Jing Mo knew that this young man was Tao Tao's cousin Zhining.

Zhi Ning said with a smile: "Brother, don't you often say that you are not afraid of ghosts?" How about now? I'll play with you, why are you so scared? Hahaha! He lowered his mask and patted Wei Taotao on the back.

Wei Taotao stood stiffly next to the desk, his face was red and white for a while, clearly surprised and ashamed.

Wei Zhining stretched out his left hand hidden behind his back again, holding a toy knife made of shiny foreign iron.

He added, "Didn't you buy this knife with me in the City God Temple?" You think this knife can kill people? Actually scared you like this, it seems that I am dressed well. ”

Zhi Ning waved the knife and grimaced at Tao Tao, and couldn't stop laughing. Mother Zhou and Tao Tao looked at each other on the wooden ground, and they were so embarrassed that they couldn't speak. Nie Xiaoman patted Tao Tao's shoulder and said, "Young man, now you can understand." Where the hell is there in this world? I expected your brothers to play with you, and you don't believe it. ”

Xiao Man paused, and then said, "Okay, now you can sleep peacefully, don't scare yourself anymore." He turned back to Zhou's mother and said: "You love the little master with loyalty, and your motives are not bad, but for the sake of preference, you make something out of nothing and suspect indiscriminately, which is unacceptable." Now that you have learned this lesson, you must no longer have unconscious resentment, which will cause disputes between families. As the saying goes, 'suspicion begets a dark ghost', you should remember this old saying. “

Nie Xiaoman put on his half arm again and nodded to Jing Mo.

"Jingmo, you also tasted the famous dish ginger crab and turtle that is about to be lost, and you have this pastime after the meal, is it worth the trip? You go back first, and I have to talk to Mr. Wei Xixian. ”

After Jing Mo waited for Nie Xiaoman to return to the hungry cat fast, he usually asked Nie Xiaoman to explain how he solved the case.

Nie Xiaoman was sitting down, and the ivory yellow stepped into his arms, rolled up comfortably in a circle, and seemed to want to hear what happened.

Nie Xiaoman said: "When I first listened to Wei Taotao's words, I felt that this young man's nerves were a little strange, and he was already convinced that there were ghosts. I knew that this matter could not be explained in words, so I went with him. I met Tao Tao's uncle, Wei Xixian, and thought that although he was a bit old-fashioned, he was a kind old-fashioned businessman. It's not like a person who eats meat and bones. I asked Wu San, who was in charge of the door, a few more words. Wu Sanren is still honest, and his favorite thing is to go to the teahouse to listen to Mr. Storyteller talk about gods and demons. He is also a little boyish, and I can't find any bad purpose in him, deliberately trying to frighten his little master. ”

Saying that, the ivory yellow swept its tail, and Xiao Man held it a little higher and continued.

"Later, I found a marquee lamp in the pottery bedroom, and there were a lot of loose papers in the guest room, all of which were toys for children in the New Year. In addition, on the white ~ pink wall under the window, another trace of rubbing by clothes was found. Therefore, I confirmed my hypothesis that the black face that Tao Tao saw on the window must be a mask that children played with in the New Year. ”

Jingmo said: "You thought of this speculation at the time. You had suspected that Tao Tao's two younger brothers were playing tricks. ”

Nie Xiaoman responded: "Yes." Could it be that the environment in which the boy lived was too old-fashioned and harsh, and the two servants were experts in ghost stories. Instead of interfering, parents even participated in the hearing. If a person is not influenced by the righteous path, then the impression of ghosts is deeply imprinted in the brain of the young man, and he gradually enters the realm of obsession. Alas, Jingmo, how important family education is. ”

He sighed slightly.

Jing Mo nodded, and asked again, "What happens after you confirm this speculation?" ”

Nie Xiaoman continued to explain: "I deduced from the traces on the powder wall that it seems that the person was wearing a mask and standing outside the window, not reaching the bottom window frame, so he stood on tiptoe. The body was pressed against the wall, leaving the traces of friction. I called Tao Tao's two cousins, Youning Zhining, to ask. The two of them denied it at first, but then I went upstairs and found the mask and the knife, and Zhi Ning confessed. He said that it was because he had heard a ghost story that he came up with the idea of pretending to be a ghost and playing with his brother. ”

"So what about the whereabouts of Zhining? How could it be without a trace? ”

"That's also very simple, it's not worth laughing at. You've seen the hall too, it's big and empty, and it's not lit at night, and it's certainly easier to hide. Zhi Ning walked into the patio from the guest hall, and hid in the dark corner of the guest hall afterwards. Tao Tao and Zhou's mother were chasing in a panic, but of course they couldn't see it. ”

Jing Mo couldn't help laughing. "In this case, this case is complete child's play. That's why you invented this child's play method to make the ending. Isn't it? ”

Nie Xiaoman's face suddenly sank, and he said, "Jingmo, it's too simple for you to say this!" ”

"Huh? Simple? Could it be that if you do this, there is still a big problem in it? ”

"yes. From one point of view, this work relieves a layer of suspicion between families; On the other hand, it also saved the life of a teenager. Why don't you understand my intentions? ”

"Oh, that's amazing?"

"Do you know how much fear you felt in your nerves when Wei Taotao first came? He's almost on the verge of madness, and he's going to go crazy any further. Therefore, I explained to him again and again at first, but to no avail. If I don't try to show him like this, just by verbal explanations, do you think he will be able to believe it? ”

At this point, the big yellow cat jumped away again, and ran into the darkness.

Xiaoman said: "In this world, there are people who believe in ghosts, and there are people who don't believe in ghosts, and it is usually difficult for the two to reach a consensus, and neutral people are the objects they woo." And the phrase that ghost believers often use to persuade neutrals is: 'You can disbelieve, but you can't be disrespectful.' ’”

Jing Mo pondered for a moment and said, "Well, the so-called would rather believe what it has than what it doesn't." ”

Nie Xiaoman said with a smile: "Yes, even Confucius said that you should respect ghosts and gods and stay away, pay attention to this honorific word." ”

Jing Mo said: "Okay, the first time I heard this, I thought it was a little bizarre. "I don't believe" means that I don't think it exists, and since I don't think it exists, how can I respect a concept that doesn't exist? Of course, there is a second explanation for "I don't believe it", which is that I don't fully believe it, that is, in my opinion, it is dispensable and uncertain. I support this view, because the existence of ghosts and gods is neither provable nor falsifiable, and no one can justify his existence or not. But even with that point of view, I still don't feel like I can respect it. ”

Xiaoman nodded: "What kind of thoughts do most people who 'rather believe it than believe it'?" Something like this: although I don't know if the ghost god really exists, as long as I respect him, if he exists, he will feel my respect, and he will not hurt me or even help me; If he doesn't exist, I don't suffer. Anyway, if you don't suffer a loss, it may still be beneficial, so why not do it? ”

Jingmo replied. "Well, that's what a lot of people think."

Xiao Man smiled: "There is a big fallacy in this kind of thinking, that is, he presupposes that divine nature and ghost nature are equivalent to human nature. How do you know that if you respect him, he will feel it? How do you know that if you respect him, he will be happy? If it is a god of the nine clouds, are you interested in the world of mediocrity like ants? For example, would you be interested in the appeal of the chickens and dogs in your house, maybe you would be harmful to them, and if you were found crying out, you would be immediately destroyed by God? If it is an evil ghost of the eighteenth layer of hell, will it look up to your respect? They have all become ghosts, and if they are all evil-doers in their lives, they like to break people's delusions, and what if they kill someone who respects ghosts? ”

Jing Mo thought for a while, and said with a smile: "What you said is extremely reasonable, so why do we have to be careful to worship those mud tires?" ”

Nie Xiaoman shook his head and said, "In the final analysis, mortals don't understand the needs of ghosts and gods at all, and they can't please them at all. Because I don't understand, I can only pretend to substitute what I need into ghosts. If there are really ghosts and gods in this world that need to be worshipped, it is better to show the exact miracles as soon as possible, and there will be a large number of believers immediately. If they don't do this, it means that they don't need your respect and worship at all. Either they can't affect this life at all, and they can't even communicate. ”

It's dark at night, and it's time to go to bed.