landbeastnovel Chapter 10: Combining Kindness and Strictness: Creating a Walking Human Warning Sign
Chapter 10: Combining Kindness and Strictness: Creating a Walking Human Warning Sign
Three days and nights.
If Wang Hu's consciousness were to become even slightly clouded, he would fall into boundless darkness.
A colossal toad shadow, so large it blotted out the entire sky, descended slowly with an overwhelming, oppressive force. The man was pinned to the spot by this invisible power, unable to move, not even a finger could be lifted. He could only watch helplessly as those indifferent, cold, inhuman giant eyes approached. Boundless fear, like icy water, seeped into every inch of his bones.
"Paw prints!"
"A giant toad is pressing down on me!"
Wang Hu's eyes were sunken deep, his cheekbones were high, his face was ashen, and he walked unsteadily, becoming a wandering ghost in the village, his former tyranny completely gone.
The villagers were abuzz with discussion, filled with suspicion and uncertainty, wondering if Wang Hu had gotten into trouble with something unclean.
After finishing his work that day, Lin Shi was called to the ancestral house by the village chief, Sun Ming. He knew that the time for the final blow had come. Carrying his hoe, he went straight to the ancestral house in the center of the village. He saw Wang Hu curled up in the corner, his body twitching from time to time. A hundred or so people were watching the spectacle around the gate. He pushed through the crowd and went inside. He saw Sun Ming and the clan elders Xu Zheng, Bai Siqi, Lü Xing, and Zhuang Shifeng talking about Wang Hu. Their faces were very solemn.
"Lin Shi!"
What's your opinion on Wang Hu's situation?
Sun Ming spoke directly.
"Village Chief! Elders!"
"Wang Hu has angered the gods!"
"Deceiving the gods, defiling the altar, invoking the toad curse, three days of cold."
"The Stone Toad King is pure in nature and bestows blessings upon the region, but his divine might should not be underestimated. Anyone who harbors evil intentions and desecrates the shrine will surely suffer the backlash of the 'Toad Curse.' There are three signs: First, a water calamity will startle the soul, and punishment will be immediately received; second, toad claws will appear on the wall, and the filth will not be removed; third, nightmares will press upon the body, and the cold will linger for three days and nights."
Lin Shi's gaze swept over Sun Ming's astonished face, and without hesitation, he pointed directly to Wang Hu's crimes.
"A few days ago, Wang Hu ran up to the Stone Toad King, spat a thick phlegm onto the stone niche, and then tried to urinate. Suddenly, a jet of water shot out and knocked him to the ground. Wang Hu scrambled home. From that moment on, he started acting strangely."
"That's it! That's it! I saw the marks on Wang Hu's wall with my own eyes; they're exactly like toad claws!"
"He howls every night, saying he's being suffocated by a giant toad!"
"Three days! Exactly three days! Look at him, he's practically out of his mind!"
The villagers' gazes fell on the trembling figure huddled in a corner in the distance. They thought of his usual behavior, the disarray at the village entrance that day, the strange claw marks on the wall, and his madness over the past three days, and these thoughts fit perfectly into the "toad curse" that Lin Shi had mentioned.
"No matter what, Wang Hu is still a villager of Shixi."
"Lin Shi".
"You are the closest person to the Stone Toad King."
"Can't you think of a way?"
"Repent and start anew?"
Zhao Fugui glanced at Lin Shi, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke.
"Chieftain."
"Wang Hu has blasphemed against the gods, incurring the curse of the toad. He must sincerely repent and atone for his sins through labor; perhaps then he may be pardoned."
Instead of taking the opportunity to condemn the entire group, Lin Shi proactively offered a solution.
I haven't truly established myself in Shixi Village yet, and resorting to drastic measures is only a momentary act of gratification, leaving room for future trouble. Clan Chief Zhao Fugui and Elder Xu Zheng have discussed this matter and spoken on it, so I have to give them face. More importantly, by using Wang Hu's atonement, I can create a model that will have a greater impact on the villagers.
"snort!"
"The death penalty can be waived!"
"He can't escape punishment!"
"Wang Hu must atone for his sins through forced labor!"
Zhao Fugui slapped his knee hard with his right hand.
Public repentance: Every day at the three times of Chen (7-9 AM), Wu (11 AM-1 PM), and You (5-7 PM), Wang Hu would go to the Stone Toad Shrine, burn three sticks of elm incense, then kneel three times and kowtow nine times, loudly reciting the repentance words: "I, Wang Hu, am ignorant and foolish, and have blasphemed the divine power. I now know my sins and beg the Stone Toad King for forgiveness!" Each repentance session had to last for fifteen minutes, rain or shine.
Labor service as atonement: Wang Hu was punished by sweeping a hundred paces of road around the ancestral shrine every day and clearing silt from the village's main irrigation canals. During the labor service, the village would provide him with a basic share of food to compensate for the loss of his ability to farm.
Cleanse body and mind: During his labor service, Wang Hu must keep his body clean and must not drink alcohol or eat meat.
It lasted for forty-nine days.
Supervision and Consequences: The clan chief and elders supervise their daily repentance and labor. If they are negligent, dishonest, or violate the prohibitions even once, they will be immediately expelled from Shixi Village and never allowed to return. If they sincerely complete the task, the gods will forgive their sins, and they may return to the village community.
Standing on the steps at the entrance of his ancestral home, Lin Shi loudly announced that he was very satisfied with the solution he and Zhao Fugui and others had come up with. It not only reflected the severe punishment of the gods, but also left a glimmer of hope for them to repent and start anew. It immediately won the unanimous approval of the villagers.
Wang Hu wept bitterly, but instead of resisting, he grasped at this straw and hurriedly kowtowed in agreement. To him, this public and orderly punishment was far better than the constant, inescapable nightmare and the eerie claw marks on the wall of his house. He would rather be punished in the sunlight than return to that dilapidated house where he was all alone, filled with invisible terror.
the next day.
The punishment begins.
Day 1.
Amidst the villagers' complex gazes, Wang Hu staggered to the stone shrine. His hands trembled violently as he lit the incense sticks, and his forehead slammed heavily against the bluestone slab as he knelt and kowtowed. His confession was broken and filled with fear. While sweeping the road, his movements were clumsy, and he worked diligently, avoiding eye contact with anyone.
The seventh day.
Wang Hu's movements became more practiced, and his confession flowed much more smoothly, but the fear in his eyes remained. When children threw pebbles at him, he didn't dare to scold them, but simply shrank back.
The twenty-first day.
The villagers noticed that Wang Hu seemed to have lost some weight, but his spirits were actually better than when he was in a daze. He cleaned very carefully, keeping the irrigation ditches spotless. During his confession, although he remained respectful, the pure fear seemed to have faded, replaced by a sense of bewilderment and contemplation.
The thirty-fifth day.
Wang Hu no longer needed supervision; he would go to the shrine to repent and do labor on his own when the appointed time came. Once, a man from another village passed by and, out of curiosity, wanted to get closer to the stone niche for a better look. For the first time, Wang Hu mustered the courage to stop him.
Day 49.
Wang Hu knelt before the shrine, remaining seated for a long time.
"Thank you! Thank you, Your Majesty, for giving me a chance to start anew."
When Wang Hu raised his head, there were tears in his eyes.
On the third day of his devout penitent labor, the wet claw marks that had plagued him for days on his wall had quietly vanished without a trace. Although he still occasionally had nightmares, the shadow of the giant toad no longer pressed him down, but simply watched him from afar.
After forty-nine days, Wang Hu seemed like a changed man. He remained taciturn, but his eyes were no longer cloudy and evasive; instead, they held a newfound sense of peace. He volunteered to the village head to continue cleaning the area around the ancestral shrine, asking for no pay, only peace of mind. He began learning to work in the fields, and although he was clumsy, he put in the effort. The villagers were initially skeptical, but seeing his daily persistence and transformation, they gradually accepted him, even occasionally offering him a bowl of water while he cleaned.
Ancestral home.
Lin Shi strode in and glanced around. Clan Chief Sun Ming and clan elders Xu Zheng, Bai Siqi, Lü Xing, and Zhuang Shifeng were sitting neatly around the table.
"sit!"
Sun Ming immediately smiled and pointed to an empty chair next to him.
Lin Shi was stunned for a moment. In the previous visits, including after presiding over the village rites, he had always been standing. This was the first time he had a chair, which meant that his status in the village had improved and become more stable. He couldn't say that he was on par with the clan chief Sun Ming and the clan elder Xu Zheng, but he was at least below the clan chief and the clan elder.
"Lin Shi!"
"You are the only one who can communicate with the Stone Toad King."
"I hope you will take good care of the village in the future."
Sun Ming smiled and pointed to the chair again.
Lin Shi didn't hesitate any longer and sat down. One should be humble when it's appropriate to be humble, and one should be assertive when it's appropriate to be assertive.
"Chieftain."
"Elders of the clan."
"Wang Hu's case is exactly what is meant by 'Deceiving the gods, defiling the altar, and invoking the toad curse, three days of cold.' This is the severity of the gods, a warning to us that divine power is like a prison, inviolable. However, the curse mark disappears with sincere repentance, and the punishment is reduced through labor to atone for the sin. This is also the leniency of the gods, giving a glimmer of hope to those who have strayed and returned to the right path."
"Wang Hu was once the shame of Shixi Village. He used his transformation to tell everyone that the power of the gods cannot be desecrated, and those who do so will be struck by lightning. But the gods are also merciful. If one is willing to sincerely repent and be down-to-earth, one can be reborn."
"King Stone Toad, your combination of kindness and severity is truly a blessing for our Stone Creek Village!"
Lin Shi took the initiative to speak.
Wang Hu's transformation was obvious, and the 49-day period had ended. The villagers were discussing this extensively, and the time for a conclusion had come.
Clan chief Sun Ming and clan elders Xu Zheng, Bai Siqi, Lü Xing, and Zhuang Shifeng all nodded in agreement.
Lin Shi smiled.
His words set the tone for the Wang Hu incident, making Wang Hu the most vivid witness to the majesty and forgiveness of the Stone Toad King, deeply imprinted in the hearts of every villager.
The Stone Toad King is not only kind-faced!
Its majesty is inviolable! To blaspheme against the gods will result in a fate worse than death!
Wang Hu became a walking warning sign, reminding everyone in Shixi Village day and night what reverence is.
After this battle, the faith in the Stone Toad King, through a combination of kindness and severity, truly became unbreakable and deeply rooted in people's hearts.
It was late at night.
Lin Shi's thoughts enveloped Shixi Village, allowing him to hear and see whatever he wanted, leaving no stone unturned. A steady stream of faith gathered around him, adding a heavy, reassuring fear to the already piety.
"I wonder what it will turn into?"
"Achieving godhood in the physical body?!"
Lin Shi slowly fell asleep, a crazy thought flashing through his mind.