Ye Wuji, his excitement fueling his charge into the main hall, found his mind gradually calming as his speed began to slow.
He had suddenly remembered something of great importance.
He was not in human form at the moment, but a black bird. Even his mother would surely not recognize him.
However, by now, he had already rushed into the main hall, and transforming back into a human was no longer a simple matter.
Ye Tiancheng and the little fox arrived at the entrance of the main hall, one right after the other.
They both witnessed a middle-aged woman sitting before a very old-fashioned loom, a traditional wooden one. She sat there, her movements mechanical, weaving cloth with each pass.
Ye Tiancheng tentatively greeted her, "Hello?"
The woman weaving in the main hall showed no reaction.
Ye Tiancheng made several more attempts, changing his words, but the woman remained unresponsive.
This situation made Ye Tiancheng, the little fox, and Ye Wuji all feel a sense of strangeness.
Ye Wuji was also very eager to know what had happened to his mother.
He cautiously descended slowly, landing on the loom. It was a place that wouldn't interfere with his mother's weaving but provided a convenient spot to rest.
It was at this moment that the weaving woman finally reacted.
The woman glanced at the black bird that had landed on her loom. Her expression seemed somewhat distant, her mouth opened, and her face held a hint of confusion.
But in the end, she said nothing.
The woman simply stared blankly at the black bird, ceasing her weaving, and remained motionless.
Seeing that his mother had some reaction, Ye Wuji felt a slight sense of relief. However, Ye Wuji couldn't help but wonder.
If his mother was responsive, why didn't she answer Ye Tiancheng's greeting?
But in the current situation, Ye Wuji knew he was just a bird and couldn't speak to his mother.
Ye Wuji thought for a moment, then spread his wings and flew towards where Ye Tiancheng and the others were standing.
Ye Tiancheng and the little fox were still standing at the entrance of the main hall.
The woman's gaze had been following the black bird that landed on her loom. Seeing the black bird fly away, her line of sight moved with it.
It was at this moment that the woman finally noticed Ye Tiancheng and the others.
Suddenly, the woman became somewhat frightened.
However, she couldn't make much sound, unable to utter a complete sentence. She could only stammer out some vague, unintelligible syllables.
After everyone stood stunned for a moment, in a flash, they all realized a shocking truth, a truth that struck Ye Wuji like a bolt from the blue.
It turned out that this woman could no longer hear anything and could not speak. She was both deaf and mute. That's why, despite Ye Tiancheng knocking on the door for a long time and even coming to the entrance of the main hall to try and greet her, the woman had no reaction.
Because she couldn't hear or speak, and before she saw Ye Tiancheng and the others, she naturally couldn't give any response.
Ye Wuji, in his haste, forgot about his bird form and urgently asked, "Mom, what's wrong? Mom?"
Naturally, the woman could not provide a corresponding answer.
Since she couldn't hear any sound, even if Ye Wuji spoke in his urgency, it would have no effect. After all, just looking, anyone would think it was the black bird making a sound, not a black bird speaking.
And one would only know that if they heard it with their own ears.
The woman couldn't answer Ye Wuji's question. Moreover, the appearance of Ye Tiancheng and the little fox, strangers, made her very panicked and shocked, almost forgetting herself, even letting out consecutive cries of alarm.
Such commotion quickly alerted the nearby villagers.
Not everyone was working in the fields; some were at home. So, when movement was detected in this area, those people quickly arrived.
Whether they came to help or to watch the excitement, these people arrived very quickly.
What followed was a period of chaos.
Fortunately, Ye Tiancheng and the little fox did not appear menacing. In fact, the little fox's appearance was quite disarming and very approachable. Therefore, the villagers who rushed over upon hearing the commotion eventually listened to Ye Tiancheng and the little fox's explanations.
Furthermore, some villagers who had sensed some commotion from further away and had come over had previously seen Ye Tiancheng and the others entering the village.
They also spoke up in support of Ye Tiancheng and the others.
At this point, the villagers finally understood that Ye Tiancheng had brought the little fox to visit relatives and were not bad people.
The villagers also helped Ye Tiancheng and the others to calm the woman.
After the commotion subsided, Ye Tiancheng and the others finally had the opportunity to inquire about the situation from these villagers.
The villagers believed that Ye Tiancheng and the little fox had come to visit relatives and were indeed not doing anything wrong. The woman had simply been startled, so they were willing to explain the situation to Ye Tiancheng and the little fox.
After this, Ye Tiancheng and the little fox learned some of the circumstances.
The villagers stated that several years ago, after her son had an accident, the woman lost her son. She seemed to have suffered a blow and fell seriously ill. Although she didn't die from it, she managed to pull through. However, after recovering from her illness, she had become both deaf and mute.
Just like now, she couldn't hear and couldn't see.
No one could say for sure what kind of illness it was, but in their area, such an ailment was untreatable.
And not long ago, the woman's husband had gone out to seek medical treatment for his wife and had not yet returned. Therefore, the woman was alone at home. Neighbors helped to look after her. Since the woman had never seen Ye Tiancheng and the others before, she had been startled.
Some villagers in the village found it strange that the woman didn't recognize Ye Tiancheng and the others when they came to visit.
Ye Tiancheng was able to manage the situation by saying that he was a relative of the male head of the household, and their relationship was not very close, being distant relatives, which was why this had happened.