So it's quite obvious that Xu Qingzhu just checked her phone.
The problem is that she has already cleaned up everything; there are very few apps on her phone, and she has even deleted those few sentences from the original owner's notes.
She opened her phone and switched to the most recently opened apps.
Then I saw that photo.
...
This was the first time Liang Shi had met him.
The first glance at the photo startled her, because the person with the exact same face as her during puberty was sitting in the middle of the bed, wearing a strange smile, like a puppet being manipulated.
It's so terrifying it would be in a horror movie.
But there's only this one picture on my phone, nothing else.
Liang Shi saved the file, then exited and tried to open it again, only to find that it was encrypted.
...
One has to admire Xu Qingzhu.
That night, Liang Shi had another dream.
Her dreams were filled with bizarre and fantastical scenes, but the one that impressed her most was a small bamboo house in the mountains.
It was a fairly beautiful mountain, covered in lush green grass, with a clear stream flowing around its base, nourishing the creatures that inhabited it.
As you ascend the mountain from its foot, a small bamboo hut stands alone halfway up the mountain. Inside the hut sits a middle-aged man dressed in a blue shirt, with a long beard.
Qiu Zimin led the young Liang Shi to the middle-aged man and asked, "Sir, what do you think of this man's qualifications?"
"It's acceptable," the other party replied.
Young Liang Shi was left outside the bamboo house.
From inside the bamboo house, one could hear Qiu Zimin talking to a middle-aged man.
"Will turning her into a sacrifice bring prosperity to the Liang family?" Qiu Zimin asked.
The middle-aged man said, "Isn't she your daughter? How can you bear to part with her?"
Chapter 37
The mountains are covered with lush trees that block out the sun, while layers of mist hang in the air, enveloping the entire mountain and turning the verdant green into a layer of white.
A mountain stream murmurs softly, and occasionally the cries of wild animals can be heard.
inside the house.
Qiu Zimin performed the kneeling ceremony.
A middle-aged man in a blue robe brewed a pot of tea, the steam filling the room. After meticulously wiping his hands, he lowered his eyes and asked again, "Have you discussed this with your husband?"
“Sir, you don’t need to beat around the bush. If you want to know something, I will tell you.” Qiu Zimin lowered her voice: “You only need to say that she can be used as a sacrifice, and that as long as she is used, the Liang family will prosper and have great fortune. That’s enough.”
“Madam Liang is truly ruthless,” the middle-aged man said with a slight smile. “But she cannot be used as a sacrifice.”
Qiu Zimin frowned, "Why not?"
The middle-aged man calmly sipped his tea and said indifferently, "She has two streams of fortune, one strong and one weak. If the weak one could become strong now, there might be a need to change her fortune. But right now, her fortune is clearly too bad. Even if it were changed, it wouldn't benefit the Liang family at all. Besides, changing fortune is all illusory. The cycle of heaven has its own cause and effect, and it can't be changed by magic."
“But if you say it can be changed, then it can be changed,” Qiu Zimin said firmly.
Suddenly, the mournful cry of a lone eagle echoed through the clear sky, as if dozens of airplanes had roared past in an instant.
The shock was so great that Liang Shi's ears were almost deafened, and his whole head was buzzing.
The scene before my eyes kept receding and blurring until it became complete darkness.
Then another bright light shone in, and Liang Shi suddenly opened his eyes.
It was early morning, and sunlight streamed into the room through the gaps in the curtains, landing right on her pillow.
Liang Shi raised his hand to wipe his forehead; cold sweat was pouring down his face, and even his palms were damp.
It's less of a dream and more of something the original owner personally experienced.
She watched the young Liang Shi standing in the mountains like an observer, and could also hear Qiu Zimin and the middle-aged man talking inside the house.
However, it came to an abrupt end.
What is certain is that the original owner's room was indeed related to sacrificial rites.
Damn it!
Why can't we break free from feudal superstition?
Feudal superstition is deadly!
Liang Shi glanced at her watch; it wasn't time for her alarm to go off yet. Taking advantage of the strong morning air, she drew back the curtains, opened her photo library, and took out the photo, hoping to find more clues.
However, the background of the photo was too dark, and the photography technology at that time was not advanced, resulting in low resolution. She looked at it for a long time but couldn't make out anything. Later, when she went to wash up, she couldn't look at her own face directly.
As I washed my face, I became a little irritated, and the word "bad luck" popped into my head.
Qiu Zimin should know that the original owner was not her child, and she also harbored hatred towards the original owner.
But what hatred could such a small child possibly have for her?
Was it because of the original owner's parents?
But who were the original owner's parents? Does Qiu Zimin know?
If you knew, why didn't you retaliate against the adults directly instead of taking it out on the children?
That means Qiu Zimin can't afford to offend the adults in this family.
But if Qiu Zimin is someone she can't afford to offend, why was she able to switch the child out?
It's also possible that Qiu Zimin is simply psychologically abnormal, which is why she handed the original owner over to Mrs. Qi and used the original owner as a sacrifice.
There were too many possibilities, and one question after another tangled in Liang Shi's mind, like a knotted tangled ball of yarn with no end in sight.
Liang Shi racked her brains early in the morning, but still couldn't figure it out. These things were beyond her comprehension.
After washing up, she slowly went downstairs, thinking that it was still early and she should have plenty of time to make breakfast. But when she came downstairs, Xu Qingzhu was already busy in the kitchen.
Xu Qingzhu's cooking skills are limited; fried eggs, bread, and soy milk are their breakfast.
Breakfast was eaten quietly, each of them lost in their own thoughts.
Xu Qingzhu also saw the picture, but she didn't ask anything or say anything. The only thing she had in common with Liang Shi was that they both had two huge dark circles under their eyes.
Neither of them slept well that night.
//
Liang Shi had originally planned to take Xu Qingzhu to the company, but Xu Qingzhu said that she was better and could drive.
Liang Shi didn't insist.
Before going to work, Liang Shi bought a cup of coffee as usual, and ran into Li Ran and Zhou Li on his way upstairs.
Li Ran was surprised again, "Xiao Liang, what's wrong with you? Is your wife still sick?"
Liang Shi: "...It's all right now."
"Your dark circles are really bad," Li Ran said. "Didn't you sleep last night?"
Liang Shi sighed helplessly, "I went to sleep, but I didn't sleep well."
No one can sleep well after watching something so scary before bed.
"How can someone so young have sleep problems?" Li Ran exclaimed in surprise. "Shouldn't you go to the hospital for a checkup?"
Liang Shi: "..."
Even Zhou Li, who was standing nearby, couldn't stand it anymore and interjected, "Don't you stay up late?"
"Does working overtime count?" Li Ran said, "I usually go to bed at ten o'clock."
Zhou Li: "It's different from young people."
"Sister Li, you're not..." Li Ran couldn't bring herself to say "youthful" after meeting Zhou Li's murderous gaze, and could only swallow it silently.
Liang Shi stood to the side, feeling extremely sleepy, mainly because he had had nightmares all night and had a headache.
"Xiao Liang," Li Ran changed the subject, "we're going to Yunfeng Mountain to worship the gods this week, are you coming?"
"What god do you worship?" Liang Shi asked.
“It’s just a Taoist temple,” Li Ran said. “I heard it’s quite effective, especially Master Yunyin. Many wealthy people go to him for fortune telling and to change their luck.”
Liang Shi suddenly straightened up, his eyes even wider than before, "Change fate?"
“Yeah,” Li Ran shrugged. “But it’s just hearsay; I haven’t seen anyone actually change. Of course, even if they did, we wouldn’t know. There are also rumors that some people keep ghosts at home. The rumors are much more far-fetched, but not many people believe them. Besides, after the founding of the People’s Republic of China, it’s forbidden for things to become spirits, so these things are just for peace of mind.”
Zhou Li said coolly from the side, "I thought you were that superstitious."
“How could that be?” Li Ran chuckled awkwardly. “My mother is a staunch materialist.”
Zhou Li: "You're not."
Li Ran: "..."
A few seconds later, Li Ran said, "There are some things that you can't completely believe, but you can't completely disbelieve either."
She suddenly leaned closer to the two of them and whispered, "Once, my cousin cried all night, especially around midnight. It was shortly after my grandfather passed away. We took her to the hospital for all sorts of tests, but they couldn't find anything wrong. Then we found a shaman who said she could communicate with spirits. She gave my cousin a bowl of something I don't know and performed a ritual at my house. And you know what happened? My cousin stopped crying that very night."
Zhou Li: "...Maybe she was just tired from crying."
Li Ran was taken aback, but still said, "I don't know either. According to that fortune teller, my grandfather's spirit came back. My cousin is young and her spirit strength is low, so my cousin was affected. Adults are usually fine."
Zhou Li paused for a moment, then asked, "What does that fortune teller believe in?"
Li Ran: "...It looks like a Buddha."
Zhou Li: "Then what were you doing at the Taoist temple?"
Li Ran: "..."
After a while, she muttered, "There's no harm in believing more."