Chapter 106 [VIP]
lantern? !
Zhou Liulang asked cautiously, "Master, what is the meaning of the blessing incantation you mentioned?"
Wuweizi slowly said, "The Zhuyin Incantation is a kind of evil magic, and can also be considered a curse."
The Zhou family was startled.
Words like "evil magic" and "curse" are chilling and unsettling to hear.
"I'll send someone to fetch it immediately. If we're on horseback, it should only take an hour. I hope you'll wait a moment, Master." Zhou Liulang bowed deeply.
Zhou Jinnuo stopped her, saying, "You're not allowed to go."
Gu Zhizhuo gently poked the little dumpling's belly with his finger, snatched Qingping's whisk and waved it in front of its eyes, the silver threads swaying left and right.
Qingping: ? ? ?
"Meow?"
The little dumpling's eyes widened with excitement. It leaped off her knees and ran after the silver threads of the whisk.
So cute! Zhou Jinnuo rested her chin on her hands, her gaze fixed on it.
Gu Zhizhuo: "Go."
Zhou Liulang felt as if he had been granted a pardon and ran away quickly.
The carriage was accompanied by maids and guards. This private matter concerned his younger sister's reputation, and he didn't trust anyone else with it, so he decided to make the round trip himself. Riding at full speed, he was jolted and disoriented, but finally brought a lantern over within an hour.
When Zhou Liulang pushed open the door to the side room and went in, he saw his fourth sister sitting on the ground, rolling a glass bead around to tease the cat.
Zhou Liulang's mind conjured up the image of his gentle and virtuous fourth sister, who never showed her teeth when she smiled.
The two figures overlapped... but they couldn't overlap at all!
"Well, playing with the cat is better than thinking about eloping all the time," Zhou Liulang silently comforted himself, just as he had comforted Madam Zhou earlier.
Mrs. Zhou had already resigned herself to her fate. Seeing her son return breathless, she simply asked, "Did you get it?"
"yes."
Sweating profusely, Zhou Liulang placed the lantern he was carrying on the Eight Immortals table.
This is an ordinary octagonal lantern, with different birds painted on each side. The painting skills are just average; the birds are not painted lifelike and look dull. It's just that they are frantically piling on colors, making the picture look messy.
Gu Zhizhuo took it in his hand and examined it carefully.
Zhou Jinnuo glanced back at it only once and casually said, "Don't break it. This is a love letter Zhang Lang gave me..."
"Meow~"
"Here you are, here you are, let's play together."
Mrs. Zhou and her son exchanged a glance, thinking to themselves: Let's just leave it at that! Consider it as having another daughter (sister) cat.
The lantern's painting was mediocre, and its craftsmanship was quite rough. The bamboo strips weren't smoothed, leaving many burrs. The glue residue hadn't been wiped clean, making it look somewhat mottled and rather perfunctory. Gu Zhizhuo looked inside the lantern again and exclaimed, "Huh?"
"Master," she said, taking the lantern from her, "there's something inside."
The inside of the lantern is made of two layers of paper, and in one corner, there is a triangular object that is vaguely tucked in. Judging from its size, it should be a folded talisman.
She asked, "Mrs. Zhou, may we open it?"
"Sure, sure." Madam Zhou hated this thing. "Take it apart however you want!"
Gu Zhizhuo found a paper cutter and carefully disassembled the lantern.
Zhou Jinnuo glanced back once, a hint of struggle on her face.
The Zhuyou technique was subtly influencing her. After only a moment's hesitation, Gu Zhizhuo had already cut the lantern open and taken out the yellow talisman folded into a triangle from the middle of the double-layered paper.
She handed it directly to Wuweizi.
Wuweizi rested the whisk on his arm and opened the talisman.
Gu Zhizhuo's pupils contracted sharply; this was a marriage talisman.
The marriage talisman is one of the talismans that people often ask for at the Taoist temple, but unlike the ordinary marriage talismans, this talisman has a circle of incantations written on all four sides. She couldn't understand the meaning of the incantations, but judging from the shape of the characters, they were the same as the talisman found in the wooden box containing her father's head.
"It is indeed a blessing incantation."
Wuweizi said with certainty.
The Zhuyin Incantation is a rather ancient form of incantation. Wuweizi has been a Taoist for eighty years and possesses exceptional talent, being able to master various Taoist arts and techniques with ease. However, even he only has a superficial understanding of the Zhuyin Incantation.
The incantation of the blessing is too evil, easily destroying people's souls and changing their destiny. It is easy to suffer backlash and karmic retribution. Nowadays, there are very few people who still know it.
"The handwriting on this talisman is very similar to the one Junior Sister brought," Qingping said, leaning closer to examine it carefully. "It should be from the same person."
Shangxu Temple, Changfeng Daoren.
Gu Zhizhuo has never forgotten a single day of what happened in the Western Frontier.
In order to avoid being accused of treason and affecting the overall situation, Gu Zhizhuo suppressed his feelings and did not go to Shangxu Temple to find out what was going on.
Later, she repeatedly threatened the Prince of Jin, making it clear to him that she already knew about his order to have Shangxu Temple suppress her father's remains, and she even told him that there would be a disaster of bloodline extinction.
She also anticipated that the Prince of Jin would most likely invite Taoist Changfeng to the capital to avert disaster.
It seems that this talisman was indeed made by Daoist Changfeng.
I wonder if he is currently staying at the Prince of Jin's residence or at some Taoist temple.
Gu Zhizhuo pondered for a moment and then asked, "Besides selling lanterns at the temple fair, where does Scholar Zhang usually live and where else does he go?"
Zhou Jinnuo looked completely bewildered.
However, Zhou Liulang once specifically looked into it and said, "His family lives in Yanziwei Lane in the south of the city. He usually sets up a calligraphy and painting stall on Mao'er Street to earn some commission. Mao'er Street is very close to the largest brothel alley in the capital, and occasionally prostitutes will ask him to write a few erotic poems."
Wuweizi burned the talisman with a candle: "This lantern must also be burned."
"Don't burn it. This is..." Zhou Jinnuo said anxiously, "This is Zhang Lang and my token of love... Ugh, it's so ugly. Burn it." It's strange, this lantern is so crudely made, how could she have regarded it as a token of love before?
"Yes, yes." Madam Zhou gestured for her son to burn it now, afraid that her daughter would regret it later.
She didn't understand most of what the master and his apprentices had just said, but she did understand one thing: her daughter's inexplicable behavior was all because of this lantern.
Burn it, that'll solve everything!
"Qingping, give Zhou Shanxin a calming talisman," Wuweizi said. "Zhou Shanxin's unrequited love is caused by a curse; without a medium, it will gradually fade away." Actually, my little apprentice has already done very well; it wouldn't matter if he didn't burn it. But burning it would obviously put the Zhou family at ease.
He had a kind face and spoke words that made people believe him from the bottom of their hearts.
"Thank you, Master." Zhou Liulang lowered his posture to the extreme and said repeatedly, "Thank you, Sister."
He once genuinely believed that his sister was infatuated with a poor boy. It was fine if she liked him, but it was absolutely unacceptable for her to abandon her family and dignity for a poor boy.
Coming to seek divine guidance is actually their last resort.
Zhou Liulang secretly rejoiced and took the lantern out to burn.
Seeing Gu Zhizhuo's absent-minded look, Wuweizi smiled and said, "Zhuo'er, there's no use thinking about it. If you want to go, then go quickly."
Yes. We can find that scholar and ask him where the talisman came from. She suddenly stood up, cupped her hands, and said, "Master, Senior Brother, I'll be going now."
Madam Zhou rose to see her off, and when she reached the door, she curtsied and thanked her.
Gu Zhizhuo quickly dodged and returned a half-bow, helping her up with both hands and saying, "Please don't be so polite. Young Master Zhou and my brother are friends; it was just a small favor."
“Miss Gu, you saved Nuo’er’s life, you deserve this courtesy.”
Mrs. Zhou spoke from the heart.
A family of Zhou's standing would certainly not allow their daughter to elope. If things continued to escalate, their daughter would at best become "mad" and be locked up in the village for life, and at worst, she would die suddenly. She had three children, but her eldest son was taken away by her mother-in-law at birth and was not close to her. Now she only had this one son and one daughter, and she couldn't bear to abandon either of them.
"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone about Miss Zhou's matter." Gu Zhizhuo didn't like beating around the bush and gave her peace of mind.
This world has always been harsh on women; a single misstep can affect their entire life.
What a considerate girl. Madam Zhou smiled gently and opened the door for her herself.
Gu Zhizhuo didn't linger any longer. He called out to Qingmei and Qiongfang and went straight down the mountain.
She mounted her horse and left, sending the coachman back to her residence on her own. By the time she returned to the capital, it was just dusk, and the streets were bustling with people coming and going.
Gu Zhizhuo first went to Cat Street, where Zhang Xiucai sold calligraphy and paintings.
Cat Street is located in the East City. She doesn't usually go to this area and isn't familiar with it. It took her a while to find someone who had seen Zhang Xiucai before, but he wasn't setting up his stall today.
His calligraphy and painting stall is usually set up next to a blind fortune teller's stall.
"Are you looking for Scholar Zhang? He didn't come today." The uncle who ran a cold water stall nearby looked at Gu Zhizhuo curiously. After taking a silver ingot, he said warmly, "Scholar Zhang has been saying these past few days that a young lady from an official family has fallen in love with him at first sight and is making a fuss about marrying him. He won't have to run his stall anymore."
The older man was somewhat envious.
Ah, I've only ever heard of families vying for sons-in-law after the imperial examinations, but I've never seen an official's daughter so indiscriminate, even wanting a scholar.
He also said that his father-in-law was in charge of education and could help him get promoted quickly, and that he would definitely pass the next exam.
"Young lady, what brings you to see Scholar Zhang?"
Could she be the rich heiress Zhang Xiucai mentioned? Meeting her imposing gaze, the uncle immediately denied it. Yao Xia definitely wasn't; she didn't seem blind, and probably wouldn't even look down on someone like Zhang Xiucai.
Gu Zhizhuo calmly replied, "To collect a debt."
Just as Zhou Liulang said, Zhang Xiucai was spreading nonsense everywhere, trying to ruin Miss Zhou's reputation.
Gu Zhizhuo was about to go to Yanziwei Lane when, not far away, the Zhou family's carriage stopped in front of her. Zhou Liulang, who was driving, sat on the carriage rafters and greeted her: "Sister, are you also looking for that Zhang boy?"
Gu Zhizhuo nodded: "I want to ask him who gave him that talisman."
"Let's do it together!" Zhou Liulang said through gritted teeth.
Surrounded by people, Zhou Liulang drove the carriage to a secluded alley nearby and whispered, "Fourth Sister told Zhenren that she and the man surnamed Zhang have agreed to elope today, and she wants to see him one last time."
"The real person said to let her go."
After much hesitation, Zhou Liulang decided to obey.
“My mother went back, and I took my fourth sister to Swallow Tail Alley first, but we didn’t see anyone there.”
Before she could finish speaking, the carriage curtain was lifted, revealing Zhou Jinnuo's pretty face. She said with a slightly confused look, "Sister Gu, I feel like something's not quite right."
Does she really like that person?
She seemed to like him very much, so much that she was willing to elope with him. However, upon closer reflection, she couldn't even remember what he looked like.
All I remember is that he was "handsome and talented".
She no longer wanted to elope, but she had to tell him in person, otherwise she wouldn't be satisfied.
"Sister, are you alright?" Zhou Liulang covered his lips with his hand and asked in a low voice.
"See me whenever you want."
“Sister, my dear sister, if anything goes wrong, you must stop her.” Zhou Liulang bowed repeatedly. He looked around and lowered his voice even further. “Fourth sister said that she made an appointment with the man surnamed Zhang to meet him tonight in front of the teahouse opposite the fortune-telling stall.”
"At what time?"
Zhou Jinnuo: "1:15 PM."
Gu Zhizhuo said, somewhat puzzled, "It's just getting dark at the hour of Xu (7-9 PM), shouldn't the servants still be awake? Are you sure you can get out?" She was asking Zhou Jinnuo.
Zhou Jinnuo lowered her head. Thinking back carefully, why had she agreed in the first place?
Gu Zhizhu spread his hands and said matter-of-factly, "Scholar Zhang probably doesn't know how many maids and servants in wealthy families are around their masters all day long."
In Gu Zhizhuo's own courtyard, besides Qiongfang and Qingmei, there were twenty maids and servants of all ranks.
"Miss Zhou, what were your original plans?"
Gu Zhizhuo sat on the carriage rafters, resting his chin on his hand and smiling at her.
“I was thinking of pretending to have diarrhea when I went to pay my respects to my grandmother. There’s a small window in the washroom in her yard that opens to the back. I could climb out of that window and sneak out of the yard.” Zhou Jinnuo spoke softer and softer, her cheeks flushing slightly with shame, “…and crawl out through the dog hole.”
When she was planning it, she thought she was incredibly capable, able to come up with such a brilliant plan. Now, facing Gu Zhizhuo's seemingly amused eyes, she had an urge to hide under the table.
Good heavens, crawling through a dog hole. What was she thinking?
Meow~ The little dumpling licked her fingers comfortingly, and Zhou Jinnuo was deeply moved.
Fourth Sister is getting more and more normal! Zhou Liulang wiped away his bitter tears, thinking that he should be fine when he saw the Zhang fellow again later.
Zhou Liulang went out and bought a large cup of herbal tea to calm his anger and anxiety.
As dusk fell, countless red lanterns hung in the alley at the end of the street, illuminating half the sky in a bright, red glow, almost like daytime.
Zhou Liulang swallowed hard; his throat was dry.
This place is too close to a brothel. If Brother Can finds out that I brought you to a place like this in the middle of the night, I'll probably get beaten up.
Definitely.
He felt uneasy; he had really sacrificed a lot for his fourth sister.
"They're here."
Gu Zhizhuo stared outside and suddenly reminded him, "Take a look, isn't that him?"
The old blind man had already gone home, the nearby stalls had mostly closed up, and there were no pedestrians around. Only a young man in a blue cloth robe and a turban stood in front of the teahouse, looking around.
Zhou Liulang gritted his teeth: "Yes, it's him!"
Zhou Jinnuo watched for a while and nodded.
She got off the carriage almost unconsciously, then hesitated and stopped, a hint of hesitation appearing on her beautiful face.
Gu Zhizhuo instructed Qingmei, "You follow along. If anything goes wrong, it's fine to knock them out and drag them back, okay?" The last part of the question was directed at Zhou Liulang.
"Yes, yes!"
Gu Zhizhuo raised his hand and gently stroked the spot on Zhou Jinnuo's forehead where the talisman had been drawn, then added a calming talisman before handing the cat to her: "Go."
Gu Zhizhuo believed in himself and also in his master's judgment.
So she watched calmly as Zhou Liulang anxiously waved his folding fan, his face covered in hot sweat, his eyes fixed on the alleyway outside.
Zhou Jinnuo walked towards Zhang Xiucai and softly called out, "Zhang Lang."
Scholar Zhang turned his head and looked over. He pulled at his face and smiled excitedly.
"Nono, you've finally come. I knew you would come; you couldn't bear to leave me, could you?"
He spoke in a choked voice, his hypocritical tone sending a chill down Zhou Jinnuo's spine: "Yes, yes." His gaze lingered on her, sticky and unsettling, like a snake flicking its tongue, making her feel extremely uncomfortable.
Scholar Zhang said affectionately, "It doesn't matter if your parents don't accept us now. As long as we're together, they'll see my sincerity towards you sooner or later. Then they'll forgive you."
Zhang Xiucai leaned closer to her, wanting to kiss her cheek.
The stench emanating from his breath made Zhou Jinnuo frown. Even his hair reeked of a sour, rotten smell, and the grime behind his ears and on his neck was nauseating.
She instinctively held her breath and backed away.
She even saw a leek leaf stuck between his teeth.
Zhang Xiucai thought she was just shy and didn't take it seriously.
The wealthy families in the capital are all snobbish; they actually looked down on him because he was just a scholar. They didn't even realize that with his talent and character, passing the imperial examinations was only a matter of time.
The thought of being turned away time and again despite his sincere attempts to propose marriage filled him with resentment.
He said tenderly, "Shall we get married tonight?"
That's too easy.
Just as that person said, as long as he gives out the talisman, a beautiful young lady from a wealthy family will fall head over heels for him.
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