The male supporting character was actually myself.

Holding his one-yuan salary, Huang Mao walked down the street, his mind filled with many thoughts.

Before parting ways, he earnestly instructed his three underlings to keep their mouths shut. He told them to just quietly make a fortune while he followed along and reaped the benefits, and not to make a fuss or they'd lose their good jobs and have nowhere to regret it!

The three underlings nodded their heads like chicks pecking at rice. Only a fool would shout about such a good thing. Everyone has their own fortune; it's most important to be honest and earn your own share.

Jiang Chen was very satisfied with the attitude of the four thugs that the Horcrux reported back. He went inside, lit candles, ate slowly, and threw the leftover meat bones to the yellow dog that was lingering at the door.

The lights weren't on in the neighboring yard, and the gate was locked, so the family had obviously gone out and hadn't returned yet.

The nights in the remote mountain village are very quiet. The villagers have little entertainment and are reluctant to waste even kerosene lamps, so they naturally go to bed early to rest.

It wasn't until after nine o'clock at night that He Gousheng returned, wearing only a coat and shuffling back in his shoes.

Qian Shuandi followed behind with a droopy face; He Yongqiang yawned and listlessly followed into the house without even washing his feet, and went straight to his room, where he collapsed onto the kang (a heated brick bed) and fell fast asleep.

"Do you think the fortune teller's predictions are accurate?" After entering the house and lighting the kerosene lamp, Qian Shuandi sat on the kang (a heated brick bed) with a heavy heart, staring intently at her husband and asking, "We spent a dime to have our son's fortune told. The more I think about it, the more I feel that the fortune teller only says nice things to us. Could he be trying to fool us?"

He Gousheng waved his hand impatiently, "Hey, why are you making such a fuss, you old hag?"

You're the one who needs to go see a fortune teller;

You're the one willing to spend the money;

You're the one asking the master so many questions;

In the end, you're the one who doesn't believe it. Aren't you crazy? If you're going to believe, listen to the fortune teller. Otherwise, why did our whole family travel so far to give money to someone?

"I'm just worried about being scammed!" Qian Shuandi slapped her hands together loudly, then lowered her head and remained silent.

After lunch, she kept thinking about how strange things had happened in the neighboring yard. In addition, her son's wedding had cost a lot of money and was still far from being finalized. After much deliberation, she decided to consult a fortune teller.

In previous years, those who could predict the future were all dealt with, but in the past two years, some so-called "divine masters" have started to emerge again, thanks to the rich cultural heritage of mountain villages.

Qian Shuandi went to several places before finally finding a highly praised fortune teller. She eagerly went there to ask him to tell her son's fortune. According to the fortune teller, her son's luck was about to become extraordinary!

Don't be fooled by his current lack of success; if he can marry a beautiful educated youth, he'll rise through the ranks, live a carefree life, and enjoy a lifetime in a big city.

"Hmm~ I went to a fortune teller today, and what he said was exactly what I wanted to hear." He Gousheng was silent for a moment before saying quietly, "He described our family's situation so accurately!"

There's nothing ghostly or strange in the neighboring yard; if something eerie happens, it's just that the three of us are having bad luck.

Look, the fortune teller said He Jiangchen's luck has run out, and logically, he shouldn't have more than two years left to live. I suddenly remembered when our mother was still alive, when my brother and I were still quite young, she had the most famous fortune teller at the time tell our fortunes.

If I hadn't had my fortune told today, I would have almost forgotten.

Back then, a fortune teller said I was destined for great wealth and honor, and that I would not only live a long life but also enjoy great fortune.

My brother has a bad fate. He suffered a lot his whole life, and when he turned thirty-four, he faced a major hurdle. If he didn't overcome it, his lineage would be completely cut off, and even if he had a son, he wouldn't live past twenty-three. Even if he did survive, his luck wouldn't be as good as our family's; it's uncertain whether we could even support our parents in their old age.

They even said that my son is the chosen one, and I'm going to benefit from his success.

Ever since that fortune-telling incident, my mother felt that she couldn't count on the eldest son. She couldn't stand him no matter what and thought that he was wasting food. So she sent him out to start his own business early and left him with a mess of debts.

Look, isn't this exactly what the sage said?

My brother died of illness at the age of thirty-four. He Jiangchen was twenty-one this year, and the fortune teller said he wouldn't live for another two years, and sure enough, he died at twenty-three!

Qian Shuandi immediately became interested upon hearing this. "Really? Think about it carefully. That's what the fortune teller said when Mother had her fortune told?"

“I would never be mistaken. Back then, I even joked with my older brother that he was childless and that I was the one who would continue the He family line.”

He Gousheng reminisced with a smug smile, "Hey, if I'm destined for great wealth and honor, then I don't have to worry about anything. Let's go to sleep. The matchmaker has taken so many benefits from us, she won't refuse to help. Let's just be patient and wait for our fairy-like wife to come to our door. Our son will rise to prominence and enjoy a life of luxury in the big city!"

The couple blew out the lamp and made some rustling noises for a while before going quiet.

Jiang Chen sat under the candlelight, reading a book while pondering the information fed back by the Soul Weapon.

A fortune teller?

Could the fortune teller He Gousheng and his friends went to be a bug? I'll ask Huang Mao tomorrow if they know where there's a skilled fortune teller. Maybe we'll encounter a bug in this mission world that gives us some clues about fate.

Jiang Chen waited until after 11 o'clock, making sure that even the dogs were asleep and there was no sound, before coming out of the room.

Big Yellow looked up at him, thought there was no danger, grunted softly a couple of times, and then lay back down in its little nest to continue sleeping soundly.

He found the large blue bricks and floor slabs he wanted in the building materials area of ​​the system space, and also found some steel bars, cement and other building materials and piled them in the yard. Then he took a warm shower and went back to his room to sleep.

The next morning, while He Gousheng and his family were still sound asleep on the kang (a heated brick bed), they suddenly heard a series of thuds and crashes coming from outside. Startled, He Yongqiang sat bolt upright and yelled, "Mom! What's going on outside? I'm so scared! Did something collapse?"

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Smashing the Wall

"If you have so much energy for yelling, why don't you get up and see what's going on!"

Qian Shuandi climbed out of bed in a huff, cursing under her breath, "Damn it, how did I end up raising such a cowardly and lazy bastard like you? How could I possibly benefit from you?"

If it were an earthquake or something, and I was waiting for you to come and help rescue people, your mother would have been crushed to death by now..."

Before he could finish speaking, there was another loud thud that shook the ground. This time, He Gousheng couldn't stay still any longer and hurriedly got up to look out the window.

The yard was filled with dust and dirt, and you could vaguely see someone wielding a pickaxe and digging at the wall.

"Hey! What are you doing?!" he roared, bursting out of the house in just his underwear and slippers, pointing at the burly men busily working away, yelling, "Who told you to smash my wall? Is there no law in broad daylight? Let me tell you..."

Before he could finish speaking, the worker who had just knocked down another section of the wall with his pickaxe looked up, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and replied in a muffled voice, "Look carefully before you speak. Are you dreaming?"

Who would want to dig up your dilapidated wall?

We'll charge extra for digging up the wall, what? You're hoping for something good without paying?

Look carefully, they're digging up He Jiangchen's courtyard wall, it has absolutely nothing to do with yours.

As they were talking, Qian Shuandi and He Yongqiang came out of the room, their clothes disheveled. They frowned and covered their mouths as they went to take a look. Sure enough, the other party had only demolished the wall of the neighboring courtyard.

"Mother, he must have offended someone, right?" He Yongqiang couldn't wait to see He Jiangchen make a fool of herself. Seeing this, he gloated, "They came knocking on the door and smashed down the courtyard wall, hehe..."

"Are you stupid?!" Qian Shuandi glared at him and slapped him. "Did your dad knock you stupid? Haven't you heard that tearing down a wall costs money?"

She pointed at the busy workers and shouted, "Stop! Stop! You're helping He Jiangchen with his work, why is it affecting my yard wall? The two walls have been leaning against each other for so many years, and now he's demolished them without a word. What are we going to do if they're blocking the foundation of my yard wall?"

Hey, we can ask the village chief or the village party secretary to settle this matter.

Back then, to avoid disputes, each family built their own courtyard wall. He Jiangchen, what do you mean by tearing down your own wall without saying a word? Are you trying to make your own yard bigger and take advantage of us?

Good heavens, I can't live like this anymore!

A little boy dares to ride on our heads and poop and pee on us. He Gousheng, you're not a man. How could I have been so blind to fall for such a good-for-nothing? You just stand by and watch your nephew bully our family to the point where we can't even live anymore!

He Jiangchen, put your hand on your heart and tell me, yesterday you swore we hadn't mistreated you, and now you're trying to drive us to the brink of despair. We can't live like this anymore..."

As she cried and screamed, Qian Shuandi lunged at the worker's pickaxe over the wall of her own yard. She was thinking to herself, "Didn't He Jiangchen secretly hoard some good stuff and sell it for a lot of money? If I don't extort a large sum of money from you, I'm not a Qian!"

"Hey, you in charge, come quick and check on that old hag next door trying to extort money!" the foreman shouted into the house in a gruff voice.

When Qian Shuandi heard that he was trying to extort money, she got so angry that she jumped up and down, crying and cursing. She even jumped onto her own courtyard wall and lay down, throwing a tantrum and refusing to let the other person continue working.

The workers weren't in a hurry; they stood aside, smiling and watching her performance.

The brand-new mesh curtain was lifted, and the village secretary walked out slowly with his hands behind his back, frowning as he watched Qian Shuandi cry and make a scene. "Gou Sheng's family, weren't you crying everywhere yesterday that your whole family was bitten by He Jiangchen's dog and couldn't get up? You insisted on demanding that he pay for your medical expenses."

"You're all lively and energetic, nothing serious. A half-grown dog is only weak enough to bite someone. If He Jiangchen's dog were any stronger or more dangerous, your whole family of three would have been dead in this yard yesterday morning. And you still have the nerve to cause trouble and extort money here?"

"You shameless woman, get down here right now!" He Gousheng hadn't expected the village secretary to be at He Jiangchen's house. Seeing this, he hurriedly scolded, "You shameless thing, aren't you ashamed..."

Qian Shuandi was also stunned. She stopped crying and making a fuss, sat on the wall of her own house, tugged at her clothes, and muttered, "This is an agreement that He Jiangchen's father and my man reached. How can he unilaterally tear down the courtyard wall?"

We're at a disadvantage here!

"With just this one wall between the inside and outside, the yard would be much more spacious. Besides, if he has someone demolish the wall, how can I guarantee it won't get in the way of my yard wall? What if he accidentally damages my wall with an extra pickaxe? We'd have to spend money to repair it."

The village party secretary took the cigarette out of his mouth, shook off the ash, pointed at the demolished courtyard wall, and sneered, "This job was just contracted out to my eldest nephew. He learned the most advanced skills in the county town."

What? You think professionals can't even break down a broken wall?

Who do you think you are?! You think you can extort ten or eight yuan from someone with this mud wall? Is it lined with gold or silver inside?

Qian Shuandi was silenced after being confronted. He was the village party secretary, powerful and influential in the village. Who would dare to offend him?

"They demolished the wall to build something better, not to take advantage of your little bit of property," the foreman replied in a gruff voice, giving her a cold look before clicking his tongue and shaking his head. "No wonder they'd rather spend more money to build a new wall; it's mainly to keep out thieves and prevent extortion. Spending this little bit of money is worth it!"

He Gousheng hurriedly stepped forward to pull his wife away, chuckling as he handed cigarettes to the village secretary and foreman over the courtyard wall, saying a few nice words of apology. He then turned around and kicked his son to vent his anger before the three of them finally went back to the house in a sorry state.

"Ignore them, keep smashing!" The village secretary casually tucked a cigarette behind the foreman's ear, straightened his dark blue cloth hat, and gave the order.

The workers started working enthusiastically again.

"Secretary, you've been a great help to me!" Jiang Chen brought over the kettle and filled the new teapot with water. The delicate fragrance of jasmine tea wafted into the room, filling it with a wonderful aroma.

The village secretary walked with his pigeon-toed gait to the solid wood chair and sat down. He curled his lip and said with a disdainful look, "Gou Sheng's family is really bastards. You'd better watch out for them in the future. After all, they are neighbors. No matter how high the walls are built, they can't stop someone from having a heart of stone."

"Yes, I will definitely try my best to avoid conflicts with them in the future."

"You've got good taste, kid." The village secretary patted the armrest of the solid wood chair, looked up at the clean and neatly arranged brand-new furniture on the whitewashed wall, and asked with a smile, "Did you buy all of this in the county town? You've been quite discreet; none of the neighbors have heard a thing."

Jiang Chen lied without batting an eye, "I ordered the goods yesterday, and they were delivered tonight. I just finished packing them up."

As he spoke, he took out a thick red envelope, placed it on the table, and pushed it over, saying with great sincerity, "Secretary, I invited you here early this morning because, in addition to building the courtyard wall and side rooms, I have another request."

"Oh dear, what are you doing? Just say what you want to say. I'm your elder, and I've watched you grow up. Would I refuse to help if I could?"

“There must be proper etiquette when doing things,” Jiang Chen explained with a slight smile. “This is wedding money. I was thinking of asking you to be my witness tomorrow. Getting married is a big deal in one’s life, and I want to make it a grand and impressive affair.”

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Impure Thoughts

The village secretary looked at him with surprise, "Wow, you're quite efficient! You just got the letter of introduction yesterday afternoon, and it's already done? Where is she from? Which family's daughter is she from?"

As he pressed He Jiangchen for answers, he sighed inwardly.

As expected, my vision was not far-sighted enough and my judgment of people was inaccurate. Who the hell would have thought that the good-for-nothing kid was such a good-for-nothing and such a cunning swindler who secretly kept valuable stuff?

If I had known he would have such a glorious day, I definitely wouldn't have stopped my daughter from marrying him! Now it's too late to regret it. His two grandsons are already running around and can run errands. This fat duck is bound to fly to someone else's house.

Thinking of this, the village secretary picked up the tea that the other party had poured, took a sip, patted his thigh, and sighed inwardly.

"It was Aunt Wang from the back street who introduced us. The girl is all alone and doesn't have any relatives. We're a good match." Jiang Chen also picked up his teacup and took a sip. Then he pointed to the next room and whispered, "I don't know about that side. I'm afraid they'll take the opportunity to cause trouble again when I hold a banquet here tomorrow."

Normally I wouldn't be afraid of them, but tomorrow I'm the groom and there are so many things I can't handle..."

The village party secretary picked up the red envelope, squeezed it, and estimated that there were at least several yuan in it. He felt both happy and emotional.

He was happy because a wealthy person from the village respected him greatly, and he figured He Jiangchen wouldn't refuse to help him if he needed anything in the future.

The感慨 (gan3, a feeling of mixed emotions, often including regret or reflection) is that things change drastically over time, and someone can turn the tables and leave everyone else behind.

"Alright, I'll take care of the wedding officiant. Since neither of you has a reliable elder, I'll step in and make the arrangements for you. As for Gou Sheng's family, don't worry, they won't be able to cause any trouble while I'm here!"