After Bai Lingmiao brought the two bowls of rice over, Li Huowang saw that the two old farmers were so excited that their hands were shaking as they kept thanking Bai Lingmiao.
Compared to Li Huowang and his group, who needed wild vegetable soup to balance out their meal, the two farmers had no such concerns. They ate the sausage rice with an almost devout expression, holding the bowls in their hands and savoring each bite.
They quickly finished the rice in their bowls, but picked out the sausage and carefully wrapped it up in a cloth, intending to save it for later.
One of the old farmers ran to the nearby stream and washed the two bowls until they were spotless. He then brought them over to Li Huowang, revealing a few missing teeth as he smiled. Li Huowang could tell that he held a certain status among the group.
He seemed to want to say something, but couldn't find the words. In the end, Li Huowang spoke first.
"Old man, with such a good harvest in Daliangtian, why are you still out here working at your age?"
"Well... those are all the landowner's crops. It has nothing to do with us even if the harvest is good. We can't even eat a single grain of rice."
The old farmer finished speaking, as if breaking the barrier between the two of them. He smiled at Li Huowang again. "Master Taoist, thank you for the food. It's delicious. One meal is worth three."
"It's nothing. Just a meal. Have you been to Pixin recently? Have you ever been there?" Li Huowang finally revealed his purpose.
"Of course I have! I just came back to pick up my nephew. Otherwise, I would have harvested all the crops in Pixin by myself. Let me tell you, harvesting wheat is a skilled job. Those young people are inexperienced and can't do it as well as I can! Let me tell you about holding the sickle... it can't be too high or too low, it has to be just right..."
Li Huowang interrupted him. "Have you really been there? Have you noticed anything different about the people there?"
Li Huowang wasn't afraid of any problems in Pixin. He was afraid that the problems there wouldn't be big enough to attract the attention of the Jiantiansi. If that were the case, his trip would be in vain. He also needed to clarify the timing. If the Jiantiansi had already been there, then his trip would also be pointless.When Li Huowang saw the serious expression on his face, Lao Maiker became nervous. He scratched the back of his head and said, "There's nothing different about the people there. They pay the money and we get our food. But they all like to stay in their houses and rarely come out. They leave the money and food outside and let us take care of ourselves."
Nervous and with a bad complexion, and they like to stay in their houses? Li Huowang silently analyzed these three strange pieces of information in his mind.
Regardless, it seemed that the Celestial Monitoring Bureau had not yet solved the problem.
Li Huowang remembered everything that had happened before and added it to this problem again. "What else? Are there any changes in their appearance compared to ordinary households?"
"No changes. How could there be any difference between one person and another?"
Li Huowang certainly knew that everyone was the same, but he now suspected that the people living in Pixian might not be human.
"Regardless of what happened there, the situation must be serious." Li Huowang thought to himself.
Seeing that the other party was not talking, Lao Maiker thought for a moment and turned to walk towards his nephew.
But halfway through, the old man turned back. "Oh, by the way, there's one more thing. They're really good at playing with dolls in Pixian. Really good!"
"When I was collecting my coins, I passed by a window and heard a doll crying inside... tsk tsk, it was so heartbreaking~"
Li Huowang thoughtfully touched his chin with his hand. "Are they really playing with children? Or are they using children for something else?"
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In his mind, he couldn't help but think of the way the river bandits used boys and girls to summon the River God. In this completely crazy world, Li Huowang always planned for the worst.
After hearing what the other party said, Li Huowang had a new layer of worry in his heart. He hoped that the situation in Pixian was serious enough to attract the attention of the Celestial Monitoring Bureau. But at the same time, he didn't want this serious matter to put them in danger.
When Li Huowang came back to his senses, Lao Maiker had already left, and it was already dark.
Li Huowang shook his head and stood up to go wash up at the small stream by the field. "The more I think about it, the more confused I get. I might as well not think about it and see the actual situation when I get there."
The two Maikers went their separate ways the next day. After all, the wheat in Pixian had all been harvested, and they had to go to other wheat fields.
Days passed, and every time they met other travelers on the road, they tried to gather information about Pixian from them. Unfortunately, these people either didn't know or said that Pixian was plagued by disease and advised Li Huowang and his companions not to go there. They didn't find any useful information.
The only relief on this journey was that they didn't encounter any bandits or robbers.
In the end, with Li Huowang's somewhat anxious mood, they finally arrived in Pixian."Is this Pixian?" Li Huowang stood on a hill, using his newly healed eyes to look at the square county below.
It was cloudy today, and the whole sky was gloomy. Against this backdrop, Pixian looked particularly eerie.
Seeing the appearance of the county, Li Huowang finally understood why it was called Pixian, because the rough shape of the county was a character "匹".
Because this county looked like "匹", it was called Pixian.
"This place doesn't look peaceful at all. Let's be careful." Li Huowang finished speaking and lifted his foot to walk towards the so-called Pixian.
As soon as he entered the county, Li Huowang clearly felt that something was wrong. Compared with the last county, there were too few people here. The road was empty, and occasionally some people passed by them in a hurry.
Li Huowang felt many eyes looking at him, and they were all coming from behind the windows. After looking around, he could imagine that many people were peeking at him and his group of outsiders.
Just then, a woman in a linen skirt holding a crying child walked towards them with a haggard face.
As soon as she approached, she was clearly frightened by Li Huowang and the others. She bit her lower lip and hugged the crying child tightly, quickly walking along the eaves of the road.
When the woman was closest to him, Li Huowang inexplicably sniffed and closed his eyes slightly.
"Awu..." Mantou sat on the ground, sticking out his red tongue and scratching Li Huowang's hem with his two front paws.
Li Huowang patted Mantou's head with his hand. "Did you smell it too? Yes, there's a smell of blood and rust on her."
