Merchant of the Underworld

Secretary Dakang held a mountain-climbing hat, a raincoat, and a walking stick in his left hand. He said that it was inconvenient to go up the mountain wearing a raincoat because it blocked the view and could easily lead to accidents.

What I held in my right hand surprised me. It turned out to be an express package. Secretary Dakang said it was sent to the village office in the morning, and my name was written on it.

I held the express and turned it over and over, this is so strange!

I just arrived here yesterday. Who would send a package here without anyone notifying me? Moreover, the sender's name was not written on it, only a Guangdong postmark was stamped. I couldn't remember any acquaintances in Guangdong for a while.

Oyu said excitedly: "Let me tear it apart! Let me tear it apart!"

Oyu usually has two hobbies, unpacking express delivery and playing with bubble wrap, so I let her do it for her.

She tore open the package and stuffed some plastic foam inside. She took out the innermost thing, screamed suddenly, covered her hands and stepped away a few meters, tears welling up in her eyes.

I asked her what was wrong and she said: "Bad brother, someone wants to harm you!"

I was suspicious for a while, and saw a token falling on the ground. I weighed it in my hand. The token was ten centimeters long, thick at the top and thin at the bottom. It looked like it was carved from fine cypress wood. There were some incomprehensible symbols drawn on it with cinnabar, and there was also a ferocious ghost head. Although it was said to be a Taoist tool, I didn't recognize it.

Oyu asked in surprise: "Is it okay for you to hold it in your hand? I just felt like I was pricked by a needle."

"It's okay." I said.

There is no yin energy on the token, but an extremely strong yang energy. No wonder Oudama cannot touch it. I feel like this is a magic weapon. I don’t know which colleague gave it to me. Why don’t you write instructions for use?

After breakfast, I prepared to go up the mountain with Secretary Dakang. The mountain road was muddy and very difficult to walk. Wearing a coir raincoat and a cane reminded me of Su Dongpo's poem: "The bamboo stick and mango shoes are easier than the horse. Who is afraid?" He chanted it casually.

Oyu continued: "No internet, no sex, no TV, boring." I glared at her, how could I tell the truth.

I asked Secretary Dakang, what strange things happened in the village before the evil rain started? For example, you accidentally dug up something, or offended someone.

Secretary Dakang thought for a while and said: "The people in our village are all honest and honest, and they have never done anything harmful to nature."

I asked again: "Have any large tombs been excavated in the village?"

"No, that is, in the 1990s, several leaders came over to inspect the Black Dragon Temple and said that they wanted to apply for a world cultural heritage. Our village is very proud!" Secretary Dakang said.

I think he didn't lie to me. There is this Black Dragon Temple on the mountain, and there is no way there is a big tomb in the mountain.

Because there was a saying in ancient times that people were tired of winning, it was taboo to have other tombs or temples on top of large tombs, which was equivalent to suppressing the feng shui of the clan. Only when some conquerors dealt with the conquered would they deliberately build tombs and temples on their tombs.

There are temples on the tops of all famous mountains in China. If you open a map of China and take a look, you will find that all the mountains are connected, showing three large dragon veins from west to east. The temples on the famous mountains seem to suppress these three dragons.

The thoughts of the ancients are very mysterious and interesting, but there is also a certain truth in them.

Two hours later, we reached the top of the mountain. There was a small temple hidden among the trees, which enshrined a statue of a man with dark and red skin. This man is wearing an aqua blue robe and a crown worn by ancient emperors. If you look closely, you will find that there is a layer of thin fish scales on the man's arms and neck.

Legend has it that the bald-tailed Lao Li is three-quarters like a fish and seven-quarters like a human being, so all his statues in the temple look like this.

There are a pair of boys and girls standing on the left and right sides of the statue. There are some offerings on the table in front, such as soju, steamed buns, fruits and so on.

The whole temple is dedicated to such a great god, and the temple feels quite new. Secretary Dakang said that the original Black Dragon Temple was destroyed by a group of Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution, and it was rebuilt later.

This temple does not hold temple celebrations, and it usually relies on donations from villagers to maintain it.

I noticed that the offerings on the table were still fresh and there were some incense ashes accumulated in the incense burner, so I asked Secretary Dakang: "How is the incense here?"

"I'm not afraid of your jokes. The village now uses water for irrigation. It's not like relying on God in the past. Who will come to pray for rain? No one has come to this temple for a long time. That is, it always rains during this period, so everyone goes up the mountain. I have worshiped several times, but this is an offering that was only made two days ago.”

He added: "When my grandfather was alive, he often said that every spring there used to be temple fairs, dragon dances, and prayers for rain. It was very lively. Master Heilong was the protector of the village. Everyone loved him. He also looked after the village. Good weather and good weather every year, blessing the land and water. Now everyone has forgotten about him, and he will return to heaven and no longer care about the village. My grandfather sheds tears every time he talks. This natural disaster is retribution, retribution! "

"What retribution?" I asked.

Secretary Dakang hurriedly explained: "Mr. Zhang, don't get me wrong. I said that when the Red Guards broke the four olds and came to destroy the temple, we didn't stop them. That's why Mr. Black Dragon was angry."

But I don’t think so. What happened over forty years ago is only being punished today. Isn’t it a bit unreasonable?

After repeated questioning, Secretary Dakang told a story from the past.

In those days, there was a temple blessing in the Black Dragon Temple. Bald-tailed Lao Li was nominally a Taoist deity, but among the people, there was not much emphasis on it, so the temple blessing allowed him to get married and have children. This family has been engaged in the profession of temple blessing for generations. Naturally, they also have the surname Li. In order to distinguish themselves from other families in the village, they are called: the Black Dragon Li family.

The Black Dragon Li family claims to be the descendants of the Black Dragon King and can communicate with the Black Dragon Master. No matter how turbulent the times, no matter how poor the family situation, this family will never move or allow their children to separate. They will always be a big family in the village.

The Heilong Li family is a bit weird. Their daughters-in-law give birth to their babies in the river. The babies will swim up on their own, and the daughters-in-law will not suffer from maternal diseases due to cold water. Moreover, it is said that their family does not eat cooked food, but only eats raw fish and shrimp every meal. They never participate in the village's operas and banquets, and no one else goes to their family's weddings and weddings. Who can get used to their food?

Over time, the Black Dragon Li family has become extremely mysterious, and has become somewhat alienated from other villagers.

But I have to say that this family is indeed a bit virtuous, and their family is responsible for praying for wind and rain every year. Secretary Dakang's grandfather once witnessed the Black Dragon Li family praying for rain. It was said to be very effective. After performing a Dragon King Dance to pray for rain, it started to rain immediately. The farmers kneeling on the ground were so excited that they thanked Master Heilong to the sky. , that scene is so spectacular!

The legendary ceremony hosted by the Black Dragon Li family lasted until the 1960s and 1970s after liberation. In the past, the weather in the big village was good every year, and the harvest was better than other villages. Girls from all over the country were willing to marry into the big village, and the boys from the big village were not willing to go out. Do the work.

Therefore, the village at that time could be said to be prosperous!