"Speaking of ghost stories, there have been quite a few rumors on Wheeler, haven't there, darling?" Cen Yemeng suddenly changed the subject.
Jiang Ye smiled and nodded, "Yes, there have been some rumors."
"Tell me one, darling," Cen Yemeng said.
Jiang Ye felt a pang of despair. What ghost stories were there on Wheeler? Why was this woman so unpredictable?
Or did she want to seize the initiative in the conversation? Even if she wanted the initiative, she should steer the conversation in a direction that was easy to talk about, not something difficult to make up!
You expect your husband to make up ghost stories on the spot? Do you think I'm Pu Songling? If I had that talent, I'd write novels like Isabelle. You should have asked Isabelle to cooperate with you on this!
"No, I'll tell one first. What if you tell the one I wanted to tell? What would I talk about then?" Cen Yemeng quickly corrected herself when she saw Jiang Ye's expression.
"Okay, then you go first," Jiang Ye smiled. "You can embellish it a bit. This isn't a formal meeting, so let's just treat it as a family listening to stories."
Jiang Ye said this to buy his wife some time. Embellishing required some thought and could delay the conversation.
"Embellishing is the job of a novelist. I can't do that. I can only tell you what I heard," Cen Yemeng said.
Jiang Ye was relieved when he heard this. Judging by her tone, it seemed she had already prepared a story in her mind.
"Okay, okay. Sister Meng, you used to tell me stories when I was little. I love listening to you tell stories," Cen Zi smiled. Her smile, though seemingly innocent and cute, was actually a way to observe the situation and see how they performed.
"The first story is about what happened before our army intervened on Wheeler," Cen Yemeng began seriously.
"About ten years ago, there were hundreds of warlord factions on the entire planet of Wheeler, constantly at war, with rivers of blood. The fighting was so fierce that the bodies of the dead were left uncollected, piled up in the wilderness, gradually turning into ancient bones in the soil."
"There was a warlord's unit, led by a man named Li Kui, who was tyrannical and extorted money from the people, ravaging the land for over forty years. Later, in a major battle, this warlord's unit was completely wiped out. However, Li Kui's body was never found, nor was his accumulated vast wealth. He and his money vanished into thin air."
"There were rumors that Li Kui's treasure, accumulated over forty years, was secretly buried near his hometown, Lu Yin City. So, a warlord sent troops to search for it. They searched house by house, even digging three feet into the ground. They spent an entire year, turning the entire city into a mess of pits and holes, but they found no treasure. Instead, they unearthed many old mass graves."
"Near Lu Yin City, there was a small village, and in the village lived a butcher named Li Gui. Due to years of war and warlord plunder, the nearby villagers couldn't even get enough to eat, and there wasn't a single pig, cow, or sheep left. Li Gui, as a butcher, lost his source of income."
"If it were just adults who were penniless, they could have begged for a living. But unfortunately, Li Gui's son had just been born and was still swaddled. Lacking nutrition, the child cried constantly from hunger. Eventually, the child stopped crying altogether, his little face swollen."
"The couple boiled rice into soup and gave the child the film on top of the rice water to barely keep him alive. But the price of rice had skyrocketed. The grain merchants who sold rice nearby had been captured and killed by the warlord's troops. Now, the warlords monopolized the rice and flour trade, and it was impossible to buy without a heavy price."
"To buy rice, Li Gui and his wife, Cui Lian, discussed and decided to use a method that would shorten their lifespan to take a risk and get rich."
"On a snowy night, Li Gui and Cui Lian quietly went out, carrying a small bag of pork cracklings and a bottle of yellow wine, searching for a place by the river with a strong yin energy. The riverbank had once been a battlefield, with many corpses."
"Li Gui kept shouting, 'I have good wine and meat here, but no one to enjoy it. What a pity.'"
"Cui Lian also called out, 'It's so cold and windy. Which elder brother would do us the honor of coming to drink?'"
"As Cui Lian walked, her foot kicked something hard and stiff. In the moonlight, she saw it was a human bone. Most of the flesh had rotted away, leaving only a dark skeleton clad in the tattered uniform of a warlord's soldier."
"Cui Lian was immediately delighted and said, 'We have a distinguished guest right here. Let's invite our guest for a drink.'"
"Li Gui said, 'Good,' and stuffed a pinch of pork cracklings into the skull's mouth, then dripped a few drops of yellow wine in."
"Cui Lian directly reached out, detached the skull from the body, and placed it into a red cloth they had prepared."
"The couple deliberately recited a passage to the red cloth, speaking to the skull. Cui Lian said, 'It's too cold and windy here, not a place for drinking. Let's take our distinguished guest home for a drink.' Li Gui said, 'But our guest's body is still on the ground. How can we only take the head home?' Cui Lian said, 'For drinking, a mouth is enough. If the wine enters the body, it will harm the body.' Li Gui said, 'That makes sense. Let's hurry home to drink with our guest.'"
"The couple braved the wind and snow back home, placed the skull on the table, kowtowed to it, and paid their respects."
"Then, Li Gui held the skull, constantly stuffing pork cracklings into its mouth, muttering incantations."
"Li Gui said, 'Good brother, it is better to be a dog in a peaceful age than a human in a chaotic one. You were a brave man with a gun in life, and no one sent you off in death. The world is unfair, and heaven is blind. My wife and I meeting you tonight is fate from past and present lives. Besides inviting you for wine and meat, we will also perform a grand ritual to help you transcend, give you a magnificent burial, and send you to the Pure Land to be reborn in a place of peace and prosperity, so that you do not suffer the misery of war on Wheeler in your next life.'"
"'However, my wife and I are destitute, so poor that we have no rice to cook, and even our child is on the verge of starvation. Although we wish to give you a magnificent burial, we truly have no money to do so. We hope you can help us and let us gain a little wealth.'"
"'The path to wealth is too difficult for the living, but easy for you spirits. Just tell us, where is the treasure that warlord Li Kui accumulated over forty years buried? If we unearth a chest of gold and silver, we will definitely burn ten carts of gold and silver for you, brother, to use in the underworld. We hope you will guide us.'"
"After speaking, Li Gui placed the skull on the ground, kowtowed several times, then crawled over and placed his ear near the skull's mouth, holding his breath and listening quietly."
"After listening for a long time, the skull said nothing. Li Gui smiled apologetically, picked up the skull, and dripped some yellow wine into it, saying, 'I understand. Brother, you think my hospitality is insufficient and you haven't had enough to eat and drink. Please enjoy yourself, brother, and eat heartily.'"
"After feeding it for a while, Li Gui placed the skull on the ground again, kowtowed several times, crawled over, and pressed his ear against it to listen."