30. The Best Brother in the World

"The weather is really weird. It has been raining for several days. Water is being released from the ground over and over again for fear of soaking the seedlings."

There are not many leisure activities in the small village on the mountain. On rainy days like this, many women gather together to mend clothes and fix the soles of shoes, while the men go to the empty room of the village committee to set up a few tables and play cards to kill time.

Originally, the old man in the mountain expected that the rain would only last for two or three days, but now it is the fifth day. The sky is overcast and the air is full of water vapor. It is almost October and it is getting colder in the mountains. , the bone-piercing cold, especially the elderly with weak immunity, carried all the large cotton-padded jackets at home.

"Hiss, don't tell me, the weather is getting cold too fast. It's hard to sleep without lighting a fire at night. It's not like the cold in the previous winter. This cold air seems to seep out from the bones. "

Lao Gentou was wearing a cotton-padded jacket and a scarf. In the past, he would have been dressed like this in December at least. But now, even though he was wearing such warm clothes, he felt cold. He even took two sips of home-brewed sorghum wine to warm himself up. .

"Uncle, I think your health is failing. It would be wise to save some money in the past two years to buy a wife for your son. Don't miss out on your grandson by then."

Lin Youcai chuckled, played a deck of cards, and played the last two cards under everyone's attention.

"Give me money, give me money." He chuckled.

"call--"

A cold air went straight to his neck. Lin Youcai quickly looked back, but there was no one behind him. It seemed like it was just his illusion.

"Don't tell me, I have saved enough money."

Lao Gentou's words brought Lin Youcai back from his thoughts. He didn't think much, looked at the complacent old Gentou and asked with a smile: "Why, the young man who lived in your house these years gave you A lot of money, right?”

People in the village think that Lao Gentou is lucky. It has been raining heavily these days, and the roads on the mountain are difficult to walk. No one wants to go up the mountain at this time. Not to mention that there is no good scenery to see, and accidents are easy to happen.

The young man from Lao Gentou's house came before it rained, just to wait for the weather to clear up and watch the sunrise. He had already stayed at Lao Gentou's house for five days, plus food expenses for each meal, and boiling water for bathing. The fee has at least made Lao Gentou a hundred dollars. Seeing that the weather is not going to be good, if he stays here for a while, good guy, he will earn a year's harvest from the fields.

There is not much land in Wude Village, and most of it is barren mountainous land. Usually, apart from taking away their own food rations, they can’t make much money. Those who know how to hunt can also sell some game to those who collect mountain products. They don’t know how to do anything. They rely on the land for a year. Earning two to three thousand is already as high as the sky.

"Hehehe, I am also an old man. I am lucky. I happened to save enough money to buy a wife through that young man." Old Gentou smiled and said nothing.

"Youcai, help me talk to Lai San and leave me a big ass to give birth to. Don't let the villages down the mountain pick out all the good stuff."

Lin Youcai nodded while grabbing the cards. He and his eldest brother were very concerned about this matter. People in the village didn't know that in fact, every time they bought a daughter-in-law, he and his eldest brother would get a commission. For example, if one of them was sold, For a woman worth thirty thousand, the two brothers can draw three thousand. This is why their brothers have never farmed, but their lives are more prosperous than anyone else's.

"But I haven't been able to contact you in the past two days. I wonder if there was something wrong with the signal tower during the heavy rain. I can't even make calls. When the rain stops one day, my brother and I will go down the mountain and let people take a look. You Don’t worry, I promise to leave you a son.”

Lin Youcai thought about why the phone at home had been busy since yesterday, and the mobile phone signal had no signal. It was just that the rain was so heavy now that he and his eldest brother didn't want to go down the mountain, so they just delayed.

This situation has not happened in the village before. Sometimes people down the mountain will find that they have to repair the signal tower themselves, but it doesn't matter. People in the mountains have less chance to use those things, playing cards and drinking. It's much more interesting to them than other things.

The wrinkles at the corners of Lao Gentou's eyes deepened when he got a satisfactory answer.

He has been waiting for his daughter-in-law for more than twenty years, and now he is just a few days away. He is praying that the rainy days will be longer, so that he can earn another one or two thousand from the young man, so that he can have enough money for the New Year. It’s all there.

****

"Sister-in-law, is the rice cooked?"

Lin Youcai spat on his hand and counted a handful of coins in his hand. He found that he had earned more than forty yuan in one afternoon.

"It's cooked. I also steamed a fish and cooked a pot of bone broth. Your eldest brother has already drank wine. Are you waiting for him?" Lin Youde's wife is five years younger than him. Because she gave birth to three daughters in a row, in this place Some people at home can’t hold their heads high.

Lin Youcai's daughter-in-law worked hard and gave birth to a son, the only son of the Lin family. Lin Youde was good to this younger brother, so he wanted his eldest nephew to help him take care of him in his old age.

The two brothers probably knew that what they were doing was shameful, so before Lin Youcai's son started to understand, he and his mother were sent to the county town to study. The brothers pooled their money to buy a commercial house of more than 100 square meters in the county town, and paid for their living expenses. The money was enough, and the two brothers went to the county to visit him several times a month to keep in touch with him.

As for Lin Youde's three daughters, they are not so lucky. Female dolls are not valuable, so it would be good if they can have enough to eat. If they go to school and get married in exchange for a betrothal gift when they are old, just treat them as their own. contribution to this home.

It’s funny to say that the people in the village only miss their sons and grandsons because one family cannot afford to raise too many children. Some of the baby girls who were born died because they were sick and did not want to spend money on medical treatment. Some of them were thrown into the mountains or mountains just after they were born. It was drowning in a toilet bucket.

When their sons and grandsons grew up and it was time for them to marry, they discovered why they couldn't even find a girl of the right age, so they each gritted their teeth and spent money to buy a wife. The vicious circle continued over and over again, but no one discovered the root cause. Just wrong.

Lin Youcai had no respect for this sister-in-law. He didn't give birth to a single child in the old Lin family. It would be nice for such a woman to give her a bite to eat.

He hummed a little tune and walked into the house. The fire pot was lit in the house and it was warm. His brother had already drank wine. When he saw his younger brother coming, he moved into the kang and asked him to take off his shoes and get on the kang.

The big bones were stewed very fragrantly. Lin Youcai took one and gnawed on it. His mouth was filled with oil, and he didn't forget to take a sip of wine.

"Lao Gentou has collected enough money, we can at least make this amount."

Lin Youcai gestured with a few fingers, and Lin Youde suddenly became happy.

"Didn't Xiaobao say he wanted an Aipade a few days ago? I just bought one for him."

Lin Youde loved his own nephew. He just heard him say it and remembered it. He didn't know what the thing called Aipade was, but it should be enough money for the villagers to buy two daughters-in-law. Bar.

"Hehe, that boy is lucky to have an uncle who loves him so much." Lin Youcai chuckled, it was his own son who took advantage.

"That's because Xiaobao strives for his own success. He gets first place in the exam every time. When he gets admitted to university in the future, our Lin family will have a good reputation."

Lin Youde drank the soju in the bowl in one gulp. Suddenly, the lights in the room buzzed, then went out, and the room suddenly became dark.

"The light bulb is probably broken. Brother, do you have a spare light bulb?" Lin Youcai put down the wine glass, uncrossed his legs, spread them out on the bed and put on his shoes.

"ah!"

He suddenly screamed, almost scaring Lin Youde to the point of peeing.

"There's...something tugging at my feet..."

It was so cold that Lin Youcai had goosebumps all over his body. He was so stiff that he didn't even dare to look down when he said it to his eldest brother.

"Are you drunk?" Lin Youde rolled his eyes at his younger brother. He climbed to the edge of the kang, took out a candle from the cabinet, and lit it with the matches he brought with him.

"I was shocked. The kang underneath is all sealed. Even if there is a ghost, she can still get under the kang and grab your feet." Lin Youde didn't believe that there were ghosts in the world, so he thought it was his brother's illusion.

"There's something on your feet, don't scare yourself."

He got off the kang and looked at his younger brother's feet. They were clean and there was nothing there. At this time, the biting coldness that Lin Youcai had just felt disappeared. He thought that maybe it was just his illusion.

He plucked up the courage to look down and saw that it was still his foot, and there was nothing extra that shouldn't be there. He breathed a sigh of relief, put on his shoes and was about to ask his brother where the spare light bulbs were at home. When he looked up, Under the candlelight, behind the elder brother, he saw a bloody girl, smiling at him with blood-colored empty eyes.

“Ahhhhh——”

Lin Youcai was really frightened this time. A fishy smell filled the room. The color drained from his face. He screamed and staggered towards the corner to hide.

"Youcai, what are you doing? I'm going to make big brother and you anxious again."

Lin Youcai's reaction was so abnormal that Lin Youde felt uncomfortable in his heart and cursed him, but he didn't have the courage to look back.

What on earth did his brother see that would make him look like this?

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

Lin Youde swallowed, feeling that his throat was dry and he couldn't help but break out in sweat.

"call--"

A cold breath came up from the back of his neck, and Lin Youde's heart felt cold. He didn't dare to move, and stood on both legs, cursing in his heart. His mother-in-law and several girls were deafened by such a loud movement. Don't even come in to take a look.

His neck felt itchy, as if he had been scratched by nails, and his heart was in his throat. Lin Youde glanced downwards, but he couldn't see anything in the blind spot. He just felt that the thing seemed to be poking deeper and deeper into his neck. .

"Amitabha, Amitabha"

He chanted the Buddha's name twice, turned around suddenly, swung his fist and hit his head hard.

There was nothing, just a ball of air in the dark environment.

Lin Youde collapsed on the ground in collapse. He no longer cared about his trembling brother, and rushed out the door.

****

"Those people are dirty. Yin Yin is a good child, you can't get dirty blood, you know?"

Yan Chu stayed in his room. He was standing, and a little girl in a white skirt sat on a chair and put her hands on his hands obediently.

Strangely enough, she couldn't touch Yan Chu's physical body, but as long as Yan Chu wanted to, he could touch her as a virtual body.

At this time, Yan Chu was holding a clean handkerchief and patiently helping her wipe one finger at a time. Every time he finished wiping, his fingers would appear beautiful white and pink, but after a while, they would turn black. When the qi spreads again, it will turn into the color of corruption, and the nails will be incomplete.

The little girl's eyes were empty. She didn't understand what the man in front of her meant, but she subconsciously listened to his words, showing a look of grievance and guilt that she had done something wrong.

"Wipe it clean, look at our Yin Yin, how beautiful we are."

In front of them was a dressing mirror. On the first day Yan Chu came, he carefully wiped off all the dust on the mirror.

In the mirror, there was only the reflection of Yan Chu, but the little girl held his hand and smiled at the mirror. I don’t know what she saw.

Those dirty things can’t be done by clean people. Their blood is too dirty and will pollute the pure white. Sin should be eliminated by sin.

The corners of Yan Chu’s mouth slightly raised. He would not do it, and his sister would not do it either. Let them go to hell by themselves.