When Yun Ye walked through the Vermilion Bird Gate, the sky had already darkened. Winter days were very short. The north wind blew from the north, sweeping over the treetops with wailing sounds that circled endlessly above the empty palace.
The eunuchs and palace maids in the palace all scurried along with legs pressed together, their eyes full of undisguisable panic.
Yun Ye looked around and nodded. This really was an excellent place to film a ghost movie. The environment was already sufficiently terrifying, and with the guest performances of those palace maids and eunuchs, the atmospheric pressure would immediately drop considerably. Living in such a place for long, it would be strange if one didn’t go mad.
Behind him, the palace gate clanged shut again. The gate tunnel immediately became pitch black, like a mouth ready to devour people at any moment. Wu She didn’t know from where he floated out, standing behind Yun Ye. If he hadn’t long grown accustomed to his appearing and disappearing like a ghost, he might well have been frightened sick.
“Next time you come out, can you make some noise with your feet? Suddenly standing behind someone—even healthy people would be frightened sick by you. As the saying goes, people scaring people can scare them to death. Next time you appear, at least make some noise with your feet, otherwise even healthy people will be frightened sick by you.”
Wu She laughed in his hoarse voice, saying: “Marquis Yun is a disciple of an immortal—are you also afraid of ghosts and demons?”
“Comparatively speaking, I’m more afraid of people. Ghosts are things that exist if you believe in them and don’t if you don’t. I’ve only seen people harm people, never seen ghosts harm people, so my master said: Respect ghosts and spirits but keep them at a distance. Of course, Master Confucius also said this, which shows these things really aren’t that frightening.”
The two chatted as they walked toward the inner city. The inner city was still very large. After walking for the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, they reached the lakeside. Some fool had planted the lake full of lotus flowers. The withered leaves sat atop the dry stems like hats. When the wind blew, the sound was very eerie, like someone walking—rustle, rustle.
Standing by the lake, he reached out and pulled off a dried lotus pod. Shaking it, the lotus seeds inside rattled continuously, like a small maraca.
Yun Ye continued westward without stopping. Wu She was quite puzzled. The Emperor was to the north, receiving the protection of Yuan Tiangang and his disciple, performing the most important evening prayers of the day. He didn’t know why Yun Ye was running to the west, thinking there must be some special significance, so he followed along.
He hadn’t eaten dinner, and after riding all the way, whatever food he’d had was jolted away somewhere. Yun Ye went west for no other reason than because the imperial kitchen was to the west.
Not bad—the Yun family’s kitchen maid was now the head chef. Seeing Yun Ye arrive, she smiled so broadly her eyes narrowed to slits. It seemed she was doing quite well in the palace—her body had become even more massive, her flesh jiggling with every two steps she took.
“Hua Niang, get me a chicken—roasted. A ready one would be best. I’m starving to death. Hurry up.”
Hua Niang knew the Marquis was someone who couldn’t stand being hungry. When he wanted to eat, he had to eat immediately, or he’d lose his temper. She quickly took out an oil-yellow fat chicken roasted in the oven, wrapped it in lotus leaves, and handed it to Yun Ye.
Taking the roasted chicken Hua Niang handed up, he passed her the lotus pod in his hand, saying: “Go pick some more lotus pods, extract the lotus seeds, cook them into porridge, add some silver ear fungus and that’s it. Just a little sugar, just enough to taste it.”
After speaking, he tore off a chicken leg and began eating. Wu She really didn’t have the patience to wait for him to finish. He grabbed him and quickly walked toward the Taiji Palace.
The Taiji Palace was wreathed in fragrant mist. Sandalwood incense was lit everywhere as if it cost nothing. A bagua mirror hung at the entrance. Yun Ye pulled it down to look at his face—ugly appearance, with a chicken leg still dangling from his mouth. He weighed it—heavy. Needless to say, gold had been added. Too wasteful to hang it on the door. He stuffed it in his bosom to keep it safe, planning to use it as part of Runniang’s dowry later. Last time, Yuan Tiangang’s congratulatory gift to Yiniang was just an eight-character fortune reading—way too cheap for him.
Li’er and Li Yuan, father and son, sat in the middle of the great hall. Yuan Tiangang, dressed as a Daoist, was walking around them with a peachwood sword. Looking carefully, he was actually treading the bagua, each step landing precisely on point, not off by a hair. From the beads of sweat on his forehead, he’d been walking for quite a while. Who knew how he’d persisted for so long? Yun Ye would get dizzy after two turns in such a small circle.
Li Tai and Li Ke held incense burners, standing at the door with worried expressions, watching their father and grandfather in the middle, very concerned.
Riding horses was hard labor, especially when Li Chengqian thought the carriage too slow and wanted to hurry—his waist had been jolted quite uncomfortably.
The great hall was empty. Except for the lofty dragon throne, there wasn’t a single chair. The cushions that officials usually sat on during court sessions were also nowhere to be seen. Having no choice, Yun Ye sat cross-legged on the floor to continue eating his chicken, while watching Yuan Tiangang’s monkey show.
Ever since experiencing the wormhole crossing incident, Yun Ye no longer believed in those supernatural matters at all, or rather, he wanted to scorn the immortals so they would produce evidence proving their existence.
The great names of Yuan Tiangang and Li Chunfeng could be called legendary through the ages. The “Tui Bei Tu” and “Weighing Bones Fortune Telling” were unparalleled in their time. But after Yun Ye had Yuan Tiangang read his fortune and received Yuan Tiangang’s solemn assertion that he was only sixteen years old, he no longer had a shred of respect for the old man. I clearly lived for over thirty years, and you say sixteen? You even calculated that my early life was full of hardships, destined to wander homeless—this was even more nonsense. When I was born, both my parents were alive. I was the first son in the family, and all my sisters doted on me. I grew up happily to adulthood. Though not wealthy, there were no major disasters. How did it become wandering homeless when it came to him?
Taking the story Yun Ye himself had fabricated and applying it, yet he still maintained that serious, unfathomable expression.
Li Tai sniffed. He was certain he smelled roasted chicken. His nose was very sensitive—even in the rich sandalwood incense, he could detect unusual scents. This was an advantage he’d always been proud of.
Looking up, he saw Grandfather and Father both had their eyes closed chanting sutras, and Mother was kneeling beneath the picture of Laozi riding an ox, praying. No one was paying attention to him. He quietly looked back for a glance. Just one look, and he was stunned.
He saw Yun Ye sitting not far behind him, holding a roasted chicken and attacking it, looking vicious and graceless. Seeing someone else eating, Li Tai’s stomach also rumbled. Only then did he remember his last meal had been breakfast.
For some reason, when he saw Yun Ye gnawing on roasted chicken, the worry in his heart vanished without a trace. This fellow must have a way to expel the ghosts and demons from the palace.
He lightly tapped Li Ke’s foot with his toe. Li Ke looked at him very dissatisfied, indicating this was a solemn occasion and not to fool around, but then noticed Li Tai gesturing mysteriously toward the back with his mouth.
Though he didn’t want to ruin Father’s and Grandfather’s important business, he still couldn’t resist the temptation of curiosity and looked back. He too discovered Yun Ye dealing with the roasted chicken, quietly throwing the torn-off chicken’s rear end behind a pillar.
He suppressed his laughter and exchanged a look with Li Tai. The brothers very tacitly took a step back together.
Yuan Tiangang’s movements became increasingly urgent. His long robe fluttered, his wide sleeves danced, and his footwork had changed from the bagua steps to the Big Dipper. Standing at the Tianquan position, he gave a great shout. Countless yellow talismans flew from his sleeves. His peachwood sword merely stabbed once, and one paper was pierced on it. When he swept back past the seven-star lamp, that paper immediately became a fireball. Under the billowing of his robe sleeves, not one of the scattered yellow talismans fell to the ground. The fireballs in his hand danced all around. Immediately, all the flying paper scraps were ignited. His sword continued to wave, occasionally batting a fireball. The scattered fireballs actually slowly gathered into one large fireball. Under the flickering candlelight, it was like a red sun, except this red sun was a bit greenish. If you said the paper didn’t have sulfur and phosphorus powder smeared on it, Yun Ye wouldn’t believe it even if you killed him.
Yun Ye was so surprised he forgot to gnaw the chicken in his hand. He couldn’t help but admire Yuan Tiangang. To deceive people, this took serious effort! With just this skill, performing on the street would earn him a fortune. Now it was being used as a placebo to comfort the spiritual worlds of the Li family father and son—what a waste. However, the compensation he received must be quite considerable, incomparable to street performing.
The fireball gradually extinguished. Yuan Tiangang also finished his work. His left hand formed a sword gesture, his right hand performed the Su Qin carrying a sword move, and the peachwood sword securely returned to the antique scabbard on his back.
“Your Majesty, Grand Emperor, this poor Daoist’s magical power is feeble. I can only do this much. The rest depends on other experts in the mortal world.” Yuan Tiangang was drenched in sweat. His thick padded jacket was soaked through with perspiration. Standing in the cold great hall, his whole body steamed like he’d been steamed in a pot. Anyone who dared say Yuan Tiangang hadn’t given his all would be speaking against their conscience.
Effort was effort, results were results. Some things in this mortal world don’t produce results just because you made an effort. This was an upright and proper principle. Anyone with the slightest thinking ability would acknowledge this principle. Yuan Tiangang had made his effort. What remained was beyond his capabilities and had nothing to do with him. The old fellow could now retreat with his honor intact.
Whether Li’er and Li Yuan could sleep tonight, he didn’t know. But Yuan Tiangang would definitely sleep sweetly and soundly tonight.
Zhangsun struggled up from the ground and rubbed her numb knees. After bowing to Yuan Tiangang, she said: “You’ve worked hard, True Person. We’re also doing our human utmost and leaving the rest to heaven’s will. If it works, that would be best. If it’s ineffective, that’s because evil demons invaded. True Person, please go rest in the side hall. Leave the palace tomorrow.”
“This poor Daoist doesn’t deserve the Empress’s courtesy. It’s just that today’s expenditure was excessive. I need to return to the monastery overnight to restore my vital energy. Please have the Empress send a eunuch to escort me out of the palace, that will suffice.” Yuan Tiangang stroked his dripping wet beard, appearing exhausted to the limit.
Yun Ye would bet that as soon as Yuan Tiangang returned to his Green Ox Monastery, he’d immediately fall ill. He’d definitely be very sick—the kind that couldn’t see people, couldn’t see light, couldn’t see wind, and especially couldn’t enter the palace again.
When this illness would recover depended on when the Li father and son could sleep well.
Yuan Tiangang wearily followed the young eunuch out of the Taiji Palace. Looking up at the brilliant starry sky, he let out a long breath. Just as he was preparing to leave, Yun Ye, with a chicken wing dangling from his mouth, blocked his way, one hand stretched out toward him very long, shaking it irritably twice.