Planes, trains and then buses.
After a tiring journey for most of the day, Li Changan finally arrived at the mountain village... The township he belongs to. As far as he can see, there are three or two streets intertwined, and old buildings are arranged according to the undulations of the terrain. Other than that, there are just stacks upon stacks of buildings. Mountain.
It rained non-stop and the air was depressingly humid.
Li Changan felt particularly unhappy when he thought that it would take a long and humid journey to reach his destination, the village in the mountains.
But what's even more unpleasant is:
"Professor Shao and the others entered the mountain in advance yesterday."
"You've arrived at the station?"
"Okay, okay, I'll pick you up now."
Ten minutes later.
A van arrived at the station, the door opened, and a middle-aged man called Li Changan to get on.
He was the person who called earlier.
He introduced himself as Wang Zhongmin, a local village cadre who was arranged by the town to be the guide and liaison of the archaeological team.
He looks to be in his forties or fifties, with a crew cut and gray stubble, and behaves like a grassroots cadre. As soon as Li Changan got in the car, he stuffed a piece of "Soft China" over him.
"Thank you, I don't smoke."
"Don't today's educated people smoke?"
He made a joke, put the cigarette in his jacket pocket, and pointed to the trunk, which was filled with various daily necessities, tools, and equipment.
"I was originally going to bring some supplies and equipment to the mountain. I turned back halfway after receiving your conversation with Captain Li..."
The identity Zhong Huansu prepared for Li Changan was that of the deputy leader of the archaeological team, which was nominally a temporary parachute supervisor.
"Should I send you to the guest house to rest for a day?"
"No need to bother, let's go into the mountains together."
…………
The van drove away from the unknown town and plunged into the vast mountains without looking back. The scenery became more and more remote and desolate, and the roads under the wheels became worse and worse.
At first it was a cement road, then an asphalt road, then a gravel road, and in the end I didn’t know whether it was a road at all.
Or a "track" in the mud, or a flat stone surface carved out of the cliff.
It is getting more and more steep and narrow.
Especially when passing through a section of stone road carved out of the mountainside, the mountain stream carries silt and gravel rushing down, blocking the view; the wind blows the rain and pulls the car windows towards the cliff, making a rattling sound; under the wheels, the edges of the stone road are broken It seems to be even narrower than the car body, which makes people worry that the tires are hanging in the air. If you are not careful, the car will overturn and kill people, and fall into the deep valley with the torrent of water next to it.
"Captain Li, don't worry."
Wang Zhongmin held the steering wheel leisurely.
"I've been driving this road for decades and I've never made any mistakes."
That is, if something goes wrong, can you still sit here and brag to me?
You can't control your own destiny, so you just pretend to be fearless.
Li Changan forced himself not to look at the cliffs outside the window, and instead started talking to Wang Zhongmin.
"Brother Wang, is this..." The name of the destination mountain village was a bit hard to pronounce. Li Changan pulled out the information and asked, "A person from Erdihuo Village?"
"no."
“I just run this route a lot.”
He changed the subject again, with a hint of amusement in his words.
"But if you ask the person in the town who knows this village best, there is no one other than me."
This made Li Changan really interested.
"Let's talk?"
…
"To talk about Erdihuo Village, we have to start with a story circulated locally."
Wang Zhongmin lit a cigarette and rolled the car window open a little.
The wind and rain poured in, blowing away the stuffy heat and sweat smell in the car.
He held the steering wheel with one hand and took a deep drag on the cigarette.
immediately.
Smoke and stories filled the carriage.
…
a long long time ago.
In order to escape the oppression of the government, a group of people hid in the mountains and established a village.
But they are not the people of the mountains, so the land does not allow their crops to grow, the forests do not allow their bows and arrows to hit their prey, and the rivers do not allow them to catch fish and shrimps in their fishing nets.
When they were about to starve to death, they finally remembered to beg the mountain god for acceptance.
At first, they sacrificed animals.
But the mountain god sent drought.
Let there not be a single rain cloud in the sky, and let the rivers and springs on the earth dry up.
The villagers believed that the mountain gods were not satisfied with their tribute.
So, they sacrificed the old man.
But the mountain god sent another earthquake.
Let the mountains and rivers shake and the houses collapse.
The villagers believed that the mountain gods were still dissatisfied with their tribute.
This time, they sacrificed women.
But the mountain god sent another plague.
Let their minds be dull and mad, and their limbs rot, become moldy, and grow hair.
The villagers believed that the mountain gods were still not satisfied with their tribute.
Finally, they had to prepare to sacrifice their children.
But by this time, all the adults had been knocked down by hunger, drought, earthquakes and plagues, and only seven children were still healthy. Among these seven children, there is a child named Azhi. He is the eldest, the strongest, the smartest and the kindest.
He did not abandon the villagers, and would rather risk catching the plague to take care of them with all his strength. But after all, there was no food in the village, and he had to leave the village to find food.
He came to the deep pool at the foot of the mountain to prepare for fishing, but found that the drought had dried up the water in the pool, and the earthquake had caused the mountain to crack, revealing a hole.
There was a voice calling him from somewhere.
So he got into the cave.
On the first day, the rocks wore out his hands, feet and knees.
The next day darkness deprived him of his eyes and ears.
On the third day, hunger and exhaustion brought him to the verge of death.
On the fourth day, he came to the mountain god's residence.
The mountain god appreciated his courage and perseverance and decided to reward him.
"Great mountain god, what are you going to reward me for?"
"I can give you mountains of gold, rivers of silver, and as many gems as the stars in the sky."
"I don't want any of this."
"I can make you the most beautiful woman in the world as your wife."
"I don't want any of this either."
"I can make you the emperor, and every citizen in the mountains will obey your orders."
"I don't want any of this either."
"What do you want?"
"I just want the villagers to be healthy again."
The mountain god was moved by Azhi's kindness and decided to grant his wish, but there was only one thing: he was not allowed to reveal the existence of the mountain god to others.
The mountain god slit his wrist, and golden gravel flowed from the blood, filling Archie's water bladder.
Then he sent Azhi back to the village.
Divine blood is indeed magical.
One drop can restore health to a sick person, two drops can give limbs to a disabled person, and three drops can bring the dead back to life.
As a result, the villagers all recovered their health, and they no longer had to worry about their livelihoods, because the story of Azhi curing the villagers spread throughout the mountains. Every day, people came to seek medical treatment with money, and Azhi generously shared the money with everyone.
In this way, A Zhi grew up day by day, the reputation of the "miracle doctor" became more and more famous, more and more people sought medical treatment, the village became more and more prosperous, and the "miracle blood" became less and less.
Finally one day, the "divine blood" was used up. Azhi announced the news, and the villagers panicked. They had long been accustomed to the luxurious and wealthy life brought by the "divine blood" and could not accept that they were about to return to a life of poverty.
Some of the villagers believed that Azhi was lying because he no longer wanted to share the wealth with everyone and wanted to monopolize the benefits of the "divine blood."
They wanted to catch Azhi and interrogate him about the source of the "sacred blood".
But everyone in the village had been favored by Azhi, and many people would not support their plan, so they persuaded the opponents, promising wealth to the poor, beauty to the ugly, and power to the weak.
Finally, everyone betrayed Azhi.
They tied A-Zhi to the top of the mountain and interrogated him, but A-Zhi remembered his promise to the mountain god and said nothing. So they angrily cut A-Zhi's neck, and what flowed out was only mortal blood, not the "god" shining with golden sand. "Blood", they returned disappointed and abandoned A Zhi on the top of the mountain to bleed to death.
The blood seeps through the soil, then through the mountain rocks, and finally into the residence of the mountain god.
When the mountain god learned of Azhi's death, he shook the mountains angrily, and all the people who had been cured by the "divine blood" died in mourning. He also dropped a heavy rain, and all the wealth that came from the "divine blood" was destroyed by the rain. Wash away.
All the people died, all the wealth disappeared, and only the seven youngest children were left in the village.
…
After telling the story, Wang Zhongmin suddenly asked:
"What do you think of this story, Captain Li?"
Li Changan politely commented: "It's very classic and simple."
"Haha, just call it cliche and plagiarism." Wang Zhongmin grinned, "I have also read some fairy tale books, and this story was probably copied in bits and pieces by some ancestor."
"This kind of folk tale is not considered plagiarism." Li Changan took over the conversation casually, "For example, a book called "Youyang Zazu" in the Tang Dynasty recorded a story very similar to "Cinderella", except that Good stories have their own vitality and circulation."
"You cultural people are really interesting to talk about."
Wang Zhongmin stopped laughing and took another puff from his cigarette holder, his eyes showing the cunning characteristic of a storyteller who is about to reveal the foreshadowing.
"But this story isn't all made up."
"How to say?"
"I heard an old man in my family say that a long time ago, people nearby called this village the 'Village of Miracle Doctors' because the people in this village have very good medical skills. Wealthy people often come from other places to go to the mountains to seek medical treatment. This is The road was actually built at that time, and it is probably older than you and me combined. You see it is narrow, because it is not used by cars, but by horse-drawn carriages."
Unexpectedly, a casual chat could yield such secrets. Li Changan asked with great interest:
"and after?"
Wang Zhongming smiled.
"I didn't know much about it after that. I just know that it suddenly declined."
"but……"
"but?"
"I am a village cadre in a village below the town. You know that the villagers cannot support themselves with this small salary. I usually run a sports car and deliver goods to canteens in various villages in the mountains. I also attract some customers. Most of the time I work as a living worker. People are sometimes dead. Those who died on the way to the hospital, those who were taken to the crematorium for cremation, those who died in other places and returned to their hometowns for burial..."
"But in Erdihuo Village, I have been driving for decades. Except for your archaeological team, I have never pulled out a living person or a dead person. From the first time I entered this village, the villagers in this village There were always only seven people.”
"The name 'Erdihuo' is a mouthful. People nearby who know this village call it..."
He paused.
"Village of Seven."
…
The journey is longer than imagined.
It was dusk, but we still hadn't arrived at the village.
The mountain road is getting tighter and tighter, the rain is getting heavier and heavier, the light has long disappeared, and the van seems to have entered the night ahead of time.
Wang Zhongmin flicked the cigarette butt into the wind and rain, and the sparks were instantly extinguished.
He held the steering wheel, his eyes filled with inexplicable colors.
"Captain Li, you are a cultural person. Do you think mountain gods really exist?"
Amateur stickman Li Changan made a sharp move.
"If you believe it, you have it; if you don't believe it, you don't have it."
After saying that, he laughed again.
"If there really is a mountain god, based on its style, I'm afraid it won't welcome outsiders like us."
"Don't panic."
Wang Zhongmin patted the steering wheel.
"Although I, Mr. Wang, have never met the mountain god, I have been traveling on mountain roads for decades and have become familiar with him. Even if you give me face, I will ensure that your archeology goes smoothly this time!"
After joking for a while, Li Changan suddenly noticed that something was slightly wrong.
He listened in sudden silence for a while.
"Brother Wang, did you hear any strange noises?"
"It's windy and rainy in the mountains, so it's not surprising to hear any noise."
"Did you feel the ground move?"
"Brother Li, are you frightened by the story? This mountain road is uneven, and the car will definitely shake when driving up it."
No! Still not right!
An inexplicable sense of crisis gripped his mind.
Li Changan pressed against the car window and looked carefully.
At this time, the mountain road had turned around the steepest section and reached a gentler slope, with a slope covered with shrubs on one side and a ravine covered with grass on the other.
Li Changan's eyes widened, looking at the dim light.
He saw it - he saw the mountains moving!
Infinite Heavenly Lord! Mountain slide...
Boom~ There was a loud noise, and the rocks, soil, and vegetation suddenly collapsed, turning into raging waves and rushing towards us! He slammed the car window.
All of a sudden.
The world is spinning.
