Mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty

Chapter 80 Sacrifice
Rong Wanyin huffed, "He's such a good guy, but he has a big mouth. The storybooks all say he's the Jade-faced Judge, but I think he's the Vicious-tongued Judge!"

Su Zhan, who was drinking water, burst out laughing when he heard it: "What? Jade-faced Judge? What kind of title is that? Why haven't I heard of it before? It's too funny... Cheng Xuan, who gave you this name? So..."

Su Zhan originally wanted to say "rustic", but when he saw Yan Mingzhang's face as black as the ash at the bottom of a pot, he swallowed his words back.

Rong Wanyin had a playful look on her face, looking unruly and as if she was just there to watch the fun.

Yan Mingzhang glared at Su Zhan, then glared at the two people who were just watching the fun—Changfeng and Mo Yun—and said slowly, "I don't know who she is, but she calls herself the female Zhuge Liang..."

The name "Female Zhuge" was coined by Rong Wanyin herself when she was chatting with Changfeng and Mo Yun. She didn't think much of it at the time, but now that it is said like this, she feels particularly ashamed.

Su Zhan, who was drinking water, couldn't help but burst out laughing: "Pfft... Hahahaha... What? Female Zhuge Liang? Too funny! Hahahaha"

Changfeng and Mo Yun were also trying to hold back their laughter, but Rong Wanyin glared at them and they forced themselves to stop smiling. Only Su Zhan was laughing non-stop.

Rong Wanyin's face flushed red, her nostrils nearly smoking with anger. She had just casually said it before, but now that Yan Mingzhang had said it, she felt so ashamed. She hated it so much that she wanted to find a hole to crawl into. Rong Wanyin glared at Su Zhan fiercely, remembering the account: "Rest well, and then hurry up and set off! You coward!"

Su Zhan's face flushed with anger, and he looked incredulous: "What did you say? A weakling? Who is a weakling?"

After Rong Wanyin finished speaking, she started walking away, and she walked very fast, completely disregarding whether Su Zhan could keep up.

Yan Mingzhang, Changfeng, and Mo Yun followed closely behind. Su Zhan stood up awkwardly, trying to catch up, and shouted breathlessly behind everyone: "Hey, wait for me!"

After walking for a long time, there was still no sign of the village.

"Why is Niujia Village so remote?" Su Zhan couldn't help but complain, "Why don't you move if you live in such a remote place?"

"This Niujia Village emerged ten years ago. Originally, there was no Niujia Village here. However, due to the war, a group of refugees from the south were settled here by the county magistrate at that time. These refugees reclaimed the surrounding wasteland. Because of its remote location and the difficult life of the refugees, the reclaimed wasteland had a poor harvest. The county magistrate at that time was enlightened and exempted them from taxes. Since there was no need to collect taxes, the detailed population information of their village was not registered. As for how the village developed later, no one knows." Yan Mingzhang explained.

"Isn't it said that there is leprosy in Niujia Village? If we go there like this, will we be infected?" Su Zhan was a little scared. He didn't want to leave a scar on his handsome face.

Yan Mingzhang smiled and took out a packet of medicine from his arms: "I confirmed with Doctor Yan yesterday. Generally, the contagious period of leprosy is no more than three years. After three years, leprosy will no longer be contagious. Doctor Yan gave a few packets of powdered medicine. Everyone should take a little, just in case.

Su Zhan was the first to take the powder: "You are so good, Cheng Xuan, you didn't tell me earlier that you had the medicine. You made me worry all the way."

Others also swallowed the powder.

"However, I searched for a long time last night, and there is indeed no information about marriages from five years ago. I couldn't find any information about your sister. I'm sorry." Yan Mingzhang turned around and apologized to Abao solemnly.

"Master Yan, I know you're a good person. I'm very grateful for your help in finding my sister..." A Bao said with tears of gratitude, wiping his tears and snot with his sleeve. After all, the world was not peaceful, and the hope of finding his sister was slim. Yan Mingzhang looked at him meaningfully, his deep eyes filled with thoughts.

"Could your sister have been sold?" Su Zhan asked after thinking for a while.

“…If you don’t know how to speak, then don’t speak…” Rong Wanyin glared at Su Zhan and muttered.

"By the way, wait a minute, we have to say this... Don't reveal your true identity. So as not to alert the enemy." Yan Mingzhang whispered to the others.

……

The group talked as they walked, and finally arrived at Niujia Village.

Before entering the village, Rong Wanyin loosened the reins of the old gray donkey and patted it: "Go eat some grass first, I'll come find you later." The old gray donkey ran away happily and soon disappeared.

There is indeed a huge banyan tree at the entrance of Niujia Village, and this banyan tree is extremely lush, which can be said to be a forest of trees. However, it grows crookedly and has many bumps on its body, just like a terminally ill patient lying on his side, but with strong muscles. It is particularly inconsistent and weird, making people feel uncomfortable when they see it.

The banyan tree was hung with red cloth strips, and some burnt incense sticks were stuck under the tree. The unique scent of incense sticks filled the air.

"It stinks..." Rong Wanyin covered her mouth and nose and couldn't help retching.

"Isn't it just the smell of incense and candles? You can't even smell the smell of incense and candles?" Su Zhan sniffed, sniffed the air carefully, and said in confusion. He reached out and touched the big lump on the banyan tree, and tore off a piece of red cloth. Apart from the smell of incense and candles, it didn't stink at all!
"...It's not incense...it's some other smell, so disgusting..." Rong Wanyin covered her mouth and nose with the wet handkerchief handed to her by Yan Mingzhang, and said while suppressing her nausea.

"Who are you? What do you want to do by getting close to the tree god? Stay away from it! Don't touch it! If you touch it again, don't blame me for being rude!" A burly, ugly-faced middle-aged man.

He rushed out of the first house at the entrance of the village, hoe in hand. His face was covered in crimson, twisted scars that resembled crawling red worms. His nose looked as if it had been cut off, leaving only two red nostrils pointing to the sky. His left hand was crippled, hunched over. But his right hand was powerful and strong; he was not to be trifled with.

The sudden appearance of such a person scared everyone, and Abao was so frightened that he trembled and hid behind Rong Wanyin.

When Su Zhan saw the man's face, he was so frightened that he took several steps back and almost fell down. He couldn't help but shout, "Ah! Ghost!"

Fortunately, Changfeng grabbed Su Zhan's arm and prevented him from falling.

A Bao tugged at the hem of Rong Wanyin's clothes, his knuckles whitening. A little frightened, he whispered, "This is the man who had chased him away that day." Rong Wanyin calmly protected A Bao behind her.

The gray-clothed man standing under the locust tree suddenly turned his head. His eyes lingered on A Bao for a moment, then he glanced at Rong Wanyin. A hint of joy flashed in his eyes, his Adam's apple moved violently, and his dry lips parted. Then, as if he had suddenly come to his senses, he was no longer on guard, but instead became excited. He stretched out his dry right hand and grabbed towards Rong Wanyin: "It's a sacrifice! It's a sacrifice!"