Chapter 22: Yi-Son-in-Law

"Who is it?"

"It's that old boatman who poles the boat over there. I don't know his real name, but everyone on the pier respectfully calls him 'Yi-Son-in-Law'. This man has incredible water skills; even when waves several feet high crash down, he dares to dive right into them," the old laborer recalled.

"Yi-Son-in-Law?" This was the first time Xu Su had heard such a strange title.

"It means the son-in-law of the River Lord. The River Lord is the god of the water. Ancient books record the River Lord's name as Feng Yi," Yang Xiao explained simply.

Hearing Yang Xiao's words, the old laborer pursed his lips and offered a fawning smile, "This gentleman is very knowledgeable; that is exactly it."

"Where is this Yi-Son-in-Law? Take us to find him." Yang Xiao didn't waste words; if he could find an eyewitness to that shipwreck case, things would be much simpler.

Upon hearing this, the old laborer's expression turned subtle, and he shook his head, "He doesn't pole boats here anymore. After that incident, he quit his original job. It's said he swore a blood oath to the Dragon King never to go into the water again."

Through the old laborer's account, Yang Xiao was certain that this Yi-Son-in-Law must know some unknown secrets. The current priority was to find him and then figure out a way to pry his mouth open. "Where can I find this Yi-Son-in-Law?"

"This..." The old laborer looked troubled, his small eyes blinking craftily, "This Yi-Son-in-Law and I have a friendship, after all. You putting me in this position makes it very difficult for me."

Yang Xiao directly took out a piece of silver.

Seeing the silver, the old laborer's breathing quickened, but he still resisted moving, "It's mainly because it's been so many years. You see, my memory is a bit..."

Yang Xiao took out another piece of silver, this one much larger than the previous one, "No rush. If you can't remember, I'll go ask others. There are so many people on the pier, there will surely be one or two with a good memory."

"Don't, don't, don't! Now that you mention it, I suddenly remember!" The old laborer immediately stepped forward to snatch the silver, clutching it tightly in his hand, "This man lives in Li Si Hutong. It's the third house from the end on the west side of the alley. I bought wine for him a long time ago and went there once."

"Me parting with some silver is nothing, but if I find out you're making up lies to swindle us, the consequences will be very ugly." Yang Xiao leaned close to the old laborer and said with a fake smile.

"I wouldn't dare! I absolutely wouldn't dare!"

After giving him a warning, Yang Xiao and Xu Su intended to head back. The time agreed upon with the coachman was almost up, but they hadn't walked far when they heard footsteps behind them.

The old laborer who had chased after them swallowed hard, looking at Yang Xiao and his companion with a nervous expression. He hesitated for a long while before speaking: "You two gentlemen, since I've taken your silver, there are some things I must say. No matter the reason, take my advice: it's better if you don't dig too deep into this matter."

"I heard an old mate on the pier say after he got drunk that when this Yi-Son-in-Law escaped to the shore that night, he only had half a life left. He was gasping for air, and if it hadn't been for a wild doctor who happened to be there and force-fed him a few doses of potent medicine to keep him alive, he wouldn't have made it through the night."

"Do you know what the first thing this Yi-Son-in-Law shouted after waking up was?" The old laborer's breathing was rapid, "'Don't pull my feet, there are floaters in the water!'"

On the way back, Yang Xiao was still thinking about what the old laborer had said. He knew what "floaters" were—they were corpses in the water. However, what this Yi-Son-in-Law had encountered was likely not as simple as ordinary floating corpses; he probably meant water ghosts.

Just as he was thinking, a pancake was suddenly held out in front of him. He turned his head and met Xu Su's face, "Eat it while it's hot. You must be hungry after all this trouble."

The pancake was bought by Xu Su near the pier. She had bought several, yet she insisted on tearing one in half to give to him. Two people eating one, half for him and half for her—she really knew how to play the game...

While eating the pancake, Xu Su leaned her body closer, her eyes filled with a hint of admiration as she looked at Yang Xiao, "Hey, what exactly do you do? How do you know so much?"

"What are you referring to?" Yang Xiao took a bite of the pancake.

"Those strange things. The River Lord, the Water Dragon King, and... and those things inside the Feng Mansion. It was terrifying." Xu Su pretended to be scared and patted her chest.

"It's nothing. You'd know too if you read more books." Yang Xiao began to lecture Xu Su with a straight face, "Within books, one finds jade-like beauties; within books, one finds houses of gold."

"You're really something. If you ask me, books also talk about the affection between lovers and how heroes struggle to pass the beauty's trial! How come I haven't seen you learn that?" Xu Su leaned her upper body over, forcing Yang Xiao into the corner of the carriage in a playful manner, staring at him with burning eyes.

Yang Xiao couldn't help but sigh that this woman looked cold, but he hadn't expected her to be willing to put in such effort. However, Yang Xiao was used to meeting moves with counter-moves, putting on a bashful and coy expression. After all, he was only 24, and his appearance was even younger than his peers, like someone currently in university. Lacking sufficient social experience, it was normal to have such a constrained reaction when being actively pursued by a beautiful woman; this had nothing to do with his knowledge.

Seeing that her goal was achieved, Xu Su didn't press the attack, only asking coquettishly: "Then tell me honestly, how can I find you after we get out?"

*Heh, this is a roundabout way of probing my real identity... * Yang Xiao looked at Xu Su with some nervousness, his cheeks slightly flushed, and blurted out: "I... I work at a history museum, and while working, I'm preparing for the postgraduate entrance exam."

"Then we can be together." Xu Su's eyes softened, "Actually, I'm a university student too. What I said before about being a university teacher was to deceive them; after all, I was worried about meeting bad people. In this Script world, there are too few good people like you who can be relied upon."

"That Brother Kuang is fierce; he feels just like a murderer on the crime channel on TV. Every time I see him, I feel panicked."

"Ah, don't misunderstand, I'm just saying that. Brother Kuang might also be a good person; I just don't want you to be deceived."

*You really have a lot of drama, * Yang Xiao sighed, deciding to play along, "It's okay, I know you mean well. I will keep an eye on the other teammates."

"Mm, then I'm relieved." Xu Su feigned a sigh of emotion, then suddenly changed the subject, "By the way, back in the room with Master Feng's Paper Person, I saw you staring at the embroidered shoes on the floor—the pair with the tips cut off. It was so strange."

*After getting close, she's planning to fish for information. * Yang Xiao played the role to the end and answered very seriously: "That pair of embroidered shoes by the bed is indeed not right, because they weren't meant for people to wear; they were prepared for ghosts."

"Legend has it that at night, ghosts cannot see people sleeping on the bed, but they can see the shoes. They will stand on their tiptoes on the shoes, and then they can see the person in the direction the shoe tips are pointing."

"If you cut off the shoe tips, it's equivalent to covering the ghost's eyes. That's why there is an old saying in the yin-yang trade: 'Sever the shoe tips, cover the ghost's eyes.'"