ttered.It, it... It hurts so much…I quickly soothed my stomach. A cry came from the hallway, faint but sharp, circling in my head like a mosquito, irritating and unsettling.With my index finger, I pi...The toll collector looked at my brother, a little unsure, not daring to reach out. But he couldn't resist my brother's charmingly mischievous smile.

She took it, opened it and looked, puzzled. "What is this A talisman"

My brother started the car and reminded me, “This is your warm baby for tonight so you don’t feel so scared. If you feel goosebumps, just stick this warm baby close to your body.”

"Huh A hot pack" The toll collector sounded confused. My brother had already driven through the gate.

I whispered, "Master Mu is truly generous now. He used to be so stingy about using even a little talisman, but now he's giving out good deeds without a second thought"

"Well, she's just a little girl. If it were an old man who was afraid of ghosts, I wouldn't care." My brother laughed and turned the car off the highway.

As I drove down the slope, I glanced at the countryside with lights from the car window. The dark clouds above the village were thick, almost obscuring the moonlight.

The road here is newly built, and some parts are not yet finished. Once a car drives a certain distance, it can't go any further because there's no way to turn around inside.

My brother was familiar with the backstreets and alleys, he parked the car at the village entrance and led me toward a sundry shop.

At the village store, a few men were gathered around playing cards, smoking, and sipping some liquor.

Master Mo's disciple surnamed Zou was a common surname in the village. When we got off the bus and asked for Lao Zou's house, several men playing cards laughed and said, "Almost everyone in this village is surnamed Zou. Which branch are you from"

Villagers have a natural wariness of outsiders, and several pairs of eyes narrowed as they sized me and my brother up.

My brother wasn't afraid of any idle talk. He casually said, “We are Lao Zou’s workmates and heard that his wife is about to give birth. We happened to be in the area, so we came to see him. The boss also let us deliver the full-month gift money in advance and approved Lao Zou to stay home for a few more days.”

The villagers were taken aback and laughed, saying, "You're a good boss! But this kid probably won't dare to go out anymore!"

"Haha, you're right! We've had a real mess here. Pots and pans are falling everywhere, my wife is pregnant, and both elders are sick! He can't even leave the house..."

"It wasn't his wife who caused this, he stole someone else and got her pregnant..."

"Shh, they've been married for years and haven't had any kids. Maybe he's the problem, that's why his wife went to cheat..."

"If it were just a matter of time, wouldn't he think it was his own child He'd be raising someone else's kid like a tortoise!"

I stood there speechless, watching these middle-aged men playing cards. It's true what they say, this village is a close-knit community where nothing stays hidden for long. Everyone knows everyone else's business.

My brother pulled me out of the little shop. Outside, an old man leaned against a tree and puffed on a cigarette, glancing at us with his legs crossed.

That look says it all.

My brother, of course, didn't let this chance pass. He walked over and squatted down to address the old man: "Sir, we're just asking for directions. Do you know..."

"I know, I'm his uncle." The grandfather said calmly.

"Oh, that's wonderful then...since you're family, we won't hide it anymore. We're here from his master and boss, to see what help he needs..." My brother said, while slipping two red banknotes into the cigarette box and handing it over.

A good cigarette costs money, and even asking for directions can cost you.

The old man took the cigarette case and packed a pipe for us, leading the way and saying, "We live in the next courtyard over. My father and his are first cousins."

"Have you heard any noises from his house" my brother hurriedly asked.

"I've heard about it, but I don't know when his wife cheated. "

The old man led us along the country path.

My brother was walking side-by-side with the old man, chatting away. I followed behind, listening in.

The old Zou we're talking about is this grandpa's nephew. The grandpa said that over the years, his nephew has been working for a boss outside of the village and can earn 200,000 to 300,000 yuan every year. His family house has already been built, and they were originally planning to buy a small car once the village road is widened. Their life is considered middle-class.

His parents-in-law were also quite proud. His wife stayed home all day, didn't go out to farm, and it was fine as long as Lao Zou could support his family.

And Old Zou is a good person too, when his son got married he even gave 50,000 yuan to help out.

Since Lao Zou's wife began to show, the big brother kept an eye on things. The two families lived next door to each other, and he knew Lao Zou was out working hard. So at night, he listened at the wall and sure enough, heard strange noises.

"What a strange sound" my brother asked curiously.

The old man glared at my brother: “What noise could there be from stealing! It’s just grunting and thrashing around with your bare butts!”

My brother laughed and said, "Are the walls in our village so thin Could this commotion be loud enough to disturb the neighbors That's terrifying."

The old man frowned and thought for a moment, then said: "I've heard the whimpering noises a few times, but when I peeked from the wall, I couldn't see anyone coming or going... I was all alone at home, and I couldn't possibly keep an eye on both the front door and the back fence... I really haven't seen any adulterers."

"Doesn't Lao Zou's family have elders With both parents living in the same courtyard, how could the daughter-in-law steal something without anyone knowing"

The old man shook his head and said, "You'll see for yourself. His wife lives in one room, and her parents live in a new house."

As we were talking, we had already walked to Lao Zou's house. Sure enough, the two families were just a wall apart. The windows on the second floor could even look over each other. No wonder we could hear strange noises.

The lock on the gate was barely latched; it swung open with a push.

The old man frowned and said, "You see, the door isn't tightly shut, so it attracts all sorts of nasty things!"

He pushed open the door and shouted into the yard, "Kid, someone's looking for you!"

The main house facing the courtyard had already been built two new floors. There was a kitchen on the east side and a tile-roofed shed on the west side.

The man in the living room on the first floor of the main house came out when he heard the sound. He looked at us with a bewildered expression.

My brother quickly said, “Your master asked us to come and see… you.”

The man reacted, hurriedly nodding and bowing as he said, "Yes yes, the master told me to, welcome welcome... I was supposed to go wait for you at the village entrance, but there's something at home—"

Bang!

A crash came from the earthen-tiled house, and we looked at each other in surprise.

"Bad luck…" the old man spat and went home.

Old Zou looked to be only about thirty years old. He hurried to shut the door and said in a low voice, "Two masters, two honorable masters, there's something truly eerie going on in my house..."

"This child definitely isn't mine. Besides the timing not adding up, I've only been home for a few days during Lunar New Year and Obon over the past few years. I've been busy making money! Even if I wanted a child, it wouldn't be possible with my schedule. It's been years since I had a child, and I was planning to stay home for a few months after finishing work this year, get pregnant, and then go out again. That way, people in the village wouldn't talk behind my back. But I never expected..."

Lao Zou was anxious, his speech becoming stammered: "I suspect this child, either...either some animal's spirit has gone into him, or...or it's a ghost..."

I lowered my eyes silently. To conceive a child unlike any other, is it really that easyould harm his health, so I sounded a little rushed. I'm sorry."Yi Laotou squinted at Lin Yanqin and nodded, "I understand... you youngsters hear things and believe them readily. I reckon some inexperi...