Chapter 214

The tea was very hot.

Lin Shuyou sat upright, trying his best not to look at his master's and grandfather's faces, as their faces were even hotter than the tea in their hands.

Lin Fu'an tried to put down his teacup several times but kept picking it up again.

Chen Shoumen held the lid, scraping it around the rim of the cup again and again.

Who would have thought that after going through the entire process, they would be told by their own grandson (disciple) that they had overthought things.

They now felt a sense of shame, as if their innermost secrets had been exposed by their grandson (disciple), and they had even revealed them themselves.

Lin Shuyou was the first to break the silence: "Master, Grandpa, we are going through..."

Lin Shuyou got stuck and started scratching his head vigorously.

No, he couldn't say it so directly, or his grandfather and master wouldn't be able to handle it.

"It's nothing, just a minor karmic backlash. We have ways to resolve it, so just speak freely," Lin Fu'an said, looking at his disciple Chen Shoumen. "Heh heh, I've seen things and understand a few things."

Lin Shuyou: "But Grandpa, you haven't seen *that* much."

Lin Fu'an: "..."

Lin Shuyou remembered that before Bin Ge went to tell stories to the old lady, he always had to prepare a draft with classical allusions. Bin Ge said that if he spoke too directly, it would negatively affect the old lady's health.

Lin Shuyou didn't think his grandfather had the fate to bear the karma that even the old lady from the Liu family had to avoid.

"Grandpa, Master, Xiaoyuan Ge is taking us rowing. The waves are strong, and we're rowing very fast. If we board the boat now, it's easy to be struck down by the waves and killed.

So, what happens next can only be discussed later."

Lin Fu'an nodded.

Chen Shoumen: "We were presumptuous."

Everyone in the team had to read each issue of the *Zhuiyuan Secret Scroll* and the *River-Crossing Code of Conduct*. Lin Shuyou also understood some principles.

If they were to incorporate their temple into the team's sphere of influence now, the starting point of the next wave would very likely occur within their own temple.

Given their current intensity of river-crossing, their temple would likely find it difficult to survive catching this wave.

Lin Shuyou: "Grandpa, Master, then I..."

Lin Fu'an said to Chen Shoumen, "Organize the people in the temple and perform the ceremony to establish a small branch for our Ayou."

Chen Shoumen immediately stood up: "Alright, I'll go arrange it now."

With his grandfather's and master's approval and help, Lin Shuyou's process of establishing the small branch proceeded very smoothly.

Shuyou was very happy.

The other people in the temple were also very happy.

Although they didn't understand why Lin Shuyou, as a direct descendant of the Lin family, would go through the process of establishing a branch temple, it at least meant that the future temple master of the main temple might fall to one of them.

A narrow side hall was partitioned off from the main hall. At its end was an altar table. On the upper tier were the ancestral tablets and lineage of Lin Shuyou's masters and ancestors. On the lower tier were only Lin Shuyou's personal fate tablet and long-burning lamp.

The fate tablet originally placed on the main altar table in the temple, as well as his name in the temple register, were also crossed out.

Lin Shuyou looked at the brand new yellow temple register in his hand. Only the first page had writing, containing just his name, birthdate, and place of origin.

This was effectively no different from starting a new family genealogy.

Pieces flaked off the Child Deity, drifting down, circling around Lin Shuyou's head, and landing on his shoulders.

Lin Shuyou could no longer suppress his smile.

A sense of responsibility and pride welled up within him.

From then on, he would take the Child Deity and go out on his own. He resolved to make a great name for himself and return!

The Child Deity thought the same.

During the earlier ceremony, It had received a message via burning paper, learning what had happened.

Although the boy's methods were somewhat harsh, he often showed It no respect and even treated It like a mule... but when it came to giving things, he was truly generous and kept his promises.

However, the Child Deity's happiness didn't last long.

Because It, residing within the statue, discovered that Lin Shuyou had consecutively burned two more messages.

A group of temple disciples carried in the statues of General Zeng and General Sun, placing them behind It.

The Child Deity was very pleased to be placed in front of the Generals Zeng and Sun.

But to be placed *with* them, the Child Deity was very unhappy.

Lin Shuyou reached out and touched the foot of the Child Deity's statue, then patted the top of its foot.

The Child Deity's statue trembled slightly.

Lin Shuyou had to lower his head. When he looked up again, his vertical pupil opened.

After a brief internal communication, the vertical pupil vanished, and Lin Shuyou yawned and left.

With this matter concluded, he would have to return to Nantong after the family dinner.

The banquet was ready, with three tables, all filled with the temple's spirit mediums.

At the head of the main table, Lin Fu'an was already seated.

Chen Shoumen pointed Lin Shuyou to a seat beside his own, and they sat down together.

As the leader of the small branch, Lin Shuyou now legally had the qualification to be on equal footing with his master, the leader of the main branch.

Chen Shoumen gestured for Lin Shuyou to pick up his wine glass, and the two of them first toasted Lin Fu'an together.

Lin Shuyou raised his wine glass. Suddenly, he felt his pupils constrict, knowing it must be the Child Deity and the Generals Zeng and Sun clashing in the main hall.

In that moment of distraction, his arm shook, and most of the wine in his cup spilled onto the ground.

Lin Shuyou was about to apologize when he saw Lin Fu'an and Chen Shoumen also pour their wine onto the ground.

Lin Shuyou was puzzled.

Lin Fu'an and Chen Shoumen exchanged a look, thinking: *Ayou did it right. The first toast must be to the Dragon King's family.*

For the second toast, Chen Shoumen and Lin Shuyou toasted Lin Fu'an together.

For the third toast, Chen Shoumen deliberately clinked glasses with Lin Shuyou. Lin Shuyou lowered his glass, but Chen Shoumen lifted it with his pinky, making them clink at an equal level.

"Ayou has grown up. Focus on your own affairs. Your grandfather and I are here at home; you don't need to worry."

In the small partitioned area of the main hall.

The statues of General Zeng and General Sun both began to tremble.

General Zeng almost turned halfway around, clearly indicating defilement and non-acceptance.

General Sun also trembled and turned sideways, but not as intensely as General Zeng, nor did It turn as far.

A slight glow flashed in the eyes of the White Crane Child Deity statue.

After Lin Shuyou's communication through spirit mediumship, Its anger had subsided.

After all, It would soon be placed in the boy's Nantong shrine. The only reason It was bringing the two of them along was for the convenience of possessing puppets in the future.

General Zeng continued to rage, while General Sun offered mild cooperation.

Cracks appeared and spread at the corners of the Child Deity statue's mouth.

It was very much looking forward to it, and also noted the unruly behavior of the two.

The next day, with A-Li's help, Li Zhuiyuan continued to move his right hand in calculations while his left hand rested on the blank book.

When he opened the book today, the painting hadn't changed; inside the cage in the painting, there was still a head resting on a pile of mangled flesh.

This was the *Evil Book* informing the boy that it had not yet recovered and needed time.

Li Zhuiyuan ignored it, continuing to relentlessly exploit it according to yesterday's amount.

The head in the painting exploded again and again, only to reform again and again.

This thing was like water in a sponge: squeeze it, and there's always more.

With today's deductions complete, Li Zhuiyuan closed the blank book.

As he was very satisfied with the current progress, the boy didn't proactively increase the daily amount.

His right hand opened, and blood mist permeated his palm. Within it, a solid, deep red streak, like a small loach, was swimming through the blood mist.

This was the goal of Li Zhuiyuan's deductions: when this 'loach' became a sufficiently long 'thread,' he could involve all his companions, significantly improving their teamwork in group battles and leading to a qualitative leap in overall strength.

"Brother Yuanhou, Sister A-Li!"

Cui Cui's voice came from the courtyard downstairs.

Li Zhuiyuan took A-Li's hand and went downstairs.

Cui Cui was carrying a large bag filled with various snacks.

They had arranged to go fishing together by boat today.

Because the deductions were quite mentally taxing, his daily work was completed quickly. In the remaining time, Li Zhuiyuan didn't want to read anymore; he preferred to be more active.

Next to Great-Grandpa's house, a small boat was moored in the river. In the past, Great-Grandpa would also pole it out to retrieve corpses from the river channel.

Li Zhuiyuan personally took the bamboo pole, pushing the small boat away from the bank. He first went along the small river, and once they reached a larger section of the river, he put away the pole. The three people on board each took a fishing rod and began to fish.

Spring had arrived, and summer was yet to come. This was considered the most comfortable and pleasant time of the year, and the scenery was tinged with a new layer of green.

After Cui Cui secured her fishing rod, she began to distribute snacks.

Li Zhuiyuan took them all, eating selectively.

For instance, he still couldn't understand why locals loved crispy fried broad beans so much, but Cui Cui kept munching 'crunch, crunch,' clearly enjoying them.

Li Zhuiyuan shelled peanuts. After gathering a handful, he first gave some to Cui Cui, and the rest to A-Li. Then A-Li also handed him a handful of sunflower seeds she had just shelled.

Li Zhuiyuan shared some sunflower seeds with Cui Cui, who happily called out, "Thank you, Sister A-Li."

A-Li didn't respond, putting a peanut into her mouth.

Li Zhuiyuan knew that A-Li accepted Cui Cui.

Although when he wasn't home, Cui Cui would come to play with A-Li, it was always Cui Cui doing all the talking, with A-Li not responding after 'reading' her.

But for Cui Cui to be able to 'chatter' incessantly by A-Li's side was already a special privilege that ordinary people simply couldn't have.

On the bridge ahead, several familiar figures appeared: Sister Yingzi, Panzi, and Leizi.

It was the weekend. After finishing the mock exam in the morning, the teachers needed to focus on grading the papers in the afternoon, so they simply gave the senior year students a half-day off.

The three clearly spotted Li Zhuiyuan too, and began waving and shouting happily.

Li Zhuiyuan picked up the bamboo pole and brought the boat to shore.

Panzi and Leizi ran over first and said, "We'll go back and get the fishing net."

Then, without waiting for Li Zhuiyuan's reply, the two immediately sprinted home.

Yingzi squatted by the bank, looking at the sparkling river surface, and quietly said:

"Little Yuanhou, what if I don't get into college?"

Her mother constantly nagged at home, saying whose daughter had already started working in a factory, whose daughter had already had children, and there she was, still studying. 'Let's see what you can achieve with your studies,' she'd say. 'If you don't succeed, not only you, but your father and I will also be laughed at.'

Yingzi could only listen, unable to retort, because due to Aunt Lanhou, her parents were among the most supportive in the village when it came to their daughter's education, compared to families with similar circumstances.

Li Zhuiyuan: "Just do your best."

Yingzi nodded and smiled: "Yes, just do my best."

After speaking, Yingzi took out two sesame candies from her pocket and handed them to Li Zhuiyuan, who reached out and took them.

Cui Cui offered her own snacks.

Yingzi waved her hand: "I won't eat. I'm going back to study. You all have fun."

Watching Yingzi's retreating back, Cui Cui wondered aloud, "Sister Yingzi looks like she's under a lot of pressure."

Li Zhuiyuan simply acknowledged, "Mm."

He couldn't help Yingzi in the same way he had helped Tan Wenbin, not only because he didn't have the time now, but mainly because Yingzi's talent wasn't as high as Tan Wenbin's.

Tan Wenbin had been overly rebellious and neglected his studies. After witnessing death and life-or-death situations, he calmed down, which led to his academic comeback. But the same method doesn't apply to different people.

Several sets of each issue of the *Zhuiyuan Secret Scroll* would be sent to Great-Grandpa's house. Great-Grandpa would give them to Yingzi, Leizi, and the others, as he only gave his four uncles a hard time, not the children of the next generation.

Leizi and Panzi returned with fishing nets and helped set them to catch fish.

As the bottom of their class, they had no academic pressure, simply waiting to find jobs with their high school diplomas after graduation.

Li Zhuiyuan observed the ripples in the water, pointed out a spot to set the net, and after two consecutive casts, indeed caught quite a few fish.

Panzi and Leizi waved their hands, dumping all the fish onto Li Zhuiyuan's boat, saying they were just playing and didn't want the fish.

The two older boys were quite responsible in their 'older brother' roles.

Li Zhuiyuan still insisted on sharing the fish with them. They didn't refuse further, taking the fish and heading back, saying that there would be a movie showing in town that night and they would save seats for Li Zhuiyuan.

The boy poled the boat back and handed the fish to Aunt Liu.

Aunt Liu smiled: "We've already stewed pork trotters soup for lunch, so let's braise these fish first and make fish jelly."

Cui Cui stayed to eat lunch at their house.

At lunchtime, Aunt Xianghou rode her tricycle to pick up Cui Cui for dinner at home. She didn't come into the courtyard, deliberately calling out from across the wheat field.

Cui Cui yelled back that she was eating there.

Li Sanjiang raised his chopsticks and called for Xianghou to come over and eat with them.

Xianghou laughed, jokingly scolding Cui Cui for being thick-skinned, then rode her tricycle back.

After the meal, Cui Cui suggested playing elastic band skipping.

Two long benches were placed horizontally, with elastic bands tied to them. Cui Cui started skipping first, then, as usual, invited Sister A-Li to join, even though Sister A-Li never did.

Li Zhuiyuan looked at A-Li: "Want to skip?"

A-Li held the boy's hand, looking at him.

Li Zhuiyuan sensed a gentle forward pull from the girl's hand.

She was willing to skip, but she wanted him to skip with her.

Well... if she wanted to skip, then skip they would.

In today's schools, elastic band skipping wasn't just a girls' game; boys played it too, and many boys were even better at it than girls.

Li Zhuiyuan took A-Li's hand. He took a step to skip first, and A-Li followed, and they played together in rhythm.

Although A-Li wouldn't laugh out loud as freely as Cui Cui, the girl's eyes remained bright.

Li Sanjiang watched the children play, a cigarette dangling from his mouth, his eyes full of affection.

He remembered the first time he saw Little Yuanhou; the boy was then running wild with Panzi, Leizi, and the others all over the village.

He was quite surprised that this city kid, after coming to the countryside, wasn't shy at all and played just as freely.

Later, after he took the boy into his home, the boy suddenly stopped being boisterous and didn't go out to play with others; he just liked to sit alone and read.

He found it strange then, how the child seemed to have changed into a different person.

Fortunately, the child now had more and more vitality, and along with that, the girl A-Li also became more empathetic.

Li Sanjiang exhaled a smoke ring, secretly glancing at the shrewd old lady.

Liu Yumei smiled and clapped along to the beat, watching A-Li's skipping figure, occasionally wiping a tear from the corner of her eye.

Many scenes now were ones she wouldn't have dared to dream of in the past.

Aunt Liu also joined in. She skipped very well, with many fancy variations, holding her hands out to the sides, moving her feet swiftly. Even wearing an apron, she skipped with the agility of a young girl, making Cui Cui constantly clap and cheer.

Since they were going to see a movie, dinner was served earlier than usual.

Cui Cui went home before dinner.

After dinner, Panzi and Leizi came with benches, bringing Shitou and Huzhi to call for them. Li Zhuiyuan and A-Li went, followed by Runsheng and Yin Meng.

It was a martial arts film tonight. Li Zhuiyuan, as usual, sat with A-Li in a corner away from the crowd, next to the small vendors selling goods.

They were still selling classic old-fashioned items. Li Zhuiyuan bought two bubble wands and blew bubbles with A-Li.

On the screen, a fight was ongoing. The changing lights and shadows wrapped the floating bubbles in even more brilliance.

After floating to a certain height, "pop, pop, pop," all the bubbles burst.

Just like a childhood destined to fade away.

The movie ended. Everyone picked up their benches, leaving the venue still wanting more.

Shitou and Huzhi were still discussing martial arts moves, debating which ultimate skill was stronger, and invited the older Panzi and Leizi to arbitrate.

However, Panzi and Leizi also held their own opinions, and the two sides quickly escalated into a playful brawl, with punches and kicks exchanged. It wasn't a real fight, but it was certainly lively, and they playfully ran home like that.

Li Zhuiyuan and A-Li walked ahead.

Runsheng and Yin Meng walked behind.

After the four arrived home, it was already late, so A-Li returned to the east room first.

Li Zhuiyuan went upstairs. As he passed Great-Grandpa's room, he heard Great-Grandpa snoring.

But when he passed by again after taking a bath, the snoring had stopped. Listening quietly through the door, Li Zhuiyuan heard Great-Grandpa's labored breathing.

The boy pushed open the door and entered. On the bed, his sleeping great-grandpa's brows were tightly furrowed, as if he were having a nightmare.

Moreover, Great-Grandpa's hands occasionally lifted, and his feet were unconsciously kicking.

Li Zhuiyuan sat by the bed.

If he used the secret art of the black leather book, he could glimpse Great-Grandpa's dreams, but it would also cause severe trauma to Great-Grandpa's spirit.

The boy sat for nearly forty minutes until Great-Grandpa's breathing stabilized and his snoring gradually resumed. Only then did he get up to leave.

But halfway there, Li Zhuiyuan stopped, looking down at the floor tiles.

Once, in this very spot, Great-Grandpa had set up a luck-transferring formation for him.

Li Zhuiyuan opened his right palm, and blood mist permeated it. The boy knelt down, pressed his palm to the tile, and as the blood mist dispersed, lines of a formation reappeared.

"It... why is it still here?"

The next morning, Li Sanjiang walked out of his room and stretched.

On the balcony, Little Yuanhou and that girl A-Li were sitting, pointing and gesturing at something in the distance.

Although Li Sanjiang didn't know what game they were playing, he had long grown accustomed to it.

"Great-Grandpa."

"What is it?"

"Did you sleep well last night?"

"Ah, yes, pretty well."

How could he have slept well? These past few days, he had started having that 'leading exercise' dream again, leaving him with a sore back and aching muscles after waking up.

"Great-Grandpa, did you have a nightmare?"

"No, why, Little Yuanhou?"

"Great-Grandpa, what kind of nightmare did you have? Tell me."

"Heh," Li Sanjiang chuckled. "Your great-grandpa here, I dreamed of a whole bunch of zombies, wow!"

Li Sanjiang deliberately tried to scare the child.

Li Zhuiyuan: "How terrifying."

Li Sanjiang smacked his lips; he felt more like a child himself.

When he went to the water vat for washing, Little Yuanhou followed him again, continuing to ask: "Great-Grandpa, could you tell me more about your dream?"

"What's there to tell about a dream?"

"I want to hear it."

"It was in the Forbidden City, with a bunch of zombies following behind me. I was leading them in a run. Damn it, I don't know what horror movie I watched back then that I still remember it now."

"Is the frequency high? Have you just started having this dream again recently?"

"Yes."

"When was the first time you had this dream recently?"

"It was after you left last time, it started happening every few days."

"Great-Grandpa, have you met any strangers recently, made any new friends..."

"Crack!"

Just as he was speaking, the water vat suddenly cracked, shattering into pieces on the ground, and the water inside gushed out, soaking Li Sanjiang's and Li Zhuiyuan's clothes.

"Oh, how unlucky, ptui, ptui, ptui. No, not unlucky, peace in pieces, peace in pieces."

What was broken was broken; might as well maximize its benefit.

Li Zhuiyuan looked at the shattered pieces of the vat on the ground, his gaze slightly condensed.

"Little Yuanhou, come change your clothes. It's early morning; don't catch a cold."

"Okay, Great-Grandpa."

After changing clothes, they went downstairs for breakfast.

Li Sanjiang finished eating early, lit a cigarette, and prepared to go for a stroll.

Li Zhuiyuan got up and went with him.

Great-Grandpa's strolls were pure rambling; his route was different every day.

Li Zhuiyuan occasionally looked up at Great-Grandpa, his fingers hidden in his sleeve, performing calculations.

Soon, his calculations encountered a cloud of mist.

"Achoo! Achoo! Achoo!"

Li Sanjiang sneezed three times in a row and said, "Oh, someone must be thinking of me."

Li Zhuiyuan knew that this mist was Great-Grandpa's good fortune.

He now had the ability to break through this mist, but the problem was... he couldn't disrupt Great-Grandpa's good fortune just out of concern for him.

The calculations, naturally, ceased then.

However, he urgently wanted to know the reason Great-Grandpa had started having that dream again: was it due to something related to himself, or something related to Great-Grandpa?

If it was related to himself, that shouldn't be the case... His household registration now only listed Great-Grandpa, so logically, his river-crossing merits should certainly be shared with Great-Grandpa, making Great-Grandpa's good fortune even stronger.

But if it was related to Great-Grandpa, what factor caused it? Could Great-Grandpa's good fortune spontaneously block this unknown influence?

"Tsk, looking at the sky today, it's probably going to rain. We need to have Hou Li and Hou Shan deliver the goods earlier."

This morning's stroll ended early.

When Li Sanjiang returned home, Uncle Qin and Xiong Shan were already loading goods. Their perception of weather changes was naturally more acute.

"Come on, I'll go with you to deliver. Old Piao's family in Xigou Village has few people. When they came to place the order, they asked me to find people to help set up the venue."

Having few people wasn't the main reason; it was that Old Piao's family had long since moved to Shanghai to live, and they never participated in village weddings or funerals, nor did they send gifts.

This time, Old Piao had died, and his body was sent back home for the funeral. When his son went to invite people in the village, few were willing to help.

These kinds of things are reciprocal. Everyone is afraid of trouble, but if you avoid trouble, you won't be able to ask others for help in the future.

However, Li Sanjiang now had sufficient manpower at home and could handle full-service funerals. As long as one was willing to pay, he could still help them hold a grand and respectable funeral.

Runsheng and Yin Meng were also called upon, and Lihua was also asked to go and help with the cooking.

As for Aunt Liu, Li Sanjiang didn't call her, because he knew that if Aunt Liu wasn't home, that old lady probably couldn't even boil water.

Honestly speaking, there was nothing to say about this daughter-in-law. In other families, if a mother-in-law did no housework all day and just expected to be served, the daughter-in-law would have long since raised hell.

It's a pity Zhuangzhuang and Ayou weren't home. If they were, he could even replace the funeral band. Ayou, dressed in costume, could perform more authentically than the local old Daoist priests.

As the large flatbed cart was pushed out, Li Sanjiang said with some surprise, "Little Yuanhou, why are you coming along?"

Li Zhuiyuan: "It's boring staying at home; I'll go too."

Until he found out what had happened to Great-Grandpa, Li Zhuiyuan felt uneasy.

Li Sanjiang: "Then don't push the cart; get on it."

With that, without waiting for Li Zhuiyuan to react, Li Sanjiang picked up the boy and placed him on the front of the cart.

Xigou Village was neither too far nor too close, but the cart's speed was slow after all. They arrived at their destination about an hour later.

Old Piao's house was a small mud house. The courtyard was not only unpaved with cement but also lacked gravel.

It wasn't that they lacked money for renovations, but that the people had long since stopped returning, so they bothered with it.

At this time, the mud house door was open. Inside, an ice coffin was parked, connected by long electrical cords from several power strips, leading to the neighbor's house.

This was because the electricity at home had been cut off long ago, and the wiring was old. Even if they paid, they couldn't use it, so to power the ice coffin, they could only borrow (and pay for) electricity from the neighbor.

Filial son Pu Xingsheng's wife and daughter were sitting on a bench. The wife was feeding her daughter eight-treasure porridge. The daughter was about the same