Hearing Fatty Wang say this, several people breathed a sigh of relief.
However, as soon as he finished speaking, Huo Xiuxiu's voice came from the door:
"I'm back!"
Although Huo Xiuxiu didn't stay in the inn for long, she was already used to the life here.
And now she began to like the peaceful environment of Fengmen Village.
There is no hustle and bustle of the city here.
The village is located among green mountains and green waters, with a beautiful and pleasant environment and a comfortable and peaceful life.
Living in the Yin Yang Inn every day and joking with Fatty Wang, Hao Xie and others also made her very happy.
But today, Huo Xiuxiu's face obviously didn't have the same smile as before.
After she walked into the yard, she saw Zhang Hao and others gathered together, as if they were discussing something, so she walked over and asked with a smile:
"What are you discussing?"
"Can I hear it?"
Fatty Wang said quickly and reluctantly: "I'm talking about you!"
"Are you talking about me?" Huo Xiuxiu looked at everyone with confusion, pointed at herself and asked.
Zhang Hao cleared his throat, interrupted Fatty Wang, and then asked:
"By the way, I heard that you went to help Old Liu with his funeral arrangements?"
"How's it going? Is everything taken care of?"
Huo Xiuxiu shook her head, and then said with a frustrated look:
"The body has been brought back."
"But we can't bury it yet."
"Because the villagers said that the funeral customs in their village are somewhat different from other places."
"But people must die with dignity. Now that Old Liu has changed beyond recognition, he cannot be buried."
"It is rumored that if Old Liu Tou is buried like this, his soul will definitely return." Zhang Hao nodded gently, thinking to himself that this saying has indeed been circulating for a long time.
If not, how could a profession like cobbler be born in ancient times? Even today, there are still corpse beauticians, whose scientific name is "embolizers", who specialize in making the deceased die with dignity. The ancient cobblers, that is, the ancient embalmers, were responsible for much more than arranging the remains. In fact, they were more responsible for suturing the souls and grooming the ghosts, so that they would have a good life when they were reincarnated.
The period of time Huo Xiuxiu stayed at the inn was also a test for her. After all, if the inn is to be upgraded in the future, manpower will be essential. Especially after the inn is upgraded, if it takes on the business of ghosts, a cobbler will be needed to handle related matters.
"This matter is easier said than done." Zhang Hao muttered, "I have a technique called Yin-Yang Suturing, also known as the Encoffining Technique. Are you willing to learn it?"
Before she finished speaking, Huo Xiuxiu looked at Zhang Hao with a blank look on her face. Apparently she hadn't come to her senses yet and stood there blankly.
"Ah?" "What?" she asked repeatedly.
Seeing this, Hao Xie reminded her with a smile: "You silly girl, what are you thinking about? Brother Zhang Hao wants to teach you your skills, why don't you become a disciple soon?"
After Hao Xie reminded her, Huo Xiuxiu woke up as if from a dream, with a look of ecstasy on her face, nodding her head repeatedly, looking at Zhang Hao, Hao Xie and others in disbelief.
"Really?"
"Brother Zhang Hao, are you finally going to accept me as your disciple?"
After saying that, Huo Xiuxiu didn't wait for Zhang Hao's response, then she knelt down on the ground, clasping her fists with her hands, her eyes full of excitement, "Master! Please accept Huo Xiuxiu's bow! No matter what Master teaches me, I am willing to learn. As long as you teach me, Zhang Brother Hao is my master!”
"Master, you are the manager of Yin Yang Inn. Once you say something, it will be hard to follow back, so you can't go back on your word!"
Zhang Hao smiled and waved his hand, "Get up. You should also thank Brother Haoxie. He is the one who thinks that I have eaten the food you cooked and I am short-tongued. I have to do something."
"Really, Hao Xie?"
Hao Xie smiled awkwardly, shrugged and said: "Haha, brother Zhang Hao is so awesome, I can't hide anything from you! But fat people are indeed not as good at cooking as Huo Xiuxiu. I am doing this for everyone's benefit. It just so happens that fat people can also enjoy it. A day when clothes come and food comes and mouth opens. ”
"Really, Fatty, you don't object, do you?"
The fat man touched his head and laughed happily thinking that he didn't have to cook.
"Haha, yes!"
"Girl, the food in the inn will depend on you from now on."
As soon as he finished speaking, there was a sudden rush of footsteps outside the door.
Immediately afterwards, an old man about sixty years old appeared at the door of the inn.
This old man was the village chief. He looked inside, and when he saw Zhang Hao, a trace of anxiety flashed in his eyes.
"Mr. Yin Yang, do you have time? I'm afraid I have to trouble you again!" the village chief said eagerly.
Fatty Wang quickly walked to the door and wanted to invite the village chief to come in, but the village chief glanced at the imperial chair in the yard with fear and waved his hand, "I won't go in, just stand here and talk."
Zhang Hao came over, looked at the village chief and asked: "Village Chief, what can I do? We are all from the village, so just tell me."
The village chief nodded, glanced at Huo Xiuxiu, and continued: "I don't know if Huo Xiuxiu told you about old Liu Tou. Old Liu Tou was bitten to death by a wolf and had no children. The funeral can only be carried out by us. The old men in the village came to do it. But the body of Old Liu Tou was so badly chewed by wolves that it was impossible to bury him. But there are no cobblers in the surrounding villages, so I wanted to ask you... Since you are in the business of dead people. , can you help sew up Old Liu Tou’s body?”
After hearing the village chief's words, Fatty Wang, Hao Xie and Zhang Qilin all turned to look at Zhang Hao.
Huo Xiuxiu had only been here for a short time and didn't know much about Zhang Hao. But Fatty Wang, Hao Xie and Zhang Qilin knew Zhang Hao very well. They knew that he was proficient in drawing talismans, driving corpses, fishing out corpses, tying paper, and summoning spirits, but they had never seen him sewing corpses together for the dead.
Moreover, there is no such item in the inn's business, so several people looked at Zhang Hao in confusion, not knowing how to handle this business.
Seeing that several people were silent, the village chief thought that the Yin Yang Inn would not help, so he quickly raised his hands anxiously and said: "Gentlemen, please help me! Old Liutou has a hard life, he has no children, and suddenly he suddenly It was already very pitiful that there was no one to attend the funeral for him. Now that the body was badly bitten by wolves, it would be too shabby to leave like this. If it was a matter of money, I would go back and let everyone in the village go. Come on...at least your work won't be in vain, and when I send Old Liu away, I will definitely invite a few of them to have a meal together."
Fatty Wang smiled awkwardly, turned to look at the village chief, waved his hands and said: "Village Chief, that's not what we meant. We are all neighbors, and Lao Liutou also gave us a lot of food, and we all remember it. Now that something has happened to his old man, it stands to reason that our inn must do our part, but..."
Before he finished speaking, the light in the village chief's eyes dimmed a little, and his expression became depressed. He interrupted Fatty Wang and sighed: "Hey... So, you are not willing to help? What a pity for that old Liu Tou. It’s okay if there’s no one to see him off before he leaves, but he still can’t leave with dignity. Why do you think he lived this life?”
Shaking his head, the village chief prepared to leave, but when he turned around, he said: "There are really no cobblers in these eight villages, let alone a wiring master. Otherwise, I wouldn't have come here in the middle of the night to cause trouble. Several people. Forget it, this is what Lao Liutou is destined to do!”
At this time, Zhang Hao walked to the door, stopped the village chief and said: "Village chief, wait a minute. The inn has taken this order. The inn has this business, so you don't have to worry about the remuneration. Let me see the body first. ”
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhang Qilin, Hao Xie, Fatty Wang and others looked at each other, their eyes full of shock and disbelief. They leaned against each other and whispered: "I didn't expect the shopkeeper to know this? Have you ever heard that Brother Zhang Hao can sew up corpses before?"
"I've never heard of it, but didn't Zhang Hao just say that he wanted to teach Huo Xiuxiu the yin-yang suture technique? Could it be this?"
"You mean the art of encoffining? It sounds like it has something to do with it, but I've never learned about it before, and I've never seen Brother Zhang Hao show off this skill!"
"Tsk, tsk, little brother Zhang Hao is hiding his secrets!"
"Okay, let's see what the shopkeeper says first!"
After a few people discussed quietly, they stood aside.
Since Zhang Hao took over this business in the village, he must be able to sew the body completely together.
As for how to mend it, it still depends on how Zhang Hao performs it.
This was unfamiliar to Huo Xiuxiu, and it was equally unfamiliar to Fatty Wang and others.
At least they had never heard of sewing up corpses before.
When the village chief saw that Zhang Hao actually agreed to help them, his eyes suddenly showed ecstasy, and he bowed to Zhang Hao and thanked him: "Oh! Then I will thank you on behalf of the dead old Liu Tou! I knew I would come to Yin Yang Inn for help. , there will definitely be results. Then... Mr. Yin Yang, when do you think we will start?”
Zhang Hao waved his hand and asked: "Old Liutou's body is incomplete, and the pieces of meat that fell from his body should not be found, right?"
The village chief nodded and continued: "They should have been eaten by those beasts in the mountains! This poor old Liu Tou was bitten to death by a wolf! What a miserable life!"
Zhang Hao nodded slightly and then said: "Okay, village chief, you go back first. I'll go over when I'm ready. By the way, I want to inform you that people with the same zodiac sign as Old Liu Tou should not go out tonight. After I sew up the corpse, Even if you go to the toilet, you have to do it in your own room, otherwise, it is easy to attract the ghost of Old Liu Tou. ”
The village chief was startled when he heard this. Most people in this village believe this, especially since Zhang Hao has helped people in the village many times.
So now that Zhang Hao said it, he naturally believed it. So he nodded repeatedly and said: "Okay, I will inform you right away." "Mr. Yin Yang, let's meet later!"
Zhang Hao nodded lightly and signaled to the village chief. The village chief left in a hurry and went to every household in the village to convey Zhang Hao's latest instructions.
No one is sure about the existence of Yin Yang, but they have all witnessed Mr. Yin Yang's extraordinary abilities. Therefore, Zhang Hao's words undoubtedly became the golden rule in their hearts.
After the village chief left, Fatty Wang, Zhang Qilin and Hao Xie slowly walked towards Zhang Hao and asked curiously.
"Brother Zhang Hao, this corpse-stitching technique... I've never seen you perform it before. It's so hidden!" Fatty Wang spoke first, his tone full of surprise.
Hao Xie also echoed and expressed his agreement.
"However, I don't quite understand the cobbler and wiring master mentioned by the village chief just now." He asked doubtfully.
Zhang Hao explained: "I have heard a little bit about the second cobbler. It seems that he is called the last gate of the four Yinmen together with the executioner, papermaker, and wuzhuo. As for the wire-walking master, maybe he is the same as the foot-walking master. Honor it.”
Then, Zhang Hao slowly shook his head and continued: "Among the people, there is a nursery rhyme about the four vaginas..."
He read out the contents of the nursery rhyme one by one, describing in detail the status of the cobbler as the weirdest of the four Yins, and the historical origins of their craft.
"Cobbler is actually the name given after the decline of this craft. In ancient times, it was a practitioner who pioneered the art of sewing corpses. He discovered that if a person's body is incomplete after death, it will be considered unlucky." Zhang Hao explained in detail.
He further elaborated on the horrific fact that the executioner's knife can not only cut off the human body, but also cut off the human soul, and how the cobbler used the mystical art of yin and yang to sew together the mutilated corpse and soul, allowing the deceased to rest in peace.
"Mr. Painted Skin is the honorific title given to those cobblers who are so skilled that they can make corpses look like they were reborn after being sewn together." Zhang Hao said with a hint of awe in his tone.
He changed the topic and said with a smile: "There are even rumors that Mr. Painted Skin can make the sutured corpse come back to life, just like a normal person!"
When Huo Xiuxiu heard this, her eyes widened in wonder.
Zhang Hao nodded to confirm, and warned them about the taboos of sewing corpses and paper figures, emphasizing that if Mr. Painted Skin sews too perfectly, there will be unpredictable consequences.
After hearing this, Zhang Qilin, Fatty Wang, Hao Xie and Huo Xiuxiu all nodded to express their understanding. Their admiration for Mr. Painted Skin arose spontaneously, even though they knew nothing about it before.
Zhang Qilin looked at Zhang Hao curiously and asked: "Shopkeeper, what you are going to teach Huo Xiuxiu is the yin and yang suture technique created by the ancient painter?"
When Huo Xiuxiu heard that the skill she was about to learn had such a profound background, her eyes flashed with anticipation and she stared at Zhang Hao closely.
Zhang Hao confirmed her guess and explained in detail the inheritance and evolution of yin-yang suturing, as well as the historical changes from Mr. Painting Skin to Mr. Thread-Making, and then to the Second Cobbler.
Huo Xiuxiu frowned and asked if modern embalmers and corpse beauticians were similar to ancient cobblers. Zhang Hao shook his head and said with a smile, although they all came from the profession of cobbler, their skills can no longer be compared with those of the cobbler of the past.
"However, the people in our inn are not like these low-class cobblers." Zhang Hao turned to look at Huo Xiuxiu and said with a smile, "I will teach you how to become a thread routing master. If you can practice Yin and Yang Suture to the Dacheng, you can also be known as Mr. Painted Skin.”
Huo Xiuxiu's eyes shone with longing, and a smile appeared at the corner of her mouth. What she was happiest about was that she finally became Zhang Hao's apprentice.
She nodded repeatedly and said firmly: "Master, don't worry, I will definitely work hard. I will never become that second cobbler, I want to be a wiring master!" (End of Chapter)