So Tian Deping rushed back to Tianjia Village early that day. He was originally here for a family dinner, but because I agreed to help, he didn't even get a bite of food during the trip. It was really not worth it.
At the family dinner that night, I didn’t drink another sip of wine. After all, I was going to Tianjiacun the next day, and I was afraid that drinking would cause trouble. Plus, I’m not an alcoholic to begin with. So after I returned to Aunt Xu's house that night, I carefully packed the necessary things. However, I didn't bring anything with me that couldn't fit in my bag, such as the soul-calling flag. I'm afraid of attracting attention. If I need it, I'll get one again. Master also explained it to me and talked about his own opinions, but he only gave verbal suggestions and let me make my own decision. I particularly admire my master's teaching method. I have to solve everything by myself. Even if I suffer a loss, I should regard it as experience. At least I will not suffer a loss again the next time I encounter the same thing.
The village chief borrowed the only carriage in the village and drove it himself. The two of us set off early the next morning. Although the carriage was not much faster than a human leg, it was better in saving effort and lest I die after walking too fast. If you go to investigate something, your energy will be greatly reduced.
At around 10 a.m., we arrived at the entrance of Tianjia Village. The village chief told me that it was still a short walk from the village entrance to Tian Deping's house, and carriages could not go there. So we hitched the carriage at the entrance of the village and gave the household a few cents to help take care of the horse. The village chief took me towards Tian Deping's house.
Although the houses in rural areas all look similar, Tian Deping's home looks pretty good. Others have mud houses, but his house is a brick house. Judging from the condition, it seems that it has not been repaired for many years. The entire house is in the shape of a capital "L", with the main room and several rooms on one side, and the hut and kitchen on the other side. I not only lamented that even the houses and huts in this rural area were superior to those in Master's house. There is a bamboo fence around the house, which forms a rectangle with the entire house. In the open space at the corner between the kitchen and the main room, there is a thick but not very tall locust tree growing. This is the old locust tree Tian Deping mentioned. I can’t tell how many years it has been growing. But judging from the thickness, it generally requires two people to hug each other.
There is a small grape trellis on the other side of the yard. If it were not for the wrong season, their grapes would probably gradually disappear as I investigated. The floor of the yard is different from the hard dirt floors of most farmhouses. Instead, it is paved with a layer of cement, which was probably done when the house was first built. Judging from this condition, Tian Deping can be regarded as a relatively wealthy family in the village. .
When Tian Deping saw the village chief and me arriving, he hurriedly came out with his wife and young daughter to greet us. His wife is the village chief's sister, but she looks much younger than Tian Deping. Her figure is similar to that of the village chief, tall and tall. It was his youngest daughter who really caught my attention.
He looks about sixteen or seventeen years old, with big eyes and a figure more like Tian Deping, tall and thin. Wearing a dark red cotton-padded jacket, dark gray cotton-padded trousers, and a pair of women's leather shoes with horizontal buckles. The mismatched outfit makes me think that I picked up a pair of leather shoes that my sister couldn't fit into. She has the youthful aura of a girl of her age, and her appearance is indeed good-looking. Perhaps because of taking care of her sister, she still looks a little haggard. She has two small braids on both sides of her head, and two small braids on her bangs. The pink steel clips, the two braids swaying when walking, look like a bicycle.
Tian Deping's wife gave us water to drink and asked us to rest first, so Cunzi and I sat down in the yard. His youngest daughter went in to take care of her elder sister. Watching her leave, I asked Tian Deping, has your eldest daughter still gotten sick since you came home yesterday? Tian Deping said that he had not arrived yesterday, but today he had an attack almost an hour before we arrived. It has passed now and he is asleep.
So I picked up the cup and walked towards the locust tree. There were many marks on the bark of the tree where it was beaten with strips, but it must have been a long time. The wounds were gradually closing, and only some marks could be seen. . The bark of old trees is generally thicker, so if you don't use special force, there won't be such marks. So it is not difficult to imagine how hard Tian Xiaofang used to whip the tree when she was ill.
After wandering around like this, I still noticed some traces, but these traces actually have little to do with people, and are mainly focused on the layout of Feng Shui. It stands to reason that there should be no obstruction at the door of the kitchen, because the kitchen is the territory of the Kitchen God, and the Kitchen God is in charge of the family's meals, which is a top priority, and he is also the head god of the family. This locust tree grows on the southeast side of the kitchen door, which means blocking the door. It probably means that the Kitchen God may not be able to enter because of this, which will affect the main god, and the family will naturally be implicated. But looking at the conditions of Tian Deping's family, it seems that this is not a problem. But the kitchen and the latrine are separated by a wall. Behind the latrine is the excrement and urine collected in wooden barrels, probably used to water the crops. This has to be said to be a problem, because the latrine is a dark and humid place. Putting such a place together with the main god is, to a certain extent, a collision with the main god. And the most important thing is the locust tree outside the door.
Chinese man-made characters are very interesting. The character "槐" for the locust tree stands for the tree on the left and the ghost on the right. To understand it directly, it means the ghost in the tree. Usually the word "ghost" not only represents death, but also represents the mischief after death. Since ancient times, the locust tree has been chosen as an excellent tree for hanging. In Sichuan, people often say something like "Why don't you find a locust tree to hang yourself on?" It is so closely related to hanging that no one can explain it clearly. However, in China, especially in rural areas in the south, the trees at home are generally wild rather than planted by oneself. The stakes involved are difficult to notice unless someone is knowledgeable.
Because in ancient China, locust trees, willows, plantains, mulberries, and figs were not suitable for planting in your own yard. The first one to bear the brunt was the locust tree. When the wind blows, the leaves will snap, as if a ghost is clapping its hands. In addition, people often hang themselves, which is said to be unlucky; then there is the willow tree, which is said to gather shade. Mulberry tree is because the pronunciation of "mulberry" is the same as "mourning". I don't know whether it is like this. The ancients always paid attention to these verbal things. The banyan tree, because of its lush branches and leaves, easily gathers energy and produces spirits. As for Basho, I don’t know why. It’s just that more people have spread the word. Regardless of whether there is a reason or not, everyone will believe it. As the saying goes, "Don't plant mulberries in front, don't plant willows in the back, don't plant ghosts clapping at the door."
This means that the strange changes that Tian Xiaofang encountered this time are very likely related to the Feng Shui layout of the family, and even part of the reason is due to the old locust tree. Even if the strange things that happened to Tian Xiaofang were not directly caused by the locust tree, cause. It is winter now, and the wind in the countryside is already strong. The flapping leaves of the locust tree will bring some yin energy to this family. But I still don’t understand why this family has lived here for so many years, but only Tian Xiaofang is the only one. This happened to a man.
So I asked Tian Deping to tell me Tian Xiaofang's birthday, and drew a row of nine squares on the palm of her left hand. Based on the date of her first onset of illness and today's date, I got a hexagram.
The fourth palace of Xun belongs to wood in the southeast. The main wood number is three or eight, and it is the eldest daughter of the family. Bingjiaji in the palace indicates rapid water flow. The owner’s neck, chest, right arm, and abdomen are in charge of the beginning of summer.
This hexagram confirmed half of my guesses. To understand it coherently, it means that the eldest daughter of this family encountered something during the Beginning of Summer. This incident was related to somewhere or all of the neck, chest, right arm, and abdomen. It is related, and the catalyst for this matter is due to the wood attribute in the southeast, and the rapid flow of water means that it is coming very quickly, like surging water.
The southeast belongs to wood, there is no doubt about this, and the old locust tree is proof of this. According to what Tian Deping said, Tian Xiaofang's situation happened suddenly and only appeared after returning to his hometown. This also means that it happened very quickly. But Tian Xiaofang was injured and was hospitalized. The injury was to a leg. This seemed to be inconsistent with the hexagram. Beginning of Summer was already more than half a year ago. Tian Xiaofang was still in the city at that time. What happened during those days? Only she knows. So I decided that I still had to ask Tian Xiaofang in person while she was awake.
I asked Tian Deping how long Tian Xiaofang usually sleeps, and he said that it usually takes about an hour, but no one has tried to wake her up in the middle. The family members thought that the child was tired from tossing, so they felt sorry for her and let her sleep. .
So I handed the cup in my hand to the village chief and asked him to wait for me outside. Then I told Tian Deping and his wife that I might not wait for her to wake up on her own. I had to try it in front of her while she was sleeping. .
