Chapter 23: Watch Me Charge

  I finished speaking and looked at them. Ah Tian laughed first: "Can't tell, you're so young and believe in this."

  The boss sighed and said: "No matter what, my purpose for coming here is only Sakuya."

  Kakaxi climbed onto my shoulder and said, "Fourth Sister, Fourth Sister, we absolutely can't back down now. Look, two villages have already been burned to the ground, everyone's dead. In nine years, who knows, maybe three villages will be gone, and in another nine years, four villages... and then they'll all be wiped out. The thing being suppressed here will break free. By that time, powerful alien monsters or something else will threaten our Earth. We can't wait for Ultraman, so let's just have us few become heroes and save the world!"

  After finishing, he tightly grasped my hand and looked at the three people beside us. They were all staring at Kakashi like a monster. Kakashi also glanced at them, indicating that they should put their hands up, but Sohachiro turned around and walked westward, saying: "Anyway, let's go to the village first and ask someone about it. Especially about that legend. Once we have some clues and are fully prepared, we can discuss whether or not to dive in."

  Atian nodded and followed Su Haicheng, saying to me as he walked: "Si Yi, if you're not full, eat a bit more while we walk."

  "Oh, okay. I still don't support going down the river, let's go to the village and ask around instead." I shook off Kakashi's hand and followed their footsteps.

  The boss also caught up with Su Haicheng: "Hey, Su Haicheng, hand over that key! If you guys aren't going to dive in, I'll go myself!"

  Kakaxi was left standing alone, his hand still stretched out in the direction we were heading, shouting at our backs: "Don't you guys have any conscience? I'm just trying to boost morale for us. Hey, wait for me! Siyi Jie, you're so capable, knowing all about formations and stuff, come on and tell me more!"

  When we arrived at the next village, it was already after noon. These villages are rarely visited by outsiders, but that doesn't mean no one ever comes in. An old lady carrying a basket of vegetables on her shoulder saw us first and asked kindly: "Which family are you looking for? I can help guide you."

  The boss immediately smiled and said: "Auntie, we're just here to have fun, is it okay if we go to your house?"

  "Come on, come on, let's go, follow me."

  She agreed just like that and led us to her home? Kakashi and I widened our eyes in surprise. Su Haicheng and A Tian seemed to have no big reaction.

  I walked at the back of the team and said in a low voice: "Isn't she worried that we are bad people?"

  "Exactly!"

  The boss said in a low voice in front of us: "These villages, usually someone comes in from the outside. The host family will receive some money left by the guests. The village is far away from the county town, they don't lack food, but they lack money, so they are very happy to entertain us. As outsiders, as soon as we enter the village, someone will notice that we have gone to which family, you guys don't have any bad ideas."

  "It turns out they are simple and honest." If it weren't for this trip, I would never have had such an understanding.

  When we arrived at the old lady's house, the man in the old lady's house saw that there were guests coming and hurriedly asked the woman to prepare food. I looked at this wooden building, with two floors up and down, pigs raised downstairs, a small hall for the owner upstairs, and four rooms on both sides. There was no kitchen, just cooking in a corner of the living room. And that strange bucket placed in the pot is said to be used for steaming rice.

  A small color TV, with a pot lid as an antenna, can still receive many channels. The walls are covered with names and phone numbers written in charcoal. The boss whispered to me that in such a village, the more names and phone numbers written on the wall of the living room, the more face the owner has.

  Su Haicheng's face was cold, but his words were still very polite. "Sir, we want to understand a legend here about some key and the dead coming back."

  That old man with a grey and white head, hunchbacked, holding a huge water pipe gun, his narrowed eyes changed: "How did you know about that key?"

  His words were full of dialect and hard to understand. The boss quickly stepped forward: "My girlfriend is from this nearby village."

  The old man nodded and put down his guard, then walked out while saying: "I'll go ask the teacher from the village to come talk to you."

  A village, the teacher and the village chief are the most credible people. While waiting, Ah Tian said he went hunting because he saw that the big aunt had only prepared a chicken shell and green vegetables for us. Chicken shell? For me and Kakashi who have always been in the city, it was an unknown thing, and it was only then that I knew that chicken shell referred to the chicken skeleton after removing the skin and meat. Their lives are basically self-sufficient. Suddenly so many guests came, and at one time they really couldn't prepare any good dishes.

  Su Haicheng stood at the first floor staircase watching Ah Tian leave, while Boss and Kakashi were still researching in the living room to see who else had left their names, even finding a professor from D University bringing students to collect wind and leaving behind.

  I followed Su Haicheng to stand at the stairs and watched Ah Tian leave, saying in a low voice: "He's going hunting with a gun. Is it safe or not?"

  "A Tian's marksmanship is excellent, and he also has a lot of experience in hunting."

  "I thought he was just a flower vase bar owner." I laughed. But when I turned my head to look at Su Haicheng beside me, he still had a cold face on. Is this person's sense of humor dead or what? "Hey!" I said somewhat displeased, walking around in front of him and blocking his way, attracting him to look at me.

  Normally, at this time, one should ask "what's wrong?" But he didn't, just staring at me, waiting for me to speak. I knew he was waiting for me to speak, but I just wouldn't say anything, just staring back at him and he also stared back at me without speaking.

  "I couldn't help but say, 'Hey, are you just going to keep staring? What's with the staring? Oh right, I spent a lot of money on your card, but I don't have any cash to pay you back. If you're going to keep staring at me like that, I'm going to have to start charging by the hour. There's only one of me in the whole world, and I'm more valuable than a giant panda - 500 bucks an hour isn't too expensive, is it? Go ahead and stare, I'll just consider it payment for my debt. Oh, and do you want me to unzip my jacket a bit?"

  My hand was on the zipper of my olive green outdoor jacket, five seconds later, his lips curled up and he turned away. I put down my hand and let out a heavy sigh: "Su Haicheng! You finally smiled. I thought after what happened you'd be stupid for the rest of your life and wouldn't smile again."

  "I didn't laugh."

  "You just smiled, I saw it."

  "I really didn't laugh."

  I shot him a glance: "Can't you just say you're amused? I've sacrificed my dignity to make you happy, and you still won't give me any reaction. No wonder you can't find a girlfriend at thirty!"

  I turned around and was about to head upstairs when he grabbed my hand as I passed by him: "Alright, I laughed. Don't play jokes like that again."

  "Are you serious?" Looking at his awkward appearance, I couldn't help but continue teasing him. Actually, what I really wanted to ask was whether he was a 30-year-old virgin or not. But I was afraid of offending him.

  He didn't continue, turned around and went upstairs even faster than me. Ah Tian came back quickly, still holding a pheasant in his hand. The old woman's smile was so wide that her eyes were almost closed.

  After the meal was ready, we sat down at the table. The village head and a teacher from the village were also with us. The village head was an old man in his seventies, while the teacher was a man in his thirties wearing a cheap suit.

  The old lady didn't come to the table, she was holding a bowl by the stove and eating some leftover food from the pot. I called out several times, then the teacher said to me: "Miss, don't call her, it's the local custom here that women don't sit at the table."

  "Huh? Then I..."

  Kakaxi smiled and said: "Fourth sister, come on, take the bowl down to eat with the pigs." As he spoke, he even gave me a chicken leg.

  I glared at him, really wanting to scold him in front of everyone and give him some face. The teacher immediately said: "You can follow us, you're a guest, an outside guest. Are you a university student? Haha, I also attended high school, wanted to attend, but didn't get in back then."

  All the men had poured themselves a drink, which was customary. When there were guests present, they would drink a bowl of wine before eating as a way to welcome them. The teacher also specifically told me that if I wasn't used to it, I didn't have to drink; just holding the wine bowl and making the motion of drinking would be enough.

  After drinking and eating, everyone's conversation finally turned to that key and legend.