The name of the village is in line with Yin Zhou's guess. It is called Duanjia Village. The big woven bag: "Excuse me, sir, can I trouble you to take this thing back to the room first?"
As a petty bourgeois tea restaurant that can sell a cup of Long Island Love for 120 yuan, the sack seems very out of date. The waiter kindly reminded that you can call the room service to help carry it, and said that he wanted to push the bag in so as not to trip the guests. , A Yan was afraid of revealing his flaws, so she hurriedly stood in front of her.
"What is this?" The waiter looked suspicious.
"Broken..." Before Yin Zhou could say the word "corpse", Lin Yan kicked him hard.
"Peanut." Lin Yan said, at the same time the little Taoist blurted out: "Conch."
"Yes, we sell conch." Lin Yan said.
"I, we sell peanuts." A Yan said.
The two looked at each other in embarrassment. Seeing that the situation was not right, Yin Zhou hurriedly lied: "Uh, there are conch and peanuts. I like to eat them."
Facing the guarded eyes of the waiter, several people packed up their things and retreated, trotting all the way back to the room. A Yan untied the sack to reveal the contents inside. Lin Yan and Yin Zhou couldn't help but lamented that they were lucky not to be seen by others.
There are small plastic bags in the woven bag. The first bag is incense candles for dark marriages, paper ingots, fruit offerings, satin rulers, wedding clothes, paper-pasted costumes for carriages and horses, wedding posts, and hand-copied land for saving the dead. There are one hundred and eight copies of the scriptures and the mantra of the past life, tightly wrapped in oiled paper, two wooden brocade boxes, and a pair of bracelets, rings, and earrings sealed inside.
A Yan took out the second package, which was actually a bundle of half-meter-long threaded steel pipes, with three shovel heads of different calibers.
"Luoyang shovel!" Lin Yan was surprised. He picked up a shovel head to test the weight. This thing is the most convenient tool for small-scale archaeology and tomb robbery. The shovel head is semi-cylindrical. Take out the underground soil layer, and determine the location and size of the ancient tomb through the composition of the soil. The tail can be connected with threaded steel pipes, and the total length of each piece is nearly 30 meters. Even the so-called deepest Han tomb is not a problem.
A Yan didn't answer, and took out four hand shovels of different sizes from the woven bag one after another, a special climbing rope, a hair brush, a folding needle shovel, five sleeping bags, camouflage clothes, a bright flashlight, mosquito repellent, and a pack It's all food, compressed biscuits, canned food, bacon, ham and salted fish that can be stored in summer, and even bought a smokeless stove.
"Let's see what else is missing. On the way back, I saw a store specializing in archaeological equipment, which was very complete." Ayan wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"Are we going to rob a tomb?" Yin Zhou was dumbfounded, holding a shovel and studying repeatedly.
"Bad, almost, except that they don't take money, and leave after sending off ghosts." The little Taoist said seriously, "Those who can build tombs in deserted places and wait to put explosives either have ulterior motives or the homes of emperors. I guess what we are looking for The Duan family's ancestral grave is not too far away, so there is a problem... "
"Don't let people find out." Lin Yan continued, "Tomb robbers are rampant in the Central Plains, and the people have long been vigilant. It is said that when they heard the sound of gunfire in the middle of the night, the whole village copied iron shovels to catch the tomb robbers."
"Yes." The little Taoist nodded. "Archaeology is meticulous work. We don't have that much time. When the time comes, we will dig a hole to go in, break the ground, find clues, hold a ceremony, and finally withdraw. It won't take a day and a night. I bought enough for four people." rations to eat."
Lin Yan couldn't help admiring the carefulness of the little Taoist. Although the tombs of the Ming Dynasty were shallower than those of the previous ones, the depth of the tombs of prominent officials was more than four meters. It was impossible to find the exact location and enter the tomb in the shortest time without a full set of tools.
His heart skipped a beat, and going forward, if the way they discussed was correct, after finding Duan Yihan's tomb, he would be able to send Xiao Yu to reincarnation in just one day and one night. Before he took the time to mourn the parting, another thing flashed In his mind, one thing that he almost forgot in the recent peace - would the power that insisted on killing Xiao Yu and him before let him go so easily
Or is it always dormant in the dark, like an eye, just waiting for the last chance
Lin Yan pressed the package containing the food: "I'll go to the supermarket in the afternoon, I'm afraid it won't be enough."
"It's okay for us to eat these for two days..."
Lin Yan interrupted him: "Ayan, have you ever wondered where your master is now?"
"Master, he won't..." A Yan was stunned, seeing Lin Yan, Yin Zhou and Xiao Yu all looking at her, she couldn't help but blushed, and murmured: "I, I don't know either."
This question made the joyful mood that had just made progress sink a lot. Lin Yan stroked the dagger Yin Zhou gave him, "Bring a knife and be prepared. I'll rent a van. Let's play big this time."
In the afternoon, a few people put away their equipment, and the things piled up on the floor were not too heavy after being distributed to everyone. This time Xiao Yu appeared in human form, and he didn't enjoy the special treatment of ghosts. He was assigned a heavy mountain climbing bike. Bao, in order to lighten Lin Yan's load, he deliberately put the heaviest probe shovel and needle shovel into his bag.
Looking at the four overstuffed packages on the floor, Lin Yan felt uncertain. During several archaeological internships, he was only responsible for sorting out cultural relics related to his profession. This was the first time he personally shoveled the ground in Luoyang.
After lunch, the five of them gathered in Yin Zhou's room. Yin Zhou collected the specific geographical location and driving directions, while Lin Yan and the little Taoist priest kept discussing the few Ming Dynasty tomb specifications in the textbooks.
Compared with archaeology, tomb robbery pays more attention to speed and eyesight. It is necessary to deceive people and bring out as many things as possible. Ancient Chinese tomb robber families have applied the search for dragons and acupoints to their peak. Lin Yan has seen many amazing robbers in archaeological practice. The hole is cut obliquely from a distance from the tomb, and the robbery hole is just right above the coffin. Often, it only takes one night for the burial in the tomb to be looted by gold thieves, while serious archaeologists can only sigh.
After some discussion, Lin Yan took the lead to go to the supermarket to replenish food stocks, and bought candles, bamboo baskets, masks, etc. according to the little Taoist priest's suggestion. What surprised him was that Ayan was very familiar with this unpopular field. In his own words It is said that Taoism was originally only used to prevent theft of tombs, so he was taught the tricks of the gold-touching school by his master since he was a child.
"There's still not much cinnabar, in case you encounter evil things, it's hard to deal with." A Yan said, Yin Zhou was curious, and asked him: "What can be in the tomb, Zongzi?"
"Ghost." Lin Yan pointed at Xiao Yu, Yin Zhou was puzzled and said, "There is no one in your tomb, isn't the soul reincarnated?"
"It is not ruled out that there are also tombs. I often hear about these in the archaeological team. For example, some of the main personnel who opened the Wanli Emperor's Dingling Mausoleum committed suicide in prison, some people crashed in a plane, and some hanged themselves at home. During the Cultural Revolution, the emperor's coffin was thrown down the mountain. A couple picked up the lacquered coffin, but their four children were smothered to death in the lacquered coffin for no reason, and a few years later, the couple’s last son died of gas poisoning on the lacquered coffin.” Lin Yan threw a bag of canned beef Get into the rented van, "It's bad luck to kill a live chicken at that time, who knows what the ancestors have, so be prepared."
Seeing Ayan go to buy cinnabar, Lin Yan turned around and asked Yin Zhou in a low voice: "Can you get a gun with your old man's way?"
"Are you crazy?! Why do you want that thing?" Yin Zhou didn't finish his sentence, but Lin Yan covered his mouth, "I'm afraid of man-made disasters. The old man has never been seen. He failed to kill so many times. Will you let us go smoothly?"
Even Yin Zhou became nervous this time, with cold sweat on his palms: "I'll try, but let my dad know we're done."
"Air guns and earthen guns are fine. If Ayan wants to help us then, that old man probably doesn't even recognize his apprentice."
Jinyang is a declining ancient city, just like Xi'an used to be called Chang'an, now Jinyang has become a ruins, in the northeast of Taiyuan, while Duanjia Village is more remote, driving from the city center on yesterday's old road, passing by After the entrance of the ancient city, the road was obviously narrow and bumpy. If we continued to drive forward for about an hour, the traces of the city were left far behind.
Yin Zhou leaned on the car window and sighed, it's a pity that he has not enjoyed life and has to go to the mountains and the countryside non-stop.
The van turned a corner halfway, and after passing a narrow path, it stopped near a shack that looked like a flea market.
In the name of recycling old furniture, this place is actually a concentration of well-known private gun dealers. There are some dilapidated old sofas and mattresses piled up in each store. The bosses all look wary and look around when they meet regular customers. Fan, take it into the dark shop. China clearly prohibits the sale of firearms, but many collectors and "sages" from all walks of life have never lacked high-quality equipment. They are inseparable from these bold dealers with gangster backgrounds. They are in Tianjin, Hebei, and Shanxi They all have their own dens, which integrate production, transportation and sales. To ensure safety, they often only make some parts, and customers purchase and assemble them in their own stores.
Yin Zhou's father was a discerning collector. Every time Lin Yan came to visit, the old and the young chatted happily. Compared with Yin Zhou who was reluctant to go home all the year round, Lin Yan was more like his old man's own son. There is a luxurious Qing Dynasty pistol in the old man's study room, and the matching bullets have long been unavailable. The whole body is golden, and the trigger and handle of the gun have turned dark black due to frequent touching, which has a heavy sense of history.
This collection came from the person they agreed to meet today. Lin Yan and the others came to the designated place under the vigilant eyes of the vendors. A tall, thin man in an old jacket had been waiting for a long time. After seeing Yin Zhou, he obviously relaxed. With a sigh of relief, he took out a black short gun hidden under his leather jacket.
"Just one?" Yin Zhou took it and weighed it.
The man showed a look of embarrassment: "Hey little ancestor, didn't you go up the mountain to hunt rabbits, take one and play first, this thing is not safe, I can't explain to your father what happened."
"I installed this myself. The effective range is only 30 meters, but the soil bullet is powerful. It can blow a hole in a rabbit. But be careful not to go away and burn yourself."
When they returned to the car, Yin Zhou put the gun into the holster, and even stuffed the bullet pouch to Lin Yan, without raising his eyelids: "If there is anything, it will be aimed at you. You should hold this thing for self-defense."
Lin Yan took it and hid it under the driver's seat, a little touched.
This meeting made the half-traveling, half-exploring team feel a deep sense of crisis for the first time. They were all silent about their own thoughts. Only Ache, who didn't know how to feel sad, ate potato chips and twisted his thighs in the passenger seat. Sticking to Xiao Yu's body like sugar, listening to him grind his teeth all over the car, it also made the rest of the people relax a bit.
The profiteer provided a lot of information. The person who sold his paintings was a middle-aged man named Duan Chengyi in Duanjia Village. He grew millet during the busy season and worked as a mason to supplement his family income in winter. He was a real rural man who sold his ancestors’ portraits to pay his son’s school fees. , seemed to be totally ignorant of the value of the ancient paintings in his hand, when he heard that the artist offered five thousand pieces, he was so happy that he jumped up, took the money and left thankfully.
Lin Yan silently thought, if he knew that the paintings of the Ming Dynasty were in such good condition and preservation that the starting price at the auction would not be lower than 50,000, he would be green with regret.
The road became more and more remote, the mountains gathered together, and the wind pouring into the car began to be filled with a fragrant smell of grain. It was the season of ripe wheat, and the waves of wheat that met the sky merged into pieces of golden sea. The sun shone down, and the wheat The sharp thorns are shining brightly, the farmers are busy in the field, the piles of harvested wheat are lying on the ground, the yellow dog pats its paws on the door, and smells it with its nose curiously.
The wheat is ripening in mid-July, and it has been more than two months since I met the ghost, and there are still about 20 days before the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month when they agreed to break up, and there are only 20 days left at the longest.
Ah Che thought he could not stretch out his arms and legs because he was squeezed into a seat with Xiao Yu, so he simply turned into a fox, curled up on Xiao Yu's lap, and lazily played with his tail.
Lin Yan looked at the two of them with inexplicable warmth.
"What's wrong?" Xiao Yu asked him.
"I think of a story written by the French. There is also a wheat field and a fox in the story. The fox said to the little prince, I don't like to eat wheat. Wheat means nothing to me, but if you tame me, I will eat it." I would imagine the wheat to be the color of your hair, and the sound of someone else's footsteps would send me running back to my cave, and your footsteps would be like music to lure me out."
"A fox waiting for love." Xiao Yu said with a smile.
"How do you know? There is a book review called this." Lin Yan was very surprised, but the fox turned into a child with a sneer, and said aggrievedly: "No one will tame me."
"Yes, you are a powerful fox demon." Lin Yan freed a hand to touch his head, the little guy turned his head, and said with red eyes: "When I was very young, my parents were caught by hunters to make fur, grandpa Shut me up at home every day to practice spells, no matter what I like, so I sneaked out and never went back."
"Nobody cares about me." A Che fiddled with Xiao Yu's clothes, "I hate wheat too."
"We all like you, here, ask your brother Yu, when will he make people so clingy?"
"I know he finds me annoying." The fox said with his head down.
Lin Yan also couldn't help laughing, saying that he was carrying a carload of problem children, and comforted him: "Your elder brother Yu will be leaving soon, I will probably spend a long time alone, if Ah Che wants to come and play with me , There is also a cat at home, buy meat for you two."
"Lin Yan..." Xiao Yu was startled.
The fox's eyes lit up, he nodded vigorously, and suddenly hesitated: "It's a pity that cat meat is not tasty..."
Before Lin Yan could reply, a small path appeared in the wheat field, with poplar trees planted on both sides, and a sign at the intersection had three words "Duanjia Village" crookedly written on it.
"It's here." Lin Yan knocked on the dashboard and shouted to the back seat: "The two sleeping people in the back got up, it's time to stop."
The car turned into the small road, but it didn't know how far it was, when a long funeral procession suddenly appeared in front of it, at least two or three hundred people, all dressed in white linen filial piety, Lin Yan rolled down the window of the car, only listening to the mournful music , The crying was endless, bright yellow paper money was scattered, and two even floated into the car. Hearing the sound of the car coming from behind, the team turned their heads one after another. An old man with a rough face stood out from the funeral procession and waved his arms , stopped Lin Yan's car.