manynovel Chapter 267: The Startled Magpie
Chapter 267: The Startled Magpie
Chapter 267: The Startled Magpie
Hong Wendi stared intently, the shadow of the wall kept shaking, and the strange shadow behind Xiao Shitou was still twisting left and right in the cold wind, but Xiao Shitou himself seemed unaware of it. He was only focused on knocking on the wooden board, making a muffled sound that spread throughout the streets.
As the sound of a bronze chime rang faintly, the vague scriptures became connected from beginning to end and gradually became chaotic, as if someone was wandering around the market town, but due to many concerns, he had not officially stepped into Shuimen Street.
There was no need to hesitate any longer. Hong Wendi remembered the special hidden weapon technique taught by Hongdou, and quickly threw a diamond-shaped stone from the dark window. However, for some reason, it went straight to an unrelated direction.
The tiles of the house knocked, and this was the first time the hidden weapon hit the roof opposite; the dead tree swayed, and this was the second time it bounced off the bare tree trunk; the stone slab tapped lightly, and this was the third time it rubbed against the rough stone slab on the ground; after the third time, it finally bounced back, and the diamond-shaped stone's momentum continued, and it actually went back in the direction of the shadow, hitting the back of the small stone quickly and accurately!
The purpose of Hong Wendi's hidden weapon technique this time was not to kill, but to create enough noise to deceive the enemy. After experiencing layers of rebound, the enemy only felt strange noises all around, feeling panic in their hearts, making it even more difficult to track the user's hiding place.
The hidden weapon was used just right to make a feint to the east and attack in the west. Hong Wendi's original intention was to use the hidden weapon to make a sound to remind Xiao Shitou to turn around and pay attention. After bouncing several times, the stone was about to reach its destination. According to his calculations, it would pass by Xiao Shitou's head and hit the door heavily, and he would naturally notice something strange behind him.
But strangely, the sound that Wen Ding expected did not occur, but instead a sound of "ouch" was heard.
As he looked at it in confusion, he saw that the twisting and slanting shadow that was closely attached to the back of the small stone suddenly shortened a lot, and from the reflection, it seemed that it was squatting down in pain, holding its head, and rolling back and forth on the ground in pain...
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Inside the Yuxiu Water Gate, people are still busy late at night.
"Brother, why did you come back so late?"
The door had been closed tightly, the bolt had been fastened again, and the light of the newly lit candle on the table was flickering faintly, making the room particularly dim and hazy.
But Xiao Shitou, who was being questioned, seemed particularly stable. He took out the oil paper roll from his arms, took out the glutinous rice dumplings that were heated with his body temperature and handed them to Hong Wendi, while pointing at the person he brought back and trying to straighten his chest.
"Junior Brother Hong, this is my new friend."
The three glutinous rice balls wrapped in rice dumplings were bought by Xiao Shitou at the market. They were sweet, sticky, crispy and had a hint of alcohol flavor, which really whetted people's appetite. However, Hong Wendi's attention was still focused on the other person from beginning to end.
Following Xiao Shitou in came a tall and thin man of about seventeen or eighteen years old. He was naturally much taller than Xiao Shitou. In addition, he was thin and disproportionate, and wore clothes that were too big for him, making him look more like a scarecrow in a field.
His face and forehead were originally wide, and his complexion was very white, so the first impression he left on people was that his face was unusually white. At this moment, he was sitting in the bunk, his body swaying unconsciously, and he didn't know whether it was out of control or because he was freezing outside.
However, even though this person's appearance was strange, his eyes were particularly clear, even a little too clear, fully displaying the innocence that should not be present at this age——
The White Face had been hit on the forehead by Hong Wendi with a hidden weapon, but he did not make any noise before and after the bandage. Instead, he gave Wendi a good-natured silly smile.
"Brother Hong, your name is so strange."
Hong Wendi: “…”
According to Xiao Shitou's description, he met Da Bailian outside the county government office today. At that time, he was already having a lot of fun playing with a group of children in their childhood, and after a few interactions, they also got along quite well with Xiao Shitou.
A group of children were tired of playing outside the county government office which was covered with weeds. Someone mentioned that a firewood fair was being held in the south of the city today. All kinds of vendors from the surrounding counties and prefectures were gathering there, and the snacks and toys were far more than usual. So the group of children chased each other and rushed to the south city market. Before they knew it, they were playing until dark.
It was not until the sky was dark and the stars and the moon suddenly came out that the children suddenly remembered to disperse. The crowd retreated like the tide, but the big white-faced man was still wandering in the sunset, seemingly with nowhere to go.
Xiao Shitou was very loyal to his new friend. Even though he was not even as tall as the white-faced man's waist and was not familiar with the streets, he still took the initiative to offer to take the other person home.
As a result, the two of them walked in confusion. It was already dark in Chong'an County and the roads were dangerous. They took detours and got lost on the way, and ended up in dead ends. They returned empty-handed until dark, so they simply returned to the Shuimen Shop together.
"I'm not your junior fellow apprentice. What's your name?"
Hong Wending said this seriously. He saw that the white-faced man in front of him was a person whose mind developed very late, so he was ignorant like a child and could only hang out with children all day. But such a person was not necessarily a fool, he was just born simple and matured later than others.
"They call me Zhao Erguan."
The white-faced man was a little afraid of Hong Wendi's majesty, so he avoided the child who was shorter than him, and his thin body gradually shrank behind Xiao Shitou.
"Junior brother, his family lives next to the City God Temple in the north of the city. Let him stay here for the night. I will take him back tomorrow."
Xiao Shitou made a lot of promises in front of Wen Ding, trying his best to show his authority as a senior brother in front of his friends. However, in front of the height disparity among the three people in the audience, he seemed a little funny.
Hong Wending understood what was going on. Xiao Shitou had called him aside and explained that he was afraid that Hong Wending would become suspicious and refuse to open the door, so he asked Da Bailian to hide behind him and not make any noise. However, he did not expect that the shadow would expose his identity and he suffered an unexpected disaster.
"It doesn't matter. It's already so late today. Let's just chat in the main hall. When it's daybreak, I'll go with you to send him home."
Hong Wendi said calmly, giving Xiao Shitou enough face.
Firstly, although Zhao Erguan had not been enlightened, his demeanor in speech and speech did not seem hypocritical, and he did not seem like a person with ulterior motives; secondly, although his clothes did not fit well in many places, they were all made of high-quality fabrics, and his hands had no calluses on his knuckles, so he must have come from a wealthy family.
More importantly, Hong Wendi believed that with his fellow disciples in charge, even if someone was spying from the side, they would not be able to cause any trouble.
Just when the three of them gathered together, the night patrol finally came near the shop, and the windows and doors in the small room were all closed, leaving only some inevitable gaps between the window frames, allowing people to sneak a peek at the night outside.
Hong Wendi waited for a long time. The sound of the night patrol was always lingering around. Even though the moonlight outside the house was as bright as water, it still could not illuminate the surrounding scenery clearly. He just felt as if someone was walking around outside the house in circles, wearing hard-soled shoes.
The three people in the house held their breath at the same time, looked at each other without saying a word, and listened to the third watch announcement outside the house, "Dong-Dong! Dong!", first slow and then fast. It was night time and the wind was cold, and even the only candle in the house was extinguished by the wind. The shop instantly fell into a quiet world.
After a long time, the footsteps finally faded away.
"Zhao Erguan, who is that person outside?"
Wen Ding asked in a low voice, causing Da Bailian to whisper involuntarily.
"He is the night watchman in the county. I heard that he was originally a monk at Ruiyan Zen Temple. The temple is thirty-five miles away from the county. I used to go there with my sister to burn incense."
This was the first time that Hong Wendi heard of a monk called Dageng, and he didn't understand why he followed others stealthily, even staggering occasionally. It seemed as if he was chasing someone or being chased by something, and he looked very embarrassed.
He was puzzled and asked, "What does the night watchman want to do by following you here?"
Zhao Erguan's pale face was particularly conspicuous in the darkness. He kept silent and said, "I don't know, but he only patrols until the fourth watch every day. He will curse at pedestrians he meets on the road. I guess he blames us for coming back late..."
Hong Wending was surprised: "The curfew in Chong'an County is so strict?"
"No, my sister told me that there are ghosts at dawn."
Zhao Erguan pricked up his ears and listened outside the window. It seemed that there was no other movement for a long time. Then he emphasized in a trembling voice, "You can't go far away after dark, otherwise my sister will break my legs, especially when the moon is about to be full. After five o'clock in the morning, there are ghosts outside."
Little Stone touched his head and said nonchalantly, "How can there be ghosts in this world?"
Zhao Erguan retorted impatiently, "Yes! Yes! There is a ghost in the government office where we played during the day. There are men and women, young and old, a big family living in it! We have seen it outside the house, and there are people singing in the bushes inside!"
"Oh? What song is it?"
Hong Wendi asked casually, but Zhao Erguan saw that neither of them took it seriously, his eyes widened instantly, and he tried his best to shrill his voice as if he was angry. His eyes tried hard to recall a certain picture or tone, and then he began to sing with a slightly hoarse voice.
"Flowers are blooming, walking in the garden, I would rather die than hear of my resurrection. Oil-painted carriage, cold green candles, pines and cypresses of Xiling are tied together with one heart..."
The song was hoarse and unpleasant to the ear, but one seemed to be able to hear a female voice accompanying it, and it flew from the front of the house to the back, from under the eaves to the beams. When one looked up, it seemed that what one saw was no longer the old roof, but a night sky as dark as ink, with densely packed ancient locust and willow trees growing on it.
Zhao Erguan told them seriously that every child in the city could sing this ghost poem. They had heard more than once that a voice was coming from the top of the tree in the government office that was as eerie as an umbrella. It sounded like an old owl's dry laughter or a wild fox's howling at the green paulownia tree. The sound only lasted for a few moments before it quietly spread in the air, and it was so sad and graceful that it made people's heart tremble.
When Zhao Erguan was speaking at the most heated point, his words suddenly stopped!
Suddenly, I heard a sound of a bronze bell ringing outside the small shop door, which was just a line away. It was a dense and viscous sound wave that quickly penetrated the door panel, instantly destroyed the auditory defense line, and set off waves of invisible storms in my brain.
Someone might be screaming at this moment, but no one could hear what they were saying. Zhao Erguan's face became paler and paler, his pupils dilated as he stared at the void in front of him. He was so scared that he was at a loss. But until this moment, the sound of loud footsteps suddenly sounded outside the house.
Xiao Shitou and Hong Wendi stood up at the same time and blocked Zhao Erguan behind them. As their hearing gradually recovered, they realized that the night watchman had never left - he had actually been leaning against the door early on to listen, gradually determining the location, and only at a certain moment did he strike the bronze bell with a ferocious look on his face.
Zhao Erguan knew that someone was running around the shop hysterically at this moment. He had not uttered a complete sentence from beginning to end. The originally vague and strange Ksitigarbha Sutra was completely silent. So in his eyes, even the solid door panel turned into a dark doorway that was emitting cold air.
What he didn't have time to finish was that in the past, there were naturally people who didn't believe that Chong'an County was haunted and went out to have fun in the middle of the night.
However, these people would always be killed by wild ghosts climbing over the wall at dawn. The corpses were in such a miserable state that it was unbearable to look at. It was said that only the night watchmen’s patrols could drive them away. But after the fifth watch, even the boundless Ksitigarbha Sutra could no longer suppress the evil spirits in the city...
(End of this chapter)