Chapter 305

This is the stature of the Long Wang.

Zhao Yi's transformation stemmed from his ancestor's notes, combined with the insights he gained from his own experiences traveling the river and the guidance of Old Lady Liu, allowing him to understand his ancestor's state of mind ever more deeply.

In the eyes of outsiders, what he was about to do was no different from the greatest act of rebellion in the history of the Zhao clan.

But in Zhao Yi's view, if his ancestor Zhao Wuyang were to be resurrected, the first person he would strike against would be the Zhao clan of Jiujiang themselves; it wouldn't even be Zhao Yi's turn to act.

Li Zhuiyuan bent down and picked up the copper coins on the ground one by one.

Zhao Yi lifted his knees from the prayer mat and stood up, his expression shifting from its initial gravity and solemnity into deep confusion and doubt.

The divination was highly auspicious.

But in reality, regardless of what the divination specifically pointed to, it would not affect the outcome of this trip.

Li Zhuiyuan was skilled in divination, but the more one understood and was familiar with it, the less one would be superstitious about it.

Performing this divination was merely to fulfill the proper formalities.

He had never once thought that Zhao Wuyang would truly "manifest."

Yet, what was originally meant to be a simple formality had now run into a problem.

The spirit tablet had just moved.

Both Li Zhuiyuan and Zhao Yi felt it; this was definitely not caused by nearby construction or an earthquake, because the spirit tablet of Li the Corpse-Fisher of Nantong was also placed beside the offering table, yet it had remained completely still.

Zhao Yi spoke up: "I remember when we burned the three sticks of incense, you said that after that, I would no longer be able to sense the spirit of my ancestor."

Li Zhuiyuan nodded: "Mm, you indeed shouldn't be able to sense it."

At the time of the three sticks of incense, Zhao Yi was suffering under the curse of the Book of Life and Death. To save him, Li Zhuiyuan had used the copper coin sword bestowed by Zhao Wuyang as a medium, channeled the Zhao clan's fundamental techniques he had mastered, and used Feng Shui arts to simulate Zhao Wuyang's aura, only then pulling Zhao Yi back from the gates of the underworld when he was supposed to have been cursed to death.

The copper coin sword turned to powder, and along with it, the "ancestral protection" that was supposed to exist on Zhao Yi's body also vanished.

Therefore, theoretically speaking, even if Zhao Yi were to knock his head against the ancestor's tablet until it bled, or even smashed his brains out, he would not elicit the slightest response from his ancestor.

But just now, there had been a response.

Zhao Yi: "Is it possible that the response wasn't for me, but for you?"

Li Zhuiyuan: "No."

Zhao Yi: "Can you be sure?"

Li Zhuiyuan: "Sure."

Zhao Yi: "Then things have become strange."

Li Zhuiyuan spread his right hand, and blood-red threads spread outward.

Zhao Yi could not see the blood-red threads, but he could perceive that something had been released. At the same time, a depth that he could not fathom appeared in the young man's eyes.

The blood-red threads coiled around the tablet inscribed with "Ancestor Zhao Wuyang," using it as the first node, and continued to extend, landing behind the offering table where a pair of footprints seemed to appear.

In truth, the "red threads" were a concretization of Li Zhuiyuan's own understanding, and those footprints were the same.

An intangible spirit could not possess the movements of a normal person, but it could indicate that the spirit of Zhao Wuyang had brushed past this place.

A spirit is not a ghost; it expresses a state of being. Even though the word "spirit" is in both names, there is a world of difference between them.

Traditional Yin-walking is the act of making things that do not exist in reality "visible," while Li Zhuiyuan's red threads were a level higher, leaving traces of the indescribable once more.

The red threads continued to extend forward, constantly evolving footprints on the ground.

Li Zhuiyuan followed the footprints forward, with Zhao Yi following behind.

The two walked out of the small cubicle and arrived outside.

The footprints continued to advance.

On the dam, four old ladies were playing cards.

Wang Lian was sitting out this round, and she was peeling peanuts for the others at the table.

Her life wheel was twisted and intermittent, meaning her life was arduous and difficult. However, the wheel had taken shape, surpassing many ordinary people, which meant that if she could persist in walking her path, there would come a day when her bitterness would end and sweetness would begin.

Although this sweetness would not be tasted by her, the obsession in her heart should be fulfilled.

Old Lady Hua's life wheel was not formed, scattered and sparse—what is commonly called in folk terms a "thin life and shallow fortune." However, there was a faint layer of soft light circling its edge, providing a foundation for her.

Liu Jinxia's life was defined by one word: tough.

Li Zhuiyuan had witnessed this point back then.

As for Liu Yumei... Li Zhuiyuan deliberately bypassed this old lady while following the red threads.

Wang Lian, who was peeling peanuts, looked curiously at Li Zhuiyuan and Zhao Yi as they walked past their card table.

The big one followed behind the small one, step by step, with the small one's palm stretched out in front, as if playing a game of imitating a blind person walking.

Liu Jinxia and Old Lady Hua also saw them and were just about to make a teasing remark, but their attention was completely drawn away by Liu Yumei's shout of "Hu!" (winning the hand).

Mainly because Liu Yumei basically always lost money when playing cards and rarely won; this big win truly surprised her fellow players.

Liu Yumei laughed happily, reached out and grabbed a handful of peeled peanuts from Wang Lian, blew off the skins, put a few in her mouth, and laughed:

"My luck is good today; it looks like something good is coming to the door."

Li Zhuiyuan and Zhao Yi crossed the entire dam and walked into the east room.

The footprints stopped in front of the offering table filled with spirit tablets in the east room.

A thin red thread, from top to bottom, strung through them one by one, missing none.

It was as if someone had once stood here, their gaze sweeping over all the spirit tablets from top to bottom.

But for a few tablets that were close together, the red threads above them were coiled densely, wrapping them tightly.

This meant they had been looked at, and perhaps even touched by hand.

Of course, these actions did not exist; they were all Li Zhuiyuan's mental projections.

The spirit tablets of the Qin and Liu families were initially arranged on the left and right sides, with the vertical order determined by their respective generations.

Later, after A Li began using the ancestor tablets to carve wood shavings, the tablets were constantly flowing out for restocking, leading to the offering table here being too lazy to distinguish between the two families, changing to an arrangement from beginning to end based on era, regardless of whether they were Qin or Liu.

To a certain extent, this could be considered to have facilitated the great reconciliation and integration of the Qin and Liu families in history.

In their history, the two families had deep blood feuds for the sake of competing for the Long Wang position; almost every Qin family Long Wang had killed people of the Liu family, and every Liu family Long Wang had stained their hands with the blood of the Qin family.

These grievances and grudges all drifted away in the wood shavings of their shared descendant, the little granddaughter.

Zhao Yi: "Those few, calculated by era, are very close to my ancestor."

Li Zhuiyuan: "Mm."

Standing before the spirit tablets, looking forward, there were the stories of the previous generation of Long Wangs he had heard of; looking back, there was the Long Wang romance of his own future.

During this time, there might also be mixed in some kind of emotion, as well as high spirits.

He, who came from the grassroots, could also forcefully occupy and write his own era in the hands of the Long Wang lineage.

It was a pity that the spirits of the ancestors of the Qin and Liu families were no longer there; otherwise, this sense of interaction would be even more intense, and it wouldn't just be a one-sided touch.

Walking out of the east room and back into the sunlight.

Zhao Yi reached out to shield his forehead, his face showing bitterness; what he was repulsed by was not just this sunlight.

"Li, this matter seems to have blown up a bit."

"Mm."

"If it really is like this, then it's no wonder that my Zhao family hasn't produced another Long Wang since our ancestor, and hasn't even produced another Zhao family member on the river with the potential to compete for the Long Wang position—it's truly deserved."

Li Zhuiyuan lowered his head and looked at the thick "Zhao Family Extermination Guide" that Zhao Yi had given him.

"The Zhao family might be countless times dirtier than what you, this young master of the Zhao family, know."

A Li was painting, and in front of her lay the picture album brought by Cuicui.

The album was reduced in size, many details became blurred, and the composition could not be expanded.

A Li held the brush, seemingly copying, but in reality, she was only taking its form and then reinterpreting it.

Cuicui also held a brush, but there was no paper in front of her, and the tip of the brush was not dipped in paint; she just stared at it while moving her wrist along.

A Li was not a good teacher; in this regard, she was the same as Li Zhuiyuan.

The more refined one is in a craft, the harder it is to teach students, because the baseline they subconsciously take for granted might be the ceiling in the eyes of the student.

However, Cuicui was a good student; she appreciated the overall artistic conception presented when A Li painted, but most of the time her eyes were fixed on A Li's wrist and the tip of the brush, watching how she painted each small scene and object.

Being able to grasp these, and barely replicate a little, was enough to stand out in the school's interest club.

Li Zhuiyuan walked in.

A Li stopped her brush; she could tell from the young man's footsteps that he had something on his mind.

However, after a brief pause, the girl immediately resumed painting.

Having matters on one's mind was a very normal thing; since the young man hadn't called her, it meant this matter didn't require her help.

Li Zhuiyuan's room was the activity room for both of them, and they had long had a tacit understanding regarding the allocation of each other's time.

The period from waking up in the morning until Liu Yi called for "breakfast" was their traditional entertainment time, generally used for sitting on the rattan chairs outside to watch the sunrise and play chess.

In the afternoon, there would be a period of reading time; sometimes A Li would read with the young man, and sometimes she would simply accompany him.

Apart from this, most of the time, although the two were in the same room, one was at a desk and the other at a painting table, each doing their own thing.

"Brother Xiaoyuan, eat this, I brought it."

Cuicui walked over carrying a bag, inside which was popcorn—not corn, but rice, round and jade-like, white and plump.

Li Zhuiyuan grabbed a handful and put it in his mouth; it was fragrant and slightly sweet.

Many families in the village would specially make this as a snack for the children.

Sensing that the young man had something on his mind, after delivering the popcorn, Cuicui returned to A Li's side to learn painting.

Li Zhuiyuan first took out a blank notebook, took a fountain pen from the pen holder, and spread out the "River-Walking Code of Conduct," flipping to the chapter on "Dream Ghosts."

The fountain pen's cap remained on for a long time; he just pressed it against the blank page of the notebook and rubbed it slowly.

A formalized divination had changed the nature of the matter.

It added a major variable to this "stocking-up trip" that was supposed to be simple and smooth.

As it stood, whether the large truck he planned to drive to Jiujiang could transport back the things he currently needed was truly hard to say.

Once accustomed to walking the river, one often forms a certain fixed mindset, underestimating the risks outside the waves; this point was especially obvious for Li Zhuiyuan's team, which was targeted by the Heavenly Dao.

But in reality, this world of the river was inherently extremely dangerous; the river could make a person, but it could also swallow them until not even the bone fragments remained.

Placing the Zhao family file that Zhao Yi had given him on his lap, Li Zhuiyuan leaned his back lightly against the chair and half-closed his eyes.

His consciousness was split three ways: reviewing his own preparations for the dream ghost wave, reading the Zhao family file, and simultaneously planning and designing the subsequent action plan.

The young man did not feel he was making a mountain out of a molehill, because the most inadvertent gutter is often the easiest place to capsize.

At the same time, beside the small path leading to the village road at Li Sanjiang's house, Zhao Yi was leaning against a tree alone, watching the small river flow by, with geese and ducks passing by in turns, going "e-e" and "ga-ga" for a while.

Some were racking their brains, while others were enjoying life.

Lin Shu You was running on the field path, flying a kite.

The kite was a gift to Li Sanjiang from a carpenter in the village; when Li Zhuiyuan first made tools like the Yellow River shovel, because his family hadn't prepared the tools, he had gone to ask the man for help.

Upon learning that Li Sanjiang was ill, the old carpenter had started making it at home, crafting a Nantong specialty—a whistle kite.

The kite flew in the sky, emitting a crisp whistling sound, signifying prayers for blessings and the dispelling of illness.

Lin Shu You was playing very happily, followed by a group of children from the village, running, shouting, and cheering along with him.

After he was tired of flying it, Lin Shu You packed up the kite and led this group of little cheerleaders who had been with him for a long time to Zhang Shen's small shop to treat them to soda.

Such things happened often in the past, and Zhang Shen was long accustomed to it, only feeling that this young man was like a child who would never grow up, and who also liked to play with the children.

In fact, although Lin Shu You had been able to attend school normally outside in the past, he had used all his spare time to train to become a Ji Tong, rarely having the opportunity to play and run with his peers.

Many people, after growing up and having the means, would deliberately do things to make up for the regrets of their childhood.

While carrying the kite back, Lin Shu You saw Zhao Yi sitting by the river with a face of "nothing is more sorrowful than a dead heart."

This appearance, this scene, it was as if in the next moment Zhao Yi would be unable to think straight and throw himself into the river to end his life.

Although he knew this was impossible, and was clear that this small river couldn't drown him, Lin Shu You still, out of a basic sense of humanitarian concern, shouted at Zhao Yi:

"Hey, Three-Eyes!"

Zhao Yi pressed the back of his head against the tree trunk behind him and sighed.

Some things, although they had passed and didn't feel abnormal at the time, once a key node was torn open, looking back, one could immediately taste a different flavor.

Lin Shu You walked toward the river.

Zhao Yi turned his head to look at him and spoke: "You really have leisure and elegance."

Lin Shu You: "That's right, Brother Bin has gone to his future father-in-law and mother-in-law's house, so I can play with peace of mind."

Zhao Yi: "He went to his mother-in-law's house; why are you happy? Where did you get such a strong sense of empathy?"

Lin Shu You: "He won't be able to read books, so I won't have any pressure and can play for a while."

Zhao Yi: "Impossible to read books? Did he go to his mother-in-law's house to do farm work?"

Lin Shu You was stunned for a moment.

In his memory, it seemed Brother Bin just ate and drank at his mother-in-law's, like a master.

And speaking of farm work, Brother Bin seemed to have never even touched a hoe; on the contrary, it was he who had helped Zhou Yunyun's family with work for a whole day.

In an instant, a huge sense of panic struck:

"Brother Bin wouldn't be reading and studying at his mother-in-law's house, would he?"

Zhao Yi: "Maybe the father-in-law is preparing to kill chickens and fish for dinner, and the mother-in-law has cut a fruit platter for him and placed it beside his desk, urging him not to work so hard and to take care of his health."

Upon hearing this, Lin Shu You turned his head to look at the kite on his shoulder, then turned around, intending to walk home, and secretly decided not to sleep tonight.

"Hey hey hey, you have time to fly a kite, but no time to chat with me a bit more?"

Lin Shu You stopped his steps and looked at Zhao Yi: "Three-Eyes, what's wrong with you?"

"Sigh, I'm feeling a bit uncomfortable inside. Come, sit over here; I'll say it out loud to make you happy."

Lin Shu You looked hesitant, but in the end, he sat down beside Zhao Yi and whispered:

"I don't want to hear your jokes."

"Do you know? I originally thought my family was a bit dirty and needed a cleaning, but now I've realized that my family might... just be a bit clean."

"Then are you clean or dirty?"

Zhao Yi looked at Lin Shu You with some surprise and sighed: "I finally understand why so many famous dialogues left behind by great sages in classical literature are conversations with young boys."

Lin Shu You: "Doesn't sound like a compliment?"

Zhao Yi: "Whether I'm dirty or clean, it doesn't matter anymore."

Lin Shu You: "It specifically depends on what you do?"

Zhao Yi: "A You."

Lin Shu You: "Mm?"

Zhao Yi: "Do you... have internal reference materials?"

Lin Shu You: "No."

Zhao Yi: "No means yes."

Lin Shu You: "You..."

Zhao Yi supported himself on the ground, stood up, and straightened his clothes: "You're right; it really depends on what I decide to do."

Lin Shu You, who had just sat down, had no choice but to stand up with him, pick up the kite, and follow Zhao Yi home.

Approaching the dam, they saw that the old ladies' card game had already ended.

Lin Shu You: "Why did they break up so early today? They usually play until before dinner."

At this time, Liu Jinxia and Old Lady Hua were no longer there; they must have already returned. Wang Lian was there sweeping with a broom, and Liu Yi walked over carrying a bag:

"Auntie Lian, we just fried some tiger-skin meat and cured ribs at home; take them back for the children to taste."

"How can I take this? I can't take it; you keep it to eat; your family has many people."

"It's precisely because they don't like to eat it."

Wang Lian took it with some embarrassment; in this day and age, how could anyone not like to eat meat?

When Old Lady Liu was not playing cards, Zhao Yi had to pay his respects, but just as he was walking this way, Liu Yumei picked up her teacup and shook it, signaling him to skip this process.

Zhao Yi lowered his head and smiled, then went directly to the second floor.

On the terrace, Li Zhuiyuan stood in front of a fire basin, inside which a thick book was burning.

On the washstand built with cement boards beside it, there sat a brick-sized mobile phone.

Zhao Yi: "You read really fast."

Li Zhuiyuan: "Have you decided?"

Zhao Yi: "I've decided, that's why I came to settle the accounts with you."

Li Zhuiyuan: "Go ahead."

Zhao Yi pointed to the two rattan chairs at the corner: "Let's go sit there and chat."

Li Zhuiyuan shook his head and looked at the fire basin in front of him: "The book hasn't finished burning yet."