The creaking sound of the village gate was still behind him. The old man who was supporting Ji Yuan did not let go and led Ji Yuan inside for more than ten steps until they arrived in front of a house with an outer wall painted with mud.
"Sir, be careful, the threshold is high, lift your feet high!"
The high threshold is not a joke, it is really high. I vaguely felt that it was as high as my calf. Ji Yuan raised his foot and stepped into the house with the old man.
This house was not like a normal residence, as it only had one room, with neither a kitchen nor an inner hall. There was only a table with an oil lamp, four benches, and two beds on the side.
'Well, more like a temporary dormitory!'
When they got inside, the old man finally let go of his hand and asked Ji Yuan to sit down.
"Sir, please take a seat. My surname is Xu. May I ask where you live?"
As he spoke, he took the initiative to move a stool aside to make it easier for Ji Yuan to sit down. The sound of his feet rubbing against the ground drew a colorless line in Ji Yuan's heart.
"Okay, thank you old man. My surname is Ji, and I am from Ning'an County."
As Ji Yuan spoke, he felt his way to the table and sat down, placing his bag and umbrella on the table. An old man beside him took a bowl from the pile of dishes that were upside down on the table, picked up the clay pot beside the table and poured water for Ji Yuan.
"Oh, Ning'an people, we usually don't receive strangers at night. As the old saying goes, a person with a shadow and warmth is a living person. Don't turn your head when someone calls your name on the night road. There are many strange things these days, so you always have to be careful. Did I make you laugh just now, sir?"
The tea pours into the bowl with a crisp sound, and a small splash occurs when the bowl is full.
"Sir, please have some water."
"It's okay. It's better to be careful. Thank you!"
After thanking him again, Ji Yuan sniffed it and drank it without caring about anything. At this time, the old man suddenly asked him a question.
"Sir, are you a ghost?"
"Puff..."
Ji Yuan spat out a mouthful of tea.
"Ahem... you old man must be joking. Of course I'm not a ghost!!!"
This sudden and tough question choked Ji Yuan so much that he coughed for a long time. The old man next to him also apologized repeatedly.
"Sir, please don't blame me. Sir, please don't blame me. I have a bad memory. I suddenly thought of something and subconsciously wanted to confirm it. It's really that our place is too remote. Few people would come here alone at night."
Ji Yuan coughed a few times and circulated his spiritual energy to soothe the irritation in his trachea, then asked with some helplessness but curiosity.
"Confirm what? Didn't the old man feel my pulse?"
"That's true, but some people don't even know they're not alive after they die. This kind of person is the hardest to identify, and we need to tell them right in front of them. We call this folk method the 'Yuanyang Method'."
"What a strange name? Yuanyang? Yuanyang? It can't be a mandarin duck, right?"
Shaking off the thoughts in his mind, Ji Yuan asked the old man directly.
"Old man, is your place often haunted?"
Otherwise why would you be so nervous? But as long as it's not a fierce ghost it's not a big problem.
"We did encounter someone looking for a scapegoat a few years ago. We are the only village in this desolate countryside within a radius of dozens of miles, and everyone is on guard, fearing that some strange creatures will come here. But ghosts are not a big deal. As the saying goes, people are three parts afraid of ghosts, and ghosts are seven parts afraid of people. There are many people who are brave, and there are many hot-tempered young men in the village..."
The old man paused, hesitated for a moment, and then continued.
"It's just that we've had trouble with beautiful snakes before. At this time of year, it's better for everyone to stay indoors if they can!"
"Beauty snake?"
Ji Yuanxin frowned. Could it be a monster
"Well, it is said that there is a giant snake with a beautiful woman's head, who likes to trick young men into eating them."
"Beauty's head? You can lie? Old man, don't lie to me!!"
Ji Yuan took a breath and subconsciously thought of Lu Shanjun from Niu Kuishan. Could ordinary people defend against this by being on guard
The light of the oil lamp in the house flickered, but the room was still dim. The swaying light was like Ji Yuan's mood.
Monsters that can speak are all very capable and have already refined their horizontal bones. They are no longer the little monsters that can be killed by iron rakes or hoes if they are not careful. And if this snake really has a human head...
Ji Yuan didn’t dare to think about it anymore, and even had the urge to leave, but if he went outside... his chest would feel so choked up.
This county can't be without a city god, right? Does he still care about this place
"Hey, a lot of people know about this. It made our village panic for a long time. How could I lie to you? I won't say more..."
Having said that, the old man stood up from a stool on the side and went to tidy up another bed.
"Sir, my family is still in the inner village. This house at the entrance of the village is for the people who look after the entrance of the village to stay temporarily. Please stay here for one night. If you need to go to the toilet at night, you can wake me up and I will help you go there."
"By the way, sir, are you hungry? If you are, I'll get you something to eat."
"No, I'm not hungry!"
While refusing, Ji Yuan went over to help make the bed. From the smell on it, he knew it was often exposed to the sun. But even if the smell was strong, it didn't matter. He didn't care much about it and didn't have the heart to pay attention to it.
“Woof woof woof…Woof woof woof…”
There were bursts of barking of dogs and a few curses outside. Ji Yuan listened carefully and seemed to hear words such as "so disgusting" and "unlucky".
Ji Yuan saw that the old man on the side didn't react, so he temporarily put aside the uneasiness in his mind and asked about his journey.
"Old man, what is the name of your village? Where is it located in Shunbao County? What is the best way to get to Jiao County?"
"Shunbao County?"
Hearing the old man's doubtful voice, Ji Yuan felt a little uneasy.
"Sir, you're taking a rather long way. This is Shanghegou Village, which is already the northeastern corner of Suiyuan County. We've long passed Baoshun."
"ah!?"
"Suiyuan County? I ran through two counties?"
The paperweight map is indeed detailed, but the lines are too fine and dense, making it difficult to grasp the map scale. One can only understand the approximate relationship between various territories through this condensed map. The Thirteen Prefectures of Dazhen are crammed in beyond the limit, and a county is just a small dot on the map. It is already a masterpiece of Wupan to carve tiny names and mark official roads. If one wants a sense of distance, it can only be reflected in the land of a prefecture.
'So I underestimated my leg strength?'
I'm afraid that when he was using a sleight of hand to chase the three horsemen, he had unknowingly gone too far!
'Speeding will cause trouble!!!'
Ji Yuan, sighing in his heart, hurriedly continued to ask the old man.
"So if I want to go to Chunhui Mansion, do you think it would be better to go back the same way or choose another route?"
"Well, I've never run so far before. How about this, Mr. Ji, you can take a rest first. Tomorrow morning, you can go and ask the merchants who are staying in the village. I heard that they are going to Du Mingfu City in the end. Maybe they know the best way to go!"
"Ah... this is the only way!"
I really miss my mobile navigation...
. . .
Late at night…
The villagers go to bed earlier than the city people, and there is no night watchman. The old man in the room is already snoring, and occasionally the barking of dogs can be heard from outside.
Ji Yuan lay on the bed with his eyes closed, but he was not asleep. On the one hand, it was because the snoring beside him was too obvious in the quiet night, especially in his ears; on the other hand, he was touching the paperweight map to re-plan his route.
“Woof woof woof…woof woof woof…woof woof woof…”
“Woof woof woof woof…”
The barking of dogs suddenly became more frequent. Ji Yuan opened his eyes almost at the same moment he heard the sound. He could hear that many village dogs were gathered in one place, barking in the same direction.
After waiting for a while, the barking of the dogs gradually subsided.
Old dogs that have been raised for a long time are often very spiritual. Ji Yuan had witnessed this once in Ning'an County. In his previous life, he had always heard old people say that dog eyes can be psychic, so Ji Yuan still cares about the barking of dogs.
"I'm a little panicked..."
. . .
At the riverside outside the village, a long black shadow slid across the ground, crawling slowly in an S-shape along the coastal area, and its dense scales rubbed against stones and branches, making a sizzling sound.
Somewhere, the black shadow raised its body and looked towards the village, revealing its sturdy body and white scales on its belly.
“Hiss~hiss~hiss~”
After standing there for a while with his tongue out, bursts of angry dog barking were heard in the village, but in fact, those domestic dogs often just barked near the fence without any intention of running out.
“Hiss~~~”
The big snake crouched down, and its slightly bloated body twisted a few times along the shore.
After a "plop~~" sound, mixed with the sound of waves being pushed away, a long black shadow slid into the river, and some small boats on the side were also shaking due to the changing ripples on the water surface.