Between seas

Luoyang City, the mountain behind Fengxian Temple.

Sitting next to the ancient mural, Jiang Yizhou looked up at the sky, only to find that there are many and bright stars tonight, which is suitable for viewing.With a thought in his heart, he wanted to ask Shen Boru to watch it together, and suddenly remembered that Shen Boru had entered the ancient mural and hadn't come out yet, so he felt dull, and the smile on his lips became a little colder.

Jiang Yizhou shrunk his body and leaned against the ancient mural, trying to embed himself in it.He lowered his head, picked up a dead branch from the ground, and started to draw it casually.

Jiang Yizhou drew a chubby dumpling with two dots for eyes and two short hands outstretched, as if to be hugged.Jiang Yizhou was afraid that others would not know who he was painting, so he marked the two big characters "A Chen" on top of Tuanzi's head.

Jiang Yizhou glanced at the fat dumpling on the ground, shook his head and smiled with a very satisfied expression.Afterwards, he glanced at the mural behind him again, and thinking of something, he quickly reached out and wiped off the fat dumpling, stood up and walked out: "Sanbao, take good care of Boss Qian."

Sambo jumped up: "Where are you going?"

"Ah Chen went to save people, I can't be idle, I have to help, I don't want to be a burden. I'll go find those two brats who stole people's heads, and if Ah Chen comes back, tell him not to worry about me."

Sanbao unconsciously followed him a few steps: "Then... be careful."

Jiang Yizhou held the twig between the two fingers of his right hand, and walked away unsteadily.

He first bought a jug of wine by the side of the road, then went to an antique shop and bought a piece of consonant horn.

Consonant horns are not the same thing as ordinary rhino horns.The horn of the rhinoceros is also known as the horn of the lovesickness. The head and the tail represent the world and the underworld, and there is a thin milky white line in the middle that connects the two ends.

After igniting the consonant horn, the human world and the underworld will overlap in the eyes of people, and even the best hidden inhuman things will show their traces.

It is also very dangerous to ignite the horn of the consonant, because the aroma of the burning consonant will attract a lot of ghosts. "Book of Jin" once recorded that Wen Qiao passed by Niuzhuji, and heard the sound of silk and bamboo singing underwater. He was curious for a moment, lit a consonant horn to take a photo, not wanting to provoke evil spirits, and died that night.The devil once said:

"Separated from Jun Youming, why do you want to see each other?"

Jiang Yizhou was lying on the top of the eaves of the tall building, playing with the small consonant horn, drank the spirits in the pot, raised his hand to wipe off the wine stains on his lips, and stood up.

Because Jiang Yizhou stood high, he could have a panoramic view of many streets and houses.

A string of red lanterns hung at the street not far away, swaying from side to side in the breeze.

The moonlight is thick.

Jiang Yizhou threw away the empty jug casually, took out the fire pocket from his body, and lit the consonant horn.Wisps of white smoke drifted out and melted into the night sky.For a moment, he felt that the scene in front of him was becoming hazy little by little, as if it was blocked by mist.

The wind came suddenly.

The string of red lanterns at the intersection was scraped off in the blink of an eye.At the same time, the howls of the ghosts also came with the wind, from far to near, from small to loud, so sharp that it almost pierced Jiang Yizhou's ears.

The wind was too strong, and Jiang Yizhou's clothes flew back, making a sound of hunting, and he staggered back a few steps, almost being carried to the ground.Against the strong wind, he raised his head slightly, stretched his right hand forward, and folded his five fingers together. A bright silver gun appeared in an instant, and the white dragon coiled on the barrel of the gun let out a low and angry cry in the strong wind.

Jiang Yizhou laughed, lifted Muci vigorously, and swung down obliquely from top to bottom.

The silver light suddenly appeared, and the wind seemed to be split in two by him, whistling away from him, blowing his temple hair up.All the ghosts in the ear mourned, and the voices were men and women, old and young, and they all murmured and repeated a sentence: "Why do you want to be photographed?"

Hearing the noisy voices coming from all directions, Jiang Yizhou felt that he was listening to monks chanting sutras in a temple, and laughed and said: "It's all gone, I'm just looking for two little ghosts, I don't intend to see what you look like. "

While speaking, he raised Mu Ci again and swung it down heavily.

The wind stopped.

At this time, the white smoke of consonant fragrance meandered forward, stopped near the intersection, and lingered for a long time.

The reason why the rhinoceros horn is also called "lovesickness rhinoceros horn" is not only because it can connect yin and yang, but more importantly, it can guide people to find the person they want to see in their hearts.

Jiang Yizhou wanted to see the pair of children who stole someone's head.

And settle accounts with them.

With the burning of the consonant horn, the figures of the ugly children at the intersection became more and more clear.The boy took the girl's hand, hummed a cheerful exotic tune, and walked slowly down the street.

Suddenly, the girl stopped in her tracks when she smelled the consonant aroma.When she looked up, she saw Jiang Yizhou on the eaves.

Behind him, the moonlight is just right.

The faces of the two children changed slightly, and they turned around to flee.But they were already smeared with the fragrance of consonance, and a thin thread formed by white smoke connected them with Jiang Yizhou.

See you, stay here.

Jiang Yizhou stepped on the moonlight falling on the eaves, turned over and jumped down, holding Mu Ci with his right hand, the snow-colored gun tip chased the two ghost children and stabbed down.

The rabbit rises and the falcon falls.

Jiang Yizhou shot the ugly little girl with a single shot, and nailed her to the ground with his backhand, unable to move an inch.

The moon is fading.

The boy was stunned for a moment, and he glanced at the girl who was struggling on the ground, and suddenly felt full of strength all over his body, with a big mouth, showing sharp and jagged teeth, and rushed towards Jiang Yizhou's right hand.

Jiang Yizhou's left hand broke off the twig he brought out just now. The moment the boy came over, he used the twig to jam his mouth. Legs dangling against the wall.

The consonance is exhausted.

The girl was indignant: "Why arrest us?"

Jiang Yizhou smiled: "What have you done, you don't have a little bit in your heart? Tell me, why steal the head of a beautiful girl, is it because they are more beautiful than you?"

After all, he was a child, so he got angry when he heard Jiang Yizhou say that.She looked as stubborn as if she was about to cry, her shoulders trembled slightly, her teeth were gritting, and her voice was very hoarse, as if it came out of her throat: "You fart! We used to be much more beautiful than these people , my dad always compliments me on how good-looking I am!"

The boy was stuck in his mouth and couldn't speak, so he nodded with a "woo woo".

"Daddy? Do you still have daddy?"

The girl said: "Why not? Dad is a master who can draw and carve. I don't know his name, but I know he is a very good person. He is very old. He is too old to walk. There are some rough knife calluses on the hands, and it hurts to touch the face."

Jiang Yizhou deliberately said: "Just an old man, nothing special?"

She gave Jiang Yizhou a hard look, and recalled: "Many years ago, we were two stones. When Dad was carving us, he told us that when he left his hometown, he was still a young man under 30 years old. , the two children in the family are only five or six years old, which is the age of mischief."

"Father was still smiling just a moment ago, but after saying this, he began to cry. While crying, he gripped the small carving knife tightly, trying not to let his hands tremble, and carved my appearance stroke by stroke."

"My father also said that he has a gentle and beautiful wife, and he likes to pester my father to paint and carve her a small statue. He used to be annoyed, so he just smeared it. Now he wants to recognize her Seriously draw a picture, but every time I put pen to paper, I remember how she is waiting for me to go home, this painting, no matter what, I can't continue to paint it."

"Daddy told us a lot about his hometown, saying that there are sheep, cows, and green grass, and there are many, many stars blinking and blinking in the sky."

The girl glanced at the blue night sky, and suddenly laughed: "At that time, I wondered where there were no cattle and sheep, and where there were no stars? Now I understand a little bit, no matter what it is, it is the best in my own home. Most precious."

Jiang Yizhou didn't interrupt her and listened to her continue.

"Daddy's paintings are really beautiful. Besides the clothes on us, there is also that big mural, which also has Daddy's handwriting."

"The people who painted murals with Dad are as old as Dad. I remember that when they rested in the middle of the night, a group of them would gather around a warm bonfire, singing and dancing. Their musical instruments were also brought from their hometown. It is also old, and the sound it plays is not crisp and accurate. But they just refuse to buy a new one, and just make do with it, jingle jingle, jingle jingle...it can spread far.”

The girl's voice dropped suddenly: "Then, these people died one by one, and the number of people singing around the campfire became less and less. When the mural was finally completed, there were only seven or eight people left. They still surrounded the campfire. Beside the bonfire, they played the huqin with missing strings or beat the time with their hands, and sang cheerful tunes."

"These seven or eight people discussed for a night and decided to go back to their hometown. But they are very old, they are so old that they can't straighten their backs, and they stop breathing after walking too far."

"I know, they can't go back."

The girl's voice was filled with tears: "Before they left, they left their brushes and buried them next to the murals. Their names were written on the pen holders. Dad told us two. He came this trip. No loss, if we carve such a beautiful us and paint such a beautiful mural, many people will like it, and some people will remember them as painters."

"After speaking, Dad took his old huqin and left. We never saw him again."

The girl sighed: "But Dad is wrong. We like those people, but those people don't like us."

Jiang Yizhou didn't quite understand, and asked, "How do you say it?"

The girl slightly raised her hand, and the tattered sleeves slid down her arm, revealing her thin right arm.

Her right arm was covered with dirt and wounds, big and small.Scratches are the most, followed by all kinds of messy handwriting, a few lines of horizontal and vertical big black characters are particularly eye-catching: "So-and-so came here for a visit".

"Sometimes I really can't figure it out, are we born to let them write and draw on our bodies?" The girl said, then lowered her only remaining eye and looked at her neck. Wearing a longevity lock, it was also taken away."

"Our nose was smashed by a drunk with a brick, and our eyes were smeared by an ignorant child with someone's pen. People who see us now will be shocked by our appearance, and we Don’t want to be like this, who in this world doesn’t want to be pretty?”

"We used to be, really, really beautiful."

"Father has lived so hard all his life. He came to Luoyang from such a far place, and he never returned home. Even if he was homesick, he still wanted to carve things and draw pictures. He was so dedicated. I was a piece of broken pieces. I know that I should not waste other people's hard work, but...but why?"

The girl spoke with tears in her eyes.But her tone was still very flat: "We are just a pair of small stone statues. In people's eyes, they may be insignificant things. But now, the big murals are all gone."

"It's not impossible to repair it if it's broken, but it's not a repair, it's completely covered and repainted, and the painting is terrible. The pen with Dad and their names is buried under the big mural. It's a pity they If the paintings are all gone, how will the names of the painters be remembered? If the paintings are gone, those pens are best not to be dug out, and they will rot in the soil forever..."

The boy was speechless and whimpered beside him.

Jiang Yizhou loosened his grip a bit: "So you stole the heads of the girls in the city to deliberately arouse people's fear of the ancient murals, so that you will not change them randomly?"

The corners of the girl's lips were raised slightly, her appearance looked very cruel under the cold moonlight, it could make people tremble.She shook her head, "Not exactly."

"not quite?"

"There is a nightmare monster who found us and asked us to find a way to attract a god surnamed Shen to come over. After the matter is completed, help us restore the original appearance and the original appearance of the big mural. Naturally, the bigger the better, we came up with the idea of ​​stealing it." Human heads. We did it very covertly, if it weren't for the bad things of the two old trees and the little bald donkey, you wouldn't know who we are until Shen Shenjun died."

Hearing this, Jiang Yizhou's heart suddenly rose to his throat, and his strength suddenly increased, pinching the boy so hard that he couldn't breathe, and his tongue stuck out, making a "ho ho" sound from his mouth.

Jiang Yizhou lowered his head and stared at the girl: "What do you mean?"

The girl smiled and said, "I've also heard about returning to the ruins. God Lord Shen killed [-] nightmare monsters in his early years, and closed the town to return to the ruins a hundred years ago. If I were the nightmare monster, I would take revenge."

"You know what I mean?"

The author has something to say:

This brain hole was triggered when I flipped through the photo album a while ago.In the third year of high school, I ran around for a while, went to Beijing, and played in the National Expo.At that time, I took a lot of photos, one baby, and one of their name tags, so as not to remember their names and origins.When I uploaded it, I found that I still missed a few name plates, so that I don’t know the names of those pieces now, which is a pity.

Then my brain opened up, from the name to the forgotten small cultural relics, and then to "so and so came here for a visit".Well, it's time to write.

As for those big treasures whose names I lost, I will make up for them when I go to Beijing again someday.