Mortal Mirror

The old blind man laughed when he heard the question, "These are all just fabricated stories. I'm just telling them randomly to earn some tips. Whether you believe it or not is your own business."

This story was quite moving. If it were true, everyone would feel that the people in the town were cold-blooded.

Suddenly, Nineteen noticed that Si Ning was staring at Li Ergou, so he reached out and tapped her little head lightly, saying, "Hey, hey, what's going on? Does Ergou have flowers growing on his face?"

As soon as he said this, everyone at the table stared blankly at Si Ning. Si Ning immediately became shy, but she was straightforward and never hid her emotions. She said generously, "Well, I don't know, I just feel a strange, inexplicable connection with this Brother Ergou.

Yeah, there's a sense of closeness and familiarity, but I don't know why. It's my first time here, and we've never met before. Isn't that strange? Could it be that we knew each other in a past life?" she joked.

Big White Elephant chuckled, "You wouldn't happen to like our Ergou, would you? But you're too young, it's not appropriate. Besides, Ergou already has the village belle in his heart."

"Who is the village belle?"

"The village belle, Ergou says her name is Cuihua. She has wide hips and a thick back, strong legs, and a big butt. She can not only farm but also have children."

Nineteen and Si Ning were stunned, and then burst into laughter.

Not far away, the red-clothed woman's face turned black. After all this time, she finally understood what Li Ergou meant by his evaluation of her. He was saying that she was not even as good as a village woman. This made her feel both amused and that she was wasting her anger on a fool.

Perhaps the only one who wasn't laughing was Li Ergou.

Why? Because he was also wondering why he felt a strange sense of closeness and fondness when he saw Si Ning. It wasn't the so-called romantic love, but a familial affection, as if she were his own sister.

Si Ning looked to be eleven or twelve years old. If his sister were still alive, she would be about that age now.

Unfortunately, after his second uncle sold him to the landlord's family, the whole family moved away from Wanglong Village. He didn't know where his second uncle went, and his sister was probably sold off as well, or perhaps she was already dead. He was too young at the time and only had a vague impression.

Thinking of this, he felt inexplicably sad, grabbed his wine glass, and drank it all in one gulp.

Seeing that Ergou wasn't speaking, everyone thought he was angry. Big White Elephant quickly said, "Ergou, you're not mad at me, are you?"

Li Ergou shook his head, wanting to talk about his sister, but ultimately decided against it, not wanting to burden others. Besides, these things were perhaps his only little secret.

Then he smiled and said, "It's nothing, I just remembered some old things."

Big White Elephant seemed to have misunderstood something and sighed, "The past is like smoke, things will only get better in the future. Don't worry, you still have us brothers."

"Brothers," he nodded, "Okay, let's drink to our brothers."

With that, he raised his glass and drank it.

Si Ning asked suspiciously, "What are you talking about? I don't seem to understand. What old things? You're so young, what unforgettable old things could you have?"

Big White Elephant immediately perked up and said, "Ah, you don't know about my Brother Ergou's past. It's even more exciting than the legend of Tiangou Town."

As soon as he said this, Nineteen also became interested and said, "Since we have nothing to do, why don't you tell us about it so we can learn more."

Big White Elephant immediately found an opportunity to show off, but then he thought of something and looked at Li Ergou, saying, "Ergou, you won't be angry if I tell it, will you?"

Li Ergou rolled his eyes at him and said, "Your mouth is on your body, say whatever you want. Why would I be angry? That's just how life is, I don't think it's embarrassing."

Big White Elephant chuckled and said, "Alright, the thing is this..."

Whether it was psychology or the gossipy nature of women, the red-clothed woman actually picked at her food while eavesdropping, like a little fox trying to steal a chicken.

Big White Elephant was truly eloquent, his saliva flying as he embellished Li Ergou's story. He knew very little, only telling the general idea and the superficial details.

Before he even finished, Si Ning was already crying miserably. By the time Big White Elephant finished speaking, Si Ning's eyes were red and she was heartbroken.

This scared everyone, even Li Ergou was a little stunned.

Big White Elephant even said, "Ah, girls are emotional creatures. Cry, cry, it's not a crime. Actually, as a grown man, I even feel like crying when I hear about Ergou's story."

Si Ning said with a red face, "Hearing about your miserable life, I feel inexplicably sad, very sad. You've had such a hard life."

Si Ning's eyes were filled with heartache, not a pretense. Besides, she didn't need to pretend. Seeing Si Ning like this, Li Ergou felt a pang of heartache, but he said with a smile, "This is nothing. My dream used to be just not to go hungry and to be able to live.

Look at me now, I've joined the martial arts school, and I have so many good friends by my side. I can eat so much good food, life has never been so good. Hardship will eventually pass."

The red-clothed woman on the side also inexplicably teared up. Perhaps she had never imagined that there could be such suffering in the world.

But after hearing Li Ergou's words, she was greatly amazed. She didn't expect that such an uneducated country boy could say such things. What a strong and resilient heart this person has. She didn't know how to evaluate this guy.

The dwarf was nonchalant, occasionally taking a sip of wine and a bite of vegetables, enjoying himself. It was as if he hadn't heard a word anyone else said. Of course, even if he had heard, he wouldn't care.

The red-clothed woman glanced at the dwarf and felt extremely helpless. She couldn't help but think, "Men are all cold-blooded animals."

Just then, Big White Elephant suddenly said, "Hey, the town is lively today. Look, another strange person has come to town."

Everyone listened and looked, and saw a hunchbacked old man riding a goat as big as a calf at the entrance of the town.

This goat was strange. It was clearly a white goat, but it had a black beard. Its horns were curved like two scimitars, and its pupils emitted an eerie light. It looked like anything but an ordinary creature.

Looking at the old man, he was hunchbacked and stooped, with many age spots on his face, looking like he was about to die at any moment. What was strange was that, despite his appearance, he was carrying a bamboo basket on his back, covered with a black cloth, sealing the basket tightly.

The strangest thing was, whether the old man himself was scary, or whether he had something scary on him, the sounds of chickens, ducks, geese, and dogs in the town suddenly stopped wherever he went, as if someone had suddenly grabbed their throats. All the sounds disappeared without a trace.

At the town entrance, the stray dogs that usually roamed there were now lying on the ground, trembling, not daring to make even the slightest sound in their throats.

At this moment, the sun was setting, and the sunlight stretched the shadows of the old man and the goat incredibly long. The blood-red light enveloped him, making him even more mysterious.

This eerie scene was chilling.