"Wang Yibo, when your house caught fire, did you make any noise? Tell me about it." Su Xiaonuan didn't believe in such superstitions; the more bizarre something seemed, the more she wanted to challenge it.
Wang Yibo is the eldest son of the village chief, a young man in his twenties.
“My brother and I were chopping firewood in the yard, my mom was cooking in the kitchen, and my dad was smoking in the yard. The fire was burning in a strange way. It wasn’t in the yard, it wasn’t in the kitchen, but in our bedroom. There was no one in there, and there were no flammable materials.”
Where is the room located?
"A seat by the window."
"Okay, I understand." Su Xiaonuan glanced at Xu Yong expressionlessly. "Where's your home?"
"The fire started in the pigsty, which was covered with straw. It burned very quickly and the whole pigsty was destroyed. Luckily, the pigs didn't die," Xu Yong said, still shaken. "If it had happened at night, my pigs would have been roasted."
Finally, she inquired about the time and direction of the fires at each house.
Su Xiaonuan pondered for a moment, then suddenly looked up and asked, "Does anyone in your village keep the ashes of the dead?"
In those days, this question was indeed a bit abrupt.
In an era when people were buried after death, there was no one to offer sacrifices to the ashes of the dead.
But she still asked, clinging to a sliver of hope.
"Xiao Nuan, why are you asking about this?" Zhang Yulan asked nervously. "Is the fire related to this?"
"Is it really true?" Su Xiaonuan asked anxiously, grabbing Zhang Yulan's hand.
“Yes.” Zhang Yulan nodded. “Old Master Lan died in a mining accident. What was brought back was a box of ashes. The Lan family felt that it was not a corpse, so they did not bury it. The ashes are enshrined in the main room.”
"So her family keeps the ashes of the dead?"
Wang Yibo, Xu Yong, and Mo Xi, the three young men, were all taken aback. Their generation didn't know these things; only the older generation did.
“Yes,” Zhang Yulan said. “That happened twenty years ago. After that, Lan Guangxue took his father’s place and went to work in the mine.”
"Are Lan Yin and the others still in the village?"
“Yes,” Wang Yibo said. “Her yard also caught fire, burning the chicken coop and some miscellaneous items.”
"Has there been any change in her?"
“Nothing has changed.” Xu Yong shook his head. “She’s dressed like a fairy, but I think she’s the one who looks like a witch.”
"Are you still wearing the same clothes?"
“Hmm,” Wang Yibo said. “She dressed so alluringly that she bewitched Wang Xiaobao. Every step Lan Yin took, Wang Xiaobao followed.”
Su Xiaonuan breathed a sigh of relief, a smile spreading across her face.
The outcry from outside is growing louder:
"Witch, come out."
"If you don't come out soon, we'll storm in."
...
"Wang Yibo, Xu Yong, you two come here." Su Xiaonuan beckoned and whispered something to them.
"Sister Xiaonuan, isn't this inappropriate?" The two of them stepped back at the same time.
"Mersh, bring the military rope from the cabinet."
Moxi didn't know what use she was, so she turned around and took out the military rope. This was a rope that her brother had brought back. The family only used it when they were airing out the quilts in the yard. Otherwise, it was kept in the cupboard.
Su Xiaonuan snatched the rope and threw it to Xu Yong, "Quick, tie me up."
Seeing that Xu Yong dared not do it, she tied herself up.
"Xiao Nuan, are you trying to walk right into the trap?"
"Mom, don't worry, just wait and see. Lock the door in a bit, then take the kids and go to the town police station with everyone."
"Then, Sister Xiaonuan, I have no choice but to offend you." Xu Yong led Su Xiaonuan, whose hands were tied, out of the house.
"Wang Yibo, hurry up and go find your dad as I told you." Su Xiaonuan raised her chin.
"Go!" Xu Yong suddenly shoved Su Xiaonuan with a menacing look.
Zhang Yulan and her daughter realized that Xiao Nuan was putting on a tragic act.
DouDou and GuoGuo were still young, and they thought their mother had really been kidnapped by bad people, so they opened their arms and cried out.
"Mommy, Mommy..."
"Bad guy, don't take my mom!"
...
"Mom, Moxi, the kids are all on the right track, you should cooperate too."
The mother and daughter understood that they were being asked to act as well.
With her two children in her arms, Zhang Yulan had no free hands, so she could only curse.
Moxi grabbed a broom and chased after him, sweeping it left and right. She was just bluffing and didn't really want to hit Xu Yong. If she really wanted to beat up a bad guy, she would never use a broom as a weapon; any carrying pole she could grab in the house would be more effective.
"Folks, I've tied up the witch," Xu Yong said to everyone, holding Su Xiaonuan at the gate.
A round of applause erupted from the crowd.
"Xu Yong, well done."
"Well tied."
"Burn her alive!" Wang Xiaobao jeered from the crowd. "She used her sorcery to burn down our house, so we shouldn't let this witch get away with it."
"Yes, the witch was burned to death. Ever since she came back from the dead, one thing after another has happened in the village."
"She must be possessed by a demon, otherwise, where would she get her divine power and skills?"
...
Aunt Hua and Chen Hao, unaware of the truth, were so anxious they jumped up and down. They were even more confused: wasn't Xu Yong supposed to be rescuing Xiao Nuan? How did he end up dragging Xiao Nuan out?
Taking advantage of everyone's inattention, Wang Yibo squeezed into the crowd and called his father out.
In a corner, Wang Yibo whispered something to the village chief.
Just as everyone was about to attack her, the village chief pushed to the front and said, "Fellow villagers, listen to me. You can't act recklessly. Burning someone to death is illegal. Since she's been caught, let's hand her over to the police to handle this matter."
Lan Yin was secretly chuckling when she heard the village chief's words. She gave Wang Xiaobao a wink, and the man immediately jumped up. "No, those policemen in town are in cahoots with her. Only we can deal with this witch."
"Wang Xiaobao, stop making trouble!" The village chief glared at him sharply. "Can you represent all the villagers? This is a matter of life and death; how can you, a scoundrel, interfere?"
The village chief looked around at the villagers and said loudly, "If this fire is indeed related to Su Xiaonuan, then we will all make her compensate for the losses. As for whether she is a witch or not, we will send her to the police station and let them decide. We are all ordinary people, and it is illegal to resort to vigilante justice."
"What if you let her go halfway through?" Wang Yibo asked deliberately.
"Then you can go to town with them and see how the police solve the case."
The crowd automatically parted to make way for him.
Seeing that the situation had changed, Lan Yin had no choice but to go to town with Wang Xiaobao. She was certain that the town police would not be able to find out the truth. Although there was no evidence to convict Su Xiaonuan, Su Xiaonuan still became a shadow in the hearts of the villagers.
Therefore, she had to go to town with them and then see what happened.
Aunt Hua and Chen Hao, along with about ten people, blocked their path.
"Release Su Xiaonuan. She's not a witch. Why blame her for the fire? She helped our village make money, and you repay kindness with enmity. Is this something a human being would do?" Chen Hao declared righteously.
"You unfilial son, I'll beat you to death!" Aunt Hua grabbed Xu Yong and started punching and kicking him. "Tell me, who instigated you? Why did you tie Xiao Nuan up? I'll beat you to death, you wicked fool who can't tell right from wrong..."
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