Chapter 321: Chapter 319: The Meat Seller
As expected, Sweet Potato had thought things through. If that malignant energy was so potent, wouldn’t they, too, become formidable if they seized it?
Everyone understood in their hearts that this time, they might truly have to reveal their hidden talents. They all knew that each possessed unique trump cards, skills they normally kept concealed.
Once the discussion concluded and a few more details were ironed out, they each departed to set their plans in motion.
Sweet Potato had initially considered shouting a few slogans, but the other three unanimously rejected the idea.
Five Altars, Five Evil aspects—Life, Wealth, Fortune, Longevity, and Luck—corresponding to East, South, West, North, and Center. Which altar should I choose to most reliably accomplish this task?
With a soft sigh, Hu Ma mentally reviewed his plan. He first called Li inside to relay a few words to Seventh Aunt, then instructed the other assistants to remain securely within the Manor. He then gathered his things and prepared to set out alone.
At the stables, he looked around and decided to take the donkey brought back from Wutong Town, not the horse. When the horse cast a reproachful glance his way, he offered a reassuring smile. "This trip isn’t dangerous, really..."
The horse turned its large head away, pointedly ignoring him.
Hu Ma could only chuckle helplessly. He instructed a passing assistant to add a jug of good wine to the donkey’s load, then, leading the reluctant animal, he ambled out of the Manor.
As he departed, he used a simple disguise technique learned from Housekeeper Zhou to slightly alter his appearance.
Twenty miles from the Manor, now riding the donkey, he had transformed his appearance. He now looked like a thin, middle-aged man wearing a straw hat. With a firm slap on the donkey’s rear, the donkey went CLIP-CLOP-CLOP, trotting joyfully along the main road. By late afternoon, he had traveled fifty or sixty miles.
He was now very close to Old Yin Mountain.
Previously, Hu Ma had observed a demonstration with the mountain lord, so he had a good understanding of the routes and habits of these treasure hunters involved in Evil Creation. The five Evil Altars were all near Old Yin Mountain but, strictly speaking, not within its actual domain.
However, once the Evil Altars were activated, they could be used to influence Mingzhou or, alternatively, to directly strike at Old Yin Mountain. Such careful selection of location confirmed the mountain lord’s earlier concerns: these people harbored malicious intent.
As he pondered, the donkey slowed its pace. They had reached the edge of Old Yin Mountain, where the road became undulating and rugged, making it impossible to move quickly. Hu Ma let the donkey take its time, and they leisurely arrived before a village.
This was the village the Life Evil Envoy had visited. However, a day had passed, and Hu Ma wasn’t sure if the envoy was still there. He reached the village entrance before nightfall and dismounted, pretending to rest beside his donkey.
After all, with a formidable enemy potentially nearby, caution was essential.
Cautiously, he glanced inside. The village was small but tidy. The blue-tiled walls of the Ancestral Hall, the willow trees in front of it, and the old well all indicated that this was a place with a long history.
Looking from a distance, he saw that every house had its doors and windows shut. The few scattered oil lamps cast a dim light, giving the village an air of desolate silence.
Yet, when he had previously followed the mountain lord, the places visited by the treasure hunters reeked of malevolent energy, a truly horrific sight. Why was this village so quiet? Hu Ma thought, but he kept his expression neutral. Leading the donkey, he slowly walked into the village. As he did, his gaze fell upon three or five elderly men sitting on the steps of the Ancestral Hall, who looked up at him with wary eyes.
It was normal for them to be vigilant; such an isolated village rarely saw outsiders, especially this late in the day.
Hu Ma, covered in dust from his journey, led his donkey forward and smiled at one of the elders. "Old Sir, I’m a Ghost Walker just passing through. It’s getting dark, and I’m afraid I won’t make it to the next village."
"I was hoping to ask if there’s a place to stay in your town?"
These elders had been watching Hu Ma’s unfamiliar face with an unfriendly air ever since he entered the village. But when they heard him introduce himself as a Ghost Walker, their expressions changed. They rose and bowed respectfully. "Sir, are you a genuine Ghost Walker?"
Hu Ma chuckled. "Are there counterfeit Ghost Walkers too? I’ve been walking ghosts with my Granny since I was a child. After she passed away, I continued on my own. It’s been thirty years now. If you don’t believe me, go ask around Old Yin Mountain. My name, Mr. Sheepskin, carries some weight in these parts."
The villagers, somewhat intimidated, exchanged glances. One, bolder than the rest, stepped forward. "Are you truly a Ghost Walker, sir? To tell you the truth, our village isn’t allowing strangers in right now."
"You were lucky to run into us; we’re kind-hearted. If you had just barged in, you’d likely have been beaten to death. But if you are a Ghost Walker, I’d like to ask, do you know how to treat illnesses or exorcise evil spirits?"
Hu Ma feigned a moment’s thought. "I am a Ghost Walker, so I don’t really know how to treat ordinary illnesses. However, exorcising evil spirits is my specialty. I can take a look."
Hearing his sincere tone, the men began to discuss quietly among themselves.
Someone said, "Daniu’s condition is probably an illness. A Ghost Walker might not be able to treat that."
Another said, "His illness is very strange; he might have encountered an evil spirit. The last Ghost Walker we invited couldn’t cure him. Maybe this one can try."
After some deliberation, they finally invited Hu Ma to walk further into the village, an opportunity he quickly seized to make inquiries.
His inquiries confirmed what he had previously witnessed through the mountain lord’s eyes: something had indeed happened in the village. Back then, he had only seen the events without understanding the cause. Now, from the villagers’ words, he learned the whole story.
"It’s all Daniu’s gluttony that caused this trouble..."
An old man sighed, then began to recount the strange occurrences in the village to Hu Ma.
This Zhang Daniu was a well-known rude man in the village, currently only twenty-five or twenty-six years old. He had grown up in poverty but was naturally strong and robust, standing a full eight feet tall with arms possessing the strength of a thousand jin.
When pigs were slaughtered in the village, it usually took three to five men to hold one down. But when Zhang Daniu was there, he could pin a pig with one hand and stab it with the knife in his other—simple and brutal.
And it wasn’t just his strength that was remarkable; his appetite was too. His usual meals of cornmeal buns and wild vegetable gruel never left him feeling full. Even at Red and White affairs like weddings or funerals, occasions with more food, he could rarely eat to his heart’s content, only managing to get about half-full.
Once, a wealthy villager, during a pig slaughter, playfully challenged him by giving him a ten-jin piece of raw meat. Zhang Daniu simply took a knife, sliced off pieces, sprinkled them with coarse green salt, and wolfed them down.
Even then, he wasn’t full and washed it all down with two bowls of pig blood soup to fill the gaps!
The villagers all said that someone like him was born to be a soldier; on the battlefield, he could kill bandits and still get enough to eat.
And now, the person in the village who had run into trouble was precisely this rude man.
The trouble began three or four days ago, with a man who came to the village selling meat. He was pushing a wheelbarrow, its contents covered with a dirty cloth.
Upon entering the village, he started banging a gong to attract attention. When the villagers gathered, he suddenly whipped off the cloth.
To everyone’s surprise, the cart was piled high with strips of fresh, tender, bright red meat. According to the seller, he had roe deer, pork, mutton, beef, and rabbit meat—all sorts.
Any kind of meat, just one copper coin for a jin. It was unbelievably cheap.
The villagers weren’t fools; they all felt something was wrong and hesitated to buy. The meat seller didn’t pressure them, just continued his desultory cries under the willow tree. Most villagers could resist, but this rude man was drawn in.
He was a glutton for meat but rarely got to eat it. Previously, when a chicken from someone’s house had fallen into a manure pit and drowned, already half-rotten when found, he had fished it out, washed it, and eaten it.
So how could he resist the sight of those alluring, bright red, glistening pieces of meat on the cart?
Although short on cash, he still fumbled out two copper coins, bought two jin of the meat, and took it home, immediately putting water on to stew it.
But he was too gluttonous. While cutting the meat, he stuffed two raw pieces into his mouth.
The moment he tasted it, his eyes lit up. He couldn’t even wait for the pot to cook; he devoured every last bit, raw and cooked. Then, he frantically rummaged through his house, gathered every last grain of rice he owned, rushed out of the village, caught up with the meat seller, and traded it all for another twenty jin of meat.
As it stewed in the pot, the fragrance that wafted out permeated the entire village. It was an agonizing temptation, and people found it hard to control themselves.
Some people hurriedly went to look for the meat seller, but he had vanished without a trace. The other villagers could only endure. Neighbors, smelling that aroma all night, tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
Finally, someone couldn’t hold back any longer. They got up and knocked on the rude man’s door, planning to beg for a piece of meat.
But when they got to the rude man’s house, they discovered that all the meat he’d bought was gone, and even the broth it was cooked in had been drunk dry. So, where was that fragrance coming from?
"What happened then?" Hu Ma asked, his curiosity piqued by the villagers’ tale.
"Afterwards..." The old man leading the way sighed. "You’ll know when you come in and see for yourself."
As they walked, he pointed to a dilapidated house by the roadside. "This is Daniu’s home. Would you like to go in and see?"
Seeing he seemed hesitant to enter, Hu Ma smiled. "Alright."
Hu Ma lifted the front of his robe, pushed open the rickety wooden door, and stepped inside. The moment he opened the door, the villagers who had led him there hastily retreated several steps, as if terrified of something within.
They stood outside on tiptoe and called into the house, "Daniu’s wife! Come out and greet him! We’ve brought a Ghost Walker for you! He can save your Daniu’s life..."
CREAK...
After Hu Ma entered the courtyard, the door to the main room opened. A gaunt, small woman, whom one could barely recognize as female, emerged. A child clung timidly to her leg, peeking out at Hu Ma from behind her.
Hu Ma looked at her, his brow furrowing slightly. But then he quickly smiled warmly and said, "I’m a Ghost Walker who was passing by. I heard there was trouble here, so I thought I’d come and see. Perhaps I can help!"