Chapter 45

"What? My grandpa broke his leg?"

Run Sheng froze completely. Grandpa Shan had found him by the river, and though the two of them often went hungry together, they had always faced hunger together. Their bond was genuine and deep.

Tan Wenbin's eyebrows shot up in excitement. He practically wanted to stand on one foot and spin around like a ballerina. He finally had a chance to see a Death Collapse!

Li Zhuiyuan, meanwhile, felt somewhat guilty. Thinking about the timing, it had probably happened after he went to Xiting Town to win money at cards, when Grandpa Shan had taken half of his winnings.

Sigh, dirty money really was hard to spend.

"What are you standing around for?" Li Sanjiang shouted at Run Sheng. "Hurry up and get the gear ready. We're leaving!"

"Oh, okay." Run Sheng immediately went inside to fetch the equipment. This time, he was not only going back to see his grandfather, but also to do the job.

"Grandpa Li, I want to go too. Take me with you."

Tan Wenbin practically wanted to cling to Li Sanjiang, afraid he would be left behind again.

"Fine, fine, I'll take you."

Li Sanjiang agreed right away. The caller had said that the Death Collapse had been bobbing up and down along a stretch of river. Several villagers had seen it, but whenever they gathered people to search for it, it vanished again.

That kind of Death Collapse was not particularly dangerous, but it took effort to find. Bringing another pair of hands was only sensible.

"Great Grandfather."

"What is it, Little Yuanhou?"

"I want to visit Grandpa Shan."

"You should. Come along."

Eager to get back and see his grandfather, Run Sheng pedaled the tricycle at top speed.

The three people sitting in the back all gripped the sides of the vehicle awkwardly.

That was because three bundles of equipment took up most of the space in the middle.

Li Sanjiang's gear, Li Zhuiyuan's gear, and Run Sheng's own gear—Run Sheng had loaded all of it aboard.

"Say, Runsheng Hou, why did you bring so much stuff? We're going to retrieve a Death Collapse, not build a house for your family."

Run Sheng did not answer. He was riding too fast, the wind howling in his ears, and he could not hear the complaints from behind.

Li Sanjiang could not be bothered to waste more breath. He took out his compass from his pocket and began calibrating it with a serious expression.

Li Zhuiyuan took out the Purple Compass from his bag and began calibrating it as well. Since they were looking for a Death Collapse, they would definitely need it.

As for the one in his great grandfather's hand, it could not find a Death Collapse at all. Its only use was leading everyone to the South Pole to find penguins.

As soon as they arrived outside Grandpa Shan's House, they could see through the half-collapsed wall that Grandpa Shan was sitting alone in the courtyard. His plastered foot rested on a bench beside him. He was peeling and eating a sweet potato, while his dentures sat nearby.

Li Sanjiang got off the tricycle, and his voice arrived before he did.

"Hey, Shan Pao, no matter how bad your teeth are, you can't just start drinking thin stuff!"

The sweet potato in Grandpa Shan's hand fell to the ground. He knew that old bastard had found out about him falling into the latrine pit. His old face immediately flushed red, and he hurriedly grabbed the crutch beside him, trying to hop back inside and shut the door.

But in his rush, he failed to keep his balance and fell straight to the ground instead.

By then, the footsteps behind him had already drawn close.

So angry that he punched the ground hard, Grandpa Shan bit down on his lip!

Li Sanjiang reached out and helped him up, letting him sit down before patting the dirt from his clothes.

Grandpa Shan said indignantly, "Who told you to come?"

Ignoring his sharp tongue, Li Sanjiang smiled. "Shan Pao, when something happens, you still have to send someone to let me know. We've been old partners for so many years. Honestly, don't just leave without saying a word. I'd be lonely."

The words were heartfelt, and Grandpa Shan's expression softened.

"Sanjiang Hou..."

"Even if you were going to die, you couldn't die in a latrine pit! It's fine if someone finds you early, but if you soaked there all night, then when I came to preside over your funeral rites, I'd have to hold my breath through the stink while changing you into burial clothes. How filthy would that be?"

Grandpa Shan: "..."

Li Sanjiang pulled out two cigarettes, put one between his own lips, and stuffed the other into Grandpa Shan's mouth. Then he glanced aside and called out.

"Zhuang Zhuang."

"Coming!"

Tan Wenbin took out a matchbox, struck a match, and lit Li Sanjiang's and Grandpa Shan's cigarettes in turn.

"Shan Pao, come stay at my place. You can come back after your injury heals."

"No. It's just one broken leg. I can eat and drink by myself. It's no trouble."

"Then should Run Sheng come back and look after you?"

Grandpa Shan hesitated for a while before shaking his head. "No need. It's good for Run Sheng to stay at your place. He eats well, sleeps well, and he's gotten sturdier too. The boy finally has a good life. Why should I drag him down?"

The words sounded touching, but Li Sanjiang simply waved his hand. "Runsheng Hou, go inside and check the rice jar and oil jug."

Run Sheng ran inside, then quickly ran back out in surprise. "Grandpa, did you really sell all the rice, flour, and oil we bought you last time?"

Those things had to be scraped bit by bit from the jars and sold loose. Just how desperate did someone have to be to do that?

Grandpa Shan exhaled a smoke ring, hoping it would hide his embarrassed face.

"I don't know what happened those days. I kept getting good hands, but I kept losing. I lost and lost, yet they kept letting me see hope. It was downright cursed."

"Heh. So you didn't want Run Sheng to come back because you were afraid that if he came back, you wouldn't even have enough sweet potatoes to eat, right?"

Grandpa Shan turned his face aside and said nothing.

"I'm telling you, you old Shan Pao. You're a grandfather, for heaven's sake. Even if you can't leave anything behind for your grandson, you shouldn't squander everything like this. In a few years, when Runsheng Hou starts looking for a girl, what girl would agree to marry him after seeing this broken shack of yours?

Look at me instead. See how I've been saving up a family fortune for my Little Yuanhou. The city is another matter, but among all the villages for miles around, won't my Little Yuanhou be able to pick whichever girl he wants?"

Grandpa Shan immediately caught the key point and asked, "What is it? Little Yuanhou can't go back to the capital?"

Li Sanjiang's expression changed, and he took a hard drag of his cigarette.

"What did you do? You even lost the boy's capital household registration?"

"Shut up!"

"Stop talking about me, and I'll shut up. Otherwise, I'll explain the benefits of household registration to you properly."

Li Zhuiyuan walked over to Grandpa Shan and asked, "Grandpa Shan, your leg isn't too serious, is it?"

"Not serious, not serious. It'll be fine after some rest." Grandpa Shan waved his hand somewhat awkwardly.

He had not known when he took the money last time. Only after returning to the card table had he learned clearly that it was the little child, not the older one, who had done most of the gambling. His Run Sheng had merely run errands, while the capital had belonged to Little Yuanhou. Yet he had actually taken half the money.

But that money had already been gambled away. He could not pay it back. Thinking of what he had done made him want to die of shame.

"Runsheng Hou." Grandpa Shan looked at Run Sheng. "From now on, listen to Little Yuanhou."

Since he had no money to repay, he could only offer up a person instead.

Run Sheng nodded. "Grandpa, I understand."

"Are you here? I say, are you here?" The local Village Chief called from outside. He was the one who had made the earlier phone call.

Grandpa Shan still did not know what was going on and asked, "What happened?"

Li Sanjiang said irritably, "If there hadn't been a Death Collapse here, we wouldn't even have known you broke your leg."

"Then hurry up and get to work. Finish the job."

"Mm."

Li Sanjiang had just started to rise when he heard his great-grandson say, "Great Grandfather, stay here and keep Grandpa Shan company. Brother Run Sheng can go."

Grandpa Shan said worriedly, "Is Run Sheng really reliable enough?"

Li Zhuiyuan said, "Grandpa Shan, Brother Run Sheng wasn't reliable before, but he's different after following my great grandfather. Just wait and see."

Grandpa Shan curled his lips. "You little Little Yuanhou."

Li Sanjiang, however, was delighted to hear it and patted his knee.

"Fine, let Runsheng Hou go find that Death Collapse first. If there's any problem, come back and get me immediately."

Having successfully coaxed his great grandfather into staying behind, Li Zhuiyuan immediately waved Run Sheng over.

Run Sheng understood. He shouldered a set of Corpse Retrieval Tools, then tossed Little Yuan's set to Tan Wenbin.

Then the three of them followed the Village Chief to a stretch of river. The river was not particularly wide, but both banks were covered in woods, with thick reeds growing along the shore and severely blocking the view.

"This is the stretch. Over the past few days, several people have come to tell me they saw a dead person floating here. I brought people over several times, but we never found anything. It's really strange.

How about you search first? If you find it and need more hands, come to the village and call me. I still have something urgent to deal with."

Run Sheng nodded. "All right, Village Chief. Go handle your business."

The Village Chief took out some cigarettes and offered one to Run Sheng. Run Sheng refused. Little Yuan was too young, so in the end Tan Wenbin took one and tucked it behind his ear.

After the Village Chief left, Li Zhuiyuan stood by the river holding his compass.

The reason the Village Chief had left was probably because he had little hope of finding the floating corpse today. He had likely organized people to search this section of river before, but all their efforts had been futile. Hiring corpse retrievers was just a last resort, at least giving the villagers an explanation.

Tan Wenbin had fully entered the mood. With a serious expression, he asked, "Little Yuan Ge, should Run Sheng and I split up and walk along the riverbank to look?"

"Bin Bin Ge, you go. Brother Run Sheng will stay with me."

"Is it because my observation skills are stronger than his?"

"It's because if Brother Run Sheng isn't by my side, I'm afraid I'll be in danger alone."

"Then... then I'll stay by your side and protect you too."

Li Zhuiyuan knew he was being overly cautious. Nothing strange had happened in the village, and the villagers who had seen the Death Collapse had all left safely. That proved it was most likely just an ordinary floating corpse.

But since a water burial from the Southern Liang era could appear in Siyuan Village, he truly did not dare be too confident. It was better to act carefully.

Holding the compass, they walked slowly along the riverbank. After covering quite a long stretch, they found no abnormalities in the Feng Shui Meteorology, nor did they find the Death Collapse.

Tan Wenbin asked, "Could it have drifted into another stretch of river?"

"It's possible." Li Zhuiyuan pointed at the water. "It's also possible there's a gap somewhere beneath the riverbed that sucked the corpse down."

"Something like that can exist?"

"Like the plug at the bottom of a bathtub."

"Doesn't that mean we'd have to dive down to search? Say, you brought so much stuff. Why didn't you think to bring an Oxygen Tank?"

Run Sheng said, "These tools are specifically for the kind of Death Collapse that can move."

"Oh, good stuff." Tan Wenbin patted the burlap sack on his back.

Without realizing it, they had reached the bend in the river. A recently built bridge stood ahead.

Li Zhuiyuan stopped. They had already searched the entire stretch of river described by the Village Chief, yet they still had nothing.

Tan Wenbin nudged Run Sheng's arm and asked, "Um, have you ever encountered a situation where you came to retrieve a Death Collapse but couldn't find it?"

"I have. I remember that back then, my grandpa and Great Grandfather would set up an Offering Table and perform a ritual to 'call someone,' making it float up on its own."

Upon hearing that, Tan Wenbin moved to Li Zhuiyuan's side and asked, "Little Yuan Ge, can you do that?"

Li Zhuiyuan frowned slightly.

Tan Wenbin immediately said, "It's okay. It doesn't matter if you can't. You're still the most impressive in my heart, bro."

Li Zhuiyuan shook his head. He could do it.

Wei Zhengdao's books, as well as those of the Qin Liu Families, had actually recorded quite a few methods for "calling someone."

But the problem was, his great grandfather and Grandpa Shan might have only learned the form of it. If it succeeded, that meant their skills were profound. If it failed, that meant the Death Collapse was extraordinary. It was mostly a matter of luck.

But he could genuinely select a position and set up an offering based on Feng Shui Meteorology to draw it out. He truly knew how to do it.

Yet the more capable he was, the less he dared use it carelessly. What if the Death Collapse had already drifted away and was no longer here? Besides, there were quite a few graves nearby, and they did not know what was in the river. If he set up an offering and failed to call out that Death Collapse, but summoned something inexplicable instead, what then?

"Let's cross the bridge. We'll walk back from the other side."

Li Zhuiyuan stepped onto the bridge. It was a concrete slab bridge without railings, three concrete slabs wide.

When they reached the middle of the bridge, Li Zhuiyuan suddenly felt the surrounding currents change. Looking down, he saw that the compass needle had begun to tremble irregularly.

He silently recited the Liu Clan's Qi Gazing Art as he turned in a circle on the spot, then stopped and began calculating from the needles in the larger and smaller rings of the compass.

Run Sheng stood beside him without a word. Tan Wenbin curiously craned his neck to peek. He felt Little Yuan looked incredibly stylish while spinning with the compass just now. It was a pity he was a little too young. Once he grew older, with that bearing and temperament, what small factory owner would not invite him over to spin around before opening for business?

Li Zhuiyuan stomped his foot. He had not noticed it while walking along the riverbank, but once he was on the bridge, he realized this bridge stood precisely at a Dragon Constricting Position.

Though it was a small river, and this dragon was as tiny as could be, the configuration was complete.

Looking around at the surrounding environment, it really was rare to see a bridge built at a river bend. Bridges were generally built over straight sections of river.

Still, even a Dragon Constricting Position was nothing special, much less an inauspicious position.

But if someone wanted to make use of it and deliberately turn it into an inauspicious position...

Li Zhuiyuan lowered his head and looked at the concrete slab beneath his feet. "Brother Run Sheng, go look beneath the bridge from the riverbank, directly under where I'm standing."

"I'll go!"

Tan Wenbin set down his things, ran quickly off the bridge, and reached the riverbank. When he could not see clearly enough, he actually stepped into the river without another word.

Though it was a small river, the middle was quite deep. If there was a sunken breach under the mud, it could easily swallow an adult.

Run Sheng crouched by the bridge and warned, "Be careful. Don't make us retrieve you later."

"The mud under this river is so deep. I've barely reached the riverbank." Tan Wenbin cautiously tested his way forward. His mindset now was that since he had finally bought a ticket into the amusement park, he had to take the initiative and get his money's worth.

Finally, he did not dare go any farther. Though he was still some distance away, he could see beneath the bridge clearly enough. He looked up, his eyes widening, then backed up a few steps and shouted to the people above.

"Little Yuan Ge, there are huge iron nails hammered into the underside of the bridge, right beneath where you're standing."

"Are there seven of them?"

"Huh?" Tan Wenbin took two more steps forward, maintaining his balance as he looked up and counted. "Yes, seven."

"Is it red around the nails?"

"Yes. It's red, like it was painted with red paint."

Just as expected.

What had originally been an ordinary Dragon Constricting Position had been altered into Dragon Bleeding.

Li Zhuiyuan turned and looked toward the bend in the river. The vital energy of this stretch of water flowed out here, while the baleful energy was intercepted. It was equivalent to using the natural environment to form a Feng Shui Bureau here.

But why had he failed to notice anything unusual while walking along the river earlier?

Li Zhuiyuan immediately thought of a possibility: the baleful energy had been absorbed by the Death Collapse!

There was interception and absorption, forming a dynamic cycle here.

No wonder villagers saw the Death Collapse, only for it to disappear again. It floated up when absorbing baleful energy, then sank back down after it was done.

So this was no simple operation to retrieve a floating corpse. Someone had set up a formation here to raise a corpse!

Li Zhuiyuan realized that if he put himself in an evil person's position and worked backward from the result, his success rate seemed genuinely high.

But he did not feel particularly happy. Instead, he felt somewhat troubled. Why was it so easy for him to put himself in the opposing side's shoes?

And besides, this Feng Shui Bureau was far too petty.

In the words his great grandfather often said at the dinner table: "What, you're only pouring this much? Raising fish?"

If he were setting it up, he could make alterations in several more places, at least drawing in baleful energy from outside and creating opposing currents. That would count as truly catalyzing Corpse Raising. This method could only be called Corpse Preservation.

"Looks like the books you read weren't very good."

Li Zhuiyuan reached up and patted his forehead. What the hell am I even thinking?

No, this wasn't his fault. It was Wei Zhengdao's fault.

Before, he had only read about these concepts in books and had never felt much about them. But once he actually began putting them into practice, something started to feel wrong. Wei Zhengdao's books were full of "righteous path content." They only taught people how to represent the righteous path and suppress Death Collapses.

Yet this guy's way of narrating things and arranging the material could be reverse-engineered in many places. Many of the taboos and mistakes he denounced with such righteousness became another extreme if used in reverse.

This guy was clearly waving the banner of the righteous path while opposing it.

"Little Yuan, are you okay?" Run Sheng asked worriedly.

"Brother Run Sheng, I'm fine. This place was arranged by someone..."

"Wait for me, wait for me! Tell us once I get there!"

Tan Wenbin shouted as he ran over with one hand raised, terrified of missing this part.

His shoes and pants had just gotten wet, though, and he stumbled while running. By the time he reached Li Zhuiyuan and Run Sheng, he lost his balance completely.

If Run Sheng had not been strong enough to grab him, he might have knocked everyone into the river.

"Hehehe, sorry, sorry." Tan Wenbin squatted down and wrung out his pants. "You can talk now."

"This bridge is part of a Feng Shui Bureau someone set up. That Death Collapse probably wasn't some passerby who drowned. He put it there himself, using this stretch of river to raise a corpse."

"Corpse Raising?" Tan Wenbin's mouth fell open. "Whoa, that sounds intense."

Run Sheng asked, "So what do we do, Little Yuan?"

"There are two options. First, I can break his setup, and the Death Collapse will float up. Second, we can go straight to his house."

Run Sheng wanted to ask how they would find it, but held himself back.

Bin Bin could not hold back. "How do we find it?"

Li Zhuiyuan pointed at the stele by the bridge pier. "The names of the people who donated money to build the bridge are written there."

Tan Wenbin scratched his head. "Right. Damn it, why do I suddenly feel so stupid?"

Run Sheng gave a soft "Mm."

Building bridges and roads had always been considered virtuous deeds. Especially in villages, where government funding was insufficient, people often had to find ways to raise part of the money themselves. If the entire village split the cost, that was one thing, but if a single donor provided the bulk of the funding, their name would generally be carved onto a stele.

Li Zhuiyuan walked over to the stele. Only one name was written on it, proving that this person had paid to build the bridge alone... Zhou Yong.

"Let's ask the Village Chief. This man should live in the village. He couldn't have dumped a corpse here and then gone off on a trip."

"I know where his house is." Run Sheng pointed in a direction. "He lives at the North Corner of the Village."

Tan Wenbin asked, "Is his family rich?"

Run Sheng shook his head. "There aren't many families in the village worse off than ours. His is one of them."

Li Zhuiyuan thought for a moment. "Then let's go to his house. We'll lay everything out and make it clear, so that after we pull this one up, he doesn't just dump another one in."

Tan Wenbin blinked and muttered quietly, "It's a corpse, not fish fry."

Run Sheng said, "Little Yuan means that if we only deal with the corpse and not the living person, there could be further trouble later."

Led by Run Sheng, the three headed toward the North Corner of the Village.

On the way, Tan Wenbin asked, "Um, should we call my dad over too?"

Run Sheng said, "You want your dad to find out you stayed at Grandpa Shan's House not to study, but to scoop up Death Collapses?"

Tan Wenbin immediately lowered his voice. "But this is a murder case, isn't it? Shouldn't it be handled by the police?"

"Bin Bin Ge, this might not be a murder case. He's raising a corpse. You can understand it as using a Feng Shui Pattern to preserve a body. If he had killed someone, there'd be no reason to go through all this trouble."

"Oh, I see. Got it."

"Brother Run Sheng, be ready later. If anything unusual happens, act immediately and make sure we stay safe."

"Mm, don't worry, Little Yuan. I understand."

Liu Yumei and Uncle Qin were considered family, so this was the first time Li Zhuiyuan had encountered another practitioner outside. He was still a little nervous.

Zhou Yong's house was even more rundown than Grandpa Shan's House. Grandpa Shan's House at least had a shabby yard, but Zhou Yong's house did not even have a fence. They actually lived in a mud house.

These days, rural villagers were all working toward building two-story homes. Anyone who did not even have a brick-and-tile single-story house and still lived in a mud house truly ranked at the very bottom of village living standards.

Tan Wenbin asked in confusion, "Someone like that fully funded a bridge?"

Run Sheng said, "He used to work at Xingren Agricultural Machinery Factory. Later, his wife and child both got sick, so he couldn't go to work anymore. He stayed home to farm and take care of them."

Tan Wenbin asked, "Are his wife and child still alive?"

"They are. The last time I rode past his front door, I saw his wife and child sitting outside in the sun."

As he spoke, Run Sheng turned to Li Zhuiyuan. "It was when you were waiting for me at home, Little Yuan. I went to the Town Market to buy rice and flour for Great Grandfather, and passed by his house. I saw them then."

Li Zhuiyuan nodded.

The three stepped onto the Small Plaza. A well there was covered by a large bamboo hat. The place was quite clean, though that was also because there was practically nothing there.

The door was shut. Tan Wenbin licked his lips and stepped forward to push it, but it would not budge. He pushed again and heard the lock inside clatter against the door.

He turned back toward Li Zhuiyuan and Run Sheng, shrugged, and said, "Looks like we came at the wrong time. They must be out. The door's locked from the inside."

Li Zhuiyuan glanced at him and asked, "Don't you think it's strange for the door to be locked from the inside?"

"What's strange about that? My front door locks from the inside too... Oh, right. How could that be?"

The locks on village wooden doors were different from the keyed locks used on apartment doors.

"Bin Bin Ge, call out again."

"Got it." Tan Wenbin knocked on the door and shouted, "Hello? Is anyone home? Is anyone home?"

There was no response from inside.

Run Sheng sniffed, then held out a hand. "Bin Bin, be quiet."

Seeing that, Li Zhuiyuan immediately took several steps back.

He knew what Run Sheng's nose was best at smelling.

"Little Yuan, there's a smell of corpse rot. It's very faint."

Tan Wenbin asked anxiously, "Is it the Death Collapse?"

Run Sheng shook his head. "Hard to say. The smell's too faint. It could be coming from something else."

Tan Wenbin guessed, "Could it be that someone locked the door from the inside, then killed themselves in there?"

The two immediately looked at Li Zhuiyuan.

Li Zhuiyuan pointed at the window beside them. "Let's go in and take a look. If we find a body, we call the police. If we don't, we apologize and pay for the damage."

Tan Wenbin walked to the wooden window and tugged on it. "This is locked too."

Run Sheng walked over, shoved him aside, grabbed the edge of the window, and gave it a hard pull. The entire window came off.

Then Run Sheng squeezed himself through.

Seeing this, Tan Wenbin gritted his teeth and followed.

"Creak!"

The lock on the inside of the wooden door was opened, and the door was pushed open. Run Sheng stood behind it.

"Little Yuan, the key was on the table, so I just unlocked it."

"Run Sheng, what are you doing? If there really is a corpse here, you've contaminated the scene. How are we supposed to explain ourselves as witnesses?"

Li Zhuiyuan entered through the front door and said, "It's fine. Your dad will explain it for us."

"But this isn't in my dad's jurisdiction."

"You were playing cards in the village. Your dad took leave and came here in plain clothes to catch you, then happened upon this house. He'll be the first witness."

Tan Wenbin swallowed. "That makes sense."

The house was not small, but the floor was full of little mud pits, with no brick paving or hard surface.

Many of the wooden beams were also very low, so adults had to watch out for their heads when walking inside.

It had a standard house layout. The kitchen and stove were at the eastern end, the main hall was in the middle, and a long cabinet stood against the wall with an Offering Table and deity statues atop it. The bedroom was at the western end.

There were quite a lot of things in the house. Many were obviously old and broken but had not been thrown away. Still, everything was arranged neatly.

Tan Wenbin and Run Sheng went to the eastern and western ends respectively, while Li Zhuiyuan stood in the main hall and looked at the deity portraits hanging above.

Guanyin Bodhisattva was on the far left, the Jade Emperor on the far right, and Jesus in the center.

It was understandable for villagers to hang any sort of deity portrait. Mixing Buddhism and Daoism was common, and even Confucian figures could be hung up. Great Grandfather, for instance, had Confucius hanging in his house.

But hanging Jesus here was somewhat out of place. His style and appearance clearly did not match those of the two figures beside him. Anyone with eyes could tell something was off.

Li Zhuiyuan walked to the cabinet and found that the incense burners before Guanyin Bodhisattva and the Jade Emperor had not been used in a very long time. They were covered in thick dust rather than incense ash.

The incense burner before Jesus, however, was full of ash. It was clearly used often.

But did Jesus accept incense?

Li Zhuiyuan raised his hand, intending to open the long cabinet. This kind of cabinet resembled a coffin in design, and one could only see inside by lifting its top cover.

Under every section of the cover were recessed grooves that connected like puzzle pieces. Usually, they had to be opened section by section. They could store miscellaneous items or grain.

But he ultimately lowered his raised hand. To be safe, he should wait for Run Sheng.

Run Sheng and Tan Wenbin returned.

"No one in the bedroom."

"No one in the kitchen either."

Li Zhuiyuan asked, "Brother Run Sheng, can you tell where the smell of corpse rot is coming from?"

Run Sheng shook his head. "Once we came inside, I couldn't tell anymore. This faint smell is everywhere."

Tan Wenbin mocked him, "You mean there's a corpse living and walking around in this house, leaving its smell everywhere? Isn't that a little ridiculous?"

"Bin Bin Ge, are you one of those people who loves dragons until he sees a real one?"

"Huh?" Tan Wenbin immediately remembered why he had come. The image of a corpse walking around and living here instantly appeared in his mind, and he shivered as a chill ran through him.

"Brother Run Sheng, open the covers and look inside."

"Sure."

Run Sheng knew how to open this kind of latch. He grabbed one side, pushed inward, then lifted it open.

Li Zhuiyuan stood on tiptoe to look inside and found that it was full of rice bags. There was a faintly pungent smell, likely from fumigation meant to prevent the rice from molding.

It seemed there was nothing in the main hall. This long cabinet was the only place here where things could be hidden.

Li Zhuiyuan walked into the kitchen, with Run Sheng and Tan Wenbin following him.

The kitchen had a standard rural layout with an Earthen Stove, and plenty of dry grass and firewood piled behind it.

Tan Wenbin pointed over there. "I checked there just now. There's nothing in the firewood and grass."

Li Zhuiyuan lifted the lids of the Water Vat and rice jar in turn. The Water Vat was filled to the brim with water, while the rice jar was filled to the brim with rice.

Tan Wenbin added, "I opened these and checked them too. Didn't find anything. But even though this family's worse off than ours, their rice jar is fuller than Run Sheng's."

Li Zhuiyuan stepped back several more paces, moving behind Run Sheng and Tan Wenbin.

He pointed at the rice jar. "A family of three is using such a large rice jar, and it's completely full."

When city families ran out of rice, they simply went out and bought more. Rural families did keep grain in storage, but most of it was stored away, with only a smaller portion placed in the kitchen rice jar for daily use. When the rice jar was nearly empty, they would take out more stored rice to refill it.

Run Sheng looked at Tan Wenbin, then at the rice jar. The meaning was clear: was Tan Wenbin going, or was he?

Tan Wenbin's body was shaking, but he still forced himself to nod. He walked to the rice jar and reached in, pushing aside the rice from the middle.

As he kept digging, Tan Wenbin suddenly let out a scream.

"Ah!!!"

Then he collapsed onto the floor and scrambled backward on both hands and feet.

Li Zhuiyuan and Run Sheng stepped forward to look. In the hollow at the center of the rice jar was a clump of black hair.

There was... a person in the rice jar!

No wonder Tan Wenbin had been scared like that. Who would not be frightened by such a sight?

Especially when one could picture the person beneath the rice, curled up inside.

Li Zhuiyuan closed his eyes, then quickly opened them again. After calming himself, he said, "Brother Run Sheng, confirm it."

"Okay."

Without another word, Run Sheng reached in and continued digging. At last, a forehead appeared beneath the hair. It really was a person—a girl.

As he continued digging, the girl's eyes became visible.

Her eyes were open.

Her eyes were completely stuffed full with grain after grain of rice.

Tan Wenbin had just gotten back to his feet and leaned over again. After one look, he recoiled several steps in fright.

Li Zhuiyuan looked away. This time, he could not blame Bin Bin for being timid. Even he could barely stand the sight of those eyes.

"Little Yuan, there's no way to keep digging unless we scoop out the rice or try to pull her out."

"No need. Leave it like this for now."

"Okay."

Li Zhuiyuan sniffed. He caught a cloying scent.

"Brother Run Sheng, do you smell it?"

"Uh, no. It's still that faint smell of corpse rot. Little Yuan, what did you smell?"

"Why do I smell a bit of fragrance?"

"Fragrance?"

Li Zhuiyuan shook his head and looked toward the Water Vat. The water in it had probably not been changed for a long time. Combined with the darkness in the house, it was not clear at all, but somewhat blackened.

"Bin Bin Ge."

Tan Wenbin immediately shook his head furiously and called out to Run Sheng, "Brother Run Sheng."

Run Sheng did not hesitate. He was wearing a sleeveless shirt and did not even need to roll up his sleeves. He thrust his entire arm into the Water Vat and began feeling around.

At last, he pulled out his dripping arm and shook it. "There's nothing inside."

Tan Wenbin suggested, "Then... should we go outside first?"

Run Sheng glanced at him. "You were the one who insisted on coming. You're also the one terrified out of your mind after seeing it."

Tan Wenbin said, "Isn't that the normal reaction?"

Li Zhuiyuan headed toward the bedroom. Run Sheng followed, while Tan Wenbin took another look at the pair of eyes in the rice jar...

Then he immediately turned around, lifted his legs high, and hurried after them.

There were two beds in the bedroom, one Big Bed and one Little Bed. Both had blue Mosquito Nets, and Sleeping Mats covered the beds.

A neatly folded quilt sat on the Big Bed, while a blanket lay on the Little Bed.

Beneath the sleeping mats on both beds, several thick layers of quilts had been laid down as mattresses, making them softer and more comfortable to sleep on.

Run Sheng pointed beneath the beds and at the wardrobes and cabinets around them. "Little Yuan, I checked all those places. Nothing seemed unusual."

Tan Wenbin pointed at the quilts and shouted, "The quilts, the quilts! Why would anyone use such thick quilts in the middle of summer?"

Run Sheng stepped forward, lifted the mosquito net, and pulled the quilt over to spread it out. It really was just a thick quilt.

Tan Wenbin said, "Uh..."

"Brother Run Sheng, lift up the sleeping mats on both beds."

"Okay."

Run Sheng first lifted the sleeping mat on the Little Bed, revealing several layers of cotton wadding underneath.

When Run Sheng was about to lift the sleeping mat on the Big Bed, Tan Wenbin rushed over ahead of him and peeled it back. Still clutching one corner of the mat in one hand, he rose onto his toes and began trembling as he spun in circles.

He had... gone into spasms from fright.

Under the sleeping mat on the Big Bed was more thick cotton wadding.

But a person was sandwiched in the middle of it—a grown woman. She was very thin.

Most of the woman's body was covered by the cotton wadding, with only her face, stomach, and feet exposed.

The woman's eyes were open as well. Her eye sockets were completely stuffed with cotton wadding, so full that they looked slightly swollen.

The cotton wadding around her eyes even bulged upward, as though new cotton had grown there.

"Put it down, Bin Bin Ge."

"Okay."

Bin Bin let go, and the sleeping mat fell back down, covering the cotton wadding and the woman inside once more.

Then Tan Wenbin walked toward Li Zhuiyuan, but Li Zhuiyuan avoided him. Tan Wenbin could only walk over to Run Sheng and wrap his arms around him. He needed a hug right then.

He was nearly crying. In fact, tears had already gathered at the corners of his eyes.

In a trembling voice with a sob in it, he asked, "Little Yuan, what do we do next?"

"Bin Bin Ge, don't be scared."

"I'm not scared..." Tan Wenbin stubbornly drew a deep breath, but the next moment, Run Sheng pushed him away.

Losing his balance, he staggered backward and landed on the sleeping mat of the Big Bed.

"Ah!"

The moment he remembered what was underneath, Tan Wenbin sprang up like a coiled spring.

"I'm scared, I'm scared!"

Li Zhuiyuan patted Tan Wenbin's arm. "Don't be scared, Bin Bin Ge. Let's go call your dad."

"Dad..."

To be fair, the moment Tan Yunlong's image appeared in his mind, the fear in Tan Wenbin's heart truly eased quite a bit. Even if his father were standing in front of him taking off his belt right now, he would have found it burningly warm and familiar.

Li Zhuiyuan walked out of the Mud House first. Run Sheng picked up the window they had removed earlier, intending to reinstall it, when he heard Tan Wenbin call from inside for him to wait.

Then came a click as Tan Wenbin locked the wooden door again from the inside.

Right after that, he climbed out through the window himself and had Run Sheng put the window back in place.

"Hehe, Little Yuan Ge, I locked the door, and I wiped down both the key and the lock. That way, there won't be any fingerprints left from Run Sheng unlocking it, and it'll save us some trouble."

Tan Wenbin felt that had been a very professional move.

"When your dad gets here, you can still have Brother Run Sheng unlock it. Besides, you didn't just wipe off Brother Run Sheng's fingerprints—you wiped off all the fingerprints on it."

"Uh..." Tan Wenbin realized he had done something useless and stupid.

"Come on, let's go call your dad."

Logically, one of them should have stayed behind to keep watch, but none of them was suitable for the job. In the end, all three headed out together.

After they had walked quite a distance, someone shouted behind them, "Hey, Runsheng Hou! Runsheng Hou!"

The three turned around and saw the Village Chief riding a bicycle along the road they had come from. From far away, he waved at them and called out, "Runsheng Hou, did you catch it? Did you catch it yet?"

Run Sheng raised a hand and shouted back, "Not yet!"

At that moment, in the three's line of sight, the Village Chief riding toward them suddenly turned to his left and raised a hand in greeting. He said something as well, smiling.

Normally, that was how one responded to greet someone in a house by the roadside.

And that spot, that direction, was Zhou Yong's house.

The three turned their heads together and looked toward Zhou Yong's house.

Though they were some distance away,

they could still vaguely make out a mother and daughter sitting in the Small Plaza.