Temperature on the fourth day
Lin Chaoying thought about it all night. When she got out of bed in the morning, she had huge dark circles under her eyes and listlessly walked down the stairs, where she ran into Qian Fei.
She exclaimed in surprise, "Wow! What were you doing last night? Your dark circles are so bad!"
Lin Chaoying waved her hand, looking troubled, and said, "I'm wondering where Xiao Mei can find evidence."
Qian Fei was optimistic. "Don't think about it. Even a smart brain needs rest! By the way, today you and Jiang Chuangu go to Granny Zhao's house, Kong Yue and I will go to the back mountain, and Qin Ming is going to find Wang Yu."
"Why is he looking for Wang Yu again?" Lin Chaoying suspected his motives were impure. "Could it be that he also wants to recruit him into Twelfth Street?"
Qian Fei: "Impossible, Wang Yu is still a suspect in a murder case! He's going to go over and try to get more information out of Wang Yu, to see if Wang Yu can realize he's been tricked and turn himself in!"
Lin Chaoying: "Then what are you doing going to the back mountain?"
After looking around, Qian Fei lowered his voice and whispered, "Kong Yue is going to the cemetery behind the mountain to perform an autopsy!"
"Ah!" Lin Chaoying exclaimed in surprise, "I always thought Kong Yue was the youngest but the most reliable, I never expected her to be so bold!"
Qian Fei nodded vigorously and said, "Of course! When we couldn't deal with the superhumans before, it was all Kong Yue's bad ideas... no! brilliant ideas!"
Lin Chaoying reminded him, "Then you must protect Kong Yue!"
Qian Feibi gave an "OK" sign and said, "Don't worry!"
Grandma Zhao's house was located in the most remote part of the entire residential area. Lin Chaoying and Jiang Chuangu walked through almost all the alleys before finally spotting the house behind an apple tree. According to Wang Qi, Xiao Mei's two favorite places to visit were the village chief's house where she took care of Wang Fei, and the place where she would go to find Grandma Zhao, who was over eighty years old, to do handicrafts.
Lin Chaoying gently knocked on the weathered wooden door. The door opened from the inside with a clang, revealing gentle eyes and brows.
Grandma Zhao, with her hunched back, saw the strangers and, assuming they were asking for directions, asked, "Which house are you looking for?"
Lin Chaoying said, "We came here to see you, Grandma Zhao! We heard that you do handicrafts here, and we'd like to learn!"
Grandma Zhao opened the door wide and replied with a smile, "You must be tourists from out of town!"
The two nodded, and she invited them in. Although the house was small, there were vegetables growing in the corner of the yard, and lucky bags and a kind of beautiful and simple knitted rope were hanging from the beams.
This doesn't feel like the houses in Peach Blossom Village. Lin Chaoying said, "These past few days, wherever I've been, the village has felt cold and gloomy. Today, even though Grandma Zhao's house is remote, it actually feels very warm?"
Jiang Chuan Gu looked up at the colorful silk fluttering in the wind. Sunlight shone down, making the ground shimmer with iridescent colors. The beauty was warm and inviting. He said, "Grandma Zhao is clearly someone who loves life."
Grandma Zhao brought out a small table, and Jiang Chuangu quickly stepped forward to help carry two baskets of fabric, as well as a stool and a small kettle. Grandma Zhao then ran into the small room, took out a bag of colorful fruits, and said, "In this weather, drinking tea and eating fruits is the most comfortable thing!"
After they sat down, they both politely expressed their gratitude.
Although Granny Zhao was old, she was very agile and had bright eyes, unlike some middle-aged or elderly people whose eyes were cloudy and yellowish. After arranging the yard, she sat down and said, "Was this introduced by Wang Qi?"
Lin Chaoying nodded, "Yes, it's him. It seems he often introduces people to you?"
"Yes," Grandma Zhao said with a smile, "This child is kind. She's afraid that I'll be all alone and have no income, so when tourists come, she'll introduce them to do some handicrafts."
Lin Chaoying picked up a red fruit, took a bite, and tasted its sweet and sour flavor with juice still lingering in her mouth. She asked, "Grandma? What is this fruit made of? It's so delicious!"
Grandma Zhao explained, "The small apples at the door are pickled. Now I'm the only one in the whole village who knows how to make them. It's something passed down from the older generation. There's nothing special about it. You city girls have never seen it before, so you should like it."
Jiang Chuan Gu doesn't like sweets. He picked up the teacup, took a sip, and was surprised by the taste, saying, "This tea is really good."
“Right?” Granny Zhao smiled happily and said, “This was left to me by the old village chief. I heard it was very valuable.”
Upon hearing the key words, the two unconsciously exchanged a glance.
Grandma Zhao observed this but didn't point it out. She asked, "What do you want to learn today? I have lucky bags and rope braiding, and I also have small handbags that I can embroider!"
"Great!" Lin Chaoying looked up at the dazzling array of beautiful handicrafts above her, and asked, "Grandma Zhao, do you have any recommendations? I want something safe and healthy!"
Grandma Zhao pointed to a spot not far away and said, "Then how about embroidering a simple lucky bag?"
Lin Chaoying was very satisfied, thinking that she could still wear it on her body, and said, "Sure."
Granny Zhao then asked Jiang Chuangu, "Young man, why don't you embroider a 'May you be forever united'?"
"Huh?" Jiang Chuan Gu didn't react, shook his head, and simply said, "Are there any cases of turning bad luck into good?"
Grandma Zhao smiled. From the moment the two entered the courtyard, she noticed that the young man's eyes were practically glued to the little girl.
Lin Chaoying teased, "Grandma Zhao, you don't know how many more unfortunate things he's had compared to his marriage prospects!"
"Alright, alright." Granny Zhao stood up, took down two lucky bags, one for peace and one for good fortune, from the yard, and said, "Each of you should embroider one today. It would be good if you could finish them."
This kind of handicraft work was torture for Lin Chaoying, requiring great patience and meticulousness. She only had a very active bottom and a mediocre sense of aesthetics, which led to Grandma Zhao having to adjust it for her several times.
In contrast, Jiangchuan Valley picked it up quickly, quietly lowering his head as his needle and thread moved back and forth, and the shape of the lucky bag began to take shape.
Lin Chaoying hadn't forgotten her mission, and casually remarked, "Xiao Mei told me before that only Granny Zhao's place in this village was different, and it turns out it's true!"
Grandma Zhao suddenly stopped weaving and asked, "What did you say?"
Lin Chaoying tentatively called her name again, "Xiao Mei..."
Grandma Zhao clearly remembered, and asked nervously, "Are you Xiao Mei's friends? You must have heard a lot of gossip these past few days, right?"
Lin Chaoying asked, "Grandma Zhao, do you believe it? Do you believe Xiao Mei would cheat on you?"
For Granny Zhao, time was everything in life. In her long, solitary years, the people and events she encountered each year left different marks on her barren life.
Xiao Mei and Wang Ge are like the happiest strokes on the ruler, besides the old village chief Wang Lin.
She said, "Of course I don't believe it. I've seen how Xiao Mei and Wang Ge get along, how could I not know about their feelings?"
Xiao Mei had only been in the village for a few days when, through Wang Qi's introduction, she started doing handicrafts at Grandma Zhao's house. Wang Ge would come to pick her up every day, always carrying either delicious food, flowers, or interesting little trinkets.
Knowing that Grandma Zhao lived alone, the two often brought ingredients to her place to cook dinner. The three of them would sit in a circle in the yard, with colorful blessings floating above their heads, hot food on the table, and a couple laughing and joking in front of them.
That was the happiest time of Grandma Zhao's life.
But she could also tell that the village elders were not satisfied with Xiao Mei. They believed that Wang Ge had not returned to the ancestral hall and the river god in advance to obtain permission for the marriage, nor had he notified the elders of the clan. He had directly married outside the village and brought her back, which was against the rules.
So when Xiao Mei rolled a boiled egg over the bruises on Wang Ge's face, saying, "I'll stay for two more days. I want to go back to Changjing the day after tomorrow. Otherwise, they'll get agitated as soon as they see me. It's not a good idea to keep beating you."
Wang Ge grabbed her hand and said with a grin, "I'm not in pain. I'll get it wherever you go! If you leave, I'll leave too! I brought you back here to meet my parents and grandfather. The others have nothing to do with me. It's not your problem; it's just that they're stubborn and unreasonable!"
Grandma Zhao knew they wouldn't be staying long, so she took out her only five hundred yuan and said, "Children, your grandfather saved me back then, and I've always remembered it. He's your elder by age, so consider this money a wedding gift for you."
The two refused to accept the money, but seeing Granny Zhao's firm attitude, Xiao Mei took it upon herself to accept the ninety-nine yuan, as it had a good meaning.
That day, Wang Ge specially bought a fish and pork ribs, treating this meal as Xiao Mei's visit to Taoyuan Village to meet her parents.
At the dinner table, they discussed that Wang Ge would go to say goodbye to the village chief tomorrow, and Xiao Mei would pack her luggage, prepare local specialties, and the two of them would leave the day after tomorrow.
Xiao Mei said excitedly, "Then tomorrow we'll go to Wang Qi's place to buy some more postcards and stones, and then we'll go to Qiu Chen to get some wine. Last time I helped Qiu Chen drive away some bullies, and he said he'd give me two bottles of the best wine from Taoyuan Village!"
Wang Ge laughed, "Then you'd better hurry. I heard Qiu Chen is dating someone from the county town recently, and they go on dates every night!"
Xiao Mei was surprised: "He's in the village every day, how did he meet a girl from the county town?"
Wang Ge helped remove the bones from the two pieces of fish, giving one to Grandma Zhao and the other to Xiao Mei, saying, "Him? We met on the bus, and they fell in love at first sight!"
Grandma Zhao sighed, "That must be fate."
Their last meal ended amidst gossip and laughter. After Xiao Mei and Wang Ge returned to the old house, Grandma Zhao looked at the empty courtyard, feeling a sense of melancholy about the loneliness that was about to come, but also a joy at being infected by the happiness of the two of them.
As she spoke, a tear unconsciously slid down her deeply lined face, and she said sadly, "Two such good children, suddenly both gone..."
Lin Chaoying and Jiang Chuan Gu felt even more distressed.
Granny Zhao took out a white cloth and wiped the moisture from the corners of her eyes. Her hoarse voice, heavy with emotion, continued, "This village has changed a long time ago. Ever since they destroyed the Prayer Hall and rebuilt it as a River God Temple, the whole village has changed... become ruthless and cannibalistic..."
Lin Chaoying asked, "The Prayer Hall? Is it the predecessor of the River God Temple?"
Grandma Zhao nodded. "Back then, the old village chief, despite his illness, knelt before the temple, begging everyone not to smash it. But Wang Shao had already gone mad. He blamed the village's poverty and misfortunes on the prayer hall, saying that wishing to the gods was the same as resenting them, which was unlucky. He said the only way to change Taoyuan Village's fate was to pray to the river god of the Qingluo River beside the village..."
Lin Chaoying: "After the river god temple was built, did the village change a lot?"
Grandma Zhao's eyes were filled with pain. "The legends of the River God Temple are a mix of truth and falsehood. They did help the village develop tourism, but suddenly many conflicts arose within the village. People who didn't usually interact, or even those who were called friends or neighbors, suddenly found themselves embroiled in a host of problems. Arguments, fights, and even deaths became the daily occurrence in this Peach Blossom Village..."
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