Runsheng, let's go, don't look back, keep riding forward!"

"Alright, hold on tight!"

...

"Little Yuan, didn't you say we were going to Shi Port? Why did you ask me to ride here first?"

"Brother Runsheng, wait for me at the entrance, I'm going in to find someone."

Li Zhuoyuan got off the tricycle and walked into the police station. After asking around, he found Tan Yunlong's office.

At this time, Tan Yunlong was closing his eyes, napping in his office chair. His face was oily, probably from staying up all night.

However, when Li Zhuoyuan walked in, he immediately opened his eyes, and that familiar hawk-like gaze struck him again.

"It's you, little friend?"

"Yes."

"How did you find my office?"

"I asked people."

"Do you know my name?"

"I asked where the police uncle with long, thick, and slightly slanted eyebrows, who looks scary when he glares, is, and they all understood."

"Hahahaha..." Tan Yunlong laughed, "Okay, little friend, what do you need me for?"

"Something, I'm here to report a case."

...

Just as he walked out of the police station gate, Li Zhuoyuan turned around and faced the plaque.

Then, he spread his arms and walked up, hugging the plaque tightly.

The window of the security room was opened, and an elderly auxiliary police officer poked his head out and asked, "Little friend, what are you doing?"

"I want to be a police officer when I grow up too."

"Good, good, being a police officer is good, hehe, good child."

The old auxiliary police officer didn't say anything else, lit a cigarette, and quietly watched the boy continue to hug the plaque.

After hugging for a long time, Li Zhuoyuan reluctantly let go.

Should be enough rubbing, right?

He lowered his head, and his clothes and pants were already covered with a thick layer of plaque dust.

After hesitating for a moment, Li Zhuoyuan decided not to brush them off and kept them.

Afterward, he got on Runsheng's tricycle.

Old Jiang's house was easy to find. It was a five-story self-built villa on the edge of the town, with a large walled courtyard outside and a pond and rock garden inside.

In this era, it can be said to be quite luxurious.

Runsheng picked up the Yellow River Shovel and said, "Little Yuan, let's go, let's charge in!"

Li Zhuoyuan looked at Runsheng with some confusion, seeing that he wasn't joking, he quickly reached out and grabbed Runsheng's wrist:

"No, Brother Runsheng, just like eating at a banquet, we don't sit at the first table, we wait for the second table, because we are dealing with something that is not human."

"Then who sits at the first table, and who will deal with those people?"

As soon as the words fell,

In the distance,

The sound of police sirens came.

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