During the Qi Dynasty of the Ming Dynasty, there was a market town called Luojiadian at the foot of Wutai Mountain in Shanxi Province. This town is quite large, and merchants traveling from south to north gather here, so there are many merchants and wealthy people. In the east end of the market town lived a young man named Luo Dalin, who was about twenty-six or seventeen years old. His parents died when he was young, and he survived with the help of kind-hearted neighbors around him. He usually eats one meal but not the next. It is good to have a full meal, so naturally he cannot enter the school or study. Fortunately, although he has been eating a simple diet since he was a child, he has developed a good body despite being beaten by wind and rain. He has a dark and thin face, a tall build, strong arms, and extraordinary courage. He has been making a living as a coolie since he was fifteen or sixteen years old. He carries a sedan chair for one family today and delivers goods for that family tomorrow. Although he does not have a lot of money every day, it is not difficult to have enough to eat and drink, and he can live happily. happy.
A few years passed in the blink of an eye, and everyone his age had gotten married and had children, but he was still alone. Seeing that I am getting older, I am also anxious to find a wife who can have a hot meal when I go home after a tiring day and someone to keep me warm at night. I just found a few matchmakers one after another, but when they heard it was him, they didn't even reply. Later, he finally found a girl from a family. Although she was vulgar in appearance, they did not reject him at all. They only said that if he could send him five taels of gold as a betrothal gift, they would betroth the girl to him. Luo Dalin was in trouble as soon as he heard this. He had not earned much in the past few years, and he usually liked to drink a little wine, and sometimes he would gamble a few times, so there was no balance left. But the girl's family insists on having a tattoo of five taels of silver, even if it's less than a penny.
Early that morning, Luo Dalin came to the street again to look for work. When I walked to the door of the tea shop, I happened to be spotted by a few local swingers. One of them, a rich young man named Lu Meng, was drinking tea. When he saw Luo Dalin, he stopped him and asked him with a smile: "I heard that you have been asking matchmakers everywhere recently, have you been successful?" This group of young masters didn’t want to suffer the pain of death , so they answered honestly: “We’ve talked about a family, but it hasn’t happened yet, because they have to pay five taels of silver before they are willing to marry.” After hearing this, Lu Meng smiled slightly. Said: "That's it, I'll give you a good opportunity to make money. If you can do it, I will give you ten taels of silver. This will not only be enough for the bride price, but the remaining five taels can also be used for your marriage. You see How about it?" When Luo Dalin heard that there was such a good thing, he thought to himself, are you kidding me? So he said quickly: "Master Lu, don't make fun of me." Lu Meng's expression changed, and she said seriously to Luo Dalin: "How can I make fun of you? If you don't believe me, ask them." After saying this, he pointed at the other few people. people.
It turns out that there was a house named Wang in Luojiadian at that time. Because the people who lived in it often died inexplicably, and it was said that there were evil spirits at work, the house became empty later. The house has been empty for several years, and no one has dared to live in it. That day, several young masters were discussing the haunted house, making a bet to see if anyone would dare to live in it and come out alive. As they were talking, they saw Luo Dalin. (Ghost House: Please keep reprinting!) This Lu Meng also knew that he was powerful and courageous, so he thought he might be able to use it for gambling, so he called him in for questioning. If Luo Dalinlin goes, he and the other two will bet ten taels of silver that he can come out alive. Anyway, this little money is just a drop in the bucket to them, not worth mentioning, and it is all just a piece of fun. Luo Dalin didn't know this, so he looked at the other young masters suspiciously. Those few nodded hurriedly and said, "Everything Mr. Lu said is true. If you don't believe it, we can act as guarantors and make a written pledge on the spot."
When Luo Dalin heard this, he couldn't help but believe 80% of it. Then he turned to Lu Meng and asked, "I wonder what the young master wants me to do?" Lu Meng smiled and said, "This matter couldn't be easier. Are you here tonight?" Just stay in the Wang family's house for one night until tomorrow morning." Only then did Luo Dalin realize that this was a life-threatening matter. Although I usually heard that it was a haunted house, I was short of money at this time. Thinking of the ten taels of white silver and a big girl, even if it was the Mountain of Swords and the Sea of Hell, I would give him a try. Even if I died, it would be better than It's better to be alive than to be cowardly. If you are lucky enough to succeed, you will also earn a wife. Thinking of this, he suddenly became brave and said loudly to several people: "That's the case, I will agree. I just need a few young masters to be my guarantee and write down the evidence. I will go tonight." So someone immediately found pen, ink, paper and inkstone. Write down the document on the spot, put their fingerprints on it, and give it to each person for safekeeping. Lu Meng and others were afraid that they would be involved if someone died tomorrow, so they went to the landlord and asked Luo Dalin to stay for one night to help him slay demons. The Wang family was worried about this matter, and they were extremely happy when they heard this, so they said to Luo Dalin: "If you can really get rid of demons, I will give you another house as a place for you to get married in the future." He also looked for it at that moment. The guarantor has established a written document and is responsible for his life and death. Luo Dalin was able to kill two birds with one stone. He immediately prepared candles and flints and moved in as soon as it got dark at night.
When the sun set, Lu Meng and several others led Luo Dalin to find a wine shop. Lu Meng wanted to serve Luo Dalin a few kilograms of beef, half a kilogram of peanuts, and four ounces of soju as a farewell party for Luo Dalin. Before Luo Dalin drank, he had a habit of mixing garlic paste with wine, firstly to disinfect it, and secondly to add flavor, so he asked the waiter to get some garlic paste and mix it in, and he drank with Lu Meng and others. I drank until I was slightly tipsy, and the sky turned dark. Several people were worried that he would get drunk and cause trouble. Luo Dalin waved his hands and said: "It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter. Haven't you heard that wine can strengthen your courage? Besides, if things go wrong, I will be a hungry ghost even if I die." After saying that, he stood up, picked up a long and thick red candle that he had prepared in advance, and went to the Wang family's house with everyone. The master of the Wang family had been waiting in front of the door. When he saw a group of people coming, he immediately took out the key and opened the big iron lock on the door. Luo Dalin didn't say much, opened the door and walked in drunkenly. Lu Meng and others were afraid that he would sneak out at night after entering, so they closed the door and locked it from the outside, leaving only two slaves to stare at him from a distance, making sure that he could not escape, and then went back to sleep and waited until the next day. Let’s see whether he is alive or dead.
As soon as Luo Dalin entered the yard, he lit candles and looked around. I saw weeds growing everywhere in the courtyard, and it was pitch black all around. There was no sound except for the chirping of insects and birds. He opened the door and entered the hall, and saw that the dust on the ground was already several inches thick. The furniture was still there, but it was also covered in dust. When I checked the back bedroom, I found that the house was extremely clean, without a trace of dust. Even the bedding on the bed was clean, as if someone had lived in it before. At this time, he had missed two drums. He muttered in his heart and put a candle next to the bed. Then he went to bed and put down the bed curtain. He did not sleep, but just sat in the bed to see what monsters and monsters there were.
I stayed until the third watch had passed, and the surroundings were still quiet, and there was nothing unusual. He couldn't help but feel a little tired, and his eyelids couldn't stop fighting. He thought in his mind that people say life and death are fateful, and it didn't matter so much to him, so it was better to sleep with him first. Just as he was about to pull back the quilt, he suddenly felt the candlelight jump twice and sway, and the flame also turned from yellow to green, leaving only a little fluorescence remaining. Luo Dalin thought the candle was about to burn out, and was about to raise the tent to light up the candle when he suddenly heard a "creak" sound coming from the ground. In the silent night, it sent chills down the spine. He raised his ears and listened carefully, feeling that the sound came from under his bed, as if something was crawling out of the ground. Luo Dalin was about to get out of bed to take a look at what was going on, when he suddenly saw a pair of thin black claws stretching out from under the bed. He grabbed it with his backhand and placed it on the edge of the bed. Then a figure emerged from under the bed, stood up slowly in a strange posture along the edge of the bed, stood motionless in front of the bed through the curtain, and seemed to be peering into the bed.
Luo Dalin felt that his hair was standing on end and his scalp was numb. He was sweating all over his body and his clothes were soaked in an instant. He opened his eyes wide and wanted to see clearly what it was, but at this time, the lights were dim and through the curtain, he could only see what seemed to be a human figure. The clothes he was wearing were so dark that he didn't know what color they were, and he couldn't tell what his appearance was. . A gust of cold wind blew, and the man's long hair fluttered slightly, and he seemed to feel two blazing eyes staring at him. A few thoughts flashed through Luo Dalin's mind. Unexpectedly, there was a demon here. It seemed that today would be a bad day.
It seemed to be looking at him at this moment, perhaps considering whether to come in or wait for him to go out. If he ran away now, his way would be blocked. What's more, the door has been locked. Even if he runs into the courtyard, he will be chased by it, and he will probably die by then. It's better to take advantage of its hesitation at this moment and strike first. Even if it can't be restrained and killed by it, at worst it will end up being a bad ghost like it. As soon as he read this, Luo Dalin found that the figure outside had opened his arms and was about to pounce, and his sharp claws were trembling slightly in the candlelight. Soon after, Luo Dalin screamed, jumped out of bed with his eyes closed, and ran towards the black shadow outside the bed. The black figure was about to pounce in when he suddenly heard a shout. He seemed to be caught by surprise. He paused for a moment and was suddenly hit. Before he could react, he connected with Luo Dalin with a grunt. The tents fell to the ground together.
Luo Dalin's head went blank with this fall. When he woke up and ignored the pain, he hurriedly opened his eyes and saw that it was as painful as death . Under the weak candlelight, he saw a strange and extremely ugly face that looked human but not human. Facing myself. This face is all bronze in color, with only two black holes for the nose, no eyebrows or beard, and even no eyelids for the eyes. There are only two deep black eye sockets, with white eye kernels turned up inside, and a pair of green eyes. His pupils stared blankly at him. Luo Dalin felt a buzz in his mind, what kind of thing is this, so terrifying?
Before he could understand, he saw the monster open its big mouth, with really sharp fangs and a scarlet tongue, and it bit him down in one bite. Luo Dalin was horrified. He wanted to get up but couldn't. It turned out that the mosquito net had tightly wrapped the two of them together when they were knocked out. Seeing the monster bite him, he didn't have time to think about it in the flash of lightning. He put his arms around it and hugged the monster tightly. At the same time, he flashed his neck and tried his best to dodge to the side. Seeing that the bite was empty, the monster was unwilling to give in. He wanted to take out his arms, but couldn't. It turns out that Luo Dalin is used to doing manual labor, and his arms are stronger than ordinary people. Two or three ordinary people can't compare to him alone. At this critical moment, his life was in danger, so he naturally used all his strength to hug the monster tightly and turn his head as much as possible. For a while, the monster couldn't bite him. I tried to break free several times, but my arms seemed to be bound by iron wires, unable to move at all.
Suddenly, the monster made a hissing sound from its mouth. Luo Dalin smelled a foul smell in his nose and felt a chill on his face. It turned out that the monster, seeing that it could not bite him and could not escape, actually opened its mouth and blew at him. The breath from this monster's mouth not only smells extremely bad, but is also bone-chillingly cold. Although it was already early summer, Luo Dalin felt the chill that was bone-chilling. He couldn't help shivering all over his body, and he almost let go of his hand as soon as he loosened it. Fortunately, he reacted quickly and immediately suppressed the coldness. His hands became harder and harder, hugging her tightly and not daring to relax. Seeing that it was still difficult for him to escape, the monster increased his strength and continued to blow. Within a moment, Luo Dalin felt that the skin on his face was like a knife cutting, and it was extremely painful.
Luo Dalin had no choice but to turn his head to avoid the stench. The monster saw him turn away and blew into his neck again. After a while, my neck started to hurt too. Luo Dalin tilted his head and was struggling to support himself. He suddenly remembered that when he was a child, he heard an old man say that all things like ghosts and monsters are extremely yin things. Could it be that the breath the monster is blowing at this moment is the gathering of yin energy? If so, this thing must be afraid of yang energy. Anyway, the pain in my neck is like a needle pricking at the moment. If it continues like this, I'm afraid I won't be able to hold on. Why don't I turn my head and try blowing on it. So he endured the pain and stench, turned his head forcibly, faced the monster's face, and blew it in one breath.
The monster was blowing vigorously, but Luo Dalin didn't expect that Luo Dalin would suddenly turn his head and blow at him. It was just that he was caught off guard. This Luo Dalin is not yet married. He has the body of a boy, and his yang energy is in full swing. It is said that evil cannot suppress good. Moreover, his breath still contains the smell of garlic paste and soju in the afternoon, and it is probably not that good. After only a few blows, the monster seemed to be unable to hold on and turned its head to the side. Luo Dalin was overjoyed when he saw it, and continued to blow harder, blowing one after another. He only hoped that he could blow the monster so much that it would not dare to turn around, and he would be saved until someone came in the morning.
Unexpectedly, after blowing for a while, the monster seemed to be unbearable anymore. He made a sound in his mouth, suddenly turned his head, and another puff of air blew over. This time, the air felt colder and stronger than before. Luo Dalin was exhausted from playing just now, and now he could no longer hold on, so he had to turn his head and endure it for the time being. Fortunately, the monster seemed a little tired after blowing for a while, and the breath in his mouth also slowed down. At this time, Luo Dalin rested for a moment, regrouped his energy, turned his head and blew again. This time the monster couldn't resist and turned around to avoid it. One person and one ghost hugged each other and blew each other's breath, and the stalemate lasted for a long time. Luo Dalin gradually felt numbness in his arms and pain in his cheeks. However, this was a critical moment of life and death, and he had to hold on no matter what.
Fortunately, it dawned early in the summer, so it was easy to wait until the rooster crowed for the first time outside. Luo Dalin suddenly felt that the monster in his arms was breathing slower. When the rooster crows three times and Dongfang turns white, the monster blows slower and slower, and finally stops moving, with an expression of blowing on its face. Luo Dalin struggled to hold on for half the night. When he saw that the monster was stiff and motionless, he could no longer hold on and fainted as soon as he stretched his legs.
At this time, it was daylight. Lu Meng and others had arrived outside the door. They saw that the door was still locked. They asked the two servants and they all said that they had not seen Luo Dalin come out at night, so they stood outside and shouted loudly for Luo Dalin. name. Unexpectedly, even after shouting several times, there was no movement inside. The owner of the Wang family was afraid that another life would be lost, so he quickly opened the iron lock and opened the door. A group of people walked in tremblingly and looked around. When I inspected the back room, I suddenly saw two people hugging each other and falling to the ground. Everyone was greatly surprised, thinking that a strongman and robber had entered. They immediately stepped forward to check, and saw that Luo Dalin was hugging a zombie-like monster without knowing whether to live or die. Everyone was so frightened that they cried out and rushed out of the door.
As soon as he went out, the owner quickly reported it to the government. When local officials arrived and sent a few brave government officials in, they found that Luo Dalin and the monster were still hugging each other, unable to separate. The few people had no choice but to carry the monster and Luo Dalin out of the house. He touched Luo Dalin with his hand and found that he was still breathing, so he quickly found hot ginger soup and drank it. Then he slowly woke up, but his arms were already stiff, and it took a lot of effort to slowly separate them. His neck was also so sore that it was difficult to even turn his head.
After being questioned by the government, Luo Dalin slowly told what happened last night. So everyone went in and moved the bed away, and found a hole underneath. When the hole was dug, a rotten coffin was buried in a deep pit, as well as an inscription. Due to the age, only the word "Daye" (the era of the Sui Dynasty) could be seen clearly, so we knew that it was this ancient corpse that was causing trouble in this house. .
So the government ordered everyone to set up a pile of firewood outside the courtyard to burn the zombies, and then carried Luo Dalin home to rest. He was already a strong man, and after going back for a few days to recuperate, he became lively and energetic again, so he approached Lu Meng and asked for ten taels of silver. The landlord also kept his promise and gave him a tile-roofed house for him to marry a wife. It's just that Luo Dalin's neck has always been a little crooked from now on, and it can't be corrected.
From then on, people in the town admired his courage and called him "Ghost Catcher Luo Da".