During the Lantern Festival, "corpse kneeling down to worship corpses" appeared on the streets of Chang'an.
The deceased were all refugees, tied with red ropes and placed in strange kneeling postures, with a copper coin engraved with the word "borrow" in their mouths.
Rumors are spreading among the people that the "ghost bride" is seeking to survive by borrowing the yang energy of a living person.
Shen Qinghe, a specially hired widower of Dali Temple, is the daughter of a former criminal minister.
With a lancet in hand, she searched for the truth among the rotten flesh and bones.
"The corpse had no blood, but medicinal wine was injected into it; the throat bones were not injured, but it died of suffocation."
She could tell at a glance that this was not the work of ghosts and gods, but a carefully planned man-made disaster.
Xie Wei, a king with a different surname in the current dynasty, was in charge of the Imperial Army, and he was weak and ill.
He originally wanted to stand by and watch, but when he saw the woman calmly dissecting the body in the pile of corpses, he changed his mind.
"I will not arrest the ghost in Chang'an City. But if it is a pretended ghost, I will send him to see the real ghost."
As the investigation deepens, clues point to the underground "ghost market" and the mansions of powerful people.
From beggars to musicians, the identities of the victims are confusing.
When all the evidence pointed to a "filial" scholar, Shen Qinghe discovered a surprising secret on the bones -
"This is not a loss of life, it is a loss of life."
"Those who want to live often die the fastest; those who want to die are forced to live forever."
The red rope is not only tied to the corpse, but also the greediest desires deep in the human heart.
In this killing in the name of family affection, Shen Qinghe and Xie Wei joined forces to cut open the hypocrisy of the prosperous Chang'an.
Small Theater
Rainy night, in the autopsy room.
Shen Qinghe washed the blood on his hands and looked up into a pair of deep eyes.
Xie Wei leaned against the door, playing with the blood-stained copper coin, half-smiling but not smiling: "Shen Wuzuo, can this life-extending magic really make people live forever?"
Shen Qinghe said coldly: "If you believe me, Your Majesty, how about I cut open your stomach and take a look?"
Xie Wei chuckled, stepped forward, and trapped her between the desk and his chest: "I don't believe in immortality, I only believe in you. After all... The only person in this world who can come within three feet of me without dying is Shen Wu Zuo."
"Dissect the corpse with the knife, dissect the body with the heart."
"The snow in Chang'an City cannot cover up the blood under the red rope."
Concept: This story uses the absurd magic of "red rope to extend life" as a mirror to reflect the struggle and distortion of human nature on the edge of life and death. It explores an eternal proposition: When the lives of loved ones hang on a thread, can people cross moral boundaries for love? The answer is not simply right or wrong, but reveals that the real "borrowing life" is never praying to ghosts and gods, but a sinful transaction at the expense of the lives of others. The story ultimately points to awe of the dignity of life - any attempt to pave the road to immortality with the flesh and blood of others will eventually lead to the abyss of self-destruction.