"Senpai!"

Xiao Zhuo watched Jiang Yingxue's figure slowly disappear in Uncle Weng's arms, and returned to the puppet, his heart was anxious, and he couldn't help but scream. Although he deduced the cause of Jiang Yingxue's death, he still didn't know what was going on with the cause of death of the Jiang family, if Jiang Yingxue took Uncle Weng and left, with Jiang Yingxue's current situation, wouldn't he have to wait a few more days! But after thinking about it again, since Jiang Yingxue had spiritual sense, all the things she remembered were experienced later, and she knew very little about the things before she died, but Uncle Weng knew everything better. As a result, Xiao Zhuo stopped and stood aside respectfully.

That touching shadow finally disappeared, and the weather-beaten body also crumbled, Xiao Zhuo wanted to step forward to help, but was also stopped by the other party. Then I saw Uncle Weng pull through the bag behind his back and take out a bunch of objects from it, paintbrushes, colorful colors, rouge, flour, etc., Xiao Zhuo recognized these things, but he couldn't guess what Uncle Weng wanted to do, did he want to paint his wife's face?

I saw Uncle Weng pour the flour into a vessel, then pour water, and then began to knead, maybe the dough was too soft, so he added some flour, until it was completely kneaded. Then he painted a layer of lacquer resin-like on the face of the puppet, tore off a piece of the dough, kneaded it in his hand several times and pasted it on the puppet, and then saw that Uncle Weng's fingers kept pressing or pressing on the dough, or collecting or squeezing, and the hands that were originally a little trembling became extremely calm at this time, and the place where the fingers passed really made the appearance of a human face. It's just that that face is made of flour after all, with no one's blood color and two inflexible facial features, Xiao Zhuo can't tell whether it looks like Jiang Yingxue or not.

Xiao Zhuo was still thinking about it here, but Uncle Weng suddenly took off the dough on the puppet and discarded it aside, tore off a piece of the dough again, and began to pinch the puppet's face again. After repeating this many times, Uncle Weng finally stopped his movements with satisfaction and said, "Young man, can you help me find some dry firewood?" ”

"The juniors will go now, the seniors will wait a while." Xiao Zhuo didn't say anything, and went straight to the outside of the courtyard to find Xu Shiji and Wang Junke, after all, this is also their territory, where is something, the two of them should know better than him. It's just that when the three of them came back with dry firewood, Uncle Weng was already standing outside the courtyard waiting for them, and the face of the puppet in his hand made of flour had become a lot more ruddy. It's just that kind of red, Xiao Zhuo looks quite weird, and he can't tell whether it's blood or rouge.

The four of them sat around the courtyard, and in the middle lit the dry firewood that Xiao Zhuo and they had found, and the crackling sound of firewood crackling echoed in the cold night sky. For a long time, no one spoke, and they all watched Uncle Weng roast the puppet there, and they didn't know if it was to dry the moisture of the dough, or if he was warming his wife, who had guarded him all his life.

"Lady, this is probably the last time I pinch your face for you! You're still as beautiful as when we got married, but I'm old, and we've persevered together for your family until now, and today I finally have hope, isn't it? When Uncle Weng said this, the bonfire suddenly jumped, and Uncle Weng's hand, which was still stroking the puppet's face, had already reached out to the top of the puppet's head and loaded the wedge.

"Don't worry, lady, I can hold out until now, how can I fall like this." Uncle Weng's eyes closed slightly, and when he opened them again, he was already looking at Xiao Zhuo, "Young Master Xiao, do you want to hear some stories about me?" ”

Xiao Zhuo heard what Uncle Weng said, and hurriedly got up to say thank you, and replied: "The seniors are affectionate, and the juniors are grateful and willing to listen." ”

"Eighty-three years ago, there was such a family, its family is also well-off, there is an only son in the family, since childhood is also considered to be gentle and elegant, full of poetry and books, but when the child was twelve years old, he watched a puppet show in the town, and since then he has been obsessed with it, so he went to the opera troupe to find a master who sang opera to learn, make puppets, arrange copywriting, portray and add music, since then indulged in it, but also has some achievements." Uncle Weng said this, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but show a smile, as if those years were like yesterday. But after all, singing is a matter of three religions and nine streams, no matter how much he likes it, how can his family agree! In order to make him feel good, his family found a family affair for him, and the woman was very beautiful, like a touch of bright red on the green shore of the spring breeze, and the fresh lotus after the rain on the clear spring and blue lake, especially when she danced, it was even more refreshing than the puppet he controlled. Since then, the man has really taken care of his thoughts, and he is very affectionate with the woman. ”

"When the beauty is beautiful, the things of life should not be like this." Xiao Zhuo heard Uncle Weng say this, and also remembered the days when Jin Ruo accompanied him: he was young and sang long songs, watching the moonset in Lantai from afar. Drunk lying on the mountains and rivers outside the clouds, sleeping together in the wild galaxy; Night rain Nanshan candle flame, laughing with the gods and Buddhas. Warm wine small furnace waiting for the fire, this life red dust and promise. (Excerpt from the ancient song "Wen Shuo") was really his most comfortable day, so he sighed casually.

"It seems that Childe is also a confidant and a red-faced person!" Uncle Weng looked at Xiao Zhuo and adjusted his posture with a smile, Xiao Zhuo nodded in response with a smile, which was regarded as answering him. "But it backfired! In the third month after their marriage, his mother-in-law was waiting to give birth, so he wanted to go home to visit, and because there were some things at home that he still needed to deal with, he asked the lady to take the lead. And when he rushed over, not only did he not see his mother, but even his mother's family died at home for some reason. Speaking of this, Uncle Weng was already very sad, but after all, he was already old, and how many tears he could shed was more of an injury.

"How did that family die?" Xiao Zhuo hurriedly asked, and as soon as he asked, he also found that he was asking too recklessly, how can people talk too much under the injury. He opened his mouth to apologize: "The younger generation is rude, please mourn the seniors!" ”

"I don't know! When I rushed over, my mother's family had been dead for three days, and the government said that she had died of poisoning, but I found and asked him, and there was no sign of poisoning in the bodies of my father-in-law's family, so I went to the government to redress my grievances, and they told me all the causes of death. It turned out that when the lady's family died, although their faces were full of horror, the places of death were all in their respective rooms, and the whole body was not injured or painful, and they all maintained the appearance of what they did before they died. In order not to panic the people, the government made a verdict that he died of poisoning. I didn't believe it at first, but when I saw the five extra willow trees outside the courtyard, I realized that it might not be that simple. So one night, I led people to cut down the five willow trees, but when they were digging the roots, no matter how much they were chopping with axes and knives, they could not move the slightest, and they tossed until the end of the day, when suddenly there was a voice in the courtyard, and everyone was frightened away. But at the time, I knew very well that there could be no one in the courtyard except for us! Uncle Weng also stopped his injury at this time, picked up the puppet again, brushed a layer of sticky things on the puppet's face, and then baked it on the bonfire.

So I boldly walked into the courtyard, maybe I was lucky, although my father-in-law's family of six was trapped in the courtyard, but after all, they were all new deaths, and there was not much resentment. I saw Guo'er and Qinghao jumping out of the house, shouting their parents and grandparents, and when they got to their parents-in-law, they kept asking them when their aunts and sisters would arrive home, and my mother-in-law kindly replied: 'It's almost there!' The day before yesterday, someone from your brother-in-law's house came to bring a letter, thinking it would be tomorrow, so don't be disobedient when the time comes! The two children wanted to go to their brother's parents' house to make a fuss, but as soon as they came out of the house, they saw me. And when I was learning puppet show, I heard the master mention that most of the puppet show masters had heard about the requiem and the spirit, and knew a little about the netherworld, although I hadn't learned that level, but I also knew some, so I didn't dare to easily shock them, so I told them that I was their brother-in-law and uncle, just because the lady couldn't stand the bumps on the road, so the line was slow, and I was afraid that the family would be anxious, so I came to report the safety first, so it was okay, and the father-in-law and mother-in-law's family also came out to entertain me. But when I went back the next day, it was still the same scene, the same conversation, and I realized at that time that my father-in-law's family was looking forward to the reunion of his mother and son before he died. At this time, Uncle Weng's hand that was supposed to brush another layer of things for the puppet also stopped in mid-air, and after a while, Uncle Weng breathed a long sigh of relief, and his arm could fall, as if this simple fall had exhausted all his strength.

"At that time, I didn't care how my father-in-law's family died, because the lady obviously went home before me, but there was no lady in the soul of the family! So I hurried back in the starry night, and when I was halfway there, the horses suddenly stopped, and I could not move left or right, so I had to find a place to rest. That is, in that night's dream, I dreamed that a faceless man walked towards me, and kept calling me husband, although I was shocked in my heart, but I had just experienced the matter of my father-in-law's family before, and I asked carefully, only to know that it was really my wife, but that face was stripped off for some reason. Uncle Weng choked up and finished speaking, and the arm that was still baking for the puppet was suddenly withdrawn. Xiao Zhuo saw that his baking this time was not as long as the last time, and he didn't ask anything, maybe Uncle Weng was also afraid that he would be too excited and drop the puppet!

"Knowing where the lady died, I couldn't hold back my grief anymore, so I told her about the family, but I didn't think that the lady suddenly became fierce and abnormal, and I was at a loss, but the lady suddenly quieted down for some reason. Later, in the dream, I learned that it was the opening of Huangquan Road that night, and the Yin Si official came out to inspect in order to protect the souls of the people, and met the lady who wanted to transform into a fierce spirit, so he stopped it. It's just that although the lady failed to turn into a fierce spirit, she still can't be reincarnated because she has no face. And I, either help the lady get her face back, or let the lady be taken to the city of vain death and be a lonely ghost forever. ”

"My predecessors chose the former, did you regret it?" When Xiao Zhuo heard this, he naturally knew the general situation of the matter, so he opened his mouth and asked a digression.

"What is there to regret not to regret! Even if the lady has no face, at least I remember in my heart that she is so beautiful, and it doesn't matter what he does! At this time, Uncle Weng took out the paintbrush from his bag, unfolded the colorful color, and began to add eyebrows to the puppet. So I traveled all sides, found my master, spent nearly a year, learned the puppet show requiem of the method, and went back to find the lady, for her to do a good carrier, carved out the eyebrows, since then I have lived in this town, and the lady does not know where the lady learned the strange method, but from the soul slowly turned into a spirit, and gradually remembered the things before death, although I know that this matter is not something I can do, but every time I see the lady go home to appease the family, I vow to return the lady to the family a justice. It's just that with the passage of time, I am a mortal body after all, in order for me to be able to fulfill this cruel wish, the lady secretly lost her cultivation to protect me, she thought I didn't know, but how many people in the world can live to be one hundred and ten years old, and they are still deaf and clear! "One stroke at a time is as good as ever, and the red makeup is memorable. The puppet in Uncle Weng's hand finally began to take shape, Xiao Zhuo looked at it, and sure enough, it was Jiang Yingxue's face, but on the cheeks, in the corners of his eyes, there was an extra line of water traces, kissing the makeup that Uncle Weng had just painted.

"A woman in the world, if you can be treated like this by your uncle, don't say that you are self-cultivation, even if you can't recover, you have no regrets!" Listening to other people's stories and thinking about his own experience, Xiao Zhuo remembered Jin Ruo's eyes before he left that night, as well as the deep affection between the two along the way, he believed that if it weren't for Jin Ruo's responsibility, Jin Ruo would rather violate the rules of heaven than be separated from himself!