Corpse Retriever

”Alright, Lihou, make another trip into town and get a desk lamp for the kid. Also pick up some extra pens and notebooks. I saw the other kids with some sort of stationery box… Forget it, just grab whatever you think looks decent.”

”Sure thing, I’ll head over after lunch.”

”Don’t wait till afternoon. There’s still a bit of time before lunch—go now.”

”Okay.”

Li Sanjiang turned to Li Zhuiyuan with a serious face. ”I already told your grandfather earlier to have Yinghou come over this afternoon to tutor you.”

After saying this, a mischievous look spread across his wrinkled face—as if to say, “Bet you didn’t see that coming.”

”Huh?”

Li Zhuiyuan looked disappointed. He had planned to spend the afternoon reading, not tutoring his cousin.

Back when she was still working on her first-year summer homework, she didn’t have too many questions. But now that she was prepping ahead for sophomore year, there were far more things she didn’t understand.

Li Sanjiang reached out and gave Zhuiyuan’s head a fond ruffle. His voice softened into a tone of fatherly weight. ”Kid, you take after your mom. That smart brain of yours would be wasted if you didn’t use it to study.””But Great-Grandpa...”

”No buts. Study hard. Get into a good university, just like your mom. That’s the proper road in life, got it?”

”But Great-Grandpa, I’m already taking college classes.”

”Hey! You dare pull one over on me? You think your great-grandpa hasn’t eaten pork but hasn’t seen a pig run? Be good. That’s final.”

”Oh, and Lihou, when you head to town, buy the kid some snacks. Whatever you find, just grab it. Get something for your daughter too.”

”Alright, Uncle.”

Li Zhuiyuan pointed to the southeast corner of the balcony. ”Uncle, can you help me move the rattan chair over there?”

Uncle Qin nodded. ”Sure.”

”What are you putting it there for?” Li Sanjiang followed his gaze, noticing Zhuiyuan didn’t want to sit next to him. He walked over to the southeast corner. Ah, so that’s why—down below, just inside the threshold of the east room, sat a little girl.

”Hey, Little Yuanhou, what are you up to putting it there?”

”I think the feng shui’s good here.”

”Pfft!” Li Sanjiang chuckled and scolded, ”You think I don’t know what you’re up to? You just want a better view of the pretty girl.”

Qin Li was a pretty one, no doubt. Otherwise, Li Sanjiang wouldn’t have offered her candy that first time. But pretty as she was, the girl had a fierce streak.

Uncle Qin moved the rattan chair, gave Li Sanjiang a nod, and left for town to shop.

After he was gone, Li Sanjiang tugged Zhuiyuan over and pointed a finger at him in warning.

”I’m telling you, Little Yuanhou, it’s fine to look, but don’t even think about getting close or playing with her. She’ll scratch your face up. Just look at that fair skin of yours—what a waste it’d be if it got all scarred. How would you ever find a wife?”

”Okay, Great-Grandpa, I get it.”

”And seriously, of all the girls to like, you pick one who’s not right in the head? She might be pretty, but what’s the use? You really want to spend your whole life taking care of her?”

He hadn’t said any of this while Qin Li’s father was around.

”I understand, Great-Grandpa.”

”Forget it, you’re still young. No point in me bringing this up now. You’re a long way off from marrying anyone. Alright, I’m heading out for a bit. Won’t be back for lunch—eat on your own.”

”Okay.”

With hands behind his back, Li Sanjiang hummed a little tune as he went downstairs. When he reached the courtyard, he turned and glanced up at the balcony. A smile broke out on his face.

Little Yuanhou had asked for things, and he hadn’t hesitated to spend. He had money!

He suddenly realized there was joy in spending money on the younger generation.

He used to think Hanhou was pathetic for doting on his kids, especially since they weren’t even that filial. But now, something clicked.

Maybe raising children wasn’t about having someone to care for you in old age, but about making life feel a little fuller, a little more meaningful.

We raise you not to demand your gratitude, but because it completes us.

Hey, that doesn’t feel so bad after all.

Li Sanjiang shook his head. What use were such thoughts now? He was nearly in the grave—his life would end childless, as always.

Once Great-Grandpa left, Li Zhuiyuan showered, changed clothes, and eagerly sat down in the rattan chair with Volume One of the ”Chronicles of the Strange and Martial.” He opened the pages and began to read.

The book used thin gold script—it was much easier on the eyes. Compared to that, the calligraphy in ”The Sutra of Golden Thread and Silken Spiral” looked like chicken scratch.

He silently made a wish: please let the other books in the box be legible too.

He quickly got absorbed in the book. But every time he turned a page, he glanced down at the girl sitting with her feet on the threshold below.

He wasn’t thinking anything improper—just that beautiful things were nice to look at. They lifted your mood.

The girl, however, hadn’t moved since that morning when she briefly looked toward Niu Fu’s back. Not a single other gesture.

Time flew by. At some point, Uncle Qin came back and handed over a desk lamp, a set of stationery, and lots of snacks.

After reading for a while longer, Aunt Liu’s voice rose from below: ”Little Yuanhou, time to eat!”

”Coming!”

He set the book down and went downstairs. Lunch was served in the courtyard, and he had a table all to himself.

On a square wooden stool sat a plate of chicken with soybeans, another of scrambled eggs with chives, and a bowl of crucian carp soup.

Li Zhuiyuan couldn’t help but think—life at Great-Grandpa’s was good.

Over at Grandpa’s, Pan’er and Lei’er were probably still drinking plain porridge.

Still, he didn’t plan to bring back any food. He knew that wouldn’t be right.

In the courtyard, Granny Liu crouched beside Qin Li, coaxing her in soft tones.

Finally, Qin Li lowered her head and began eating.

Same as breakfast—her rhythm steady and precise, never missing a beat.

After he finished eating, Zhuiyuan quickly cleaned up, put his dishes in the kitchen, washed his hands, and headed back upstairs to keep reading.

The first volume of the book was all about Dead Sinkers. There were so many kinds. Even something like the Little Oriole, which could walk upright, was just mid-tier in terms of danger—maybe even below that.

But the more dangerous the Dead Sinker, the vaguer the records. The pictures became increasingly abstract, like something out of ”The Classic of Mountains and Seas.”

It made sense. The deadlier the creature, the fewer witnesses survived to describe it.

”Yuanzhi.”

Yingzi arrived carrying a stool and a small bench.

Zhuiyuan looked up. ”Hey, Sis.”

”I’m here! Hehe. Here, have some candy.” She pulled a sweet from her pocket and handed it to him.

”Thanks, Sis.” Zhuiyuan unwrapped it and popped it in his mouth, then headed into his bedroom.

Yingzi unwrapped her cloth bundle and laid out books and practice problems. She curiously flipped through the book he’d left on the chair and frowned—the writing was indecipherable to her.

Just then, Zhuiyuan came out holding snacks and placed them beside her. ”Here, Sis—have some.”

”This is way too much. I can’t eat all of it.”

”Take it back for everyone. Just don’t let Grandma and Grandpa see.”

These were the snacks Li Weihan had brought that morning. He hadn’t touched the ones Great-Grandpa bought.

”You’re my little brother. It feels wrong taking your stuff.”

Seeing him dive back into his book, Yingzi could only say, ”Yuanzhi, when I start working and making money, I’ll buy you tons of good stuff.”

Zhuiyuan looked up and smiled. ”Okay, Sis.”

Then he went right back to reading.

Yingzi, noticing how focused he was, didn’t interrupt. She quietly prepped her own coursework. This time, instead of asking questions on the spot, she jotted them down to ask later—she didn’t want to disturb him.

After finishing the first volume, Zhuiyuan stood up and did a full set of national student calisthenics.

The text was dense, archaic, and vague—he had to puzzle things out as he read. It was the first time a book had felt so mentally exhausting.

But it was also incredibly fulfilling. He felt like he was truly learning something.

For the first time, he could empathize with the kids in class who struggled. Their lives were fuller than he’d realized.

After exercising, he went to the bathroom. Since it was daytime, he didn’t need the chamber pot. On his way downstairs, he spotted the girl sitting behind the threshold again—and even stopped to greet her:

”Good afternoon.”

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