The old village chief walked in with Captain Wu (the thin man's father) and a few people with gray beards and hair, as well as a few middle-aged people. Grandpa Hao and Hao Junqi's parents followed behind these people.

I took Hao Junqi's hand and greeted her. Escape is no longer possible.

"They really hid in their homes." Captain Wu said.

Before Captain Wu finished speaking, two middle-aged men came up and grabbed our hands.

"Why are you arresting me?" Hao Junqi struggled.

And I didn't move.

"Let go of my granddaughter!" Grandpa Hao shouted.

Hao Youde wanted to rush up, but was stopped.

These two middle-aged men forcibly tied our hands behind our backs.

"Call your son." The old village chief said to Captain Wu.

The thin man walked to the front of the crowd.

I immediately understood that the reason why the adults came straight to arrest us was naturally the secret of this kid.

I suddenly understood that Hao Junqi and I had fallen into the trap set by the thin man, and that today's situation was the real goal he wanted to achieve, because only in this way could he really put me to death.

After they knocked me unconscious, they discussed with Hao Junqi and tempted Hao Junqi to trick me into going up to the Optimus Pillar Cliff, when they thought of this situation.

And if this situation does not appear, it is naturally the ghosts who have taken our lives—none of the children in the village do not know that there are ghosts on the Optimus Pillar Cliff.

I glared at the thin man.

It's terrible for a thirteen-year-old child to have such scheming.

The thin man told everyone about the situation that day he instigated Hao Junqi to let me go to the Optimus Stone Pillar.

Hao Junqi and I admitted that we had gone up to the Optimus Pillar Cliff.

Hao Junqi said that it was the thin man's fault first, if it weren't for the endless torture of the thin man, we wouldn't have gone up to the Optimus Pillar, that is to say, we were forced, so if we want to punish the crime, we must first cure the sin of the thin man.

Hao Junqi intermittently theorized with the old village chief, and finally made it clear.

The crowd crowded at the door was in an uproar.

Captain Wu scolded everyone rudely and told everyone to be quiet, and then he only said one sentence, "My son told you to kill people, do you want to kill people too."

This sentence was echoed by everyone.

The old village chief exchanged views with some of the old men, and then asked our guards to take us to the barn. The people who flocked to the door scattered the birds and beasts.

Hao Junqi's mother cried. Grandpa Hao and Hao Youde were both blocked out of the crowd.

As soon as he walked outside the door, the man in charge of beating the gongs and drums sounded the gongs and drums again, shouting: "Everyone has gone to the barre, everyone has gone to the barn!" ”

Hao Junqi and I were pressed to walk to the barn one after the other.

The barn was a place that left us with indescribable happiness, but it was also the place that made the thin man the most ashamed, and now it has become our judgment ground.

I wanted to look at Hao Junqi backwards, but the body of the middle-aged man who was looking down on us blocked my view.

I feel extremely sad. Parents are uncertain about their life and death in the brigade, and they themselves are pressed to trial, and the devil knows what awaits our verdict!

The most undesirable thing is that he also put Hao Junqi on board.

When we arrived at the barnyard, there were already many villagers gathered there. The two middle-aged men tied us to two jujube trees on the edge of the barn. Captain Wu went around home on the way he had just walked and got two brown ropes.

I remembered the brown rope dripping with my parents' blood.

There was a lot of talk.

Grandpa Hao took advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention and ran in front of us. He waved his hand at everyone and shouted in an old voice: "Village Chief Li, Captain Wu, and all the big brothers and sisters who are older than me, I, Hao Zhonghai, just want to ask everyone, which ancestral precept said that breaking into the Optimus Stone Pillar Cliff would be so tied up?" The ancestral motto prohibits our descendants from going up the Tiger Slope, let alone going up the Optimus Stone Pillar Cliff, but it has never been said how to punish the right person. My granddaughter and Teacher Zheng's son, everyone also understood that they were forced to climb the Optimus Pillar Cliff in order not to be bullied by some people anymore, why can't they be forgiven once? They're still young after all. ”

Grandpa Hao's voice was full of emotion, and his throat was choked.

Many people cast sympathetic glances at us.

Captain Wu wiped his hair with his hand and said, "Uncle Hao, we can understand that you are talking like this to save your niece. But have you ever thought about what kind of disaster will be brought to our entire village by trespassing on the Optimus Pillar Cliff? ”

"What kind of calamity?" Grandpa Hao asked.

"Yes, what calamity can be?" Hao Youde agreed.

People are talking to each other.

"Humph! I would like to ask you, if there were no calamities, would our ancestors have passed down such ancestral teachings from generation to generation? Listen, everyone, it's not that I want to deliberately not go with Uncle Hao, but please think about it, if we don't deal with these two people who trespass on the forbidden land, if something disaster comes, how can I, the captain, be worthy of everyone? It is precisely because we don't know what the specific disaster is that it is more terrible, and we have to deal with these two people, don't you say? Captain Wu spoke eloquently.

As soon as Captain Wu instigated this, many people immediately became emotional. Some are clamoring for us to be dealt with immediately. And Grandpa Hao was forcibly dragged down by several strong middle-aged people.

Then the old village chief asked everyone for advice on how to deal with it, and this was good, the crowd seemed to explode.

I looked at Hao Junqi in despair, and Hao Junqi lowered her head and didn't know what she was thinking.

It was proposed that we be beaten up as a warning; There are also proposals that we should be imprisoned and that we be given our freedom when no disaster occurs; There were also proposals to send us to the Commune so that the commune cadres could deal with us. This last proposal was well received.

I saw Captain Wu raise his right hand to signal everyone to be quiet, and then he cleared his throat and said, "I see that everyone really thinks things simple." Haven't you noticed that the Optimus Pillar split in half, and the moment it cracked, the sky suddenly darkened, and there were lightning and thunder, what does this mean? It shows that God has been alarmed. Is this something that can be dealt with by beating the perpetrator or detaining him for a few days? ”

"Then Captain Wu will tell me how to deal with it, right?" The impatient shouted.

"Yes, Captain Wu, if you have any ideas, just say it," said the old village chief, "You can ask for everyone's opinions." ”

"My idea is to sink them in the pond." Captain Wu spoke very slowly, but he spoke every word very hard, and I believe that every word reached everyone's ears.

I gasped. It was a posture that would kill us, and I understood why his son was so vicious.

"I'll fuck your Wu shit, when did my Hao family offend you, you want to be so vicious?" Hao Youde shouted.

"Nephew Wu, you have to accumulate some virtue when you speak. That's two kids. Grandpa Hao said.

"Why do I say this, is it like Hao Youde said that the Hao family has offended me? Who in the village doesn't know that your Hao family has nothing to do with my Wu family? The reason why I suggest this is completely for the sake of the people of the whole village, and for the sake of our Dongmen Village. This kind of thing that has been forbidden by ancestors for generations has happened, and if it is not severely punished, who cares about ancestral teaching? The more merciless we are, the more forgiving God will be to us, so that no calamity will be upon us. If there are some small disasters, some swine fever or something, we can still accept it, if we destroy our whole village, you can tell me, who can afford it? ”

"You immortal Wu shit, you dog can't spit ivory out of his mouth!" Hao Youde was almost hysterical.

But Captain Wu's words obviously shocked all the onlookers.

"Also, we can also see when we watch the drama that the ancient dynasties used sinking ponds to punish this kind of thing. And isn't there a pond at the entrance of our village? The oldest people in the village should know that this pond is older than our village, and our ancestors have his intention to settle this pond. ”

The emotions of the masses are getting more and more agitated. Many people raised their hands and echoed the idea of sinking us into the pond.

Hao Junqi's mother had fallen to the ground crying. Hao Youde squatted on the ground and covered his face in his palms.

Several older people and the old village chief had a discussion for more than ten minutes, and finally, the old village chief announced that Zheng Qihang and Hao Junqi would be sunk in the pond immediately!

I saw Grandpa Hao fall to the ground.

Someone came to untie our ropes, and of course they were going to send us to the sinking pond.

I took advantage of the fact that the person who untied my rope was not paying attention, shook off his hand and ran to the old village chief and knelt down, and I begged the old village chief to let Hao Junqi go.

"Old village chief grandpa, please let Kiki go, she is accompanying me up the mountain. If you want to sink the pond, sink me, okay? It was I who wanted to go up to the Optimus Pillar Cliff in order to stop being tortured by the thin man, so if you want to punish me, punish me. "At that moment, I really broke down.

Hao Junqi heard my words and immediately cried, "Brother, why are you talking like that? I was the one who promised the thin man to go up to the Optimus Pillar Cliff. Your name is Skinny Witness, did I promise it? You were unconscious. So, grandpa the village chief, if you want to sink the pond, you can only sink me, please let my brother set sail. ”

Many people sighed.

The man who untied me thought I was going to run away, so he quickly walked up to me and clasped my arms behind my back.

"I'm not trying to run away, uncle, I'm begging the village chief's grandfather to let Kiki go. Can you help me talk to the village chief's grandfather, don't sink Kiki into the pond, okay? I didn't struggle at all, and the middle-aged man grabbed my hand hard. I don't feel pain in my hands, but my heart hurts so much.

No one heeded our pleas, and a few people shouted and they escorted us out of the village.

The man who struck the gong opened the way in front of us, and many people followed us as if they were giving us a funeral.

"Don't stop me! Please let go of me, let go of my Kiki. Let go of my child, I only have this one child. Hao Junqi's mother's crying was drowned out by the villagers' discussions.

"Good immortal Wu shit, you will definitely be thundered by the sky, you will!" Hao Youde's eyes almost popped out. The almost heart-rending cry made many people frown.

There were also a few well-wishers who were comforting their husband and wife. But they couldn't listen to the persuasion, and they were about to collapse like me.

I didn't see Grandpa Hao. I couldn't hear him. Could it be that he didn't have the strength to get up after his old man fell to the ground? Somebody has to help them.