Strange Tale

When Si Ren returned to Yancheng, he went to the church first.Tell Father Martin that he has come back so he doesn't need to run up the mountain again, and the more important thing is to see if Qilin is there.After getting a negative answer, Si Ren was a little impatient.

Qilin has never been away for so long without making a sound. In the past, they really disagreed because of something, and he would be over after a while, and at most he would talk to Si Ren.This time it was obviously a joke, no matter how childish he was, he wouldn't go away for several days for no reason.

Father Martin asked about Long Jiu, and Si Ren said that Long Jiu was fine and had already been picked up by his subordinates.The priest said nothing more.When Qilin disappeared, he was also worried for Si Ren. In his eyes, Qilin was still a child.So when Si Ren said that he would go to the street to look for it, the priest insisted on following him.

At noon, Si Leng and Father Martin met at the agreed place, but both of them got nothing.Si Ren felt dizzy and his legs were weak, and after some calculations, he realized that he hadn't eaten for a whole day and night, and he only ate a steamed bun yesterday.

"Let's find a place to eat first?" Si Ren suggested.

Father Martin agreed, and they went to a restaurant called Shiquan Pavilion.

The restaurant is neither big nor small, with two floors, private rooms on the second floor and scattered seats on the first floor.It was the restaurant, there was a lot of noise upstairs and downstairs, and there were a lot of guests.

Si Ren and Father Martin sat at a table in the corner.A shop assistant came over to pour tea, and Si Ren ordered some vegetarian dishes.The priest didn't like meat at all, and he had a knife, so he only added a tofu soup.

After the man finished his work and left, the two began to chat.After deciding where to go in the afternoon, Father Martin took a sip of tea and hesitated to talk.

"What's wrong?" Si Ren also picked up his teacup and looked at him.

"It's the disappearance of those bodies. Didn't you say you have time to explain to me?"

"Hmm..." Si Ren hesitated, "Do you really want to know?"

Father Martin nodded, "Actually, I understand: I am a Western priest living in a foreign land. I don't understand the doctrines and laws that your Middle-earth sects say, and there are some things I shouldn't ask. But after all, those people are treated by me. Buried. So I don’t care about other things, that is, I can’t just watch their souls rest in peace and ignore them.”

Si Ren smiled, "Father Bodhisattva has a heart."

"You're kidding me again, you believe in Bodhisattvas."

"Hehe, it's all the same, all methods are unified."

"All methods return to one?"

"Well, it's nothing. Let's talk about those corpses. Since you are not taboo, I might as well make it clear. First of all, are you sure they are dead?"

"determine."

"Actually, I saw them the day before yesterday."

"Ah?!" Father Martin stared, "Aren't they dead?!"

"That depends on how you define 'dead'."

"The soul leaves the body and goes to heaven or hell."

"Well, but after our soul leaves the body, we have to go to the underworld first. No matter who it is, as soon as it dies, it will arrive. Do you know what the word 'yin' means?"

"I probably know that it is the angel who came to take the soul away."

"Uh, angel..." Si Ren struggled for a moment, "Well, you can also say that. Anyway, except for a few reasons, the ghosts can't be taken away. Once the other souls leave the body, they have to obediently go to the underworld to report to the underworld. Jurisdiction. Therefore, there are only two situations in which the soul can be controlled by people: one is killed by a Gu, and the other is..."

"Bewitched?"

"Being infected by a Gu is... that is... Anyway, it is somewhat similar to being poisoned. You don't need to know it so clearly. One is being infected by a Gu and dying, and the other is that a person is captured before death. The soul of a living person is the soul of a living person. The people you buried died from trauma, so they were obviously not poisoned. But you said that those people were indeed dead, so it is impossible for them to be captured by others. And those people are almost the same It is impossible for the people who came to bring them to the world to make such a big mistake and leave dozens of people behind. Then there is no doubt that their souls have gone to the underworld. In addition, when I saw those people, although they moved freely, they His mind is dazed, his eyes are dull, and he doesn't seem to know what he is doing. From this, it can be inferred that those corpses are possessed by other spirits, and they are already walking corpses."

After Si Ren finished speaking, Father Martin showed a slightly confused expression.Just when the waiter came over with the food, Si Ban leaned back on the chair and drank a couple of sips of water.

The man walked away, Si Ren asked: "I said so, can you understand?"

"Well... not bad. But when you say that, I think of some demons in our beliefs."

"Oh?"

"For example, vampire zombies, have you heard of them?"

Si Ren nodded, "I've heard of it. Before coming to Yancheng, I heard a case elsewhere, and it seems to be related to vampire zombies."

"Well, it's the same everywhere, where there are angels, there are devils."

It was a serious topic at first, but seeing the chubby Father Martin suddenly getting sad, Si Ren couldn't help laughing, "Uh, I have a question I've been wanting to ask you for a long time."

"Just ask."

"Since you are here to preach and we have frequent contacts, why don't you preach your teachings to me? This is very different from the missionaries I have met before."

Father Martin also smiled, "So that's what I asked. It's very simple. If you were an ordinary person, I would have persuaded you to believe in the Lord. But you are not. I don't have enough knowledge. I don't understand the fields you know well, so I can't answer your question." Doubts can’t listen to your confession, how can you redeem if you can’t wash away your sins? So, I think it’s useless to tell you, but it’s disgusting. It’s better to be friends. I still have this self-knowledge. Hmm ?Am i right?"

"Hahahaha! Yes, you are right. This is why I like you, Father. Well, I won't say more. Eat quickly, I'm starving to death."

Father Martin said that he was also hungry, and the two picked up their chopsticks.But before I had a few mouthfuls, the boy from the restaurant ran over.He asked Si Ren if he was "Mr. Si".Si Ren said yes.He whispered into Si Ren's ear that a guest on the second floor invited him over.Si Ren asked who it was, he said he didn't know.Si Ren thought for a while and told Father Martin to eat first, and then he followed the buddy away.

When I came to the door of a private room on the second floor, the man said.Si Ren knocked on the door twice, and a voice of "Please come in" came from inside.Si Ren pushed the door and went in, and the man closed the door behind him.

"Long Jiu?" Si Ren was stunned.

"Where did you come from, a mountain villager? How dare you call the general directly..."

Long Jiu waved his hands to prevent the people around him from continuing, "Go out first."

The two people next to him left, and Long Jiu pointed to the position opposite him.After sitting down, Si Ren looked at Long Jiu, "You come out to mess around again when you're good?"

Long Jiu didn't take it seriously, "My body is different from yours, good is good, bad is bad. I'm fine now."

"Then what are you doing here? The General's Mansion has no place to take a shower, doesn't it even have a cook?"

"Who said the General's Mansion has no place to take a bath?"

"Then why are you still running to Jicuitan?"

"I like places with a lot of water."

"Then you come here..."

"I've been in the city for a few days, and I haven't had time. So I went out for a stroll and learned about the customs of Yancheng. What about you? Why didn't you leave Yancheng, and you still have dinner with a Western monk here?"

"Western monk? Oh, you said Father Martin."

"Father?" Long Jiu sneered, "You are quite kind."

"What's that called? Priest? It doesn't make much difference, does it?"

"Heretical heresy. Hmph! You really don't refuse anyone who comes. Immortals, masters, demons and ghosts can mix with anyone."

Si Ren frowned, "Don't say that, Martin is very nice."

Long Jiu curled his lips, "If you don't say it, you won't. Then you came here to have dinner with that foreign monk?"

"That's not true. Qilin is gone. I came out to look for him. The priest is here to help."

"Missing? What do you mean?"

"When I returned to Buji House from you that day, I made a few exaggerated jokes, and he ran out in a fit of anger and never came back."

"Oh, it's been three or four days."

"Yeah, I'm dying of anxiety."

"Then...how about it." Long Jiu stretched out his head towards Si Ren, "You can send that horse, cow, or other priest back this afternoon, and I will accompany you to find him."

"what?"

"Anyway, I'm planning to walk around today, so I'll help you by the way."

"This..." Si Ren scratched his head: It's not impossible to ask Long Jiu to look for it with him, but this proposal is a bit beyond his expectation.

"But you are not familiar with Yancheng."

"You don't need to be familiar with the terrain to find someone, right? You can just ask if you can? When you meet someone, just ask if you have seen such a tall, thick, and big-headed boy." Long Jiu said, gesturing to Qilin's height, shortness, and fatness. Thin, "Or at most ask to see if anyone has lost a chicken. You can't ask the priest to ask if anyone has lost a chicken?"

is not possible.Is Xiaolin's head big?Si Ren muttered in his heart.

Long Jiu still said: "And I really can't find you to report to the public security station. I just sent someone there after I came back this morning. It will be much easier if I go with you."

"Why are you so actively trying to find someone with me?"

Long Jiu blinked, "Active? Do I have it? Just drop in."

Si Ren smiled, "Okay, then don't bring anyone else, just the two of us."

"Okay, I'll let them go back later."

"Well, I'll go down and talk to the priest first, and then finish the meal with him."

"How troublesome is that? Why don't you go down after eating here." Long Jiu said, raising his hand to compare the chicken, duck and fish on the table.

Si Ren shook his head and stood up, "I can't bear this delicacy."

Long Jiu watched him walk to the door, "I'll wait for you here."

"Well, I'll finish eating soon."