The next day, I woke up early, in a very bad spirit, and I didn't sleep until three or four o'clock in the morning.

Bu Jin and I had some breakfast at the hotel and left. At breakfast, I tentatively asked Bu Jin about last night, but she never said a word. And, since last night she had seen me rummaging through her bag, she had always seemed to be wary of me, and it never put it in her suitcase again, but always held it in her arms. I looked at the cloth bag, and I was always worried that centipedes, spiders, and of course, the box of wriggling red larvae that scarried me the most was last night.

I followed my father's instructions to find his former colleague Wang Chengbao and dialed the phone number he gave me last night. The phone beeped twice, and an old voice said, "Hello? ”

I replied, "Hey, hello, are you Mr. Wang Chengbao?" ”

"yes, who are you?"

"I am Fan Jiyun's son, I am in Kunming now, and it was my father who asked me to come to you."

The person on the other end of the phone thought for a while and said, "Oh, you're Peixi." ”

So, I had a few words of greeting with Wang Chengbao, and he told me to go to a tea house in Kunming to wait for him first. I hung up the phone, hailed a taxi, and told the driver where I was going, and the driver was surprised and said as he drove, "How can you two young people go to that kind of place?" ”

I was a little curious, so I asked, "What, is there anything different about that teahouse?" ”

"Not really." The driver explained, "It's just that it's a very ordinary small teahouse, and in the old town, many people don't even know that there is such a place in the road, and it is usually a place where some retired old men gather, and young people will definitely feel very bored when they go there." ”

"Oh, I'm going to find someone."

"Looking for someone? Do you have any acquaintances there? ”

"It's a former colleague of my father."

When the driver heard this, he looked at me with wide eyes, and seemed to have a new understanding of me, and said, "Then your father must have been a big man in Kunming before." ”

I wondered, so I asked, "Why do you say that?" ”

The driver smiled and said, "Because the old men in the Qingming Teahouse were basically high-ranking government officials when they were young, and now they are retired, so they are idle." If you want me to say, there is really nothing to do in that place, it is a group of retired old cadres who rely on the old and sell the old, and they get together all day and day long, just to talk about politics and complain about how bad the current government is. ”

I explained, "No, no, my father was just a university teacher. ”

While talking, we have come to the Qingming Teahouse. It is indeed as the driver said, the location is extremely remote, and most of the buildings next to it are the family buildings of old cadres. Although there don't seem to be many people here, the decoration is not bad, the door is a wooden plaque, on which is the dark green grass big characters "Qing Ming", and there are also some small tables and rattan chairs. There were more than a dozen old men in their sixties and seventies sitting inside, some playing Go, some reading the newspaper, and three or four sitting around a small table chatting.

As soon as Bu Jin and I opened the curtain and entered, the original noisy sound inside suddenly stopped, and the dozen or so old men all looked at us with surprised expressions. It seems that this teahouse is really not patronized by young people all year round, and basically relies on the old customers of these retired cadres to maintain its business, so it is not surprising that two newcomers occasionally come, and they are all young people in their twenties.

I looked around the store for a week, and I didn't know which one was Wang Chengbao, maybe he hadn't come at all. At this time, the old men also returned to normal and continued to be busy. Bu Jin and I found a remote corner and did it, and a middle-aged man in his forties, missing a front tooth, immediately walked up and asked the two of us what we wanted to drink.

I haven't drunk tea a few times since I was a child, and I haven't studied tea much, and no matter how good the tea is, I can't tell any special fragrance in my mouth, so I simply said to the man: "What kind of tea those old men drink, you can bring me any tea." ”

The middle-aged man nodded, and left, and after a while, two cups of warm tea were served. I was bored and tried to say a few words to Bu Jin, but she ignored me at all. I guess she's probably still angry with me last night, and anyway, she's also a girl, and she will have times of anger, which makes her a little human.

I sat idly and began to search in my head for this Wang Chengbao if I had seen it before. Of course, I did hear this name when my father usually chatted, but he only mentioned it casually, saying that he had worked with Wang Chengbao very happily before, and also talked about some archaeological experiences with Wang Chengbao. However, in my impression, I have not met Wang Chengbao as a person. The taxi driver just now said that most of the people who came to this teahouse were retired cadres, and I said in my heart could it be that this Wang Chengbao was really a government official in Kunming back then?

As I was thinking, I suddenly walked in the door of a white-haired old man, who looked to be in his seventies. But seeing that he is neatly dressed, has a straight back, and walks with a chic demeanor, it seems that he was also a handsome guy when he was young.

As soon as the old man entered the door, he also looked around for a week, and his eyes fell on the location of me and Bu Jin, and then he walked over with a kind smile and said, "It's Peixi's nephew." ”

As soon as I heard that, I stood up and shook the old man's hand, and said, "Yes, it's the junior." Are you Uncle Wang? ”

The old man nodded, smiled at me, and said, "You've grown so big." ”

I nodded and smiled, not knowing what to say. Ordinary elders, all who meet young juniors will generally say this, in fact, it is just a sigh of time flies.

Wang Chengbao said again: "You definitely don't know me, because when I first met you, you were still in swaddling clothes." ”

"Yes!" I have always had a high emotional intelligence, and hurriedly echoed.

When Wang Chengbao heard this, he laughed exaggeratedly twice, and said, "Of course, I went to drink your full moon wine that time." Your father and I, one in Yunnan and the other in the Northeast, are too far apart to see each other a few times on weekdays, and the last time we met was at your full moon banquet. It's been more than 20 years, how old are you this year? ”

"Twenty-six." I replied.

Wang Chengbao asked the owner of the shop to make a pot of tea for him, and asked while drinking: "Your father's health is okay." ”

"It's okay, it's just that it's not as strong as your body."

Wang Chengbao laughed twice, his laughter was still very contrived, and said, "The young man is quite good at talking. ”

I nodded, and didn't say anything more. Actually, I was already upset by these useless pleasantries, because I had been greeting him for a while when I called him in the morning, and I really didn't want to waste any more time. I hope that he can tell me why my father wants me to stay in Yunnan for the next few days, and he specially told me not to be afraid of any strange things that happen, but to stay here, and to find this Wang Chengbao in front of me. So, now that I've found this person, what should I do about it, I can't just be idle in their house.

I thought about it for a while and said, "Uncle Wang, I heard my father say that he wanted me to stay in Yunnan for the time being, and asked me to come to you, saying that you can find me a place to stay, which is really troublesome for you." ”

"Eldest nephew, what are you talking about, I have been friends with your father for decades, and now I haven't seen him for many years, and his son has come to beg me to do something, will I refuse?"

I nodded hurriedly and said, "Then thank you Uncle Wang for taking care of me." There's one thing I don't quite understand, though. ”

"I don't understand why your father won't let you leave Yunnan and go back to your hometown?" That Wang Chengbao is really powerful, and before I could ask, he had already seen through what I was thinking. As the saying goes, people become old and refined, which means that a person has lived for a long time and has experienced many things, so he is often very good at observing words and feelings, and often before the other party speaks, he already knows what the other party thinks in his heart. I think this is the so-called old rivers and lakes.

I nodded, and Wang Chengbao glanced at Bu Jin, who had not spoken, and said, "This girl is the descendant of your father's life-saving benefactor." ”

"yes, what's wrong?"

"She's a Hmong?"

"Yes." I replied.

Wang Chengbao leaned back on the rattan chair and said, "Eldest nephew, you should know your father." Brother Jiyun is not only a historian, but also a fan of metaphysics. ”

I replied that I knew the truth. In my family, many people only know that my father is a famous historian, but few people know that my father also has an extraordinary love for metaphysics, and his bookshelves are full of many bizarre books, all of which are books about mysterious events. Once, Gao Peng, a close friend who co-owned a bookstore with me, came to my house, looked at the shelves full of old books, his eyes lit up with excitement, and he told me very excitedly that most of my father's bookshelves were rare books, and they would sell them at a good price in the market. My father has always cherished these books, and even if I wanted to touch his books, I had to allow them with his consent, and more often than not, my father was alone in his study reading them.

Wang Chengbao said: "Your father has always been obsessed with studying witch culture in ancient times, so he came to Yunnan once thirty years ago and did an investigation near Dianchi Lake in Yunnan. Eldest nephew, I don't know if you believe in ghosts and gods, but there are indeed many things in this world that cannot be explained by science. ”

I remembered what happened last night, and I couldn't help but glance at Bu Jin, who was sitting next to me, and nodded.

"But you also know your father's character."

"I like to sell lawsuits by nature." I'm the first to go.

"Yes, he often likes to sell lawsuits, so that curious us can't help but be led by his nose, I think, he can probably get some kind of satisfaction from it." Wang Chengbao took a sip of tea and said, "So, I don't know what your father's real intentions are, he just told me about a jade plaque, as if it was, it meant hanging on this girl's neck." ”

"Yes, my father told me about it, and he asked me to check the jade plate." As I spoke, I looked at Bu Jin, and I wondered if she understood what I said, and if she would be even more angry because of it. Seeing that she didn't react, I continued with reassurance: "Last night, I also saw it, and she did have a jade plaque around her neck. ”

"Oh?" Wang Chengbao raised his eyebrows and said, "I think the secret that your father wants to hide is in that jade plate." Eldest nephew, I think you must be like me, very curious about the jade plate. ”

I said, "I saw the jade plaque last night, it is a piece of white jade, even the words engraved on it I don't recognize." ”

"White jade?" Wang Chengbao seemed a little surprised, and said: "Eldest nephew, how can I say that your Uncle Wang has also worked with your father, and I can also understand some rare words, I wonder if Lu Dao can let me take a look at that jade plate?" ”

"This ...... I'll have to ask her. As she spoke, I touched Bu Jin's arm, and she turned her head to look at me, as if to say, what's wrong?

I gestured with my hand and said slowly, "Can you show us the jade plaque around your neck?" ”

After Bu Jin understood what I meant, he subconsciously grabbed the jade plate on his chest through his shirt and shook his head at me. I remember it as one of the few times she shook her head at me instead of nodding her head.

I glanced at Wang Chengbao, and his old man's expression was a little embarrassed. I said, "Uncle Wang, don't worry, I'll talk to her about it." Wang Chengbao nodded awkwardly when he heard this.

That's when my phone rang all of a sudden. I picked up my phone and saw that it was Liu Zhen. I said to Wang Chengbao: "I'm really sorry, Uncle Wang, I'll go out to answer the phone first." ”

Wang Chengbao nodded, and I explained to Bu Jin again before walking out of the Qingming Teahouse. Liu Zhen is a student of my father, two years older than me, but a hundred times smarter than me, after graduating from university, he directly enrolled in graduate school and studied for a master's and doctorate, but he was already a doctor of history, and he was also the first doctoral student brought out by my father. For a while, he used to come to my house to play, and I was about the same age as him, so we gradually became very good friends. My mother always asked me to learn from him, but Liu Zhen had one good thing, that is, he never felt superior to others, and this is what I liked about him.

I was a little puzzled, because I heard from my father a few days ago that Liu Zhen had recently been sent to Inner Mongolia to carry out some archaeological activities, and he should be very busy, and I don't know why he has time to call me now.

I answered the phone, and there was no greeting, and I said, "Lao Liu, why did you remember to call me, I heard that you haven't been busy lately?" ”

Unexpectedly, Liu Zhen asked me bluntly in a stiff tone: "Peixi, are you in Yunnan now?" ”

I was stunned for a moment, and said in my heart how did he know that I was in Yunnan, could it be that my father told him? So, I said, "Yes, how do you know the Tao?" ”

"The teacher told me."

As soon as I heard that it was my dad who told him, I didn't think much of it, and joked: "Oh, why, I want souvenirs, I think about you, I'll give it to you when I go back." ”

Liu Zhen on the other side of the phone sighed, seemed to be a little anxious, and said: "I don't care what souvenirs you want, I am about to go to Yunnan, and I am waiting for the plane at the airport now." ”

"You're coming too?" I felt strange and asked, "Didn't I hear my dad say that you were going to Inner Mongolia to do some archaeological activities recently?" ”

Liu Zhen replied: "The situation has changed, it was your father who entrusted me, saying that you are in big trouble and want me to come to Yunnan to help you immediately." ”

"Big trouble?" I said to myself that there have been a lot of strange things that have happened recently, but it is not a big trouble, so I said, "I haven't been in any big trouble, and besides, I was on the phone with my dad last night." ”

"The person you talked to last night wasn't the teacher."

As soon as I heard Liu Zhen's words, I had goosebumps all over my body, and the hairs on my instinctive back stood up all of a sudden, and I hurriedly said: "Impossible, can I even hear my own father's voice wrong?" Last night, it was my father's voice. ”

"I know that you will think this is a little strange, but you must believe my words, the person who called you last night is definitely not the teacher, because, because the teacher disappeared on the third day you left the Northeast." Liu Zhen said with some excitement.

As soon as I heard this, my head buzzed and blurted out, "What? Missing? What the hell is going on? ”

"There are so many things here, I have to meet and talk to you in detail, because there is a good chance that our phone will be tapped."

"Eavesdropping? What the hell is going on? "I've become more and more aware that things are not as simple as I thought they would be.

Liu Zhen didn't explain too much, but asked me: "Last night, did the person who pretended to be your father ask you to find someone named Wang Chengbao?" ”

"yes, and I'm with him now, and he's a former colleague of my father." I said.

"That person is not Wang Chengbao!"

I was taken aback and asked, "How do you know the Tao?" ”

Liu Zhen said excitedly and said, "Because the real Wang Chengbao died thirty years ago. ”