Delia's mother skillfully and naturally lifted the lid of the small pot.
In an instant, a plume of hot, steaming vapor rose up and filled the surrounding air.
He picked up the ladle and scooped out more than half a bucket of hot water from the small pot, but did not immediately take the scooped-out hot water to Delia.
Delia's mother picked up the ladle again, scooped some cold water from the bucket beside her, and slowly poured it back into the small pot.
After visually estimating that there was enough hot water for her to use in the shower later, Delia's mother put the lid back on the small pot, picked up the hot water, and headed to the bathroom.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Delia's mother knocked on the bathroom door, raised her voice slightly, and called out gently:
"I've put the hot water at your door!"
Soon, Delia's clear voice came from inside the bathroom:
"Okay, I understand! Thank you, Mom!"
Delia's mother smiled gently, returned to the kitchen, and began preparing the ingredients.
After some time, a series of knocks came from outside the house.
"Why would anyone come on a rainy day?"
Delia's mother said something with some doubt, then paused her work briefly and walked towards the door.
Squeak--!
The door opened.
Delia's mother looked up and saw several figures standing outside.
In an instant, a strong sense of unease spread rapidly through her heart like a surging tide.
"Village... Village chief, what brings you here?" Delia's mother asked somewhat stiffly.
The village chief stood at the doorway, looking at Delia's mother, his face expressionless.
" Delia's mom, it's time!"
"It's time? Isn't there still 25 days left?" Delia's mother's eyes widened instantly, her voice filled with astonishment.
"That's the normal time for the sacrifice. Isn't it raining now?" the village chief said expressionlessly.
"It's... it's raining?" Delia's mother's body trembled slightly involuntarily, and her voice became shaky.
"Yes, we have to deliver extra on rainy days, don't you remember?" The village chief said slowly, each word like a heavy hammer blow to Delia's mother's heart.
She then suddenly remembered why that family had changed their minds last year.
This caused the ghost to wait all night.
The next day, the ghost came looking for him. Not only did the ghost kill someone, but it also added another rule.
That means we have to deliver it earlier every time it rains.
But at that time, everyone was terrified by the ghost killing people, and no one was really listening to this!
Moreover, and more importantly, I told those two police officers that I had 25 more days!
what to do?
what to do?
"Alright, hurry up and call Delia out!" the village chief said impatiently.
Delia's mother's body jolted, her mouth opened again, and she forced back her fear and tension, her voice trembling as she said:
"Hana... Delia isn't home!"
The village chief frowned upon hearing this. "Not home? Where did you go?"
Delia's mother took a deep breath, suppressing her nervousness, and said calmly:
"Didn't two adults come to the village on a trip? They brought a child with them, Delia has been playing with that child these past few days!"
A man behind the village chief leaned forward slightly and said:
"That's right! My wife has seen Delia playing with that child these past couple of days!"
Upon hearing this, the village chief frowned and looked at Delia's mother, asking:
"You didn't tell them about what happened in our village, did you?"
Delia's mother seemed extremely frightened and quickly shook her head.
"No, I didn't say anything. How could I dare to say something like that!"
When Delia's mother denied it, the village chief's brows relaxed slightly.
"Good that you didn't say anything! But doesn't Delia ever go home on rainy days?"
"The rain is coming down really fast, Delia might not make it home in time!" Delia's mother's reply still sounded somewhat curt.
" Delia must be with those two! Aren't they staying at the inn? They'll definitely have to go back since it's raining. We can just go to the inn and pick Delia up!" someone behind the village chief suggested.
"What if those two disagree?" another person behind the village chief asked.
Why don't they agree?
"Aren't we going to send Delia to the demons? They probably won't agree, right?"
"What business is it of theirs if it's something that happens to people in our own village? What right do they have to interfere?"
"That's what they say, but... it's still sending it to ghosts, what if they really want to interfere?"
"If they dare to interfere, we'll send them both to the ghosts. There are only two of them anyway!"
"But they have knives! Are you going to rush in and fight them?"
"A knife... it's a knife! Those two people are so fair-skinned, they look like they're carrying something scary!"
"But what if they really know how to use knives?"
Seeing that the two were arguing endlessly, another person couldn't stand it any longer and spoke up:
"Are you two idiots? Why did you tell them we were going to send Delia to the demons! We just got there, then sent someone over saying they were there to take Delia home, wasn't that enough?"
Upon hearing this, the two arguing people opened their mouths, but for a moment they were speechless.
The village chief gave the man an approving look, then turned to Delia's mother and said decisively:
"Okay, then we'll go over there to pick up Delia!"
Seeing the village chief and his companions turn to leave, Delia's mother couldn't help but smile slightly, a hint of almost imperceptible joy. She quickly nodded twice.
"Um!"
The village chief turned and took two steps, but then, as if suddenly remembering something, he turned back to look at Delia's mother with some confusion.
" Delia is being sent away, aren't you sad?"
Upon hearing this, Delia's mother's heart, which had just been slightly excited, instantly plummeted into an icy abyss. The smile on her face froze slightly, and she forced a bitter expression to keep it from disappearing, saying:
"I... I'm heartbroken! But there's nothing I can do, isn't there? All the other kids have already been sent there! I can't just stop Delia from going!"
Seeing how understanding and righteous Delia's mother was, the village chief nodded in agreement.
Although the children were chosen by drawing lots during a meeting, and a ghost had once caused trouble in the village.
However, many of the selected families are still not very willing to cooperate.
They didn't dare to openly obstruct them, but crying, making a scene, and tripping them up were still quite common.
It's rare to see someone as cooperative as Delia's mother.
"Alright, let's go, let's head to the hotel!"
The village chief turned around and gave some instructions to the people behind him, then led them outside.
Just as I took two steps, a clear, childlike voice suddenly came from behind me:
"Mom, what are you doing? The food's almost burnt!"