Copper Coins

Although the letter was hastily written, it was not rash in its content.Tai Bu never mentioned the so-called "very similar to the national teacher" person from the beginning to the end. After all, this is disrespectful in a sense.

No one in Taichang Temple has the courage to be so reckless in front of the national teacher.Because in their impression, the national teacher has always been unsmiling, whenever he appears, he has a feeling that he cannot be approached or disturbed.

Even though Taibu and Taizhu were brought back to Taichang Temple by the national teacher since they were young, after so many years, the national teacher is still a high and untouchable and rebellious existence for them.

"In your letter..." Tai Zhu tugged at the reins, and spoke hesitantly before setting off.

Tai Bu didn't need to finish listening to know what he wanted to say, "I'm not that stupid, I just mentioned that the person we were ordered to find is dead. If Lin Ge's journey goes well, he will be able to land in Famen Temple about tomorrow night. In the event of wind and rain, we can arrive the day after tomorrow at the latest. After reading the letter, the national teacher will make arrangements, so we will follow suit. Before that, let’s play by ear.”

Their abilities are limited, and they can only borrow wood pigeons to deliver letters, but the national division is different.If the adult wanted to reply to the letter, he would use the fire to burn it, and even if they could receive it, there would be no delay at all.

So if you want to confirm whether the national teacher is still in Famen Temple, you will have the result in at most two days.

"Actually, when we enter that village and meet that person, there should be a result." Tai Zhu whispered, "After all, no one else can act as a national teacher."

Although they are not the real disciples of the national teacher, they can barely be counted as half of them. The food, lodging and education are all under the Taichang Temple, and the national teacher likes secluded places with few people, so they live alone in Tianji courtyard all year round.But they are already considered to be the most frequent people who have seen the national teacher. From the time when they were teenagers or even children to the present, after so many years, they have already understood the habits and temperament of the national teacher's gestures.

It is not an exaggeration to say that even if the national teacher wears a mask and blends in among hundreds of thousands of people dressed in the same attire, the two of them can be picked out at a glance.

I wrote that letter just to ask for peace of mind while asking for instructions.

The two looked at each other, without further delay, as soon as they clamped the horse's belly, the long team headed towards the small village in the south of the mountain amidst the sound of hooves...

-

In the depths of the small village, under the branches of an old loquat tree, there is a single hut.Hanging on the low eaves of the hut are two heavy bunches of garlic and bright red chili peppers, which are woven into flowers with hemp rope.

The hemp rope was woven with some care, at first glance it didn't look like it was simply hung out to dry.When he got closer, he could still smell the smoky smell on the hemp rope.

This is where the wounded soldier said Uncle Qu lived.

Xue Xian walked to the door, instead of knocking on it first, he shrugged his nose, frowned and went to the hemp rope to smell it, then raised his sleeve to cover his nose, and said in a deep voice, "Blood The taste is still old."

Xuan Min is used to dislike this kind of things, so he raised his hand and gave Xue Xian a hand, and dragged the clumsy ancestor back, as if standing by the hemp rope for a while, he would get the smell like.

The blindness of the two people is still there, so ordinary people can neither see them nor hear them.Just when Xue Xian was pulled away from the hemp rope by Xuan Min, a man in a thick jacket walked past Uncle Qu's door leading a child who had just passed his waist.

The child just glanced at the hut, and was dragged away by the man a few steps, as if the hut was infected with chicken plague.

"How many times have I told you? Don't just go here when you're free." The man frowned and reprimanded.

The child said "oh", and obediently shrank his neck and walked around with him, but his eyes still couldn't hold back his glance.

It just so happened that another pair of mother and son who had watched the excitement at the entrance of the village also passed by the door. The woman nodded to the oncoming father and son, and then dragged her own children a few steps away...

"People in this village don't seem to like this Qu guy that much." Xue Xian muttered.

He originally planned to wait for those passers-by to leave and knock on the door again, but as soon as he finished speaking, the leaky wooden door of the hut creaked open.

An old man with a pursed mouth squinted his head out of the room, glanced blankly, and fixed his gaze on where Xue Xian and Xuan Min were standing.Although his eyes were cloudy and his focus was a bit out of focus, Xue Xian still felt that the old man could see them, at least he could feel their presence.

"Who is it? Why are you standing at the door? If you don't come in, I'll close the door." The old man with a narrow mouth shouted inarticulately.

He himself was about a little deaf, so that his voice was loud enough for those who walked around to hear him.

"Hurry up, hurry up, Old Qu's madness is about to strike again." The man muttered in a low voice, dragged his own child, and walked away in three steps at a time.The same is true for mother and child reactions.

In the blink of an eye, there was no one in front of the house.

"Hey——" Old Qu was obviously not a good-tempered person. He held the wooden door and waited for a while, but still no one entered the room, so he cursed and wanted to close the door.

But just as the door was about to close, Xue Xian raised his hand to stop it.

"Excuse me, take a shelter from the wind." Xue Xian said.

When Old Qu heard this, he still hesitated: "Is it a human or a ghost?"

But before Xue Xian could answer, he yelled again self-consciously: "It shouldn't be a ghost, my evil spirit warding string is hanging brightly, and ghosts dare not come...Who are you? What are you doing here? "

"To ask one thing." Xue Xian replied.

Old Qu still held the door, hesitating not to let them in: "What's the matter?"

"I heard that you are from the Xiashan area of ​​Langzhou?" Xue Xian didn't really care if he entered or not. After all, the hut was really short, and he and Xuan Min had to bow their heads when entering. If you can ask clearly, you will save yourself the trouble of bending over.

Old Qu nodded, "Yeah, what's wrong?"

"I just sent a little brother back to his hometown, and I heard him mention that he heard you tell me when he was young that there are many magic medicines in the Xiashan Mountain of Langzhou?"

Old Qu listened for a while with a strange expression, touched his chin and pondered for a while, and then let go of the doorknob: "Come in and let's talk. I'm so tired from standing. I have bad legs and feet, so I can't bear it."

This old Qu seemed to have been living alone for a long time, and the house was not cleaned up, and the wind hadn't passed through for an unknown period of time, and there was a suffocating smell, which was nothing more than a rotten smell, mixed with a smell of garlic.

As soon as he loosened his hands and opened the wooden door, Xue Xian's face was covered with this indescribable smell.

Xue Xian: "..." How about standing up and talking...

He held his breath with a green face, bowed his head and stepped into the door, grabbed Xuan Min who wanted to stay outside the door, and dragged him in together.

Taking advantage of the time when old man Qu turned around and fumbled to sit down, Xue Xian grabbed Xuan Min's monk's robe, put it in front of his nose, and took a deep breath, only to slow down a bit.

Xuan Min: "..."

Old man Qu is not a hospitable person, and he didn't invite the two of them to sit down. There are not many places in his room where people can sit.

"What kind of magic medicine are you asking about?" He sat down in a chair covered with a thick cloth, squinted his eyes and asked, "There are a lot of Cordyceps in Langzhou, and some magic medicines are not uncommon."

"Is there a life extension or a change of fortune?" Xue Xian asked tentatively.

Qu old man squinted at them, and it took a long time before he said: "There are rumors of that kind of magic medicine, but they are not the same kind. It is said that there are two kinds, which are very similar in appearance, but their effects are completely different. It will hurt your life, and there are rumors that one of them can bind three lives, and I don't know which one it is, anyway, we don't have the knowledge of that fate, so we just have to listen to it whether it is true or not." Old man Qu was rambling .

"Then do you know where the medicine was born?" Xue Xian asked again.

Old Qu did not disappoint them, and actually circled a relatively specific place, "Hundred wormholes!"

Xue Xian understood, "That's enough. Do the local people know where the Baichong Cave is? If so, we'll ask when we get to Xiashan Mountain."

"Where!" Lao Qu waved his hand, "If you really ask, I'm sure no one can answer."

Xue Xian frowned: "Why?"

"You don't know how poisonous the worms are in our place. The name Hundred Worm Cave, just listening to it, kills half your life. Besides, who has nothing to think about these rumors that are not true?" Old man Qu said, "The reason why I've heard of this is because my ancestors were witch doctors, and Jing loves to tinker with these things. To be honest, you are asking the right person, and only I, Old Qu, can show you the way."

He raised his hand, stroked the palm of the other hand with his index finger, and said: "When you reach the Xiashan area, go this way and go around to the southwest mountain pass. There are three peaks on that side, and one of them has a curved cliff on the top. The wormhole is nearby, as for jumping to the bottom of the cliff or what to do, I don’t know, if you are alive, try all kinds of methods.”

There is life, the most indispensable thing is this.

Xue Xian snorted, and thought that it was really not a trouble, at worst, it would not be too difficult for him and Xuan Min to search the entire cliff.

In fact, if it was true that it was medicine, Xue Xian would not believe it so much.But if it is a "hundred wormhole", it may be really accurate.After all, the thing in Xuan Min's mind is called "Same Life Spider", so it has nothing to do with insects.

It is of course nonsense that one kind of worm can extend one's life and change one's life, but if one uses the Gu bred by that worm, and then uses some kind of talisman array or some kind of sorcery to urge it, maybe it can really help. The result is that only one party will benefit from this kind of thing, and the other party may suffer.

When asked about the place, the two of them naturally wouldn't stay for long.Before he left, Xue Xian glanced at the old, decayed and dilapidated furnishings in the room, and silently threw a gold bead into the cloth bag hanging behind the door, as a reward for questioning.

Old man Qu is eccentric, but not annoying.He didn't ask Xue Xian what they were going to do, and he didn't intend to see them off, but when Xue Xian opened the wooden door and was about to step out, the old man Qu murmured again like a dream: " However, I would like to advise that even if you find that thing, it is best not to use it. There was a legend in my ancestors. It is said that he wants to extend his life or tie up an afterlife. I don’t remember much. It's clear, in short, it's very difficult in the end, life is worse than death, and I don't know what to plan..."

After he finished speaking, he said with a self-deprecating tone: "But I have told many people about this, but no one believed me, and they all said I was crazy. You just listen to it, let's go, let's go, I'll sleep again." Go back to sleep in a while."

"I'm not so idle and panic, besides, I'll pay for my life again?" Xue Xian answered casually, waved at old man Qu, and pushed Xuan Min out the door.

When they asked what they wanted to ask, the two naturally didn't delay any longer, and immediately walked towards the entrance of the village along the path crisscrossing the village.On the way out of the village, when passing by the river pond, Xue Xian casually glanced into the distance, only to see that the wounded soldier was really standing upright in front of the door, as if he planned to stop for 60 years.

In fact, he doesn't quite understand this kind of overly intense emotion, whether it's the "ancestral love" that old man Qu said, or the wounded soldier who cried ferociously, the kind of emotion contained in their actions Emotions, he really can't empathize with them.

He also met a man in the army once, about six or seventy years ago.

It was a desert in the far north, and he followed the weather to spread some rain.When I got there, I saw the strong wind blowing, the wind and sand were all over the sky, and there were many bones on the ground.Burnt chariots, broken battle flags, and rotten and broken armor were spread for ten miles.

The soldier was sitting alone on the side of the chariot at that time, with one leg bent, standing on the upturned wheel in the air, looking at the broken flag beside him with his head propped up.

Xue Xian only took one look and knew that it was a wild soul that had been dead for more than half a year.Everyone else left early, but he was the only one who didn't know what he was thinking about, so he didn't leave for a long time.Xue Xian was a bit lazy by nature, and he was not considered a warm-hearted person. He didn't intend to bother him, but he wanted to leave after the rain, but the lonely soul called him back.

The lonely soul had probably wandered around for a long time, and his mind was a little muddy, and it didn't matter who Xue Xian was, he just dragged him to chatter and dance.Just like the wounded soldier, he spoke in a confusing manner, which was quite difficult to understand.

Xue Xian always looked at his mood when doing things, and that day he happened to be feeling a little emotional when he saw the corpses all over the place, so he had a little more patience with that lonely soul, and tolerated the nonsense he talked for a long time.In summary, there are only two things, one is "it would be great if this battle is won", and the other is "dare not to go on the road".

"I'm not afraid of death, why are you afraid of going on the road?" Xue Xian asked.

The lonely soul talked incoherently for a long while before Xue Xian managed to understand: he was afraid that if he got on the road, he would have to live his next life, but his wife was still in this life, and he was afraid of leaving. There will be no chance to see you again.

"I don't have a chance to see you again." Xue Xian said, "You are bound here, and you can't leave."

The lonely soul gave him a sad look, and then talked for a long time with gestures: If only he could remember to look for her in the next life, it would not be so uncomfortable.If there is still fate, it is best to meet her when she was young, watch her grow up little by little, from a little girl to a big girl, and then marry her, there is no need to live and die like in dramas, the most ordinary little days That's fine, it's better...don't have any more wars...

Xue Xian looked at the corpses all over the field and listened to his sour harangues, but he didn't feel bothered.

Before he left, he casually threw a long rope to the lonely soul.

"Why do you give me the rope? I'm already dead, so I don't need to hang it?" the lonely soul said dumbfounded.

Xue Xian said angrily, "Wrap a circle around your left wrist and make a mark. Don't you want to find someone in your next life? Although you can't remember these trivial things, the mark will be more conspicuous after all. If you think deeply enough, you can really find it.”

That lonely soul wandered for more than half a year only because of this little concern, and now it's over, so naturally he didn't stay any longer, and when Xue Xian left, he also went on his own way.

Now, when Xue Xian saw the wounded soldier, he thought of that lonely soul again.Sixty-seventy years later, he still can't quite understand the emotion that he can't forget after death.

However, when recalling these bits and pieces of the past, he subconsciously glanced at Xuan Min.

"What?" Xuan Min, who was half a step ahead, saw Xue Xian's footsteps pause from the corner of his eyes, and asked in a low voice.

Xue Xian came back to his senses, only to realize that his eyes were on Xuan Min's shoulders, he said "Oh", and turned his eyes away, "It's nothing, I just remembered a passerby."

"A passer-by?" Xuan Min glanced at the other side of the pond, then turned to Xue Xian.

However, Xue Xian's gaze had already fallen on the road ahead, "Let's go, get out—someone!"

They had already passed the monument at the entrance of the village, and had just removed the blindfold.After turning this corner, you will be able to exit the mountain road.As a result, just as Xue Xiaoxue was talking halfway, he caught a glimpse of a long, white line standing on the mountain road not far away.

"Which funeral is so grand?" Xue Xian just muttered, and saw a flag erected beside the carriage sandwiched in the team, with two words written on the flag: too often.

Both he and Xuan Min stopped, before he saw the appearance of the person coming, he heard a clear female voice say: "Get off the horse."

Then, the hundreds of people came down from the horse in unison, and bowed to them.

Xue Xian: "..." Which play is this singing?