Hua Jiunan and the others had just arrived at the gate of Yizhuang and before they could go in, they saw a group of men in white coming from a distance carrying a coffin.
According to Chinese rules: the deceased is the most important.
Several people immediately stepped aside to let the person who had done something "white" go first.
As soon as the coffin arrived at the gate of Yizhuang, the door slowly opened.
Granny Zhao, the "corpse keeper" who was guarding the Yizhuang, came out with a hunched figure.
At the same time, he kept scattering the paper money in his hand on the coffin that was carried through the door.
"The Lord of East and West, the ministers of North and South, and the four directions are back to pick up the newcomers."
"Ashes return to dust, dust returns to dust, don't miss the bluestone road in your hometown."
After some charity, the family members of the deceased cried and gave a few dollars to Granny Zhao.
"Mother-in-law, I will leave my grandfather to you until he grows old."
"Later...a car came to pick him up from the county crematorium the day after tomorrow."
Granny Zhao nodded deeply.
"You can go back without worries."
"Hey, speaking of which, your grandfather is still two years younger than me. Why are you leaving in such a hurry..."
After crying again, the family members of the deceased reluctantly left.
It was also at this time that Granny Zhao had time to pay attention to Hua Jiunan and the others.
"You guys are the ones that Old Man Liu said were here to 'check things out' tonight?!"
(Note: Investigating the dead and ghosts is called "investigation" among the people in Northern China.)
Hua Jiu couldn't bear the gift. Hearing this, he hurriedly stepped forward and handed over the letter from shopkeeper Liu.
"Grandma Zhao and Grandpa Liu's explanations are all in the letter."
After Granny Zhao read it, the dissatisfaction on her face was much lessened, and she even managed to squeeze out a smile.
"No wonder someone so young dares to come here. It turns out he is the grandson of the deaf lady."
"No wonder, no wonder!"
"But this bowl of rice is not delicious!"
"Be careful, be careful!"
As Granny Zhao spoke, she took out a large handful of incense and lit it, then walked around all the coffins in the house and muttered.
"The elders, the younger ones in the family are borrowing a place to do some things tonight."
"If you disturb anyone, please don't be angry because I have served you for so many years."
As she talked, Granny Zhao walked to the coffin that had just been brought in.
"Especially you, old man Ma!"
"You have a bad temper when you are alive, but you have to change it when you are dead!"
"In this world of yin and yang, no one will spoil you. Don't wait until you suffer a loss before complaining to me!"
After Granny Zhao finished speaking, she placed the whole bunch of incense in the bowl in front of the coffin, and then bowed three times.
Suddenly there was a bang from the coffin, and I don't know if it was a response.
After doing all this, Granny Zhao was still a little worried about the Hua Jiu Nan people.
He took the trouble to explain other things to note:
For example, these "residents" in the yizhuang, each "person"'s temperament and preferences;
At twelve o'clock in the evening, they would burn incense and "serve dinner" for them on time, and then open the door and let the "guests" go out for a walk and let go of their grievances.
A special reminder is that they must close the door in time after they go out to prevent lonely ghosts from coming in and taking over their bodies.
Wait until Yin time and then open the door and let the "guests" in.
Hua Jiunan was humble and benevolent, and wrote down everything on paper, saying that he would never forget it.
Granny Zhao looked at his serious look, her eyes filled with admiration.
Then he returned to his home on crutches with peace of mind.
Seeing that there were no outsiders, Hua Jiu could not take out the tributes prepared by several people in advance:
Pork head meat, pig trotters, pig ears, twists, peanuts, melon seeds, etc. are all available.
There were even a dozen bottles of spirits.
Together with Chen Daji and Zhang Chao, they placed them in front of each coffin one by one according to the personal preferences explained by Granny Zhao.
"Dear seniors, after the elders of the younger generation's family came to the treasure land, they were never heard from again."
"I have no choice but to come here to check. If there is anything rude, please forgive me!"
After finishing speaking, Hua Jiunan led Chen Daji and Zhang Chao to circle and clasp their fists at all the coffins.
It was only at this time that I had time to observe the entire Yizhuang.
It's very big inside and filled with all kinds of coffins.
Some of the old ones have become discolored and rotten, with large holes exposed at the edges and corners, and the bones inside are vaguely visible.
Waves of corrupt and old smells wafted out, making the place even weirder.
There is an incense table in the middle of Yizhuang, and there are densely packed tablets on the incense table.
There is a coffin board under the incense table, which is obviously a resting place for the "corpse guard".