"Excuse me, is this a black shop?"
Hearing this, the waiter who was greeting the guests with a smile suddenly became stunned and looked at Xia Zhichan up and down with some suspicion:
"Sir, what did you say?"
"A black shop—the kind of shop where people kill people and bury their bodies just to make money."
Xia Zhichan didn't know what he was thinking. He was not in a hurry to go in, but was joking with the second brother who was waiting for customers at the door.
"Oh, sir, our store is a big, good store, definitely not a black store. You, you..."
A few jokes made the second brother's face turn red. He didn't know how to explain it. He couldn't say anything even after saying "you" for a long time.
"Okay, okay, I'll just do it. I can live in a black shop even if I don't have to..."
Xia Zhichan strolled into the Dong family's old store under the surprised and confused gaze of the waiter. Following his footsteps, the red sun on the distant horizon gradually sank.
Dark night is coming.
"Shopkeeper, I want an upper room..."
Of course Xia Zhichan saw Nan Er sitting there drinking. He walked over directly and sat down on the chair opposite Nan Er:
"Another jug of wine, good wine!"
…
"Are you a human or a ghost..."
Nan Er handed over the red wine gourd in his hand. There was no doubt in his tone, but a bit of ridicule.
"Me? I am a human and a ghost, a Buddha and an immortal."
Xia Zhichan took the wine gourd and stuffed it into the sleeve of his right hand. He shook his fingers with an inscrutable look.
"Hmph, stinky fart..." Nan Er said, but couldn't help laughing. There was no irony or disdain in that smile, only the simple joy of meeting old friends again.
Xia Zhichan picked up the wine flask and poured a glass for Nan Er and herself. He picked up the wine glass and said to Nan Er who was grinning:
"Come, drink."
Nan Er picked up the white porcelain wine glass. He looked at the friend in front of him who could be said to be acquaintance not long ago but seemed to be an old friend for many years. He touched the wine glass in his hand to the wine glass Xia Zhichan was holding.
Bang, the wine glasses collided and made a crisp sound.
With this encounter, Nan Er determined that Xia Zhichan was his only friend in this life. His life was very rough, but there were always people who helped him. He used to be his mentor, but now it's Xia Zhichan.
As the saying goes, a thousand cups of wine are too short for a close friend, so the two of them drank three or four jugs of wine one after another. It was late at night until the silver moon hung high outside and the stars were dotted.
"Drink more!"
Nan Er shouted loudly, but he landed on the table earlier than the wine glass. The wine glass slipped from his hand, hit the table and spun around several times.
"Hahaha, you dare to drink with me with this little drinking capacity? You know, I drank down my eldest brother, second brother, third brother, and master..."
Xia Zhichan was also drunk, but he was still barely conscious. He ordered the waiter to help Nan Er back to the upper room on the second floor. But he carried the last bottle of wine and wandered to the large yard at the back.
There were seven carts parked neatly in this large yard, with at least one person standing guard on each cart shaft. The flags on the carts were taken down at night, and then hung with a dart lamp.
When Xia Zhichan entered the backyard, at least three or four people's eyes instantly turned over and looked him up and down. Although Xia Zhichan's dress seemed a little strange to them, looking at her drunken appearance, they felt that she was just a guest who drank too much.
But out of caution, the people in the escort still held their weapons in their hands and stared at Xia Zhichan's every move.
There is a bluestone well in the southwest corner of the yard, which casts a cold halo under the moonlight.
Xia Zhichan staggered to the wellhead. He put the wine bottle next to the bluestone wellhead. He picked up the wooden barrel tied with a rope from the ground and threw the barrel in.
Only a thud was heard.
The rope in his hand gradually sank, which was caused by underground well water pouring into the barrel. Xia Zhichan didn't wait too long, just lifted the bucket up again and scooped up some with her hands.
He happened to have his back to the people watching the escort car, so everyone thought he was just getting water to quench their thirst, but no one saw him. He scooped up the water and just smelled it, then poured it back into the barrel.
"Well, I'm full..."
Xia Zhichan stood up straight and stretched. As he spoke, he staggered towards his room.
The jug of wine he brought casually was forgotten next to the bluestone wellhead.
The moon in the sky is beautiful, and it looks even brighter against the stars. She is like a charming beauty, wearing a bright gauze coat and holding a white round fan, peeking at her lover.
But the moon in the well slowly turned into a crying face.
She frowned, and shed two tears of blood.
…
"Third uncle..."
A call made Mr. Huang, who was sitting cross-legged and meditating, open his eyes.
He looked at his niece who came out of the back room. He still remembered the incident of her throwing a knife to kill someone a few days ago, so he kept a cold face the whole way and didn't say a word to his niece.
"Uncle Third, I was wrong, I was really wrong."
The woman pursed her mouth and her almond-shaped eyes were filled with grievances. She had been really scared these days. Usually when she made some small mistakes and her father wanted to beat or punish her, it was only her third uncle who came forward to intercede and was spared.
The third uncle who usually loved her very much was actually really angry now, which made her really at a loss for a moment.
She felt scared and a little aggrieved at the same time. She was scared because her father would definitely punish her severely after returning home from escorting, and her third uncle would not plead for her this time. She felt aggrieved because she felt that she had not done anything. Wrong, I just used a flying knife to kill a few mountain thieves who were jealous of money. Why did the third uncle lose his temper?
"Third uncle..."
At this time, Mr. Huang's head was still as motionless as a wood or stone carving, and he didn't even move his eyes to look at the person.
"Third uncle woo woo woo..."
Women, there are three tricks to deal with men, which are to cry, make trouble and hang themselves. Most men will soften in front of women's tears. Whether a husband treats his wife or a father treats his daughter, it is the same.
The small mouth shrunk, the almond-shaped eyes drooped, and a few lines of tears flowed from the corners of the eyes.
"Girl..."
Mr. Huang finally spoke, and he pretended that he didn't see the water bag hidden in the woman's sleeves, nor did he see her secretly wiping water drops from the corners of his eyes.
He stretched out his hand and said to his niece:
"Girl, take out your nine willow leaf flying knives and give them to me."
"Third Uncle, that was what you gave me on my twelfth birthday..."
The woman wiped off the droplets of water that had just been applied to her face with the corner of her sleeve. When she heard that Uncle Huang was about to take back the nine flying knives on her body, she frowned and felt even more reluctant.
Mr. Huang didn't speak anymore, but he opened his eyes wide and snorted softly.
Just this sound made the woman tremble all over. She really had tears in her eyes this time, and she reluctantly took off her dart bag from her waist.
Mr. Huang took the dart bag over. He just took it with his hands and knew that there was a throwing knife missing in the dart bag. After all, the woman's ability to throw throwing knives was passed down from him personally, and his ability was passed down from his ancestors. He has been playing with throwing knives and darts since he was a child. He knew exactly how much these things weighed:
"There's one more."
As soon as these words came out, the woman who was frowning and ready to cry actually shed tears this time. She was in bloom, sobbing softly as she took out the last willow leaf flying knife from her sleeve.
"Third uncle, I, I..."
"Go and rest. We will continue our journey early tomorrow morning."
After saying that, Mr. Huang closed his eyes and returned to the posture of sitting cross-legged and meditating.
The woman turned back three times with each step, almost waiting for her third uncle to call her back. Even if the third uncle scolds himself severely this time, it is much better than completely ignoring him.
"This girl. If this is a punishment according to the rules of our profession, not only will the throwing knife be taken back, but a finger of your dart-playing hand will also be lost..."
Mr. Huang sighed. He had never been married in his life, and he had no direct disciples. In his heart, he really treated his niece as his own daughter.
But the events of the past few days really made him reflect on whether he was too pampered and doted on his niece. I recall how strict my father was to me when I was practicing martial arts. Not only did he practice martial arts, but he also taught me the principles of life and some rules in the world.
When I first entered the world of martial arts at the age of twenty, I was young and frivolous. But just because of these four words, young and frivolous, I don't know how many troubles he caused in the world. Looking back now, I really have all kinds of mixed feelings in my heart.
Just as I was thinking about it, I suddenly heard the sound of a few tiles on the roof.
The sound was very light, and most people thought it was caused by the night wind or a wild cat walking by. But Mr. Huang, the escort leader, has been around for a long time, and in addition, their martial arts has a unique skill called "listening to the wind and receiving escorts", which means they can distinguish positions by listening to the sound.
Generally, people who can play darts will practice catching darts, but most people can only catch darts from the front, and they can only catch darts with both hands. A few people can catch darts with their mouths. But Mr. Huang, the escort chief, has been practicing since childhood and can catch all kinds of hidden weapons flying from four or five directions at the same time in a dark room.
Therefore, his hearing power is much stronger than that of ordinary people. Just a few ordinary tile sounds, to his ears, are the sounds made by someone stepping on the roof using Qinggong.
Mr. Huang carried the wooden box behind his back and tied the dart bag containing nine throwing knives that he had just returned from his niece to his waist.
Gently pushing open the window, he got out like a civet cat. Then he took a breath of Dantian Qi and flew up to the roof.
A bright moon is in the sky, spreading the frosty moonlight down.
Mr. Huang, the head escort, leaned over the green tiles and didn't make a sound. He looked solemnly at several masked men in black on the roof not far away, and gently pulled out a throwing knife from the dart bag with his right hand.
The flying knife forged from fine iron glowed with a cold white light under the bright moon.
He observed for a while and found that the other party did not seem to be coming for him, but out of caution he did not leave easily, but continued to observe the movements of those people.
The men in black walked lightly and leaned toward the second-floor window of the inn in front. One of them deliberately counted them, as if he was looking for a fixed window.
At this moment, a dark cloud suddenly floated over from the sky and completely covered the originally bright and lovely crescent moon.
It was pitch dark, and at this moment, I heard the sound of bangs, one fast, two slow and three, coming from the street not far away. It was the night watchman who patrolled the streets to announce the time. His voice was too far away to be heard, but Bangzi's voice came through.
One fast and two slow, which just means the third watch in the middle of the night.
At this moment, there was a commotion in the large courtyard, the sound of panicked footsteps, the crisp sound of weapons being unsheathed, and the sound of someone crying.
The bodyguards who were originally on guard at night shouted in frightened voices, followed by several chaotic gong sounds:
"Cangcangcang——"
"Someone is coming——"
“It’s haunted!!!”
