But it was basically used in bait pits, which were deliberately set traps specifically for catching water monkeys.
However, this also indicated that a main pit might exist nearby, though it was unknown what exactly was buried inside.
Li Zhiyuan had no interest in searching, because the condition needed to set up a ground trap was likely the "live burial" from back then. It did not refer to burying people alive, but rather underwater structures that could move with changing hydrology.
Therefore, perhaps when it was constructed, the bait pits and main pit were in standard positions. But now, it was uncertain how chaotic they had become. Even if you knew the location of a bait pit, you could not deduce the main pit’s position.
Si Hai’s family was unlucky, and it was unclear whether his fish pond was dug right on top of a bait pit, or the bait pit itself had moved beneath his fish pond.
Of course, if it weren’t either of those two situations, then the nature of the incident might have changed. It might really have been a water monkey caught on the hook.
All afternoon, Li Zhiyuan read books, and Grandmaster and Run Sheng didn’t return until dinner.
At dinner, Li Sanjiang recounted what happened to the Si Hai family.
Two outsiders wanted to lease Si Hai’s fish pond at a high price to raise softshell turtles, so even though it wasn’t time to empty the pond, Si Hai decided to clear it to lease it out.
When Si Hai and his son went down to the pond to set nets at noon, an incident occurred. The two outsiders also helping in the pond were involved; all four people looked as if they had been rolled in limewater, with large areas burned and rotten. Although they hadn’t died and were taken to the hospital, their appearance was truly frightening.
The local villagers were terrified. Li Sanjiang performed some rites on the spot in the afternoon. As soon as the rite was completed, the red water in the whole pond subsided. Villagers all said that Sanjiang had suppressed the evil spirit.
When mentioning this, Li Sanjiang rubbed his chin with satisfaction and took a sip of wine.
Li Zhiyuan speculated that it was the land trap being triggered and released completely, opening the bait pit, which caused the pond water to pour into the bait pit.
Moreover, those two outsiders were indeed kind-hearted, not only offering to lease the fish pond at a high price but also volunteering to help clear it.
After dinner, Li Zhiyuan prepared to go upstairs to practice martial arts but was mysteriously stopped by Run Sheng.
"Xiao Yuan, come here for a moment."
Li Zhiyuan followed Run Sheng to the side of a tricycle, where Run Sheng lifted the white plastic cover to reveal an old shovel lying underneath.
"Xiao Yuan, look, doesn’t this shovel look a bit like our Yellow River Shovel? But only a little, it’s not as good as ours."
Li Zhiyuan took the shovel and tried folding and transforming it. The core structure was indeed the same as the Yellow River Shovel, but the detailed design was far inferior.
However, this item was indeed old, bearing many repair marks; it was truly an antique.
"Brother Runsheng, did you pick this up by the fish pond today?"
"Yeah, I didn’t dare tell Grandmaster. I picked it up secretly because I smelled a corpse odor on it."
Li Zhiyuan leaned in to sniff it. He didn’t detect anything, but he trusted Run Sheng’s judgment because professional Corpse Recovery Divers had an uncanny sensitivity to the smell of Water Corpses.
"Does it belong to those two outsiders?"
"I don’t know; when I got there, all four were severely injured, and this thing was just left by the pond."
"You did well, Brother Runsheng."
"Ah... I thought you’d blame me for taking it."
"This is not just any ordinary item."
The old imitation Yellow River Shovel, still holding the odor of Water Corpses, almost explicitly indicated it was used by those water monkeys.
"Water monkeys" referred to underwater thieves who, if noticed by people on the shore when stealing or excavating, would often drag them underwater to kill and silence them. Thus, tales of water monkeys seeking scapegoats circulated everywhere.
"Xiao Yuan, is it useful?"
"It is useful, Brother Runsheng. The next time you smell something , be sure to inform me promptly."
"Alright, no problem."
"Oh, by the way, Brother Runsheng, would you play some cards with me?"
"What, play cards with you?" Run Sheng recalled the scene at the hall where Xiao Yuan was wiping the floor with everyone. In his eyes, Xiao Yuan was like another gambling legend, Gao Jin.
"Just a few rounds, no money involved."
There was already an open pack of cards in the drawer. Li Zhiyuan and Run Sheng sat across from each other. Run Sheng shuffled and dealt the cards; it was simple, just three-card Poker, comparing who had the bigger hand after dealing.
After twenty rounds, Run Sheng won eight, and Li Zhiyuan won twelve.
Li Zhiyuan switched to shuffling and dealing himself, and after twenty rounds, he won nine and Run Sheng won eleven.
*It seemed that the special Luck he had disappeared?*
*But, what exactly had he sacrificed?*
Li Zhiyuan sat there, continuing to play with the cards in his hand. He kept waiting for a big one, but it never came.
*Forget it, don’t think about it. He’d find Run Sheng and compare another game tomorrow morning. If it was still such a normal win-loss ratio, then he could go out.*
Aunt Liu was combing Liu Yumei’s hair, sighing, "Xiao Yuan’s household registration is here now. This child, his Luck really isn’t great, falling such a big fall."
"A big fall? Maybe that kid himself didn’t feel much about it."
"It’s because he’s still young and doesn’t understand, right?"
"Ah Ting, you’ve interacted with him. Do you really think he’s just a kid?"
"For most people, encountering such an event might mean their Luck for life is broken, leaving them perpetually downcast.