Aunt Zhang's Favor

"Li Zhuiyuan, you've become even more disgusting now."

At this moment, Li Weihan, Cui Guiying, a group of Li family siblings, Aunt Zhang, and several villagers who came to the small shop to buy things in the evening were all staring at Li Zhuiyuan with smiles and curiosity.

Everyone was quiet, and everyone was eager.

The simple yearning for beautiful things is human nature.

Nothing could have moved and gratified the onlookers more than a mother and son, separated by a great distance, yet able to hear each other's thoughts.

Li Zhuiyuan's hands still gripped the microphone tightly. The shy expression on his face not only didn't fade but became even more pronounced. He shifted his body slightly, as if trying to avoid everyone's gaze, but to everyone else, it looked more like a child's coy refusal.

Everyone found the scene very endearing. Their smiles grew brighter, their mouths slightly agape, as they waited for the conversation to continue.

Although they couldn't hear the voice on the other end of the microphone, they could imagine what the child's mother had said and asked based on the child's responses.

"Mom, I'm doing well at home, and I'm being very good."

"Shouldn't you be angry? Shouldn't you angrily hang up the phone? Shouldn't you cry or make a fuss? Shouldn't you question me, your mother?

Oh, right, you won't.

Heh heh.

Are they gathered around you in a circle, watching you?"

"Mom, I don't really miss home. I'm very happy here."

"Li Zhuiyuan, this is the first time you've met them, and it's the first time they've seen you since you were born. So, do you need to keep performing in front of them?"

"Grandma and Grandpa are very good to me. Pan Zi, Lei Zi, Yingzi, Shitou, Huzi, and all my siblings are also very good to me. They all play with me."

"Li Zhuiyuan, you're truly hypocritical. You look down on them at heart, thinking they're ignorant and stupid, yet you still try to create an image for yourself in front of them."

"The village is so much fun. There are fields, irrigation ditches, and we can catch fish and frogs. Grandma's pickles are delicious. Grandma said Mom loved them when she was little too."

"Don't you get tired? My son, why are you so endlessly devoted to this game?"

"I also visited Aunt Xianghou's house. Aunt Xianghou told me a lot about Mom's past. Many people still remember you, Mom."

"I'm truly amazing, to have borne such a disgusting son."

"Mom, is your work busy over there? Grandpa and Grandma hope you'll take good care of yourself, eat on time, and don't overwork yourself."

As Li Zhuiyuan spoke, he looked at Li Weihan and Cui Guiying. The elderly couple nodded vigorously, signaling for Li Zhuiyuan to continue.

"I thought I could control myself, but your birth became a mirror, reflecting the part of myself I hate the most. Li Zhuiyuan, do you know that every time I saw you these past few years, I was restraining the urge to strangle you?

Every time you called me 'Mom,' it sounded like a demon's whisper in my ears."

Li Zhuiyuan nodded as he listened. In the eyes of the crowd, it looked like he was obeying his mother's loving instructions. They seemed to guess that his mother was definitely on the phone, teaching him all sorts of precautions, telling him to be good, obedient, and not mischievous.

"I understand, Mom. I know. I understand."

"I try to patch up this skin I'm in. Every morning when I wake up, I look in the mirror and repeat affirmations and confirmations to myself.

But you, you always try to tear this skin off me, again and again.

You are me, and I am you.

Li Zhuiyuan, We, mother and son, Are both monsters wearing human skin."

"I understand, Mom. Don't worry, I'll be obedient."

Li Zhuiyuan's ear was pressed against the microphone, and he swayed gently. He looked like a child who was slightly impatient with his parents' nagging, and also a little embarrassed, yet feeling sweet inside.

"Your father once helped me control my illness, and my marriage also provided me with some assistance. I should have returned to the right path, until, I gave birth to you.

Your birth destroyed all my efforts over the years.

In my eyes, Li Zhuiyuan, You are a mistake that should never have happened."

"Mom, can you send some more snacks? Those cookies, we really like them. And some stationery, everyone really likes my pencil case. I promised them I'd give it to them."

Upon hearing this, Shitou and Huzi excitedly hugged each other.

"I shouldn't have tried to find a cure for you after discovering your true nature. Each failed treatment on you felt like witnessing my own repeated failures.

My life was already dim, and you, you completely extinguished the last glimmer of light I had.

Xiao Yuan, Why don't you just die?"

"Mom, you too."

"If you had just died on your own initiative early on, perhaps it would have awakened my maternal instincts, wouldn't it?"

"Mm, I won't."

"I'm going to participate in a secret project. The risk factor for that project is very high. I don't know if I'll be able to return alive."

"Mom, you need to take care of yourself. I'll worry about you."

"I'm telling you this because I don't want these true feelings to be hidden in my heart after I die, without me ever having the chance to tell you. I feel like we need this kind of honest conversation between us.

Actually, you've always understood. While I can see through you, you can see through me too, can't you?"

"Mhm, I'm listening. I'll remember it, Mom."

"This path is one you chose yourself.

When your father and I divorced, even though he begged you to stay with him, you firmly chose to come with me.

Your father always thought I was sick, that I was deliberately tormenting you and your father, causing you both pain.

But what he doesn't know is that his son is a more terrifying demon than I am. All his displays of fatherly love were nothing but a complete clown show in the eyes of his beloved son.

He's heartbroken and has already applied to join an Arctic research project.

When I wanted to change your surname back, your grandfather disagreed, but you insisted on changing it.

Your grandmother said if you followed me, you'd never be allowed back home again, but you still grabbed my sleeve and left with me.

Li Zhuiyuan, do you think doing all this will move me or make me change my mind?

My heart is filled with nothing but repeated, frustrated cries:

Why, Why do you insist on clinging to me and continuing to torment me!"

"Okay, okay, I understand everything, Mom. You don't need to say any more, I understand."

"I'm leaving for the project tomorrow. I don't know if I'll be able to return safely. My only hope is that if I do return alive, you will no longer be a part of my life.

I've thought it through, and I've made up my mind.

Li Zhuiyuan, I'm going to shake you off like a piece of stubborn gum.

I'll transfer your guardianship to your father. Even though he's not here, your grandparents will likely be very happy to take you in. After all, you're a child who can get into the gifted program, a source of pride for their family."

"I don't want that. I don't want anything else, just send me snacks and stationery, the new kinds, Mom."

"I know you won't want anything else. You'll still try to cling to anything that has to do with me. That's why I'm sending you back to my hometown, a place I will never return to in my life.

I will transfer your guardianship to my father. Your household registration and your academic records will be transferred there as well.

I'm very grateful that this project provides the convenience of arranging family relationships."

"Mom, I'm staying with Great Grandfather Li Sanjiang now. Great Grandfather likes me and asked me to stay with him for a while. Great Grandfather is very kind."

"I understand."

"Mhm, that's all for now, Mom. I need to give the microphone to Grandpa. Grandpa wants to keep talking to you."

Li Zhuiyuan held the microphone and waited for a moment. After hearing footsteps recede and then approach again from the other end, he reluctantly handed the microphone to Li Weihan.

Li Weihan took the microphone. "Hello, Lanhou? Don't worry, Little Yuanhou is doing very well here. We'll take good care of him."

Li Zhuiyuan didn't want to stay and watch his grandfather chat with Aunt Xu.

"Grandpa, Grandma, I'm going back to Great Grandfather's place for dinner."

Cui Guiying quickly said, "Hurry back now, don't keep your Great Grandfather waiting. In a while, your Grandpa and I will ask your Great Grandfather when you can return to secular life and come home."

"Okay, Grandma. Goodbye, Grandma. Goodbye, Grandpa. Goodbye, everyone."

Li Zhuiyuan waved goodbye to everyone and then turned to leave.

Run Sheng followed behind Li Zhuiyuan. He was hungry but didn't dare to remind or urge the boy to walk faster.

He had always felt the boy had two faces. Although the boy always called him "Brother Run Sheng," the way he said "Brother" felt different when there were other people around compared to when it was just the two of them.

The former was a respectful and enthusiastic address, while the latter sounded as if his name was simply "Run Sheng Ge."

But he didn't have the curiosity to explore this further. His grandfather had told him he was slow-witted and shouldn't waste his energy trying to figure out what smart people were thinking.

He felt the boy's mood was low. All he could do was walk with the boy at his own pace.

In Li Zhuiyuan's mind, his mother's words from the phone call replayed over and over.

He was somewhat comforted that his mother had spoken so much to him in one go after such a long time.

However, he knew that these words weren't really directed at him, her son, but rather at the person deep within his mother's heart.

And his mother saw him, her son, as the cold, icy embodiment of that person within her heart.

If it were him, and the expressionless reflection in the cabinet mirror were to become his child in the future, he too would go mad, would become hysterical.

After all the effort, all the striving to conceal and suppress that coldness, it had ultimately resulted in a child who clung to him all day, calling him "Mom."

At this moment, Li Zhuiyuan smiled.

He found it amusing, like a comical, ironic silent film in black and white.

He stopped walking and squatted down beside the small ditch by the roadside.

It was already dark, and the ditch water could only reflect a dark, murky face.

Li Zhuiyuan looked at this face, but he didn't know who it belonged to.

Run Sheng also squatted down beside him, silently lighting a stick of incense.

Li Zhuiyuan picked up a nearby stone and threw it at his own reflection in the water.

"Plop..."

After rippling outwards, it immediately returned to its original state.

He knew his mother was critically ill.

The phone call tonight was a form of self-abandonment, she was tired, she was desperate, she would completely let go of her struggle, no longer resist, and would integrate.

Thinking in a more positive direction, this phone call was her final outpouring.

Although it was filled with harsh words, curses, and imprecations.

At the same time, it did carry a sense of hatred, even jealousy.

Her human skin had completely broken, and she also wanted to shed her son's skin.

So, Mom, are you looking for a kindred spirit after completely sinking?

Were you angry?

Yes.

But Li Zhuiyuan didn't know how strong it was, because he could understand.

Because this was absolute rationality.

She proved through her own experience that all struggles were useless and meaningless, so she wanted to save herself this process through this method.

But Li Zhuiyuan was also very confused because she shouldn't have sent him back, she shouldn't have sent him back to Nantong.

Sometimes, you shouldn't listen to what others say, but rather watch what they do.

Continue to stay in Beijing, continue to attend the gifted children's program, continue to study step by step, graduate step by step, and be assigned a job step by step...

As long as he continued step by step, he would become the same person as her sooner.

She just needed to do nothing to turn herself into her, because he had fallen ill earlier than she did, and much more severely.

But she still sent him back to her hometown, saying she would never return in this life.

Is it because this place is the last fantasy you've kept in your heart?

Is this your last protection and expectation for me?

Do you think that living here is the reason you fell ill later than your son, and were able to get married and have children, living a normal life?

Li Zhuiyuan clasped his head with both hands, his expression pained: "Or is it all just wishful thinking on my part?"

Run Sheng saw the boy's body start to sway back and forth; he seemed to want to fall into the irrigation ditch.

Li Zhuiyuan really wanted to fall in, jump into the irrigation ditch, and cry while slapping the water. He thought he should vent right now.

But in the end, his movement stopped, because he felt it was too childish.

Li Zhuiyuan turned his head and looked at Run Sheng, who was squatting beside him.

Run Sheng shivered and immediately averted his gaze, not daring to meet those eyes.

Li Zhuiyuan looked at the stick of incense in Run Sheng's hand. He reached out and gently grasped the burning tip of the incense.

The burning sensation quickly came, but the boy's face showed no expression.

Until he reached a critical point.

"Hiss..."

The boy finally let go, his face contorted in pain.

"It hurts so much..."

His voice also changed back to a wronged, childlike tone.

Run Sheng turned his head. He had just felt the burning incense in his hand shake. Seeing the wound on Li Zhuiyuan's palm, he immediately said anxiously and self-reproachfully:

"I'm sorry, Little Yuan, I didn't mean to, I really didn't mean to."

Run Sheng thought that when he turned his head just now, he had accidentally burned the boy with the incense in his hand.

"It's okay, Brother Run Sheng, I just grabbed it out of curiosity."

Run Sheng's eyes were about to well up with tears. At this moment, Little Yuan was still making up a clumsy excuse to prevent him from blaming himself.

He felt even more guilty, thinking all sorts of things and finding Little Yuan's eyes terrifying just now.

Li Zhuiyuan looked at the wound on his palm.

Has the illness worsened to the point where he is seeking self-harm?

Li Zhuiyuan stood up and said, "Brother Run Sheng, let's go back."

"Your wound..."

"It's fine, I'll ask Aunt Liu for some ointment."

Walking home, the large group on the threshing ground was still eating, likely deliberately slowing down their meal to wait for him to return.

"Little Yuan, is that Mom's call?"

"Yes, Great Grandfather."

Li Zhuiyuan sat down, picked up his chopsticks, and began recounting his conversation with his mother.

He seemed very happy and delighted.

Like all normal children, there comes a time when parents are their idols, and they constantly talk about "my dad" or "my mom" and what they do.

Li Sanjiang listened with great pleasure, interjecting frequently. Each time Li Zhuiyuan answered him, Li Sanjiang became even happier, tapping his bowl with his chopsticks and saying, "I knew it, I knew it, hahaha."

Aunt Liu was also very pleased. Her naturally cheerful disposition made her happy to see the family atmosphere lighten up.

Even Liu Yumei asked Li Zhuiyuan a few questions.

She felt a pang of emotion, thinking that no matter how smart a child was, he couldn't escape his natural childlike nature.

Run Sheng gnawed on a cigarette while eating. Seeing Li Zhuiyuan's behavior, he subconsciously assumed that his silence on the way home was just the child missing his mother.

He didn't have parents, only a grandfather. So, watching Li Zhuiyuan constantly talk to everyone, a look of longing gradually appeared on his face:

So, having a mother is such a happy thing.

Only A Li silently put down her chopsticks.

She liked looking at boys' expressions, but the excited and happy boy in front of her had no light in his eyes.

After the meal, Li Zhuiyuan insisted on taking Li Sanjiang to Zheng Datong to get some medicine.

An injection would have been more effective, but Li Sanjiang absolutely refused.

After they returned, everything went back to normal.

Run Sheng sat in front of the television, watching it while smoking.

After Aunt Liu finished cleaning the kitchen stove, she busied herself coloring the paper figures.

A Li, coaxed by Li Zhuiyuan, went back to her room with Grandma Liu to sleep.

Li Zhuiyuan, behind the house, seriously practiced his horse stance.

When he returned to the second floor, he saw Li Sanjiang pouring laundry detergent into his hand.

On the stone slab by the water vat, a basin of hot water was placed, with a towel hanging nearby.

"Great Grandfather..."

"Great Grandfather, I've been informed of good news again."

"Congratulations."

"Go on, get out of here, you little shovel!"

"Heh heh."

Because of the interruption from his mother's call, Li Zhuiyuan realized that the issue of his good fortune hadn't been resolved yet.

Unfortunately, he couldn't ask Great Grandfather directly, as Great Grandfather himself didn't understand it.

So, what was being bought and sold in this transaction that consumed so much of his good fortune?

Li Zhuiyuan walked back to his bedroom, turned on the desk lamp, and took out the Liu Clan's Qi Gazing Art.

He opened it and frowned.

He missed Wei Zhengdao's writing.

Out of all the sets of books he had taken from the basement, only Wei Zhengdao's writing was comfortable for him to read.

Forcing himself to endure the discomfort, he read page by page with concentration.

He didn't know if he was gradually adapting to the essence of this "dog-crawling script,"

or if the content of the Liu Clan's Qi Gazing Art was truly profound and mysterious.

The more Li Zhuiyuan read, the more engrossed he became, gradually unable to stop.

This book discussed the principles of feng shui related to rivers, lakes, and seas.

It was a very specialized category. Normal "feng shui" had a broader scope, with water being just one element, and mountains and land being more important.

After all, whether for the living or the deceased, most things were located on land.

This book, however, focused primarily on water systems, covering aspects like water burials, water prisons, and water calamities, with mountains and land serving as supplements.

From a practical perspective, one could draw an analogy:

If you truly understood and absorbed other feng shui books, you might sense during your travels through famous mountains and rivers, "There might be an ancient tomb here."

After reading this book, while standing at the bow of a boat, you might have a sudden intuition and point your hand, saying, "There might be a dead float here."

Li Zhuiyuan didn't rush to continue reading the Liu family's books. Instead, he picked up the Qin Clan's Flood Dragon Observation Method again.

He discovered that the themes were consistent, suggesting that the Liu and Qin families were likely prominent families of equal standing on the river back then.

Although the themes were consistent, their approaches and methods differed.

This was highly beneficial for the learner, allowing them to cross-reference and deepen their understanding.

If he could understand both books, his understanding of the world's feng shui would become extremely profound.

He glanced at the time; it was time for him to sleep.

Li Zhuiyuan put away the books, turned off the desk lamp, took a basin of water, and took a bath. Then he returned to the bedroom, lay on the bed, folded the quilt, and lay down to sleep.

A quarter of an hour later, Li Zhuiyuan sat up. He couldn't sleep.

No matter how strong the inertia of his behavioral logic was, it couldn't suppress the impact of his mother's phone call on his heart.

He pushed open the door, walked to the balcony, and sat down in the rattan chair. Li Zhuiyuan looked at the dark night sky, lost in thought.

After an unknown amount of time, Liu Yumei opened the door to the east room. Seeing her granddaughter about to go out, she only managed to hang a cloak on her.

Looking up and seeing the boy sitting on the second-floor balcony, Liu Yumei's heart was filled with mixed emotions.

Is it not enough to be together during the day, but they have to play together at night too?

But looking at the boy's indifferent expression, she felt a little confused: wasn't this child alright during dinner? Why was he like this now?

Did he miss his mother when he was sleeping at night?

Although it was a child's nature, Liu Yumei felt that this little boy shouldn't be so fragile.

His current appearance was exactly like her A Li's when she used to sit by the threshold.

Soon, she saw her granddaughter's figure appear on the second floor. The girl sat down on the rattan chair next to the boy.

After a while, the girl actually took the initiative to share the cloak she was wearing, covering the boy with half of it.

Liu Yumei's eyes widened. Her granddaughter had taken the initiative to show concern for someone?

She had been living at Li Sanjiang's house for some time, but A Li's condition had only been controlled and had not worsened. As for improving, there wasn't even a trace of it.

It was only after that kid also moved in with his Great Grandfather that A Li's condition began to show signs of improvement, like water droplets finally forming on a block of ice.

But no matter how much it improved, it couldn't compare to today, this entire day and night!

First, she could nod and shake her head to express herself, and now she could even take such initiative to show care.

Liu Yumei looked up, preventing tears from welling up in her eyes. She had truly seen hope for her granddaughter's recovery. It seemed it wouldn't be long now.

She walked into the house and sat before the offering table, pointing at them:

"A Li got sick because of your irresponsibility. If you had left behind even a little bit of spiritual energy to protect her according to tradition, A Li wouldn't have become like this."

Picking up a handkerchief, she wiped away her tears and said with a choked voice:

"If I had known that smashing your spirit tablets would help A Li's condition, I would have chopped you all up for firewood long ago."

Li Zhuiyuan didn't know when the girl had arrived. She seemed to have been there for a long time, and something was covering his back, keeping him warm.

"You're here?"

The girl looked at the boy. This time, she took the initiative to hold his hand. Then, as if sensing something, she lowered her head and pried open the boy's palm.

There was a wound in his palm.

The girl's fingertips caressed it.

This was a rare moment of tenderness, and Li Zhuiyuan couldn't help but smile, but the smile quickly froze.

Because the girl's five fingers were all pressed into his palm, and her fingernails, all of medium length, dug directly into his flesh.

"Hiss..."

Li Zhuiyuan stood up in pain, his body almost twisting.

"A Li, it hurts, it hurts..."

They say all pain converges in the fingers, but the palm was also soft and sensitive. The girl's five fingernails had dug deeply into the flesh and were still exerting force.

The sensation was like plowing one's hand with a rake.

When he was by the irrigation ditch earlier and had actively grabbed the incense stick from Run Sheng, he truly hadn't felt any pain then because he hadn't been normal.

But now, he was normal.

His pleas for mercy seemed to be useless now. The girl, who had always been the most obedient to him, now seemed to be ignoring him.

Her eyelashes were trembling, her body was shaking, and the light in her eyes had disappeared, replaced by numbness.

A dangerous aura emanated from her.

In the past, whenever she was about to act out, the boy only needed to hold her hand to calm her down. But now, it was the boy's hand that was exacerbating her outburst.

Li Zhuiyuan pulled his hand away from the girl.

The girl's body gradually returned to calm, her eyelashes stopped trembling, and her eyelids drooped.

She turned around and walked towards the staircase.

The cloak that had been covering them fell off. Li Zhuiyuan picked it up, intending to put it back on the girl.

But as he approached again, the girl stopped. Her back began to tremble.

Li Zhuiyuan had to stop, even taking a few steps back.

The girl returned to normal and continued forward, her figure disappearing into the stairs.

Soon, the girl appeared on the open ground. The door to the east room had not been closed, and she walked in.

Li Zhuiyuan stood on the second floor, still holding the red cloak in his hand.

In the past, the girl had always loved collecting everything related to them. Now, she not only rejected contact with him but also anything that had touched her.

Li Zhuiyuan lowered his head, looking at the five bloody gashes on his palm, which were still bleeding.

He was in pain but not angry. Instead, he felt guilty.

He wiped away the blood with his left hand, revealing the burn mark in the center.

He knew why the girl had suddenly become angry.

It was because she had discovered that the person she had placed her hopes on to help her climb out of the abyss was actually walking into the abyss himself.

The greatest torture in the world was to give someone hope in despair, only to personally extinguish that hope.

She had, in fact, gotten used to it.

Li Zhuiyuan went to rinse his wounds, found a clean piece of cloth for a simple bandage, and then returned to his bedroom.

He lay down on the bed, unsure if sleepiness had truly overcome him or if his subconscious craved for everything to be restored by morning after a night's sleep.

In any case, he fell asleep.

His sleep was light. He woke up many times after short periods of sleep due to inexplicable palpitations, but he did not open his eyes, forcing himself to continue sleeping.

Finally, after countless times, he felt a clear light through his eyelids.

Day had broken.

He turned his head and opened his eyes. There was no one on the chair by the door.

Li Zhuiyuan picked up the washbasin and walked out of the bedroom. When he passed by Great Grandfather's room, he saw through the gauze door that Great Grandfather was not in bed.

After washing up and going downstairs, he didn't see Run Sheng at the table on the first floor either.

He hadn't slept too late today; how could everyone be up so early?

Li Zhuiyuan walked onto the open ground. Aunt Liu came out of the kitchen. "Little Yuan, good morning. Breakfast will be ready soon."

"Aunt Liu, where is my Great Grandfather?"

"The village chief came before dawn and called your Great Grandfather to the town government, saying there was an urgent matter. Run Sheng drove your Great Grandfather there."

Li Zhuiyuan nodded, then his gaze fell on the east room.

Behind the threshold of the east room, the girl in the black dress sat there. Her feet were placed on the threshold, her gaze level, without any emotion.

"Little Yuan, Little Yuan, hurry up and come here."

This morning, when her granddaughter didn't wake up as early as usual, she had already sensed that something was amiss.

After getting up and getting dressed, her granddaughter actually picked up a stool and sat behind the threshold.

In an instant, Liu Yumei felt as if the sky had fallen!

Now, her only hope was the boy.

Li Zhuiyuan walked towards the east room. As he got closer, the girl's body began to tremble, her hands unconsciously clenched slowly, and the depths of her eyes also tinged red.

Liu Yumei immediately reached out to stop Li Zhuiyuan from getting closer, stepped forward, squatted beside her granddaughter, and whispered words of comfort.

Her granddaughter's reaction was even more intense than when strangers approached before.

Li Zhuiyuan retreated a distance. Seeing that the girl had calmed down under Grandma Liu's comfort, he bit his lip and took a deep breath.

Yes, it was just as he had thought before going to sleep.

After a night's sleep, Everything had been restored.

"What? Say it again, I didn't hear you clearly!"

Li Sanjiang sat in the Civil Affairs Bureau office, banging on the table. He had actually heard clearly, but he couldn't believe it.

The director of the Civil Affairs Bureau and several staff members could only patiently explain it to him again, even though this was the fourth time.

They had also received notification from their superiors that a matter required special approval and expedited processing, so they had come to the office early to wait.

In fact, after seeing the faxed documents, they also felt a great deal of confusion.

In this day and age, such a thing could still happen?

"Elder, your surname is Li Sanjiang, right?"

"I brought my ID card and household registration book, so tell me, isn't it?"

"Yes, yes, yes. Actually, the matter is very clear. Now, it depends on whether you are willing to sign. If you are not willing, we will send these documents back."

Li Sanjiang picked up the pen somewhat blankly and asked, "If I sign this, will Little Yuanhou be added to my household registration?"