Chapter 43: Upgraded

  Liu the old man and his wife returned from their son's home in the provincial city last night, driving a cow cart. He only has this one son, who was spoiled when he was young, but it turns out that this kid is capable. After growing up, he originally worked as a clerk in a silk store in the provincial city, and his work performance was not bad, so he was favored by his boss and became a live-in son-in-law.

  At first, the two old men were also unwilling, but thinking about it, the master of the house only had this one daughter and no son. In the future, wouldn't the silk store rely on my son to support it from outside? Wouldn't that be just like their family's own?

  The couple secretly made a plan and went from being unwilling to willing.

  No sooner had she finished breakfast and taken up a broom to sweep the yard than Chunxiang from next door came over for a visit.

  "Sister-in-law and big brother, didn't you just come back last night?"

  Chunxiang girl looked at them two nodding and said: "You don't know that after you left, something big happened in the village."

  The couple was lifted by her, both of them were in high spirits. Liu's old wife put down the broom and brought a chair for her to sit on, and she sat down beside the old man, eager to hear about what news she had during these days when she wasn't in this village.

  Chunxiang had been paying attention to the movements next door since early this morning. She saw light coming from there last night, so she knew the couple was back. This morning, she came over to block the door after feeding the chickens and clapping her hands.

  Chunxiang was interested in both old men and felt satisfied when she saw their curious glances.

  "You don't know, Liu Jian's family just bought a brand new horse carriage."

  "What, bought a carriage?" Liu's old wife exclaimed, she really didn't see it coming. She knew that Liu Jian usually didn't have this kind of money, although he had raised several hundred rabbits in the backyard on the mountain, but where did he get the money for buying a carriage?

  To be honest, this time why hurry to the provincial capital to live with his son for a few days, Liu old head wife is some private heart, before, she saw Liu Jianjia's life getting better and better, in her heart, you say he borrowed our family car once, gave 10 cents, isn't it too little, just between the lines, implying this meaning to Liu Jian.

  At that time, Liu Jian's reaction was also not very good, and she couldn't figure out what the situation was.

  She thought, aren't you going to borrow? I didn't say it clearly, I hurriedly drove our family's cart to live in the city for a while, and saw how you borrowed. If it was late, I would raise the price openly, otherwise, in this village, which family can you go to borrow from? The whole village only has their family with a cow cart, and finally, they still have to come to her house.

  She had been thinking of this plan all along.

  But now that Chunxiang has said so, isn't her abacus calculation in vain?

  And from then on, Liu Jian would never come to her house to borrow a car again, and she wouldn't even make ten cents.

  She said she didn't care what Liu Jian did with the car, and there was no need to rush. They lived in a mountainous area, what could they possibly have to do? But it's good that he borrowed the car over a hundred times a year, which added up to more than two taels of silver. Calculating carefully, this was also a considerable amount of money.

  Others in the village didn't give as much as he did, at most just two or three cents, and even that was for feeding the cattle.

  Liu Lao's wife was filled with regret at this time, and she had no place to go and talk to anyone about it.

  Chunxiang naturally knew that this time, the Liu family made a lot of money, but she didn't come for this reason. As previously mentioned, she was about to continue with her next topic.

  "Really? You know they're so wealthy, where did it come from?" Chunxiang looked at Liu as he put down his teacup and gazed back at her.

  Liu's wife next to him heard this and her eyes lit up, it seemed there was still a chance, and she regained her spirit from the resentment that had just been depressed.

  Liu's wife enthusiastically grabbed a handful of melon seeds brought from the city and stuffed them into Chunxiang's mother's hands, lifting her chin vigorously to signal, her not-so-agile teeth moving the dates in her mouth, she hadn't even swallowed yet when she urged her to continue speaking quickly.

  Chun Xiang's mother deliberately straightened up, adjusted her waist, cleared her throat and said in a hushed tone with a mysterious gaze: "It's known..."

  She stopped talking and turned back, pretending to be mysterious, sat up straight, smiled slyly with her face sideways, covering her mouth, and regained her elegant and refined demeanor, looking at the reactions of the two.

  Liu's old wife finally swallowed the date cake in her mouth, pulled her throat and patted it hard several times, almost taking her life.

  She didn't eat breakfast this morning, originally planning to do a good job and then slowly drink tea and savor the pastries her son bought for her in the city. Who knew Spring Fragrance's mother would come visiting at this time?

  She had just heard another piece of news that made her both anxious and resentful, when suddenly another shocking message came, she hastily swallowed the pastry in her mouth and almost choked to death.

  Liu's old wife regained her composure and continued what Chunxiang had left unsaid, asking: "Could it be that you know about the profit?"

  Liu Lao's wife said so, but she didn't believe it either.

  Only Spring Fragrance's mother rolled her eyes and said: "Nonsense, it's not that she earned the money, I've heard others say that she is..."

  It happened that just a few days after the incident, a wandering monk happened to pass by and arrived at Biao Hu's home. He asked Biao Hu's mother for water to drink, and during their casual conversation, she asked him to take a look at her son's face.

  Although the mother gave her son a loud name, Biao Hu has been sick since he was born and has been bedridden for many years due to his illness.

  Biao Hu's mother is also doting on her child, taking care of him since he was young and growing up. In recent years, it has been much better than when he was first born. The medical expenses have never stopped, and Biao Hu's father has always been working as a bodyguard outside to earn money for his son's medical treatment. Otherwise, relying solely on farming would not be enough to sustain the family in these years.

  The mother of the fierce tiger led the old monk to her son's room. The old monk looked at the child's face and immediately furrowed his brow, originally thinking it was a normal fortune-telling session, but this made him extremely surprised, with a serious expression he sat there observing the child's face, muttering incessantly in his mouth.

  Biao Hu's daughter stood nervously beside him, listening to the old monk summarize his decades of experience in studying Taoism. The more he listened, the stranger it seemed. This was not an ordinary illness, perhaps not even an illness at all. The old monk said this to Biao Hu's daughter.

  The old monk twisted the white whiskers under his chin, pinched his fingers and calculated again. Finally, he walked outside and looked around the village. He raised his head, with two sides leaning against the big mountain. Turning his head, he gazed at the continuous mountains in the distance, which blocked the road ahead. If one wants to pass through this place, they must detour around the mountains from another direction.

  If it wasn't for his accidental arrival here, he wouldn't have asked anyone on the road and would absolutely not have ended up here. This is a dead end that doesn't lead anywhere, with an eerie atmosphere...

  The old monk stroked his beard thoughtfully.

  She turned to see the mother of that fierce tiger looking at him with a tense face, sighed and said to the mother of the fierce tiger: "Looking at your son's pale face, his hair is hard and black, I'm afraid there's something..."

  Lao Dao's words were not yet finished, but Biao Hu's mother had already softened her stance a bit. Looking at his deeply furrowed brow earlier, she was now somewhat afraid.

  The old monk kindly advised, slowly saying: "Don't worry for now, let me first perform a ritual for your son, and then give you a protective charm that has been blessed by the Golden Buddha of Taishang Laojun. This will ensure that your son will be free from illness and disaster in the future. Otherwise..."

  The mother of the fierce tiger listened and immediately got up to kowtow to the old Taoist, asking him to save her precious son, who was her only child.

  All these years, she hasn't gotten pregnant again after giving birth to her son, and maybe never will in the future, how can she not take it seriously.

  Invite this old Taoist master back home as an honored guest and ask him to perform his magic to save people.

  Chunxiang's mother said here, Liu Lao and his wife exchanged a look, then turned their heads to glance at her, saying in unison: "Could it be that Zhi Xiao is indeed an evil spirit? A calamity star?"

  The old couple who finished speaking seemed to have goosebumps all over their bodies, shaking and rubbing their hands as if there was something unclean on them.

  In fact, their son had long been forbidden from letting them go out with the family, now it's fine, really won't bring any bad luck.

  "At that time, Biao Hu's mother didn't ask in detail, and just wanted the old monk to save their son first..."

  "But afterwards, someone came to ask about the situation and after telling them, everyone analyzed it together. It just confirmed their previous rumors, and even had the confirmation of a high-ranking monk. This is ominous! Some people said that if you knew your past life, you must have been a big monster, otherwise whose child would be born in that place? Isn't the broom star a unlucky star?"

  Chunxiang's mother kept talking nonstop beside her.

  Liu old man and the other two old men furrowed their brows, reminiscing: "Ever since she was born to her mother, I remember that year there was a big flood, many people drowned, and then several years later, a severe drought, not a single grain harvested all year round..."

  Chunxiang's mother slapped her thigh, and at this time she didn't feel any pain. Her eyes sparkled with stars, and what she loved to hear the most was exactly this. She continued, "Right? Isn't all of this just things that happened after she was born? So it's not impossible that someone said she used magic to bewitch Erni and Mutian, took their money, and went to live on a mountain with Zhi Xiao?"

  From then on, the old couple roughly believed in this saying. In folk, there has always been a legend about the broom star, which is an ominous symbol, often accompanied by war and natural disasters.

  If we really have to match seats according to numbers, then it just so happens that all the numbers match perfectly. And when you add in the fact that I'm a reincarnated demon, it makes it seem even more credible.

  ……