Chapter 7

A wall apart, two beds.

On the western bed, Li Sanjiang's brow was tightly furrowed. He muttered in his sleep from time to time, his limbs twitching irregularly.

Yet despite such intense reactions, he still could not wake from the nightmare.

Somewhere in the unseen, it felt as though an invisible person was pressing down on him.

That person was heavy, crushing his chest until he could barely breathe.

But no matter how hard he tried, he could not push them away.

Li Sanjiang had never expected that after carrying corpses his whole life, he would one day suffer sleep paralysis from a ghost.

But even amid such panic and distress, he still found some comfort for himself:

"Then it means Little Yuanhou's baleful energy has all been transferred to me, right? The formation worked!"

Meanwhile, on the eastern bed, Li Zhuiyuan lay quietly.

There was not the slightest trace of pain on his face, and his breathing was steady, as though he were still sleeping soundly.

However, in his dream, Li Zhuiyuan opened his eyes.

He sat up in bed. At first, he thought he had woken up, but when he glanced outside again, it was pitch-black.

He understood. He was still dreaming, because even the gauze window in the bedroom let moonlight through. It could not possibly be this completely dark.

Looking around, Li Zhuiyuan realized that the only area he could see was the bed beneath him.

It was an old wooden bed with a sense of age to it. Many details had been worn away by time, but upon closer inspection, one could still find the intricate, thoughtful carvings.

Li Zhuiyuan moved the quilt off himself, knelt and shuffled to the edge of the bed, then tried reaching out a hand to touch the outside.

After all, this was a dream.

Liu Manting had asked him during the day whether he got bored in the countryside.

He had answered that there were lots of fun things here.

Yes, there really were lots of them.

For the past few years, he had never understood why the word "studying" was so often preceded by the word "diligent."

Wasn't studying just a matter of reading through concepts, theories, and formulas, then solving those simple problems?

Only later did he realize that some people genuinely felt pain during the process of studying.

He envied them.

Still young, he had little experience of life or society. The place where he spent the most time was the classroom, and as a student:

If difficult problems could not make you feel frustrated or tortured, if solving them could not make you feel joy or exhilaration, if there was no sense of suppression and no sense of effort, then naturally there was no sense of gain.

The sea of exercises before you was like tediously filling in a grid with doodles.

Especially when he imitated other students and reported his grades to his parents in hopes of receiving praise, only for his mother to look at him with increasingly cold eyes.

As though he had done something wrong, and was only going further and further astray.

Thus, he could gain no emotion from studying, only... numbness.

The change

came when he fell into the water and saw Little Yellow Oriole.

He felt oppressed. He felt pain. And when he watched Big Beard and Father and Son sink into the Fish Pond, while Little Yellow Oriole performed her final dance on the water's surface, he experienced a sense of gain.

Great Grandfather had seen him standing there in a daze and urged him to think of something happy, like attending a banquet.

He had not told Great Grandfather

that what he had felt inside at the time... was exhilaration.

A brand-new Main Gate had opened a crack before him.

He came to like this unknown, eerie feeling.

He had finally experienced ignorance and bewilderment. That sense of helplessness and lack of control brought him a faint pleasure.

He thought the way Grandma used a needle to call back his soul, then put it into a bowl of water, was incredible.

Then he looked at Liu Jinxia and Li Sanjiang and found them even more incredible.

They understood so many concepts. They had memorized so many formulas. They could solve problems.

And he

was merely a poor student.

Li Zhuiyuan's hand extended past the edge of the bed. He seemed to feel a breeze, extremely faint, so faint that he even wondered whether it was merely his imagination.

And he could no longer see the hand that had reached past the edge of the bed.

He pulled his hand back and held it before himself. Mm, the hand was still there.

Then he extended it again, this time downward.

He seemed to feel a faint chill. It was still subtle, but at least he could be certain there was a difference in sensation.

At the height level with the edge of his bed, outside the unseen boundary, there seemed to be two different kinds of medium.

Li Zhuiyuan closed his eyes and began concentrating as hard as he could on sensing it. The hand reaching downward slowly swayed back and forth, his fingers moving irregularly as well.

More real. More delicate. Keep going.

In his first two dreams, the first had been of Little Yellow Oriole coming to his house, and the second had been of the hunchbacked Grandpa carrying an old woman on his back.

Then this dream should not simply be darkness.

At last, he felt it. Something thin seemed to have brushed past his fingertips just now.

He immediately lay on the bed and stretched his arm down as far as he could.

Before long, that earlier sensation returned, and its frequency began to increase.

Like... water weeds?

Li Zhuiyuan immediately thought of the black aquatic weeds he had seen last time. Could it be hair?

It kept brushing past him, weaving back and forth across his fingertips and forearm. When he pinched it with his fingers, he could even feel its fine stiffness.

It really did seem to be hair.

"Slap."

Li Zhuiyuan's eyes lit up. Something had just lightly struck his palm. It was not hair's soft smoothness, but something else.

Wait, wait, wait...

"Slap."

It came a second time.

What was it like? What was it like?

Li Zhuiyuan began thinking, comparing it with scenes in his memories that might produce a similar collision of textures.

"Slap."

This time, the force was greater, but still not enough!

Li Zhuiyuan began swinging his arm more widely, swaying it, swaying it...

Finally,

"Slap!"

The impact was clear, and he seemed to hear a crisp sound beside his ear as well.

It was like standing still with your arm raised when someone walked over and gave you a high-five.

As Li Zhuiyuan continued making discoveries, the dense darkness outside the bed quietly began to fade.

At the same time, the sensations coming from below became clearer and clearer.

Li Zhuiyuan could even take the initiative to reach out and entwine his hand with that hair, and complete the next high-five while swinging his arm.

He understood. Those high-fives did not seem intentional on the other party's part. Rather, his hand had simply happened to meet the other person's palm. He had also felt himself slap the back of a hand, and the sound had not been as crisp.

Suddenly, Li Zhuiyuan felt something collide with the arm he had stretched down. Pain shot through him, and he instinctively pulled his arm upward a little.

That pull was like something that had originally been caught and obstructed suddenly resuming its movement.

Li Zhuiyuan's fingertips touched a hard curve, followed by a slick indentation, then a clearly jointed upward slope. He bumped along one segment of bone after another before touching a rounded, raised elasticity.

Then his fingers lost contact. He immediately thrust his entire arm down, and in the end, grabbed five small bones clustered together.

"Huff..."

Li Zhuiyuan immediately pulled back his hand, shock appearing on his face.

That was a complete person. He had just touched from the back of her head all the way to her toes.

There were people under the bed!

And not just one. Several—many, many of them. A whole crowd!

At that moment, Li Zhuiyuan noticed that the thin quilt beside him had vanished.

He looked toward the bed's diagonal corner. A Child was there, wrapped tightly in the quilt and curled up in a trembling ball, eyes full of terror.

That Child looked... exactly like him.

"I'm so scared, I'm so scared, I'm really so scared... boohoo... Mom, come take me away."

Li Zhuiyuan looked at that "himself," trembling with fear, and asked:

"Why are you still here?"

"Comrade, we've already tested and examined your son. He does not have any psychological problems. He is very healthy, bright, and cheerful."

The female doctor in a white coat spoke with a smile. At the same time, she could not help reaching out to gently touch the little boy's face.

The little boy smiled too.

Mm, what an adorable Child.

The female doctor looked up again at the mother standing beside the boy. She was somewhat puzzled. Why, upon receiving a diagnosis of "healthy," did this mother show not the slightest joy, only coldness?

At the time, psychology and psychological treatment had not yet become widespread in the country, and the public did not know much about them. Still, psychological clinics could be found in the capital.

"Mom, I'm not sick." Eight-year-old Li Zhuiyuan took his mother's hand on his own initiative and looked up at her. "Mom, the doctor said I'm healthy."

Li Lan lowered her head to look at her son, then looked at the doctor and said:

"You've been fooled by him."

The female doctor spread her hands, doing her best to control her emotions as she explained:

"Comrade, since you brought your son here, I assume you have some understanding of psychology. Therefore, you should trust our diagnosis and trust our professionalism."

Li Lan said, "I overestimated your professionalism."

"As the child's mother, how can you be like this?" The female doctor could no longer hold back. "This is the first time I've seen a mother who can be unhappy after learning that her son is healthy. I truly cannot understand what you are thinking!"

Li Lan said, "You just said you were professional."

The female doctor said, "..."

Li Lan took Li Zhuiyuan's hand and turned to leave the clinic. Li Zhuiyuan followed his mother's pace with his head lowered, like a child who had done something wrong.

They did not go home. Instead, they went to a psychological clinic affiliated with another foreign-funded hospital.

Li Zhuiyuan was taken inside by a new doctor for an examination.

Forty minutes later, the door opened, and Li Zhuiyuan was brought out.

The doctor spoke with a grave expression:

"Ma'am, we currently suspect that your son shows relatively severe signs of schizophrenia and autism. From our consultation, this should be related to his family's emotional environment.

"He desperately longs for his mother's care and companionship.

"So during the following course of treatment, as the child's mother, I hope you will cooperate with us as much as possible. Only then can your son return to health."

After hearing the doctor, Li Lan lowered her head to look at Li Zhuiyuan standing before her and asked:

"Is it fun?"

"Mom, I..."

The doctor could not stand it anymore. He raised a hand to block Li Lan. "Ma'am, you should not be so harsh with your son. His problems are already very serious. You must take them seriously enough, otherwise in the future..."

Li Lan did not continue listening. She turned and walked away.

"Ma'am, ma'am!" No matter how the doctor called after her, she never looked back.

Li Zhuiyuan hurried after her.

Li Lan stopped in front of the restroom, and Li Zhuiyuan stopped as well. There happened to be a large mirror there, reflecting both mother and son.

Li Zhuiyuan saw his mother in the mirror. She was staring at her own reflection, and a trace of disgust showed in her eyes.

Even when her gaze lowered and fell upon Li Zhuiyuan's reflection, the disgust in her eyes did not fade.

"Mom..."

Li Zhuiyuan cautiously tugged at Li Lan's Sleeve Cuff. He wanted to ask his mother what he had to do for her to like him as she had before, rather than becoming increasingly indifferent over the past few years.

He believed that as long as he knew, he could correct it quickly, because he learned things fast.

"Lan, Lan, Lan!"

Dad's shout came from outside. He ran over drenched in sweat, not even stopping to catch his breath before anxiously asking, "Lan, how's Little Yuan? Is there anything wrong with him?"

"Dad."

"Yes, son."

Li Zhuiyuan was pulled into his father's embrace.

Li Lan watched the Father and Son embracing. She seemed to be trying to restrain herself, but the corners of her mouth still lifted slightly into a mocking smile.

The man looked up and saw it.

At that moment, all the emotions that had been building up inside him finally became impossible to suppress. He almost let out a trembling growl:

"Lan, what exactly do you want? What will it take for you to be satisfied? Do you have to torment us this way?"

After shouting, he sat down on the floor and cried.

"Dad, don't cry." Li Zhuiyuan stepped forward, wanting to wipe away his father's tears.

But he happened to meet his mother's gaze, and immediately stopped moving.

Li Lan closed her eyes. After a while, she opened them again, then turned and walked outside, leaving the Father and Son where they were.

Li Zhuiyuan looked ahead. On the gleaming tiles, his mother's retreating figure was reflected as it gradually moved farther away.

"Why are you still here?"

On the bed, Li Zhuiyuan asked the "himself" wrapped in the quilt and trembling with fear for the second time.

But the other him still gave no answer.

Li Zhuiyuan shook his head. "Thank you for helping me fool the doctor during that examination, but you don't exist."

He did not have schizophrenia.

As soon as he finished speaking, the thin quilt fell onto the bed.

The "himself" who had been wrapped in it, shivering and calling for his mother, was gone.

"Whoosh... whoosh... whoosh..."

All around him, the clear sound of flowing water suddenly rose.

The dense darkness finally faded, turning into a gray like diluted ink spreading through water.

But at least visibility had improved.

Li Zhuiyuan slowly stood up and looked around again.

He was standing on the bed, yet it felt as though he were standing on a boat.

Because all around him were rolling black river waves, and corpses floated in the water, packed densely together like a rice field stretching beyond sight.

"Great Grandfather said that after Ritual Presiding, I'd return to normal.

But why was I still dreaming?

And

it was a dream like this..."

At that moment, it seemed the wind had risen over the river.

The wind passed through those corpses, carrying the peculiar stench of Death Collapse.

Countless times stronger than the fragrance of rice.

Li Zhuiyuan stood there watching for a long time. He even walked to the head of the bed and leaned against the bedrail to look.

He did not know how much longer this dream would last, and it seemed he had no way to wake himself up.

But...

Li Zhuiyuan sat down on the bed, straightened the rumpled thin quilt, folded it neatly, lay down, and pulled it over his stomach.

Mm.

He was going to sleep.

"Mm..."

Li Zhuiyuan opened his eyes. It was already daylight outside.

He knew that he had truly woken up.

He had slept very comfortably. He felt refreshed and full of energy.

Li Zhuiyuan could not help wondering whether sleeping in a dream counted as real deep sleep.

If that was true, then he not only did not mind dreams like last night's, but was even a little reluctant to let them go.

After all, no matter how terrifying a nightmare was, he could get used to it after experiencing it enough times.

He looked down and discovered that the black threads around his neck, wrists, and ankles had somehow snapped on their own.

Great Grandfather had said they could be cut off in the morning. It should be fine, right?

He got out of bed and walked to the door. Before opening it, Li Zhuiyuan closed his eyes and took several deep breaths.

It was a habit he had learned from his mother. After getting up, she would often stand before the bathroom mirror and take deep breaths with great effort.

Even now, Li Zhuiyuan still did not understand what exactly it was supposed to accomplish.

But when he pushed open the door and warm sunlight fell over him, a smile appeared on Li Zhuiyuan's lips, as if all the gloom from last night had vanished in that instant.

Carrying his washbasin and toothbrush cup, Li Zhuiyuan went to the balcony to fetch water and began washing up.

"Little Yuan, come down for breakfast once you're done washing up," Aunt Liu called from the yard.

"Okay, Aunt Liu."

Li Zhuiyuan went downstairs. This time, the little wooden stool was not inside the house, but out in the yard.

A bowl of plain congee, a salted duck egg, a plate of sour eggplant, and a plate of pickled ginger had already been set on the stool.

"There's more congee in the pot. Want me to get you another duck egg?"

"This is enough, Aunt Liu. Thank you, Aunt Liu."

"What are you thanking me for? This is Aunt Liu's job."

Li Zhuiyuan was somewhat curious about how much Great Grandfather paid Aunt Liu.

But Great Grandfather probably had enough money. Although he lived extravagantly, he had many sources of income. Most importantly, he had no children and never saved money. Whatever he earned, he spent.

"Aunt Liu, has my Great Grandfather gone out?"

"No, probably not up yet."

"Oh."

Li Zhuiyuan began eating breakfast. He first tapped the hollow end of the duck egg against the wooden stool, then peeled open a crack and held it in his hand, using the tips of his Chopsticks to pick out the contents and eat them.

As he was nearly finished, he saw that at the eastern end of the yard, about twenty meters away, another square wooden stool and Small Stool had been set out, with plain congee and Pickles on them as well.

The little girl he had seen yesterday came out holding her grandmother's hand and sat down.

Today, she wore a purple cheongsam, far more conservative than Little Yellow Oriole's, and the embroidery on it was also more delicate and elaborate.

She had changed her hairstyle too, with a wooden hairpin tucked into it.

Such care in dressing was rare in the countryside, especially in summer. Most boys ran all over the village in nothing but briefs.

Aunt Liu brought over another square wooden stool and Small Stool. This time, a tea set was placed on the wooden stool. She lowered her head and said something to the elderly woman, who waved her hand, and Aunt Liu left.

The elderly woman then crouched before the girl and spoke to her softly.

The girl sat there, staring straight ahead. Just like yesterday, it was as though there was no one else in her eyes.

But the elderly woman's persuasion had ultimately worked. The girl silently lowered her head, picked up her Chopsticks, and began eating.

Li Zhuiyuan noticed that she took one bite of Pickles, then two mouthfuls of congee, then another bite of Pickles and two mouthfuls of congee. The rhythm never changed.

The elderly woman peeled a salted duck egg for her. When she tried to hand it over, the girl froze, and her body seemed to begin trembling faintly.

The elderly woman immediately apologized and took the salted duck egg away.

Only then did the girl continue eating, still following the same pattern: one bite of Pickles, two mouthfuls of congee.

Watching this scene, Li Zhuiyuan thought of someone: his deskmate from the gifted class. He ate the same way, planning out the food and rice on his tray beforehand, deciding exactly how much food went with how much rice. By the end, every bit of both would be gone.

Not only that, whenever he walked out of the classroom, he had to step on the corners of the floor tiles. If he stepped wrong one day, he would run back into the classroom and come out again. Even if he had been on his way to the bathroom, he would hold it in and do it properly first.

The girl ate quickly. After finishing, she put down her Chopsticks.

The elderly woman took out a handkerchief and carefully wiped the corners of her mouth and her fingers.

Then she stood, picked up the Small Stool, and returned to the East Room.

She put the stool down in the same spot, sat on it, placed her feet on the Door Threshold, and stared straight ahead.

The elderly woman gave her a helpless look, then got up and sat in a chair.

Li Zhuiyuan noticed that the other woman's gaze had fallen on him again. But unlike yesterday, she waved him over and called out to him first.

"Come here. Let me have a look at you."

Li Zhuiyuan walked over. As he drew closer, he seemed able to smell the incense fragrance coming from her.

"Hello, Grandma."

"You're called Little Yuan, right?"

"Mm, Li Zhuiyuan."

"Grandma's surname is Liu."

"Grandma Liu."

"Good boy. Since moving here, this is the first time I've seen another Child." Liu Yumei raised her wrist and glanced at the bracelet there. After hesitating, seemingly deciding it was unsuitable, she finally removed a jade thumb ring from her ring finger and held it out to Li Zhuiyuan. "Here, Grandma has a gift for you."

Li Zhuiyuan waved his hands. "I can't take it, Grandma Liu. It's too valuable."

"It's fake, just glass. Treat it as a toy."

"No, I can't take it."

Liu Yumei held it out farther and urged, "A gift from an elder should not be refused. Refusing it would be impolite."

Li Zhuiyuan took half a step back instead of reaching for it. "I have to ask my Great Grandfather first."

Liu Yumei nodded and put the jade thumb ring back in her pocket rather than slipping it onto her finger again.

"Little Yuan, what grade are you in?"

"Third grade."

"How are your grades?"

"Not bad."

"How old are you this year?"

"Ten."

"Which month were you born in?"

"August."

"Then you're a month older than our A Li." As she spoke, Liu Yumei looked toward the girl sitting behind the Door Threshold. "Originally, our A Li should have been in third grade too."

Liu Yumei's expression immediately darkened a little. Yes, originally, her granddaughter should have been as cheerful and healthy as the little Boy before her, attending school.

"Oh, right, Little Yuan. While you're staying here, you can go anywhere else, but don't go into the East Room. Mm, don't get close to A Li. Our A Li doesn't like strangers getting close to her. She's shy and wary of strangers..."

Grandma Liu gave the same warning Great Grandfather had given him last night.

Li Zhuiyuan asked, "Grandma, does A Li have autism?"

Liu Yumei looked at the little Boy before her in surprise. "You know about that too?"

These days, most people had never even heard the term.

"Mm."

Liu Yumei blinked and reached out to take Li Zhuiyuan's hand.

Then she asked,

"What, do you have an adult in your family who studies this?"

Mm, they study me.

"I read about it in the newspaper."

"Oh." Liu Yumei sighed with some disappointment.

"Grandma Liu, there are people in big cities who can treat this illness."

Li Zhuiyuan was very curious. Her family did not seem short of money, so why had they not taken Qin Li to a big city for treatment, instead living here?

"Our A Li doesn't have ordinary autism. Seeing doctors at a hospital won't help."

Li Zhuiyuan did not quite understand. If going to the hospital was useless, could living at Great Grandfather's place help?

Liu Yumei turned sideways, looked at the tea set on the wooden stool, and asked, "Want some tea?"

"Thank you, Grandma."

Seeing Liu Yumei prepare to bend over and pick up the thermos, Li Zhuiyuan lifted it first. "I'll do it."

"Mm? All right, you do it."

Li Zhuiyuan opened the tea cake, added the leaves, waited for the water, brewed the tea, poured water over the pot, warmed the cups, and poured the tea...

Whenever the elderly people in the Family Courtyard held tea gatherings, they would call him over to make tea. He had to go too, because he still needed to mooch meals at their homes.

Liu Yumei watched Li Zhuiyuan's movements the whole time. She suddenly felt that this Child was quite interesting.

"Grandma, your tea."

"Mm." After taking a sip, Liu Yumei said, "From now on, you can handle the tea-making. Grandma has plenty of snacks here."

"Okay."

At that moment, movement came from the Second Floor Balcony. Soon, Li Sanjiang came downstairs, looking exhausted and listless.

Liu Yumei tilted her head slightly and smiled. "What, did you spend the night sneaking around like a thief?"

Li Sanjiang sighed. It had been worse than being a thief. Last night, he had spent the entire dream being chased by a group of Qing Zombies!

"Little Yuanhou, how did you sleep last night?"

"Great Grandfather, I slept very well."

"That's good, that's good..."

Li Sanjiang let out a long breath. It seemed the formation had truly worked. His suffering had been worth it.

Aunt Liu brought Li Sanjiang breakfast. While he was eating, Li Weihan and Cui Guiying appeared in the distance, carrying Li Zhuiyuan's spare clothes and snacks.

When he had lived at home before, all the children had been there, so these snacks had to be divided among them all. Now that Li Zhuiyuan was living elsewhere, they brought him everything that remained.

"Little Yuanhou, while you're living here, listen to your Great Grandfather. Don't cause him trouble, understand?"

"Grandma will come visit you, Child. Be good. If you miss home, just run back and have a look, all right?"

Smack! Smack! Smack!

Li Sanjiang angrily rapped the wooden stool with his Chopsticks and scolded,

"Hanhou, you brat, you came early in the morning to drop things off because you were afraid that if you came any later, your uncle would make you stay for a meal, weren't you?

"Hah, you think you're something now. You don't even want to sit down and have a drink with your uncle anymore. Acting like strangers, acting all distant. You don't consider your uncle family anymore, do you?"

Li Weihan and Cui Guiying immediately stepped forward to soothe him and apologize.

Only after calming Li Sanjiang down did they leave.

Li Sanjiang scraped the last bit of congee into his mouth, wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, and said to Li Zhuiyuan, who was standing beside him, "Your Grandpa is just too damned proper. He's the kind who can't sleep at night if he takes even the slightest advantage of someone else. That's what pisses me off most about him."

His fields had originally been rented to Li Weihan, but who knew that the old man would later return the lease?

"That's why you're willing to let Grandpa support you in your old age, Great Grandfather."

Li Sanjiang smacked his lips a few times. That truly hit the nail on the head.

He knew that when his mouth twisted and his eyes went crooked, when he could no longer care for himself, Li Weihan would not only look after him, but more importantly... he would not show him a sour face.

Li Sanjiang had lived freely all his life. Even during the final stretch of his old age, he did not want to suffer the slightest indignity.

But in front of a Child, Li Sanjiang still had to put on airs. "What, would supporting me in my old age be such a loss for him? The land belongs to the village collective, but this house, this business, all the things I've saved up—won't they all be his in the end? Hmph. He won't lose out."

Then Li Sanjiang rubbed Li Zhuiyuan's chin and continued, "But I don't want my things to be divided among those ungrateful uncles of yours in the end. Little Yuanhou, be a good boy and make your Great Grandfather happy more often. How about Great Grandfather writes it down that all this property will go straight to you in the future?"

"Okay. When I grow up, I'll support you in your old age, Great Grandfather."

"Hahahaha, by the time you grow up, Great Grandfather will probably be long gone."

Those words truly made him happy; they carried a sense of good fortune.

Li Zhuiyuan thought of the basement Aunt Liu had mentioned yesterday, then of the Golden Sand Luo Text Scripture he had seen on the floor of Li Sanjiang's room last night. He asked:

"Great Grandfather, what do you have in your basement?"

"The valuable stuff is displayed on the first floor. The things in the basement aren't worth much—just junk your Great Grandfather picked up in the past, plus over a dozen boxes of worthless books other people left with me. They're full of scribbles like ghost talismans; you can't understand a word of them."

Books?

Li Zhuiyuan's eyes lit up. How were those worthless books? They were his study materials.

He desperately wanted to improve his grades.

"Great Grandfather, can I go in and take a look?"

"What?" Li Sanjiang was somewhat surprised. "What's there to see in that stuff?"

"You said you'd leave the family property to me someday. Are you going back on your word?"

"Fine, fine. If you want to rummage through it, go ahead. The key's in the cloth shoe beside that door. Be careful, there's a lot of dust in there, and it's filthy. I haven't gone in for years."

"Thank you, Great Grandfather."

Just as Li Zhuiyuan was about to explore the basement, another hunched figure appeared on the path outside. It was Niu Fu.

"Uncle Sanjiang, Uncle Sanjiang, I've come to beg you!"

Almost instinctively, Li Zhuiyuan's gaze immediately fell on Niu Fu's hunchback. Then he remembered Liu Jinxia's warning and quickly turned his body and head away, refusing to look at him.

Yet because of that, Li Zhuiyuan saw Qin Li, who had been sitting motionlessly in the East Room like a statue, move her neck and turn her gaze toward Niu Fu's back.

She could see!