Chapter 4 of Ming Niang Yang
Xie Qianchou and Yan Ran followed the screams to a gentle slope, where Xie Qianchou had performed rituals during the day. They saw a bonfire burning on the slope, and a man kneeling beside it, head bowed. Across from him was a thick white fog, like a wall blocking something out.
It wasn't very late, and residents began to arrive to watch the fun—after all, there wasn't much entertainment here at night. Everyone just watched from a distance, no one wanting to venture in.
Just as the groups of three or four gradually gathered into a crowd, a skeletal arm slowly emerged from the white mist and pressed against the face of the kneeling figure. The fleshless bones slowly pushed the head back. As the arm moved, a blood-red sleeve emerged from behind the mist, gradually covering the bones, which were chilled by the bonfire. Then, a figure wearing a red veil and a crimson wedding dress emerged from the mist.
The person's head was pressed into a kneeling position, looking up at the sky. The woman in the red wedding dress slowly raised her hand, and the red sleeve slid down, revealing a smooth hand like a couple's arm.
Bones growing flesh? Seeing this bizarre scene, Yan Ran felt a chill in his heart, and he couldn't help but stick close to Jie Qianchou. Jie Qianchou didn't move, just staring at the bonfire, the red clothes, and the white mist. Hiding behind him, Yan Ran actually felt a sense of security.
The scarlet wedding dress slowly retracted its arms, like a bride too embarrassed to see the world, retreating into the white mist. Amid the crackling of the bonfire, the kneeling figure suddenly collapsed backwards, revealing a face twisted and ugly by wind and dehydration. His neck, hands, and other exposed skin were as "fresh" as a living person's, as if the skeletal arm had instantly drained all the moisture from his face, which had been vibrant just moments before.
"The Bone Bride... murder!"
Someone shouted, and the crowd scattered like frightened cats.
Yan Ran followed them and ran back two steps, then suddenly realized she didn't know where to run. She turned around and saw Jie Qianchou still standing there like a nail. Yan Ran felt relieved, and felt that Jie Qianchou was indeed a capable undercover police officer and had courage.
Yan Ran shuffled back to Jie Qianchou's side. Following Jie Qianchou's gaze, she saw a face that resembled a thousand-year-old terracotta figurine. Dark red crystals dotted the dry, cracked skin, and a faint sweet, fishy smell wafted through the air.
Yan Ran felt a cramp in her stomach and she didn't want to stay here anymore.
"Shall we go too?"
Jie Qianchou did not respond.
Yan Ran tugged at Jie Qianchou's hand; she sensed something was amiss. Why were Jie Qianchou's hands shaking so violently? Her attention had been focused on the bonfire, but now Yan Ran looked closely at Jie Qianchou and noticed his lips were pale and his hands and feet were trembling. He was clearly frightened and unable to move.
The emotions that had been filled with fear just now were now completely speechless. Yan Ran, feeling the countless ellipsis floating in his head, slapped Jie Qianchou hard on the forehead. Jie Qianchou shuddered, turned around, and ran away.
Yan Ran stood there with mixed emotions as a few mocking cries of crows came from the sky.
After a long while, Yan Ran stumbled back to Wang Jinhua's home, only to be questioned by the police who had arrived. Yan Ran knew nothing, and the police, far from getting any useful information from her, only managed to get some information about the deceased.
The deceased was Zhu Li, a resident of the town. Zhu Li had no visible injuries, and aside from his face, which had dried out like a mummy, nothing else was found. Although Zhu Li lived alone in the town, he had been seen yesterday. So, what could cause a person's face to transform into a mummy-like state almost instantly?
Yan Ran shuddered as she thought of the bright red wedding dress. She decided to collect the money and leave tomorrow; it was not a good time to stay here any longer.
There were no hotels in Paradise Town, so when Wang Jinhua invited Yan Ran over, she agreed to let her stay at her home. The guest room at Wang Jinhua's house was very comfortably decorated, with a stream flowing outside the window and swaying leaves, giving it the feeling of a farm stay in the mountains.
But Yan Ran couldn't be happy. She'd tossed and turned last night, unable to sleep, and wanted to play some mobile games, but there was no signal here. Yan Ran, waking up early with a pair of panda eyes, happened to run into Wang Jinhua, who had just returned from feeding the pigs.
"The meal is ready, let's eat."
While Yan Ran expressed his gratitude, he also had the illusion that he was being fed like a pig.
"Sister Wang," Yan Ran said to Wang Jinhua while drinking porridge, "I've already told you about Xiaohu's situation. Follow-up consultations will require props like sand tables, so you'll need to go to my studio. This service is now over."
"Oh, that's it." Wang Jinhua handed Yan Ran an ear of corn while she herself ate a roasted sweet potato.
Yan Ran was waiting eagerly for Wang Jinhua to pay the bill, but she just ate sweet potatoes without saying a word.
"Sister Wang, how about we settle the bill?" Yan Ran said bluntly.
"I see."
Wang Jinhua looked at Yan Ran, and Yan Ran also looked at Wang Jinhua.
"I'm sorry this trip has been quite troublesome for you," Wang Jinhua said, throwing the leftover sweet potato peel aside. "But Xiaohu is fine."
Yan Ran looked at Wang Jinhua with a puzzled look on his face. "Xiao Hu said he saw a ghost, right?"
Yan Ran nodded.
"You saw a ghost last night, too, didn't you?"
Yan Ran nodded subconsciously.
"That Xiaohu really saw a ghost, so he wasn't talking nonsense, was he?"
Yan Ran remembered the diagnosis he had made before and continued to nod.
"So Xiaohu was frightened by a ghost. If you're frightened by a ghost, shouldn't you seek help from a Taoist priest?"
Yan Ran could only nod.
"Look, you didn't help at all, so how can I pay you?" Wang Jinhua said helplessly. "Isn't this the same as feeding pigs? I feed pigs because they're edible and can be sold. If pigs were useless, do you think I would still feed them?"
There's nothing wrong with this logical loop, the question is why use a pig as an analogy? Yan Ran gritted his teeth, no one can get away with this!
"Sister Wang, if there aren't any ghosts, do we have to pay the bill?" Yan Ran smiled sweetly, just like when she asked Jie Qianchou for a "crossing fee" in the past. "Do I still have to come to you for the follow-up consultation?"
"Is that so..." Wang Jinhua leaned back. She inexplicably felt an invisible pressure coming from the air.
After breakfast, Yan Ran searched all over the mountains and fields for Jie Qianchou, and finally blocked him on the way out of the town.
Xie Qianchou was wearing a black hiking outfit, carrying a large backpack, and a large hat with a brim pulled down tightly. If you didn't look closely, you wouldn't recognize him as the Taoist priest with the graceful posture from yesterday.
Yan Ran narrowed his eyes: "You don't want to run away, do you?"
Jie Qianchou touched his nose and said, "I don't owe any loan sharks, why should I run away?"
Yan Ran raised his eyebrows: "Okay, come back with me."
Jie Qianchou quickly waved his hands: "Don't make trouble, I have something else to do, let's eat together later."
After saying that, Jie Qianchou was about to bypass Yan Ran and walk down the mountain.
Yan Ran took a step forward to block Jie Qianchou.
"I have seen your heart."
"What?"
Yan Ran raised his lips slightly and said, "I'm going to call a few villagers over to see you off."
Jie Qianchou had a bitter face: "Stop messing around, hey, what do you want?"
Jie Qianchou had a premonition that Yan Ran was going to ask him about the skeleton bride from last night, and maybe even planned to drag him into doing something.
Yan Ran took out a few coins and asked, "Tell me, how did the coins disappear last night?"
Jie Qianchou didn't react, he blinked and said, "That's it?"
Yan Ran didn't say anything, just looked at him.
Jie Qianchou picked up two coins from Yan Ran's hand and placed them on the ground one behind the other. This time, he didn't cover the coins with leaves. "Look, this is a simple coin-hiding and replacement trick."
Xie Qianchou placed his left hand on the coin in front of him, then slowly moved it back, the same technique he'd used to cover the leaves and then partially reveal them. This seemingly small movement actually moved the coin closer to his wrist. His right hand pretended to move the leaves away, a gesture meant to draw attention. Simultaneously, his left hand gently shifted, and the coin, originally at his wrist, moved to the coin behind him with this slight movement.
"Is it that simple?"
"How complicated do you want it to be?"
"No! What if I choose a coin in a different position? What will you do?"
Jie Qianchou didn't say anything, but just looked at Yan Ran with a special look.
"I feel like you're thinking of something very rude." Yan Ran felt offended.
"If you want to learn, I'll teach you later. Contact me tomorrow." Jie Qianchou walked around Yan Ran again.
"So, you figured out yesterday that the Skeleton Bride wasn't actually a ghost."
When Xie Qianchou heard Yan Ran's words, he stopped. It wasn't that he didn't want to go, but that Yan Ran had grabbed his backpack.
Yan Ran said to himself, "Evading a coin and evading a piece of bone are similar no matter how you think about it."
"It's quite different. One is the world in the sleeve, which is a trick of the color gate, but it is different from the hidden movement and fortune-transfer of the hand gate."
Yan Ran nodded, she had confirmed her inference.
"If you're not a ghost, why are you in such a hurry to leave?"
"It's not like a ghost is leaving, okay? There's clearly a murderer in this town."
"So, you're not a police officer at all."
Yan Ran raised his right hand and pointed his index finger at Jie Qianchou: "I said, I have seen through your heart."
Xie Qianchou looked bewildered and asked, "Did I ever tell you I'm a police officer? Are you sick?"
Yan Ran was stunned. After careful recollection, he realized that this guy had never said he was a police officer. From the beginning to the end, he had only assumed that he was an undercover agent. But why would he run away when he was fine?
“Master, Master!”
An old man and several villagers came quickly from behind and surrounded Li Qianchou.
Yan Ran had some impression of this old man. When Jie Qianchou was performing the ritual yesterday, he was standing next to him.
The old man panted and said, "Why did you come here? It was so hard for me to find you."
Jie Qianchou's expression was as calm as water, as if he could change his expression. "Those who practice Taoism like to climb mountains. I just came out for a walk this morning. Master Gao is so anxious, is there something wrong again?"
Old Gao looked at Jie Qianchou, who was wearing mountaineering clothes, and then glanced at Yan Ran beside him. Why does this feel like eloping? Who cares? As long as he doesn't return to secular life now, it's fine.
Old Gao smiled and said, "Isn't this about asking the Master to exorcise evil spirits? Master, you know, there are always people in this shabby place who like to gossip, saying that you took 600 yuan from our family and ran away. I immediately got angry with him, saying that Master, you definitely can't do that. You agreed to come to exorcise evil spirits for our family, you can't do this ritual and then have a ghost come to our house, right?"
Yan Ran nodded. This guy really wants to run away. Isn't this blocking people? Wait, why did I work so hard to charge 500 yuan, but this guy can make 600 yuan by doing some magic?
Jie Qianchou said calmly, "It's alright. People's minds are fickle and fragile, so why bother with them?"
Old Gao didn't understand what he meant and continued to talk to himself: "Anyway, Master, can you defeat that ghost from yesterday, the Skeleton Bride?"
Jie Qianchou smiled faintly: "May the Supreme Heavenly Lord bless you. I originally wanted to liberate this ghost, but..."
Old Gao answered quickly: "I understand. We'll add another 600 yuan."
Those who saw the Skeleton Bride last night were all terrified and fled, but Jie Qianchou remained calm and composed. Coupled with Jie Qianchou's ability to make talismans spontaneously combust without fire during the day, the townspeople believed he was a truly skilled master. Except, of course, for Yan Ran.
Jie Qianchou pondered the number of six hundred and looked at Old Man Gao: "There is one more condition. I need an assistant who is not afraid of death."
Old Gao took an awkward half step back.
Xie Qianchou's eyes swept over the people surrounding him one by one, and everyone he saw retreated. Xie Qianchou's eyes fell on Yan Ran.
"You."
Yan Ran pointed at his nose and asked, "Me?"
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