With a look of self-reproach on his face, Ma Dajun said, "Do you want to rest a little longer?"
"It's alright. Once I finish this, I'll rest for a few days and I'll be fine."
Hu Tudao waved his hand, picked up the paper figure, and began to chant incantations. Perhaps due to his weakness, his chanting was noticeably softer this time.
Hu Tudao recited for about two or three minutes, then gestured with his right hand toward the paper figure in his hand. He then lit the paper figure and placed it in a stainless steel dish to burn it completely.
"Uncle Ma, is the duck I asked you to prepare ready?" Hu Tudao asked Ma Dajun.
"It's ready, in the chicken coop outside," Ma Dajun nodded and said.
"Go and arrest them," Hutudao ordered.
"Okay." Ma Dajun nodded and walked towards the door.
A short while later, Ma Dajun came in carrying a duck and handed it to Hu Tudao.
Hu Tudao took the duck, squatted down, reached out and gently scooped up the ashes from the stainless steel tray, then smeared them on the duck's back.
I looked on with a puzzled expression, but seeing how seriously Hu Tudao was working, I didn't dare to ask any questions.
Hu Tudao smeared all the paper ash onto the duck's back, turning a pure white duck into a dark, grimy creature.
After doing all this, Hu Tudao stood up with the duck in his hand, glanced at me, and perhaps seeing the curiosity on my face, slowly explained, "These wandering ghosts, who missed the time to cross the Bridge of Helplessness, can only be carried across the river by ducks to be reincarnated."
I nodded subconsciously, thinking that what Hu Tudao said made sense. In our area, every year on the 14th day of the seventh lunar month, people would kill ducks as a sacrifice, saying that the ducks could carry the wandering souls across the Bridge of Helplessness so that they could be reincarnated.
“I’ll go outside and leave this duck on the road. Don’t try to catch it. That will be the end of today’s business. Your daughter can go and be reincarnated now.” After saying this, Hu Tudao picked up the duck and went out the door, leaving it on the road.
Hu Tudao returned to Ma Dajun's house and began to pack his magical artifacts and props into his bag.
"Master Hu, thank you so much, you've worked so hard." Ma Dajun took out a large red envelope from his pocket and handed it to Hu Tudao.
Hu Tudao didn't stand on ceremony. He accepted the red envelope and put it in his pocket, saying, "After today, your family, Ma Dajun, will surely have smooth sailing, good health, and great wealth."
"You've worked hard. This is some tonic I bought for you to help you recover." Ma Dajun took out another red envelope and handed it to Hu Tudao.
Hu Tudao didn't hesitate, took it and put it in his pocket, saying, "It's getting late, I should go back."
"Let me see you off." After saying that, Ma Dajun took out a small red envelope from his pocket, handed it to me, and said, "Brother Zuo, I also want to thank you for inviting Master Hu here. Please accept this small red envelope for good luck."
Since Ma Dajun has said so, I didn't stand on ceremony, reached out and took the red envelope, and put it in my pocket.
Hu Tudao and I went outside, and Ma Dajun and his wife followed us out carrying the three kinds of food.
Because Hu Tudao wanted to ride home in my car, he put those three kinds of food into the trunk on the back of my seat.
After saying goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Ma, I rode my electric bike home with Hu Tudao on the back. I checked the time; it was past 1:10 a.m., so I figured I'd get home around 1 a.m.
Hu Tudao sat in the back seat of my car and began to take out the red envelopes, opening them one by one and counting the amount inside.
"You must have made a lot of money on this trip, right?" I asked. To be honest, I was really envious of Hu Tudao and his line of work. They could earn several hundred or even a thousand yuan for each religious ceremony they performed, which was many times better than delivering packages.
"It's not much, just a few hundred yuan. Didn't you also get a red envelope? Take it out and see how much it is?" Hu Tudao's tone was excited, completely unlike his previous weak appearance.
"It's inconvenient for me to ride a bike." I don't believe that Hu Tudao only received a few hundred yuan. The red envelope for the ritual was 666 yuan, plus at least 500 yuan for nutrition, and the red envelope for the feng shui change before, which contained at least a hundred yuan. In total, it was at least a thousand yuan.
"Let me take a look for you." Hu Tudao took the red envelope out of my pocket, opened it, and clicked his tongue, saying, "Ma Dajun is really generous; he gave you 20 yuan."
My face immediately darkened. I had worked myself to the bone all night and only received 20 yuan. That was like giving money to a beggar. But then I thought about how their family had just lost their daughter, and my resentment vanished instantly. Being able to send Ma Jiajie away was a relief. I wouldn't have to be bothered by her anymore.
I was riding my bike when Hutudao suddenly shouted from behind, "Stop!"
I gripped the front and rear brakes with both hands, and the electric scooter's wheels left a black tire mark more than a meter long on the road before slowly coming to a stop.
Just as I was about to ask Hu Tudao what was wrong, I saw him jump off the back seat and run towards the bushes by the roadside.
"What are you doing?" I asked, frowning. He had just looked listless, but now he was full of energy.
Hu Tudao didn't answer, and I didn't need his answer either. I saw him pick up a white duck from the edge of the grass. And I recognized this duck at a glance; it was the same one that Hu Tudao had released on the road not long ago. I didn't expect it to have come here and been seen by Hu Tudao.
"Didn't you say we couldn't catch it?" I asked, puzzled, as Hu Tu walked back.
"Don't worry, the things have already been delivered. I'll take the ducks back and raise them, otherwise if someone sees them tomorrow, they'll end up as a dish sooner or later." Hu Tudao carried the ducks and sat down on the back of my seat again.
My face darkened. I felt more and more that Hu Tudao was unreliable. He had come out and received so many red envelopes, there were chickens, ducks and pig heads in the box, and now he was carrying a duck. What the hell was he doing working?
Why not just join his line of work?
"Hu Tudao, did Ma Jiajie say anything to you?" I remembered the voice at the traffic light intersection telling me to hurry up, and subconsciously thought that it was Ma Jiajie. Logically speaking, there might be another one at the traffic light intersection. Could it be that she was attracted by the offerings I set up?
"Stop. You'd better not ask about these things. It won't do you any good," Hu Tudao said, patting me on the back in a serious tone.
Since he had already said that, I stopped asking about Ma Jiajie. Instead, I thought about what happened at the traffic light intersection tonight and asked, "Tonight at the traffic light intersection, I think I heard a woman calling my name, but I didn't dare to answer her."
"No way, are you too nervous and hallucinating?" Hu Tu asked with a disbelieving look.
"I'm pretty sure I didn't dare answer her at the time. I quickly rode away on my bike. Looking in my rearview mirror, I saw a red figure standing at the traffic light intersection, but it disappeared in the blink of an eye," I said earnestly.
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