Painter

Chapter 160 Nine: Grab the Grain
It's late at night, under Niu Shou Mountain, the sound of silk and bamboo is still coming from the curtain of the deep courtyard of the high house.Lights shine through the windows, dimly illuminating the pond, and the fire macaques swallow the water in the shadow of the flowers, tirelessly.Under the moonlight, you can see a smoke dragon statue that can ward off poisonous insects lying on the wall tiles. At the gate of the house, there is a picture of a strong man who suppresses evil and exorcises ghosts.The money spent on these spiritually blessed objects in one month is worth the accumulation of ordinary people over the years.

This house and the fields under Niu Shou Mountain belong to Zhang family in Qingling County.At this time, in the main room of the house, several men in brocade clothes were sitting behind the table.The one sitting at the east end is Zhang Chengguan, the owner of the house.

Zhang Chengguan had drank lotus wine in the morning, and had a business deal in the afternoon, and he was joking with his friends at the moment.Outside the house, there is a small pavilion facing the hall.Under the eaves of the pavilion stood two maidservants carrying lamps.In the pavilion, a paper screen was set up, and a lantern and shadow play was being performed inside.I saw the shadow of the paper man with wide sleeves and high crown shaking his head.

A burst of singing came out: "Sell the fine wine, and don't care about his fate—"

Zhang Chengguan held the lamp and said, "Recently, for some reason, I can't sleep well."

A person next to him smiled and said, "There are 280 million shi of grain transported this autumn, Zhang Lang's [-] shi of grain is just a drop in the bucket!"

Zhang Chengguan shook his head and sighed: "It's not because I can't sleep well, it's just that I have an old problem, and I always have a headache. I also ordered some incense to calm the nerves, but it is far worse than the one you gave me last autumn." A few pills like Tibetan incense are good."

The man smiled and said: "This is easy to handle. Although this incense is a secret incense product from the Yufo Temple, I know the value of the monks in the temple. I will ask for a few pills next time."

Zhang Chengguan said with a smile: "Then it's a deal..."

Before he could finish speaking, a shadow cast across the courtyard.

The cold wind blew, and the lights in the pavilion dimmed suddenly, as if they were suppressed by the sudden frost pressure.

The voice of the opera singer faltered, and the maidservant who carried the lamp also showed a disturbed expression.

The men in brocade clothes at the table looked up, and saw a black cloud drifting from nowhere, covering the moon.

At this moment, there was a sound of fluttering wings all around.

A group of crows flew to the eaves and landed on the top of the wall.

Wow!Wow!Crows sounded everywhere.

Zhang Chengguan's face turned pale, he got up and took two steps back, and called out in panic, "Mr. Lu!"

The old man in Tsing Yi stood up from the table. Although he was gray-haired, his movements were nimble and nimble. He jumped over the table and landed in the courtyard. He held the three-foot Qingfeng with his backhand. The faint light is also murderous and intimidating.This swordsman surnamed Lu is a well-known swordsman in the Jianghu of Qizhou. When he was young, he went to Xuankong Temple to learn swordsmanship.He raised his eyes, and the crows seemed to be frightened by his vigor, so they flew up and circled back and forth over the courtyard.

The crows just yelled and did not dare to approach, and the tense atmosphere in the courtyard calmed down a little.

There was a strange sound in the distance, Chacha!Chacha!It seems to be rubbing against armor while marching.

It was accompanied by the sound of heavy footsteps, as if a Kui drum was beating.

dong dong!

The footsteps are getting closer and closer, as if they are outside the courtyard!

Boom!

In the astonished eyes of everyone, the gate of the house collapsed, the beams and columns toppled, and the bricks and tiles fell.

In the smoke and dust, clusters of will-o'-the-wisps floated up, illuminating ghosts with swords and armor smashed one by one.

A ghost figure at the front, the mount under him looks like a tiger or leopard.

"Ghost..."

"Ghost!"

The people in the courtyard exclaimed.

With a snap, the last piece of the ruined wall fell down and pressed against the door of the house.

Between the cracks of the bricks, there is a little yellow light.

There was another bang, the bricks and tiles arched, and the body of the exorcist warriors painted on the door rose from the ground, increasing in height, and in the blink of an eye, they turned into two golden armored gods nearly two feet tall!
Bricks and tiles slipped from the golden armor, the exorcist looked down, and the ghost soldiers in the smoke were as petite as babies in front of it.

The mount, which looked like a tiger or leopard, jumped out of the smoke and dust. Compared with the golden armored god, its figure was like a mayfly compared to a big tree.When it collided with the golden armor, there was a thud, but it pierced through the cowhide like a powerful crossbow, and passed through without any stagnation.

Snapped!A piece of talisman paper was trampled into the soil by paws, and a little gold powder was stained on the white hair.

The white beast carried a ghost general on its back, its face was as white as frost, its lips were as bloody as blood, and its ghostly eyes were carved like sapphire, it was breathtaking.

call!The west wind blows away the smoke.

The group of ghost soldiers behind the ghost general is in a dense formation. In the formation, the banner reflects the faint will-o'-the-wisp, and the word "Feng" can be vaguely seen.

The eyes of the old man in Tsing Yi were fixed, the Qingfeng in his hand shook, and he uttered a "Yin" sword chant.He jumped up, stepped on the pillars of the pavilion, and flew nearly two feet high.This sword is condescending, piercing towards the ghost general, as if coming by the moon.One moment ago, the blade of the sword saw the faint lights in the courtyard, and the next moment, there were pieces of will-o'-the-wisps reflected, stabbing in front of the ghost general.

The ghost general remained motionless.

A ray of saber light came out from behind the ghost general, the latter came first, and intersected with the blade of the sword.clang!Splash a large piece of sparks.

The old man in Tsing Yi froze, was knocked back by a huge force, and fell to the ground.

A ghostly figure flashed out from among the ghost soldiers. After slashing through the blade of the sword, he slashed at the chest of the old man in green.

The old man in green stepped on his left foot, bent his knee slightly, and stopped his retreat.With a pick of the Qingfeng in his hand, the point of the sword hit the blade, and he drew it around, using the strip of water style in Xuankong Temple's "Yongxuan Thirteen Swords".

The deflected blade brushed against the shoulder of the old man in green, and the knife-wielding man turned his wrist, a cold light suddenly appeared, and the knife pierced the old man's rib.

The old man in Tsing Yi focused his eyes, stretched out his left hand, trying to grab the wrist holding the barrier knife.But the barrier knife twisted suddenly like a carp writhing.The old man in Tsing Yi let out a muffled snort, and his five fingers were severed at the root, blood spattering!
The barrier knife chopped off the five fingers of the old man in Tsing Yi, and the castration remained unabated.The old man in Tsing Yi didn't care about his injuries, and drew his sword back to defend.The horizontal knife raised again, drawing a line of cold light.

Bang!The three-foot Qingfeng was thrown high.

A somewhat delicate black shoe kicked out from the darkness, kicking the chest of the old man in Tsing Yi.

The old man in Tsing Yi coughed up a mouthful of blood, flew upside down, hit the pavilion pillar, and fell slumped.

He was bleeding from the mouth and nose, half leaning on the stone Xumi seat of the pavilion pillar, and was about to prop himself up when the black shoes stepped out from the darkness and stepped on his chest.Immediately afterwards, a line of blades, reflecting the gloomy moonlight, pressed against his neck.

The light in the courtyard saw the appearance of this ghostly figure. She was dressed in black, her eyes were cold, her forehead had ghost horns, and her face was pale.

The prostitutes, maidservants, and businessmen in the courtyard trembled.

Zhang Chengguan was covered in cold sweat, glanced at the big banner behind the ghost general, then quickly lowered his head, the words "ghost soldiers crossing the border" popped up in his mind.The passage of ghost soldiers was not fabricated by Zheng Junshan, it turned out to be true!He got down on his knees, summoned up his courage and shouted, "Is this the ghost master of Changping?"

The blue ghost eyes under Tie Douhou looked at Zhang Chengguan, but did not speak.The mount under him roared, "This is a clever man, the general may as well take him under his account and become a military advisor!"

Zhang Chengguan trembled all over. To be a military adviser under the account of a ghost master, he had to be a ghost first!He hurriedly yelled: "I know the general is going to Guihu Mountain. I would like to donate the stored food. I just hope that the general will spare my life!"

(End of this chapter)