Three Springs
"Your eldest son..." Si Mucheng hesitated, unable to finish his sentence.
Although the woman was smiling, there was a hint of sorrow in her smile: "It's just that the white-haired bury the black-haired; there's nothing we can do about it."
So on the way home, Si Mucheng and Wen Ya heard another story, covered in dust.
The woman's name is Yang Yanzhen, a villager from Dongwan Village. She has two children and an elderly mother-in-law. Her husband works away from home, and Yang Yanzhen manages the household on her own. She is very capable, handling farm work, taking care of the children and the elderly. She is busy every day, living an ordinary and mundane life, but she is content.
Life went on like this, but things weren't peaceful at home. When the younger son was born, the older son was ten years old. For some reason, the older son's rebellious phase came early. He wanted to compete with his younger brother for everything, and he would argue with his mother after only a few words. The house was noisy every day.
Yang Yanzhen simply didn't have the energy to deal with it, and she thought things would get better as her child grew up. She had grown up the same way; in the countryside, with so many children, parents couldn't possibly care for everyone. The older children always looked after the younger ones, so there was no such thing as a rebellious phase. Every day was filled with endless chores and schoolwork; the biggest wish was simply to have enough to eat. That's how she grew up, and she assumed her son would grow up the same way.
Four years later, the eldest son's rebellious phase showed no signs of ending, and the relationship between mother and son became increasingly strained.
After a heated argument one day, he drank pesticide from the doorway and died.
Si Mucheng: "..."
Although he tried hard to control himself, he couldn't help but turn to look at the brat. What a temper the brat had!
The little devil kept his head down and didn't say a word.
Yang Yanzhen suddenly grabbed Si Mucheng and Wen Ya's hands: "Hey, my house is just ahead. Thank you so much for today, please stay for a meal!"
Si Mucheng was still waiting to see what Wen Ya thought when an uncle by the roadside shouted with wide eyes, "Are you from Dehong's family? Yanzhen? You're back? Where have you been these past two days? Your family has been looking for you like crazy!"
The group looked in the direction of the voice, and Yang Yanzhen saw a familiar face. She relaxed completely, and her eyes instantly welled up with tears: "It's me! Brother Desheng, thank you for your trouble."
The uncle by the roadside gave a few instructions to the little boy beside him. The little boy ran and relayed the message. Soon, several other people ran out. They were probably relatives from the village. They surrounded the three of them and started talking all at once.
"Yanzhen, your mother-in-law and son are so worried, they're looking for you everywhere in the village!"
"My God, you're finally back safe and sound! We've been looking for you for two days and couldn't find you anywhere. If we didn't hear from you by today, we'd have to call your man!"
"That's right!"
"With Xingwang's death anniversary approaching, I thought you were thinking of doing something rash..."
The sound stopped abruptly, and the speaker clearly realized that he had said the wrong thing, immediately becoming flustered and at a loss as if he had done something wrong.
After a few awkward seconds, the uncle who recognized Yang Yanzhen first spoke up: "Stop talking nonsense, it's best that you came back safely! Yanzhen, you should go back quickly, don't let the old lady worry."
"Yes!" Yang Yanzhen replied. Just then, an old woman and a young girl, supporting each other, staggered over from afar. As soon as the old woman saw Yang Yanzhen, she began to wipe away tears, her voice trembling with sobs: "Yanzhen, you scared me to death!"
The little boy also shouted, "Mom!!"
Upon seeing her loved ones, Yang Yanzhen finally couldn't hold back her tears.
The three of them hugged and cried for a while before Yang Yanzhen introduced Si Mucheng and Wen Ya to everyone.
Only then did the villagers notice the two oddly positioned individuals. Upon hearing that they were the ones who had saved Yang Yanzhen, a torrent of words of gratitude poured out.
Wen Ya remained expressionless, while Si Mucheng's eight-tooth grin and smiling eyes were very endearing to the aunties and grandmothers. Seeing his appearance, they all expressed their intention to come to their homes for lunch that day. With everyone extending invitations, Si Mucheng was overwhelmed and his face was almost stiff from smiling. He turned to Wen Ya with a pleading look, and Uncle Desheng waved his hand, making a decision: "Stop crowding around, come to my house for lunch. Yanzhen, don't be shy, you've been frightened these past two days. Go back and tidy up, and come to my house for lunch. Bring Dehong's mother and Xingda along, so we won't have to bother cooking at home. Go on ahead."
It seemed that Uncle Desheng held a high position in the village; once he spoke, everyone else fell silent. Yang Yanzhen then took her family, along with Si Mucheng and Wen Ya, home. On the way, her youngest son seemed to really like Si Mucheng. The five-year-old boy looked up at him for a long time, then asked in a childish voice, "Big brother, did you save Mommy?"
Si Mucheng looked down at the boy's dark pupils and smiled: "Yes."
Xingda's eyes lit up: "Big brother, you're so amazing!"
Seeing that he was short-armed and short-legged, Si Mucheng was worried that if he didn't walk steadily, he might pull the old lady down and make her fall. So he picked him up in his arms.
Yang Yanzhen was startled: "Hey, young man, you don't need to carry him, he can walk by himself."
"It's alright," Si Mucheng smiled. "I have plenty of strength, and he's not heavy."
Seeing his insistence, Yang Yanzhen, despite feeling embarrassed, said no more.
Xingda was rarely held like this; his face turned as red as an apple, but his eyes sparkled.
He looked around for a while, then leaned close to Si Mucheng's ear and said, "Big brother, I know what Mom went to do."
Si Mucheng asked curiously, "Then what did she go to do?"
"She went to see her brother."
Si Mucheng glanced at the silent little devil floating beside him.
Xingda explained earnestly, "They're not going to see my brother, they're going to see his tombstone. They say my brother is dead. So Mom goes to see his tombstone whenever she misses him. But don't tell anyone about this!"
"Hmm?" Si Mucheng asked, puzzled. "Why can't we tell others?"
Xingda raised his head: "Grandma said it's unlucky, that elders shouldn't sweep the graves of younger generations. What does that mean? My brother and I are both our parents' children, what's so unlucky about that? Big brother, do you know why?"
Si Mucheng had never heard of it, perhaps it was a custom in Dongwan Village, and he didn't want to comment, so he simply said, "I don't know either."
Xingda said in a mature tone, "Sigh! I really don't understand!"
Yang Yanzhen's house wasn't far away. From the outside, the two-story house looked brand new and beautiful, no different from the surrounding houses, all equally bright and shiny. But once inside, it was found to be rather simple. The main room was empty, and the tables, chairs, and altars were all made of wood, which looked quite old.
Yang Yanzhen told Si Mucheng and Wen Ya to find a place to sit while she tidied up. Her mother-in-law followed her into the inner room, presumably because the two women wanted to talk.
Xingda, acting like a little adult, poured water for Si Mucheng and Wen Ya. When he saw Wen Xiaofeng, his eyes were glued to her. He asked cheerfully and politely, "Sister, is this your pet?"
Wen Ya nodded.
He then asked, "Can I play with it for a while?"
Wen Ya glanced at Wen Xiaofeng, who held her head high as if waiting for praise. Wen Ya then said to Xingda, "Okay."
Watching Xingda and Xiaofeng play, Si Mucheng was very puzzled. This family seemed quite normal. The youngest son was sensible and polite, and Yang Yanzhen didn't seem like a mean person. He wondered what grievances the little devil had suffered that led him to resort to such an extreme measure as drinking pesticide.
Wen Ya was preoccupied with her own thoughts, and her face grew even sullen.
She was thinking about her grandfather.
Wen Yongjie is clearly suspicious. That Bagua formation must be concealing another secret. And the ghosts selected by the Soul-Returning Lamp are so close to Xiqiao Village. Could it be a coincidence?
This little imp is the final link in activating the Resurrection Lamp. She has a gut feeling that her grandfather will appear after the lamp is activated. So what exactly is her grandfather plotting behind the scenes?
A hidden anxiety welled up inside Wen Ya, so she stood up and walked to the vegetable garden in front of the house, taking a deep breath to try to suppress the anxiety.
"Sister." The boy's voice, slightly hoarse from puberty, came through.
Wen Ya composed herself, turned around, and saw the boy floating in front of her with his head down. Wen Ya said coldly, "What?"
The little devil seemed to have mustered all his strength: "Sister, do you have a treasure that can bring me back to life?"
Wen Ya crossed her arms and looked at "him," her tone laced with sarcasm: "You committed suicide. You didn't want to live when you had the chance, and now you want to borrow my spiritual artifact to be resurrected. Are you that free?"
Si Mucheng had followed Wen Ya out, but he was startled when he heard these words before they even got close. He had never seen Wen Ya so sharp before. In the past, she was just indifferent, and at most she would just ignore people when she was angry. How could she say such things to this brat now?
Si Mucheng quickly stepped forward and grasped Wen Ya's wrist: "What's wrong?"
Wen Ya realized she had said the wrong thing. She took a deep breath, glanced at the dejected little devil, and after a long while, managed to utter two words: "...Sorry."
"Are you unhappy?" Si Mucheng still looked down at her.
Wen Ya looked dejected. Hearing Si Mucheng's words, she simply shook her head. After a while, she looked up again at the little devil and asked, "When did you die?"
Yang Yanzhen said that she wanted to pay her respects because her eldest son's death anniversary was approaching. She believed that the little devil had been dead for more than a year, or almost a year.
Sure enough, upon hearing her question, the little devil obediently answered, "This time last year."
Wen Ya thought for a moment and then asked, "If I'm not mistaken, you should have known about the resurrection of the spiritual artifact a long time ago."
The little ghost nodded and volunteered, "Just a few days ago, one night, a voice suddenly told me that if I had any unfinished business, I could borrow a treasure to return to life and complete what I wanted to do. When I met you all today, I felt a power from my sister, which must be that treasure, so..."
He glanced quickly at Wen Ya, then made up his mind and said, "Sister, I know I made a mistake, but I really still have things to do. Can you...can you help me?"
Wen Ya stared at "him" with her narrow phoenix eyes, not answering his question, but instead saying, "Since you already knew, why didn't you come to find me?"
The ghosts who came for the resurrection lamp almost moved at will, following the lamp's call to come before her, but the little ghost in front of her did not.
The little devil hesitated for a moment before finally saying, "I...I can't bear to leave my mother."
Wen Ya stopped abruptly.
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