I am a Flower Vase in an Infinite World / I Am a Useless flower in an infinite

Chapter 95

She exclaimed loudly, "There's something here!"

A child, bare-assed, saw it too and reached out to grab it, only to receive a smack on the buttocks from one of the women.

The players gathered around, none daring to touch it. The female player who first discovered the red envelope frowned, skillfully using the branch to open it.

To everyone's surprise, the envelope contained a stack of hundred-yuan bills!

Just then, a huge roar erupted not far away. This round of explosives seemed more substantial than the previous ones. Tang Ning watched as the ancient bridge finally couldn't withstand the destruction. It collapsed into the river amidst thick smoke, creating waves of water, a spectacle akin to a scene from a movie. The exclamations of children by the river were drowned out by the explosion. The once clear river rapidly turned muddy, with dead fish floating belly-up.

There's a tragic beauty in destruction, and as the ancient bridge truly fell apart, it seemed something intangible also shattered into pieces.

Players and other townsfolk rushed to the bridge's side. Tang Ning lagged behind, first hearing gasps of shock from the crowd. Those at the forefront wore grim expressions, as if they had seen something horrifying.

Tang Ning stood amidst the crowd, tiptoeing to peer into the ruins, where she spotted two small skeletons. The stark white bones lay in the mud, undamaged by the explosion that had shattered the surrounding stones into pieces. Judging by their size, they looked to be children around six or seven years old.

"What the hell is going on here? Whose kids are these?!" "Why are there corpses under the bridge!" "Is the master around? Get the master here!"

The villagers seemed clueless, swirling around in panic, with no one daring to touch the bodies. Some, harboring the notion that family scandals should not be publicized, yelled for the players to leave quickly. The players exchanged looks, and someone posted a message in the group chat.

Jiang Mianmian typed, "This looks like a case of 'living piers.' In ancient times, if a construction project was facing difficulties, young boys and girls would be encased within the bridge piers. Bridges built with 'living piers' were exceptionally sturdy."

Jiang Mianmian continued, "During the construction of such piers, some would disguise themselves as beggars and ask for clothes. If you lent them your clothes, those clothes would be nailed to the pier, making you a part of the 'living pier.' Another common practice was to throw red envelopes nearby; the money inside was considered your 'life-buying money.'"

The first player to find the red envelope looked visibly shaken and typed quickly in the group chat, "Does it mean I'm implicated in this karma just by accidentally touching it with a stick?"

Jiang Mianmian replied, "I don't know."

"Let's get the fuck out of here, follow me. Why the hell are you all still standing around?" The boatman approached the players, calling out to those looking down at their phones.

"Old man, does your village have any unique customs?" a player asked.

The boatman waved his hand dismissively, "All backward and feudal customs that should be abolished. I'd rather not talk about it!"

"Come on, tell us, Uncle. We want to hear."

The boatman furrowed his brow, "What's there to listen to? Haven't you young folks watched any movies? In horror films, the ones who die first are always those with nothing better to do than poke their noses into everything!"

Tang Ning had never encountered such a self-aware NPC before. Looking around at the other players, who seemed at a loss for words as well, it appeared that everyone was meeting such a character for the first time. Suddenly, no one knew how to continue prying.

"Alright, alright, you've all come a long way and must be tired, right? Go have some of our local fish. The fish from our town is exceptional; you can't buy fish this fresh and tender anywhere else," the boatman said, leading everyone to eat. Tang Ning looked back towards the bridge, where the townspeople were still helplessly gathered around the two corpses.

Soon, they arrived at the dining spot, right at the boatman's doorstep, outdoors, with a large table. A woman around the boatman's age was setting the table. Seeing her, the boatman exclaimed, "Wife, your fish soup is getting more fragrant by the day! I could smell it from miles away!"

The wife didn't seem much for conversation. Seeing the players, she didn't greet them but quietly went inside the house.

"Come, come, come, you young folks are in for a treat. Who wouldn't praise my wife's fish soup? I've been drinking it for decades and never got tired of it." The boatman enthusiastically ladled soup for everyone. Some players wanted to decline, to prevent the boatman from fussing too much, but Uncle Boatman wasn't pleased, "What's this about letting guests lift a finger? You've paid so much money; of course, I have to take good care of you."

It looked like the boatman's family was responsible for hosting this group of tourists.

The boatman sighed, "Times have changed. Who would have thought about making money from tourism in the past? The money you've paid for this trip is equivalent to what I'd make in a year of hard work."

Lin Yun ladled the milky white fish soup into his bowl, gently blew on it, but didn't drink. Not just Lin Yun, but no one among the surrounding circle of players seemed willing to be the first to try.

"Uncle, how did your town suddenly decide to get into tourism?" Lin Yun asked.

The boatman sighed, "It's all thanks to our new mayor. He's the one who led us into this. Hey, why aren't you all drinking? It won't taste good once it's cold!"

The boatman, Uncle, cast his gaze towards the female player closest to him, who was also the first to discover the red packet, "Are you worried that the food we prepare is dirty and unsanitary? Rest assured, my wife has boiled the dishes and utensils three times over just to host you!"

The female player seemed really unlucky as she stiffly explained under the boatman Uncle's pressing, "I'm allergic to seafood."

Uncle retorted, "This is river fish."

The atmosphere turned incredibly awkward in an instant.

Uncle, visibly displeased, said, "The fish soup won't taste good once it's cooled. My wife spent over two hours preparing it. Couldn't you at least try a spoonful?"

Under Uncle's urging, the players began to reluctantly pick up their chopsticks, though they were merely going through the motions, waiting for someone else to test the waters first. Tang Ning stirred the fish soup with his spoon, and a bit of oil surfaced, with the dead fish's eyeballs eerily visible. True to Uncle's word, the fish meat had been simmered till it was falling apart. A gentle scrape with Tang Ning's spoon broke a hole in the fish's belly, revealing something leaking out.

Tang Ning took a closer look.

It was a piece of finger bone.