Zhou Xiang helped the old lady sit down, "Auntie, please sit down and let's chat for a while."

"Hey! Okay!" The old lady's face was full of wrinkles when she laughed. It had been a long time since a soft little girl talked to her.

After helping the old lady sit down, Zhou Xiang realized that the old lady's eyes were almost blurry. She had to get very close to her to see a vague shadow.

Zhou wanted to talk about everything, and as he did so, he ended up talking about the flooding of the Huai River.

"Auntie, when I came here just now, I saw what looked like a bend not far behind the village. Is it safe for you to live here? What if there's a flood?"

When the old lady heard this, her eyes turned red. "It all depends on fate! The lucky ones can escape the flood, but the unlucky ones will be taken away by God!"

"I'm sorry, Auntie. Did I touch upon something that hurt you? I'm sorry!" Zhou Xiang's voice dropped.

"It's okay! Our ancestors have lived here for a long time. Every year during the rainy season, God always takes away a few people. We're used to it."

Zhou Xiang stopped talking. But the old lady sighed softly and continued talking to Zhou Xiang.

It turned out that the aunt's family was the one she said had an unlucky fate. Her parents-in-law, husband, and children were washed away in the devastating flood in 1954, leaving only her alive by hanging on a willow tree.

She lived alone for more than forty years. There were floods every year, none as severe as that year, but they still took several lives.

"Auntie, since it's so difficult to live here, why don't you move away?"

"Move? Where to? Which village is willing to accept so many outsiders? The land is limited. If there are more outsiders, the land will be less.

Are we going to break up our entire village? We don't want that! People always like to bully strangers. If we are all separated, we will be bullied everywhere. It's better for us to stay in our own little world, free from bullying, and let fate decide our life and death!"

The old lady's mood became depressed, and Zhou Xiang was also in a bad mood, so she quickly tried to find a new topic.

"Auntie, does that kid come to see you often?"

Speaking of this topic, the old lady's mood brightened up again, "Yeah? I was lonely too. That kid passed by my house like you did, so I called him to talk.

However, the kid's accent didn't sound like Huaixian, so I couldn't understand him at first. But as he spoke to me more, I learned to speak Huaixian dialect."

"Does he come here often?"

"He comes here about once every three to five days! I asked him what he came here for. He said he was studying the Huai River and planned to manage it, so he often came to check it out. Later, every time he came, he would come to my place for a meal, chat with me, and listen to my stories."

"So, Auntie is a good storyteller?"

The old lady laughed and said, "How can I tell stories? I can only tell stories about the Huai River, which I heard from the older generation."

"Then, tell me about it, Auntie!"

The old lady had been lonely for a long time, so she was naturally happy that someone was willing to listen to her. "Okay! I'll tell you a most bizarre ancient legend."

There are many ancient legends about the Huai River. There is a village called Huaixi Village, where the older generation has passed down a most bizarre legend.

A long, long time ago, I don’t know how many years ago, the Huai River was hit by a disaster, and corpses were everywhere. A Taoist priest passed by this place and couldn’t bear to see the villagers living by the Huai River suffering so much.

A magic spell was set up at the bend, so that no matter how high the Huai River water rose, it would not overflow the river bank and flood the village.

The villagers were grateful to the Taoist priest, so they built a Taoist temple for him and enshrined his statue. The person who carved the statue had no idea what the Taoist priest looked like, and the villagers had no impression of him, so they could only carve him in the style of an ordinary Taoist priest.

After the statue was erected in the Taoist temple, its facial features immediately became distinct, and anyone who had seen the Taoist priest could tell at a glance that it was the immortal Taoist priest.

However, after leaving the Taoist temple and trying to describe the Taoist priest's appearance to others, the impression in my mind immediately became vague again.

After a few times, everyone understood and no longer mentioned the Taoist priest outside the temple.

As time went by, the Taoist priest's deeds were kept in the hearts of the nearby villagers and no longer spread outside.

Day after day, year after year, hundreds of years passed. In the summer of one year, the Huai River suddenly overflowed the embankment again, submerging the villages on both sides of the river and causing countless casualties.

People who knew this legend rushed to the Taoist temple to check. They found it too had been flooded, and the statue of the Taoist priest had been shattered. The villagers couldn't believe it. They wondered how powerful the flood could be, and how it could shatter a wooden statue. Shouldn't wood float in water?

After the villagers left the Taoist temple, the brick-built temple was shattered into dust and washed away by the flood. After the flood, even the foundation of the temple disappeared, as if the temple had never existed. Over time, even the legend of the Taoist priest disappeared.

The old lady sighed, "I am the oldest person in the village. The villagers say that I have a hard life and killed my whole family. No one wants to talk to me. This legend may end with me.

But fortunately, I told you and that kid, so this legend can be passed down."

"Auntie, legends are just legends."

The old lady shook her head. "No, the person who told me this told me that this legend must not be lost. Even if only one person knows it, future generations must know what a Taoist priest did for the villagers."

"Very well! Don't worry, Auntie. I will not let this legend die out."

The old lady smiled and said, "Well, well, well, you're more obedient than that kid. That kid couldn't even make a fake promise to me, and he even told me not to tell anyone else. How could that be possible? A beautiful legend can't be interrupted, right?"

Zhou Xiang nodded. "Yes, it can't be discontinued. Our country has many positive legends that have gradually died out without anyone noticing. I didn't think much of it just now. Today, Auntie warmly treated us to lunch, so for that reason, I must also pass on this beautiful yet sad legend."

After hearing this, the old lady nodded with satisfaction, "Great! After hearing this, I can finally die with my eyes closed."

"Auntie, let's not talk about this. You can live a long time."

"Auntie is old! Living one day at a time is a good thing. Living a long time? That's unthinkable."

Ling Ran came in with the food. Zhou wanted to tidy up the small square table and asked him to put down the bowl.

Then, he helped the old lady sit at the table and handed her chopsticks and a bowl of rice.

"Auntie, can you see clearly when you pick up the food? Otherwise, I can remove the fish bones for you."

The old lady shook her head. "No, just pick a piece for me and I'll pick it out slowly with my tongue. I haven't had meat in a long time."

Zhou Xiang picked up a piece of fish belly, picked out a few large bones, and placed it on the old lady's rice. "Eat it!"

The old lady smiled with red eyes. How long had it been since she had received such attentive care? The child here would wait for her to cook for him, and would eat directly after it was cooked. She would never pick up any food for him.

As she ate, she felt a sense of happiness, as if her children were still around.

"The food is really delicious, especially the fish. It's so fragrant. After 41 years, I can finally enjoy the aroma of food."

Zhou Xiang put a piece of fish meat with bones removed back into her bowl and said, "Then, Auntie, please eat more."

"Okay, okay, I'll eat more. Don't worry about me. Just eat quickly."