Chapter 5 Chapter Four: The Nine Sons of the Dragon

"Captain Xia, your phone number." The next day, Xia Zicheng and Zhong Mingyue were going to go to Dodo's company to investigate Dodo's situation. As soon as they entered the Criminal Brigade, Dabao stood outside the guard on duty and yelled loudly. "Who is calling?" Xia Zicheng walked over quickly.He has been more sensitive recently, whenever he gets a call from him, he thinks it has something to do with the case. "It's a man, the other party won't say anything about it." "I'm Xia Zicheng, who are you?" "Hello, Captain Xia! I'm Meihua, the editor of "Wolf City" magazine. Are you free now? I want to see you." A gentle man's voice came from the phone.

"What's the matter?" Xia Zicheng's first reaction was that he had a clue, so he said hastily. "I want to talk to you about Mi Lip." "That's great! Where are you now?" "I'm at the magazine now, but how about we meet somewhere?" "Okay. Where do you think it is good? Of course you think it is suitable." "The cafe opposite our company is called 'Japan Shinichi', I'll wait for you at the door." "Okay. I'll be there now. I'll be there in about fifteen minutes." "See you then."

"Okay!" Xia Zicheng hung up the phone, hurried outside, and saw Zhong Mingyue talking with the director, probably about the progress of the case. Xia Zi deliberately thought: The other party just wanted to see him, so he didn't call Zhong Mingyue. After passing the traffic light on Lumo Road, I parked the car in the parking lot opposite the magazine and got off. I looked around and saw a cafe called "Japan Shinichi" in front of me. Xia Zicheng walked up quickly.Xia Zicheng saw a man beside the door attendant raising his hand to greet him, he waved and walked over.

Xia Zicheng approached him to shake hands. "Hello!" Xia Zicheng greeted first. "Hi, let's go in and talk!" Mei Hua said softly. They sat down in the innermost position.Meihua ordered milk tea, and Xia Zicheng asked for coffee. Xia Zicheng carefully looked at Mei Hua on the opposite side, with an oval face, fair skin, clear eyes, wearing a down jacket on the upper body, and blue jeans on the lower body.Although the overall look is not fashionable, it is very temperamental, which is the type that fantasy girls like. "My pen name is Mei Hua, and my real name is Dong Wen." Mei Hua said frankly before the milk tea and coffee were served.

Meihua's voice is very gentle, the kind that attracts girls.Xia Zicheng thought that he purposely called with a soft voice, so it turned out that his voice was so special. The waiter brought milk tea and coffee, and they tasted them separately. "It tastes really good!" Xia Zicheng glanced at Dongwen. "It's really good. This place is also very good, quiet enough!" "Do you come here often?" "Come here once or twice a month. If you come too much, you won't be able to afford it." Dongwen smiled. "One or two times is already very good. People like us are on the go all day long and don't even have a spare time."

"Interpol is indeed a hard job." "I came to this place, and talking about the case would disturb Yaxing, but I still have to bring it up. I really feel a little unpleasant." Dongwen remained silent, as if hesitating for something. "You are the editor of "Wolf City" magazine, how is your relationship with the editor-in-chief?" Xia Zicheng directly entered the topic, not wanting to waste time. "It's been less than half a year since I joined the magazine, and the friendship with the editor-in-chief is just a friend of colleagues, so we still trust each other." Dongwen finally said.

"What do you think about the disappearance of the editor-in-chief?" "I suspect that the dead body of Donghu may be the editor-in-chief...it should be, according to your report on the deceased, I have read the news, the height and age are about the same, and I heard that there is a trace that looks like a plaque." Xia Zicheng looked at Dongwen in shock: "Why do you think it's the editor-in-chief instead of other women? Also, the plaque of the deceased is in the private part of the body, have you seen it?" Xia Zicheng suddenly remembered Duoduo's words , Mi Lip has a man outside, but he is not a boyfriend.Dongwen's age looks younger than the deceased's, so it's okay to be a boyfriend and girlfriend.What is the reason?

Dongwen hesitated for a moment, then murmured: "It's just that I hope Captain Xia will keep what I said a secret. It's related to my work and reputation." "If there is no need to mention the facts of the case, we will keep the information secret, even if it is known by our insiders, we will not tell others." "In that case, let me speak directly." Dongwen took a deep breath. "Actually... the editor-in-chief and I once had a sexual relationship, so I saw the plaque on her private part, but I didn't see the body, so I can't be sure it's Mi Lip."

"As for the process of the sexual relationship, I think it still needs to be kept secret." "This is not necessary to the facts of the case. We will not pursue it. As for whether the deceased is Mi Lip, when you follow me to the forensic morgue to identify the body, the truth will be revealed." "That's not a problem. Tomorrow, but..." Dongwen said, frowning.Looking at his expression, Xia Zicheng seemed to be imagining what the corpse had become.Xia Zicheng could understand his mood. "Captain Xia, have you read our "Wolf City" magazine?" Dongwen asked suddenly, which stunned Xia Zicheng for a moment.

"I took a look at it, and I'm not interested in magazines, but I find it strange that your magazine's launch is almost the same day as the murder case, so I think it's strange, but where is Xi Xiao, I'm still reasoning not come out." "Don't Captain Xia think that the murder has something to do with the magazine?" "Why do you think so?" "Captain Xia should remember the story of "Wolf City" magazine "Sou Shen Ji"." "What does this have to do with "Sou Shen Ji"... Do you mean that the publication of the magazine and the death of the deceased is not a coincidence, but premeditated murder?"

"Yes, it should be premeditated murder." "Who is the biggest suspect?" "All three are possible." "Which three people?" Dongwen suddenly paused, looked around, then leaned over and said in a low voice, "President Pan of our company, as well as President Pan's wife and editor-in-chief Nana." "Why do you think they are murderers? Is there any basis?" "No. But I feel that Mi Lip's death will have something to do with them. First, before Mi Lip's death, he and Nana had been arguing about the "Wolf City" magazine. This magazine originated when Nana saw The news on the website of the ancient city and ancient tomb was suddenly inspired and wanted to do it, but after the planning plan came out, Mi Lip opposed it, thinking that such stories were not worth watching, and expressed his specific opinions on these fairy tales, and analyzed them clearly and logically, but Nana also has her specific opinion on planning this magazine. She believes that magazines with mythology and history are more attractive to readers. After all, it is difficult to guess the tastes of readers nowadays. Since the magazine has not been released on the market, no one can guess the fate of the magazine. Later, the two People also had further heated debates. In the end, Mr. Pan agreed to the planning plan of this magazine." "I took a look at this magazine. It's really good, and it can attract readers who like reasoning, suspense, and fantasy." "As for Nana's real reason for planning this magazine, it's not for the company, but for herself. In the company, everyone knows that she and Mi Lip are fighting openly and secretly. The main reason for their disharmony is that Nana can't be the editor-in-chief. .In such a small magazine as ours, being the editor-in-chief is actually pretty good, at least she has face, not to mention that Nana is the kind of strong woman who loves face the most." "Second, don't look at how small our magazine is. In fact, it is like Jianghu, even more vicious than Jianghu. Between editors and editors, between editor-in-chief and editor-in-chief, between editor-in-chief and Mrs. Pan's wife, and between editor-in-chief There is a complicated relationship between Mr. Pan and Mrs. Pan's wife. Behind these complicated relationships, the main contradiction is that Mr. Pan is caught between Mi Lip, Nana and his wife." Xia Zicheng suddenly remembered Dodo's words, saying that there is a man outside Mi Lip, and it should be Boss Pan. It seems that his and Zhong Mingyue's deduction is still very accurate. "You mean that Mr. Pan, Mr. Pan's wife, and Nana are all suspects." "That's right. Everyone knows about Mr. Pan's affair with Mi Chun and Nana, so I deduce that the three of them may be the murderers of Mi Chun's death." Xia Zicheng looked at Dongwen calmly, and gradually, he understood the motive of the murder. "However, there is another point that I am most puzzled about. Why is Mi Lip's death related to Taotie? Tao Fan is a wolf-like animal. Could it be that Mi Lip was eaten by wolves?" Dongwen expressed his reasoning opinion After that, slowly calm down and say. "Wolf?" Xia Zicheng suddenly remembered that the heart of the deceased was hollowed out, and he couldn't help being shocked, "Could it be that Mi Lip was eaten by a wolf?" For Xia Zicheng's sudden appearance, Li Tiaotiao showed a surprised expression. "Captain Xia, how come you have time to come here?" Li Tiaotiao sat down on the chair opposite Xia Zicheng, and said with a teasing smile. "Can't you? It looks like he is going to drive away the guests!" Xia Zicheng looked directly at his gentle wife, with a happy smile on his face.After Xia Zicheng and Dongwen broke up, they went directly to the History and Myth Research Office of Gucheng University.He came here often when he and Li Tiaotiao were dating, so he was a regular visitor.He sits in the chair quite naturally now. "I think... Maybe I came here because I missed me." Li Tiaotiao said, blushing. When Xia Zicheng heard this, he felt very ashamed. He hadn't gone home for a few days, and had been staying with Zhong Mingyue in the punishment brigade. "Tiaotiao still understands me. The purpose of this visit is first to see the beautiful Tiaotiao, and second, I want to learn more about the mythical story of Taotie in "Sou Shen Ji"." Tiaotiao was very clear about Xia Zicheng's work, so he didn't act coquettishly, and said, "Wait a minute." As he spoke, he walked into the research room, turned out after a while, and handed Xia Zicheng a book printed with "Sou Shen Ji" . "Do you still remember the time I went to the library with you that day?" Xia Zicheng suddenly remembered, oh, "What's wrong?" "Didn't we find the book "Sou Shen Ji" in the library that day? Didn't the librarian say that this book has been borrowed?" "good." "I found this book after I went to the library in Hankou." Tiaotiao pointed at the book in Xia Zicheng's hand. "After reading it, did you find anything?" "The editor who planned the magazine "Wolf City" must be very familiar with "Sou Shen Ji", or read historical myths." Xia Zicheng didn't want to waste time, so he directly talked to Tiaotiao about the "Wolf City" magazine, including what Dongwen said, but he didn't mention the suspect.The cases Xing Qing investigates cannot be disclosed to anyone, including his wife. "So, if the deceased is the editor-in-chief of "Wolf City" magazine, her death may be related to the Taotie of the Nine Sons of the Dragon in "Sou Shen Ji"?" "At present, it is only an inference, and no conclusion can be drawn yet." "Take it easy, I'm going to the research room. If you're in a hurry, you don't have to wait for me to come back." Li Tiaotiao smiled at Xia Zicheng and walked towards the research room. Xia Zicheng watched Tiaotiao walk into the research room, and opened "Sou Shen Ji": Ancient myths and legends, the dragon has nine sons: the eldest is Prison Niu, the second is Yazi, the third is Xiaofeng, the fourth is Pu Lao, and the fifth is Suan Ni, the sixth child is Bi Xi, the seventh child is Bi An, the eighth child is negative, and the ninth child is Chi kiss (鸱尾).There are other sayings: the eldest is Bixi, the second is Chiwen (鸱tail), the third is Pulao, the fourth is Bigan, the fifth is Taotie, the sixth is Chongbu, the seventh is Yazi, the eighth is Suni, and the old Jiujiaotu . Longsheng Jiuzi means that the dragon gave birth to nine sons, and none of the nine sons became dragons, and each of them was different.The so-called "a dragon has nine sons" does not mean that a dragon happens to have nine sons.In traditional Chinese culture, nine is used to represent a great number and has a supreme status. Nine is an imaginary number and is also an expensive number, so it is used to describe the dragon.The saying that the dragon has nine sons has a long history, but there has been no theory about which nine animals are there. It was not until the Ming Dynasty that various theories appeared.Regardless of the various theories for the time being, let's introduce some legendary descendants of dragons. One of the sayings: Prison cow, one of the nine sons of the dragon, is shaped like a small yellow dragon with rare horns. It likes music and squats on the head of the piano.This dragon son with musical instincts not only stands on the huqin of the Han nationality, but also has the image of raising his head and opening his mouth on the dragon head Yueqin of the Yi nationality, the Sanxian qin of the Bai nationality and some musical instruments of the Tibetan nationality. Yazi, one of the nine sons of the dragon, has a dragon body and a head. He is fierce, bloodthirsty and aggressive, and is engraved on the knife ring and the hilt of the sword.The original meaning of Yaizu is to stare with anger, the so-called "a meal of virtue must be repaid, and Yaizu's grievances must be repaid."Retribution is inevitable, so it is very natural for this dragon who looks like a jackal to appear on the scabbard of the handle. Xiaofeng, one of the nine sons of the dragon, has been very dangerous in his life, and now the beast in the temple is his image. Pu Lao, one of the nine sons of the dragon in the legend, roared loudly when he was hit, and used it as a beast button for Hong Zhong to lift the beam, helping his song to spread far and wide.Shaped like a dragon but smaller than a dragon, it sings well.It is said that Pu Lao lives by the sea and is usually most afraid of whales.Every time he encountered a whale attack, Pulao kept screaming.Therefore, people put its image on the bell, and carved the long wood of the bell into the shape of a whale, and used it to strike the bell, hoping that its sound would be loud and bright. Suan Ni, one of the nine sons of the dragon in the legend, also known as Jin Ni and Ling Ni.Suanni is originally another name for lion, so it looks like a lion, good for fireworks, and easy to sit on.Its elegant demeanor can be seen on the Buddha seat and incense burner in the temple.The lion, which dares to eat even tigers and leopards, and has a very imposing appearance, was introduced to China along with Buddhism.Because the Buddha Sakyamuni had the metaphor of "fearless lion", people naturally arranged it as a seat for Buddha, or carved it on the incense burner to let him enjoy the incense slowly. Bi Xi, also known as Gui Bi, Ba Xia, and Du Xia, is the length of a dragon with nine sons, looks like a turtle, has teeth, is strong, and is easy to bear.It also bears heavy objects on its back, and the stone turtle under the stele is its image. Bi An, one of the nine sons of the dragon, looks like a tiger. It is said that he is good at litigation. Therefore, his image is erected on both sides of the prison gate or the main hall of the government office, and it is also called the charter.It looks like a tiger, powerful, and good at prison litigation, so people engraved it on the prison door.Tiger is a mighty beast, so it can be seen that the purpose of Bi An is to enhance the majesty of the prison and make criminals daunting. Negative quality, one of the nine sons of the dragon, with a body like a dragon, elegant and gentle, coiled on the top of the stone tablet. Chi kiss, also known as Chiwei and Chi kiss, is one of the nine sons of the dragon. It has a moist mouth and a thick voice, and it is easy to swallow. It became a spine-swallowing beast at both ends of the temple ridge.Whether the owl's tail is a bird or a legendary whale in the sea is not certain.Shaped like a four-legged snake with its tail cut off, this dragon son is good at looking around in dangerous places, and also likes to swallow fire.According to legend, when Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty built the Boliang Hall, someone said that there was a fish in the sea with a tail like a bird, that is, a harrier eagle, which could spray waves and rain, and could be used to prevent fires. above the roof. In addition, there is another saying that Xiaofeng, Prisoner, and Negative are not the nine sons. Instead, it is: Taotie, which is said to be one of the nine sons of the dragon.It looks like a wolf and eats well.The shape of its head is often carved on Zhongding Yi ware as decoration.Since gluttony is a particularly gluttonous beast in the legend, people who are greedy for food and even property are called gluttonous.Taotie also appeared as a patterned animal face decoration on Shang and Zhou bronzes, called Taotie pattern. Earthworm, one of the nine sons of the dragon in the legend, loves water, and is carved into the animal shape of bridge pillars and buildings dripping water. Jiaotu, one of the nine sons of the dragon, is shaped like a snail and clam, and it is easy to keep its mouth shut.Therefore, people often carve its image on the shop head of the gate, or depict it on the door panel.Snail mussels always close their shells tightly when encountering foreign objects.People use it on the door, probably because it can be closed tightly for safety. It is also said that Chi, Qilin, Hou, and Maung Lin are also nine sons: Chi, or Chi Shou, one of the legendary nine sons of the dragon, has a big mouth and a belly that can hold a lot of water. It is mostly used for decoration of drainage outlets in buildings. It is called Chishou Sanshui. Qilin, a mythical beast in ancient Chinese myths and legends.The male is named Qi, and the female is named Lin.The shape of Qilin is like a deer, and its tail is like that of an ox. Qilin has a single horn, while Lin has no horn.In ancient China, unicorns were used to symbolize auspiciousness.Now it is generally believed that the unicorn is the giraffe. Ji, commonly known as Wangtianhou, Chaotianhou, is said to be the son of the Dragon King and has the habit of keeping watch.The stepping dragon on the top of the Huabiao pillar (that is, roaring towards the sky) roars at the sky, which is regarded as conveying the will of heaven and conveying the feelings of the people.There are also literature records that the mount of Guanyin Bodhisattva is "roaring to the sky"? Pixiu is also known as Tianlu and evil spirits.It is a mythical animal in ancient Chinese myths and legends. It has a dragon head, a horse body, and Lin feet. It is shaped like a lion, with gray and white fur, and can fly.Pixiu is ferocious and powerful. It is responsible for patrolling in the sky, preventing demons, ghosts, plagues and diseases from disturbing the heaven.In ancient times, people often used Pixiu as the name of the army.It has a mouth but no anus. It can swallow everything without diarrhea. It can attract wealth and treasure, and it can only go in and out.Now many Chinese people wear jade products of Pixiu because of this. Taotie became the main decoration of Shang and Zhou Ding, which involves a series of problems.Baoding is the most important weapon of the Chinese nation in the Bronze Age.In the Zhou Dynasty, the "Ding" of "one word and nine tripods" was an artifact and ritual vessel that symbolized the supremacy of the king, and it was also a sacrificial vessel for worshiping the heavens and ancestors.Therefore, only the totem belonging to the nation is eligible to ascend to such a lofty position, and be engraved and cast on the treasure tripod.This phenomenon also reflects two problems: first, in the Shang and Zhou dynasties, the Huaxia people may still worship the wolf totem, at least the beast totem, and the totem worship of the ancestors of the Yandi and Huangdi clan may still exist, while the Zhou Dynasty The Huaxia people were more deeply influenced by the wolf totem, because Zhou originated from Xirong, and most of the Xirong were nomads who worshiped the wolf totem; second, the dragon at that time might not have been generally accepted and had not really become the national totem of the Huaxia people, otherwise Therefore, Baoding, which symbolizes royal power, must have dragons as its main decoration.Moreover, at that time, the emperor of Zhou had not yet sat on the dragon seat. At that time, he still continued the nomadic legacy of Yan and Huang, sitting on the ground. The decorations on the Zhou Ding are mainly composed of Taotie patterns and cloud patterns, with Taotie as the center and cloud patterns surrounding it.Obviously, the gluttonous beast is in the sky, poking its head out from the clouds, overlooking the world.Its body is hidden in the clouds. I don't know if it has a snake body or a dragon body, but if the dragon body is added behind Taotie's head, it will not be far from the standard dragon later.Therefore, there may be a transitional stage between the wolf totem and the dragon totem.Taotie has both the character of a wolf and the face of a dragon later on. The real names and prototypes of the mythical beasts referred to by the animal face patterns have long been buried in the ages that cannot be reproduced. Later generations named them Taotie because of their ferocious, mysterious and terrifying faces, and some of them had human heads in their mouths.Taotie was originally used in "Zuo Zhuan" to describe the unkind and unrighteous people who are greedy for money and food.Modern scholars have pointed out that it is far-fetched to name the animal-mask pattern as the man-eating Taotie, which is contrary to the social and cultural conditions of the Shang and Zhou dynasties. Because of its ferocious and terrifying appearance and its reputation as a glutton, it is almost impossible to find traces of this beast in the evolution of Chinese culture and art.In the middle of the Western Zhou Dynasty, animal decorations, which had been popular for hundreds of years, suddenly withdrew from the field of main bronze decorations.However, several animal patterns, such as dragon, tiger, phoenix, and tortoise, which appeared on bronze wares at the same time as the Taotie pattern, appeared in large numbers in official and folk in the later cultural evolution, and became the most famous auspicious symbols in Chinese culture. Objects and artistic expression are endless themes.Especially dragons, in the Bronze Age, most of them also had the same ferocious faces as the Taotie pattern.In terms of mystery, might and status, dragons were far inferior to gluttons in the Bronze Age.However, the dragon later ascended to the highest throne of Chinese cultural and political symbols, and Taotie, the supreme figure of the Bronze Age, is hard to find. Next, we talked about the taotie pattern.What the Taotie pattern refers to has always been controversial, and so far there is no conclusion.Some say it's cattle, sheep, tigers, deer, mandrills... Among these theories, Taotie is the loudest when it comes to tigers.Many scholars engaged in the study of primitive culture and art believe that Taotie pattern is an exaggeration and deformation of tiger pattern.In ancient times, the tiger was also a very important divine beast, and the shape of a wizard riding a tiger often appeared in later cultural relics.In the long history of Chinese culture, before the worship of dragon and phoenix, there was a long period of worship of dragon and tiger. The pattern of dragon and tiger fighting was very popular from the Eastern Zhou Dynasty to the Western Han Dynasty, especially the dragon and tiger unearthed from the Mawangdui Han Tomb. The fighting picture is the most exquisite and extraordinary.The ancients believed that the tiger is a yang beast, "the cloud follows the dragon, and the wind follows the tiger".The dragon and the tiger fighting each other represent the intercourse of yin and yang.In the Han Dynasty, Canglong, Baihu, Suzaku, and Xuanwu represented the four astronomical officials of the Middle East, West, South, and North.At least, in the early days of Chinese history, the status of the tiger was not inferior to that of the dragon.However, the depiction of the supernatural powers of tigers in ancient books is obviously difficult to compare with the prominent status of Taotie on bronze wares. Gluttony is a ferocious and cruel monster in ancient times. It likes to eat people and has a large appetite. From this point, it is not difficult to see that gluttony is actually a concrete manifestation of the dark side of society at that time, and people also resent the oppression of the slavery society. To entrust their own feelings, Taotie has become more and more familiar to people.It is the most important meaning of the ancient gluttony culture to compare gluttony to a slavery society that cannibalize people. Because Taotie is a ferocious monster with great power, it is used as a talisman by many ethnic minorities in the north, engraving its patterns on utensils and food dishes, thinking that in this way, they can use the powerful power of Taotie to prevent being swallowed by other fierce beasts , Gradually replaced the original cannibalistic and cruel side. Now, the main meaning of Taotie is a symbol of food culture. Gluttony is a mythical beast in ancient Chinese legends, and its biggest feature is that it can be eaten. According to legend, Taotie was the head of Chi You who was beheaded after being defeated by Emperor Yan and Huang. It was transformed by resentment gathered in different places. It has the ability to devour everything. After reading it again, I still can't figure out "Where is the key to the connection between Taotie and the murder?"