Chapter 1 The Pretty Daughter-in-law of Xiaoyu Village

  I was born in the early 1980s, in a remote mountain village on the southwestern border. That village once brought me laughter and happiness, but after that thing happened, it only brings me nightmares.

  Now, the village has disappeared, and the people in that village have also left one by one during that era because of that thing. I am one of the few survivors among them, so after careful consideration, I decided to write down what I saw at that time.

  The nightmare of the entire village began with the mysterious disappearance of the corpse of a rural beauty named Zhang Xiaolan.

  That was when I was seven years old, on the tenth day of the sixth month in the year of Wuchen, which coincided with the summer solstice, July 23rd on the solar calendar. That day was my seventh birthday and also the day Zhang Xiaolan was buried.

  The village where I was born is called Shimavillage, and Zhang Xiaolan married into Shimavillage. As for her hometown, I only know it's very far away, but I don't know exactly where it is. Anyway, in my memory, after Zhang Xiaolan married into Shimavillage, she never went back to her hometown again.

  Zhang Xiaolan was very beautiful, but as for what she looked like, I couldn't say clearly and can't remember either. Because at that time I was still a little kid, in the eyes of a little kid, the most beautiful woman is always mom.

  Zhang Xiaolan's husband was the son of the village head, named Liu Da Kui. However, that Liu Da Kui was an idiot. Therefore, when Zhang Xiaolan had just married and come over, many people in the village thought it was a beautiful flower inserted into cow dung.

  At that time, because it was located in the depths of the mountains, Shimawan Village didn't even have electricity, and everyone used kerosene lamps for lighting at night. Of course, there wouldn't be any black-and-white TVs or radios in the village either.

  The most common form of entertainment in the village is for women to sit together and gossip, thus cultivating many sharp-tongued women.

  That Zhang Xiaolan, it's unclear whether it was because the women in the village excluded her or because she simply didn't deign to associate with these gossipy women, but in any case, she rarely spoke with them.

  It's unclear whether it was because Zhang Xiaolan was too beautiful or because she had offended the village gossips. In any case, within half a month of marrying into Shimavillage, rumors began circulating that she was having an affair.

  Like shocking news such as "Crawl Gray", after passing through the mouths of those gossipmongers, it can be described as a thrilling ethical blockbuster in just one or two turns.

  After those gossipy women's vivid descriptions, Zhang Xiaolan and her father-in-law Liu Renqing's affair was spread further and further, becoming more and more credible. Even Liu Renqing's wife, Zhang Xiaolan's mother-in-law Li Tianzhen, was also dragged into the rumors by those gossipy women.

  I didn't witness Liu Renqing's affair with the gray-haired man myself. As for the whole process of Liu Renqing's affair, I also heard it from those gossiping women, and whether it was true or not, I didn't go to verify it, so I couldn't make a rash judgment either.

  According to what the gossipy women said, this is roughly how things went. The Liu family had only one son for three generations, so Liu Da Kui was very honored to have become the only son of the Liu family.

  Because he was an only child, the Liu family placed all their hopes for continuing the Liu lineage on him. Therefore, although Liu Da-kui was a fool, Liu Ren-qing still went to find him a wife to continue the Liu family line.

  There are some differences in the identity of Zhang Xiaolan, Liu's daughter-in-law. Some people say that Zhang Xiaolan was bought by Liu Daogui from a human trafficker for money, while others say that Zhang Xiaolan is a prostitute and was met by Liu Daogui when he was fooling around outside, and also said that someone had seen Zhang Xiaolan selling in the town before.

  In short, even if it's a baseless rumor, in the mouths of those gossipy women in Shimǎ Village, it can be made to sound like a well-reasoned argument. Of course, I don't really believe what those gossipy women say, so I've never been able to figure out where that Zhang Xiaolan actually came from.

  There was only one time when I heard my mother say that Zhang Xiaolan was from another province, and her home was very far away from Shima Village. My mother is not a gossip, so in my opinion, my mother's words are credible, so I can only confirm that Zhang Xiaolan's home is very far away, but nothing else is known.

  Zhang Xiaolan's background is not the focus here, so I won't elaborate on it.

  It is said that on the night Liu's family brought Zhang Xiaolan back home as their daughter-in-law, before entering the bridal chamber. Li Tianzhen knew her son was a fool, so she had taught Zhang Xiaolan some techniques beforehand.

  Xiao Lan indeed followed Li Tianzhen's words and did it, she not only used her hands but also her mouth. Unfortunately, Liu Da Kui was not really angry, he was not only stupid in the head, but that thing was also useless.

  So Zhang Xiaolan struggled all night, but there was no result at all. Liu Da-kui was good, when Zhang Xiaolan tried to wake him up with her mouth, he actually fell asleep with a snore.

  On the first night of their wedding, it's said that girls from good families are usually very shy, but Zhang Xiaolan was so bold that she even used her mouth, showing that she's a slut at heart.

  For several nights after the wedding night, Zhang Xiaolan did not enjoy the pleasure of being a woman. Therefore, on a certain evening a few days later, Zhang Xiaolan secretly took a rolling pin into the house.

  After Liu Da-kui fell asleep, Zhang Xiao-lan began to gently rub her place with a rolling pin. As she rubbed, Zhang Xiao-lan moaned emotionally.

  Just as Zhang Xiaolan's moans were getting louder, Liu Renqing happened to finish using the toilet and was returning from the outhouse. As he passed by Liu Daogui's room, he heard Zhang Xiaolan's groans.

  Liu Renqing is a seasoned person, he knows what this sound means. Liu Renqing thought that Zhang Xiaolan's voice was made by his own son, it seems that his own son is not stupid either, at least continuing the incense of the Liu family is no problem.

  However, Liu Renqing was a cautious person. Having only heard the sound, he still couldn't confirm whether his son Liu Daqi had consummated his marriage with his daughter-in-law Zhang Xiaolan or not.

  To clarify, Liu Renqing woke up Li Tianzhen. This kind of thing, it's not too good for the husband to sneak a peek, so it's slightly better for the wife to go take a look. Therefore, Liu Renqing asked Li Tianzhen to go and see if it was really like that.

  This matter concerns the inheritance of the Liu family's incense, and it is a major event for the Liu family. Therefore, although Li Tianzhen also felt that going to sneak a peek was not good in her heart, she still went with a hard head because her own son was an idiot.

  Li Tianzhen quietly walked to the door of her son Liu Daogui's room. To avoid suspicion, Liu Renqing did not follow and hid in his own room instead.

  At the door of the house, Li Tianzhen felt that something was wrong. As a woman herself, she knew what kind of sound women made when they were doing that thing.

  She could hear that Zhang Xiaolan was also panting, but this sound still carried some resentment. What's important is that Li Tianzhen heard her son Liu Daogui snoring.

  As for her own son, Zhang Xiaolan was quite familiar with him. As soon as Liu Da-kui started snoring, he would definitely sleep like a dead pig.

  Li Tianzhen's sons have all married, and she has a wealth of experience in this area. She knows that once men fall asleep, they are not capable of doing that thing.

  At least Liu Da-kui's father, Liu Ren-qing, had never done that thing with her in his dreams over the past few decades. So, after hearing Liu Da-kui's snores, Li Tian-zhen couldn't help but feel suspicious.

  She is now somewhat suspicious, Zhang Xiaolan's voice was not made when she was with her son Liu Daogui.

  Li Tianzhen originally only wanted to quietly listen outside her son's room and then leave, but after hearing his snores, she had to take a look.

  The doors of the rural houses are all made of wood. Even if the door is not locked, you can push it open with a small crack, and it will creak loudly. Therefore, to avoid embarrassment, Li Tianzhen cannot move the room door.

  However, wanting to see what's going on inside the house isn't just a matter of pushing open the door.

  At that time, the houses in rural areas were all earth walls. Therefore, there was either a hole here or a seam there. This is due to the quality of the house itself and also the credit of mice. At least those holes on the wall were mostly made by mice.

  Liu Da-kui's wooden door sill in this room was gnawed by that damned rat, making a big hole. Through this hole, one can barely see the situation inside the house.

  At this time, Li Tianzhen couldn't care about what was proper or improper anymore. She directly lay down on the ground and stuck her eyes to the hole gnawed by the mouse at the doorsill.

  Although the hole was close to the ground, it was as big as a fist, and the highest point of the entrance was at least three or four inches from the ground. Therefore, Li Tianzhen didn't find it too uncomfortable to look in while lying down.

  There was a small window on the wall in Liu Da-kui's room, and since the moon was brighter that day, although there were no kerosene lamps lit inside, the scene inside could still be vaguely seen.

  Before seeing that scene, Li Tianzhen still had a wisp of fantasy. She hoped she was just having tinnitus, and her son Liu Daqi wasn't snoring or sleeping, but was consummating his marriage with his daughter-in-law.

  But this fantasy often cannot be true. After seeing Zhang Xiaolan playing with a big stick and her son sleeping like a dead pig, Li Tianzhen was thoroughly desperate.

  After seeing all this, Li Dajun felt not only desperate but also indignant, and of course, she was also ashamed for her own daughter-in-law. Such a scene, Li Dajun had no interest in continuing to watch, because the more she looked, the more disgusted she felt, so she stormed back to her own room.