Chapter 6 5. The beginning of love (2)
After the old man's story was told, Little Lingjie couldn't stop thinking about it. He stared at Grandpa in a daze. The old man stroked his head kindly, and added a few more words with a smile:
"People say that Zhao Mazi was taken away by Lord Yan because he violated the rules of heaven, people! If you lose your heart and conscience, disaster will happen sooner or later. Don't think that no one will know when you do something bad, people I don’t know, God knows! To be a human being, one should behave in an upright manner, as long as one walks straight and upright, even if a ghost knocks on the door in the middle of the night, there is nothing to be afraid of.”
After the old man said these words, he went to bed, and Xiao Lingjie sat up and stayed up late.There was always a pock-marked man shaking back and forth in front of him, for a while he was kneeling on the ground digging other people's graves with a pickaxe, and for a while he was dying in the grass with a scream.Fortunately, the sound of firecrackers outside the house emboldened him one after another, otherwise he really didn't know how scared he would be. He suddenly felt cowardly for no reason. He suspected that a certain piece of grass he had sat on might be the place where Zhao Mazi's body was buried. He might still have Zhao Mazi's spooky aura on his ass.Little Lingjie trembled with fear for a while, and smiled with joy for a while. Grandpa's words gave him a lot of encouragement. As long as a person walks straight and straight, even ghosts and gods will not dare to approach him. From this point of view, he is more courageous. It's not necessarily good, if Zhao Mazi is not too courageous, even if he does bad things, even if he kills his father with a knife, he will not go to the ghost land, nor will he be scared to death there.
What the hell scared Zhao Mazi to death?Little Lingjie faintly felt an invisible hand reaching into his skull, trying to find something, and these things were the answer to Zhao Mazi's frightened death, he was almost sure that these things must exist in a corner of his brain , but the hand was tossing and turning, making the back of his head ache, and he still couldn't find those things. Little Lingjie was so anxious that he wanted to go crazy. When is it.After midnight, Hu Huli got up and was about to go to the cemetery to offer incense. He saw him frowning and thinking hard, so he said to him: "Look what you did, you made yourself a human, a ghost." Little Lingjie's head was in a mess, and when he heard the words "people are not people, ghosts are not ghosts", there was a sudden emptiness in the Lingtai, and he seemed to be swept into the shadowy area by a cloud of mist in an instant. A ghostly place full of air and chirping ghostly voices.It was the middle of the night in summer, he was hiding in the mist wrapped in weeds in a void, and the phosphorous fire flew past his feet flickeringly, he was not afraid, but just felt amused, the burrow they found was right in front of him not far away.There was no sound in the surrounding fields, and the heaven and earth froze into a chaotic stillness.Suddenly, a sound of "rustling" footsteps came to his ears, and he didn't need to guess to know that it was Zhao Mazi who was smelling of alcohol. Zhao Mazi broke off a branch with green leaves from there, and walked forward along the way. Walking all the way, he muttered: "Isn't it just a few weeds? It can scare me. I even dare to hug and kiss the dead, hahaha! Could it be that God sent me another charming little girl! Hahaha!" Lingjie stuck on the tip of the grass and looked at the hole in front of Zhao Mazi. He knew that Zhao Mazi's death must be related to the hole. Sure enough, Zhao Mazi was walking forward when he suddenly stopped and stared at Looking ahead, his face turned from doubt to panic, and then from panic to despair. He unexpectedly saw a dark shadow suddenly appearing on the flat ground in front of him. The shadow only showed two terrifyingly bright eyes and His teeth were grim and his face was hard to see. Little Lingjie knew that it was just a man in black wearing a black mask who came out of a hole in the ground. The man in black didn't expect to meet someone here.He couldn't help but let out a low "wow", but this sound was like a bolt from the blue to Zhao Mazi, and Zhao Mazi let out a scream, probably because his guts were scared out of his wits.Of course he died there.
Little Lingjie's thoughts flickered back home and sat by the fire.He was almost sure that Zhao Mazi was frightened to death by the dream-like scene he saw.
He was sure that what Zhao Mazi encountered was definitely not a ghost, but a living person, but his appearance was too sudden, and it was in the place where people often think that there are ominous things.
Little Lingjie was completely conquered by his speculation, he never thought that he would be so smart, he was so smart, he couldn't help dancing and laughing "hehe".Hu Huli glared fiercely at the second son who was suddenly possessed by an evil spirit, and pouted his mouth into the room again. Little Lingjie stuck out his tongue and waved his hand at his father.I was still uncontrollably happy.
Looking forward to it every day and every night, it was hard to look forward to the fifth day of the first lunar month. The weather was not good, and it snowed heavily.Little Lingjie's enthusiasm was turned completely cold by the snow.Staying in the house is like a little mouse caught in a mousetrap, looking around, getting angry at everything he sees, and wanting to scold his mother at everything he sees.After lunch, Little Lingjie was in despair, and a well-planned trip to the ghost land went to waste.When it was getting dark, Zhou Tiedan and Shuan Zhu learned a few cat meows outside the gate of Li's house, "meow, meow". Qingzi stood vigorously in the snow, stomping her feet non-stop.After Xiao Lingjie came out, the three discussed for a long time, but no one had a better idea, so they broke up unhappy.Little Lingjie never expected that the miscarriage of their action, which had been postponed indefinitely, would save his life.Could it be that there is a real will in the dark?
Little Lingjie survived the "Bao Wu" full of resentment, thinking that God has the virtue of being good at life, and would give him a good day and let them go to the ghost land for another walk.But the truth is exactly as grandpa said, God sometimes has no eyes, the five heavy snowfalls covered the sky for a day, and the sixth day of the sixth day continued for another day, and the seventh day was relieved, and at dawn he gave Xiaolingjie a A brief surprise, while eating breakfast, those nasty white guys started dancing outside the house again.Little Lingjie can't wait to jump into the sky to plug up the big hole where the snow is leaking, and then slap the fairy in charge of the hole a few times, just like his father holding his ass with red eyes Just as ruthless, or more ruthless.On the seventh day of the seventh day, Xiao Lingjie counted the fingers of more than a thousand people.Waking up in the morning on the eighth day of the lunar new year, Little Lingjie jumped into the courtyard barefoot without any shoes on, and the snow stopped falling!Sure enough, the snow stopped.
The little guy patted his head "ho ho" and smirked for half an hour, laughing so hard that his heart was bristling, and he couldn't help but think of a sentence who told him: when a child was too smart, he would grow up The more stupid you are, the stupid you will become in the end.Hu Hu Li is also very happy that there is no snow. After the Chinese New Year, the relatives’ homes have not moved around. The Spring Festival is short for the poor.
When Xiao Lingjie was happy, he ran to find Zhou Tiedan.Let him inform the Qizhong brothers that if there is no snow on the 11th day of the first lunar month, they will leave on time after breakfast.The eighth day was cloudy, and the ninth day was sunny. The farmers knew that the snow melting day was colder than the snowing day. On the ninth day, Xiao Lingjie stayed at home and slept with his head covered. In the dream, I saw a sunny day, with warm wind blowing, and a group of them laughed and ran in the whirling willow forest. ...
The snow had melted for two days, and the black road surface was faintly exposed on the ground at dusk on the tenth day of the lunar new year. The dripping water from the eaves left black marks like dead snakes on the untouched snow in the courtyard.Little Lingjie suddenly had no reason to be afraid that the entrance of the cave would be flooded with snow water. He walked in a hurry that day, and besides, the place was almost deserted. They just found some dead branches and weeds and set up a tent at the entrance of the cave. They didn't even think of floating soil. Bury some.Fear is fear, right now Little Lingjie can't run to see if it's true.Besides, I'm going again on the eleventh day, so I'm not in a hurry.Little Lingjie never dreamed that his father's hasty decision completely destroyed his entire plan.
Hu Hu Li did not intend to visit relatives on the 11th day of the first lunar month. When I got up in the morning and opened the door, I saw that the sky was bright red and the snow on the ground had almost melted away. The remaining bits were frozen with the loose soil on the ground, hard , it is a good day to go out.Hu Huli turned around to discuss with Mrs. Cao, and decided to go to the old lady's natal nephew on a sunny day, and then drop by to see a cousin near the door. For the sake of relaxation, the two decided to just Bringing a child, and the two chose Little Lingjie without hesitation.
Little Lingjie also woke up early, obediently waiting to get ready for breakfast and slipping away with an excuse. Hu Huli's plan was announced at the dinner table, Little Lingjie was caught off guard and almost dropped the rice bowl in his hand on the ground.
His dissatisfaction is his dissatisfaction, Hu Huli's decision cannot be changed.Xiao Lingjie knew that the matter was irreversible, so he accepted his fate.Let the third child inform Zhou Tiedan that the action was cancelled. Of course, he didn't dare to tell the third child what was going on, so he asked the third child to tell Zhou Tiedan that my brother and my father were going to visit relatives together.
After the third child went out, Xiao Lingjie thought it was not a big deal. Normally, being able to go out and visit relatives was a good thing he could never have dreamed of. In a year, the five brothers took turns to show up at relatives' homes. Just a few days after the Spring Festival, go there as soon as you go, and get two lucky money. Anyway, the deep hole will not be able to run for a day and a half. new clothes.
Xiao Lingjie happily ran with his parents for a day.The relatives all know that the Li family has five young masters, but now they only brought one, so this one must be the most favored among the five, so they should be as close as possible to Xiao Lingjie. His ability is already extremely high, and he knows that his performance is related to the face of his parents, so he also focuses on his performance, willing to be a good baby and a good boy for a day.The relatives were full of praise for the little guy's cleverness and intelligence, and Hu Huli and his wife were so happy that their eyebrows and eyes disappeared.
In this way, this Spring Festival Little Spirit has become a must-have treasure for Dad when he visits relatives.I worked non-stop for three or four days, and then I was busy celebrating the Lantern Festival. By the time I calmed down, it was already the end of the first month and the beginning of February.
The child's interest became very fast, and after a few days of the sweetness of the care of his parents and the love of his relatives, Xiao Lingjie actually forgot about his previous "powerful" and felt the ridiculousness and pitifulness of being the king among a group of children. up.Besides, in that group of people, he had to act like a leader at all times, looking at the faces of the big guys when he was laughing and cursing, not daring to relax a little, no matter how tired he was.Therefore, by the end of the Spring Festival, Little Lingjie was not as interested in the so-called action gatherings as before. Once Zhou Tiedan meowed like a cat for a long time outside, which made him very impatient. The old relationship was not easy to turn against him, so he had to order the four brothers to act fiercely and drive him away.
Time flies, the sun and the moon fly by, and it is March in a blink of an eye. The spring on the banks of the Ziya River is getting stronger day by day. After waking up from laziness, they began to appear in small groups on the fields beside the fields.Hu Huli and his wife went down to the field as soon as spring began, plowed and harrowed, and prepared for spring plowing.
After the beginning of spring, Hu Huli tightened his control over the second boy, letting him stay at home all day long and read the books Mr. Zhang gave him.Although Xiao Lingjie is an outstanding "high-achieving student" in Mr. Zhang's "short training class", he has no foundation after all.Let's say three or two months, more than half of it was spent on "Thousand Characters", and he didn't talk much about other sages' words. The reason is very simple. Once the child is playing crazy, it is impossible to make him work hard.Besides, there are many words in Mr. Zhang's books that Little Lingjie doesn't know, which is an excellent excuse.When Hu Huli was learning to play the huqin from Taoists when he was a child, he was terribly afraid of difficulties when he encountered difficulties.In fact, the little guy is not feeling well, but it is definitely not because encountering new words delays his work, but reading itself delays his play time, staying alone in the room, looking at the tree outside the window, twittering and calling friends. Accompanied by the little sparrow foraging for food for a few days, little Lingjie finally found a justifiable reason to go out to play. He told his father to accumulate new words first, and to draw some new words every two or three days. I went to ask the old gentleman in some free time, and Hu Huli took it seriously, thinking that his son really wanted to study hard, so he agreed.Little Lingjie had gone to Mr. Zhang and asked questions, but every time he went there for half a day, most of the time he spent playing outside.Only half an hour is spent running to the teacher, asking questions, and then running back to play outside.
If he ran for a few days, Xiao Lingjie didn't read much, but his body became stronger.Hu Huli also thought about checking his homework, but he was illiterate, so he didn't know how his son's books were. Anyway, after reading a book, he would say "wow" when you turn to that page. Wow" read a pass.Hu Huli didn't think too deeply. The child is still young, so he read a little bit every day. After a long time, he will naturally read some tricks.
Before Hu Hu Li and his wife go to the ground, they have to explain to the little guy, not letting him run around casually, reading is important, and Xiao Lingjie promises to be crisp every time.It's just that as soon as his parents left the house, he leaned on the wall with his ears pricked up to listen to the music, guessing that his parents were too far away to see the door.As soon as the book was closed, she ran out. The old lady caught sight of it and rushed out of the gate panting with her feet bumped. The little guy had already disappeared after running away.
The brothers in those corps were really loyal to Little Lingjie. The boss ignored them later, and they played by themselves. Once the boss needed them for something, just say hello, "Hula" and you will be there in ten minutes. One or eight cheered for the boss.Little Lingjie was bored at home for a long time, and gradually recalled the grand occasion of brothers gathering together on the river beach, people cheering and horses shouting.So the title of "Boss" naturally made him find the joy of the past again.
The day's activity is to go to the Earth Temple, which is the dilapidated small temple at the entrance of the village.Little Lingjie didn't think about the specific things. Going to the Earth Temple is just the first step, and we need to discuss the next action plan there. The recent question about how to play has really troubled Little Lingjie. Ghost Land is a good place, but Hearing from Shuan Zhu that there were soldiers stationed there, Xiao Lingjie sent Zhou Tiedan to investigate once. Sure enough, there were soldiers, all wearing colorful battle robes, and some in iron armor, very mighty.The soldiers were walking back and forth on the river slope with red-tasseled guns in their hands, looking left and right. When they saw people coming from a distance, they ran to stop them and refused to let them go. They looked very ferocious.It's impossible to go to the ghost land.
There's nothing much else to do elsewhere.game?Everything imaginable has been played.
For example, climbing a tree to dig out a bird's nest, going down to a river to catch a clam, an eagle to catch a chicken, a kitten to catch a mouse, etc. When mentioning these things, people want to retch and look dismissive.Little Lingjie didn't have any other good ideas. It stands to reason that it would be more fun to dig out a bird's nest in Sanyuetian. There are no cubs with yellow beaks in the bird's nest, and there are a few warm eggs for the mother bird. It's a pity that , the entire Li Jia Village can't find a tree with a bird's nest on it.When this group of people had a good time, they didn't think of saving some programs to play later. Therefore, the magpies and crows who once set up camp in Li Jia Village, secretly ate millet, and nursed their cubs all went to other treasure hunting places.
Little Lingjie arrived late, and far away from the Earth Temple, he saw Gou Zhushou setting up an awning and looking over here.Zhou Tiedan didn't know where he was.Gouzhu smiled mysteriously when he saw the boss, pointed to the small temple, and then whispered to the boss' ear:
"Boss, something happened in the temple. I don't know where a strange old man came from and stayed in it. The military division is checking the situation inside, so hurry up and have a look."
Xiao Lingjie felt something strange when he heard it.Two days ago, he ran here alone to defecate, and there was no human hair in it?Suddenly, an old man appeared, and he was a strange old man.Little Lingjie understood what the word "weird" in these little guys' mouths meant, it was nothing more than ragged clothes, longer beards, dirty faces, and messy hair.Little Lingjie sees this kind of person a lot. His father and his colleagues from the old days would rush to their house to eat and live for free if they catch up with the market and other places. Most of the people there can take care of it. Such a "weird" word.
Thinking about it, Xiao Lingjie stepped over the temple gate, raised his eyes, and realized that his opinion was extremely wrong.In the temple, Tie Dan and a group of children formed a circle, raised his chin and stared into the middle of the circle, and the person in the middle of the circle was the "weird person" Gou Zhu said.Little Lingjie didn't find anything strange about his clothes, but at first glance, the thought that came to his mind was that this person was strange inside and out, and even a little mysterious.In the middle of the circle is a little old man, saying that the old man is because he is really old, his face is haggard like a dry leaf blown by the autumn wind, he has a very long beard, both black and white, but it is neatly combed and long The ones hang down to the chest, like Xu Sheng on the stage.He is said to be small because the old man's frame is indeed small, and the space occupied by sitting down is not as much as that of a dog post, but he doesn't feel a bit wretched.Especially that pair of eyes, which are so naked that it can make you feel cold for a long time if you glance at them.The little old man was poor and did not know much about the country. He was wearing a yellow robe, but the style of the robe was not quite the same as the local robe. The time of traveling might be too long, and the yellow color had been turned into dust by wind and dust.A piece of cloth was wrapped around his head, which was also yellow, and the yellow cloth was rolled into a big bump on the back of his head, which looked a bit cumbersome.The shoes he wears are local goods, mille-soled cloth shoes, the kind that farmers always wear when they go out for long distances, they are strong and light.The little old man was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the circle and smiling at Zhou Tiedan and the others. That smile seemed to be beyond the reach of ordinary people. It made people feel very comfortable but could not produce a sense of intimacy. It seemed that there was a kind of majesty in that smile. It is the "noble" that Mr. Zhang said!Xiao Lingjie stood calmly outside the circle, secretly thinking that he wanted to guess the little old man's way based on his "life experience", so that he could show his subordinates again.
The little ones held their breath and sat upright.No one noticed that the boss had arrived.Gou Zhu had been waiting for someone outside the door, but he didn't come in to notify him, so the little old man nodded at him.As soon as Zhou Tiedan turned around, he found that the boss was standing behind him, and the others also saw Xiao Lingjie, "Hulala" stood up together, greeted the boss in a mess, and called "Boss" kindly. Xiao Lingjie felt a little flustered.
Little Lingjie didn't know that what the little old man said to him was the first sentence Zhou Tiedan and the others had said since they came in. The little old man obviously saw that this group of wild horse-like children were standing in front of Little Lingjie. The obedience and obedience seemed to be a little disbelieving, the little old man scanned the large group of children, high and low, one by one, put away the reserved smile on his face and replaced it with surprise, and rushed to the little one Lingjie said:
"Son, are you the leader of these people?"
The little old man's tone was still more majestic than gentle, as if he was used to commanding others, and his words were commanding.By this time, Xiao Lingjie had realized that the little old man was definitely not a human being.In his family, because his father had eaten the bowl of Jianghu, it was not uncommon to see people of all schools and classes, but none of them was like the little old man.He felt that this person might be a senior official visiting Weifu.Otherwise, there is no such aura that penetrates into the bones.The senior officials visiting in micro-clothes are characters that often appear in grandma's old-fashioned stories. Grandma said that if a senior official wants to visit abroad, he has to change into ordinary people's clothes.Some even dressed up as beggars begging along the street.But no matter how much he looks like, people with a discerning eye can still recognize him at a glance, because a high-ranking official has been an official for a long time, and he has such an aura that he looks like an official.Little Lingjie turned to admiration for the little old man from suspicion.But the little old man's question clearly hurt his self-esteem seriously. People always do this. If you don't care about him, then you can ignore what he says, but once you have feelings for him, especially respect .Then if he shows a little bit of contempt or belittling towards you, you will absolutely not be able to bear it.This is the situation Xiao Lingjie is facing right now, he can't bear the critical and suspicious eyes of the little old man.He thought he had suffered a great humiliation, he wanted to get angry, he wanted to scold this ignorant old guy, but he didn't, he had to control himself in front of his subordinates.
The little old man still looked at him with a smile, he bravely touched the two breathtaking cold lights in the little old man's eyes, and then replied casually:
"Old man, don't you see it?"
The little old man didn't seem to expect him to answer like this, he was a little startled, but he looked up to the sky and laughed out loud in an instant.It's hard to believe that such a loud laughter can come out of such a thin body, Xiao Lingjie's ears are buzzing, and looking at Zhou Tiedan and the others, they have already plugged their ears and eyes with their hands.Little Lingjie didn't plug his ears and eyes, not because he wanted to show that he was different, he just felt that it was disgraceful.
After the little old man laughed, the floating ash on the roof beams fell straight down, Zhou Tiedan was busy beating the dust on his body, the little old man stepped out of the crowd in one step, stood in front of Little Lingjie, and gently kissed him There was a pat on the shoulder, which made Xiao Lingjie almost sit down. He wondered why this dry old man was so aggressive.The little old man looked up to the sky and let out a haha, then fixed his eyes on Little Lingjie's face, and said every word, but his voice was obviously hoarse and low, as if he was recalling some sad past:
"Little guy, it's not simple, it's not simple. Once you make a big splash in decades, you'll be a master of power and profit again, hahaha!"
When the little old man said "ten years", his tone was lower, like a mosquito humming. If he hadn't stood close, Little Lingjie could hardly hear him. When he said "another", the little old man suddenly raised his voice again. , the light in his eyes instantly became dark and bleak, looking at Xiao Lingjie as if he saw the murder of his father and enemy.A gust of cold air rose from the bottom of Xiao Lingjie's feet, and he was almost thinking about how to escape, when the old man suddenly laughed again.
From then on, the little old man didn't say anything more important, but just casually asked how many families lived in the village, who was rich and who was poor.Then I asked the children why they didn't study, and finally asked Xiao Lingjie alone, what was his father's name, who else was in his family, and whether he would like to welcome me to their house.
For some reason, Little Lingjie had an indescribable resistance to this strange old man, as if he had robbed him of something he loved, and he felt that all his behaviors that he usually thought were very decent looked naive and childish in his eyes, even ridiculous.He didn't want to answer the strange old man's question, or he wanted to play a trick on the strange old man, but it was impossible. There was an invisible pressure in the strange old man's eyes looking directly at him, which made his chest tight, and he didn't dare to confront the strange old man. See, he was afraid that the old man's eyes would stick out two light hooks and hook all his thoughts out of his mouth.
After answering the strange old man's question, Little Lingjie came out of the temple almost exhausted.He didn't want to admit that he was afraid of the weirdo, but he was, afraid for no reason.He ran to a corner, took off his coat and took a few breaths. Fortunately, the weather was warm, and the sweat-soaked underwear was tightly attached to his skin, which made him very uncomfortable.He wanted to calm his mind and think about the ins and outs of the strange old man, but he felt powerless, and all his thoughts disappeared as soon as they touched the two sharp eyes branded deep in his soul.He couldn't figure out why this was the case.
When Xiao Lingjie returned home, he was not at all energetic. The old lady saw him coming back, and the anger accumulated all day spewed out, and she rushed over with the little broken shoe sole in her hand.The little guy just looked up at the old lady sickly, without any intention of begging for mercy or running away, and still sat still like a sick chicken.The old lady rushed to the front and felt incredible, raised her hand in the air and put it down.The old lady murmured in her heart: "Did this kid go out today and hit something evil, why is he so virtuous.
He ran up to help me hold the soles of my shoes when I couldn't get in front of him before, and he kept yelling that he would never do this again.What's wrong this time, didn't you let your grandma down?oh!You think my old man is just scaring you and dare not get serious with you, you boy wait, see if I..." The old lady closed her eyes, hesitated for a while, and finally "slapped" the sole of her shoe to the corner. She is really reluctant to fight!
The old lady threw away her shoes, and she blamed her little grandson in her heart, you little idiot turned into a fool.Usually monkeys can do what monkeys can, alas!Didn't you build a step yesterday for me to borrow the slope to go down the donkey?My old man has lived a long life in vain, and he can't even take care of a yellow-mouthed child.
The old lady was angry and strange, and asked the little guy what happened and he ignored him.The old lady had no choice but to sit down and sulk.Little Lingjie wanted to go up to comfort him, but he couldn't even raise his head to speak, so he went to the room timidly, took off his shoes and lay on the bed, stared at the canopy in a daze for a while, and fell asleep without knowing it.
During dinner, the strange old man actually came to pay a visit, still in the same attire.After Xiao Lingjie was woken up by Cao Shi, he rubbed his eyes and went out of the room. He saw him and his father talking face to face.
That night, the strange old man ate at Xiao Lingjie's house.The Li family has received many high-level people from the "Three Mountains and Five Sacred Mountains".Mrs. Cao, the old man, and the old lady didn't think there was anything unusual.
On the contrary, Hu Hu Li looked respectful.No matter what I did, I lost the unrestrained vigor of the past, and kept restraining my hands and feet, forgetting things.
The old man introduced to Xiao Lingjie that this strange old man is Grandpa Cai.Little Lingjie didn't know why a Grandpa Cai appeared in him all of a sudden, and it was a Grandpa Cai who frightened him to death.He had to listen to what his father said, and for the first time in his life, Xiao Lingjie called Grandpa Cai timidly and stopped talking.
At the dinner table, the old man and Grandpa Cai had a very speculative conversation. At this time, the old man returned to normal, holding the chopsticks in his hand and swipe left and right, spattering the face of Xiao Lingjie who was sitting next to him.Grandpa Cai also forgot to be decent. He took off his robe and put it aside, and unbuttoned one of the underwear buttons, revealing his thin chest. Grandpa Cai seemed to like drinking very much, and he held a lot of alcohol. When the glass was dry, when he was happy, he would tap the side of the bowl with his chopsticks, humming some weird things in time with the beat.Little Lingjie became more and more puzzled, this grandpa Cai is a fairy who deserves his father's respect, he called uncle one by one, and went to buy him a pot of wine, you know, his father never drank alcohol .To say that Grandpa Cai is a high-ranking official, Little Lingjie is a little skeptical, high-ranking officials are all well-educated, dignified and dignified, so there is such a casual, unconstrained appearance, watching him drink heavily, eat food, and look unscrupulous, It's like a green forest hawker walking in the rivers and lakes.Xiao Lingjie suddenly remembered that his father had mentioned to him that his elder brother, who was a master, had become the king of the mountain and was very capable.
The first time Xiao Lingjie heard his father mention that uncle, he wanted to fight with him, but his father said he was dead.Moreover, he led Little Lingjie to pay respects to his grave.Those who run the rivers and lakes should all have kung fu, otherwise they would have lost their lives long ago if they encountered interception.Little Lingjie felt a pain in his shoulder, and he couldn't help but recall that Grandpa Cai lightly patted him on the shoulder.Yes, Grandpa Cai must be a quack with real kung fu.However, after Xiao Lingjie came to this conclusion, he felt something was wrong again. Among the Jianghu people who came to the house, no one was as imposing as him!
Grandpa Cai and Dad had a long talk about midnight.Little Lingjie dozed off next to him for company, and he didn't dare to go to sleep without his father telling him to go to bed. At first he wanted to hear what his father and he were talking about, but after hearing a few words, he lost interest. I kept saying that Big Brother Wang was so kind to me, that Mr. Li was grateful for his virtue, and he was powerless to repay him. In the end, my father had tears in his eyes and gritted his teeth.He also mentioned Er Nuo’s grandfather, of course he was scolding him. At the end, the father cried bitterly and intermittently said goodbye to Brother Wang under Jiuquan. Brother Wang ruined his life for someone Li. Things behind are not taken care of.Grandpa Cai also shed two tears, and persuaded his father to say that people have been away for so long, and they can be regarded as buried in the earth, and that the affairs behind him are not taken care of. The blessing of that surnamed Deng should be blamed. Don't be too demanding on yourself. People should look forward. The dead are already dead, and it is not so ridiculous that the living should be burdened by the dead.Xiao Lingjie vaguely guessed that Grandpa Cai had something to do with that "Big Brother Wang" buried in the city, but he didn't know what it was.
Grandpa Cai didn't leave until midnight. Before he left, he stroked Xiao Lingjie's head lovingly, which made Xiao Lingjie's skin goosebumps. It wasn't because Grandpa Cai used any tricks.It was because Little Lingjie was too afraid of him.Hu Huli tried his best to persuade the strange old man to stay, but the strange old man refused to resign and had to go back to the earth temple.
After sending Grandpa Cai away, the old man locked the door and went to bed. After a while, there was a heavy snoring sound. Little Lingjie couldn't fall asleep looking at the dark window. Who the hell is this Grandpa Cai?Little Lingjie couldn't figure it out, and he didn't fall asleep until the east window turned pale and the hardworking rooster started to crow.
For many days, Xiao Lingjie let out a cold breath from the bottom of his heart whenever he thought of that strange old man, Grandpa Cai.In fact, Grandpa Cai treated him very well. He dared not go to the land temple to play again, but he met Grandpa Cai several times in other places. Little Lingjie can dodge as much as possible, but if he really can't dodge, he still has to bite the bullet and go up to say hello. His father told him that Grandpa Cai is the lifesaver of our Li family, so don't wait too long he.Little Lingjie is not an ungrateful person, although he doesn't know how much kindness Grandpa Cai has towards his Li family, when he meets Grandpa Cai, he always puts his hands down respectfully and calls out "Cai!" Grandpa," and stepped aside to let him pass.Grandpa Cai didn't show any contempt for him like the first time, nor did he stroke his hair like he did when he was at his house. He just smiled at him kindly, which is definitely appreciated by the loyal elders when he sees him A bright smile that only juniors can have.Xiao Lingjie had seen this kind of smile on Mr. Zhang's face many times, and it made him feel warm every time, but Grandpa Cai's smile couldn't produce that effect.Xiao Lingjie could only feel the embarrassment of being "feared" and thorny.
Grandpa Cai didn't leave after laughing, so he must have a chat with him.In fact, it is not a chat, it can only be a question and answer between the old and the young. Grandpa Cai asked him if he had a good time and what his parents did.Little Lingjie always answered every question, and never said a word after answering. Before Grandpa Cai left, he always asked him to send a greeting to his father on his behalf, and asked Little Lingjie to play with him when he was free. He said he had many good stories.
Little Lingjie loves to listen to people tell stories.But he never dared to go to Grandpa Cai to hear it, and he couldn't reverse the timidity in his heart.He wanted to treat Grandpa Cai like other elders, and he wanted to get close to Grandpa Cai like other elders. He even saw Grandpa Cai leaning on the wall in the earth temple a few times, but he fought fiercely. After the ideological struggle, he slipped away quietly.
Things in the world are really hard to predict. Maybe God will twist your fate when you just fell asleep. Later, when Little Lingjie was lying in Grandpa Cai's arms and listening to him tell stories, he remembered the past. Fear and cowardice towards him, I can't believe that everything in front of me is real.He still remembers the incident that brought him closer to Grandpa Cai.
It is said that the people are afraid of officials, but in fact the people are more afraid of soldiers than officials. The ancestors of Li Jia Village are all foreigners.Therefore, the villagers of Li Jia Village, who have been living for generations until now, mentioning soldiers is tantamount to mentioning floods and beasts. Dad squatted in the corner to eat, and there were many people eating with rice bowls around him.The rice field in the countryside is the most important channel for the dissemination of gossip. Farmers here tell the stories of the former three emperors and five emperors in their own way and chat about the next meal.The topic that day started with a long-haired thing, and everyone was eager to express their opinions. It was the first time in Xiao Lingjie's life that he heard the word long-haired. After listening carefully for a while, he finally realized that long-haired It is a group of soldiers composed of poor people.These soldiers always fought with the emperor's soldiers, and they always defeated the emperor's soldiers.
皇帝派出去统兵的大将军也被长毛打死了好几个，皇帝气得好像又坐不稳龙椅了，一个劲地派兵和长毛打仗，打来打去，长毛的兵越打越多，还在南京也立了一个朝廷，皇帝姓洪。长毛立了朝廷之后，发誓要把大清皇帝赶跑，听说长毛里打头的兵已经打到了西边安徽一带，很快就要打到北京了。
小灵杰对领兵打仗的事儿特别感兴趣，听着听着就入了迷，饭也忘了吃，呆呆地坐着听，农人们说到最后一句"皇帝的兵怎么这么脓包"结尾，有的人还辅以一声长叹。好像是预感到李贾村又要面临一次兵荒马乱，大家都不作声，闷闷地往嘴里扒饭，小灵杰忽然想起来鬼地也驻上了兵。而且还是皇帝的兵，但是听周铁蛋的口气那些兵也是一个个如狼似虎吹胡子瞪眼的，怎么会连盔甲都买不起的长毛兵都打不过呢？oh!小灵杰忽然明白了什么，大家都是老百姓，老百姓当然要帮老百姓说话了。小灵杰对这种偏袒自己人的作法很不满意，于是极不服气地说了一句：
"鬼地不是住上皇帝的兵了吗？听说也很厉害，你们怎么不过去瞧瞧？"
饭场上的气氛忽然间就凝固了，大家伙儿忘了往嘴里扒饭，直直地把目光射向小灵杰，有一个很悲哀地问小灵杰：
"is that true?"
小灵杰还没来得及回答，那人又自言自语了一句，眼泪似乎都快要掉下来了。
"那咱们老百姓的苦日子大概要到头了！"
小灵杰大惑不解，既然苦日子快到头了，他还那么难受干什么，跟死了亲爹似的。
大家后边的饭吃得都很快，吃完了也都不再打招呼，各自端了各自的饭碗往回走，小灵杰跟在老爹屁股后边，嘴里很不满意地嘀咕：
"皇帝的兵就是住到鬼地了吗，不信他们自己瞧去呗，有什么好难受的！"
老爹进了家门就把门从里边闩上，进了堂屋又把堂屋门也闩上，然后急切地问小灵杰：
"好孩子，鬼地真的住上兵了吗？"
"我听周铁蛋说的，他和别人一块去那儿玩过，刚好看见的，有很多很多！"
小灵杰怕挨打，不敢说是他让周铁蛋去看的，只得把责任全推到周铁蛋身上。
老爹在屋里急匆匆地来回踱步，脸上阴晴不定的煞是吓人。小灵杰不敢看他，低了头想自己的心事。忽然，老爹又回过头来问他：
"好孩子，我给你说，以后不管谁问你鬼地是不是有兵，你都要说不知道，千万记住这一点。还有，不管你以前去过没去过，以后再不要到鬼地去了。"
小灵杰一看老爹怀疑上了他去过鬼地，连忙红着脸辩解：
"爹，我以前没去过鬼地，说鬼地有兵的事是拴柱干的，然后周铁蛋不信，就去看了，一看果然是有的。"
"拴柱，拴柱他爹，噢，对了，一定是拴柱他爹从那儿得了信，回家闭着门说，让小拴柱听去了。唉？拴柱他爹，老实人，你不出来说大家就永远不知道了吗？"
老爹自言自语良久，又把妈妈和一群孩子叫到面前，告诉他（她）们官兵快要过来了，千万不要乱跑，没事就呆在家里，妈妈似乎想说些什么，被老爹用手势制止了，老爹从鼻孔里重重哼了一声，"啪"一拳捶在桌子上，狠狠地说：
"以后的地里活我一个人包了，日他娘的，这世道，老百姓的苦日子真的快到头了。非得一个一个被这群兽兵弄死不可！"
小灵杰恍然大悟了，苦日子到头原来就是死，怪不得大家都那么伤心呢！
以后的几天村子里寂静，街上走过的人都阴沉着脸，见了面也不打招呼，只各自在嘴里"嗯"上一声，便低了头各走各个路。更让小灵杰奇怪的是，平时满街里说笑的大姑娘小媳妇一个个没了踪影，甚至连七八岁的小不点也找不见了，只有几个老态龙钟的老太太仍旧每天拄着歪脖拐棍颤悠悠地散她们的步。田里干活的也没了女人，挥汗如雨地侍弄地的全是大男人，连送饭的都成了和小灵杰一时的那些弟兄们。
小灵杰的奇怪只压在心里，没敢问过老爹，他知道老爹不会告诉他什么。他不明白，鬼地的兵到底是厉害还是不厉害，说他厉害吧，他连长毛都打不过，说他不厉害吧，老爹还叫他们兽兵，而且他们能将李贾村的人一个一个弄死。小灵杰没有想到如果是村人都被弄死，他们一个也跑不掉，他想破脑袋也想不出他们村一村的人都被弄死会是什么样的一个场景，他不服气，倔强的天性和儿童的好奇心使他又把鬼地之行当成了一次必须实施的计划，老爹的话大部分他当了耳旁风，一小部分他记着，就是鬼地很危险，他不想再带太多的人，人多事容易被兵发现，他只需要有一个伴就行，无庸置疑，周铁蛋是他做选择的第一人选。
周铁蛋和小灵杰是背着家里人偷偷溜出来的，他们选择的时间是下午，鬼地有鬼小灵杰本来就相信，况且如今又住了那么多兵，鬼怕阳气，就算有鬼那么多大活人怎么着，也把鬼吓跑了。所以他们决定下午去，在附近藏到晚上再偷偷溜过去看看情况，然后根据具体情况另行安排下一步举动。
两个傻大胆计划得很周密，小灵杰最初找周铁蛋商量时没有一点把握，周铁蛋人样样都好、能干、实诚、够意思，就是骨头有点软，据说他老爹晃晃拳头都能吓得他做三天恶梦。
因为小灵杰的决定是晚上在鬼地过夜，至少要天明才能回来，周铁蛋如果同意去回来就必须得有充足的思想准备捱住他老爹一顿毒打。那知周铁蛋听完小灵杰的设想连眉头都没有习惯性地皱一下就答应了，小灵杰提醒他似地冲他晃了晃拳头，脸上还装出一副凶神恶煞似的丑样儿，周铁蛋很为自己的丑事羞涩，红着脸对小灵杰说："我不怕，反正我爹也不敢往死里打我。"两个人一拍即合后便开始谋划具体事项。包括什么时候动身，带什么东西，万一被兵们逮住该怎么脱身等等。
此刻两个小人都趴在离鬼地不远的一片乱草丛里，五月的草疯了似地铺满那一片无人居住的荒地，两个人触目所见尽是旺盛而茂密的一人多深的草棵，绿得哈口气似乎都能冒出汁水，黄昏的日头在草梢上滚滚，给草叶镶上了一层黄澄澄的毛边。鬼地的绿柳黄沙映着西天怪异的云彩，被两人眼前密密的草切割成鱼网大小的色块儿，很美很美。
两人只看见了一个兵靠在一棵柳树上打瞌睡，头往下一栽一栽，好像随时都会倒下来睡一觉，红缨枪被他斜杵在松软的沙地上，晚风中红樱舞成碗大的一朵红花，枪尖被日头照得明晃晃的，这个兵没有穿铁甲，衣裳也不像戏台上的战袍，倒像农人下地劳作时穿的破烂衣裳，上衣袖子短而宽、腰身很大，裤腿很窄，束在黑色的薄衣靴里，衣裳和裤子都是深红色，在胸前绣了一个字，两个人都认得，是"兵"字。兵的帽子像一个大空心陀牛，顶上也有一簇红缨子，帽子外边是白底有鲜红的道道，像是淋漓着的鲜血。
两个人趴在地上看得聚精会神，连大气都不敢出，其实，这儿会他们就是站起来蹦上几蹦再打个滚也不会有人发现他们的行踪。可惜他们不敢，怕万一被兵逮住，逮住之后的后果他们没想太严重，只是认定一点，鬼地肯定是进不去了。
两个人一动不动地趴着，好在还没有蚊子，地上的草软绵绵地贴着肚皮，麻酥酥的还算舒服，日头完全掉进子牙河里之前他们一人吃了点带来的干馍，没有水，两个人怕咬出声响，含在嘴里用唾沫和口水泡开后才敢一点一点往下咽，滋味不太好受，半个干馍就把他们两个一人捉弄了一头汗。
天黑后起了风，乱草扑簌簌地乱动，像一群人挥舞着手臂。两个人又等了一会儿，才慢慢地往前爬动，路是白天他们看好的，没什么大的障碍。兵在天黑的时候换了一个精神点儿的，一样的行头打扮，一样的红缨枪，一样地靠着柳树，只是枪被他一头抓在手里，一头拖在地上。而且，他的两只眼睛还隔一会儿往四处看看，尽管看得不很用心，看到两个人藏身的地方时两个人还是不免心惊胆战。
那个兵没有发现他们，他们俩由斜坡一直爬上高岗，爬到高岗上的密不透风的深草里时才长出了一口气，眼前就是他们发现深洞的大致方位，那堵墙不见了。似乎就在洞口那地方有一个大大的半圆形的帐篷，帐篷门开在两个人正对的背面，因为帐篷里的光在那漏出一大块，在草地上照出一长条白斑。帐篷有大约一半被荒草包围，另一半前边是裸露的土地。帐篷外边没有看到兵。两个人趴在暗处勾了勾手指头，于是按原定计划周铁蛋负责警卫，小灵杰往前去看情况。
爬到离帐篷有十多步远时，小灵杰停了下来。冲呆在后边的周铁蛋打了个手势，这个联络方式是他们看到灯光时临时想到的，在家时他们考虑的是万一没有月亮，又没灯光时的情况。这会是没有月亮，灯光虽然淡了些，但离二三十步打个手势还依稀看得到。小灵杰打了手势后又往边上爬了几步，躲到一片草深而且灯光照不到的地方。屏住呼吸，两只眼睛一眨不眨地盯住帐篷周围的草棵。
周铁蛋看小灵杰隐蔽停当，从腰里掏出了一个弹弓，那是他们平时打鸟用的，这下派上了用场。周铁蛋用的子弹是随手从地上捡起的小石头子，这也是事先商量好的，如果打泥弹当然顺手，不过泥弹容易给人看出痕迹，不如就地取材来得稳妥。
周铁蛋瞄准的目标是帐篷门外那块光条房边的一片深草，那地儿离两个人都比较远，万一有埋伏从草丛里窜出来，要包围那块地方也不至于走到他们俩身边。
小石子疙里疙瘩用着显然不太顺手，小灵杰只听见"飒"的一声，也没闹明白石子落到那儿去了，四外的吆喝就响起来了，大叫着"谁"的声音至少有七八个，紧接着就是一阵纷乱而杂沓的脚步声，帐篷四周的草里幽灵般地站起来十多个人箭也似地扑向帐篷前面那道光条，小灵杰倒吸了一口凉气，在心里面默默算了一下。在那片草里来回走动着寻找的共有十二个人。都是人高马大的汉子。
那些人当然找不到什么，嘀咕了几句一个骂了句娘就要走开，一个兵忽然想起什么来了说：
"邹老大咋地没过来，莫不是给人割了脑袋。"
立刻就有人冲小灵杰躲的地方大叫：
"邹老大，你个狗娘养的滚出来吧！不滚出来又要挨皮鞭了。"
小灵杰明白邹老大就在他附近，不敢再抬头看，于是把头埋到草棵里，只听得身后一两步之遥的草棵"忽喇忽喇"一阵响动，接着是一声长长的哈欠，再下来是骂人的粗话。
"谁他娘的活得不耐烦了，敢骂你大爷我，老子才他妈的刚合上眼，就有人在这儿哭丧！"
"踢踏踢踏"的脚步声从小灵杰耳朵边响过去，踢倒的草棵倒在小灵杰头上，擦着脖颈痒痒的难受，小灵杰只听见自己的心跳"扑通扑通"响，隔了好一会儿才敢抬头，光明处已经是十三个人了。
小灵杰当机立断，伏在地上又往右挪动了四五步，估计离那位邹老大足够远了，才又伏下，摸一下额头，泥沙和汗已经粘到了一块。
那些兵对着骂了一通各回各地，小灵杰看准了他们的潜伏地点，一丁点一丁点地从夹缝中往前挪，挪到帐篷边上时，手指已在地里抠得热疼热疼。他放松了一下心情，把手指放在嘴里含了一会儿，蓦地听到帐篷里一阵女人的呻吟，呻吟声不大，好像是塞住嘴但没塞紧漏出来的，听着很是凄惨。
小灵杰不知道是什么女人为什么躲在帐篷里哭，他朝帐篷里看了看。帐篷上并没有露出人影，眼前似乎是堆着一个大的四方东西，紧贴着帐篷放着，一个立棱把篷布顶出好大一块。
根据小灵杰刚才的观察，那个立棱旁边没有埋伏，小灵杰不知道帐篷里他看不到影子的地方是不是也埋伏着兵，所以不敢轻举妄动。耳朵贴地仔细地听了好久，女人的呻吟声愈来愈大，愈来愈痛苦，但是在靠帐篷另一侧的地方。除此之外，帐篷里再无其他声响。
小灵杰不能再迟疑了，张老先生教他的"待时而动"，现在已到了时候，他轻轻地把拖到地上的篷布掀起一角，两只眼睛四处轮了一圈，帐篷里东西不多，那个有立棱的是个四角包着铜皮的黑箱，他掀起的地方正好在箱子的一面，呻吟声是从被箱子挡住的那部分漏出来的。
小灵杰不想就此罢休，女人的哭声和偌大一个几乎空空如也的帐篷更刺激了他的好奇心，他根本没有想到他现在的所做所为万一被兵们发现，他的小命可以被那些兵找到一千条理由杀死一万次。没想到后果才胆大，一胆大自然更不会去想后果，小灵杰曲着身子，两只手紧抠住帐篷里边地上的一块凸出的树根，吸紧小腹，一点一点把整个身子慢慢从篷布外缩到帐篷里面，像一条忙着蜕皮的蛇。
一入帐篷，小灵杰立刻就后悔起来。后悔的不是帐篷里没什么值得他看的，只要是在帐篷里边，不管是什么东西他都会强迫自己感上兴趣，他钻进来后发现自己是心甘情愿跳入了一个笼子。帐篷门口有兵，其他地方有埋伏，在帐篷里边只要稍一动作，被兵发觉，他就只有一条路可走，乖乖地束手就缚，听凭兵们处置。
呻吟声里又掺入了哭声，不伦不类的，有点像被他们逮住幼雏的老鸦跟着他们盘旋翻飞时的叫声。他不能不看那边出了什么事。害怕和刺激两者之间他更倾向于后者。
贴着箱子向外探出半个脑袋，小灵杰一下就被看到的情景吓得目瞪口呆了：
呻吟的女人身上一点衣裳都没穿，赤身裸体地被绳子牢牢绑住四肢躺在床上，女人的嘴里塞着一块破布，眼里闪着泪花。床很大，女人被绑成一个"大"字，床边上还留有一大块空儿。一个男人背对着这边，两只手正在女人的胸上用力揉搓，女人挣扎不开，只有手脚发着颤痛苦地呻吟。
女人虽然哭得一脸泪，看起来仍很好看，只是脸孔苍白了些，头发乱得象一团杂草，有一小撮被泪珠粘在脸上。小灵杰之所以惊呆仅仅是因为他以前从未见过女人脱光过。他想不到女人还会被脱光绑在床上，那个男人在干什么他不懂，不过显然是在干好事，小灵杰已经不能思想，他完全忘掉了爷爷给他讲的那个赵麻子的故事。他不知道该怎么办好了。当然他不敢过去把那个男的轰跑，把女的解下来。事实上，他的心里渐渐有一丝从未体会过的颤栗，弥漫开来，到大脑，到手，到脚，他两腿发软，所有的血液一会儿工夫似乎全部冲到了脸上和大腿间，烧得他嘴唇发干，头脑发胀，大腿间一阵燥热，他觉得自己的小鸡儿忽然硬硬地顶在裤头上了，他想不出为什么，但他测想要是压在那个好看的女人身上肯定很舒服，他甚至也想跑过去揉揉那个女人的奶子，揉得她更加痛苦，泪流得更多，最好把破布从她嘴里掏出来，让她声嘶力竭地叫喊，……
男人本来是穿着上衣的，他好像是个头目，小灵杰从床边扔着的一大堆衣裳里看到一件铁甲，头盔也有，被他扔到床腿边上了。男人忽然也把衣裳脱了下来，一纵身压到了女人身上，女人颤得更加厉害，只是仍然不能出声，男人的身体像春风吹过的麦浪，一起一伏地好久，忽然就"哼"了一声翻了下来，一晃眼的当儿小灵杰看见他的胸口长着密密的黑毛，一直长到肚子上，黑碜碜的很吓人。
男人跳下来后连衣裳都没穿，阴阳怪气地笑了一声，忽然从床下边拔出一口刀，明晃晃亮闪闪的，男人对着刀刃惋惜地吹了两口气，嘴里啧啧连声。床上的女人好像一点力气也没了，一动不动地躺曹，只有胸口剧烈起伏，头歪在一边，小灵杰看不清她的表情。
男人拿刀在空中挽了两个刀花，忽然一回头对女人说道：
"小娘儿们，别怪军爷我狠心，我也是无可奈何，军爷送你好好上路，黄泉路上你就怪你爹妈吧！怪他们为什么让你生为女人，而且还是这么可爱的女人。"
男人说着说着忽然笑了起来，越笑声音越大，连眼泪恐怕都笑出来了，笑完后男人"呸"往地上吐了口唾沫，把刀尖垂到女人高耸的奶子上，用力往下一摁。女人垂在一边的头倏地抬了起来，眼睛瞪得好像就要裂开眼眶迸将出来，额头上青筋暴起老高，她肯定想说什么，却说不出，就那么支撑了一小会儿，小灵杰心里"怦怦"直跳，担心她的胳膊怕是要被刚才那一刀拗断了，因为他听到有两声很大的类似于木头断裂的"格格"声。
等女人再次摔倒后，男人似乎动了点善心，用手指在女人身上很轻很轻地抚摸了一下，说：
"这么可爱的小娘儿们，这辈子也不知道还能不能见着第二个，唉！爷爷我都不忍心下手了，可惜呀！可惜！"
小灵杰心头狂喜，以为他要把女人给放了呢！那知男人第二个"可惜"的"惜"字一出口，手中那把刀寒光一闪。 ...
小灵杰觉得一颗心"蹭"一下从嗓子眼蹦到了嘴里，嘴里发苦发涩发腥，脑子像被火球猛地烘烤了一下，刹那间奇热无比，他再也控制不住自己的嘴巴，大叫了一声"啊——呃！"……
小灵杰迷迷糊糊中觉得自己气喘吁吁地在一条长长的黑暗的地道里奔跑，后面肯定有什么在追赶他，他能听到那勾魂摄魄似的脚步声，他不敢回头看，害怕会失去跑下去的勇气，他已经累得筋疲力竭，他甚至想停下来等死，他觉得死的滋味大约也不过如此，然而，耳边有一个低语却又清晰的声音一直在命令他：跑下去，前面就是光明。前面没有光明，只有一团漆黑，但他仍然在跑，不停地跑、跑，跑……
小灵杰醒来以后发现自己躺在一片柔软的草地上，红红的日头就悬在头顶，是正午时分，睁开的眼睛一阵刺疼。但他还是看清楚了坐在他旁边的蔡爷爷和周铁蛋，噩梦中的那个追赶者不知到哪去了，小灵杰大口大口地喘着粗气，仍是心有余悸，一看到蔡爷爷那慈祥的笑容，忽然有一种在外边受了委屈后回来看到妈妈时的激动，泪水在瞬间模糊了他的视线，他从草上爬起来一头扎到蔡爷爷的怀里放声大哭起来。
蔡爷爷紧紧地搂着他，嘴里喃喃地对他说："傻孩子，傻孩子，别怕，蔡爷爷在这儿呢！谁也不敢动你一根指头。"他觉出蔡爷爷的泪珠一颗一颗滴在他脖颈上，滚烫滚烫。
周铁蛋本来睡得正香，他是靠着蔡爷爷坐着睡着的，小灵杰这么一搅和，周铁蛋也睡不稳了，一头栽到了地上。
小灵杰已经记不起他"啊"了一声之后的所有事情，他不明白蔡爷爷怎么会在此时和他在一块儿。倒是周铁蛋醒来后冲他大嚷，"头儿，还不快谢谢怪老爷爷，要不是他，咱哥俩儿就出不了鬼地了。"
小灵杰更加迷惑，会是蔡爷爷救了他吗？那几天他在白天一直没碰到过蔡爷爷，还以为他探亲访友去了，也没太在意，谁知再碰面竟是在这儿。
蔡爷爷已经擦去了老泪，笑咪咪地冲他说：
"小鬼头，你的胆子也太大了，你没听说过清妖都是杀人不眨眼的恶魔转世吧？万一你们俩给清妖抓住，脖子上这颗小脑袋……哈哈……就保不住了。"
小灵杰不再怀疑是蔡爷爷救了他们，因为他知道蔡爷爷有真功夫，定了定神，小灵杰忽然神秘兮兮地问：
"蔡爷爷，您老人家咋知道我跟铁蛋一块来这儿了，我们俩谁也没告诉过呀？
蔡爷爷捻着胡须，一副未卜先知的样子：
"小鬼头，你以为你肚里那两个小九九，能瞒得过你爹妈？
你们俩没回家吃晚，你爹就心急火燎地找着我了，说小灵杰怕是和铁蛋一块去鬼地了，唉？要不是我老人家刚踩过道儿，轻车熟路的，你们俩，可就……难喽！难喽！ "
小灵杰不知道老爹是怎样猜出他和铁蛋是去了鬼地，那次蔡爷爷并没有给他说明白到底怎么把铁蛋和他救出来的，回到家后老爹正在屋里生气，当然还有担心，老爹后来说他相信蔡爷爷的本事，但是怕万一蔡爷爷到了小家伙已经被逮住了，那就是有通天本事也救不活死呀？还好，老爹见他平安归来，也没怎么责怪他，只说以后别再头脑一热，就不要命的来回跑。小灵杰这次真是口服心服，唯老爹爹是从，不再乱跑，一有机会就去找蔡爷爷聊天。
蔡爷爷救他们俩的经过小灵杰是听周铁蛋说的。小灵杰听完后吓得接连做了两天恶梦，梦醒后就摸自己的脖子，看是不是在梦中被人割去了脑袋，周铁蛋是这么说的：
那天蔡爷爷赶到之前，周李二位已经潜伏到那片草丛里了，蔡爷爷眼睁睁看着两个傻小子在那里玩雕虫小枝，但是却不敢声张。事实上，小灵杰他们俩一潜入鬼地就给兵们的巡哨发现了，实际远没有两个小家伙想象的那么简单，因此，两个小家伙自太阳落山之前的潜伏直到鬼地的一举一动都在兵们的掌握之中。两个人之所以一路畅通无阻地爬到帐篷外边的主要原因是兵们故意给他们俩让开了一条路，就是说他们从哪儿过那儿的兵就悄悄溜走。因为那些兵不敢相信过来的只有两个小孩子，他们想放长线钓大鱼。蔡爷爷一路上不声不响地放倒了十来个明岗暗哨，好不容易才进到周李二位所在的那块草地，眼前的景象让蔡爷爷大吃一惊，小灵杰和周铁蛋一前一后隔了几十步远，两个人身后的草里密密麻麻谷穗一样排着的都是严阵以待的兵。两个小家伙不知天高地厚地拿弹弓投石问路了一把，一看没有什么危险，小灵杰便自以为得计，试摸试摸钻帐篷里去了，蔡爷爷和二位之间隔着由兵们构成的一道屏障，插翅也难飞进去，只得眼睁睁看着小灵杰钻进了帐篷，心里暗暗叫苦，可也不敢轻举妄动。因为他明白那些兵的目的不是这两个