Feng Chen and Fu Xueman went back in disappointment. Shen Bing and I couldn't help but cheer. We had finally waited for the victory result in which the Chief Executive ruled us not guilty. From now on, we can live uprightly in the world.
Our ancestors told us that although Judge Cui did not find any evidence of guilt from Mei Ruoqi in a short period of time, her evil identity as the descendant of the Mei School and her unknown origins during her death and entering the underworld silenced the Chief Executive. The two of them listed Mei Ruoqi's deeds during her lifetime, the grudge between her and me, and the fact that I dug out this traitor, which made the Chief Executive break his silence and agree to pardon the crimes of Shen Bing and me.
But they didn't know what was going on between Mei Ruoqi and the Chief Executive, and the Chief Executive was actually protecting this traitor. It was said that this ghost guarded the temple diligently and conscientiously, and although she did some eccentric things, considering that it was her first offense, she was punished to face the wall in the temple and never leave the temple.
I blinked my eyes, thinking to myself, what the hell, that's called perverse, that's evil. Letting her face the wall in the temple is like not being punished, and she is still in the position of patrolling the temple. If she doesn't go out, she can still drive the evil spirits, do evil in the world, and continue to whisper in the ears of this confused King of Hell.
Alas, this is like the monsters in Journey to the West who had backers, who were eventually taken to heaven, and only the small monsters without background were beaten to death. Mei Ruoqi had a backer in the underworld, and this backer was Judge Wu, who then stepped on Judge Wu's shoulders and got close to the Chief Executive. In the end, her real backer was actually the Chief Executive.
How can you reason with this? They are both players and referees. We, the audience, have nothing to do with it. At most we can complain a few words, but the outcome will not change.
It would be good enough for the two of us to be pardoned. Otherwise, if the Chief Executive refused to give in and insisted on punishing us severely, what could we do? Even if he wanted to punish Mei Ruoqi and exile him to Woshi in the northeast, who would know if he came back quietly before he got there? The temple was a place that only the Chief Executive could go to. Even Judge Cui did not dare to approach it.
After all, it is still the words of our great grandfather, it is better to stay out of our own business. This also fully reflects Zheng Banqiao's saying "It is rare to be confused". If you pretend to be confused when you know the truth, you will have fewer troubles.
After the Seventh and Eighth Masters congratulated us, they left in a hurry, saying that Judge Cui had called them over for something. I had many questions to ask the old ancestor, but he stopped me.
"Don't ask anything. You already know enough." The old ancestor said solemnly, "The chief executive ordered you to leave the underworld as soon as possible. From now on, you are not allowed to enter without the guidance of the ghost messenger. Judge Cui has just notified the local city god. Your bodies have been taken to the city god temple. You can return to the world at any time."
"Okay, let's go now. But I want to know, if I want to see the ancestor in the future, do I still have to see him once every six months?" I asked, holding Shen Bing's little hand.
The old man shook his head and said with a sad expression: "We can't see each other again. The Chief Executive may have seen that I am very close to Judge Cui, and in order to prevent us from forming a clique, he said that he wanted me to go to Woshi in the northwest to find a job. So, we may never meet again."
We were both stunned when we heard this. Isn't this just exiling our ancestors to the frontier in disguise? Fuck that second uncle, this bastard Chief Executive, how did our Xi family displease you that one of us was exiled to Woshi in the Northeast and the other to Woshi in the Northwest, and they were not even together.
Shen Bing's eyes turned red, and she said to the old ancestor: "Why can't you come back to meet us when you get there?"
The old ancestor sighed and said, "Anyone who is sent to the old place of the Ten Kings of Hell will be trapped there forever and cannot get out again. It's like the hell realm, it's extremely difficult to get out. Even ghost messengers have a chance to visit home once every sixty years. Sixty years, ah, I heard that no ghost messenger who went to the Wo Shi Hell has returned in six hundred years." As he spoke, a trace of melancholy flashed across his face.
When I thought about never being able to see him again, my nose got sore and tears started to fall. I couldn't help but hug the old ancestor and burst into tears.
“Don’t cry, don’t cry. Although your great-grandfather and I have gone to a barren land, our lives are definitely better than in the underworld.” His eyes were also red. He pulled me away, held my hand and said, “Judge Cui is urging me to send you out. The Seventh and Eighth Masters are waiting at the release point. Let’s go!”
Shen Bing followed behind and sobbed, "Ancestor, if you leave, there will be no one to take care of us if the underworld causes trouble for us in the future. There will also be no one to stand up for me if the bumpkins bully me. Woo woo..."
The old ancestor turned around and touched her head with his hand, and said with a smile: "Don't meddle in other people's business anymore. Go home and run a good shop, help ghosts solve their problems, and accumulate virtue for our Xi family. If there is anything, Judge Cui and the Seventh and Eighth Masters will still help."
Soon we arrived at the release point, where the Seventh and Eighth Masters were waiting, but they looked anxious. Shen Bing and I had a lot to say to the old ancestor, and we felt reluctant to leave as we said one less word.
At this time, Master Qi came over and patted me on the shoulder: "Brother, it's almost the end of the Chou hour. If you don't leave now and fail to repay the Yang, it will anger the Chief Executive, and no one will be able to plead for you then. Let's go quickly." He sighed, as if he couldn't bear to ruin this moment of our final reunion as grandparents and grandchildren.
"Hurry up, hurry up, or it will be too late!" Mr. Ba urged again.
The old man wiped the tears off my face and pushed me over. Shen Bing and I knelt on the ground and kowtowed three times respectfully to him. But when we walked to the archway of Fangshengkou, we looked back and saw that he was crying too. This tragic scene has been deeply imprinted in my heart and will never go away in my life!
When we opened our eyes, we found ourselves lying in the dark, but we felt cold all over and our clothes were wet. We were probably frozen in the corpse cabinet, and a layer of frost had formed on our bodies, which was now melting. A body that was cold and without heat could not be resurrected, but the King of Hell called us back. I guess the City God had done everything he could to revive us, even if we were frozen into popsicles.
"I wonder when the ancestor will pass away?" Shen Bing leaned in my arms and asked sadly.
I sighed. I don't know. I guess he will leave in the next two days. I hope that Northwest Woshi will be as prosperous and lively as Northeast Woshi, so that our ancestors can live comfortably there. He has suffered for many years in the underworld, facing the wall and praying for his great grandfather. Alas, I really want to talk to Judge Cui and ask him to let me become a ghost slave to give my ancestors and great grandfather a chance to reincarnate.
We just hugged each other silently, and no one spoke. After a long time, we suddenly heard footsteps in the distance. At this moment, our eyes adjusted to the darkness, and we vaguely found that we were in a room, which was very large and seemed to be a hall. Behind us, there was a tall black shadow that seemed to be a statue of a god.