The Emperor is Above

Chapter 108 Does the old man know about the cat ghost’s past?

"Lucky cat?"

This is the first time I hear such a familiar name after being in this world for nearly half a year.

This made Qing Yi wonder, was it a coincidence or was it related to the original world?

The old man with a scar on his right cheek said with hatred: "It is said to be a lucky cat, but how can it produce money, food, cloth and other valuables out of thin air? Isn't it stolen from other people's homes?

Those men in black robes claimed that as long as one offered incense, blood and food to the cat gods every day, the worshiper's family would be continuously rewarded with money.

Not only are there many people in the pavilion offering sacrifices, but even many nobles and ministers are offering sacrifices. Not only is Maoqiu Pavilion full of people offering sacrifices to the cat ghost god, but other pavilions are also full of people offering sacrifices to the cat ghost god. "

"There is no such thing as getting something for nothing in this world! These people are obsessed with money!"

The old man's white beard twitched with anger, and he slammed the cane in his hand, saying, "I am a man who cannot be made into steel."

"I have also heard of this cat ghost. It was originally brought from the southern wilderness countries. It is very deceptive and harmful. The Chen Kingdom almost perished because of it!"

"Oh? The old man actually knows about the past of the cat ghost?"

Qing Yi couldn't help but cheer up, and turned to the old man and said, "You have traveled a lot in the past, and since you have heard of cat ghosts, then tell us what they are."

Looking around the room, seeing that everyone was listening attentively, the old man recalled deeply for a long time.

Then he said in an old and loud voice: "That was many years ago. The first time I heard the name of Cat Ghost was about fifty years ago.

At that time, I was less than 20 years old, working as a handyman in a carriage and horse business in the capital, often following the caravans to transport goods to and from the states of Huang, Cai, Guan, and Qi in Zhongzhou south of the Yellow River.

The old man recalled and said slowly,

"Once, a caravan suddenly wanted to purchase a batch of agarwood, so they went to the State of Chen in the Southern Wilds. Although the State of Chen was a country in the Southern Wilds, it was close to Zhongzhou and not too far away. It was also the eldest of the more than 70 vassal states in the Southern Wilds at that time, and its national strength was extremely strong.

It was also during that time in the capital of the State of Chen that the first person I saw worshipping the cat god was the owner of the inn where I was staying. He was a short and plump man, a very kind and amiable person.

Even for a errand boy like me, he would smile every day when he saw me, and from time to time he would give us the leftover wine and meat from the guests.

At that time, I saw a strange black cat statue enshrined in the lobby of his inn. The innkeeper was in a good mood at the time and told us servants that this was called a fortune cat.

But I felt uneasy as soon as I took a look at it, because the statue looked very strange, like the corpse of a black cat that had been disemboweled and suffered countless tortures.

A cat face with unusually large eyes and a weird smile, half-crouching with one front paw waving. Just one look at it makes me shiver. It's too sinister."

Qing Yi was shocked. According to the old man's description, the appearance of the cat ghost was indeed very similar to the lucky cat in the original world.

He really couldn't compare the cute fortune cat ornaments that every merchant in later generations had with the weird black cat statue, but the two did have something in common.

I tried my best to suppress my curiosity and motioned for the old man to continue.

"A few years later, I followed the caravan to the State of Chen to purchase goods. At that time, there were even more people in the State of Chen worshiping the cat god.

Walking on the streets, one can often see some cat-ghost-god priests in black robes, openly entering and leaving the mansions of officials of the Marquis of Chen, spreading the worship of the cat-ghost-god everywhere.

This cat ghost god priest is never picky about believers. As long as they are willing to bring the cat ghost god statue home for worship and sincerely contribute food, incense, and blood every day, they will be fine.

It provides its worshippers with money, food, cloth, gold, silver, and extremely precious treasures every day, and can even help find missing people, livestock, and objects.

Qing Yi heard this and asked again: "Old man, this cat ghost stole other people's property and gave it to believers, which is indeed a great evil. Why do you say that the State of Chen almost perished because of this?"

"Do you think the Cat Ghost God is nothing? It's just a trick, how could it lead to the near destruction of a powerful country?" The old man looked at Yi and smiled bitterly, "I was scared by the Cat Ghost God statue at first, but when I saw many people around me worshipping the Cat Ghost God and getting rich, I was also prepared to worship the Cat Ghost God statue and make a little fortune.

But I quickly gave up the idea, because I saw the first innkeeper who worshipped the cat ghost god died, and all his money was stolen overnight. "

"what?"

Everyone present was shocked and puzzled. Hei Weng asked in confusion, "Old Bai, if the shopkeeper is not the first believer in the cat ghost god, he is at least one of the earliest, right?

Since all the property in the house has been stolen, you can still pray to the cat ghost to give you more property. Why do you need to commit suicide?"

The old man shook his head and said, “Because the thief who stole all this man’s money was the cat ghost god that he had worshipped for many years.

The cat god seems to have great powers and can often bestow money and food, but it is nothing more than stealing food and treasures from other people's homes and sending them to the home of the worshiper.

Because the shopkeeper refused the oracle from the cat ghost priest, who wanted him to sacrifice his daughter in a blood sacrifice, his family was eventually destroyed and he committed suicide in anger.

"It is indeed an evil god. We cannot believe in it!"

"It's a good thing that we all left Maoqiu Pavilion, otherwise there would be a big mess, right?"

"This evil god actually wants to sacrifice human blood. How terrifying!"

When the elders heard this, they were terrified and secretly thanked their luck that they did not enshrine the cat ghost god. This extremely evil cat ghost god actually required a blood sacrifice.

Although the donors can get some benefits at the beginning, they will have to give more in the end, and may even have to sacrifice the lives of their own children.

"Do you think the harm caused by cat ghosts is so simple?" The old man coughed lightly, his face full of solemnity.

"Everyone is eager for wealth, and the cat ghost uses this to manipulate people's hearts.

In the beginning, there were relatively few believers in the State of Chen who worshipped the Cat God, so the Cat God stole property from the homes of non-believers and gave it to the worshippers.

However, as time went by, within a few years almost everyone in the State of Chen worshipped the cat god. Even the king's wife secretly worshipped the cat god in the palace, trying to steal the property from the ministers' homes and bring it to her own palace.

Therefore, the cat ghost god priests preached that only those who truly believed would be blessed. As for whether one truly believed in and worshipped the cat ghost god, it depended on how much money the worshippers gave to the cat ghost god.

As a result, all the people in Chen State stopped working and rushed to give money and property to the cat ghost god priests, thinking only of stealing other people's property by offering sacrifices to the cat ghost god. What do you think will happen to this country if it gets something for nothing?"

"I understand!"

Qing Yi looked solemn, "Fifty years ago, the State of Chen was a powerful country with thousands of chariots, known as the Lord of the Southern Princes, and the Lord of Chen led the seventy princes of the South on behalf of the emperor.

In just over a decade, the country rapidly declined and almost perished. It turned out that there was such a reason behind it.

The most terrifying enemy in the world is not one with strong physical strength, but one who manipulates people's hearts. No matter how loyal, filial, polite, benevolent, wise and trustworthy one is, one cannot resist the temptation of money.

In the past, the Northern Wasteland was remote and barren. To amass wealth, these evil god priests only liked to move around in the various countries of Zhongzhou and rarely came to our Northern Wasteland. Now, they are suddenly moving around in Xing State without restraint. I'm afraid there is a big conspiracy."

At this point, Qing Yi said solemnly, "Old Man Bai, Old Man Hei, and all the elders, please explain the past of the Cat Ghost God to everyone. It is strictly forbidden to worship the Cat Ghost God in Guqiu.

It is strictly forbidden to worship any lewd temples other than the ancestral tablets. Anyone who dares to worship other evil gods will be severely punished for disrespecting their ancestors. "

"How can someone who dares to disrespect his ancestors be considered a human being?" Several elders nodded in agreement, without any objection.

(End of this chapter)