Chapter 83: The Pagoda Incense Stick

Li Zhuiyuan caught the slight tremor in Liu Yumei's voice and turned to look. She was still eating as usual, but the corners of her eyes looked faintly red.

It was the first time he’d seen Liu Yumei lose composure like this.

After the meal, Runsheng brought out the family’s handcart, and Li Sanjiang and Li Zhuiyuan climbed aboard.

Runsheng’s pushing was steady, with hardly any bumps to feel, though the pace was a bit sluggish.

“Runshenghou, over the next few days, you should learn to pedal a tricycle. That’s faster.”

“Grandpa, why don’t you just buy a tractor? I could learn that—it’s way faster.”

“You think your grandpa looks like a tractor driver?”

Runsheng fell silent.

Li Sanjiang lit a cigarette and looked at Li Zhuiyuan. “Xiaoyuanhou, do you think we should get a television?”

“If you want to watch, Great-Grandpa, then we can get one.”

“I’m asking you.”

“Oh… I don’t really have much time for TV.”

There were still boxes of books waiting in the basement. Who had time for TV?

“You little rascal.”

Li Sanjiang had hoped to delight his great-grandson with the idea of a TV, but the boy didn’t seem too interested. Even when given spending money, he never visited the corner store unless it was for something he specifically wanted.

Runsheng, pushing the cart, chimed in excitedly, “TV’s a great idea! Let’s get one!”

“Great idea my foot. Push faster—don’t you want to catch the movie tonight?”

“Oh, right!”

At the fork near Niu Fu’s house, Li Sanjiang got down from the cart early, straightened his clothes, and solemnly raised his Peachwood Sword, wiping it carefully with a cloth.

Once he’d finished his preparations, he stepped into the Niu family home.

Greeting him were Niu Fu’s two sons and their wives, who bustled around offering tea and snacks with overflowing hospitality.

These types of employers were the easiest to handle—they’d spill all their worries like dumping beans, and all he had to do was follow their narrative to play his part.

Li Zhuiyuan, meanwhile, went around the house looking for Niu Fu. Room after room turned up empty, making him wonder if Niu Fu still lived here.

But when he reached the woodshed out back, he finally found Niu Fu.

In his mind, Li Zhuiyuan had imagined Niu Fu lying neglected in bed, utterly dejected...

But he had overestimated his children’s sense of filial piety.

Niu Fu, paralyzed on one side from a fall, didn’t even have a bed. He’d been relegated to the woodshed.

His “bed” was a pile of dry straw. Firewood was stacked to one side, clutter piled high on the other.

There were two bowls beside him—one with relatively clean water, the other filthy, layered with grime. Presumably, that one was for food.

As for Niu Fu himself, he was shirtless, wearing only dirty shorts so caked in grime they clung like scabs. The stench was suffocating.

If his kids wouldn’t even give him a bed, there was no point hoping they’d bathe or clothe him.

Li Zhuiyuan covered his nose and approached slightly.

The last time he’d seen Niu Fu, the man had been hunched but robust—fifty wasn’t old in the countryside, still considered solid labor force.

Now, Niu Fu had wasted away. His mouth moved constantly, mumbling—whether speaking or just involuntary motion, it was unclear.

He turned slightly to glance at Li Zhuiyuan when he entered, then turned back, staring blankly at the ceiling.

After a while, Li Zhuiyuan stepped outside, gulping in fresh air.

“Meow.”

A crippled, ugly old black cat emerged on the wall beside him, limping forward.

It looked at Li Zhuiyuan and licked its paw.

“Don’t you think it’s too quiet?”

The cat froze mid-lick.

“Everyone’s pretending the others don’t exist. No interaction. Tonight, stir things up a bit—escalate the tension.”

“Meow…”

This time, the meow had a tremor in it.

In the courtyard, Li Sanjiang began performing a ritual. The two sons who couldn’t spare time to wash dishes for their own father now knelt devoutly before the altar with their wives.

When the ritual was done, Li Sanjiang tapped each shoulder with his Peachwood Sword and said comfortingly:

“Don’t worry. You know yourselves what sins your father committed. Some debts the old should pay themselves. They won’t drag you down. Just relax.”

“If you still feel the bad luck lingering, well, there’s a way—redirect it to close relatives. But your lips must stay sealed. Say a word, and even kin won’t stand by you.”

“Redirect! We’ll redirect! Grandpa, please help us!”

“Forget it. That kind of move hurts others and damages my spiritual practice.”

Li Sanjiang feigned reluctance, but when another red envelope was offered, he sighed and relented.

“Fine. Since you insist, I’ll draw away your bad luck. But not a word, understand?”

“Yes, yes, of course. We understand.”

After another round of ritual, Li Sanjiang declared:

“Done. What little bad luck remained has now been redirected to your second and third uncles’ households.”

Amid effusive thanks, Li Sanjiang led Li Zhuiyuan and Runsheng away.

As they rode toward Niu Rui’s house, Li Zhuiyuan couldn’t help asking, “Great-Grandpa, I thought you’d lecture them.”

“Lecture them? Hah, you think I’ve lost my mind? If someone needs a lecture just to care for their parents, what’s the point? Better I take more of their money—buy some pig’s head meat and wine for myself.

Just hope the Niu family doesn’t have more trouble. If something else goes wrong, it’ll be hard for me to cover. Might even ruin my reputation.”

“Didn’t you already settle the Cat-faced Granny?”

“True, true.”

Li Zhuiyuan knew no more trouble would come. Once the three children met their respective ends, the Cat-faced Granny would vanish.

As they neared Niu Rui’s place, they saw him in the courtyard, crouched over a tiny stove boiling medicine. His children sneered nearby, mocking his useless remedies and their cost.

Niu Rui had killed someone in his youth. His mother, the old lady Niu, had cleaned up the mess. Still, deep down, he remained hot-tempered.

Finally, he snapped—stood up and slapped his daughter-in-law, who was still holding a baby.

His son roared and jumped him. The two men rolled on the ground, fists flying.

Though sick, Niu Rui’s illness had just come under control, and he fought his son to a standstill.

His wife screamed and clawed at Niu Rui’s face, cursing him for wasting money and daring to touch her precious son.

The baby’s cries, the scuffle, and the yelling blended into a chaotic symphony in the courtyard.

When Li Sanjiang arrived, they abruptly stopped. Faces bruised and bloodied, they all forced fawning smiles.

Niu Rui had been saved by Li Sanjiang himself, and the family had heard eerie echoes of the long-dead old lady Niu in the ancestral house. Naturally, they held Li Sanjiang in awe.

Once respectfully ushered inside, the begging began.

Li Sanjiang comforted them and performed another ritual.

After the first set, he spoke the same line about drawing away bad luck. Another red envelope appeared, prompting another ritual.

Before leaving, Niu Rui secretly handed over another envelope, begging Li Sanjiang to drive out his demons and cure his illness.

Li Sanjiang accepted it, promising to light an eternal candle for him, but also urged him to keep taking his medicine without fail.

That, after all, was part of the ethical code for practitioners of the occult. You could take someone’s money and offer spiritual comfort, but they still needed real doctors.

Yet this advice would only deepen the rift in Niu Rui’s household.

Li Zhuiyuan knew Niu Rui’s illness wasn’t curable. It would only become an endless cycle of hope and despair.

Niu Fu had already collapsed into helplessness. Niu Rui, though, was still struggling.

He wasn’t too far gone yet, but as the tension piled up, a future explosion seemed inevitable.

The hatred in his family’s eyes was already growing. That ending would not disappoint.

So when the black cat passed him again, Li Zhuiyuan merely nodded calmly.

When they reached Niu Lian’s house, as usual, Li Sanjiang was welcomed inside.

Li Zhuiyuan didn’t find Niu Lian in the main room or the woodshed.

Eventually, next to the pigsty, he found her—chained with iron beside the family toilet.

Which meant, every time her family came here to relieve themselves, they could chat with her while sitting on the throne.

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