Records of the Lost Cases of Helaitang in the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 219 Magic Painting
When Zhuge Xian heard that the Wang brothers asked him to lead the way to the Chaotian Palace Ghost Market tomorrow, he immediately agreed. He studied too hard and saw that his myopia had worsened. He also felt that he should go outdoors more often to relax.

The next day at Chou hour (one o'clock in the morning) I got up and took a mule cart to Chaotian Palace. I looked up and saw seven or eight stars in the sky, with the Milky Way hanging in the sky. I went to bed early and got up late every day. It was rare to see such a clear starry sky. I had a lot of emotions brewing, and I was thinking about reciting a poem. Unexpectedly, before I finished the poem, I snored loudly and fell asleep in the car.

The ghost market does not really have ghosts, it is just a market for night trading. There are ghosts and shadows at night, and many shady transactions are concluded here. In the early morning, the chickens disperse, money and goods are collected, and people and ghosts have different paths.

When Wang Heng and the others arrived at Chaotian Palace, they were about to enter the Yin period.

The dark sky over the ghost market is pressing down, with flickering lights and candles. Most of the pedestrians are wearing black robes and walking through the market, with no trace of their faces or whereabouts.

Under the archway of Chaotian Palace, someone was holding a lantern, and it was vaguely possible to see a few people standing there. The shadows of the lamps were whirling, illuminating people's faces with uncertainty, which was a bit scary.

Suddenly, a dark figure suddenly walked toward Wang Heng and the others from under the archway, making a chirping sound.

The three of them saw the black shadow acting suddenly and were confused about its meaning in a hurry. Wang Heng immediately woke up and saw that it was indeed a Lishan citizen.

The weird atmosphere around him made him swallow his words of greeting.

The person carrying the lantern under the archway is Lao Chen, a handyman from the South Prison. Next to him is Jinyang Jun Li Xun, and Jiaozhi official student Ruan Youhai. Lao Chen is so enthusiastic. He must have received a lot of benefits from Li Xun on weekdays. Ruan Youhai didn't ask for it yesterday. Come on, I followed you somehow.

It is not convenient to say much here, so the two groups of people bowed their hands to each other as a courtesy.

Stepping into the archway of Chaotian Palace, you can see the ghostly fire and phosphorus at a glance. The scale of the ghost market is quite large.

Buyers and sellers rarely talk to each other and can reach a deal with just looks and gestures. The seller's asking price is not very high, and almost nothing exceeds five taels of silver.

Zhuge Xian bought a few rolls of Jingxian paper, and Xiaocai found a cicada made of unknown stone. Wang Heng bought several old books. He had good eyesight, and he could tell that these books were all written by senior class supervisors of the South Prison. Used old books somehow ended up in the ghost market.

Several Lishan residents also bought some gadgets, and the group was enjoying their shopping. Suddenly, Xiaocai's eyes were bright and he said in a quick voice: "Monster."

Everyone was stunned and followed Xiaocai's line of sight. They saw a black figure about ten feet away shaking its furry tail. Hearing Xiaocai's exclamation, the black figure turned around and caught a glimpse in the flickering lights. It was a gorgeous face. Extraordinary face.

Could it be a vixen?

When everyone was stunned and lost their minds, the black shadow had already disappeared into the night, disappearing without a trace.

Unexpectedly, the group of people had such an unexpected encounter, and they couldn't help but chatted away, attracting the attention of passers-by in the ghost market.

They walked past several stalls in a row, but nothing strange could attract them. There was a large locust tree hugging each other on the roadside in front of them, and a hunchback squatted under the tree. The locust tree was gathering shade. This hunchback didn't know what to do.

Everyone came forward to take a look. Old Chen was holding a lantern, and through the dim light they could vaguely see several scrolls of ancient paintings on the ground. Lishan people seemed to have noticed something. They picked up a scroll of landscape and looked at it carefully. In the end, they actually wanted to buy it for one tael of silver.

One tael of silver was paid out in the ghost market, which was really a high price. Wang Heng and Li Shanmin, who had been classmates for a while, had developed a good relationship. Most of the students in the South Prison were rich and wealthy, and they had a good friendship. Part of the reason was that neither of them was a luxurious young man. .

Although Li Shanmin is a native of Jiangning, his family does not seem to be well-off. The South Prison does not allow the prison guards to bring servants to serve him. He lives in the South Prison dormitory all year round. Wang Heng has never seen a servant at home to deliver things. From the outside, It seemed that he was living on official fees from the Imperial Academy, and he had never heard that Li Sheng had a hobby of collecting picture scrolls. Therefore, Wang Heng thought it was unusual to see a couple of paintings of the Ghost Market, and took a special look at Li Sheng. Angry face.

The hunchback under the big locust tree cleared his throat and said in a very strange accent: "This painting is a magic painting. Sir, do you really want it?"

Li Sheng frowned, took out a few pieces of silver and handed it to the hunchback, then took the scroll and left without saying a word.

A few chickens crow in the distance, and the pedestrians in the ghost market disperse. Just a moment ago, the market was bustling with people, but in the blink of an eye, it is empty.

Everyone raised their eyes and glanced towards the sky. The morning light was faint and it was already dawn.

The handyman Lao Chen was very familiar with the ghost market area and said with an apologetic smile: "The young masters have walked all this way and are probably hungry and tired. I know a nearby Shaobing shop that makes delicious and delicious cakes, so why not go there?" Take a break and let me serve you a few pieces of cake."

Several people got up in the middle of the night with thunderous stomach rumblings, so they followed Lao Chen to the Shaobing shop to make some rest.

Today's ghost market has a good harvest. Jinyang Lord Li Wei suggested that everyone put the treasures they found on the table and evaluate each other.

Generally speaking, it was a good buy and everyone was very satisfied.

Wang Heng held up Li Sheng's painting, but the binding was very particular. He gently unfolded the scroll. It was a green landscape scroll, painted on silk in a Song Dynasty style. In the scroll, the mountains in the distance are green, and white clouds pass by the branches. There are lush forests and deep bamboos, surrounded by mountains and water. The hut is quiet and quiet, with mountain flowers blooming on the bamboo fence. The stream flows in front of the hut, and a small boat is tied to the water. It is so lonely.

This is undoubtedly a good painting. No wonder Li Sheng fell in love with it at first sight.

While Wang Heng was admiring it, Jiaozhi Ruan Youhai came over at some point. He looked down from above and suddenly exclaimed: "Ah".

Wang Heng asked: "Master Ruan, do you have any insights?"

Ruan Youhai avoided his eyes and shook his head repeatedly, "No, it's nothing."

Wang Heng and Ruan Youhai were not very familiar with each other, so even if they had doubts in their hearts, it was hard to ask.

After breakfast, everyone waved goodbye.

Li Sheng asked the store owner to wrap two steamed buns in lotus leaves for him to take away. Wang Heng knew that Li Sheng had brought the steamed buns to Xiao Hei, the raccoon cat in Nan Prison, so he took out a purse from his pocket bag, which he asked Yao Ma to steam. Xiaoyu, please ask Li Sheng to bring it to Xiaohei as well.