$605, Fulfill your vow (1/2)
The night was cold and dewy, and on both sides of the dirt road in front of the Wutong God Temple, clusters of newly sprouted weeds were covered with white frost on their stems and leaves.
When illuminated by the moonlight, it reflects the snow-white luster.
The candlelight flickered slightly in the window hole in the temple, and the two red lacquered wooden doors were locked.
Old Miao Zhu was awakened by the accident at night, but now he could no longer fall asleep. He renewed the incense for the 'Wutong God', picked up a small bench from the corner of the temple, and took care of himself. Sitting under the statue of the god, with his hands in his sleeves, curled up, eyes slightly closed, he took a nap in front of the fire.
The firewood filled into the fire has been burned into red charcoal.
The charcoal emitted heat, which made Laomiao Zhu who was standing by the fire feel warm on his chest, but his back was still cold.
After sitting for a while, he couldn't bear the chill on his back, so he stood up, turned his back to the fire, stamped his feet, and moved his body to generate a slight warmth in his body.
At this time, there were knocks on the door outside the temple.
The knocking on the door was slow and rhythmic.
Tuk, Tuk, Tuk!
"Who?"
Laomiao Zhu held up a candlestick and walked towards the door while asking questions.
No one outside the door responded to his inquiry, only the knocking on the door still sounded slowly and slowly.
"I asked you who you are?
What are you doing in the temple in the middle of the night? "Lao Miaozhu stood at the door, frowning and repeating the previous question.
This time, the knocking on the door stopped.
The knocking on the door paused for a while,
Then a deep female voice sounded: "I still wish...
We are here to fulfill our wish..."
"You still wish?
Why do you want to come here in the middle of the night? ! "Old Miao Zhu had suspicious eyes. He held the candlestick and approached the crack of the door, and looked out through the crack of the door - outside the crack of the door, there seemed to be someone wearing floral clothes that were soaked in water.
Old Miao Zhu stooped and looked out the door, only seeing the waist and abdomen of a few people.
The colorful clothes that seemed to be soaked in water stuck to the abdomens of those people, outlining the extremely bulging abdomens of several people.
His eyes gradually moved upward,
Passing by the swollen chest and the whitened neck with layers of wrinkles, I saw a bulging face with a smile on its face, trying to stretch out its tongue, and the black hair like water plants stuck to the woman's cheek. On her temples and temples, there were only the whites of her eyes and no kernels in her eye sockets.
'Her' head was slightly lowered, causing the layers of folds on her neck to ooze fishy water——
A pair of blind eyes looked at the old Miao Zhu in the crack of the door.
The dark purple lips squirmed slightly,
His tongue flicked: "Let's come and fulfill our wish..."
Several swollen faces came closer, with only the whites of their eyes staring at the old temple minister in the door. They all moved their dark purple lips and said, "We are here to fulfill our wishes..."
"ah!"
Even though Lao Miao Zhu has served the "Wutong God" for many years, he has heard many strange things, but this personal experience - it is the first time for him to see those pale and swollen faces. The whites of his eyes stared at him, and he was so frightened that he fell to the ground. The candlestick in his hand instantly fell to the ground, and the candle flame went out!
In the temple,
Only the candles under the statues and the fire next to the incense burner gave off a faint glow!
And outside the crack of the door, there was moonlight seeping in!
The moonlight shone on Lao Miao Zhu's chest, making him feel cold all over!
He hurriedly climbed up from the ground, walked towards the statue of the god with trembling body, grabbed a handful of incense and lit it on the candle, and offered the incense to the 'Wutong Statue': "I have served you with all my heart for more than ten years. Please protect me this time. Please bless the God of Five Powers——"
The temple has been guarding the Wutong Temple for more than ten years, and it has strong faith in the efficaciousness of the "Wutong God".
At this critical moment, the first thing he thought of was to offer incense to the Wutong God and ask him to save his life!
The 'Five God Statues' on the wall are filled with incense and illuminated by candlelight, giving rise to an unspeakable sense of mystery - the five-headed snake god in the painting is silent and motionless, with its five snake heads opening its bloody mouth. , opening the five gates called "Fu, Lu, Longevity, Luck, and Heirs".
And behind the old temple wishes,
The two red lacquered doors of the Wutong Temple also opened silently——
The door bolt on the door was brushed by an invisible force and slid open quietly!
The moonlight shines in from outside the door,
It landed on the back of Old Miao Zhu and spread out on most of the floor tiles in the temple!
outside the door,
The white moonlight is bright.
Outside the open red lacquered wooden door, where can you see any long-tongued woman wearing colorful clothes and a belly swollen like a pregnant woman?
inside the temple,
Zhu in the old temple holds a handful of incense in both hands and maintains the posture of offering incense to the Wutong statue.
He was motionless,
——On his chest, the thin clothes were torn apart,
The chest was open and blood was dripping.
But inside the opened chest, there was no trace of the heart!
on the wall,
The bloody mouth of the five snake heads of Wutong God became increasingly red, and the sharp fangs seemed to be covered with blood!
…
It was a long night of silence, and except for the occasional barking of dogs and the sound of wind coming and going, there was no other sound.
As he walked in the village, Huang Liuzi couldn't help but lower his footsteps and lower his voice: "The intersection ahead, diagonally opposite the courtyard where you turn, is my home."
Su Wu nodded and led the horse to follow Huang Liuzi.
Perhaps due to his "cowardice at home", Huang Liuzi, who had been anxiously urging Su Wu before, now slowed down and walked side by side to the door of his house with Su Wu.
Huang Liuzi's home is a courtyard surrounded by earthen walls.
At this time, Huang Liuzi and Su Wu were standing in front of the black door of the courtyard. The former slapped the door hard, and shouted inside: "Tweedy, Tweetie, open the door quickly, I'm back!"
The sound of knocking on the door caused the dogs kept in the neighboring houses to start barking.
The village that originally seemed quite quiet suddenly became lively.
Huang Liuzi patted the door a few times, but when he didn't hear any response from the door, he turned his attention to the earthen wall on the side, wanting to climb over the wall directly to the home to check.
At this time, a female voice came from the door: "I heard it, I heard it, I will open the door for you!"
Why are you back so late at night?
Have you finished all the work in the county? "
Hearing the female voice, Huang Liuzi breathed a sigh of relief, turned to look at Su Wu, and then turned back to the female voice inside the door and replied: "Hey, something big happened, I saved my life.
How are you?
Nothing strange happened, right? "
"We haven't seen each other for just a day, what weird thing could happen to me?" The female voice inside the door became much gentler, and there was a sound of pulling the door bolt.
Accompanied by a squeaking sound,
Two black doors were opened, and a woman with an oval face and big eyes stood inside the door holding a huge belly. When she saw Huang Liuzi in front of her, her eyes were full of joy. She also saw Su Wu behind Huang Liuzi. , the joy in his eyes suddenly turned into panic and vigilance.
"Liuzi, who is this behind you?" She only glanced at Su Wu, then looked away from Su Wu, and turned to her husband, Huang Liuzi, to ask.
Huang Liuzi brought Su Wu to him and introduced to his wife: "This is Taoist Priest Dingyang who stayed at Wutong Temple. He was the one who took me back to the village on horseback in the middle of the night!
Hey, there are too many things going on here!
Cui'er, I'm a little hungry. Is there anything to eat at home? "
While talking, Huang Liuzi supported his wife and walked her into the main room. After walking a few steps, he turned back and greeted Su Wu: "Taoist Master, come to my house to sit for a while first!"
"good."
Su Wu nodded, led the horse through the gatehouse, and closed the courtyard gate.
After Huang Liuzi's wife glanced at him from the beginning, she never paid attention to him or actively talked to him. This behavior was actually a bit contemptuous of the guest, but Su Wu actually understood a little bit - a prostitute really wanted to talk to him. After marrying someone, she will definitely know how to avoid suspicion better than ordinary women, and she will standardize her words and deeds everywhere.
This can prevent other people from thinking wrongly about her, and it can also prevent others from looking down upon her and still treating her as the former prostitute.
Su Wu tied the horse to a tree in the yard.
He followed Huang Liuzi into the main room.
Huang Liuzi invited him to sit down at the table. Madam-in-law silently brought a pot of hot tea and asked him to help pour a cup for Su Wu. Then he was busy in the kitchen for a while, bringing two bowls of egg tea and a few Zhangyou cake.
“It’s dark at night, and it’s hard to turn on the stove and cook.
Let me make you some egg tea with hot water and eat some pancakes.
When daybreak comes, I will kill the old hen at home and cook a good meal for you. Madam-in-law sat on a round stool three or five steps away from the table, holding her belly and talking to Huang Liuzi, who was snoring and drinking egg tea.
Huang Liuzi soaked the pancakes in the bowl and nodded repeatedly when he heard the words: "Okay, okay, call me when the time comes and I'll kill the chicken. You're still pregnant, so it's best not to see the blood!"
Madam-in-law pursed her lips and smiled and nodded.
Su Wu said at this time: "There is no need to kill the chicken. I was ordered by the master to send brother Liuzi home. Now I have to turn back and meet the master and others at the mouth of Shaxi River to see how the situation is there. ”
"It's so late, do you want to go back?" Huang Liuzi put down the bowl and looked at Su Wu, his eyes hesitant.
Madam-in-law was standing by but stopped talking.
“Seven or eight people drowned in that river mouth in one night, which is a bit strange.
The sooner we get to the scene now, the better.
The more likely you are to find some clues. "Su Wu's eyes covertly glanced at the swollen belly of Huang Liuzi's wife - this woman's belly was too big, and it didn't look like she was only three months pregnant.
However, when a woman is pregnant, the size of her belly often cannot accurately determine the month of pregnancy.
Some people are seven or eight months pregnant and still not showing signs of pregnancy.
Some people may have a big belly in two or three months, so we cannot generalize.
Su Wu also needs to look for opportunities now to see if there is any abnormality in the fetus in the belly of Huang Liuzi's wife!
"Those women who drowned all have one thing in common - they are all pregnant. This matter is quite strange. Madam-in-law is also pregnant now. You should pay more attention and be more careful." Su Wu said to Huang seriously Liuzi said.
Huang Liuzi hasn't spoken yet.
The lady-in-law sitting on the round stool turned slightly pale and said, "Sirius, what happened when you went boating today?
Someone drowned?
How is this going? "