David Thompson suddenly realized that the clan leader thought he was possessed by Philip Thompson. He immediately knew his opportunity had come. He cried out, “Ah!” and widened his eyes in surprise, asking, “How did the clan leader know?”

William Thompson was shocked. “Did you really hear it?”

David Thompson nodded. “I did hear that voice when I fell into the well. I always thought there was a ghost in the well and never dared to tell my father.”

“What did the voice say?”

David Thompson lowered his head in silent contemplation, quietly recalling the chronological notes he had organized. Arthur Thompson ascended the throne in the second year after the founding of the Song dynasty, so Philip Thompson died in 961, and this year is 1111, which means Philip Thompson has been dead for one hundred and fifty years.

David Thompson looked up at the sky, his expression tinged with a dreamy quality, and slowly said, “When I fell into the well, that voice whispered in my ear that his soul had wandered for a full one hundred and fifty years and had finally found me, a soul-hosting child.”

William Thompson immediately took out a genealogy book from his robe and began to flip through it. The genealogy recorded the birth and death years of the great ancestor in very obscure language, understandable only to the clan leader.

As he flipped through the book, William Thompson used his finger to calculate on the ground. Finally, his expression changed dramatically. According to his calculations, it had been exactly one hundred and fifty years since the great ancestor passed away.

William Thompson's legs gave out, and he knelt down in front of David Thompson with a thud. Even if this child wasn’t the great ancestor reborn, a part of the great ancestor’s soul must be residing in his body.

Seeing the clan leader kneel, George Thompson was so frightened that he knelt down as well. My god! Could this child really be possessed by the great ancestor? The great ancestor passed away one hundred and fifty years ago and has now returned.

David Thompson pretended to panic and said, “Clan leader, Fourth Uncle, what are you… what are you doing?”

He was actually a bit worried—what if the clan leader really took him for an ancestor?

“Unworthy descendant William Thompson pays respects to the great ancestor!”

“Unworthy descendant George Thompson kowtows to the great ancestor!”

Even in a remote village a thousand years later, many foolish men and women would believe such tricks, let alone in the Song dynasty. William Thompson had already made up his mind, and David Thompson merely confirmed his suspicions. But if it had been his brother Richard Thompson, he might not have believed it.

David Thompson simply sat down, secretly smiling bitterly to himself. He had just made up a few things off the top of his head, and they actually believed him. Would he have to start fainting like a witch and then babble nonsense like a shaman in the future? Sigh! How was he supposed to end this?

William Thompson respectfully kowtowed three times but didn’t dare sit down again. Instead, he stood with his hands at his sides in front of David Thompson. He hadn’t slept all night, thinking about this matter—why would the great ancestor choose David Thompson, a six-year-old child, to rush into the fire? There were at least two hundred clan members fighting the fire last night, countless able-bodied men, yet the great ancestor chose a child.

Now he finally understood that the great ancestor had already had a connection with David Thompson. Water and fire complement each other!

“Clan leader, please sit. I have something to say.”

William Thompson nervously perched on the edge of his seat. David Thompson looked at him solemnly and said, “Clan leader, it’s best not to mention the great ancestor again. This is the Song dynasty, and the emperor’s surname is Zhao, not Li. Talking too much about this could get the whole clan wiped out.”

William Thompson was stunned. He slapped his forehead—he hadn’t realized how serious this was. No! When he got back, he must immediately order everyone to keep silent and forbid anyone from talking about the great ancestor’s manifestation last night.

He turned to look at George Thompson again. George Thompson immediately shook his head like a rattle-drum. “Don’t worry, clan leader, I absolutely won’t say a word about this.”

With just one sentence, David Thompson completely shut down William Thompson’s intention to spread the story in the county. He added calmly, “Clan leader, just call me Qing’er from now on. Let’s never mention this again.”

William Thompson gradually calmed down and nodded. “Qing’er, is there anything you need me to do?”

After all this mystical pretense, David Thompson had been waiting for this very question. He unceremoniously held up four fingers. “First, Henry Brooks destroyed the Li family ancestral hall, bringing disgrace to the honored ancestor and harming the Li descendants. He must be expelled immediately and never employed again.”

William Thompson noticed that his tone was nothing like that of a six-year-old child—he even mentioned the honored ancestor. This made him believe even more, and he quickly said, “I’ve already driven him out and will never use him again.”

“Second, all the debts my father Brian Thompson owes the clan leader are to be canceled, and the wages that have been withheld from him over the years should be made up in full.”

Four years ago, Brian Thompson borrowed money to bury his wife, and his father-in-law Paul Dean and William Thompson colluded to ruthlessly fleece him. They claimed it cost five hundred strings of cash, but in reality, a little over a hundred would have sufficed. Most of the five hundred strings ended up back in their hands through the purchase of the burial plot, coffin, various labor fees, and so on. The actual expenses were just a few pigs that ended up in the villagers’ bellies, plus some clothing and burial items.

William Thompson not only gained a reputation for helping the clan but also got himself a cheap laborer, almost like a slave. All of this was in black and white, and Brian Thompson had willingly signed the papers.

But who could have expected Brian Thompson to have such a son? William Thompson felt a wave of guilt and hurriedly said, “I’ll definitely cancel the debt. I’ll bring the IOU and the wages over as soon as I get back.”

David Thompson continued, “The third thing is, I want to go to school. Clan leader, please arrange it for me!”