After Descending the Mountain, Seven Big Brothers Spoil Me - Chapter 188

Chapter 188: A Thunder in the Sky, a Lump of Charcoal on the Ground
“Boom!”

A thunderous sound suddenly rang out.

Startled, everyone walked out of their rooms and saw a hole in Zhouzhou’s roof.

Qin Lie’s face instantly changed, and he quickly walked into the room. Before long, he came out carrying a small black lump.

Others were dumbfounded upon seeing it. Grandma Qin stared for a while before reluctantly recognizing that the little black ball in front of her resembled her precious granddaughter. She hesitated and said, “Zhouzhou?”

Zhouzhou was completely black, her clothes were pitch black, and the explosion had turned her hairstyle into a dandelion. The hidden poison inside had also turned to ashes, and a faint smell of burnt lingered in the air. Her face was dark, and she looked like a round coal.

Zhouzhou was stunned. She had been talking to the Ancestral Master just now, and suddenly a thunderbolt struck, leaving her charred. But why? Why did she have to be struck by lightning?

As soon as she opened her mouth, a puff of smoke emerged. Zhouzhou’s mental state completely collapsed, and she burst into tears, with tears streaming down her face, revealing a white patch of skin.

“My little golden ingots!”

“My eight strands of wealth-attracting hair!!!”

“They turned me into black, how am I supposed to become a wealthy woman? I don’t want to become a burdened woman!!”

Zhouzhou looked heartbroken and desperate, which made Qin Lie feel sorry for her. He quickly asked Li Yuanming to check on her.

Fortunately, she hadn’t suffered any injuries, but her hair was singed and needed to be shaved and regrown. She couldn’t tie her wealth-attracting hair anymore, which made Zhouzhou even more devastated.

“Why am I so unlucky?” She slapped her leg, and a white palm print appeared on it. Her voice was no longer crisp but rather hoarse. As she spoke, smoke continued to billow out of her mouth, creating a comical scene.

However, Qin Lie couldn’t find it amusing. He held Zhouzhou tenderly, using a damp cloth to wipe her face little by little.

Ye Lingfeng and Chen Tuo walked in just in time to witness this scene. When Chen Tuo saw the small black ball, he was shocked and stammered, “Grandpa Zhouzhou, what wicked things did you do to get struck by lightning?”

Upon hearing this, Zhouzhou’s crying stopped for a moment, and the next second, she cried even louder. She felt so wronged.

Seeing this, everyone’s gaze turned to Chen Tuo with a fierce glare. Chen Tuo immediately closed his mouth, shrunk his neck, and wanted to bury himself.

What nonsense he was spouting.

His words, however, gave Qin Lie some inspiration. He looked at Ye Lingfeng and furrowed his brows, asking, “What were you doing just now?”

He didn’t expect him to ask this question, and Ye Lingfeng was momentarily stunned. He said, “I just went to the next room to light incense.”

But there hadn’t been any problem with the incense earlier.

Qin Lie furrowed his brows, not understanding what was going on.

The Ancestral Master floated out of the statue, with talismans stuck to his body. He didn’t let Wen Jing see him and whispered in Qin Lie’s ear, “He must have paid respects to her. Otherwise, it would be strange if Zhouzhou didn’t get struck by lightning.”

It was against the natural order for children to pay respects to their parents. This was an act of filial disobedience.

Understanding this, Qin Lie’s expression grew even worse. He looked at Zhouzhou, who was crying so much that she began to cough, and held her tightly. “Good girl, stop crying.”

Zhouzhou sobbed, “Dad, it hurts.”

Although she hadn’t been injured, she would rather have been hurt.

Blood can flow, but money must be earned. Without her wealth-attracting hair, how much money would she lose?

Qin Lie gently touched her head and comforted her in a warm voice, “Didn’t you say this is the ‘Thread of Troubles’? Don’t worry about making money for now. Just be a carefree Little Baldy for a few days. With your hair tonic, it will grow back quickly.”

That was the only option they had.

Zhouzhou’s crying gradually subsided, and she nestled in his arms, sniffling as she held onto him.

Her shoes were also destroyed, exposing her feet, which were pale and unharmed.

Qin Lie held her chubby little foot and undid her clothes to wrap her in his arms. His coat was loose enough to accommodate the extra little lump.

After glancing at Ye Lingfeng, Qin Lie pursed his lips and walked to his own room.

Ye Lingfeng was confused and looked at them as they left, not knowing what had happened.

Mu Xuan also glanced at him, furrowed his brows, and walked into Qin Lie’s room, closing the door behind him.

The room was heated with a heater, warm and cozy. Soon, a white little dumpling emerged, but her hair was severely damaged and definitely had to be shaved off. Qin Lie brought a razor and gradually shaved off her hair. Zhouzhou wrapped herself in his clothes, serving as a makeshift cape, and sat there with her chubby legs crossed, obediently not crying or making a fuss. However, her eyes were red, her head hung low, and it was heart-wrenching to see.

“What happened?” Mu Xuan asked. “Why would Zhouzhou suddenly be struck by lightning for no reason? Something must have happened.”

Upon hearing this, Zhouzhou sniffled and said, “Maybe I’m too young to handle the incense.”

Or perhaps she was too arrogant, and the heavens didn’t take kindly to it, so they sent down a lightning bolt to wake her up.

Looking up at Mu Xuan with a pitiful expression, Zhouzhou pouted and said, “Eldest Senior Brother, you’re right. People shouldn’t be too proud and should be humble.”

She hadn’t lived up to that, and that’s why this happened.

Mu Xuan sighed. He felt that something was not quite right. He touched her little chubby cheeks and said, “It’s okay, our Zhouzhou is amazing. It’s okay to be a little proud.”

“No, no,” Zhouzhou shook her head repeatedly, looking like she had been scared by a snake for ten years. She said, “I won’t dare anymore.”

She promised to be obedient and not show off anymore.

Seeing her body tremble, Mu Xuan felt sorry for her but couldn’t find comforting words. He could only silently accompany her.

Grandma Qin and the others also came in, but seeing Zhouzhou’s pitiful state, they didn’t dare to ask too much, afraid that asking again would make her more upset.

After coaxing the little girl to sleep, they all left one by one, wondering what had happened and why it happened so suddenly.

The level of danger in their line of work was too high.

However, Mu Xuan still felt that something was off. He followed everyone out but soon turned back. As expected, he saw Qin Lie still standing in the courtyard, looking at the neighboring temple, lost in thought.

Recalling what had happened today, as well as his earlier question to Ye Lingfeng about what he had been doing, and what Zhouzhou had said about someone lighting incense for her…

A thought suddenly came to his mind. His face changed slightly, and he walked up, glancing in the direction of the room, and asked Qin Lie in a low voice, “Is there a connection between Zhouzhou and Ye Lingfeng?”

He should have thought of it earlier. How could someone suddenly light incense for Zhouzhou?

And at this moment, after lighting the incense, she was struck by lightning. There was only one possibility.

Ye Lingfeng, it was highly likely that he was a close relative of Zhouzhou.

That’s why this situation occurred.

And Ye Lingfeng’s incense was clearly burned for his wife and child.

Child…

His mind exploded with a “bang,” and in an instant, Mu Xuan understood everything. He stared at Qin Lie and asked, “Is he Zhouzhou’s biological father?”

Looking at him, Qin Lie nodded slowly.

Witnessing this, Mu Xuan was momentarily stunned, unsure of what to say.

They had always thought Zhouzhou was an orphan, never expecting it to be like this.

Zhouzhou’s father was actually alive, and moreover, he was so close to her.

“Why didn’t you say anything?” After a while, he asked in a hoarse voice.

“How should I say it?” Qin Lie countered, looking at him steadily, with a struggling and pained expression.

The two of them locked eyes for a moment, and Mu Xuan was the first to react.

Yes, how should he say it?

Although he didn’t know what Ye Lingfeng did for a living, judging by his appearance, he knew it couldn’t be anything good.

He clenched his fist and gritted his teeth, saying, “I’m going to beat him up!”

That was a decision he had made a long time ago.

He had said that one day, when he saw Zhouzhou’s biological father, he would give him a good beating.

He had seen Zhouzhou a long time ago, on the day Master Yi Yun brought her back from the foot of the mountain.

At that time, he happened to meet him on the mountain and saw the child in his arms. The small child lay in a blood-stained swaddle, freezing cold, with closed eyes and hardly any signs of life.

It was extremely pitiful.

At that time, he was thinking about how heartless the parents must be to do such a thing.

Later, Zhouzhou became his junior sister, and since their master was unreliable, he was practically the one who raised Zhouzhou. They had spent most of the time together.

He loved Zhouzhou the most, and therefore, he resented her father even more.

He clenched his fist tightly and suddenly heard a voice, “Whom do you want to beat up?”

Both of them were startled and turned their heads to see Wen Jing approaching, her face not looking good.