The uproar eventually settled, and the matter was resolved.
Hu Ma listened as the village elders scolded Head Li for his lack of filial piety, claiming he had starved his own mother to death. He also heard the neighbors on both sides banging against Head Li's windows. Nearby, the Dong couple were blocking the entrance to the Li family's courtyard, demanding compensation for their pig.
Gradually, he understood the entire situation but found himself momentarily speechless.
Indeed, the evil spirit was present, but ultimately, it was the living who had committed the sin.
The person collapsed on the ground was helped up; it was Head Li's wife, barely clinging to life. Yet, this wasn't a living person overcome by hunger for pig slop. The villagers who had rushed over all heard the cry Head Li's wife uttered just before fainting. And her voice, the sounds she made—they truly resembled Head Li's mother.
