Hu Ma stayed in the village that day, had dinner with the second master, and returned to the village before dusk fell.

I lit an oil lamp and read a book for a while, then lay down on the bed early and fell asleep.

Now, with the help of that Erguotou man, Shou Sui has a new door, and the rest is just step by step and planning bit by bit.

But Hu Ma, who had slept peacefully and dreamlessly all night, didn't know that in the village, in the house of the Cui family boss, several brothers of the Cui family and Cui Xie'er's mother and sister-in-law were all gathered around the Eight Immortals table.

There was only one oil lamp lit on the table, illuminating people's faces in varying degrees of light and darkness. Cui Xie'er was kicked out, but the Cui family boss had a cold face and punched the table hard.

"The patriarch has sent his grandson in, so he should pretend to be a good person now."

"Take down that Hu boy and let us Xie'er take over. It's easy, but he refuses to let go."

"..."

When other people heard this, they were also indignant.

The Cui family had agreed to bleed this time, but the old and confused patriarch did not agree in the end.

"Haha, the Zhou family is also afraid of us..."

At this time, Grandma Cui, who was sitting on the bed next to her with messy white hair, suddenly sneered and said: "Our Xie'er is a sensible child. If he joins the red lantern society, his performance will definitely be better than his grandson's, and he will at least be able to do it in the future."

Become a steward or even a shopkeeper."

"The Zhou family just relied on the second child's great ability and large number of people to become the leader of the clan. Our Cui family is no less good."

"He is worried that our Cui family will overwhelm his Zhou family!"

The Cui family brothers were just puzzled at first, why the old patriarch refused in the end even though he was obviously moved.

Now after listening to Grandma Cui's words, I suddenly understood: "This old guy still has such a plan, how shameless..."

After scolding each other, they looked at each other, feeling that it would be difficult to do, and hesitated: "What should we do?"

"There are a bunch of useless things, and it's up to me, an old woman, to make a difference."

When Grandma Cui saw that adults like them had no idea, she got angry. She pounded the bed board and said, "Boss, don't be so stupid. Come here and help me move out the box wrapped in black from under the bed."

"

"ah?"

The eldest son of the Cui family was startled for a moment, then understood and was slightly excited.

He was older, so he remembered it most clearly. His wife also knew some things, and she was somewhat famous when she was young. But later, when the Hu family came to the village and didn't know what happened, she put the things away and didn't use them.

When Cui Mo's accident happened earlier, it was the old lady who asked her to keep the little Jin Barezi. She said it was okay and she would keep it for Xie'er to get a wife in the future.

It's a pity that the Hu family did something bad later and killed the woman.

The box was pulled out, and Grandma Cui took out the key from under the bedside and opened it.

I saw that there were red papers and white symbols inside, as well as some strange objects, some like bones and some like hair.

When the old lady of the Cui family saw these things, her eyes became a little deep. She slowly scanned the objects in the box, and her expression became a bit majestic.

After pondering for a long time, she took out a piece of black stuff that looked like dried meat and said to Cui Xie'er's mother: "Lao Er's family, aren't you pregnant again? Go to Lao Huotangzi tomorrow to burn paper and thank your ancestors...

This thing will also be burned together."

The second daughter-in-law didn't know why, so she accepted it tremblingly and agreed repeatedly.

"The boss and the third..."

Cui's grandma took the paper figurine from inside again, tied her hair, and said: "You two, go and bury this thing under the crooked-neck tree behind the Hu's house. Remember to go there after the second daughter-in-law burns the paper."

, and don’t let people in the village see it..."

The boss and the third child also agreed quickly.

The grandma of the Cui family looked at the fourth child of the Cui family next to her: "Don't be stunned. Don't you like drinking and playing cards? Go and play with you. If you're in a hurry, it's okay to make a fuss."

The fourth child of the Cui family didn't expect such a good thing and nodded excitedly.

As soon as the explanation was finished, the whole family was slightly nervous: "If we do this, we Xie'er can go?"

Grandma Cui glared at them: "If you have a way, do you still need my old lady?"

Suddenly no one in the room dared to speak.

…

…

Hu Ma tidied up the house, packed her belongings, and made preparations to go to the city. Everything else was fine, but she had to keep her purse filled with ashes close to her body.

It was simple, packed up, and ready to go at any time, but it was freezing. When I woke up this morning, I suddenly felt dizzy and my mouth was dry.

It felt like I had swallowed a coal of fire in my throat, it was dry and painful, and when I touched my forehead, it was frighteningly hot.

"Do I have a fever?"

He was slightly surprised, and even felt a little speechless.

Well, when you don't eat enough Tai Sui meat, your body will be a cold piece, and you won't be able to get any heat even if you want it.

Now maybe he has enough blood and food, but he still has a fever...

Feeling groggy, I tried my best to get up and wanted to scoop a ladle of water to moisten my throat. However, my body felt heavy and I could not walk steadily.

It seems that my body is not only sick, but also very sick.

After drinking water, I wanted to cook some porridge, but I had no appetite at all, so I lay down on the bed to rest.

At noon, Zhou Datong came over and opened the door: "Brother Hu Ma, grandpa said that we should all go to my house for dinner in the evening."

"He wants to tell us the rules after going to the mansion..."

"...Hey, why aren't you getting up at this hour?"

"..."

Hu Ma felt weak, waved his hands and said, "I seem to be sick."

"I really know how to choose the time. I'm going to the mansion in a few days."

Zhou Datong came over and touched his forehead. He also felt a little hot, so he hurriedly went out. After a while, the clan leader came over to take a look, and the second master also came over. He looked a little worried, but after looking at Hu Ma

After that, I didn't notice any evil spirits, but I thought it was just the cold.

Thinking that my mother-in-law had already entered Laohuotang, there was probably no evil spirit in this village who dared to provoke Hu Ma, so she just sighed and comforted him.

"Your mother-in-law is gone. You, a young man, really don't know how to take care of yourself."

"Find someone to grab some herbs for you, drink them hot and you'll be fine."

"..."

So Zhou Datong ran errands, grabbed herbs for Hu Ma, and also got two steamed buns for Hu Ma from his home.

After Hu Ma drank the herbal medicine, she felt lighter. She thought about going to the patriarch's house to learn the rules, so she got up in the evening.

But just as he was about to go out, he suddenly felt dizzy again.

For some reason, he actually felt that the breath coming out of his throat was scorching hot, and there were bursts of stars in front of his eyes. He managed to hold on, but after taking a few steps, he suddenly almost fell down.

Looking up, night has fallen, and the trees in the surrounding village are jagged and spinning, like ghosts with teeth and claws.

There was a strange sound of laughter in my ears, and there was a biting chill.

In a daze, he suddenly saw Xiao Hongtang jumping in front of him, baring her teeth at the dark surroundings.

Hu Ma suddenly felt something was wrong in her heart, and hurriedly asked Xiao Hongtang: "Who are you talking to? What... is there over there?"

"have no idea."

When she asked, Xiao Hongtang was a little confused again, shaking her little head: "But Xiao Hongtang thinks..."

"...There is something."

"But I don't know what it is."

"..."

"Is there something?"

Hu Ma's heart trembled: "Am I really sick, or...something else?"

He tried his best to stand up, but his body was so weak that he fell down and passed out.

Xiao Hongtang became nervous and dragged Hu Ma into the house. The village was quiet and quiet, the night was deep and creeping around, and she didn't know what was hidden in it.

Everyone in the village closed their doors early to rest, and no one knew that next to the old fire pond, after the second daughter-in-law of the Cui family, who came to burn paper for her ancestors during the day, returned, there was always black smoke floating around, as if to cover up the fire.

What are you wearing?

After the mother-in-law left, the old people arranged for strong laborers to patrol the village, but today they were distracted again. They heard that there were people gambling behind, and they got into a fight because of the gambling.

No one in the entire village found Hu Ma who had passed out in this small room.

"Go quickly and learn the rules at the clan leader's house."

At this time, in the Cui family, the old lady was lecturing Cui Xie'er: "If you don't learn the rules, how will you know who is easy to mess with and who is not easy to mess with when you enter the city?"
To be continued...