Day and night tour

Chapter 389 The Dead Return to Life
The more chaotic the situation, the more the painter longed for Zhou Xuan's appearance.

"Otherwise, kill all those who have crossed the line. The Imperial Guard has already set the rules, and they still dare to violate them. If we don't kill a few, the people behind won't learn their lesson."

The musician suggested.

“Nonsense! People are longing for their loved ones and just want to embrace and see them. What’s wrong with that?” The painter disagreed with the musician’s opinion.

The musician said, "Without rules, nothing can be accomplished. This is how our master taught us to do things."

"You've misunderstood Mr. Da."

The painter still disagreed, rejected the musician's suggestion, and then lowered his head to ponder a solution.

To be honest, ever since Zhou Xuan made a name for himself in Mingjiang Prefecture, everyone from the priests of the Bone Elders Society to the witch Shang Wenjun and others has been following Zhou Xuan's lead.

This is a good thing. With such a large prefecture city, so many branches, and an extremely complex environment, the prefecture city is like a terminally ill old man. If he can't catch his breath, he might just die.

Chaotic times need a strong leader; having a reliable backbone is always a blessing.

But it's also a bad thing. All matters, big and small, in the manor depend on Zhou Xuan. If this great master of Mingjiang Prefecture really leaves the prefectural city and goes to Jingchuan Prefecture, Huangyuan Prefecture, or even the capital prefecture, wouldn't Mingjiang be leaderless and in complete chaos?

Zhou Xuanxiu has nine halls. He will go to whichever prefecture city the opportunity lies in. It's only a matter of time before he leaves Mingjiang.

"I also need to learn from the great master and come up with some ideas."

Once the painter thought about it this way, he was no longer anxious.

He put himself in Zhou Xuan's shoes and wondered, "If the Great Master were here, how would he handle this chaotic situation?"

"It's not that Master Da doesn't use force, but he always knows how to do things in moderation. In his suppression, he also uses methods of appeasement... He combines firmness with gentleness, and he is both firm and gentle."

With this thought in mind, the painter came up with a plan and immediately sent a secret message from the gang to Li Chengfeng—

—Quickly dispatch the City God's disciples to pierce the bones of those who have crossed the boundary with the City God's ink thread, inflicting great pain upon them, causing them to scream in agony, but without taking their lives.

In summary, it can be said in one sentence: the death penalty may be avoided, but punishment is unforgivable.

At the same time, the painter sent a secret letter to Shang Wenjun of the witch's shrine, asking her to take the witch's disciples and gently persuade the people not to act impulsively and to restrain themselves and return to propriety, since they had promised Shepherd City in advance not to disturb their Hundred Ghosts Night Parade.

Two groups of people, one group was masculine and the other was feminine.

Not to mention,
The painter's method really did have a great effect.

On the ruined street of the donkey shed shop, anyone who dared to cross the line into the two beams of light was immediately subdued by dozens of city gods dressed in black robes and holding ink lines.

The City God's ink lines, like butterflies flitting among flowers, passed through the spines and ribs of those who transgressed the boundaries, locking all the vital points in their bodies.

Those who crossed the line immediately lay on the ground groaning in pain.

The City God's ink thread could not only weave through flowers, but also tighten. In the past, during the initial interrogation of prisoners, the ink thread caused great pain when it was pulled back.

Those who have incense offerings for their ancestors cannot endure this kind of suffering, let alone ordinary people who do not.

In an instant, screams echoed throughout the street, serving as a warning and deterring many people who were trying to cross the line.

"The Bureau of Wandering Gods has repeatedly emphasized in advance that maintaining the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts in Shepherd Soul City is a major plan of our Mingjiang Prefecture. Anyone who oversteps the boundaries and disrupts the order will be killed without mercy."

"But Master Hua and Master Le, considering that you are all longing for your families, which is understandable, we will not take your lives. We will only imprison you with ink lines and make you suffer some pain."

"However, if anyone else commits the same offense, don't blame us City God disciples for being ruthless."

The reputation of the City God's Hall in Mingjiang Prefecture was already terrible. In the eyes of the common people, they were domineering, vicious, and extremely intimidating.

Those ordinary people who tried to cross the boundary were really frightened, and none of them dared to go forward.

As for the popular uprising, the City God made it clear that the punishment was merely to imprison people with black lines, not to take their lives. Therefore, although the suppression was extremely aggressive, it did not ultimately cross the bottom line of the common people.

The city god suppressed the rebellion, and the witch also came out to offer advice.

"Everyone, the Grand Master and Shepherd City have both promised you that your loved ones who perished in the Flame of the Demon will return soon. They are all important figures who keep their word and will not go back on their promises."

"That's right, folks. Haste makes waste. Today, let's all be patient. If we can hold back, Shepherd Soul City won't have anything to say. But if we can't, they can start finding fault with us."

What about the order not being maintained? What about the disturbance caused by living people during the night procession of a hundred ghosts, resulting in insufficient absorption of death energy?

In the end, they originally promised to bring all the dead of Mingjiang back to life, but because they found fault, they cut the number of those who could be brought back in half, and the loss was still borne by our Mingjiang Prefecture itself.

The shaman's disciples went along the street to dissuade her, appealing to her emotions and reasoning with her.

The two branches, each fulfilling their respective duties, effectively quelled the rapidly escalating unrest.

Meanwhile, Zhou Xuan was also observing the situation at the donkey shed from afar, and he was quite satisfied. He said to Miss Qiang, "Old Hua has some skills now. He knows that when dealing with important matters, one must be firm, otherwise there will be no deterrence; but one must not be too forceful, otherwise the people's hearts will turn against him."

They found the City God to suppress the disturbance and a witch to advise the innocent; one played the good cop, the other the bad cop, and they managed to quell the situation. Excellent, truly excellent.

"I guess they're all influenced by you. Painters of the past would never have done these things."

Miss Wall mocked the painter with a hint of disdain.

She was the Sighing Mother Wall of the Bone Elders' Guild, and she knew their character best—a useless scholar, and those Bone Elders were a group of foolish scholars who studied day and night. Although the Bone Elders' clergy weren't as pedantic as academics, they always left the management of the prefectural city to the government.
Over time, it's no surprise that the painters became clueless about disaster relief and how to appease the public.

Now, the painter has even developed methods for dealing with popular uprisings, which are enough to impress her.

"You taught me so well, Ah Xuan."

“No matter how good the teacher is, the student must also be perceptive. The musician is too fierce, Shang Wenjun is too passive, and Brother Peng is unwilling to come out of seclusion. Mingjiang can only let the old painter manage things.”

Having been in Mingjiang Prefecture for so long, Zhou Xuan had always supported the painter in becoming the leader of Mingjiang, and now that he saw the reward, he was extremely gratified.

"Let's go, A-Qiang, we need to deliver that final blow."

After saying this, Zhou Xuan went to visit the Bell Tower the day before.

……

Atop the clock tower, the painter gazed at the now quiet scene at the donkey shed, feeling somewhat smug.

"In the end, Master's method still works," the painter said.

The musician also found it amazing and said, "In my opinion, the best course of action would be to use force to kill him. But now it seems that your method is good, Old Hua. You must have learned a lot from the Master."

He is straightforward and principled, but if other people's methods are effective, he will also approve of them.

"Master, you are worthy of being Mingjiang's teacher. I have learned a few skills from you, and they will benefit me immensely in the future."

As the painter was speaking, a familiar voice came from behind him.

"Old painting, you did very well today."

Zhou Xuan's voice resonated with the painter's heart; being praised by the teacher was a student's moment of happiness.

"Master, Mingjiang Prefecture owes you a great debt of gratitude once again today."

The painter was delighted, but he dared not lose his composure. He had only done the most insignificant work for the grand spectacle that had descended upon Shepherd Soul City today. The one who truly accomplished the magnificent work was the Great Master.

"It's nothing to mention about the favor, Old Hua. I'm about to make a day trip to the donkey shed. Before I leave, I have something to tell you."

"Please give your orders, sir."

The painter quickly replied.

"No one in Mingjiang Prefecture should be allowed to step into those two beams of light..."

"It's natural."

“However, if there’s a doll called ‘Little Brother Er’ that enters the line, you can put it in,” Zhou Xuan said.

"Understood." The painter was a little puzzled. Why did everyone else put the little doll in the line but not the other people?
Who exactly is that kid, that he deserves the master's personal guidance?
Despite his doubts, the painter didn't ask too many questions and simply handled the matter properly.

No sooner had Zhou Xuan gone on a day trip to the donkey shed than the painter arranged for Old Bone to investigate who "Little Brother" really was...

……

After the city god and the witch intervened, order was restored at the donkey shed shop.

The people who were watching the procession of ghosts were all silent and trembling. Even if they saw the figures of their relatives in the procession of the dead, they only dared to stand still and call out their family members' names and wave their hands, but dared not make any overstepping moves.

Zhou Xuan was always a person full of humanistic concern, and he assigned cerebellum an extra task.

"Cerebellum, does your brain's memory include the names of all the deceased?"

"Of course I am, I have a very sharp mind."

"Then you can tell who has what name, right?"

“I know the name of every single one of them,” the cerebellum replied.

"very good."

Zhou Xuan said, "When the name of a deceased person is called by their family, you should project the deceased person's head up in the image, and ideally, they should be able to smile and respond to the family."

Even if family members cannot embrace each other, a simple smile at each other can bring immense comfort to the surviving family members.

“I’m afraid it’s impossible,” said the cerebellum. “Director Xuan, you’ve pushed me to my limit. At most, I can make the projection look up. If I were to make the dead in the projection smile, the workload would be too much. I’m afraid my brain would burn out.”

"Looking up and making eye contact is fine too."

Zhou Xuan lowered his requirements.

"No problem, just watch, Director Xuan, your little brain will definitely complete the mission."

The cerebellum immediately made subtle adjustments to the projection.

"Ayi, big brother, big brother!"

"Mingsheng...Miss...I am your father." The relatives by the donkey shed called out the name of their loved one. Upon hearing this, the deceased raised his head and looked at his relatives.

Immediately, some of the relatives who received a response wept with joy, some wiped away their tears in secret, and some told the projected images of the deceased about their experiences after the disaster.

The waiter was also in the crowd.

The procession of the Hundred Demons had not yet arrived at his location, but he gleaned a message from the clamor of voices: once the procession arrived, he would be able to see his deceased parents among the dead.

In order to see his parents one last time, he squeezed through the crowd. Finally, he managed to squeeze to the outermost layer of the crowd and poked his head out between two adults.

"Little one, let me make this clear to you: it's okay to be excited when you see your relatives, and it's okay to call out to them, but... please don't cross the line, or something bad will happen."

"I heard that there were dozens of people ahead of me who were pierced through the bone and flesh by the City God with ink lines just because they crossed the boundary. It was a really terrible experience."

The news spread faster than a night's journey, and even the waiter was a little scared.

Babies are easily frightened, but he only told himself not to cross the line, while still sticking his head forward.

As the night procession drew closer, the waiter wiped his eyes with the corner of his clothes and stared intently, not daring to blink.

"Father, Mother, you must come back. If you come back, Xiao Er will still be the happy Xiao Er."

The younger brother's mother sold cigarettes at the cinema, and his father showed movies at the cinema. The family was not wealthy, but the parents' love for the younger brother was self-evident.

The procession arrived, and the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons moved with incredible speed. The waiter's sharp eyes constantly searched the crowd for any trace of his parents.
As he searched, he didn't know why, but tears started streaming down his face; a feeling of sadness welled up inside him for no apparent reason.

He wiped away his tears as he searched, and finally, he found his parents.

My father has difficulty walking and walks with a limp.
My mother sold cigarettes at the movie theater every day, with heavy cigarette trays hanging around her neck. Over time, she developed cervical spondylosis, and even now, when she lowers her head, her neck still arches in an arc.

Upon finding his parents, the second brother immediately started howling at the top of his lungs.

"Mom! Dad! I'm Xiao Er... I'm still alive... Master is so good to us, I have soda to drink, I play with my friends, I'm never cold or hungry..."

“Mother…you came back to see me yesterday and even watched ‘The Burning of the Red Lotus Temple’ with me. That movie was so wonderful. There’s something I forgot to tell you…”

“If you come back to life, don’t go back to selling cigarettes. Xiao Er will go to work at the docks to supplement the family income. You can rest well.”

As the young man spoke, for some reason, his tears flowed even more fiercely. Little did he know that among the entire procession of the dead, everyone else was a projection, and only his parents and his two neighbors were the paper figures made by the Taoist of Guishan to represent the dead.

Hearing the shouts, the parents stopped in their tracks and turned to look at the second son.

The second brother immediately got a little carried away and wanted to cross the line to hug his parents, but... he still remembered the warning that those who crossed the line would be imprisoned by the ink line, so he didn't dare to move.

At that moment, an old man in the crowd suddenly used some strength to throw the young man into the line.

This old man was none other than the Taoist Guishan, whom Zhou Xuan had arranged in advance.

"Baby, if you don't leave, all the paper figures I made will have been for nothing."

Guishan Daoist chuckled to himself.

The waiter, however, felt as if he had somehow found himself inside the lines.
Now that he was already there, and having broken the rules, he was no longer afraid. He simply hugged his parents' legs and cried, "Dad, Mom, I missed you so much... Actually, I lied to you... I didn't have a good life after the disaster. I lost my father and mother, and there were always people who bullied us..."
I, along with many other orphans, am bullied by the older children. Father, Mother, please don't come. If you must leave, take me with you.

His words caused those around him to grieve as well.

Frankly speaking, wherever there are people, there will be bullying and a hierarchy.

Even though Zhou Xuan and Pan Shanying managed the order of the entire Mingjiang Prefecture very well, they couldn't control bullying.

Those children whose parents were still alive felt superior and always liked to bully children like "Little Brother".

The bullying and longing for their parents were the reasons why Xiao Erge and the other children who had lost their parents wanted to commit suicide at the Guishan Taoist Temple.

"Whoever crosses the line and disregards the prohibition of the Imperial Guardian?"

The City God's disciple, holding a black thread, flew to the waiter's side.
At that moment, Li Chengfeng's lantern from the Wandering Gods Bureau drifted over, casting a few candle flames.

The sparks drifted to the ears of the disciples at the City God Hall, where they exploded softly, and the disciples heard a sound that only they could hear.

"Young Master specifically ordered that Brother Er be allowed to cross the line, so you must not harm him."

The City God's disciple froze on the spot, unsure of what to do.

The local people also pleaded with the City God's disciples for mercy.

"It's just a doll, let him go."

“The child is pitiful too, let’s just take him aside.”

Besides the people's persuasion, the procession at night also underwent a strange change; whether it was the ghosts or the dead, they all stopped moving forward.

The paper ghost leader, wielding a water and fire stick, weaved through the night procession. Once he found Little Brother, he raised his stick to strike him.

"You audacious yang people, how dare you obstruct our night journey! You deserve to die!"

Just as the water-fire stick, accompanied by the sound of wind, was about to smash into the waiter's head, a folding fan suddenly flew out, unfolded in front of the stick, and blocked its momentum.

"The Master has arrived."

"A humble commoner pays respects to the esteemed master."

"The great kindness and virtue that the Master has shown to our Mingjiang Prefecture is something we, the common people, will never forget."

In an instant, the people on both sides knelt down in droves upon seeing Zhou Xuan arrive, expressing their gratitude for his kindness.

Zhou Xuan put away the paper fan, raised it high, and shouted in a deep voice, "Stand up! No kneeling!"

"Thank you, sir. Thank you, sir."

Those who were kneeling did not stand up because of Zhou Xuan's reprimand; instead, more people knelt down.

"I said, stand up, you're not allowed to kneel."

Zhou Xuan unleashed his "world-class" aura, and an invisible force rose from the ground, supporting the people's knees and forcing them to stand up straight.

This is the way of the world, where the will of the people is aligned, and the wishes and power of all beings can be used by the disciples of the valley.

Zhou Xuan immediately said, "No one is worthy of your kneeling except your parents, and I am not worthy of your kneeling either. From now on, if you see me again, I will beat up anyone who kneels... not for any other reason than to beat them until they are weak-willed."

At this point, Zhou Xuan's tone softened again, and he said, "If you really want to thank me, just nod and smile when you see me in the future."

"As per Mr. Da's instructions."

"Master, you truly possess both authority and virtue. Mingjiang is truly blessed to have you."

The common people were truly impressed by Zhou Xuan, both by his abilities and his character—this influential figure in Mingjiang was completely different from the high-ranking, revered figures of the past!

"Gentlemen, don't rush to express your gratitude. Now, I want to ask this Grand Underworld Envoy of Shepherd Soul City, why did you attack the child of my Mingjiang Prefecture?"

Zhou Xuan turned his head to look at the paper ghost messenger.

The ghost messenger smiled obsequiously and said, "Master, we agreed beforehand that Shepherd Soul City would allow the dead to return to life, while the living people of Mingjiang Prefecture would not be allowed to obstruct our Soul City's Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts. This child, by hugging his parents, has too much yang energy, causing the night parade to stop."

"Stop it, just chase him away, why take his life?"

Zhou Xuan pushed off the ground with one foot, using the momentum of the feng shui to create a gust of wind that swept "Little Brother" into his arms. He said, "The child is also a pitiful soul. His parents are dead, and seeing their spirits again, it's understandable that he couldn't control his emotions. Great ghost messenger, I'm taking the child with me. Continue your journey..."

“Since the esteemed master has said so, how dare I, a mere nobody, disagree? As the saying goes, if you’re going to do a good deed to the end, then I’ll add another gift to apologize for disturbing the esteemed master.”

At this point, the ghost messenger immediately swung his water-and-fire cudgel, one cudgel for each of the four deceased people around him, and then, holding the cudgel, bowed to Zhou Xuan and said,
“Master, the return of the dead in Mingjiang Prefecture can only be achieved after the night patrol ends and the gates of hell close—however, as for these four people, I, the humble ghost messenger, will make the decision to let them return to life first.”

The four people who were pushed away by the water and fire sticks were the paper figures that Zhou Xuan had prepared in advance—the parents of the second brother and his neighbor.

"Then should I say thank you?" Zhou Xuan asked, frowning.

"Thank you so much, sir. I'm sorry to have bothered you."

The paper ghost messengers immediately picked up their fire and water sticks and started the procession on its night march: "The dead shall proceed, the living shall give way!"

The parade of a hundred ghosts continued, but the four people who "came back to life" caused a stir among the surrounding people.

Especially when they saw the parents embracing the little boy and calling out "Little Er" in heart-wrenching cries, the people were overwhelmed with mixed feelings and their emotions were extremely complicated.

They are genuinely happy, even if the joyous occasion of family reunion happens in someone else's home.
At the same time, they felt at ease. When the resurrection of the dead was clearly presented to them, they believed in the mysterious fact that all the dead would be resurrected to their very core.

This is also the ultimate goal of Zhou Xuan's performance today.

Aside from joy and peace of mind, a small number of people felt jealousy—they were jealous that the first to be resurrected were Xiao Erge's family members, and not their own.

Of these jealous people, nine out of ten are still able to suppress their jealousy; they simply feel the emotion but dare not say anything.

But about 10% of the people couldn't hold back any longer, and a few of them even started questioning Zhou Xuan.

"Sir, I have something to say."

“Go ahead and speak,” Zhou Xuan said.

“We followed the rules and didn’t cross the line, so our family members didn’t come back to life. That child broke the rules, but his family members were able to come back to life ahead of time. This is unfair.”

"That's right. It's one thing for his family members to be resurrected, but his neighbors were also resurrected. When one person attains enlightenment, even his chickens and dogs ascend to heaven."

In Mingjiang Prefecture at this time of year, there are not many people who dare to question Zhou Xuan on the spot. Precisely because of this, the voices of those who question him seem extremely loud and noisy.

"Sir, we demand fairness!"

"Yes, that's what we want: fairness."

Consumed by jealousy, six or seven commoners actually stood together, wanting to "reason" with Zhou Xuan...

(End of this chapter)