The little fox immediately agreed, "Of course."
Ye Tiancheng pretended to rummage around the storage area for a while, with the little fox following behind him, waiting. In reality, the fox was subtly observing the situation inside the room.
Because his actions were not obvious, and Hou Mingzhu was not paying attention to them, coupled with Ye Qingcheng being busy with her homework, his intentions were not discovered.
Ye Tiancheng feigned searching for a long time, giving the little fox ample time, before calling out to the fox to "look at the things." The little fox cooperated by looking for a moment, and then, along with Ye Tiancheng, left the room with something, heading outside.
After leaving the room, Ye Tiancheng asked the little fox, "How was it? Did you figure anything out?"
The little fox pondered for a moment before replying to Ye Tiancheng, "I could sense residual yin energy, so it's true the bride came. Other than that, there was nothing unusual in the room."
This analysis was interesting, as it usually pointed to only one possibility.
Ye Tiancheng asked the little fox, "So, in your opinion, did the bride come of her own volition, of her own will, rather than something on our end attracting her?"
The little fox couldn't think of any other possibilities, so she could only reply to Ye Tiancheng, "Although I'd like to consider more possibilities, based on the current clues, this one seems the most likely."
"If you want to know more, you'll need to inquire and observe further."
Ye Tiancheng knew that every time he felt a headache, it was due to insufficient information. He still had to investigate; in short, he couldn't rest.
Afterward, Ye Tiancheng and the little fox discussed for a while. The little fox also asked Ye Tiancheng if the Nuwa Stone had made any discoveries. The answer was obviously no; if the Nuwa Stone alone could solve the problem, Ye Tiancheng wouldn't have gone to find the little fox.
Moreover, one shouldn't rely on the Nuwa Stone for everything; it wasn't a good thing. If one had the ability, one should try to do things oneself. Relying too much on external power was ultimately not a long-term solution; what if one couldn't get help at some point? Wouldn't that be terrible?
For instance, before the Nuwa Stone sacrificed itself for Ye Tiancheng and returned to him, Ye Tiancheng had spent some time without its companionship and help.
If Ye Tiancheng had developed the habit of relying on the Nuwa Stone for everything before, he didn't know what he would have become after losing it.
Speaking of which, Ye Tiancheng hadn't even told Fatty about getting the Nuwa Stone back. Instead, the little fox, after losing her memory, had already learned about it again. Ye Tiancheng sighed; he hadn't even figured out when to confess. He actually didn't want to talk about this matter.
After all, Fatty hadn't lost his memory a second time. So, if this matter were to be pursued to the end, it would still lead back to the illusion Fatty had experienced back then, which would give Ye Tiancheng a terrible headache, as it was difficult to explain.
Leaving that aside, one had to focus on the current predicament.
Ye Tiancheng and the little fox decided to act and inquire in the village about yesterday's wedding, especially about the bride and groom.
They didn't act together, as collecting information from different people separately would yield more comprehensive results.
Ye Tiancheng found the male owner of the house that had lent them lodging. Due to the recent heavy rain, not only Ye Tiancheng but also the villagers of this settlement were trapped by the downpour and couldn't do anything.
When Ye Tiancheng found the male owner of the house, the owner was sitting on the threshold in front of the main house's door, smoking a pipe.
The house lent to Ye Tiancheng and his companions was in the adjacent rooms; the main house was still where the owners lived. The owners did not live together with Ye Tiancheng and his group.
The male owner's name was Zhao Hai, and this village was called Zhao Family Village. Most people in the village were surnamed Zhao. If there were outsiders, they were usually wives brought back from outside the village by the men. Otherwise, everyone in the village had the same surname, were closely related, and were like one family.
Strictly speaking, they could be considered one family, as their bloodlines could all be traced back. Many villages named after surnames had similar characteristics.
It was said that after leaving Zhao Family Village and going a bit further, at the foot of another mountain, there was another village called Wang Family Village. The relationship between Wang Family Village and Zhao Family Village was also very close. Due to their proximity, they often married their daughters to each other, and their blood relations would not be too far apart.
Zhao Hai was around forty years old, a middle-aged man with yellowish-dark skin. He looked older than his actual age. He had an ordinary appearance and was not conspicuous in the village, but he was not ugly either.
As a farmer, he seemed a bit unkempt, but in reality, he was quite tidy. His outward appearance was mostly related to his profession; some things couldn't be made cleaner with tidying.
Ye Tiancheng walked over and greeted Zhao Hai, "Old Zhao, having a smoke here?"
He was called "Old Zhao" because Ye Tiancheng and his group had initially called Zhao Hai "Mr. Zhao" according to outside customs. Zhao Hai felt uncomfortable and asked them to call him "Old Zhao."
Moreover, since they were staying at Zhao Hai's house, Ye Tiancheng and his group must have interacted with Zhao Hai. Therefore, seeing Zhao Hai smoking at his doorstep, and being unable to leave, it wouldn't seem strange or difficult to strike up a conversation with him.
Zhao Hai heard Ye Tiancheng's voice and looked towards him. Seeing Ye Tiancheng walking towards him and sitting down not far from him on the threshold, he didn't object.
He tapped his pipe, shook off some ash, and then replied, "With this weather, there's nothing to do. Bored, so I can only smoke here and relax."
Zhao Hai wasn't smoking the cigarettes sold outside. He used a pipe, a very old pipe, filled with tobacco leaves and then lit it.
It was rare for people to smoke with such pipes nowadays.
Ye Tiancheng nodded in agreement, "Yes, with this weather, we really can't do anything. We originally planned to continue our journey but were forced to stay. And there's nothing to do, it's really boring, and I don't know what to do."
Zhao Hai took a puff of his smoke, sitting on the threshold, exhaling clouds of mist. He squinted his eyes and said, "There's no helping it. This rain probably won't stop for a few days. And with such heavy rain, who knows what the mountain roads have become. If you want to drive, you'll probably have to wait a few days."
"Otherwise, after the mountain roads have been washed out by heavy rain for several days, if you drive directly, who knows what dangers you might encounter."
Ye Tiancheng understood this. He had mentally prepared himself to be stuck here by the heavy rain. In any case, he definitely couldn't leave immediately after the rain stopped.
Sitting on the threshold of the main house, Ye Tiancheng chatted casually with Zhao Hai for a few words before subtly steering the conversation towards the two banquets held in the village yesterday.
However, Ye Tiancheng didn't reveal his intentions too obviously at first. Instead, he found an entry point and then started talking to Zhao Hai about the matter, trying to inquire about some details to get some clues.
Ye Tiancheng suddenly started talking to Zhao Hai about this matter, "Old Zhao, when someone in your village holds a banquet, do you really not cook at home?"
Because the topic shift was natural, Ye Tiancheng smoothly transitioned the conversation. Zhao Hai didn't think much of it, as it wasn't something to hide. He replied to Ye Tiancheng, "That's right, it's a customary rule, so to speak."
"In our village, no matter whose house holds a banquet, everyone in the village is invited to attend. As long as they are able to attend, they must be present. If they cannot attend, someone from their family will bring food back from the banquet. If there is no one left at home, and they cannot come themselves, then the host of the banquet will send some food over."
"Because of this rule, everyone defaults to not cooking at home during such times. The host family holds the banquet for a few days, and we stop cooking for those days."
Ye Tiancheng pondered for a moment, then continued to ask, "So, do we still have to attend the banquet today?"
"I heard yesterday that the banquets in the village would last for a few days before they were considered over?"
Zhao Hai gave an affirmative answer, "Since we are not cooking these days, we definitely have to go today. The banquet in the village this time will last for at least three days."
Ye Tiancheng immediately seized the keyword and repeated, "At least three days?"
Zhao Hai paused for a moment, then continued to answer Ye Tiancheng, "Because this is how it should be done according to the rules, at least three days, until it is completed. Sometimes, marriages are arranged, and if they cannot be completed in three days, they might be postponed for several days."
Ye Tiancheng gained some knowledge; he had never heard of such a custom, "So there's such a rule? I haven't heard of it outside."
"But was it really a marriage arrangement?"
"Don't blame me for being too curious; it's just that I've never seen such a scene. I mean no offense, but it's the first time I've seen it, and it's hard not to be curious."
Ye Tiancheng asked Zhao Hai, "Yesterday, in the village, was it... a ghost marriage?"
As he said the last few words, Ye Tiancheng's voice involuntarily softened a lot, but Zhao Hai still heard him clearly.
"This has nothing to do with you outsiders. It's better to be less curious, so I don't want to say more. However, anyone with eyes can see that it is indeed a ghost marriage." Zhao Hai seemed unwilling to discuss it further, even subtly warning Ye Tiancheng not to inquire too much.
But his reaction made Ye Tiancheng even more eager to ask, especially since he was trapped here.
Ye Tiancheng said, "I am indeed a bit too curious, and I have absolutely no ill intentions. It's just that I've never seen it before. I'll only ask you, Old Zhao, to satisfy my curiosity, and I absolutely won't reveal a single word. Can't I even say that?"
While saying this, Ye Tiancheng didn't forget the monetary approach. He took out his wallet, pulled out a stack of red bills, and then, with a poker face, stuffed them into Zhao Hai's hand.
Why else would they say there's no one in this world who doesn't love money, and no problem that money can't solve? If money couldn't solve it, it just meant not enough money was spent.
However, at least the stack of red bills Ye Tiancheng took out successfully loosened Zhao Hai's tongue.
Zhao Hai's expression remained unchanged. He grabbed the stack of red bills and tucked them into his pocket before saying to Ye Tiancheng, "I can tell you, it's not entirely impossible, but you must remember to keep it a secret."