The man looked at her for a while, then glanced around. "You look rather pitiful, so I'll keep you company for a bit. But you can't go around saying this, or your master will hear and give you a beating."
Li Mei sneered inwardly. After all this time in the underworld, no one had ever dared to give her a hard time. Her face showed no sign of anything amiss.
He smiled gently, "Look at what you're saying, brother. If you're willing to chat with me, why would I go around spreading rumors? Tell me, what happened to that girl afterward?"
The man sighed, "What else can we do but bury it..."
"Buried? How many days after death should I bury him?" Li Mei pondered to herself. Too long a death wouldn't do; it would affect the price and make it harder to sell.
"It seems to be..." the man pondered for a moment, "It seems to be the day before yesterday."
Another person interrupted him, "No... it was yesterday, he was buried in a mass grave... the poor thing, they didn't even keep the body there."
Li Mei spat, "These parents are really something else! They didn't even bother to lay the girl's body to rest after she died?"
"Of course! I heard her younger siblings burned some paper money for her... There's nothing we can do, she was born a girl. If she were born a boy next life, her family might even keep her body for three days."
After speaking, the man looked at his partner and said, "You stay and chat with this old lady... I have to go home. My wife is waiting for me to come home and chop wood; she'll nag me if I'm late."
"I told you you're spineless, henpecked... Go back, go back..." he said, about to leave, but Li Mei grabbed him, "Where are you going again?"
"Auntie, I can't chat with you any longer, I have to go to the docks to carry heavy loads," the man said before hurrying away.
Li Mei stood there lost in thought for a moment, then turned and went back into the house. "Son... son, wake up! Go check over at the mass grave site, see if there are any new graves."
Liu Dashan, half asleep and very impatient, said, "Mom, can't you let me sleep a little longer?"
Li Mei stepped forward and yanked off his blanket. "This time it's different, it's something new! Master Qiu's family has been waiting for three or four days. If we don't hurry, someone else will beat us to it!"
Liu Dashan sat up, yawning. "Have you made arrangements with that family?"
"Fool, why waste that money?" Li Mei casually folded the quilt. "Let's dig up the grave tonight and send the person to Master Qiu's house tonight."
Liu Dashan got off the kang (heated brick bed), put on his shoes, and walked to the washbasin stand. Without caring whether the water was clean or not, he scooped it up and splashed it twice, then grabbed a handkerchief and wiped his face haphazardly.
"Alright, I'll go take a look. You should let Master Qiu know first."
Li Mei urged repeatedly, "Go quickly, go quickly! Aren't I more reliable than you at handling things?"
Liu Dashan then left the courtyard.
Seeing this, Constable Wang immediately ordered his men to quietly follow them, while he himself remained to stake out near Li Mei's house. Not long after, Li Mei also came out, and Constable Wang followed her without making a sound.
When Liu Dashan arrived at the mass grave, he saw a girl leading a boy, squatting in front of a grave burning paper money.
He stood at a distance and looked around. Only the soil and stones of the grave in front of the two of them were fresh. After figuring out the exact location, he turned around and went home.
In the dead of night, at a mass grave.
Constable Wang and his constables lay in ambush behind the grave mound, while a group of ghosts floated curiously in front of the new grave, whispering among themselves, wondering why their leader had buried them alive.
Jin Shanyao lay in the dark coffin, occasionally scratching at the wooden planks with her hand, then taking a deep breath, ah... the refreshing smell of earth, it smells so good.
The temperature and humidity were perfect for the trees to grow. She couldn't resist putting her hand near the vent to feel the breeze on her palm.
Just as she was feeling content, a sharp, hissing sound suddenly came from the grave mound—the sound of a shovel being driven into the soil. With each shovelful, the sound grew louder.
Jin Shanyao up and obediently closed her eyes, trying to be a proper dead person.
Ghost Two paced anxiously around the grave robber, "Boss, boss... get up quickly! Ghosts' Bane to dig up your grave!"
After calling for a long time, there was no response.
Ghost Two frantically spread his arms to block the grave mound, shouting, "Dare to touch my boss's grave? I'll fight you to the death!"
With a soft thud, the shovel pierced straight through his body, and another shovelful of soil was dug away. Ghost Three went up and pulled Ghost Two aside.
"Don't ruin the boss's plans..."
Only then did Ghost Two realize that his boss was so powerful, how could he be afraid of digging graves? Once he understood this, Ghost Two floated to Ghosts' Bane's side.
The Ghost One on each side, watching them dig graves.
Li Mei swayed her shoulders a couple of times, and suddenly felt a little heavy for some reason.
"He's out! He's out!" Liu Dashan threw down his shovel, lifted the coffin lid with his bare hands, and upon seeing the person inside, the three thieves instantly forgot to breathe.
So beautiful... Her skin was as white as jade, and it even shimmered faintly in the moonlight. Her features were exquisitely beautiful, and she looked as if she were asleep.
The only problem is that he's a bit too tall; he feels a little cramped lying in the coffin.
Meng Anzhi and Meng Anci stared intently at them, their hearts pounding in their throats. They were extremely anxious. "Hurry up and close the coffin! If you don't close it soon, Auntie won't be able to hold her breath any longer!"
Li Mei's voice rang out, "Stop looking... carry the person out here."
Liu Dashan suddenly snapped back to reality and exclaimed, "Quickly cover it up... Oh no, no, quickly get him out!"
Several people hurriedly lifted the Jin Shanyao out of the coffin.
Liu Mei glanced around and urged, "Hurry up... hurry up, Master Qiu is still waiting."
Liu Dashan, huffing and puffing, carried the Jin Shanyao on his back, stumbling along the way. "Damn it... did this girl die from eating a weight? How come she's so heavy?"
The other two men were holding onto Jin Shanyao's thighs. "Da Shan... this beautiful woman is yours to carry, and you're not happy about it..." He was kicked before he could finish speaking.
Dried Shrimp you kick me, you little rascal?
The man beside him exclaimed in surprise, "How could I possibly have the strength to kick you... My arm is practically broken from lifting it, damn it... This delicate-looking girl looks like a heavy stone."
Liu Dashan was sweating profusely from exhaustion. "Alright... stop arguing, Crab, come help me..." he said, Jin Shanyao onto the Crab.
The Crab felt light as a feather, not at all as heavy as Liu Dashan had described, and it seemed as if a breath was brushing against its neck.
He shook his head impatiently, " Dried Shrimp... stop messing around..."
"What am I making a fuss about?? It's late at night, don't talk nonsense."
Li Mei: "Alright, alright... stop talking nonsense, it'll be dawn if we delay any longer."
The men fell silent, carrying the heavy corpses on their backs, and hurried towards Master Qiu's house.
Constable Wang and his men quietly followed behind. It was the first time the ghosts had ever witnessed such a lively event, and they swarmed together, following behind Ghosts' Bane.
About 15 minutes later, Li Mei entered a house where Constable Wang and Zhu Huaizhang met and climbed up the wall using a ladder.
In the courtyard sat a large coffin containing the body of a man who had died of illness. Li Mei, while helping Jin Shanyao put on her wedding dress, laughed and said, " Master Qiu, you've made the right choice in selecting me. Everyone in Qingzhou Prefecture knows I have extensive connections."
She straightened Jin Shanyao's face, and a slight breath touched her face, startling her. She looked at Jin Shanyao's face but found nothing unusual.
Suppressing his unease, he continued, " Master Qiu... how about it? You couldn't find many like him in the entire Qingzhou Prefecture."
Master Qiu nodded in satisfaction, "Not bad, not bad... but why does this person look a little familiar?"
"Hey, look at what you're saying... People are all alike to some extent, let alone beautiful women..." she said, placing the Jin Shanyao into the coffin.
"Look, look, look... How well this match is with Young Master Qiu! Young Master Qiu will have people to serve him even in the afterlife, so you can rest assured, sir."
At this moment, Young Master Qiu's soul was already surrounded by a group of ghosts. Ghost One kicked him, saying, "You... you want to have a ghost marriage arranged by my boss?"
Young Master Qiu trembled with fear, "Big Sister Ghost... this has nothing to do with me, it was all my father's decision."
"Still trying to argue..." Ghost Two pounced on Young Master Qiu, grabbed his leg, and bit him hard.
Ah... a piercing scream tore through the night sky!