In Love With My Fierce Farming Wife!
Chapter 918 - 923: Returning to the Ancestral Hall

Chapter 918: Chapter 923: Returning to the Ancestral Hall

Helpless, he left a portion of his men to continue rebuilding Xiangyang, while another group continued the search for the rascal pig’s whereabouts. As for himself, he headed north once again with the troops, intent on achieving his goal as soon as possible.

Actually, the rascal pig was right under these people’s noses all along.

The searchers looked high and low inside and outside the city, nearly pulling out the hidden stakes in the moat, all to find it. Yet, they never imagined that, at that moment, the rascal pig was right under the city walls.

Heavenly trial chased after it, and the rascal pig, in its panic, scurried into a pier.

But with one blast of thunder, the pier crumbled under the force of the heavenly trial into dust.

Before the rascal pig could get up, more heavenly trial lightning struck it repeatedly, shaving off layers of the eight-meter-high walls. The impacts blasted into the ground, carving out a huge, deep pit.

The rascal pig struggled to climb out of the pit, but the final strike knocked it out cold, turning it into charred flesh settling at the very bottom.

Scattered bricks and stone whetstones soon fell from the sky, covering its body, and filled the massive hole.

Water from the moat flowed up, mixing with the mud. Trodden by the Qin army swarming into the city from outside, it was tamped down layer by layer, gradually becoming one with the walls.

At this moment, it was still transforming in its unconscious state.

Unaware of the uproar it caused in its search, nearly turning the world upside down.

While there was chaos over here, Luoyan Village was immersed in the joy of the New Year.

On the first day of the lunar month, everyone was busy with ancestral worship and visiting one another with greetings.

Su Pan’er also followed the crowd into the Qin family’s ancestral hall.

It wasn’t her first time entering the ancestral hall, but this time was different from the other few times!

Whole sheep, pig heads, and various other items were laid out on the worship altar. The spot Su Pan’er stood in this time was different from usual; she was assigned to the first row! Such a thing had never happened before!

And no one, from the Clan Leader and Clan elders down to the ordinary clan members, raised an objection. They all silently accepted this arrangement.

After the Clan Leader conducted the worship and finished reading the lengthy words of praise, it was Su Pan’er who led the way in paying homage.

However, as Su Pan’er finished worshiping the ancestors and was about to step down from the altar, a Buddha statue placed to the side caught her attention.

It was that Buddha statue again!

As if there was some mysterious calling power, urging her to draw closer.

And indeed, she did just that!

As if mesmerized, she turned direction, step by step, toward the Buddha statue, getting closer and closer until at last, she stood before it, looking up at the Buddha statue veiled with red silk, her eyes distant.

Her odd behavior did not go unnoticed by the Qin family members. At that moment, their faces all wore a strange expression.

It was remembered that years ago, when Mrs. Qin-Li called Su Pan’er a demon fairy, the Old Clan Leader had brought out the Buddha statue. While everyone was lost in awe of it, only Su Pan’er remained unaffected.

But now, with the Buddha statue covered in red silk, while everyone else was unaffected, it was Su Pan’er who became captivated!

Seeing something amiss, the First Clan Elder stepped forward with a loud cough!

"Qin’s Third Daughter-in-Law, you are with child. After paying respects to the ancestors, you should return home," he said.

It was a kind reminder but also an implicit warning!

Su Pan’er’s body shook slightly, pulling her out of her trance. A current of surprise flashed through her eyes, and then she smiled softly at the First Clan Elder, bowed slightly, and turned to walk back.

It seems, she would need to find time to take a closer look.

Su Pan’er said and done, after paying homage to the ancestors, she took the chance when the clan members were sharing the offerings to quietly find the Clan Leader.

"You want to enter the ancestral hall again? Why?"

The Clan Leader appeared very curious, sizing up Su Pan’er, "Qin’s Third Daughter-in-Law ah! As of now, Qin’s third kid isn’t at home, and your Yan Yan is also recorded in the family registry. There are some matters you should avoid if you can, avoid them for now. It’s better to do less than to meddle!"

Su Pan’er naturally understood the good intentions of the Clan Leader, yet it still couldn’t make her change her mind.

"Clan Leader, please help me this time. Next time, if the Clan Leader needs anything, Pan’er will definitely do her utmost to help the Clan Leader once. How about that?"

Everyone knew that Su Pan’er was an Eminent Doctor, and since she had returned this time, she rarely treated patients herself anymore! Now that she offered such conditions, even the Clan Leader found it hard to refuse.

The Clan Leader bit his lip in thought, still unable to resist such a temptation, "Wait here, I will go and discuss with them."

The Clan Leader went to consult with the Second Clan’s Elder and the Fourth Clan Elder. He didn’t make Su Pan’er wait long before he turned back, his face filled with joy, "Qin’s Third Daughter-in-Law, if you want to enter, come over tonight. I will arrange for you to sneak in quietly. Remember, do not disturb anyone!"

"Rest assured, Clan Leader, Pan’er understands!"

There was no need for him to tell her this as Su Pan’er would have done it anyway.

Finally, when night fell, Su Pan’er slipped out the door in the darkness, heading straight for the ancestral hall.

The ancestral hall at night was pitch black and seemed even more sinister and deathly silent. But it provided Su Pan’er with the best cover.

The Clan Leader was standing at the great entrance of the ancestral hall. Seeing that Su Pan’er did not even bring a lantern and came alone, he silently pulled open the grand doors without a word.

"Go inside," he said in a low voice, handing her a lantern, "The ancestral hall is after all not like any other place. You must never harbor any contempt, and you must never disrespect the ancestors. I’ll wait for you outside the door, you have the time of two sticks of incense to quickly come out."

Su Pan’er did not speak, she silently took the lantern, nodded, and walked in.

The ancestral hall at night was eerily cold, and Su Pan’er narrowed her eyes to see clearly overhead, where there was a densely packed array of plaques, half visible and half hidden in the shadow of the night.

Her vision was excellent, and she could see objects even in pitch-dark environments, the darkness here posed no impediment to her.

Without any hesitation in her step, she walked briskly to the Buddha statue, stood for a while, took a deep breath, and swiftly pulled off the red silk on the statue.

The Buddha statue was just a clay sculpture covered in a layer of gold paint; there was nothing special about its outward appearance.

But the inexplicable confusion that occurred on two separate occasions, could it be that there was really an issue with this Buddha statue?

She reached out her hand, gently touching the statue.

Not ready to give up, she walked around the statue once more, still unable to find anything unusual.

What was going on?

She turned back to the front of the statue, frowning as she focused on the face filled with an expression of compassion for the world...

Wait!

What was that?

Su Pan’er raised the lantern in her hand high, illuminating the face of the statue. The Buddha’s mouth was slightly upturned, with a smiling expression between the two lips, there was a very fine small hole. The shape of that hole...

Su Pan’er felt a slight stir in her heart, reaching out to gently touch it. After some thought, she searched her body for the iron piece the old Clan Leader had given her and held it in her hand, comparing it.

This iron piece, she had sent to Qin Yi in a letter, and Qin Yi had put it back into the envelope and returned it to her.

Last night on New Year’s Eve, she missed Qin Yi and took the letter out again to read, and she carried the iron piece with her on her person.