Chapter 17: Karmic Debt (Part II)

Seeing Li Chi's still-tender face, yet filled with a ruthless expression, Ye Chengfu, who was in the crowd, paused. He held his torch and stroked his chin, pondering:

"This fourth son is likely not a character to be trifled with. The leader, Liang Lu, is dead, and of the three remaining vicious wolves, the older one is cunning and the younger one is fierce. Within ten years, this Lijing Village will surely become the Li family's private domain!"

The crowd paused for a few breaths, but then someone was heard answering in a low voice:

"Changhu was killed by the refugees!"

Li Xiangping, holding back his tears, knelt beside Li Changhu. He turned his head to look at Tian Shoushui and asked with a choked voice:

"Uncle Tian, what is this about?"

"It is most likely those remnants of the Yuan family."

Li Mutian squeezed a few words through his teeth. He looked at Tian Shoushui, who was hanging his head in shame and silence, glanced at the surrounding villagers, and shouted:

"Li Tongya!"

Upon hearing this, Li Tongya wiped away his tears, stepped forward, cupped his hands toward the villagers, and said in a loud voice:

"I have disturbed you all tonight. Please disperse first; there is no need to linger here."

After speaking, he bowed to help Liu Linfeng up and whispered in his ear:

"Uncle, please take people to control those refugees first to prevent anyone from causing trouble in the chaos. We will follow shortly."

"Good, good..."

Liu Linfeng had been cowering before Li Mutian, feeling as if needles were pricking his back. Hearing this, he felt as if he had been granted amnesty, nodded repeatedly, and left with his men.

Tian Shoushui and Ren Pingan carried Li Changhu from the ground to the Li family's backyard. Suddenly, a burst of crying erupted from the main courtyard—it was the Ren woman, who had fainted upon hearing the tragic news. Tian Yun and the Liu woman, holding back their tears, took care of her while one of them hurried off to find a doctor.

"Big Brother..."

Tian Shoushui put down Li Changhu, his eyes filled with tears. Just as he was about to say something, Li Mutian waved his hand and said wearily:

"Pingan, go check on the Ren woman. Shoushui, you go with Liu Linfeng to watch the refugees. Without a statement from my Li family, he is likely feeling tied up."

"Yes."

Tian Shoushui was stunned for a moment, wiped his tears, and retreated. Ren Pingan also nodded blankly and went to look after Ren Pinger.

With no outsiders left in the backyard, only the Li brothers remained, weeping in low voices.

Li Mutian finally could not restrain himself. Like a wounded lone wolf, he sat beside his eldest son and began to howl in a low voice.

"Changhu—"

The brothers also began to weep one after another. Li Tongya and Li Xiangping were still somewhat restrained, but Li Chi, being young, cried his heart out.

————

At the dead of night, Lijing Village was in chaos. Old Man Xu walked alone, leaning on his hoe, toward the back mountain. Following the winding path, he saw a continuous cluster of graves appearing amidst the overgrown weeds.

Old Man Xu stopped and stared. Sure enough, a young man in tattered clothes, wearing animal skins around his waist, was sitting leisurely beside a small tombstone in the corner, legs spread wide, muttering something.

His ears twitched, and the young man looked up sharply. Seeing that the newcomer was just a simple, honest-looking old farmer who seemed too old to walk, he even clapped his hands, tilted his head, and asked with a smile:

"Where did you come from, old man!"

Old Man Xu did not answer him. He walked extremely slowly, trembling as he moved closer. Pretending to be vigilant, he stared at the young man, knelt by the grave, and began to sob softly while clutching the tombstone.

The young man listened carefully. Vaguely, he heard words about a great revenge being fulfilled and the master resting in peace. His heart stirred instantly.

Now that his great revenge was partially fulfilled, he felt immense satisfaction. He had thousands of words he wanted to say, but there was no one by his side to share his joy and satisfaction. Why not chat with this old man and kill him before leaving? Wouldn't that be the best of both worlds?

Thinking of this, the young man smiled and said:

"You come to cry at the Yuan family's grave; aren't you afraid the Li family will trouble you?"

Old Man Xu wiped his tears and answered. He glanced at the young man, but was suddenly struck with terror. He knelt on the ground and said:

"Little Young Master!"

"Hmm?"

The young man was startled and thought to himself:

"Has this old man seen me at the entrance of the village? I'd better kill him and flee; it saves trouble."

Old Man Xu covered his tears and said again:

"The Mistress often held you, Young Master, and sat in the fields, so I recognize you. I still remember you have three black moles on your foot, which can serve as proof."

Old Man Xu had lived for over seventy years and was as cunning as a fox. He had reversed cause and effect, shocking the young man into losing his murderous intent. He was stunned for a moment and hurriedly asked:

"Then do you remember what my mother looked like?"

"Of course I remember."

Old Man Xu pulled a branch from a haystack, loosened the soil with his hoe, and began to carve carefully.

The young man was extremely excited, yet he kept looking down gloomily at Old Man Xu. Thoughts kept flashing through his mind: one moment he felt he should kill him, the next he felt he should kidnap him to ask more about his mother.

Before long, Old Man Xu finished drawing and stood up. Although he was a farmer, he often painted door gods and auspicious pictures for the villagers. After all these years, he had some skill in painting, and with a few strokes, he had captured the spirit of the person vividly.

"Mother!"

The young man knelt on the ground and looked. Seeing the eyebrows and eyes that were still vaguely in his dreams, he began to weep softly. Twenty-two years of grievances and suppression surged into his heart, and he could not help but let his tears flow like a spring.

Old Man Xu sighed beside him, talking incessantly about the Mistress's kindness. For a time, the young man could not hold back his tears even more.

"I still remember the Master's appearance; let me draw it."

After hearing Old Man Xu's words, the young man already trusted him eighty percent. He wiped his tears and promised without looking up.

Old Man Xu was raising his hoe to loosen the soil and draw when his eyes flashed with ruthlessness. The hoe was raised high, its silver-bright blade flashing lightly in the moonlight. It fell suddenly, smashing toward the young man's neck.

Old Man Xu had farmed for years and was still in good health. This blow was a dull thud that broke bones and tendons. The young man fell forward onto the ground, his head tilted upward, his eyes rolling back, his limbs twitching constantly, and white foam spilling from his mouth.

The old man took advantage of him falling to the ground and smashed his hoe squarely onto the young man's head, completely snuffing out his breath.

Old Man Xu was not at ease and smashed him a dozen more times, until flesh and blood flew everywhere, and white and red flowed all over the ground. He flipped the young man over and saw that he had no breath left, his corpse still wearing an expression of sorrow.

Only then did he finally lose his strength, sat on the ground, covered his face with his withered hands, and wailed in pain:

"Karmic debt! Karmic debt..." ===== CHAPTER 18 =====