Otherworldly Merchant

“Very likely.” The T-shirt man nodded his head and turned to the big beard who was standing outside the door, "said Sheriff.“ Go and look at Huba Village. ”

Soon, two police cars left the alley and continued along the hill road.

The sheriff introduced us: "Huba Village is a local indigenous village in Hong Kong, extremely remote, with few people from the village communicating with the outside world. It is said that it has been around for thousands of years and still retains some very ancient traditional customs, such as archery and sacrificial water gods. ”

“For thousands of years?” I was surprised to hear that.

The source of Chinese civilization is long, up to 5,000 years old. But it has always been centered on the Central Plains. Even coastal cities have been sparsely populated after a long time. How can there be a village that has existed for thousands of years?

The sheriff heard the surprise in my tone, laughing: “The village is said to have existed since the Qin dynasty. Later, there were experts who visited it. Indeed, there were some relics of the Great Qin Empire. ”

He said that I was even more suspicious. What does the water monster in the river have to do with this ancient village?

Over an hour's walk along the hill road, the police car parked under a hill.

The mountain was not high, but steep. A spring of Hiroshima twisted around the hill for half a circle, which was the only way to the distance.

“This is the source of the river where it happened!” The sheriff flipped over the map in his hand to introduce it.

We got out of the car and slowed down along a rough mountain road. Another half-day walk through lush croplands suddenly revealed a small village in front of them.

Surrounded by mountains, the village sits at the bottom of a huge bowl.

The village is small, with a maximum of twenty or thirty households, and the houses are dilapidated, mostly in situ, made of stone piles. At a glance, no one would have thought of such a simple village, unlike the small stone village of Bui 'i Gai, which is actually located in Hong Kong, the most prosperous part of Asia.

Bell!

Just halfway down the trail, a very crisp bell rang abruptly.

“What's going on? Does it mean that this village is extremely exclusive and should be alarmed at the sight of outsiders entering?” It's strange to me, but after all, there are a few police officers left, and I'm not too scared.

Boo!

The bell continued to ring, and the sound went away, hitting the surrounding mountains, constantly sending an echo.

Along the mountain road, we stepped onto a highland in front of the village, and suddenly we saw the whole village, and at the same time we saw a very strange sight!

There is a tall platform in the middle of the village, beneath which the hundreds of people kneel, each extremely devout, immobile, deeply bowed their heads. On the stage stands an old woman with wrinkles, wearing a robe embroidered with a strange pattern and a very strange pointed hat on her head, holding a black crutch and singing something out loud.

Her tone was suddenly high and low and extremely strange, as if she were a medieval witch, singing some kind of spell.

Boo!

Another crisp bell, she lowered her cane and reached forward.

A woman kneeling in the last row hurriedly climbed up and walked to the high stage with a baby screaming in her arms.

The old lady was praying for something with her arms in the air?

Then he pulled something out of his pocket and put it on the baby's neck with great respect.

“This must be the amulet in Grandma Jua's mouth, right?” I have a secret heart.

The T-shirt man looked at me and said, "What kind of ritual do you think this is? ”

“Ceremony?” As soon as he mentioned the word 'ritual’, a word popped up in my head.

“Coronation!” I spoke out.

“Nice.” The T-shirt nodded.

Speaking of ancient rituals, besides the emperor's ascendant, the crowning of the chief captain's seal is the most solemn.

But whenever a general triumphs, this ritual is essential. The old lady's movements and clothes just now seemed strange, but at this point in time, it was very similar to the ancient coronation.

Strange, after the baby put on the pendant, he stopped crying and laughed.

For the first time, several officers have seen this scene, and the look on their faces is very strange.

The T-shirt man and I looked at each other and felt a little heavier in their hearts.

Such rituals have long been lost in mainland China, but have continued for generations to this day in remote villages in Hong Kong. And that seemingly rudimentary charm contains a mysterious power that not only stops children crying, but even the water monster in the river is afraid of three points.

Looks like we're really here in Huba Village!

Seeing the ceremony ended, the villagers of Taiwan dispersed, and our people approached the past.

Sheriff Big Beard took the dirt-speaking cop to the road first, and he didn't know what to say to the witch who was conducting the ceremony? The witch looked at us and hesitated for a moment, nodding her head.

Immediately, the Turkish speaking police officer translated: “The first time we grew up together, this grandmother was a village sacrifice. They were praying for the newborn child. If you have any questions, please ask! ”

The T-shirt man walked two steps forward: "Granny, I just saw that your ceremony was ancient, it seemed like an ancient coronation, I wonder what history is in it? ”

As soon as the witch heard this, she looked back at us, and this slowly said something.

Police quickly translated: “You have a good eye. This is indeed a time to commemorate our ancestors when they were sealed. ”

“Our ancestors were the sealed kings of the Great Qin Empire and were instructed to sit on the soil and water side of the town. Today, although the ancestors have left, Ying Ling is still there. If you wear this ancestral stone amulet, you can protect the people from disasters and illnesses and long life. ”

“Another pendant!” As soon as I heard it, I had to take two steps forward: “Granny, is this a pendant that your ancestors left behind? ”

“When Emperor Qin ordered his ancestors to lead the 3,000 sailor towns to guard the sea frontier, and gave him the word 'King of the South China Sea’ himself, his ancestors engraved it on the mountain stone. But then the Qin dynasty was extinguished, and the mountain stone also burst, and then our ancestors dreamed, let us use the mountain stone as a decoration, hanging it on the chest for security and wellbeing, this custom passed down from generation to generation.” The witch replied.

“Qin Shihuang? King of the South China Sea?” I had a sudden shock in my heart.

“Grandma, can you show us the big rock?” The T-shirt man asked.

The witch refused very resolutely: "The grandstones have been hidden by us, and no one outside the village can see them, but you can visit the grand temple. ”

“Fine.” The T-shirt man sighed: “Thank you, Grandma. ”

The ancestral temple of Huba Village was built at the foot of the mountain. Huba Village is poor, but the temple is extremely well built! Half a hill was emptied, and a row of colorful stone columns was erected outside, engraved with four large, golden, glittering letters, 'Temple of the King of the South Sea'.