Chapter 8 Chapter 8: The Strange Ancient Corpse

The ancient corpse in front of him was very strange, and it was also very different from the description in the newspaper.The newspapers said that the body was well preserved, but it was too complete. I walked up in three steps and made two steps and looked carefully. This mummy was about 1.7 meters long. I don't know if it was because of the shrinkage after death. Its face was a bit hideous, and its cheeks were bulging, as if it had breath stuffed in its mouth and didn't spit it out. It was said to be a mummy, but in fact its body was not dry, and its skin was even moist.I put on gloves and gently pressed on the skin of the ancient corpse, it was a little elastic.

To be honest, it really doesn't look like an ancient corpse that has been dead for more than five hundred years.If it wasn't for the testimony of the second uncle on the side, I would even believe that it died only a few days ago. Looking down slowly, I was surprised to find that the nails and hair of the ancient corpse were really long as described in the newspaper.The long nails have even begun to bend slightly, and the color on the corpse is whitish, which is very abnormal. I lowered my head and took a closer look, and found that there was a layer of fine white hair growing on the skin of the ancient corpse. This white hair looked like some kind of fluff and some kind of fungus.

"What is this?" I tore off a handful with my hand and looked under my eyes. "I don't know either," the second uncle smiled wryly and shook his head: "I've never seen it before, and it's never been recorded in any documents. I sent the sample to the Provincial Research Institute, and concluded that it was an unknown substance. This This substance was formed by a certain fungus and the weakened skin, and then swallowed each other. Now it has completely become a part of the body of the ancient corpse!" He licked his lips, and said again: "I only arrived a week after this ancient corpse was dug out, and the ancient corpse basically looked like this when it arrived. Researcher Wang Zitong came earlier, according to her It is said that when the corpse was just dug out, it was not what it is now. Although the corpse was well preserved when it was unearthed, the skin was dry and inelastic, and most of the muscles had collapsed. Although it was much better than ordinary mummies, it was definitely not It’s as fresh as it is now. After I came here, I saw the ancient corpse grow nails and hair, and then these white hairs grew on the corpse a few days ago, it’s really incredible.”

As he spoke, he became excited, dancing and said: "Researcher Wang Zitong and I have read a lot of documents, and initially determined that there must be something wrong with the liquids that filled the coffins of ancient corpses. It can have an intuitive impact on the medicine and antisepsis technology five hundred years ago." I looked at that weird ancient corpse, and for some reason, I always felt depressed, and I even had an unexplainable bad premonition deep in my heart. After pondering for a moment, he said slowly: "It's strange. Generally speaking, the brain is the main body of human life. The brain will die within a few minutes without the supply of oxygen. Cells in other parts may die within a few minutes. Later. Cuticle cells, such as hair and nails, can continue to live for months or years."

"But I've never heard that a baby can grow after being unearthed for a hundred years. Unless..." "I know, what you want to talk about is the corpse farm, right? I don't understand you kid yet." The second uncle glanced at me and said: "The so-called corpse raising place, more scientifically speaking, is that the pH of the soil is extremely unbalanced, which is not suitable for the growth of organic matter, so it will not breed ant insects and bacteria. Even if the corpse is collected for a hundred years, Muscle hair will not rot. Some data even show that the hair and nails of the corpse will continue to grow in the cadaver area,"

"Yes, it seems that the second uncle is also very clear." I said unhurriedly: "I'm afraid I don't need to say the next thing, just destroy the ancient corpse as soon as possible." "You man, when did you become so feudal and superstitious?" The second uncle frowned. There are too many secrets in me, I don't want to be a sinner of history, that..." "Stop," I unceremoniously interrupted his tirade: "Second Uncle, how many years have you been doing archaeology?" "Forty years, why?" He was a little puzzled by my abrupt question.

"Then you should know some customary rules in the archaeological world." I looked at him. The second uncle was a little dumbfounded: "Of course I know, you are talking about those rules with serious feudal superstition. They are all hundreds of years old. How can modern people do it? If that is the case, the precious things in the Palace Museum Not half of the cultural relics will be destroyed.” "Although it is true to say so, and those archaeological rules that have been passed down for thousands of years are indeed superstitious, many of the things of the ancients, those things that have been tested in practice and passed down by word of mouth, have proved to be true in the end. is correct."

While looking at the ancient corpse, I slowly said: "The corpses dug out of the corpses must be burned, this is the most ordered one in the rules. "None of the ancient Fengshui masters and onmyoji masters were stupid. On the contrary, most of them were people with practical knowledge. They must have considered their political conditions or special reasons for burying their corpses in the corpse. These things I'm afraid the second uncle knows better than me. "Think about it carefully, why is the ancient corpse fine in the coffin, and it still looks like a normal mummy. But once it was unearthed and exposed to the air, the hair and nails grew suddenly, and white hair grew all over the body?

"I think the onmyoji at that time must have used some method to allow the interaction between the corpse and the tomb to achieve a delicate balance. Maybe the liquid in those coffins is the key. Thousands of times in the rules and regulations must be burnt The corpse unearthed from the corpse breeding site may also have some factors that the predecessors have received some serious lessons. Therefore, this ancient corpse cannot be kept." Suddenly, he remembered the walking corpses crawling out of the mortuary that he had encountered before, and he couldn't help shivering all over his body.

As long as the things of the ancients seem unreasonable now, there are basically mysteries in them.In order to avoid future troubles, it is better to destroy it as soon as possible. Seeing that he didn't speak for a long time, I said again: "Second uncle, why did you show me the data on the colonization of corpses in various places just now? In fact, you also have some suspicions in your heart that this ancient corpse has something unusual. Dangerous!" The second uncle was resisted by my words, fell into thinking, and said after a long while: "Yes, I do have my own ideas. However, all the issues you are thinking about now lie in whether the place where the ancient corpse was unearthed is a corpse farm or not." .That's very simple, you can go to the field to see if it is true, and if it is true, we will discuss the next step in detail."

This sentence is more realistic, I like to hear it, so I nodded slightly. "Very good, I'll ask researcher Wang Zitong to take you there." The second uncle took out his mobile phone and dialed the number and said a few words, and the stiff and introverted girl walked in soon after. "Professor Ye, did you call me?" Perhaps because she was not used to getting along with people, the girl's eyes were unfocused. "Well, Researcher Wang, please take this Researcher Ye to the construction site where the ancient corpse was unearthed. He wants to collect some specimens." The second uncle nodded at her, and changed my identity to his subordinate without any politeness. researcher. "Yes," she lowered her head, her voice was as soft as a mosquito's eyelashes: "please, please go this way." Immediately, my second uncle and I sighed at the same time. This girl is really only suitable for living in quiet places like museums and libraries, she is really too shy! The place where the ancient corpse was dug up is located in the southwest of Mosong Town.Although the museum is not big, it occupies a large area, so it was planned to be built in a remote place. It will go to the southwestern suburbs, just passing through the entire town. I drove the rented car, and Wang Zitong kept his head down all the way, not knowing what he was doing. "Well, my name is Ye Buyu. What's your name?" I really couldn't bear the oppressive and dull atmosphere in the car. Although I knew her name, I still asked without words. "Ah, my surname is Wang, Wang Zitong." She replied softly, maybe she didn't expect that I would take the initiative to talk to her, and when she got nervous, all the documents in her hand spilled on her lap and on the floor of the car. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry." She didn't know what she was sorry for, so she lowered her body to pick up something in a panic. This girl is not only shy, but I'm afraid her personality is a bit carefree! I smiled with rare kindness: "Wang Zitong, um, it's a nice name," "Thank you, thank you." Her face was immediately flushed with blush. I smiled again, let go of my right hand, and pointed to her glasses: "By the way, that, is Mi nearsighted?" "No," she shook her head with a low face. "Then, can I make a request?" I turned my head and winked at her: "Take off your glasses, I can't even see your face with such a big frame!" The girl didn't speak, just kept lowering her head, showing no intention of carrying out my kind request. The atmosphere suddenly became dull again. Is my request too much?I did a rare self-examination, and then continued to find nothing to say: "I heard that the ancient corpse was discovered?" "No, it was discovered by local farmers. I was the first to arrive at the scene." Speaking of archaeological things, Wang Zitong finally had a little bit of energy and talked a little too much: "It's a pity that local people looted many precious cultural relics. There is no way to get it back." There was some regret on her face, and she looked like a person who really loved archaeology.No wonder the second uncle admired her so much. In some respects, the two of them felt like a nest of snakes and rats. "Oh, like this, can you tell me the situation at that time?" Although I have read the files, listening to the person's own description can increase the sense of substitution. Wang Zitong nodded: "This ancient corpse was discovered by a farmer on the morning of August 5th when he was preparing the land and preparing to build a house. I arrived in the afternoon of the same day. "At that time, the tomb was completely destroyed by the excavator, and the funerary objects were looted in sevens and eights, even the local police were looting. Fortunately, the coffin was intact when I arrived, but it had been opened. The ancient factory was turned into a mess, and several policemen were still sitting on the coffin discussing how to divide the spoils. I managed to stop the looting and persuaded them to return the stolen cultural relics as soon as possible.” It was completely different from what was described in the newspaper, but it made sense. The so-called top beam is not straight and the bottom beam is crooked. There must be such a bastard chief in Mosong Town, and he must have the same subordinates. It's weird to say that they don't join the looting army.It's just hard to imagine how a shy girl like Wang Zitong stopped them. "I was shocked when I saw the corpse. The deceased was a male. From the skin and face, I couldn't tell how long the corpse had been dead, because the corpse was not decomposed, and it was well preserved. Only by relying on him Judging from his clothing, he should be from the Ming Dynasty, and the certificate of precepts found later also proved this. Judging from the certificate of precepts, its holder was named Yang Fuxin, and the certificate of precepts was issued in the fourth year of Zhengtong in the Ming Dynasty, that is, In 1439 A.D., about 500 years ago. I discussed with Professor Ye several times, and preliminarily deduced that this corpse is the owner of this ultimatum." I pondered for a moment: "Looking at the description in the file, it is said that when Mi stretched his hand into the coffin, he found that the corpse was as cold as ice to the touch. Is there such a thing?" "That's right," Wang Zitong's tone became more and more fluent once it touched on her major, and she didn't seem to be in a daze at all. "Not only the corpse, but also the coffin, which broke the airtightness after it was opened. After being exposed to the hot sun for nearly six hours, the temperature inside was still very cold. I measured it with a thermometer at that time, and it was minus one degree. It's really unbelievable." "It's really hard to understand, I don't know how they did it!" I thought while driving. "It was also mentioned in my report. It is likely to be caused by two aspects." She sorted out her thoughts slightly, and said: "First, Yang Fuxin's tomb uses a grouting structure. The walls are built with blue bricks. After the coffin is put in, the three-component mortar is poured between the brick walls and the coffin to give The coffin is wrapped with a strong sealing layer. And a special substance, alum, is used in its grout. Alum can be used as a coagulant to prevent the grout from cracking, thereby strengthening the seal. Because the tomb is sealed and the temperature is constant , lack of oxygen, and bacteria cannot reproduce, which creates conditions for preserving corpses.” The so-called Sanhe soil is made by boiling glutinous rice into slurry, adding lime and loess, and mixing it according to a certain proportion, which is similar to the current cement.It's just that although this method is commonly used, it gives me an indescribable uncomfortable feeling, as if thinking of something, but I can't always catch the fleeting spirit. "The second is coffin fluid. What we announced to the outside world is that when the coffin was taken out, we unexpectedly discovered that the treatment of the bottom of the tomb is relatively simple, and the three-fold sizing is much thinner than the surrounding and top of the coffin. The river along the Hamamatsu River Vertically and horizontally, the groundwater level is high. The bottom is specially made thin, so that the groundwater will seep in from the bottom little by little over five hundred years to form the coffin liquid. Before that, because the tomb was sealed and lacked oxygen, the decay of the corpse had stopped , and the subsequent immersion in the coffin fluid just helped it keep moist." Wang Zitong smiled for some reason, with a naughty look: "Actually, we still don't know the composition of the coffin fluid. Although the coffin fluid evaporated after the coffin was opened, Professor Ye still extracted the coffin fluid from the wood of the coffin. Some coffin fluid. After taking it for testing, the Provincial Research Institute couldn’t tell why.” These words immediately made me feel bad, and I had a more serious bad premonition. Glutinous rice, compound soil with alum added, mysterious coffin liquid, why is it so troublesome to bury an ordinary wandering monk?Even if he is an eminent monk, he probably won't get such good care. What is so special about that monk? Judging from the description of the tomb, the person who repaired the tomb must be a talented onmyoji or Fengshui master.He, who worked so hard to build this tomb, must have a reason for it. But what is the reason? The more I thought about it, the more uncomfortable I felt, and my eyelids even twitched wildly to join in the fun. Wang Zitong suddenly said softly: "Here we are." I stopped the car, got down, and looked towards the location of the grave.