There were still a few pieces of frozen beef in the freezer. Zhang Lisheng took them out and threw them into the rough porcelain pot without thawing them. He added cold water, seasonings, and herbs and stewed them on the stove with a big fire.
He lowered the fire when the beef was about seventy to eighty percent cooked. He added some brown herbal juice that he made himself at the right time and stewed the meat until it was tender. A pot of extremely nourishing medicinal cuisine was done.
This jar of medicinal cuisine was different from ordinary medicinal cuisine. It didn't smell strong and pungent, and the taste wasn't too special at first. However, after a few more mouthfuls, it gave people a wonderful feeling of satisfaction. Their bodies also became warm and comfortable.
Zhang Lisheng let out a sigh of relief after he finished the stewed beef with big mouthfuls of soup and water. He wiped his mouth clean and washed his face with the water from the well. He walked into the side room of the old mansion and lay on his rough and sturdy wooden bed. Soon, he fell into a deep sleep.
He slept for more than ten hours and only woke up the next morning. He heard someone shouting, "Mountain Worm, Mountain Worm, it's your Uncle Ah Lie. Open the door now!" before he got off the bed.
Zhang Lisheng put on his pants and a jacket immediately while shouting, "Uncle Ah Lie, wait for me. I'll open the door now." He walked to the heavy, old wooden door in big steps and opened the door after opening the latch.
It was Tao Lielin who was standing outside the door. He said in shock when he saw Zhang Lisheng who was not dressed properly, "What are you doing, kid?
We're bringing your father home today. Why aren't you up yet? "
According to the Miaowei people's custom, those who died in a foreign land must be buried at the place of death for 48 hours, which was two days and two nights later. They would then be brought back to their hometown for burial.
Zhang Lisheng recalled that he was going to the county town to bring his father home today. He ran to the side room of the old house in panic. "Uncle Ah Lie, I've been muddle-headed these two days. I … I'll go put on my clothes now."
"No wonder you're muddle-headed. Sigh, even an adult would be muddle-headed after going through such a big event.
It's not that I want to rush you, but other than picking up your father today, you still have to meet with the driver who caused the accident, the traffic police, and the insurance company. If you don't hurry, there won't be enough time. " Tao Lielin was planning to step into the old house's courtyard as he spoke. However, just when he lifted his leg, he felt an inexplicable chill in his heart and shuddered. After thinking about it, he swallowed his saliva and put his leg down again.
Ever since Guawo Village was still a Miao village a few hundred years ago, very few people dared to enter the Zhang family's front door alone.
Since ancient times, the people in Western Sichuan were barbaric and there were many legends of gods and monsters. When the aborigines wanted to bring back their dead family members, according to the customs, they had to wear trousers, flowery shirts, and red cloth wrapped around their heads. Their necks and wrists had to be covered with gold and silver ornaments to avoid calamity.
Zhang Lisheng had been wearing the cheap children's clothes that his father bought from the department store in the county since he was young. Ever since he got his school uniform in junior high, he had never changed his school uniform. He had never worn the Miaowei people's traditional clothes.
Therefore, to bring back his father's remains this time, he did not have any clothes that fit the customs. Therefore, he could only search in his father's room to try his luck.
Although the Zhang family was a family of father and son, Zhang Daowu had always been harsh to Zhang Lisheng. Speaking of which, Zhang Lisheng had never been to his father's bedroom before.
Zhang Lisheng could not help but shudder when he pushed the door open, even though he knew that his father was dead.
The room was dimly lit. The most eye-catching thing was a giant wooden bed. The material was similar to the wooden bed in Zhang Lisheng's bedroom, but it was twice the size. Following the Miaowei people's custom, there were big mahogany boxes with miscellaneous items placed on both sides of the bed.
Zhang Lisheng was stunned. He climbed onto the wooden bed and forcefully opened the heavy wooden box on one side of the bed. He saw that it was not clothes that were placed inside, but tens of life-like animal statues that were the size of palms.
Just when he was feeling disappointed, his vision turned black all of a sudden. A barren land filled with plants and trees appeared in his mind all of a sudden.
Even the grass on the land seemed to be three to four meters tall. A group of giant warriors with naked upper bodies, straw aprons covering their nether regions, and stone sabers and axes as weapons were fighting a bloody battle.
In the jungle far away from the battlefield, there were countless giant poisonous bugs and beasts with ferocious fangs peeping at the giant warriors' flesh and blood in the dark.
Among the bugs and beasts, there were four human-shaped giant corpses that were shrouded in black mist. They were carrying a giant stone bed. On the bed, there was a skinny, tanned man who was the size of a normal person sitting with his legs crossed. He seemed to be smiling faintly.
The illusion disappeared in a flash. Before Zhang Lisheng could see the giants, giant beasts, giant corpses, and especially the face of the man on the stone bed, his vision turned black again. Everything returned to normal.
He shook his head hard and picked up a statue from the wooden box as if he was deep in thought.
The statue was a poisonous snake with a black pointy head. Its body was twisting as if it was playing in the water. Its tail was divided into three.
Looking at the statue, Zhang Lisheng immediately recalled a passage in the ancient book 'Commentary on the Water Classic (Like Water)'. "In ancient times, there was a hook snake that was 100 feet long with a forked tail. It was good at swimming. It hunted beasts in the water with its tail hook and swallowed them."
100 feet was about three meters, which was 300 centimeters. A python that was 100 feet long would be 30 meters long. It was almost as tall as a 12-story building if it stood upright.
From the point of view of modern biology, it was impossible for such a huge reptile to appear even during the Cretaceous period when the air was rich in oxygen and large animals dominated the earth. The record about the hook snake in 'Commentary on the Water Classic (Like Water)' was undoubtedly an exaggerated myth and legend in the scientific interpretation.
However, to Zhang Lisheng who had become a wizard, everything was not that simple!
However, now was clearly not the time to think about the authenticity of the divine legacy. He hurriedly looked at the other statues in the wooden box and found that they also belonged to the records of the ancient Chinese books. They could not exist in reality, such as Mountain Spider, Qin Yuan, Dark Wasp, Huaji, and other strange insects. He closed the wooden box.
Later on, Zhang Lisheng climbed to the other side of the wooden bed and opened the other wooden box. There were many clothes stacked neatly in it.
After looking through it quickly, he realized that there was really a brand new Miaowei traditional costume in the deepest part of the wooden box. There were also a few ancient pure gold necklaces and bracelets that were suitable for him to wear.
Realizing that he had wasted too much time, Zhang Lisheng did not have time to be surprised. He took off his clothes immediately and changed into the Miaowei costume in the wooden box.
Although it was plump, everything looked neat after he rolled up his pants and tightened his waist. After putting on the necklaces and bracelets, he became a skinny young man from the Miaowei Tribe in an instant.
Zhang Lisheng ran out of the old house in big steps after putting on his clothes.
Tao Lielin saw Zhang Lisheng in Miaowei costume outside the door. He nodded and said, "Yes, yes." He then pulled Zhang Lisheng and ran to the village entrance.
Hundreds of villagers had already gathered at the village entrance. Apart from leaving one person to look after the house, almost all of the adult villagers had gathered in Guawo Village. Compared to the playful mood of the young men who went with them last time, the journey to bring back Zhang Daowu's remains was much more solemn.
'When one family is in trouble, all families will help' was an ancient custom passed down by the Miaowei people during their difficult mountain life. It was not something to be messed around when it was implemented.
"Mountain Worm is here. You'll sit at the front of the car. The rest of you will go to the east, west, south, and north of the village. One, two, three, four, five … Don't scatter." A spirited old Miaowei man with wrinkles all over his face shouted loudly without a smile on his face when he saw Tao Lielin pulling Zhang Lisheng along on the stone road from far away.
The old man who was speaking was Tian Jiushi who had been the village chief and secretary of Guawo Village for 57 years. Legend had it that he had participated in the national uprising against the Japanese in Western Sichuan before the Red China was built. He was extremely famous in the entire Damu Town.
"Yes, yes …" The villagers climbed into the truck in an orderly manner after hearing Tian Jiushi's shout. Even the most rebellious young men behaved very obediently.
However, Tian Jiushi behaved differently to Zhang Lisheng. He shook his head and said gently while sighing as he watched Tao Lielin pulling the young man to his side, "Mountain Worm is here. Brother Daowu's body is so strong, but who knew he would walk ahead of me.
"You're the descendant of our Guawo Village's Zhang family. Bring your father back today."
"Yes, Uncle Jiushi," Zhang Lisheng lowered his head and answered in a muffled tone.
The Zhang family had always been a lonely branch in Guawo Village. They were not ranked with the other villagers. Since young, Zhang Lisheng would call those who were the same age as him by their names while he would call those who were older uncle or aunt. He would call Tian Jiushi who was over 80 years old and Tao Lielin who was over 40 years old 'uncle'.
Tian Jiushi did not mind Zhang Lisheng's way of addressing him. He sighed again and turned his head to look at Tao Lielin. He said loudly with confidence, "Ah Lie's son, your Grandpa Jiushi is old now. I can't go to the county anymore. I'll entrust this matter to you today, kid. You must do it properly and be a proper person."
Tao Lielin's face almost turned red when he heard the old village chief calling him 'Ah Lie's son' in front of the entire village and many tourists. However, he dared not say anything. He could only nod obediently and said softly, "Master Jiushi, I know, I know."
"What?"
"Master Jiushi, I know, I know," Tao Lielin raised his voice and shouted awkwardly.
"Don't delay anymore. Get in the truck," Tian Jiushi said while waving his hand in satisfaction.
Just like that, the Guawo Village's old branch secretary gave his order. More than ten trucks that were filled with villagers drove towards Qu County's county seat arrogantly.
Just when the convoy passed by the Damu Town's station, it attracted the attention of some people. Along the way, two public security law enforcement vehicles that had the word 'police' painted on them stopped the Guawo Village's truck convoy.
Six police officers who were fat, skinny, tall, and short got out of the police vehicles. All of them had smiles on their faces and looked like they were enforcing the law in a civilized manner.
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