When the Great Dao Dies, I Remain; When Spiritual Energy Withers, I Endure

After a heavy rain, there is an earthy fragrance in the air.

There was a swordsman walking on the mountain road. For the first time, he was not greedy for the wine in his waist. He probably drank all the wine.

This time, the swordsman did not walk alone. He was followed by four men, all young men, wearing gray-blue official hats and holding three-foot-long round sticks.

This stick is made of solid wood, flexible and heavy, and has a copper ring inlaid at the end.

They had just killed a tiger and were about to carry it back when the swordsman happened to pass by, so they called him for help and came over to help.

Of course, the help is not free, just treat him to a drink when he gets back.

The big tiger is very heavy, and it cannot be carried by only four men. One more person will increase the strength. The swordsman thought that he could have free wine and food, so he rolled up his sleeves and got started happily.

The journey is long and difficult to walk through mountain passes and mountains, and carrying such a huge thing on your back is an unforgettable experience.

But the road is not boring.

The four men regarded each other as brothers, and they chatted with each other.

The tallest and strongest man among them is planning to ask for a wife this year, and his brothers are all congratulating him. At this juncture, he killed such a big tiger. Once the reputation spreads, even the rich lady can marry him.

The man felt shy and smiled shyly.

Later, someone else joked, saying that you should be more careful. The mother-in-law you marry is the incarnation of the tiger, and she has turned into a mother-in-law to seek revenge on you. Just now, you kid gave it a blow on the head and sent it to hell. , designated to remember you.

Hearing this, everyone laughed. If he really married a tigress, it would be a sure thing. He would inevitably be laughed at by his brothers in the future.

Li Changxiao found it interesting and laughed too. This smile attracted the attention of the four people, so they changed the focus.

The leanest one among the four asked Li Changxiao out of curiosity, saying that he didn't look like a Linwu person, so how could he be here?

Before Li Changxiao could answer, the tall and strong man suddenly said in realization, "I know, brother, you are a wanderer."

The four of them were curious about the swordsman they happened to meet on the road. The key was that they had never seen such a person before, and he looked strangely good-looking.

As they walked, the four of them chatted for a long time, bragging and spanking. When they climbed over a hill and saw the edge of the county seat from a distance, the four of them breathed a sigh of relief.

Finally, at this moment, I couldn't help but complain. This evil beast must have eaten a lot of people, otherwise how could it be so heavy.

Linwu County is surrounded by mountains and tigers are rampant. It is said that one mountain cannot tolerate two tigers, but this saying does not apply here.

In the past, the situation would have been better. The government would invite some Jianghu sects to hunt tigers every April and November.

The world is in chaos now, and we can’t control it anymore.

Seeing that there was still a long way to go and it was already dark, the four of them decided to spend the night here. The swordsman accompanying them naturally followed the local customs.

The five grown men didn't have much to pay attention to. The swordsman had put in a lot of effort during the day, so naturally they couldn't let him go hungry. The four of them tore off a corner of the rough cakes they had brought with them and handed them to the swordsman.

The older man among the four smiled and apologized, saying that he would treat them to nice wine and food when they got to town.

The swordsman was so easy-going that he didn't mind. He took the coarse cakes and just sprinkled them with coarse salt.

A man stopped him and took out a pack of shriveled sauerkraut from his arms, saying that it tastes best just as it is.

Someone's eyes rolled around and he had the idea of ​​​​a tiger. He wanted to ask the swordsman to borrow his sword and cut off a piece of meat to taste.

The aroma of barbecue wafts.

The five of them sat around the campfire until late at night.

What surprised Li Changxiao was that the four men who dared to go up the mountain to hunt tigers suddenly erected a small mound on the side of the road late at night, burned three sticks of incense on it, and knelt down to pray.

Li Changxiao asked curiously: "Brother, what are you worshiping?"

The tallest man explained: "Of course we worship the land here. This is our custom here. When we go out, we pray for the protection of the land lord."

"Not only that, when we return to the county and everything is stable, we will go to the Earth Temple in the next mountain to worship again. This trip will be considered a complete and complete journey."

"Tu Tu Temple?" Li Changxiao frowned, "Is this temple spiritual?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the four of them immediately became interested, "Nature is so clever that it couldn't be more clever."

"If anyone disrespects the land master, look...the belly of this mountain tiger will be his final destination."

"Brother, you are from outside, so you don't know, but you have to remember one thing. In Linwu County, even the emperor dares to scold him, but he dare not scold the land lord."

…

At noon on the second day.

Five people carried the killed tiger and walked into Linwu County in a swaggering manner.

This is a county town surrounded by mountains.

The population is quite large, but because of the remoteness of the terrain, conscription did not reach this area.

The reputation of killing the big tiger spread out all at once, and when they heard that some of them had wives and concubines, countless women were moved.

Such a reliable man would be a good person to marry.

The names of the four people were quickly recorded in the county annals, and they became famous figures in Linwu County.

It can be said that the scenery is infinite.

That night.

The four of them hosted a banquet for the swordsman they met on the way, and went to the most famous restaurant in the county to eat whatever they wanted.

If you rely on the mountains to eat the mountains, if you rely on the sea to eat the sea, the local delicacies in Linwu County are mostly mountain delicacies.

The ingredients are bugs, pangolins, wild boars...etc.

The dishes were served one by one, and the four people ordered another can of good wine, shouting that they would not leave until they were drunk today.

I thought it was just an ordinary banquet.

But while they were eating, the county magistrate came and expressed his praise for this ambitious young man.

He also told the five people a piece of news.

This afternoon, the county magistrate cut open the tiger's body, intending to remove its bones, peel its skin, and drain its blood.

But when the stomach was opened, the scene inside scared everyone present and made them pale.

I saw a pile of undigested meat and some clothing scraps in the tiger's stomach...

The sour and rotten smell, even if I think of it now, my stomach still churns.

At that time, the county magistrate pinched his nose and ordered people to turn over the meat inside, maybe they could find something useful.

In the end, he really found a few broken fingers.

It was a pair of men and women.

In addition, there was a broken jade pendant...

Then, the county magistrate frowned and invited Mr. Zhou from the county to come and authenticate.

Mr. Zhou burst into tears on the spot.

The woman in the tiger's belly was his daughter, and the man was his daughter's lover, a poor scholar.

The play was about the fathers breaking up a couple and the couple eloped far away, but who would have thought that the couple was eaten by the tiger before they went far away.

He didn't care what happened to the poor scholar, but he saw that the woman he loved turned into minced meat in his belly, and the sound of "Daddy" was still ringing in his ears, how could he not be sad?

At the beginning, it was Mr. Zhou who loved his daughter so much that he reported to the officials and paid a high price, which led to the reason for the tiger-hunting team to go up the mountain to hunt tigers.