Chapter 41. Ping Yu remained silent, relentlessly digging for gold. ...
With Lin's father in a state of great inner conflict, the two of them left hand in hand with their aunt.
Pingyu was in charge of gathering information. She smiled sweetly and said, "Auntie, what is your relationship with my mother's great-grandfather? My family doesn't have such a grand birthday banquet. It's really impressive!"
"Isn't it grand? We have to have a big celebration for the elders' birthdays. This is a tradition passed down from our ancestors in Balai!" The auntie replied with a smile, "I am the great-granddaughter-in-law of the founding emperor. My name is Xue Xuliu. You two can just call me Aunt Xue."
“Aunt Xue, I’m Pingyu, and this is Nezha. I’m curious about something, may I ask?”
"No problem at all, go ahead and ask, girl."
Pingyu paused for a moment, as if choosing his words: "My home is in Chentang Pass, which is quite far from here. Wouldn't it be inconvenient for you to come down and invite people? Why did you think of my family as relatives?"
Ping Yu wanted to ask more questions, but stopped himself because of Xue Xuliu's actions.
From the mud houses to now, I've moved through one courtyard after another.
Finally, we arrived at a place filled with joy and celebration.
The wooden house was surrounded by a fence, both sides wrapped with yellow and green ribbons. Round lanterns, the size of full-term infants, hung from the eaves, their wicks already dimmed like dried blood hanging beneath the eaves. Pingyu caught a whiff of a strange fragrance from afar; at first, the scent was comforting, but after a while, it made her dizzy and her chest feel tight. Her sense of smell was keen, and she couldn't help but hold her breath. Suddenly, Nezha felt a warmth beside him; a girl had scurried over like a puppy.
He had a light, pleasant fragrance that could dispel the lingering, strong scent in Pingyu's nose.
Nezha felt a tightness in the back of his neck, but he didn't push Pingyu away after all, trying to accept another person invading his small "territory".
Xue Xuliu treated it as childish play, pointing to the main gate and saying, "The founding emperor is inside."
The words "May your fortune be as vast as the Eastern Sea" and "May your longevity be as enduring as the Southern Mountain" were written in vermilion on the doorway. On either side of the two door panels were two door gods, their newly painted paint still wet. The aunt stepped forward and pushed the door open.
Behind the door is the main hall.
I wonder which deity or Buddha is being worshipped for so much incense. The pig trough was washed clean, filled with soil, and densely packed with sandalwood sticks. Flames flickered, the incense burning from red to white, sinking down inch by inch like ashes. Sticky white smoke filled the entire main hall, obscuring any visible statues or shrines.
Only an old man sat high on the table, receiving the incense offerings that filled the room.
Xue Xuliu, standing in front, bowed respectfully and said, "Grand Ancestor, I have brought two juniors with me."
Pingyu and Nezha stared intently at the old man on the table.
She was clearly a ninety-year-old woman, but Pingyu found her to be in better health than himself. Her full head of silver hair was meticulously combed, and her face, white with a rosy tinge, resembled clean pigskin, making it impossible to see anything but a few deep wrinkles on her forehead, the corners of her eyes, and her nasolabial folds.
The area below the chin of the founding emperor was completely covered by layers of clothing.
The fabric used for the clothing was stiff, and the only part that was exposed was the head, which looked like a flower peeking out of a vase.
"Greetings, Emperor Taizu."
The two spoke together.
Emperor Taizu nodded, his voice sharp as a cat's meow: "Good child."
How can someone not even feel a fly landing in their eyeball?
She mouthed the words to Nezha:
Demon?
Nezha shook his head:
people.
Xue Xuliu was busy making arrangements.
She held a bunch of incense sticks, lit them over a candle flame, and casually stuck them into the pig trough. Turning to the two men, she said, "Why don't you say some auspicious words so that the Great Ancestor can pat your heads?"
Ping hesitated more.
Even though Nezha said the other person was human, she didn't really want to be touched by that eerie scene.
Moreover, she has a lot of yin energy. What if she accidentally kills an old man and causes him to die prematurely?
As I hesitated, the person beside me walked forward.
Nezha walked up to Pingyu and looked at his pig-belly-like face, and said slowly, "Grand Ancestor, I wish you a long and healthy life, and boundless blessings in the future."
"Oh my, what a sweet talker! Come here!" Xue Xuliu laughed heartily and pulled Nezha to the table: "Grand Ancestor, feel him!"
Under the watchful eyes of the two men, the Emperor Taizu reached out his hand from under his clothes.
Unlike the plump, fleshy face, those were truly the hands of an old man. Like the skin of a soybean just lifted from soy milk, they hung damply with the last bit of flesh clinging to them, covered with brownish-red spots and textures.
He pressed his hand down on Nezha's head.
He accepted it without flinching, when Xue Xuliu's voice rang out:
"One touch and you're smart"
"Second Health Check"
"Three touches to flatten..."
Pingyu quickly covered his ears, just in time to avoid the woman's piercing scream.
"What are you doing?!"
Nezha launched his attack at the last moment.
The boy grabbed the old woman's wrist and used his thumb to probe her pulse. However, the action lasted only a moment; the woman quickly shook off his hand.
Xue Xuliu blushed with anger and loudly questioned, "How could you be like this, child!"
Nezha looked at his fingertips, his face filled with confusion.
Why is there no pulse?
He was lost in thought and ignored the woman's screams.
Pingyu quickly pulled Nezha back, making up a flimsy excuse: "A fly just flew by, and Nezha was startled, that's why he did that. Right, Nezha?"
The boy was unresponsive, as if he were in a nightmare. To calm him down, the only thing to do was pinch his fingers and repeat, "Nezha!"
“Oh, right,” he said slowly and perfunctorily. “There’s a very big fly.”
"You..."
"Where are the flies?"
The sound would be covered up, and Xue Xuliu immediately put it to her lips.
The rooster, which had been so domineering just moments before, instantly turned into a tiny insect being pecked at on the ground.
She said awkwardly, "My husband..."
Xue Xuliu's husband is...
The village chief has arrived.
He was a handsome young man, holding a small child with a cinnabar dot on his forehead.
He said loudly, "The child was only frightened by the flying insects, so why is my wife so angry?"
Xue Xuliu hesitated and remained silent. He then turned to the two of them and said, "You must be the two new children from the Lin family. This birthday banquet is for adults, so you shouldn't meddle. The founding emperor is also getting old and can't withstand too much exertion. I brought my own children to keep you company. Why don't the three of you go out for a stroll and come back later? Tonight, we'll also be hosting a banquet for your elders, so even if you're tired, you can still eat plenty of meat."
He said he put down his own child.
The village chief was dressed only in clothes, without any ornaments, and didn't look like someone with any cultivation or spiritual power. His child, barely born, widened his eyes upon seeing Pingyu and Nezha, exclaiming, "Those are the two who stole my bowl!"
Memories flooded back; it turned out he was the leader of the group of cardboard children I met at the village entrance.
He reached out and demanded, "Give me back my bowl!"
"That's all." Nezha ignored him.
Pingyu kindly replied, "It was taken by the person banging the gong."
"Hey, I knew you guys were young and would get along well."
The village chief's smiling face left Pingyu speechless.
Where did they get the conclusion that they had a good relationship? But this child didn't seem very bright, and he was one of those people in the long line at the village entrance; perhaps they could get some information out of him. Thinking this, Pingyu gave Nezha a look. The boy received the signal, raised his arm, grabbed the child by the neck, and dragged him out.
"Let's go, let's go play!"
The child was strangled until his face turned purple and he couldn't speak.
Ping Yu blocked and covered for them, as if they were arm in arm.
Nezha dragged the child outside, and Pingyu carefully closed the door behind him. The child watched helplessly as his parents disappeared behind the door; these two strangers looked like they were conspiring to murder and dispose of the body! He remembered the terrifying expression on Nezha's face when he asked for meat earlier, and he was so frightened that he wanted to cry.
"Just leave it here."
Pingyu raised his chin towards a tree, and the child felt utterly hopeless: It's over, the burial site has been decided.
The vicious boy who had been choking him released his grip and tossed him to the ground like an object. The child clutched his throat, slumped to the ground, and coughed weakly and helplessly a few times. Just as he looked up, two figures crouched down in front of him. Ping Yu smiled and asked, "What's your name?"
"Dog, little dog..." Giving a child a humble name makes it easier to raise him. He stammered in response, but compared to Ping Yu's smile, the fierce-looking Nezha behind the girl was more eye-catching. After getting the name, Ping Yu said again, "Little dog, how about we become friends?"
"I don't want to!" He closed his eyes. "You children who bully others like this will be punished by the Mountain God!"
There was no pain, no angry shouts, and the two people in front of him didn't react. After a while, the dog tentatively opened his eyes. This time, besides the smiling girl, there was also a golden object in her hand. This, this is... He picked it up and put it in his mouth to bite. As soon as he bit down, a ring of teeth marks immediately appeared on it.
Gold!
Dog immediately stood up. He wiped the gold on his clothes to remove the drool, patted his chest, and said to Ping Yu earnestly, "You're my friend now, Dog. I'll protect you while we're in the car!"
No wonder Dad invited his family into the village; they're the God of Wealth!
Ping Yu waved his finger: "No need to cover it up. But I do have some things I'd like to ask you."
"Go ahead and tell me, I'll definitely keep quiet about what I know."
It's about speaking freely, isn't it?
Ping Yu chuckled twice and pointed at the dog: "What do you do?"
"I don't think I can say that," the boy said, fiddling with his fingers.
Ping Yu remained silent, focusing solely on extracting gold.
The dog accepted another piece, its expression instantly changing: "This is for reporting purposes."
"What's the meaning?"
"That's what my father said. Our village of Balai is protected by the mountain god." Gou'er: "If an elderly person lives a long life, we have to hold a grand birthday feast to inform the god. We gather a lot of meat, and then send it to the mountain for food that evening!"
Nezha and Pingyu exchanged a glance and asked, "Your village has produced a long-lived elder. What does that have to do with the gods?"
Are we really going to let the mountains sustain us?
Nezha immediately formed a sword-finger gesture and brought it to his lips. Pingyu grabbed his hand and asked in surprise, "What are you doing?"
"To verify," he said.
"Who are you looking for...?"
Pingyu had a bad feeling when he saw Nezha stomp on the ground.
road:
"The person in charge of this mountain."
Author's Note: Purple Land: Holy crap!
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