Delicious-looking dishes were brought to the table one after another.
People around were feasting and chatting. Suddenly, the scene of the illusion changed. The red cloth turned into mourning cloth, and the big red wedding characters became mourning characters. There was a coffin in the hall. In front of the coffin, the groom's parents were wearing mourning clothes and wailing.
The guests were still the same group of people. Each of them wore a sorrowful expression. The two gossiping aunts at Shen Weixun's table started whispering to each other again.
"What a tragedy. They just got married yesterday, and the groom is gone today."
"Alas, you really shouldn't marry a girl who's been educated. She has a too strong character. I heard that last night, after the wedding night, while Liu Gui was sleeping, his wife strangled him to death."
"She's so vicious. Won't the village head kill her?"
"No way. They spent so much money buying her. And she hasn't left a root yet. The village head's wife must be infertile, but this young daughter - in - law can bear children."
"Will the village head's wife agree?"
"What can she do even if she doesn't agree? Can she go against the village head?"
The funeral soon ended, and the guests gradually left. Shen Weixun exchanged a look with Nian Nian, then pulled Meng Xiaoming and left the yard, returning to the small cottage where they had first stayed.
"What we're experiencing now should be what happened in this village before. I don't know what the answer to break this illusion is," Shen Weixun said after sitting on the bed and taking out the prepared compressed biscuits to hand to Meng Xiaoming.
"When we came here yesterday, the village had been abandoned for a long time, but the furnishings in this cottage were still complete. It's as if the people disappeared out of thin air. The illusion should continue to change. We need to know what happened next to find a breakthrough," Nian Nian analyzed.
"That bride should have been bought by them," Meng Xiaoming blinked his eyes, feeling a bit uncomfortable. Human trafficking had always been a common problem. Women bought into the mountains rarely had a chance to get out. They would basically spend their whole lives there.
Suddenly, the sound of gongs and drums started outside again, followed by a rapid knocking on the door. Shen Weixun went to open the door. The child who had come to greet them in the morning appeared again, even saying the same words as before.
"Uncle Qian, why did you just get up? The feast is about to start. The bride is already here. My mother told you to hurry up. Otherwise, you'll miss the start of the feast."
Shen Weixun slammed the door shut. The child at the door kept slapping the wooden door like a death - knell ringer, shouting and repeating the same words.
"Come out! Come to my wedding! Come out!"
After the child shouted for a long time, his voice suddenly changed into a rough male voice, shouting fiercely.
"We'll go after we tidy up a bit!" Shen Weixun shouted through the door.
The knocking stopped. After a while, the child's clear voice sounded again: "My mother said the bride the village head's son is marrying this time is very beautiful. Come quickly!"
It gradually became quiet outside. Shen Weixun looked at Meng Xiaoming, who had difficulty moving, and said, "This house should be safe. You stay here. This time, Nian Nian and I will go."
"Okay. Be careful then."
Meng Xiaoming weighed his current physical condition and knew that he was just a useless burden now. It would be better for him to stay put honestly.
Nian Nian had shown her outstanding abilities in previous rounds. One must not judge her abilities based on her age.
This time, only Shen Weixun and Nian Nian went to the feast. The situation was exactly the same as before. First, there was the wedding banquet and the bound bride, then the funeral and the groom who died on the wedding night. Even the expressions of the people around didn't change.
"Shall we go back?" Nian Nian approached Shen Weixun and whispered after the funeral ended.
"Go back. Let's see if it will cycle again," Shen Weixun whispered back.
As they had guessed, this illusion was like forcing them to watch a movie. As soon as they returned to the cottage, it would start all over again. When the third - round funeral ended, they chose to stay where they were, and the scene of the illusion changed again. It suddenly turned from day to night.
The candlelight in the village head's house flickered. The shadows in the room were projected on the window. The person hanging from the beam swayed. There was a faint sound of a whip lashing inside.
"I told you to be disobedient! Since you killed my son, you have to leave a root for our Liu family!" the village head roared angrily.
Then there was a rattling sound of things being smashed inside. The hanging person was taken down. The village head's wife slowly walked out of the room, holding the memorial tablet of her son and sitting on the steps, crying.
"Son, don't worry. As long as that woman gives birth to a child for our Liu family, I'll kill her to avenge you. No! I won't kill her. I'll make her live a life worse than death!" the village head's wife murmured while stroking the memorial tablet.
The woman's shrill screams came one after another from the room. The village head's wife gradually became numb as she listened to the sound of her husband and daughter - in - law having sex. After a while, the village head walked out of the room, even adjusting his pants that he hadn't had time to tidy up.
The scene continued to change. Many men came into the village head's house one after another. The village head's wife was standing at the door, holding a child. There was a bowl in front of her, filled with small - denomination bills. Every time a man went into the house, he would throw a bill into the bowl.
The absurd scene inside the house was clearly visible through the candlelight. The men who went in and out were in an endless stream. Some smacked their lips, feeling it wasn't enough, and would come out, pay again, and then go back in.
Nian Nian couldn't bear to watch any longer. She closed her eyes and turned her head away. She clenched her fists tightly, suppressing the urge to rush up and kill these people. She kept telling herself over and over again that this was just an illusion.
The village head walked out of the room slowly, still looking unsatisfied. He asked his wife, "How's it going? How much money is there?"
"Eight hundred yuan. Another two hundred yuan and we'll get our money back," the village head's wife sneered and replied irritably.
"Hehe, don't be jealous, old couple. This woman seems to be pregnant. Tomorrow, get some abortion pills for her and get rid of the bastard," the village head said with a smirk.
"Got it. We won't take any more customers after this wave. The child should go to sleep," the village head's wife rolled her eyes.
The illusion continued. All the people disappeared from the yard in an instant. This time, Shen Weixun and Nian Nian finally saw the bride's true appearance. She was a very beautiful girl. Her long black hair was scattered on her shoulders. Her lips and cheeks were bruised. Her haggard face was full of hatred.
At this moment, she was in the yard, tied to a stool. The village head's wife slowly approached her with a bowl of black herbal medicine. The village head nodded, pulled out the rag in the girl's mouth, held her head firmly, and forced her to open her mouth by pinching her lower jaw. The herbal medicine was poured into the girl's throat.
The girl struggled and shook her head. Two lines of clear tears ran down her cheeks. When the herbal medicine was finished, the rag was stuffed back into her mouth. The pain in her stomach became more and more intense. The girl was sweating coldly, and her legs were gradually stained red with a large amount of blood.