The strange story of Huai'an Inn

This is the first time the shopkeeper mentioned this name to the national teacher tonight.But seeing the sudden change of the national teacher's face, Chong Liu knew that he remembered.

Remember that former proud daughter of heaven that he chose to forget.

Mengku avoided the shopkeeper's sight, and an invisible protective shell instantly covered the face that had just revealed the most fragile color of fear.Chong Liu's aloof awe when he saw Mengku for the first time appeared again.

"Why do you need Fairy Jiuluan's whisk?" The national teacher's tone was a little stiff.

Chongliu vaguely knew that it was useless for the shopkeeper to ask for Fairy Jiuluan's whisk, but he was using this excuse to force the national teacher to meet Jiuluan.If it weren't for the disparity in status, he would almost applaud the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper Shi Shiran said, "The weather is getting hotter, get a dust whisk to drive away mosquitoes."

The national teacher obviously also heard that the shopkeeper was just talking nonsense, and didn't intend to answer seriously.And he was in a situation where he wanted something from others, so he couldn't be too tough.He had no choice but to say in a detached tone with no emotion, "I haven't seen her for more than fifty years. The whisk is something she carries with her, and she may not be willing to give it to me."

"As long as you are willing to ask for it seriously, she will definitely give it to you." The shopkeeper said, but his tone was softer.He obviously looked much younger than the national teacher, but his tone carried a bit of the earnestness of the elders admonishing young people, "There are many things, and there will be no way out if you keep avoiding them. It's been so many years, and now you meet again." After such a thing, what are you afraid of?"

The national teacher's expression didn't seem to change, but Chongliu saw the flicker in his eyes.

Coming out of the Bixia Villa, Chong Liu was driving his car staggeringly towards Tianliang City, when he suddenly felt the shopkeeper's voice very close to his ears, and the breath of the words fell on his ears, "Did you remember what the national teacher said just now?"

Chong Liu was so frightened that he turned around and saw the shopkeeper's snow-white face close at hand.

Chong Liu patted his chest and said, "Boss, you are going to cause a car accident like this!"

The shopkeeper said with a smile, "You performed well today. I wanted to praise you, but you turned on me instead."

Chong Liu scratched his head, and said with a shy smile, "How dare I attack you, you are a big shot that even the national teacher dare not offend!"

"He just wanted something from me, so he lowered his profile now. After I hand over what they need and the contract is signed, most of the people will change their faces." The shopkeeper leaned against the car door On the bed, slowly sorting out the folds of his clothes.

"Boss, did you know the national teacher before?"

"Well, it can be regarded as some origin."

"Boss, what did you do before you opened the inn? How do you know so many things that even alchemists don't know?" It's getting late now, there are no cars and horses on the official road, and Chong Liu is not so nervous when driving, so he started Try to ask the curiosity that is already full to overflowing.

The shopkeeper said with a smile, "What's the matter? Now I'm starting to check my household registration?"

"No, no! I'm just curious... If you don't want to say it, don't say it. I'm just asking nonsense."

"Then let's exchange."

"exchange?"

"Yeah, I don't know much about you. When you were introduced, I only noticed that you were smart and literate, so I took you in." The warm wind blew a few strands of hair from the shopkeeper's forehead, The wind is light and the clouds are light.

"Shopkeeper, I'm just an ordinary person. I can't find it in the crowd, so I have nothing to say."

"How many shop assistants have you seen who can write your handwriting so well?" The shopkeeper looked at him with his eyes.

Just as Chong Liu was about to speak, the shopkeeper suddenly let out a snort, and glanced at a galloping horse on a side road that merged into the official road.There were two figures sitting on the tall horse. The one in front of him had his head down and his body was limp, as if unconscious.

The point is, those two people, Chong Liu and the shopkeeper, knew each other.

Isn't that Liu Sheng and Xu Hanke?What happened to Xu Hanke?

In order to avoid colliding with Liu Sheng's horse, Chong Liu had already started to rein in the horse.But the shopkeeper raised his voice and shouted, "Master Liu, where are you from!"

Liu Sheng stopped his horse not far in front of them, turned his head, but showed a sweaty and panicked face.

A long distance away, Chong Liu smelled a damp and fishy smell, a bit like the smell of too many rotting leaves and dead insects buried in the old soil.

The shopkeeper frowned, seeing that Xu Hanke lowered his head, seemingly unresponsive to their calls.

"What's the matter, Mr. Xu?" The shopkeeper's voice lost its previous lightness and became more cautious.

"We had an accident in Baixueze, I have to take him to the doctor now!" Liu Sheng said in a tight voice, and he was about to ride his horse forward again.

But at this time, Xu Hanke, who was motionless, suddenly twitched violently, almost as if he had gone epileptic. Then he lowered his head and began to vomit heart-piercingly.What he spit out was some kind of greenish mucus, in which there were tangles of wriggling and struggling worms, spiders, earthworms, centipedes and other vicious insects that made the scalp tingle.

Along with the vomit came a strong, sickening stench.

Chong Liu felt his scalp explode.The shopkeeper also covered his nose with his sleeve and shrank into the car.

Liu Sheng was even more panicked, he didn't even have time to say goodbye, he swung his whip and urged the horse to gallop away.

Chong Liu murmured, "Something happened..."

"He is full of filth, it will happen sooner or later, it has nothing to do with you, don't think about it." The shopkeeper stretched out his hand and pressed his shoulder, "In a place like Baixueze where miasma is rampant, even the most experienced hunter woodcutter in the area They won't even go, what are they doing there when they have nothing to do? It's just courting death..."

"But my master...if the court officials really die in our inn...wouldn't we be in bad luck too?"

The shopkeeper thought for a while, then rolled up his sleeves a little irritably, "You're right... well, it's getting more and more difficult to sit quietly and do a small business in this world."

small business...

It's all done on the head of the national teacher... Where is it small?Chongliu slandered.

............................................................

When they rushed back to the inn, it was past dinner time, and night fell on Tianliang City.Most of the reputable restaurants on Bianhe Street are closed, but many small vendors who do night trading have connected cart shops all over the street.Their inn was supposed to be closed, but the lobby was brightly lit, and there were quite a few people who looked like officers and soldiers coming in and out.

Chong Liu's secret path is not good, it seems that Liu Sheng really asked the government for help...

"Boss... what should I do?"

The shopkeeper glanced into the lobby and saw a round old man wearing a magistrate's uniform sitting at a table drinking tea, and smiled, "Don't worry."

As soon as the carriage stopped, Xiao Shun rushed out immediately, narrating incoherently that Liu Sheng brought the unconscious Xu Hanke back to look for the doctor, after a while the doctor was scared away, and another pair of officers and soldiers came, Not long after dinner, even the county magistrate came over in person.

All the small vendors near the Huai'an Inn were driven away, as if a murder had occurred.

Looking at the menacing soldiers with knives on their waists at the door, Chongliu and Xiaoshun didn't dare to show their anger.But the shopkeeper seemed to be very relaxed, Shi Shiran led the two of them into the hall.

The county magistrate, Mr. Xu Yun, had the pomp of an official, sitting upright, and there was a person who looked like a master beside him fanning him.Zhu Yi, Fu Zi and the helpers stood by and did not dare to speak, while Master Liao sat at another table and drank tea slowly...

Master Xu just raised his eyes when the shopkeeper stepped into the threshold, and his expression suddenly changed.He hurriedly stood up and walked quickly to the shopkeeper, "I wish the boss, you are back!"

"Master Xu." The shopkeeper still made a long bow with his standard and neat posture.

Mr. Xu quickly grabbed Shopkeeper Zhu's arm, pulled him away and muttered something, apparently without the arrogance of a government lord.

Only then did Chong Liu feel relieved.Also... even the national teacher is afraid of the shopkeeper, and this little seventh-rank magistrate should be no problem.Moreover, the shopkeeper has been able to do his weird dental business in Liangcheng for so long without any hindrance, so he must have been walking with the government more frequently.Even... maybe this Mr. Xu was once a customer of the shopkeeper?

Chong Liu smelled a stench in the air that he had smelled on the official road before.Moreover, I don't know if it was his illusion, but he always felt that he could see some... silky shadows in the floating lights?But when he looked carefully, he couldn't see anything.

That kind of feeling is like when you pass through a place with lush forests, you suddenly feel like a spider web is stuck on your face, but you can't feel anything when you touch it with your hands.

Since his fine hair entered the inn, he hasn't lay down...

I always feel that there is something more in the inn...

Not only those officers and soldiers, but also some less visible things.

The shopkeeper turned his head and said, "Xiao Shun, you choose a horse and go to Zilu Mountain overnight to find Song Mingzi. Liuer, come with me."

Xiao Shun has always been in charge of the stables, and his horse riding skills are also the best among all the helpers, so it is perfect for him to find someone.Chong Liu quickly followed the shopkeeper and the magistrate, and went straight to the North Tower.

Many guests stood in the corridor facing the atrium to watch the excitement and whispered to each other.Officers and soldiers were guarding the stairs in the north building, but those soldiers who were supposed to be fearless were all pale and frightened at this moment.Chong Liu heard one or two talking beside him, and scattered words floated into his ears: "It's too evil..."

"Bugs out of his eyes..."

Listen... Why is it a bit like the symptoms that Xu Hanke described to him before, the symptoms that King Zhong had?

They came to the door of Xu Hanke's room, and it was Liu Sheng who opened the door.

"It's you? Master Xu, I asked you to invite the national teacher, did you send someone there?" Liu Sheng asked sternly.

Xu Zhixian replied nervously, "Master Liu... let Shopkeeper Zhu take a look first. He knows a lot about this matter."

But Liu Sheng stared at shopkeeper Zhu with suspicious eyes, and he didn't know what was going on in his mind.

"Master Liu, why don't you let me have a look first, I'm afraid the national teacher will not come here so fast." The shopkeeper persuaded with a soft tone, "Liu Sheng finally took a step aside.

Chong Liu couldn't hold back Dadi and sneezed.The stench was too strong, if he hadn't had time to eat dinner, he might have already vomited it up.

The air... became thicker... He could almost feel the spider silk-like thing densely filling the entire room, stretching out from the open door, caressing everyone's face.

In the room, Xu Hanke was lying on the bed with his eyes closed, his face was pale and black.Beside the bed, there was a puddle of pus-green mucus that hadn't been cleaned off.

"What happened after you went to Baixueze?" the shopkeeper asked as he walked towards Xu Hanke's bedside.

Liu Sheng said, "Nothing special happened. It's just that when he was walking by the swamp, he tripped over a tree root and fell, and his hand was cut. I bandaged him."

"Have you encountered... a dense fog?" The shopkeeper dipped a little bit of the pus-green vomit from Xu Hanke's mouth with his fingers, put it in front of his nose and smelled it.

Liu Sheng was stunned, "How do you know?"

"I know what this is." The shopkeeper sighed, shook his head and said, "It's a parasite."