Knife splashing

Chapter 34: Rules for Inviting God

The fire appeared, bringing warmth in the darkness.

Ergou breathed a sigh of relief at first, but when he saw the scene in front of him, his heart rose to his throat again. He felt his back cold and his hands and feet weak.

There is a valley ahead, which is not very large.

There is a mountain temple near the back of the valley. It has been in disrepair for many years and is now in ruins. Several strong beggars are guarding it outside. They are all greasy and covered with pus-filled sores.

Around the ruined temple are tents of various sizes.

There were bonfires everywhere and big pots set up.

At least hundreds of beggars gathered here.

The old man was gray-haired, haggard, with pale eyes, squatting there like a corpse, without a trace of life...

The youngest ones were only seven or eight years old, all in rags, with dark faces, and some even had disabilities. They gathered in front of the big pot and fanned the fire with all their might...

These beggars traveling west have their own way of cooking.

They gathered together all the food they begged for, whether it was steamed buns, some moldy cakes, or even leftovers from restaurants, and poured them all into a big pot to cook.

Many things have turned sour, and you can imagine the smell they give off.

Even so, the beggars still squatted by the fire and swallowed their saliva.

What made Ergou nervous was the other end.

There was an open space over there, and all the strong beggars gathered there. Everyone held a dog-beating stick in their hands, and they formed a big circle and kept hitting the ground.

In the middle of the clearing, a wild dog was running around.

These wild dogs in mass graves eat dead flesh, their eyes turn bloodshot. They are as big as hungry wolves, and there are big bumps on their heads from years of banging against coffins. They are extremely ferocious.

But now, he was panic-stricken and whimpering.

Amid the intensive beating of the dog-beating stick, it seemed to have lost its mind, circling around in circles like a ghost, and refused to run out.

And all around it were poisonous snakes, with their heads raised, fangs bared, and hissing sounds, ready to strike the wild dog when they found an opportunity.

Soon the wild dog was poisoned and fell to the ground, stiff and trembling.

The surrounding venomous snakes swarmed over and drilled into its mouth through all seven orifices...

Ergou had never seen such a strange sight before. He stood there with cold hands and feet, not daring to move.

"Let's go, what are you waiting for?"

The old beggar leading the way in front saw it and shouted at him.

"Yes Yes."

Ergou hurriedly followed, keeping his neck hunched and keeping a low profile.

He followed the old beggar closely and entered the dilapidated temple.

"Master, someone is coming."

The old beggar bowed and reported, then stepped aside.

Ergou swallowed and looked up secretly.

I saw that the statue of the mountain god on the stone platform where the statue originally stood had been moved away, and replaced by a fat and big-eared beggar.

He was a large man, with his chest exposed, his belly piled with layers of fat, and his bald head was shiny and greasy.

He was lying on his side, his body also covered with scabies.

This person was none other than the beggar leader who was traveling west from Xianyang.

He is a mysterious man who has taken root in Xianyang many years ago and rarely deals with gangs in the city. The beggars call him Shan Ye.

A pungent stench came over him, and Ergou felt sick and wanted to vomit, but he dared not show any abnormality. He bowed respectfully and said, "Greetings, Master Shan!"

"Ah."

Beggar Shanye was extremely fat, and his eyelids were as bulging as light bulbs. Even if he tried hard to open his eyes, it looked as if only a slit was opened to others.

He looked at Er Gou below and said indifferently, "The leader of the Iron Knife Gang is the disciple of that old monkey, right?"

"I have nothing to do with you guys, why are you here?"

Er Gou immediately saluted and said without further ado, "The leader would like to ask you to help deal with a few people. They are all from other places and don't know the rules..."

After explaining what happened, he took out a few silver bills from his pocket and said with a flattering smile: "For you, it's just a piece of cake. This is a gift to you."

The total amount of these silver notes is three hundred taels.

To be honest, I earned more than what I got from the son of the boss of Chunfeng troupe.

But now, it’s not about money.

Zheng Heibei would rather spend some money to settle the matter.

Beggar Shan Ye glanced at it, seemed to have no interest, and waved his hand and said, "Let's go. People from poor families can't keep money, and they are not thugs for others."

"this…"

Ergou was anxious, "Master Shan, we are all living in Xianyang, we will see each other sooner or later, if you help us, the Iron Blade Gang will definitely remember your favor."

The beggar leader thought for a moment, "It doesn't matter if it's a favor or not, I'll take the banknotes, but you have to help me find someone." Ergou was a little confused, and laughed dryly, "Master Shan, you're joking. Your disciples are all over Xianyang. When it comes to information, I'm afraid they are more knowledgeable than us."

The beggar leader said calmly, "I am from a poor family, not an old thief from the Rong family. The rule of our ancestors is that we cannot enter the house. We have visited thousands of houses and tens of thousands of households, but we dare only hang around in front of other people's doors."

"Besides, there are some places where we will be driven away as soon as we get close."

The man immediately understood, "Who are you looking for?"

Beggar Shanye slowly stood up and scratched his greasy belly.

"A few months ago, Gushui Village outside the city was attacked by knife-wielding bandits and the entire village was burned down. Did you know that?"

"Young one knows."

The man laughed and said, "That incident was a conspiracy between an internal thief and an external bandit. The funny thing is that Mr. Lu's concubine also sold a lot of land and cheated several families at the same time. She was really a master at this."

"You're looking for her?"

"To be honest, we are also looking for this fat sheep."

"Not her."

The beggar leader said calmly, "It's another concubine. If I'm not mistaken, she's still hiding in Xianyang City!"

…………

Just as Wang Daoxuan said, the rain stopped the next day and the sky cleared.

Early in the morning, the three of them arrived at the Chunfeng Class compound.

Today, Wang Daoxuan changed into a neat Taoist robe, and all his belongings were placed in a backpack similar to a scholar's book box, which was carried by Sha Lifei.

When we arrived, the members of the Chunfeng Class had already gathered.

Ever since the people from the Iron Knife Gang left yesterday, they haven't come to the door again, so we can sleep peacefully. But everyone knows that this matter is not over yet.

No matter how innocent the boss's son was and how he was framed, the IOUs made by the Iron Knife Gang were watertight and they were always right.

Even if they don't come to harass them, they will be in trouble if they are reported to the government.

Being angry, helpless, and furious is useless, this is the reality.

People like them usually hide when they see officials. How can they compare to these guys who walk between black and white.

The guys in Tianjin even dared to rob the warehouses and earn money for settling down from the court!
Therefore, they now have only one choice:
Sing a ghost show!
There are many such jobs. In some places, accidents often happen, or the ancestral temples are not stable, and there are problems at weddings and funerals. It is not enough to ask the orthodox Taoists to perform rituals to suppress evil spirits, so people are asked to sing ghost shows to appease the people, and the remuneration is very generous.

The first step is to invite a Yin god who can calm the situation.

Looking at the determined people in the Spring Breeze Class, Wang Daoxuan sighed secretly, but his expression became more serious, "Everyone, do you know the rules?"

"I'll say it again."

"We set out at noon and arrived at the mass grave at night. After we found the place, everyone washed their hands and silently sang the words to invite the gods while I performed the ritual..."

"Remember, no matter what animal you meet on the mountain, you must not call it by its name. The tiger is called 'big bug', the bear is called 'old man', the eagle is called 'master', the hedgehog is called 'Second Master Bai', the fox is called 'Third Master San', and the ghost is called 'Master Qingfeng'..."

"I don't know what you will get, so please be polite. You never know if one of them has gained spiritual power and will come to cause trouble for you..."

"Also, you can't say a word during the ritual."

"When I say 'coming', you all shout 'catch it' and then immediately go down the mountain. No matter what happens behind you, you must not look back..."

Wang Daoxuan gave very detailed instructions, not daring to leave out any mistakes.

To be honest, many opera troupes know how to invite gods in this way, and some even do it once a year, and there are explanations and omens behind it.

Sheep, dogs, cows, and a kind breeze are all auspicious signs. It is best to encounter a wild boar, which means everything will be auspicious.

If you encounter rabbits and birds, it means you will be running around all year.

Of course, they often come on their own and run away when they hear the animals calling, and we don’t know whether they have been invited or not. Some of them are even just a ritual.

But the Spring Breeze Class is different.

If you want to invite the Yin spirit to maintain order without causing any loss of life, there cannot be any mistakes in the process, and even those vague taboos must be observed.

Wang Daoxuan was explaining while Sha Lifei approached Li Yan and said in a low voice with a sad face: "I went to the teahouse this morning and heard some news."

"That old monkey Zhou Pan has already entered the state of Hua Jin, so he naturally won't attack you, but he has several disciples who have all mastered the An Jin, and they all want to beat you to death to please the old monkey."

"I also heard one thing. When your father Li Hu was alive, he was close friends with Guan Wanche, the head of the Xianyang government office. Why not ask him to help mediate..."

"Guan Wanche?"

Li Yan frowned upon hearing this, then sneered, "My father never mentioned this person when he was alive, and he has never visited us in all these years. I guess even if they know each other, their relationship is just average."

"I can only rely on myself in this arena!"

"On you?"

Sharifei was furious. "How old are you? Even if you have potential, you are only at the peak of Ming Jin. If someone raises his hand, the force will penetrate your internal organs and make you vomit blood."

"How are we going to fight? Are you going to die?!"

Li Yan did not speak, but stared at his palm, then gently placed it on a small tree next to him, took a deep breath, and pressed it suddenly.

Wow!
The leaves on the branches are falling...

(End of this chapter)