Longevity Candle

Chapter 17 He is a good man

Jiang Zhu quietly watched the elderly couple, plotting how to send the child to Liu Sanzhu's house.

They were too old to live more than a few years, so they started planning for the future of young children.

It is only natural to think of future generations.

However, their plan is truly despicable.

The child, surprisingly, felt perfectly at ease.

Jiang Zhu learned about Liu Sanzhu from the townspeople. He was the third child in his family, with an older brother and an older sister, and two younger brothers. It was a large family.

In his early years, his family was so poor that they couldn't afford to eat. His eldest sister got married early and received some dowry, which helped the family recover.

My elder brother became a fisherman at a young age, but he still lived a frugal life.

Later, Sanzhuzi had a stroke of luck. He saved a young master on the river and received his favor by providing him with fish. Only then did he begin to enjoy a better life.

Liu Sanzhu quickly built his fortune. He treated his family very well and always paid fair prices to the people in town, charging them two cents more than other fishmongers.

He was gentle and considerate, and even though he was called Third Master, he still respected his elders and never acted like a rich man.

Most residents of Liujia Town are grateful to him and sell their good catches of fish to him.

However, his profits attracted the covetous eyes of others, and many people were envious of Liu Sanzhu.

The elderly couple in front of me are the ones who are envious.

Their son, while fishing, was too greedy and was pulled into the Qingjiang River by a large fish. He refused to let go even in the face of death and became a wandering ghost in the Qingjiang River.

She left behind her son, Liu Hao, whom she spoiled excessively. He was materialistic and only wanted to live a good life.

Jiang Zhu lost interest and sat cross-legged on the roof to cultivate.

As evening approached, Liu Sanzhu carried an oil paper package in his left hand, a money bag hanging from his waist, and held the hand of a seven-year-old child in his right hand.

"Brother Hao."

The children shouted with joy.

Liu Hao looked at the person who had come and ran over happily: "Brother Lang."

The child was named Liu Lang, which sounded a bit unlucky. It was given to him by his father, Liu Sanzhu, who said that he was going to make a living on the river and not be afraid of the storms. He believed that the worse the name, the more resilient the child would be.

Liu Lang is indeed resilient; he has never been sick since childhood.

The two children were playing together. Liu Sanzhu handed the oil paper package to Liu Hao and took out a money bag from his waist: "Grandpa, please count this. This is the money from selling the fish. It's a total of one tael and five mace."

"Thank you, Third Master." The old fisherman quickly accepted the gift, but a look of unease appeared on his face.

Liu Sanzhu hesitated for a moment, then asked, "What's wrong, sir? If I can do it, I'll definitely help you."

"This... Third Master, could you come inside and talk?" the old fisherman asked.

Liu Sanzhu nodded, assuming he had some unspeakable difficulty, and followed him into the house.

After entering the house, the old fisherman bent his knees and knelt down: "Third Master, my wife and I don't have many years left to live, and we would like to ask you to take care of Haozi."

"Old man, get up quickly. This person is both a distant relative and a close neighbor. If you kneel down, won't you be embarrassing me?"

Liu Sanzhu quickly helped him up: "Don't worry, I'll come and check on him more often in the future, and I'll make sure Xiao Hao doesn't go hungry."

"Third Master, I want you to take Haozi as your godson," the old fisherman said, revealing his thoughts.

"This, this won't do, this won't do," Liu Sanzhu quickly refused.

Liu Hao is already grown up and can remember things. Putting aside whether he will be filial to him after being raised, once this precedent is set, are all the children in the town going to be taken in?
In Liujia Town, many families who went fishing in the river were left behind as orphans and widows.

No matter how kind-hearted Liu Sanzhu is, he still has a large family to support.

"Third Master, I really have no other choice. Please have pity on Xiao Hao." The old fisherman pretended to kneel down again.

"Grandpa, how about this? From now on, I'll give you two extra coins for the fish, I won't make a single penny. After you two pass away, I'll also help with your funeral arrangements, and have someone deliver food to him every day so he can live peacefully until he's sixteen. What do you say?"

Liu Sanzhu thought for a moment and then said.

The old fisherman's eyes were filled with tears: "You really won't take Xiao Hao in? Look, he gets along very well with Lang Ge'er, and he can keep Lang Ge'er company."

“Old man, we really can’t make this mistake.” Liu Sanzhu sighed bitterly, “You know how many people in town are like this, how can I afford to raise him? Can’t I raise him until he’s sixteen?”

"No way." The old fisherman was desperate, his expression turning ferocious: "Xiao Haozi has to have the same treatment as Lang Ge'er."

Liu Sanzhu's face also turned cold: "Pretend I was never here today, and that I didn't hear anything."

After saying that, he made a move to leave.

The old fisherman grabbed his leg and held a knife to his own neck: "Third Master, I'm so sorry. You and the old man died in the house at the same time. No matter how many mouths you have, you can't explain it."

"You...you..." Liu Sanzhu was frightened and hurriedly advised, "Grandpa, let's talk this out. Please don't do this, please don't do this."

Outside, an old woman's voice rang out: "Old man, what's the matter? Why have you been talking for so long?"

Liu Hao seemed to sense something, looked into the room, and was gnawing on a chicken leg, his mouth glistening with oil, making Liu Lang extremely envious, but he didn't give him a single bite.

Upon hearing his wife's voice, the old fisherman seemed to receive a signal and plunged the sharp blade into his own neck.

Jingle
A crisp sound rang out, but the sharp blade shattered inch by inch, unable to harm him in the slightest.

Liu Sanzhu was terrified. He never expected that the man would actually commit suicide. He had always had a smooth life and had never encountered anything like this before.

"Leave quickly."

A sharp shout rang in his mind, waking him up. He took off running, picked up Liu Lang, and left without looking back.

Jiang Zhu shook his head, and his figure gradually faded away.

It is only natural to think of future generations.

But if Liu Hao were to use such coercive methods, and if it were to actually happen, who knows what kind of torment would be inflicted on Liu Sanzhu's family.

Both being people with tragic fates, Gu Qianshan and Ayan were very kind back then.

The net of fish I gave them was a bit too much.

The old fisherman was also paralyzed with fear. He never expected such a bizarre thing to happen, and his knife even shattered.

Seeing Liu Sanzhu flee in a panic, the old woman thought her plan had succeeded and immediately began to shout, "Oh dear, my poor old man, Liu Sanzhu, you heartless bastard..."

The neighbors all came running at the sound. A bold man entered the house and asked in surprise, "Isn't the old man perfectly fine? Auntie, why are you crying?"

The old woman's voice abruptly stopped, as if she had been choked. Her eyes widened as she stared at the old fisherman in disbelief: "You, how are you still alive?"

"It's a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding," the old fisherman said hastily, regaining his senses.

The neighbors had all left, and the elderly couple sat at the table, speechless.

Liu Hao asked with a displeased look, "Grandpa, how come you're still alive?"

The old fisherman stiffened, but still reassured him gently, "Don't worry, Sanzhuzi is a good man. He won't hold a grudge. As long as we find an opportunity, this can still be accomplished."

The old woman also said, "Good grandson, grandpa and grandma will definitely make sure you live a good life."

Liu Hao then calmed down, looking forward to the arrival of a life of wealth and honor.

As the days went by, Liu Sanzhu, having suffered a loss, stopped personally delivering the money. Instead, he arranged for his subordinates to do it, giving them instructions before leaving the money behind.

He told Liu Lang to stay away from Liu Hao. At first, Liu Lang was unwilling, but after making new friends, he quickly forgot about Liu Hao.

Although he was kind-hearted, he wasn't stupid and wouldn't give the old fisherman and his wife another chance.

As life returned to normal, Liu Sanzhu kept thinking about that voice that had awakened him.

Who is it that, without showing themselves, can shatter a knife into pieces?
(End of this chapter)