Chapter 76 Human Sacrifice

The seventh prince walked to the wooden door, reached out and pushed it, but couldn't budge it. Through the sparse cracks in the door, he saw that the door to the woodshed had been blocked from the outside by a piece of wood.

Xie Mianmian leaned closer to look. "Oh my, this is familiar to me." She had tried her best to open this kind of wooden bolt on the Flower Pavilion Boat. Although she hadn't succeeded in opening it, she was still very experienced in picking locks.

Xie Mianmian took back her butterfly hairpin, wedged it above the wood, and used a clever push to push it upwards.

With a "thud," the piece of wood hit the ground, and the door opened.

The two children opened the door a crack, just big enough for their faces, and looked into the yard. The bright moonlight illuminated the yard, and the old woman was not outside.

A bright moonlit night, a windy escape.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, the Seventh Prince grabbed Xie Mianmian's wrist and quickly and quietly ran out.

They hadn't run more than a few steps when they heard voices coming from not far away. The Seventh Prince's heart tightened, and he pulled the child behind a tree.

The tree wasn't big; its trunk wasn't much wider than a child. The two children could only barely hide by turning sideways and gathering their sleeves together.

The Seventh Prince whispered in Xie Mianmian's ear, "Hide your belly, don't let them find out."

Xie Mianmian had no choice but to take deep breaths and shrink her round belly.

Not far away, the old woman was talking to a kind-looking woman with a round face.

The round-faced woman gripped the old woman's arm, her voice tinged with anxiety, "Don't go crazy! Those two children are innocent. Do you really want them to take Sanya's place?"

The old woman flung her hand away, her voice trembling with emotion, “Isn’t my Sanya innocent too? My husband died in battle against the Northern Rong a few years ago. His body never returned home, and not even a penny came back. All these years, I’ve been the only one supporting this family.”

As she spoke, she was overcome with grief and covered her face, crying, "I did all the housework, farmed the land, saw my in-laws off, and raised the child all by myself! It was so hard, and I finally made it this far, but they want my only child to die!"

This year, the village held a sacrificial ceremony, and a monk appeared out of nowhere, saying that five pairs of boys and girls had to be sacrificed alive in order to get rid of the calamity, but no family was willing to give up their children.

The village head had no choice but to decide by drawing lots. Coincidentally, when the old woman brought her two children to the village head, she was told that her daughter, Sanya, had been chosen.

Thinking of this, the old woman suddenly grabbed the round-faced woman's hands, her eyes wide, a hint of madness and resentment in them. "Look at me now! If Sanya dies, then all the suffering I've endured these years is a joke!"

With a deeply lined face and withered fingers, the old woman tremblingly touched her graying hair, even though she was not yet thirty.

The round-faced woman, feeling a pang of pity, grasped the old woman's hand in return. "But those two children clearly come from a wealthy family. What if their families come knocking on our door..."

The old woman calmed down, and now she felt her mind was very clear. She stared straight into the round-faced woman's eyes. "No, after tonight, no one will be able to find them. Even if those people come looking for them, the villagers won't say anything."

She murmured, as if trying to persuade the round-faced woman, or perhaps trying to persuade herself.

Xie Mianmian, who was hiding behind the tree, heard their conversation and covered her mouth in surprise.

With a "crack," it sounded like someone had stepped on a tree branch.

The two children immediately stared at each other with wide eyes: How could you be so careless?

What? It wasn't me!

Who is that?

Both children had a bad feeling at the same time, and they looked in the direction of the sound without prior arrangement.

A woman rushed over menacingly, shouting, "Come quick, these two children are trying to run away!"

The two children hadn't run more than a few steps before they were caught. The woman tied their hands tightly with hemp rope and strung them together.

As the woman tied him up, she muttered to the Seventh Prince, "With you here, my Da Bao won't have to go."

The seventh prince struggled desperately, but to no avail. The woman, who was used to hard labor, looked thin, but she had great strength in her hands.

The two children were like little chicks in her care.

Hearing the sound, the old woman hurried over, saying, "Let's go, it's almost time."

So they grabbed the rope binding the two children's hands and, like pulling stubborn donkeys, dragged them to a certain place.

On the riverbank, a group of villagers gathered around a pile of torches. There were so many people that it seemed like everyone in the village had stayed up all night and had gathered here.

The dark river flowed swiftly, and the scene was quiet except for the sound of rushing water.

The orange-red firelight shone on the faces of the villagers, some with unbearable sorrow, some with grief, but most were numb from the torment of poverty.

The old woman and her group arrived, and the crowd silently made way for them.

Seeing that everyone had arrived, the village head looked at the monk who was hidden in the darkness to the side. The monk slowly turned the prayer beads in his hand and nodded.

The village head strode up to the villagers and gestured for them to listen to him. “For the past fifty years, our Xiahe Village has been plagued by floods. Every few years, there will be a year when the crops in the fields are destroyed by floods, resulting in a complete crop failure.”

Upon hearing this, many dark-skinned, thin old men blinked their cloudy eyes and couldn't help but wipe away a tear of bitterness.

The village head continued, "Today is the day our village holds its once-every-three-years river god worship ceremony. This year, thanks to the guidance of a high monk, Xiahe Village is offering five pairs of boys and girls to the great river god."

As he spoke, the village head turned to face the river, knelt down on both knees, and shouted, "May the River God bless our Xiahe Village with favorable weather and abundant harvests!"

The villagers behind them also knelt down and shouted, "We hope that the River God will bless Xiahe Village with favorable weather and abundant harvests!"

The villagers knelt down in reverence, and for a moment, only three people remained standing.

One of them was the monk, who stood against the light, his expression unreadable.

And then there were the two children. The Seventh Prince was so angry that his chest heaved violently. "I, the Prince, even said that the villagers were simple and honest. This is simply ignorant and absurd!"

When he returns alive, he will surely make his father punish these uncivilized villagers severely, especially the village head, who led the way in harming children!

Xie Mianmian looked at the strange scene in front of her and hid behind the Seventh Prince in fear. It turned out that not all bald monks were as upright as Master Kongming. The monk in front of her was a big bad guy!

After the kneeling ceremony was completed, the villagers stood up one after another. The village head looked to the side and saw six strong middle-aged men standing on either side of a wooden stretcher. The object on the stretcher was covered with a dark red cotton cloth. It was the same thing that Xie Mianmian had seen in the brick house during the day.

The village headman waved his hand at them and shouted, "Rise!"