Chapter 97: Chance encounter

If June is just a prelude to the heat, then as soon as July arrives, the temperature will rush thirty-seven-eight.
When Lu Qingjiu got up, he saw the White Moon Fox, who had always liked to sleep with him, lying next to him, half rolled up in a sleeping T-shirt, revealing his white belly. Baiyue Fox's belly is not soft to the touch, and there is no fat. It feels very ordinary, not as good as Lu Qingjiu's own.
Hearing the movement of Lu Qingjiu getting up, Baiyuehu yawned and got up from the bed in a daze. He moved naturally to kiss Lu Qingjiu's chin, and then the two of them each washed away.
It was too early in the morning, and the animal activities in the yard became frequent. The white moon fox went to the field before the sun got up, cleaned up the vegetables that should be cleaned, and poured enough water. Lu Qingjiu made a hearty breakfast, and the food became more refreshing when the weather became hot. He cut the stalks of lettuce into thin filaments and then copied them with hot water, then put in chili sesame oil and other condiments, and mixed them with cold. The dough that was fermented last night is ready to use today. The filling is also prepared last night. It is stuffed with pork and cabbage, and some lotus roots are added to increase the taste.
Then wrap the stuffing into the fermented noodles, bake them with an electric baking pan, and the hot biscuits are out of the oven. Lu Qingjiu also boiled a big pot of mung bean porridge and cooked five salted duck eggs. He originally planned to make some tea eggs, but it was too late, so he wanted to make it at noon.
The white moon fox took care of the vegetables in the ground, and by the way returned to the yard with a basket of vegetables. There was less rain this year, and the vegetables did not grow well last year, but they looked good. The eggplant and tomato are ripe. Needless to say, the tomato tastes as delicious as last year. It is moist and juicy and can be eaten as a fruit. The eggplant is also a big one. Lu Qingjiu specially asked Baiyue Fox to pick it. Use the remaining fillings of the pie to make some eggplant boxes to eat.
When Yin Xun arrived, breakfast was just ready, and a few people sat down at the table and began to feast on.
Pies and porridge are enough, and there are oily salted duck eggs, which relieves heat and greasiness when eating. This time the pie tastes very good, and the added lotus root is the key. The thin skin is bitten into hot gravy. If you bite it off, the skin is crispy, the filling is soft, and the lotus root inside is It perfectly neutralizes the greasy feeling of pork. There are also shredded lettuce, spicy and crisp, especially appetizing. Lu Qingjiu ate two cakes and two bowls of porridge, and finally they both ate it. Yin Xun and Bai Yuehu were also satisfied.
After breakfast, Yin Xun said that the hawthorns in the west of the village were ripe and they could pick some.
"Isn't the hawthorn grown in Aunt Liu's family?" Lu Qingjiu thought of this.
"Yes." Yin Xun said, "but isn't Aunt Liu dead..."
Lu Qingjiu: "...but you are also dead."
Yin Xun: "..." It seems right.
Lu Qingjiu looked at Bai Yuehu and said, "What is the situation with the people in the village?"
White Moon Fox took a sip of the tea and moistened his mouth: "They don't know that they are dead, or live like ordinary people."
Lu Qingjiu said: "In the eyes of outsiders, they are also alive?"
Bai Yuehu said: "Yeah."
Lu Qingjiu thought about it and thought it was right, because at least in the eyes of Hu Shu and Pang Ziqi, Shuifu Village is a living person in a village, and sometimes the villagers of Shuifu Village will exchange some commodities with the outside world. The outside world did not find anything unusual in Shuifu Village.
Xiao Hua, who was lying next to him, asked, "Will Li Xiaoyu go to junior high school?"
Bai Yuehu glanced at Xiaohua: "That depends on whether he can pass the exam."
As soon as his words fell, Lu Qingjiu saw a blazing flame in Xiaohua's eyes. He said, "I know, I will definitely try to get Li Xiaoyu to college. Although he is dead, he has a dream!"
Lu Qingjiu: "..." Okay.
Yin Xun didn't care about the future and education of the villagers at all, and blinked his eyes and asked, "Then let's go pick hawthorn?"
Lu Qingjiu said: "Go!" The hawthorn at home is almost finished. This thing is sour and sweet, but it is a holy product for cooling off the summer. It would be great to have fresh ones. But you can’t just pick it up like this, you have to change it...
So after lunch, Lu Qingjiu went to find Yin Xun's neighbor, Aunt Liu, and discussed with her that he would buy hawthorn at the market price.
Aunt Liu originally wanted to decline, saying it was for Lu Qingjiu to eat, but when he heard that the quantity he requested was quite large, she finally agreed.
After getting permission from Aunt Liu, Lu Qingjiu's family happily picked the hawthorn.
This hawthorn tree is pretty good, with bunches of red fruits hanging on the luxuriant branches and leaves. It is different from dried hawthorn. The fresh hawthorn tastes sour. After Lu Qingjiu tasted one, his whole face was wrinkled together. He also squeezed one into the white moon fox's mouth without any change in face.
"Isn't it sour?" Lu Qingjiu asked.
"Fortunately." Bai Yuehu replied.
When Lu Qingjiu heard the words, he didn't want to continue picking the fruit. The White Moon Fox silently put down his hand holding the tree trunk. There were a few obvious finger prints abruptly on the smooth trunk. Hmph, Long wouldn't be afraid of acid, neither sour orange nor sour haw could defeat him.
Yin Xun dashed around the tree, like a monkey, plucking a full basket down to Lu Qingjiu, and Lu Qingjiu handed an empty basket up.
Most of these Hawthorn Lu wines are intended to be marinated for soaking in water. The rest can be made into hawthorn cakes and candied haws. Speaking of candied haws, have Baiyuehu and Yin Xun eaten such snacks? Lu Qingjiu remembers that there is no such snack in the town. Sell, and even if they sell, the two of them have no money to buy...
Lu Qingjiu thought of this and planned to buy some other fruits and make it together.
After picking a few baskets full of hawthorns and paying Aunt Liu's money for the hawthorns, the three happily went home. When they got home, Lu Qingjiu asked them to clean the hawthorns first, and then nuclear the contents. This is a big project, but it's still early, so I don't worry.
Lu Qingjiu fed Niu Niu a little chocolate and then squeezed half a bucket of milk. He planned to make popsicles to cool off the heat. After boiling the milk, he added sugar and honey in it, and then poured the milk into a special mold for popsicles. It was frozen in the freezer.
The weather was so hot that even Lu Qingjiu was sweating all over after doing these things. He went to wash his face and planned to cook dinner.
I had braised beef for lunch. Lu Qingjiu planned to make it simpler for dinner. So I fried a few plates of eggplant box, made garlic white meat and cold chicken, and fried a bitter gourd. The staple food is dried noodles in tomato soup. Also put fresh lettuce leaves and poached eggs, it is very cool.
Everyone was a little hungry after a busy afternoon. Lu Qingjiu snorted the noodles and said that he was going to the city tomorrow and asked if they had anything to bring.
"Why are you going to the city so hot?" Yin Xun chewed the tender chicken.
"Go buy some fruit." Lu Qingjiu said, "make you candied haws, have you eaten them?"
"No." Yin Xun gave a sad answer.
Bai Yuehu shook his head, and added after a short pause: "But I saw someone else eat it."
When Lu Qingjiu heard the words, he wanted to cover his face, thinking that you might as well not add it. This supplement sounds even more sad.
After dinner in the evening, Bai Yuehu and Yin Xun washed the dishes, while Lu Qingjiu went to put the hawthorn peeled in the afternoon into a pot and boil it with sugar to make a sweet and sour hawthorn sauce. This hawthorn sauce is a perfect match for summer, or put it in water and freeze it into popsicles.
After doing this, it was getting late, and Lu Qingjiu took a bath and hid in the air-conditioned room. Because of Zhu Rong's advice before, Lu Qingjiu didn't dare to turn on the air-conditioning all day long, and even drank the beer at room temperature during the skewer. For people with body heat, not being able to eat ice in summer is simply the most terrible torture. Fortunately, Lu Qingjiu is cold in body, so if you don't eat it, you won't be affected much. Of course, I still miss it occasionally.
In the sufficient air-conditioning, Lu Qingjiu, who had been tired for a day, fell asleep with the arm of Baiyue Fox. He has completely adapted to the slow-paced country life, and he has no idea of ​​returning to the city. Besides, there is still a need here. His people, just don't know why his grandfather, repeatedly reiterated that he wanted him to leave here.
The next day, Lu Qingjiu went to the city as planned, planning to buy some fruits that he did not grow to make candied haws. The most primitive candied haws are made with hawthorn, but in recent years, living standards have improved, and the types have become diverse. Fruits such as strawberries, grapes, and kiwi are all delicious. Lu Qingjiu's favorite is the candied haws made of strawberries. Strawberries are a bit sour, but they are sour and sweet after being coated with a layer of crunchy icing. One bite is best to tease children.
Today, Baiyuehu and Yin Xun did not follow. Lu Qingjiu assigned them a task to remove the grass in the yard. As the weather gets hot, the weeds in the yard are becoming more and more luxuriant, especially near the ancient well. The nearby location is almost overgrown with weeds.
In the supermarket, he bought fruits such as strawberries and grapes. Lu Qingjiu also brought a box of mangoes and various snacks, thinking of filling Baiyuehu and Yinxun's childhood memories. It's just that when he was buying something, he felt that the surrounding atmosphere was a little bit wrong, and he looked around carefully and couldn't find anything wrong.
Lu Qingjiu developed a little vigilance in his heart, and he quickly left the supermarket to leave here, but who knew that when he was three or four meters away from the truck, he noticed that a strangely dressed man stood beside the truck. woman. It was originally a hot summer day, but she was wearing a thick down jacket, with long hair wrapped in silver on the top of her head, and exaggerated earrings on her ears. Her gaze fell on Lu Qingjiu, as if she was measuring something.
This person is obviously not an ordinary person. If a normal person wears this down jacket, it is estimated that the heatstroke will pass out in less than half an hour, but she looks like a drop of sweat has not fallen, and there is a weird smile on her mouth.
Lu Qingjiu's footsteps stopped and did not go in the direction of the truck. Instead, he immediately turned around, planning to leave the sparsely-traveled parking lot. But who knew he had just turned around when there was a rapid sound of footsteps behind him.
"Wait," the woman called. "Don't go."
How could Lu Qingjiu listen to her? Not only did he keep running when he heard this, but who knew that he didn't run two steps, and there was a strong force behind him, pushing him directly. All the things in Lu Qingjiu's hand were scattered on the ground, he held on to the wall next to him before he could barely stabilize it without falling.
He turned his head and saw the woman standing not far from him, she said: "Don't go..."
Lu Qingjiu knew that he was not her opponent, so he could only stagger back a few steps, and said, "What do you want to do?"
The woman said: "How do I go to the underworld?"
Lu Qingjiu: "..." He knew it.
Seeing that Lu Qingjiu didn't answer, the woman became impatient, and asked again in a calm voice, "I'm asking you how to get to the underworld?"
Lu Qingjiu gritted his teeth and said, "I don't know."
The woman said: "You don't know? Are you not from the underworld?"
Lu Qingjiu was talking to her while observing the surrounding situation. There was no one in the garage just now. At this moment, there was a soft ding from the elevator, and it seemed that someone had come down. Lu Qingjiu said: "You go up there. , Just turn around.
He pointed to the escape route casually.
When the woman heard this, her face sank, she said: "You lie to me."
Lu Qingjiu: "Huh?" Was it just like that?
The woman said, "I got down from there."
Lu Qingjiu looked embarrassed, but at this moment, a human figure walked around the corner. It seemed that he was driving from the supermarket. Lu Qingjiu turned around and ran away. This time, he fought his life. Did not even dare to turn back.
He rushed directly to the elevator with a single breath. Lu Qingjiu slapped the elevator up button before he could react, but he was unlucky, just one step away, and the elevator door closed in front of him. When Lu Qingjiu heard the footsteps coming from behind him, he abruptly broke out in a cold sweat, and when he was about to run towards the stairs, he pressed his shoulders with both hands.
Lu Qingjiu turned his head stiffly and saw the person behind him. This person seemed to have come down from the elevator, with some surprise on his face. He said, "Brother, what's wrong?"
Lu Qingjiu said: "Run!"
"What?" Before the man had finished speaking, a hand passed through his chest and pressed it on Lu Qingjiu's arm.
Lu Qingjiu looked silly, he wanted to run, but was caught by both hands, and couldn't move. It's just that he quickly noticed that the person in front of him was obviously not a human, because he was neither bleeding nor falling down after being crossed by a hand with a hand. There was no reaction except for frowning.
"What are you doing?" The man in front of him turned his head and complained very dissatisfiedly to the woman behind him, "Didn't I tell you to stay in the car obediently."
The woman snorted coldly: "How long have you been there."
The man said, "Isn't I shopping for something." He lifted the plastic bag in his handle and pointed at Lu Qingjiu who was dumbfounded, "What are you scaring people to do."
The woman said: "I just want to ask for directions."
The man said: "How did you ask?"
The woman said, "I asked how to get to the underworld."
The man looked pained, he took a few deep breaths before he managed to control his emotions, and then his tone was full of helplessness: "Okay... will you take your hand from my chest first?"
The woman snorted again: "If I take it back, don't let people go."
The man said: "Even if you let go, don't scare ordinary people."
The woman let go. After she took it back, Lu Qingjiu saw an empty big hole through the man's torn t-shirt. This man actually had no chest, and the entire chest cavity was empty.
Lu Qingjiu's eyes rounded, and he blurted out, "You don't have a chest?!"
The man said: "Yes, neither does she."
The woman said angrily: "Who said I have no chest, I am not Fangfeng."
The man said: "Anyway, I didn't see that you have breasts."
The woman realized that she had been molested, her brows and eyes were frowned, she had to say that she was still pretty when she looked closer, and if she didn't dress very strangely, it wouldn't be difficult to ask for directions.
When Lu Qingjiu heard the name Fangfeng, he immediately remembered something. He said, "You are... from Guanxiongguo?" Guanxiongguo is a race in the Shanhaijing, and the biggest feature is a big hole in his chest.
The man was stunned. He didn't expect Lu Qingjiu to recognize his identity. He was surprised, but also a little surprised: "You also went to the meeting?"
Lu Qingjiu: "Huh?" What meeting?
The man frowned and looked at Lu Sake: "Are you a human?"
Lu Qingjiu just wanted to say that he is of course a human, and the woman behind the man answered, "Of course he is not."
The man said: "Are you not?"
Lu Qingjiu said, "Brother, can you let go first? I think my shoulder is about to be grabbed by you."
He originally thought that the man would refuse, but who knew that he was very polite and let go of Lu Qingjiu with an embarrassment. It did not look malicious. Lu Qingjiu rubbed his sore shoulder, and carefully observed the man and the woman. This man was dressed in the same manner as a human. If it weren't for the big empty chest in his chest, no one would think he was not a human being, a woman. It is completely incompatible with the surroundings, especially the thick down jacket.
"I'm just passing by, and I don't know where you are going." Lu Qingjiu said, "Can I go now?"
The man said: "Oh...that's how it is, then you didn't go to the meeting?"
Lu Qingjiu shook his head, saying that he didn't know what the man was talking about. Hearing this, the man thought for a while, and said: "Then do you know how to get to the underworld?"
When Lu Qingjiu heard him mention the underworld again, he immediately became vigilant: "What underworld, I am a human, I can only live in the underworld, and I definitely cannot go to the underworld."
The man was silent for a moment, and said helplessly: "It's not the underworld, but is there any place name called Yinjian nearby..."
He also explained how to write the word Yinjian.
Lu Qingjiu immediately understood: "You are talking about Yinjian Building? It's around here...what are you going to do there?" Yinjian is an office building built by the government, which is quite famous in the local area. Government agencies have set up offices there, and he didn't expect the woman to ask about this place.
"Oh, we have something to go there." The man said, "My surname is Wang, and my name is Wang Rumeng. She...you just call her a girl."
The woman frowned upon hearing this, as if she wanted to say something, but she stopped seeing Wang Rumeng's expression.
Lu Qingjiu kept his eyes on him and did not dare to say his name. He said: "Where are you going, let me tell you." He was about to describe in detail, but Wang Rumeng held Lu Qingjiu's shoulder again. , He said, "Brother, I'm sorry, can I trouble you to send us there? You came by car, right?"
Lu Qingjiu was deliberately embarrassed.
Wang Rumeng said: "You see my clothes are also torn, and others will not be scared if they see it. She is even more unable to see people like this, so please trouble you." Although his words were mild, his tone was not discussed. The taste of Lu Sake, and the hand holding Lu Sake didn't intend to relax at all. It seems that he didn't intend to let Lu Sake go.
When the woman saw this, she said, "He has the breath of a dragon."
Wang Rumeng's expression changed slightly after hearing this: "He is a dragon?"
The woman shook her head: "Have you ever seen a dragon with such a weak combat power? He should not be a dragon, but he has lived with dragons for a long time."
At this time, Wang Rumeng's eyes looked at Lu Qingjiu even more strange. Lu Qingjiu couldn't escape when he was caught, so he could only say, "Have you finished watching?"
"I'm finished." Wang Rumeng said, "Do you know the dragon?"
Lu Qingjiu said: "What does it matter whether you know or not?"
Wang Rumeng smiled: "If you know me, be polite to you, after all, I don't want to mess with them..."
Lu Qingjiu said: "Well, I know, can you let me go."
Wang Rumeng shook his head: "No, we won't find a way if you let you go, brother, help others to the end, let us go first."
Lu Qingjiu knew that he would not let go, so he could only agree, so the three of them walked to the pickup truck of Lu Qingjiu, but within two steps, there was a strong smell of burnt around, as if something was burning. Got. Lu Qingjiu smelled the smell before asking any questions, Wang Rumeng, who was standing next to him, changed his face and said, "No!" Then he rushed to the side and began to search for the black pocket he was holding. This pocket was held in his hand when he got off the elevator, and it seemed to be packed with a lot of stuff, and it was a big bag. Lu Qingjiu quickly found the source of the fire. He stared at the girl standing on his left as a puff of black smoke began to emerge from her body, and red flames began to stray wildly. Most people were so panicked. The ground rolled, but the girl looked at Lu Qingjiu indifferently. The two eyes met for a while, and the girl threatened: "What are you looking at? I haven't seen anyone catch fire."
Lu Qingjiu: "..." I'm sorry, he really hasn't seen it.
The girl's hair and skin were still undamaged under the flames, but the down jacket on her body began to carbonize rapidly, and gave out a pungent burnt smell, emitting black smoke, Lu Qingjiu stood beside him at a loss, thinking Wanting to help her put out the fire, Wang Rumeng rushed back again, threw two pieces of clothing on the ground, then grabbed Lu Qingjiu’s shoulders, and forced him to the side: "Don’t look, don’t look. See her clothes are all burned out."
Lu Qingjiu felt that he would take the White Moon Fox to go out in the future. This world is really too dangerous. Anyone who meets someone hasn't spoken a few words, so he burns.
Fortunately, the girl burned very quickly, and it was only a minute later, and a sentence came from behind. Lu Qingjiu turned around with Wang Rumeng and saw the girl standing on the wreckage, like a nirvana. Phoenix.
In other words... Lu Qingjiu suddenly remembered that he didn't seem to have seen Phoenix in Shaohao's house, could it be... the person in front of him is...