Nightmare Apostle

The remaining 10 people in the hall were dressed in different clothes, obviously representing different identities. After a while, the door opened. Manager Wu looked at them for a moment, nodded slightly, and reminded at the same time: "Everyone, I will take you to see the owner of my village. Remember. Don’t ask about your identities if you shouldn’t.

Don't say what you shouldn't say. After the matter is completed, the benefits promised to you will not be less. "

After saying that, everyone followed Manager Wu and his entourage and walked out. However, Yang Xiao noticed that one of the servants did not follow him. Instead, he stood outside the attic door holding a red lantern with the word "longevity" until Yang Xiao and the others walked out. At the courtyard gate, the figure disappeared.

"Everyone, there are some things that the owner of my village cannot tell you. Let me tell you the ugly things first. Our Fushou Village is not a small family.

You have meritorious service, and there are many rules here. Since you are here, you must abide by the rules here, do you understand? "Steward Wu folded his hands in his cuffs, straightened his waist, and looked proud.

This face is really annoying, but people have to bow their heads under the eaves, and everyone can only respond, saying that they must be a responsible and well-behaved person.

The courtyards here are one inside another, much larger than Yang Xiao expected, and the decoration is also quite gorgeous, not only gorgeous,

Instead, they were imposing and full of nobility. Yang Xiao judged that this family was by no means an ordinary rich man or businessman, but someone with an official position. It seemed that they were not ordinary petty officials.

Soon after, they came to a large courtyard, which should be the core area of ​​the entire Fushou Village. The walls of the courtyard were much higher than the walls along the way.

At this moment, the courtyard was shrouded in a dark red light, which was hung under the treetops on the eaves. There were red lanterns one after another. But looking from a distance, instead of being festive, it was filled with an inexplicable atmosphere. weird.

As soon as he stepped into the courtyard, a group of people came out and gathered around a sedan. Seeing this, Manager Wu explained: "This is the owner of my village. The owner suddenly felt cold today and cannot see guests. You guys can talk to each other across the sedan." Just fine.”

Soon, the sedan arrived in front of everyone, because Yang Xiao and others were filial guests, and filial guests who changed into clothes were not polite, except for today's birthday girl.

Separated by a thick curtain, Yang Xiao and others could only vaguely see a figure sitting in the sedan through the light reflected by the lantern.

"Master, they are here." Manager Wu came to the window on the side of the sedan and said respectfully through the curtain.

"Everyone, today... today you are helping our Fushou Village. This feeling... we... we will never forget, ahem... ahem...:

?

He spoke intermittently, and ended up coughing violently. This was not like Manager Wu's downplaying of a cold syndrome.

It seemed that the oil was running out. Suddenly, a bold guess came to Yang Xiao's mind. Could it be that...the person who celebrated his birthday today was not an ancestor, but the owner of the village in the sedan chair?

Although it is not as formal as salute, the basic respect and inferiority must still be maintained. People like Yang Xiao lowered their heads one after another and only used their peripheral vision to look at the owner of the village in the sedan. With the sound of coughing, the figure in the sedan kept shaking. At this moment, Yang Xiao paid attention The person in the sedan looked like a thin old man, but the strange thing was that the old man's head was surprisingly big, obviously out of proportion to his body. It felt like he had taken someone else's head and put it on his neck. superior.

However, as the observation deepened, Yang Xiao found that this was not the case. Something strange appeared on the old man's face. His face... .Appears to be wearing a mask.

"Cough...cough..." After a violent cough, the old man finally calmed down and said feebly: "Let Manager Wu explain the rest. I only want to say one thing, today is a big day for our village. , you must obey the rules in front of our ancestors.”

After pausing for a few seconds, the owner of the village let out a cry that sounded like a dying person. Hearing this, Yang Xiao and the others were very worried about him. They were not worried about the owner's health, but they were worried about the owner's health at this juncture. If he dies suddenly, they cannot escape the blame. They might blame outsiders like them for the village owner's death, saying that they were responsible for his death.

Fortunately, after a moment of relief, the village owner finally took a breath and said intermittently: "There is...there is one more thing you must remember.

Ancestors have a rare destiny, and it is like this... If you don't guarantee such a blessed and long life, you will cause some trouble... The village has been prepared for some evil spirits. Don't worry about this... After the birthday celebrations begin, no matter what happens, you... don't be afraid. Don't be chaotic. Chaos will lead to change. . "

"Follow the rules, follow the rules, and make sure everything is safe. Our ancestors will also... bless us."

Originally, they agreed to just say one sentence, but the village owner finally said so much, but Yang Xiao's thoughts only stayed in one place.

Evil ticket... .

Sure enough, it is not that simple in this longevity village. Birthday celebrations for the elderly are a great joy. The ancients also generally regard long-lived elderly people as a good omen, and some evil spirits will also keep an eye on the birthdays of these elderly people and use the longevity energy of the elderly to save themselves from disasters. .

Generally speaking, the age of seventy is considered auspicious, and the age of 80 to 90 is considered auspicious.

After 90 years of age, or even reaching the age of 100, many local parents and officials will come to the scene in person, or prepare a gift to send over, one for congratulations, and the other for the same purpose. Feeling joyful.

As for the tea life beyond that, which is 108 years old, once someone can live to this age, then according to folklore, this person must have done more good deeds and accumulated enough money in this life, or even in the previous life. Merit, this is how God favors you. No one is perfect, but this person is close to perfection. Therefore, tea longevity is also called perfect longevity and perfect human longevity.

Of course, there is no clear record of the above statement, and this 141-year-old is unheard of by Yang Xiao and others. Not to mention the ancient times when medical and sanitation conditions were rudimentary, even modern people have not heard of anyone who can live to this age. of this age.

If calculated according to the luck of happiness and longevity, the ancestor of Fushou Village is considered to be full, and this is what Yang Xiao is most worried about. This extraordinary luck may attract some evil things, and maybe there will be something evil in Fushou Village. There is a catastrophe.

Of course, he didn't really believe that this ancestor could live to such a long age. In his opinion, this was most likely a scam.

While he was still thinking, suddenly, a servant carrying a red lantern hurried in and announced: "The auspicious time is approaching, and there is still a fragrance!"

It took about 15 minutes to half an hour. After hearing this, the people in the courtyard became visibly nervous. Guan Wu had arranged for people to send the owner away. At the same time, the nearby servants also quickly retreated out of the courtyard. This scene can make everyone present. People couldn't stand it anymore, so Lou Huiyang immediately asked: "Manager Wu, this hasn't even started yet, why are everyone leaving?"

"Don't ask what you shouldn't ask. This is a rule." The next second, Manager Wu took out a crumpled piece of paper from his arms. It was khaki and rough in texture, like the kind used for drawing charms, and handed it to Xiang Fengchen, who he considered to be the leader of the group, warned in a hurried tone: "Put this paper away and wait for the sound of the drum. After three drums, you go in immediately. After entering the birthday field, everyone follows the positions marked above. Stand still, don't move around, and don't talk. Our ancestors like to be quiet."

"My ancestors placed four blessing and longevity candles in front of them. The four candles are of different lengths. After the first blessing and longevity candle burns out, you will bow first. After the second blessing and longevity candle burns out, you will bow a second time. And so on. When the four sticks are burned out, you should not get up after prostrating until you hear the sound of hammer banging outside, then get up and exit the way you came. Do you understand?"

"Got it." This is not difficult to understand.

After the explanation, Manager Wu also left. Now they were the only ones left in the huge courtyard. What was disturbing was that after Manager Wu exited, he closed the courtyard door. After a while, there was a "clattering" sound. came from outside the door.

"It's an iron chain." Yuzawa Jun frowned suddenly, and the uneasiness in his heart became more concrete. "Those people locked us in the yard."

"Mr. Xiang, what exactly is the evil spirit they are talking about?" Zhang Songde looked at Xiang Fengchen. The person here who is most likely to know the answer is this person.

Not sure whether he really didn't know or didn't want to tell, Xiang Fengchen tightened his face, shook his head slowly, and whispered: "Take a step and see.

If it is true as they say, then this ancestor's birthday will definitely not be peaceful, so everyone should be careful. "

Opening the yellow paper in his hand, he saw a topographic map drawn with very rough brushstrokes. The position of each person was marked on it, divided into left and right columns. The first person on the left was Nalan Shuo, then Yang Xiao, Gong Banlan, Ark, Lou Huiyang, the one on the right is headed by Zhang Songde,

Then came Xiang Fengchen, Tang Zerun, Jiang Qingluan, and Chang Chuchu.

But strangely, according to the markings on the picture, a line was drawn horizontally between the two rows of people, cutting them off at the waist. Those on the left were Nalan Shuo and Yang Xiao, and those on the right were within the line. It's Zhang Songde and Xiang Fengchen. It feels like they can be closer to their ancestors. This seems to be some kind of honor.

The two columns of people are not completely symmetrical. The right column has one more space than the left column. This is because there is an extra space between Yu Zejun and Jiang Qingluan in the right column. Judging from the size, it is just enough for one more person to stand.

"This position should have belonged to Yuan Ruoqi!" This was something that could be seen through at a glance, Chang Chuchu pointed out immediately.

The next second, a more difficult question emerged. Since Yuan Ruoqi is dead, why is the place of birthday greetings still reserved for her?

Yuze Jun looked a little uneasy, and Jiang Qingluan was also uneasy. After all, Yuan Ruoqi's position was between the two of them. If you think about it to the extreme, leaving the position may mean that Yuan Ruoqi will come back tonight, and together with them, give the ancestors "Chong" longevity.

But Yuan Ruoqi was already dead, and then thinking about what the owner of the village had mentioned, that there might be evil spirits coming to the door tonight, everyone couldn't help but feel a little heavier.

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

Suddenly, several drums sounded in the distance, and this meant that tonight's mission had begun. They had to walk into the lavish mansion in front of them, enter the longevity hall, and "bless" the longevity of their ancestors. According to the initial reception, The leader of the team that entered the village hinted that their ancestor was already at the end of his life.

"Let's line up the queue first." Nalan Shuo gathered everyone and divided them into two teams. He led the team on the left, and Zhang Songde, who put on armor, was on the team on the right. Compared with Nalan Shuo, Zhang Songde's psychological quality was weaker. Three minutes later, from the corners of his tightened mouth, he could see the tension visible to the naked eye.

The building in front of you is not small in scale and looks like an ancestral hall. A double-open wooden door is tightly closed, and a trace of dark red light shines from inside. It is unsettling to look at it.

"Push the door." Nalan Shuo whispered.

The next second, he and Zhang Songde used force at the same time, one to the left and one to the right, to push the door open. The door shaft made a harsh friction sound, as if no one had opened the door for a long time.

As the door was pushed open, the scene inside also came into everyone's eyes. The next second, Xiang Fengchen's pupils shrank sharply. He never thought that there was a different world inside. More than a dozen thick pillars supported the building from the inside. From the angle they stood, every two pillars formed a pair, and a plaque was hung on them. Each pair of plaques formed a birthday couplet.

Normally, this kind of birthday couplet is not a straight pair, and there is no need to carve it on the plaque. Just write it on paper and stick it on. If this can be explained by the wealth of Fushouzhuang, then the next scene shocked Xiang Fengchen, an old man. Because the building was dark and the lighting was insufficient, he could only vaguely see some words on the last few couplets. He not only saw words like sun and moon, but also heaven and earth. You know, there was a saying in ancient times that "the king is like the sun". Words like this are exclusive to the royal family. Using them in this small Fushouzhuang is completely a crime of Yue. If it is really discussed, it will be a death sentence.

This scene made Xiang Fengchen's heart sink to the bottom. This Fushou Manor had such a grand ceremony, and would rather risk the crime of Yue to "rush" the life of his ancestor. This was not the behavior of a simple filial son and grandson. This was very likely to offend people.

No, he was in big trouble. He was entangled by a very vicious evil thing, but he couldn't think of it no matter how hard he tried. What on earth could it be that he had to use such an extraordinary method to suppress it.

Yang Xiao didn't have Xiang Fengchen's knowledge, but he was shocked as soon as he entered the door. Even an outsider could see that the layout here was very unconventional and a little extravagant. What was even more strange was that they had just entered a door, and not far in front of them, there was actually another door, and... The threshold of this door was very high, very high.

It was so high that even with Yang Xiao's long legs, it was a bit difficult to step over it. Yang Xiao's first feeling was that this thing was not prepared for humans, but for ghosts. There is a saying that ghosts cannot bend their knees and cannot pass through high thresholds.

And thinking of the so-called evil tickets before, it is obvious that the owner's family built the threshold for the purpose of preventing the so-called evil tickets from breaking into the longevity hall.

But the next second, after following Nalan Shuo into the threshold, Yang Xiao subconsciously glanced and saw a pair of wet legs standing outside the threshold.