Chapter 22

"Grave robbers? These tomb rats still dare to come to our village?"

At the mention of grave robbers, the old village chief's face darkened. "They ran fast, or else Xiao Ma would have caught them and taken them to the station for a thorough investigation."

The Xiao Ma the old village chief referred to was the deputy chief of the local police station. As a model village for public security in the jurisdiction, the old village chief had sent out invitations, and they were expected to show up and celebrate.

"Grandpa Liu, you still have such a strong sense of justice."

Seeing the old village chief's expression, Su Xiaofan smiled and shook his head.

After several years in society, Su Xiaofan had come to understand that the world wasn't as black and white as he had once thought. There were many gray areas in between.

Take the antique market, for example. Every stall owner selling antiques would claim that everything on their stall was once used by emperors, the older the better, and at least from the Qing Dynasty or earlier, to fetch a high price.

Strictly speaking, they were indeed deceiving people, but most adults with analytical skills wouldn't fall for it. If a couple of gullible people did, it was their bad luck.

Their impact on society wasn't significant. How much could a street stall make? At most a few thousand yuan, which wasn't enough for a criminal case. Besides, there were indeed some good items on the stalls, which is why there were so many stories of finding hidden treasures.

But these seemingly unscrupulous stall owners were also husbands and fathers, supporting their families with their hard work. They were among the poorest in society, not stealing or robbing, but earning a living through their early mornings and late nights.

Of course, Su Xiaofan also despised grave robbers who profited from the dead and their ancestors.

However, Su Xiaofan wasn't in charge of any relevant departments, and he had no evidence to prove that these people were grave robbers, so he wouldn't react as strongly as the old village chief.

"You don't understand. If it weren't for these people, our village wouldn't have lost..."

The old village chief stopped mid-sentence, "Why am I telling you this, Xiaofan? You must be hungry. Go inside and eat something. I'll take care of the guests."

"Huh? Did they steal something from our village?"

Su Xiaofan picked up on the old village chief's tone.

"It's an old story from decades ago. I'll tell you later."

The old village chief waved his hand, clearly unwilling to elaborate.

"Grandpa Liu, is the tripod at the village entrance an antique? I remember it has been there since I was a child."

Su Xiaofan looked at the Han King Tripod at the village entrance, seemingly mentioning it casually.

"Not just you, I remember it has been there since I was a child."

The old village chief chuckled and said, "It might be a replica from the Republican era. Experts have examined it and said it's not old enough, so it can stay here. Otherwise, it would have been sent to the museum long ago."

"What kind of experts are they, saying it's from the Republican era? It should be from the Qin Dynasty."

Su Xiaofan silently criticized the experts. A genuine antique like this, left out in the elements, and no one could recognize it.

After greeting Zheng Dagang, Su Xiaofan entered the village.

Having arrived early in the morning to help, Su Xiaofan was now starving. He found a table where his fellow villagers were sitting and quickly started eating.

The old village chief had arranged the graduation banquet in batches, with some guests coming in the morning and others in the evening. The morning session lasted until around three, and the evening session was already being prepared.

...

...

It wasn't until around nine in the evening that the graduation banquet was finally over. Su Xiaofan and Zheng Dagang returned to their ancestral home.

Su Xiaofan's ancestral home was one of the more dilapidated in the village. Since Su Xiaofan and his sister hadn't lived there in recent years, it hadn't been renovated.

"Xiaofan? Are you staying here tonight?"

Zheng Dagang looked at the drafty windows and couldn't help but smile bitterly. He wasn't afraid of hardship, but with the weather already warm and mosquitoes around, the broken windows let them in. In just a few minutes, Zheng Dagang had already been bitten several times.

"Grandpa Liu said we should leave tomorrow. It wouldn't be right to leave in the middle of the night."

Su Xiaofan, who was also being bitten, smiled bitterly. He had rarely returned to the village in recent years, and when he did, it was usually just for the day. He hadn't noticed how dilapidated the ancestral home had become.

"Brother, if we stay the night, we'll just be feeding the mosquitoes. Let's go back. It's only a one-hour drive."

Su Xiaoxiao, holding a magazine, was fanning herself. She missed their home in the city.

"You act like you've never been bitten before. You've become so precious after just a few days in the city?"

Su Xiaofan pouted. He remembered sleeping in the cornfield during hot summer nights when he was a child, not afraid of mosquitoes. People, indeed, find it easy to go from frugality to luxury but hard to go from luxury to frugality.

"Brother Zheng, you and Xiaoxiao wait here."

Su Xiaofan thought for a moment and said, "I'll go to the convenience store to buy some mosquito coils and talk to Grandpa Liu about the banquet."

"What's there to talk about with the banquet?"

Before Su Xiaofan could finish, Grandpa Liu's voice came from the doorway.

"Grandpa Liu, you've been busy all day. I should be the one to come to you."

Su Xiaofan hurried over. Despite the unknown conflict between the old village chief and his father, Su Xiaofan admired the old village chief's character.

He invited Grandpa Liu to sit down and said, "Grandpa Liu, how much did the banquet cost today? Please give me the total."

Su Xiaofan, having grown up in the countryside, knew that such banquets usually resulted in a loss for the host, as most guests would only give a small amount of money but bring their entire family to eat.

"Why do you need to know?"

Grandpa Liu glared, "I already said the graduation banquet is on the village. Don't worry about the cost. It's all on the village."

"Your grandfather and I are brothers. Your family is small, just you, your father, and Xiaoxiao. If I don't take care of you, who will?"

Grandpa Liu sighed and pointed at Su Xiaofan, "You're a worry. If you could study for another year, it would be better. Once you all graduate, I'll have a face to show your grandfather."

"Grandpa Liu, I'll listen to you."

At this point, Su Xiaofan didn't argue. His grandfather and Grandpa Liu were actually cousins, not brothers, and the relationship was distant. Grandpa Liu's care was a favor, not an obligation.

"Grandpa Liu, we want to go back today."

Su Xiaoxiao, who was closer to Grandpa Liu, held his arm, "Grandpa Liu, look, there are so many mosquitoes. I've already been bitten several times."

"It's normal to have mosquitoes in the countryside. Stay one more night. The roads are bad at night."

Grandpa Liu rubbed Su Xiaoxiao's head, "You're a literary star now. Are you afraid of mosquitoes? I'll bring you some mosquito coils later."

"Grandpa Liu, the roads are much better now. I can drive without any problem."

Zheng Dagang, who was O-type blood and attracted mosquitoes, couldn't stand it anymore. His arms and legs were already covered in bites.

"That's right, Grandpa Liu. I know the roads well. I used to ride my bike here often. There's no problem."

Su Xiaofan added, remembering his high school days when he would often take a bus to town and then borrow a bike to ride back to the village. During his middle school years, he would ride his bike home every night after evening study sessions.

"You don't know what you're talking about. The roads are bad at night."

Grandpa Liu, who treated Su Xiaofan and his sister like his own children, felt he had been a bit harsh. He paused and said, "If you must go, wait a moment. I'll get something for you to take."

Seeing Grandpa Liu leave, Su Xiaofan and his sister exchanged puzzled looks, wondering what he was getting.

Grandpa Liu returned quickly, about ten minutes later, and handed Su Xiaofan a red envelope.

"Take this. I'll have someone transfer Xiaoxiao's tuition to her bank account later."

"Grandpa Liu, what is this? Why are you giving me a red envelope? I'm not going to college!"

Su Xiaofan shook his head and didn't take it. He glanced at the flat envelope, which didn't seem to contain much money.

"It's not money. It's a talisman for your journey. Keep it for safety!"

Grandpa Liu placed the envelope in Su Xiaofan's hand, "Don't fold the talisman. When you get home, stick the house protection talisman on your door. It will help."

"Talisman? What kind of talisman?"

Su Xiaofan was puzzled. Grandpa Liu was a veteran party member. When did he start believing in superstitions?

"Take it. If you keep arguing, you won't leave today."

Grandpa Liu turned to leave, "Come on, I'll see you off. The earlier you leave, the sooner you'll get home."

"Okay, let's go, Xiaofan, follow me."

Zheng Dagang quickly stood up, not wanting to spend the night being bitten by mosquitoes.

"..."

Su Xiaofan, holding the red envelope, picked up his backpack.

"Su Xiaofan, let me see what Grandpa Liu gave you."

Su Xiaoxiao snatched the red envelope from her brother.

"Su Xiaoxiao, are you getting cocky again? Call me brother!"

Su Xiaofan didn't argue with her. He was familiar with talismans from rural traditions, where households would often post peach wood charms during festivals.

"It's just a safety talisman."

Su Xiaoxiao, being quick, opened the envelope and took out a yellow talisman.

"It's a Car Talisman!"

Zheng Dagang, looking over, said, "See, there's a car character in the middle, and on the sides, it says 'safe travel' and 'good fortune.' These are sold in the market. Many car owners buy them before the New Year."

"Car Talisman?"

Su Xiaofan looked at the talisman, and suddenly a line of information appeared in his mind.

[Repair Value: 3 points!]

[Car Talisman, a low-grade incomplete talisman, can be repaired. Deduct one repair point. Do you want to repair it?]

"Low-grade magical items and low-grade talismans?"

Seeing the information in his mind, Su Xiaofan was momentarily stunned. Since the appearance of the repair value in his mind, everything that appeared was either a magical item or a talisman, which was beyond his understanding.