'Xixixi Lingling, a desolate and secretly frightened heart. I can hear the high and low sounds across the mountains and trees, fighting against the wind and rain. '
'One drop after another, one drop after another, and the blood and tears of the sad people burst out together. Regarding this hurtful place, I turn to the memory of the deserted tomb. '
Wang Po's house.
The troupe on the stage sang so loudly that they burst into tears.
White silk gauze, candlelight flickering, and a light rain at night made it even more desolate and speechless.
Mrs. Wang and her daughter-in-law fainted from crying several times. They asked a doctor to prepare a few doses of soothing soup, and then fell asleep miserably an hour ago.
Two young grandchildren, a boy and a girl, were left running around the courtyard without knowing what was going on.
Tang Ling was sitting in the front yard of Granny Wang's house, cracking melon seeds on the table in the corner and taking a sip of the rice wine in front of him from time to time.
It was sour in the mouth, and Tang Ling couldn't tell how long it tasted.
But unable to resist the persuasion of a group of like-minded teenagers at the table, Tang Ling could only have a few drinks from time to time.
"The wife of the Wang family is also pitiful. The man died in the mountains many years ago, and now this wife of the Wang family is also." Looking at the children running around in the courtyard, a young man sitting next to Tang Ling couldn't help but sigh. There was a sound.
"I heard that there is a lot to explore about the Wang family's Dalang death state?" Tang Ling peeled off another peanut, put it in his mouth and chewed it carefully.
Eating in the dream realm is a strange experience. You can smell the taste and aroma in the nose and taste it in the mouth, but the belly is empty.
Even so, Tang Ling enjoyed it very much.
From the so-called 'lunch' at home, he had been shocked by the food culture of ancient China.
"You never get tired of fine food, you never get tired of fine food", this is simply meticulous to the extreme.
The freshest spring bamboo shoots, only the crispest and tenderest part of the bamboo shoot core, thinly slice the good cloud legs, no extra condiments, thicken the soup and serve with a handful of green onions, the taste of spring will be in your mouth, and it will be deliciously salty. , it has its own freshness.
Take a fresh orange, rotate it three-quarters of the way, peel it carefully, hollow out the orange flesh, squeeze out some juice, and leave out the orange flesh. Then take the crabs from the lake, peel them carefully, make a piece of crab roe and crab meat, put it into the intact orange peel, cover it with the orange lid, add water, wine and vinegar to steam it, then add it with salt and vinegar for dipping. Eat together.
These dishes are just two of Tang Ling's lunch dishes. In comparison, what Ziyue ate during the Ziyue era was just pig food.
Were all pre-civilized ancient China so luxurious? Just a wealthy country gentry, so particular, what would those high-ranking officials and powerful people eat
Tang Ling was curious, but at the same time he also had a question: Is the Realm of Dreams showing the real life of ancient China? Or is it a deliberate exaggeration? If it was real life, did what he was experiencing now really happen in history
Tang Ling frowned and unknowingly took another sip of rice wine. He felt that he had captured something very important, which would be of great help to the Dream Realm in the future, but some things still needed to be corroborated.
At this moment, a fragile girl interjected: "Brother Tang, if you want to mention the death of the Wang family's eldest son, I know some truth, which is much more reliable than the rumors spread by those naughty and talkative people." ”
"Oh?" Tang Ling raised his eyebrows. There were young men around him making fun of him. Young Master Tang was afraid that he was looking for something to do for his chivalry.
But the girl who spoke ignored the group of teenagers. She only stared at Tang Ling with her big eyes and said, "My brother is a county policeman who collected the body himself. It is said that zombies caused trouble, but the cause of death is It was clear that his internal organs were shattered by a palm first, and then, and then..."
After saying this, the girl's face turned a little pale.
In the mourning hall, under the candlelight, two pale lanterns swayed in the wind. The dark solid wood coffin reflected the candlelight brightly. Two children from the Wang family ran around the coffin. The older girl shouted: "Mother-in-law, mother-in-law, hurry up Get up, there are many guests at home."
"Mother-in-law, mother-in-law, there are so many delicious things at home." Echoing the young girl, the little boy who spoke with a milky voice also shouted loudly.
The two children kept slapping the coffin, making a "bang bang" sound, and the whole coffin was shaking slightly.
"What's next?" Tang Ling glanced at the big black coffin. The ignorant child didn't care much, and then asked.
"Then I was bitten in a mess, but the tooth marks were not the zombies in the rumors. Instead, they were divided into two types of teeth marks, one from a human and one from some kind of beast." The girl finished speaking in one breath. , quickly lowered his head, not daring to look towards the mourning hall.
However, the young man next to him was dissatisfied and said: "How come it's not a zombie? If not, how afraid are you? You don't even dare to look at the coffin, and you are not as bold as two children."
"Three people died this month, and not a single piece of good meat was found on their bodies. If it were an ordinary murder, who would eat the human flesh? Rumor has it that they pried open the human brain and ate the brain." Another young man suddenly made a loud noise and made a claw-stretching monster. Like, bluffing that girl.
The girl screamed in fright, but on the other side of the mourning hall, the little granddaughter of the Wang family was extremely happy, clapped her hands and laughed loudly: "Mother-in-law is getting up, mother-in-law is getting up."
"Ah?" When the girl heard this, she was so frightened that she was about to burst into tears.
Tang Ling smiled slightly, stood up, and walked over with his hands behind his back. Before arriving at the mourning hall, he took the two children one by one and said, "Don't make any noise. My mother-in-law is tired. Let her rest for a while. Wait a minute, the chef will fry the fruit." , just wait and eat the fruit.”
When the two children heard that they were going to eat the fruit, they clapped their hands and left cheering.
Tang Ling squinted as he watched the two children leave, and then glanced at the main room. In the main room was the chairman. His cheap dad in the Dream Realm was talking to several well-respected old people in the town. .
His cheap brother, on the other hand, was writing a pen beside him. He should be writing something like an obituary, but the content should at least include some words of advice to the people in the town, urging them not to believe in that strange power and chaos.
Because the master of the Tang family mentioned at noon that it is unreasonable for every household to stay closed and people are in panic. As the first household in the town, they must stand up to correct the atmosphere.
Therefore, there was this grand wedding at night, paid for by the Tang family. In the presence of Mr. Tang, everyone in the town came.
First, I also want to hear an explanation from a well-established person on this matter.
Second, if there are more people gathered, there will be no fear.
But Tang Ling couldn't help but laugh. The cheap dad looked upright and caring about the people, but the door of the house was closed during the day. He was very nervous when he opened it. He was afraid and had no confidence. He was very afraid, right
At this time, several old people led by Mr. Tang Ling were not sure if they had any arguments. Judging from their appearance, they were a little excited when they spoke.
Tang Ling didn't care, but slowly walked around the black coffin and gently touched the coffin with his left hand, as if he wanted to know what kind of good wood the Tang family had made for them. 'Fangzi'.
The troupe continued to sing lively. The song in the previous scene was too miserable, but at this time it was replaced by the touching and pathos "Phoenix Seeking the Phoenix". The young girls and boys were mesmerized by the song, and all kinds of looks were exchanged during the table. Hidden thoughts.
"People from ancient China are so cool." Tang Ling did not go back to the table in the corner. Instead, he chose a table closest to the mourning hall and sat down.
He was not used to this kind of collective "sexual lust" scene. His love string had not yet awakened, so several young girls with lustful eyes looked at him, but he glared back fiercely.
It was such a fuss.
The opera was singing lively here, and the chef in charge of the banquet over there had already prepared some fruit snacks.
After all, it was the Tang family who took action. There was no shortage of dried fruits, fresh fruits, and pastry fruits. Tang Ling was sitting next to the mourning hall, eating and drinking again. For some reason, the Tang family master glanced over here and saw Tang Ling. After seeing this, I couldn't help but glare at him fiercely.
Mr. Han, who had been standing next to Mr. Tang, walked out and shouted: "What are you talking about? You have been out for two days and you have become a hungry ghost? Look at your elder brother, and then look at you. Go to the back room to accompany your elder brother. go."
"No." Tang Ling refused with a smile.
I don't know if it was an illusion, but when Mr. Han said the word "ghost", the wind at night became stronger, blowing in waves, and it was very cold.
There were so many people here, Master Han didn't want to argue with Tang Ling too much, so he could only glare at Tang Ling and whispered: "After all, you are the second young master, so please pay attention to your face."
Tang Ling nodded in agreement while stuffing a delicate pastry made of unknown materials into his mouth.
Master Han felt angry for a while, but he could only give up with a stamp of his feet, turned around and entered the house.
At this time, the two grandsons of Mrs. Wang's family came around again holding a chopstick with freshly fried fruits stuck on it.
The child was not afraid and wandered around the table where Tang Ling was sitting twice before running to the coffin.
At this time, another group of children, leading a big yellow dog, started talking quietly next to them.
"My dad beat me to death this afternoon." The kid who spoke probably wasn't bragging. The bruise at the corner of his mouth couldn't be deceiving.
"My mother made me kneel for an hour, and I still can't stand upright." Another child also whispered.
"Then what you saw, have you told your parents?" The boy holding the big yellow dog asked softly.
"I told you, my parents scolded me for being blinded. Not only did they punish me, they also didn't allow me to tell anyone." The last child shrank his neck.
"My parents didn't say whether they believed it or not, even if they asked me to hold Da Huang wherever I go tonight." The child who spoke first added.
rhubarb? Tang Ling smiled, maybe he was referring to the dog
And how could these children forget with Tang Ling's amazing memory? Aren't they the few running children he met this morning
This incident was quite a big deal in the afternoon, with several families crying and complaining that they could not find their children and that the children had been eaten by monsters.
There are also people who openly say that there are zombies. The big boss in the town and county has done nothing. Now that the child is gone, they want to sue Master Qingtian.
As a result, the child was found soon, at Mrs. Wang's house.
It turned out that it was just a few children who sneaked out to watch the fun.
Thinking of this, Tang Ling grabbed a handful of fruits and walked towards the children calmly. The two grandsons of Mrs. Wang's family were squatting next to the big black coffin, eating fried fruits.
"Come, tell me brother, what did you see?" Tang Ling smiled and handed out all the fruits in his hand.
Several children accepted the fruit, but each of them hesitated and said nothing.
Tang Ling was not in a hurry, glanced at the big black coffin, and took out several more large coins from his arms.
"Tanghulu, face man, what do you want to buy? Who can tell me who I will give the big money to." Tang Ling smiled like an old fox.
The dog called Big Yellow seemed to be a little afraid of Tang Ling. It lay down at Tang Ling's feet, wagging its tail and showing its belly, looking very useless.
Compared to the dogs in the Ziyue era, they were countless times cuter. Tang Ling stretched out his hand and pinched the dog's face with a look like "I think you're cute."
The dog's face was deformed, but the big dog still grunted to please him, as if he was an adult and you would be happy if you were happy.
At this moment, a child finally plucked up the courage and took a big coin from Tang Ling's other open hand.
Then he whispered: "Grandma Wang was eaten, even her brain was eaten. I went around to the back and took a look. There was a big hole, but it was empty inside."
"My stomach was completely ripped out." Another child also came forward and took a big coin.
Tang Ling smiled, but his eyes gradually darkened.
The children chatted about their findings, while Tang Ling touched the rhubarb and said "hmm" while asking some incomprehensible questions.
"Tell me, what kind of hole is a hole in your brain?"
"The belly was opened? What does it look like on the outside?"
"The back of the head, I mean the back of the head, is there any wound?"
"Yes, your brain wasn't eaten clean, right?"
What do children know? I just felt that the second young master of the Tang family might not have a strange interest, as the questions he asked were so penetrating.
But children are also honest and say whatever they see.
Tang Ling pondered. Behind him, his two grandsons started knocking on the coffin again. "Mother-in-law, it's time to eat the fruit. The fruit is fragrant and crispy."
This scene made many women cry and felt pitiful.
At the same time, the Tang family master also walked out of the hall with a few pages of manuscript paper.
The troupe consciously stopped singing at this time, and the charming thoughts of the boys and girls were suddenly interrupted. Only then did they remember that it was clearly an innocent incident with a bit of horror. What kind of lovesickness were they secretly talking about
Mr. Tang walked onto the stage.
The five hundred or so people in the courtyard suddenly became quiet.
Mr. Tang looked at the villagers with a sad expression and said loudly: "Recently, our Qingxi Town has not been very peaceful."
"There are cannibal demons and murderous people roaming here. There are also good people who take advantage of this situation to spread false rumors and disturb people's hearts."
"As the first household in the town, I, Tang Jili, feel very unhappy, heartbroken, and helpless."
"We in Qingxi Town cannot sit back and wait for death regarding the murderous man-eating demon. At the same time, we cannot allow rumors to spread. This matter will be discussed later while the neighbors are gathered here. But Wang Po died as the third person in the town , died due to the evil deeds of the perpetrators. As a fellow villager, I send you my condolences."
After saying this, the Tang family master took the obituary notice and walked to the mourning hall step by step with majestic steps.
Wang Po's two little grandchildren were still calling for her mother-in-law, and the Wang family's daughter-in-law was also helped out with a pale face.
The group of children who had been questioned by Tang Ling before ran to the outside table to play. For some reason, Dahuang, whose face was swollen from Tang Ling's touch, started running wildly in the courtyard. It turned out that he saw an old mother picking food on the ground. The chicken couldn't help but chase it.
The child called Rhubarb and followed behind.
There was a lot of chaos in the courtyard and the children were making a mess. How could there be any sign of mourning
The Tang family master frowned, but he couldn't say anything about the child, so he had to unfold the obituary in his hand and read it word by word.
"Alas, I'm so sorry, Mr. Liu, the Prince of the Family Yan Palace"
"Mother-in-law, why don't you get up?" Following the solemn and heavy voice of the Tang family master, the Wang family's little granddaughter stopped eating the fruit and called her mother-in-law with a crying voice.
Seeing his sister's appearance, the younger grandson raised his head and started crying.
The Wang family's daughter-in-law was weak and had no strength to take care of the child. Just looking at the child's sad appearance, she seemed to have felt the death of her mother-in-law, and she couldn't help feeling sad about it, lowering her head and crying.
People's hearts were shrouded in a cloud of unspeakable sorrow, and the voice of Mr. Tang's son reading the obituary gradually became extremely angry. He was accusing the murderous cannibal of ignoring the laws of nature, not knowing human nature, and having a heart like hell. demon.
'Cluck, cluck', the hen being chased by Rhubarb ran under the coffin.
Dahuang also chased after him excitedly.
Arriving under the coffin, the hen suddenly seemed confused amidst the cries of the two children and just circled around the coffin.
At this time, Dahuang also chased under the coffin, stretched out his mouth and bit the hen.
"Rhubarb, don't bite. If you bite to death, you will have to pay money." The group of children chased after him. Among them, the owner of rhubarb, who was running at the front, shouted while reaching out to grab the rope hanging around the rhubarb's neck.
Dahuang seemed to understand the words of the little master. At this time, he actually made a fearful sound of "wuwuwu", ducked, and quickly ran out from the other side of the coffin.
Several children ran too fast and had no time to stop their feet. They all ran into them.
The hen under the coffin was so frightened that it flapped its wings and flew out in a very embarrassed state.
But the coffins placed on the two benches were knocked to the ground by several children.
When Tang Ling saw this scene, he couldn't help but frown.
At this time, it was not yet time for burial, and the coffin lid, which had not been nailed, fell apart after falling to the ground.
Following the dull sound of "bang", Mr. Tang, who was reading the obituary in front of the coffin, was also startled.
Looking back, I saw that the body of the old woman rolled out of the coffin. Her remains were only slightly arranged, and the birthday clothes she had put on were also lifted up.
'The left hand that had been chewed up was clean and not a trace of flesh was left. '
'The disemboweled abdomen, with neat large incisions, looked like a grinning mouth. The flesh and blood glowed white. '
'The neck was twisted, exposing the hole in the back of the head. '
Has the Tang family master ever seen this formation before? Suddenly he was so frightened that he took several steps back.
On the other hand, the two crying grandchildren of the Wang family showed no fear at all. They also dropped the fried fruits in their hands and rushed towards Granny Wang's body.
The few children who had caused trouble were also frightened and froze on the spot, looking at the scattered coffins at a loss and not daring to move.
"Grandma." The little grandson grabbed Grandma Wang's other cold hand.
At this moment, a gust of cold night wind blew the candlelight above the mourning hall swaying, flickering on and off, and the white lantern fell directly to the ground.
With the soft sound of the lantern falling to the ground, Grandma Wang's eyes suddenly opened. The hand held by her grandson also tightened hers. She pulled her grandson over and sat down. got up.
"Fake corpse." The crowd started shouting.
"Ah, my child." The Wang family's daughter-in-law screamed at the top of her lungs.
At this moment, a figure leaped high and flew directly over Mr. Tang's head. Before people could see clearly, they saw a flash of silver sword light.
A stiff arm holding the grandson's hand was cut off directly.
The next moment, the sword light twisted a sword and slashed in the other direction. Granny Wang's head was neatly cut off, rolled to the side with a "gudongdong", and was grabbed by another hand, directly Take it in your hand.
It's a fake corpse, it's really a fake corpse.
But this corpse was beheaded before it caused any trouble
The people who were shocked and confused saw carefully that the knife cut off Wang Po's arm and then cut off Wang Po's head. Isn't it the second young master of the Tang family, Tang Chongwu, who held the head in his hand
Amid people's shocked gazes, Tang Ling looked carefully at the head in his hand under the candlelight. Part of the gray matter in the skull cavity had been removed, but a dense and intricate network of brain nerves as dense as a spider web remained intact.
It’s a bit interesting.
At this moment, a message finally appeared in Tang Ling's mind.
'Investigate the 'zombie cannibal' incident in Qingxi Town and find out the truth of the incident within three days. Completeness: 0%. '
The missions in Dream Realm have always been extremely simple, and you will not be prompted to what extent you need to complete the mission or whether you need to kill the mission target.
It won't provide any clues.
However, Tang Ling's expression did not change at all. He put down the head in his hand, looked at all the villagers, and said calmly: "Put Grandma Wang into the coffin again. I'm afraid she won't be able to fake her corpse again."
"Take advantage of tonight to select twenty strong men. Follow me to Nanli Gang." As soon as Tang Ling finished speaking, everyone panicked.
Where is Nanli Gang? It is the place where ancestral graves have been located in Qingxi Town since ancient times.
Tonight's corpse fraud incident is already very scary. Are you still going to Nanli Gang? Even the most courageous man in the town did not dare to follow Tang Ling.
Mr. Han, on the other hand, took a deep look at Tang Ling. He seemed not to have expected that the second young man he had been talking about would be so powerful.
He stood up slowly and said softly: "I'll go with you."
"Mr. Han, don't let Chongwu mess around. We will discuss tonight's matter. Are you going to go to Nanli Gang?" The master of the Tang family did not expect that his second son would have such amazing skills, but if he was allowed to go to Nanli Gang, it would be No, just in case something goes wrong
"If we don't go to Nanli Gang, there will be no peace in the town." Tang Ling originally wanted to call him daddy, but in the end it was just in a dream, so it was difficult for him to call him daddy, so he simply expressed his attitude directly.
Then Tang Ling no longer paid attention to the old man of the Tang family, but looked at everyone: "As a man, shouldn't you stand up? Think about it, one day, the mother, wife, and children in the family will all become like Granny Wang. Do you still have the dignity to stand up to heaven and earth?”
This sentence made the men in Qingxi Town excited, and some teenagers were the first to stand up: "I'll go."
"I also need to go."
The eldest son of the Tang family was hiding in the main room, wondering and looking at his two words with confusion. How could a few words be more inciting than his ten-thousand-character book
**
In a quiet town.
Maybe a few consecutive drizzles exhausted the dark clouds in the sky.
Under the still cold night, a hazy yellow moon gradually showed its face.
It's just a pale first quarter moon, but in the end it brings a ray of light to the dark night.
Throw the dogwood, star anise, and fragrant leaves into the pot of boiling water one by one.
The finely chopped pork, along with some half-cooked offal, was also put into the pot and stewed slowly.
In an exquisite small enamel bowl, there is an attractive bowl of white almond tofu mixed with red sugar and sprinkled with a layer of honey syrup. Under the exquisite copper lamp, it looks extremely attractive.
'Love doesn't know where it starts, but it goes deeper and deeper. The living can die, and the dead can live. '
'Death can lead to life. Those who are alive but cannot die, and those who die but cannot be resurrected are not the result of love.'
'Why should the love in dreams be unreal? There are so many people in dreams in the world'
A song "The Peony Pavilion" was sung in the house. The melody was precise and round, with three sighs in one breath, and it was perfectly executed.
The timbre is lingering, pathos, and touching. As soon as you hear it, you can't help but resonate. I would like to know who is the daughter of the He family who has such a heavenly voice.
"What's this hour? You haven't come home yet?" The lyrics paused for a moment, and a voice with a faint sigh of inquiry came from the room again.
**
Yellow moon
Tang Ling stared at the moon in the sky in a daze. Although his expression was so calm, his heart was as shocked as a stormy sea.
"Why is it a yellow moon? Is the reality reflected in the Dream Realm the real reality?" Tang Ling was confused.
Nanli Gang - It's hard to leave the dead, and it's hard to leave the living.
It's hard to leave, but we are all separated here.
The first quarter moon, the drizzling sky, the cool night breeze, but the people who come here have no sorrow.
The torch burned brightly, illuminating everyone's face with uneasiness.
Two new graves have been dug, and the coffins are empty.
It seemed that he had expected such a result, and Tang Ling, who was now the backbone of everyone, looked very calm.
He stared blankly at the sky, seemingly only interested in the hazy moon in the sky.
He didn't say a word, leaving people standing here in fear, unable to guess what he was thinking.
"Second Young Master Tang, what do you think?" At this moment, someone finally couldn't help but stepped forward and asked Tang Ling.
Tang Ling shook his head and said, "What else can I say? There must be several people dead in every village within ten miles."
"As for what will happen in Qingxi Town? It's hard to say, hard to say."
In Tang Ling's mind, the entire incident had already drawn a vague outline, and now he needed some information.
All he needed was a little information. He had to go to the county and borrow the county annals to read.
Because it is not strictly a historical novel, but it is also a dream, so the lyrics in it are not strictly about dynasties. The backgrounds of the characters are also blurred. If you are a serious book fan, you can just read this. In addition, the direction of the Dream Realm will not be supernatural, but the overall direction will be pointed in a general direction, connected to the main line. Finally, the ancient Chinese background will not be the only background. The background of the Dream Realm will be very complicated. Everyone can look forward to every dream.
(End of chapter)