Feng Yun's words naturally aroused Kong Jie's curiosity.
What will the polling bureau do next, and how will the entire case develop?
Therefore, Kong Jie quickly agreed without even thinking about it, and followed Feng Yun gradually towards the Zhang family residence.
The villagers gathered not far away still haven't figured out what happened.
Watching the people gradually disappearing, the villagers still looked at each other in situ.
The smoker was still standing by the river, smoking a dry cigarette. In the swirling smoke, the smoker kept looking at Feng Yun and the others who were gradually disappearing in the village with a puzzled look.
"Poll Bureau..."
He repeated these three words in a voice that only he could hear, and his expression was somewhat intriguing.
…
When Kong Jie followed Feng Yun to the Zhang family residence again, he soon saw the three figures reflected on the window, busy going back and forth in the house.
When you open the door and enter the room, you will see a large table, mainly with a hot pot in the center, which is the most classic mandarin duck pot.
The only thing that was a bit special was that Ma Ling'er was lying on the table at the moment, carefully holding a brush dipped in cinnabar and drawing patterns on the pot.
While drawing, Ma Ling'er kept speaking plausibly.
"Qian is connected three times, Kun is broken six times, the bowl is shaken upward, the bowl is covered by Gen, the middle part is empty, the middle part is full, the upper part is empty, and the lower part is broken."
What Ma Ling'er said was exactly the Bagua formula that Feng Yun had taught previously.
Relying on this formula, Ma Ling'er quickly drew eight lines in eight directions on the hot pot.
The eight lines respectively represent the Heavenly Stem, Earthly Kun, Huoli, Shuigan, Mountain Gen, Thunder Zhen, Feng Xun, and Zedui.
This process is an essential step in making Yin Yang pot.
There has always been a saying in mountain cities that on July 15th, the Ghost Festival, if you see a very lively and overcrowded hot pot restaurant, don’t step into it easily.
It is said that the food eaten in these shops is Yin Yang hot pot, and many people want to see their dead relatives on this day.
Therefore, it is unclear who is a human and who is a ghost between the two people sitting across from each other.
But this happened a long time ago. Nowadays, more people only regard this kind of thing as a legend or a joke after dinner.
But in some remote places, the bad habit of ghost marriage still exists.
And this yin and yang pot is the wedding banquet of the underworld...
After Ma Ling'er finished the last stroke, she breathed a deep sigh of relief and then put the brush aside.
"Bride, the yin and yang pot is ready. How are your preparations over there?"
The sound of Fatty's footsteps soon came from the room, as well as a voice of complaint:
"Don't shout, it's not embarrassing enough for me, a grown-up man, to be the bride."
While talking, the fat man walked out of the room, holding a piece of talisman paper in his hand. The yellow talisman paper was densely packed with special patterns that were completely incomprehensible.
Yan Qilin quickly walked out of another room and poured half of the red oil and half of the white soup into the Yuanyang pot.
The red oil and white soup are just ordinary hot pot base ingredients. The special thing about Yin Yang Pot is the talisman and the Bagua pattern on the pot. Other than that, everything else is ordinary hot pot ingredients.
However, due to time constraints, no one had time to prepare the food for hot pot.
Anyway, it's not for eating, and it won't affect what they want to do next.
When the two helped place two chairs on the front and back of the table, all preparations were completed.
However, it is worth noting that the place where this table can be placed is directly above the beam where Zhang Dong was hanged.
The fat man's heart was filled with disgust, and he simply wiped the ashes from the pot bottom on his eyelids. This is the saying that out of sight is out of mind.
However, Ma Ling'er and Yan Qilin could still see Zhang Dong repeating the hanging process. This scene made them feel indescribably awkward.
The fat man quickly sat on the main seat, but at this moment he was still a little unsure:
"Speaking of which, is this really useful? The wedding is just to attract the River God. It's not a real marriage. Will the yin and yang buckle work?"
When Ma Ling'er heard this, she couldn't help laughing and said:
"You think it's fake, but the marriage certificate has been burned to worship heaven. Your marriage is a witness to heaven and earth.
So strictly speaking, you and the river god are husband and wife.
Use the yin and yang method to connect the two of you to each other, and you set up taboos during this period.
In this way, as long as the river god violates a taboo, you will be able to sense it, and we can prepare in advance so that we will not be passive.
At the same time, with the yin and yang buckle fastened, you can clearly sense the location of the river god no matter how far apart you two are.
This also makes it easier for us to find him again, with no harm at all. "
When the fat man heard this, his eyes widened:
"Isn't it true? I am such a young man, and I will have to be engaged in an engagement in the future? Or will it be with an old man?"
"Do not worry……"
Yan Qilin patted the fat man on the shoulder and comforted:
"After the matter is over, we will help you terminate the engagement."
"But although it is lifted, strictly speaking, from the perspective of the witness of heaven and earth, you are divorced, hahaha."
Ma Ling'er's words completely made Fatty want to cry:
"In order to solve the case, is it easy for me?
If I were to find out the ins and outs of this case and catch the culprit, I would have to cut him into pieces to relieve the hatred in my heart! "
The fat man said through gritted teeth, but what needed to be done still had to be done.
The fat man quickly put the drawn talisman into the white soup pot, then picked up a pair of chopsticks, dipped them in the red soup and put them in his mouth.
"Yin and Yang are connected. Don't ask God to ask Earth to ask for the underworld. Yin and Yang are hidden in the mandarin duck pot, and mandarin ducks are formed in the white soup pot..."
As he finished speaking, the fat man dipped his chopsticks into the white soup pot again and put it into his mouth.
In an instant, the fat man trembled all over.
Seeing this scene, Ma Ling'er quickly picked up another pair of chopsticks and a bowl of water and placed them on the table opposite the fat man.
Under the gaze of several people, Ma Ling'er inserted the pair of chopsticks into the bowl. When he slowly let go of his hand, the pair of chopsticks stood upright in the water.
"Tick..."
The fat man dropped a drop of blood into the clear water, and saw that after the blood entered the water, it quickly spread out and looked like a network made of red silk threads.
Somehow, Fatty also felt that he suddenly had an inexplicable feeling in his heart.
"It's done!"
The whole ceremony did not last long. Fatty quickly opened his eyes, looked at Yan Qilin and nodded:
“I seem to feel the location of the River God. I don’t know why, but I feel like the River God is in a very lively environment.
Direction, it should be on the other side of Yongan River. "
"What taboos are set?"
Faced with Yan Qilin's serious inquiry, Fatty immediately replied:
"As long as the river god mentions anything about our polling bureau, I will know it immediately through the yin and yang between each other."
"Great, this way, we won't be passive.
The next step is to seize the time to complete the river ritual ceremony and try to see if it can attract ghost ships again. "
After deciding on their next move, the three of them left the Zhang family residence in a hurry.
Kong Jie, who was standing at the door, couldn't recover for a long time.
"Director Feng, are there really so many details in this Yuanyang Pot?"
Kong Jie looked at Feng Yun in surprise and asked, and Feng Yun quickly nodded:
"That's right, but Director Kong doesn't need to worry.
The folk way of making yin and yang pots has long been lost. Even if this culture is still preserved in a small number of places, it only has its form but no spirit. No one in the world except the polling bureau can use it. "
Kong Jie felt a little relieved, but he quickly asked again:
"If such a thing had ever happened among the people, why was it not known to anyone? Even people like us in the government have never heard of it?"
Feng Yun smiled:
“Since ancient times, there has been a gap between the people and the government.
Moreover, in our country of Great Yan, there are different styles and customs, and the people in various places have their own specialties and some secret cultures.
Today is an era that believes in science, and these hidden cultures often have no way to be verified through science.
Over time, it became a legend or a folk anecdote.
There used to be sixteen folk factions that flourished in the folk world, including the Outer Eight Sects, the Inner Eight Sects, and the Yin Eight Sects, but you can't even find a word about this in history.
The history as we know it is written by the victors, and the purpose of writing history is often very complicated.
So just because you don’t know it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.
Let me give you the simplest example. Who do you think is the most famous female player in history? "
Faced with Feng Yun's inquiry, Kong Jie thought for a moment and then said:
"Hua Mulan?"
Feng Yun shook his head and then continued:
"The first female military commander in history was named Fuhao.
Shang King Wu Ding never forgot her, but before the discovery of more than 1,000 oracle bone inscriptions, almost no historical materials recorded her.
So what you think is history, what you think is the truth, is ultimately written down by humans.
The same is true for folk culture. There are few documents but it is passed down orally.
It's like the other side of the world, although it's real, it's hard to see the light of day.
When one culture has a great impact on another culture, the culture that can bring greater benefits will be vigorously developed, thereby covering up the other culture. "
Feng Yun's words were firmly remembered by Kong Jie.
Looking at Kong Jie who was deep in thought, Feng Yun said calmly:
"Director Kong, let's go and see how my team members will investigate the case next."
The figures of Kong Jie and Feng Yun gradually disappeared at the end of the path. Only the mandarin duck pot still placed in the house still proved what had just happened.
Almost everyone ignored Zhang Dong, the poor ghost who kept repeating the suicide process.
He had a bitter look on his face, and even more bitterness in his heart.
Why am I committing suicide here? Can you be more serious and put on the hot pot?
…
At the same time, by the Yongan River, the villagers had returned to their homes with doubts. Almost every household was talking about this weird incident.
Ever since the people from the polling bureau appeared in the village, all kinds of strange things happened one after another.
First, there was a big red event at the home of the host who had wiped out his family. As a result, no villager had ever seen the bride and groom. Who were the bride and groom?
I have never heard the lively sounds that I should have.
On the second day, before the villagers could accept the incident, the red matter turned into a white matter.
The fat man who was still asking questions to the villagers yesterday turned out to be the black and white photo of the deceased that was placed in the mourning hall.
An old man I had never seen before went door to door to announce the funeral.
The villagers kindly helped to see him off, but unexpectedly he saw a strange boat by the river again.
The old man jumped on the boat and ran away. The lid of the coffin was kicked open immediately. The fat man, who everyone thought was dead, appeared in front of everyone alive again.
All the villagers were puzzled by these things. Some people wanted to gather by the river out of curiosity to have a look, but they were quickly dispersed by the soldiers.
Therefore, the villagers were so confused that every house was still brightly lit near midnight.
At this time, Fatty and the others had arrived at the river again. On the bamboo raft floating by the river, the coffin was still lying there quietly.
The soldiers followed the fat man's instructions and quickly delivered a paper man made of paper.
But when he brought the paper man back, he happened to be seen by reporters who had been standing outside the defense line.
"That officer and soldier is holding a paper figure?"
"What is going on inside? Is this paper man also needed for the investigation?"
Reporters were confused by this. After all, the officers and soldiers and the paper figures themselves should not appear in the same frame, so the visual contrast is naturally very strong.
But even if they were curious, they couldn't get through the defense to see what was going on.
After getting the paper man, Fatty quickly wrote his birthday and birth date on a piece of yellow talisman paper, and then stuffed it into the paper man's body.
In this way, it is equivalent to the paper man replacing the fat man, making it easier to complete the final ceremony.
Under the watchful eyes of Feng Yun and Kong Jie, the three fat men pushed the coffin into the river.
The coffin quickly began to sink to the bottom of the river. At the same time, gusts of dark wind blew up on the river.
The fat men standing on the shore looked around curiously. As expected, the river was filled with white mist again at this moment.
"Damn it, it was attracted at least.
Fat Lord, I got married and was in a coffin, and now I have to sink my body into the bottom of the river just to attract this bullshit ghost ship.
This time, even if the damn king of heaven comes, the fat man will still have to get on this ship! "
In the white mist that gradually formed, Oni Chuan's figure was once again looming.
Seeing this scene, Fatty and the others quickly got on the bamboo raft, and Feng Yun and Kong Jie followed closely behind.
The fat man rowed the bamboo raft slowly into the white mist, approaching the ghost ship.
At this moment, everyone saw that the coffin that was supposed to sink to the bottom of the water slowly surfaced.
"Snapped!"
With a loud noise, the coffin lid was pushed open from the inside.
Immediately afterwards, the paper man, who should have been soaked, suddenly sat up slowly and extremely stiffly.
The ghost ship stopped next to the coffin, and then a rope appeared between them that shouldn't be there.
The paper man stood up, as if under some kind of control, and approached the ghost ship step by step, and then began to climb up the ghost ship with the help of ropes.
Since the fat man had previously painted the facial features on the paper man, and then affixed his birthday and birth date on it, the paper man was, in a sense, a real corpse.
In other words, if what is lying in the coffin is not a paper man, but a real corpse.
He will also act independently and embark on the ghost ship just like he does now.
When the three of them saw this scene, their eyes widened. Kong Jie, who was standing next to Feng Yun, subconsciously took a step back.
That was a paper man, but now he was acting autonomously like a living person. Anyone else would probably find it difficult to accept it.
"The missing bodies in the hospital are indeed related to this ghost ship."
“No wonder Si Xing searched and searched, but nothing was found.
The corpses in the morgue must have walked to the Yongan River on their own like this. This is too weird. "
The scene in front of them undoubtedly confirmed the previous guesses of Fatty and the others.
All clues in the hospital indicate that these corpses have traces of movement, but who would have thought of this without seeing it with their own eyes?
The fat man sped up the movements of his hands and said doubtfully:
"What does this evil spirit want with these corpses? Could it be that he has some hobbies?"
"Stop talking nonsense and speed up quickly. If the ghost ship slips away again this time, our efforts will be in vain."
Under Ma Ling'er's urging, Fatty quickly controlled the bamboo raft and approached the ghost ship.
This is the first time that several people have faced a ghost ship at such a close distance. Visible to the naked eye, the entire ghost ship is rusty and dilapidated.
At the same time, the closer they got to the ghost ship, the stronger the smell became, causing several people to retching at one point.
Resisting the discomfort, the fat man grabbed the rope, and then took the lead in struggling to step on the ship wall and climb onto the ghost ship.
The rest of the people followed suit, until only Feng Yun and Kong Jie were left on the bamboo raft. Feng Yun turned back and glanced at Kong Jie:
“Director Kong, I can’t say what will happen next.
So you'd better figure out whether you want to get on this boat with us, or wait on the shore? "
In response to Feng Yun's inquiry, Kong Jie looked at the three people standing on the ghost ship, then at Feng Yun, then gritted his teeth and nodded.
"Get aboard!"
He knew very well that if it weren't for the polling bureau, what he had experienced in the past few days would probably never have happened to him in his life.
Although he was also panicking at this moment, his curiosity obviously took over.
In this way, a few people finally stepped on the ghost ship along the rope. The wooden deck creaked with every step, as if it would break at any time.
The entire plywood was covered with thick rust and even moss.
At the same time, there is still a stench lingering around. Staying here for one more second is a great test for several people.
There were many incomplete holes on the side of the boat. Logically speaking, it was impossible for such a boat to float on the water. But at this time, the ghost boat was safely following the river, gradually drifting towards the vast white mist.
This ship is not big, and it won't take too much time for Fatty and a few people to go around it.
When several people gathered together again, some questions were revealed.
The boat looked like it had been underwater for many years.
And besides them, the only one on the whole ship was the paper man who stood there in a daze after getting on the ship...
(End of chapter)
