Chapter 36: I Want to Sleep (Part 2) Can you tie me up? ...
"Brother Jiang, how's the paper figure coming along? Do you need my help?" Huang Pingkuan noticed the strange look on his face and guessed that he was having trouble, so he took the paper figure and looked it over for a while. "Brother Jiang, your craftsmanship is quite good."
"This paper figure is so beautifully made. The eyebrows and eyes are so lifelike, and even the hair is so detailed. It's clear that you and that person have a very good relationship!" Huang Pingkuan exclaimed. Jiang Yu glanced at it and saw that the paper figure he was holding had three words written on it: "Chen Jiuxu".
"There seems to be a slight flaw in the eye area. Is the ink out? Let me add a couple more strokes for you." He then picked up another paper figure, which belonged to Shen Qinggui.
Jiang Yu made three paper figures, one for himself and one for Shen Jiuxu and Shen Qinggui, just to keep someone from getting angry. But when Huang Pingkuan said that, he felt a chill down his spine.
"Thank you so much, Brother Huang. My hand was shaking just now, so I didn't finish the drawing."
Jiang Yu gritted his teeth and said, the slight sucking from the back of his neck made his body tremble slightly, but he tried his best to suppress the palpitations in his heart.
That seemingly calm face had long lost its usual composure, and there was a hint of shame and anger in its eyes. It wished it could just throw the two paper figures out, not caring about Shen Jiuxu and Shen Qinggui at all.
"Making paper figures requires skill, and you've done a great job. By the way, Brother Jiang, I have a few more that are already finished, just missing the eyes. Why don't you make a few more for yourself as Daoist companions?"
Huang Pingkuan was very enthusiastic. Jiang Yu looked in the direction he was pointing and saw that there were more than a dozen paper figures piled up on the ground, sitting there in a white blanket. If a thief came to see them at night, he would probably be scared to death.
"No, no, two are enough, that's more than enough."
Jiang Yu quickly waved his hand, still hoping to survive in bed. "Brother Huang, your cooking skills are really fast and good!"
Huang Pingkuan stared into those dark eyes, looking somewhat shy, even with a hint of nostalgia. He revealed an emotion that Jiang Yu had never seen before, an emotion that a paper doll should never exhibit.
"By the way, Brother Jiang, to make our paper figures the most lifelike, we need to drip a drop of our own blood on them. This was left by that immortal."
In the spacious courtyard, a row of paper figures were neatly arranged against the wall. Huang Pingkuan smiled at him, revealing a set of white teeth. Jiang Yu could only smile awkwardly, but the other party had already taken out a silver needle. "Just prick it once, and the paper figure will have life, and this life belongs to you."
Before Jiang Yu could make a move, Xi Chuang had already taken the silver needle, pricked his fingertip, and a drop of blood came out.
With a "thud," blood soaked into the paper figure, staining the originally white paper with a patch of red. Xi Chuang smiled and said, "Brother Huang, is this alright?"
"Alright, Brother Jiang, it's your turn."
Jiang Yu couldn't refuse and was about to tie it when a strong wind suddenly blew by, blowing mud and sand into people's eyes. When he opened his eyes again, he found that there was a red dot above the paper figure.
Shen Qinggui blew a breath into his ear, the warm breath making Jiang Yu's hair messy. He looked at the bright red spot on the paper figure and guessed what it was. It was clear that some people's petals were quite juicy.
"Okay, thank you for the reminder, Brother Huang."
The scene transformed into a joyful atmosphere once again, with paper figures, their heads glowing with a bloody light, their eyes the size of black beans, looking like wolves with gaping jaws in the night.
“Brother Jiang, I’m going out to gather some firewood. You can wander around the village, or have a girl take you. It’s no fun staying at home all the time.”
After giving his instructions, Huang Pingkuan left. Jiang Yu glanced at the paper figure in Xi Chuang's hand, which he had been holding tightly in his arms.
Jiang Yu couldn't help but be curious. Seeing the pile of gold and silver jewels painted on the paper figure, he asked, "What did you make... Lian Quesheng?"
"Young Master Jiang recognized you?"
Xi Chuang smiled shyly, "My master isn't here, and I miss him, so I made a paper figure to keep him company."
Jiang Yu: ...
He underestimated the master and apprentice pair. He originally thought that Lian Quesheng was capable of such absurd things, but he didn't expect that Xichuang was the same.
Jiang Yu didn't know what to say, so he made up an excuse to go out. The village was just as he had imagined. Every house was like Huang Pingkuan's house, without windows. The dark doorways were like coffins that could only be entered but not exited.
When the people there saw him, they all wore expressions of shock, their black eyes shifting to the right by a distance the thickness of a blade of grass.
Jiang Yu wanted to ask something, but those people only said similar things to Huang Pingkuan, even the same things.
“It’s Gurenzhuang, we’ve lived here for decades, how could we not recognize our own home?” An old man wiping the sweat from his brow while weeding in the field said, “It’s just a pity that this mountain village is isolated, and many of the children who have left have not returned for a long time. I guess they’ve gone elsewhere to enjoy a better life.”
"Ah Xing, come here, have some water and a steamed bun. Your aunt steamed these last night, with your favorite wild vegetable filling." The old woman beckoned to the little girl who was following Jiang Yu.
So her name is Ah Xing!
The little girl who kept skipping and hopping behind them also had a name, instead of being a lifeless paper doll.
Ah Xing was overjoyed. Jiang Yu stood under the tree, smiling, watching her eat. He casually picked a few foxtail grasses, braided them into a plait, and twirled them around on his wrist.
Unexpectedly, Ah Xing suddenly turned around while eating and started screaming. The unfinished bun in her hand was thrown to the ground, her face turned deathly pale, and a rare glimmer of light appeared in her dark eyes.
"ah--"
"Ah Xing, it hurts so much! It hurts so much!" "Help Ah Xing! Father, Mother, where are you?"
Everything was out of control. She was no longer the emotionless paper doll she once was; instead, she became afraid and panicked.
"What's wrong, Ah Xing? We're all here."
The little girl covered her head with both hands and desperately tried to ram her head against Jiang Yu's wrist. Fortunately, they hadn't gone far, and Ah Xing's mother heard the commotion and ran over.
"Young Master Jiang, is it because of this?"
Xi Chuang pointed to the thing that had suddenly appeared on Jiang Yu's wrist. Jiang Yu realized what it was and quickly hid it behind his back. Ah Xing calmed down, but there were still tears on her cheeks.
"Ah Xing, what's wrong? Tell me, did that thing scare you?"
Jiang Yu squatted down, picked a flower to comfort her, and the little girl finally stopped crying, her eyes regaining their usual calm. He couldn't get any more information out of her, but Jiang Yu always felt that there was a huge secret hidden inside.
“Young Master Jiang, let’s go back too. We’ve been through a lot today, and Brother Huang will be coming to find us soon,” Xichuang reminded him. Jiang Yu could only glance at the old man by the roadside again, seeing him still weeding in the field, seemingly unaffected by the situation. After thinking it over, he said, “Xichuang, you should go back first.”
Xi Chuang listened to him and went back with A Xing and the others.
"Grandpa, do you remember how you died?" Jiang Yu cautiously walked to the man's side, placing one hand on the sword at his waist. The old man paused for a moment, showing no anger as Jiang Yu had expected, but rather a hint of confusion.
Am I dead?
“I—” The old man’s body stiffened, and the light in his eyes vanished in an instant before returning to its original state. It was as if he had not heard Jiang Yu’s words, or perhaps he had already forgotten them after only a moment. “We have to hurry up and get to work, or your aunt will have already prepared the meal.”
"Don't ask anymore, you won't get any answers."
Shen Qinggui whispered in his ear, "I just tried it. They are controlled by that drop of blood and won't say anything beyond their control. Ah Xing's case might be a special case. A child's soul is newly formed, and although it is immature, it is tightly bound and nourished by the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, making it difficult to be disturbed. That's why a trace of consciousness remains, and it appeared under these circumstances."
"So... could it be that someone killed them, and Ah Xing just happened to see it?" Jiang Yu speculated. "But what does that have to do with the braid?"
"Could it be that the person was using a whip?"
"I don't know. We can only ask again when the opportunity arises. Ah Xing's remaining consciousness has been suppressed again. Let's wait until tomorrow." Shen Qinggui sighed. He hadn't expected that such a small village as Old Friend Village would contain so much darkness.
When evening came, Huang Pingkuan left after seeing that he was fast asleep. Jiang Yu slowly opened his eyes, looked at the silence outside, and felt uneasy.
Sure enough, around midnight, he suddenly felt a surge of heat, and flames shot into the sky. Outside the west window, someone was banging on the door, shouting, "Young Master Jiang, there's a fire, Young Master Jiang!"
Jiang Yu pushed open the door, and outside was a red glow. Inside the old manor were paper figures, and once the fire started, there would be no way to escape.
But he still didn't believe it. Jiang Yu ran to the house where the family of three lived, wanting to rush in. Shen Qinggui understood what he meant and immediately sprouted a branch, "I'll do it."
Everything was collapsing at an accelerated pace, burning into ashes. He felt an unprecedented force, as if it was trying to throw them out of this world. Had someone behind it discovered them?
The ashes filled the sky and completely enveloped him. Jiang Yu's vision went black, but a branch wrapped around his waist and pulled him out of the firelight.
"Jiang Yu, wake up."
"I'm in pain, save Ah Xing!" "Am I dead?"
Am I dead?
Jiang Yu woke up with a start and saw Shen Jiuxu sitting on a rock, with his outer robe draped over him. When he saw that Shen Jiuxu had opened his eyes, he hugged him tightly. "You're finally awake. The place was burned to the ground. I only managed to take this out."
It's the sword tassel made of lace satin.
“The fire started suddenly in the middle of the night. Without spiritual power, we are powerless to stop it,” Shen Jiuxu comforted him. “The person who set the fire behind the scenes might be the one who made these paper figures.”
Jiang Yu sneered, grabbed the sword beside him and slashed his hand. He quickly drew a talisman on the stone surface with the blood on his hand. "It's nothing, go ask an old friend."
The gates of the Nine Netherworlds opened once again.
The judge and Yama, who were sitting comfortably in their high positions, were furious when they heard the commotion outside. Just as they were about to go out, they heard a familiar yet terrifying voice.
"It can't be that guy again, can it?" Yama wiped the cold sweat from his forehead symbolically. "Go ahead, just say I'm not here."
"Oh dear, my lord, is that person someone I can afford to offend? I really dare not. If that Xianchen sword were to be placed against my neck again, my head would be chopped off on the spot."
The judge, with a mournful face, tried to push Yama away, saying, "The person he sent over last time looked like a weak scholar, but who would have thought he was such a troublemaker? I dare not see him again. You may go."
"We meet again."
Jiang Yu arrived before they could find a place to hide. His face was deathly pale, even in the netherworld, he was deathly pale.
"My lord, is this man about to die? Is that why he's come to report to us?" The judge cautiously took out the Book of Life and Death. "But that shouldn't be the case; his name isn't even listed here."
"Your Majesty."
Jiang Yu's voice was very soft, but it made people tremble with fear. "I'm here to investigate someone."
"So you've come to check on people, huh? No problem, no problem—ah, Young Master Jiang, this is probably against the rules. This Book of Life and Death cannot be shown to others, otherwise it would be a dereliction of duty on my part."
The judge looked at Yama with a bitter smile and pleaded for help, but little did he know that Yama was secretly hiding behind a pillar, completely disregarding his own life or death, even though he was already dead.
"Your Majesty, can you investigate?"
Jiang Yu ignored them. These words, seemingly as light as a feather, felt like ten mountains weighing on the two of them. Yama stammered, "Ah, this, ah, these are the rules of our Nine Netherworld. Rules cannot be broken. Young Master Jiang is the most courteous person, he should—"
A flash of silver light appeared, and the blade was already pressed against his chest. The judge, who was watching from a distance, suddenly breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, his rank was not as high as that of Yama, the King of Hell, otherwise this sword might have been aimed at him.
"That's not right—"
The judge casually touched the hilt of his sword at his neck. Another person had arrived. Wasn't Jiang Yu enough? This person was with him too.
Shen Qinggui looked at him with a smile, but his hand holding the sword was very steady.
The judge immediately smiled ingratiatingly and said, "Good evening, sir."
"Can I see it now?" Jiang Yu asked politely. Yama immediately changed his tune, "Of course you can. If Young Master Jiang wants to see it, we will certainly agree. Just let me know next time, and I will immediately send a judge to deliver it to you."
Thank you.
Looking at his refined and pretentious face, Yama felt a pang of regret. If it were an ordinary person, it wouldn't matter, but this man was practically a demigod. Yama had witnessed the grandeur of his ascension. Although something went wrong later, judging by his foresight, his re-ascension was just around the corner.
He dared not offend anyone, especially with the sword in his hand.
"Judge, hurry, bring the Book of Life and Death to Young Master Jiang. Ox-Head and Horse-Face, why aren't you serving tea to the two young masters?" King Yama was bitter but couldn't express it, so he could only stand aside with a wronged expression, offering his seat. "Young Master Jiang, would you like to sit down?"
"Please sit down, sir."
Jiang Yu looked at the thick stack of the Book of Life and Death, "Help me check Huang Pingkuan, Song Quan, and Huang Xing's family."
Upon hearing this, the judge flipped through the paper with lightning speed, almost blurring his vision. Cold sweat poured down his forehead. After about half an incense stick's time, he suddenly exclaimed, "Found it!"
"Huang Pingkuan, who lived to the age of thirty, was from Meiling. He had a daughter with Song Quansheng, named Huang Xing, who died fifteen years ago and has now been reincarnated."
Why did he die?
"A sword wound, piercing the chest, fatal." The judge said as he examined the body. He was just an ordinary villager; why would Jiang Yu come all the way here just to investigate the cause of his death?
"What about Song Quan and Huang Xing?"
"He also died from a sword wound."
Jiang Yu frowned slightly. He thought Huang Xing had exclaimed in surprise when she saw the braid because the man was using a whip as a magical weapon. But he didn't expect that she would die from a sword wound.
"Meiling, was it renamed later?" Shen Qinggui asked abruptly. The judge lowered his eyes slightly, and seeing that Jiang Yu did not interrupt him, he listened to his words and went to look through the book again. "Yes, Meiling was later renamed Gurenzhuang. It's probably because almost everyone in their village died, so they changed the name."
"Are they all dead?"
The judge rolled his eyelids upward, glanced at his irresponsible King Yama, and then said softly, "Yes, it's written very clearly here. Except for a boy named Huang Ning, everyone else died from a sword wound."
The judge pointed to the words above and showed them to Jiang Yu. "That's really strange. Maybe someone is seeking revenge. Otherwise, how could an entire village have died that day?"
"Where is Huang Ning?"
"Then I don't know. The Book of Life and Death only says that he ran to Egret Island when he was young, and there is no record of him there after that."
Seeing that he had asked enough questions and that Jiang Yu had no intention of taking action, Yama immediately stepped in to smooth things over, patting his round belly and laughing.
“Young Master Jiang, as you know, there are all sorts of strange and wonderful things in this world. Even someone as powerful as you, capable of ascending to immortality, is not recorded in our Book of Life and Death. Furthermore, there are no records of the plant spirits and monsters that are naturally born in this world. Perhaps this Huang Ning has used some method to evade the scrutiny of us Nine Netherworld people.”
"I see."
Jiang Yu flipped through the Book of Life and Death, knowing that he wouldn't dare lie to him, but he really couldn't get any more information out of him, so he had no choice but to turn around and leave. The King of Hell and the judge behind him saw his figure gradually disappearing into the distance and breathed a sigh of relief.
This King Yama has finally left again.
Their little place, Jiuyou, really can't accommodate such a big shot. But he's a troublemaker who comes to Jiuyou every few days to cause trouble. They can't beat him, and they can't avoid him.
"Could that Huang Ning be the immortal they were talking about?"
“Just look it up and you’ll find out.” Jiang Yu said, and then he saw someone who looked exactly like him walking over. Lian Quesheng even had his arm around his shoulder, chatting and laughing like an idiot.
"Hey, Jiang Yu—"
Lian Quesheng looked at the other Jiang Yu in disbelief, rubbed his eyes, and thought, "He's not old enough to have failing eyesight yet."
"How come there are two Jiang Yus and three Shen Jiuxus?" Lian Quesheng was completely stunned. "Xichuang, come here quickly! Look what's going on—"
Why are there two west-facing windows?
Lian Quesheng blinked, turned around, and looked at the people who had circled around him. How could there be so many people?
"Jiang Yu, where are you? You're not lying to me, are you? Xichuang, Xichuang, Brother Qinggui, what's going on with you guys?"
Jiang Yu stared at his neat row of teeth, which startled Lian Quesheng so much that he almost collapsed to the ground. "I'm your friend, don't scare me."
Xi Chuang sighed and pulled out another person, Lian Quesheng, from behind him, which only made things worse.
Lian Quesheng almost fainted on the spot, but Shen Qinggui moved his finger and restored the paper figures that had been dripped with his blood to their original form. Immediately afterwards, the three paper figures lay down on the ground.
"It's a paper figure."
Xichuang recounted the whole story to Lian Quesheng, and his shouts instantly filled the entire space.
"You didn't tell me?"
"Isn't that loyalty enough? Jiang Yu, you've gone too far!" He pointed at Jiang Yu, about to continue his accusations, when someone glanced at him. His survival instinct kicked in quickly, and he turned to Xichuang. "Xichuang, as my disciple, how could you lie to me with them? This is betraying your master and ancestors, do you understand?"
Jiang Yu felt a headache coming on. He wanted to run away but didn't want to move. Suddenly, he remembered that he hadn't settled accounts with Shen Jiuxu, who had lied to him. An idea came to him, and he poked Shen Jiuxu's waist. "Can you tie me up?"
Shen Qinggui: Huh?
"What?" He thought he hadn't heard clearly, but Jiang Yu repeated it in his ear, "Can you tie me up? Can't you use those branches?"
A moment later, Lian Quesheng and Xi Chuang were dazzled by a flurry of leaves and petals dancing in the air. When they opened their eyes again, the Daoist couple beside them had vanished.
The long branches were tied around Jiang Yu's waist. Shen Jiuxu tried his best to suppress the flower buds that had sprouted up on his head again, but unexpectedly Jiang Yu told him not to move and kissed him on the head.
"I want to swing on a swing, but you've tied me up."
Jiang Yu said with a smile. Shen Qinggui did not expect him to say that. His original wild thoughts were interrupted. He was full of heat, but it felt like Jiang Yu had poured a bucket of cold water on him.
"good."
The hoarse voice made Jiang Yu want to laugh for no reason. He didn't expect Shen Qinggui to be so obedient this time, but he had underestimated the situation.
The other person lay leisurely on the bed, while he was tied to a branch and swung back and forth in the air. Shen Qinggui granted his wish and let him swing in the air.
The room was dimly lit by a single red candle, but it was perfect for sleeping. Shen Qinggui took out the paper figure that belonged to Jiang Yu and touched it at the lower back.
Jiang Yu, who was in the air, felt it. He stared wide-eyed at the shameless person. How could he do such a thing?
However, the paper figure, about an arm's length long, was placed by Shen Jiuxu beside the bed, and the other person gazed at him with those beautiful eyes.
He did it on purpose.
"It's getting late, do you want to go to sleep?" Shen Qinggui asked knowingly, but his hands continued to move.
Jiang Yu bit her lip, but things didn't go as he wished. Even though she was in great pain in the air, she didn't say a word.
Aren't you going to sleep?
Shen Qinggui poured himself a glass of water from the table and drank it in small sips. Jiang Yu trembled at his actions, but it was Shen Qinggui who suggested being tied to a swing in the air.
He had no sword in his hand, and he was completely out of options.
Shen Qinggui was very patient. He took the paper figure and touched it over and over. He even took out a brush dipped in cinnabar and drew a flower on the paper figure's brow.
The itching sensation from the calligraphy brush was unbearable for Jiang Yu. He stared at the flowers that kept sprouting on Shen Jiuxu's head and surrendered immediately.
"sleep."
"What?" Shen Jiuxu seemed not to have heard clearly and asked again.
"I said it's getting late, I want to go to sleep!"
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Author's Note: Jiang Yu: Things went awry. Who knew some people could be so despicable! [Chin resting on hand]
I remember a long time ago, we had a idiom riddle game, and some readers in the comments section gave the answers. I said I'd add an extra chapter then, but each chapter was already quite long those days, so I'll just put the extra chapter in this one, combining the two. Otherwise, it would look weird to leave it in the middle. [heart emoji]
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