Chapter 80: The Bai Family Matron

A few years back, pagers had just entered the domestic market and caught on like wildfire. Young city folks even took pride in strapping one around their waist.

“I’m thinking of getting one myself. Tell you what, I’ll get an extra one and gift it to you. How’s that sound, Little Yuan?”

Li Zhuiyuan shook his head. “I don’t need it.”

“Oh, right!” Xue Liangliang smacked his forehead. “I promised to buy you snacks and toys, but I completely forgot. I’ll mail them to you once I get back to school.”

“Thanks, Brother Liangliang.”

“Well, I’m heading to bed then.” Xue Liangliang climbed back into bed and quickly drifted off.

After finishing the scroll in his hand, Li Zhuiyuan went to shower. Passing by his great-grandfather’s bedroom, he could clearly hear his snores through the door.

Sounded like Great-Grandpa was sleeping well.

Back in his room, Li Zhuiyuan placed a new toothbrush in the washbasin, then crawled onto the inner side of the bed and went to sleep.

The next morning, Xue Liangliang woke up early.

He was one of those people who, despite sleeping less than others, always woke up fully refreshed.

Opening his eyes, he glanced at the still-sleeping Li Zhuiyuan beside him and thought to himself—it’d be fun if this kid made it into Haihe University and became his classmate.

Moving quietly, he got out of bed. Seeing the new toothbrush in the basin, he picked it up and was about to head out to wash up when—

“Aaahhh!!”

The washbasin clattered to the floor, sending the cup, towel, and toothbrush scattering.

Anyone would’ve been scared stiff to open a door first thing in the morning and find a little girl standing there in complete silence.

The commotion woke Li Zhuiyuan. He quickly got out of bed, rubbing his eyes as he rushed over and grabbed Ah Li’s hand with one hand, urging:

“Brother Liangliang, go wash up.”

“Oh, okay.”

Xue Liangliang quickly gathered his things and left. What he didn’t know was that if Li Zhuiyuan had been even a moment slower, he might’ve ended up badly hurt.

Because as soon as Li Zhuiyuan took Ah Li’s hand, her body had already begun trembling—a sign she was about to lash out.

Usually, Li Zhuiyuan could sleep in. Even if Ah Li came and he hadn’t woken up, she’d quietly sit and wait for him.

But Xue Liangliang sleeping over had disrupted that routine.

Worse, his loud yell had pushed the entire household’s breakfast time earlier than usual.

While eating breakfast after freshening up, they heard Aunt Zhang from the village convenience store shouting across the wheat field: “Sanjiang! Phone call!”

“Coming!”

Li Sanjiang stuffed some pickled vegetables into his bun, grabbed his bowl of porridge and chopsticks, and ambled out while eating.

At the store, after waiting about a cigarette’s time, the phone rang again. It was a call from Chen Xiaoling, Aunt Ying’s sister-in-law.

She said the farm owner had been found—dead in a widow’s home in town. The widow was quite devoted and was preparing to hold a funeral.

But the missing items were nowhere to be found. Supposedly, the singer had also been there often. The three of them were frequently seen together.

The singer wasn’t local, and when her workplace was questioned, they said she hadn’t shown up since last week and had given false ID details.

Now, it was suspected that the jewelry and porcelain vase were in her possession. But finding her would be difficult.

At least Zhou Hai would soon be cleared of suspicion and released by noon.

Panicked, Chen Xiaoling asked what she and her husband should do, saying she’d had another nightmare the night before.

Li Sanjiang calmly reassured her and told her to go with Zhou Hai to burn incense at the base of Zhiyun Pagoda on Wolf Mountain once he was released.

Chen Xiaoling anxiously asked if that would be enough.

Li Sanjiang then recommended they also visit the other four mountains—Jun Mountain, Huangni Mountain, Ma’an Mountain, and Sword Mountain—for incense offerings.

In truth, he had no idea if it would help. He just didn’t want to be involved anymore.

Yesterday’s encounter with the Bai Family Matron had already severed their connection, no matter how hostile. That was the end of it.

He had no reason to keep meddling in Zhou Hai’s mess, especially without compensation and no close family ties. That kind of danger? No thanks.

After all, the trouble began with their own greed. He had already done more than enough.

With incense to burn at five mountains, Chen Xiaoling felt slightly more confident and thanked him profusely, hanging up just as the call timer hit sixty seconds.

Aunt Zhang chuckled. “You sure are busy these days, Sanjiang. I even heard folks talking about you at the wholesale market in Shigang.”

“Not all good news, but we manage. Give me a pack of Da Qianmen.”

“Sure thing.”

It was a village custom—not letting someone run errands for free. Answer a call, buy something in return. Even if it’s just candy for the kids.

As he headed home with the cigarettes, he saw Xue Liangliang walking out.

“Grandpa, I’m heading back to school.”

“What? Leaving already?”

“Yeah, I only took one day off.”

“Alright then. Be careful on the road.”

“Okay, Grandpa. I’ll come visit again.”

“Heh.”

Li Sanjiang chuckled and waved. One night’s sleep and a breakfast, then gone. Didn’t even help tutor his great-grandson. These college students sure are slick.

Just as he turned to head home, he spotted someone biking toward him. The face seemed familiar. After a moment, he recognized him—it was Niu Fu’s youngest son.

The man jumped off his bike and jogged over, looking anxious.

“Grandpa Sanjiang, please, come check on my dad again. Something’s happened to him.”

Li Sanjiang frowned. “Ah, so it happened. But that’s no longer my concern. It’s fate.”

What a joke. He wasn’t a store selling televisions—no after-sales service here.

“No, Grandpa, really—it’s not just my dad. My second uncle and aunt are in trouble too. Everyone’s panicking. They sent me to beg you to come.”

“That won’t do. I barely managed the first time. Keep pushing, and how am I supposed to live? My coffin hasn’t even been lacquered yet.”

“Grandpa, please. We’re counting on you.” As he spoke, he pulled out a red envelope and stuffed it into Li Sanjiang’s hand.

The weight of the envelope softened Li Sanjiang’s stance.

“Well… all I can do is take a look. If something really has happened, I probably won’t be able to fix it. At most, I can offer blessings, some protection, maybe cleanse the feng shui.”

“That’s more than enough. We’re truly grateful.”

Truth be told, these younger family members weren’t too concerned about the three elders. They were scared that after what happened to them, the next wave of misfortune would fall on their own heads.

“Head back for now. I need to get ready. I’ll come by this afternoon.”

“Okay, okay! We’ll wait for you at home.”

After the man biked away, Li Sanjiang strolled along the path by the rice fields, opening the red envelope. Seeing a thick stack of big bills, he couldn’t help but smile.

Ah, what a nice way to start the day.

No reason to keep taking only the worst jobs.

Like Liu Jinxia once said, in this line of work, bluffing is inevitable. Most of it is just putting on a show.

But still, you had to know who you were dealing with. Some people were just rotten to the core. Taking their money was almost like doing them a favor—misfortune offset by financial loss.

Back home, Li Sanjiang didn’t bother preparing much. He lay back on the wicker chair on the second-floor terrace, turned on the radio, and planned to nap until the afternoon.

Adjusting his posture, he caught sight of the kids lying on their little loungers in the northeast corner—side by side.

One chair was missing its right armrest, the other its left. But together, they fit perfectly. No gap between them.

“Little rascal really knows how to enjoy life.”

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