Old Mrs. Zhou got angry, "If I didn't accumulate good karma, how could I have given birth to ten sons? Little Ninth Son, keep an eye on your wife!"
"Honey, Mom's getting old, how can you talk to her like that?" Zhou Xiaojiu, who was recuperating from the burns on her face at home, was thinking about the back mountain.
His wife, Li Ercai, turned her head and glared at him angrily before storming into the house, her large pregnant belly protruding.
Zhou Xiaojiu chased after his wife into the house to coax her.
"My mom is right, why are you arguing with her!"
“Uncle Erzhuang and his wife just brought over an old hen last night, and your mother still said such nasty things? How is that girl supposed to face the world after being talked about like that?”
“My mom was right, that Song Yinhua is a slut…”
"Don't say things like that again!" Li Ercai interrupted.
Seeing that his wife was really angry, Zhou Xiaojiu quickly explained, "It was the fortune teller who said it, not me."
"Then you're not allowed to spread rumors!" Li Ercai was furious. "If I were to give birth to a girl, and people talked about our daughter like that, would you still be able to say such things?"
"I'm a guy!"
"What if it's a girl?"
"Pah! Pah! Pah! That's bad luck! Don't say it's a girl. My mom consulted a fortune teller, and it's definitely a boy!"
I think it's a girl!
Zhou Xiaojiu turned hostile.
-
The textile factory in the town.
Li Wenxiu changed into her work clothes and asked the factory for leave.
She rode her bicycle with Song Yinhua in tow as she left the factory gate.
"Wenxiu, just tell me the address. I'll go and check it out by myself first. No need to trouble you to take time off." Song Yinhua said somewhat embarrassedly.
"Big sister, don't be so polite with me, this is all to help Caixing." Li Wenxiu said as she pedaled her bicycle.
She always heard Song Baogen praise Song Yinhua, saying that his older sister had raised them, so she tried hard to please Song Yinhua and leave a good impression on her.
Li Wenxiu was sweating profusely as she rode from the textile factory in town to Shitou Village.
“Big sister, this is the house!” Li Wenxiu pointed to a family living in a three-room new tile-roofed house. “Their daughter got pregnant with Wang Pizi’s child. At first, they made a huge fuss. Wang Pizi gave them money, and that’s how they were able to renovate these three tile-roofed houses. My mother told me that a few days ago, this family was showing off all over the village, saying that their son-in-law came to visit them and gave them a hundred yuan.”
Li Wenxiu told Song Yinhua everything she knew in one go.
"Is that swindler still inside?" Song Yinhua asked.
“He should be there. If he’s not, he’s probably telling fortunes at the little restaurant at the village entrance,” Li Wenxiu said softly. “Just yesterday, my mom wanted to take me to the village entrance to have my fortune told, but I gave her a good scolding.”
After understanding the general situation, Song Yinhua sent Li Wenxiu away.
She handed Li Wenxiu the dried wild vegetables in her basket and a bag of green apples she had picked from her storage space, saying, "These are all picked from the back mountain. Take them back and let your uncle and aunt try them."
"No way, big sister, you don't need to be so polite with me. Once I marry Baogen, we'll be family."
Li Wenxiu's attitude shows that she is very satisfied with Song Baogen.
"Why don't you stay at my place for lunch today? I'll go buy groceries now..."
"Wenxiu!" Song Yinhua quickly called out to the enthusiastic Li Wenxiu, "I have something to do later, let's meet again next time, there will be plenty of opportunities to meet in the future."
Li Wenxiu smiled shyly, feeling that her boyfriend's older sister had approved of her.
-
Several people were waiting in the small restaurant at the entrance of the village.
Wang the Scoundrel was stroking his beard and talking animatedly as he told fortunes.
Everyone wants to increase their fortune, prolong their life, and make a fortune.
Scammers prey on this psychology, making them believe whatever they're told.
Song Yinhua watched from the side for a while and noticed that the swindler had his eye on the granddaughter of an old woman who had come to have her fortune told.
The little girl was as beautiful as a flower, but she didn't look as old as Cai Xing.
“Your old man and son and daughter-in-law died young because there are evil spirits in your house!” Wang the rogue said to the old woman while holding the little girl’s hand and reading her palm.
He took advantage of the young girl under the guise of reading her palm.
The girl was young and didn't understand; she didn't realize she was being taken advantage of.
“If you don’t deal with the evil spirits in your house soon, I’m afraid you won’t be able to save your granddaughter.”
The old woman was so frightened that she knelt down with a thud, crying and begging the master to save her granddaughter.
"Since we've met, it must be fate. This master will definitely save your granddaughter. Come on, let's go to your house and take a look."
Others were eager to have their fortunes told, but the master gave them a few perfunctory words and said he would continue to send them away the next day.
After Wang Pizi and his grandson left, the restaurant owner said, "What fortune telling? I think it's just a scam!"
"The master's predictions are incredibly accurate! If you don't understand, don't talk nonsense! Be careful, one word from the master could bankrupt your restaurant!" A villager who supported Wang the Scoundrel retorted to the restaurant owner.
The old woman waited outside the courtyard, while the master performed an exorcism inside the house to bring good fortune to her granddaughter.
Song Yinhua told the old woman that the people inside were swindlers.
The old woman didn't believe it and firmly believed that the master would save her and her granddaughter.
The old woman ignored the granddaughter's cries and pleas for help coming from inside the house. When Song Yinhua tried to go in to help, the old woman pushed her away.
"You're not allowed to disrupt the master's ritual!" The old woman glared angrily at Song Yinhua. "The master is helping me and my granddaughter. If you dare to ruin my family's affairs, I'll fight you to the death!"
Song Yinhua felt a deep sense of powerlessness. These villagers were so ignorant and foolish to believe a liar's words, letting the liar bully their families right in front of them.
"I've never seen you before!" The old woman looked at Song Yinhua, who was a stranger. "Aren't you from our village? I think you're the one who came to our village to scam people!"
The old woman grabbed a broom from the yard and chased after Song Yinhua, hitting her. Inside the house, the little girl cried pitifully, calling out, "Grandma, save me..."
-
That evening, Wang the Scoundrel was enjoying a drink and humming a tune at the restaurant, while people occasionally came over to have their fortunes told.
He made up random things, his nose hairs twitching.
It was both ugly and sleazy.
He paid the bill and left just as the restaurant was about to close.
Not far from the restaurant, we passed a primary school in the village.
The village primary school used to be a mass grave.
Wang Pizi was so frightened that he trembled and hurried away. Suddenly, a leg stretched out from the side, tripping him and causing him to fall headfirst to the ground.
"Who tripped me..." Wang the rascal looked up and saw two people wearing hats, their faces obscured. "Who are you? Why did you trip me?"
"We're here to take you to the underworld!"
Wang Pizi had drunk quite a bit of alcohol. He shook his head and looked closely at the two dark figures.
A tall hat, and a traditional costume.
One was tall and thin, the other was short and stocky.
One of the tall, thin figures bent down to grab him, saying, "You scoundrel Wang, you have committed numerous evils. We are here on orders from the Lord of the Underworld to arrest you and bring you to trial!"
Only then did Wang Pizi realize that it was Black Impermanence.
As Black Impermanence spoke, a long object hung in front of his eyes.
Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be the long tongue of the Black Impermanence.
Wang Pizi was so frightened that he quickly got up, but the more he tried to stand up, the weaker his legs became.
After finally managing to get up from the ground, he turned to run away, only to be blocked by the Ox-Head and Horse-Face demons.
"How could I, a kind and righteous person, have committed any evil deeds? You've arrested the wrong person!"
"You use fortune telling and exorcism as a pretext to swindle money and seduce women everywhere. Just today, a young girl was humiliated to death by you. When she went to the underworld, she went to the underworld lord and cried, saying that you killed her!"
"Nonsense! Would a kind-hearted and upright gentleman like me do such a thing? The person you're talking about isn't me!"
"Do you think we're pushovers? None of the despicable things you humans do behind our backs escape our watchful eyes! The Lord of Hell has said you'll be cast into the eighteenth level of hell, never to be reincarnated!"
Wang the Scoundrel stubbornly denied everything, saying, "Have you ever seen a face as upright as mine? I would never do something so beastly..."
Suddenly, a disheveled little girl darted out of the darkness, shouting, "You killed me! It was you! You tricked my grandma into performing an exorcism to bring me good fortune and then ruined me! I've come to take your life..."
"Ahhh...!" Wang the scoundrel screamed in fright. "I gave your grandma money. You were alive and well when I left. Who knew you'd be so fragile? Your death is none of my business!"
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