There is a god in the sky

Chapter 12 Zhongyuan Chapter Sacrifice 2

Several fast horses galloped along the official road.

The group stopped by the river, leading their horses to drink and rest.

"Sir, Qingmu County is fifty miles ahead. The last news was lost near Qingmu County."

Xiao Ji took the dry food and water handed to him by his attendant and casually ate a few mouthfuls.

He came to Aoki Prefecture not on official business, but to find someone privately.

Ten days ago, he received a letter from home saying that his cousin Fu had eloped with a courtesan. The Fu family had been chasing after him, but they eventually lost track of him outside Jianzhou Prefecture.

Just then, Xiao Ji took office as the Director of the Criminal Justice Department of Jianzhou Prefecture, and the task of finding the missing person was entrusted to him.

Xiao Ji had not returned to the capital for three years, never expecting that his once obedient and well-behaved cousin would do something so outrageous.

"Young Master, will something happen to my eldest young master? Jianzhou Prefecture is so far from the capital, why did they insist on coming here?"

Guan Shu was Fu Qingyan's pageboy.

The young master eloped with a courtesan, and in order to atone for his crime, he led his servants on a long journey to catch up with her.

If it weren't for Xiao Ji's help, he would have been in despair.

Xiao Ji said unhappily, "His relationship with that courtesan has definitely not been a recent thing. You are his page, why didn't you report it when you discovered their affair earlier?"

Reading books is a bitter experience.

“Whenever the young master goes to see Miss Biyou, he doesn’t allow me to serve him closely. I don’t know when they decided to elope.”

Xiao Ji stuffed the water bag shut, got up and walked towards the horses, saying to his attendants, "We'll get into the county town before dark."

Jianzhou Prefecture is mountainous, so it would be difficult to find them if they wanted to hide.

Fu Qingyan is an inexperienced young master who is easily fooled.

Losing money is one thing, but losing one's life is another.

The only option now is to go to the county government and ask for help.

"We should go into the city before dark; after midnight it will be the Ghost Festival." Sui Feng rubbed his arms, feeling a cool breeze.

Here, the Ghost Festival is celebrated on the 14th of the seventh lunar month.

Burning paper money, offering food and tea, and waiting for midnight when the gates of hell open, allows relatives to enjoy the offerings.

Everyone felt a chill and quickened their pace.

In order to get into the city before dark, the group deliberately took a detour via a side road.

The path was overgrown with weeds and difficult to walk on.

Fortunately, Xiao Ji has traveled to various villages and towns over the years and has become accustomed to this type of road.

Upon reaching a desolate area, Xiao Ji stopped and asked, "Have you smelled any smoke?"

As the sun set and darkness began to fall, there were rustling sounds coming from the surrounding grass.

Suiying led the way, gazing into the distance, and pointed in a direction, saying, "Sir, there's smoke over there. Is there a fire somewhere?"

"How could there be a fire in broad daylight, without any thunder?" Sui Feng rubbed his arms and asked everyone, "Aren't you feeling a little cold?"

“The weeds branch out to both sides, which shows that someone has passed through here recently, or perhaps someone is working in the fields not far away.”

Wood ash is the best fertilizer, and farmers often burn withered grass as fertilizer when cultivating the land.

Just as the group was about to leave, they heard a faint sound of bells.

Sui Feng joked, "It must be the bell tied around the cow's neck; I've seen it before."

"Such a rhythmic sound doesn't seem to come from walking, but rather like..." Xiao Ji looked into the distance and seemed to see white paper money floating in the sky.

He said in a low voice, "It sounds like someone is performing a ritual."

Shivering in the wind, she asked, "There were rumors that the area around Aoki Prefecture is haunted. Could this be the place?"

Sui Ying rolled her eyes. "It's not even dark yet, where would a ghost come from?"

As the sound of the bell grew closer, Xiao Ji frowned and said, "Don't be paranoid, we'll know once we go and take a look."

He also wanted to know whether the so-called haunting was man-made or something strange.