Mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty

Chapter 51 Living Dead

It was a hot and humid summer evening. In the corridor of a shabby hotel, a skinny old man was staggering towards the end of the corridor, carrying a large basin of warm water.

At the end of the corridor, there was a dim room with closed windows and doors. From inside came the creaking sound of an old rocking chair.

With a creak, the door swung open, and a wave of heat, mixed with the distinct fragrance of camphor wood, lashed me in. However, even the rich aroma of camphor wood couldn't mask the stench of decay that permeated the heat. An old woman sat in a rocking chair, her face withered, like a mummy, only the occasional, slow movement of her eyes giving her some sign of life. A few mice gnawed at her feet, and one even leaped boldly into her arms. But she remained unresponsive.

"Get out! Get out!" The old man kicked a mouse away and drove it away angrily.

"Old lady, let's wipe our bodies and make ourselves comfortable." The old man put down the basin, rolled up his sleeves, smiled, and tried his best to make himself look happier.

The old woman didn't react, and didn't even turn her eyes from looking straight ahead.

The old man sighed helplessly, rolled up the old woman's sleeves and wanted to wipe her.

Under the sleeves were shriveled arms, with fat white maggots crawling in and out from time to time.

The old man choked up a little and quietly wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes.

The wind blew into the room, blowing up the corners of the old woman's clothes.
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The wind blew up a corner of his clothes, revealing an exquisite and intricate pattern of auspicious clouds. Su Zhan's face was filled with joy, and he walked with a breeze.

As soon as Su Zhan entered the dining room, he saw various dishes already laid out on the table. Su Zhan sat down carelessly: "Hahaha, this young master is so lucky, I just caught up with dinner, just in time!"

Before Su Zhan even picked up his chopsticks, he felt a chill behind him and a voice rang out, "Where have you been wandering around today?"

Su Zhan wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, looking guilty. Why did he feel that his questioning was more terrifying than that of his grandfather? Su Zhan rolled his eyes, feeling unsure, and began to make up stories: "No... no, I just went to understand the people's feelings. Didn't you say that I should get to know the people more and understand their sufferings? You have been gone for a whole day today!"

This lie is best eaten with the truth! Understanding the public sentiment is a lie, but wandering around all day is the truth.

"..."

Yan Mingzhang rolled his eyes at him, washed his hands, and sat down.

Rong Wanyin came skipping in from outside, washed her hands, and sat down.

Su Zhan breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Yan Mingzhang sitting down and not questioning him. He said excitedly, "Do you know what news I found out today?"

Rong Wanyin picked up a piece of crispy meat and put it in her mouth. Her eyes sparkled as she asked curiously, "What's the news?"

Seeing Rong Wanyin join in the conversation, Su Zhan looked smug and boasted, "That's some very exciting news. Fill my tea, and I'll be merciful and tell you!" Rong Wanyin's face suddenly changed, and she became expressionless. She sat up straight, picked up her chopsticks, and poked them on the table, leveling them. Without looking away, she said loudly, "Sir, eat! Eating while listening to gossip is not digesting."

Yan Mingzhang raised the corners of his mouth slightly, nodded, and started eating by himself, completely ignoring Su Zhan.

Su Zhan was immediately deflated. No one showed up to support him. Fine, fine, if they don't want to pour tea, then don't pour tea. Su Zhan had no choice but to pour himself a cup of tea, moisten his throat, and mutter to himself: "Alas, what a pity, such exciting news, but no one wants to know! Forget it, I'll tell you out of mercy! I heard that there is a village nearby where very strange things are happening! The dead can be resurrected! There have been several living dead! Some say it's the Bodhisattva appearing; some say it's haunted; some say it's the work of the little devils in the King of Hell's Palace; I've never seen a living dead person before! Do you want to go with me? Just to understand the people's feelings!"

Rong Wanyin glanced at him sideways, curled her lips, and looked uninterested: "Living dead, not interested..."

Yan Mingzhang calmly took a bite of food and said, "A gentleman does not speak of strange things. They are just some ghost tricks. What's so interesting about them..."

Su Zhan took a sip of tea and continued with a smile, "I knew you two were just so boring. What a pity! I heard... there's a hot spring next to that village. The hot spring boiled eggs there are very famous. The eggs boiled in the hot spring are runny in the middle, and the soft yolk flows out when you bite into them. It's so fragrant. There's also an inn next to the hot spring. The roasted meat there is especially delicious. Just imagine, soaking in the hot spring, feeling so comfortable all over, then eating a hot spring egg, some roasted meat, feeling the cool breeze, and watching the fireflies flying, don't even mention it!"

Su Zhan sighed, looking regretful: "Forget it. I wanted to take you there, but since you don't want to go, I'll go by myself... I've already found out which restaurant is the best..."

Rong Wanyin immediately turned around, with stars in her eyes. She swallowed her saliva and looked longingly: "Master Su, is everything you said true?"

Su Zhan was very pleased with himself and raised his head proudly: "How could it be true?"

Rong Wanyin looked at Yan Mingzhang with anticipation.

Yan Mingzhang: “…”

Yan Mingzhang calmly took a sip of tea, put down the cup, and said seriously, "If that's the case, then let's go and take a look! We can't just ignore rumors like this. It's detrimental to people's livelihood!"

Su Zhan couldn't help but roll his eyes, muttering to himself, "Yan Mingzhang, you're such an ungrateful person who changes his mind at the drop of a hat! You're so hypocritical! You're also a disgrace to the people. I think you're morally deficient!"
It was a day off and everyone had to set out early in the morning. Rong Wanyin went to the stable and wanted to lead the old gray donkey out, but the stubborn donkey refused to move.

"Miss Rong, why don't you forget it?" Mo Yun advised, looking a little embarrassed. "If you forget it in the hot spring village again, the journey will be long..."

When Rong Wanyin heard this, she thought it made sense and gave up.

Everyone had no choice but to set off together in a carriage. Mo Yun and Chang Feng also accompanied them. The distance was neither far nor near, and it took most of the day to get there by carriage. Rong Wanyin was very excited at first, but gradually became listless. Perhaps it was because she had eaten too much for breakfast, especially the boiled egg. Now it felt like the boiled egg was jumping back and forth in her stomach. Rong Wanyin had a sour taste at the back of her tongue, and she felt that she could not hold on any longer. Yan Mingzhang handed her a cup of warm tea, but she waved her hand and pushed it away. She could not hold on any longer. Rong Wanyin squeezed out two words from between her teeth: "Stop... the car..." The moment the carriage stopped, she rushed out of the carriage.

Rong Wanyin held onto a tree by the roadside, a bitter and sour taste rising in her mouth.

"Wow……"