When the book-traveling little detective meets the two-faced prince

Soon, the clear sound of the bells became clearer.

There was no need for suppression by force; the people kept silent on their own accord. All the people present, including the soldiers under Cheng Su, held their breath and stared at the direction where the sound came from in the mist.

Every time the clear bell rang, his expression became more and more panicked, as if there was a monster that could devour people hidden in the mist.

Some of the timid ones have already started to move and left Pinghai Lake in a panic.

Chang Feizhang looked at the lake, then at Cheng Su who had a serious expression, and cold sweat kept pouring down his face.

Seeing this, Guan Ziheng also wanted to leave. His legs and feet felt a little weak, but when he saw Lin Lezhi still standing there as if nothing had happened, he felt too embarrassed to say that he wanted to leave. He mustered up his courage and stood there, but he didn't dare look at the lake and kept his eyes down.

Gradually, the white mist was covered with a layer of light yellow halo. This yellow halo seemed to have unravelled the veil of the mist, revealing a small wooden corner.

As the water flows, its true appearance slowly reveals itself.

"It's a lantern boat!"

One of the people recognized the object floating out of the mist and shouted loudly.

After seeing that it was a lantern boat, the people's nervous mood was relieved a little, and many people began to respond. One person said with certainty: "It is a lantern boat, and the lanterns on the boat are mine!"

The boat sailed out of the mist backwards, and a few lanterns placed on the boat were visible. The candlelight of the lanterns shone through the mist, trying to emit their faint light.

"It seems that only the rope broke. Fortunately, God blesses us and the boat floated back by itself." A commoner standing on the other side clasped his hands together to thank God, but after a while he looked at the person next to him with a puzzled look and asked, "But who tied a bell on the boat last night?"

The people around shook their heads, indicating that they didn't know. The person closest to the man who was speaking guessed, "I don't know, but there were so many people on the lantern boat last night, maybe someone went up to hang the bell."

However, no one admitted it at the time.

As the water flows forward, the lantern boat becomes more clearly visible to people.

After seeing the lantern boat, a citizen said excitedly: "Look, everyone, all the lanterns on the lantern boat are lit!"

After a brief silence, the people's faces were filled with joy.

Lin Lezhi nudged Guan Ziheng with his elbow and said, "Ziheng, look, it's really a lantern boat."

Guan Ziheng looked at Lin Lezhi, and after seeing Lin Lezhi's expression of belief in him, he glanced doubtfully at the lake.

He wanted to just take a perfunctory look, but after this glance, Guan Ziheng couldn't lower his eyes, and his eyes were always fixed on the approaching ship.

In the dim sky, the lantern boats floating in the lake, with all the lanterns lit, are particularly beautiful.

It's like a god descending, captivating everyone.

The people let down their guard, breathed a sigh of relief, stopped thinking about the bells on the boat, and started chatting with the people around them.

"I thought this year would be like eleven years ago, but fortunately it's not."

"Yes, this is the first time that all the lanterns are lit up. It's really a miracle!"

"........."

Eleven years ago?

Could it be... related to the disappearance of the people in Huaifeng Village?

Lin Lezhi glanced in the direction of the speaker. The person who was speaking was the one who shouted slogans when the rope was pulled just now. Among the dozen people, he looked the oldest.

The people near the lakeshore immediately knelt down and kowtowed three times on the ground. They put their hands together and thanked devoutly: "It must be that God appreciated our sincerity and responded to our prayers. Thank you! Thank you to all the gods for blessing our Pinghai Town."

The boat had been drifting on the lake for a whole night with its line cut off and the wind blowing all night, but now not a single light was out. Lin Lezhi felt that this was even more mysterious than not having any light at all.

Could it be that there really are invisible gods who cast a barrier on the ship to protect the lanterns?

Lin Lezhi looked at the boat gradually drifting towards the shore, his eyes darkened.

The noise around made Cheng Su look a little unhappy. Chang Feizhang, who had been observing the situation from the side, shouted, "The lantern boat will soon dock. Everyone, please be quiet for a while and don't disturb the ceremony."

Chang Feizhang easily understood the people's psychology and successfully calmed them down. He then looked at the leading boatmen and said, "When the boat is about to dock, use a rope to secure it to prevent it from swaying back and forth."

"I understand, Magistrate Chang. Just leave it to us." The leading boatman responded with a confident smile.

It took time to pull the rope originally tied to the lantern boat out of the water. The boatman took a spare long rope from the dock and stood ready waiting.

The people all looked expectantly as they watched the lantern boat gradually approach the shore.

When the lantern boat was about one meter close to the shore, the boatman found the right moment and jumped onto the boat steadily with the rope. The moment he jumped onto the boat, the hull and the lanterns on the boat shook.

The boatman stepped on the deck under his feet, looking a little confused.

But the boatman did not stop, and quickly tied the long rope in his hand to the stern of the boat. Then he stood up and shouted to other boatmen on the shore: "Catch it!" After that, he threw the rope in his hand to the shore, and other boatmen on the dock caught it quickly.

When the lantern boat approached the shore, the leading boatman took out a longboard from the deck and placed the longboard between the boat and the pier the moment the boat docked.

After doing all this, the boatman walked down from the boat smoothly.

"Mr. Chang, the boat has been secured. You may get on board." The boatman stepped forward and said respectfully.

Chang Feizhang nodded, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, and waved to the yamen runner who was holding a wine cup beside him. His expression and behavior were full of anxiety, as if he was afraid that something would go wrong and make Cheng Su unhappy.

The yamen runner came forward with a tray, and Chang Feizhang turned to Cheng Su and respectfully clasped his fists and asked, "General Cheng, the boat has already docked. I would like to trouble you to help the people sail the boat to bring good luck."

Seeing that Chang Feizhang was unable to handle the heavy responsibility and was timid, Cheng Su was very displeased, but with so many people present, Cheng Su still took the wine cups from the tray.

Cheng Su held up the wine cup in both hands, walked to the deck and shouted loudly: "Thank God for your sincerity, and sail for blessings--!"

After shouting, Cheng Su poured the wine in the glass onto the deck of the lantern boat.

"Thank you, General Cheng." Chang Feizhang shouted respectfully, and the people also knelt down and followed his lead.

Lin Lezhi subconsciously looked at Xiao Yihuo, but Xiao Yihuo still just pretended to do so. He didn't kneel down, and didn't even move his lips.

Lin Lezhi almost couldn't help laughing.

"Everyone get up." Cheng Su raised his hand and shouted.

After the people got up, they walked to the boat in waves, chose a place where there were no lanterns, and prayed for their own families. The bells on the boat also rang continuously as the people got on and off the boat.

After several waves of people boarded the island, Cheng Su didn't want to wait any longer, so he turned around and said to Hong Mingxu, "Count the number of people and prepare to go to the island."

"Yes!" Hong Mingxu turned around and shouted to the soldiers standing by, "Count the number of people and prepare to set sail!"

The ceremony ended successfully, and Guan Ziheng whispered to Lin Lezhi: "Lezhi, I'll go back first..."

"what--!"

At this moment, a scream from a citizen was suddenly heard!

Lin Lezhi and his companions turned around and saw a civilian pointing at the lake below the boat with a pale face, shouting tremblingly: "The boat... the boat is bleeding, the boat is bleeding!"

Cheng Su turned around and looked at the lake, his brows furrowed and he clenched his fists at his sides, his eyes darkening.

A bright red spread out around the boat, and the glaring red was still spreading outward.