The horses pulling the carts were scrawny, their necks pressed low by the scales, and although they worked hard, the wagons often slipped in the mud. The carriage was uncovered, and if it rained on the way, it had to go into the woods for shelter.

The car was covered with thick straw, soaked after being drenched in heavy rain. Wang Li, a middle-aged servant, lay on his stomach and was taken care of by Wang Li and his son Wang Hu.

Jiang Yuan sat on the carriage and shook the carriage, originally the work of driving should have been done by suppressing Wang Li, but he was injured like that at this time, Jiang Yuan had no choice but to do it himself. Fortunately, although the horse he pulled was thin and old, he was quite docile, and even a freshman like Jiang Yuan could drive it effortlessly.

"Childe......" Wang Li suddenly opened his mouth, "When you get to the intersection in front, please take the road on the right." ”

Jiang Yuan glanced at the intersection in front of him, frowned and said:

"If you turn right, you will get out of the road to Yangcheng. ”

Wang Li wiped his tears and pleaded in a low voice:

"It will take a few days to get to Yangcheng, and the child's father is afraid that ...... It won't be that time......"

Wang Li, the official of the government, was injured, and his wound was drenched by the rain, and he has been in a semi-coma with a high fever for the past two days, and it seems that he is indeed likely to die if he does not reach Yangcheng.

Talking to Jiang Yuan, Wang Li could only ask for a wail. After all, firstly, Jiang Yuan was the benevolent father who saved their family of three, and secondly, Jiang Yuan's toughness and ferocity also made Wang Li's heart afraid. Therefore, even if it is his own carriage, Wang Li does not dare to make claims.

Jiang Yuan hesitated for a moment and asked:

"And where does the path on the right lead?"

Wang Li heard that Jiang Yuan's tone was loose, and hurriedly replied:

"The bay leading to the Xuan River, on the bank of which there is a river temple, in which lives the old boss of the child's father. That man is proficient in medicine and can save my family. ”

"The river temple at the river bend ......" Jiang Yuan seemed to have some memories of this place.

He soon remembered that this place he had often heard from traders in Taiping Town seemed to be an ominous place......

The Xuan River went down from Yangcheng all the way to the east, and was blocked by the mountain at the foot of Jiuquan Mountain, and was diverted to the north, forming a huge river bay.

However, the world is dark and chaotic, and there are often unknown dead bodies from the Xuan River, washed by the river to the river bay and piled up, making the land of the river bend strange and evil things frequently. In ancient times, the common people raised funds to build the river temple, not only to suppress evil spirits, but also to use it as a righteous village to collect and settle the nameless dead bodies for people to claim.

The river temple is guarded by only one corpse collector all year round, and occasionally there are people who go to stay overnight, and there are also some passers-by who have been robbed of money by mountain bandits and cannot rush to the next village, or poor scholars who can only walk to Yangcheng because of poverty during the exam season every day.

"Your father-in-law's boss...... Is it an official errand?, so why are you a corpse collector in the River Temple?" Jiang Yuan asked.

Wang Li explained:

"That person's name is Yan Gudao, he used to be the head catcher of Yangcheng, and he was very famous back then, and many Jiangyang thieves fell into his hands. However, Yan Zhutou had a upright personality, offended many people and was ostracized, so he resigned from his position and came to the River Temple in frustration. ”

Jiang Yuan didn't expect that there would be such a person, he thought about it secretly, he was not in a hurry to go to Yangcheng, and he was also in someone else's car. It is reasonable to go to the river temple for a trip.

The sun is setting, and the cold wind is gusting.

When they arrived at the intersection, Jiang Yuan pulled the reins, and the carriage turned into the right path and disappeared into the forest, heading towards the faintly visible Xuan River in the distance.

The Xuan River is a large river, with wide banks and gentle river levels, and you can often see boats sailing down the river during the day. If the weather is good, the sparkling water surface with white sail fishing songs is a beautiful sight.

But as the night progresses, there is no longer a single cargo ship to be seen on the river, and the surface of the river is a deep inky color, and the river will become turbulent, and under the waves, it seems to contain an unknown mystery.

When the bright moon loomed in the dark clouds, Jiang Yuan finally drove to the river bay.

At the bend of the river there is a large flat rocky beach that has been washed away, and there is black rotten wood washed up by the river. At the end of the river beach is the wooded Jiuquan Mountain, and at the foot of the mountain stands a dilapidated building, which is the River Temple.

The temple is backed by a high mountain and faces the river, surrounded by lush forests, making it particularly lonely and lonely at night.

It was an old temple, with a black tile covering the top that looked dull and old at night, clumps of weeds growing between the cracks, the cornices hanging from the winddoer had long since been rusted, and the walls were dim and beginning to fall off. The temple is very large, and you can see the glorious appearance of the past, but with the loss of time, it begins to appear decayed and lonely.

When the carriage came to the outside of the river temple, Wang Li called his son Wang Hu and tried to move Wang Li, who was already unconscious, out of the carriage.

"I'll do it anyway. Jiang Yuan said, carrying Wang Li on his shoulders and walking towards the River Temple.

After stepping into the temple gate, you will be greeted by a wide courtyard.

In the center of the courtyard is a release pond, and the bluestone pavement around the pond is covered with thick fallen leaves.

In the open space not far from the release pond, a torch burned brightly on the ground. In the firelight, a burly figure was pouring tung oil on a pile of firewood, and in the middle of the firewood, another person was faintly visible.

As Jiang Yuan and the others stepped into the courtyard, the burly figure paused and turned his head to look at a few people.

In the light of the fire, it was evident that the man was about fifty or sixty years old, with his hair in a bun crooked to the side, a large beard on his mouth and cheeks, and he was dressed in tattered clothes, and a wine gourd was tied to his belt.

"Hey!" the man shouted, "it's better to stay here overnight, and get out of here!"

Jiang Yuan thought that this person was Yan Gudao, and before he could speak, Wang Li had already hurriedly said:

"Yan Zhutou, please save Wang Li! He's dying......"

The old man, known as Yan Zhutou, looked at Wang Li in surprise:

"It's my brother and sister, what's wrong with Wang Li?"

While speaking, Yan Gudao hurriedly walked over, and when he saw the official Wang Li on Jiang Yuan's shoulder, he was also taken aback: "Why is it so badly injured!"

After finishing speaking, he didn't wait for everyone to explain, hurriedly took Wang Li from Jiang Yuan's shoulder, and walked towards the main hall at the end of the courtyard with Wang Li on his shoulder.

Wang Li also hurriedly walked into the main hall with his son Wang Hu.

Jiang Yuan came to the pair of firewood alone, and as he got closer, in addition to the strong smell of tung oil, there was also a rotten smell.

He picked up the torch on the ground and shone it towards the pyre, only to see a corpse lying in the middle of the top layer of the pyre.

The corpse was disheveled, as if after a long period of soaking, its body had swelled and bulged, and its skin was so white and wrinkled that it was impossible to distinguish whether it was a man or a woman. What is strange is that the teeth and nails of this corpse seem to be growing after death, and a few fangs have even grown beyond the lips.

"Don't get too close!" Yan Gudao returned to the courtyard after settling Wang Li, he took the torch from Jiang Yuan's hand, and then threw the torch on the firewood without hesitation.

The pyre soaked in tung oil soon rose into flames, and Jiang Yuan noticed that the corpse that had been calm in the pyre seemed to be writhing when it was burned, and he didn't know if it was due to the shrinkage of heat.

Jiang Yuan watched quietly for a while, and the smell of cooked meat and burnt paste mixed and dispersed. In a short time, the corpse had been burned to a creep and shrink, and soon it was a pile of charred bones, and the flames gradually subsided.

"Why did he become like this?" Jiang Yuan asked.

Yan Gudao sighed and said:

"Evil qi enters the body, and you can't live in peace even if you die. There are still a few of them parked in the room over there, and if no one comes to claim them in two days, they will have to be burned like this. ”

Jiang Yuan looked in the direction that Yan Gudao said, and a row of side houses was so dark that there was no light, and the atmosphere was gloomy.

"Don't you do the head catcher, come to be the corpse collector?" Jiang Yuan asked.

Yan Gudao smiled and said:

"It's too hard to deal with the living, but it's easier to get along with the dead. You saved Wang Li's family, I have to thank you, so I also give you a piece of advice: This river temple is far more dangerous than you imagined, and I won't care about the life or death of outsiders when you enter here, so I advise you to leave quickly. ”

Jiang Yuan said with a smile:

"What, is there a ghost here?"

Jiang Yuan not only needed to stay overnight, but also needed to take Wang Li's carriage. What's more, he was very curious about this Yan Gu Dao, and from Yan Gu Dao's body, Jiang Yuan felt a special energy, which was very similar to the power that was contrary to the ghost qi on the wooden card that Sun Daming gave him.

Seeing that Jiang Yuan had no intention of leaving, Yan Gudao shook his head and said:

"If you don't want to go, go in through the side door next to the main hall, where there are three empty rooms where you can stay. By the way, one of the rooms is inhabited by a scholar returning from the exam, and the other room is occupied by a couple, so don't disturb them too much. ”

After finishing speaking, Yan Gudao also ignored Jiang Yuan, turned around and walked into the main hall, and began to check Wang Li's injuries.

Jiang Yuan didn't care about Wang Li's injury, and he didn't bother to enter the main hall. He walked through the side door that Yan Gudao had said, and came to a dark backyard.

In the backyard stood three dilapidated houses, one of which had a wide open door, and a person sitting on a couch was faintly visible, and the room was dark, but the appearance of the person was difficult to see.

This is the scholar that Yan Gudao said? Jiang Yuan was puzzled in his heart, and walked straight towards the house.

It wasn't until Jiang Yuan entered the house that the figure sitting quietly in the dark seemed to wake up suddenly, followed by a young voice:

"I'm so sorry! I'm sorry! I lost my mind at the next moment, and I was rude!"

The fire broke in the house, and soon an oil lamp was lit, and the dim light filled the whole house.

I saw a young scholar sitting on the couch, wearing a square scarf and a long robe, with a handsome face and a gentle and elegant temperament. It's just that the scholar's face is sad, and there are tear stains in the corners of his eyes, obviously he just cried not long ago.

The scholar hurriedly wiped the corners of his eyes, and then got up and saluted Jiang Yuanchang:

"In Xia Lu Junsheng, I haven't asked my brother Taizun's surname yet. ”

Jiang Yuan looked at the scholar named Lu Junsheng for a while before replying:

"Jiang Yuan. ”

"It turned out to be Brother Jiang," Lu Junsheng said, "Look at Brother Jiang's appearance...... Could it be that he also returned from Yangcheng to catch the exam?"

Jiang Yuan shook his head:

"On the contrary, I'm going to Yangcheng and I'm here halfway to spend the night. Brother Lu, you ...... Seems to have something on your mind?"

Lu Junsheng smiled bitterly and didn't want to talk more. He pointed to the next room and said:

"Brother Jiang can live next door, and the room is fairly clean after cleaning. Originally, I borrowed it from my hometown, but he somehow left last night without saying goodbye. I was about to leave during the day, but it rained again...... The hour is not early, Brother Jiang, please rest early. ”

Jiang Yuan shrugged and left Lu Junsheng's room.

When he came to the outside of the house, Jiang Yuan turned his head, but found that at the door of the house against the wall, there were two rickety figures.

The two figures were shrouded in shadows cast by the walls, and seemed to be hunched over, trembling even when they stood.

"Two, is there something wrong?" Jiang Yuan asked.

I saw the two people come out of the shadows, but they were an old couple.

Their skin was wrinkled like dehydrated orange peel, their hair was gray, and they were holding each other up, as if they were about to fall down when they walked.

The old man looked at Jiang Yuan expectantly and asked:

"This son, have you seen my grandson and granddaughter? My grandson is six years old and his name is Yang Xiaolong. The granddaughter is four years old and is called Yang Xiaohuang. They were so tall, dressed in sackcloth, with pigtails on their heads. ”

Jiang Yuan shook his head.

The old woman still did not give up, she touched the corner of her eye and said:

"We are from Qiqi Village, and when we returned to our hometown last night, we encountered a torrential rain and stayed here, but our grandchildren and granddaughters were lost in the middle of the night, and we couldn't find them after looking for a day...... If we can't find them, how are we going to live?"

"I'm sorry. Jiang Yuan said, "If I meet them, I will definitely bring them over and hand them over to the two old people." ”

Along the way, he didn't see any children. If he sees it in the future, Jiang Yuan will not care about this gesture.

Shaking his head, Jiang Yuan came to the empty room next to Lu Junsheng's room, which was very simple, with only a square table and a wooden bed to keep out moisture, and there was not even a futon on the bed.

Jiang Yuan didn't care about this, he sat cross-legged on the bed quietly and continued to practice the internal strength of the "Crazy Sword Technique", everything in this river temple seemed to be very interesting, and he wouldn't be lonely if he thought about it.