There is a trick

Chapter 24 Corpse Lotus Root
"You stayed in the wine cellar for a day. Did you have any strange dreams? Did you have any hallucinations?" Zhou Chang asked the worried Shidanzi.

Hearing this, Shi Danzi turned his head and looked at him in surprise: "Brother, did you also have a dream in the cellar?"

The young man's tricks had been exposed, and his position with Yang Rui might be in jeopardy, so he became particularly close to Zhou Chang - he was also making some plans for his future.

Zhou Chang nodded.

Shi Danzi lowered his eyes, recalled, and said to Zhou Chang: "I didn't feel anything at first, but then I felt like a gust of hot wind blew into the coffin from somewhere, and then I started dreaming.

At first, the dreams were confusing and difficult to remember.

Then I dreamed that I seemed to sink into a big lake..."

At this point, Shidanzi was a little scared: "The water in the lake was emerald green, and I could only see some blurry scenes in front of me.

Later, I heard a "gurgling" and "gurgling" sound behind me, as if something was exhaling.

I twisted my body to look—the lake water suddenly became clear, and I saw colorful lotus roots growing in the mud at the bottom of the lake. Water flowed through the lotus roots, making the same sound I heard.

"Colorful lotus roots?" Zhou Chang raised his eyebrows.

"Maybe they are lotus roots..." Shi Danzi said hesitantly, "Those lotus roots have eight or nine main nodes, and each of them has several branches growing outward. I don't know why, but they are all wearing colorful clothes and skirts that only women wear...

I thought it was strange, so I went closer to take a look. Unexpectedly, the nine lotus roots were shaken by the water, and their flowery clothes also swayed along with them.

There was a section of lotus root closer to me. I saw a pitch-black rope wrapped around it, which had cut off most of the lotus root. Many lotus root threads floated out from the broken part of the lotus root, swaying in the water, and suddenly turned into pitch-black hair!
The lotus root that was about to be strangled turned into a swollen woman's head!

It had a head full of messy hair and was smiling at me!

As soon as I panicked, those lotus roots turned into swollen women in flowery dresses. They were tied by a rope with their almost broken necks, and they kept waving their hands at me in the water!

Several women's feet were stuck in the mud, and white things were wriggling in the mud. I took a quick look and saw that they were just large groups of female corpses stuck in the mud!
I was so scared that a chill ran down my spine and I quickly swam towards the surface of the water.

The female corpses were lying under the water, staring at me!
The further upstream I went, the more I saw a tall and thin man with a rat-like braid like the one in the previous dynasty. He was holding a fishing rod in his hand and fishing by the lake.

While fishing, I was reciting the "Pure and Tranquility Sutra" that we recited in the morning.

One person does not enter a temple, two people do not look into a well, and three people do not hug a tree..."

Shidanzi was immersed in the horrific memories, muttering to himself, unable to control himself!
……

"Dad, the newly opened braised meat shop next door smells so good."

The boy with a big head, a small body and a slightly bulging belly looked at the flag in front of "Li Lu Rou" not far away, sniffed hard, and said to the man in front of him.

The man was carefully supporting a middle-aged woman and walking towards his house.

Hearing his son's words, he glanced at the braised meat shop and whispered to the boy, "There are fewer people raising pigs and cattle nowadays, so what kind of good meat can the braised meat shop use?

Maybe it’s human flesh… which can’t be eaten…”

The man threatened the boy with words.

Tong'er was not afraid. He nodded nonchalantly, his pigtails swaying: "I know, I know, Dad and Mom's illness is not yet cured, and we need money everywhere at home. I'm just telling you -

The braised meat in that butcher shop is really delicious..."

Listening to his son's sensible words and looking at his eager eyes as he tried hard to suppress them, the man felt a pain in his eyes.

He opened his mouth, but in the end just sighed, and helped his wife into the main room. Tong'er immediately brought a stool for his dazed mother to sit down.

It was getting darker outside.

The light in the room got darker.

In the dim room, the rumbling stomachs of the father and son were more obvious.

"The wine shop said that your mother will be well in a few days at most." The father spoke to divert his son's attention. Their family now only had one meal a day. "Old Li, who used to live at the end of the street, got crazy. His family paid him to stay in Yongsheng Wine Shop for a day.

After coming back, I was in a daze for a few days and then I got better. "

"Oh……"

"What's the name of the owner of that newly opened braised meat shop? I think I heard someone mention it."

"I think her name is Li Meihua..."

"Ah."

The father and son chatted for a few minutes, and then neither of them wanted to talk to each other anymore.

I was really hungry. And the aroma of meat was still wafting from the braised meat shop next door.

The man saw some customers gathered in front of the shop. He swallowed, stood up and went to close the door, wanting his son to go to bed early.

At this time, my wife, who was sitting on the stool like a clay figurine, stammered and said something indistinct: "Animated steps..."

"What?" The man was startled and hurriedly walked close to his wife, staring at her face, "Mother, what did you say?"

"No one..."

"One person shouldn't enter a temple, two people shouldn't look into a well..." The wife's words became clearer and clearer. Her eyebrows trembled slightly, and expression gradually appeared on her face.

The man couldn't help himself.

Tong'er looked at his mother's expression and felt it was a little strange.

“This is waking up!

My dear, your mother is about to wake up!" The man was so happy that he almost shed tears. He looked left and right, and suddenly fixed his eyes, as if he had made up his mind. He took out a few copper coins from his arms and handed them to the boy, "Go!

My dear, go buy a piece of braised meat to eat!
Buy the cheapest one!"

……

Zhou Chang pushed the cart back home.

Yang Rui frowned and took Shi Danzi into the house.

"Hey, this person--" Zhou Sanji looked at Master Yang Rui and his apprentice, both of whom had strange expressions on their faces, and sighed helplessly. He seemed to know something about the inside story.

"Wine is medicine, it can cure heart disease..." Zhou Chang said thoughtfully, "Does Uncle Yang have any heart disease? Today, when he heard people in the wine shop say that Shidanzi was not crazy, he did look a little unhappy.

And there were no smiling faces along the way.”

Zhou Sanji turned back to look at Zhou Chang, with a smile on his face: "You don't understand, these are all things of the older generation.

Now that you are doing well, I am satisfied. You don't have to worry about the rest.

——He has already accepted Shidanzi as his apprentice, and he can’t drive him away unless he does anything to offend him. Don’t worry, it’s nothing serious.”

The old woman refused to speak, so Zhou Chang did not ask any more questions. He looked at the door of the wing room and asked, "What did Bai Xiu'e do today?"

"Sewing animal clothes at home—what a waste of time!" Zhou Sanji glared at Zhou Chang and his tone turned bad.

"I'll go see her." Zhou Chang said as he walked towards Bai Xiu'e's bedroom door.

All of his thoughts have now been strengthened in the winery, but the number of thoughts has not changed.

Therefore, he needs to get closer to Bai Xiu'e and obtain more thoughts from her, and bring them to the wine cellar to strengthen them.

"Hey, don't go!
Come back and light the fire for me, it’s time for dinner!

You kid, you won't listen when things get better!"

The old man shouted behind Zhou Chang, but Zhou Chang ignored him.

He walked to Bai Xiu'e's door, paused for a moment, and without knocking, pushed the door open and walked in.

The red light of the setting sun followed the tall figure into the dim room.

Bai Xiu'e, who was sitting on the small wooden bed, was obviously a little panicked when she saw the figure suddenly breaking in. She immediately hid what was in her hand behind her - she was holding a piece of gray-black fur the size of a bowl, and the fur seemed to be sewn together by several mice.

What Bai Xiu'e really wanted to hide was not the rat fur.

Instead, it was the few carabid beetles she held in her hands. These carabid beetles, which could still be seen in the cold winter, were now sewn into scales with strands of slightly white and transparent silk threads and hidden by Bai Xiu'e under the mouse fur.

"Miss Bai, I'm sorry to bother you."

Zhou Chang stood at the door and did not go inside, which made Bai Xiu'e feel somewhat relieved.

She lowered her head and whispered, "What's the matter, Brother Zhou? Please knock on the door first next time..."

If I knock on the door, how can I discover Miss Bai’s secret?
Zhou Chang saw that the piece of mouse skin hidden by Bai Xiu'e was indeed made of several mouse skins put together, but there was not a single trace of stitching on the skin - even in the sewing basket next to Bai Xiu'e, all the spools of thread had their threads tied up neatly, showing no signs of having been used.

She indeed had special silk thread that could be used to sew the "animal coat" that she and her grandfather had agreed upon.

That kind of silk thread should be from the same origin as Zhou Chang's Nian Yi.

(End of this chapter)