Qinhuai River, above the boat.
The music of silk and bamboo pipes continues.
From time to time, a few women's laughter could be heard.
"Zijing, this glass of wine is for my brother, so I can't refuse it."
"Don't dare."
Prince Jing sat at the side table, saying he didn't dare, and then raised his head and drank the glass.
He looked quite bold like this, but in fact he was already drunk and couldn't help but bump into the girl next to him. At the same time, he subconsciously straightened his body out of restraint.
This look made the girls around him cover their sleeves and chuckle.
Even Lu Li couldn't help but sigh. After all, he was a young man who had nothing to say and was still thin-skinned.
At this moment, Prince Jing's face was full of drunkenness. Seeing several girls around him laughing, he became more and more cautious. However, he never dared to forget his mission and warned again: "Brother Meng Ming, the master asked me to go to the city to find you, but Can’t run away anymore.”
"Brother, I know in my heart that I won't dare to keep Mr. Tiantai waiting for a long time." Lu Li said seriously.
After receiving another guarantee, Wang Zijing was completely relieved and said with a big tongue, "That's all. Junior brother will toast to brother again."
Young people cannot hide things when they drink too much.
Especially Wang Zijing, a fifteen or sixteen-year-old young man who had grown up in an academy since he was a child. He could almost be said to be ignorant of worldly affairs.
As a result, when I went down the mountain for the first time, I ran into the Qinhuai River, one of the most beautiful places in the world, and met Lu Li.
After two or three glasses of wine, he talked about everything.
Mr. Tiantai was the imperial censor of this dynasty. After becoming an official in his old age, he gave lectures on Qingliang Mountain outside Jinling City and founded Chongzheng Academy.
In just ten years, the small school on the hillside at the eastern foot of Qingliang Mountain has become a holy place of study for students in Jiangnan.
In addition, according to what his brother Zijing said, Lu Li also realized that Confucianism is indeed not simple.
"In the past, my master took me on a study trip north and slept in the wilderness. I encountered strange things many times..."
At this moment, without any need for Lu Li's clichés, Wang Zijing took the initiative to talk about his travel experiences.
At the same time, Dan Niang and the famous prostitute Su Xiaodie looked at each other. They had grown up in Jinling since childhood and had never heard of ghosts and ghosts. They only regarded it as young people getting drunk for the first time and talking nonsense.
"Sir, your classmate is drunk. Why don't you help him go to his room to rest for a while." Dan Niang leaned into Lu Li's ear and said softly: "My family asked the boatman to fish some carp from the river and make some sobering soup. But good?"
"No need."
Lu Li listened enthusiastically, but he couldn't agree. Facing Dan Niang's confused eyes, he smiled and said:
"You don't talk about monsters, power, chaos, and gods. It's not because you don't believe in them. You respect them and stay away from them."
After saying this, he continued to look at the junior brother he had just met and raised his glass to him.
And Wang Zijing was not hesitant, even if he was very drunk, he still insisted on refilling himself. Fortunately, Su Xiaodie who was waiting next to him was smart and helped this guy in time, otherwise, he would have fallen to the ground.
Seeing this, Lu Li stopped pouring wine and ordered the guard guarding the corner to order the cook to make a pot of fish soup. He then raised his eyes to look at the muttering junior fellow apprentice and said with a smile, "Zijing, you are drunk."
Frankly speaking, this invitation was indeed a set-up, but Lu Li didn't have any intentions. He just wanted to know more about the situation.
It just so happened that this young junior brother was so new to the world, and he was so sincere to him when they first met, telling him everything he knew. Because of this, he had already recognized this younger brother in his heart.
"Definitely drunk."
Hearing this, Wang Zijing did not deny it and managed to sit still with the help of his female companion.
Su Xiaodie supported her junior brother with one hand, and her other hand was not idle. She picked up two sour plums from the fruit plate in front of her and fed him to chew them.
After a while.
"You are too drunk to make your brother laugh."
The junior brother handed over his hands and confessed. Although his face was still red, his mind was much clearer than before.
"It doesn't matter, you and I are classmates, and now we see each other like old friends, there's nothing we can't laugh about."
Dan Niang had no reaction at all to Mr. Lu's words. She had been with him until now and had already guessed that the two had just met each other for the first time. At this moment, she was curious in her heart as to why her benefactor was so fond of this little Confucian scholar.
Could it be that... there are really ghosts and ghosts in the world?
"Junior brother, I haven't finished telling you about my old study tour. To be honest, I have been interested in the theory of ghosts and gods since I was a child." Lu Li said frankly.
On the side, no one was surprised.
The ancestral community has existed for tens of thousands of years.
The same is true for the children of all the major families who stay in Jinling. They spend all day doing nothing. As long as they don't commit crimes and have some strange interests, it doesn't matter at all.
"There were so many strange things that happened along the way. I will only pick two that I will never forget."
Guests do as they please.
This banquet was originally paid for by Lu Li, and due to his extraordinary status, Dan Niang, the famous prostitute Su Xiaodie, and the few serving maids did not have any objections and all listened attentively.
As for the dozen or so guards, they were just like wooden stakes from beginning to end. Lu Li didn't ask any questions, so they stood silently in the corner to ensure that no accidents would occur.
"After leaving Jinling and traveling northwest for about six hundred miles, there was a deserted village. Among them was a widower named Li. He claimed that he had been unable to eat for more than ten days, but his stomach was severely bloated."
"When we came, he was lying on the bluestone at the entrance of the village and wailing. Mr. Tiantai asked him, why did it become like this?"
In an era when entertainment activities were scarce, such weird stories could really attract people. Danniang clung to Lu Li, scared and wanting to hear them.
On the side, the courtesan who was supporting her junior brother could not help but hold her breath, silently waiting for the next chapter.
Under the gaze of everyone, Zijing did not mean to show off. He chewed two more sour plums, suppressed his drunkenness, and continued:
"Li widower said that one day after finishing his farm work, he was lying in bed to rest in the evening. Suddenly he saw a woman walking out of the earthen wall of his house. Her hair was as unkempt as weeds. She hung down to cover her face. She walked toward her without saying a word. Move forward.”
"Old man Li didn't pay attention at first, just thinking he was too tired and dazzled, until the woman walked to the bed..."
Hearing this, a little maid couldn't help but muttered: "What is happening when a widower meets a strange woman and walks to the bedside? It's really an advantage for him."
Dan Niang and Su Xiaodie were far away and never heard.
Lu Li heard it, but didn't take it seriously. He still looked at his junior brother and waited patiently for what he said.
"call."
After exhaling the breath of alcohol, the junior brother felt much more comfortable. His slow speech could not help but speed up, and a trace of fear appeared on his face:
"The woman came to the old man's bed, suddenly raised her hand and parted her hair, revealing her face, which was dark and fat, like a wild boar in the mountains."
The little maid who just said that the widower was taking advantage tightened her lips and thought to herself: There is no woman like a wild boar in the world, she is simply an evil spirit.
"After seeing the woman's face clearly, Old Man Li was terrified and struggled to escape, but the woman held her down. She jumped on the bed, held the old man's head hard, and put her mouth on her."
Lu Li frowned with a strange expression.
And Dan Niang pressed closer to him. If he hadn't noticed her body shaking, Lu Li would have even thought that the lady was deliberately taking advantage of him.
Not far away, Su Xiaodie also had a pale face.
Were the ancients so careless?
But when it comes to ghosts and gods, I restored the details a little and then they were incorporated smoothly...
Looking at the younger brother who was reminiscing about the past, he was now sweating on his forehead, his lips were white, and he was mostly awake from alcohol.
He actually frightened himself like this. It seemed that it was really not his fault that the girls present were frightened like this.
"Senior brother...I'm afraid..."
"it's okay no problem."
Lu Li smiled helplessly, turned slightly to the side, patted his junior brother on the shoulder, and said comfortingly:
"Jinling is the place where dragons flourished in this dynasty. It was suppressed by the imperial mausoleum. The population has been booming since ancient times. What kind of spirit can't open its eyes? Dare to hit this place."
"Furthermore, there are so many guards on the boat, and the evil spirit is so strong that even ordinary little devils can't avoid them."
After saying this, Lu Li couldn't help laughing.
The guards also looked normal. They had certainly heard about ghosts and gods, but they were not afraid.
People are three points afraid of ghosts, and ghosts are seven points afraid of people.
The butcher had accumulated evil aura by killing livestock. The devils trembled when they saw it, let alone the soldiers. These guards who protected the young marquis cut off countless heads and spent the night in mass graves with their weapons. Nothing dares to come out and disturb people's dreams.
After hearing what Lu Li said, the junior brother gradually came back to his senses and said in one breath:
"The woman put her tongue into the old man's mouth. The old man said that something as cold as ice cubes slowly flowed into his throat. He didn't want to swallow it, but he couldn't breathe, and in the end he couldn't hold it in any longer. Then swallow a small sip."
"It went on like this for a long time. The old man felt that he was going to die from suffocation. The footsteps of villagers walking outside the door were heard, and the woman let go of her hand and jumped into the wall in a hurry."
"Since then, Old Man Li has been so bloated that he can't breathe and can't even take a bite of food."
After saying that, the junior brother was relieved and collapsed on the seat.
The girl Xiaodie who was responsible for taking care of him had a complex expression and was afraid of curiosity. She struggled for a moment and said hesitantly:
"What happened to the old man in the end?"
"nothing."
The younger brother sighed: "Master said that he would leave a message for him. He just needs to hang it at home, and he will be back to his original state, and he will not encounter strange things in the future."
"The backpack is complete with pen, ink, paper and inkstones. There is no need for the old man to pay for paper, but he doesn't believe that such good things can happen in the world. He scolds me and others for lying to him, saying that it is the New Year's Day, and those in the village who copy couplets will be asked to do so. Charge five bucks.”
The foolish country man is ignorant...
Lu Li sighed inwardly and became more and more curious about what Mr. Tiantai did in the end. Most likely, he left Mo Bao behind and left without saying anything.
"During the dispute, another undocumented wild Taoist priest came to the village. He said that there was a way to save people, but he wanted the old man to stew the egg-laying hen at home as a reward. Old Man Li agreed immediately without even thinking about it. "
"About half an hour later, in front of dozens of people in the deserted village, the wild Taoist finished eating the meat and drinking the soup, and used an unwashed pot to make a bowl of ginseng and reed soup for the old man. After drinking it, he vomited a sticky puddle It smells fishy, something like egg white, and the strange disease will be cured."
The story ends here.
Several girls present breathed a sigh of relief.
Only Lu Li felt familiar. He seemed to have read this story somewhere...
By the way, it's "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio"!
It's called "Oni Jin"!
"I didn't expect this story to be related to Mr. Tiantai and the wild Taoist priests. The original text didn't mention it, let alone such twists and turns."
"Sure enough, this is a paradoxical world."
