Chapter 58 Blasphemy 7. Springtime news spread throughout most of Yu County...
Although it was called a ceremony, Shen Mingxin didn't take it seriously, sometimes waving his fan and sometimes pacing around aimlessly.
However, since there was no disruptive or outrageous behavior, the boy tolerated it all for the sake of the silver notes.
The people from Futian Temple were somewhat dissatisfied, and whispered to Shen Mingxin, "Young Master Shen, please behave yourself and don't disturb our prayers! You are a very wealthy and noble person, and you have your sworn brother's protection, so naturally you don't ask for these things. But we are begging Lord Chunshan to grant us an auspicious day!"
In the past, the gifts of tens or hundreds of taels of silver could not compare to the mere, illusory favor of Lord Chunshan.
Shen Mingxin smiled, neither responding nor replying.
Halfway through the ceremony, Shen Mingxin glanced at the time and said with embarrassment that he suddenly remembered he had something to do at home and had to leave. The servant boy was already annoyed with him, and seeing that he was sensible enough to leave, he didn't try to stop him and quickly saw him off.
Two moments after Shen Mingxin left, Shushi came in and said that the young master's jade pendant was lost and he needed to look for it. With a smile, he also gave the boy some silver. The boy was impatient but let it go.
An hour later, Shen Mingxin sat in a teahouse on a street corner.
"Young Master, Young Master!" Shushi called out softly as he ran into the private room. "It's all taken care of. That old thief managed to switch the main offering with a wooden puppet while I was busy searching for the jade pendant, replacing the infant with the wooden puppet, and has sent it to be settled as you instructed."
"When the ceremony was over, the fairy boy picked up the statue to kill it, only to find out that he was furious and scared to death. He knelt in front of the statue and his head was bleeding. But he didn't seem very smart and didn't think it was you, young master."
"The old thief didn't ask for money. He said that the Tongtian Goddess of Xiling knows that people are precious now and that she can't even get human sacrifices once a year. Now that a wild god from outside is making such a fuss just to invite a god, he can't stand it and considers it chivalrous."
As he spoke, Soseki brought over the jade pendant and a small bag of silver that Shen Mingxin had deliberately left in Futian Courtyard.
“Fine, if you don’t want it, then don’t,” Shen Mingxin casually accepted it, raising an eyebrow and smiling, “Just consider it as fulfilling his chivalrous heart.”
"But go again later and tell him to be careful in his actions from now on. The god worshipped by Xiling is the Great Goddess of Heaven. Although the government does not prohibit us from worshipping other gods, it has never approved it either. Now, this Lord Chunshan has come up and said that he has the permission of the Prefect of Xiling. This is definitely not ordinary."
Soseki said, "Perhaps that fairy boy is just talking nonsense, trying to glorify himself..."
“It doesn’t seem like it,” Shen Mingxin shook his head, glancing out the window at the misty mountains and rivers of Yu County, a beautiful and prosperous place. “When I woke up from this illness and looked outside, I always felt that Yu County… was going to be unstable.”
Soseki was stunned: "Then, what should we do?"
"What can we do?" Shen Mingxin closed his fan, lowered his head and drank his tea. "We ordinary people will just have to take it one day at a time."
Shen Mingxin's words were carefree, and his premonition was not wrong.
Within three to five days of the incident at Fukuda-in Temple, the name of the deity Chunshan Gong had spread throughout most of Yu County. It was said that he was an extremely efficacious deity, in charge of granting children and wealth, and that as long as one was sincere, he would often appear to grant their wishes.
A miracle?
In all his years, Shen Mingxin had never seen any deity actually manifest.
On the fifteenth day, a procession of gods, with everyone's face painted with spring branches, came to the streets of the county town. They carried the ethereal and otherworldly image of the god holding a peach branch, circled the town three times, and entered the county government office.
Some time later, a large-scale construction project was launched in the south of the city to build a new temple, named Chunshan Temple.
Even if Shen Mingxin wanted to, she was powerless to do anything about it.
He watched as fresh incense burned throughout the city, and listened to the discontented curses of the followers of the Heavenly Goddess. He only wished that his family would not be drawn into this trouble.
On the very day that the Chunshan Temple broke ground, Shen Mingxin's sworn brother, Shen Chou, returned to the Shen family home, weary from his journey.
Shen Mingxin didn't know much about Chenchou either.
He came to the Shen family when Shen Mingxin was eight years old. According to Shen Zhuan, Shen Chou's grandfather was from the same hometown as him and could be called a cousin. Shen Chou's family had already fallen into ruin, leaving only him. He couldn't bear to see him wandering around, so he wanted to adopt him as Shen Mingxin's sworn brother. In the future, he would also work as a manager in the family business to help Shen Mingxin manage the family business, so that he would have someone to support him.
Shen Mingxin was too young to understand, and his parents had no objections, so the matter was settled.
Shen Chou was six years older than Shen Mingxin. He was fourteen when he arrived, clearly a boy, but he looked like a beautiful girl. He had a gentle and feminine beauty and a mild and compliant nature. Most of his peers liked him.
But Shen Mingxin didn't like it much. He always felt that there was something strange about this sworn brother, which made him not want to get close to him.
After Shen Chou was eighteen, he volunteered to work as an accountant and traveled with merchant caravans to make trade, spending most of his time away from home.
Thus, his feelings for Shen Mingxin became even more distant, and he could only be described as vaguely familiar with her.
"As soon as I saw the letter, I rushed back day and night without stopping, but the journey was too long, and unfortunately I encountered heavy rain, which caused repeated delays, so I only arrived today," Shen Chou explained with remorse in the Shen family hall, then looked at Shen Mingxin, "Fortunately, he is alright, which is a great relief, otherwise I really..."
"Alright," Shen Zhuan said, not wanting to hear any more of this. "Let's not talk about these things anymore. It's all in the past. Mingxin is all better now, and you're back. It's been so long since our family has been together like this."
"Quick, go wash up, the three of us will have a good drink later!"
He urged him on, his face glowing with happiness.
"Alright," Chen Chou replied with a smile, "Today, I'll drink with Grandpa until we drop!"
With that, he went to change his clothes.
Shen Mingxin glanced at Shen Chou's departing figure, then looked at the smiling Shen Zhuan: "Grandpa, can you smell it? My sworn brother seems to have a strong scent of incense on him. I wonder where it came from."
Shen Zhuan raised his eyes slightly: "The smell of incense?"
He seemed oblivious, and just laughed, "Where did he get the smell of incense? You smelled it on yourself, didn't you? You've been worshipping the God of Xiangjun these past few days, you've been completely overwhelmed by the smell of incense."
"Speaking of Chou-ge'er, the smell of medicinal wine is quite strong. He must have encountered some accidents on his way back, and suffered some injuries. In this world, things are not completely peaceful yet..."
Is it on my own body?
Shen Mingxin's elegant and beautiful eyes furrowed slightly as she turned beneath the fan.
Meanwhile, on the other side, looking towards Qiushan.
Before nightfall, three or five farmers, carrying baskets on their backs, hurried into the Shenxiang Temple.
"Hurry up!"
"It's not your fault, you insisted on digging for those wild mushrooms, otherwise why would we be so late? Hopefully we can get down the mountain before dark..."
"I heard that when night falls on Wangqiu Mountain, not even a single insect comes out. Something's strange..."
"What's there to be afraid of! The goddess Xiangjun of Wangqiu Mountain is protecting us!" said the young man who loved digging for wild mushrooms and was quite daring.
"Alright, once you enter the temple, you'll be facing the goddess Xiangjun. Stop talking nonsense," the eldest glared at them. "Hurry up and get ready to worship the goddess."
As he spoke, he put down his basket, took out the offerings, arranged them one by one, and then took out incense and lit it.
The others stopped arguing and quickly followed suit.
The offerings were nothing more than a few pieces of flatbread, a plate of fruit, some snacks, and a skinny roasted chicken. The aroma was just the rustic scent of a farmer's hand-rubbed bread, which was quite pungent when burned. A whole basket of them wasn't worth much, but it was already the best thing a farmer could offer these days.
"May the goddess Xiangjun protect us..."
The three or five people knelt on the prayer mats, looked up at the statue of the god, and their expressions involuntarily became solemn.
They murmured their prayers, and aside from their own selfish motives, they couldn't shake off the word "demon." After nearly a month, Chu Shenxiang was practically sick of hearing it.
Yes, it's been almost a month since the white cat last went out. During this time, Chu Shenxiang has had more incense offerings, but also more helplessness.
The story begins about two weeks ago.
Half a month ago, Chu Shenxiang returned from the Shen family. She thought she could finally have some peace and quiet and sleep soundly. However, just four or five days after she closed her eyes, a stronger incense than before entered her body, accompanied by many buzzing chants and prayers.
He opened his eyes and saw that it was a group of farmers. The leader, besides an old man with a pipe in his hair who was obviously the village chief, was a family of four.
Of the four, the youngest girl, Chu Shenxiang, looked familiar; she was the living soul he had casually sent back that night.
It's just sending away a living soul, how could it attract so many people?
Chu Shenxiang was puzzled, but after listening for a few moments, she understood what was going on.
It turns out that this little girl, Yue Xiaohe, was not the only child in Yuejia Village to have lost her soul. In recent days, two other children had also lost their souls almost one after the other, and never returned, becoming just small skeletons.
If it happens to one or two families in one area, that's one thing—children are easily frightened—but for three families to encounter it in a row, all in the same village, makes one wonder.
When Yue Xiaohe lost his soul, the people of Yuejia Village could no longer contain themselves and were filled with anxiety. The village chief, a man of experience and capable, took charge of raising money and even used the Yue family's savings. He planned to invite a Taoist priest from the county to take a look at the village's affairs.
Where in Keyu County could you find any powerful sorcerers? Even the wealthy Shen family had to go out of town to hire them.
The people of Yuejia Village had all been swindlers, and despite spending a considerable amount of money, Yue Xiaohe still hadn't woken up. The villagers were even more helpless. The village chief, having no other option, gritted his teeth and went to Xiling, to the county town, to invite a Taoist priest from Tongtian Temple.
Like many other people in Xiling, Yuejia Village believed in the Goddess Tongtian and were filled with hope when the Taoist priest from Tongtian Temple came. But in the end, the priest left with the money without accomplishing his task.
The only difference between this Taoist priest and the swindler was that he did not deny the Yuejia Village's speculations about demons.
Upon hearing the talk of demons, the other sorcerers laughed as if the villagers were all fools: "Yu County is so close to Xiling County, how could any demons come here!"
"The last one was more than 30 years ago. A cat demon ate only two or three people before it was discovered by the Great Goddess of Heaven. A divine light shot out from the temple in the north of Yu County and killed it on the spot."
"Now that there are hardly any battles, and the Divine Illumination Kingdom's Grand Preceptor travels the world to slay demons and monsters, there are even fewer of these demons that thrive in the midst of infatuation and resentment."
The people of Yuejia Village listened, unsure whether to feel reassured or suspicious; they felt even more bewildered and confused.
Everything changed that night when a white lotus lamp shone, the little girl opened her eyes, and came back to life.
Few people in Yu County knew about Shen Xiangjun's image and name, except for the village chief's son, who was always looking for excitement and gossiping. Twenty years ago, the Shen family in the east of the city invited the shrine of the Heavenly Goddess Tongtian and welcomed an unknown wild god into their home, and even built a temple on Wangqiu Mountain. Many people knew about this, but it had been so long that they had forgotten.
But things are different recently.
The news that the young master of the Shen family had sought medical help and consulted deities, and was suspected of not having long to live, spread throughout the county. Naturally, Shen Xiangjun, whom the young master of the Shen family had sworn brother to, was also brought up again and recited in the streets and alleys.
“Looking at Autumn Mountain, White Lotus Lantern… Who else could it be but Shen Xiangjun? The old folks all say there’s something strange about Autumn Mountain; no temples or monasteries are built there, only this one!” The village chief’s son said at the time, “The one who saved Xiao He must be Shen Xiangjun!”
“But that white cat… I’ve never heard of any strange beasts under Shenxiangjun’s command?” someone hesitated.
“We don’t know anything about Shenxiangjun, how could we know so much?” said the village chief’s son.
"Then let's go ask the Shen family?"
"We don't even know how ill the young master of the Shen family is, how could he have time to bother with us..."
"Hey, if you ask me, Wangqiu Mountain is right in front of us, why don't we just go up the mountain and take a look?"
The village chief made the decision, and he led Xiao He's family and several villagers up the mountain to pay their respects under the guise of expressing gratitude. Thus, the scene of Chu Shenxiang being woken up and opening her eyes after just falling asleep came about.
Chu Shenxiang was indifferent to the amount of incense offerings and did not respond to the group's thanks.
The village chief asked about the divination cup, but he ignored him. Whether awake or asleep, Chu Shenxiang never interfered with these people's divination attempts. The answers they received were never from him, but from themselves.
As for demons, Chu Shenxiang did not smell anything unusual on Xiaohe or the others. However, according to what they said, the children's repeated loss of souls must be suspicious, but Chu Shenxiang did not know the details.
They thought that after that incident, Yuejia Village would be quiet, but unexpectedly, the temple became lively from then on.
Even though he didn't respond at all, people from Yuejia Village continued to come. Unlike the Shen family, who were quite particular about worshipping the gods on the first and fifteenth of the lunar month, the people from Yuejia Village came to offer sacrifices and worship the gods every three days.
If Chu Shenxiang hadn't seen the piety on their faces, she would have thought they were deliberately disturbing him to prevent him from falling asleep.
Of course, he could also shut out the outside world and fall into a deep sleep, undisturbed for ten or twenty years. But this trick doesn't work as well after his humanity returns; that humanity is always restless, making it impossible for him to sleep.
The three or five people who came to worship today left in a hurry before dark.
The temple fell silent again.
Chu Shenxiang glanced indifferently at the ever-increasing incense burning within her body. Instead of falling asleep, she listlessly observed the vivid joys and sorrows of human nature, finding it quite interesting, like watching a circus act.
Halfway through the performance, a commotion suddenly broke out inside Wangqiu Mountain.
As midnight approached, Chu Shenxiang glanced at the boundless night and almost subconsciously thought of the young master in red, who was as alluring as a ghost.
However, the visitor in the middle of the night was not Shen Mingxin, but a strange man.
If Shen Mingxin were here, he would definitely recognize that this strange man was none other than Shen Chou, who had just hurriedly returned home today.
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