Zhang Juan apologized and admitted her mistake, but Mama Ma simply sneered and walked away without a word.
Angering Mama Ma? How could that possibly end well!
Did she really think a simple apology would be enough? Was that even possible?
Everyone in the village knew that the shaman and the poison witch were the two people you absolutely could not offend. Once wronged, the consequences would be unimaginable. However, Mama Ma was usually a very kind-hearted person who helped villagers without ever charging a fee. But she also had her own temper—if anyone ever wrongfully accused her, she would become cold and merciless.
Seeing that Mama Ma ignored her, Zhang Juan suddenly did something no one expected—she turned and ran!
“…”
Everyone was puzzled in an instant, and Shui Miao was also confused. Under these circumstances, Zhang Juan shouldn’t have run, so why did she? Mama Ma also stopped walking and looked toward Zhang Juan, suddenly feeling a sense of foreboding. Knowing her daughter better than anyone, Zhang Ling’s mother, upon seeing this, slapped her thigh and hurriedly shouted to the young bride, “Quickly chase after her! Bring her back! She’s going to find Old Master Long at the west end of the village. This girl has a stubborn temper and is capable of doing anything!”
As soon as Zhang Ling’s mother spoke these words, all the neighbors inhaled sharply.
Everyone knew that Old Master Long had a narrow heart and was greedy for profit. He would do anything for the right price. His skills in witchcraft were terrifying—if Zhang Juan was determined to beg Old Master Long to retaliate against Mama Ma, there was a real possibility he might agree. If Old Master Long decided to help Zhang Juan, Mama Ma would surely be in big trouble. Once the city gate catches fire, the fish in the pond will inevitably suffer too—the nearby villagers would all be dragged into the chaos and suffer greatly.
Reminded by the old woman, the young bride was startled and immediately prepared to chase after Zhang Juan.
But Shui Miao also ran out behind her…
It turned out that Shuilong Ridge was divided by a large river, splitting the village into East Village and West Village. To reach the West Village, one had to go south along the Shuilong River to the shallowest section, cross the river on foot, and then run for another ten minutes or so to reach the West Village. The young bride couldn’t send Shui Miao back, so she held his hand and ran southward together, chasing all the way to the riverside where Shui Miao had previously regained consciousness.
Seeing no one following behind, Shui Miao suddenly pulled the young bride aside, hiding behind a large rock and preventing her from continuing the chase. He even covered her mouth so she couldn’t speak.
The young bride was completely baffled, unable to understand what Shui Miao was trying to do.
Shui Miao held her tightly without explaining anything, simply sitting there quietly.
He had his own plan. Now that things had reached this point, it might be better to let Zhang Juan go and summon Old Master Long, then watch the two powerful figures fight each other while he reaped the benefits from the sidelines. If they didn’t fight, he would continue being watched constantly by the spirit attached to Mama Ma, restricting his freedom and preventing him from discovering the real reason the White Snake had brought him here.
That was why Shui Miao had chased out here with the young bride.
However, just as he sat down for a few minutes, he suddenly felt a chill around his neck. A black-and-red venomous snake had leapt down from the rocks and coiled tightly around his neck. Startled, Shui Miao instinctively tried to shake it off but ended up bitten on the finger, instantly numbing half of his arm.
Damn! Another snake…
Shui Miao quickly shook off the snake and used his mouth to suck the venom from the bite, but after just one suck, his mouth went numb, losing all sensation. Only then did the young bride react, rushing to a nearby patch of grass, tearing off some leaves, chewing them in her mouth, and then smearing the mashed herbs onto Shui Miao’s finger. She even spat the remaining mixture directly into his mouth.
The numbness spread throughout his body, and soon Shui Miao was unable to move.
However, the young bride knew it wasn’t serious. The numbness would subside within half an hour as long as the herbal remedy was applied.
She leaned Shui Miao against a rock and continued chasing after Zhang Juan.
Shui Miao felt anxious inside. Not long after, when the numbness reached his chest, the jade pendant on his body slightly vibrated, instantly eliminating all discomfort.
So this jade pendant really is my amulet!
Excited, Shui Miao quickly chased after the young bride.
When he reached the shallow part of the river, he saw the young bride limping forward, apparently having sprained her foot. Catching up to her, Shui Miao helped her sit on a nearby rock, trying to massage her foot but not knowing how. Seeing that Shui Miao looked completely normal, not at all like a fool, the young bride grabbed his arm anxiously and asked, “San, have you been pretending to be stupid all along?”
“…”
Hearing the words “pretending to be stupid,” Shui Miao’s heart skipped a beat. He hurriedly gave her foot a few random rubs, causing her to wince in pain. She pushed him away with a sigh and said, “Looks like you really are still a bit slow. But you’ve improved a lot from before. Zhang Juan ran too fast for me to catch up, and now my foot is injured. You’d better help me go back.”
Shui Miao smiled foolishly and nodded, then carried the young bride on his back and started walking home.
Seeing how steadily Shui Miao walked, the young bride began to suspect again—he didn’t seem stupid at all!
After walking for a while, Shui Miao saw several female neighbors approaching from ahead. As usual in the village, there were far more women than men—the men had all gone out to work, leaving the women as the main labor force.
The kind-hearted women helped support the young bride as they walked back.
No one chased after Zhang Juan. No one in the village would willingly go to the West Village unless absolutely necessary, because everyone feared being cursed by Old Master Long.
In the past, Old Master Long had used his curses to control the women of the village and take advantage of them.
But since Mama Ma became the shaman, she had taught everyone how to defend against curses—always cook food thoroughly, never accept anything from Old Master Long. Additionally, Mama Ma taught them that bathing in the Women’s River could remove curse eggs attached to the skin, as the river was surrounded by mugwort and blessed by her talismans.
Because of this, all the women in the village bathed in the river.
Even women from the West Village often came to bathe in the Women’s River.
※※※
From a distance, Shui Miao saw that Li Ermao had already recovered, and his son Li Gang had also come back to life. The two of them were walking southward together. Compared to when they first arrived at the village, their attitudes were now significantly more subdued.
They kept their heads down as they passed by Shui Miao.
In fact, Mama Ma wasn’t a cruel or ruthless shaman. She had only made Li Gang suffer like that to scare everyone a little. However, when Zhang Juan impulsively ran to the West Village to find Old Master Long, Mama Ma, considering the seriousness of the situation, decided to spare both Li Ermao and Li Gang after being persuaded by the villagers.
Now, this father and son were heading to the West Village to try to stop Zhang Juan.
When Shui Miao returned, Mama Ma didn’t even glance at him before heading home directly. Shui Miao listened to the neighbors gossiping and gradually pieced together what had happened. He began to wonder—how did Mama Ma know that the young bride had sprained her foot? Could it be that the spirit attached to Mama Ma had followed them and was watching him?
Thinking about this, Shui Miao suddenly looked at his hand and realized there was no wound from the snake bite.
“How is that possible?”
“Could it be… that snake was transformed by the spirit?”
“The spirit was trying to deceive me! She wanted to stop me from preventing the young bride from going to the West Village!”
“If that’s true, then the spirit attached to Mama Ma must be afraid of Old Master Long in the West Village…”
Shui Miao’s heart chilled, his eyes darting as his determination to stir up conflict between the two sides and let them fight while he reaped the benefits only grew stronger.
※※※
In the West Village of Shuilong Ridge,
Deep within a quiet forest, numerous netted enclosures were visible everywhere, each filled with strange and grotesque insects, making the sight deeply unsettling.
Deep within this forest stood several connected bamboo huts.
These huts were different from ordinary ones. Their exteriors were wrapped with dried medicinal herbs, and between the herbs were various talismans. At a glance, the entire structure exuded an eerie, inexplicable aura—strangers would surely hesitate to approach. Those familiar with the area knew that only Old Master Long lived inside these huts, along with countless bizarre and terrifying insects.
Following the forest path, Zhang Juan walked forward, covering her mouth while glancing at the horrifying insects inside the netted enclosures. When she was about ten meters from the bamboo huts, she suddenly saw a dog covered in insect eggs lying on the ground inside one of the enclosures. White worms crawled out of the eggs, wriggling all over the dog’s body.
At this sight, Zhang Juan could no longer hold back—she vomited violently.
“Whoosh!”
The black curtain hanging at the entrance of the bamboo hut was suddenly pulled aside by a pair of hands covered in pus-filled sores…
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage