Liu Renchun walked out of the room, glanced at Qin Xianglian standing outside the door, sighed reluctantly but helplessly, and finally stomped his foot and left with his hands behind his back.
Jiang Xiaobai then walked out of the room, watching Liu Renchun leave Qin Xianglian's house dejectedly.
"Xiaobai, what did you say to Liu Renchun?"
Qin Xianglian was both surprised and curious. Liu Renchun was an old scoundrel, and Jiang Xiaobai actually managed to deal with this old scoundrel, making her look at Jiang Xiaobai with new respect.
Jiang Xiaobai said, "Auntie, Liu Renchun has something I have on him, so he shouldn't dare to do anything to you in the future. But this old bastard will keep thinking about what he can't have, so you still need to be careful and not give him any opportunity."
"I know, Xiaobai. Thanks to you today." Qin Xianglian played with her clothes' hem, feeling a bit embarrassed after Jiang Xiaobai saw Liu Renchun pressing her onto the bed.
"Can you not tell Xiao Lang about what happened just now?"
Jiang Xiaobai laughed. "Auntie, Moron's brain, it doesn't matter if I tell him. He might even think you and Liu Renchun were playing a game on the bed."
"Xiaobai, you are Xiao Lang's best friend. Do you have to say that about him too?"
It was clear that Qin Xianglian was a bit angry, so Jiang Xiaobai quickly apologized. "Auntie, I'm sorry. I just like to speak quickly. Moron is my brother, closer than a real brother. The day I, Jiang Xiaobai, get rich, I will never forget this brother."
Qin Xianglian sighed, looking at Jiang Xiaobai gratefully. "Xiaobai, Xiao Lang is lucky to have a friend like you. Auntie will leave this world someday, and then Xiao Lang will depend on you to take care of him."
"Auntie, why are you saying such sad things? You are still young."
Qin Xianglian laughed. "You little rascal, always taking liberties with your auntie. What young? I'm already twenty-five in virtual age!"
Qin Xianglian was not actually Moron's biological mother. His real mother died in childbirth, and Qin Xianglian, who was his aunt, took care of him. He always called her "mom." Later, she married her honest and sincere brother-in-law, but a few years ago, he died in an accident at a construction site.
"Auntie, you are already twenty-five? My god! I thought you were under twenty." Jiang Xiaobai's slick tongue always made the young women and wives in the village laugh.
"You little rascal, have you put honey on your mouth!"
Qin Xianglian looked at the time. It was almost noon. "Xiaobai, go get Xiao Lang back. We'll have lunch at auntie's house. Auntie will kill a chicken to reward you."
"Auntie, I don't want to eat chicken." Jiang Xiaobai grinned mischievously, stepping closer to Qin Xianglian. She stepped back in surprise, only to find herself against a wall.
"What are you... what do you want?" Qin Xianglian's heart was pounding.
"Auntie, I want to eat tofu," Jiang Xiaobai said with a wicked smile.
"…Fine, Auntie will go buy you tofu."
Qin Xianglian tried to push Jiang Xiaobai away, but he grabbed her soft, smooth hand. Her mind went blank, and before she could react, Jiang Xiaobai had already kissed her shy face and ran away triumphantly.
Qin Xianglian took a long time to recover, touching her burning cheek, only then realizing that Jiang Xiaobai, who was her son's age, was already a grown man and should not be treated as a child.
Qin Xianglian leaned against the wall, feeling weak all over. The tingling sensation hadn't subsided. She hadn't felt such an electric jolt since her wedding night. After so many years, her calm heart was once again stirred.
…
Jiang Xiaobai returned home to find Moron fiddling with the crayfish and eels he had brought back in the morning. There were several small carp caught in the trap overnight, and Moron had almost played them to death.
"Moron, your mom is calling you to come home for lunch."
"Oh, lunch!"
Moron, a glutton, dropped the crayfish in his hand and ran home, shaking all his fat.
Jiang Xiaobai looked at the half-dead crayfish and eels in the bucket, sighing. He thought that if he took them to town now, they would have died by the time he arrived. What could have sold for two hundred yuan wouldn't even sell for forty if they died.
Liu Changhe still hadn't come. Jiang Xiaobai started doing chores, soaking the bloodstained clothes, pillowcases, and bedsheets from the night before. Soon, the clear water in the bucket turned red. Jiang Xiaobai poured out the dirty water, seeing two small carp with white bellies barely moving their gills, seemingly about to die.
He casually tossed the two nearly dead carp into the dirty water he had just emptied.
After washing the clothes and sheets, Jiang Xiaobai wiped his sweat and suddenly noticed the two carp he had thrown in the dirty water were swimming happily.
"What's going on?" Jiang Xiaobai was stunned.
"Could it be my blood?"
The dirty water had his blood. To verify his idea, Jiang Xiaobai punched his nose, making it bleed. He experimented with another almost dead carp, but it didn't revive as he had hoped.
"Not my blood, then what?"
After thinking hard, Jiang Xiaobai's mind suddenly recalled the dragon-shaped copper ornament. He slapped his thigh and found it. His blood had touched the ornament last night. Containing many strange things, it might have magical powers.
He threw the dragon-shaped copper ornament into the water, then threw in several nearly dead crayfish. Jiang Xiaobai watched carefully, and the crayfish quickly regained vitality, soon climbing out of the half-meter-deep plastic bucket, displaying unprecedented liveliness.
"The thing Grandpa left me is indeed a treasure!"
The ancient cultivation techniques that entered his mind last night weren't something Jiang Xiaobai could practice yet. However, he could use the copper ornament's reviving power to get rich. At least he wouldn't worry about the thirty-thousand-yuan medical debt for Grandpa.
Jiang Xiaobai did another experiment. He threw a completely dead crayfish into the bucket, but it didn't revive, showing the copper ornament couldn't bring the dead back to life. Its power only worked on those not completely dead yet.
"From now on, I don't need to worry about stealing fish and shrimp from Nanwan Lake. I'll buy dying crayfish cheap, revive them, and sell them high. This business has no cost and almost no risk, a sure profit!"