CH 18

The blizzard spluttered on and off for another day and another night. From the perspective of Xue Xian and Jiang Shining, this was both good and bad.

The good part was that the mule who did all the work, Jiang Shining, was a rogue ghost who feared yang energy. During the snowstorm, black clouds covered the entire sky, suppressing yang and nourishing yin. This was convenient for Jiang Shining, as he no longer needed to hide anytime the sun came out.

The bad part was...

"Protect my face! Quick! The wind is gonna blow my head off!" Xue Xian roared at Jiang Shining.

With such a fierce wind, he naturally couldn't sit on Jiang Shining's shoulder. Jiang Shining had no other choice but to tuck Xue Xian into the front of his robe, but with Xue Xian’s head sticking out so that this restless one could enjoy the scenery. But the freak wind refused to obey the laws of nature: it blew about in all directions, screeching all the while.

Grimacing, Jiang Shining raised his hand to cover Xue Xian's paper head and continued struggling against the wind. "You could also just put your precious head inside my robe." 

"No," Xue Xian said firmly. "You'll get lost without me."

Jiang Shining: “...” Does he have no shame?

Xue Xian laughed coldly. "When we get to the town, you'll be begging me to give you directions."

Jiang Shining: “...”

They were heading to a place two towns over from Ningyang County known as Wolong County. Its county seat, Wolong Xian Cheng, was one of the towns along the river. There was an old and weathered ferry service there.

The river port was very small and did not serve many customers each day. It certainly wasn't the only way to get to Anqing Prefecture. The reason why they had chosen this route for their river crossing was because Xue Xian wanted to pay a visit to someone in Wolong County.

"There’s a family that lives to the east of the river port," Xue Xian had explained. "Technically, they’re two brothers, but they don’t look that family-like. The last few times I visited, they wouldn't stop bickering. The older one has some talent [a] –– I need him to take a look at my golden marble. He might be able to tell me where the fisherman is: the one who sold it to Liu-shiye." 

Jiang Shining had thought: If he's visited more than once, then this must be a powerful master. He thus obediently headed toward Wolong County.

In order to avoid having to cross checkpoints in the two towns between Ningyang Xian Cheng and Wolong Xian Cheng, they elected to use mountain paths. Between the two of them, there was a dragon and a ghost, and they were used to moving around at night, so there should have been nothing to worry about.

But rumor had it that these mountains were crawling with savage bandits. There wasn’t an overwhelming amount, but they were still a nuisance to any horses or carriages that tried to cross. Because Xue Xian was carrying that golden marble, Jiang Shining fretted the whole way, terrified that they would come across a gang who would not hesitate to rip them to shreds.

At one of the abandoned temples where they'd taken shelter, Jiang Shining noticed slashes on the building's pillars. It looked like the traces of a battle between swordsmen. In the corner, he saw dried splatters of blood, which did not help his acute anxiety. 

But somehow –– perhaps because of the route they'd taken, or some other coincidence –– they did not catch even a glimpse of a mountain bandit. They did come across one or two horse-drawn carriages, and when they did so, they happily turned back into paper form to hitch a ride.

All in all, the journey had been strangely uneventful.

On the fourth day, they arrived at their destination city's gates unscathed. Jiang Shining was incredulous. "Are we that lucky?"

"Most people are terrified of having their treasures stolen or of coming face to face with a bandit. But here you are, wishing you'd run into one. What's wrong with you?" Xue Xian said, looking up at the city gate.

"Wolong County––" Jiang Shining read the sign out loud. "They say that any place with Long, dragon, in its name has actually been visited by a dragon. Wolong means 'hidden dragon' –– has a dragon slumbered here?" 

Xue Xian pulled a face. "This puny town isn't even big enough to take a step in. Why the fuck would anyone slumber here? Not me!"

Confused, Jiang Shining stared at him. "I wasn't talking about you."

They had arrived at just the right time. The morning bell rang wu geng from somewhere in the center, the sound moving across the city in ripples. After the fifth ring, the city gates slowly opened.

As the guards pushed open the gate, Jiang Shining ducked into a shadow in the corner, where he planned to turn paper-thin and slip inconspicuously into the city. That way, he could avoid having to speak to the patrol and answer nosy questions. But as he was stepping away, he felt his heel come into contact with something on the ground.

"What is it?" Xue Xian asked.

Jiang Shining bent over and brushed away the patch of snow beside his footprint. It was a misshapen flake of metal.

He held it against the light cast by the lanterns on the city wall and inspected it. The flake was around the size of his thumb. On one side was a rough carving in the shape of a wolf's head, and on the other, a name. But the name had been repeatedly slashed off, so that it was utterly illegible.

"Another one," muttered Jiang Shining as he rummaged in his robes and procured a second, identical flake.

He had picked up that flake earlier, while they'd been resting in an abandoned temple. That one was still covered in blood, and the name on it had also been scribbled out so that not a single character could be read.

Xue Xian said, "Keep it for now."

Jiang Shining slipped both flakes back into his robe. He made sure that the guards weren't watching and, without delay, slid into the city. 

Inside, he froze in shock.

Wolong Xian Cheng did not look like Ningyang at all. He couldn't see a single straight street, only all sorts of twisting and turning lanes that seemed to lead nowhere. It was the most chaotic kind of labyrinth.

Reluctantly, Jiang Shining looked down at Xue Xian. "How... Where do I go?" 

Gleefully, Xue Xian gave his marble a hug and tilted his head. "Go to that street and cut east through the lane behind Zhang's Crispy Cakes." 

"See that stall selling sesame sweets? Turn west at that corner."

"Find the alley that smells like seafood wontons. Yes, that one. Go down that alley."

…

As they navigated the city, Jiang Shining began to feel terribly hungry. And he was a ghost! Who knew when the last time was that he’d actually felt hunger.

“Is food the only way you know your way around?" Jiang Shining asked. He looked miserable. 

Xue Xian looked up from his marble and nodded. "Yes. Now shut up and keep walking. The sun's coming up soon. Once we pass the pork shop and a restaurant called Baishun, we'll be there!" 

Jiang Shining rolled his eyes.

Although this zuzong was irritating to no end, he had indeed picked the quickest route. They passed Baishun Restaurant and Jiang Shining saw a river port floating in the fog ahead of them. A flag flapped violently in the wind, and some small boats were bobbing up and down by the shore.

Jiang Shining raised his hand and again used it to cover the paper man's head. Shrinking into his robes, he walked against the harsh wind toward the neighborhood to the east of the ferry.

"Zuzong, can you please sit still? If you get blown away by the wind, I won't come save you," mumbled Jiang Shining unhappily.

But Xue Xian was angling his head to look behind them. "Why do I feel like there's someone behind us?" he said with a tsk.

Jiang Shining stopped and turned in a circle, trying to see what Xue Xian had thought he'd seen. "I don't see anyone suspicious here. Were you confused by the snowflakes?" 

"Perhaps," Xue Xian muttered. Feeling safer, his head darted back into the robe.

He thought: If someone really was following us, their steps would make a crunching sound in the snow, but I don't hear anything. Perhaps I’m overthinking it...

Following Xue Xian's orders, Jiang Shining quickly arrived at a discreet set of doors deep into the neighborhood. In fact, ‘set of doors’ was an overstatement. From the outside, this courtyard looked to be smaller than a chicken hut. The front door only consisted of one door instead of two, and that door was streaked with age. The humidity had caused some mold to grow on it, and no one seemed bothered to clean it off.

It seemed that this household did not know how to take care of itself.

"Knock," said Xue Xian.

Even the way Jiang Shining knocked on a door was full of refinement and elegance. Those three dududu sounds he made were light and dull. Xue Xian scowled impatiently. "That was about as loud as a mosquito's buzz. There's no way the brothers inside heard it. One of them has an injured ear. Go ahead and knock as loud as you can."

Jiang Shining knocked again, louder and harsher this time, all the while saying, "Sorry, sorry," under his breath.

After a long time, there finally came the low crunch of someone shuffling through the snow. 

Perhaps it was the hindrance of the snow, but the footsteps made the person sound to be... limping? 

"How old are the brothers?" Jiang Shining couldn’t help but ask.

"Oh," Xue Xian responded, "the little one is eight or nine. The older one is maybe sixteen or seventeen."

Jiang Shining gaped. "What? You're asking a kid to tell your fortune?"

In that moment, the single rotten door was violently pulled open.

“Thief! Get out!!" roared a childish-sounding voice.

Then there was a splash. Out of nowhere, a tub of water hurtled towards them and soaked the unsuspecting Jiang Shining from head to foot!

After all, Jiang Shining's body was made of paper! After being doused with water, his whole body turned soft and he crumpled weakly to the floor. Nor could Xue Xian, hiding in his robe, escape the same fate: he flung himself away and landed on the wet floor with a slap, the golden marble tumbling away from his arms and rolling toward the door.

The person inside threw their wooden tub aside with a clang, then, after a pause, shot out a hand and grabbed the marble before hurriedly shutting the door again.

Just as Xue Xian, stuck to the ground, began to curse at the culprit, a warm hand landed from the heavens and peeled him away from the floor. 

That hand brought with it a familiar, bitter stench of medicine, which was so sharp that it made Xue Xian sneeze. He limply hung his head, unable to lift it at all. He yelled, "Bald donkey! What did I ever do to you? Did I kill your family or raid your tomb? Why won't you leave me alone? Aren't you fucking tired from following me for eight hundred li? [b] Huh?!"

A cold, calm voice replied, "Thank you for your concern. I am not tired."

“...” Xue Xian so furious he wanted to vomit blood. If only I could throw him into the river!

The newcomer who had appeared at the chicken-hut courtyard was none other than Xuanmin.

He held Xue Xian’s damp paper body in one hand and picked up Jiang Shining, who had also reverted to his small paper form. With those two pinched between his fingers, he rudely pushed open the wooden door.

With sweeping steps, he walked into the courtyard and grabbed the ‘little thief’ before the latter could escape. He looked down at the child and said, "Stealing is forbidden. Return the marble."

---

[a] Musuli uses the phrase 本事 (ben3 shi4), which means skill or ability. Here, it is a vague way of saying that the person in question has skill in the magical or mystical arts. 

[b] 800 li = 400 km.