Chapter 60 Bone Lining "Grandpa has worms in his mouth."

"No rush," Bai Yuan said. "Were you preparing bones for your son last night?"

The practice of pairing bone linings is what is known as a ghost marriage.

Old Zhang found this person utterly baffling. They had already come to deliver a ghost marriage invitation, yet she was clearly asking questions she already knew the answer to. What did his family's affairs have to do with her? She said she was delivering a marriage invitation, but instead she kept it in her pocket and wouldn't take it out, and kept asking all sorts of questions. What was she trying to do?

At this point, Old Zhang's face showed displeasure: "This is our family matter, and others don't need to interfere. The water has been brought, so please drink it if you want." After drinking, they left quickly.

Old Zhang tried to get rid of him, but Bai Yuan remained unmoved: "The driver I hired and the doctor I invited unfortunately went missing in that area last night, so I came to ask you about them."

Old Zhang patiently pleaded, "Didn't I just say that I didn't see Doctor Ding?"

Bai Yuanyi seemed determined to get to the bottom of things: "Where was the carriage? They were driving a carriage at the time."

Old Zhang frowned more and more deeply: "No, I haven't seen any horse-drawn carriages."

"Really?" Bai Yuan looked around. "Are you alone at home right now?"

Old Zhang: "..."

Where is the child's mother?

Old Zhang replied casually, "He's inside, already asleep."

"She was probably here last night too, I wonder if she saw me..."

“She’s been with me the whole time and didn’t see anything. She’s been heartbroken these past few days and it was only with great difficulty that she finally fell asleep. Please don’t disturb her.”

Bai Yuan: "I see. So what happened last night that caused the bone-matching ceremony to be suddenly interrupted?"

Upon hearing this, Old Zhang's expression changed instantly, his eyes filled with undisguised fear: "Wh...what, nothing's wrong, you...you guys should leave quickly, I need to, I need to get back to work."

Old Zhang started chasing people away, picking on the weakest ones first, and he directly pushed Xiao Dinggua out.

"Hey... Uncle..." Little Dinggua tried to dodge passively.

“In that case, we won’t bother you any longer,” Zhou Yaren, who had been silent until now, said. “But one last thing, I still need to ask you: who is Huang Xiaoyun, the woman who was paired with your son? Is she also from the original village? Where does she live? Could you please give us directions?”

Old Zhang paused: "Why...why are you asking this?"

Zhou Yaren said slowly, "Since the two families are related by blood, the Huang family must have had relatives at the scene last night. Since neither of you have seen my coachman and Doctor Ding, we should go to the Huang family to ask, just in case one of them saw them."

Upon hearing this, Old Zhang was shocked, completely unexpected that these two actually planned to go find the Huang family: "What are you trying to do?!"

Zhou Yaren answered matter-of-factly, "We're looking for someone."

Old Zhang immediately became anxious: "Haven't I made myself perfectly clear? We've never seen it, we really haven't seen it. Why won't you believe me?"

Zhou Yaren smiled faintly and said, "Brother, don't be anxious. It's not that we don't believe you, we just want to ask other people."

After saying that, he turned to leave, but Old Zhang suddenly blocked his way: "No, you, you don't go."

Bai Yuan raised an eyebrow without making a sound. Sure enough, the blind man was the most cunning.

Zhou Yaren did have some suspicions, so she tested him, and as a result, Old Zhang couldn't hold back.

Why?

Old Zhang grabbed him, as if afraid they would run away: "You can't go, you can't go."

Zhou Yaren didn't struggle, letting him hold her arm: "Why can't I go?"

Bai Yuan sensed something fishy: "Did you do something wrong?"

Old Zhang felt a little guilty after being poked by her, and he spoke haltingly: "Anyway, we can't go. The Huang family didn't come, so they definitely haven't seen it. You, you shouldn't ask. This matter, the matter of the two children being matched, can't be made public."

Sure enough, there was a problem. Zhou Yaren's face darkened. "So you secretly dug up Huang Xiaoyun's remains behind the Huang family's back to arrange a ghost marriage for your son?" That's why you went to the mountain in the middle of the night to do it.

These words surprised Bai Yuan somewhat: "Oh? Stealing a corpse?"

Little Dinggua also opened his eyes wide in surprise.

Old Zhang's face turned pale, and he said in a panic, "No, no, we didn't."

Old Zhang hurriedly explained, "My initial intention was simply to keep the two children company down there, so they wouldn't be lonely underground. Please don't go around spreading rumors!"

Bai Yuan said, "You dug up someone's daughter's grave without permission. Even if we don't say anything, how can we keep this a secret?"

Old Zhang was clearly not confident and refused to admit it no matter what, but he still held onto Zhou Yaren tightly and wouldn't let go: "I didn't, I really didn't, don't go around saying things like that! And don't go to the Huang family, they weren't there!"

Zhou Yaren could clearly feel the other person's hand trembling slightly, but still replied, "I'm afraid that won't work."

Old Zhang never expected that the ghost marriage document would be picked up by these two passersby. If they were to go to the Huang family, wouldn't this secret affair be exposed? If things got out of hand and the Huang family reported it to the authorities, the consequences would be unimaginable. Old Zhang really didn't know what to do: "I'm begging you, okay?!"

Little Dinggua couldn't stand it anymore and couldn't help but shout in condemnation: "What's the use of begging us? How could you do this! You are simply..."

Just as he was getting the child to confess, and seeing that the time was almost right, Bai Yuan, of course, couldn't let the child interrupt, and immediately stopped him, saying, "Don't talk nonsense, go stand aside."

Xiao Dinggua was so angry that her face turned red and her neck bulged, so she had to swallow her words again.

Bai Yuan seized the opportunity to speak: "Then tell me in detail, what happened?"

Seeing that the other party hesitated to speak, Bai Yuan tried to get him to talk by saying, "We are just passing by. We don't want to meddle or make things difficult for you two. If we can't find the person soon, we'll have to ask around elsewhere."

Forced into a corner, Old Zhang tearfully confessed, "I had no choice. My Tiezhu was only fifteen years old, and he was killed by these wicked people. Even if he was a little naughty and offended someone with something, it shouldn't have warranted taking his life. What did he do to deserve such a cruel act..."

The mention of his son struck a nerve, and he was overcome with grief. He clenched his fists and pounded his chest repeatedly, sobbing, "My poor son, he's gone just like that. I, an old man, have to bury my son. How are his parents supposed to live?"

Seeing his heartbroken appearance, Xiao Dinggua suddenly felt extremely sorry for him and her eyes reddened as she felt sad for him.

It's hard not to be infected by this emotion, especially the sight of the gray-haired, haggard, and pained old Zhang, which truly breaks the heart and brings tears to the eyes of those who hear and see it.

These cries of sorrow were hard not to move Zhou Yaren.

Only Bai Yuan seemed unfazed, remaining completely detached, and even calmly asked, "And then?"

Old Zhang was devastated: "I worked hard for half my life and finally raised my child. Before I could even find him a wife, Tiezhu was gone. He didn't even leave behind a son or daughter. This has made my Zhang family line end."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Dinggua opened his mouth, but hesitated and couldn't utter a single word. Because the crying was so heart-wrenching, he closed his mouth again with red eyes.

Old Zhang kept wiping away tears with his sleeve, his eyes bloodshot: "Since he couldn't marry in life, his bones must be matched after death. Huang Dashan's daughter drowned two years ago while washing clothes by the river. She died young and wasn't betrothed, so she couldn't be buried in the ancestral grave. She's been buried in the mass grave in Xishan, waiting for her bones to be matched. So we found a matchmaker to arrange this marriage."

Up to this point, everything seemed normal; the Zhang family was simply following local customs regarding weddings and funerals.

Zhou Yaren tilted her head and asked, "A matchmaker?"

Old Zhang thought he didn't understand: "They are matchmakers who specialize in arranging ghost marriages for men and women who die before they are married."

Bai Yuan pressed, "Is there a mass grave on that desolate mountain?" But she had not gone there today.

“Yes,” Old Zhang nodded. “But the Huang family was asking for an exorbitant dowry, several times higher than what a living person would pay. Our family is destitute; we simply can’t afford that much money. Tie Zhu’s mother took a few pounds of rice and flour to plead for them. You know, it’s not right for our daughter to be buried in a mass grave all this time; we should settle things as soon as possible if a suitable match is found. But no matter how much we pleaded, Huang Dashan just wouldn’t agree. He only cares about money, saying he’d only sell Huang Xiaoyun’s bones to us if we paid enough. He’s using his own daughter’s remains for a business deal. Tie Zhu’s mother said, ‘What kind of parents are these?’ and the Huang family shoved her out, cursing at us, saying, ‘If you don’t have money, don’t marry a ghost wife to your short-lived son!’”

These words really fueled Old Zhang's resentment. He said bitterly, "That Huang Dashan has a son who idles around all day, is lazy and good-for-nothing. He's reached the age where he should be getting married. I know what they're up to. They definitely want to use the dowry from selling their daughter's bones to arrange a marriage for their son. They're capable of doing that!"

Bai Yuan understood: "The Huang family disagreed, so you went to steal the corpse."

The words "corpse theft" made Old Zhang's face change drastically. This was a crime, and if it went to the authorities, he would be imprisoned. Naturally, he was terrified.

Old Zhang argued, "We were just thinking about the two children. The girl was unfortunate to have such parents and could only be abandoned in the mass grave as a wandering ghost. If we exhume her bones and match them with the iron pillar, we can give her a proper burial."

He firmly believed that what he was doing was for the good of his child.

Little Dinggua was young, but he understood that taking without permission was stealing, and a gentleman has principles: "But if other people don't agree, you can't do it without permission."

Old Zhang said irritably, "What do you know, you little kid..."

"My grandfather taught me..."

“Your grandfather,” Old Zhang interrupted him, “Ding Langzhong should have taught you that after he passes away, you should also hold a similar ceremony for his deceased son.”

Xiao Dinggua was suddenly startled, clearly caught off guard: "What?"

"It's because of your father who died young. Otherwise, why would Doctor Ding raise you? Isn't that all he's good for!"

“What do you mean by ‘this little bit of use’? My father died young, so I’ll take care of my grandfather in his old age and see him off when he passes away.”

Old Zhang reasoned, "Doctor Ding has never mistreated you. It's your duty to care for him in his old age and see him off in his final days. Everyone in the surrounding villages knows this. After all, your father died too young and is still buried under that tree stump on West Mountain, not yet in the ancestral grave. Actually, Doctor Ding has already spent a lot of money to arrange a marriage for a girl from a family through a matchmaker. He's just waiting for the day he passes away so that you, as his grandson, can hold a proper funeral for him, arrange a ghost marriage for your father, and then move to the ancestral grave with Doctor Ding."

Xiao Dinggua was stunned, because his grandfather had never mentioned these things to him.

Perhaps due to different local customs, Zhou Yaren only vaguely understood: "What does it mean to match a wet funeral with a dry funeral?"

“Holding a funeral for someone who has just passed away is called a ‘wet funeral,’ while holding a funeral for someone who has been dead for a long time and has been buried is called a ‘dry funeral.’ Generally, what needs to be done again is a ghost marriage,” Old Zhang explained. “Children who died young, whose lifespan has not ended and who have not continued the family line, cannot be buried in the ancestral grave. According to our custom, ghost marriages cannot be held at any time. They can only be held after a family member has passed away and there has been a wet funeral. That’s why Ding Langzhong’s son has been dead for decades and has not yet had a ghost marriage.”

"Wait a minute," Bai Yuan asked, "how many sons does Doctor Ding have?"

"There's only one child."

“A single son died decades ago,” Bai Yuan turned to Xiao Dinggua, whose face was pale. “Then what about his so-called grandson…” Bai Yuan hesitated and said, “This child is only a teenager.”

Based on this calculation, Xiao Dinggua should not be Ding Langzhong's biological grandson.

It is true that he is not a biological grandson. Almost everyone who knows Dr. Ding knows this, and it is not a secret that is being kept hidden.

Ding Langzhong's son died young. When he was thirteen, he accidentally fell off a cliff while collecting herbs in the mountains, breaking his neck and dying. Ding Langzhong's first wife died of depression as a result, and she was unable to leave him with any more children.

Xiao Dinggua kept his head down, his fingers gripping his cotton pants tightly at his sides. Clearly, he knew his background all too well and often heard his neighbors mention it. It was an open secret, and no one ever hid it from him during casual conversations.

Xiao Dinggua was a little beggar whom Dr. Ding picked up from the roadside one day during a clinic visit.

The little beggar was huddled in the arms of a dead old beggar, his body so thin he barely had any flesh on him, thinner than a stick. His tattered clothes barely covered his buttocks, and his whole body was covered in bruises. Between his legs, his genitals, smaller than a sparrow's head, hung down, bruised and red.

The little beggar was too young to even understand life and death. Confused, he leaned against the old beggar's chest, his eyes rolling back from hunger as he called for his grandfather.

He thought his grandfather was just sleeping as usual and would wake up in a while to carry him to the city to beg for food.

He waited and waited, for a day or several days, but his grandfather still didn't open his eyes, and his body was covered with many small insects.

The little beggar crawled on his grandfather's body, catching bugs one after another, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get rid of them all. The worms kept multiplying and wriggling out of the old beggar's eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.

It was at this moment that Dr. Ding passed by the place and saw the little beggar lying next to a rotting corpse infested with maggots, ignorantly and fearlessly catching maggots and throwing them into the grass.

The sight startled Doctor Ding, who gasped in shock: "Child, what are you doing?!"

The little beggar looked up, his face full of innocent confusion: "Grandpa has worms in his mouth."