My enemies became my companions

Chapter 477: More Powerful Than Ghosts (Two in One)

The waiter was playing with his abacus beads, trying to learn how to keep accounts, when he turned around and saw the stranger approaching him and asking him a question:
"Waiter, are there any ghosts in this city?"

The waiter was startled by these words. If the visitor was not a guest, he would have started cursing at him.

When Chen Yi saw him shiver, he realized that this small Taiyang County was mostly a haunted place.

The waiter forced a smile and said, "Sir, this is a joke. It's not auspicious on the first day of the new year."

"I am very lucky." After saying that, Chen Yi didn't say anything more. He took out a talisman from his arms and shook the scabbard on his back, "Taoist priest."

The waiter looked at it suspiciously for a moment, then asked, "May I ask if you have a certificate of ordination?"

Chen Yi paused for a moment. He had been slaying demons and monsters all along, but he did it casually. As for the Taoism he practiced, it was Zhou Yitang who taught him privately. He had never really joined the Taoist sect, and he did not have a certificate of ordination on him.

According to the old system of the Song Dynasty, whether it was Buddhism, Taoism, or other religions, one had to have a certificate of ordination before becoming a monk. In addition to the fact that many religious matters were magical and strange, monks were exempt from the head tax, and temples and Taoist temples had large amounts of land and temple properties. As the number of monks increased, the national treasury became difficult, and there were also many desperate criminals who disguised themselves as Buddhist monks and Taoists. Therefore, if one became a monk without a certificate of ordination, he was generally called a fugitive.

Seeing the waiter's suspicion, Chen Yi pondered for a while and said, "Wait a moment, I'll go get it."

After saying that, he hurried upstairs. When he came down a moment later, he had a gauze-like price sheet in his hand. There was a series of words written on it and an official seal in the corner.

The official seal was a real official seal, the waiter recognized it.

"Yin Tingxue...is this it?"

The waiter looked at it for a while and could barely make out the words on it.
"It looks like a female name..."

"I am a rather flirtatious person."

As he spoke, Chen Yi composed a poem at random.
"After the old rain in deep autumn, I listen to the snow falling into the tower." This poem was of course written by the little fox. She wrote it for fun in her spare time. Chen Yi saw it by chance and wrote it down.

"Oh, the Taoist priest is so elegant!"

He had a certificate of ordination and could discuss poetry and scriptures. This time the waiter finally believed him and his attitude was much better than before.

"Then tell me, what's going on in this county?"

"In our county..."

The waiter looked around the inn. There were only a few diners sitting in the hall, and there were not many people in the streets outside. From time to time, there was the sound of footsteps on the upper floor, and the proprietress unloading bacon.

He moved closer and lowered his voice, "To be honest, our county is indeed haunted, and it's quite severe. There are haunted houses everywhere, and now every house in the city is haunted!"

Chen Yi knew that there was some exaggeration in this, so he went straight to the point and asked, "Which house is the most haunted?"

"If we were to ask which family is the most haunted..." The waiter paused for a moment and then said, "It would have to be the Yan family in the west of the city."

"Yan family?"

"That's right," the waiter's tone deepened, "The Yan family...originally had four children, three boys and one girl. The couple raised four children. Mr. Yan was a bricklayer, and Mrs. Yan did some weaving to supplement the family income. They didn't live a rich life, but they could buy new clothes for each child every year. But unfortunately, Mr. Yan went back to repair a house for the county government, and he stepped on the ladder and fell on his neck, and died!"

After saying this, the waiter clapped his hands and sighed, "How can an orphan and a widow live like this?"

The pillar of the family died, leaving only a woman to raise four children. The difficulty can be imagined, but these are not the main points. Chen Yi urged: "Go on."

"It would be fine if the Yan family died, but before he died, they howled at the beams for dozens of days. They hired a doctor, took medicine, but still died. The Yan family is left with a lot of debts. It's okay to owe the doctor money, because everyone in the neighborhood knows him and they just gossip about him. The key is that they owe money to the government!" The waiter paused and continued, "The Yan family's house was not repaired, but in order to treat him, they asked the government for money for the work. Madam Yan even knelt in front of the door and borrowed another sum. After the Yan family died, Madam Yan's family couldn't even afford to eat, let alone pay back the money. The government saw that she was a weak woman, so they sent people to take over the house and collect the debt.

We are a poor family, and we have come to this point. We can either hang ourselves with a rope, and die to clear our debts, but we have four children, so are we going to hang ourselves? If that doesn’t work, the only way out is to sell our children.”

Chen Yi narrowed his eyes slightly, not knowing what to say, and only sighed softly in his heart.

After spending a long time with Yin Tingxue, he also felt more compassion.

The hemp rope breaks at the thinnest part, and this house happens to be the most haunted.

"It's raining on a rainy night. I wanted to sell my son and daughter, but I couldn't sell them. I went to two or three counties, but there was no rich family willing to pay. Either they thought the child was too old, or they wanted to raise one for nothing..."

At this time, the sound of footsteps was heard on the stairs. It turned out to be the proprietress who had prepared the bacon and was going down the stairs.

"You little brat, you don't do anything, what are you talking about with others?" The proprietress said subconsciously when she saw the waiter chatting enthusiastically.

"Madam, this Taoist priest wants to know about the Yan family."

"The Yan family can't even afford to hire someone to exorcise ghosts, not to mention that the woman went crazy after losing her child."

Chen Yi caught something and asked, "He went crazy after losing his child?"

The waiter turned around and said, "Just when I was about to say this, Madam Yan couldn't sell the child. After she returned home, one day, she saw some bloodstained clothes hanging outside the house. She didn't care at first, but the next day, her eldest son went out to play and didn't come back. She asked people to look for him, but they only saw a bloodstained shirt hanging on a tree. From then on, her mental state became abnormal. After that, children disappeared from several households in that area..."

The lady boss got scared when she heard this and kept saying, "Stop talking about that woman."

"No, I have to finish what I'm saying to you. There's a new detective who doesn't believe in evil..."

.........

Yin Tingxue saw a woman turning the corner with her clothes gathered together, with some blood on them.

She was shocked.

According to legend, when the Guhuo bird goes out at night to look for children, it will smear blood on the children's clothes in advance, as if to make a mark. Then, no matter how cautious the family is, it will still be able to steal the child.

The bloodstain in front of her seemed ambiguous, but Yin Tingxue couldn't calm down. She clenched her fists, afraid of missing the clue.

Where is this woman going? Is she going to throw the bloody clothes away, or put the blame on someone else?

The more she thought about it, the more Yin Tingxue couldn't help but feel itchy. She turned around to look at Chen Yi, only to see that he was talking to the waiter and was not looking at her. After pondering for a moment, she stood up carefully.

Just go check it out.

Otherwise the woman would get lost.

Yin Tingxue walked alone into the dimly lit street.

The woman was very far away and never looked back. She was holding her clothes and looked like she was in a hurry, and no one knew where she was going.

Yin Tingxue followed from a distance. New Year's Day was a festive time, and there was no curfew. There were almost no pedestrians on the roadside, and the wind whistled through the alley, bringing a cool breeze.

After walking about a hundred steps, the streets changed from wide to narrow. The woman turned the corner and Yin Tingxue followed her in. The walls on both sides were cold, and there were weeds growing at the footsteps. There was a faint sound of wild mice grinding their teeth as they ran by.

The walls of the streets and alleys were not very high, but they were covered with moss, as if no one had stepped on them for a long time, and they looked eerie.

The woman's steps became faster and faster.

She still held the bloody clothes tightly in her hands.

Yin Tingxue saw her turn another corner from afar.

The dusk was as dark as night, and the sky was dim. I didn’t know if it was an illusion, but the wind at the alley entrance was getting stronger, making the hair on my neck stand on end.

The alley in front of her was extremely long, as if it kept extending forward. Yin Tingxue's pace quickened involuntarily, and her heart beat faster and faster, as if it was about to jump out of her chest.

Turn this corner.

Yin Tingxue stopped and was stunned for a moment.

The alley in front of her was empty, there was no sign of the woman, and at the end there was only a gray and black wall. She had reached a dead end.

Lost...

Come to think of it, it's normal to get lost in an unfamiliar place. Yin Tingxue's mind calmed down. Although she had been away for only a short while, it was time to go back, otherwise Chen Yi would say she ran away again, and she turned around and left.

Turning back, she suddenly froze without noticing.

At the entrance of the alley, she saw a pale woman holding a blood-stained shirt in her arms, smiling at her sinisterly...

…………

"The official went to ask for the money. Although Madam Yan was half crazy, she was very easy to talk to, and she got some of the money back. But when the official walked out, he turned around and saw someone standing at the entrance of the alley, smiling at him."

The waiter spoke vividly, and his voice rose unconsciously.

The customers in the inn, who were walking in twos and threes, had different expressions on their faces. Some could not stand the horror inside and hurried upstairs. Some were afraid in their hearts but suppressed it. Only a man with a beard and a large iron knife tied around his waist had a normal expression and continued to eat meat and drink wine as usual.

Seeing this, the lady boss could no longer hold back and started to scold and beat him:

"Stop talking! If you keep talking, you'll drive the dog away!"

The waiter stopped talking awkwardly, counted on his abacus awkwardly, and said no more. The proprietress also walked back upstairs.

Chen Yi rubbed his chin after hearing the whole story. The Guhuo bird started with the Yan family, which was consistent with the habit of the Guhuo bird. This kind of intelligent monster was best at seeking benefits and avoiding harm. Orphans and widows were naturally easier to attack than other families. This was also why it was often said that the Guhuo bird liked to eat human claws and predict good or bad luck.

The people in the county were very secretive about the Guhuo bird and were unwilling to talk about it with outsiders, fearing that it would bring trouble upon themselves. But for Chen Yi at the moment, if a fight really started, there would be no difference between the Guhuo bird and a sparrow. The only difficulty was...

"It's easy to kill a demon, but it's hard to find one..."

After saying that, Chen Yi saw that it was getting dark, turned around and was about to call Yin Tingxue.

Outside the door, the familiar cotton-padded jacket was nowhere to be seen.

What about people?

Chen Yi's expression froze. He stepped out of the door and looked around, but could not see Yin Tingxue.

His mind buzzed slightly, and he lowered his head and counted with his fingers.

The hexagram had not yet come out, but when I turned around, I saw Yin Tingxue walking towards me from a distance, with her head lowered, looking like she had done something wrong.

She walked to the door of the inn, and before she even raised her head, she felt a cold gaze staring at her.

"Where did you go?"

Hearing his question, Yin Tingxue raised her head slightly and said:

"I didn't go anywhere, just took a look..."

Chen Yi narrowed his eyes, looking unconvinced.

Yin Tingxue didn't know how to answer, so she could only stiffen her neck and look at him. After a long while, she whispered:

"Husband, can we go back to the room first?"

Some things are inconvenient to say at this time.

Chen Yi was a little skeptical, but considering that she had returned not long after leaving, it seemed like it was really as she said, so he just took a look. Moreover, it was impossible for her to escape now...

Why was he always thinking about whether she would escape or not? Yin Tingxue felt a pang in her heart.

Chen Yi pulled her over and was about to go upstairs.

A few lanterns were floating at the corner of the street, alternating between light and dark, like ghost lights. When I got closer, I realized that they were a few policemen patrolling the street.

The one walking in front was a constable.

He stood outside the door, and before he even entered, he coldly scolded, "Why are you still lighting the lights when you haven't closed the door yet?"

A loud shout shook half the inn, and several people turned to look.

The waiter quickly apologized with a smile, "Captain Shao... We are just trying to see if we can get a few more customers. It's a small business, and we can't make money without customers."

"There's a demon in the county right now, and County Magistrate Han has issued a curfew, and every household has closed their doors early, but you guys won't!" Constable Shao's face was still cold, as if he was going to investigate, "Where's the shopkeeper? Come out and explain."

"The shopkeeper has caught a cold and cannot stay in bed."

"Just a little cold and a few coughs and you can't see anyone?"

Constable Shao sneered several times, as if he was determined to make things difficult for the man.

Seeing his aggressive look, Chen Yi thought of the slight mockery in the waiter's words when he talked about the constable. He thought that the constable who was frightened could not be this person.

Catching Chen Yi's piercing gaze, and seeing that he was so close, Constable Shao turned around and shouted, "What are you looking at? How did you get into the city?"

Before Chen Yi could respond, the waiter quickly said with a smile, "There is no good person in the world who would not enter the city through the gate. This person is a Taoist priest from the north. His surname is Yin and his name is Tingxue. He just came to inquire about catching and exorcising ghosts."

Hearing the word "ghost", Constable Shao was like being stabbed in the sore spot, and shouted angrily: "What ghost is it? It's a monster. And this Taoist priest, where did he come from? I tell you, County Magistrate Wei has already invited a magician. When the ritual is performed, there will be no place for monsters in the county, and that old lady Yan should pay back the money!"

As he spoke further, his voice became louder and louder, shaking the walls of the inn. The waiter could only smile and stand in front of Chen Yi to endure it.

Bang! The wine bowl hit the table, and the bearded man turned his eyes and said suddenly:

"I see you're afraid of ghosts, no wonder you were scared back."

"Where did these savages come from?!"

Upon hearing this, Constable Shao became furious, put his hand on the hilt of the knife, and stepped into the room.

The man also slammed the table and stood up.

"You, an official, dare to bully He Taixiong!"

With a clanging sound, the huge iron sword was suddenly unsheathed, and the extremely polished blade emitted a chilling air.

Seeing that the two were about to fight on the spot, both officials and civilians inside and outside the inn became nervous.

There was a creaking sound of a door being pushed open upstairs, and the shopkeeper, who was in his fifties and dressed in plain clothes, came downstairs.

He took a look and said to Constable Shao and his group, "Constable Shao, I am sorry for being so slow."

When Constable Shao saw that it was the shopkeeper, he stopped walking but kept his hand on the knife.

He had almost calmed down his anger, and replaced it with a half-smile on his face. He said, "My elder brother is ill in bed and cannot entertain guests. I understand, but..." He pointed his chin at the man named He Taixiong, "But these two officers have violated the law by showing their knives. I'm afraid they will have to go to the government office with us."

"This guest has a rough and unrestrained personality. He may have offended Constable Shao accidentally. Don't take it personally."

The shopkeeper lowered his old eyes, took out a banknote from his pocket and said calmly:
"On New Year's Day, a little thought is not enough to show respect."

"Then for my brother's sake, I won't bother with it."

Constable Shao sheathed his knife, walked out of the inn, waved his hand, and walked away with a group of officers in a swagger.

The figure disappeared into the street, and the waiter quickly closed the door after the shopkeeper signaled with his eyes.

"The upper beam is crooked and the lower beam is crooked..."

Seeing the man walking away, the waiter let out a breath and said:
"This official is more powerful than a ghost!"

(End of this chapter)