“Jiang family daughter-in-law, don’t be so stubborn. Now that you’re here, you’re definitely not going anywhere.”
"Look at yourself, isn't the eldest son of the Jiang family good enough to you? In other families in Fengxian Village, which of those men doesn't beat their own wives? Has the eldest son of the Jiang family ever hit you even once?"
"Jiang family daughter-in-law, you should be content. The eldest son of the Jiang family doesn't beat you. What man is as good as him nowadays? Just settle down and live your life with him!"
When Ji He regained consciousness, she heard a somewhat hoarse female voice chattering incessantly, like flies buzzing around her ears.
She never expected that, having already entered the past Fengxian Village because of the iron photo frame, she would be able to delve even deeper into this illusion of the past, like layers of dreams.
After entering the dream again, Ji He found herself in a small room with all the doors and windows tightly closed. There was even a rusty lock hanging on the door, firmly locking it shut.
In a pitch-black little room, a woman dressed in patched clothes sat on the edge of a dirty bed, her face numb and stiff, like a lifeless puppet...
In front of the woman, the speaker was a burly middle-aged woman with a headscarf. She pointed at the woman with her short, calloused fingers and spoke loudly, spitting as she spoke.
Ji He took a closer look and was shocked. The uncouth middle-aged peasant woman in front of her was actually the starving ghost that she and Xia Changhong had seen in the brick and tile room!
At this moment, the uncouth peasant woman did not see Ji He suddenly appear and continued to grumble and persuade him.
"I'm not trying to criticize you, Jiang family daughter-in-law, but for us women, it doesn't matter who we marry. Why do you have to make yourself like this? What's wrong with our Fengxian Village?"
"..."
The woman didn't speak, but just lowered her head, staring at the ground, her eyes empty and devoid of any light.
Hearing that address, Ji He couldn't help but look at the woman. She was probably the bride who had been like a puppet at the previous wedding—the woman who had been abducted and abandoned.
Unsurprisingly, after this woman was forced to marry the cripple from the Jiang family, her life afterward was bound to be difficult.
Just by listening to the coarse words of that peasant woman, one can imagine what the attitude of the entire Fengxian Village is towards women. It is probably commonplace for them to suffer inhumane treatment.
The woman in front of us, before being forced to come to Fengxian Village, clearly had a life of luxury. In that era, she must have been a wealthy young lady who was very well taken care of.
As for the man whose head was chopped off earlier, he was her boyfriend, probably a wealthy second-generation heir. The two of them must have been living the best life outside Fengxian Village, but instead... they ended up here.
Ji He couldn't help but frown, but as a veteran player, her mind wouldn't be swayed by the NPC's story. To achieve her goal, she wouldn't mind even personally sending the woman back.
It's just an NPC, a fabricated story from a global horror game.
Soon, the subtle ripples in Ji He's heart disappeared in an instant, and taking advantage of the fact that the two people in the small room couldn't see her, she brazenly started searching the room.
—If this past is indeed related to Jiang Shihe, then clues about him must be found here.
But just as they were searching, a heart-wrenching sound came from outside the tightly closed room, a painful sob that sounded like a man's voice, since women were not allowed to go out and show their faces in public in Fengxian Village.
"The eldest son of the Jiang family... the eldest son of the Jiang family... he fell into the river and drowned!!!"
"What?!"
The uncouth peasant woman, who had been pointing and whispering at the woman in the small room, also realized what was happening and hurriedly rushed out.
The sudden turn of events startled Ji He. She immediately wanted to follow them out, but just as she was about to leave the tightly closed room, she suddenly stopped—
Behind Ji He, the woman who had been stiff and numb like a puppet suddenly moved. For some reason, she was not attracted by the unexpected events outside, but looked at the corner of the room.
A strange chill ran up from behind her, and Ji He froze. She slowly turned around and stared intently at the woman sitting in the room.
In the pitch-black room, only the light filtering through the open door illuminated half of the room, but it never reached the woman's position. She sat there like a poorly made sculpture, lifeless, in the darkness.
At this moment, Ji He finally understood why the woman hadn't run out even though the door was open, and hadn't even bothered to look at the doorway.
On her hands were chains and ropes, so tight they had chafed her skin raw—the kind of ropes used in the countryside to keep watch dogs leashed…
Ji He couldn't help but swallow hard, forcibly suppressing the chill rising in her heart. She followed the woman's gaze to the corner, but the next moment, her pupils suddenly contracted, and she took a half step back.
In the corner the woman was looking at was the darkest part of the small room, and somehow, a little boy was standing there!
Even in the dim light, one could see the boy's exceptionally superior appearance from a young age. His face was smiling, obedient and polite, yet incredibly eerie, with eyes as dark as obsidian.
Ji He's hands were trembling uncontrollably. When exactly did he appear here?!
But before Ji He could figure it out, the woman who had been silent finally spoke: "What happened?"
It seemed that she hadn't drunk water for a long time; the woman's voice was dry and hoarse, like a sawing motion, which sounded somewhat harsh.
Just as Ji He was wondering why the woman was asking the child instead of listening to the sounds outside, the little boy had already answered with a smile and obedient manner.
"I heard that Dad went to the river, but because it rained last night, the muddy path by the river was too slippery. He also has a bad leg and is lame, so he fell into the river. No one around noticed, and he drowned."
"..."
The woman, who had just spoken, fell silent once again.
After an unknown amount of time, the woman seemed to hear footsteps approaching again outside. She said, word by word, "Did you do this?"
"Mother, what are you saying?"
The little boy was somewhat surprised and couldn't help but widen his eyes.
But the woman spoke again the next moment: "Did you do this?"
"Jiang, Shi, He".
Hearing the name clearly confirmed all of Ji He's suspicions. She couldn't help but look at the young Jiang Shihe, a strange chill and fear creeping into her heart.
Even in his childhood, one could see his exceptional future appearance. At this moment, he was smiling, his obsidian-like eyes fixed on the woman. His smile was clearly docile, yet it also resembled a vengeful ghost from hell.
"Mother, I don't know."
—He was born a bad seed, a madman.
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