What exactly is my grandfather planning? I still can't figure it out. His years of battle experience abroad seem like a Pandora's box. He endured quietly at the Lin's estate for over twenty years, but the extent of his scheming remains unknown to anyone. What I've uncovered seems to be just the tip of the iceberg.
After leaving Grandpa's, I felt quite powerless. Despite there being nothing wrong with Grandpa's arrangement for me, it still made me uncomfortable. Perhaps everyone dislikes the feeling of having their destiny controlled by others.
When I returned home and went to my room, Uncle Two was still awake on the bed. It seemed he was waiting for me tonight. Perhaps I wanted to have a talk with him, to discuss Grandpa in his eyes.
"Has Fatty figured it out yet?" Uncle Two asked me.
"Did Grandpa do it? I haven't told Fatty yet," I said to Uncle Two, hoping he would understand.
Uncle Two glanced at me and said, "Sooner or later, you will understand. Everything your grandfather has done is for your sake."
"Including Third Uncle's death and the faked death of Lin Erduo?" I asked.
Uncle Two fell silent and closed his eyes. Although his eyes were closed, he still said to me, "Take this book and read it. You could agree to be Fatty's apprentice. The world has changed; there are no more prejudices based on family background. Learn more things as one's skills need not be kept hidden."
After he finished speaking, he tossed me a black book without a title. Instantly, all my worries were put aside. Finally, I could become a Taoist priest! As long as I was strong enough, I could solve all the mysteries without relying on others!
However, when I opened the book, I was dumbfounded. I said to Uncle Two, "Are you kidding me with this?"
The book was densely covered with small characters in a language I couldn't understand.
"Someday you will understand the words in it," Uncle Two said to me.
"Why do I have it now then?" I asked helplessly.
"For now, familiarize yourself with it," he said.
I felt embarrassed instantly. There was nothing to be familiar with in such a book. I had tried my best, my eyes were tired, yet I still didn't understand the language inside. In the end, I fell asleep with the book in my hands. In my dream, I saw my grandfather for the first time, sitting on a bench, squinting while smoking a pipe. He looked so serene.
When I saw the smiling face of my grandfather in my dream, I seemed to understand everything in that moment. I woke up and Uncle Two hadn't woken up yet; perhaps he was pretending to be asleep.
I'm not stupid, so now I understand why Grandpa smiled in my dream. It's because his goal had been achieved. My father said he tricked a paper woman into impersonating my mother, to save us from a debt collector. But suddenly, I thought of another layer.
Besides shielding my mother once from a disaster, he was preparing for me. The child born from my father and the paper mother, has the constitution of a Taoist priest – that was Grandpa's plan.
It seemed like over twenty years in advance, twenty-three years ago, he had already started preparing for my life. What was his plan? Lin Xiaofan's success?
I woke up the policewoman while the others were still asleep, as she and Wu Miaoke and her daughter squished into one room. It was unavoidable that I woke them up. Lin Xiaoyao was still drowsy, probably due to the excitement from last night. When Jiu Liang and I were preparing to leave, Wu Miaoke followed us, her ample bosom trembling as she ran, making my heart fluster.
She was only wearing a white tank top with nothing underneath. I noticed the details with my observant eyes.
She seemed to feel my gaze and ran to my side, handing me a piece of paper, saying, "I've signed it; give it to Uncle San Shui."
I took it, and as she turned to leave, her face slightly flushed.
Whether she shed a tear after turning back, only she would know.
The two of us went directly to the town. Our task today was to seek Lin Sanshui's approval to open the ancestral grave, as everything concerning Lin Sanshui's father and what my grandfather did so far was still speculative, needing further confirmation.
According to the address Wu Miaoke gave me, we arrived at a row of small houses behind the town hospital. The houses were dirty and smelly, almost like a shantytown in the town. I couldn't help but admire Lin Sanshui, being of such an advanced age, having a non-threatening appearance compared to Uncle Two, yet serving as the village head and the wealthiest man in the village. This was nothing special in the town.
When we knocked at the door, we found a pregnant woman sleeping in bed. Lin Sanshui appeared at the door, wearing only his underwear. He was not just surprised when he saw Policewoman Jiu Liang and me; he was almost trembling with fear.
"Lin Sanshui, you have been reported for illegal cohabitation and have now been officially arrested," Jiu Liang said, intentionally scaring him.
Lin Sanshui's face turned pale. I had been very dissatisfied with Lin Sanshui, but seeing their current situation, I suddenly felt more pity for him. He was just an ordinary person of advanced age who wanted a child. We should not impose too many feudal restrictions on him. Furthermore, this was the Lin estate; if this happened outside, how big of a deal would it be?
"Jiu Liang, don't scare Uncle Sanshui," I glared at Jiu Liang, saying.
Lin Sanshui's face somewhat eased. This divorce seemed to have also stripped away the remaining bit of arrogance he had. He had a slight hunch and said to us, "Let's talk outside. She likes to sleep in."
"Wow, are you showing concern? I don't think she's stronger than Miaoke," Jiu Liang said sarcastically. The three women were putting on a show, and now that Jiu Liang was sleeping with Wu Miaoke and her daughter, as long as she didn't pretend to be affectionate with me, the two would not antagonize her. The current three individuals were like sisters, so naturally, they would unite against her.
Lin Sanshui's face turned very pale again, deeply troubled and unable to refute anything.
"Enough, Jiu Liang!" I couldn't allow this tough woman to ruin things. Regardless of how I felt about Lin Sanshui now, given that we were here today to seek Lin Sanshui's help, we couldn’t keep offending him.
Lin Sanshui gratefully looked at me. We walked past the stinking ditch outside the house and found a breakfast place. There weren't many people at this time. We ordered two baskets of steamed buns and three bowls of congee and chatted while eating.
I didn't mention Lin Xiaoyao's Phoenix Divination fate to Lin Sanshui. I said that in order to treat Lin Xiaoyao's face, we needed to open Second Grandfather's grave to check. Lin Sanshui almost had no hesitation and said, "Open it, it's fine, as long as it can cure Xiaoyao."
I immediately looked at Lin Sanshui. I wanted to sarcastically talk back, but I quickly stepped on Jiu Liang's foot under the table. She understood and followed me to the side of the road. Before I could speak, she said, "Just now, I was about to talk to you separately. Right now, Lin Xiaoyao's mole on her face still can't be removed. As mentioned before, if the mole is removed from Lin Xiaoyao's face, it will be the same as if a black dog is killed. Do you believe that someone will come to take Lin Xiaoyao away?"
I was horrified by what she said, "Isn't it too bizarre? Are there still fortune tellers now, and do people still believe in that?"
We were blown away by a powerful gust of wind and rain, and we set out on the road to find Lin Sanshui. He was trembling from excitement and fear. After securing Lin Sanshui’s agreement, we completed our task for the day. As we left, I secretly handed Lin Sanshui the divorce agreement signed by Wu Miaoke.
The moment he received it, his whole body trembled. As we continued walking, we realized that he was not with us. When I turned back to look, I saw a middle-aged man sitting on the ground, crying like a child.
"Pitiable people always have detestable aspects," the policewoman muttered.
When we opened the car door to leave, Lin Sanshui suddenly rushed to our car and got in. He wiped away his tears and said, "I want to go back to Lin estate and take a look."
"Uncle Sanshui, should we take it slow?" I asked him. Was it really suitable for him to return to the village in this state?
"It's alright, officer, you can drive." Lin Sanshui managed to force a smile.
Upon returning to the village, we didn't go back home. Originally, we intended to meet Lin Xiaoyao, but Lin Sanshui changed his mind in the car. This further reflected his conflicting emotions at the moment. We called Fatty but no one else, as this time, even if it was just to open Lin Sanshui's father's grave to take a look, it still counted as disrespect to the deceased.
Because of Xu Lin's previous experience in vandalizing my grandfather's tomb, we were very familiar with the process. We quickly dug up the black lacquered coffin, which had almost completely rotted due to its long age. Fatty, panting and drenched in sweat, sat on the edge of the grave and lit a cigarette, so I told him, "Fatty, let's find a place to pee."
As I said it, I winked at him, and he understood. He stood up and said, "Little guy, I was just about to have a private chat with you. As for the black mole on the face, it can’t be removed yet. It's similar to that Feng Shui master's example. If the mole is removed, it's like killing a black dog. Do you believe someone will come to take Xiaoyao away soon?"
His words frightened me, "Is it really mysterious? Are there still fortune tellers nowadays and do people still believe in that?"
The Fat Boy gave me a fierce look and said, "It's the kind of person who believes in this the most. Even if you don't believe, it's better to believe it exists rather than not. Why don't you try it?"
"What should I do?" I dare not try it. If the mole on Little Yao's face disappeared and then a group of armed soldiers came and snatched her away to be a wife, who would I cry to?
“Why don’t you marry her first, break her virginity, let her fortune transfer to you, and then remove the mole?” The Fat Boy looked at me and said.
My mouth was dry and I didn’t know whether to nod or shake my head.
“Look at you, you're hesitating about this. Even though I'm old, if I were twenty years younger, no, even ten, I would compete with you right away!" The Fat Boy snorted.