As the two were about to leave, a sudden commotion erupted from the distant Xishan Village, with a woman’s wailing piercing the night sky. Lanterns lit up in many households, and many people opened their windows, shouting, “What happened to the Tian Cheng household?”
Fortunately, it was late, and many households were already closed, so their communication was mostly through shouting, allowing the two men on the hillside to hear the gist of it. Someone replied, “Tian Cheng is dying, he’ll be carried to the ancestral hall, and he’ll be sent away tomorrow night!”
The woman cried heart-wrenchingly, “Uncles and aunts, he can still be saved! I’ll take him to the city to see a doctor!
Please don’t send him to the ancestral hall…”
A loud male voice said, “No! We can’t go to the county town. Are we going to burden the entire village for one person?”
Fu Shenyi and Yan Xiaohang exchanged a glance. Something was indeed suspicious in Xishan Village. Why would they be afraid of burdening the whole village by taking a sick person to the county town for medical treatment?
A sudden ominous guess flashed through Fu Shenyi’s mind: “Could it be… a plague?”
After the patient was sent to the ancestral hall, Xishan Village returned to calm. Yan Xiaohang and Fu Shenyi sneaked into a household’s courtyard and listened by the wall for a long time. They pieced together the context: the patient had contracted an incurable disease, and the villagers believed this to be an ill omen. They were planning to perform an exorcism ritual by the river the next night.
Fu Shenyi was sore and tired, almost unable to squat, and stumbled forward. Yan Xiaohang caught him and carried him out of the village. They rode back to the city, asked the inn’s waiter for hot water and food, and after washing and eating, General Fu lay on the bed to rest, while Lord Yan sat by the bedside, massaging his legs to relax.
“Do you think the ‘disease’ might be a plague?”
“Fu Shenyi said, ‘If it really is a plague, the villagers seem too calm. If a plague were to spread widely, wiping out an entire village would be the least of it.’
‘Concealment is human nature,’ Yan Xiaohang rolled up his trouser leg and pressed on several acupoints on his calf. ‘Think about it. The local official didn’t even report the autumn night white outbreak to the imperial court. If he discovered a series of suspicious plague-like diseases in Xishan Village, what would he do?’
Fu Shenyi’s eyebrows jumped. Yan Xiaohang continued, ‘Better to kill wrongly than let one escape. Regardless of whether it’s a plague, complete elimination is the only way to prevent future trouble. The villagers know that if this spreads, their entire village is doomed, so they’re desperately keeping it secret and afraid to report it to the authorities.’
Fu Shenyi slapped the bed, ‘What a dog of an official! Outrageous!’
Yan Xiaohang smiled silently.
Yan Xiaohan held his hand and tucked it back into the quilt. He leaned down and kissed his forehead, whispering, ‘Go to sleep, I’ll go wash my hands.’
Fu Shen heard these words and closed his eyes again, but he couldn’t fall asleep. In the darkness, there was a rustling sound of fabric, and then the bed slightly sank as Yan Xiaohan climbed onto the bed, gently pulling him into his arms.”
Fu Shen closed his eyes and traced his hand with his fingertips, hearing Yan Xiaohan whisper in his ear, “You wake up at the slightest breeze, which is bad for your health.”
Body temperature and breath were the best lullabies, and Fu Shen’s drowsiness returned. At this moment, even Yan Xiaohan’s murmurs couldn’t disturb him. He turned over, his hand resting on Yan Xiaohan’s waist, patting it absent-mindedly, and mumbled, “Sleeping.”
Yan Xiaohan chuckled, thinking this person was just like a child looking for his mother as soon as he opened his eyes. He pulled the blanket up, covering both their shoulders, and softly responded, “Mm. Sleep.”
The next morning, the two went to the back mountain of Xihe Village again, noticing a woman continuously wiping her tears by the river. Surrounding women tried to comfort her, presumably the “Tian Cheng’s wife” who had been crying the night before. Fu Shen, having recovered his spirits, twirled his fire-poking stick and said, “Keep an eye on her. Help if necessary. We might be able to extract some truth.”
Yan Xiaohan replied, “As you command.”
As the sunset approached and tired birds returned to the forest, villagers working in the fields gradually went home. Yan Xiaohan and Fu Shen stood halfway up the mountain, overlooking the entire village.
Just like the scene that night, lanterns first lit up from the ancestral hall’s direction, then households emerged with lanterns, gradually forming a light band that wound along the village paths towards the river.
In the lantern light, they could vaguely see a flower cart in the crowd, with a white-clothed person lying motionless on it. This scene sent a chill down Yan Xiaohan’s spine, reminding him of the strange, funeral-like procession he had seen in the ancestral hall.
Suddenly feeling warmth on his hand, Fu Shen held his hand and casually said, “Don’t be afraid.”
Yan Xiaohan secretly intertwined their fingers: “Mm. Not afraid.”
However, for some unknown reason, he didn’t break free, allowing Yan Xiaohan to hold his hand until the villagers reached the riverbank, placing the flower cart on an open space and spreading out fruit offerings.
An elderly man with a white beard stepped forward, first solemnly kowtowing three times to the rushing river. Then, trembling, he pulled a yellow charm from his sleeve, recited an incantation, and burned it on the incense. As the charm turned to ash, he shook a bell and began to chant a prayer.
Fu Shen vaguely heard a plea to some sacred entity to forgive sinners and bless the village with good weather and prevent epidemics.
Fu Shen was stunned: “The current dynasty abolished River God sacrifices long ago, replacing them with water officials and dragon kings. How dare these ignorant people still use human sacrifices?”
He was referring to ancient customs where people believed river floods were caused by the River God’s anger, requiring sacrifices to appease him. In milder cases, they would sacrifice livestock, but more extreme practices involved sacrificing young boys, girls, or beautiful maidens. Many innocent children and women died this way. When the current dynasty was established, the emperor strictly prohibited these old customs, demolishing river god temples and banning live sacrifices.
Who could have imagined that a century later, this nightmare would repeat itself?
Yan Xiaohan restrained him: “Wait, don’t be hasty. The River God only manages weather, not epidemics. And historically, sacrifices used young boys and girls. The person on the flower cart seems to be a man. It might not be a River God sacrifice. Let’s wait and see what happens.”
After the elder finished his prayer, two fully covered men lifted the white-clothed person from the cart and tied a large stone to his chest. Suddenly, a woman in the crowd let out a heart-wrenching scream, rushing forward to fight the men: “…Let me die! Let me die in his place!
The village chief signaled some women to drag her away. The woman collapsed, crying and cursing on the ground. The villagers seemed to ignore her as two men lifted the white-clothed person and threw him into the rushing river. With an old, hoarse “sending the immortal,” everyone knelt and kowtowed three times to the river.
Fu Shen’s face was dark. With his keen eyesight, he could even see the person still struggling in the water. He whispered, “This river flows into a small lake near the fox spirit temple. Let’s go check; he might still be saved.”
