Guan Taiping was leaning on the sofa with his eyes closed, his arrogant look as if he was the best in the world was really uncomfortable to watch. His disciple, named Abao, was sitting on the side, looking around, like a country boy who came to the city for the first time, everything he saw was new to him, with a silly look on his face.
Boss Zheng was sitting opposite us, and he looked down upon the three of us standing behind him, as if we were non-existent, like air.
Time passed bit by bit in the depressing atmosphere, slowly approaching midnight.
Guan Taiping suddenly opened his eyes, stared at my face with two sharp eyes, and asked, "Is your last name Xi?"
I was moved. The old man's eyes were sharp. I smiled and replied, "Yes, my surname is Xi, and I'm from Shangcheng Town." It seemed that he had guessed who I was. There was no need to beat around the bush with him because he was someone my father respected. So I called myself a junior just to show respect to him.
"Well, I guessed right. You are a descendant of the Xi family." After saying this, the old man closed his eyes and ignored me again.
I thought to myself, old man, you are too arrogant. You know that I am a descendant of the Xi family, but you are still so arrogant. It is obvious that you don't take the Xi family seriously. Forget it, I won't bother with him, because very few people know about the Ghost Thing Specialty Shop, and those who know about it may think that the descendants of Ghost Thing are not orthodox Taoist disciples, so they look down on those who eat this dinner.
The grandfather clock in the living room struck eleven o'clock, and the midnight hour had arrived!
Guan Taiping slowly opened his eyes and asked, "Is the copper basin of water placed under the bed?"
"It's put away." Boss Zheng replied quickly.
"Well, Abao, set up the incense table."
A Bao responded and asked someone to bring a square table, spread a yellow cloth on the table, and put the shrine and incense burner on it. The shrine is a tablet made of yellow paper with the name of a certain god written on it with a brush. Because there are many Taoist gods, the disciples of each sect worship different gods. Their master and disciples worship Taishang Laojun, who is the ancestor of Taoism and has the most disciples.
The ghost-suppressing token, the Three Purities Bell, the peach wood sword and several yellow talismans were neatly placed on the table, and incense and candles were lit.
When Boss Zheng saw the incense table being set up, he immediately showed a look of awe on his face, as this formal practice of opening an altar was rarely seen in the county.
Guan Taiping stood up from the sofa and stretched out his arms. Abao took out a Taoist robe from his bag and put it on him quickly, and handed him a whisk.
Lu Fei and I looked at each other, feeling very curious. This old guy is really a man who knows how to deceive others. Catching ghosts is not a ritual, so there is no need to make a big fuss. He is wearing a Taoist robe and a Taoist hat on his head, and he even holds a whisk that looks like a sheep's tail. He looks like a eunuch no matter how you look at him.
This is just like taking off your pants to fart, an extra procedure!
Lu Fei whispered to me, "Brother Xi, I'm convinced by the old man. With such a big fanfare, the customers will definitely be confused. I will do the same thing next time."
I turned my head and whispered in his ear, "Go find a big rooster and hide outside the courtyard wall. I'll call you on my cell phone later and you can let the rooster crow twice."
Lu Fei was stunned and asked me in a low voice: "Aren't we catching ghosts? How can we catch the headless ghost if it is scared away by the crowing of the rooster?"
"Idiot, we're not the ones catching him." I said unhappily.
Lu Fei immediately understood what was going on, nodded with a smile, and quietly slipped out with Ma Yunxi. I turned around and looked at the old guy who was kowtowing to Taishang Laojun, thinking to myself, don't blame me for playing tricks on you. If you really have this ability, you can catch the headless ghost even if you scare it away. If you don't have this ability, even if you ask twenty Taishang Laojun gods, it won't work.