Corpse Retriever.

Chapter 408

The sound of cars could be heard outside the dam.

Ah Li opened her eyes on the bed in the east room.

Liu Yumei looked at her granddaughter and smiled, "Grandma will get up and do your hair and makeup now."

Ah Li closed her eyes again.

Liu Yumei extended a finger and lightly touched her granddaughter's delicate nose from a distance.

Knowing that Xiao Yuan would be back late, they didn't want to disturb him and hoped he could go back to his room to sleep and rest soon.

Li Zhuiyuan glanced at the unlit east room, went upstairs, took a shower, and then went back to his room to rest.

I only slept for a short while before dawn broke.

The routine and expectations ensure that the boy wakes up on time.

Ah Li sat gracefully in the chair in front of the painting table, facing the bed, looking at Li Zhuiyuan.

During the boy's breaks from walking along the river, Ah Li was often at her busiest. She had to seize the time to finish all the handicrafts and provide the boy with the best equipment to prepare for the next wave.

This time, Li Zhuiyuan and his companions made it seem like they were going to travel along the river, but they returned after only a week.

Without the pressure of a deadline, Ah Li didn't want to paint this morning. She just wanted to watch him sleep, which is essentially the same as appreciating a painting.

Li Zhuiyuan sat up, not in a hurry to get out of bed, but instead sat on the bed and looked at A Li.

As the girl's figure gradually changed, Grandma Liu also changed her approach to designing her granddaughter's clothes, incorporating more heroic elements. In other words, she was entering the transition period from little girl to young lady.

"I'm back. I guess I'll have to stay a while longer. Walking along the river is tiring. I want to take a break."

Ah Li nodded, revealing two adorable dimples; this was her last attempt to retain her girlish charm.

Correspondingly, Li Zhuiyuan is no longer the little boy who was carried here by his great-grandfather when he first arrived in Nantong.

During the growth and development stage, people pay the most attention to leaving traces of their work.

Li Zhuiyuan was really looking forward to seeing Ah Li standing in a long dress and carrying a sword after she came of age.

He had seen Liu Qingcheng's portrait from back then, but he felt that Ah Li would definitely be more beautiful than this Liu family dragon king in the future.

A casual glance revealed a memorial tablet bearing Liu Qingcheng's name in a box beneath the drawing table.

These are the raw materials that were prepared and placed here; they can also be considered as leftovers from the last use.

I'm actually a little glad that the Dragon King's spirit is gone. Otherwise, if the Dragon King, who is known for his bad temper, had sensed my "outrageous" comparison just now, he might have given me a hard time.

Wash up, play chess... and wait for the morning bell to ring.

"Time for breakfast!"

Li Zhuiyuan took A Li's hand and went downstairs to have breakfast.

The wordless book was tied around the boy's waist.

During the rest of his time at home, Li Zhuiyuan deliberately wasted the preparation period for the new wave, as he would be very idle.

But this book will never leave my side.

Li Sanjiang came down carrying a black plastic bag containing cash and a bankbook.

The passbook was brand new. After all, Li Sanjiang had never had the habit of saving money before. He only opened this passbook after adopting Xiao Yuanhou.

However, there's a considerable amount of money stored inside.

He goes out every few days, either to meditate or to retrieve corpses. He has a good reputation and a big name in the area, so he doesn't need to worry about competing with his peers. The number of jobs he gets is almost equal to the number of household registration cancellations at the local police station.

Sometimes it goes even further, since they might end up with a dead body that's completely disfigured, and they don't know if it's local or from out of town, so the police station can't dispose of it even if they want to.

Furthermore, the family also runs a business selling and renting funeral supplies, which is basically in short supply. For items like paper offerings and incense, there is absolutely no possibility of stockpiling.

Finally, there's Uncle Qin and Xiong Shan at home; those two are really good at farming.

Admittedly, farming is not profitable, but the scale and low labor costs make it a worthwhile endeavor.

In the village, Li Sanjiang continuously contracted out plots of land, and with the occasional help from Runsheng when he was home, they really cultivated each plot. They wanted to cultivate as much land as you had, without ever mentioning raising wages.

Thankfully, this isn't a concern anymore; otherwise, back when Li Sanjiang was first liberated, he was genuinely afraid he'd be executed as a landlord.

After receiving a call from his great-grandson yesterday saying he wanted to buy a house, Li Sanjiang took out his savings account and did some serious calculations.

After calculating, I felt more confident.

"Young Marquis Yuan, when are we setting off?"

"Grandpa, the sooner the better."

Liangliang is waiting to move into his "new house" so he can settle things as soon as possible and get married.

"Alright, wait until I finish this bowl of noodles."

Tan Wenbin originally wanted to go along to negotiate the price, but he also had to help Brother Liang organize the wedding procession, and he also dragged Lin Shuyou along as an assistant.

Therefore, in the end, Runsheng had no choice but to ride a tricycle, carrying Li Sanjiang and Li Zhuiyuan to the city.

Buying a house is a big deal.

But the grandfather and grandson didn't have the mindset to face such a big event at all. In Li Sanjiang's eyes, it was no different from when he went out to buy a TV.

A house is nothing more than a box that is a bit more expensive and bigger than a television set. In the past, people watched from outside; now, you go inside and act out your own story.

Li Zhuiyuan felt no pressure.

The only thing to worry about is probably the feng shui of the house.

It's not that they're worried about the house's feng shui, but rather that even the best feng shui house might cause problems if they live there for a long time.

Li Zhuiyuan also had to set up a trap in the new house to avoid the negative impact of their presence on other homeowners in the same community.

Well, in fact, without this kind of influence, it's actually a good thing that five Bai family ladies have moved into the community. The community won't have to worry about petty theft or burglary anymore.

The neighborhood was tentatively decided on last night on the way back to Nantong Road. It's close to the city center, so the price is relatively expensive, but it should be within my grandfather's budget.

Li Zhuiyuan had his own money, but he didn't give it to his grandfather as payment for the house. It wasn't that he was reluctant to part with it, but rather that it would spoil his grandfather's mood.

The old man was eager to use his own money to buy himself a house, a happiness he had long awaited.

"By the way, Xiao Yuanhou, how old is Liangliang's girlfriend?"

"I don't know, she looks very young."

"How does it look?"

"Quite good looking."

"No wonder he used to come to Nantong every few days; it turns out he was dating someone."

"really."

Have you gotten your marriage certificate yet?

"not yet."

Bai Zhilan's household registration only exists in a few words in the local chronicles of Nantong.

However, these days, it's not difficult to create a fake identity. There are many loopholes to exploit. As long as you don't commit crimes or go into hiding or flee, nothing will happen.

Sometimes, when government factories are recruiting, people who don't meet the age requirement will buy a fake identity to get in. It's very difficult to change it back later, and many people use this "new identity" for their entire lives.

"What? They moved in together without even getting a marriage certificate?"

"Ah."

"Do the girl's parents know?"

“The woman’s parents are gone, and she has cut off all her relatives and friends. She only has four sisters left.”

"Oh, how pitiful."

Li Zhuiyuan didn't respond, because he was the one who caused this pitiful situation.

Runsheng pedaled his tricycle very fast and soon entered the city.

Li Sanjiang: "Hey, every time I come to the city, I feel that it has changed a lot. If you were to leave me here alone, I might not be able to find my way around."

However, living in this little cage here is really not as comfortable as living in the countryside.

Here, every day when I open the window, all I see are the buildings in front of me; it's incredibly suffocating.

Li Zhuiyuan: "Yes."

"By the way, Young Marquis Yuan, what kind of business do that woman and her four sisters do?"

"I'm planning to open a funeral clothing store."

"Oh, opening a funeral clothing store is a good idea, but... what kind of store?"

"Brother Liangliang said that he will get the goods from you, Grandpa, and sell them in their shop."

Li Sanjiang scratched his head and asked:

"Young Marquis Yuan, isn't this woman very, very beautiful?"

"Ah."

Li Sanjiang patted his stomach: "Is there anything here?"

"There is."

Li Sanjiang: "No wonder! I knew it! Liangliang is a big shot, how could he end up with someone like this..."

Li Sanjiang stopped midway through his sentence.

He thought of his future great-granddaughter-in-law.

Li Sanjiang waved his hand and said, "It's good that the two of them are destined to be together. Let's not talk about those things or be particular about them. As long as they can get along well and live a good life together, that's enough."

Li Zhuiyuan: "Mm."

Li Sanjiang: "Do Liangliang's parents know about this?"

Xue Liangliang's parents once came to Nantong for the Spring Festival, and they still often send some local specialties to Li Sanjiang.

Li Zhuiyuan: "I don't know."

Actually, Xue Liangliang wanted to introduce Bai Zhilan to his parents so that they wouldn't worry about his marriage anymore.

But the problem lies in Bai Zhilan's belly. The pregnancy cycle cannot be predicted in the usual way. When she was taken to see her parents, they excitedly started calculating the due date. As the day approached, the elderly couple rushed over to prepare to take care of their daughter-in-law during childbirth and postpartum confinement. But when they took a look... why didn't her belly change much?
The elderly couple would probably burst into tears on the spot, mourning their poor grandchild who had miscarried their first child.

Li Sanjiang shook his head: "Sigh, young people these days, I can't understand them, I really can't understand them. Little Yuanhou, learn the good things, but don't learn the bad things. You must never be like this in the future."

Li Zhuiyuan: "Yes, don't worry, Grandpa."

Runsheng turned the tricycle right. If he had turned left, he would have been able to reach the South Street of Nantong Commercial Center very quickly.

Xue Liangliang wanted to treat his wife well, and he had the means to do so. So last night, when everyone was chatting in the car, Xue Liangliang said that he wanted to buy a shop for Bai Zhilan on South Street.

Even Lin Shuyou couldn't stand these words at the time.

Ayou countered, "Should I have my sister-in-law open a funeral clothing shop in Nantong's busiest commercial pedestrian street?"

Tan Wenbin joked, "Hey, I have to say, it seems much more plausible than someone's idea of ​​opening a coffee shop in the village."

Lin Shuyou: "..."

Xue Liangliang also realized he had made a fool of himself, laughed, and said that funeral clothes are clothes too, so why not just invest in a textile factory in Nantong?
Lin Shuyou: "Brother Liang, are you only feeling good if you don't spend money on your wife?"

Tan Wenbin then covered Lin Shuyou's mouth and asked Xue Liangliang:
"Brother Liang, is investing in textiles in Nantong a lucrative business?"

With his mouth covered, Ayou looked at Brother Bin with a puzzled expression.

Tan Wenbin glared back at Ayou: How dare you doubt my brother Liang's investment!
Xue Liangliang: "The industrial policies, scale, and capacity are all in place, plus Nantong's geographical advantages, so I think the prospects are pretty good."

However, who can predict the future? Especially since investing is inherently risky. As long as she's happy, that's fine; if she loses, so be it.

After releasing his hand from Lin Shuyou, Tan Wenbin took out his notebook and wrote it down.

Lin Shuyou: "Brother Bin, why are you writing this down?" Tan Wenbin: "Did you compensate Chen Lin for her car?"

Lin Shuyou: "Brother Bin, can I borrow a pen?"

……

The real estate agency is located at the entrance of the residential complex.

Runsheng parked the tricycle by the door.

There were two employees sitting in the store. They both looked up and glanced at the couple. After seeing that it was this pair, they looked again and then looked down.

The owner of the agency happened to be returning from the restroom when he saw Li Sanjiang enter the store. He immediately came over to greet him warmly.

After some introductions and understanding of the purpose of the visit, the owner personally showed the apartment complex to us. The complex was quite large, and there were many listings.

Many of the houses that are for sale are still occupied. When you go to view the house, you have to take off your shoes at the door and put out your cigarette.

After a few times, Li Sanjiang started to find it troublesome.

The next house I wanted to see was on the second floor. The windows faced the courtyard, offering a great view. Most importantly, the decoration and furnishings were excellent, but the owner wasn't home.

The real estate agent led Li Sanjiang in, specifically telling him that he didn't need to change his shoes.

After looking through all the rooms, Li Sanjiang exclaimed, "This house is wonderful!"

The apartment layout, decoration, and location are all impeccable.

Li Sanjiang asked about the price, and the shopkeeper answered.

"What? So cheap? Oh no, why is it so expensive!"

The owner said, "The owner is going abroad and is in a hurry to sell the property, so the sale is quite rushed."

Li Sanjiang blinked: "Um, could we...?"

The boss gestured: "Yes, round it up. This is the homeowner's bottom line."

Li Sanjiang: "The furniture?"

Boss: "Keep them all; we can write it into the contract."

Li Sanjiang smiled.

This house is better than the ones I've seen before, but the price is more than 30% lower.

Boss: "Let me tell you, there are a lot of people eyeing this house. Some have even gone back to raise money, saying they'll come to sign the contract this afternoon."

Li Sanjiang exclaimed anxiously, "That won't do!"

Li Zhuiyuan knew there was something wrong with the house.

Above the living room, a faint, ominous aura lingered.

Moving your gaze downwards to the floor below, it's clear that it has been processed and differs slightly from the surrounding floor.

This must be a haunted house; someone has died here, not from old age or suicide, but from a violent murder.

However, seeing that his great-grandfather was completely swayed and thought he had gotten a great deal, Li Zhuiyuan did not say anything to remind him.

The old man has made up his mind; he wants this set.

When Li Zhuiyuan left the house to go back to the agency to sign the contract, he was at the very back. A neighbor opened their door, revealing an elderly woman with a kind face. She said to Li Zhuiyuan:
“Little boy, go quickly and tell your parents that someone has been murdered in this house.”

After saying that, the old lady closed the door. She had already done a very kind thing to do that.

Li Zhuiyuan did not tell his great-grandfather about the old lady's reminder.

This bit of malevolent energy was nothing more than a drizzle to Lady Bai.

The contract has been signed.

Inside the real estate agency.

The old man also brought Li Zhuiyuan's identification documents.

The homeowner arrived quickly; she was a thin, middle-aged woman.

After the woman signed the contract, she indicated that she could proceed with the transfer of ownership immediately.

Everything went very smoothly; there was no queue at all during the property transfer.

After finishing, the woman left immediately.

The real estate agent took the commission, said a few words of congratulations, and left.

Holding the brand-new property ownership certificate, Li Sanjiang stroked the name "Li Zhuiyuan" on it, unable to contain his joy, muttering to himself:

"When we get back, I'll take a picture of this and show it to that mercenary old lady!"

After buying a house faster than buying a mule, Li Sanjiang refused Runsheng's suggestion to have lunch at a nearby restaurant, telling him to work harder and ride back as soon as possible, as eating out was expensive and eating at home was cheaper.

After returning home, Li Sanjiang deliberately stood on the dam with the property certificate in his hand, fanning himself.

The autumn wind is chilly, and people keep complaining about the heat.

Liu Yumei and Liu Jinxia were playing cards and ignored Li Sanjiang. Liu Jinxia and the others, however, enthusiastically joined in, praising Li Sanjiang for being so good to his great-grandson.

At this moment, half of the money spent on the house has already been recouped for Li Sanjiang. The remaining half will be slowly "spent" by him during his walks and chats in the village in the days to come.

Li Zhuiyuan called Tan Wenbin and told him the address of the new house.

Tan Wenbin had also arranged the motorcade and said he would take Ayou to decorate the new house right away.

After hanging up the phone, Li Zhuiyuan and A Li, each carrying a small basket, walked hand in hand to Big Beard's house.

Last time, I overdid the use of the medicinal herb garden, so now I need to clean it up again.

After working for three hours, Li Zhuiyuan wiped A Li's sweat and told her to sit down and rest for a while before he went into the peach grove.

By the peach blossom pond, Qing'an lay on his side, neither drinking nor playing the zither, as if he were asleep.

He couldn't sleep; the constant pain made it impossible for him to find peace.

Therefore, sleeping, like drinking and playing the zither, is a form of self-entertainment performance in Qing'an.

Li Zhuiyuan sat down and opened the "Book Without Words".

On the first page, a woman appears in the cage; she kneels, her forehead touching the ground.

On the second page, inside the cage, a dark figure sits on a chair, thoroughly tortured.

The phrase "the evil book" means that she has completed the interrogation, broken down her opponent's defenses, and now Li Zhuiyuan can ask any questions he wants.

The progress has accelerated significantly.

Moreover, Li Zhuiyuan also noticed that the three place names that were originally written on the wall in the first page of the cage had all disappeared.

Qing'an remained asleep, motionless.

A peach blossom fell from above the boy's head, swaying gently, and landed on the page of the "Wordless Book," instantly dissolving into a pinkish hue.

The woman on the page trembled, appearing to be in great pain, yet she maintained her position with her forehead to the ground, not daring to act recklessly in front of the boy.

The next moment, more and more peach blossoms began to fall from above.

Li Zhuiyuan closed the "Book Without Words".

Let the colorful petals fall all over you.

Li Zhuiyuan said with some disdain, "You've dirtied my book."

After saying that, Li Zhuiyuan stood up and walked out of the peach grove.

Qing'an opened her eyes.

Su Luo brought over a cup of tea, hoping it would calm him down. Seeing that Qing An didn't seem angry, Su Luo took the opportunity to ask:
"What book is that person reading? It's so valuable."

Qing'an took the teacup and took a sip: "He wasn't reading at all."

"Then he is?"

He's playing with fire.

……

Li Zhuiyuan led A Li by the hand and left the bearded man's house. On their way home, they made a special detour to the Li family's ancestral graves.

The ancestral grave is no longer sunken or waterlogged; it has returned to normal.

Li Zhuiyuan took off his coat and laid it on the ground, then sat down side by side with A Li.

The wordless book was taken out again and opened.

On the first page, the wrinkles caused by that peach blossom have been mostly restored.

The woman remained kneeling, her face obscured.

Li Zhuiyuan: "Raise your head."

As the pages turned, the woman looked up. She deliberately used delicate and expressive strokes to depict just the right amount of weariness and vicissitudes on her face, making it seem as if her journey had truly been difficult.

Li Zhuiyuan said, "First, I need information about the person in Ye Dui's place who looks very much like me. Second, I need information about the other three people who escaped from the Goguryeo tomb, not just their locations."

The woman lowered her head again, indicating that she had accepted the order.

Li Zhuiyuan closed the "Wordless Book" and slowly shook the book in his hand at the hole where the tattered straw mat had been dug out.

Last time I asked you, when you were my age, did you ever play with a giant turtle?

Now let me ask you again: when you were my age, did you ever play with such a big fire?
After tucking his coat into his hand, Li Zhuiyuan and A Li left the ancestral graves and returned home.

The old mobile phone that was left at home rang.

Liu Jinxia: "Little Yuanhou, your cell phone has been ringing several times."

"Okay, I'll go pick it up right away."

Li Zhuiyuan answered the phone, and Tan Wenbin's voice came from the other end:

"Brother Xiaoyuan, the house that Grandpa bought today is a haunted house."

"Ah."

“I visited the neighbors, especially the old lady who lives next door. She told me a lot about the original homeowner, who was a middle-level leader in charge of logistics at a local state-owned enterprise. He had an affair with a female subordinate, which was discovered by her husband. The husband was so angry that he went to her door with a knife and stabbed her to death.”

After stabbing him, the husband ran away and is still at large.

So this house is not only a haunted house, but it may also be being watched by a murderer. Who knows, he might miss home one day and come back to visit, and he will definitely come and take a look at this place.

The original owner's wife certainly didn't dare or want to live in the house anymore, so she put it up for sale at a low price. But everyone in the neighborhood knew about it, so even though it was cheap, no one bought it until today when she met Grandpa Li.

The real estate agent deliberately concealed this fact from Mr. Li, knowing he wasn't from the city center.

"Well, continue."

“When Ah-you and I were decorating our wedding room, Ah-you went to check the circuit. The circuit breaker was working properly, but there was no power in the cover of a socket on the wall next to the bedside table in the master bedroom. Ah-you touched it but couldn’t feel anything.”

Then, Ah-you reached his arm in to feel around and found a very narrow compartment with many black sealed bags inside. Ah-you took them all out; there was a lot of cash inside.

This must be the embezzled money from the original homeowner, which he deliberately hid here without even telling his wife.

The stolen money here is enough for Grandpa Li to buy more than ten more houses in this community.

Buy one, get ten free.

---

I've updated 3 chapters in the last two days, but they're short, totaling only 2.1 words. It's not a big update, and it feels like I'm just trying to get everyone to vote for me.

The reason is that I disrupted my sleep schedule while writing the second chapter last night and didn't sleep at all. During the day, I had to go out for something and didn't dare to catch up on sleep for fear of not being able to get up and not having enough time to write today's chapter. As a result, my writing condition was very poor and I wrote very slowly.

I'm going to get a good night's sleep tonight, and tomorrow I'll write a 2-word chapter. A serious chapter will be released, and I'll also make up for the IOU I owed earlier.

(End of this chapter)