He's Dead, What Do We Do?

Zhou Qingyan, Zhou Qinghe, and Zhou Qingchen rushed over from next door. Zhou Qingyan asked, "Sister, what happened? Why did I hear screaming over here?"

Only then did Zhou Wanwan light the kerosene lamp. The three of them jumped in fright. Blood covered the floor, and Pockmarked Liu lay in a pool of it.

Their legs went weak with fear. Zhou Qingyan summoned his courage and stepped forward to check his breathing. "He's... he's dead... What do we do?"

Zhou Wanwan sneered. "What's so hard about that? Just throw him into the mountains!"

Unlike in her previous life, there were no cameras here. If they threw him into the mountains, wild beasts would devour him before long.

Zhou Qinghe was comparatively bold. He wrapped Pockmarked Liu in a quilt and said, "Right, let's throw him straight into the mountains."

Zhou Wanwan held his hand down. "First, search him for silver."

"Huh? Isn't that a bit wrong?" Zhou Qingchen was a little frightened.

Zhou Wanwan had already started searching. She felt around Pockmarked Liu's waist and, sure enough, found a pouch, though it stank.

Zhou Wanwan opened it and found a small piece of silver inside, about two taels, as well as more than two hundred copper coins.

He had nothing else of value on him. Zhou Wanwan tipped out the silver and copper coins and said, "Go get Father and Mother to help. The few of us can't carry him."

Liu Su'e and Zhou Fusheng were soon shaken awake, still groggy. When Zhou Fusheng saw Pockmarked Liu's corpse, his legs went weak. "Wh-what happened? He isn't dead, is he?"

Zhou Qingyan sighed. "He tried to sneak into our sister's room, and she killed him."

Liu Su'e turned pale. "What should we do? How about we go to the authorities? We'll say I killed him..."

Zhou Wanwan hurriedly stopped her. "We can't do that. If we say you killed him, our brothers won't be able to take the imperial examinations later. Just listen to me and throw him into the mountains."

Trembling, Liu Su'e hoisted Pockmarked Liu onto her back. "Husband, your legs aren't good, so stay home and wipe up the blood. I'll make the trip up the mountain."

Everyone else followed Liu Su'e toward the mountain. Fortunately, it was nighttime, and there were only two other households nearby, so no one saw them.

Liu Su'e looked at Zhou Wanwan. "Wanwan, don't kill anyone next time. Leave them a way to live. This is too frightening. What if he becomes a ghost and comes back for revenge?"

Zhou Wanwan burst out laughing:

"Mother, how could ghosts be scarier than people? A man like him wouldn't spare our family even if we let him live.

He's better off dead. Only then will it be over once and for all."

Zhou Qingyan nodded. "I don't think we could have let him go either. He's extremely petty, and our family has already offended him. As long as he's alive, he won't let us off."

Liu Su'e sighed. "But what if someone finds out?"

Zhou Wanwan smiled.

"They won't find out. Don't worry! As long as we deny it to the bitter end, no one will know Pockmarked Liu came to our house.

But Old Madam Zhou knows, so we just need to watch out for her."

It was Liu Su'e's first time coming to such a remote wilderness so late at night. When the cold wind blew, she trembled with fear. "There won't be ghosts, will there?"

Zhou Wanwan shivered too. The mountain was quite cold in autumn, and there were no flashlights in ancient times.

They had made a few simple torches by wrapping rags around the ends of pieces of wood and pouring some oil over them. Now, as the wind blew, the torches flickered, looking frightening indeed.

Liu Su'e said, "Why don't we leave him here? No one should find him."

Zhou Wanwan shook her head.

"People often come here to chop firewood. If he's found, it'll be a real nuisance.

Let's go farther into the mountain."

Strange cries came from the mountain without cease, but Zhou Wanwan could not concern herself with them. She kept listening for the voices of the flowers and plants around her.

Suddenly, she heard a wild chrysanthemum nearby speak. "If they go up the mountain this way, they'll run into a pack of wild wolves. Tsk, tsk, tsk... Those wolves don't eat vegetables."

Zhou Wanwan immediately stopped. "Mother, let's not go this way. Let's go over there!"

The wild chrysanthemum shook its head gently. "Over there... Go on! Go on! There's a bear over there. They'll be torn to pieces as soon as they go."

Zhou Wanwan stopped helplessly. "Oh! I don't know where would be suitable. Does that mean there's nowhere to leave the corpse?"

The wild chrysanthemum looked at her.

"This little girl is so stupid. Take the little path over there!

No one's been that way for years, and there's a deep pool over there. Just throw him into it.

In a few days, the fish will have eaten him clean!"

Only then did Zhou Wanwan say, "Let's take this little path..."

Liu Su'e looked at her. "Wanwan, where's the path here? Why don't we go into the mountain instead?"

Zhou Wanwan led them farther in. Sure enough, there was a little path here, but no one had walked it for years, so it was hard to make out.

Zhou Wanwan carefully led them deeper in. After walking for the time it took an incense stick to burn, she saw a deep pool, just as the chrysanthemum had said.

Liu Su'e threw him into the cold pool. "What a shame about that quilt. It was new..."

Zhou Wanwan set it alight, and the whole forest glowed red. It was covered in blood and could no longer be used, so she might as well burn it.

They sat in the forest and rested for a while. To Zhou Wanwan's surprise, she heard a voice say, "What are these people doing here so late at night? How frightening! They aren't going to pick us, are they?"

"Surely not? We're so, so bitter..."

Zhou Wanwan searched for a long while before finding a clump of Chinese goldthread. She smiled. "Good thing I brought a herb hoe. This goldthread can treat many illnesses!"

Liu Su'e looked at her. "Wanwan, how do you know this is goldthread?"

Zhou Wanwan thought for a moment. "I had a dream. Someone in it told me all sorts of things, and that's how I learned!"

"Oh! It must have been an immortal appearing in your dream. Wanwan, you're amazing, but we mustn't tell anyone about this," Liu Su'e cautioned softly.

Zhou Wanwan nodded. "Mm, I know. I definitely won't tell anyone."

Zhou Qingyan took the herb hoe. "A girl's hands are meant for holding needles and thread. How can you use them to dig these up? We'll do it."

Zhou Wanwan smiled faintly and closed her eyes. She could feel her body absorbing the Spiritual Qi in the forest, and it felt wonderful.

She even felt that the Spiritual Qi here was much denser than the Spiritual Qi on Earth.

She sat down and began to meditate. In her previous life, her Lineage had a complete internal cultivation method that allowed the body to absorb a trace of Spiritual Qi, after which one could sense plants.