On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the weather was gloomy. Crows kept circling around the big trees in the village, cawing loudly, creating a somber atmosphere and sounding particularly unpleasant.
The villagers all said that when a crow caws, someone is going to die.
Moreover, this thick, inseparable cloud layer is also caused by an excessive amount of yin energy.
The death of a young person evokes a different feeling than the death of an elderly person. Young people are more likely to inspire fear!
The circling crows only added to the eerie and mysterious atmosphere.
Lu Huaijiao and the others didn't bring up the topic, but the other villagers couldn't help but discuss it in small groups at home.
I don't know where the rumors started in the first place.
In short, on the second day of the Lunar New Year, a rumor circulated throughout the village: Miao Yuan had died a tragic death, her eyes wide open in disbelief, and she would surely come back to find a scapegoat...
Lu Huaijiao didn't hear the rumor while she was at home.
However, in other parts of the village, especially among those who had been following Miao Yuan's death, the rumors had terrified them.
Already feeling guilty, he was even more flustered, his body taut, and the slightest breeze could break his tense nerves!
This man is Zhang Qiang!
"Brother Qiang, what's wrong?"
Gu Yanping didn't know what was wrong with her husband. Why did he seem so absent-minded during the Chinese New Year? He couldn't sleep at night, and he couldn't even eat during the day, looking like he had something on his mind.
Are you worried about something?
Gu Yanping likes Zhang Qiang, and her feelings are genuine.
But she really isn't very smart!
Otherwise, it would have been impossible not to notice Zhang Qiang's unusual behavior; it was all because of Miao Yuan's death.
Zhang Qiang was lost in thought when he suddenly heard Gu Yanping's words, which startled him.
The huge reaction left Gu Yanping completely bewildered.
"Brother Qiang? What's wrong? What happened?"
"Oh? Oh, it's nothing, it's nothing. I was just thinking about something. I was thinking about what we'd do in the city when I go to university. We need to plan ahead for food and accommodation."
Zhang Qiang knew what Gu Yanping liked to hear.
This unsophisticated village girl loved listening to stories about the city.
Whenever he mentioned the city, her attention would be drawn to it, and she would show an expression of longing.
She's such a naive country girl.
Zhang Qiang inwardly scorned him.
There was absolutely no way he would go to the city with him. He had had enough of living in the village all these years, and now that he could finally return to the city, how could he possibly have any connection with the villagers again?
He, Zhang Qiang, came into this world clean, and he will leave clean as well.
Do not have any connection whatsoever with anyone or anything in this village.
Gu Yanping, overjoyed by Zhang Qiang's words, had no idea that the man who loved and respected her was plotting to abandon her.
The third day of the Lunar New Year.
Early in the morning, Lu Huaijiao was woken up by the noise from the neighboring courtyard.
Miao Yuan was buried this morning.
Here, funerals are usually held around seven or eight in the morning. It's still dark outside, so what's all the noise going on next door?
Lu Huaijiao hummed twice in dissatisfaction.
The man beside her reached out and patted her back, gently coaxing her, "It must be the Miao people who have arrived."
"Hmm? People from the Miao family?"
Lu Huaijiao was stunned for a moment, but quickly realized that the Miao family were Miao Yuan's maternal relatives.
I didn't expect them to come back.
This made Lu Huaijiao look at the Miao people with new respect.
Listening to the intermittent sobbing of the woman next door, she figured it must be Miao Yuan's mother who had come; otherwise, she wouldn't be crying so pitifully.
"Let's get up and go take a look."
Lu Huaijiao made the suggestion.
The noise from next door is so loud that she can't sleep, so she might as well go over next door and check on them.
Moreover, she had been wondering about something for the past few days and really wanted to see it for herself.
"Isn't your wife scared?"
"What are you afraid of?"
Are you afraid of Miao Yuan? You weren't afraid when she was alive, so she's even less scary now that she's dead. Don't tell her about ghosts or anything like that; she doesn't believe in that stuff at all.
If ghosts really exist, then she wouldn't have never met Gu Changzheng in her dreams for so many years after Gu Changzheng's death in her previous life.
So ghosts don't exist at all.
The couple got up, dressed, and washed up; it was already getting light outside.
The crying next door had subsided somewhat.
Lu Huaijiao held Gu Changzheng's hand, and together they went out of the courtyard to the next house.
According to their village custom, villagers are expected to come and help on the morning of the funeral. As for how corrupt Gu Changqing's character was in private, that's all private.
On the surface, at least in terms of social interactions within the village, Gu Changqing was very adept at it.
He would help anyone in need.
Therefore, quite a few people have come to his house to help him at this time today.
Because so many people came, the whole village knew about the Miao people's commotion. Some of the younger people stood outside the gate, too afraid to go in.
Although Lu Huaijiao wasn't superstitious, the village still had its own set of rules.
Elders would not appear at the funeral of a younger person.
Elders like Gu Jianhua didn't come; it was his peers who did. Gu Xiangdong and Gu Changshan were the ones presiding over the event for Gu Changqing.
Three people from the Miao family came. Apart from Miao Yuan's biological mother, her father and brother both put on a very unapproachable demeanor.
He Yun was also in the crowd.
When she saw Lu Huaijiao, she walked over to her side.
Speak to her in a low voice.
It turned out they were from the Miao family. They didn't believe Miao Yuan had died accidentally; they insisted that Miao Yuan must have been murdered.
They were unwilling to bury Miao Yuan until they found out who had killed her.
Lu Huaijiao let out a sound of surprise and looked at He Yun with a puzzled expression: "Isn't Miao Yuan's home in the same city but a different county?"
He Yun didn't understand what Lu Huaijiao meant at first.
But she nodded and honestly replied, "Yes, it's a two-hour drive from our county."
"When did Gu Changzheng's second brother inform the Miao family about Miao Yuan's death? If he informed them on New Year's Day, why did the Miao family only arrive today?"
Lu Huaijiao didn't have a good impression of Gu Changqing, but that doesn't mean she was the kind of person who would distort the truth.
There is a fundamental difference between a pretentious person and a fool who can't distinguish right from wrong.
Just like in the current situation, if someone can clearly see that the Miao people have ill intentions, but pretends not to see it and agrees with them, then they are unable to distinguish right from wrong.
Being unable to distinguish right from wrong is not just being pretentious, it's downright stupid.
When she mentioned it, He Yun realized what she meant.
"Yes, it's strange. The Miao people came at such a convenient time. Why did they have to come at this time? It's hard not to suspect their purpose!"
"There's no doubt they came with a purpose."
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