There was a knock on the door. Liu Ruyan stood up and opened the door. She saw Wan Jinqiu standing outside the house, holding a food box in her arms.
She smiled slightly and said: "I'm afraid the food in Lefang is going to be cold. If it's inconvenient, miss, I will bring the food for you."
Liu Ruyan glanced at the window and realized that it was almost dusk.
"I've made the host worry so much," she apologized.
Wan Jinqiu walked into the house, put down the food box, and took out the food one by one. When she looked up, she saw the portrait on the wall, and was obviously frightened: "Why did the girl put this evil thing in the house?"
"It's okay, I'll take it off later." Liu Ruyan said.
Wan Jinqiu looked worried: "Today's Miyagi is not as good as before. Girls must be careful in everything."
"Got it." She responded.
After sending Wan Jinqiu away, Liu Ruyan sat down to have a meal.
After eating, she took the dishes to the yard, fetched water, washed them, and put them back in the food box.
As the night got darker, Liu Ruyan lit candles in the room. The moment she raised her eyes, she vaguely caught a glimpse of the paintings on the wall, which seemed to be moving.
She picked up the candlestick and came to stand in front of the portrait.
The woman in the painting remains unchanged. Could it be that she is dazzled?
She looked back briefly, and clearly remembered that she had just caught a glimpse of the "Palace Maid" sinking to the bottom of the lake, struggling, as if trying to escape...
Just when her thoughts were wandering, there was a knock on the door.
Liu Ruyan looked for the sound and saw a few shadows coming out of the window screen, standing quietly outside the door with the cold wind whistling.
Liu Ruyan walked over and opened the door.
"Why is the room so dark? I thought you weren't here." Gong Shuyu was puzzled.
Bai Zhi and Dong Qingxian followed closely behind, lighting a few candles.
"Have you read all these books?" Bai Zhi asked as she sat down.
Liu Ruyan nodded: "Those with abnormal mental state can be roughly divided into epilepsy, mania, and epilepsy. Judging from the symptoms, they may be suffering from mania."
Bai Zhi frowned: "Mania is caused by excessive yang energy and excessive mental state. Traditional Chinese medicine will treat it by clearing away heat and purging fire. But if there is really any disease, why has it never happened before?"
"Unless..." Bai Zhi suddenly thought, "unless these people happen to encounter natural or man-made disasters, or are dominated by fear and coercion for a long time. Their hearts cannot be calm, their minds cannot be at peace, and once they are stimulated, they will go crazy.
Crazy.”
Liu Ruyan asked: "How was your investigation at Taiyuan Hospital?"
Bai Zhi: "According to the prescription prescribed by the imperial doctor to the musician, her condition has improved. So Bai guessed that the girl's madness was probably stimulated."
"It's possible." Dong Qingxian listened for a long time.
Gongshuyu was indifferent and only listened to the general outline.
He stood aside and found an extra painting in the room. At first glance, it looked pretty good, but the next moment, he turned pale and started shouting.
"Ghost - ghost -" he pointed at the wall.
Dong Qingxian didn't know why. He approached the wall and looked around several times: "What did you see?"
Gong Shuyu hid behind Liu Ruyan, stuck out half of his head, and pointed at the wall: "The woman in the painting is saying to me - save me - save me -"
"Maybe you got it wrong." Dong Qingxian smiled.
Gong Shuyu shook his head: "This painting is weird and weird. What's the origin of it?"
Liu Ruyan turned her gaze: "The evil spirit that has been circulating recently is the woman in this painting. Her body was buried at the bottom of the lake. Her resentment was so deep that her grievance spirit still lingers."
Dong Qingxian, who was standing in front of the painting, stiffened when he heard this.
Liu Ruyan then added: "Just before you entered the house, I happened to see that she seemed to be trapped in the painting and wanted to escape."
Save me - save me -
The shrill female voice echoed intermittently, lingering faintly through the frozen lake water.
Dong Qingxian's scalp was numb and he ran away.
Gongshuyu became even more panicked and grabbed her arm, not daring to come forward again: "Such a wicked person."
Bai Zhi suddenly lost her idea: "Why can't I hear it?"
Dong Qingxian listened for a while: "Actually, Qingxian never heard it either."
Bai Zhi took a few steps forward and stared at the paintings on the wall.
Behind him, Gong Shuyu watched with trepidation, fearing that the evil spirit in the painting would burst out of the paper.
Bai Zhi said "Eh" and got a little closer: "Pine smoke, deer glue, jade chips, borneol, raw lacquer, garcinia, rhinoceros horn..."
He turned around and faced everyone: "There are pine trees in Huizhou, which are good materials for making ink. Huizhou ink comes from this. This ink has a strong fragrance and long-lasting color. It is made of twelve-flavored materials and is the finest ink."
.But the strange thing is that the Huizhou ink in the painting has added spice, and Bai can't tell where it comes from."
Gongshuyu was amazed: "There are actually people that the Medicine Fairy doesn't recognize!"
Bai Zhi felt ashamed: "There are so many wonders in the world, I forgive Bai for his shallow knowledge."
Liu Ruyan came closer. After his reminder, the Hui ink in the painting seemed to be a bit different.
But... she had vaguely smelled this ink fragrance somewhere, it was like...
Buddhist incense at Jinling Temple!
She also smelled it in the palace of the king. Since the Guanyin statue was enshrined with incense, it would naturally be contaminated with the smell. But the picture of the lady in front of her was made by Gu Qing in the Lake Center Hall. How could the Buddhist fragrance appear in the Hui ink?
"What are you guys doing in the house?" Shen Yanchu had just come back from outside. When he entered the house, he found that everyone was there.
"There's something weird about this painting." Liu Ruyan motioned for him to take a look.
Shen Yanchu watched for a moment: "What's the problem?"
Gong Shuyu pointed at the painting carefully: "Didn't you hear any strange sounds?"
He replied: "No."
Liu Ruyan: "There is something wrong with the fragrance of ink in the painting. As a scholar, Li Chongguang, the king of the country, has a special liking for ink. The imperial court has a special position of ink officer. The ink officer is good at making ink, and he is very good at selecting materials and ingredients.
But Hui ink is made of twelve kinds of raw materials, so how can it add a new spice?"
Shen Yanchu smelled it carefully: "Is it like the Buddhist incense from Jinling Temple?"
Liu Ruyan nodded: "Looks like I have to go to the temple again."
She poured a cup of tea and handed it to him: "By the way, where were you just now?"
Shen Yanchu took the cup and said: "Giving gold does not mean leaving the palace. He said that Jinling is his hometown."
Bai Zhi was surprised: "Brother Jin, have you remembered it?"
"That's right, so this morning, Jin Buhuan wanted to go out to the palace to try his luck." He said calmly, "It's just that it's been too long, I hope he can get what he wants..."
In the early morning, the sun rises.
Liu Ruyan was wearing a big cloak, and Shen Yanchu was walking beside her.
The two of them walked slowly along the path in the palace, bypassing a garden, and in front of them stood the ancient temple - Jinling Temple.
The one receiving today was the same young novice monk from last time. When he saw Liu Ruyan, he clasped his hands together, his eyebrows drooped, and he bowed and said: "Amitabha."
Liu Ruyan returned the favor.
In the Buddhist hall, she took some incense sticks and lit them. The fragrance that spread out was light and pleasant, and it was the finest Buddhist incense.
Shen Yanchu stood aside: "The Buddhist incense in this temple is different from other places. The king of the country worships Buddhism, so he may have a special place for making incense."
In this regard, Liu Ruyan asked the young novice monk: "May I ask Master, where does the Buddhist incense in Jinling Temple come from?"
"It seems that the donor also likes the incense in the temple?" the little novice monk said with a smile, "these Buddhist incense are made by the incense hall, and pilgrims occasionally take some back."
Liu Ruyan asked: "Can you take me to Xiangtang?"
The young novice nodded: "It's in the backyard. You two, please come with me."