"You can say that."
Sun Daqiao said: "At least in ancient times, shadow puppets were used to absorb the souls of the dead, just like mutilated animals. But later, shadow puppets were adapted into shadow puppet shows. Since then, the nature of shadow puppets for witchcraft has changed. This is Just like dance, in ancient times dance was a form of shamanic prayer and was used by shamans to communicate with gods. Later, the spiritual meaning became less and less, and it gradually became a dance to add to the entertainment of palace banquets."
Yue Erpao said curiously: "Then this is strange. Why are all these witchcrafts losing their power and evolving more and more into culture and art? Isn't it supposed that the longer the time goes by, the more powerful the witchcraft will be."
Song Siyuan retorted: "Witchcraft has been suppressed since the Yan and Huang Dynasties. It was not until the Zhou Dynasty that it was completely abolished as an obscene ritual. Since then, witchcraft and witchcraft have been suppressed by orthodox civilization. Most of them Witchcraft either disappears directly, or is combined with other things to hide traces of ancient witchcraft."
"Dancing, shadow puppets, watching Luoyin, dancing with gods, and Nuo skills, these are all branches of ancient witchcraft, and they are also ancient secret arts that combine witchcraft and other customs. You can understand witchcraft as a parasite, as long as there are Possibly, witchcraft can be parasitic on any folklore.”
She paused and sighed: "I think that even in modern times, ancient witchcraft is a symbol of evil. In the era of ancient orthodox civilization, the situation of witchcraft and witchcraft will never be good, and they can only continue to eliminate existing Traces must be parasitic on various folk activities at the same time so that they can continue to multiply.”
She picked up the leather shadow and said: "For example, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty just heard that someone was cursing him, so he carried out a large-scale punishment in the palace, encouraged the palace people to report each other, and directly killed nearly 100,000 people in the former dynasty, harem, and civilians, which attracted the attention of these palaces. When people talk about witchcraft, it can be seen that the emperor's instinctive fear of witchcraft is probably because he is afraid that the imperial power will be stolen by witches and return to the era when witchcraft ruled everything. In ancient times, the imperial power and the power of witchcraft were incompatible. This can basically be seen from this Gotta understand.”
"Song Qianjin plans to use shadow puppets to help my sister recall the past. Is she also trying to use witchcraft?"
Ban Shu walked to the yard and said.
At this moment, Ban Shu had taken off the mask covering his face. Everyone had been very curious about the face under the mask before. Just out of politeness, they did not dare to ask him why he always wore the mask. Thinking about it, it was probably because of something on his face. Some ugly marks or scars, or simply to avoid being recognized.
Now, when everyone saw his face, their eyes lit up.
Ban Shu's face, in serious comparison, is not amazing. Even if it is not particularly exquisite, it is definitely upright and handsome. His facial features are extremely well-proportioned, his eyebrows are full of bookishness, and there is a little red mark between his eyebrows, which is very special. He has a clear and gentle temperament that does not belong to his age. It is not an exaggeration to say that he is a teenager, and he does not look like he is in his thirties at all.
The most special thing is his skin!
According to Yue Guanchao, his skin is fairer than that of a big girl. No matter how white a man's skin is, at least the wind and sun will leave traces. A skin as fair as his's as if he's been applying powder for years and months to take care of himself, giving him a delicate feel. It feels like white porcelain and looks like a paper-made boy resurrected.
Because the face has the unique color of a living person, I don't feel scary when I look at it. I just feel like a god made of pink and jade.
"Leader of the class, since you are handsome, wearing a mask covers up this good skin in vain." Yue Guanchao did not expect that there was something else under the mask.
"When traveling in the world, the most important thing is to avoid being conspicuous. My appearance is too special. If someone remembers me, I will be easily recognized. It's easier to put on a mask and calm people down first."
Ban Shu’s words are true. With his pink and jade-like appearance, there really was someone who looked exactly like him in history. Legend has it that Wei Jie of the Jin Dynasty was very handsome when he was young and looked different from ordinary people. He rode a sheep cart to the market every day, often It attracted nearby women to surround her, and she was called a Jade Lady.
If Wei Jie had lived to this day, he would probably be like Ban Shu, with a pink and jade-like appearance, pure ice and smooth jade!
"I didn't expect you to look so good. We thought you were ugly so you wore the mask."
Yue Erpao's words made Xu Xiake shudder at him: "You should not be judged by appearance. Who knew that there is such a face behind the mask? It is actually safe for you to wear the mask. However, I am a little curious. Are you a natural person?" The reason why my skin is so white is because of years of applying powder and taking care of it.”
Xu Xiake was indeed curious about Ban Shu's face. This kind of god-like face made it obvious at first glance that he was not an ordinary child.
Ban Shu said: "I've been like this since I was a child. I don't have the habit of applying makeup or powder. It's a completely natural skin color. I don't know why I became so white."
"If it grows naturally, then your parents also do it."
Yue Guanchao had already guessed what Xu Xiake said. If this snow-white complexion were an animal, it would probably be an albino animal in Shennongjia.
Ban Shu shook his head, with a trace of sadness flashing in his eyes: "I don't know about that. I have been at Chaoyun Villa since I was sensible. I was only three or four years old at that time. I have no memory of my parents at all. They must have thrown me away after I was born."
"Then, have you ever looked for your parents? Have you ever asked them why they abandoned you?"
Even the children in the orphanage have thought about finding their biological parents. Ban Shu, whose parents are unknown, probably at least thought about finding his biological parents.
"No!"
Ban Shu answered very simply: "At the foot of Wushan Mountain, an albino child will bring disaster if he is considered unlucky. I think my biological parents thought that an albino child like me was unlucky, so they threw me into the mountains and my sister picked me up. Since I It’s clear why it was discarded, so there’s nothing to get it back.”
"In other words, even if we really find them, I will still have fair skin and they will still think I am ominous. What else is there to find?"
When Ban Shu said this, his eyes were very sad. Probably, he was very concerned about his parents abandoning him into the mountains. At that time, even if he was left at the door of the orphanage, he could still have a way to survive. If he was thrown into the mountains so cruelly, he would probably be saved. The thought of letting him fend for himself would inevitably make him feel chilly.
Seeing the embarrassment on his face, Song Siyuan rolled her eyes at them and quickly changed the subject: "Since our fate is over, there is no more thoughts to think about. The plan for now is to wake up Ban Nu as soon as possible. We have prepared the shadow puppets. The class leader can make those drawings I gave you!"
Ban Shu nodded: "I have prepared the cage and shadow puppet light box according to your drawings, but I don't understand why your shadow puppet light box is completely different from ordinary light boxes."
Shadow puppet play is a folk art. It is roughly made of wood into a large square grid with front and rear ventilation, and a white cloth is covered in the middle. The craftsman stands behind the curtain and controls the shadow puppets. When the light shines through the light box, you can see that the shadow puppets are like living creatures. The audience stands outside the light box. , shaped like a stage to watch a play, it is a hit.
Song Siyuan's shadow puppet light box is like a lantern. The four sides of the light box are completely connected, and it looks like a "vessel" shape, which is particularly strange.
She explained: "Leader of the class, not only are these light boxes strange, the shadow puppet I want is also one size larger, about the size of half a human. What I want is for the light box to completely surround Ban Nu, and then I will put her in a cage. , placed in the middle of the shadow puppet light box, when the shadow puppets on all four sides start performing, she will have no way to escape or hide."
"Would this be a bit too exciting for her?"
After all, Ban Shu was still worried about his sister's safety. In the past few days, he had made an exception and fed her raw animal flesh and blood. Her original thin body was returning to normal. Such a female monster was so powerful that he had to strengthen the chain. He barely let her break free.
If he stimulates her too much, he can't guarantee whether Ban Nu will break through the iron cage, and it will be bad if he hurts someone else.
"A big break can lead to a big success. Ban Nu has been unconscious for thirty years, and this is the only way to wake her up. If you are ready, how about we start tomorrow?"
Once Ban Shu's shadow puppet light box was built, everything was almost ready.
"Okay, let's start tomorrow. I'll feed Sister some Ganoderma lucidum water tonight."
After that, Ban Shu left the courtyard and continued busy with chores in the villa.
"Hiss, what's going on with you guys? You keep asking about people's backgrounds. Isn't this just poking someone's lungs in front of someone?" Song Siyuan stretched out her index finger and pointed at each of them one by one, as if she hated the iron.
"I'm just curious. Ban Shu is fairer than the older girl." Yue Erpao said with a naive smile.
"I think Ban Shu's life experience must be unusual." Xu Xiake rubbed his chin and narrowed his eyes. He was obviously extremely curious about Ban Shu's life experience.
"Do you think he is also a type of albino animal?" Song Siyuan had already noticed this just now!
According to Ban Shu, albino people are considered unlucky in Wushan, probably because albino people are not common. With such a connection, it is difficult for her not to move closer to Shennongjia.
"You can't say he's an animal."
Xu Xiake looked at everyone: "Wushan is only two hundred miles away from Shennongjia. It is not an exaggeration to say that it is the closest settlement to Shennongjia. If there are really albino animals in Shennongjia, maybe they can really live here. That white river sturgeon Isn’t it the helper that the God-pressing Craftsman found!”
"Perhaps, in addition to albino animals appearing in Shennongjia, there may also be albino people. Although the number of these people is small, they still exist. Precisely because the number is small and rare, as long as an albino person is born, he will be ignored by the people around him. To be ominous, his parents abandoned him in the mountains. Does this mean that as long as he is an albino, he will probably be killed and will not survive to grow up?"
Song Siyuan pondered his words and nodded in approval: "It makes sense. The snow white on the leader of the class definitely has this secret. After we wake up Ban Nu, we must ask her how she picked up Ban Shu in the first place. This This will also help us unlock the secrets of Shennongjia."
