"What is he afraid of?"
Chen Xiaobao talked to himself.
After pondering for a while, Chen Xiaobao returned to the room quietly. The next morning, bursts of mournful music sounded in Lijiazhai. Bai Xiaoli rubbed her eyes, awakened by the mournful music.
"Brother Xiaobao, what's that sound?"
Bai Xiaoli opened her eyes blankly, and for a moment she couldn't even remember where she was.
After waiting for a while, she came to her senses and found that Chen Xiaobao's arm was on her slender waist. Her face turned slightly red and she was completely sober.
"It's funeral music. There's a funeral going on in the village!"
Chen Xiaobao also woke up. He had a light sleep last night and woke up when he heard the funeral music. He got up and walked to the window and saw that a funeral was being held in a villager's home in the village.
"Mr. Chen, there's a funeral in the village, I need to go preside over it. The meal is ready, you guys eat first, and when I'm done, I'll come back and sign the contract with you!"
Headman Li tied a white cloth on his head, gave some quick instructions, and went out.
"Xiao Li, let's go downstairs to eat!"
Chen Xiaobao had an idea and called Bai Xiaoli to go downstairs together.
"Young man, come and have a meal. Lijiazhai is a remote place and the people there are poor. The food is simple and plain. Please don't mind!" The old woman, who had lost many of her teeth, had a kind face. When she saw the two men coming down, she quickly brought out the meal.
There were just two bowls of oil tea, a plate of fried rice cakes, and some black, indescribable stuff. It was simpler than last night's meal.
"Grandma, you are too polite. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. We will eat whatever you eat!"
Chen Xiaobao glanced towards the backyard and smiled.
"Good boy, eat, eat!"
The old lady said kindly.
After a while, several people appeared. They were all the people who went into the mountain yesterday. However, only half of them came. The others probably stayed at the villagers' homes to eat.
"Grandma, can I go for a walk in the backyard? I want to move around after dinner!" Chen Xiaobao suddenly said after a while.
"The back hasn't been cleaned yet, it's too dirty, you'd better not go there!"
A trace of panic flashed across the old lady's face and she spoke quickly.
"Then forget it!"
Chen Xiaobao smiled and nodded. There was indeed something wrong with the backyard.
But Chen Xiaobao didn't force it. Everyone has a secret. As long as it doesn't affect their land rental, it's fine.
After the meal, Tou Ren Li was busy with the funeral procession. The family holding the funeral also had to prepare a banquet. Chen Xiaobao and the others waited until almost noon, but Tou Ren Li did not come back.
The old lady also wanted to attend a banquet at noon. She didn't prepare food for several people, so she invited a few people to join the banquet.
"Then each of you can make a gift, and I'll pay for it!"
Chen Xiaobao went to deliver the gifts and took a few people with him.
Soon, there was music and dancing in the village, and many people began to get busy.
"Grandma, what are they doing?"
Bai Xiaoli asked curiously.
"It's time to bury him and put him to rest in peace!"
The old lady sighed, and suddenly a hint of pity appeared in her eyes as she looked at Bai Xiaoli.
Bai Xiaoli was confused by the look and was about to continue asking when the old lady hurried over to help.
Bai Xiaoli shook her head, feeling vaguely uneasy. She turned around to talk to Chen Xiaobao, only to see Chen Xiaobao frowning and looking around.
"Brother Xiaobao, what are you looking for?"
Bai Xiaoli followed Chen Xiaobao's gaze and saw that the people in the village were busy, so she didn't notice anything unusual.
"Li Dayong, have you seen Li Dayong today?"
Chen Xiaobao frowned and took out his cell phone.
"It seems not. Is he having dinner at another villager's house? Two families in Lijiazhai are going to hold funerals today!" Bai Xiaoli thought about it carefully. She didn't notice whether Li Dayong was there today, but two families in Lijiazhai were going to hold funerals today, so maybe Li Dayong was there.
Moreover, Li Dayong has relatives in Lijiazhai, so it is not certain whether he has gone to his relatives' home.
"Do you have Li Dayong's phone number? I'll call him and ask!"
Chen Xiaobao said as he took out his cell phone.
"I'll go ask!"
Bai Xiaoli didn't have Li Dayong's phone number either, but other staff members or the driver did. She went and asked and quickly found out Li Dayong's phone number.
“Beep, beep, beep!”
Chen Xiaobao made a phone call for a long time, and the call was connected, but no one answered. Chen Xiaobao suddenly had an ominous premonition.
"Xiao Li, stay here. I'm going to go out for a while. Don't wander around!"
Chen Xiaobao hurriedly told Bai Xiaoli something and went straight to another villager's home where a funeral was being held. After asking around, he still couldn't find Li Dayong.
The coffin of this villager's family had been carried away by the funeral procession, and only some women, children and helpers were left at home.
Chen Xiaobao asked again where Li Dayong's relatives were, but after looking for them, he still couldn't find Li Dayong.
"Xiaobao, don't worry. Maybe Li Dayong went with the funeral procession. It rained so hard last night and we are in the mountains. Where else can he go?"
Bai Xiaoli didn't realize the problem yet. She thought that Li Dayong was a living person and it was impossible for him to disappear for no reason.
"Wait a minute!"
Chen Xiaobao frowned, not sure whether Li Dayong was buried with the funeral procession or was really missing.
You can only wait patiently.
But after waiting for a long time, there was no sign of the funeral procession returning.
By noon, the water in the pot was almost boiled dry, but the team still hadn't returned.
Not only did Chen Xiaobao and the others feel that something was wrong, even the villagers of Lijiazhai felt that something was wrong.
"What's going on? Why haven't you come back yet?"
"Yeah, I've been gone for quite some time, I should have come back a long time ago!"
"Did it rain heavily yesterday and the grave was washed away? Do we need to dig it again?"
"That should be it, otherwise why hasn't he come back yet?"
The villagers of Lijiazhai were talking about it.
According to the rules of Lijiazhai, the body must be kept for three days after a funeral. The grave was dug before the heavy rain yesterday, and the funeral will be held today. The coffin will be carried directly over and the grave will be filled back after burial.
The cemetery in Lijiazhai is not far from the village. All in all, the funeral procession will be back in two hours at most. But now it has been two or three hours and the procession has not returned yet.
"It seems that neither of the two funeral processions have returned!" Bai Xiaoli heard the discussions around her and whispered to Chen Xiaobao.
"Well, something might be wrong!"
Chen Xiaobao frowned and looked outside the village. There was fog outside the village. The rainstorm had stopped long ago. The sky was clear and the sun was shining. But maybe because it had just rained heavily, the forest was humid and the fog outside the village blocked the view. The funeral procession could not be seen.
After waiting for more than half an hour, the chef simply extinguished the fire in the steamer. The villagers here started to make a commotion and seemed ready to leave the village.
"Brother Xiaobao, they said the funeral procession hasn't returned yet, so they're going to send someone to look for it!"
Bai Xiaoli said.
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