At a very remote small mountain village, an old man with gray hair was carrying firewood down the mountain. He had just fell down, but it didn’t hurt much, and it took him quite a while to pick up the firewood again.
Halfway up the hill, he suddenly found a man standing on a big rock by the side of the road.
That looks to be like a Daoist robe on him. His sleeves were blown by the wind. He was looking down at something with his back to the old man.
“Young man, there is a cliff at the bottom. It’s dangerous. Come down quickly.”
When the man turned and saw his face clearly, the old man couldn’t help but feel stunned. He had lived for over 70 years, and he has never seen such a good-looking person as this young man.
“Old man, what’s under the cliff?”
Listening to the light and beautiful voice, the old man was stupefied for another second before he replied, “I don’t know what’s down there. There’s no village living below, and the road is difficult to walk. No one has ever been there.”
“I heard that there’s a river. I don’t know if it’s true.”
Wei Mingyan nodded, stood on a high stone, and pulled out a tortoise shell from his sleeve, “Thank you for showing me the way. It’s fate that I ran into you. How about I tell you a fortune?”
“Fortune telling?”
The old man had seen a fortune teller. When he was young, his father took him to the old blind man who lived down the hill to tell his fortune. He said that his life would be full of children, and live a very rich life. His father was very happy, so he gave the old man a couple more eggs.
So many years have passed, his wife died early, and he didn’t want to remarry. He lost his wife and baby, he didn’t become rich or even powerful. But unfortunately, the old blind man left long before he got married. Otherwise, he would have been able to say that that man couldn’t tell fortunes.
Because of the old blind man, he didn’t believe in these fortune-tellers. He shook his head laboriously with the firewood on his back, “No, I have no money for that.”
“It’s going to be dark soon, and it isn’t easy to walk at night. You’d better hurry down the mountain.”
“I’ll calculate for you. No charge.”
“No, I don’t believe those things …”
The handsome Daoist, as if he didn’t hear him speak, jumped down the big stone, shook his tortoise shell, looked at the copper money that fell out, and slightly picked his eyebrows. “Lost your mother at age of 3, father at age 16, wife and son at the age of 27. Now, 79 …”
He opened his lips but didn’t say the rest.
The old man paused as he was about to move on. He turned and looked into Wei Mingyan, with eyes full of disbelief. “How did you know my wife was pregnant when she died?”
The Daoist picked up the tortoise shell and kept it in his sleeve. “Old man, you have a granddaughter. But she isn’t biological, your fate is a little shallow. “
“That’s accurate, that’s accurate…”
The old man murmured, “I picked up a child before. She was left in the mountains. She very young, without a father or a mother. I felt pity for her, so I raised her like a granddaughter. “
“Fate is shallow, which means that this granddaughter has left you. May I ask why?”
“I was incompetent. I was too poor. My little granddaughter suffered with me. Her uncle had a family he knew in the city. The family wanted to adopt a child. He told me that I should let him take her there. “
“She was good-looking and well-behaved. If she went to that family, at least she would be able to go to school, so as not to suffer hardships with a bad old man like me. “
Wei Mingyan slowly walked up to the old man and looked at the tall stack of firewood on his back and the back of his bruised hand. With a warm voice, he asked, “Haven’t you been in touch with her since you sent her away?”
The old man shook his head. “I can’t get in touch with her. Her uncle said ‘the people that want to adopt a child would be afraid that she would remember’. If I don’t contact her, she won’t remember, so those people would really regard her as their own child.”
When he finished, he said, “That’s a good calculation. You have real skills.”
Wei Mingyan looked up at the firewood and chuckled, “Then, are you still willing to let me tell you your fortune?”
The old man was a little hesitant, “Is it true that you don’t charge?”
Seeing this, the smile on the Daoist priest remained, and said in a warm voice, “If you don’t mind, take me in for the night, I don’t have a place to stay.”
“That’s fine, but my family is poor. There may be nothing good for you.”
“Thank you. Let’s go down the hill first.”
“Yes, Yes … By the way, this dog can eat human food, right? I heard that nowadays young people feed their dogs only those dog-food or whatever, and won’t allow them to eat human food.”
Looking at the old man who was bent into a shrimp by the firewood on his back, Wei Mingyan touched Da Huang, who was obediently following him, and said softly, “Don’t worry, I’ve prepared food for him.”
The old man glanced somewhat hesitantly at the young Daoist master, who had brought nothing but a dog with him, and swallowed back the words he wanted to ask.
“Uncle, what happened to your face? Your face looks bruised and battered, it looks really scary. ” They came across a villager carrying a hoe on the way down the hill, who first stared at the sight of the old man and then rushed to greet him when he saw him clearly.
“It’s nothing. Didn’t it rain last night? The road was slippery and I fell, it’s nothing serious. It doesn’t hurt much.”
“It really doesn’t hurt, huh? It looks weird. I have some medicinal wine at home, I’ll bring some to you later.”
“It’s okay, I’m thick-skinned, it doesn’t hurt anyway.”
The villager looked somewhat inquisitively at the black and blue bloodstains on the old man’s face, and then looked suspiciously at Wei Mingyan who was slowly walking over, “Uncle, this is?”
“Oh, this is …”
“Hello, my name is Wei. I am a fortune teller. I am going to stay in the village tonight. ” The handsome Daoist didn’t wait for the old man to finish his introduction and answered himself.
“Fortune teller?”
The villagers looked at Wei Mingyan. He was wearing a robe, but he was too young.
He heard his eldest son say that priest also go to college now, and they need diplomas. Priests in the temple could be young, and it looks like fortune tellers were similar.
The villager and the old man had the same idea. They didn’t believe this, but they didn’t say it.
“That’s fine, Uncle you go back first. I’ll have the kid at home bring the medicinal wine over later. “
Wei Mingyan turned around and glanced at the villager, “Wait a minute.”
The villagers turned around in disbelief. The stranger said, “You are blue in the brow and bereaved. It’s better to not let your son go out today, especially not near the water.”
Hearing these words, the villagers’ faces suddenly changed. Who would like to hear that their son would die? But this man was a Daoist priest. Although he didn’t believe it, he still felt a little afraid.
“Old Liu, you have to believe the words of the Daoist master ah. He just told me a fortune calculation, the calculation was accurate. Don’t let Caicai go out today. My wound is fine, doesn’t hurt at all.”
The old man was quick to believe it, after all, he had just experienced it firsthand.
The villager nodded hesitantly. He still didn’t believe himself, but because of the old man’s words, he still said, “Then I’ll watch Caicai and won’t let him go out. Uncle, if you’re in pain, just call me. I just made the medicated wine this year, but it works.”
He hesitated to look at the handsome man who looks more like a celebrity than a Daoist. “Thank you for Master Daoist’s reminder. “
Watching the villagers leave, the old man said to Wei Mingyan, ” Old Liu’s son goes to college, and he believes in science, so he doesn’t believe in fortune telling very much. Don’t take offense, he is quite nice. When he was a child, his mother was sick and I helped in sending her to town, so he always remembers gratitude, and will usually come to help me.”
“I understand.”
Wei Mingyan listened to the old man’s explanation, smiled and glanced at the villager’s back, with thoughtful eyes, “Kindness is rewarded.”
The villager, who was called Old Liu, came home carrying his hoe. His wife was just cooking and putting food on the table. When she saw her husband come back, she casually said, “Wash your hands and let’s eat.”
Old Liu looked around the yard and saw that his son wasn’t playing in front of the sand pile like always. When he thought of what the young Daoist priest said just now, he was puzzled for a moment.
“Where is Caicai?”
“Watching TV in the house. Call him after washing, the little brat won’t remember to eat when the TV is on.”
“Just watch, after dinner, he wouldn’t go out all day.”
Hearing his wife’s answer, Old Liu was relieved and at the same time amused that he believed those words.
Caicai loved watching TV, especially these days, when he squats in the house and refuses to go out all day. Why would he go to the water’s edge? That guy was indeed a charlatan.
But his son told him to believe in science. Those fortune telling and so on, were feudal superstitions and had no scientific basis at all.
Old Liu went to the house to call on his son. His wife was about to get chopsticks. A young man stood outside with a big bag on his back and shouted, “Mom!”
“Huahua!!”
The woman who just left the table raised her head in surprise and rushed to meet him, helping her son take off the big bag. “Why did you come back without saying a word? You should have told us in advance, I would have sent your father to pick you up.”
“It isn’t so far away that I needed to be picked up. Where’s Dad and Caicai?”
As they walked along, the young man walked forward with a smile and said, “I saved up a month’s leave, plus I applied in advance. So, I can stay home for 10 days this time and spend some time with you.”
In the house, the little boy who was unhappy because he wasn’t allowed to watch TV was about to jump over the steps when he heard his brother’s voice. His eyes lit up, and his unhappy face was swept away. He ran out with his small short legs.
“Older Brother!!”
“Caicai!” The young man picked up his brother with a smile and teased him. “Did you listen to Mom and Dad? Did you?”
“Yes, yes! Brother, don’t tickle me …”
The woman smiled and went to add one more bowl and pair of chopsticks. Old Liu was also smiling, looking at the oldest son and the youngest son being close. His eyes were full of love for the two children.
The whole family sat down happily for dinner, listening to the eldest son talk about his work in the city. Old Liu smiled and laugh happily, and remembered the events today.
“I just met a Taoist priest. He said I had a blue hue on my eyebrows. I might mourn a child. He also said don’t go near the water’s edge. I got a fright and quickly came back to see Caicai. “
“Tsk tsk. Why are you saying this while laughing?! Our Caicai is fine. You just had to say this bad thing!” The wife gave her husband a glance in vain and gave each of her two sons a chopstick of food.
“Eat more and grow your body.”
The eldest son was a bit helpless, he had been working for a year. How could he still be growing? But when he thought about it, looking at his mother’s cooking, he still ate happily.
Their family was one of the rare happy families in the village. The relationship between husband and wife was harmonious. The husband was considerate of his wife, and the wife cared about her husband. The eldest son was admitted to a key university, and after working for one year, he had added electrical appliances to their home. Although the youngest son was a little naughty, he can also be regarded as a clever boy. He was usually asked to run errands and other things, very active.
The family was happy, very happy.
After dinner, the younger son took the older son to the house to chat. Old Liu helped his wife clean the dishes. Although he was happy his son came back, he didn’t know why his heart felt uncomfortable.
“Let’s watch Caicai for a while, don’t let him go out. My heart feels uncomfortable.”
“You’re a soft-hearted man. These kinds of things aren’t accurate. When I wasn’t married yet, my Second Sister got married. The fortune teller said that she and my Brother-in-law were a match made in heaven. What happened? In less than half a year, she went home crying and got divorced.”
“I know, but the man doesn’t look like a liar. He looks like the immortals in those paintings, and Uncle Genzi said he was accurate. You know Uncle Genzi never lies.”
Hearing ‘Uncle Genzi’, her hands that were washing dishes paused. She had some hesitation on her face, but soon found a reason, “Uncle is easier to cheat than you. He must have been fooled. The man told you the water’s edge? Caicai doesn’t like to go out. There isn’t any water’s edge at home. Let him stay at hope properly.”
“All right, all right. If you aren’t assured, I’ll watch Caicai. I won’t tell him to go out. All right?”
Although she didn’t agree with her husband’s words, she couldn’t neglect the distress look on his frowning face, so she agreed.
“Huahua rarely comes home. Quickly, go inside and talk with him. If he’s tired, tell him to rest. Tell Caicai to keep quiet.”
Old Lai nodded. Digging his pocket, ready to take out a cigarette to smoke, he suddenly remembered that his eldest son didn’t like it when he smoked. So, he quickly stuffed it back in.
His son always said that smoking was harmful to his health, and every time he saw him smoking, he contemplated on take him to a big city for a physical examination.
It’s fine. Why should he spend that money? His son is at home these days, so he had to avoid him when smoking.
When she saw her man enter the house, the wife smiled and continued to scrub the dishes. Her happy mood continued because of her son’s return.
She felt that she was really lucky to marry such a good man and give birth to such a good child.
When her Older Sister’s husband died, there was only one Caicai who was still a baby, and a few hundred yuan that wasn’t enough to support a child. When her brother-in-law’s relatives threw the child away, it was obvious that their family’s condition weren’t good at that time, but her husband still decided to take the child in.
The man raised Caicai as his own child, and Huahua accepted his younger brother, played with him and taught him to read and write.
Looking at the whole village, which family was willing to feed a child for nothing? So, she was really lucky.
When the woman finished washing the dishes, she saw that the table had been cleared by her husband, so she shook water off her hands and went into the house. The younger son was laughing around the eldest son and played around with him. Maybe because he was tired after working during the day, her husband was already lying in bed and snoring loudly.
She gently came closer to her sons, “All right, you two go play in your own room, Dad is tired, let Dad sleep.”
Caicai still wanted to stay and watch TV, but the elder son was sensible. He picked up his younger brother, “Let’s go, brother will take you to my room to play cards.”
This was a game that the brothers could play all day with one deck of cards.
Watching her two sons go out, the woman sat by the bed with a smile and took off her husband’s shoes.
“I told you to talk to your son, and you go to sleep… without even taking off your shoes.”
The man on the bed opened his eyes in a daze to take them off himself, but she pressed him back down. “All right. I know you’re tired, go to sleep.”
People in the village generally go to bed early. The woman went out to take a bath, then lay beside her husband, ready for bed too.
While he was sleeping here, the sound of his youngest son’s loud cries suddenly came from the side room.
Old Liu was originally sleeping soundly, but he quickly rolled out of bed, “I’ll go see Caicai.”
The woman also hastily put on her clothes and followed. Her son’s room wasn’t far away, so they arrived quickly.
When they lifted the curtain, they were surprised that their youngest son was alone in bed.
“Caicai, what’s wrong Caicai?”
Old Liu watched the child grow up and became his own son. He quickly came forward to coax him in his arms.
“Older Brother. Brother is gone, I want my Brother …”
The little boy was crying out of breath and had tears all over his face.
The husband and wife looked around but didn’t see their eldest son. They quickly called, and the phone was soon answered.
“I was hungry. I went to the village entrance to buy something to eat. Is Caicai awake? I didn’t leave until he fell asleep.”
Hearing his son’s voice, Old Liu breathed a sigh of relief. He hung up the phone after responding a few times.
After putting down the phone, he held the youngest son to coax, “Caicai be good. Brother went to buy delicious food, he will be back soon.”
“No!!”
The little boy who always behaved when coaxed, wasn’t willing to let it go, “I want my Brother now, I want my Brother!”
“Caicai! Be obedient, Brother will be back soon. He’s at the village entrance. Don’t cry. ” The wife was a little angry. Isn’t the child usually very good? Why isn’t he obedient today?
“Brother is gone, I saw him go. I want my Brother. Dad, go to get my brother back! Dad, you go!!”
The little boy shook his adoptive father’s hand and cried almost out of breath. “Dad, go, go!!”
The cries of small children were the most shrill and ear-piercing. Old Liu felt uncomfortable listening to it, plus he was upset after just waking up. He simply stood up and went outside.
“I’ll pick up the child.”
“It’s so late. Huahua isn’t a child anymore. Why should you pick him up? Don’t worry about Caicai. I think he’s fussy because he hasn’t seen his brother in so long.”
“No, I don’t know why, but my heart feels uncomfortable. It’s fine to go out for a walk too.”
Moreover, the words of the Daoist priest during the day kept ringing in his heart.
He said, keep his son away from the water.
At that time, the eldest son hadn’t come back yet. He thought that the Daoist priest was talking about Caicai, but now that Huahua was back. If the fortune was true, Huahua was his biological son, and Huahua grew up afraid of water …
The cries of his young son, and the uncertainty in his heart, made the head of the family pick up his pace.
Their home was near the foot of the mountain. There was indeed a river a small distance away from the entrance to the village, but the bridge on the river was surrounded by railings, so it was okay for children to play in the water. Huahua was so big, how could he not be okay?
Although thinking like this, Old Liu’s heart was still like carrying some worry. He soon arrived at the river not far from the edge of the mill. From this point of view, you could see that there was a flash of light from a mobile phone on the bridge deck, which was moving toward him.
It should be his son Huahua. The man breathed a sigh of relief.
It seems that he really did think too much. Didn’t his son tell him all about it? To believe in science.
He was about to shout his son’s name when he suddenly heard a sound of something collapsing, and his son’s scream.
–Burst!
The man watched the bridge collapse, and his son fell into the water. He had no time to think, and frantically ran toward him.
His son fell into the water.
Huahua was in danger.
Jumping into the water, he grabbing his son as hard as he could until he got to shore, his brain was filled with these two sentences.
“Cough cough cough … Dad?”
The young man only flopped in the water a few times and was saved. There was nothing major except that he choked a few mouthfuls of water because of panic. He recovered from the panic after a while, only to find that the man who saved him was his biological father.
Before I could ask how he came over, I was pulled up violently.
“Dad? Dad?”
The man was soaked to the skin, and the cold wind blew, so he couldn’t help shuddering. In his mind, there was what the Daoist priest said during the day.
–It’s better to not let your son go out today, especially not near the water.
“Dad? Cough! Cough! Where are we going? Let’s go home first and change clothes, okay?”
He pulled his confused son in silence, came to a shabby house in panic, and knocked on the door.
“Bark Bark!!”
“Bark Bark Bark!!”
When the dogs in the village heard the noise, they all barked, each louder than the other.
The door opened, and after seeing that the man who opened the door was the Daoist priest with handsome looks, the man plopped down on his knees.
“Thank you, Daoist Master. Thank you, Daoist Master!!!”
“You don’t have to thank me.”
Wei Mingyan looked at the confused young man who was standing dumbfoundedly and all soaked. he said, “If you hadn’t taken the child in, you wouldn’t have been warned.”
“Children’s intuition are often the most accurate. “
Old Liu was shaking all over, he straightened up and asked, “Master, my son has recovered his life. Will he, in the future, still be in danger?”
Although he didn’t believe in these things, but as a child, he had heard a lot from the village elders. Like this thing now, retrieving a life, a price must be paid.
“His life has changed, and no one can calculate it.”
“So, do I… do I have to … pay for it…?”
“Hmm …”
Wei Mingyan pondered for a second, looked at the young man who was still full of confusion, and raised an eyebrow, “Young man, do you believe in science?”
Zhong Hua subconsciously nodded, and then, saw the handsome man in the Daoist robe in front of him reveal a smile.
“As it happens, I also believe.”
“Oh??”
The yellow dog that no one could see wagged its tail on the ground and watched Wei Mingyan help the young man into the house, being persuasive.
“We have fate ah… come, let’s talk.”
At a very remote small mountain village, an old man with gray hair was carrying firewood down the mountain. He had just fell down, but it didn’t hurt much, and it took him quite a while to pick up the firewood again.
Halfway up the hill, he suddenly found a man standing on a big rock by the side of the road.
That looks to be like a Daoist robe on him. His sleeves were blown by the wind. He was looking down at something with his back to the old man.
“Young man, there is a cliff at the bottom. It’s dangerous. Come down quickly.”
When the man turned and saw his face clearly, the old man couldn’t help but feel stunned. He had lived for over 70 years, and he has never seen such a good-looking person as this young man.
“Old man, what’s under the cliff?”
Listening to the light and beautiful voice, the old man was stupefied for another second before he replied, “I don’t know what’s down there. There’s no village living below, and the road is difficult to walk. No one has ever been there.”
“I heard that there’s a river. I don’t know if it’s true.”
Wei Mingyan nodded, stood on a high stone, and pulled out a tortoise shell from his sleeve, “Thank you for showing me the way. It’s fate that I ran into you. How about I tell you a fortune?”
“Fortune telling?”
The old man had seen a fortune teller. When he was young, his father took him to the old blind man who lived down the hill to tell his fortune. He said that his life would be full of children, and live a very rich life. His father was very happy, so he gave the old man a couple more eggs.
So many years have passed, his wife died early, and he didn’t want to remarry. He lost his wife and baby, he didn’t become rich or even powerful. But unfortunately, the old blind man left long before he got married. Otherwise, he would have been able to say that that man couldn’t tell fortunes.
Because of the old blind man, he didn’t believe in these fortune-tellers. He shook his head laboriously with the firewood on his back, “No, I have no money for that.”
“It’s going to be dark soon, and it isn’t easy to walk at night. You’d better hurry down the mountain.”
“I’ll calculate for you. No charge.”
“No, I don’t believe those things …”
The handsome Daoist, as if he didn’t hear him speak, jumped down the big stone, shook his tortoise shell, looked at the copper money that fell out, and slightly picked his eyebrows. “Lost your mother at age of 3, father at age 16, wife and son at the age of 27. Now, 79 …”
He opened his lips but didn’t say the rest.
The old man paused as he was about to move on. He turned and looked into Wei Mingyan, with eyes full of disbelief. “How did you know my wife was pregnant when she died?”
The Daoist picked up the tortoise shell and kept it in his sleeve. “Old man, you have a granddaughter. But she isn’t biological, your fate is a little shallow. “
“That’s accurate, that’s accurate…”
The old man murmured, “I picked up a child before. She was left in the mountains. She very young, without a father or a mother. I felt pity for her, so I raised her like a granddaughter. “
“Fate is shallow, which means that this granddaughter has left you. May I ask why?”
“I was incompetent. I was too poor. My little granddaughter suffered with me. Her uncle had a family he knew in the city. The family wanted to adopt a child. He told me that I should let him take her there. “
“She was good-looking and well-behaved. If she went to that family, at least she would be able to go to school, so as not to suffer hardships with a bad old man like me. “
Wei Mingyan slowly walked up to the old man and looked at the tall stack of firewood on his back and the back of his bruised hand. With a warm voice, he asked, “Haven’t you been in touch with her since you sent her away?”
The old man shook his head. “I can’t get in touch with her. Her uncle said ‘the people that want to adopt a child would be afraid that she would remember’. If I don’t contact her, she won’t remember, so those people would really regard her as their own child.”
When he finished, he said, “That’s a good calculation. You have real skills.”
Wei Mingyan looked up at the firewood and chuckled, “Then, are you still willing to let me tell you your fortune?”
The old man was a little hesitant, “Is it true that you don’t charge?”
Seeing this, the smile on the Daoist priest remained, and said in a warm voice, “If you don’t mind, take me in for the night, I don’t have a place to stay.”
“That’s fine, but my family is poor. There may be nothing good for you.”
“Thank you. Let’s go down the hill first.”
“Yes, Yes … By the way, this dog can eat human food, right? I heard that nowadays young people feed their dogs only those dog-food or whatever, and won’t allow them to eat human food.”
Looking at the old man who was bent into a shrimp by the firewood on his back, Wei Mingyan touched Da Huang, who was obediently following him, and said softly, “Don’t worry, I’ve prepared food for him.”
The old man glanced somewhat hesitantly at the young Daoist master, who had brought nothing but a dog with him, and swallowed back the words he wanted to ask.
“Uncle, what happened to your face? Your face looks bruised and battered, it looks really scary. ” They came across a villager carrying a hoe on the way down the hill, who first stared at the sight of the old man and then rushed to greet him when he saw him clearly.
“It’s nothing. Didn’t it rain last night? The road was slippery and I fell, it’s nothing serious. It doesn’t hurt much.”
“It really doesn’t hurt, huh? It looks weird. I have some medicinal wine at home, I’ll bring some to you later.”
“It’s okay, I’m thick-skinned, it doesn’t hurt anyway.”
The villager looked somewhat inquisitively at the black and blue bloodstains on the old man’s face, and then looked suspiciously at Wei Mingyan who was slowly walking over, “Uncle, this is?”
“Oh, this is …”
“Hello, my name is Wei. I am a fortune teller. I am going to stay in the village tonight. ” The handsome Daoist didn’t wait for the old man to finish his introduction and answered himself.
“Fortune teller?”
The villagers looked at Wei Mingyan. He was wearing a robe, but he was too young.
He heard his eldest son say that priest also go to college now, and they need diplomas. Priests in the temple could be young, and it looks like fortune tellers were similar.
The villager and the old man had the same idea. They didn’t believe this, but they didn’t say it.
“That’s fine, Uncle you go back first. I’ll have the kid at home bring the medicinal wine over later. “
Wei Mingyan turned around and glanced at the villager, “Wait a minute.”
The villagers turned around in disbelief. The stranger said, “You are blue in the brow and bereaved. It’s better to not let your son go out today, especially not near the water.”
Hearing these words, the villagers’ faces suddenly changed. Who would like to hear that their son would die? But this man was a Daoist priest. Although he didn’t believe it, he still felt a little afraid.
“Old Liu, you have to believe the words of the Daoist master ah. He just told me a fortune calculation, the calculation was accurate. Don’t let Caicai go out today. My wound is fine, doesn’t hurt at all.”
The old man was quick to believe it, after all, he had just experienced it firsthand.
The villager nodded hesitantly. He still didn’t believe himself, but because of the old man’s words, he still said, “Then I’ll watch Caicai and won’t let him go out. Uncle, if you’re in pain, just call me. I just made the medicated wine this year, but it works.”
He hesitated to look at the handsome man who looks more like a celebrity than a Daoist. “Thank you for Master Daoist’s reminder. “
Watching the villagers leave, the old man said to Wei Mingyan, ” Old Liu’s son goes to college, and he believes in science, so he doesn’t believe in fortune telling very much. Don’t take offense, he is quite nice. When he was a child, his mother was sick and I helped in sending her to town, so he always remembers gratitude, and will usually come to help me.”
“I understand.”
Wei Mingyan listened to the old man’s explanation, smiled and glanced at the villager’s back, with thoughtful eyes, “Kindness is rewarded.”
The villager, who was called Old Liu, came home carrying his hoe. His wife was just cooking and putting food on the table. When she saw her husband come back, she casually said, “Wash your hands and let’s eat.”
Old Liu looked around the yard and saw that his son wasn’t playing in front of the sand pile like always. When he thought of what the young Daoist priest said just now, he was puzzled for a moment.
“Where is Caicai?”
“Watching TV in the house. Call him after washing, the little brat won’t remember to eat when the TV is on.”
“Just watch, after dinner, he wouldn’t go out all day.”
Hearing his wife’s answer, Old Liu was relieved and at the same time amused that he believed those words.
Caicai loved watching TV, especially these days, when he squats in the house and refuses to go out all day. Why would he go to the water’s edge? That guy was indeed a charlatan.
But his son told him to believe in science. Those fortune telling and so on, were feudal superstitions and had no scientific basis at all.
Old Liu went to the house to call on his son. His wife was about to get chopsticks. A young man stood outside with a big bag on his back and shouted, “Mom!”
“Huahua!!”
The woman who just left the table raised her head in surprise and rushed to meet him, helping her son take off the big bag. “Why did you come back without saying a word? You should have told us in advance, I would have sent your father to pick you up.”
“It isn’t so far away that I needed to be picked up. Where’s Dad and Caicai?”
As they walked along, the young man walked forward with a smile and said, “I saved up a month’s leave, plus I applied in advance. So, I can stay home for 10 days this time and spend some time with you.”
In the house, the little boy who was unhappy because he wasn’t allowed to watch TV was about to jump over the steps when he heard his brother’s voice. His eyes lit up, and his unhappy face was swept away. He ran out with his small short legs.
“Older Brother!!”
“Caicai!” The young man picked up his brother with a smile and teased him. “Did you listen to Mom and Dad? Did you?”
“Yes, yes! Brother, don’t tickle me …”
The woman smiled and went to add one more bowl and pair of chopsticks. Old Liu was also smiling, looking at the oldest son and the youngest son being close. His eyes were full of love for the two children.
The whole family sat down happily for dinner, listening to the eldest son talk about his work in the city. Old Liu smiled and laugh happily, and remembered the events today.
“I just met a Taoist priest. He said I had a blue hue on my eyebrows. I might mourn a child. He also said don’t go near the water’s edge. I got a fright and quickly came back to see Caicai. “
“Tsk tsk. Why are you saying this while laughing?! Our Caicai is fine. You just had to say this bad thing!” The wife gave her husband a glance in vain and gave each of her two sons a chopstick of food.
“Eat more and grow your body.”
The eldest son was a bit helpless, he had been working for a year. How could he still be growing? But when he thought about it, looking at his mother’s cooking, he still ate happily.
Their family was one of the rare happy families in the village. The relationship between husband and wife was harmonious. The husband was considerate of his wife, and the wife cared about her husband. The eldest son was admitted to a key university, and after working for one year, he had added electrical appliances to their home. Although the youngest son was a little naughty, he can also be regarded as a clever boy. He was usually asked to run errands and other things, very active.
The family was happy, very happy.
After dinner, the younger son took the older son to the house to chat. Old Liu helped his wife clean the dishes. Although he was happy his son came back, he didn’t know why his heart felt uncomfortable.
“Let’s watch Caicai for a while, don’t let him go out. My heart feels uncomfortable.”
“You’re a soft-hearted man. These kinds of things aren’t accurate. When I wasn’t married yet, my Second Sister got married. The fortune teller said that she and my Brother-in-law were a match made in heaven. What happened? In less than half a year, she went home crying and got divorced.”
“I know, but the man doesn’t look like a liar. He looks like the immortals in those paintings, and Uncle Genzi said he was accurate. You know Uncle Genzi never lies.”
Hearing ‘Uncle Genzi’, her hands that were washing dishes paused. She had some hesitation on her face, but soon found a reason, “Uncle is easier to cheat than you. He must have been fooled. The man told you the water’s edge? Caicai doesn’t like to go out. There isn’t any water’s edge at home. Let him stay at hope properly.”
“All right, all right. If you aren’t assured, I’ll watch Caicai. I won’t tell him to go out. All right?”
Although she didn’t agree with her husband’s words, she couldn’t neglect the distress look on his frowning face, so she agreed.
“Huahua rarely comes home. Quickly, go inside and talk with him. If he’s tired, tell him to rest. Tell Caicai to keep quiet.”
Old Lai nodded. Digging his pocket, ready to take out a cigarette to smoke, he suddenly remembered that his eldest son didn’t like it when he smoked. So, he quickly stuffed it back in.
His son always said that smoking was harmful to his health, and every time he saw him smoking, he contemplated on take him to a big city for a physical examination.
It’s fine. Why should he spend that money? His son is at home these days, so he had to avoid him when smoking.
When she saw her man enter the house, the wife smiled and continued to scrub the dishes. Her happy mood continued because of her son’s return.
She felt that she was really lucky to marry such a good man and give birth to such a good child.
When her Older Sister’s husband died, there was only one Caicai who was still a baby, and a few hundred yuan that wasn’t enough to support a child. When her brother-in-law’s relatives threw the child away, it was obvious that their family’s condition weren’t good at that time, but her husband still decided to take the child in.
The man raised Caicai as his own child, and Huahua accepted his younger brother, played with him and taught him to read and write.
Looking at the whole village, which family was willing to feed a child for nothing? So, she was really lucky.
When the woman finished washing the dishes, she saw that the table had been cleared by her husband, so she shook water off her hands and went into the house. The younger son was laughing around the eldest son and played around with him. Maybe because he was tired after working during the day, her husband was already lying in bed and snoring loudly.
She gently came closer to her sons, “All right, you two go play in your own room, Dad is tired, let Dad sleep.”
Caicai still wanted to stay and watch TV, but the elder son was sensible. He picked up his younger brother, “Let’s go, brother will take you to my room to play cards.”
This was a game that the brothers could play all day with one deck of cards.
Watching her two sons go out, the woman sat by the bed with a smile and took off her husband’s shoes.
“I told you to talk to your son, and you go to sleep… without even taking off your shoes.”
The man on the bed opened his eyes in a daze to take them off himself, but she pressed him back down. “All right. I know you’re tired, go to sleep.”
People in the village generally go to bed early. The woman went out to take a bath, then lay beside her husband, ready for bed too.
While he was sleeping here, the sound of his youngest son’s loud cries suddenly came from the side room.
Old Liu was originally sleeping soundly, but he quickly rolled out of bed, “I’ll go see Caicai.”
The woman also hastily put on her clothes and followed. Her son’s room wasn’t far away, so they arrived quickly.
When they lifted the curtain, they were surprised that their youngest son was alone in bed.
“Caicai, what’s wrong Caicai?”
Old Liu watched the child grow up and became his own son. He quickly came forward to coax him in his arms.
“Older Brother. Brother is gone, I want my Brother …”
The little boy was crying out of breath and had tears all over his face.
The husband and wife looked around but didn’t see their eldest son. They quickly called, and the phone was soon answered.
“I was hungry. I went to the village entrance to buy something to eat. Is Caicai awake? I didn’t leave until he fell asleep.”
Hearing his son’s voice, Old Liu breathed a sigh of relief. He hung up the phone after responding a few times.
After putting down the phone, he held the youngest son to coax, “Caicai be good. Brother went to buy delicious food, he will be back soon.”
“No!!”
The little boy who always behaved when coaxed, wasn’t willing to let it go, “I want my Brother now, I want my Brother!”
“Caicai! Be obedient, Brother will be back soon. He’s at the village entrance. Don’t cry. ” The wife was a little angry. Isn’t the child usually very good? Why isn’t he obedient today?
“Brother is gone, I saw him go. I want my Brother. Dad, go to get my brother back! Dad, you go!!”
The little boy shook his adoptive father’s hand and cried almost out of breath. “Dad, go, go!!”
The cries of small children were the most shrill and ear-piercing. Old Liu felt uncomfortable listening to it, plus he was upset after just waking up. He simply stood up and went outside.
“I’ll pick up the child.”
“It’s so late. Huahua isn’t a child anymore. Why should you pick him up? Don’t worry about Caicai. I think he’s fussy because he hasn’t seen his brother in so long.”
“No, I don’t know why, but my heart feels uncomfortable. It’s fine to go out for a walk too.”
Moreover, the words of the Daoist priest during the day kept ringing in his heart.
He said, keep his son away from the water.
At that time, the eldest son hadn’t come back yet. He thought that the Daoist priest was talking about Caicai, but now that Huahua was back. If the fortune was true, Huahua was his biological son, and Huahua grew up afraid of water …
The cries of his young son, and the uncertainty in his heart, made the head of the family pick up his pace.
Their home was near the foot of the mountain. There was indeed a river a small distance away from the entrance to the village, but the bridge on the river was surrounded by railings, so it was okay for children to play in the water. Huahua was so big, how could he not be okay?
Although thinking like this, Old Liu’s heart was still like carrying some worry. He soon arrived at the river not far from the edge of the mill. From this point of view, you could see that there was a flash of light from a mobile phone on the bridge deck, which was moving toward him.
It should be his son Huahua. The man breathed a sigh of relief.
It seems that he really did think too much. Didn’t his son tell him all about it? To believe in science.
He was about to shout his son’s name when he suddenly heard a sound of something collapsing, and his son’s scream.
–Burst!
The man watched the bridge collapse, and his son fell into the water. He had no time to think, and frantically ran toward him.
His son fell into the water.
Huahua was in danger.
Jumping into the water, he grabbing his son as hard as he could until he got to shore, his brain was filled with these two sentences.
“Cough cough cough … Dad?”
The young man only flopped in the water a few times and was saved. There was nothing major except that he choked a few mouthfuls of water because of panic. He recovered from the panic after a while, only to find that the man who saved him was his biological father.
Before I could ask how he came over, I was pulled up violently.
“Dad? Dad?”
The man was soaked to the skin, and the cold wind blew, so he couldn’t help shuddering. In his mind, there was what the Daoist priest said during the day.
–It’s better to not let your son go out today, especially not near the water.
“Dad? Cough! Cough! Where are we going? Let’s go home first and change clothes, okay?”
He pulled his confused son in silence, came to a shabby house in panic, and knocked on the door.
“Bark Bark!!”
“Bark Bark Bark!!”
When the dogs in the village heard the noise, they all barked, each louder than the other.
The door opened, and after seeing that the man who opened the door was the Daoist priest with handsome looks, the man plopped down on his knees.
“Thank you, Daoist Master. Thank you, Daoist Master!!!”
“You don’t have to thank me.”
Wei Mingyan looked at the confused young man who was standing dumbfoundedly and all soaked. he said, “If you hadn’t taken the child in, you wouldn’t have been warned.”
“Children’s intuition are often the most accurate. “
Old Liu was shaking all over, he straightened up and asked, “Master, my son has recovered his life. Will he, in the future, still be in danger?”
Although he didn’t believe in these things, but as a child, he had heard a lot from the village elders. Like this thing now, retrieving a life, a price must be paid.
“His life has changed, and no one can calculate it.”
“So, do I… do I have to … pay for it…?”
“Hmm …”
Wei Mingyan pondered for a second, looked at the young man who was still full of confusion, and raised an eyebrow, “Young man, do you believe in science?”
Zhong Hua subconsciously nodded, and then, saw the handsome man in the Daoist robe in front of him reveal a smile.
“As it happens, I also believe.”
“Oh??”
The yellow dog that no one could see wagged its tail on the ground and watched Wei Mingyan help the young man into the house, being persuasive.
“We have fate ah… come, let’s talk.”
