Ghost Blowing Lantern II - Chapter 300 Washing hands in a thin golden basin

Mr. Zhang San was an “old master” in the tomb robbing business in the late Qing Dynasty. He hung three talismans by himself, and was often called “Zhang San Lianzi” in the world. His real name is unknown. Even though he served in the “Kunlun Mountains” and was in an official position, He only used his real surname and buried his real name.

But most of Mr. Zhang’s true teachings are unknown to even his disciples and family members. Why is this? Just because everything he did in his life was against the law, both black and white were familiar with each other, and he also had his name in the green forest.

Before the Republic of China, China was still a monarchy. If a serious crime was committed, it would be possible to “implicate nine ethnic groups.” If one person committed a crime, his relatives and friends would be implicated. Therefore, people in the green forest never used their real names, only ” Even though some people are famous all over the world, they only leave their nicknames in the world until their death.

Although Mr. Zhang has a long history of crimes, he was rewarded by Emperor Xianfeng when he was young, and he is also very skilled in worldly affairs. He has made friends with countless princes with the rare and ancient relics he obtained through fighting. The officials and servants did not dare to touch him at all, so his disciples He has a large number of people and countless wealth, and heroes from all over the world are willing to make friends with him.

One year, Mr. Zhang decided to retire. He knew his destiny and was tired of making a living in the world. He planned to live in seclusion in the mountains and forests and spend the rest of his life. So he spread invitations and invited friends from all over the country to come to Zhang’s house for a banquet.

Since he is working in the underworld, he cannot do without the “Xiling Bandits” who control the 613 provinces in the south, seven and north. Back then, they were a family of officials and bandits, so Mr. Zhang naturally wanted to join the gang. This time, he will wash his hands in a golden basin. , is the incense head that pulls out the “Everlasting Victory Mountain”.

At that time, the power of the Xiling group of bandits was declining. Many people did not know that the third master was Zhang Sanlianzi, the “gold-touching captain”. In addition, although the bandit chief at that time had a higher status, his reputation was far less than that of Zhang Sanye, so he This move made more noise than the bandit leader’s withdrawal. It was a grand event in the green forest at that time.

Who wouldn’t want to broaden their horizons among those lagging behind? On the 15th day of the sixth month of the lunar calendar, there were indeed a large number of guests gathered together. The people who arrived were all criminal thieves and thieves in the forest. Tables and chairs were lined up from the main hall to the main door, and both sides of the corridor were also packed with people, many generations of people. People with low status can only stand on the edge and have no place to sit.

After arranging to sit in the next generation, we must first open the incense hall, kowtow to the ancestor Wusheng Zhenjun, and start the ceremony of pulling incense. In fact, this is just a formality, but secular etiquette is inevitable, and we dare not neglect it. Seeing that the moon in the sky was full and the stars were almost all out, he invited the leader of the Xiling Pirates to sit under the sacred throne in the main hall. The master of ceremonies on both sides carried an incense burner in front of the hall, with nineteen large incense sticks inserted in it. The formation of incense sticks is “three in front, four in back, five on the left and six on the right, with a single incense stick inserted in the middle.”

After the gongs and drums were played, the salute was about to take place, and all the gangsters who were watching the ceremony fell silent. At this time, Mr. Zhang came out and gave a half-kneeling salute in front of the bandit leader. At that time, the Green Forest Road was “easy to join a gang, but difficult to pull out incense.” For ordinary people, They don’t dare to pull out incense at all. Ordinary thieves want to wash their hands. Unless something serious happens to their parents or their wives and children, and the person in charge of the family has to go back, then they dare to mention the matter of washing their hands in the golden basin. The tiller faction Only when people find out that this is indeed the case can he be allowed to pull the incense, otherwise he will be killed without mercy. Although Mr. Zhang has a different identity, he still has to go through this scene. He must first state the reason for pulling the incense in front of the bandit leader.

Mr. Zhang first explained the reason for “pulling out the incense and withdrawing from the gang”. He simply said that he was suffering from old illnesses and had his wife, children and children involved, so it was difficult for him to commit murder and swindle goods again. He also hoped that the master and the helmsman would be noble and allow the disciples to escape unscathed.

After hearing this, the bandit leader quickly helped Zhang Sanye up and said with a smile: “Congratulations to Third Brother on washing your hands in the golden basin. It is very valuable to bravely retreat from the rapids. In the world, both sides of the world are in dire straits. It is really not easy to survive until this day. There is a saying – storms and clouds always come together, there is no time to gather and disperse. Pull out the incense and withdraw from the group, but the loyalty remains.”

So Mr. Zhang, accompanied by the chief of thieves, came to the front of the hall, stood beside the incense burner, and recited the hymn to pull the incense: “The sky is filled with stars in all directions, and the ever-victorious mountains are among them; I have been wandering in the world for decades, and I have received many favors from my brothers. Come and take care of me. Today I have to leave, so I ask all the brothers to be tolerant. I am going back to support my mother, and my life is still connected with my brothers. The soldiers are coming to report to me. There is fire and water for ventilation. There is loess below and sky above. My younger brother and all my brothers are closely linked; my teeth are broken by a hammer but my mouth cannot open, my courage and my heart that are gouged out by a steel knife remain unchanged; my younger brother has a false promise: five lightning strikes can destroy the whole family; I wish the Kuixing star from afar gathers golden light, conquers Kunlun forever, and the incense covers Kunlun, and walks the path of heaven forever. spread.”

No matter who pulls the incense on the green forest road, they must recite this hymn, saying that they have an old mother to support, which is the excuse of “filial piety comes first”. No matter what they do to stop others, even if they have a big excuse , and it is impossible to prevent others from fulfilling their filial piety. Although the third master has been orphaned since childhood, he still has to recite the chant according to the original text without changing it at all. In the process of reciting, there must not be a single word error. You cannot stop to think of words in the middle, otherwise you will be regarded as guilty and have evil intentions. The thieves around you will immediately come forward and chop the person who chants the praise into meat paste.

There are 19 lines in the entire hymn. Every time a line is recited, a big stick of incense is pulled out. When Mr. Zhang has finished reciting all the eulogies, the incense in the furnace is finished. At this time, the tiller immediately says to him He cupped his hands and said happily: “It’s easy to go, third brother. Whenever you miss home, come back and have a glass of water and wine.” This was considered a ritual. From then on, Mr. Zhang had nothing to do with the secular affairs of Green Forest Road. Everyone came forward to congratulate him at the same time. Firecrackers were set off outside the house, and drums and drums were played. The servants immediately came to the banquet. For a while, there was a lot of water and land, cups and glasses were exchanged, and both the host and the guest were happy.

During the banquet, the group of thieves exchanged cups, and someone suggested: “Today is the big day for Mr. Zhang to pull out the incense and withdraw from the gang. Heroes from all walks of life gathered together, and the banquet was full of fine wine and delicacies. It was so enjoyable, but there was nothing to drink with it. This teaching It’s hard to enjoy yourself by drinking too much. We are mostly rude men and men’s husbands on the green forest road, and we can’t imitate the literati and poets in ordering the wine. So what should we do? If you are brave, you might as well ask the experts to tell the proud experiences of your life in public during the banquet. , when it comes to being strange, brave, or beyond the reach of ordinary people, we should each drink a big bowl to praise it.”

The group of thieves exclaimed that it was wonderful. Mr. Zhang was a casual person, and he knew it well. This was because everyone wanted to take the opportunity to hear what happened to him back then. He was just happy today, so there was no way he could make any excuses, so he was at the table. However, Zhang Sanye did it privately by hanging talismans and touching gold. He did not want to reveal it in front of the public. He just cut off the beginning and ended it and told everyone some of the adventures he had experienced in his life.

Mr. Zhang originally came from a well-known family. After his family was ruined, he lived in the countryside since he was a child. He participated in solving several strange cases when he was young, and became famous in the south of the Yangtze River. Later he became an officer, fought with the Taiping Army, and suppressed the Naozi. , and followed Mr. Zuo to suppress the Xinjiang rebellion. He had been on the battlefield for many times in his life, often in battles, and had countless adventures in his life.

No matter which part of the third master’s deeds was told, it would be like “the stars and the moon have no luster, and the rivers flow backwards”, and everyone was fascinated by it. After he told the story, they followed the instructions according to seniority and seniority. I would like to ask the remaining seniors to tell us about their traces. Groups of thieves travel across the north and south, traveling thousands of miles. In addition to killing people and setting fires, they have also done many major things. Their experiences are also sensational. People in the green forest prefer to show off. These heroic things really made the speaker elated and the listener fascinated. I don’t know how many empty wine jars were knocked over during the dinner. This was a hearty meal. I drank from dusk until the next day and finally got drunk.

After more than a month had passed when all the black and white matters were sorted out, Mr. Zhang returned to his hometown with his family. He also had to “pick up the talisman and seal the gold” in front of the ancestor’s shrine. From now on, he will I don’t plan to be a “golden captain” anymore.

There are only three “ancient gold-touching talismans” left in the world, which are passed down from generation to generation. According to ancient rules, you cannot fight upside down without hanging the talisman. Mr. Zhang has a son, a daughter, and four disciples. Excluding his daughter, there are a total of five brothers. The Zhang family are all Feng Shui masters. The only people in the world who are qualified to hang talismans are Mr. Zhang and his group of disciples. If there are too many, there are far less than ten people, but there are only three real talismans. , who on earth passed the gold-touching talisman to? It still takes a lot of thinking.

The four disciples of Mr. Zhang are all outstanding. One is Elder Liaochen who later became a monk in Wuku Temple. Elder Liaochen at that time had not yet been ordained, so he did not leave his real name in the green forest, and no one knew his lay family. Name, this person has been a powerful thief since he was a child. He is nicknamed “Feitian Xie” by others. He never fails to steal mansions from wealthy families. His lightness kung fu is extremely good. The skills were taught by Mr. Zhang Sanye. He was as hot-hearted as ever, and he always wanted to help the world and save people.

The other one is the “Golden Abacus”. He comes from a merchant family, knows how to use strange tools, and is shrewd and slippery. What is rare is that he has an upright heart, but he thinks too highly of himself and does not take ordinary people into consideration. A pure gold abacus The abacus never leaves his hand. The beads and frame are engraved with the numbers of the heavenly stems and the earthly branches. His abacus is not used to calculate accounts, but is specially used to calculate the five elements and calculate the eight directions. He and Mr. Zhang met in their early years. , have an extraordinary friendship, half mentor and half friend.

The third one is Sun Guofu, who has yin and yang eyes. He was originally a child of an aristocratic family. Because he was born with yin and yang eyes, he was “able to see ghosts” since he was a child, so he was kicked out of the house and wandered around. Later, he was met by Mr. Zhang and took him in. Disciple, this person is kind-hearted, full of knowledge, and has a Taoist mentality. In other words, he is relatively traditional and conservative. Although he has learned many skills, he is unwilling to engage in profit-making activities, and he has never participated in the sharing of spoils and gatherings of justice in the green forest. action, so he uses his real name wherever he goes.

The last youngest son is a close disciple of Mr. Zhang. He is nicknamed “Iron Motou”. He is full of hard skills. He has become a bandit and a gangster. He has killed countless people before. Mr. Zhang said that his temperament and temperament were very similar to that of a brother in his early years. He wanted him to be a disciple because he wanted to be strong and honest.

On this day, Mr. Zhang called his disciples and grandchildren to the front of the hall, put three ancient talismans on a jade plate, and told everyone, “It is better to choose a day than to hit the sun.” Today, the golden talisman will be handed down. There is no banquet in the world that lasts forever. Regardless of whether they got the talisman or not, from today on, they have to start their own business and go out to work according to their abilities. But there is one who learned the Dragon Searching Technique of Touching Jin Xiaowei and the gold-dividing acupuncture point. Those who don’t care about touching gold talismans and fighting upside down may be lucky enough to come back with their lives once or twice. But if you break the ancient rules, you will not be able to escape the fatal disaster sooner or later. If you don’t listen to the master’s words, you will die one day. When the time comes, don’t blame your teacher for not making it clear.

The disciples all knew that Mr. Zhang San was extremely intelligent and everything he said was right, so they naturally did not dare to disobey him. They all came forward and prostrated themselves, saying: “It is up to the master to decide who to pass on the three golden ancient talismans. Disciples.” We have no more words to say.”

Mr. Zhang nodded. In fact, although he had five disciples including his son, he had already decided who would touch the gold talisman. He first asked his son to exit the room. It turned out that the secret technique of gold touching has been passed down for thousands of years and has internal rules. There are many, and the true talisman is not passed down to the descendants of his family, but this is one of them.

It is completely different from the unruly folk thieves. This business rule is based on fighting for profits and extremely damaging the fortune. Even if the captain steals the treasures from the ancient tombs, most of them are to save the world and the people, but there are many treasures. It is not an ordinary thing that can be seen in the world. If it is revealed in the world, it will definitely lead to open and covert struggles. After investigation, the person who fights against the tomb to get the treasure has committed a lot of sins. Therefore, there is the saying “Be good for one generation and rest for three generations.” It is said that starting from the third master’s son’s generation to his great-grandson’s generation, no one can engage in the business of robbing tombs by hanging talismans, otherwise they will be punished by God, their descendants will be cut off, and their families will be ruined.

The craftsmen of the old society also said that in the butcher shop where pigs were slaughtered, there was a legend about a butcher who suffered retribution on the ground in Jinan Prefecture, Shandong Province. This is not an ordinary folk talk, and it is especially credible because These skills are all passed down from generation to generation from generation to generation, and there are clear records of how many generations of butchers have been made.

Among all butchers, one generation every three generations will never become a butcher. Although they must inherit and learn the skills of their ancestors, they cannot start their own business to slaughter animals. It is said that this is due to concerns about killing too many animals and fear of being unable to succeed. But is the reason really true? So, no one can explain it clearly to this day. In short, among every three generations, one generation must be unable to maintain the ancestral business and must learn other crafts to make a living. When he has offspring, he can become a butcher again.

The Mi family has been butchering pigs and sheep for generations. When it was passed down to the “Mi Butcher”, it was a big taboo. The skill of killing pigs was passed down to his generation. According to the convention, he should not use the butcher knife again, but he didn’t take it to heart. , still slaughtering pigs and opening butcher shops. One day, the butcher got up before dawn in order to kill an old sow. He lit a candle alone in the slaughterhouse, put the old pig on the ground, and touched the pig on its neck. Bloodline, I wanted to bleed the old sow with my knife, but suddenly the pig acted like a human being and said: “I was supposed to die on May 15th, but today is only May 14th. The time is wrong, how dare you kill me?” .”

The butcher’s courage is beyond comparison with ordinary people, and the butcher Mi got up too early, and he was sleepy. He thought he had heard wrongly, and actually heard the pig speaking human language, and without thinking much at the moment, he inserted the knife. Let the old pig struggle and howl in spite of the bloodletting and remain indifferent.

But then the next day, it was May 15th, and the butcher Mi got up so early to slaughter the pigs. Unexpectedly, he was even sleepier today, and he didn’t even bother to light the lamp. Anyway, he was familiar with it, and he touched the black with the knife, but he didn’t hear anything today. The pig that was being slaughtered was talking. The slaughter went very smoothly and seemed to be less laborious than before. When the pig’s hair was shed, the butcher Mi was still wondering: “Hey, it’s weird. This pig was knifed today but it didn’t scream much and didn’t move.” What’s more? And…and why are there no hairs on the pig’s legs? They are so smooth and smooth, and feel as soft as a white-striped chicken…”

Thinking that Butcher Mi suddenly woke up and found that he had not entered the slaughterhouse at all, but was sitting in his own home. The bed and floor in the room were all bloody. He was holding a snow-white and fat woman’s thigh in his hand. Butcher Mi was frightened. The soul left the shell and the seven souls ascended to heaven. How dare you believe that the tragedy in front of you is real? He actually cut his wife into pieces and slaughtered her as a pig while sleepwalking. The blood all over the room was still hot. As a result, Butcher Mi hanged himself that day. Before he died, he wrote the words “The time is not right” on the wall with blood.

Regardless of whether this is an anecdote in the countryside or a real deed, those who rely on their craftsmanship would rather believe it than not, so Mr. Zhang refused to let his son do the gold business again. Captain, in this case, the only people who can hang the talisman are Zhang Sanye’s four apprentices. Among them, Sun Guofu, the “yin and yang eye”, is a scholar without a crown. He is not willing to fight upside down and is willing to do ordinary things. To make a living, one might open a shop and teach apprentices, or do fortune-telling for others. Choose the two houses of Yin and Yang. Anyway, he has many skills, so he doesn’t have to worry about making a living.

Seeing that the “Yin Yang Eye” had made up his mind, Mr. Zhang took out a book. This book was called “The Secret Technique of Yin and Yang Feng Shui in Sixteen Characters”, which recorded in detail what Mr. Zhang knew and learned in his life.

The secret technique of touching gold is actually a branch of “Yi”. The ancient Zhoutian hexagram has a total of sixteen characters, and only the Bagua has been passed down to later generations. This Bagua is divided into the Innate Bagua and the Acquired Bagua. It is said that the Innate Bagua was obtained by Emperor Fu Xi from the tortoise shell pattern. The result is that the hexagram was performed by King Wen of Zhou the day after tomorrow. In fact, it was created by later generations. There is not much difference between the two. They both belong to the number of the hexagram with “dragon” as the symbol. Therefore, the Zhouyi interpretation of the hexagram should belong to the dragon hexagram. Although there are phenomena of ups and downs in these gossips and refutations, upon closer inspection, they are all numbers of revitalization. Therefore, from the beginning to the end of the Book of Changes, it is all about the Qianyuan Heavenly Way.

The other Bagua, which has been lost since the Western Zhou Dynasty, belongs to the Yin hexagram, mostly with stars and phoenixes as symbols. The ancients believed that the number of ancient hexagrams was too complete, and it vented all the mysteries of creation between heaven and earth. This would be jealous of ghosts and gods. If it is left unknown, half of the sixteen hexagrams will be destroyed, and it will never exist again in the world.