Chapter 101: Mother, what should we do?

Shi Jin asked Shi Lin several times along the road, but got no answer; he pursed his lips, sat uneasily to one side, not even glancing at him.

When the carriage reached Qiaojia Cun, the sky was already growing dark.

Shi Lin had An San stop at the village entrance, he lifted the carriage curtain and jumped down; seeing Shi Jin not coming out, he shouted: "Jin'er, what are you doing sitting in there? Come out!"

"San Shu, where are we going?"

Shi Jin lifted the carriage curtain and asked.

Shi Lin carried him down and said: "Follow me, you'll find out."

He didn't hold his hand.

He let him walk by himself.

Shi Jin had always walked on smooth roads since childhood; he had never traversed such a rough, uneven path, and after only a short while he fell to the ground.

"San Shu, what a terrible road, it's so hard to walk!"

Shi Lin didn't go over to pull him up: "Can't you get up? If you don't get up, I'm leaving."

Shi Jin bit his lip and climbed to his feet.

After falling several times, he finally followed Shi Lin to the Mountain God Temple where Qiao Sheng and the others lived.

Seeing his own San Shu leading him toward that dilapidated Mountain God Temple, Shi Jin felt awful: "San Shu, we're not going to stay here tonight, are we?"

"Keep up."

Having said that, Shi Lin walked inside.

Shi Jin was usually bold, but he also had fears—he was afraid of the dark.

Seeing his San Shu not waiting for him to go inside.

He hurried to catch up.

As soon as they entered, the Mountain God Temple lit up with firelight; this sudden blaze startled Shi Jin: "San Shu, there's a ghost, there's a ghost!"

"Shi Shushu!"

Xiao Shitou saw Shi Lin arrive, laughed and ran over; his gaze fell on Shi Jin hiding behind him, and he asked somewhat surprised: "Shi Shushu, who is he?"

"What are you pretending? You don't know me!"

Shi Jin stepped forward and said.

Shi Lin patted his head and said: "Is that what you mean, Xiao Shitou? He's asking me what our relationship is! You've read all those books for nothing."

Before they could say anything.

Shi Lin introduced Shi Jin: "Xiao Shitou, this is Shi Jin, my nephew."

"Oh."

Xiao Shitou put the oil lamp he was holding to one side.

Shi Lin looked around and didn't see Qiao Sheng, then called out: "Xiao Shitou, where's your mother?"

"She went to fetch water."

Xiao Shitou answered honestly.

Shi Lin told the two of them to stay in the Mountain God Temple, then went out to look for Qiao Sheng, and not far off he saw her.

He walked over and said: "Do you really need to carry two buckets of water? Just lift them and bring them home!"

"You can, you come."

Qiao Sheng set the water buckets down.

Shi Lin rolled up his sleeves, took a bucket in each hand, lifted them and walked off.

Just as they approached the interior, Shi Jin's voice came: "Aren't you called Qiao Yi? Why are you called Xiao Shitou now? Do you live here? How did you know my San Shu?"

The questions came one after another.

Shi Lin walked inside while saying: "Why can't they have a nickname? They do live here, and from now on you'll live here too."

"What!"

Shi Jin widened his eyes.

Shi Lin set down the water buckets, speaking neither fast nor slow: "You heard right—you will live here from now on."

"Are you still my San Shu!"

"You're mistreating me…"

Shi Jin burst into a loud wail.

Qiao Sheng, not having seen Shi Jin before, had thought this kid wouldn't cry easily, but to her surprise he cried as soon as he said he would, and he cried loudly with many tears.

"Qiao Sheng, thank you for the trouble."

Shi Lin took off running, and by the time Shi Jin chased after him, he had already disappeared.

Shi Jin cried even more sadly now.

Xiao Shitou tugged at Qiao Sheng's sleeve and asked: "Mother, what should we do?"

(End of chapter)