Chapter 186: How to Catch Ghosts

The words of thanks were light and the person who said them was sincere. He was not as cold and distant as usual, but calm and composed.

Lu Tong's eyes moved.

A few days ago, she used the grace of saving her life in the execution ground of Southern Jiangsu to ask Pei Yunying to do her a favor.

She asked Pei Yunying to draw a picture of eyebrows and set it in Fengle Building.

Fengle Building in Yanzhi Hutong is the favorite place for wealthy merchants in Shengjing to linger, listen to operas, drink, rest, buy pleasure...

My sister was killed here because of Ke Chengxing's mistake.

Pei Yunying agreed to this matter and even did more. His men were well-versed and lived up to expectations. He soon figured out the layout of Fengle Building. The top row of attics was specially prepared for distinguished guests in Fengle Building. They were "fat sheep" with a certain status and different from ordinary wealthy merchants.

Qi Yutai has always lived in "Qingzhe".

He was generous, and the shopkeeper was willing to keep this upper room for him. When Lu Rou got into trouble, the servants of the Qi family who came after hearing the news helped Qi Yutai to smooth things over, and the shopkeeper had a glimpse of his extraordinary status.

In fact, from beginning to end, there was no such guest who "fought for the room", and the owner of Fenglelou never lent Jingzhe to another person for money.

However, just a few days before Qi Yutai got into trouble, the owner of Fenglelou had something to do in his hometown and temporarily returned to his hometown, leaving the restaurant to his cousin. There are many loopholes in this.

First, pretend that the guest quarreled with Qi Yutai, causing Qi Yutai, who had just taken the powder, to have blood and qi surge. The sachet worn by the "guest" contained medicinal materials, which intensified the evil wind entering the blood.

The oil lamp that the "singer" overturned casually ignited a fire, burning the scroll in the room, but revealing the painting under the scroll, which was the painting that Lu Tong specially prepared for Qi Yutai, and it was also the last medicine for his "shock and madness".

Although Fengle Tower is not as well guarded as Yuxian Tower, Pei Yunying has helped a lot in arranging it to this point. His men are more powerful than Lu Tong imagined, and even gave Lu Tong an illusion that this man's words at the time that he could help her kill Qi Yutai might not be a joke.

However, the matter has passed, and there is no reason to regret it.

Lu Tong thought about it, stretched out his hand to open the bag hanging on his waist, and took out a small, pink porcelain jar from it and handed it to Pei Yunying.

Pei Yunying was surprised: "What is this?"

"Jin Xianrong's maintenance medicine, I also prepared a dose for Lord Pei."

Pei Yunying: "..."

Seeing him silent, Lu Tong rarely took the initiative to explain: "This fire was thanks to Lord Pei's help. I thought about it, after all, the meeting between Su Nan and me happened many years ago."

"This is my thank you gift to Lord Pei."

Pei Yunying had no expression on his face: "Take it."

"Your Excellency might as well accept it." Lu Tong said seriously, "I changed the recipe. Before, after the Huangmaogang hunting ground, the palace commander had someone send the prey, and I took the deer blood from it. Deer blood is hot in nature, warms the kidneys and replenishes yang, nourishes blood and improves essence, and is a tonic for kidney yang deficiency. It is best used as medicine."

"The Imperial Pharmacy can't make a second bottle."

She said it seriously, as if this was really an expensive thank you gift, and he would be a fool without vision if he didn't accept it.

Pei Yunying didn't get angry but laughed.

He said coldly: "If you push this thing to me again, I will have people spread rumors in the imperial city tomorrow, saying that I am your fiancé."

Lu Tong: "..."

She quietly put away the medicine jar.

This person is ungrateful.

And shameless.

The atmosphere in the room was cold for a moment. As if sensing her complaints, Pei Yunying coughed lightly, glanced at her, and said: "But how did you think of mixing cinnabar with those medicine juices?"

The "eyebrow painting" in the "Jingzhe" room of Fengle Tower was made by Pei Yunying at Lu Tong's request.

The thunder painting is an ordinary silk painting, but the "eyebrow painting" under the thunder painting is made of materials that are definitely not ordinary.

The silk scroll was soaked in the medicine juice made by Lu Tong in advance with red fragrant cotton. With the fire, the fragrance in the painting is so fragrant that it makes people hallucinate.

The pigments used to depict the lines were mixed by Lu Tong himself. Stone snake skin, mica, smoke glue, blue water, insect wax... Various medicinal materials were refined by special methods, mixed with cinnabar, and painted into the picture. The color disappeared after half an hour. However, once a fire broke out, the cinnabar regained its color.

Lu Tong asked Pei Yunying to use this material to paint the seven orifices of the characters in the painting.

The fire gradually became fiercer and burned the thunder picture. The "pond spring grass dream" in Sili Mansion had been invading Qi Yutai for a long time without knowing it. His epilepsy was on the verge of the edge, and he only needed the last medicine.

Qi Yutai had just taken the powder and smelled the incense. His blood and qi were combined, and the qi was combined with the yang. Suddenly seeing this eyebrow painting, it brought back the past. When he saw the seven orifices of the person in the painting bleeding again, he must have felt guilty and stopped drinking water, and his qi was flowing, and he was in a trance.

She had read Qi Yutai's medical records. Although the real situation was covered up, she could still clearly see that after the case of Mr. Yang in Mangming Township, Qi Yutai was bedridden for a long time. And then all the birds were driven away from the Taishi Mansion.

The first time he was frightened by external objects, he could still suppress it, but the second time must be much more serious.

After that, the fire in Fengle Building continued to burn. The fire started from the top pavilion. The eyebrow painting was burned by the fire, leaving no trace. Even if someone later suspected it, they would go to the attic again, and there would be no clues in the ruins after the fire.

They would only think that it was the Taishi son who took too much Hanshi powder and was talking nonsense in a trance.

"It's really seamless." A voice of praise came from his ears, and Pei Yunying tilted his head, "But this method is new, how did you know it?"

This method of pigment transformation is not taught in medical classics and pharmacology.

Lu Tong was stunned for a moment.

She lowered her head and took a sip of the white lotus dew in front of her. The dew was cold, and the sweetness seemed slightly bland, even a little bitter.

"My father told me."

Pei Yunying was slightly startled.

As if for the sake of beauty, the sweet syrup vendor put two broken lotus petals in the bamboo cup. The pink and white broken flowers floated in the clear syrupy water, rising and falling, like a boat illuminated by the moonlight in a lotus pond on a summer night.

Lu Chen was in a daze for a moment.

It seemed like someone was calling her from behind: "Girl, Zhuo, slow down!"

She was jumping in front of her, and when she turned around, she saw her mother pulling Lu Rou and calling her from behind. Lu Qian and his father were walking behind, each holding several tubes of sweet syrup.

"Hurry up!" she complained, "I won't be able to catch up with the water play later——"

Every year around the summer solstice in Changwu County, people will set up a stage by the small river in the county to sing water plays.

At this time, people from every household in the city take ferries to go to the river to watch the show.

Children don't like to listen to some of the most famous plays of the class club. Talking about love, hatred, promotion and wealth, loyalty, filial piety, etiquette and justice are all big words, but they sound distant and boring.

The most popular ones are ghost plays. For example, a child in Zhangjiazhai died unjustly today and will turn into a ghost to seek revenge tomorrow. The statue of the God of Wealth in the Li family temple will turn into an old woman at night and eat the hearts of wealthy people. The ghost in the new tomb on the mountain next door Every night the bride would pick a passing man to come over to get married... The children screamed in fright while listening with great interest.

Lu Chen also loved to hear the story about "the headless ghost's revenge and death".

One year, Banshe came to court with great effort and changed the play of "Headless Ghost".

The lanterns on the stage were dim, only the actors' costumes painted with oil were bright. The red lantern shone slightly in front of the paper door, and a big white face with bleeding from all its orifices suddenly appeared on the wall.

"Wow——" sound.

Lu Jing's loud cry startled all the egrets in the lotus pond.

That year, many children watching the theater in Changwu County were frightened and cried, and Lu Chen got fever when he returned home. The neighbor's aunt Fei said that she was entangled in dirty things and wanted to go to the mountain to ask an aunt to call out the ghost.

Lu Rou and Lu Qian sat in front of her bed, looking at her worriedly.

She was wrapped in a blanket and huddled at the foot of the bed. She felt that such a white face would appear at any time in the tent, in front of the cupboard door, or under the table, and she did not dare to close her eyes for a moment.

However, in just two days, the originally round face also looked two points thinner.

Her father walked in from the door and taught her to put on her clothes and get out of bed.

She refused.

"Get up." Father said, "I'll teach you how to catch ghosts."

Ghost hunting?

After all, her curiosity about catching ghosts was greater than that of lying in bed. She shuffled out of bed and walked to her father. His father sat her down at the table covered with paper and handed her a paint-stained pencil. Pen.

The pigment is like cinnabar, but it is different from ordinary cinnabar. The texture is too sticky.

Her father asked her to write a word.

Lu Yan drew a "ghost" with a flying phoenix and a dancing dragon.

The vermilion handwriting was scrawled like a painting, and it was difficult to tell whether it was a character or a symbol. My father held his forehead and sighed.

Lu Zhuo was baffled.

She sat blankly for a moment, and was about to ask where the ghost hunter was going to catch it, when she saw the red writing on the white paper gradually fading away, as if an invisible person was standing next to her, quietly erasing the writing with a cloth.

Lu Zhuo jumped up in shock: "There's a ghost!"

But her father pressed her shoulders and asked her to sit down again.

He picked up the oil lamp on the table and burned it gently on the white paper that had faded into nothingness, and the handwriting that had just disappeared reappeared.

"This is..." Lu Chen was stunned.

"My father asked the class leader, using stone snake slough, mica, tobacco gum, blue water, insect white wax... Various medicinal materials were refined through special methods, mixed with cinnabar, and painted into the picture. Half an hour later, The color disappears immediately. However, when exposed to fire, the color of the cinnabar reappears.”

"The silk cloth on the stage had already been painted with people's faces in advance. In the middle of the play, the young man lit it with a torch, and the cloth showed its own color."

Her father stood in front of the table, looked at her and sighed: "Girl, there are no ghosts in the world."

As a young girl, she knew everything and felt a little relieved, but when she recalled the pale white face on the cloth, she still felt frightened and hesitated to question: "Everything is different, we just haven't seen it, so what if there is one?" Woolen cloth?"

The father was speechless for a moment.

After a while, he said: "There's no need to be afraid."

Lu Chen blinked.

"There is a cloud in the book. The teacher said: Don't be afraid of ghosts, but fight them. If you win the battle, Gujia will lose. I am just like him."

He stroked his beard: "This is the way to catch ghosts that your father taught you."

Don't be afraid of the devil, but fight it.

This "way to catch ghosts" was often recalled by her later in Luomei Peak. Every time she looked for a dead body in a graveyard, she would tell herself, "People are ghosts who are not dead, and ghosts are dead people." There is no need to worry.

And in this world, there are many people who are far more vicious and cruel than ghosts.

But I would like to accept the word "fight".

The lights were dim, a strong wind blew by, and the branches in front of the door were beaten so hard that they "crackled" in front of the wooden window.

Lu Yan came back to his senses, took a sip of white lotus dew, lowered his head and said, "My father learned this recipe from the class club, and I later used it to cheat on my homework for the school exam at home."

Pei Yunying looked strange: "Cheating?"

"good."

She didn't have to go to school in a neighboring county like Lu Qian, but she still didn't miss out on her homework, and her father had to take exams at home every six months.

That was her nightmare.

She cleverly thought of using her father's "ghost-catching method" to write the silent poems on white paper with cinnabar mixed with medicinal materials, but she was discovered before she could light the fire. After all, lighting a lamp in the daytime was a bit too much. Too much.

Father scolded her.

"What kind of person is it to be so sneaky all day long! Where's the ruler? Who hid my ruler!"

Lu Qian had already run half a mile away with the ruler in his arms. Lu Rou came to persuade him, but was pushed out of the door by his father with a sullen face.

"Don't be a bad person since childhood. It's too late to regret after spilling the water! Just indulge her."

He scolded her again: "I taught you the method of paint, not for you to use it in such a crooked way!"

Thinking about it, Lu Tong laughed out loud.

Father always put morality first. When she was young, she just wanted to write it down secretly to cope with homework, and was regarded as "evil way". But now, she used this "ghost catching method" to design a fire and frame someone, and even more than that. Before that, she had killed people and buried bodies. She did whatever it took to achieve her goal...

The smile on her face gradually faded. Lu Tong was quiet for a while and said: "He must be very disappointed in me."

She grew up to be the person her father least wanted her to be.

It was dark all around, with only the sound of the wind outside the window.

"I think he would be proud of you."

In the silence, someone suddenly spoke.

Lu Tong raised her eyes.

"A man went to Shengjing alone to avenge his family, killed three enemies and escaped unscathed, and the last one is coming soon. If I have such a daughter in the future, I will be very proud."

He said casually, as if he didn't mean it.

There was a faint cold and fragrant scent in the air, and the flames illuminated the handsome and sharp eyebrows of the person in front of him. It was obvious that a heavy rain was coming, but because of this soft and warm color, there was some beauty in such a beautiful scene.

He looked at Lu Tong and smiled and said, "If your father knew what you are doing now, he would only feel distressed."

Lu Tong's heart trembled.

She had been away from home for too long, and she no longer dared to expect tolerance and pampering as before, let alone heartache.

Lu Tong put away her thoughts, "'If I have a daughter like this in the future...'" She imitated Pei Yunying's words and frowned, "Is the commander taking advantage of me?"

He was stunned, then laughed: "I'm comforting you."

"I'm not depressed, why do I need comfort?"

Pei Yunying stared at her.

Lu Tong sat under the dim light, her expression was normal, her tone was calm, as if the loss that just flashed across her eyes was an illusion.

He lowered his head and smiled, and didn't continue this topic, and turned to talk about another thing.

"Although Qi Yutai is temporarily insane now, Cui Min will treat him and he may regain consciousness in the future."

"Once he regains consciousness, Qi Yutai will say that he had fought with guests for the upper room on the night of the fire in Fengle Tower, and his lie will be exposed immediately."

"Qi Qing, that old fox, may not be unaware of the strangeness."

"Doctor Lu," he said, "Aren't you afraid that he will tell Qi Qing the clues?"

With the Qi family's caution, even if they can't find the "eyebrow painting", it doesn't mean they won't be suspicious. Once they are suspicious, excluding all enemies, the matter of the Lu family in Changwu County may be put in front of the Qi family again.

The lights were silent.

After a long time, Lu Tong smiled slightly.

"Don't be afraid."

Her eyes were unusually bright under the lights, and she spoke calmly.

"Who would believe a madman's words?"

She sarcastically said, "I'm afraid even his father wouldn't believe his son."

...

"Crackle--"

Bean-sized raindrops fell from the sky. Lu Tong had just returned to the dormitory when it started to rain in the yard.

The rain still carried the heat of summer. Lu Tong put the oil lamp on the table. Lin Danqing was leaning over to close the wooden window by the table. Finally, she pushed it hard with her palm.

Lu Tong asked: "Why is it closed so tightly?"

The dormitory was separated by men and women. It was hot in summer, so there would always be some gaps for ventilation at night.

Lin Danqing climbed back on the couch, took out the book under the pillow and read it aloud to her: "Look, it says here: Men who have always had an affair and women who support men can all fly, and they don't need to go in and out through the door."

"There are also young and energetic new medical officers. What if one night they are horny and touch the wrong room? Wouldn't it be embarrassing? It's better to be careful."

Lu Tong: "..."

"It makes sense," she turned her head and asked Lu Tong: "Isn't it, sister Lu?"

Lu Tong avoided her gaze and said calmly: "...Yes."

...

The rain fell continuously, washing the ground in the yard clean.

Pei Yunying returned to the mansion and put away his umbrella at the door.

The huge mansion was empty. There was a bunch of roses in the vase in the hall. Pei Yunshu came to put it for him during the day.

He was in the Palace Marshal's Mansion most of the time. When he was not in the Palace Marshal's Mansion, he stayed in the palace. This mansion was often empty. However, since Pei Yunshu and her daughter moved next door, they came back more often.

The maids in the mansion would come to sweep during the day and go home at night. He didn't like to be served, and there were only a few trusted guards in the mansion. He would not show up when there was nothing to do.

Pei Yunying lit the lamp and walked into the study.

The study was still the same as when he left. The wood blocks on the low table were messy, and a few pieces of drawing paper were scattered in front of the desk. There were wolf hair hanging on the pen holder. Several of them were brand new. They were newly bought and had not been used many times.

He sat down at the table and put away the papers that were blown by the wind. His movements gradually slowed down.

The eyebrow painting with special pigments on the top floor of Fengle Building was made by him personally.

Lu Tong asked him to paint this picture because he knew that he was good at painting. If he gave it to other painters in Shengjing, he was always afraid that others would leak the secret.

In fact, he had not mentioned the paintbrush since his mother passed away. He should have refused, but for some reason, he accepted her proposal.

Pei Yunying shook his head and smiled helplessly.

Lu Tong said that if her father were still alive, he would be very disappointed to know that she was now using the method of revenge in the past.

What about him?

If his mother knew that the calligraphy and painting she taught him to read "There are eight styles in all paintings: ancient and moist, water is clean and bright, mountains should be majestic, springs should be free and easy, clouds and mist appear and disappear, wild paths are winding, pines are like dragons and snakes, and bamboos are hidden in the wind and rain at night", and finally painted on the walls of the flower house and red square to pretend to be ghosts, I wonder what she would think.

He shouldn't be disappointed, right?

He leaned back and stared at the wolf hair on the pen in the dim light. I don't know what he thought of, and a trace of self-mockery flashed in his eyes.

After all...

This can be regarded as getting rid of harm for the people.

"Don't be afraid of ghosts, just fight them..." "People are ghosts who have not yet died..." - "Zi Bu Yu"

"There are eight categories in every painting..." - "Complete Collection of Shanshui Chun"

"The man who has always had an affair..." - "Silent Drama"