Corpse Retriever.

Chapter 301

Nantong has entered the hot summer season. Even in the countryside, it's fine to sit under a tree or in the shade by the river, but if you go out into the sun, it feels like you're being roasted.

Zhao Yi unbuttoned his collar and bought a bottle of soda as he passed Aunt Zhang's convenience store.

However, since the soda had been sitting on the shelf in the sun for a long time, it was surprisingly warm when I took a sip.

Aunt Zhang: "Young man, would you like a sugar ice?"

Aunt Zhang pointed to her freezer, a square, chubby white box covered with a thick quilt.

Zhao Yi: "Give me one."

Aunt Zhang: "Come on, choose for yourself."

Considering the village's consumption level, there weren't many types of ice cream. Zhao Yi chose one with a panda head printed on the packaging. This ice cream was considered a high-end and best-selling product at the moment.

I tore open the packaging, took a bite, and found it to be rich and creamy with a strong milky flavor.

Zhao Yi licked his lips, looking at the brown and white panda in his hand with one of its ears bitten off, thinking that when he came back from Big Beard's house later, he would bring one back for the guy surnamed Li as well.

Kids will definitely love this.

Perhaps because he had repeatedly suffered setbacks in his struggles with the man surnamed Li, he had lost the will to confront him directly and gradually turned to age discrimination.

Aunt Zhang rested her elbow on the counter covered with tape, propping up her face.

Look at Zhao Yi, then look at the celebrity posters that his youngest daughter had put up on the wall of the convenience store.

Aunt Zhang used to not find anything interesting about the flashy characters in the posters, but seeing them in person in real life was a completely different experience.

It's a pity, I heard from Grandpa Sanjiang that this young man is in a circus troupe.

With just a few people, the acrobatic troupe certainly wouldn't make much money, and most importantly, they have to travel all over the country.

Aunt Zhang hesitated for a long time, and only asked when Zhao Yi had almost finished eating his "panda head" snack under the tin eaves of the convenience store:
"Young man, are you married?"

Zhao Yi: "I have four children already."

"My God!" Aunt Zhang exclaimed, covering her mouth. "How old are you? How old is your wife? Why did she give birth so soon?"

Zhao Yi: "I have two wives back in my hometown who can share the burden."

Aunt Zhang picked up a rag from the counter and began wiping haphazardly, as if trying to drive away some dirt.

Zhao Yi smiled and tossed the ice cream stick into the trash can. Just as he was about to walk away, he saw an elderly man and woman pulling a cart toward him.

A young girl was lying on the cart, wearing a yellow floral top, gray pants, and red buttoned cloth shoes, with a handkerchief covering her forehead.

"Oh dear, Aunt Guiying, what's wrong with Yinghou?"

Aunt Zhang immediately ran out from behind the counter and went to the cart to check.

Cui Guiying was holding another handkerchief in her hand and said to Aunt Zhang, "Here, get some water, I'll rub the handkerchief."

"I'll come, I'll come."

Aunt Zhang took the handkerchief, ran into the shop to get water to wash it, paused for a moment when she came out, then pulled back the quilt, took an ice cream from the freezer, wrapped it in the handkerchief, and handed it to Cui Guiying:
"Aunt Guiying, apply this to Yinghou."

Cui Guiying took it and replaced the cloth on Yingzi's forehead.

Li Weihan then reached into his pocket to take out money.

"Oh dear, Uncle Han, what are you doing at a time like this!"

"It's what I should give you." Li Weihan handed over the money.

Aunt Zhang pushed the money away, stamped her foot, and said, "Isn't it wrong to treat the kid to an ice pop on a regular day? Besides, the kid is in such a state, how am I supposed to keep this money!"

Li Weihan had an excellent reputation in the village. He was willing to help Liu Jinxia, ​​who was struggling financially and had a bad reputation back then, let alone others. He would lend a hand to almost anyone in the village who was building a house or a fishpond.

Li Weihan took the money back, nodded to Aunt Zhang, and then sighed.

Aunt Zhang: "What's wrong with Yinghou?"

Cui Guiying: "She was in class when she suddenly collapsed to the ground, kicking her legs and foaming at the mouth. The teacher took her to the clinic and gave her an IV drip. She's calmed down now, but she's still dazed. The doctor said it doesn't seem like heatstroke..."

Aunt Zhang: "Where are her parents?"

Cui Guiying: "Her father went to work on a construction site in the city with Qu Sihou a while ago, and her mother also went to the construction site to help cook. The children at home are all staying with us now."

Qu Sihou is a well-known figure in the village. He is quite influential outside the village and often organizes the village's laborers to work outside.

Aunt Zhang: "You should call a car. You can't just push the child back like this. If someone sees it on the road, people in the village will gossip. Aunt Guiying, just tell everyone that Yingzi just had heatstroke and there's nothing else wrong."

Cui Guiying looked at Li Weihan, whose brows furrowed deeply.

Some special diseases can make it very difficult to find a spouse.

Zhao Yi had already walked quite a distance. Although he had become a doctor from a young age due to illness, he was never one to be happy to help others.

Aunt Zhang: "With only a few days left until the college entrance exam, won't Yinghou's condition interfere with the exam?"

Cui Guiying: "That's right. Her grandfather and I were worried about this the whole way. Our Yinghou studies very hard, going to bed late and getting up early every day. It would be such a tragedy if he failed the exam because of this."

Aunt Zhang: "Yes, your Li family has a lot of academic talent in this generation. Didn't Xiao Yuanhou become the top scholar? His sister certainly won't do badly either."

Huh?
Zhao Yi, who had been walking forward, naturally began to walk backward.

He retreated to the side of the cart, looked at Yingzi lying on it unconscious, and reached out to take her pulse.

There was no other way. Young Master Zhao had suffered from illness since childhood, and he felt deeply for the suffering of others. He couldn't bear to see people afflicted by disease and always held a heart for healing the sick.

The three of them looked at Zhao Yi's actions and didn't know what to say for a moment. Mainly, Zhao Yi's appearance was too good, and he didn't seem to be acting like a hooligan. Moreover, his pulse-taking movements were very professional.

Withdrawing his hand, Zhao Yi walked to the counter of the convenience store and took a box of needles from there.

Zhao Yi didn't have his own silver needles on him, but these ordinary needles were enough. He opened the package, took out three needles, and rubbed them between his fingertips. The needle tips were hot and shimmered with a faint luster.

"Are you going to..."

Cui Guiying stepped forward, not directly stopping them, but her face showed unease.

Li Weihan grabbed his wife's hand and pulled her back, then stepped forward and asked Zhao Yi:

"Young man, do you know how to treat illnesses?"

"My surname is Li... cough, don't worry, I'm Xiao Yuan... Xiao Yuan's friend."

Aunt Zhang: "You're not a circus performer..."

Zhao Yi: "I've traveled all over the country and know a bit about unorthodox martial arts."

Without waiting any longer, Zhao Yi began administering acupuncture.

After inserting three needles in succession, Zhao Yi flicked them with his fingertips in a freehand manner.

"Buzz!" "Buzz!" "Buzz!"

Three mosquito buzzes.

Yingzi opened her eyes, turned to her side, and spat out a mouthful of thick blood.

Immediately afterwards, she began to pant, her gaze sweeping around in confusion; she had truly regained consciousness.

Li Weihan, Cui Guiying, and Aunt Zhang all crowded forward to check with surprise.

"It's not epilepsy, it's just excessive thinking, internal heat, and the recent hot weather, well... let's just say it's a case of sudden internal heat attacking the heart."

Find a well that's over thirty years old, scrape moss from its walls, and plug your nostrils with it for an hour each morning, noon, and night; also get some duck blood, pig blood... preferably chicken blood. If you can't eat it cold, stir-fry it with tofu or something similar, and eat a large bowl of it every day.

As Cui Guiying took notes, she asked, "Will the illness be cured like this?"

Zhao Yi: "It will worsen her condition, but she'll be more excited and in better spirits these days. She's going to take the college entrance exam, and around the summer after the exam, she'll have a serious illness and be bedridden for a month. She's young and in good health, so it's not a big problem; she can recover."

Cui Guiying looked at Li Weihan in astonishment. Would this "blood medicine" worsen her condition?

Yingzi said firmly, "I want to take the college entrance exam, I want to take the exam."

Although health is the foundation of everything, for Yingzi, if she doesn't do well on the college entrance exam, her health will remain in the village forever.

Cui Guiying and Li Weihan helped Yingzi up, checked the child's body, and asked if she felt unwell anywhere.

After everything was settled, he planned to thank Zhao Yi and invite him home for a meal, only to find that Zhao Yi had disappeared.

On Aunt Zhang's shop counter, there was an opened box of needles, with the money for the needles underneath.

He broke off a willow branch, put it in his mouth, and walked slowly along the ridge of the field with his hands behind his head.

The man surnamed Li has a terrible mind, but his cousin got sick from anxiety because of the upcoming college entrance exam. They are blood relatives with the same surname, but the difference between them is like heaven and earth.

But that makes sense, since it's really hard to guess what bloodline inheritance is like before you're born.

But once the child is born, you can clearly see the signs, such as the silly one you're going to see at Big Beard's house.

Even Zhao Yi was envious of that child. If it weren't for the fact that the child's "godfather" was a bit too scary, Zhao Yi would have wanted to become his godfather.

When Zhao Yi reached the door of the bearded man's house, he stopped.

He came here to see Lao Tian; there was nothing else involved.

The problem is, the peach orchard is right there, and given my current situation, if I go there directly, that person will inevitably misunderstand that I did it on purpose.

The correct approach would be to first ask Mr. Li to go and deliver a message, plead for leniency, and gauge his attitude before you come yourself.

The main reason Zhao Yi kept pestering the man surnamed Li to return to Nantong was because there was this peach orchard in Nantong.

To solve the problem of having a face on one's body, one should naturally seek advice from predecessors who have countless faces on their bodies.

"Forget it, let's go back and beg that guy surnamed Li first. If we go directly like this, we might get hung up and beaten."

Zhao Yi turned around gracefully without any hesitation. Just as he was about to take a step back, his steps slowed down, and the dashing and agile air about him disappeared, replaced by the gentle and quiet demeanor of an ancient scholar playing in the countryside.

Lin Shuyou isn't here, so this time, it's really Su Luo showing his true colors.

Sulo was clearly more comfortable with the current situation than sitting in the driver's seat and driving a truck.

There are more houses on the second floor, and the roads are much wider and paved, but the farmland, the small bridges and the flowing water are truly welcoming.

Looking around, I couldn't see any hilltops.

"I wonder which plain and water town this is."

Soon, Su Luo's gaze was drawn to the beautiful peach blossom scenery in front of her.

To ordinary people, peach blossoms change with the seasons, and the blooming season has long passed. But those with spiritual insight can see through this illusion and witness the eternally blooming peach blossoms.

Su Luo is currently using Zhao Yi's body, so he can definitely see it. Upon seeing it, he couldn't help but step inside.

Xiao Yingying went out to buy goods today, while Old Tiantou sat in the shade of the dam, eating cantaloupe.

He was one piece, and the clumsy baby in the crib next to him was another piece.

The melon was the wrong variety and not sweet, but the old man and the young man both enjoyed it very much.

Old Tian held a palm-leaf fan in his other hand, fanning the child.

Taking care of Benben always reminds Old Tian of his own son's childhood.

The young master also loved to eat melons back then, but he was so weak that he couldn't eat many things easily because they were hard to digest. Old Tian had to chop the melons into pieces, boil them, add rock sugar, and then feed the young master small bites with a spoon.

The young master is coming back today, and he has already prepared food.

Ever since Li Sanjiang fell ill and became bedridden, he stopped drinking with Li Sanjiang. He only visited him briefly once a day and stopped eating with him there. There was no other way; the pressure there was just too much for him to handle alone.

Turning his head, a familiar figure appeared in Old Tian's line of sight.

"Master!"

Old Tian stood up, smiling, and ran over.

Su Luo was taken aback for a moment. He had been addressed as "Young Master" before, and hearing it again made him feel somewhat dazed.

But after taking a closer look at Lao Tian's face, Su Luo immediately smiled.

He had seen this old man in his childhood friend's memory; the old man had raised him. Now, he looked old, his hair was white, and his back was hunched.

Just like one's own mother, those who were truly good to one will grow old and pass away.

"Master, are you okay?"

Old Tian patted Su Luo's body from top to bottom with both hands to make sure no parts were missing, and then immediately said,

"Young Master, please have a seat. I'll bring out your food. It's all prepared and waiting for your return!"

Old Tian ran into the house.

Su Luo slowly walked onto the dam and saw Benben, who was holding onto the crib railing with both hands and looking at her.

"This child is so delicate and beautiful, she's been raised so well."

Su Luo habitually reached out to touch her wrist.

When meeting children of relatives and friends, it's appropriate to give them small gifts.

He had no shortage of these exquisite little items during his lifetime, and he remembered to bury quite a few with him after his death.

But when he touched it, he found a Rolex watch that was golden and had a copper sheen.

"This……"

Benben let go of her hands, sat down, and then slowly kicked her two little legs to move herself to the other corner of the crib, but her face still had a silly and cute smile.

Old Tian was overjoyed but also troubled by his genuine feelings, so he didn't notice the change in his young master at first. But Benben realized that he was no longer the bad uncle who used to tease his genitals.

"Young Master, they're here, they're here!"

Old Tian brought out two plates, one with hot mixed noodles and the other with tea cakes.

These are all foods that the young master has loved since he was a child. Every time they finish a trip along the river, Old Tian would specially cook a meal for the young master.

Su Luo took the chopsticks, picked up a piece of tea cake, took a bite and savored it carefully, exclaiming, "It's really delicious."

Old Tian's expression changed. He took a few steps back and habitually swung his hands away.

The two daggers that were once used for attacking were gone; instead, two small shovels slid into his palm.

"Who are you? Why are you impersonating my family...?"

Before he could finish speaking, Old Tian's throat seemed to be blocked, and he could no longer make a sound.

He looked at Su Luo with a horrified gaze, not because the other party dared to attack him, but because he was horrified at what kind of being dared to commit evil deeds in this village and on this dam!
Su Luo put the remaining half of the tea cake back on the plate, looked at the old man Tian who looked distressed, shook his head, and said:

"not me."

In the peach grove, a gentle breeze blows, causing peach blossoms to fall and drift to the dam.

Su Luo turned around and faced the peach blossoms.

The petals floated before him, seemingly falling slowly, yet appearing as if they would never fall.

It felt as if a pair of terrifying eyes were staring at me from the shadows.

This feeling of being spied on was all too familiar to Su Luo, both in life and in death.

He habitually wanted to let things take their course and let them do as they pleased.

But then he immediately realized that it was his childhood friend's body, so he immediately put his hands in front of him and made a defensive gesture.

Benben in the crib looked at Su Luo, then turned his head to look at the area in front of Su Luo.

Even clumsy eyes can see that being, because that being allows them to see.

At this moment, Benben started imitating that person's actions.
First, she moved her small face forward and tried to lower her eyebrows, making a puzzled expression as much as possible.

Immediately afterwards, Benben turned his face away, revealing a silly smile.

Reach out and pull at the corner of your mouth, so that one side of your mouth doesn't smile while the other side smiles.

Then he realized that his imitation wasn't quite right, and the flesh on his face was laughing too, so he had to reach out and rub his face with another hand. After a while, Benben leaned back and fell onto the crib.

There's no way around it; even the most precocious child would find it difficult to display a cold, insincere smile at an age when they can't even hold their urine.

Clearly, the one under the peach grove noticed Zhao Yi's unusual behavior.

At first, it was puzzled.

It was because it was certain that after it threw the black book to Zhao Yi, Zhao Yi did not open it and handed it back to the boy unopened.

The current situation is that he doesn't want the secret technique in the black book that he gave himself, but instead learns the secret technique from that boy.
After a brief moment of confusion, it immediately understood why Zhao Yi had come here at this time.

At this moment, the scene that Zhao Yi was most worried about and tried his best to avoid happened.

The man under the peach grove didn't care about being used. He was someone who had been self-imposed confinement and waiting to die. There was no price he wouldn't pay, but it required an exchange.

That boy was very sensible; he would always bring a basket of "fruit" to make him happy.

But this person really came empty-handed, not even bringing a single fruit basket.

Sigh, what does she think she is?

A peach blossom fell onto Su Luo's brow.

As soon as Benben sat up, its mouth formed an "oh" shape, and it immediately covered its eyes with both hands, not daring to look, because it was angry.

As the peach blossoms scattered, Old Tian was finally free, and he knelt down on one knee with a thud.

"Are you really the young master?"

"I'm."

"Then what were you doing on my young master...?"

Su Luo was pulled by an invisible force and slammed face down to the ground with a loud bang.

The bearded man's family used to be the richest in the village, and the quality of the cement on this dam was much higher than that of Li Sanjiang's family. Even so, Su Luo still managed to smash a dent into it.

"Master!"

Old Tian was heartbroken. Although he didn't know who was possessing his young master's body, it was still his young master's body.

Just as Old Tian rushed out to check on the young master's injuries, Su Luo, who was lying face down, began to move rapidly across the dam, as if being dragged by an invisible giant hand, and with a "whoosh," he quickly scraped against the ground.

"Thump thump thump," after sliding over the steps of the dam, it continued to move with a "whoosh" sound as it rubbed against the gravel.

Just seeing this scene is painful enough, even without experiencing it firsthand.

Old Tian leaped down, trying to grab his young master, but he was too late. The young master's body was dragged into the peach grove, while Old Tian himself was thrown back and crashed heavily to the ground.

Immediately afterwards, Old Tian was mentioned again.

Li Zhuiyuan always approached that person with utmost respect, while Tan Wenbin and Lin Shuyou were extremely cautious, daring not to act rashly in the slightest.

Old Tian's attempt to rush into the peach orchard was already an offense.

To put it bluntly, even if a tiger is in a good mood when it's dozing off, it's still a tiger after all.

“Eeya eeya eeya…”

Benben waved his hands as if he were crying.

"Pfft!"

Old Tian, ​​who had been lifted up, fell back to the ground. His body twitched a few times, and blood spilled from the corner of his mouth. He struggled to stand up, wanting to venture into the peach grove again, but ultimately stopped.

With gritted teeth, Old Tian clutched his chest and ran outside. He had to find the boy; only he could save his young master. However, before Old Tian could even leave the bearded man's property, a peach branch wrapped around him, forcibly pulling him up and then swinging him around before he was finally settled firmly on the stool next to the crib.

The peach branch slipped into his clothes, restraining his body. Old Tian stiffly bent over, picked up the palm-leaf fan from the ground, and began to fan himself at a steady pace.

Benben, who was originally in the corner, slowly crawled over to Laotiantou, buried his head, and pretended to be asleep while enjoying the breeze.

"Jingle Bell!"

Xiao Yingying returned on her tricycle, which was loaded with four jars of wine and two cans of milk powder.

Pushing the tricycle onto the dam, she saw Old Tian sitting there fanning himself and Benben pretending to be asleep.

Xiao Yingying turned her gaze to the peach grove.

Then, without saying anything, he simply moved the things he had bought into the house, then moved the materials out, and began making paper.

Compared to cement ground and gravel roads, the soft soil under the peach grove feels more welcoming.

The premise is that we don't have to consider the soil that keeps invading our ears and noses, and the ever-increasing speed of it.

"Snapped!"

Su Luo was thrown into a pool of water.

The pond is small, about the size of a square table in an ordinary household, but it is fully equipped with all the essentials, including music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, and is even decorated with wine jars.

A man in a long, wide-sleeved robe is painting with his back to the pool.

Su Luo surfaced, blood dripping from his face and flowing into the pool.

"I don't know who you are..."

The man paused slightly in his paintbrush.

The peach blossom mark between Su Luo's eyebrows flashed, and she was slammed into the water again.

After a long while, Zhao Yi finally surfaced again.

"Huh...huh...huh..."

In the past, I could hold my breath underwater for as long as I wanted without any problem, but only if I was prepared. But this time, when I woke up underwater, I found myself breathless right from the start.

That damned pool is so small, yet so deep; Zhao Yi almost drowned in it.

Looking around and quickly analyzing the situation, Zhao Yi spoke:

"You have to believe me. I didn't plan to come here empty-handed, but I suddenly fell ill. And that person is mentally challenged. He must have seen the beautiful peach blossoms here and wandered over here."

A peach branch came down, first used to tie Zhao Yi up, then lifted him up, and finally tightened it!
"Hiss...ah..."

Zhao Yi immediately experienced the feeling of his body being almost squeezed to the point of bursting.

Even so, Zhao Yi dared not resist. Even though he had made great progress in the previous wave, facing such an existence, if you did not resist, you still had a theoretical chance of surviving. Once you resisted, even the theory would cease to exist.

The peach branch loosened, and Zhao Yi fell into the pool again.

Even though his body was still in excruciating pain, Zhao Yi still managed to open his mouth and explain:

“I’m not lying. You said I’m like you, so how could I do something so stupid? Even if you don’t believe me, you have to believe yourself.”

Another peach branch fell, this time not to bind him, but to burrow directly into Zhao Yi's body from the back of his neck.

Zhao Yi tried to make a sound, but thin branches sprouted from his neck, preventing him from uttering a sound.

Next, he was pulled out of the water again, and the peach branch continued to penetrate deeper, its fine roots constantly winding through his body.

Zhao Yi was truly terrified this time, because if the other party made even a simple thought, his entire human skin would be smoothly peeled off.

The shadow of death has fallen once again.

This is neither Fengdu nor Ghost Street, and he did not pass through the thick fog where the Great Emperor left a foreshadowing. Therefore, if he dies here, he will truly die.

However, this emotion came and went quickly. After all, he had "died" twice in a real sense, so he had developed a lot of resistance.

Man: "You surprised me a bit."

The peach branch at his throat parted, granting Zhao Yi the right to speak again.

Zhao Yi: "After all, I regard you as my role model, so I should at least make some progress."

Man: "Have you seen through life and death?"

Zhao Yi: "It's still early, it's still far away, it's not that bad."

"Since you're not afraid of death, then..."

In an instant, ten peach branches pressed down and extended in front of Zhao Yi.

Zhao Yi couldn't help but swallow.

The peach branches were like whips, and ten whips lashed down swiftly one after another.

"Pop!" "Pap!" "Pap!"

The whip not only lashed the body, but its thorns seemed to pierce the soul; such pain profoundly illustrated what it meant to be worse than dead.

After a round of whipping, Zhao Yi hung there, blood dripping continuously from his body, flowing into the pool below and gradually turning it red.

Looking down at Zhao Yi, the skin and flesh on his body seemed to be disintegrating, like a pickled chicken foot being deboned.

Zhao Yi himself had fallen into a coma at this point.

The man put down his paintbrush, picked up a wine jar next to him, took a sip of wine, and then flicked the jar upwards, spilling the remaining wine onto Zhao Yi.

Flames rose, and the heat began to scorch.

Zhao Yi's mouth gaped open, his eyes widened, and his previously scattered consciousness was jolted back to its senses.

The sudden onslaught of extreme torture caused Zhao Yi's eyes to turn red, and the breath between life and death swirled rapidly.

However, what should have been a brilliant act of self-salvation in adversity was abruptly interrupted by a peach branch that inconsiderately pierced his heart!
Zhao Yi's body convulsed violently amidst the flames.

The man kept his back to Zhao Yi, not looking at him, as if simply enjoying the wails coming from behind him, which could add a touch of inspiration to his painting.

"How does it feel?"

"I...I...I..."

The flames died down, but the peach branch that had pierced Zhao Yi's chest remained, still slowly rotating.

Zhao Yi strained his neck and forced himself to say what was on his mind:

"Thank you so much!"

……

After talking with Grandpa for a while, he quickly fell asleep.

Li Zhuiyuan observed from the side for a while. The boy wanted to confirm whether the good fortune had returned to his great-grandfather, but even if it had, it seemed that he couldn't see any clues for a while.

Li Zhuiyuan picked up a coin from the drawer of his grandfather's bedside table and went out of the room to the terrace.

There's a silly but very effective method.

"front."

The boy flicked his finger, sending the coin flying before landing in his palm—heads.

It bounced again, landed again, and was still head-on.

Ten times in a row, all heads.

Li Zhuiyuan did not try to control it deliberately, and tried his best to make the result random.

Although such a small sample size is not scientifically sound, it was enough for Li Zhuiyuan to feel that good fortune was currently still upon him.

I remember when I used my great-grandfather's "Good Fortune" card to play Texas Hold'em, I didn't need any skills at all; I could win big money purely based on luck.

If one only uses good fortune to do these things, the problem is not that big. But if one continues to carry it with one's life along the river, the resulting karma and depletion will be terrifying, especially since this time it involves two "deities".

Grandpa's good fortune cannot be unlimited; it must have a limit. Once he has used it all up, then Grandpa's later years will probably come to an end.

Li Zhuiyuan admitted that his grandfather's good fortune played a significant role in the previous wave, but if he had a choice, he would choose not to bring him.

Next, it depends on whether I dream tonight. If I dream again, it means that my good fortune can return on its own. If I don't dream... I'll have to draw that luck-changing formation again.

Li Zhuiyuan walked back to his room, and as soon as he entered, the boy noticed something was wrong.

He looked around, including the top and the ground, but found nothing amiss. Yet, the feeling that something was wrong only grew stronger.

The boy examined the room carefully again, then closed his eyes and compared the scene in his room before he left home with the scene in his memory.

I couldn't find any flaws in the details, but there were differences in the atmosphere.

Li Zhuiyuan opened his eyes, his right palm was open, and blood mist filled the air. Then he waved his hand, and tiny, almost imperceptible specks of red scattered and adhered to the surroundings.

The floor is fine, the tables, chairs, and wardrobes are fine, the surrounding walls are fine, the problem is with the ceiling.

The ceiling has been repaired and repainted, restored to its original state, with the aim of making it indistinguishable from the original ceiling.

There is no possibility of foreign invasion here, nor is there any possibility of foreign invasion causing damage and then being calmly repaired.

The only person who can do repairs in his own room is... Uncle Qin.

Li Zhuiyuan raised his palms above his head, and blood mist rose upwards. The boy's mind was also reconstructing the events, and soon, blood-red grooves "appeared".

This means that a force once ravaged and swept across the ceiling in a very short time, leaving behind deep marks.

Following these traces, trace backwards to find the release point.

Li Zhuiyuan lowered his head and looked at the chair behind the drawing table.

Normally, in this room, I sit behind my desk, and the chair behind the drawing table is always Ah Li's seat.

Li Zhuiyuan left the room and went downstairs.

Actually, when Li Zhuiyuan returned home and found the east room door closed, and Ah Li not standing in the most conspicuous spot to wait for him as usual, he knew something must have happened.

Liu Yumei was sitting at the entrance of the east room, drinking tea. Seeing the young man approaching, she smiled slightly and asked:

How is your great-grandfather?

"You'll be much better soon."

Liu Yumei nodded. The boy went upstairs to the second floor as soon as he returned and didn't come to the east room. She wasn't angry at all. It was only right to visit the sick and bedridden elders after returning home.

"Grandma, Ah Li..."

"Ah Li is fine." As she said this, Liu Yumei looked up at Xiao Yuan's room on the second floor. "It's nothing serious."

"Shall I go inside and check on her?"

"Go."

"it is good."

Watching the young man push open the door to the east room and go inside, Liu Yumei lowered her head and took another sip of tea.

Ah Li was indeed fine, but a small accident happened that morning, and Liu Yumei was also a little startled when she noticed the commotion.

She had Uncle Qin repair the place, not to hide it from Xiao Yuan, but to keep it a secret from herself.

"Alas, what you start with will surely end with you."

I thought my granddaughter was getting better and better, but it turns out that all her improvements were based on that boy.

Liu Yumei felt sorrow and melancholy, yet also a sense of relief.

Aunt Liu walked over, looking somewhat downcast.

Because Mengmeng didn't come back.

Mengmeng is not allowed in the kitchen at home. That silly girl wants to help but knows that she can't handle the food preparation, so she often deliberately stands by the kitchen window and chats with herself while she's cooking.

Liu Yumei: "Alright, the person isn't dead, is it really necessary to make such a fuss?"

"So he's not your apprentice after all."

"On this road, life and death are the norm. It was a miracle that Ali came back alive after going alone. It's rare to see someone like Xiao Yuan who always went with a full crew and returned safely."

Just pretend Mengmeng is dead.

"Think about it again, hey, that girl's still alive, doesn't that make you feel a bit better?"

“That girl is someone who loves being around people. I’m afraid she really won’t be able to handle being alone in that place.”

"Children have their own plans and considerations. If you, as an adult, show your displeasure, you'll only put pressure on them."

Aunt Liu took a deep breath, her expression returned to normal, and she smiled: "You're right, I was too attached to appearances."

Liu Yumei: "It's only a few years away anyway. This matter will definitely come to a conclusion before we finish walking through the night and blow out the lanterns."

The version of Zhuangzhuang's story hasn't been sorted out yet, and Liu Yumei doesn't know the details of the previous wave, but she is still certain that Yin Meng's matter won't drag on for too long, at least not until Xiao Yuan successfully becomes the Dragon King after leaving the river.

Ordinary dragon kings, those old geezers, might not give him this face, but Xiao Yuan is different.

The old man is just relying on his long life, but he can't compete with the fact that this generation of Dragon King is really young.

Once Xiao Yuan becomes the Dragon King, he can sit at the entrance of Fengdu and just wait it out. Who knows who will outlast whom!

Liu Yumei: "By the way, where's Runsheng?"

Aunt Liu: "Ali just called him to go to the fields. Ali is also worried about his apprentice."

Liu Yumei sighed and said, "Well, I advised you but forgot to warn that idiot beforehand. He might have gone to comfort her on his own."

At this moment, Lin Shuyou came out of the living room carrying a basin and a cloth. He had just wiped the coffin clean so that everyone could sleep at night.

Liu Yumei looked up at Lin Shuyou.

Lin Shuyou nodded respectfully to Liu Yumei and chuckled.

Liu Yumei: "See? Even Ayou didn't go around comforting Runsheng. He must have been notified in advance."

East room.

Li Zhuiyuan walked into the inner room and saw A Li, dressed in a white dress, sitting on the edge of the bed.

Her headdress was carefully chosen, indicating that she knew she was coming back today, but deliberately hid in the house and did not come out.

When the boy walked in, the girl looked up, glanced at him, and then lowered her head again, her hands, hidden under her skirt, clenching even tighter.

Like being scared.

Li Zhuiyuan knew that the girl wasn't afraid of him, but rather afraid of him finding out.

"Ah Li, I'm back."

The girl's eyelashes trembled slightly.

Li Zhuiyuan stood to the girl's left, extended his hand, and said, "Come on, let's go chat on the terrace. My recent adventures have been quite exciting."

The girl nodded, stood up, and handed her right hand to the boy.

Li Zhuiyuan quickly grabbed the girl's left hand.

The girl trembled and instinctively tried to pull her left hand back.

The boy held on tightly, but the girl raised her eyes, glanced at him, and then lowered her head again, no longer struggling violently.

Li Zhuiyuan held the girl's wrist with his left hand and gently pried open her fingers one by one with his right hand. His movements were gentle, but his attitude was firm.

The girl's palm was opened, revealing a glaring wound carved with a knife.

The wound was long and deep, and that was after treatment.

Her left hand should have been bandaged, but knowing she was coming back, she was afraid he would see it, so she removed the bandage herself.

A scene flashed through Li Zhuiyuan's mind:
In her room on the second floor, Ah Li was sitting in a chair behind her desk, carving something. Suddenly, she froze, cut open her palm with the carving knife, tilted her head back and let the blood flow out like a chain of blood across the ceiling.

This was just Li Zhuiyuan's initial imagined scenario. He knew the actual situation must have been far more extreme because...

"You sensed that I was dead, didn't you?"

Ah Li bit her lower lip, and after a while, she slowly nodded, like a child who had done something wrong.

Li Zhuiyuan had once grabbed Xiang and harmed himself, and she was very angry when she found out. This time, it was her turn to do the same thing, and she was discovered.

However, Li Zhuiyuan was not angry at all. Instead, he smiled and gently stroked the wound on the girl's palm, saying with a smile:
“Ah Li, I’m so happy to see you do this.”

If you feel that if I die, you no longer want to live in this world that frightens you, you can die with me.

Ah Li looked up at the boy, her eyes filled with surprise. She hadn't expected him to say that.

"But you know, I'm not that easy to die. There will probably be many more times like this in the future, with even longer intervals between them."

Because there are many people targeting me, including the sky above us.

When I come back to life, I want to see you as soon as I get home. But what should I do if I'm alive but you've died first?
They can't kill me. Those guys who want to kill me, I'll kill them one by one.

You must have faith in me. No matter what you sense in the future, even if Tan Wenbin tells you in person that I am dead.

Don't believe him, because that's my plan, and this plan can't be known to a second person, not even Tan Wenbin.

Take good care of yourself and wait for me to come back, looking beautiful and radiant like before.

"Look now, your hand is injured, it doesn't look good anymore."

The girl quickly pulled out her left hand to cover herself so the boy wouldn't see.

"Where's the medicine? I'll reapply the medicine and bandage it for you. Aunt Liu's medicine will definitely not leave a scar."

Zhao Yi also has some good scar removal medicine; I'll ask him for some later to have on hand.

I didn't see him when I came downstairs. I wonder where he's off having a good time.

……

Deep within Li Zhuiyuan's consciousness.

The main body, holding a carving knife, stood in the basement, looking at the group of completed statues in front of him, or more precisely, staring at the statue of Ah Li.

The statue is dressed in a white shirt and a riding skirt, with a wooden hairpin in its hair, exuding elegance and grace.

This was Li Zhuiyuan's favorite outfit in his memory. A Li also knew that Li Zhuiyuan liked it very much, and for a while he wore it frequently.

The original body replicated this.

That time, the original body briefly controlled Li Zhuiyuan's body. At that time, he had a strong desire to test A Li's strength.

Unlike Li Zhuiyuan, who sees girls as objects that need his protection, the original body only sees those with clear value that he can control.

Now, the entity has received the answer, an answer that greatly surprised even itself, far exceeding its original expectations:

"By using chess and painting as a starting point, the landscapes and ever-changing scenery come into my view, nurturing the spirit of the Liu family."
Using dreams as a chessboard, evil spirits and demons threaten and curse, tempering my soul and honing the Qin clan's dragon.

Inner demons, oh inner demons, though you bear the burdens of two families,

But Qin Li...

He is truly the culmination of the Qin and Liu families' traditions!

(End of this chapter)