Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Squatting, the old man slowly stood up. After he stood straight, Li Juxiang suddenly felt that his back didn't seem as hunched as before.

"Huh?"

The old man also patted his waist, thinking that Liu Momo was indeed effective. He hadn't even said anything properly yet, just entered her door, and he already felt his body relax considerably.

He didn't linger, going straight inside.

"Cuihou, you and Xiaoyuanhou go eat."

After giving instructions, she also followed into the inner room. Liu Jinxia's eyesight wasn't good, so she needed help recording things when discussing matters.

"Yuanhou brother, shall we go continue eating?"

"Okay."

Li Zhuoyuan responded, although the discomfort in his body hadn't subsided, he still tried to step forward.

With one step, Li Zhuoyuan felt the coolness that had been on his head slow down, and the touch of the ice block on his left face also slowly receded.

But as his second step fell, Li Zhuoyuan suddenly discovered that the coolness hadn't disappeared. The ice coldness on his left face reappeared, and it felt as if a block of ice was pressing on his right shoulder.

When he took his third step, the ice coldness on his left face was gone again, shifting to his left shoulder, while the ice coldness on his right shoulder remained.

Li Zhuoyuan took his fourth step, before his foot even landed, the ice coldness on both shoulders suddenly intensified.

"Huff..."

Li Zhuoyuan took a trembling deep breath and slowly retracted his foot. The ice coldness on both shoulders returned to their previous level.

He couldn't see anything, yet he could picture it: earlier, an old lady was half-squatting in front of him, her right hand on his left face, her left hand on his head, stroking it, saying:

"This good child, truly well-behaved."

When he walked forward, the old lady also changed her posture accordingly, both hands gradually sliding down onto his shoulders. This was an action of borrowing strength to support herself.

If he continued to walk forward, then, she would climb up along with the momentum.

She,

Wanted him to carry her!

...

The shady room on the first floor was Liu Jinxia's office.

The room was very large, but it felt cramped upon entering.

Wooden boxes were stacked around, occupying seventy to eighty percent of the space. Inside were various magic tools, scriptures, and statues.

If you opened several boxes, you could see Laozi and Buddha with their arms around each other, or even Guanyin Bodhisattva's seat not having a child but instead a cross with Jesus.

In the early years, Liu Jinxia also had a dream, responding to the call of the new era, wanting to gather the strengths of a hundred schools to forge her own path.

Unfortunately, in the backward market around Shannan Town, such trendy things couldn't be accepted.

Liu Jinxia could only helplessly accept her fate and return to the traditional image of a fortune-telling blind woman.

Therefore, the things that could be used in this room were just a black lacquered wooden table, several wooden stools, and two white candles.

"Hiss..."

Liu Jinxia used a handkerchief to wipe her eyes. The candle smoke was making them uncomfortable. It seemed these candles would also need to be removed later.

At this time, the old man sitting opposite had also finished speaking. The look in his eyes as he gazed at Liu Jinxia was respectful.

Since coming here, not only had his hunched back eased considerably, but his mind was no longer dizzy, and he could speak much more clearly.

The old man's surname was Niu, his name was Niu Fu, and he was from the neighboring Shigan Town. He came here today to handle the underworld birthday for his old mother.

Yesterday, his younger brother, Niu Rui, had also come here for the same reason. Liu Jinxia had only gone to Li Weihan's house after attending to him.

The two Niu family brothers, plus one younger sister, lost their father early. Their old mother raised the three of them as a widow.

Now, they were all over fifty themselves and had become grandfathers and grandmothers.

Their old mother had passed away half a year ago.

But since the funeral, troubles at each of the Niu family siblings' homes had been non-stop, either one getting sick or another having an accident.

At first, everyone didn't pay too much attention, but the frequency increased and the severity worsened.

Last time, Niu Rui's son fell into a ditch while riding his bike home after work, breaking several ribs. If a passerby hadn't discovered him in time, he would have almost lost his life. Niu Fu's hunched back also became more severe and exaggerated. Even the seventy and eighty-year-old hunched-back people in the same village weren't as severe as him. One must know that half a year ago, he might not have been hunched at all.

Furthermore, the three siblings would dream about their old mother from time to time. They suspected that the old mother's lingering concerns hadn't dissipated, and they were planning to hold an underworld birthday for her, burn a blood scripture, ward off evil spirits, and seek peace.

However, the two brothers now had a conflict. The younger brother, Niu Rui, wanted to hold the underworld birthday at his home, but the elder brother, Niu Fu, wouldn't allow it, insisting it must be held at his home.

Outsiders might still think these two brothers were quite filial, even competing over the troublesome matter of holding an underworld birthday. Isn't this vying to show filial piety to their old mother?

Liu Jinxia obviously didn't believe it. Her eyesight was getting worse, but her mind was becoming clearer.

Among the people she received here, those like Li Weihan were few. Most had done guilty things. As the old saying goes, if you do guilty things, you will always fear ghosts knocking on the door.

However, Liu Jinxia wouldn't pursue the matter to the end. She just said faintly:

"Don't tell me, that younger sister in your family also wants to hold it?"

"Um, she wants to too."

Liu Jinxia raised an eyebrow.

According to the current village rules, after a daughter gets married, she is a guest. Every year, she can spare a few times to go back to her maternal home to visit. During New Year, she brings her son-in-law to visit. It's also acceptable to just show face.

If her parents are sick, a daughter who can attend to them by their sickbed for a while and see them off at the end is praised as a filial daughter by neighbors and relatives.

Because daughters don't divide family property, they only need to show up and make a simple effort for their parents' old age and matters after death. They don't need to contribute money.

But this Niu family's third sister unexpectedly also wanted to hold an underworld birthday for her old mother... This seemed very unconventional. No matter how great her filial piety, it shouldn't be displayed this way. If the family only had sisters and no sons, it would be a different story, but as it happens, she had two elder brothers.

Liu Jinxia lowered her eyelids and said:

"This is easy to handle. Since you all want to compete for the host, then all be the hosts. Borrow a piece of land on the public dam in your village, set up three offering tables, place three sets of longevity gifts, and burn three blood scriptures."

Niu Fu was stunned for a moment and asked, "Can... can it still be like this?"

Liu Jinxia nodded, "Yes, hold it together, in one place. Your old mother won't have to be busy separately. Your younger brother, Ruihou, already gave me the birth dates and eight characters of his family yesterday. You give me yours today, and also notify your younger sister to send hers to me within these two days. That way, I can open the ritual for you."

Originally, one matter was one share of money. Now it became receiving three shares of money for one matter. Liu Jinxia was profiting.

Niu Fu hesitated for a moment, but finally nodded, "Okay, then let's do it like this. I'll go back and tell them to do it together."

"Okay, after all the eight characters are sent over, I'll give you a specific date."

"Make it fast," Niu Fu urged, "We need to hurry."

"I understand." Liu Jinxia nodded, indicating he didn't need to worry, then stood up to see him out.

As Niu Fu's backside was about to leave the stool, he seemed to think of something again, sat back down, and said, "There's one more thing. When holding the underworld birthday, please ask Liu Momo to preside."

Presiding was also a ritual matter. As for asking someone to preside, it meant inviting someone with spiritual power to accompany and suppress the array, preventing little ghosts from causing trouble.

As for how to interpret this "someone with spiritual power," it all depended on interpretation. If there was really no one, a pig butcher could also go preside.

Because Li Sanjiang had a paper craft business at home, every time he delivered paper crafts to someone's house, he would automatically preside for them. Not only could he get a free meal, but he could also receive a red envelope from the host.

However, this "automatic" service was cheap, and the red envelope money was also meager. But if you genuinely opened your mouth and said "please," that was a different price.

Niu Fu immediately added, "The red envelope money is easy to discuss, Liu Momo, we... all three families will give it."

"Like this, huh..." Liu Jinxia's heart sank, a sense of inexplicable panic.

"In addition, please also ask Liu Momo to invite your fellow villager, Uncle Sanjiang. We also want to invite him."

Liu Jinxia swallowed a mouthful of saliva and didn't immediately promise, but said:

"I will go and tell Sanjiang Hou, but I don't know if he is free. You first give me the eight characters, and I'll calculate the date for you. We can't delay this."

"Okay, okay, okay."

Next, Niu Fu took out a cloth bundle from his pocket. Opening it layer by layer, it revealed a stack of curled-edge big unity banknotes.

He licked his fingertip and began to count the money.

Liu Jinxia accepted the first sum but pushed away the second, saying, "As for the presiding matter, wait until I discuss it with Sanjiang Hou, then we'll talk about it.

"This..." Niu Fu was clearly a bit unwilling, "Or, should we fix it first?"

Liu Jinxia said firmly, "Before the matter is clear, the money is not urgent either. This is the rule."

"Okay, then I'll trouble Liu Momo. I won't go to Uncle Sanjiang's place. I'll wait for your news."

"Okay."

Niu Fu opened the door himself and walked out.

Li Juxiang went to support her old mother and asked doubtfully, "Mom, what's wrong?"

This order would offset a season's income. Li Juxiang didn't understand why her money-loving mother was hesitant this time, and it didn't seem like she was trying to raise the price.

Liu Jinxia said softly, "They are all farmers, not big rich or noble masters. If they are so easy to talk to and straightforward with the money, it can only be because of one thing."

"What thing?"

"Breaking wealth to avoid disaster."

"Mom, you mean?"

"Xianghou, you say, in this world, which mother would want to harm her own children after she's gone?"

"That's true."

"What's even more incomprehensible is how many sons and daughters, whose lives are unstable, would suspect that their old mother underground is messing with them?

Unless they themselves had done something worse than a beast."

"Mom, this order?"

"Forget it, let's wait until I find Sanjiang Hou and discuss it. If he feels we can go, then we'll just earn all this money. Alas, they really are giving too much."

"If Uncle Sanjiang says he won't go, are you willing?"

"There's no meaning in earning money that you have no life to spend."

"Also, Uncle Sanjiang's skills are reliable. With him around, we can feel at ease."

"His skills..." Liu Jinxia furrowed her brows, seeming a bit difficult to evaluate, but still affirmed, "With him around, I do have a sense of security."

...

"Yuanhou brother?"

Seeing Li Zhuoyuan still not moving, Cuicui reached out and pulled his hand.

The moment their hands touched, Li Zhuoyuan felt the ice coldness on his left shoulder disappear. At the same time, he sensed Cuicui shiver, and the hand holding his trembled slightly.

"Cuicui, step back a little!"

"Huh?"

"Stay away from me!"

Although she didn't know why, Cuicui still obediently let go of his hand and stepped back several paces.

"Cuicui, stand there and don't move, don't come near me."

"Okay..."

Yuanhou brother's sudden attitude made Cuicui recall memories of being disliked. A haze had already appeared in her eyes, and her little nose was sniffing.

Li Zhuoyuan then had a feeling that when Cuicui touched him, the old lady who had been resting both hands on his shoulders had taken away one hand and reached out towards Cuicui.

After Cuicui retreated, the old lady returned to her previous posture.

"Liu Momo, I'll leave now!"

Niu Fu's energetic voice came from inside, completely different from his earlier hoarseness.

He walked into the hall and his gaze swept towards the two children still inside. Without any expression, he walked towards the door.

"Grandpa..." Li Zhuoyuan raised his hand and pointed to the corner of the wall, which was also the basin on the shelf beside him, "Wash your hands."

Cuicui wiped the corner of her eyes with the back of her hand and said with a smile, "Grandpa, wash your hands before going out to get rid of bad luck."

After saying that, Cuicui lowered her head and looked at her toes. Did Yuanhou brother also feel that her home was unlucky?

She was originally used to it and didn't feel it was a big deal, but for some reason, she was very sensitive today.

"Oh, okay, then I'll wash up."

Niu Fu retracted the foot that had stepped over the threshold, turned and walked to the basin, and began to wash his hands.

As he washed,

Li Zhuoyuan felt the ice coldness on his shoulders retreat step by step. His body felt a sense of relaxation but also some weakness.

Niu Fu's back then slowly re-hunched down visibly.

Li Juxiang supported Liu Jinxia as she came out and said, "I'll see you out."

"No need to be polite, I'm leaving, see you later."

Niu Fu finished washing his hands and wanted to take the cloth on the shelf to wipe them, but found it was a bit out of reach. After shaking his hands, he put both hands behind his waist and slowly stepped over the threshold sideways.

Li Juxiang's eyes showed doubt. Something seemed wrong, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

She walked to the basin, wanting to change the water, but after she glanced at what was in the basin, her expression immediately froze:

The banana leaves in the basin had actually become extremely fine strips. Even if someone had deliberately torn them by hand, it would be impossible to tear them so finely and neatly.

Most importantly, the water in this basin had actually turned black!

Li Juxiang immediately walked quickly to her mother's side and whispered to her.

Liu Jinxia looked at her daughter in surprise, then looked outside the room.

By this time, Niu Fu had finally managed to cross the threshold and walked onto the dam.

Li Zhuoyuan also finally recovered from his weakness. He walked to Liu Jinxia, pointed to Niu Fu's retreating back, and said to Liu Jinxia:

"Nai, on his back..."

"Shh!"

Liu Jinxia immediately covered the child's mouth with both hands.

The smell of these hands was really too strong. Li Zhuoyuan's eyes were watering.

Niu Fu outside paused for a moment, turned sideways, and glanced with a meaningful look, then continued to walk away.

It wasn't until the person was far out on the dam that Liu Jinxia loosened her hands covering the child.

"Child, now, speak."

Li Zhuoyuan took several deep breaths and said, "Nai, on that grandpa's back, was he carrying something?"

Liu Jinxia brought her face close to Li Zhuoyuan's, lowered her voice, and asked, "Little Yuanhou, did you see something?"

Li Zhuoyuan shook his head.

He indeed hadn't seen anything, only felt it.

Liu Jinxia furrowed her brow and asked, "Little Yuanhou, did Sanjiang Hou go to your house last night?"

"Nai, I was sleeping, I don't know."

"Hehe."

Liu Jinxia smiled and nodded, not continuing to ask, but said seriously, "Little Yuanhou, remember one sentence from grandma."

"Grandma, speak."

"Some things, even if you see them, you absolutely must not show it in front of them. If it knows you can see it, who knows... it might just entangle you."

Was it because of this?

Li Zhuoyuan nodded forcefully, "Nai, I remember." "Good, go eat with Little Cuihou."

"Okay, grandma."

Li Zhuoyuan walked to Cuicui, who looked at him with some doubt.

"Cuicui, let's go eat."

"Okay, hehe."

A smile reappeared on the little girl's face.

After the two children entered the kitchen, Liu Jinxia sat on a chair in the hall, her expression grave.

"Mom?" Li Juxiang was still holding the basin, "Did Little Yuanhou really see something?"

"Sometimes, to see something, you don't necessarily need to use your eyes."

"How could this happen?"

"This probably needs to be asked of Sanjiang Hou. Heaven knows what methods he used to mess with things."

"Alas, I hope the child will be okay. I truly like this child."

"Yo." Liu Jinxia looked at her daughter with a half-smile, "What, taken a fancy to him, want to take him as your son-in-law?"

"Mom, don't make this joke. It's impossible for me to have such thoughts. He's Lanhou's son."

Liu Jinxia rarely didn't scold her daughter for being "cheap" this time, but comforted her by saying, "Lanhou, that girl, was smart from a young age. Her son is even more precocious and formidable. So, he's truly not suitable as a son-in-law."

Li Juxiang was amused and asked, "Mom, listen, what nonsense are you talking? Smart people still make mistakes?"

"Daughter, you don't understand.

Which child have you ever seen who was possessed by something dirty yesterday and fainted, yet today can walk out hand in hand as if nothing happened?

Do you guess if he knows about the matter at Big Beard's house? Do you believe him when he says he slept last night and didn't know anything?

Heh, just now, he saw something unclean here again, and now he can calmly sit down and continue eating.

This child is already unusually smart. He can quickly figure out his current situation and adjust himself well.

Even this... ghost-seeing matter.

It's just that he's still young now, with a bit of a childlike tenderness.

When he grows up, living with such a person would be quite boring, because as long as he looks at you, he can see right through you. You have no secrets in front of him.

You can't even act spoiled or throw tantrums with him, because he simply stands higher than you. He looks down and overlooks you in every aspect.

Cold as ice, without human touch."

"Mom, how can you say that about a child? I think Little Yuanhou is really quite good, polite and well-behaved."

"That's because he is like this to everyone, just like his mother when she was little."

"Mom..."

"Yes, his mother also divorced me."

"You..." Li Juxiang was angry.

Liu Jinxia wasn't finished, she exhaled a puff of smoke and continued, "People like them, mother and son, are only suitable for finding someone who has no self, whose eyes are solely on their objects."

"Mom, I should go find Grandpa Sanjiang."

"Go ahead, go ahead." Liu Jinxia waved her hand, "If that Sanjiang Hou procrastinates, just ask him, if he really messes up Han Hou's most beloved grandson, does he still want Han Hou to see him off in his old age?"

Li Juxiang quickly poured out the sewage in the basin, got on her tricycle and set off. She really didn't want to hear her mother talk about these things anymore.

Liu Jinxia pinched out the cigarette butt in her hand, yawned, and slowly walked towards the kitchen.

The two children had already finished eating. Liu Jinxia saw her usually spoiled granddaughter, who never did housework, actively taking over the task of tidying the bowls and chopsticks and wiping the table.

She kept saying, "Yuanhou brother, hurry up and put it down, I do these tasks every day."

It made Liu Jinxia laugh.

Perhaps because it involved the matter of seeing himself off in his old age, Li Sanjiang didn't procrastinate this time and arrived early on Li Juxiang's tricycle.

Liu Jinxia asked Li Juxiang to take the two children upstairs to watch TV, then led Li Sanjiang into her office.

"Ho, Liu Blind, your setup here is really cramped." Li Sanjiang patted the tall stacks of wooden boxes around him, "If I didn't know better, I'd think you just finished buying goods from Guangdong and are preparing to switch to the wholesale business."

"I don't have time to talk nonsense with you."

Liu Jinxia told him everything about today, including the Niu family's underworld birthday.

Li Sanjiang's eyes widened and he asked, "How can that Little Yuanhou see?"

Liu Jinxia took a deep breath, clenched her fists, and finally suppressed her anger, retorting, "Are you f***ing asking me?"

Li Sanjiang took out a cigarette, threw one to Liu Jinxia, and then held one under his nose, sniffing and contemplating.

Liu Jinxia picked up the cigarette, tapped the filter end on the tabletop, and asked, "What good thing did you do last night!"

"Accumulating virtue."

"You..." Liu Jinxia licked her lips and asked, "Big Beard grandpa's second son drifted into the fish pond today. Did you bring that dead body over?"

Li Sanjiang didn't speak.

"How did you bring it over?" Liu Jinxia continued to probe, then, as if thinking of a terrible possibility, her voice rose and she cursed, "You old thing with a thousand cuts, you wouldn't let Little Yuanhou lead the corpse, would you?"

"Cough cough..." Li Sanjiang cleared his throat, "Liu Blind, lend me a light."

Liu Jinxia directly threw the matchbox over, "You really did this!"

"Sigh..."

Li Sanjiang averted his gaze and smoked.

Liu Jinxia left her chair, walked around the table, and stood in front of Li Sanjiang, spitting directly onto the old man's face:

"Living people walk the yang road, dead people walk the yin road. Letting Little Yuanhou lead the corpse is making this child walk the yin road, staining him with ghostly energy. Do you know, he might already be able to 'walk yin' because of what you've done!"

"Walk yin?" Li Sanjiang was stunned for a moment, then as if hearing a big joke, "Ha, talking nonsense, how could messing around a bit make someone walk yin like this!"

"Heh... hehehehe." Liu Blind let out a cold laugh.

Li Sanjiang, on the other hand, started to get anxious. He suddenly stood up, "If it were really so easy to walk yin, you, Liu Blind, have been in this line for decades, and you wouldn't need to still be doing this swindling trick!"

Walking yin, in some places called "touching blindness" or "descending god," refers to the ability to go from the yang world to the yin world. To put it vulgarly, it means being able to see things from the non-yang world.

People come to find "god women" like Liu Blind precisely because they can create such an image of being able to connect with gods and ghosts. But unfortunately, nine out of ten people like them don't have this skill. At least, Liu Blind didn't.

Liu Jinxia calmly breathed and said, "This child is smart, and his mind is sharp."

Hearing this, Li Sanjiang swallowed a mouthful of saliva. The scene from last night suddenly flashed in his mind: Little Yuanhou pointing into the river and saying, "Isn't she waiting for me?"

"Slap!"

Li Sanjiang sat back down in his chair, his expression shocked and uncertain. He suddenly realized that what Liu Jinxia said seemed to be true.

"His biological parents are both in Beijing, they are Beijing residents. The child's brain is also good, he can grasp studying and everything he does. A great future is certain, yet you messed this up for him.

Not to mention the impact on his life from constantly seeing those dirty things, just look at how lonely you are. Even when it's time to be seen off in your old age, you have to find a reliable person like Han Hou in advance.

As for me, heh, let's not even mention it.

Anyone who touches this path will inevitably be stained with a few of the five ills and three lacks. You are creating sin, oh. Do you think your brain was not working at that time?"

Li Sanjiang didn't retort. His brows were furrowed into the shape of a "river."

Seeing his expression, Liu Jinxia also didn't continue to mock him. Her tone softened as she comforted him, "Fortunately, the child's situation is not severe yet. I see that he can only vaguely perceive some dirty things, he can't truly walk yin yet. It can still be salvaged, still can be pulled back."

Li Sanjiang's eyes showed determination as he said, "Then I'll break it for him!"

"How to break it?"

"I'll go find Han Hou and tell him to let Little Yuanhou come live with me for a period of time. I'll preside over a living ritual for him."

Liu Jinxia's mouth fell open when she heard this, "Preside over a living ritual?"

Generally, there was no such thing as presiding over a living ritual. Presiding for a dead person at a funeral was to prevent dirty things from causing trouble. Presiding for a living person was equivalent to transferring the other person's bad luck to oneself. No one was willing to do this.

As for the so-called "leaving home," it referred to temporarily breaking away from home, breaking the karma. After a period of time, one could return to secular life.

Remote areas in the countryside and Southeast Asia still have the tradition of sending children away to temples for a period of time and then bringing them back to continue living. Recognizing "dry dads and dry moms" for children inland is a simplified version of this custom.

Li Sanjiang looked at Liu Jinxia and asked, "Do you think it will work?"

Liu Jinxia nodded, "Since you're willing to pay such a price, it will definitely work."

She had entered this line of work halfway and basically relied on her own exploration. But in the early years, she hadn't thought of finding Li Sanjiang to learn a real skill.

The reason why it didn't happen in the end was that she found Li Sanjiang to be somewhat unreliable.

You say he doesn't have skills? Every time something happens, he can always come up with some method. But you say he has skills? He often messes things up seven or eight ways, just like this time.

But there was one point that Liu Jinxia could affirm, and that was that this old man had a peculiar quality that she couldn't describe.

She had heard her father-in-law say when she first got married that Li Sanjiang was arrested three times during the Republic of China era. The people arrested with him all disappeared without a trace, but Li Sanjiang managed to sneak back every time, safe and sound.

He clearly engaged in taboo business, yet he was always free from illness and disaster. It was even hard to say that he was truly lonely, because unlike her, he never married and always lived an incomparably comfortable and carefree life.

For some reason, he should have passed away long ago, but he remained long-lived and rosy-cheeked, and his spirits were very high. Liu Jinxia was fully a generation younger than him, yet she felt she would probably pass away before him.

Presiding for a living person and transferring bad luck requires whether you have the fortune to bear it. Without a doubt, Li Sanjiang truly had it, not only had it but it was overflowing.

Li Sanjiang stood up, threw the cigarette butt on the ground and stamped it out. As he was preparing to go out, Liu Jinxia called out to him again:

"I say, Uncle Sanjiang."

"Huh?"

"Uncle Sanjiang, I was just too worried about the child, my tone was a bit harsh, sorry."

Li Sanjiang glanced at Liu Jinxia and said, "Anything else?"

Liu Jinxia smiled apologetically, "Since you're planning to do it like this, presiding for one child is doing it. Isn't presiding for two children also a convenient matter? I'll also send my Little Cuihou to your home to live, just to be a companion to Little Yuanhou. What do you think?"

"Indeed, no good words."

Li Sanjiang walked out without looking back. Presiding for Little Yuanhou was one because he had responsibility in this matter, and two was for Han Hou to see him off in his old age.

He had lived a carefree life. Sacrificing a bit in his old age to ensure this was truly not a loss. It was much more cost-effective compared to those old people who were busy for their children for half their lives.

But presiding for Liu Blind's family, Li Sanjiang felt that if he dared to do it today, he should prepare for a sudden death tomorrow!

"Little Yuanhou, come, Great-grandpa will take you home!"

"Coming, Great-grandpa."

When Li Zhuoyuan was brought back by Li Sanjiang, Yingzi was leading two younger sisters in jumping rope on the dam.

Two long benches were placed four meters apart, horizontally at each end, with the rubber band set on the bench legs.

"Small ball, banana pear, Malan blossom twenty-one. Two five six, two five seven, two eight two nine thirty-one..."

"Yinghou, are your grandpa and grandma back?" Li Sanjiang called out.

"Oh, Great-grandpa, Yuanzai." Yingzi and the others saw them, "Grandpa, grandma just got back."

"Okay."

Li Sanjiang let go of Li Zhuoyuan's hand and walked in, seeing Li Weihan and Cui Guiying.

The old couple thought Li Sanjiang had come about the "confession" matter and quickly took the initiative to report the situation.

After listening, Li Sanjiang nodded and comforted them, "Okay, the matter at Big Beard's house, just let it be. I don't think there will be any further involvement."

Li Weihan asked somewhat worriedly, "Uncle, has that Little Huangying been dealt with by you?"

Li Sanjiang's eyelids twitched. Dealt with, how could he deal with her? Go dig under Big Beard's fish pond with a shovel, then shout and ask if she was still there?

By rights, a dead body that had just died shouldn't be that fierce. It was already very inconceivable that she could chase someone from the shore to their home.

However, whether that Little Huangying had dissipated after getting revenge or was still hiding in the fish pond, staring at Big Beard's old house as an evil entity, Li Sanjiang had no plans to investigate further.

"She won't come to your house again. You remember the date, next year, do another sacrifice for her. Just the intention is fine."

"Okay, Uncle, we remember."

"Okay, however, there's another matter I need to discuss with you."

Li Sanjiang briefly explained Li Zhuoyuan's physical problem, but he hid his improper handling of the situation. He had to save some face.

Cui Guiying's lips turned white again hearing this, "Heaven, how is it still not over?"

Li Weihan was much calmer and said to his old wife, "The most dangerous hurdle is already passed. This is nothing now. Uncle has a way. Just do as Uncle says. Quickly go pack some clothes and luggage for Little Yuanhou."

Li Sanjiang waved his hand, "Going to live at my place is not going to jail. You can come visit. You can just send his things tomorrow. It won't be too long, at most half a month. Just when I also raise a child and enjoy being a grandpa, hehe."

Li Sanjiang's relaxed tone reassured Cui Guiying a lot. She wiped the tears from the corner of her eyes and said, "Then I'll really trouble Uncle Sanjiang."

"Hey, don't say that, we're family, family. Okay, set a table, light a pair of candles, pour three bowls of wine, we'll go through the process, and finish the leaving-home ritual."

The leaving-home ritual was very simple. The candle table was placed on the dam. Li Sanjiang mumbled while leading Li Zhuoyuan to circle the table three times.

Finally, Li Zhuoyuan was asked to consecutively pick up three bowls of yellow wine. One bowl was sprinkled towards the sky, one bowl was poured on himself, and the last bowl was splashed towards the direction of the family standing inside the house door.

Here, the biggest particularity was that during the ritual, Li Weihan, Cui Guiying, and a crowd of brothers and sisters could only stand inside the threshold, not come out, and not make a sound to disturb.

The ritual finished.

"Okay, Han Hou, see you tomorrow." Li Sanjiang waved his hand, "I'll take the child home first."

After saying that, Li Sanjiang carried Li Zhuoyuan out towards the dam.

Li Zhuoyuan, being carried, twisted his body, maintained a smile, and waved goodbye to his family, as if he were just visiting a relative.

Inside the threshold, Li Weihan hugged Cui Guiying's shoulder, their gaze always on their body. Although Panzilei and Huzi Shitou were told to be silent, everyone covered their mouths while peering out from beside grandpa and grandma, looking at themselves.

At this time, the sunset was just setting in the west. The warm orange light shone, casting a soft light circle on everything in their vision.

Li Zhuoyuan's heart suddenly felt a sense of trance. He vaguely had a premonition that this scene would forever remain in the depths of his heart. In the future, he would often recall it.

Just like flipping through that...

Old yellowed photo.

(End of chapter)