HLnovel Chapter 36 A Voice Like a Poisonous Curse
Chapter 36 A Voice Like a Poisonous Curse
Grandma Sun looked embarrassed. She certainly couldn't say it in front of so many people, after all, the Yang family was so well-off, they might be able to give Lianhua ten taels of betrothal money.
Even if she can't marry into the Yang family, there are other families she can marry into later.
But if the lotus becomes aggressive and makes a tormenting sound, then the lotus's reputation will be ruined!
She lowered her voice and said, "Peach Blossom, I really have something to tell you."
“Grandma, is there anything you can’t say in public?” Zhao Taohua retorted.
Finally, after thinking it over, Grandma Sun said, "Peach Blossom, your sister Lotus seems to be possessed by a demon. You should go and take a look!"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Shengxiang immediately perked up. Had Zhao Lianhua been tainted by a demon?
She asked Grandma Sun, "Grandma Sun, could it be that Lotus harbored evil intentions and was thus tainted by a demon?"
The other villagers who were helping out at the Zhao family asked in surprise, "Lianhua usually seems so innocent and naive, how could she harbor such evil intentions?"
Someone nearby whispered, "Don't you even know whose family Lianhua is? What kind of child can the Zhao family's old residence raise?"
Grandma Sun was furious when she heard what these people said. She cursed:
“My Lianhua didn’t get it. She was digging for herbs on the mountain, and when she was thirsty, she picked a wild fruit to eat and that’s how she got it.”
Grandma Sun explained to everyone that, in short, no matter what, they couldn't say that Lotus harbored evil intentions; otherwise, everyone would know that Lotus wasn't actually that good inside.
Zhao Taohua raised an eyebrow: "Oh? I see. I wonder what kind of wild fruit Sister Lotus ate?"
She didn't believe Zhao Lianhua could actually swallow a long, completely black pole.
"persimmon?"
"plow?"
"orange?
Many villagers are speculating.
"Grandma, you know my rules. It costs ten taels of silver for each exorcism. Please pay me first!"
Zhao Taohua reached out her hand to Grandma Sun, which made Grandma Sun gasp for breath.
Their whole family had been digging for nearly twenty days and had only just earned ten taels of silver. They couldn't afford to spend it all now!
"Peach Blossom, don't worry, Grandma will definitely give you a lot of money. Lotus is getting married soon, and the Yang family will give a lot of betrothal gifts."
Originally, Old Lady Sun planned to ask the Yang family for a dowry of ten taels of silver, but Peach Blossom, that little stray dog, would charge ten taels of silver every time she performed a ritual to exorcise evil spirits.
It seems that we'll have to ask the Yang family for at least fifteen taels of betrothal money in return.
Zhao Taohua remained unmoved and laughed, "Grandma, are you trying to order me around without any explanation?"
Grandma Sun was anxious, but it was impossible for her to pay up.
"I'll write you an IOU!" said Grandma Sun.
As long as she doesn't have to pay, anything goes.
Zhao Taohua watched as Grandma Sun pressed her fingerprint on the IOU, then contentedly tucked it into her bosom.
The Zhao family's old house had ten acres of fertile land, worth thirty taels according to the prices in Zhao Village. Old Mrs. Sun already owed her twenty-eight taels.
Next time, if Grandma Sun tries to write an IOU again, she won't allow it!
Immediately afterwards, Zhao Taohua and Grandma Sun walked towards the Zhao family's old house together, and Qian Shi followed along, worried about them.
Jiang and Zhao Shengxiang were also worried, so they followed along. In fact, they were both curious about what kind of spirit had possessed Zhao Lianhua.
Zhao Shengxiang ate a durian, but what did she eat?
Grandma Sun looked back and saw that many villagers had come along.
Immediately, Old Mrs. Sun's face darkened, and she cursed:
"What are you doing here? Weren't you helping out at Ershu's house?"
One of them said, "The roof tiles at Ershu's house are almost finished, and the courtyard wall will definitely be built today as well. There are so many people here, it won't matter if a few of us are missing."
"That's right. Besides, Peach Blossom is very fast at catching spirits. It won't take much of a time."
Another person chimed in.
Zhao Shenglin was strolling around the village when he suddenly saw a group of people following behind Grandma Sun, so he went over to join in the fun.
Only after asking did they learn that Zhao Lianhua, the granddaughter of the eldest son of the Zhao family's old house, had been possessed by a demon and was asking Zhao Taohua to catch it!
Everyone says that Zhao Lianhua accidentally ate some fruit from the mountains, which is why she became entangled with the spirits.
Zhao Shenglin didn't care why she got involved with the spirit; he only knew that his chance had come again!
If Zhao Lianhua does something shady and gets involved with a spirit, ruining her reputation, wouldn't he be able to get a wife for free?
Zhao Lianhua is prettier than Zhao Shengxiang. If they could sleep together in each other's arms at night, he would wake up laughing in his dreams.
Grandma Sun was furious to see so many people following her. There was no way to stop them, so she could only block them at the gate of the Zhao family's old house.
When Zhou saw that she had brought so many people back, she was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan:
"Mother, now that everyone knows, how will Lianhua get married?"
The marriage between Lianhua and the Yang family is about to be finalized. Lianhua has already driven away the matchmaker You once, so there can't be any more unexpected changes.
Otherwise, even if the demon on Lotus is exorcised, her marriage to the Yang family will still fall through.
What's even more chilling is that if Lianhua's reputation is ruined, not only will her marriage to the Yang family fall through, but she'll also have trouble finding a partner in the future.
As Old Lady Sun closed the courtyard gate, she said to Madam Zhou:
“Don’t worry, eldest brother. I told them that Lianhua went up the mountain to dig for medicinal herbs, ate a wild fruit when she was thirsty, and that’s how she got tainted by the mountain spirits.”
Upon hearing this, Zhou breathed a sigh of relief and immediately led Zhao Taohua and her daughter toward Lianhua's room.
Jiang Shi, Zhao Shengxiang, and the others outside the courtyard gate were extremely curious, but unfortunately, Old Lady Sun closed the gate and wouldn't let them in.
They could only stand outside the courtyard gate and strain their ears to listen to what was happening inside.
When Zhao Ershu's family moved out, a room in the old Zhao family house became empty. Later, Grandma Sun gave it to the children of the eldest and third families.
Children over three years old would all live in that room so that the adults could have more grandchildren for the Zhao family's old house.
As soon as Zhao Taohua entered the room, she saw that Zhao Lianhua's mouth was gagged and her hands and feet were tied.
Upon seeing this, Madam Qian exclaimed in shock, "What kind of demon has possessed Lotus? Why are you treating her like this? Look at Lotus's wrists and ankles, they're all blistered from being tied with hemp rope!"
Although Qian was not Zhao Lianhua's biological mother, she was still an elder and couldn't bear to see Zhao Lianhua tied up like that.
Just as she was about to step forward and remove the cloth from Zhao Lianhua's mouth, she was stopped by Old Lady Sun and Zhou.
There are quite a few people standing outside the courtyard gate right now!
The Qian family didn't know, but they did know that once the cloth was removed from Lotus's mouth, she would definitely make a sharp, bone-scraping sound.
It's one thing if they suffer torture again, but it's another matter if people outside the courtyard hear it!
Grandma Sun said to Zhao Taohua, "Taohua, you should be able to tell what kind of spirit is on Lotus, right? Quickly, bring Lotus out!"
Just then, Zhao Taohua saw Zhao Lianhua turn her jaw, trying to spit out the cloth from her mouth.
Zhao Taohua wouldn't give her that chance. The troll's voice was extremely unpleasant. She directly pressed down on Zhao Lianhua's mouth, and a stream of spiritual energy flowed into it, immediately trying to pull the troll out.
"!!!"
The troll sensed danger and his pupils contracted.
He never expected that a minor Taoist master would emerge from this remote and impoverished place.
In an instant, Grandma Sun, Madam Zhou, and Madam Qian saw a long, jet-black rod emerge from Zhao Lianhua's body.
The long pole exuded a chilling aura, sending shivers down one's spine and causing one to retreat several steps in fear.
As the long pole was about to escape, all three men felt their hearts clench with anxiety.
Fortunately, in the next instant, Zhao Taohua firmly grasped it in her palm again.
It struggled left and right, constantly attacking Zhao Taohua with a sound like a poisonous curse. Qian Shi, Grandma Sun, and Zhou Shi, who were standing nearby, were already in a state of mental confusion and rushed over to snatch the long pole from Zhao Taohua's hands.
Not only them, but even the villagers outside the courtyard were affected by the noise and all started banging on the door like madmen.
They had only one thing on their minds: to go in and compete with Zhao Taohua for the long pole!
How could the wooden door of the Zhao family's old house withstand so many people banging on it at the same time?
A short while later, with a muffled thud, the courtyard gate collapsed, dust flew up, and the villagers stepped into the courtyard on the gate panels.