On the west side of the village chief's yard, connected to the main house, is the ear house, which is made of mud. In front of the ear house is a donkey shed, supported by two crooked logs in front.
The light in the donkey shed was very dim. If the person behind the wood hadn't moved, I wouldn't have seen it.
I took a closer look, and it turned out to be Aunt Zhang who had made a grand escape at the market last time.
Aunt Zhang was wearing a dirty red floral cotton-padded jacket, with a green scarf wrapped around her head.
On such a hot day, wouldn't she cover herself?
Aunt Zhang seemed to notice that I was looking at her. She hid behind the wood and raised her hand to pull the scarf to cover her face, leaving only a pair of black cloth shoes exposed.
"Girl Yun, come in quickly."
My second uncle called me in the house.
"Oh, here we come."
I entered the house, and my mother pulled me twice: "Why don't you go in the house?"
I rubbed my nose: "I saw Aunt Zhang. She is wearing winter clothes."
Hearing what I said, my mother, father and second uncle were all stunned for a moment.
The village chief's wife made tea for my dad and the others, and my second uncle thanked her.
The village chief's wife sighed: "Hey, Zhang's wife didn't know what she had done. Zhang suddenly changed her gender. His wife now seems to be sick. She is in a daze and doesn't speak to anyone.
There is no good place to hide, and it’s so cold in the summer that I can’t even wear cotton clothes. What a good person I used to be.”
When she talked about empathy, she lifted up her apron and wiped the corners of her eyes.
I was next to my second uncle's leg, biting my fingers and twisting myself into a twist.
"Girl Yun." The second uncle pushed my shoulder, "Do you see something on your Aunt Zhang?"
"I didn't see clearly." The light in the donkey shed was very dark. If Aunt Zhang hadn't moved, I wouldn't have seen her, let alone the thing that I like to hide the most.
My mother raised her eyes and said, "Village chief, sister-in-law, you still have to call Sister-in-law Zhang in. I will check carefully to find out what's going on."
"Hey! OK!" The village chief waved his hand and stood up straight away.
The village chief's wife slapped him angrily and looked at him sideways: "It's okay, Zhang's daughter-in-law is afraid of others talking to her loudly now. Your voice is louder than a donkey, so I'll go with it."
Then the village chief's wife went out as we watched.
When we were in the house, we all looked towards the donkey shed.
The village chief's wife walked quietly for fear of startling Aunt Zhang. She walked closer and called out in a low voice. Aunt Zhang was immediately frightened and jumped three feet high, screaming.
Aunt Zhang covered her head and huddled under the wood. Judging from her exposed knees, her whole body was shaking violently.
I really can't believe that this person who looks like a mental patient is actually Aunt Zhang...
The second uncle sighed above my head.
I glanced at my second uncle, and his round eyes were full of compassion.
We couldn't hear the village chief's wife trying to persuade Aunt Zhang in the house, but fortunately Aunt Zhang followed the village chief's wife into the house.
She hunched her shoulders and lowered her head, her scarf blocking her face.
The second uncle pushed me again: "Girl Yun, do you see clearly now?"
"I see clearly, there is no ghost, but..."
"But what?"
I leaned close to my second uncle's ear and whispered, "Look at Auntie Zhang's face."
The second uncle was stunned and looked straight at Aunt Zhang's face, but he couldn't see anything because of the scarf.
But I am short and Aunt Zhang lowered her head, so I could see clearly.
"Aunt Zhang has a fine line between her eyebrows, black hair on her forehead, blue on the bridge of her nose, and black lips, as if she has a beard..." I spoke softer and quieter, and my second uncle turned his face.
Lifting up, his eyes opened wider and wider.
Isn’t this what Aunt Li looked like when we saw her in the Chenghuang Temple?
Aunt Li wanted to commit suicide because she was haunted by a hanger.
What's the reason for Aunt Zhang?
Could it be that Aunt Zhang also wants to commit suicide?!
I looked at Aunt Zhang in shock. The strange thing was that there was no resentful expression on her face, but her eyes were dull, like a puppy seeing a stranger, huddled behind the village chief's wife.
No matter how you look at it, it doesn't look like you are committing suicide.
My mother coughed twice, adjusted her expression and tone, walked to Aunt Zhang and said with a smile: "Sister-in-law Zhang, I am Guizhi, and I am here to help you."
Aunt Zhang hid, but then quickly raised her face. She probably knew my mother.
Strange, why do I use the word "know"?
Aunt Zhang opened her mouth slightly, and a thin layer of mist gradually appeared in her eyes. She suddenly hugged my mother and burst into tears.
The moment I saw my mother being hugged by Aunt Zhang again, I shivered.
Aunt Zhang cried for a long time, as if she had vented all her emotions. She was tired of crying, so she was supported by my mother and sat on the edge of the kang.
My second uncle and I were at the edge of the kang, and Aunt Zhang passed by me. The hairs on my body suddenly stood up.
Aunt Zhang seemed to have many ice cubes tied to her body, and the air around her was freezing.
I rubbed my arms, no wonder she wore such thick clothes.
My mother sat next to Aunt Zhang, pressed her pulse, and muttered.
As soon as we saw my mother's look, we all knew that my mother was starting to look at things, so no one said anything, and we all stared at my mother's expression intently.
My mother's brows suddenly wrinkled, then opened again after a while, and then wrinkled again.
It made our hearts flutter.
After the clock on the door of the village chief's house showed that ten minutes had passed, my mother exhaled a white breath, slowly withdrew her hand, and closed her eyes.
The village chief couldn't wait any longer. He walked slowly to my mother's side and waved his hands anxiously: "Guizhi, what's going on?"
My mother pulled the blanket aside and covered Aunt Zhang's legs: "Sister-in-law Zhang has been sucked in yang energy by a vaginal object. Fortunately, she found it early, her life is already hanging by a thread."
I remember my mother said that dying people can see ghosts, so Aunt Zhang must be afraid because of this.
When she heard the word Yang Qi, Aunt Zhang immediately started crying, which was heartbreaking to watch.
The village chief said: "What kind of thing attracts yang energy? Did Zhang's daughter-in-law get into something dirty?"
My mother shook her head: "This way of absorbing yang energy can only be done through marital affairs. The problem really lies with Brother Zhang."
The village chief was so surprised that he could put an egg in his mouth: "Zhang'er is such a big living person, how could he..."
They talked me into confusion.
I tugged on my second uncle's clothes.
"Second uncle, what is the matter between husband and wife?"
The second uncle's face suddenly turned red. He glared and slapped my hand away, scolding me in a low voice: "You're a kid, don't ask me questions."
"..." What's the matter? Is it something important?
My dad has been sitting on a chair on the floor smoking since he entered the house. My dad loves me so much that he will definitely tell me.
I was about to go to my dad happily, but my second uncle suddenly grabbed my back collar, bent down and told me: "Don't ask, you will know when you grow up, remember?"
Seeing my uncle's serious expression, I had no choice but to compromise.
My mother adjusted her collar, turned around and said to the village chief: "Village Chief, let's go to Lao Zhang's house now."