Witch Redemption

That's why the scene before her eyes was so desolate, as if she were all alone in the world. Whenever this happened, the lonely old woman would feel a kind of mental torment, thinking of her husband, parents, and friends who had died many years ago, and her two sons who had abandoned her. Then she couldn't help but shed tears alone in silence.

Looking back over the past ten years, countless elderly people left behind in the village have chosen to end their lives because they couldn't accept reality and couldn't bear the loneliness of their later years. Fortunately, she has always been a strong-willed person who cherishes life and is afraid of death; otherwise, she would have followed in her footsteps ten years ago.

"Hey."

A habitual sigh escaped, as if trying to expel all the pent-up frustration in his heart.

The elderly woman named Li Xiaolu raised her right sleeve, which resembled withered tree bark, and wiped the sweat from under her straw hat.

After being reminded of the scene, she recalled the troublesome incident that had occurred the day before yesterday. After all, her youngest son, who had been out of contact for many years, was once the apple of her eye, and she had poured a lot of her heart and soul into him. Now that her youngest son had returned in a sorry state, she, as his mother, could not be too cold-blooded and heartless.

After all, as people get older, they tend to be more accepting of some regrets. When she thought about how many years she had left to live and how much more precious a prodigal son's return was, she felt regret for her heartless actions the day before yesterday and her mind was in turmoil.

"I can't raise any more money, and there's only so much I can do to help."

The money the elderly man has earned over the years is barely enough to make ends meet. When he calculates his savings, it is only around ten thousand yuan. This amount is not even a fraction of what it is in modern society, but it is the lifeblood of the elderly man.

For the elderly woman, this sum of ten thousand yuan would be enough to support her living alone for many years.

At first, when Li Lan and her three friends, who claimed to be her granddaughters, came to her side, she was worried about the expenses that would follow. As it turned out, Li Lan and Li Dai quickly found jobs and gave her a certain amount of living expenses every month, which alleviated her financial difficulties.

That's one point. The second point is that if all of these crops were sold, it would be possible to make a lot of money, something that would have been unthinkable in the past.

The old woman wasn't unaware that the four granddaughters' identities were likely unrelated to her youngest son. She knew perfectly well the truth the day before yesterday when her son, along with his wife and two children, came to visit. These four fake granddaughters had deceived her, and she, as if numbing herself, chose to believe them, even fantasizing about living a life of family bliss she had never dared to dream of before.

If her son's return would disrupt this hard-won "family bliss," what choice should she make?

Just as he was feeling troubled, he suddenly heard footsteps behind him. It turned out that his granddaughter Li Lan and Li Dai had come to help.

"Grandma, you rest for a while, leave this to us."

When they have free time, their two older granddaughters come to help with everything, something they never dared to imagine when they were alone.

"Good good."

The old man pulled his straw hat down to hide his complicated expression, then patted his aching back. "Ah Lan, what time is it?"

When she was alone, the elderly woman often forgot the time and would sometimes be so busy that she wouldn't cook until one or two o'clock in the afternoon. But now that she has several granddaughters, she is more mindful of the time because of their hunger.

"It's 10 o'clock. The landlady brought us back this morning, and we came here right away."

Li Lan responded and then led Della to start harvesting in the field.

"By the way, Grandma, how are we going to sell the vegetables next?"

“Every morning, there are vegetable transport trucks heading to the town and county. As long as the quantity is large enough, you can contact them in advance and the handover will take place around 4 a.m.”

"Okay, Della and I will prepare the melons and other easily stored vegetables in advance. As for fresh vegetables, we will get them ready before four o'clock in the morning."

Li Lan, the "farming witch," quickly responded a few times, and in no time at all, she and Della harvested a full four bags.

With their physical condition, they could work in the fields all day without feeling tired, and their efficiency was unimaginably high.

The elderly Li Xiaolu had a strong feeling that her four granddaughters might not be human.

At her age, she naturally believed in things like "ghosts and gods," worshipped local deities, and would burn incense and pray to Buddha during festivals.

So, sometimes she would wonder if her four granddaughters were gods sent down from heaven to save her from the suffering of her later years.

But then I thought about it again, what kind of immortals go down to the ground to work or go out to do odd jobs? Besides, they also need to eat and sleep, and their material and spiritual needs are not neglected.

"..."

Every time she saw her two granddaughters carrying two bags of crops and striding forward, she felt as if she had seen a ghost. Could these two granddaughters be reincarnations of strongmen?

To be honest, with such an exaggerated weight, it would take an elderly person a long time to carry it themselves. They would either have to do it in batches or rely on transportation.

Li Lan and Della walked side by side behind the old woman, moving slowly. Out of concern for her, Li Lan tentatively asked, "Grandma, has something bothering you lately? Are you having financial difficulties?"

"Oh, no, no, it's really nothing serious."

The old man's tone clearly indicated a moment of panic, followed by a long silence.

The old woman hesitated for a long time before asking somewhat nervously, "What do you think a mother should be like?"

"This..." Li Lan and Della were speechless.

Before transmigrating, Li Lan was a real man who wanted to be a father. Even after transmigrating into the body of a witch, he never thought about having offspring. He couldn't answer that question.

Della, too, had never been a mother and didn't know what it meant to be a mother.

"If your son betrayed you, but later came back, would you still be willing to accept him?"

Whether or not this is acceptable is the most troubling question for this elderly man right now.

Li Lan was a shrewd person after all. Before coming to this village, she had conducted a thorough investigation of the old man. As soon as the old man mentioned the word "son," she and Della immediately understood what was going on.

Sure enough, the old man's son was coming back. Could it be that the person he saw the day before yesterday was...?

If it were the fiery and upright Li Lan of the past, his response at this moment would probably have been to advise the old man to sever all ties with his son and never see him again. However, his current mental age is that of an older man, and he is not as extreme as before.

"I'm sorry, Grandma, this is a difficult question for us to answer."

Li Lan gave a wry smile. He felt that everything depended on the old man's own wishes. In fact, he hadn't expected that the old man's worries were actually this.

"Haha, that's true, most people wouldn't have experienced this." The old man said, as if mocking himself.

Unbeknownst to them, Li Lan quickly exchanged a glance with Della, clearly considering their next course of action.

Chapter 16 The Real World

Late at night, after a busy day, Li Lan and Della finally had a chance to chat privately for a while.

The topic concerns Li Xiaolu's grandmother and also the choices Li Lan and her family will make next.

"Karen, if it really is Grandma's son who has returned, should we consider leaving now?"

Della suggested that she wasn't the type to abandon someone after they've served their purpose, but she was worried that the situation would turn out badly for them, and leaving would be the best option.

After all, the reason why these four outsiders were able to live in this remote mountain village and have their own legitimate identities was actually due to Della's powerful hacking skills and Li Lan's professional deception, which was originally an illegal and criminal act.

Only they themselves knew that they were not Li Zhongsheng's daughters at all, but were merely using Li Zhongsheng's name to get by.

If Li Xiaolu's son, Li Zhongsheng, returns soon, all of Li Lan's claims will be exposed, and how to deal with Grandma Li's anger will become a huge problem.

People are naturally inclined to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages. Della's concerns at this moment are not without reason, as she is trying to prevent a huge crisis if her secret is exposed in the future.

Li Lan understood Della's point of view, but he was still worried about the old woman. "Let's wait a little longer. Grandma probably already realized that we have no blood relation with her, otherwise she wouldn't have let us communicate with others as distant relatives."

The old man's intuition was very sharp; Li Lan was certain of that.

In addition, the reason why people are worried about the elderly is very simple: the elderly were abandoned in the past.

Upon closer examination, neither of her two sons were good people.

Well, both of Li Xiaolu's grandmother's sons are considered educated people with decent levels of education. However, after developing their careers in big cities, getting married, and having children, they both chose to abandon their elderly mother, and their motives weren't particularly complicated.

One of the motivations was the gap between cultured people and the illiterate. The two sons could not tolerate an elderly person who was uncultured and even had "various bad habits" living with them, as it would make them feel psychologically uncomfortable.

Or rather, they might even feel ashamed when facing outsiders.

The second motivation is that supporting parents is not only a huge expense, but also requires a lot of energy. In the early stages, it's manageable when parents are still mobile, but later, if they need someone to take care of their daily lives, it becomes a huge ordeal for the whole family.

The son finds it troublesome and is busy making money, while the daughter-in-law, an "outsider," is even less willing to serve tea and water to such an elderly person, let alone take care of a burden who is unable to move or even incontinent in the future.

Moreover, people from rural areas generally have a subconscious belief that "it's not a crime if no one finds out." So after leaving their hometowns, they cut off all contact with their hometowns and disappear for ten years.

In modern cities, people are indifferent to human relationships, and no one will ask questions. Therefore, those who work with her two sons basically do not know the extent of their filial impiety, or they assume that their parents have long passed away and do not associate it with the situation of elderly people left behind in rural areas.

“If there’s a first time, there will probably be a second. I don’t think her youngest son who came back this time will feel any gratitude. I’m afraid he’s just coming back to avoid the storm, and once the storm passes, he will still abandon her.”

Li Lan made her guesses without any hesitation. Anyway, with Della's investigation, she naturally had a thorough understanding of the situation from various aspects.

"Are there many similar situations in this world?" Della asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Actually, there aren't that many. It's true that there are many elderly people left behind in impoverished areas, but it's relatively rare to see them being abandoned like this."

In Li Lan's understanding, society had already achieved a moderately prosperous society ten years ago, and the overall moral standard had also improved. Cases of directly abandoning the elderly were at most possible in truly impoverished mountainous areas. If we broaden the scope to the entire country or the entire world, it can only be considered rare.

“Karen,” Della paused for a moment, clearly hesitant, “why don’t we try to persuade Grandma to completely cut it off…”

"inappropriate."

It has to be said that the moment Li Lan probed the old man's thoughts today, she had the intention of persuading him to sever all ties with her. However, what are the traditional Chinese values?

Advise reconciliation, not separation.

The prodigal son does not exchange for gold.

What if the old woman's son genuinely wants to reconcile with her when he returns this time? What if he is determined to support his elderly mother and give her a peaceful old age? Wouldn't it ruin her plans if Li Lan and the others persuaded her to be heartless?

Sometimes, family matters are more complicated and more troublesome than anything else.

Moreover, strictly speaking, Li Lan and the others are not the old man's biological children. In fact, they are just outsiders, so it is not appropriate for them to interfere in this family matter.

Even though Li Lan treated Li Xiaolu's grandmother as his own, he had no idea what she was thinking, let alone what her son would think later.

"Let Grandma decide for herself. Family ties often lead people to do things that contradict their own hearts. If we try to persuade her now, she might regret it immensely in the future, leaving behind countless regrets. It's better to let Grandma think it over herself. That way, no matter what happens in the future, she will be at peace with it."

If the elderly person is abandoned again in the future, Li Lan and the others can take them in again without any problem. The most troublesome thing is their persuasion, which causes the elderly person to have a knot in their heart.

"Well, since Karen has said so, we'll see what happens then."

Della didn't delve into the topic further. She'd always preferred to pass the buck, and Li Lan's choice was her choice—that had never changed.

“Let’s pack our bags these few days. If we’re sure Grandma wants to take us in, then we might have to leave. I think I need to take care of my own things in advance.”

Continuing to run away wasn't a solution, so Li Lan finally made up her mind to confront her past.

...... ...... ......

When they returned to the dormitory, it was already midnight. Li Xiaolu's grandmother was already fast asleep in another bedroom, while Hei Fa Yu Hui and Leviathan continued to stare at their phones reading novels.

"Shub, there are some things we might need to talk about."

"Oh, wait a minute, almost done watching..."

Ten minutes later, Hei Fa Yu Hui and Leviathan reluctantly put down their phones. Li Lan then proceeded to recount the foggy world she had experienced the day before, without any further formalities, and asked for their opinions.

A world shrouded in mist?

Black-haired Yu Hui and Leviathan stared at each other, clearly exchanging glances and struggling with what to say and what not to say.

"Servant, actually we don't know much..."

"Just say what you know. I know you guys pretty well, and I know you won't reveal anything you don't want to say." Li Lan knew these two would answer like that, and he was quite easygoing, so he didn't argue with them.

"Well, actually, it's like this. I've said before that there exists a supreme ruler in this world..."