Corpse Recovery Diver-Chapter 23 - 5

The old man squatting down slowly rose to his feet, and after he stood upright, Li Juxiang suddenly felt that his back didn't seem as hunched as before.

"Heh?"

The old man patted his waist and thought to himself that Nanny Liu really did have a gift. Without having properly spoken to her and just by entering her home, he felt his body easing up a great deal.

He didn't linger and went straight inside.

"Cuihou, you and Little Yuanhou go finish your meal."

After giving the instruction, she followed into the inner room. Liu Jinxia's eyesight wasn't good, so when discussing matters, Li Juxiang needed to help record on the side.

"Brother Yuanhou, let's continue to eat, shall we?"

"Mhm."

Li Zhiyuan responded and, despite the lingering discomfort on his body, still tried to take a step forward.

With that step, Li Zhiyuan felt the previously frequent sensation of coolness on his head slow down, and the ice-cold touch on his left cheek gradually faded.

But as the second step fell, Li Zhiyuan suddenly found that the coolness didn't disappear after all, the cold reappeared on his left cheek, and it felt like there was a block of ice pressing on his right shoulder.

By the time the third step was taken, the icy cold on the left cheek vanished again, shifting to his left shoulder, while the right shoulder remained chillingly cold.

Li Zhiyuan moved to take a fourth step, but before his foot landed, the icy sensation on both shoulders suddenly intensified.

"Hu..."

Li Zhiyuan shivered and took a deep breath, slowly withdrawing his foot, and the ice-cold feel on both shoulders returned to the previous level.

He couldn't see anything, but he could imagine the elderly woman previously squatting in front of him, her right hand on his left face and her left hand caressing his head as she said,

"This child, he's really well-behaved."

As he tried to walk forward, the old woman shifted her posture, sliding both hands down to his shoulders in a motion that seemed to leverage support from him.

If he continued to walk forward, then she would likely climb onto him.

She,

wanted to be carried by him!

...

The room shielded from the sunlight on the first floor was Liu Jinxia's office.

The room was quite large, but once inside, it seemed exceedingly cramped.

Various magic artifacts, scriptures, and statues filled the wooden cases stacked and arranged around, consuming nearly seventy to eighty percent of the space.

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If a few cases were opened, you could see statues of Laojun and Buddha shoulder to shoulder, as well as the Guanyin Bodhisattva with Jesus on the cross beneath her rather than a child.

In earlier years, Liu Jinxia too harbored dreams, responding to the call of the new era, hoping to integrate the strengths of all and carve out a path unique to herself.

Unfortunately, the backward market within the radius centered on Shinan Town was unable to accept such avant-garde concepts.

Liu Jinxia had no choice but to resign herself to returning to the traditional image of a blind fortune-teller.

Therefore, the only things put to use in this room were a black-lacquered wooden table, a few stools, and two white candles.

"Hiss..."

Liu Jinxia wiped her eyes with a handkerchief, her eyes irritated by the candle smoke. It seemed that the candles would also have to be removed in the future.

At this moment, the old man sitting opposite finished his statement, his gaze at Liu Jinxia filled with respect.

Since coming here, not only had his hunchback eased a great deal, but his mind also became less muddled, and he spoke more clearly.

The old man's surname was Niu, named Niu Fu, and he was from Shigang Town next door. He came here today to arrange a "diminishing rite" for his late mother.

Yesterday, his brother Niu Rui had also been here for the same reason. It was after attending to him that Liu Jinxia had gone to Li Weihan's home.

The two Niu brothers, plus a younger sister—their father had passed away early, leaving their mother, a widow, to raise the three of them.

Now, as they themselves were all over fifty, they each had become grandparents.

Half a year ago, their mother passed away.

However, since managing the funeral arrangements, issues kept arising in the homes of the three siblings, whether it was someone falling ill or meeting with an accident.

At first, no one paid much attention, but as the frequency and severity increased, they became more concerned.

Recently, Niu Rui's son had fallen into a ditch on his way home from work, breaking several ribs. If it weren't for passersby finding him in time, he might have lost his life; Niu Fu's hunchback had also become more severe and exaggerated, making him look worse than even the oldest hunchbacks in the village, and to think just half a year ago, he didn't have any hunchback to speak of.

Furthermore, the occasional dreams about their late mother made the siblings suspect that her lingering concern wasn't at rest, prompting them to plan a "diminishing rite" to burn the Blood Scripture, dispel evil spirits, and pray for peace.

However, now there was discord between the two brothers: as the younger brother, Niu Rui wanted to hold the rite at his own home, but the elder brother, Niu Fu, wouldn't allow it, insisting it had to be done at his house.

To outsiders, this might sound like the brothers were very filial, even competing to arrange such a tedious and laborious ceremony—a sign of vying to show filial piety to their late mother.

Liu Jinxia, of course, didn't believe it; her eyesight might be getting worse, but her heart was growing clearer.

Among her clients, those like Li Weihan were the rare few; most had done something guilty, and as the old saying goes in reverse, those with guilty consciences always fear the midnight knock.

However, Liu Jinxia would not probe to the bottom, merely stating coolly:

"Don't tell me your little sister also wants to hold one?"

"Mhm, she does."

Liu Jinxia raised her eyebrows.

According to the current customs of the villages, once a woman gets married, she is considered an outsider. Being able to return to her parents' home a few times a year and bringing her husband over during the New Year to maintain appearances is generally sufficient.

If her parents fall ill, for a daughter to ultimately attend to them at their bedside is regarded as highly praiseworthy for filial piety among neighbors and relatives.