Records of Strange People and Strange Events in the Old Mansion

Chapter 174 God

"Sister, are you okay?" Dan'er's voice rang in Zhu Hu's ears. Zhu Hu opened her eyes and saw that she had slept on the stone bench on the porch by the back door of the old house for the whole afternoon. She blinked and shook her head and asked Dan'er: "When did you come back?"

"Just got back." Dan'er looked dusty and tired.

Zhu Huan pulled Dan'er over to sit on the stone bench and asked softly, "Did you find it? Isn't it better to miss each other than to see each other?"

"I've never missed you, nor did I want to meet you. I just wanted to find out what kind of parents would abandon their own flesh and blood to a wolf's den?" Two lines of hot tears slid silently from Dan'er's eyes.

Zhu Hu reached out his hand to wipe away Dan'er's tears and said quietly, "There's no need to confirm it. What can't a tiger-like person do? Let the past be the past. You have a sister, and I can't leave you."

"Sister, if it weren't for you, I would have died in front of them." There was an unprecedented sadness on Dan'er's face.

Zhu Hao smiled bitterly and said, "It is so easy to die. To live requires courage, bravery and an unyielding heart."

"Sister, have you guessed long ago that they are related to the old house?" Dan'er stopped crying.

Zhu Hu said: "There is no doubt about this. Think about it, if it has nothing to do with the old house, why would an outsider throw a baby in a swaddling cloth into a wolf den where donkeys can't even get to the village? How could a wild wolf carry you to the old house?"

"Well, they lived in the cave for five years in order to steal the treasures from the old house. They stole the treasures and fled far away, but left me in the wolf's den." Dan'er calmly recounted the past to Zhu Hao, as if he was not talking about himself.

Zhu Huan didn't expect that Dan'er's biological parents were actually Lan Yuliu's brothers with the same father and mother. No wonder Lan Yuliu revealed Dan'er's life experience and the whereabouts of her brother to Lu Huan before being arrested.

Dan'er said that they had tried to keep him and were willing to compensate him. With their current strength, it would be no problem for him to become a billionaire overnight. But Dan'er only wanted them to return the treasures in the main house of the old house, the priceless treasures in the main house of the old house.

"They haven't sold it yet? Have they returned it to you? Where is the treasure?" Zhu Huan grabbed Dan'er's arm and asked impatiently.

Dan'er smiled and told Zhu Huan: "Sister, they couldn't sell the priceless treasures in the main house of the old house, and they were reluctant to sell them. They felt guilty and let me take them all back."

"Really? Really? Where are these priceless treasures? Where are they?" The red badger stood up, picked up the egg and ran out to the porch.

Dan'er was dragged by Zhu Huan to run out of the porch and into the front yard, and stopped in front of the main house of the old house. Dan'er finally had the chance to say to Zhu Huan: "Sister, those priceless treasures are still in the car, waiting for you to come over and inspect them."

"Still in the car? Where is the car? Waiting for me to inspect it? What does that mean?" Zhu Huan was so excited that he completely lost his composure.

Dan'er replied: "Sister, the car is parked under the big camphor tree. You are now the lifelong curator of the Old House Museum and the mistress of the main house of the Old House. Naturally, it must be verified by you before it can be officially collected in the Old House Museum."

"Parking the car under the big camphor tree? I'm the lifelong curator of the Old House Museum?" Zhu Hu muttered to himself and ran towards the big camphor tree.

There was a big car parked under the big camphor tree. The car was covered tightly. Next to the car stood Uncle Liu, Lu Bo, Zhu Yunshan, Zhu Yunhe and his wife, and Lu Huan.

Why are they still here? Could it be that what Daner had before waking me up wasn't just a dream? Didn't my Eight Immortals in Heaven defeat those Taoist Eight Immortals who were trying to cause trouble for me? Why are they still here? Could it be that they still want to covet the treasures that Daner brought back? No, I have to take the initiative and completely stop them from thinking about it.

Thinking of this, Zhu Hao suppressed his eagerness to see the treasures that Dan'er brought back, jumped onto the platform and announced loudly to Zhu Yunshan and Zhu Yunhe: "Whether you agree to donate the treasures or not, I will still donate all the treasures to the Old House Museum in your name. Only in this way, you and your baby Beibei can return to the Old House in glory in the future. Otherwise, you and them will be banned from entering the Old House for life, and your names will be completely removed from the Old House Zhu family tree."

"You?" Zhu Yunshan and Zhu Yunhe looked at Zhu Huan in surprise.

Uncle Liu, Lu Bo, Liu Ruyu and Liu Ruyi were also extremely surprised, looking at Zhu Huan like stupid geese.

Lu Huan jumped onto the platform and explained with a smile: "Don't be like this, Director Zhu is inspecting you." Then he lowered his voice and said to Zhu Huan: "Are you still dreaming? Wake up."

"Am I still dreaming? No way?" Zhu Hu pinched his waist hard, it hurt so much that he was not dreaming, so he turned to Zhu Yunshan and Zhu Yunhe and asked, "Are you also donating all the treasures of the owner of the main house of the old house?"

"You are the owner of the main house of the old house, and everything is up to you." "Haven't you signed a donation agreement with the higher-ups? Tomorrow they will hold an opening ceremony and donation ceremony for the old house museum." Zhu Yunshan and Zhu Yunhe responded.

Zhu Huan was even more confused, wondering whether he was in a dream or outside of it. If he was in a dream, then when did this dream start? And when did it end? If he was outside of it, how could he not have any memory at all?

"Director Zhu, this batch of Ming Dynasty furniture shipped back from the south was all stolen from the main house of the old residence by criminals back then. Today they are returned to the original owner. Please inspect them." Dan'er pulled down the tarpaulin covering the truck and called Zhu Huan.

"Oh, okay." Zhu Hao agreed, jumped off the platform and ran towards the car.

Dozens of old-style furniture were neatly stacked on the big car, some of which Red Badger had seen for the first time.

Ruber was even more excited than Zhu Hao. When he saw the furniture, he rushed to the side of the car without hesitation, knelt down with a plop, and shouted: "Grandma, the baby is back, the baby is back."

Looking at the tearful Lu Bo, Zhu Hu lowered his voice and asked Lu Huan: "He should be serious, right?"

"It's definitely steamed, not boiled. Look at the way he looks, do you think he can cook it?" Lu Huan replied with a smile.

The red badger stuck out his tongue and went over to help Rubeus up, asking, "You should know all about these furniture, right? Can you explain to me why they are priceless treasures?"

"Director Zhu, since you hired me as a consultant for the Old House Museum, I naturally have to explain everything to you in detail." Ruber said as he asked some craftsmen he brought with him to carefully move the furniture from the truck.

"Everyone, come here and listen carefully, and explain these treasures to tourists in the future." Lu Huan called out, and a dozen handsome men and beautiful women standing neatly under the big camphor tree gathered around Lu Bo and Zhu Huan.

Zhu Hu looked at the handsome men and beautiful women in uniform and asked Lu Huan softly, "Who are they?"

"They are all your men and also my men. They are tour guides and interpreters of the Old House Museum." Lu Huan replied.

Zhu Hu was puzzled: "The guides and docents of the Old House Museum? Are they also your subordinates?"

"I have been appointed as the deputy director of the Old House Museum, a permanent one." Lu Huan smiled at Zhu Huan.

Zhu Huan wanted to ask Lu Huan again, but Lu Bo had already instructed the craftsmen to move a chair from the truck.

"This is not an ordinary chair. It is called a 'Four-legged Chair', also known as a 'Northern Official Hat Chair'. It is one of the representative works of Huanghuali mortise and tenon furniture from the Ming Dynasty. Look, does its shape resemble the official hat worn by ancient officials?" Lu Bo pointed at the four-legged chair and explained to Zhu Hu and the others. Zhu Hu stroked the chair and exclaimed: "It really looks like an official hat, so smooth and solid."

"The ends of the chair's backrest are slightly upturned, just like the official hats of ancient officials. The 'S'-shaped backrest is completely ergonomic, and you won't feel tired even if you sit for a long time. You see, the four legs of the chair are not straight up and down, but slightly contracted from bottom to top. When subjected to downward pressure, this structure will make the chair more stable and firm." Ruburt explained it clearly.

"What about this one?" Lu Huan took a chair from the two craftsmen and placed it in front of Lu Bo and Zhu Huan.

Lu Bo explained: "This chair is called [Huanghuali Wood Round Back Chair]. The whole chair is well-proportioned and has a smooth shape. The chair ring is made up of five sections, and the joints are connected with wedges and tenons to ensure that the chair ring is connected in sections without falling apart. The headrest and armrests are smooth and round. The joints of the components are inlaid with white copper ornaments, which have both reinforcement and decorative functions. The backrest is carved with openwork dragon patterns, the middle is carved with openwork unicorn patterns, and the bottom is pot-doored. It is usually placed in a prominent position in the hall, with a momentum of surpassing the other four seats, and is a symbol of identity and status."

"So this is also a representative example of mortise and tenon structure furniture?" Zhu Huan asked.

Ruber explained: "Yes, this chair mainly uses [wedge-nail tenon], which is often found on round chairs, cross-legged chairs, round tables, round tables and other furniture. This type of mortise and tenon is arc-shaped, with two semicircles overlapping each other, and the male and female tenons are inserted into each other, making it more solid and stable. There is a groove at the flat part of the semicircle. After the two semicircles are closed, a small square wedge is inserted into the groove, with one end larger and the other end smaller for easy insertion. This manufacturing method can prevent the arc-shaped parts from shaking up and down or left and right, and it is clever and solid."

"The ancient craftsmen were so clever that they could make the furniture so sturdy without using a single nail." Zhu Hu sighed.

Lu Bo pointed to a table that two craftsmen had just unloaded from a truck and said to Zhu Hao: "This table is called a [Huanghuali wood mortise and tenon painting table]. The mortise and tenon used are tenoned and grooved at the top of the legs, planted into the large edge of the table, and embedded with tooth strips, which tightly connect the panel, legs, and tooth strips into one. This manufacturing method prevents the painting table from loosening and shaking over time, and it is durable. There are no tenons on the surface of the painting table, which is beautiful and has a very uniform force. It was a common structure for table-shaped furniture in the Ming and Qing dynasties."

"Hey, hey, hey, don't keep talking about mortise and tenon structure endlessly. First move these priceless treasures back to the old house, and then explain them to us slowly." Uncle Liu came over to stop Ruber from talking any further.

Lu Huan laughed and said, "Yes, yes, yes, my father can talk about the [mortise and tenon] structure for three days and three nights without sleeping. Hey, everyone, be careful when moving."

Zhu Huan felt deeply moved as he watched a truckload of Ming Dynasty furniture return to the old house.

Later, according to Ruburt, these furniture were all made of the finest huanghuali wood of the time, including [huanghuali wood two-curved corner piano table], [huanghuali wood waisted three-bend leg overlord stretcher square stool], [huanghuali wood one-leg three-tooth curved stretcher and clip flower square table], [huanghuali wood Luohan bed], [huanghuali wood overlord stretcher painting table], [huanghuali wood overlord stretcher dining table], etc., each piece is a priceless treasure.

Lu Bo also said that the "Ba Wang crossbeam" is a part of the mortise and tenon structure of Ming and Qing furniture. It means to raise one's arms to hold up the sky, which is derived from the story of Ba Wang lifting the tripod. It is very vivid. This mortise and tenon structure is mainly used in square tables, square stools and other furniture. It is a mortise and tenon structure that can reinforce the legs without a crossbeam, making the design of the furniture more beautiful and generous. The straight lines and curves, squares and circles, horizontals and verticals are arranged just right, reflecting the elegant charm in simplicity, which is another outstanding creation of ancient furniture.

Zhu Huan lingered among these Ming Dynasty furniture with mortise and tenon structures, reluctant to leave. Ma Yasha came to call her to eat several times but she refused to leave.

"From now on, you will be the lifelong curator of the old house museum. You will have plenty of time to communicate with these treasures. Now, you should go and have dinner. You must prepare well for tomorrow's opening ceremony." Ma Yasha pulled Zhu Huan out of the main house of the old house.

Zhu Huan looked back every few steps. When he reached the persimmon tree in front of Zhu Hu's house, he broke free from Ma Yasha's hand and ran back to the main house. Before entering the main house, he stood under the eaves and turned back to Ma Yasha and shouted, "Fairies don't care about worldly things. It's more important for me to stay with my god."

"I told you to be crazy, but if you keep going like this, you will become crazy sooner or later." Ma Yasha had no choice but to return to the big camphor tree.

When Zhu Huan entered the main house, he felt happy and elated. He felt like he really experienced what it meant to be an immortal.

All the items in the main hall of the old house have been put back in place, and Uncle Liu and Lu Bo have placed them exactly according to the remaining layout diagram of the old house's hall.

He carefully stroked every chair and every table, and finally lay down on the rosewood bed and fell into a deep sleep again.

Birds were singing, flowers were blooming, and springs were gurgling. Red Badger came to a valley. As he was looking around, he heard bursts of knocking sounds coming from deep in the valley. Following the sound, he saw an old man with flowing silver beard waving a hammer and chiseling a stone plaque.

"Old man, where have you been these days?" Zhu Hu was extremely surprised to see that the old man was the old craftsman who jumped into the cave with her.

The old craftsman wiped the sweat from his forehead and said to Zhu Huan with a smile: "I will carve the door plaque here."

"Carving a door plaque? What door plaque is there for?" Zhu Huan saw that three complete words had been carved on a large bluestone under the old craftsman, and he was carving the fourth word.

The old craftsman replied to Zhu Huan: "Of course it is the door plaque of the old house."

"The door plaque of the old house? Doesn't the old house have a door plaque?" Zhu Huan wondered.

The old craftsman looked up and asked Zhu Huan: "Does the old house still have a door plaque?"

"Yes, isn't there a plaque above the main entrance?" Zhu Hu wanted to see what the three words the old craftsman had carved were. But no matter how hard she looked, she couldn't see clearly.

The old craftsman asked Zhu Huan: "Do you remember what kind of door plaque it was?"

"It's a bluestone door plaque. This bluestone door plaque is the same size as the one you are carving now. It has the words 'You are tolerant and virtuous' written on it." Zhu Huan answered the old craftsman without even a burp.

After hearing Zhu Huan's answer, the old craftsman hurriedly dropped his hammer and chisel, lifted his clothes and was about to kneel down in front of Zhu Huan. Zhu Huan hurriedly supported the old craftsman and asked, "Old man, what did I say wrong? What are you going to do?"

"Fairy, you are the real old house fairy." The old craftsman was very excited.

Zhu Hu became even more suspicious and asked, "Old man, what do you mean by that?"

“Fairy, the door plaque of the old house was destroyed long ago. You were not born at that time, but you know so much about it. You must be the fairy of the old house. Please accept my great courtesy.” The old craftsman leaned over and bowed.

Zhu Hu hurriedly helped the old craftsman up and said, "What old house fairy? That's all Zhu Shanzi's nonsense. His purpose is to bring me to the public and make me a target of public criticism so that he can take advantage of the situation."

"Fairy, do you know which immortal the red fan is? It's Han Zhongli, one of the Eight Immortals." The old craftsman got up from the ground and pulled the red badger to sit on the bluestone slab.

Zhu Huan sat on the bluestone slab and listened to the old craftsman explain why Han Zhongli transformed into a red fan and came to the old house to cause trouble.

"Fan fire to put it out, fan wind to stop it, fan water to make it rise, fan soil to disperse it, fan stone to turn it into gold." The old craftsman said that the palm fan in Han Zhongli's hand was given by Emperor Donghua and made from a thousand-year-old palm tree. This palm fan has infinite changes. When it is big, it covers the sky and the sun, and when it is moving, it rolls up the moon and moves the clouds. So even though Han Zhongli turned into a red fan, he still held the folding fan in his hand and waved it non-stop.

The old craftsman said that the one who really came to the old house and Zhu Huan was not Lü Dongbin, but Han Zhongli. Han Zhongli's fame and status among the Eight Immortals of Taoism are second only to Li Tieguai. In the Yuan Dynasty, Quanzhen Taoism worshipped him as the "Zhengyang Patriarch".

So why did Han Zhongli pick a fight with the old house and Zhu Huan? It was because he was too narrow-minded and wanted to compete for ranking.

The old craftsman told Zhu Huan that before the Ming Dynasty, there were many legends about the Eight Immortals. There were the Eight Immortals of the Han Dynasty, the Eight Immortals of the Tang Dynasty, and the Eight Immortals of the Song and Yuan Dynasties, and the immortals listed were different. It was not until the Ming Dynasty that Wu Yuantai's "Journey to the East" was determined to be: Tieguai Li (Li Xuan), Han Zhongli (Zhongli Quan), Zhang Guolao (Zhang Guo), Lü Dongbin (Lü Yan), He Xiangu (He Qiong), Lan Caihe (Xu Jian), Han Xiangzi, Cao Guojiu (Cao Jingxiu), commonly known as the "Eight Immortals of Taoism".

Among the Eight Immortals of the Han Dynasty, Han Zhongli ranked first, but in the Ming Dynasty he ranked second, so he naturally felt resentful. Wu Yuantai wrote "Journey to the East" while living in the old house.