The 36th Chapter

"Runsheng Hou, stop the three-wheeler up ahead."

Run Sheng stopped the three-wheeler and bent over, lifting the brake lever.

Li Sanjiang took money from his pocket, not bothering to count it, and handed it to Run Sheng. "Go buy some steamed buns over there, and then go to the shop next door and buy me a bottle of wine."

"What, drinking wine this early in the morning?"

"Just go when I tell you to, don't ask so many questions."

"Alright."

Run Sheng came back with the buns and the wine.

Li Sanjiang bit open the bottle cap with his teeth, spat it out as he threw his head back, then picked up the bottle and took a big swig.

"Ugh... ugh... Hoo..."

The aftereffects of that early morning chug were too strong, and he had to take several bites of the steamed buns to suppress it.

"Why aren't you eating?"

"Sir, I left in such a hurry this morning that I didn't bring any incense."

"Then why did you buy so many buns? They'll be cold by the time we get back."

"They're still good cold! These are meat buns!"

"Let's go, let's go, let's head home."

"Alright, sit tight then, and don't fall off when you get into the spirit of it."

Li Sanjiang gave him a sideways glance, then raised the bottle and took another swig.

When he tried to take another bite of a bun, he let out a burp, and his whole demeanor suddenly turned melancholic. Tears welled up in his eyes, so he turned his head, reached over, and pulled at Run Sheng's vest to wipe his eyes.

Run Sheng looked back and asked, "Sir, shouldn't you be happy? Why are you crying again?"

"Happy? Happy my ass."

"Little Yuan isn't being registered under your household, is he? Isn't that something to be happy about?"

"What good is my household registration? Is it as good as a city registration, or a Beijing registration?"

"What's so special about a Beijing registration?"

"What's special? It's like finally leaping over the dragon gate like a carp, only to jump back down and turn back into a carp."

"Being a carp is fine too. That way, Little Yuan won't have to leave."

Li Sanjiang sighed, raised his hand, and slapped himself twice.

He had been called to the Civil Affairs Bureau by the village head early that morning. As soon as he walked in, he was surrounded by several staff members who placed documents in front of him. They said it was requested by Little Yuanhou's mother to transfer the child's household registration to him.

He had found it baffling at the time. Although he genuinely liked the child, he would never do something that would ruin the child's future!

But their explanation was that something had happened to Little Yuanhou's mother, and the child's household registration issue had to be resolved. If he didn't sign today, the documents would be returned, and Little Yuanhou would become an undocumented person, unable to attend school in the future.

Under the pressure of their mixed tactics, Li Sanjiang had signed the papers in a daze.

Now, even though he had been drinking, the slight breeze seemed to clear his head a bit. Even if the child's paternal grandfather didn't want him, he should have been registered under Li Weihan, so why under him?

Even though the child was living with him now, what did that have to do with him?

But now, it did.

Li Sanjiang looked down at the bag at his feet, which contained the household registration book and other documents.

"Damn it, why are the public offices working so efficiently today?"

He pulled out the household registration book, opened it, and saw a new name added under his own.

Li Sanjiang's heart was filled with mixed emotions. The Li family had finally produced a golden phoenix that flew to Beijing and laid an egg, only for the egg to be sent back to the old home:

"Sigh, decades of hard work, gone in one night."

"Well, it's only been one night, how did everything go back?"

Liu Yumei held her teacup, but the tea had gone cold, and she hadn't drunk it.

Looking at her granddaughter, who sat motionless on the doorstep, she felt a bitterness in her mouth. The tea tasted even more bitter.

She had been so happy she cried last night. If only she had saved some tears, she couldn't cry now.

She looked up at the balcony on the second floor. The boy was sitting in a rattan chair, reading intently, only occasionally looking down at A Li when he turned a page.

Liu Yumei really wanted to curse him: "You kid, don't just stare!"

If ordinary children had a fight and shouted at each other, "Hmph, I'm never playing with you again!"

And then sulkily ignored each other, that would be quite common and normal.

But Liu Yumei knew that such a thing wouldn't happen with her granddaughter, nor with that boy. The boy was smart and steady; he wouldn't do something so childish.

So, what exactly happened between the two of them?

After hesitating for a while, Liu Yumei finally stood up and walked into the main house.

Normally, she wouldn't come here, let alone go up to the second floor, but today, she had no choice but to make an exception.

Watching A Li's condition steadily improve, only for it to suddenly revert to its initial state, her heart felt like it had been scorched hot and then doused with a basin of water – it ached so much it felt like it would split open.

She had to ask what had happened. It wasn't that she was playing favorites; if something happened, she had to ask the boy. If she could get anything out of A Li, would she need to stay here?

As she approached, the boy also stood up, holding a book.

"Little Yuan, Grandma is here to talk with you."

"Grandma, please sit."

Liu Yumei sat down in the rattan chair that A Li used to use. Her peripheral vision caught sight of the book in the boy's hand, and it just looked like gibberish to her, completely indecipherable.

"Reading?"

"Mm."

Li Zhuiyuan politely placed the book beside him, turning halfway towards Liu Yumei to show he was listening attentively. Yes, what he had just been reading was the "Liu Clan's Qi Gazing Art."

"What's going on between you and A Li?"

"Grandma, it's my fault."

He had been greatly disheartened last night by what Li Lan had said on the phone.

Li Zhuiyuan lowered his head, looking at his palm, which he had bandaged himself.

He was A Li's balcony; she had gathered the courage to step out of the darkness, come onto the balcony, and begin to cautiously observe and interact with the world.

Just yesterday, A Li had discovered bricks appearing on the balcony, signifying that this balcony might be sealed off.

It was hard to imagine how desperate the girl must have felt last night when she saw the self-inflicted wounds on his palm.

She had already imprisoned herself at the bottom of a dark, dry well. One day, a rope was lowered from above, and someone kept talking to her from the well's opening. Just as she was preparing to climb up the rope, she discovered that the person who had been encouraging her had come down the rope himself.

Li Zhuiyuan knew that because the girl's eyes had once been full of him, his own downfall had caused her even greater harm and despair.

No, she had come last night; she wanted to accompany him. She wasn't afraid of him becoming dejected; she couldn't accept him giving up.

Like Li Lan, giving up the struggle, abandoning herself.

The light in her eyes was him, but last night, he had extinguished it.

"Sigh, what's the point of arguing about who's right or wrong now? Grandma wants to ask you, Little Yuan, do you have any other way to make A Li go back to how she was a few days ago? Can you?"

"Yes."

Liu Yumei's face lit up with excitement. "Really? What do I need to do?"

"I can't do it right now, Grandma. I need some time."

"You need time... What exactly do you need to do?"

"Read."

"Read?"

Liu Yumei frowned slightly. She suspected the boy in front of her was toying with her, but then she suddenly felt it made perfect sense. In her memory, it seemed like it was the boy reading on this second floor before, and as he read, A Li had actively walked towards him.

Could it be that her granddaughter liked the scholarly type?

Liu Yumei pondered. Was it because she liked dressing A Li in ancient costumes and usually enjoyed reading storybooks like "Romance of the Western Chamber"?

"Grandma, A Li has already gone back inside."

"What?" Liu Yumei looked down and saw that A Li was still sitting behind the threshold, not having moved at all. "Isn't she still there?"

"We need to find a way to call A Li out again so I can apologize to her face."

Liu Yumei couldn't quite understand, but seeing that the boy spoke so coherently, she inexplicably felt reassured.

"Then, you should read your book properly."

"Okay, Grandma."

Liu Yumei went downstairs.

Li Zhuiyuan picked up the "Liu Clan's Qi Gazing Art" again. These gibberish characters... if he looked away for even a moment, he had to start all over again to regain his focus, or he wouldn't understand anything.

After reading another page, as he turned it, Li Zhuiyuan looked down at the girl.

He wasn't the least bit dissatisfied with the girl's sudden "departure"; he really liked this feeling of being needed.

He finally had a mask that he couldn't take off.

Li Lan, what you failed to find, I have found.

Back downstairs, Liu Yumei's expression also became a bit more relaxed as she brewed herself another pot of tea.

Just then, Run Sheng rode his tricycle onto the courtyard.

"Uncle, we're home, we're home. Uncle, wake up, wake up."

Liu Yumei stepped forward and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Great Grandfather drank too much."

"Oh, did he go out for an early drink?"

"I got drunk as I was drinking." Run Sheng took out the empty wine bottles from the car, holding them upside down. There wasn't a single drop left.

"You carry him up."

"Alright."

Run Sheng grabbed Li Sanjiang's shoulder with his left hand and then smoothly shifted him with his right. Li Sanjiang ended up on his back.

Liu Yumei asked, "Who taught you to carry him like that?"

"Huh? Nobody taught me. I just got used to it from carrying so many corpses."

"Next time, remember not to carry him like that. It's bad luck."

"Alright, I got it."

Liu Yumei waved her hand, dispersing the smell of alcohol in front of her, and also signaled Run Sheng to quickly carry the person away.

Run Sheng ran into the house and went straight up to the second floor.

Liu Yumei walked back to her tea table and, as usual, picked up her teacup with her index and middle fingers.

She lifted it into the air, and the cup suddenly swayed, but not a drop of tea spilled out.

Liu Yumei exclaimed in surprise:

"It's full again?"

"Little Yuan, help me open the door. Great Grandfather drank himself under the table."

Li Zhuiyuan opened the screen door and, along with Run Sheng, settled Li Sanjiang onto the bed. Li Sanjiang's face was flushed red, looking completely passed out from drunkenness.

Afterward, Li Zhuiyuan and Run Sheng walked out of the room and into the hallway.

"What exactly happened?"

Great Grandfather loved to drink, but it wasn't to the point of starting in the morning.

Run Sheng scratched his head and said, "Little Yuan, your household registration has been transferred to Grand Uncle's place. It seems like your student status and everything else have been transferred too."

Li Zhuiyuan was taken aback. Was it that fast?

Last night on the phone, Li Lan had said she was going to transfer his household registration. He had mentioned that he was currently living at Li Sanjiang's house, deliberately hinting at something. It was clear Li Lan had understood.

Of course, it would be strange if she hadn't understood; they both acknowledged each other's intelligence.

However, not only was the efficiency high this time, but his student status could also be transferred. It seemed the project Li Lan was participating in was indeed very important. The resettlement of family members was being fast-tracked, something even those old professors couldn't stop.

"Little Yuan, I'm going downstairs to eat some steamed buns first."

"Okay, go ahead, Brother Run Sheng."

After Run Sheng went down, Li Zhuiyuan took a washbasin and washed a towel. Then, he pushed open Li Sanjiang's room door again and went inside.

Li Sanjiang lay on the bed, his left arm across his forehead, his legs spread apart.

Li Zhuiyuan squeezed the towel dry and handed it to Li Sanjiang.

"Great Grandfather, wipe your face."

Li Sanjiang didn't move.

"Great Grandfather has a good tolerance for alcohol. He's not drunk. If he were really asleep, he'd be snoring."

"Cough cough..." Li Sanjiang opened his eyes and looked at Li Zhuiyuan by the bedside. "Little Yuanhou, Great Grandfather did something wrong."

"No, it's Great Grandfather who took me in."

"You're still young. You probably don't know what a Beijing household registration means."

"Great Grandfather, that's not that important."

"What do you know, you little brat? When you grow up, you'll definitely be angry and regret this. Listen to Great Grandfather. Try to find your Paternal Grandfather's side and have them get it back for you."

"Great Grandfather, I have the surname Li now."

"Sigh, tell me, what is this your mother has done? You don't feel bad, but Great Grandfather does. Great Grandfather feels he's let you down, truly sorry. Your future, my child, has been ruined just like this."

"Great Grandfather, it's okay. At worst, I'll be like Li... like my mom, and get into a university in a big city."

"Right, school! I almost forgot!"

Li Sanjiang sprang up from the bed like a carp and quickly ran to the stool, opening the bag containing the household registration book and other documents.

"Great Grandfather still has to ask people to find a school for you. How about Shinan Elementary? No, Shigang's is bigger. Let's go to Shigang for elementary school."

"Elementary school..."

"Let me tell you, Little Yuanhou, you can play however you want during the summer vacation, but when school officially starts, you absolutely cannot fall behind. You need to focus on your studies."

"Great Grandfather, do you know anyone at the school?"

"If I don't know anyone, can't I find someone? Even if I can't find someone directly, finding someone indirectly who can safely take money is fine. I heard that schools also have good classes and bad classes. We have to try our best to get you into a good class. By the way, Little Yuan, what grade are you in?"

"Great Grandfather, that Uncle Tan from last time was quite nice."

"Uncle Tan, which Uncle Tan?"

"The Captain Tan from the police station."

"I've only met him twice, we're not close. Besides, he's not from the school."

"Shigang Town is this small, it'll be much more convenient if he helps out. He even invited me to his place last time. I'll bring the files over in a bit and ask him."

"Alright, then Great Grandfather will go with you then."

"No need. If he can't handle it, and you go, it'll be too awkward. I'm just a kid, so it's more appropriate for me to ask."

"Then let's leave it at that for now. You ask him when you go to his house, and I'll try to find someone on my end too."

Seeing Li Sanjiang agree, Li Zhuiyuan breathed a sigh of relief.

He didn't want to leave this place right now, but he also didn't want Great Grandfather to send him to elementary school immediately.

Although he hadn't interacted much with Captain Tan, he owed him a favor from last time, so he should help. The main thing was to help him skip grades, preferably to the third year of high school.

This way, he could participate in the college entrance examination a year later.

If he wanted to shorten the time, he could also participate in the National Olympiad competition held every winter to get a recommendation for admission.

However, where should he go to university?

Since Li Lan didn't want to see him, he wouldn't go to where she was.

Li Zhuiyuan suddenly thought of a university. Both its name and its majors were very suitable for him right now... Haihe University.

At this thought, Li Zhuiyuan couldn't help but laugh in his heart:

"Brother Liangliang, it seems we'll really be schoolmates from now on."

Great Grandfather scratched his head, thinking about his network of connections, while Li Zhuiyuan walked out to continue reading.

He only put down his book to go downstairs for lunch when Aunt Liu called him.

Sitting on his small stool, he looked at the empty seat beside him and the table without the girl's small plate, and indeed felt a sense of emptiness.

He turned his head and saw that A Li's small dining table had been moved to the east room. Liu Yumei was sorting out her food portions while trying to persuade her.

Finally, A Li picked up her chopsticks and started eating.

Liu Yumei nodded with relief. As she stood up, she felt a slight ache in her back. Before, A Li would eat with just a word from the boy, why did she need to persuade her for so long?

Suddenly, a sense of urgency arose in her heart. She was getting older. If she were gone and A Li's illness still hadn't recovered, who would take care of A Li?

Li Sanjiang also came down to eat. After sitting down, he saw Li Zhuiyuan sitting there alone. He looked around and found that the girl had gone into the room. He immediately slammed down his chopsticks and said indignantly:

"I say, do we have to be so realistic? Our Little Yuanhou just lost his Beijing household registration, and now you're unwilling to eat at the same table?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Pan Zi and Lei Zi running over, sweating profusely.

"Great Grandfather, Great Grandfather, something bad has happened! Four Haizi's fish pond is in trouble. When they were clearing the pond, a lot of red water suddenly came out, like blood. Four Haizi and the few people who went into the fish pond to set nets had their skin rot!"

"Great Grandfather, the people over there asked us two to come and invite you to take a look."

"What?" Li Sanjiang shot up from his seat. "Run Sheng, let's go take a look!"

Upon hearing the description, Li Zhuiyuan silently recited: Yin Earth Red Fiend?

Liu Yumei touched her temple, also puzzled. How could there be Yin Earth Red Fiend in this area?

Run Sheng reluctantly put down his food basin and followed Li Sanjiang.

Li Zhuiyuan did not go. He would not go near the water until he confirmed that his fortune issue was resolved.

Returning to the second floor, Li Zhuiyuan reopened his book and continued reading.

If it was just Yin Earth Red Fiend, Great Grandfather shouldn't be in any danger. This kind of Yin Earth Red Fiend formation only appeared in "bait hole" locations.

Throughout history, it wasn't just famous mountains and great rivers or auspicious veins where things were buried. In fact, many ancient people chose to bury things in riverbeds, such as tombs, temples, and treasures.

The silt accumulation and the changes in river courses made it easier to form "seas turning into mulberry fields" quickly, making them harder to find.

Yin Earth Red Fiend was a more traditional feng shui mechanism formation. Once triggered, the things inside could quickly scatter with the surging water, causing harm to those who coveted them.

But they were basically used as "bait holes," that is, deliberately set traps specifically to catch Water Monkeys.

However, this also indicated that there was likely a main hole nearby. It was just unknown what was buried inside.

Li Zhuiyuan had no interest in finding it, because those who had the conditions to set up Yin Earth Red Fiend would definitely have built "living burials" back then. This didn't mean burying people alive, but rather that the underwater structures they built could move with the changes in the water patterns.

Therefore, when they were built, the distance between the bait holes and the main hole might have been standard, but now, they were all over the place. Even if you knew the location of a bait hole, you couldn't deduce the location of the main hole.

Four Haizi's family was also unlucky. It was either that their fish pond happened to be dug on top of a bait hole, or the bait hole itself moved under their fish pond.

Of course, if neither of the above situations occurred, then the nature of the matter might change, and it might truly be that a Water Monkey had taken the bait.

Li Zhuiyuan spent the entire afternoon reading. Great Grandfather and Run Sheng did not return until dinner.

During dinner, Li Sanjiang talked about what happened at Four Haizi's house.

Two outsiders wanted to contract Four Haizi's fish pond at a high price to raise soft-shelled turtles. So, even though it wasn't time to clear the pond yet, Four Haizi decided to clear it and rent it out.

When Four Haizi and his son went into the pond to set nets at noon, something happened. The two outsiders who were helping in the pond at the time also had an accident. The bodies of all four people were like they had been rolled in lime water, with large areas of burns. Although they were not dead and had been sent to the hospital, their appearance was truly terrifying.

The nearby villagers were all quite shaken. Li Sanjiang performed a ritual there that afternoon, and once it was finished, the pond full of red water receded. The villagers all said that Grandpa Sanjiang had subdued the evil spirits.

As he spoke of this, Li Sanjiang smugly stroked his chin and took a swig of wine.

Li Zhuiyuan, however, guessed that after the Geothermal Red Malice was disturbed and released, the bait hole must have opened, and all the water in the pond had flowed into it.

Moreover, those two outsiders were truly kind-hearted. Not only did they contract the fish pond at a high price, but they also helped clear it out.

After the meal, Li Zhuiyuan was about to go upstairs to practice his horse stance when Run Sheng mysteriously stopped him.

"Little Yuan, come here for a moment."

Li Zhuiyuan followed Run Sheng to the side of the three-wheeled bicycle. Run Sheng pulled back the white plastic sheet covering it, revealing an old shovel lying inside.

"Little Yuan, look, doesn't this shovel resemble our Yellow River Shovel a bit? But it only looks similar; it's not as good as ours."

Li Zhuiyuan took the shovel and tried folding and transforming it a few times. The core structure was indeed the same as the Yellow River Shovel, but the detailed design was far inferior.

However, this thing was genuinely old, with many repair marks; it was an antique.

"Brother Run Sheng, did you find this by the fish pond today?"

"Yeah, I didn't dare tell Grandpa and just secretly picked it up myself because I smelled a corpse odor on it."

Li Zhuiyuan leaned in to smell it, but he couldn't detect anything. However, he trusted Run Sheng's judgment, as professional corpse retrievers often had an almost incomprehensible sensitivity to the smell of water corpses.

"Is it from those two outsiders?"

"I don't know. When we went there, all four of them were badly injured, and this thing was just lying by the pond."

"You did well, Brother Run Sheng."

"Ah... I thought you'd be mad at me for taking something without permission."

"This is no ordinary item."

An imitation Yellow River Shovel from a bygone era, still carrying the stench of a water corpse, almost explicitly indicated that it must be something used by those Water Monkeys.

Water Monkeys referred to underwater thieves. When they were digging and were spotted by people on shore, they would often drag them into the water to silence them. Therefore, legends about Water Monkeys specifically targeting scapegoats circulated in various places.

"Little Yuan, is it useful?"

"It's useful, Brother Run Sheng. If you smell this kind of scent again in the future, remember to remind me promptly."

"Alright, no problem."

"Oh, right, Brother Run Sheng, play a few hands of cards with me."

"What, play cards with me?" Run Sheng recalled the scene from the other day in the hall where Little Yuan was dominating, like another God of Gamblers, Gao Jin, in his eyes.

"Just a few casual games, no money involved."

There were already opened decks of cards in the drawer. Li Zhuiyuan and Run Sheng sat opposite each other. Run Sheng shuffled and dealt. It was simple: three-card stud, and after the cards were dealt, they would reveal them and compare their ranks.

After twenty hands, Run Sheng won eight, and he won twelve.

Li Zhuiyuan then switched to shuffling and dealing himself. After twenty hands, he won nine, and Run Sheng won eleven.

It seemed his special good fortune had disappeared?

But what price had he paid?

Li Zhuiyuan sat there, idly playing with the cards, constantly waiting for a big win, but that big win never came.

Never mind, he wouldn't think about it anymore. He'd find Run Sheng to play cards with again tomorrow morning. If the win-loss ratio was still this normal, then he could go out.

East Wing.

Aunt Liu was brushing Liu Yumei's hair and sighed, "Little Yuan's household registration is settled here. This child, his luck is truly bad, taking such a big fall."

"Took a big fall? Perhaps the boy himself doesn't feel anything."

"That's because he's still young and doesn't understand, perhaps?"

"Auntie Ting, haven't you interacted with him? Do you really think he's just a child?"

"He doesn't seem like one."

"For an ordinary person, encountering something like this would likely ruin their luck for a lifetime, causing them to fall into despair.

But this ladder of rules was designed for ordinary people. For true geniuses, it's nothing at all.

In times of peace, they can ascend whenever they wish, and there are plenty of ways to do so. Ordinary people can only envy them."

"You're right, that's exactly how it is."

"But it's good this way too. I was worried he'd leave after the summer vacation ended, but it looks like he'll be staying here for a while longer."

"Regarding A Li's illness, does Little Yuan have any ideas?"

"He said he has a way, but he needs to read books."

"What kind of method is that?"

"Let's just wait and see. We're old now; we don't understand the affairs of the younger generation."

The next morning, as Li Zhuiyuan woke up, he habitually turned his head to look. No one was sitting on the chair by the door as usual.

"Sigh..."

After Li Zhuiyuan got up and washed, he read outside for a while. When he went down for breakfast, Ah Li was still not by his side.

After the meal, Li Zhuiyuan pulled Run Sheng, and like last night, they continued to play cards, comparing who had the bigger hand. The win-loss ratio was very healthy.

Finally, he was relieved and could go out.

"Captain Tan, morning."

"Morning, Captain Tan."

"Mm, morning to you both."

Tan Yunlong, dressed in casual clothes, rode his motorcycle into the station, greeting colleagues he passed.

It was actually not early anymore, it was already morning. He had also taken leave and arrived late because early this morning, he had gone to see his son's teacher at school.

Students who were originally in the second year of high school and were about to enter their third year during the summer vacation had a very short break and had already returned to school for classes. His son had gotten into a fight outside the school last night, making quite a commotion and almost starting a group brawl.

However, he didn't blame his son because his son had stood up to protect a classmate who was being bullied.

Tan Yunlong had always been open-minded about his son's studies. It was fine if his grades weren't outstanding, and it was fine if he couldn't get into a good university for college entrance exams, as long as he had good character and values.

This was also why, when he transferred jobs, he didn't hesitate to argue with his wife and insisted on transferring his son to a school near his workplace. He needed to keep an eye on this kid.

Having been a police officer for a long time, he had seen too many kinds of evil. He knew that if he didn't control his child's character, no amount of nurturing would be meaningful.

As he walked into the office building, the colleagues he met continued to greet him warmly. Although a heinous crime had occurred in the jurisdiction, it had been solved quickly, and he had received commendations for it.

Even the director had hinted to him to take this opportunity to network more. After all, his old connections were still there, and receiving commendations would make it natural for him to transfer back. But Tan Yunlong didn't seem to have any intention of doing so. He felt quite good about being at the township police station.

As Tan Yunlong pushed open the office door, he paused for a moment, then a smile appeared on his lips as he closed the door.

He picked up the kettle, made a cup of tea, and handed it to the boy.

The boy took something wrapped in newspaper from his feet and opened it in front of him. It was a shovel.

Cultural relics unearthed from the ground all belonged to the state. Private theft was illegal, and their channels for selling stolen goods were often abroad, so it was important to report it to the police promptly.

After listening to the boy's concise explanation, Tan Yunlong first got up and walked out of the office to arrange for people to set up surveillance in the clinic's ward. Then he closed the door and sat back down. Seeing Li Zhuiyuan holding his teacup and taking several sips of hot tea without putting it down.

"It seems you need my help with something this time."

"Yes, Uncle Tan, I'd like to ask you to help me enroll. This is my file."

Tan Yunlong looked through the documents and then said in confusion, "What is this operation?"

"I want to go to school."

"Okay, I'll help you contact the town elementary school. What grade were you in before?" Tan Yunlong held the enrollment certificate and looked at it carefully. "Is the gifted class elementary school? And this university's name, tsk tsk, were you attending the affiliated elementary school of this university before?"

"I want to skip grades."

"Skip to sixth grade? I know that Beijing has good educational resources, but the competition here is also quite fierce. If we're only talking about test-taking ability, Beijing's might not be better than here."

"The third year of high school."

"Mm, third year of high school... What?" Tan Yunlong looked up and stared at the boy. "Are you sure you're not joking?"

"Uncle Tan, you just need to help me arrange the skipping grade process. As for the exams and tests, I'll handle them myself."

Li Zhuiyuan knew that there were skipping grade policies in various places, and many classmates in his class had advanced this way.

"Really?" Tan Yunlong's interest was piqued. "Judging by your tone, it's just that the college entrance exams have ended. Otherwise, you could be preparing for the college entrance exams directly."

"No, I still want to stay here for a while longer. I don't want to leave."

"How about this, I can help you, but to avoid me making a fool of myself, you have to come to my house for dinner tonight. My son is also about to enter his third year of high school."

"Not tonight, but tomorrow or the day after."

Seeing the boy so calm and composed, Tan Yunlong couldn't help but believe him and asked, "Are you one of those child prodigies?"

Li Zhuiyuan hesitated. A more accurate description of himself would probably be a child with an illness.

"Then why did you go and do that?" Tan Yunlong waved his hand, referring to corpse retrieval.

This time, Li Zhuiyuan's answer was firm:

"It's fun, interesting."

"If you're really like that, you should study hard and serve the country."

"Aren't I doing that?"

"I don't mean it that way. Alright, then tomorrow night, I'll pick you up from your place. I remember where you live."

"Okay." Li Zhuiyuan stood up and bowed to Tan Yunlong. "Thank you, Uncle."

Tan Yunlong also stood up, walked towards the boy, and patted his head. "It's Uncle who should thank you."

Before noon, Li Zhuiyuan returned home in Run Sheng's tricycle.

There were several bricklayers at home, building a house in the back.

Aunt Liu walked over with a smile and said to Li Zhuiyuan:

"Your Great Grandfather just asked what was going on. I said you requested a workshop, and he actually nodded without asking further questions. He went inside and got money for me, but I pushed it back, saying I had enough.

He asked where the money came from. I said Run Sheng won it playing cards."

"Heh heh."

Run Sheng, who was parking his car nearby, let out a foolish grin.

Li Zhuiyuan turned and reminded him, "Brother Run Sheng, aren't you going to run?"

"What?"

From inside the main house, a figure suddenly darted out, holding a rattan vine used for making paper effigies, and lunged straight for Run Sheng:

"I told you not to learn bad habits! Who did you have to learn from but your country bumpkin father playing cards and gambling? I'll beat you to death, beat you to death!"

Run Sheng ran, and Great Grandfather chased.

They began circling the fields in front of the courtyard.

Li Zhuiyuan inwardly sighed, thinking how good Great Grandfather's health was.

He had recovered quickly from his cold, and hadn't been picking up bird droppings lately. It seemed that after his own luck issues were resolved, Great Grandfather had also returned to normal.

Then, Li Zhuiyuan looked towards the east wing. A Li was still sitting behind the threshold, motionless, like an exquisite sculpture.

These past few days, without the girl's company, his reading had truly become just reading.

Liu Yumei gave Li Zhuiyuan a meaningful look, signaling him to try and interact with A Li again.

Li Zhuiyuan didn't go. Instead, he walked directly into the house and went upstairs. The "Liu Clan's Qi Gazing Art" was almost finished.

He had been staying up late every day to read, forcefully accelerating his progress.

Liu Yumei sat on a chair, looking up at the second floor. A wave of frustration uncontrollably rose within her. Before, she used to feel jealous that her granddaughter was close to the boy. Now, she wished her granddaughter could be as clingy with the boy as she used to be.

But this boy was genuinely just reading every day. Why didn't you try interacting with her? You wouldn't know if it would work unless you tried. Girls need to be coaxed.

From childhood until now, A Li had only had this one playmate. Liu Yumei didn't believe her granddaughter had completely lost feelings for the boy.

After lunch, Li Zhuiyuan continued reading. In the afternoon, Li Zhuiyuan finally finished the book.

He leaned back in his rattan chair, seizing the time to organize and deepen his understanding of the entire book's content.

Although his eyes were closed, images of the weather phenomena and scenes recorded in the book's text appeared in his mind. His left and right hands gestured irregularly. To outsiders, it looked like the boy was closing his eyes and imagining himself as a music conductor. But in Li Zhuiyuan's perception, he was manipulating different water environments.

For this type of book, rote memorization had limited effect. One had to achieve a profound understanding, reaching a level of recondite comprehension akin to art appreciation, to truly grasp it.

Fine beads of sweat appeared on his face, his brows furrowing and relaxing intermittently.

After he had completely organized his thoughts, the boy opened his eyes, which were filled with exhaustion.

He sat up and realized his face felt sticky. It turned out he had a nosebleed, and quite a lot of it. A large patch on his clothes was soaked red.

Li Zhuiyuan knew this was his body's warning for overusing his brain.

To digest the "Liu Clan's Qi Gazing Art" in just a few days was an extremely demanding challenge, even for him. Fortunately, he had completed it. However, he couldn't continue doing things like this in the future.

Otherwise, he was very worried that before any mental problems arose, his body would give out first.

He took a shower, changed his clothes, and washed the blood-stained clothes himself. Li Zhuiyuan went downstairs, told Aunt Liu he was tired and wouldn't be eating dinner, then headed back behind the house.

Li Sanjiang and Run Sheng were helping the bricklayers. The workshop was being built against the back wall of the main house and would be completed before nightfall.

Li Zhuiyuan told Li Sanjiang he wouldn't be eating dinner, explaining he had stayed up too late studying last night and couldn't stay awake, wanting to go to sleep early.

He had originally just wanted to avoid worrying Great Grandfather and, more importantly, prevent Great Grandfather from checking on him at night and disturbing his rest, so he came to inform him.

However, upon hearing his words, Li Sanjiang's eyes immediately turned red. He quickly waved his hand, signaling Li Zhuiyuan to go back and sleep.

After Li Zhuiyuan left, Li Sanjiang wiped his eyes with the back of his hand:

"He says he doesn't care to make me feel better, but Little Yuanhou is actually anxious. Listen, his mind was never on studying before. When has he ever studied diligently late at night?"

Returning from behind the house to the front, Li Zhuiyuan had to walk close to the wall, keeping a sufficient distance. Otherwise, A Li would have a reaction.

From a safe distance, Li Zhuiyuan stood there and watched the girl for a long time.

He had worried before whether he would be able to adapt if he couldn't see A Li after returning to the capital.

Now, he didn't need to worry. He knew he simply couldn't adapt.

Just as A Li had grown accustomed to the darkness, he too had grown accustomed to various masks.

If he had never experienced it, everything could have remained the same. But precisely because he had experienced it... he couldn't go back.

"Little Yuan, come, have some tea with Grandma."

"No, Grandma, I'm tired. I'm going back to my room to sleep."

Back in his room, Li Zhuiyuan lay down on the bed and began to sleep. He was truly exhausted.

He slept until deep into the night. When he woke up, he got out of bed and first went into Great Grandfather's room to retrieve some things. Great Grandfather was sleeping soundly, so soundly that even thunder wouldn't wake him.

Then he went downstairs. The television was on, displaying a colorful static image.

Run Sheng was lying on the makeshift bed on the floor, holding the little black dog, sleeping soundly.

This little black dog was now being looked after by Run Sheng. Of course, it didn't really need looking after, as it spent most of its time sleeping in its own doghouse. Great Grandfather had only discovered the presence of an extra dog in the house after several days.

"Run Sheng ge, wake up."

"Mmm... What's up, Little Yuan?"

"Run Sheng ge, come out with me for a bit, bring the tools."

"Okay!"

Li Zhuiyuan went to get more incense and candles, and also grabbed some ingredients from the kitchen. When he came out, he saw Run Sheng preparing to push the tricycle.

"Run Sheng ge, it's not far, we can walk."

"Okay." Run Sheng followed, carrying a large sack, and asked in a low voice, "Little Yuan, are we going to deal with them?"

"Deal with who?"

"Those guys who contracted the fish pond."

"The police will handle them."

"Then what are we going there for?"

"To ask for help."

Run Sheng turned to look at the sack he was carrying, then at the incense and sacrificial offerings in Li Zhuiyuan's hand.

"To ask for help, we need to bring these?"

Li Zhuiyuan led Run Sheng to a fish pond. Directly opposite the pond was Big Beard's house.

Big Beard's wife had already left with their eldest son. They planned to sell this house, but it wasn't easy to sell the homestead to outsiders. Moreover, someone had just drowned in front of the house, and the story had spread eerily. Even with a very low price, no one dared to take it for now.

Therefore, this place was currently one of the most secluded spots in the village.

Li Zhuiyuan stood in front of the fish pond, closed his eyes, and then slowly opened them. The contents of the "Liu Clan's Qi Gazing Art" appeared in his mind.

He was the one who had brought Little Yellow Oriole here initially, and now he had to confirm if Little Yellow Oriole was still here.

The color of the water's surface, the state of the aquatic plants, what was on the bank and off the bank, including the wind blowing across it—all these minute details formed the meteorological phenomena in Li Zhuiyuan's mind.

Li Zhuiyuan walked slowly along the edge of the fish pond, observing carefully. Finally, he confirmed that there was a dead float hidden in the fish pond.

Little Yellow Oriole was still here.

"Run Sheng ge, here, here, and over there, dig small holes and place incense."

"Okay." Run Sheng picked up the Yellow River Shovel and got to work.

Li Zhuiyuan, on the other hand, threw the offerings he brought into specific locations in the pond, then placed two candles at the guiding position on the southwest side of the pond and lit them.

After doing all this, Li Zhuiyuan picked up a stack of yellow paper and lit it with the candle.

"Run Sheng ge, don't do anything unless I tell you to later. You should stand back now and then follow us."

Run Sheng obediently stood back, then asked doubtfully, "Follow us?"

Li Zhuiyuan waved the burning yellow paper, chanting, "Young Li Zhuiyuan requests your emergence from the water. Three sacrifices will be offered in return."

"Crack!"

The yellow paper was pressed into the soil and extinguished.

Li Zhuiyuan turned around, his back to the pond, holding the incense burner in his left hand and the bell in his right.

Although Run Sheng was standing far away, he could see clearly. He saw ripples suddenly appear on the surface of the pond behind Li Zhuiyuan, and then the figure of a long-haired woman slowly emerged onto the bank.

A dead float!

Run Sheng's breathing immediately quickened. He wanted to shout that Little Yuan was in danger, but then he thought that Little Yuan had summoned this dead float himself.

Then, his mind took another turn: Oh my god, Little Yuan can actually summon dead floats!

He had followed his grandfather to retrieve bodies since he was young, always reacting passively. He had never seen or even imagined that there could be such an active method!

How did Little Yuan do it?

Two cold hands landed on his shoulders. Li Zhuiyuan felt his body sink, and then the dampness of water soaked his clothes.

This familiar feeling had returned.

However, this time, he wasn't very scared, but just to be safe, he still called out to Run Sheng.

"Ding ding ding... Ding ding ding... Ding ding ding..."

The clear bell sound rang out. Li Zhuiyuan began to move forward, and the figure behind him also followed him.

Under the moonlight, Two figures, one tall and one short, cast their shadows.

East room bedroom.

Liu Yumei was fanning Ah Li with a cattail fan. Ah Li's eyes were open; she hadn't slept yet.

Before, that boy would coax her to sleep every night, and Ah Li would obediently close her eyes when she returned to her room, trying to fall asleep so she could wake up early to dress up and meet him.

Suddenly, Liu Yumei seemed to sense something, got up, and walked to the window to look outside. Then, she looked at A Li on the bed and saw that A Li's eyes, which had been open, were now slowly closing.

"This... this is... this is..."

Even Liu Yumei, who had weathered many storms, was rendered speechless by shock. After a long moment, she recalled what the boy had said to her the day before yesterday:

"Grandma, A Li is back in her room. We need to find a way to call her out again so I can apologize to her face."

A wry smile spread across Liu Yumei's face:

"No, is this how young people arrange to meet at night now?"

Li Zhuiyuan walked to the open ground, shaking a bell and carrying an incense burner, and then stopped.

Immediately, Li Zhuiyuan closed his eyes.

Although he was wet, cold, and uncomfortable, he forced himself to enter a state of sleep.

In fact, he didn't need to truly sleep; achieving a semi-conscious, dazed state was enough to successfully walk the yin path.

When he slowly opened his eyes, he first looked behind him. The figure in the long dress and qipao was still there. Looking further into the distance, he couldn't see Run Sheng.

Yes, I've successfully entered the dream.

"Please wait a moment, I'll send you back shortly."

After speaking, Li Zhuiyuan put down the bell and incense burner in his hands and then walked forward.

He broke free from the restraint of those hands. The qipao figure remained motionless, still holding her hands up.

Li Zhuiyuan walked to the front of the east room and stopped.

Soon, the girl's figure appeared.

This time, she finally didn't completely ignore him as she had during the day, but instead, her gaze fell upon him.

Late at night, pitch black, on the open ground stood a boy, a girl, and a dead float.

The boy looked at the girl and said sincerely:

"A Li, will you forgive me?"