I am a wandering immortal in the mortal realm.

It had been so long since anyone in Linquan Town had died a violent death, but then the town's biggest gang leader drowned in the river!

The news caused an uproar throughout the town.

The once deserted riverbank was instantly surrounded by a huge crowd.

Everyone pointed and whispered at Chen Jun in the middle of the water, their expressions a mixture of excitement and fear.

"Good riddance, good riddance! This scourge... only death brings peace!"

It's unclear who spoke first, but they spat out a sound of vindication, suggesting they had suffered quite a bit of bullying from Chen Jun in the past.

An elderly man advised, "Alright, alright, say no more. Death is a serious matter. Let bygones be bygones. Besides, you were doing this in front of people. Aren't you afraid of breaking the rules?"

The person who spoke first moved his lips, turned his head to look at Chen Jun's corpse, and stared at the horrific death. His heart tightened for some reason, but he ultimately said nothing more.

"A precious pearl! A precious pearl!"

Suddenly a loud shout came from behind. Zheng Baozhu turned around and saw that it was her third brother, Zheng Baoyu, who had come looking for her.

It must be said that Zheng's mother was blessed; after marrying Zheng Ren, she gave birth to only two pregnancies, yet had five children.

Her first pregnancy resulted in three boys: Zheng Baojin, Zheng Baoyin, and Zheng Baoyu. Five years later, she gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl: Zheng Baojuan and Zheng Baozhu.

In those days, medical conditions were extremely scarce, and multiple pregnancies were a very dangerous thing for women.

First, childbirth is difficult, easily resulting in multiple deaths from one pregnancy. Second, the babies are difficult to raise; multiple births are less desirable than single births, and caring for them is extremely difficult.

Why was Zheng Ren so kind to Zhuang Da, who had died?

Besides their childhood friendship, the other party provided crucial support in raising their child.

Otherwise, it would have been impossible for all five children of the Zheng family to have survived.

Therefore, he cherishes this kindness.

The only thing that's not pretty is probably the third child.

Because she didn't compete with her older brothers in the womb, this baby was born weak and only slightly larger than a mouse.

Everyone thought the child wouldn't survive, but Zheng's mother breastfed him until he was two years old, which is how he managed to keep him alive.

Compared to the tall and strong Zheng Baojin and Zheng Baoyin brothers, this third brother was unable to carry anything, and although he had a handsome face with red lips and white teeth, his body seemed so weak that a gust of wind could blow him away.

Because other children loved to laugh at him, he became very introverted and locked himself in his room every day. Over time, he developed a love for embroidery and weaving.

Despite being a boy, he's been raised to look more like a girl than most girls.

Fortunately, the Zheng family had a clean and upright family tradition, so no one gossiped about him. However, he eventually understood that he was different from others, so he kept a distance from his brothers, but got along with his sister like best friends.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing that Zheng Baozhu had an accident, the third son of the Zheng family, who rarely left his home, was the first to rush to the riverbank.

Everyone was staring at the third son of the Zheng family with strange looks, but he seemed oblivious, only grabbing Zheng Baozhu's sleeve and repeatedly asking, "Baozhu, are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?"

Touched, Zheng Baozhu honestly replied, "Brother, I'm fine. Someone drowned in the river. It seems to be Sister Cui's younger brother, Chen Jun!"

"Oh, I see..."

Zheng Baoyu patted his chest and breathed a sigh of relief before belatedly realizing that everyone around him was staring at him.

A blush rose on his pale face, and he looked like a frightened rabbit, quickly hiding behind Zheng Baozhu.

Zheng Baozhu, being spoiled and willful, and also deeply fond of her third brother, couldn't help but glare at everyone upon seeing this, and scolded them playfully, "Look, look! What's so interesting? Aren't you enough dead bodies to look at?"

Her reprimand caused everyone to turn away in embarrassment, but two boys suddenly jumped out and shouted, "We prefer watching eunuchs!"

Upon hearing this, Zheng Baoyu was struck dumb. The pale color on his face quickly faded, and he swayed involuntarily, as if he might collapse at any moment.

Zheng Baozhu's vision went black. She knew this was her third brother's long-standing heartache, and now being ridiculed in public was no different from rubbing salt into a wound.

She looked at her third brother, her heart aching with heartache. She was both anxious and angry, her eyes welling up with tears. Staring intently at the two children, she gritted her teeth and said fiercely, "What did you just say?"

The mischievous child was just being naughty, but he didn't expect the adults to take it seriously. He was a little scared, so he immediately stopped talking and tried to crawl inside.

"Stop right there!"

The child's parents then stepped forward, quickly shielding the child behind them and smiling apologetically at Zheng Baozhu: "Sister Zhu, the child is just joking, don't take it seriously." As they spoke, they gestured to urge the child to leave quickly.

"Baozhu, don't fight, I'm fine."

Zheng Baoyu also pulled his younger sister to persuade him. Although he forced a smile, his face revealed a gentle warmth. He may have felt sorry for himself, but he had no resentment towards others.

Zheng Baozhu felt a lump in her throat, but she wasn't one to give in so easily. Seeing her third brother's kindness, she felt even more disgusted with the two brats' unrestrained speech, wishing she could skin them alive.

So he lifted his foot to chase after her.

The two mischievous children were terrified, and even the adults thought Zheng Baozhu was making a mountain out of a molehill, immediately shouting, "What are you doing? What are you doing? Zheng Baozhu, how old are you? Why are you arguing with children like that?"

"Exactly! Exactly!" Emboldened by their parents' support, the kids instantly became arrogant, spitting at the Zheng siblings and shouting, "It's not just us who say he's a eunuch, my parents said so too!"

"you!"

Zheng Baozhu was about to cry from anger when a loud shout came from behind her: "You little brat, who are you calling a eunuch?!"

Zheng Baozhu turned around, saw the person who came, her eyes lit up, and she hurriedly called out "Second Brother!" before crying and complaining, "Second Brother, come quick, they're insulting Third Brother!"

The saying goes, "The dragon has nine sons, each different from the other." Zheng Ren had five children, each with a distinct personality.

The eldest brother, Zheng Baojin, was steady and reliable, but with Zheng Baoyin, it was as if the roles had been reversed.

Not only was he short-tempered, but he was also incredibly stubborn. To make matters worse, he was a big, burly man, stronger than an ox, and a ruthless character that even the gangster leader Chen Jun dared not mess with.

Sure enough, the two families who had been arguing just moments before turned several shades pale when they saw Zheng Baoyin arrive.

Even those two brats didn't dare to be arrogant anymore, and kept shrinking behind the adults like quails.

The two families exchanged glances, trying to sneak away while there were many people by the river.

But before they could take a step, Zheng Baoyin's voice rang out again: "Let's see which of you dares to leave!"

"Zheng Baoyin, what are you doing?" The two families were too scared to move. One of the men, trembling, asked.

"What am I going to do?" Zheng Baoyin grinned, revealing a set of gleaming white teeth, and strode over, snarling, "You motherfucker, did you enjoy swearing just now? Don't you know what I'm going to do?"

"Zheng Baoyin, don't do anything reckless! There are so many people watching here. If something happens, you'll definitely be in trouble!" Another woman jumped out. She seemed genuinely scared, her eyes filled with fear, and her cries were somewhat frantic.

"Perfect! I'll trade my life for your whole family, what a steal!" Zheng Baoyin said fearlessly.

Someone nearby tried to smooth things over, but was silenced by a fierce glare from him.

"I'm telling you this now: anyone who dares to protect these two bastards, I'll take care of them too!"

The kids were so scared their legs went weak, and they tried to run away, but Zheng Baoyin stopped them: "You dare to run and see what happens? Believe me, I'll turn you all into eunuchs right here and now!"

The two families dared not move, and just watched as Zheng Baoyin took out a hemp rope and tied the two children together.

"Zheng Baoyin, what are you doing?" The two men couldn't sit still any longer and stepped forward to snatch him away. "They're just children! What do they know?"

"Kids don't know any better, and neither do adults?" Zheng Baoyin glanced at him, casually swatting him away with a disdainful sneer. "Let me tell you, besides my parents, no one dares to insult my brother yet. You two little brats can go take a bath with Chen Jun!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he actually picked up the two children and threw them into the river.

"Ah... Father! Mother!"

The people around were terrified. They only knew that Zheng Baoyin was fierce, but they didn't know he was this fierce. He just threw people away like that. What if he drowned?

"Dad...walululu...Mom...walulu..."

The two children were not good swimmers to begin with, and now that their hands and feet were tied with rope, they were thrown into the water and immediately sank straight down. In addition, there was a dead body floating in the river. In their horror, they choked on two mouthfuls of water on the spot.

Zheng Baoyin held the other end of the rope tightly, pulling the two men out of the water whenever they were about to drown.

"Zheng Baoyin, release my child, or I'll report you to the authorities right now! Yes, report me to the authorities immediately!"

The two adults seemed to realize something, but as soon as they moved, they were pressed down by a tremendous force.

Zheng Baojin had somehow appeared behind the two families, holding one of them down with each hand and looking at them coldly.

The two families, however, reacted as if they had seen a savior, hurriedly shouting, "Zheng Baojin, you must persuade your brother! He's committed murder; he'll go to jail, he'll be beheaded!"

Unexpectedly, Zheng Baojin, usually so mature and composed, didn't stop them today. Instead, he calmly replied, "No need. My brother knows what he's doing. On the contrary, you have ill-mannered children. My brother is helping you discipline them for free, and instead of being grateful, you want to report it to the authorities. Have you no conscience?"

"You...you're just being unreasonable!" Both families were furious at this twisted argument, yet they were helpless.

On the river, the two children were drinking water mouthful by mouthful. Perhaps they were stirring too vigorously, because the water surface was shaking, and the corpse that was originally still suddenly began to float slowly over.

In the short time it took for them to sink to the bottom, when they came together again, they were met with a pair of dark, hollow eyes, rolled-up gums, and a tongue that had been half-eaten by fish and shrimp.

Their faces, pale from being soaked, also had a bluish-black tinge, like those of the dead. It was like seeing a piece of rotten, soaked fat; inexplicably, they even felt that oil was seeping out of it.

"vomit……"

The two were shocked and terrified, and almost died on the spot. A feeling of nausea arose, but because everything happened so suddenly, and they swallowed two mouthfuls of river water next to the corpse, they felt even more nauseous.

"My son! My son! Zheng Baoyin, quickly pull my child up! He's dying, can't you see?"

The shore was in an uproar, with people crying and wailing.

Suddenly someone shouted "Make way!" It was Zheng Ren leading the patrol inspector.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

If there's anyone in this world who could control Zheng Baoyin, it would probably be his own father, Zheng Ren.

Seeing his father approaching with a stern face, Zheng Baoyin realized he had gone too far, so he fiercely threatened the water, "Do you know what you did wrong?"

"Okay! Okay!"

"Do you dare to do it again?"

"I won't do it again! I won't do it again!"

The two children answered eagerly.

Zheng Baoyin then exerted all his strength, his arm muscles bulging thicker than his thighs, and lifted the two children out of the water with one hand each.

Just then, Zheng Ren happened to walk to the riverbank.

He also saw what had just happened, glared at Zheng Baojin, and then turned his gaze to Zheng Baoyin.

Zheng Baoyin just chuckled and called out "Dad," which almost made Zheng Ren's beard twist in anger.

"Zheng Ren, look what your son has done!" The parents of both families, carrying their two children who were trembling like drowned rats, ran up to Zheng Ren to complain.

Zheng Ren merely snorted coldly, "I know my child. If you hadn't provoked him, he definitely wouldn't have punished you. It's your fault, so can you tell me what you did to make my child so angry?"

"you……"

The two families were ultimately in the wrong, and though they gritted their teeth, they couldn't utter a single word.

Zheng Baoyin grinned maliciously from the side, "What, you guys want to try taking a bath with Chen Jun too?"

"You...you...you're ruthless, you just wait!" The men turned pale and, in the end, dared not retaliate against Zheng Baoyin's recklessness. They took the children and slunk away.

"whispering sound!"

Zheng Baoyin watched their retreating figures and scoffed disdainfully.

Upon hearing this, Zheng Ren turned around and slapped him on the head, scolding him irritably, "If you dare to cause me trouble again, I'll break your legs!" After saying that, he glared at Zheng Baojin.

The other person pretended not to see it, and instead came to Zheng Baoyu's side and gently patted his shoulder to comfort him.

Zheng Baoyu smiled with emotion, responding to his elder brother.

It was only then that Zheng Rencai saw his third son and was quite surprised that the other son had actually gone out today.

In an instant, he seemed to understand the reason, and he sighed heavily again.

The eldest and second eldest sons, though they haven't said anything, always feel indebted to each other since birth because of the way their third son is now.

Therefore, it's fine for others to provoke the two brothers, but if you provoke the third brother, he will definitely be dealt with to death.

It seems that the other two companies today are the same.

Luckily, I didn't scold them indiscriminately just now, otherwise I would have disappointed the third brother.

Zheng Ren secretly rejoiced, but the inspector had already retrieved the body.

Once out of the water, Chen Jun wasn't as terrifying as before. Zheng Baozhu wondered if it was just her imagination, but the corpse seemed to have lost some kind of color.

"Inspector Lu, what should be done with this body?" Zheng Ren asked, bowing.

A case had occurred in town, and the inspector was clearly in a bad mood. He coldly replied, "Take him to the yamen for a coroner's examination. If it's murder, investigate. If it's suicide, let the family take him home!"

Seeing that Zheng Ren had no further questions, he waved his hand, and two constables rushed forward, wrapped Chen Jun's body in a white cloth, and left in a hurry.

Once the body was taken away, the excitement was almost over, and the riverbank suddenly became deserted.

Zheng Ren turned to look at his daughter and asked, "Were you scared?"

Zheng Baozhu chuckled, patted her chest, and said, "Don't worry, I have a protective talisman given to me by the Taoist priest!"

"Oh?" Zheng Ren was taken aback, then said irritably, "So you went to the Taoist temple early in the morning because you were out there."

Zheng Baozhu smiled sheepishly, took out a triangular amulet from her bosom, approached Zheng Baoyu, and said earnestly, "Brother, this is for you. Be sure to keep it close to your body!"

She thought that her brothers were all very yang, but this third brother seemed to be the only one who might be possessed by evil spirits. Giving him this amulet was making the most of it!

Holding the talisman, Zheng Baoyu was deeply moved and quickly thanked her gently, "Thank you, little sister!"

Zheng Baojin's eyes stung with tears as he watched, and he said sarcastically, "Third brother is a brother, but eldest brother isn't?"

Zheng Baozhu slapped him and said irritably, "Do you think I don't want to buy more? They're three hundred coins each!"

"Three hundred coins?" Zheng Baoyin exclaimed. He was always fearless and showed little respect to the Taoist priest. "This Taoist is robbing me!"

"That's really rude!" Zheng Baozhu rolled her eyes at him. "You didn't use any of the family's money, do you even know what it means to not easily impart knowledge?"

"I don't know!" Zheng Baoyin snorted and crossed his arms.

Seeing that his two children were about to quarrel again, Zheng Ren, equally heartbroken, tried to smooth things over: "Alright, alright, Baozhu meant well. The Taoist priest is a highly skilled person, and his talismans must be extraordinary!"

Zheng Baozhu laughed: "Dad has a good eye for quality."

However, when Zheng Baoyu heard that the talisman was so expensive, he insisted on giving her money.

He does embroidery at home every day, and each embroidered piece can sell for a full ounce, making him the richest man in the family. Naturally, he wouldn't let his sister spend so much money on him.

"Alright, alright, bro, just take it. Giving me money is too formal!"

Fearing her third brother would try to bribe her, Zheng Baozhu quickly changed the subject, asking her father, "By the way, Dad, why didn't Sister-in-law Cui come?"

Zheng Ren sighed and frowned, saying, "I haven't told her yet!"

"Why?" Zheng Baozhu's eyes widened.

"She's already exhausted from dealing with your brother Ping's situation, and she also has to take care of Qing'er. I'm afraid if I tell her, her health won't be able to handle it!"

"But we can't keep it a secret forever, can we?" Zheng Baozhu disagreed.

"Let's wait for news from the government office!" Zheng Ren said with some worry.

The family walked back side by side, but when they reached the fork in the road, Zheng Baoyu suddenly stopped.

"Father, eldest brother, second brother, little sister, you all go back first, I'm going to check on the embroidery shop!"

"Brother, what are you doing at the embroidery workshop? Today isn't the day you hand in your patterns, is it?" Zheng Baozhu asked curiously, and the others also looked over.

Zheng Baoyu smiled and said, "I'm going to buy some embroidery thread; I'll need it."

His sister had given him such an expensive talisman, so he wanted to embroider a beautiful handkerchief for her. He would buy two rolls of gold embroidery thread today, something he usually wouldn't use.

"Brother, I'll go with you!" Zheng Baozhu said.

Zheng Baoyu simply shook his head: "No need, I can go by myself, it'll be quick."

Zheng Baozhu was about to say something more, but Zheng Ren stopped her with a look in his eyes.

Watching him walk away, Zheng Rencai said, "Let him go. He's been locked up for so many years; it's time he learned to walk on his own!"

Upon hearing this, the three siblings exchanged a glance, sighed softly, and silently withdrew their gazes.

……

Zheng Baoyu left the main group and chose a secluded path to head towards the embroidery workshop.

Little did he know that not far behind him, two furtive figures were lurking.

"Brother, where is he going?"

"Who cares, let's follow them! Damn it, we've suffered so much, let's tie this damned eunuch up and make him drink Chen Jun's bathwater!"

"Brother, but I'm a little afraid of Zheng Baoyin!"

"What's there to be afraid of? It's only been a short while. Who knows if it's us turning around to attack? We'll just cover our faces so he can't find any evidence!"

"All right."

Seeing that Zheng Baoyu was about to walk away, the two of them took off after him.

Zheng Baoyu was actually a little confused at this moment.

He rarely went out and didn't know that the path he used to walk on had been replanted with trees, and he lost his way as he walked.

Although we are walking on the same road now, it doesn't look familiar.

"Brother, if I remember correctly, this road leads towards the cemetery, right? What's he going to the cemetery for?"

"Let's catch up first!"

"That's a graveyard, bro, I'm a little scared!"

"A cemetery is perfect, no one's around, just in time for the two of us to make our move!"

"Okay... alright!"

As they walked deeper into the road, the atmosphere became increasingly eerie and silent.

The two brothers were terrified, but they had already walked most of the way, so they had no choice but to grit their teeth and keep going.

Suddenly, the younger brother patted the person in front of him and said, "Brother, look over there on that slope, isn't there someone?"

The older brother was startled and looked up sharply in that direction!

There's nothing there.

He turned around and flicked the other person on the forehead, saying, "You son of a bitch, don't you know that scaring someone can be deadly?"

The younger brother swallowed hard and said weakly, "But...maybe I saw it wrong."

Just as the older brother was about to curse, his expression changed, because he noticed a chilling wind blowing from somewhere, making his bones feel cold and the hairs on the back of his head stand on end.

"Tiezhu, are you cold?"

"I don't..." The younger brother was about to say no when he suddenly sensed something, and his face turned pale. "Wait a minute, why...why is it suddenly so cold?"

At this point, they finally realized something was wrong.

Although it was still broad daylight, the sunlight was pitifully weak, and a hazy mist rose all around.

Sensing something was wrong, the elder brother quickly said, "Quick, follow that eunuch!"

But when he looked up, Zheng Baoyu was nowhere to be seen.

The two men immediately turned pale.

The fog grew thicker and thicker, making it impossible to find the way out or even see the way we came.

"Wow!"

The younger brother burst into tears, and the older brother's legs went weak.

Just as the two were about to call for help, an inexplicable feeling of being watched suddenly overwhelmed them.

The older brother's heart skipped a beat, and he looked up abruptly, only to see a face hanging upside down in mid-air, staring right at him.

Dark, hollow eye sockets, rolled-up gums, a broken tongue...

Cold sweat broke out all over my face!

The older brother swallowed hard, too frightened to know how to react.

Suddenly, the person smiled and made a strange sound, like a broken bellows.

"Little friend, can you see my eyes?"