This towel, why does it look somewhat familiar?
Liu Yumei remembered that this was the one that boy from the Li family had draped over his shoulder today.
"What is going on here?"
She thought about taking the towel down, but just as her hand was about to touch it, she hesitated.
Turning her head to look into the inner room, she saw a figure of a girl standing at the doorway.
"Ah Li, didn't you lie down already? Why are you up again?"
The girl remained silent.
"Ah Li, did you put this towel here?"
Still no response.
"Ah Li, this is a place for setting up ancestral tablets, the most precious area for offerings. You can't just put anything here. This towel should be placed where it belongs. Grandma will clean it for you, alright?"
The girl's eyelashes started to flutter.
"Then let's just leave it here, it's fine as it is, heh, it's just fine."
The girl returned to calmness.
"Ah Li, go to sleep now. Grandma won’t touch it anymore. I promise that when you wake up tomorrow, you’ll still see it here."
The girl turned and went back inside.
Liu Yumei sighed, a smile returning to her face. She had just noticed that when Ah Li was about to get angry, her eyelids merely twitched while her body did not tremble, which was a kind of progress.
Over the years, they had been avoiding situations that would make Ah Li sick. It wasn't just because her furious state could harm herself and those around her, but also because her condition would worsen each time she fell ill.
For now, the most important thing was to treat Ah Li's condition; everything else was secondary.
Liu Yumei finally found her husband's spirit tablet behind those of her two older brothers.
"I’m sorry to trouble you, you’ve been stuck with my brothers for a while. Did you two fight?"
Back then, the old man was shamelessly pursuing her, often getting beaten by her brothers. Even after they married, he would still shout and argue every time he drank with them, nearly coming to blows.
Before marriage, it was her brothers picking on him; after marriage, he would get drunk and provoke them, shamelessly shouting, "Come on, hit me if you can! If you kill me, your sister will have to mourn for me!"
Her brothers would grit their teeth in anger, cursing her for being blind to have fallen for him.
To be fair, apart from being a bit petty and holding grudges, the old man treated her quite well.
Gently wiping her husband's tablet, she said, "Old man, this towel is what your granddaughter wants to set here; you can let it be."
After saying that, Liu Yumei shifted the tablet over a bit, aligning her husband’s tablet next to her father's.
"Talk to my dad a little, son-in-law counts as half a son."
Even though that dirty towel on the center was a bit unsightly, Liu Yumei's tone still carried joy:
"You know, don’t be angry with Ah Li. The way she is now is also because of you. You both left so decisively without leaving any incense for your descendants.
That boy from the Li family, his name is Li Zhuiyuan. A nice name and quite the interesting kid, but he’s remarkably precocious.
I've seen many clever children, but one like him is a first for me.
He gives me the feeling that, apart from his youthful naiveté, he acts deliberately like a child.
What a pity; people like him often don’t live long.
But who knows? He’s now living with Li Sanjiang, related to him; he should find it easier to share in the blessings.
But none of this matters.
I just hope he can help our Ah Li slowly recover from her illness. She has endured too much hardship and pain; this is not what she deserves.
You all, when you died at the Jiang, called it for the new world.
This world is too big; as a simple woman, I can't see beyond my own granddaughter. I just hope she can smile like other girls, speaking openly and freely.
If you have any spirit in heaven..."
At this point, Liu Yumei couldn’t help rolling her eyes at the tablets, her tone shifting to a grumbling complaint:
"If you had left some spirit behind before passing, why would my granddaughter have become like this!"
...
After washing up, Li Zhuiyuan fetched another towel, carefully scrubbed it clean with soap, and hung it on the drying line.
Passing by Li Sanjiang's bedroom door, he hesitated a moment before pushing the door open.
On the bed, Li Sanjiang was lounging with his legs crossed, lazily humming a tune, preparing for sleep.
"Gramps, there’s something I've thought about, and I need to talk to you again."
“Oh? What is it? Speak up.”
"Last night, Niu Fu's mother came to our house, using the tables, chairs, and utensils from the first floor to hold a birthday celebration for herself. It was quite lively, and I was pulled in to participate."
Li Sanjiang frowned slightly, sitting up instinctively. "Continue."
"Towards the end of the celebration, a zombie appeared, and there was a fight with Niu Fu’s mom. She couldn’t hold her own, and in the last moment, she sent me away."
"Sent you away? Where did she send you?"
"I woke up."
"Oh." Li Sanjiang nodded, recalling how in his dreams he had been chased by a bunch of zombies. He understood; the boy must have had a similar dream. He comforted him, "Little Yuan, think of it as just a dream. Don’t worry, nothing will happen tonight."
Since they weren’t performing a fortune-altering ritual tonight, he would sleep well.
"But, Gramps..."
"Never mind, don’t take it to heart, I understand."
Li Zhuiyuan nodded, indeed, Gramps understood.
"By the way, Gramps, have you noticed that Liu grandma and the others are living here and working for you?"
"I noticed that a long time ago, hehe."
Li Zhuiyuan nodded again; Gramps indeed knew.
Li Sanjiang chuckled inwardly. This family was helping him with farming, making paper offerings, delivering tables and chairs, cooking, and cleaning... and they only asked for such a tiny bit of wages.
Heaven knows what they were thinking.
In these times, it’s hard to find others who work so much for so little; he had to cherish it.
"Anything else, Little Yuan? If not, you should go back to sleep. I’m feeling tired too."
"One last thing, it’s always me helping Yingzi sis with her studies. She struggles to comprehend, learning quite slowly."
Li Zhuiyuan noticed that after he finished speaking, Li Sanjiang's lips pressed together, his cheeks puffed up, as if he was holding back laughter.
After a ten-second silence, he finally erupted into laughter: "Hahaha!"
Li Sanjiang’s laughter made him wince, and he took a sharp breath but couldn’t help but scold, "You little rascal, just say you don’t want to study. Don’t come up with such a lame excuse. You think your Gramps is a fool?"
"Alright, alright, enough nonsense. Go back to sleep. Tomorrow, Yingzi will definitely come by. If you keep playing around, you won’t escape studying!"
"Goodnight, Gramps."
Li Zhuiyuan didn’t argue; even Gramps wasn’t all-knowing. It was normal to miss a few things.
Returning to his bedroom, he lay down, covered himself with a quilt, and closed his eyes, falling into a deep sleep.
This sleep was quite stable, and he didn’t have any dreams.
When dawn broke, Li Zhuiyuan woke up and sat on the edge of his bed for a while. After feeling it out, he realized the quality of his sleep was far worse than when he had dreams.
Getting up to grab the basin, he prepared to wash up. The moment he opened the door, he saw a girl standing at the entrance; it was Qin Li.
Today she had styled her hair, adorned with a wooden hairpin, wearing a white top and a black skirt, looking elegant and graceful.
Beautiful people also need to wear beautiful clothes to complement their presence.
Li Zhuiyuan knew that Qin Li’s clothes were not something one could find in stores. First, the trendy styles these days had made traditional retro styles seem outdated and beneath notice; second, her clothing was intricately designed and crafted, likely only made to order in a heritage clothing workshop at a high cost.
However, judging by Liu grandma's generosity in giving such valuable gifts like jade bangles when they first met, their family surely had no shortage of wealth.
The tips of the girl's hair had a bit of luster to it. Li Zhuiyuan couldn’t help but reach out and touch her hair, sensing a little moisture.
"Have you been waiting here for long?"
The girl didn’t reply, only staring at Li Zhuiyuan.
"Next time, when I wake up, I’ll come to the east room to call you so we can read together. That way, you won’t have to wait here, okay?"
The brightness in her eyes dimmed a little.
"I'll try to get up early from now on. If you come and I’m not up yet, just come in and sit down. This door isn’t locked anyway."
The sparkle in her eyes returned.
Li Zhuiyuan went to the drying line and took down the towel he had washed last night. It wasn’t fully dry but still usable.
He walked over to the stool, wiped it down, and placed the towel on it. "You can sit here first; I’ll go wash up."
Qin Li sat down.
Li Zhuiyuan went to wash up.
Sitting on the stool, Qin Li’s gaze fell on the still clean towel. She reached for it, but after a moment, she withdrew her hand.
After brushing his teeth, just as he was wiping his face and placing the washcloth down, he was startled to see Liu grandma standing in front of him.
"Little Yuan, heh, very sorry for bothering you."
This was the first time Li Zhuiyuan had seen Liu grandma enter the main house and even go upstairs. It must mean that Qin Li had been waiting here for quite a long time, and Liu grandma had accompanied her the whole time.
"Grandma, I like playing with Ah Li."
"Then you both play well. Just call grandma if you need anything." Liu grandma smiled as she walked downstairs.
Li Zhuiyuan put the basin back in the room. It was still too early, the sun hadn’t risen yet, so he didn’t feel like reading.
Glancing around the room, he picked up a small wooden box and came back out.
"Ah Li, how about I teach you to play chess?"
Qin Li didn’t respond, just stared at the small wooden box.
Li Zhuiyuan opened the box. It was a go game set that Qin San had bought for him when he sent Qin Uncle to buy snacks and study supplies.
The board was made of translucent oiled paper, printed with the pattern, and the stones were tiny plastic circles the size of ladybugs—very small and crude.
But it was low-cost and cheap, and the stationery shop in Shinan Town wouldn’t stock such a formal go set. Who would buy that?
"I'll explain the rules of go first..."
Before Li Zhuiyuan could finish, Ah Li picked up a black stone and placed it on the board.
Li Zhuiyuan stopped talking and placed a white stone.
After several moves, Li Zhuiyuan confirmed that the girl could play go.
He couldn't help but smile, immersing himself in the game.
They played quickly, not taking much time to think.
Gradually, Li Zhuiyuan began to feel overwhelmed, and in the end...
"I lost."
Li Zhuiyuan hadn’t let her win; he really lost.
Even though he had never learned chess seriously, he was able to calculate well, and since go was something that relied on that, he did decently compared to casual enthusiasts, not to mention he had no hope of matching professionals.
But the girl was clearly better. She must have been formally taught, playing not only quickly but also methodically.
Li Zhuiyuan felt no sense of defeat; he knew he could learn things quickly but couldn’t skip the process of "learning."
In many fields, being smart wasn’t enough; it required considerable accumulation and experience and needed a platform for support.
"Ah Li is amazing! Want to play again?"
The girl twirled a stone with her fingers, lifting her gaze to Li Zhuiyuan. It was clear she wanted to keep playing.
Li Zhuiyuan tidied up the board. Seeing that a morning breeze had kicked in, he found four cement pieces with some plaster falling off to hold the board down.
The second round of their match began.
The speed of their moves stayed fast; the more they played, the more Li Zhuiyuan couldn’t help but smile.
He could sense that the girl was letting him win.
He felt no shame in that; rather, it brought him joy, and then he began to play poorly on purpose.
Now, the girl's pace began to slow, and her brows started to furrow.
Li Zhuiyuan couldn’t tease her anymore, and he won again.
The girl looked up at him.
The corners of her mouth had an indistinct pout, clearly showing she was upset.
But her eyelashes didn’t flutter, and her body didn’t tremble.
"Alright, alright, it’s my fault. I was wrong." He looked up and realized it was already bright outside, while below, Aunt Liu’s voice called for breakfast.
Li Zhuiyuan packed away the board, took Qin Li downstairs for breakfast.
Fortunately, the originally solo breakfast had transformed into a small table for two.
Li Zhuiyuan added pickled vegetables to a small dish for the girl. After she began her meal, he habitually cracked the eggshell of a duck egg, scooped out some, and began eating.
Suddenly, he noticed the girl next to him had stopped eating; he turned to see her watching the duck egg in his hand.
"Want me to crack one for you? But that way, it’ll be hard to control the portion."
Qin Li continued to stare.
Li Zhuiyuan could only crack another duck egg, carefully peeling part of the shell before handing it to her.
Qin Li cradled it in her hands, looking down intently at the cracked duck egg.
At that moment, Li Sanjiang staggered down the stairs.
Looking over at the table for Little Yuan and the girl, then glancing at the family table for Liu, Qin, and Liu, he quietly made his way toward his own solitary table.
Just as he was about to dig in, he caught sight of a figure appearing on the small path in front.
A boy around fourteen or fifteen, with dark skin, pushed a unicycle on which an old man sat.
The boy was wearing patched blue shorts and nothing on his upper body, while the old man was bald, looking shriveled due to age, wearing plastic slippers and holding a water pipe.
Seeing this, Li Sanjiang set down his chopsticks and said, "Ah, here comes the beggar."
Once the grandfather and grandson reached the courtyard, Li Sanjiang also approached, greeting them warmly, "Oh, I knew you would come today, but didn’t expect you to arrive so early."
The old man puffed on his pipe and replied, "We hurried here in the dark, so we could save on breakfast."
"Ting hou, is there still porridge in the pot?" Li Sanjiang asked.
With a scoff, the old man dismissed him, "If I’m coming here and still eating watery stuff, then I might as well not have come; we want something solid."
"Alright, alright, Ting hou, go cook."
"Understood."
Aunt Liu went to the kitchen to prepare the meal.
"Little Yuan, come here," Li Sanjiang called, pointing at the old man, "This is your Old Mountain Uncle."
"Don’t talk nonsense, why the hell should I be a generation lower!"
"Fine, we’ll just call you Old Mountain Grandpa then."
"Old Mountain Grandpa, okay."
"Hey, good, a beautiful little fellow, delicate skin and tender flesh, very obedient."
Li Sanjiang laughed as he ruffled Li Zhuiyuan’s hair, saying, "Little Yuan."
"Gramps?"
The old man immediately turned red at Li Sanjiang's words, angrily shouting, "You old fool, you just want to take advantage of me!"
"Heh, I’m too lazy to take advantage of you. You’re about the same age as Han Hou, right?"
Li Zhuiyuan found it surprising that the old man was actually younger than Gramps, yet Gramps appeared younger than him.
In the distance, Liu Yumei put down her bowl, picked up her handkerchief, and covered her nose.
The old man carried a ghastly smell, like that of a corpse from the water, it was quite revolting.
Looking at his shabby appearance, he seemed to fit the profile of a corpse fisherman. In contrast, Li Sanjiang... lived well, eating and being well cared for—it was an exception.
To put it plainly, anyone with a decent background and proper livelihood wouldn’t choose such work; it meant his economic status in the village was predetermined, and added to the various taboos of digging corpses...
Much of his later life was assuredly not blissful.
Liu Yumei didn’t intend to continue eating. She noticed her granddaughter had also left the table, perhaps it was because Little Yuan had called her over for introductions. But her granddaughter didn’t wait on the second floor for reading; instead, she headed straight back to the east room.
Hmm?
Curiosity piqued, Liu Yumei slowly made her way back to the east room. Just as she was about to step over the threshold, she saw her granddaughter coming out again.
"Are you going to find Little Yuan again?"
The girl remained silent, crossing the courtyard, heading upstairs to sit in the northeast corner, waiting for Li Zhuiyuan to finish before reading.
While she was happy with her granddaughter's change and improvement, after the excitement faded gradually since yesterday, a pang of sadness began to surface in Liu Yumei's heart.
The girl she had painstakingly raised now only had eyes for that Little Yuan.
Fortunately, they were still young, with no concerns in that regard.
But thinking back, they had been like that when they were small, and wouldn’t getting older bring more complications?
Fortunately, this Little Yuan would be returning to the capital after summer break.
But what if her granddaughter’s illness isn’t cured by the time he leaves?
Entering the east room, Liu Yumei prepared to light two incense sticks to drive off any unpleasant odors and settle her chaotic heart. Her gaze naturally swept over the table of tablets.
Then, she quickly turned back to look again.
“What...”
She saw that the position where her father’s tablet had been was now empty, replaced with...
A cracked salty duck egg.
...
The old man’s surname is Lu, and his name is Lu Shan. He is from Xiting Town and is the village's corpse fisherman.
The boy is named Lu Runsheng, picked up by Lu Shan from the riverside. Though he is an adopted son, the age gap is so significant that he prefers to let the boy call him grandpa.
“Little Yuan, your great-grandfather and I have a bond that’s life and death.”
Lu Shan smirked, “Heh, indeed. It’s always me taking risks while you just collect the money.”
"Hey, I trust your skills. Besides, those things you do are nothing to you; it wouldn’t even require my help."
"You old man, the older you get, the thicker your skin."
Some jobs might be more complicated than usual, and an ordinary corpse fisherman wouldn’t manage, but Lu Shan was a trusted partner of Li Sanjiang.
The two had a close relationship; whenever a dangerous job came up, Li Sanjiang would immediately think of him.
Just like this instance of the Niu family’s death anniversary.
Li Zhuiyuan could feel that Old Mountain Grandpa harbored quite a bit of resentment toward his great-grandfather; it was obvious enough from their shabby clothing that their life was tough, while his great-grandfather here... had it much better than even the village head’s daily diet.
Both came from the same profession, yet their lives could hardly be more different, which would surely lead to some discontent.
Aunt Liu brought out the dishes. Time was tight; she had only time to stir-fry two dishes, one being sausage with garlic shoots, and the other eggplant with salted meat, large in portion but less vegetarian.
Freshly steamed rice was placed in an aluminum basin, steaming hot.
Runsheng began to swallow involuntarily upon seeing the meat.
Li Zhuiyuan was surprised when Aunt Liu also casually brought along a stick of incense.
"Sis, can you bring me another bowl?"
"Sure, I forgot."
It was evident that the grandfather and grandson duo were no strangers to going to Great Grandpa's place, as Aunt Liu had entertained them in the past.
Aunt Liu brought another large basin, and Old Mountain Grandpa served rice into it, then placed the dishes on top.
Afterward, he lit the incense and inserted it into the rice and dishes on the table.
Once these rituals were completed, he began to eat heartily at his bowl.
Li Sanjiang pulled out a bottle of liquor, pouring a cup for Old Mountain Grandpa. He took a long draught while looking at the table, signaling for Li Sanjiang to keep pouring.
Runsheng sat quietly, gazing at the burning incense without touching his chopsticks.
But clearly, he was very hungry, eager to eat.
Aunt Liu came over with a soup of tomato and egg drop, adding a good amount of vinegar.
Old Mountain Grandpa picked up the soup bowl and poured it into his basin, then continued to dig in.
Li Sanjiang pulled out a cigarette case, taking out two sticks. After flicking one to Old Mountain Grandpa, he lit one for himself, cursing, "Damn, did you not eat at all yesterday and come with an empty stomach?”
Old Mountain Grandpa continued to gulp down his food, finally raising his bowl and slurping down the remaining soup before contentedly wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and reaching for a cigarette, saying:
“By the time I got your message, I hadn’t eaten. I was starving for almost three days.”
“I said, if you starve to death, just wrap yourself in a grass mat and bury you. The boy would still have to suffer along with you; that's pure misery."
Old Mountain Grandpa took a drag, casually adding, "I found him, so he must suffer with me; that’s only right. I’ve already told Runsheng, when I die, let him come find you. He’ll work for you and you’ll feed him."
“Don’t talk such nonsense; I’m older than you, I’ll surely go before you.”
Old Mountain Grandpa blew a puff of smoke, licking his lips, and spat to the floor, saying: “Forget it, you should be worried about your own health instead, living as long as I can will be what it is.”
Finally, the incense finished burning, leaving a lot of ash on both the dishes and the rice.
However, Runsheng wasn’t bothered; he brought the aluminum dish filled with rice to himself and began to eat.
Li Zhuiyuan felt puzzled but didn't dare to ask.
Old Mountain Grandpa noticed this and grinned, saying: “Runsheng once ate some bad meat as a kid; now he'd vomit if he consumed clean food. Even if he drinks some corn porridge, he has to stick in a piece of incense first.”
Saying this, Old Mountain Grandpa leaned closer to Li Zhuiyuan playfully and asked: “Little Yuan, you know what bad meat is, don’t you?"
"Is it meat from corpses?"
Old Mountain Grandpa was momentarily taken aback. He hadn’t expected this little kid to calmly retort. Initially, he aimed to tease him without giving an answer but found himself somewhat stifled instead.
Li Sanjiang wasn’t pleased, “What nonsense are you saying to the kid?”
Old Mountain Grandpa pointed at Li Zhuiyuan and said, “Sanjiang, this little great-grandson of yours is rather interesting, he seems like a good candidate for our line of work.”
“Don’t talk nonsense; my great-grandson is going to return to the capital to go to university! How could he possibly do this dirty work?"
“Li Sanjiang, I find your attitude quite disdainful. You look down upon our line of work while grabbing money from it; it's chilling that the heavens have closed their eyes to let you off like that!”
“Heh, unhappy with that? Hold your breath.”
“Great-Grandpa, I'm going to read.”
“Go ahead, go ahead.”
Li Zhuiyuan left the table and went upstairs. At this time, the morning sunlight was shining bright, illuminating Qin Li’s hair and skirt, like a beautiful sculpture.
Taking out a book, he sat down and said apologetically, “Some guests arrived; I spent some time with them, making you wait.”
Qin Li said nothing.
Li Zhuiyuan opened the book and began enjoying the beautiful reading time of the day.
Just as he was finishing this volume and preparing to swap for another book, Qin Li suddenly stood up and looked behind.
Li Zhuiyuan followed her gaze and discovered Runsheng standing there, looking a bit shy.
He seemed awkward since he was only wearing a pair of shorts. Normally, this attire was quite common in the village, especially during summer, where shirtless boys and men were everywhere.
However, in the presence of the young men and women in front of him, this outfit stood out too starkly.
Li Zhuiyuan’s clothing and shoes had arrived from the capital. Although he didn’t particularly care for his clothes, he hadn’t gotten used to going bare-chested, and as for Qin Li, she obviously would be far from it.
Even though Runsheng was older than them, he felt both inferior and eager to join them.
Li Zhuiyuan grabbed Qin Li's hand, "Runsheng is our guest; there’s no problem."
Upon hearing this, Qin Li stopped looking at him.
Li Zhuiyuan wasn’t surprised that Qin Li would want to look at Runsheng; the girl seemed to have the ability to perceive things obscurely, especially after the way Runsheng ate... something about him didn’t seem right.
“Runsheng, we’re reading; come and sit with us.”
“Uh, is that okay?” He wanted to sit but only smiled sheepishly, scratching his head.
Li Zhuiyuan went up to him and clasped his wrist.
His hand felt chilly.
Although it was the height of summer and he had just eaten a big meal, it should feel warm, yet he felt cool and damp.
Runsheng followed Li Zhuiyuan over, sitting on the small stool.
Noting that Qin Li's eyelashes had begun to twitch and her body began to quiver, Li Zhuiyuan once again held her hand, hoping to calm her down. If that didn’t work, he would have to sit Runsheng farther away.
Fortunately, once he held her hand, she settled down; it seemed he would have to keep holding on.
Seeing this, Runsheng appeared a bit awkward, as if preparing to rise; he could tell that this unbelievably beautiful girl felt uncomfortable around him.
"Runsheng, don’t be shy. Ah Li is just naturally fearful of strangers; it’s not personal against you. In this house, only Grandma Liu and I can get close to her. Now that she’s okay, you can stay seated."
By the way, Runsheng, do you often help Old Mountain Grandpa with recovering corpses?"
Indeed, once the topic of recovering corpses came up, Runsheng instantly appeared more natural and confident, speaking: "Yeah, these days I mostly set up the offering table while my grandpa does the retrieving."
He added: "Let me tell you, just three months ago, I recovered a corpse of a newborn; that thing was so wicked, I swear, you wouldn’t believe it."
"Did it get caught in a whirlpool?"
Runsheng paused momentarily: "A whirlpool?"
"You know, spots in the river that are prone to sinkholes or whirlpool-like currents."
Runsheng excitedly slapped his thigh and exclaimed: "How did you know?"
Then he seemed to realize, laughing, "Did your great-grandpa tell you?"
"I read it in a book."
"A book?" Runsheng looked at the book resting on the wooden stool in front of him, extended a hand, and opened the pages, "This text is quite the headache; was it written in this book?"
"Yes, indeed, this collection has many volumes."
The "Records of Strange Tales in the Martial World" emphasized the deaths of infants as unfortunate, since many places have had terrible traditions where infants would drown, leading to frequent occurrences of it.
Such deaths carry a trait of intentional malice, often.
In most cases, if one didn’t stumble onto it or quickly fled, there would simply be no trouble. Meanwhile, infants’ deaths frequently lure individuals towards dangerous areas, using geography to kill.
Even small rivers can have hazardous areas; drownings can happen even to seasoned fishermen, and they might use subtle tactics, such as entangling one with water plants while swimming, leading to one’s demise.
Many infant deaths either haven't been born or had only just passed, brimming with resentment and anger. Yet they possess a weak power and are distinctly unable to counter other forms of death with varied means; they can only use geography for retribution.
Runsheng seemed shocked: “In our trade, there are actually books written about it?”
Li Zhuiyuan nodded, saying: “That’s right.”
Runsheng inquired, “Who would be that bored to write about our line of work?”
Li Zhuiyuan didn’t know how to answer that. He didn’t know who the book’s author was but had a lingering thought. Every ending stated that the corpse would eventually be "destroyed by the righteous path." Was it possible that the author's name included “righteous path”?
Runsheng then said, “Even stranger, this book was written for public reading, yet people actually read stories about retrieving corpses.”
Li Zhuiyuan: “…”
From what he could tell, “Records of Strange Tales in the Martial World” was indeed full of valuable content.
“Runsheng, let’s talk about that incident specifically.”
“Oh right, that day I ran into a whirlpool; the boat capsized, and I fell into the mud. Fortunately, I held my breath and struggled hard to find my way up, or I would’ve been buried alive in the river.”
“Truly perilous.” Li Zhuiyuan added, "Runsheng, you’re really skilled."
At least the Little Yellow Oriole just wanted him to guide her. If it had been a corpse of an infant, well, he’d be nearing his seventh day now.
“Fortunately, on that day grandpa and I were hungry for a good meal after doing our work, so we purposefully skipped lunch. Had we not been so hungry, I wouldn’t have embarrassed myself so much.”
“Next time, we have to eat our fill before going.”
“Of course! I love coming to your great-grandpa's place for meals; it’s always great food!”
“So, did you manage to retrieve the infant body in the end?”
“Of course, we got it. It was very sly; when it realized it couldn’t kill me, it wanted to hide among the water plants. I pulled it out from beneath the water plants.
When it noticed it couldn't hide there, it tried to burrow beneath the riverbed, and I literally dug it out like a sweet potato. Don’t say, it looked plump and tender because of being submerged; it really did resemble a boiled sweet potato that had been peeled.
All it needed was a bowl of soy sauce and some minced garlic on it.”
Li Zhuiyuan noticed that when he reached this part of the story, Runsheng licked his lips.
Aside from that, Li Zhuiyuan didn’t wish to explore further, simply thinking he must have genuinely been very hungry back then.
"Runsheng, Runsheng!" Old Mountain Grandpa's voice called from downstairs, “Come down to lay out a bed for Grandpa! I’m taking a nap before lunch.”
“Coming, Grandpa.”
Runsheng got up and rushed down.
Qin Li then took the initiative to flip open the book on the stool.
Li Zhuiyuan understood her intent; she wanted to read with him, not wanting to be interrupted.
“Runsheng is a guest; tomorrow we will be relying on him.”
Thinking about their itinerary to the Niu family’s anniversary, one a patient, the other one too old to move, one blind…
In the end, it would be Runsheng they could count on.
Qin Li lifted her head and looked at Li Zhuiyuan with slightly dimmed eyes.
It seemed she was expressing her grievance.
Li Zhuiyuan squeezed her hand: “Okay, let’s continue our reading.”
However, after Runsheng went downstairs to set the bed, he didn’t return.
At lunchtime, Li Zhuiyuan took Qin Li down. He found the two of them napping on the first floor on a round table that served as a bed. They got up just in time for lunch.
The breakfast they had this morning was indeed just a breakfast, but the lunch Aunt Liu prepared was carefully laid out; it could be considered a small banquet.
The grandfather and grandson had their fill and again returned to sleep on the round table until dinner time. After dinner, they went straight back to sleep again, snoring thunderously.
It made one wonder if they had some special method to store energy for tomorrow.
Li Zhuiyuan was able to enjoy almost a whole day of reading again, achieving even greater efficiency today, finishing volume twenty-four.
With the foundational learning from before, now he simply needed to remember names and characteristics of the corpses.
Li Zhuiyuan felt that with one more full day, he could finish “Records of Strange Tales in the Martial World,” and he looked forward to the next set.
A bit oddly, Yingzi hadn’t come today, and Li Sanjiang muttered something. But since he had business tomorrow, he could only wait till after to talk to Han Hou.
That night, he again had no dreams.
In the morning, Li Zhuiyuan woke up purposely even earlier than yesterday. Lying in bed, he found himself beginning to miss the energetic feeling upon waking from dreams.
As he sat up, Li Zhuiyuan was taken aback, realizing it was Qin Li sitting in the chair in his room.
The girl seemed to notice that she had frightened him; she stood up, lowering her head.
He could sense her emotional turmoil and unease.
Li Zhuiyuan walked over, taking her hand, "It's great; I can see you as soon as I open my eyes."
The girl lifted her head, her eyes shining.
Today, she was wearing a white qipao with flowers in her hair, looking elegant and noble, exuding a fragrance reminiscent of orchids.
After Li Zhuiyuan washed up, he played three rounds of chess with her, happily letting her win all three.
At breakfast, Aunt Liu pointed at the nearby small wooden bench and said: “Little Yuan, you and Ah Li eat over here.”
Li Zhuiyuan noticed that another table was set nearby, filled with wine and meat early in the morning, and Aunt Liu had thoughtfully inserted incense early because of Runsheng's presence.
At this moment, the incense was burning;
It looked like a table of sacrificial offerings.
Liu Juxiang arrived on a tricycle driven by Liu Jinxia, and upon seeing Li Sanjiang completely bandaged, Liu Jinxia nearly broke down in tears, accusing him:
“Li Sanjiang, you old beast! What kind of person are you!”
Liu Jinxia cried and fussed for quite a while, but in the end, she couldn’t bring herself to quit and tried to coax her daughter back instead.
Li Zhuiyuan and Qin Li took their places to begin breakfast.
After a while, Li Sanjiang called for Old Mountain Grandpa, Runsheng, and Liu Jinxia to eat:
“Come on, everyone’s here; let’s setup the offering table!”
(End of this chapter)