The feeling just now was all too familiar; it was the body's reaction to the backlash from the energy crystal.
Zuo Ling closed her eyes, no longer daring to look directly into the Bodhisattva's eyes; her heart pounded like a drum.
She was certain that the Bodhisattva's eyes were made of energy crystals, but not ones that she could absorb in her current state.
This is the first time I've encountered an energy crystal that I can't look directly at, which shows how much energy it contains.
He pondered how to remove the Buddha's eyes without being discovered by the villagers.
Turning around, Zuo Ling was startled to see a woman standing under a tree in the courtyard.
She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't even notice when the person came in.
He stood up to greet her: "Sister, do you have stones to sell?"
The woman was shy, and stammered, trying to make conversation:
"Yes, yes, you...you're worshipping Buddha."
"Yes, does eldest sister know which deities they are?"
The land of Jinzhou is full of wonders and mysteries. The three bodhisattvas have different clothes, so they must each have their own origin.
The woman shook her head:
"I don't know either. Our village doesn't have a place for discussions, and the temple was just sitting idle anyway, so we borrowed it."
Zuo Ling: "..."
How cunning! Taking advantage of the fact that the Bodhisattva cannot speak, taking things without asking.
Since the ancestral hall was not built with funds from the villagers themselves, it naturally lacked many elaborate customs.
I'm still curious. After all, it's an artifact from hundreds of years ago. Aren't the villagers afraid that someone might move the Buddha statue away?
The woman didn't want to talk to Zuo Ling about this topic anymore, so she took out a stone from her cloth bundle: "I have a stone at home, can you take a look at it?"
The stone is about the size of a fist, reddish-brown in color, with a smooth, oily surface and clear patterns, as beautiful as a watercolor painting.
It looks good, but unfortunately it's not the energy crystal Zuo Ling wanted.
How much do you want to sell it for?
The woman hesitated, unsure of how much to sell it for, and tentatively held up three fingers:
"Three...three thousand."
Her child found the stone by chance while playing by the river, thought it was pretty, and picked it up.
Before we arrived, the child's father told us to be bold and ask for a high price.
According to her, 300 is not even worth it; 3000 is the highest price she can think of.
After pretending to caress it for a while, Zuo Ling said, "1000 at most, if that's suitable, you can keep it."
Normally, Zuo Ling wouldn't buy non-energy crystals at all.
Now that they have other plans, they have to start a new strategy.
Unexpectedly, a broken stone she picked up from the riverbank could sell for 1,000 yuan, and the woman readily agreed.
"1000 will do, 1000 will do."
Fearing that Zuo Ling might change her mind, he quickly stuffed the stone into her hand.
The village was remote and had no signal, so Zuo Ling paid the woman 1,000 yuan in cash.
The woman left happily.
The village was so small that, within the time it takes to eat a meal, the villagers learned that so-and-so's wife had sold a broken stone she picked up by the river for 1,000 yuan.
Most villagers earn no more than 10,000 yuan a year.
The villagers were in an uproar: could they really make money just by picking up a broken rock?
Many villagers didn't even have time to eat; they put down their bowls and chopsticks, lit lamps, and went to the riverbank in the dark to feel for stones.
After the initial success and the profits made, many more stone sellers came, including men, women, and children.
Zuo Ling picked out the ones that caught her eye and looked good, and bought a few.
The amounts ranged from three to five hundred, but none exceeded 1,000 yuan.
Anyone with a clear head would immediately know that Zuo Ling was fishing.
The villagers were blinded by the easy windfall of several hundred yuan, and none of them noticed anything amiss.
They all rushed to the house of the first woman selling stones, asking her what kind of stones she was selling so they could go down to the river and feel them.
The woman gestured for a long time, but couldn't explain it clearly.
The villagers were so anxious that they went down to the river in the dead of night to feel for stones.
No one came, so Zuo Ling parked the car in the yard and bolted the gate.
He took out a bowl of Eight Treasures Soup and two donkey meat sandwiches from his spatial storage and enjoyed a comfortable dinner.
After finishing their meal, they checked each of the side rooms. Apart from simple tables and chairs, there were no other valuables inside.
She thought to herself, "She's really not well-liked by the villagers; she doesn't even have a bed."
She had planned to sleep in the car anyway, so she didn't care whether there was a bed or not.
I bought a 7-seater Tank 500 instead of a 5-seater because the rear of the 5-seater can't be folded flat, while the 7-seater can be folded flat, so I can rest in the car when it's inconvenient to find a hotel.
I put a set of bedding in the back of the truck. I've slept in it several times in the past two weeks.
With a portable biodegradable toilet, going to the toilet is much easier.
The first time I saw the fertilizer I produced, it was neither gray nor black, and the feeling was... well, quite unique.
Zuo Ling was satisfied not only with the fertilizer, but also with the fact that the toilet used very little water, which was incredibly thoughtful in the extremely hot and water-scarce environment.
I plan to buy a few more sets, and also stock up on more degradation agents.
Back at the main shrine, we continued to examine the three Bodhisattva statues and other items inside, leaving no corner unchecked.
Afraid of disturbing the villagers, they didn't turn on the lights and instead put on night vision goggles to investigate.
The Bodhisattva statue is very tall, and the offering table is a bit low; I can't reach it.
There was a household ladder in Zuo Ling's space. By stepping on the ladder, one could just reach the eyes of the Bodhisattva in the middle.
I didn't dare look directly at it, so I touched it and pushed it in. It moved a little, which meant it could be taken out.
Zuo Ling searched inch by inch from top to bottom, but there was nowhere left to move.
Upon closer inspection, the three bodhisattvas, connected to their bases, are carved from a single massive stone, prompting admiration for the ancients' exceptional wisdom and carving skills.
Such a huge rock couldn't be moved an inch without heavy lifting equipment. I don't know how it got into the village.
No wonder they weren't afraid of her living in the ancestral hall.
For Zuo Ling, who has a spatial ability, this is not a problem; it's just a matter of waving her hand.
Even so, Zuo Ling never considered taking the Bodhisattva away.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
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