In the front yard, Old Lady Sun complained to Old Lady Wang as usual: "If you have twenty yuan, you might as well buy a mosquito coil, which is much more reliable!"
She had told me countless times that Old Lady Wang was superstitious. Burning incense was fine, just to get peace of mind, but what was the point of the Taihe Temple talisman, which cost hundreds of yuan each?
Although Old Lady Sun's son still runs a shop here, and she herself has a very good impression of Xiao Xie, she has to admit that the young Taoist priest he hired to sell mosquito repellent talismans does not sound reliable!
Old Lady Wang was very unconvinced, "Then why are there no mosquitoes here?"
"Uh..." Old Mrs. Sun was speechless for a moment.
...
Old Mrs. Wang’s house is in an old residential building on the first floor. The doors and windows are not tightly sealed, so mosquitoes are killed one after another.
Her son bought an electric mosquito swatter, and every night when she and her husband had nothing to do, they would kill mosquitoes at home. The sound of mosquitoes being electrocuted was endless. Even so, it was still easy to get bitten at night if you were not careful.
Moreover, the entire Queshan Province is mountainous and the mosquitoes are very poisonous. A bite will cause a big swelling not long after. If you scratch it without applying any medicine, a light brown mark will be left after the redness and swelling subsides. The mark will not fade for several months and in more serious cases, it will leave scars.
Today is the weekend. When Old Mrs. Wang returned home, her son and daughter-in-law came back for dinner. They moved out after getting married two years ago.
Old Mrs. Wang didn't dare tell them that she had bought the talisman. Her son and daughter-in-law did not like her belief very much and repeatedly warned her that she could ask for the talisman, but if she was sick she had to go to the hospital and it was not enough to just burn incense and pray to the gods.
Following Zhang Daoting's instructions, Old Lady Wang chose to stick the mosquito repellent talisman behind the bedroom door to prevent her son from seeing it.
When it was time to eat, Wang Yongyi, the old lady's son, took out a small jar of ointment and said, "Mom, this is made by my colleague's family. Apply a little bit immediately after a mosquito bite, and it will heal quickly."
This is a secret recipe passed down from his colleague's family, made with Chinese herbal medicine. The amount produced each year is limited. He finally got a jar, which is only as big as the palm of his hand.
Old Lady Wang took the jar, opened the lid and took a look. Inside was a light green ointment with a faint herbal aroma. "Okay, I'll try it."
Wang Yongyi asked again: "By the way, Mom, do you still have the well water from last time? I'll bring a pot back tomorrow. It's pretty good for making tea."
Before, Old Lady Wang told him that the water from this well tasted good, so he took some back with him. He didn't hold out much hope, but who knew that the water quality was really good. He used it to make tea with a few tea friends, and their friends even asked about it, which made him feel a little proud that he had found a treasure.
"Yes, yes. I told you, this water is very good. Some people even drive here every day to fetch water." Old Mrs. Wang had an inexplicable sense of pride.
Wang Yongyi usually likes to drink tea. He laughed and said, "Really? That's strange. We have lived here for so long, and we didn't know that the water in Baoyangguan Well was so good."
"That's because they didn't want to be famous before. Besides, who would bother to fetch water before? It was much more convenient to boil water at home." Speaking of this, Old Lady Wang had something else to say, "Don't even mention the well. I didn't even go there to burn incense before. It was too small."
"It's too small." Wang Yongyi thought so too. Even his religious mother wouldn't go there.
Wang Yongyi and his wife were going to sleep here at night, so Old Lady Wang went to the room in advance to kill mosquitoes for them. But after entering, she found that there were no mosquitoes at all in the room.
She walked around several times with the electric mosquito swatter, but only killed two mosquitoes. This was completely different from the previous situations.
Could it be that the mosquito repellent talisman was effective? Old Mrs. Wang was delighted, but a little unsure. She closed the door and said, "Hey, do you feel that there are fewer mosquitoes?"
Wang Yongyi was at a loss, "It seems so, the mosquito coils I bought this time are particularly useful?"
There was indeed a plate of mosquito coils lit in the living room, but Old Mrs. Wang was sure that it was definitely not the problem. This was not the first day she had lit this mosquito coil, and to be honest, it was of limited use!
Old Mrs. Wang thought about it and said nothing. She decided to wait and see the situation.
Old man Wang on the side looked at his wife and son. He didn't know, but he saw a new talisman pasted behind the door and knew that the mosquito coil had not been changed. However, he didn't think about the relationship between the mosquito and the talisman for a moment.
...
At night, Wang Yongyi and his wife entered the room. Wang Yongyi's wife said, "There are indeed fewer mosquitoes today. I wonder how it will be overnight."
When I slept here before, I was inevitably bitten once or twice a day. It was hard to prevent. I tried all kinds of mosquito repellents, but none of them were perfect.
The two of them only discussed for a few sentences and then fell asleep.
In the other room, Mrs. Wang held an electric mosquito swatter and observed for a long time, confirming that there was not a single mosquito in the room. She didn't hit any mosquitoes. There were two in her son's room before, but not even a single wing was found in her room.
"Hey, did you change the mosquito coils? Why is this one so effective?" asked Old Man Wang.
Old Lady Wang snorted, "Of course I didn't change it. The reason there are no mosquitoes is because I got a talisman from the Taoist temple today."
Old man Wang frowned and said, "What kind of god is this? Why would you care about this?"
He muttered, maybe the quality of the mosquito coils is uneven, some are very good and some are very bad? Thinking of this, Old Man Wang prepared to order another plate.
"Wait, don't light it." Old Lady Wang said, "There are no mosquitoes here, don't light it, and see how it goes tonight. I think this is the effect of this talisman."
Old Man Wang: ...
He was speechless.
The two have spent most of their lives together, and Old Man Wang knows what kind of person Old Lady Wang is. There is nothing he can do but cover his head and sleep.
...
After a night passed, the family of four slept soundly until dawn.
In the morning, Wang Yongyi asked Mrs. Wang while eating breakfast: "Mom, what brand of mosquito coils do you have? They are quite useful."
Old Lady Wang ran to the room, took down the mosquito repellent talisman, folded it and gave it to Wang Yongyi: "What mosquito coil? It's the mosquito repellent talisman I got from Baoyang Temple yesterday. Look, it's very useful. There were no mosquitoes all night. Take it and stick it in your bedroom at home."
Although Wang Yongyi's home is on a high floor and there are fewer mosquitoes, Grandma Wang thinks that fewer mosquitoes does not mean there are none. So she decided to let her son take it back so that she can buy another one herself.
Wang Yongyi was confused, but also found it funny. "What the hell, a mosquito repellent charm?"
At this time, Old Man Wang came out of the toilet, with his hands behind his back, and said, "Oh, I looked around, and there really aren't any. There are only one or two in the toilet and the kitchen, but they may be too far away!"
Their old people got up early and had already discovered that indeed the mosquitoes had not appeared all night. Old man Wang even went outside and to each room to observe, and he was sure that it was most likely the effect of the mosquito repellent talisman.
Wang Yongyi was stunned. He had known for a long time that his mother was superstitious, but why did his father fall for it too? Why did he insist that this would be useful?
Wait, but it's really like they said, it has nothing to do with mosquito coils, it's because of the talisman that there are no mosquitoes, how can this be explained, could it be...
"Fcuk, so awesome?" Wang Yongyi was holding the talisman, looking shocked.
I didn't expect that this small Taoist temple, Baoyang Temple, not only has a good well, but also has such a capability?
He had watched his mother burn incense and pray for talismans since he was a child, but the effects were all based on her own judgment. This kind of talisman that works immediately was the first time he had seen it. It was so magical! What kind of metaphysics was this!
At this time, Wang Yongyi's wife also came out. After listening to what they said, she was also quite amazed: "This... Could it be because of some secret recipe, like the ointment at your colleague's house, with the talisman paper soaked in medicine?"
Wang Yongyi said hesitantly: "But, there doesn't seem to be any smell on it." He smelled it again and there was indeed only the faint smell of yellow paper and cinnabar itself.
"It doesn't smell like anything, how can it be medicine?" Old Lady Wang said with eyes wide open. "Besides, if they have the formula, why don't they just make it into mosquito repellent and sell it? That would be very profitable!"
It seems to make some sense, but Wang Yongyi's wife still thinks that even though she can't smell it, she would rather believe it's some magical recipe.
"It's not expensive, but I don't know how long it will last. Mom, go buy two more." Wang Yongyi didn't care. He didn't care what the reason was, as long as it was useful!
...
When Old Lady Wang went to Baoyang Temple, she was surprised to see that several tea drinkers who had bought talismans with her yesterday had also arrived and were surrounding Zhang Daoting, discussing something.
After hearing this, Old Lady Wang realized that their talismans were also very effective. She was so shocked that one of them went back without pasting the talisman. When she came back and heard that other people’s talismans were effective, she was confused.
Old Mrs. Wang was outspoken and complained: "My daughter-in-law actually said that she soaked some medicine, so it can repel mosquitoes. But I saw that there were still mosquitoes outside the house. Can this medicine tell where is my home?"
The other tea drinkers smiled awkwardly. In fact, they were also confused in their hearts. Sometimes they doubted their lives, and sometimes they wondered if there was any scientific explanation that could explain it, but they just didn't say it out loud.
Many people say that this kind of thing exists if you believe it and doesn’t exist if you don’t believe it, but the existence or non-existence of mosquitoes is a very objective result.
Zhang Daoting said confidently: "If you have any doubts, you can take the talisman paper for testing."
When the tea drinkers heard this, they looked at each other and felt that he did not seem to be bluffing.
"The cloud seals written on the talisman were created by ancient people based on the changes in the clouds in the sky. They were then written on talisman paper to pray for blessings and cure diseases. It has many uses. It is in line with the way of nature. Whether you believe it or not, it is an ancient culture. It has been passed down for so many years, and there is a reason for it."
Zhang Daoting's speech made everyone feel that it made sense, and they nodded thoughtfully. There are so many things in this world that cannot be explained by science, so many strange people and things, who knows what the principle of this talisman is?
Mosquito repellent charms may be rare, but many of them know that the night crying charm is quite famous, and they have heard of many people using it, even in their own homes. The night crying charm is used to stop children from crying at night. It is said that because children are more spiritual, there are many successful cases.
"Um...Master Zhang, can we enter the Lingguan Temple? I want to go and burn incense." Old Mrs. Wang originally believed in Taoism, and now she felt that the Baoyang Temple was really powerful, so she asked.
"Not yet. Now we can only go to Sanqing Temple and Wenchang Temple." Zhang Daoting said.
In fact, it is not about repairing the statue, but replacing it with a copper one. There is no need to close the Lingguan Temple. The problem is that the ancestor seems to be disgusted with his current tattered statue, and the incense will be extinguished when anyone goes to burn incense... I guess he wants to show people a new look.
Old Lady Wang was going to burn incense, and the other tea drinkers thought about it and followed her in to burn incense to the Three Pure Ones. They didn't believe it at first, but after buying this mosquito repellent talisman, they felt like they had opened the door to a new world. They didn't believe it completely, but they also felt awe and burned incense to seek peace of mind.
Then, as more and more people came to the front yard, everyone else knew about it. When they bought the mosquito repellent yesterday, many people were there, but only those few people paid.
Now when I hear them say it really works, I am skeptical and even a little suspicious that they are a scam.
Taoist Zhang Daoting did not take the opportunity to promote it vigorously. In the end, about seven or eight people came to him to ask for talismans, wanting to try whether it really worked.
The mosquito repellent talisman only costs twenty yuan, so Zhang Daoting couldn't help but ask them if they needed other talismans, such as those for warding off evil spirits, curing headaches, or helping digestion.
Oliver Xie took time to draw talismans. The workload was not large, but considering that this was just the beginning, he was already very satisfied.
The mosquito repellent charm was just an introduction, and he had even considered reducing or even stopping sales after reaching a certain level. He didn't want people to mention Baoyang Temple as if they were talking about mosquito coils, which would be counterproductive. He had to balance the image and promote other charms.
...
...
Because Oliver Xie has been busy drawing talismans recently, the consumption is quite high, so he took some time to go out and buy talisman paper and cinnabar. First he went to the Chinese medicine store to buy cinnabar, and then he went to buy yellow paper.
Oliver Xie brought a backpack. When he bought yellow paper, people saw that he was quite young and had a school bag on his back, and asked curiously, "Classmate, why are you buying this? For handicraft class?"
...Oliver Xie thought that this boss was quite humorous. If he really wanted to do handicrafts, he would not buy yellow paper.
This shop sells Buddhist beads, statues of gods, yellow paper, and some sachets and ready-made talismans. The owner also promotes them by saying, "Would you like to buy some talismans? We have talismans that can protect you from failing the exams."
"A talisman that will not fail the exam? There is such a talisman?" Oliver Xie thought it was very magical. How could he not have heard of it? He thought he had learned a lot. But he saw that the talisman was a photocopy.
The boss talked about it: "Of course, there are many Taoist talismans, covering thousands of things, and they can cure everything. There are talismans for treating bad breath and constipation, not to mention that they can help you avoid failing the exam. You may not understand this, but even though our talisman is a photocopy, the original was drawn by a master, and it works."
Oliver Xie's mouth twitched, and at this moment he suddenly caught a glimpse of a somewhat familiar figure outside the door, which immediately attracted his attention.
The boss also looked outside in the direction he was looking, and saw five or six Taoist priests standing outside. He hummed, "They seem to be the Taoist priests from the Taihe Temple."
Oliver Xie took out the money, slapped it on the table, and hurriedly put the yellow paper into his schoolbag.
"Student, why are you in such a hurry?" the boss said, and when he saw the cinnabar flash by in his bag, he was a little slow to react.
"Goodbye, boss. I saw my senior brother." Oliver Xie said seriously.
boss:...
He watched Oliver Xie run out with his bag on his back, and actually went to the Taoist priests and started talking to them. He immediately slapped his forehead and said, "Why didn't you tell me earlier that this young man is a Taoist priest?"
What the hell is he still selling?
...
Several Taoists from Taihe Temple looked at Oliver Xie, wondering when Shi Changxuan had made friends in the local area.
Shi Changxuan explained in a few words that Oliver Xie was from Baoyang Temple, and that he met him last time because of the incident with Fang Zhenxing who took money from the man. Although Baoyang Temple was very small, they knew it to some extent as local Taoists, and some of them knew Nathaniel Wang and chatted with Oliver Xie.
Knowing that they were half colleagues, these Taoists not only did not relax, but became a little nervous, and hesitantly hinted that Shi Changxuan should leave.
Oliver Xie looked around curiously, not knowing what they meant.
Shi Changxuan looked at Oliver Xie, looking a little hesitant.
Oliver Xie immediately understood that they were probably busy with Chen Sansheng's affairs. Chen Sansheng had failed in the fight and was not in a good situation. He had not announced it to the public, as it was a bit embarrassing since he was the master of the temple.
Last time he guessed the truth, but it would be difficult to say it in front of these people, so he quickly changed the subject and said, "See you later, Taoist priests. Um, can you invite us from Baoyang Temple to any activities you organize in the future? Hahaha."
In the past, Nathaniel Wang never participated in group activities. When Oliver Xie said this, everyone politely agreed.
In order not to delay others' work, Oliver Xie went back on his own initiative.
But what happened was that after Oliver Xie got off the bus heading back to the Taoist temple, he actually saw Shi Changxuan and his group again. However, they didn't see him, but walked straight in one direction.
Oliver Xie thought there was no need to say hello, so he simply went back to the Taoist temple to practice talismans. Because Tyler He and his classmates had needs, and now that business was open, Oliver Xie drew some more Lingzu amulets for stock.
As a result, not long after practicing, when Oliver Xie went out to boil water, he saw a nearby business owner come in and said to everyone: "Oh, I just came over from the supermarket and saw an old Taoist priest jumping off a building at the construction site on Mingxi Road. My god, his legs were broken."
Construction site? Oliver Xie's eyes widened a little, he put down the pot in his hand and turned around to walk back.
Here it comes, the opportunity to put your knowledge into practice and show yourself has come again.
Not long after walking, Zhang Daoting came out. Seeing his hurried look, he casually asked, "Where are you going?"
Oliver Xie said with great pride: "Take my sword!"
"?!" Zhang Daoting said in horror, "Boss, who are you going to kill?"
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