With a fast horse galloping, you can reach Sifang Town in one day. From there, you can go to Zuilong Tan in half a day.
But now I avoided the Fairy Temple and took a detour. In addition, I walked mostly on wild roads in the countryside and followed a carriage.
"The sun is setting, and we definitely won't be able to reach the town today. Let's find a place to rest first." Zhang Yangqing, who was leading the way, said to the people behind him in a hoarse voice.
"After a day's walking, let alone the villages, there is not a single soul on the road. Where is there a place to rest?"
Due to the current influence of evil spirits, few people come and go in the wilderness. Most of the people stay in the bustling towns, and even the herb collectors do not come easily.
Hunters only hunt on the hills they are familiar with.
Unless that's life-threatening.
Zhang Yangqing said: "Half a mile ahead, there is a Tonglu Village. It was attacked by bandits ten years ago. It is now an uninhabited village. When I was hunting, I was in this Xiangyang Mountain, so I am familiar with the roads here. , but the arm disappeared later when I was hunting, and it hasn’t been here for a long time..." He said hoarsely.
"In that case, what are you waiting for? I'll ask Brother Yang Qing to lead the way." Mu Nianyong, a burly man, said hurriedly.
Since there was an acquaintance leading the way, the others had no objections.
Sure enough, a group of seven people passed through a wild road with some weeds, and the front suddenly opened up.
"Is there really a village?" Everyone looked down.
Tonglu Village is located on a narrow platform sandwiched between two streams, surrounded by mountains and rivers.
Liu Sichen took the map out of his sleeve: "Is there a village here? The map didn't mark it..." It only marked this area as the Xiangyang Mountains.
"Villages that have been abandoned for more than ten years will not be recorded." Dongfang Qingfeng said.
Liu Sichen rode his horse closer, looked at the three people in front of him and said: "General, it seems that we can't reach Sifang Town today. Look..." After all, these people are not familiar with this place and don't know the basics, but they still need to lead the way.
Dongfang Qingfeng's horse was kicking its hooves in place. He tightened the rope to make it more honest. "The road conditions are unclear. Please listen to them and find a place to rest first."
"OK."
Dongfang Qingfeng looked around among the three people, and finally his eyes fell on Zhang Yangqing's empty sleeve.
"Brothers at the back, Brother Yang Qing said that there is a place to stay in that village. Let's take a rest there tonight before leaving tomorrow."
Mu Nianyong felt that there must be a master among the four people behind.
He intuitively thought it was the one riding the bay-red horse, so he looked at Dongfang Qingfeng and his sword.
When Dongfang Qingfeng saw him looking over, he smiled politely and nodded.
Then the group of people rode close to Xiangyang Village.
Although it is in a remote place, the village is well built. It is surrounded by mountains on three sides and two streams sandwich the village. It is surrounded by green mountains and clear water, and the scenery is beautiful.
"Most of the houses in Tonglu Village are uninhabited and have been dilapidated over time. However, there is a blacksmith shop here, which is made of solid bluestone. It is very strong and can still be inhabited. It was my place to stay when I was hunting."
"just in front."
The blacksmith shop Zhang Yangqing mentioned is located at the crossroads of the village.
Everyone thought it would be a mud house, no one cared about it, it was just a one-night stay.
Unexpectedly, it turned out to be a rather decent and exquisite bluestone house.
The second-entry house not only has a spacious front yard, but also has three rooms in the backyard.
The ground at the entrance is paved with bluestone, and it is a large house in the village.
The group dismounted.
Looking up, there was a faded plaque hanging on the door with the words "Blacksmith Shop" on it.
Qingshi Tetsu's front yard is a blacksmithing place, with a large open stove, a square chimney leading straight to the roof, and scattered rusty ironware around it.
"This place is nice!" Li Gui, a thin man with a slight kidney deficiency, began to look at the scenery and muttered: "Take a break in your free time. I love this place. The beauty of the world lingers all year round."
"Come on, stop dragging out your sour poetry."
A few people chatted and laughed and settled the carriage.
When Que Qingyue carried the hem of her clothes and walked up the bluestone steps, she looked at the ground carefully. The steps were surprisingly clean.
Yuan Ying hurriedly tied the horse and ran over three steps at a time, panting: "Ancestor, do you think this place is okay?"
Que Qingyue put her hands in her sleeves and stood on the steps of the courtyard. She glanced at the courtyard inside. Maybe because it was an iron shop, the layout of the courtyard rooms was different from that of ordinary homes.
A corridor leads directly to the three rooms inside.
The doors, windows, eaves, and bluestone paving are all very clean.
She raised her eyebrows slightly and said, "Well, it's not bad."
"That's fine, as long as there is no evil worship like the Fairy Temple." Yuan Ying breathed a sigh of relief.
Que Qingyue looked back at her, "Is this what you just asked?"
"yes!"
"What I'm saying is that it's okay to stay temporarily here."
"ah?"
"What are you thinking about?" Que Qingyue said, clasping her hands, looking down at the road and walking down the steps.
"No, ancestor." Yuan Ying followed her all the way down the steps: "You didn't feel anything else? As long as you give the order and feel something is not good, I will definitely take you away without looking back..."
Que Qingyue smiled as she listened to the words, "Do you think Xie Chong is like the sweet potatoes in the field, three with one step and one with three?"
"Do you know how many years of baptism and yin energy are needed for the place where evil worship is born? How many coincidences, right time and place are needed? There must also be a certain amount of chance, and more importantly, those who have complaints must not complain again. The difficulty of the resentful soul is almost equal to making a person become an immortal, or come back from the dead, do you understand?"
If he had taken three steps, he would have been worshiped by evil spirits, and five steps would have led to hell, and Danie would have died long ago.
"Oh." Yuan Ying cursed but felt relieved when she heard her ancestor's words.
"I saw there is a well in the courtyard. You can fetch some water and tidy up the room. We will rest here at night." Que Qingyue turned around and ordered.
"Okay, ancestor! I'll go right away."
"What's your ancestor?" You are my ancestor!
If Yuan Ying wasn't running fast, she would have kicked him over.
…
Although Zhang Yangqing broke his arm, he had hunting experience. When he went out for a walk, he and Mu Nianyong dug out three nests of hares and two pheasants from the back mountain. The rabbits and pheasants were plump, each weighing four or five pounds. Heavy.
Liu Sichen knocked out several fat fish with stones by the stream and tied them back with straw ropes.
There is a ready-made iron pot on the big stove in the blacksmith shop. You can light the fire, open the box and turn on the wind, steam, cook, fry, stir-fry rabbit, stew chicken with bamboo shoots, steam fatty fish, and leave one to make soup.
Zhang Yangqing took out a jar of cold-warming liquor that he had brought with him when he was hunting and settling here in the past.
A few people set up a table of decent meals in the spacious blacksmithing room of the blacksmith shop.
The fire in the iron furnace is still burning, which not only provides illumination, but also drives away the moisture and chill after the rain in the mountains at night.
Que Qingyue usually doesn't enter a place like the kitchen.
The same is true for Yuan Ying. She can do strong work and chop firewood, but she has no cooking skills at all. Although she is a maid, in addition to taking care of her ancestors, angering her ancestors, and being beaten by her ancestors, she is very free, practicing fists and kicks, and stepping on them. Plum blossom pile, just for daily fun.
Not to mention asking ancestors to cook, that is simply impossible!
Our ancestors would rather not eat than go to the kitchen.
It is even more impossible for our ancestors to sit at the same table with these drunkards.
In fact, no one would let Que Qingyue take action without even thinking about it.
Zhang Yangqing and the other three cooked all the meals themselves with their sleeves rolled up.
Yuan Ying moved another table to the window. She was holding a bowl and eating meat, while Que Qingyue was drinking tea.
It was a pot of Peiyuan tea. Que Qingyue adjusted her sleeves, sat down at the table, reached for the teapot and poured a cup.
Peiyuan Tea is what she spits out from the Moon Disk of the Sea of Consciousness.
It doesn't look like anything in the world. The golden and oily leaves are like a living fish, tumbling up and down when entering the water.
The brewed tea soup is golden yellow, with a mellow aroma that can replenish vitality and physical strength. It is soft in the mouth and has a lingering fragrance after it melts.
The reason why she eats so little on weekdays is because she has Peiyuan tea. One tablet a day is enough to replenish the vitality she needs for the day.
Liu Sichen acted quickly, and when no one was paying attention, he had already poisoned each dish and wine with a silver needle.
Dongfang Qingfeng glanced at him, he nodded, and then the two of them sat down with everyone.
The delicious food is delicious and the smell is so delicious that it makes people salivate.
Several people were intoxicated with wine.
When he looked up, he saw Yuan Ying by the window, her mouth full of food, and Master Que Tianshi opposite, sitting at the window, raising a cup of tea and looking out the window.
In fact, there is nothing interesting to see. There is no moonlight tonight.
After drinking a bowl of wine across the table, someone suddenly asked boldly: "Master Que, are all the people in Xuanmen like you, who don't eat the fireworks of the world?"
Que Qingyue looked back lazily, and the person who asked the question turned out to be Zhang Yangqing, who was usually silent and had only one arm missing.
Look at the merit points he has accumulated.
Que Qingyue gave him a rare and pleasant smile, looked at him, and replied: "No, I still have to eat some fireworks occasionally."
Everyone across the table looked at her.
No matter he is serious, has a smile, has a pleasant face, or is cold and indifferent, he looks good.
It's so beautiful.
Looking at such a cold beauty.
The night becomes more beautiful.
Only Dongfang Qingfeng withdrew his gaze, his expression remained the same as usual, and he poured another bowl of wine.
Zhang Yangqing slowly put down the wine bowl.
The scar on his face became horribly red due to drinking strong alcohol. His face was so ugly that a child would cry when seeing it. However, his eyes were bright at the moment. He asked: "Then I can ask Master Que Tian again. A question?"
Que Qingyue didn't care about his appearance. She looked down at the tea cup and said casually: "You can ask."
"I heard that the first generation ancestor of the Que family has the magical power to bring back the dead. Is it true?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Dongfang Qingfeng, who was pouring the wine, looked at him, and Liu Sichen also looked back at him.
Several other people did not expect that he would ask such a question.
There was silence for a moment.
There was only the crackling sound of firewood burning in the fire chamber at the head of the cellar.
Obviously, this kind of thing is just an exaggerated rumor spread by the world. Everyone can say this, but they cannot really believe it.
How could such a thing as returning from the dead be true?
Brother Yang Qing must be drunk.
Que Qingyue's hand holding the teacup paused, and she tapped the teacup with her fingers.
After sighing for a long time, he put down his tea cup and looked at him and said, "I can't answer your question now. When I have the opportunity in the future, I will take you to the teacher's gate and you can ask them for advice."
"That's right, Brother Yang Qing, aren't you embarrassing Miss Que? She is the ancestor of my sect. What do you want people to say? You can't say anything about respecting teachers and trapping people in such unkind and unjust things... "
How can I say it out loud?
"This man is drunk."
"Miss Que, don't listen to his nonsense, he is drunk."
"This wine is really strong. Even Brother Yang Qing is so drunk."
"It's better to drink less, the wine is too strong, eat more meat, and bring some vegetables..."
"Sorry everyone, I drank too much. I have to go to the toilet. Come on, you guys eat..." Zhang Yangqing stood up unsteadily.
"Be careful!"
Que Qingyue picked up the teapot and poured another cup.
Yuan Ying muttered from the opposite side: "This person is really interesting. How dare he believe it if you ask me such a thing?"
Que Qingyue lowered her head and took a sip of tea, and softly agreed: "You are right, he actually believes this kind of thing."
After having enough wine and food, the night is already deep.
Everyone went back to their rooms, and Yuan Ying ran to wash up.
Que Qingyue stood up from the makeshift bed. She straightened her sleeves and reached out to take off her belt.
Suddenly a knife was silently placed on her shoulder.
Que Qingyue stopped her hand and turned her head slightly to look behind her.
In the peripheral vision, there was a person standing there silently.
From her angle, only one sleeve was visible.
"Who are you?"
"do not move."
