“Yes!”

The old woman looked into Hu Ma's eyes and sighed softly, "Your grandfather didn't have time to tell me these things because the Meng family recognized an old ancestor from somewhere, who was just too powerful."

"Your grandfather, along with one of your uncles and a young aunt, couldn't defeat him. Your grandfather didn't have time to say anything before he died, and your father, no matter how many times I asked, he never denied it."

"Later, I saw your birth and also saw the people from the Da Luo Fa Sect appearing in Lao Yin Mountain."

"I began to believe the Meng family's words. The Hu family did indeed exchange you for something."

"..."

Hu Ma already knew what happened next. He already knew many of the things the old woman was saying.

But now, his heart was still surging with endless emotions.

The Hu family also yearned for immortality?

He seemed to look deep in thought, but slowly raised his head, looking at the black clouds in the sky, and seeing the ancestral shrines of the ten surnames shrouded in grim ghost aura.

He looked at the old man guarding the shrine, sitting quietly on the futon not far away, as if he hadn't heard his conversation with the old woman. Finally, his gaze fell outside, on the shadowy figures of the noble lords in the capital city.

The old woman gently patted Hu Ma's hand, making him turn back to look at her. She said softly, "Back then, I married into the Hu family because I admired the Hu family's character. The Hu family learned magic from among the villages, but they never forgot their roots."

"Your grandfather and I met in the countryside when we were dealing with harmful spirits. After returning to the capital, we completed the three媒六聘 (sān méi liù pìn, traditional six rites) and he married me."

"I'm from the Bai family, but I became a daughter-in-law of the Hu family, so I've always considered things for the Hu family."

"The original family and the *zhuodao* (blade wielder, trusted subordinate) have the most trusting relationship. Although I'm the daughter-in-law of the Hu family, I'm also the *zhuodao* of the Hu family."

"But your grandfather kept the later things from me."

"..."

As she said these words, her tone seemed to become a little low, and she looked at Hu Ma frankly, "So, if you want this old woman to say, I don't think your grandfather would be someone who wanted to become an immortal."

"But the Hu family has indeed been involved in these matters for the past twenty years, and has received more benefits than the other families."

"The Duyu royal family is not a good thing."

"But in many people's eyes, Duyu was a wealthy household. After being robbed by bandits, the family property was left behind, and it was all divided up. The eight surnames were the thieves, the Hu and Meng families were the accomplices, and the Da Luo Fa Sect was just a dog-headed strategist..."

"And the Hu family took the largest share of the family property stolen from Duyu..."

"..."

Listening to the old woman's story, Hu Ma was stunned for a moment and couldn't help but think deeply.

After saying these words, the old woman seemed to relax a lot. She leaned down quietly and gently stroked Hu Ma's spine, and said softly, "In recent years, you've done a lot of things. Those are debts left by the old man, and you can only be pushed to walk.”

"But, have you ever done anything you regret?"

Listening to the old woman's words, Hu Ma couldn't help but smile and shook his head, "No."

"That's right."

The old woman was full of relief and said in a low voice, "Then in the future, don't do things that you will regret either."

"Now, no matter what, you have already returned. The things that the Hu family obtained back then are all yours to decide."

"Why ask how your grandfather did it back then?"

"Listen to the old woman, if your grandfather was really a confused worm who cared about those things, then you can refuse to acknowledge him."

"..."

"..."

At this moment, Hu Ma's heart was finally shaken a little. He looked seriously at the old woman's already somewhat blurred face, and then smiled.

The old woman really had resentment in her heart...

"Refuse to acknowledge him? That won't do."

Now that the conversation had reached this point, he already knew the answer he wanted, and he also understood why the old woman wanted to tell him about the Hu family's ancestral history.

Ever since he woke up, ever since he sought survival from death, he had been hoping for such an opportunity to talk to the old woman. He seemed to feel that there were many things he couldn't finish saying. He kept asking, asking many, many things, about the Hu family's affairs, about Little Hongtang's affairs.

He asked about the Hu family's past glory and the Hu family's original status.

Most importantly, since the Hu family had already paid so much, of course he had to ask clearly how many benefits they had received back then, so as not to be confused and cheated.

He kept asking until even the old man in front of the ancestral shrine began to cough softly to remind him, and then he slowly got up.

His father's coffin was sent into the fire pit behind the ancestral shrine. Before this, Hu Ma didn't know that the ten-surname ancestral shrine, which represented the orthodox lineage of the world, actually used the same funeral method as the ancient villages like Lao Yin Mountain.

After that, Hu Ma offered incense. The misty incense in front of him gradually faded, and at the same time, the old woman's shadow also faded.

She still looked at Hu Ma reluctantly, and instructed, "Next time you come to burn incense, don't come alone..."

"At your age, in the Da Yang village, no one will want you soon..."

"..."

Little Hongtang gently tugged at the corner of his clothes and watched the old woman return to the ancestral shrine with him.

The funeral ended.

When Hu Ma finally turned around slowly, the distant relatives and friends behind him, who had been waiting impatiently but didn't dare to show it on their faces, had already crowded up.

On the first day, they were eager to see Hu Ma, but Hu Ma refused. Now that they had finally waited for the end of the funeral, they were eager to come forward and talk. The first to squeeze to the front was his uncle.

The senior member of the Ren family seemed a little ashamed, sighing and saying, "After your mother returned from the mountains, she has been staying at home ever since, only burning incense and praying every day."

"This time, after hearing that you were escorting the coffin back, we also tried to persuade her, but she was unwilling to come out again, but... but she is still a little worried about you, so she asked me to take a look at you on her behalf. She is very happy that you are still alive and well."

"But no matter what, now that you've returned, rebuilding the Hu family's foundation is also the right thing to do."

"Our family still has some properties in this capital city. We'll transfer them to the Hu family's name first, and we'll discuss the rest slowly..."

"..."

Before he could say much, someone else supported an old man and rushed to the front. This was the second ancestor of the Qingyuan Hu family. He tremblingly held Hu Ma's hand and said, "I only found out about those bastards going to Mingzhou to look for you afterwards."

"It's outrageous!"

"You killed them, and that was a good kill. If you didn't kill them, the ghost walkers in this world wouldn't accept this 'Hu' character!"

"We did divide the family and establish a separate genealogy, that's true, but the character ‘Hu’ is written with the same strokes. Now that you're back, but there's only one seedling left in such a big family..."

"But you don't have to worry about lacking manpower. There are plenty of people in our family..."

"..."

His mood was still immersed in the conversation with the old woman, so he had no choice but to deal with these relatives.

Hu Ma frowned and said, "Manpower is certainly lacking, far from enough. Seeing this world in great chaos, dragons and snakes rising together, grass-roots kings fighting everywhere, and evil spirits wreaking havoc on the world, the people have to guard against being eaten by ghosts and also guard against being eaten by the living. How miserable?"

"There are too many things that need to be done. Not to mention relatives, even if you give me all the people in the capital city, I would still feel that it's not enough!"

"It's just that these things are very dangerous, and countless people die. Are the two elders willing?"

"..."

The relatives on both sides were stunned.

They looked embarrassed and said after a while, "At this critical moment, how can we care about others?"

"Now that the ten surnames have all returned to the capital, we have all heard about the Stone Pavilion incident. The Hu family has made great contributions, and their position is ahead of other families, but you don't have anyone to use by your side..."

"Since that's the case, why not open up the path to the bridge and let more people in our family be able to get some immortal energy? No matter what we do, it will be more convenient?"

Hearing their words, Hu Ma was a little surprised, "Does the path to the bridge need others to open it?"

When the two elders heard this, they thought he was deliberately mocking them, and said with a wry smile, "If you don't nod your head, who in the family can cross the bridge?"

"There are also some of us old folks who want to cross the bridge and help the ghost walkers, but the *Zhen Sui Shu* (Talisman of the Year) has always been in your hands. Without that *mushi* (mother template) blocking the way, others won't be able to stand firmly even if they cross the bridge..."

"..."

"*Zhen Sui Shu*, *mushi*?"

Hu Ma heard their hesitant words, and his heart was filled with a sense of understanding.

Ever since he saw the fate clearly and finished talking with the old woman, everything in his heart became clearer and clearer.

A smile began to appear on his face, and he didn't have to give his relatives a bad look like he did in Mingzhou. After all, he didn't know anything in Mingzhou, so he was careful and wary. But now, he knew more than the old woman...

Looking up, whether it was the Qingyuan Hu family or the Ren family in the capital, they all had twinkling eyes and looked at him with hope. Further behind, there were countless unfamiliar but expectant faces.

Some belonged to the old woman's maternal Bai family, some belonged to the old people of the Hu family of the former town of Sujing, and some were distant relatives from all walks of life.

Like bamboo shoots in the mountains, they all popped out.

"I have remembered the reminders of the two elders, but let's take it slowly!"

He said with a smile, "After all, my father's funeral hasn't been completed yet. It's really too early to talk about these things now, isn't it?"

As he spoke, he squeezed out of the crowd and walked forward slowly, feeling in his heart that the Hu family wasn't really poor. They were clearly richer than all the families in the capital...

Seeing this, others didn't dare to stop him, but they were all filled with fear and expectation. They looked at each other, and although they were dissatisfied, they all hid it deep in their hearts at this time, but they were secretly determined.

The Dharma Assembly would begin, the ten surnames would return to the capital, and whether each family could get a bowl of Stone Pavilion soup depended on whether this person nodded his head...

This matter couldn't be blamed on others. If the national teacher hadn't returned, who would have known that the major event of Stone Pavilion was actually dominated by the Hu family of the town of Sujing, which had declined for twenty years and only had an empty name?

(End of this chapter)