Only after Zhao Guizhi finished speaking did she notice Wang Zhaoming sitting up in bed. “Little Sister, you’re awake! You had us worried to death.”
She stood by the bed, reaching out to touch Wang Zhaoming, yet hesitated out of fear that her movement might make her uncomfortable.
“How are you feeling now? Is there anywhere else you feel unwell? I’ll go call the doctor for you.”
Wang Zhaoming stopped her. “No need, Second Sister-in-law.”
“The doctor can’t cure my condition. Please just let the officers outside know that I’m awake.”
Zhao Guizhi and Wen Caimei both wore expressions of disapproval at the same time.
Wen Caimei said, “My youngest, why don’t you rest a bit longer? There’s no harm in making them wait a little. Besides, that County Magistrate injured his leg and can’t walk anyway, so he won’t be leaving anytime soon.”
Wang Zhaoming shook her head. “No need, Mother. Just have Second Sister-in-law inform them that I’m awake.”
Those who died wrongfully were still waiting for justice.
For every day this went unaddressed, the resentment spirit formed by them would grow larger.
If it escalated to an irreversible degree, the people in the surrounding villages would suffer.
Zhao Guizhi looked at Wen Caimei, hoping she would persuade Wang Zhaoming.
“Don’t look at me. If I could persuade her, would she have been brought back unconscious?”
Listening to Wen Caimei’s angry words, Wang Zhaoming squeezed her hand tightly.
“Mother, when Master picked me up, he said that I was born missing one soul and one spirit, destined not to live past the age of twenty.”
“Ever since I learned about my lifespan, I lived cautiously, not daring to travel far, merely guarding Master’s Taoist temple.”
“With no relatives, no playmates, and no friends, my companions were the trees in the mountains, the wind, and the rain—everyone except all of you.”
“Those kinds of days were very dull. Even though Master knew I was miserable and tried every possible way to bring back various novel toys from outside to make me happy, I was only happy the moment I received them.”
“Once Master went down the mountain to handle matters, I would feel even more lonely. Only then did I realize that my happiness was because my Master had returned and someone was accompanying me, not because of those gifts.”
Wen Caimei pictured the scene of a tiny Wang Zhaoming squatting at the gate of the Taoist temple waiting for her master to return, and her heart instantly pained for her immensely.
“I am telling you these things to let you know that I have a family now, and I won’t feel that living is meaningless.”
“Now, everything I do is so that I can live properly, and remain by your side healthy, safe, and sound.”
“Therefore, regarding my upcoming actions or plans, the family doesn’t need to feel anxious or terrified. Everything I do is to make my body better.”
Zhao Guizhi asked, “Zhao Zhao, if you do good deeds, can you gain the merit that the masters on the mountain spoke of? And with merit, will your body get better and better, right?”
“Yes.” Wang Zhaoming openly admitted her intention.
Hearing Wang Zhaoming admit it, Wen Caimei reached out with a heart full of distress, caressing Wang Zhaoming’s face. “Since that’s the case, whatever you do from now on, Mother won’t stop you. But if you need our help, you must speak up. You can’t bottle everything up inside and hide it from us.”
Back when she couldn’t speak, she worried that the girl couldn’t express what she truly wanted.
Now that she could speak, she worried even more, fearing the child would only report good news and hide the bad.
Coupled with the skills Wang Zhao had learned that they couldn’t assist with, she grew even more anxious.
No wonder the elders always said that a child raised for a hundred years is worried over for ninety-nine.
“Mother, fortunately, no one in our family does bad things.”
Zhao Guizhi was truly grateful to her own mother, who had disregarded her father’s opposition back then and stubbornly arranged this marriage for her.
After marrying into this family for so many years, except for the pain suffered during childbirth, she had never endured any hardships from her mother-in-law.
Her sisters-in-law were easy to get along with, and although the children were mischievous, they were very sensible under the guidance of her father-in-law and mother-in-law.
Her husband went without saying; though a bit simple-minded, his doting affection for her was truly beyond question.
In a harmonious family, naturally, no one would do anything bad.
Otherwise, it would have been impossible for her sister-in-law to suddenly recover and possess such great capabilities.
Although she hadn’t personally seen how Wang Zhaoming saved the County Magistrate, seeing how polite those officers were toward Wang Zhaoming, she guessed that Wang Zhaoming must have thoroughly displayed her skills in front of them.
In any case, having the County Magistrate owe such a huge favor was a good thing for the Wang family.
As a daughter-in-law of the Wang family, she would naturally benefit as well.
“Oh dear, Zhao Zhao, Mother used to follow your grandfather and uncles in slaughtering pigs. Will that affect you?”
Wen Caimei was deeply conflicted. Slaughtering pigs was to feed the family and was considered a craft; pig butchers were well-off among ordinary folks.
Her father had retired now and stopped slaughtering, merely tending to the pork stall while her four older brothers took over the craft.
She didn’t know if her brothers’ taking of animal lives would affect her daughter.
If there was an impact, what should she do?
Seeing through Wen Caimei’s inner conflict, Wang Zhaoming put her heart at ease. “Mother, slaughtering pigs is for livelihood, natural selection, and the law of nature. It does not damage merit. Only abusing animals will be recorded down, and once down below, the underlings will naturally apply those same methods onto those who abused living creatures.”
“So you don’t need to worry at all; it won’t affect me. Let Uncles rest assured and continue using this craft to make a living.”
Merit was not something anyone could have just because they wanted it.
The laws of Heaven and Earth had their own set of rules to judge the behavior of living beings in the world.
Wen Caimei let out a visible sigh of relief.
“Then I’ll go give the response to the officers outside.”
“Mm, sorry to trouble you, Second Sister-in-law.”
“Why say such a thing? We’re family, there’s no trouble about it.”
Zhao Guizhi brought the news of Wang Zhaoming waking up to the officers outside.
Upon receiving the news of her awakening, the officers were visibly delighted.
“I’ll go tell the Master this good news right away.”
They had already been won over by Wang Zhaoming’s abilities, and their concern for her was genuine.
An hour later, Gao Zhijie, having received the news that Wang Zhaoming had awakened, was carried to the Wang family’s home on the back of an officer.
Knowing he was here to see Wang Zhaoming, Wen Caimei led him directly to Wang Zhaoming’s bedside after bowing.
Seeing that Wen Caimei did not seem surprised by his appearance in the slightest, Gao Zhijie asked Wang Zhaoming, “Did you also divine the news that I was coming?”
“I find it very strange. In the eyes of the villagers, your reputation doesn’t seem to be very good.”
Before coming, Gao Zhijie had already sent people to investigate information related to Wang Zhaoming.
Aggregating the information obtained from the mouths of the villagers revealed a common point: Wang Zhaoming was a fool in the eyes of the worldly realm.
She couldn’t speak, reacted slowly, and knew nothing except eating; even eating and bathing required help from others.
Recently, rumors began spreading that she had suddenly recovered.
For a person who had been foolish for so many years to suddenly start speaking fluently and possess knowledge of so many strange and eerie methods, it seemed strange no matter how one looked at it.
He scrutinized Wang Zhaoming with a suspicious gaze, yet his heart was suspended high in apprehension.
If Wang Zhaoming’s body was occupied by an improper entity, would he be able to deal with it?
“So?”
“You think that inside this body of mine isn’t me, but some other strange existence?”
Wang Zhaoming burst out laughing. “Master Magistrate, read fewer of those storybooks.”
“Those entities usually occupy a person’s body because of unfulfilled last wishes, and they can only occupy it for three days. After three days, they will be dispersed by the original owner of the body, their soul scattered into destruction.”
“If what they occupy is the body of a dead person, that’s even easier to identify. The characteristics that appear on a dead body will appear on the occupied body, easily noticed by others. And once the body begins to rot, those entities will be trapped inside, rotting away along with the corpse.”
“Without deep hatred or extreme necessity, they wouldn’t be so foolish.”
“Look, do any of the characteristics I mentioned appear on me?”