Chapter 16

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

This bungalow was considered to be tall because in this village, almost every family had a one-story bungalow. Only this family had built a multi-storey bungalow. Standing at the highest point of the bungalow, one could see the bungalows around the village. It was like a crane standing out from a flock of chickens. However, this bungalow had probably not been repaired for many years. A corner of the roof had collapsed.

As the saying goes, “The white tiger covers the green dragon, and there are poor people from generation to generation.” In short, “the white tiger covers the green dragon” meant that the buildings in the white tiger area were taller than the buildings in the green dragon area.

The green dragon area was located in the east with more sun, which represented men. The white tiger area was located in the west with less sun, which also represented women. If the white tiger covered the green dragon, it meant that the white tiger occupied the top, which meant that illness and women occupied the top, suppressing the newborns and men represented by the green dragon. It would cause problems like family disagreement and many illnesses in the family.

“What’s wrong with you? Didn’t I tell you to send food to your father? Why are you still here so late at night?” A rough rural woman’s voice sounded in the small bungalow, and the surrounding bungalows could hear it clearly.

A moment later, the door of the bungalow opened. A man with a walking stick was carrying a backpack and moving slowly in the direction of the farmland.

When the door opened, Feng Nian saw the woman who had shouted just now. After the man left, she still refused to give up. She stood at the door with her hands on her hips and continued to scold, “I don’t know what sin I’ve committed to marry a cripple like you. You even said that you’re a university student. Those who can work in the fields are more nimble than you.” After scolding, she seemed to have vented her anger and slammed the door shut again, making a loud sound.

In the room that was separated from the bungalow, an old woman shook her head gently. “You’re making such a fuss every day. Don’t you know how to stop?”

Feng Nian’s lips curled. She walked to the bungalow and knocked lightly on the door.

“Who is it?” The old woman in the bungalow asked.

“Hello, I’m here to ask for directions.” She had a sweet smile on her face, looking like a student who had lost her way.

Seeing this, the woman opened the door a crack and replied in a low voice, “Walk in the opposite direction and you’ll be able to leave the village.” After saying that, she wanted to close the door immediately.

Unexpectedly, Feng Nian’s toes pressed against the crack of the door. She revealed a big smile at the crack of the door. Along with the smile was a 10 yuan note stuffed through the crack of the door. “Auntie, please. I’m thirsty. I’ll pay you for a bowl of water.”

She actually had a headache. This was 10 yuan. It could buy two packets of instant noodles. She had to charge this 10 yuan to the Xiao family.

The woman opened the door with a smile and brought Feng Nian into the house. The bungalow was empty. Other than the necessary furniture, there was nothing else.

The woman handed her a bowl of water. This bowl was probably the best bowl in the house, but the edge was still a little damaged. The woman wiped her hands in embarrassment and explained, “There are usually no visitors here. There are no cups at home. Girl, please make do.”

After thanking her with a smile, Feng Nian picked up the bowl and took a sip of water. This water should be from the well. It was very sweet and had no contaminated taste. “Auntie, how should I address you?”

Seeing that she did not care about these problems, the woman smiled even more happily and became more talkative. She called herself Tian Fang. “Girl, why are you here? Usually, no outsiders come in here.”

Feng Nian had already prepared a draft in her heart. She lied without blushing, “It’s all the extracurricular homework assigned by the teacher. He asked us to go out to the field to take photos. I got lost as I walked.”

Tian Fang looked enlightened. “College students these days. It’s not easy to be one. In our village, the one next door had graduated from university, but nothing’s changed.” She pouted in the direction of the small bungalow.

Feng Nian continued from Tian Fang’s words and said, “They studied in university and even built a small bungalow in the village. It’s already very impressive. It means that I still have to study more. After I graduate in the future, I have to build a small bungalow at home.”

“What’s so good about a small bungalow? It still depends on—” Tian Fang stopped mid-sentence. She seemed to realize that she could not say these words in front of an outsider like Feng Nian. She immediately changed the topic. “Girl, after drinking the water, leave quickly. There’s nothing to see in this village.”

She nodded obediently. After placing the bowl on the table, she bade farewell to Tian Fang and stood up to leave.

As she walked back along the village road, she saw the man who had just come out of the bungalow. Beside him was an older man who looked 80 to 90% similar to him. He was stuffing cornbread into his mouth. Logically speaking, very few people at this age would still work in the fields unless their family was out of labor. Even though that family had built the bungalow and did not pay attention to the layout, they were now withered and their families were sick.

There was a secret hidden in this village. Since she could not get it out of other people, she would let the Xiao family investigate. Besides, it was time for her to work at the coffee shop.

————

The afternoon sun shone on the wall from the window sill. It was as warm as the temperature in the coffee shop. It was quiet and warm.

Beside the window, a man in a dark blue shirt sat lazily on the sofa. His sleeves were half rolled up and there was a laptop on the table. Wei Zhen liked to come to the coffee shop to order a cup of coffee when he was not busy in the afternoon. He would enjoy the leisure aftenoon time.

Suddenly, a commotion broke the silence in the coffee shop.

“What’s going on? Why does this coffee taste so bad?” A man in his early thirties was making a racket in the shop.

“There he goes again. There’s always two or three times a month. It’s even more predictable than my period,” Chang Yi, who worked in the cafe with Feng Nian, whispered as he walked to Feng Nian’s side.

This man was a famous ruffian on this street. Every day, he would pick different shops to pester. It was not that the shopKeepers had never tried to look for the security officer, but once the security officer left, he caused even more trouble. The shopKeepers could only keep quiet and spend some money to settle the matter. They only hoped that this big Buddha would leave quickly and not affect their business.

Feng Nian glanced at the ruffian. This person was wearing a shirt with stains on the sleeves. His chin was covered in stubble, and his entire body reeked of smoke. However, she still felt a ghostly aura from that person.

Suddenly, a hanging ghost stretched out its long arm and poked its head out from behind the hooligan. It wrapped its arms tightly around the hooligan’s neck and stuck its long tongue on his head. Its saliva dripped onto his hair that looked like a chicken’s nest. If anyone could see it, they would definitely be so disgusted that they would not be able to eat for three days. Coincidentally, Wei Zhen saw it.

He had no intention of paying attention to this matter, but his pocket emitted waves of heat. He reached into his pocket and a thick purple jade pendant was emitting waves of heat. This was passed down from the Wei Family ancestor and could sense the existence of ghosts. He looked at the hooligan and happened to see what Feng Nian had seen.

Feng Nian had an idea. A professional smile appeared on her face as she picked up the tray and walked towards the hooligan. “Hello, sir. This is a free portion of caviar bread from our shop. Have a good meal.”

The hooligan was stunned. He had thought that there would be an argument, but there was not a word. Instead, a very good-looking girl brought him a piece of bread. He noticed that there was a bright red cash note under the bread. It turned out that this was to be settled with money. He smiled and took the bread. He nodded and sat down quietly.

The hooligan’s silence made everyone return to their seats. She took advantage of the fact that there was no one around and stuck a yellow talisman on the hooligan’s back. The hanging ghost looked terrified. It kept struggling, wanting to leave the hooligan’s back. Unfortunately, it was too late. It was sucked into the talisman and turned to ashes.

The corners of Wei Zhen’s lips curled up. This girl really knew how to take revenge. After the hanging ghost was killed, the cinnabar on the talisman paper also disappeared, leaving behind a turtle drawn on the talisman paper.