17 The Strange Statue

The sky was always gray and covered with clouds.

 Before long, Qiao Yuan arrived at the village entrance.

 Compared to the prosperity of Four-Corner Village in the real world, the village in front of them was more like a poor village.

 Just like the villages from decades ago, the streets were made of blue bricks and tiles, with low bungalows on both sides, one after another.

 It looked run-down, but it gave people a sense of peace and tranquility.

 There were two trees at the entrance of the village. One was a date tree, and the other was also a date tree.

 There was a small wooden pavilion at the side with a stone table in the middle. It seemed to be the place where the villagers rested and enjoyed the shade. An old man was standing inside.

 However, Qiao Yuan's attention was focused on the human-sized statue behind the pavilion.

 It was different from the works of art in Qiao Yuan's memory.

 The shape of this sculpture was quite strange. Its face was blurry, and it looked like a man and a woman. It was holding a lantern in its hand and was full of mystery. For a moment, it was impossible to describe it with words.

 ...

 "The brother in front, wait a moment!"

 A voice came from behind. 

 A group of people in casual traveling clothes were approaching Qiao Yuan. There were men and women, adults and children. 

 They looked like tourists.

 Qiao Yuan stopped in his tracks and waited.

 The young man who had greeted him quickly came to Qiao Yuan, panting heavily with his hands on his hips. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and looked at the quiet fields around him. Perhaps he thought Qiao Yuan was a local, so he asked about the situation here.

 "Brother, can I ask you something? Is this a Four-Corner Village?

 "We're foreigners. It's our first time here, and we seem to be lost. "

 Qiao Yuan sized up the panting young man in front of him.

 It could be seen that he had a very typical puffy body.

 After asking some questions here and there, Qiao Yuan had gotten some sort of understanding, he learned about the eight people in this group. They had just gotten to know each other and had all chosen to take a detour to avoid the ticket or to pursue a sense of novelty. Then... They had chosen a main road to come here.

 ...

 "The air in the countryside is so good, much better than in our city. When I save enough money, I'll definitely go back to the countryside to enjoy my retirement!"

 "That's right. Let's see if we can buy some local specialties later."

 "Wow, this place is so beautiful. I want to take pictures!"

 "Li Si, quick ... Take a few more pictures for me!"

 There was constant discussion in the crowd. The most eye-catching one was a young and beautiful girl with a ponytail. She was quite happy to see the green fields and asked her boyfriend to take a picture of her.

 The tall boyfriend could only helplessly agree.

 These people didn't seem to realize the seriousness of the problem.

 "I'm sorry, I don't know."

 Qiao Yuan said slowly.

 ...

 The behavior of Qiao Yuan and the rest, which was clearly out of place in the village, finally attracted the attention of the old man in the pavilion.

 The old man walked out with a kind smile on his face and went to the front of the crowd.

 "Welcome to the dead corner village!"

 Qiao Yuan stared at the old man in front of him, who was about 50 or 60 years old. The old man's tone was a little serious, and Qiao Yuan couldn't tell whether he was talking about four or dead.

 "Old man, is this the Four-Corner Village?"

 The young man who had greeted Qiao Yuan earlier came to the old man's side and asked.

 "Yes," the old man replied with a smile while stroking his beard.

 "Then where are the corners? Why didn't I see it in the photo?" The man asked in confusion.

 The smile on the old man's face became even brighter.

 ...

 The Four-Corner Village was divided into the new village and the old village. The new village was a tourist attraction with four unique corners.

 The old village was where the local residents lived. However, due to the rapid development of the new village in recent years, most of the young people in the old village had gone out.

 There were only a few elderly men and women left in the old village, living a simple rural life.

 Upon hearing the old man's words, everyone's ears perked up. They did not expect the Four-Corner Village to have such a history. This trip was not in vain.

 Then, the old man called himself the village chief of the Four-Corner Village and invited everyone into the village as guests.

 Although everyone said that they were disturbing him, they looked at the sky and followed him honestly, including Qiao Yuan.

 Along the way, the tourists talked and laughed, asking about the village.

 A few people even joked that they wanted to settle down here when they were old.

 The old man explained enthusiastically and led Qiao Yuan and the other nine into the village. Soon, some enthusiastic villagers surrounded them, asking about their well-being and giving them drinks and fruit.

 The tourists were embarrassed for a while. The villagers here were really simple and honest, and the tourists were ready to pay money in return.

 However, they were all rejected by the villagers. In their words, these were all their property and were not worth much.

 The tourists who were used to city life couldn't help but sigh. There were really good people in this world.

 After the village chief and the villagers had a discussion, they let the nine people live in nine different houses. They could not resist the enthusiastic villagers and could only agree to the arrangement.

 Qiao Yuan had originally planned to calm down first and then slowly investigate, until he saw a figure.

 That was ... Wang Jing!

 ...

 Qiao Yuan was not mistaken. Although they had only seen her once, that baby face that made people want to pinch it was clearly recognizable.

 Qiao Yuan walked around the crowd and quickly came to Wang Jing. At this time, Wang Jing finally noticed Qiao Yuan and looked a little surprised.

 "Qiao Yuan, why are you here?"

 It was obvious that Wang Jing was quite happy. She didn't look like she was in danger or threatened.

 Qiao Yuan turned to look at the villagers who were talking to the tourists again. He could see the happy smiles on the faces of these simple villagers.

 This kind of thing can't be faked!

 Qiao Yuan even had the illusion that even if his own son came, he would not be as good as this.

 Putting this matter aside, he had to ask about Li Xiaoling's whereabouts first.

 "Wang Jing, where is Li Xiaoling?"

 Hearing Qiao Yuan's words, Wang Jing tilted her head and revealed a puzzled expression.

 "I don't know. I'm not with her. Why are you looking for her?"

 Qiao Yuan was speechless.

 "Are you sure you're not joking with me?"

 Qiao Yuan stared at Wang Jing, trying to figure out that she was lying from her micro-expressions, but he failed.

 "Do you know Li Xiaoling?" Qiao Yuan asked after a minute of silence.

 There was a trace of suspicion in his tone because he suspected that the Wang Jing in front of him was a fake. His explanation was reasonable.

 "I know. She's my best friend. The last time we went on a blind date, you held her hand."

 Wang Jing was still a little confused and didn't understand what Qiao Yuan meant.

 After a simple conversation, Wang Jing said that after the blind date ended yesterday afternoon, she temporarily separated from Li Xiaoling and came here alone. She had even stayed here for a night.

 "I'm telling you, this village is really comfortable. The fruits here are really delicious ..."

 Wang Jing started explaining the village's situation to Qiao Yuan in high spirits.

 However, Qiao Yuan's mind was not on this for the time being. There must be something wrong with Wang Jing.

 Since Li Xiaoling had sent him the words ' Four-Corner Village', her disappearance must have something to do with this village. 

 With Li Xiaoling's personality, she would definitely be with Wang Jing!

 Qiao Yuan immediately decided to stay here for the night.

 "Chief, I want to move to another room. I'll stay with her!"

 After thinking about it, Qiao Yuan said this. He didn't know why the village chief had separated the nine people, so he wanted to test the waters.

 The village chief, who was conversing with the crowd, was clearly stunned. He looked at Qiao Yuan and then at Wang Jing.

 "Young lady, what do you say?"

 It was obvious that he was asking for Wang Jing's opinion.

 "Chief, this is my sister. I'm here to look after her."

 Qiao Yuan explained with a smile. Behind him, Wang Jing blushed and lowered her head, not daring to look at Qiao Yuan.

 The village chief's murky eyes flickered for a moment before he finally agreed.

 The agreement was very straightforward, which made Qiao Yuan feel that there was something wrong with the village.

 ...

 "By the way, village chief, I saw a statue at the village entrance just now. What did it mean?"

 A teenager who took the water from a villager and drank it all asked curiously.

 Everyone was also listening attentively. It seemed like Qiao Yuan was not the only one who was curious.

 The village chief smiled and raised his head to look at the village entrance. But because it was too far away, he could only see a black dot.

 "This is a legend of our Four-Corner Village."

 "It's said that a long time ago, a scholar who was rushing to the capital for an examination passed by here and found a female ghost circling the village, harming the passers-by."

 "The scholar had read the books of the sages since he was a child. He was influenced by righteousness and had a sense of justice in his heart. He spent two days and two nights and finally used a trick to reform the female ghost and perished together with her. 

In order to commemorate this scholar, the later generations built this statue and worshiped it day and night. As time passed, this custom was preserved."

 The village chief looked at the fields in the distance, then looked at the crowd. As if he had thought of something, he said,"

 "There's a saying among the older generation. In the middle of the night, if you knock on your door four times, The Guardian spirit will appear again."

 "If you meet a woman with a Red Lantern, it means that you're going to have bad luck."

 "If you meet a man with a White Lantern, it means you're having good luck."

 ...

 "It's that magical?"

 The crowd immediately broke into a discussion. They had never heard of this mythical story.

 "I told you it's just a myth, it's fake ..." The village chief smiled and waved his hand.

 Everyone laughed along and didn't take it seriously.

 "Li Si, let's go and pay our respects too. As the saying goes, we must pay our respects at every temple and love each other!"

 The ponytailed girl's interest was immediately piqued.

 Li Si: "????"

 Everyone was confused.

 The villager: "????"

 It seemed ... To make sense.

 Following that, everyone followed suit and paid their respects, Qiao Yuan being no exception.

 He went to the statue and bowed sincerely.

 He had originally wanted to pray for himself, but after thinking about it carefully, he realized that praying was only for his safety and had no practical use. He might as well...

 Qiao Yuan's eyes brightened and he bowed again.

 "Please help me curse the culprit to die a terrible death, a sore on the head, infertility, and broken bones ..."

 Instead of praying for himself, it was better to curse the enemy. Although it was useless, it felt different.