Chapter 9

Is it because of the saying, "What one thinks of by day, one dreams of by night"?

After all, he had spent no small amount of time these past two days feasting his eyes on her; he had nearly begun to use her as a brush washer.

However,

the next moment,

Qin Liu, standing on the dam, raised her head and looked at Li Zhuiyuan, who was standing on the terrace.

For the first time, their gazes met.

Li Zhuiyuan understood: she was not a product of his own dreaming; she had entered his dream. Dreams were projections rooted in reality, and since he had nearly made a habit of freezing her image in his mind, it was only natural that she shouldn't perform any extraneous actions within the dream.

No...

Li Zhuiyuan frowned slightly.

This time,

am I certain this is my own dream?

Is there a possibility that I, like Qin Liu below, am merely a participant?

Or perhaps I have dreamt too few times to summarize any patterns or experience; I have only just begun reading books, and even then, only introductory popular science texts.

It is like having a problem placed before me, yet I cannot even understand the meaning of the question.

Perhaps,

Qin Liu might know something?

Since she could take the initiative to look at him, could he also hope that she might speak?

But the first floor was currently bustling and noisy; to go down the stairs, he would have to pass through the middle of the first floor, which was highly unfeasible.

The second-floor terrace was not very high, but for his small frame to jump down directly was also unrealistic.

Because this was likely not his dream, he had lost the qualification to take risks or make mistakes at will.

Li Zhuiyuan squatted down and waved at Qin Liu below, signaling for her to come closer, to see if they could lower their voices and whisper.

However, before Qin Liu could react, Li Zhuiyuan heard footsteps coming from the stairwell behind him.

He turned his head and saw four older women walking toward him. They were wearing brightly colored clothes, their faces painted with thick powder and rouge.

They also saw Li Zhuiyuan; in fact, one could say they were heading straight for him.

"Little one, why are you here? The banquet is about to start!"

"Hurry, the banquet is starting! Go quickly and sit in the first wave; the second wave will have to wait a long time!"

"Yes, yes, yes. Once the first wave finishes eating, hurry home to sleep so you won't be late for school tomorrow."

When hosting banquets for weddings or funerals, if there were too many guests for the reception capacity, they would eat in waves. Once the first wave finished, the tables would be cleared, dishes and cold plates reset, and the second wave would be seated.

"I don't..."

Before he could finish his refusal, an old woman reached out and gripped Li Zhuiyuan's hand.

In an instant, Li Zhuiyuan noticed that the clothes he had been wearing were gone, replaced by a small blue long robe. It looked very old-fashioned, but the color was brand new.

The old woman's grip was also very strong, pulling Li Zhuiyuan into several stumbles. As they went down the stairs, Li Zhuiyuan tried to pry her hand off.

Her hand was very white—a deathly, pale white—and he could not see any lines on it.

Seeming to sense his struggle, the old woman suddenly stopped and slowly turned her head.

"Little one, you aren't being obedient. You don't want to go?"

Her voice became very slow and eerie. The light in the stairwell dimmed, and the remaining luster all fell upon the old woman's face.

Li Zhuiyuan took a deep breath, forcing a smile onto his face.

"I'll go. To the banquet. I want to eat at the banquet."

"Good child."

As soon as she finished speaking, the light in the stairwell instantly returned.

The old woman continued to pull Li Zhuiyuan's hand as they walked down, all the way to the first floor.

Originally, the first floor of the Great-Grandfather's house was used purely as a warehouse; the four walls hadn't even been painted, remaining the raw color of cement.

But now, the entire first floor was decorated with lanterns and streamers, looking very festive.

Tables were set up, each covered with red plastic film, topped with bowls, dishes, and cold plates.

There were many people coming and going—men, women, old, and young—all wearing overly gaudy new clothes, their faces heavily powdered with prominent rouge.

Li Zhuiyuan roughly knew what they were.

Because all the tables, chairs, and plates on the first floor were set out, yet those paper figures that usually filled the storage were nowhere to be seen.

After the old woman pulled Li Zhuiyuan to the first floor, she let go of his hand and went about her own business. Li Zhuiyuan turned around, only to find that the stairs he had just come down... were gone.

He did not stand foolishly in place but walked toward the entrance. For the convenience of moving goods, the Great-Grandfather's house had many front door panels, which were now removed, leaving the entrance wide open.

Therefore, the first floor and the dam outside were nearly fully connected.

Just as he reached the entrance, Li Zhuiyuan saw two young women pulling a little girl inside. It was Qin Liu.

Unlike him, her clothes had not changed; he figured it was because she was already dressed appropriately for this place.

At this moment, Qin Liu's eyelashes began to flutter, and her body began to tremble slightly.

Li Zhuiyuan guessed that she might be about to lash out and bite someone.

The two young women pulling her seemed to notice Qin Liu's abnormality and lowered their heads to look at her. At the same time, the light where the three of them stood began to dim, and this darkness gradually expanded. The others encompassed within it all stopped their conversations and activities, turning their cold, expressionless faces toward this side.

Li Zhuiyuan was now certain: this was not his dream.

Of course, it was not Qin Liu's dream either.

He had never heard of anyone suffering a backlash from the surrounding environment for acting out of character in their own dream.

This was clearly someone else's dream. Although he did not know whose, it was currently immersed in the dream, and illogical, out-of-character behavior within the dream would disturb it and cause it to wake up.

After waking up, it might be grumpy; or it might pinch to death the two little shrimps that shouldn't exist, disturbing its beautiful dream, before continuing to resume the dream.

But regardless of the situation, Li Zhuiyuan felt it was very disadvantageous for his current self.

So he took the initiative to step forward, standing in front of Qin Liu, and said with a smile:

"Little sister, I finally found you. You don't know how long big brother has been looking for you."

Li Zhuiyuan then looked at the two women holding Qin Liu's hands and said:

"Thank you for helping me find my little sister. She likes to run around blindly by herself; she isn't quite right in the head."

As he spoke, Li Zhuiyuan pointed to his forehead.

"Oh, so that's how it is."

"Your little sister is here."

The two women's faces showed a look of sudden realization.

The shadow that had been expanding stopped, though it did not retract.

Those outside the shadow went back to what they were doing, but those inside the shadow continued to cast their gazes here.

Still not enough!

Li Zhuiyuan pursed his lips. He took the initiative to reach out, grabbed Qin Liu's hand, and then wrapped his other hand behind her, gently patting her head:

"Little sister, be good, don't be afraid. Big brother is here; big brother will take good care of you."

After finishing, Li Zhuiyuan waited for the likely scratching and biting that would follow.

But he had to take this gamble. Since Qin Liu had taken the initiative to look up at him downstairs, he would bet that she could continue to endure this time!

Their bodies were very close; Li Zhuiyuan could feel the girl's hand trembling.

In his one-sided observation over the past two days in reality, Li Zhuiyuan knew clearly that the girl before him rejected all contact from the outside world.

Only her grandmother could persuade her to eat with soft, gentle words, but even Grandmother Liu dared not make any intimate gestures toward her.

However, what made Li Zhuiyuan happy was that the girl's trembling gradually weakened, and her breathing began to stabilize. Not only did she not push him away, she didn't even try to break free from the hand he was holding.

Seeing that the girl had finally calmed down, the shadow at their feet began to shrink and eventually disappeared.

The people who had been staring here without moving all turned their heads back to their own business, including the two women.

Phew... safe for now.

Li Zhuiyuan looked at Qin Liu and asked in a low voice: "Do you know what we should do next?"

Qin Liu did not react; she just kept her gaze on him.

Fine, she probably didn't know either.

If it were daytime, and he could hold her hand while she looked at him, Li Zhuiyuan felt he would be quite happy.

This feeling was like a perfect work of art interacting and responding to you.

But in this current environment, Li Zhuiyuan found it hard to have such a mood.

"Seated, seated, everyone, take your seats!"

"Alright, sit, sit, hurry and sit!"

Someone was bustling about, arranging the seating.

At this time, the safest choice was to blend in.

"Let's find a place to sit." Li Zhuiyuan said to Qin Liu, then led her by the hand toward a table where only a little boy was sitting.

Who knew that just as they were about to sit down, they saw the little boy immediately bend over, covering the bench, and shouting:

"I've reserved this seat, I've reserved this seat! My dad, mom, grandpa, grandma, uncle, and second uncle are coming over soon; you can't sit here!"

So they had encountered someone reserving seats in advance.

If it weren't for the fact that the little boy's rouge was so thick he clearly looked like a paper-boy transformed, Li Zhuiyuan would have suspected he was Hu Zi or Shitou.

Last time they ate at the bearded man's house, Hu Zi and Shitou had also gone ahead to reserve seats for their older brothers; the expression, tone, and posture were almost identical.

"Little one, little one, there are two empty ones here. Sit here, that way our table will be full." An old grandfather wearing a burial shroud at the next table called out.

"Alright, Grandpa."

Li Zhuiyuan immediately pulled Qin Liu over. After he sat down, seeing that Qin Liu was still standing, he could only remind her in a low voice: "Sit."

Qin Liu did not move, remaining standing.

Li Zhuiyuan could only reach out, grab her waist, and apply force downward; she sat down.

However, when he touched her waist, Li Zhuiyuan felt her begin to tremble again.

After he let go, she calmed down again.

He lowered his head and glanced at the hand he was still holding... Li Zhuiyuan roughly understood; this was likely the maximum level of contact she could accept at the moment.

"Little one, where are the adults in your family?" the old grandfather in the burial shroud asked.

His tone was quite kind, but with that makeup... no matter how kind the person, they would look very eerie.

Li Zhuiyuan: "My grandpa and grandma are helping in the kitchen; they told me to bring my little sister over to eat first."

"Oh, I see, hehe." Following that, the old grandfather in the burial shroud looked at Qin Liu again. "This girl is so well-behaved. How old is she?"

Qin Liu ignored him.

Li Zhuiyuan knew clearly that even if she wanted to respond, she couldn't, because she likely couldn't understand the Nantong dialect.

Grandmother Liu's family lived here at the Great-Grandfather's place; Auntie Liu and Uncle Qin worked for the Great-Grandfather, but they had no interaction with the villagers, even using Mandarin when speaking to him, let alone Qin Liu, who liked to sit behind the threshold all day without moving.

Fortunately, it was good that she didn't speak. If she opened her mouth and spoke Mandarin, it would only attract more curious questions. At this juncture, the more one said, the more mistakes one made.

"Grandpa, my little sister is ten. When she was little, she had a fever and wasn't sent to the health center in time, which burned out her brain. She can't hear very well and can't speak either."

Li Zhuiyuan deliberately said it loudly so the whole table could hear. No matter what, he had to plug the gap on Qin Liu's side first.

"Oh, I see. Sigh, poor child, tsk tsk tsk."

"Sigh, there's one in our team too. Had a fever when little, the adults at home didn't pay attention, and the brain got burned out."

"Exactly. Raising a little one requires a lot of attention; otherwise, the child suffers, and it's a suffering for the adults to raise her later too."

The people at the table began to exchange comments.

At this time, the old grandfather in the burial shroud asked Li Zhuiyuan again: "How old are you?"

"I'm eleven."

Li Zhuiyuan lied and added a year. Although Qin Liu was actually only one month younger than him, he definitely couldn't say ten; the two of them didn't look like twins at all, and their "mother" couldn't have given birth to two children in one month.

If he did, they would start pulling out theories about one being brought by a widower father and the other by a widow mother, forming a remarried family.

In that case, the discussion at the whole table would definitely become even more spirited, and maybe people at the next table would join in too.

"Are you in school?"

"Yes, fourth grade."

"Oh, and your little sister?"

"My little sister isn't in school. She just stays at home sitting all day. We only brought her out today because of the banquet."

"Hmm."

The old grandfather in the burial shroud stopped asking and turned to chat with others at the table.

Li Zhuiyuan finally gained a moment of peace. He looked at Qin Liu sitting beside him, leaned over, and whispered:

"Don't be afraid, I'm here."

This wasn't fawning, but soothing; the subtext was: be calm, don't explode.

Qin Liu turned her head and also looked at Li Zhuiyuan.

Li Zhuiyuan could see no emotion in her eyes.

Then, Qin Liu turned her head back and continued to stare blankly.

Li Zhuiyuan felt that she should be able to understand; after all, she could eat by herself... it wasn't that she lacked the ability to take care of herself, and she had a cleanliness obsession.

Every time she finished eating, Grandmother Liu would help her wipe clean.

At this moment, the idle Li Zhuiyuan began to pay attention to the dishes on the table.

What was currently set out were all cold plates: cold spinach molded into a cylinder, century egg with tofu, stir-fried peanuts, sliced salted duck eggs...

There were only two meat dishes: sliced salted meat and braised small pork ribs. However, the portions were very small, and they were cut small enough for everyone at the table to have two chopsticks' worth.

These braised pork ribs were placed right in front of him. They were eaten cold, sweet but not greasy. Last time he attended a banquet, Li Zhuiyuan had a deep impression of this dish.

But now, seeing this dish, he had no appetite at all. Heaven knows what this thing actually was.

At this time, singing was heard.

People at nearby tables looked over, and many stood up.

Li Zhuiyuan also turned to look. The location was a small open area in the center of the banquet, where a man and a woman were standing, with an old man playing an instrument beside them.

The man and woman were wearing opera robes, and their makeup was even richer, with more extensions and exaggerations on top of the thick powder and rouge.

Accompanied by the old man's instrument, the man sang first, and after some physical movements, the woman continued to sing.

Li Zhuiyuan knew this was a local Nantong opera—the "Master Tongzi Opera."

Li Weihan and Cui Guiying had once taken him to the village dam to watch it. The opera's characteristics were strange, shrill, high-pitched, and sorrowful, with a strong impact.

To outsiders, it was... extremely unpleasant to listen to.

At that time, Li Zhuiyuan had just arrived in Nantong and was still learning and familiarizing himself with the local dialect. Li Weihan and Cui Guiying had listened with fascination, while Li Zhuiyuan felt it was like demonic sounds entering his ears, causing extreme pain.

This time was the same; everyone at the table and nearby listened with great absorption. Li Zhuiyuan looked at Qin Liu again. Fortunately, she had no reaction.

Along with the performance, someone holding a basket began to distribute chopsticks to each table, and another person came with vinegar and soy sauce to pour into the dishes. There were six dishes per table, generally shared by two people.

"Come, little one, eat." The burial shroud grandfather picked up a piece of rib and put it in Li Zhuiyuan's bowl.

"Thank you, Grandpa."

"Eat, don't just look."

"Alright, Grandpa, you eat too."

"Hmm."

"Woof!" "Meow!"

At this moment, Li Zhuiyuan noticed many cats and dogs running under the table; there was one not far from his feet.

Li Zhuiyuan picked up the rib, and when no one was looking, he threw it down. The dog below immediately grabbed it and began to eat.

Next, Li Zhuiyuan did the same with the dishes the enthusiastic burial shroud grandfather put in his bowl, throwing them under the table. Soon, many cats and dogs gathered on his side.

Li Zhuiyuan was actually quite familiar with these cats and dogs; he had seen them in the paper-cutting pile during the day, but at that time, they weren't as lively or hungry as they were now.

Burial shroud grandfather: "Little one, tell your little sister to eat. She's just sitting there, not eating at all."

Li Zhuiyuan could only turn his head and make a gesture: "Little sister, eat."

Who knew that as soon as he finished speaking, Qin Liu picked up her chopsticks and began to pick up food. She picked up three chopsticks' worth and put them in her own bowl, then lowered her head and opened her mouth.

No, are you really eating?

Li Zhuiyuan hurriedly pulled her hand.

Qin Liu turned her head and looked at Li Zhuiyuan. This time, there was actually emotion in her eyes. Although very weak, it was truly there—it was confusion.

Li Zhuiyuan could only lean his mouth to her ear. Well, it was normal for siblings to whisper:

"Don't eat it, feed it to the animals below."

Qin Liu lowered her head, glanced at the group of cats and dogs below, then stood up and directly picked up a plate of food from the table.

Judging by this posture, she intended to dump the whole plate down to feed them.

This action of directly picking up the plate immediately drew dissatisfied frowns from others at the table.

Li Zhuiyuan could only stand up, grab the plate, and put it back, smiling and educating her: "Little sister, this is for everyone to eat together. You can't be greedy; it's not all yours."

Seeing Li Zhuiyuan say this, the adults at the table looked much better, and many said:

"If she likes it, let her eat it, it's fine."

"Just put the plate in front of her."

Li Zhuiyuan kept waving his hands and shaking his head: "Can't do that, that's not according to the rules."

"Bang... pop!"

The sound of firecrackers came from outside, and the children at nearby tables began to cover their ears and scream.

A dozen firecrackers went off in a row. When the last one ended, the color tone of the entire venue dimmed. Everyone at the table suddenly stopped moving, and the next table also stopped.

Everyone sat straight and stiff, looking forward.

Although he didn't know what happened, Li Zhuiyuan hurriedly learned to do the same. He glanced at Qin Liu beside him from the corner of his eye. Hmm... she didn't need to learn; she was a professional.

Outside the door, an old woman walked in, surrounded by a group of young boys and girls.

As soon as she appeared, the atmosphere of the entire venue became somewhat stagnant.

Through the gaps between heads, Li Zhuiyuan recognized her. It was the old woman he had seen in his dream at Liu Jinxia's house that day, the one being carried on Niu Fu's back.

How could she be here?

He clearly remembered that when Niu Fu left the Great-Grandfather's house, he was hunchbacked.

The old woman's body was somewhat hunched, but her spirit was very good—abnormally good. Green light shone in her eyes, and there were even tufts of fine fur on her face.

Also, there seemed to be a few black threads on her face... or perhaps they were black whiskers growing out of thin air.

It seemed... like a cat's face.

The old woman walked to the main table under the opera stage and smiled at the surroundings:

"Today is my birthday. Everyone gave me face by coming over, so you must eat and drink well, hehe."

As soon as she finished speaking, the dimmed color tone returned to brightness.

Everyone who had just been sitting stiffly and lifelessly began to pick up food, eat, and chat naturally again.

Li Zhuiyuan felt fortunate that the position he and Qin Liu were sitting in happened to be half-turned away from the old woman, and there were several tables in between. They were children and small in stature, so they shouldn't be seen.

But just as he was feeling fortunate, in the blink of an eye, he saw the old woman actually pick up a wine glass and start to toast table by table!

He recognized her, so she must definitely recognize him.

This should be her dream... no, Li Zhuiyuan now felt that the environment here could no longer be simply described as a "dream." He and Qin Liu were likely in another special environment.

But regardless, he could not be seen by her.

The old woman toasted quickly, saying a few words and then toasting a whole table together. If this continued, it wouldn't be long before she reached their table.

Li Zhuiyuan immediately shouted loudly at Qin Liu: "What, you miss Grandma?"

Qin Liu turned her head to look at him, once again showing confusion in her eyes.

Li Zhuiyuan deliberately used his hand to pat upward under the table, and immediately the whole table trembled a few times, and many people's food fell back down.

"Hey, little sister, don't make a scene. We are eating. If you don't eat yourself, don't affect others!"

The confusion in Qin Liu's eyes deepened.

Li Zhuiyuan faced the others at the table and apologized: "Sorry, my little sister here..."

He pointed to his forehead again.

Everyone showed an understanding expression. Her brain was burned out, so it was normal for her to do things that didn't make sense.

Li Zhuiyuan pulled Qin Liu up and left the table: "Alright, I'll take you to find Grandma. Sigh, I really can't stand you. I haven't eaten my fill yet!"

Immediately, Li Zhuiyuan pulled Qin Liu toward the entrance, but just as they got close, he saw a row of men wearing old-fashioned retainer clothes standing outside.

Some were chatting, some were tearing firecracker fuses. Although they were all busy, they had completely controlled the exit.

Leaving from here was impossible. Moreover, Li Zhuiyuan observed that judging by the old woman's posture, she didn't seem to intend to toast only one round. If they continued to stay here, even if they kept playing hide-and-seek, it would be very easy for her to notice them.

Looking around, the stairs to the second floor were gone. The only area left to hide in was the northwest corner, which led to the kitchen.

At this moment, the sound of stir-frying was coming from there.

Li Zhuiyuan pulled Qin Liu toward the back kitchen. During this time, to avoid attracting outside attention, he kept scolding Qin Liu:

"Look at you, insisting on finding Grandma."

"It's hard to eat at a banquet, and I haven't even eaten so many good dishes."

"Ah, the hen soup is coming, you made me miss the chicken leg!"

Sure enough, as they walked along, people at nearby tables were eating and drinking, and no shadows appeared at their feet. Everyone felt it was normal.

Finally, Li Zhuiyuan led Qin Liu into the kitchen. As soon as they entered, they saw a large plastic basin surrounded by many dirty plates.

Seven or eight old women were squatting beside the plastic basin, holding rags and washing the plates.

However, the plastic basin was not filled with water, but sand. They were washing with sand.

Beside the large stove, a fat chef wearing an apron was stir-frying. His movements were very skillful; he looked like a master.

But the ingredients in the baskets beside him were all stacks of white paper;

The seasoning jars beside him did not contain oil, salt, soy sauce, or vinegar, but various pigments;

Beside them was a large bucket filled with paste.

He saw him first heat the paste in the pot, then pour in a stack of white paper. While stir-frying, he kept adding various pigments, and finally, he reduced the sauce over high heat. When he lifted the large pot to plate, what he poured out were dishes that were complete in color, fragrance, and taste.

Moreover, the flames rising from the large stove were not the usual color, but eerie green, like ghost fire.

"If the little one wants to play, go play outside. Don't get in the way here!" The chef urged impatiently.

Li Zhuiyuan said: "Wow, you are so amazing. The dishes you make are so delicious. When I grow up, I want to be a chef too. I want to learn from you!"

"Hehe." The fat master put away his previous impatience and laughed. "Study hard. Being a chef is nothing. In this summer heat, it's bitter to death."

"No, I just want to be a chef. Being a chef is so good. I can eat many delicious things. Also, my brain is stupid, my grades are bad, and I can't learn."

"Grades are bad? Then you must learn a craft quickly; otherwise, you'll starve to death later."

"You are really amazing. Wow, is that how it's done? You are too amazing. I'll just watch from the side and won't add trouble for you."

The fat master didn't agree, but he didn't chase them away again.

Li Zhuiyuan stood by the side, praising from time to time, and helping to pass plates and add pigments.

Actually, this kind of praise was really against his conscience; after all, no matter what dish this chef made, it was just paste, white paper, and pigments all thrown into the pot together.

But watching the finished dishes come out of the pot like this... it really felt quite strange.

Standing like this for a long time, someone came from outside to pass the word: "The first wave is over, the second wave is seated!"

Next, more dirty plates were sent over. After the old women's sand baptism, they were put back on the chef's side to be refilled with dishes.

The first to be served were still cold plates. There was a cold plate master, so the fat master could rest for a while. He first picked up the towel hanging around his neck to wipe his sweat, then picked up two pieces of tiger-skin meat from the side. After eating one himself, he handed one to Li Zhuiyuan.

"Come, eat."

"No, no."

"Eat, don't be polite."

"I'm already full."

Li Zhuiyuan felt that it might be because he had praised too much before, leading to the fat master's excessive enthusiasm now.

However, just after he refused for the second time, the fat master's expression suddenly turned cold.

Li Zhuiyuan noticed that a shadow appeared at his feet and was gradually expanding.

The cold plate master beside him and the old women washing dishes also turned their heads to look at him.

Clearly... in this day and age, where could a child refuse a large piece of meat?

Li Zhuiyuan had no choice but to take the meat from the fat master's hand and put it into his mouth, chewing while revealing a shy smile, as if his previous refusal was just because he was thin-skinned:

"Delicious, really fragrant."

A smile appeared on the fat master's face, the shadow below began to retract, and the others around continued to work.

"Ah, little sister, why is your shoe broken? Why are you so careless? This is your new shoe. I want to wear new ones but don't have any. Look, Mom will beat you when we go back!"

As he spoke, Li Zhuiyuan squatted down, pretending to help Qin Liu fix her shoe, but actually secretly spat out the meat in his mouth, quietly put it on the ground, and then reached out to grab Qin Liu's left ankle, letting her lift her foot and step on the meat.

It wasn't that he hadn't thought about just swallowing the meat; at worst, he would just treat it as eating some paper, which wasn't a big deal. But the problem was that as soon as the meat entered his mouth, a special, indescribable feeling of nausea struck him, rushing straight to his forehead, and his stomach began to cramp.

It was as if he was eating food that absolutely did not belong to him.

After standing up, Li Zhuiyuan began to breathe deeply, attempting to get rid of the intense discomfort as soon as possible.

Qin Liu lowered her head and looked at her feet. Her body began to tremble.

Li Zhuiyuan guessed that she must feel her shoe was dirty.

Holding her hand, Li Zhuiyuan leaned toward her and whispered in a tired tone: "Please, just endure it for a moment, be good."

Qin Liu raised her head, gradually stopped trembling, and did not move her shoe away from the dirty thing.

Seeing her like this, Li Zhuiyuan actually felt a little moved.

But the emotion hadn't lasted long before the fat master, who was likely truly satisfied by the praise, actually took out a large chicken leg and handed it over:

"Come, little one, eat the chicken leg!"

Li Zhuiyuan: "..."

Without hesitation, Li Zhuiyuan took it, took a big bite, and smiled: "Chicken leg, really fragrant, really delicious."

Fat master: "Hahahaha!"

"Oh, little sister, where did you get that oil stain on your skirt? Really, you don't know how to cherish new clothes at all. No wonder Mom says you're a money-losing item!"

Li Zhuiyuan hurriedly squatted down again, pretending to help his little sister clean the stain on her clothes, reached out to grab Qin Liu's right ankle, lifted it, and let her right shoe step on the remaining chicken leg and the meat he had spat out.

"Ah..."

His mouth was bitter, his forehead dizzy, his stomach cramping—a feeling of nausea and rejection from his whole body almost made Li Zhuiyuan unable to stand up. If he hadn't supported himself with his hand, he might have really fallen to the ground.

But he finally managed to stand up with willpower, albeit very reluctantly.

This food, he really couldn't even touch it; this was not for the living.

Fortunately, the fat master didn't give him any more food afterward; he began to get busy with the hot dishes for the second wave of guests.

Once the second wave ended, the banquet would be over. Li Zhuiyuan felt that if he and Qin Liu could just hold out until the end, they would be able to escape this place.

Finally, he saw the fat master pour out sweet dumpling soup from the pot.

This was the dessert of the banquet here, the closing dish. Once this dish was served, it meant the banquet was over.

Li Zhuiyuan's heart lifted, and he squeezed Qin Liu's hand: Alright, it's almost over.

Who knew that at this moment, the old woman's voice came from the kitchen entrance:

"You masters have really worked hard. I'm really sorry to have caused you such fatigue."

Li Zhuiyuan's heart tightened, and he immediately pulled Qin Liu to squat behind the stove, using the stove and the fat master's bulk to block the line of sight from the kitchen entrance.

Fat master: "Old Madam, live a long life, as long as Mount Shoubinan, hahahaha!"

"Hehe, it's not good to live too long. Living too long makes the descendants annoyed."

"What kind of talk is that? Having an old person in the family is like having a treasure. I wish my own mother could live to be a hundred."

"Your mother is blessed to have a son like you. Those in my family feel that if I live too long, I will suck the blessings of my children and grandchildren and bring disaster to the family."

"What kind of fart talk is that? How can anyone say that about their own mother? Really not a thing."

"Sigh, don't talk about them. They aren't necessarily wrong. I'm old too, no use anymore. Staying at home is just a waste of food, making them feel uncomfortable."

"No wonder I didn't see your two sons today. Didn't your daughter come either?"

"Hmm, didn't come."

"Really, not even coming for your own mother's birthday. Too unreasonable."

"Doesn't matter, doesn't matter. In a few days, I'll go find them, hehe... hehe... hehehe."

The old woman's laughter suddenly changed from normal to shrill, and the sound also gradually became ethereal from outside the stove, and finally, it became clearer and clearer, until it seemed to settle right above his head.

Li Zhuiyuan, squatting on the ground, slowly raised his head.

Just a few centimeters from his face was the face of the cat-faced old woman.

He could see the dense fine fur on her face clearly, and he could count the number of whiskers on her face. Her teeth were so long and sharp that her lips could hardly cover them, and her pair of green eyes were full of mockery.

"Little one, are you here?"

(End of chapter)