Having eaten and drunk enough, and having also overcome his craving for tobacco, Hu Changzi shouldered the big frame and continued on his way. At this time, it was only around 8 or 9 o'clock, with the sun shining brightly. The mountain air was thick with moisture, and further up, there were areas that had not been trodden by human feet in decades, the upper half of the mountain.

  That sentence "the world originally had no roads, but with many people walking, roads were formed" is now more suitable for Hu Changzi than ever. The mountain has just passed halfway, and the road under his feet has disappeared without a trace. His eyes are filled with wisteria branches and weeds, and Hu Changzi is now taking one step at a time, stopping to cut vines, with his bicycle on his shoulder, no longer as relaxed as before.

  He muttered to himself, feeling sorry for the brand new Liberation shoes on his feet, which had been ruined by this road. After walking not far, they were covered in mud as if he had just finished farming.

  There was a path, also opened up decades ago as a small dirt road. Now it's hard to tell which way is clear, and can only rely on the general direction, drilling in and out among these old tree vines, suddenly feeling that the road ahead has become open and spacious.

  Hú Zhǎngzi was overjoyed, thinking to himself that this small mountain pass wasn't difficult to climb at all, and there was a road laid out right here. He followed the winding mountain path upwards, but from some point on, the sweat on his head started pouring down like rain, and his footsteps became heavier and more labored.

  As he walked, the weight of the bicycle on his shoulder began to feel heavier and heavier. Although he was quite strong and could carry 200 kilograms of grain for five miles without getting winded, today he felt like he couldn't handle even a few dozen kilograms of bicycle, so he thought about finding a place to take a break.

  This strange thing happened every time Hu Changzi wanted to rest. The bicycle on his shoulder would become heavier, pressing him almost motionless. His hands wanted to put the bike down, but they wouldn't listen to his commands. If he gritted his teeth and persisted, this feeling of being pressed would immediately ease a bit.

  Hu Changzi tried several times to unload the bicycle but failed, and this mountain road seemed to be getting more and more terrifying as he walked.

  Originally, the small road was lined with old trees, and inside were dense weeds, all of which were covered by shrubs that were as tall as a person. However, now he seemed to see one or two small hills rising vaguely among the shrubs.

  What's with the mountain package? He didn't dare to think about it, just thinking about quickly sending the mourning letter in his bag to the other side of the mountain, but his feet were already a bit unable to move, and he stopped to rest, really unable to walk anymore.

  Suddenly, he heard a child's laughter coming from behind him. In this desolate mountain wilderness, where did the kid come from? Hu Changzi raised his head to look around, but the trees here were too tall and dense, even blocking out the sun in the sky, making it seem like dusk had already fallen, although it was only noon. The child's mocking laughter grew clearer, as if it was right next to his ear.

  Hu Changzi felt a little scared in his heart, and he regretted taking this job. It was said that the distant relative had not been able to send the funeral notice because of the difficulty of the road, so Wang Furen and Lao Ye had passed away without anyone knowing. If no one was willing to deliver it again this time, this family relationship would definitely be severed.

  He was in a dilemma, if he went back to the village and said it was because he was too scared to deliver the message, people would cut off their relationship with him, who knows what others would think of him, that would be the end of his life in Wangzhuang. But if he continued on the road, his legs were already going soft, the child's "heh heh heh" laughter never stopped for a moment, he really didn't dare to walk anymore.

  At that moment, Hu Changzi suddenly felt his ears being pinched hard. He quickly turned around and was so scared that he lost two and a half of his souls. The thing on his shoulder was no longer a bicycle, but a large black coffin! On top of the coffin, there was a small boy wearing mourning clothes, smiling at him. However, his face was not normal, it was a pale white, like it was smeared with flour, and there were two small red dots on it.

  "Hu Changzi let out a loud shriek, and with an unknown surge of strength, he flung the bicycle off his shoulder to the ground. A loud "clang" was heard as the brand new bike flew onto a nearby tree, causing the bell to ring loudly. Hu Changzi knew he must have seen a ghost, and in fear, he tumbled and rolled down the mountain for seven or eight meters, until he crashed into something hard with a thud, and was knocked unconscious. It wasn't until much later that he came to."

  When he turned his head again, he found that he was blocked by a stone covered with moss. He secretly congratulated himself that if there wasn't this stone, he would have fallen to death. Holding onto the big stone, he slowly got up, wanting to rub his back a few times. Lifting his head, he saw that the place was full of small hills, each with a stone standing in front of it.

  Hu Changzi's body trembled as he lowered his head and glanced at the stone slab in front of him, on which words were still engraved. Although he couldn't read, it was clear to him that this thing was a tombstone, and he suddenly realized that he had unknowingly entered a burial ground!

  He didn't care about the bicycle anymore, and ran down the mountain with his head in his hands as if his life depended on it. He didn't know how long he had been running when he finally saw the village at the foot of the mountain. At this time, he heard the child's laughter again. Hu Changzi thought to himself that he was doomed, and that he must have been haunted by a wild ghost in the mountains. His legs went soft and he sat down on the ground immediately, thinking about how his children were still young and his wife was still so young, and wondering if she would remarry soon after his death, bringing their child with her. He felt utterly hopeless.

  Before long, the laughter grew louder and closer. A little girl in a red floral dress emerged from the woods. Hu Changzi looked up and thought, "Oh no, another one!" He was truly exhausted and couldn't run anymore. His legs went weak and he knelt down before the little girl, saying: "Please spare my life, great immortal! I have just had a newborn baby at home, and when I return, I will definitely burn more gold, silver, and treasures for you..."

  That little girl inexplicably stared at the old man who was kowtowing to her, and immediately shouted: "Grandpa come and see, there's a madman here."

  Hu Changzi looked up and saw an old man carrying a basket on his back, holding the little girl who was staring at him vigilantly. The old man scolded him upon seeing his crazy appearance: "Where did this madman come from? Coming here to cause trouble and scare my granddaughter?"

  Hulu Changzi heard the sound and thought it was a human voice, then looked again and indeed saw two big living people. He had lived in the countryside for many years and knew at a glance that they were medicine collectors, so he wiped away his tears and snot and said: "I'm just delivering a message, I thought I'd encountered ghosts."

  "Damn it!" the old man cursed, "In broad daylight, where did this ghost come from? I think you're here to curse our grandfather and grandson. Watch me beat you up!" After finishing speaking, the old man picked up a wooden stick by his side and chased Hu Zhangzi away.

  "Hold on, hold on, I'm from Wang Village, delivering a message for someone. Just now, I really encountered a ghost!"

  The old man looked at Hu Changzi with suspicion and asked: "What message did you bring? How did the message get sent to this mountain?"

  "I've lost the letter, I came from Wang Village." Hu Changzi finished speaking and was anxious to take out the letter from his pocket as proof, but was scolded by the old man: "Don't take it out, how inauspicious! Spit, spit, spit!" Then the old man quickly turned around and led his granddaughter away.

  "Hu Changzi chased after him for a few steps and shouted: 'Hey, hey, old man, I'm asking you something, where is this?'"

  The old man threw down three words without looking back: "Fangjia Village!"

  Fangjia Village? Hu Changzi turned his head and looked back, sighing: "Geez, I've actually climbed over the entire Lion Mountain!"

  This Fangjia Village is already part of Anhui, on the other side of Lion Mountain is Wangzhuang, and after crossing over, the first place you arrive at is Fangjia Village. After passing through Fangjia Village and continuing on for a while, you'll reach Hewu Chong where the recipient lives. Who would have thought that he'd end up coming down here by chance? That bicycle got lost, along with the bag of white flower-shaped rice cakes that were tied to the handlebars for convenience. As soon as Hu Changzi thought about this, his heart started racing - that big black coffin and that little kid...

  He didn't dare to stay any longer, following the old man from a distance of about 20 meters, all the way down the mountain, and finally arrived at He Mu Chong before sunset to deliver the letter.

  He brought that distant relative who received the news, he was dead and wouldn't cross the mountain, there was no money in his pocket either. In the end, the two of them had to change buses and walk. The public transportation back then wasn't like it is now, going whenever you want, and it was already late afternoon. By the time they returned to Wang Village on an empty stomach, it was already the day of Old He's funeral.

  After Hu Zhangzi returned home, he didn't dare to mention the loss of the car and just scattered rice and tea leaves according to Cha Wenbin's previous instructions before going to sleep.

  What else did Nacha Wenbin do in these few days? He had already gone two consecutive nights without sleep, and he knew many of the people who came from the provincial city. During the day, he was busy with hospitality, at night he was busy doing Buddhist rituals, and he also had to find time to comfort Chaizi.

  On the third day, when Jin Ge's director personally led a team to retrieve He Lao's body, Hu Changzi's twenty-year-old daughter-in-law rushed into Wang Jia's courtyard with her crying child, shouting "Save me! Save me! My husband is dying!"

  read3;