That day when he came, there was only Cha Wenbin alone.

  As a Taoist, his arrival often means that something inauspicious has appeared in the village.

  In rural areas, Taoist priests are always closely linked with gods and ghosts. So in this case, Zhang Wenbin did not call upon the superiors.

  At that time, Cha Wenbin's skills were already well-known in several surrounding areas, but often because he usually went out for several months, people who wanted to find him mostly couldn't get in touch with him. It was also because of his appearance that a group of Taoist priests and witches quickly became popular in our area, giving people fortunes and divinations, or naming and testing characters.

  In the era of reform and opening up, some people's thinking had already begun to progress, and the spring breeze of modern medicine also blew into our small mountain village. From the walls of the earth toilet to the gate of the village committee, slogans opposing feudal superstition were printed everywhere, but there were still things that could not be solved by medicine, such as Ah Fa's current state.

  In the past, rural people invited Taoist priests to exorcise evil spirits based on their fear of gods and ghosts. However, in those years, it had begun to evolve into an attitude of treating a dead horse as if it were alive, referring to patients who were beyond help in hospitals or those with strange illnesses that left doctors at a loss for what to do.

  Cha Wenbin's arrival, to a certain extent, still attracted a large crowd of onlookers. His fame was not based on pretending to be mysterious or supernatural, but rather on people passing down stories by word of mouth, and some had even seen it with their own eyes.

  He is different from ordinary Taoist priests or gods, he never charges money and will not make a big show. Even some simple things, such as incense paper are brought by himself, to show people that if the host family is really in difficulty, he will even give them some money.

  So, locally, Zhang Wenbin is not just a Taoist priest. To invite him, for some people, it's very difficult! For example, when private enterprises have just started to rise, some people who have made a bit of money want to build luxurious ancestral halls, no matter how many people you send to invite him, the only response from Zhang's household will be an exceptionally tall man telling you: "Wenbin is not in."

  But for some people, it's very easy to invite Cha Wenbin over, such as my dad this time inviting him to take a look at Ah Fa. Cha Wenbin almost immediately packed his things and followed Dad back home.

  A Fa's home was also built on the mountain, with houses facing south and north. In front of it was a small stream, and they had simply laid a wooden plank to make a bridge for their own use. When people walked on the bridge, it would creak and groan loudly, making one fear that if they weren't careful, they might step through the somewhat rotten planks.

  Cha Wenbin furrowed his brow and asked under the introduction of Ah Ba, "How long has this family's bridge been built?"

  Our village is located along the river, and many families need to build a bridge to connect the highway with their homes. Families who have the conditions will build cement structures, but most are made of this simple wooden plank.

  Dad naturally didn't know why Zhang Wenbin furrowed his brow, so he said: "This bridge has been built for a while. Last time it rained heavily and the river flooded, washing away a plank of wood. It was only replaced about a week ago."

  Zha Wenbin nodded thoughtfully and then told me, "When crossing the bridge, remember to walk on the left side, don't walk on the right side of that plank, that plank has some problems."

  Dad is also a clever person, since Cha Wenbin said so, he must have his reasons, and following him won't do any harm.

  After crossing the bridge, there were already some people at Ah Fa's home, all of whom were brothers and sisters from their family, as well as neighbors from next door. Seeing that the Taoist priest had arrived, they made way for him, allowing Ah Fa's wife to lead Zhang Wenbin inside.

  As soon as they entered, a foul smell hit them, and Dad covered his nose, feeling like vomiting. Seeing the guest's reaction, Ah Fa's wife also felt embarrassed and said: "No choice, let Brother tie him up, otherwise he will bite people."

  As she spoke, the woman rolled up her sleeves, revealing a row of purple bite marks on her arm. Seeing these wounds, the woman burst into tears again: "I don't know what sin I've committed, but just a few days ago he was just dazed, and yesterday he started biting people. If it weren't for Eldest and Second Brother being there, he would have bitten me to death."

  The foul smell was the stench of Ah Fa's feces and urine, because he was tied up and no one dared to untie him, so his bowel movements had to be left on the bed.

  As soon as Zha Wenbin entered the house, his eyes met those of A Fa. A Fa's eyes gleamed with ferocity, while Zha Wenbin's eyes had an added chill. They stood there like that for about a minute, then Zha Wenbin's thumb lightly tapped the hilt of his sword, and the Qixing Sword was only exposed by a few inches. A Fa tilted his head inward, no longer looking directly at him.

  "Boil some hot water first and give it to him for a wash, don't let go of his hands and feet, just throw him directly into the big bucket, remember to put more mugwort in the bucket." After finishing speaking, Cha Wenbin turned around and left.

  They thought about it and decided that with Ah Fa being such a sloppy person, who would dare to get close. So several brothers gritted their teeth, took out scissors and cut open the clothes on Ah Fa's body, stripping him bare. Although Ah Fa was a cripple, at this moment he seemed incredibly strong, and the four brothers almost couldn't hold him down, it was as if he had been thrown into boiling water to scald a pig.

  A Fa's mouth was stuffed with a rag because he wanted to bite people, so it was just his throat "Woo woo" shouting wildly.

  The washing is almost done, and the rooms inside have also been tidied up. Only then was it wrapped in a blanket and sent back again.

  Someone came to ask Cha Wenbin and said: "Mr. Cha, this person has been cleaned up."

  Unexpectedly, Cha Wenbin didn't seem to want to make a move, and instead asked: "The wooden plank added at the back of their bridge, where did it come from?"

  The old woman replied, "From the river."

  Indeed, in our place, the mountain is quite steep, and when it rains heavily, some withered trees and rotten wood on the mountain are easily washed into this small stream.

  Cha Wenbin stopped after hearing this and turned his head to ask my father: "Has any prominent or noble person ever appeared in this place?"

  "I didn't know that, what's going on?" Indeed, as for our family, it was also the generation of great-grandfather who moved here, and the total time of settlement here is less than 100 years. The largest aristocrat is just the landlord at that time.

  However, the history of our village is too severely interrupted. For example, that general temple is a typical relic of the interrupted dynasty. The people living here now are basically all immigrants from outside, and the real original inhabitants were either killed or fled during the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom period.

  Zha Wenbin said to the bridge: "The plank I mentioned earlier, if I didn't see it wrong, is made of Phoebe zhennan wood."

  "Kusunoki?"

  "Not bad, it's camphor wood, or rather, golden camphor wood. Judging from its appearance, it should be the base of a coffin. Although it has been a long time and has been soaked in water for so long, you see that those few wooden nails are still good."

  Following what Cha Wenbin said, everyone took a closer look and indeed found that on this unremarkable wooden board, there were several symmetrical mortise holes, some of which had fallen off while others remained.

  "If you don't mind, it's better to tie the two ends of this board with a rope and hang it up. This board can't be left here anymore. Bridges are things that gather yin energy, and judging from the age of this board, it's at least thousands of years old. Using something like this as a stepping stone, how many people can walk on it safely?"

  As soon as he heard that this thing was a coffin board, Ah Fa's wife's face turned white with fear. This thing was picked up by Ah Fa in the river, and it just so happened that a plank on their own bridge was washed away that day, and they saw a plank floating on the water surface, compared to it, the size was quite suitable, and they easily put it together as a bridge deck. Because this board was very heavy, at the time, it took the combined efforts of both husband and wife to lift it up.

  A muddled person will do muddled things. If they had turned the board over at that time, maybe they wouldn't have used it like this.

  When everyone lifted the board, it was turned over at the same time, and everyone burst into laughter. The back of the bottom plate of this coffin is painted with crimson black lacquer, and the quality of the lacquer is really good. After so many years, there are no cracks or gaps to be seen, and after being soaked in water and picked up, it still shines like a mirror.

  More importantly, the bottom is also painted with a golden powder depicting a dragon about 1.5 meters long. The appearance of this dragon is not as complex as modern dragons, but its shape and lines are exceptionally beautiful, obviously made by top-notch craftsmen. With just this information, it's enough to show that this wooden board has an extraordinary origin.

  It wasn't long before the news of discovering a treasure wooden board spread, and Ah Fa's house was surrounded by people. At that time, someone offered a high price to buy it from Ah Fa's wife, but Cha Wenbin just coldly threw out a sentence: "Who isn't afraid of having a dead person in their home? Take it if you dare."

  With just this one sentence, those who wanted to get rich immediately dispelled their New Year's atmosphere. In the afternoon, Chaozi and his three companions also arrived. As for archaeology, he was still quite knowledgeable, and with just a glance, he said: "Hmm, Wenbin brother, this thing is not simple at all, maybe this village really has some potential!"

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