Perhaps because Qishui Village itself is wealthy, the ancestral hall is relatively luxurious. On both sides of the Zhumen are the couplets "The ancestral virtues flow from benevolence, justice, propriety, wisdom and trust, and the great outpouring of poetry and calligraphy brings filial piety, thrift and diligence", and a plaque of the Qishui Ancestral Hall hangs above.
"Um?"
Ji Xingwang frowned slightly, "Why is it Qishui Ancestral Hall instead of So-and-so's Ancestral Hall?"
"Maybe it's because the villagers who originally formed Qishui Village came from a complicated background."
Li Ang said: "According to Zhuo Wenbai, Qishui Village itself was formed by a group of refugees from different places.
Unlike ordinary villages, there are only one or two, or three or four surnames in the whole village. That’s why it’s not called the ancestral hall of a certain family such as the Que family or the Watson family. "
"Watson's?"
Ji Xingwang repeated it, and he couldn't help but feel doubtful in his heart, thinking silently: "I have only heard of the Quhou clan, Qutu clan, Qu Nan clan, and Qu Lu clan, but I have never heard of the Watson clan.
Does the surname Watson exist in the Central Plains?
Could it be..."
He glanced at the monk named Luffy out of the corner of his eye, with a calm expression on the surface, but secretly his thoughts suddenly changed, "Is he from overseas?
The airtight clothes worn on the body are to cover up the black or white skin color.
The hat and scarf are used to cover up the distinctive eye color and high nose bridge..."
"Find a way to go in and take a look first."
Li Ang said: "It's still dark, and considering the current situation of the villagers in Qishui Village turning into ghosts, the situation in the ancestral hall is probably not very optimistic.
Some ancestral halls will be used as places to handle weddings, funerals, birthdays, weddings and other events, and some will be used as memorials to temporarily store the remains of clan members.
If the people in Qishui Village could turn into ghosts, then the corpses might turn into something weird. "
He asked the other three to step back a little, then he quietly kicked off the ground, jumped up on the wall, and looked down.
The imagined situation of hundreds of ghosts walking at night did not appear in the ancestral hall. In some rooms, candlelight flickered, figures flickered in and out, and whimpering sounds that made people's hair stand on end were constantly heard.
Like Qishui Village, the villagers in the ancestral hall have also turned into some kind of ghosts, but they are blocked by wooden doors and do not wander around on the road.
Li Ang waved his hands and motioned for others to jump up on the wall, cross the wall, and land on the ground.
The twins' induction did not clearly point out the exact place of Yu Yuan's death. The four of them pressed against the wall and explored along the ancestral hall. In a small room, they found the Qishui Village ancestor tablets placed on the niches, as well as a thick stack of genealogy. , which records in detail the name, blood relationship, birth and death dates of each villager in Qishui Village, etc.
"The earliest record of the birth of new villagers can be traced back to the first year of Shoyan in the former Sui Dynasty. The latest record of the birth of a baby is in the second year of Ningyi in the former Sui Dynasty - that is, a few years before the demise of the former Sui Dynasty. It lasted for a total of 180 years. .”
Li Ang pondered: "Because Qishui Village disappeared at the end of the Sui Dynasty. It is equivalent to the time node we are at now, which is roughly the time period when Qishui Village disappeared as a whole."
"Maybe it's the night before the village disappears."
Ji Xingwang was flipping through the family tree and suddenly frowned and said, "Well...it's a bit strange."
Guan Anyan asked: "What's wrong, teacher?"
“Village Lifespan in Genealogy.”
Ji Xingwang said: “During the first eighty years when the village was founded, none of the villagers in Qishui Village lived longer than seventy-five years.
In the next hundred years, the average life span of the villagers in Qishui Village was greatly extended, and it became a longevity village. "
"Isn't this normal?"
Guan Anyan said doubtfully: "Qishui Village is considered a relatively wealthy village even if it is located on Jiangnan Road. The villagers have snakeheaded fish in the lake to sell. If the year is bad and the food harvest is reduced, they will not be unable to survive. The average life span is naturally longer. Much higher.”
"That shouldn't be such a coincidence,"
Ji Xingwang shook his head and said: "Besides this, there is another point that concerns me.
You know, even in today's Yu State, in wealthy villages like Qishui Village, many infants and young children die early.
In order not to make his parents sad and reduce the length of the genealogy, he will choose not to record him in the genealogy. Only when a child is over five or ten years old will his or her name be entered into the genealogy.
However, this Qishui Village genealogy also records those infants and young children who died prematurely.
And it was exactly a hundred years after the village was founded that this habit started. "
"this..."
Guan Anyan hesitated and said, "What does it mean?"
"No,"
Ji Xingwang shook his head, "But I always feel that there is a connection behind these things."
"The evidence is not complete yet and more clues are needed."
Li Ang flipped through the last few pages of the family tree, and sure enough he saw the names of Zhuo Wenbai's family - the couple's daughter was named Zhuo Lu, who must have been the "Lu'er" mentioned in the evening.
"Its daybreak."
Yu Yong, who had been silent all this time, suddenly said.
Everyone looked at the windows and saw the faint morning light on the horizon, shining through the window paper.
Dang Dang Dang——
The sound of Haotian bells was heard in the distance. Li Ang opened the window and found that the thick fog outside was quickly dissipating with the arrival of sunlight.
"Get out of here first."
At this time, noises were also heard in various rooms of the ancestral hall. Li Ang said hello to his companions, and the four of them quietly walked out of the secret room, left the ancestral hall, and looked in the distance.
"Are these villagers back to normal again?"
Guan Anyan said in surprise.
The villagers who reappeared in the ancestral hall, except that they still looked a little dull, had returned to their normal appearance, as if the "nocturnal wandering syndrome" that turned into ghosts last night had no sequelae.
Perhaps because of the so-called "Qishui Village Celebration", in addition to adult villagers, there were many children in the ancestral hall.
"Go over and ask."
Li Ang thought for a moment, then walked into the ancestral hall and tried to communicate with the villagers.
But whether they were adult villagers or children, they all could only mutter a few words over and over again, unable to extract any useful information.
"Hello fellow villager, I am actually an ordinary businessman in the north of Yu State. I am also a folk culture enthusiast. I am very interested in the content of your village. Can you find a place to talk in detail? I will be paid."
"Leave, you don't belong here."
"Okay, fellow, you've seen through. In fact, I am a secret agent of the imperial palace. This time I came to Taiyuan County to investigate the local people's sentiments. As long as you are willing to cooperate, you can be promoted to a high position and honor your ancestors."
"Leave, you don't belong here."
"Fellow, you don't cooperate with my work, which makes me very embarrassed and unhappy."
"Leave, you don't belong here."
After some communication, all the villagers had the same reaction. Yu Yongyong could not help but look ferocious, drew out the dagger from his waist, and stepped forward.
"etc!"
Ji Xingwang's eyes narrowed slightly, and he threw out the talisman, calling up the strong wind and blocking Yu Yong's progress, "What are you going to do?"
"You still have to ask? My brother died for no apparent reason. There must be an explanation."
Yu Yong shouted in a deep voice: "These villagers are ignorant and unconscious. They are obviously no longer alive. Kill one of them to see if they will turn into ghosts.
In the evening, all the villagers turn into evil spirits, so it is better to deal with them now to avoid any worries later. "
"..."
Ji Xingwang was stunned after hearing this. Indeed, judging from what he saw last night and the reactions of the villagers now, they do not look like normal living people.
But killing people like this... is really against the morals of Luli Academy.
"Don't make any noise. It's just dawn now and there's still a long time until evening."
Upon seeing this, Li Ang said: "It seems that only Zhuo Wenbai's family is different in the whole village. Why don't we go back and take a look first."
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