Chapter 305: Sixteen Heavenly Demon Dance

"Brother Jing: Not all antiques are expensive, and it's certainly not the case that the older an antique is, the more valuable it becomes. You have to look at the condition and material, and even more so at the craftsmanship, technique, cultural, and historical value."

"It is indeed a Han Mirror, but to put it bluntly: it's a mass-produced item, and there are many of them still in existence, so its value as a collectible isn't very high."

Jing Zeyang peered at the mirror: "How high is 'not high'?"

"This piece is slightly more special: it's the beast-biting-dragon-and-tiger style, with a rhino and a tiger's tail, so the value is a bit higher, roughly ten or twenty thousand!"

Jing Zeyang was stunned for a moment: Ten or twenty thousand isn't high?

Cousin Lin, you need to get this straight, we didn't pay a single cent?

He looked astonished: "That stingy boss was actually willing to part with it?"

Lin Sicheng thought for a moment: "He probably didn't research it deeply and just took it for an ordinary Han Mirror worth a thousand or eight hundred. But this type belongs to a variant from the late Eastern Han Dynasty that incorporates grassland gold-ware styles; it has more copper and less lead, and the decorative patterns are intricate. Whether in terms of culture, history, or craftsmanship, its representativeness is a bit higher..."

Heh, was it that the boss didn't research it deeply?

He didn't understand it at all, so how could he research it?

That settles it then.

Based on Jing Zeyang's understanding of Lin Sicheng, the real price could probably be half as much again, or maybe even double. If you calculate that, that's twenty or thirty thousand.

Tsk, that's two years of his salary?

It was a wish fulfilled, and he'd have bragging rights in the future; Jing Zeyang happily wrapped it up.

He pondered in his heart how to return this favor.

Tang Nan Yan and Xu Qin looked at each other: first it was Jade, then a Rhino Horn Cup, then porcelain, and now it was Bronze?

And during this time, he was also doing Artifact Research on ancient texts?

By this calculation, is there almost no common antique on the market that Lin Sicheng cannot appraise?

They say that every trade has its master and that different professions are like mountains apart; why does this saying not hold true when applied to Lin Sicheng?

The key is, he's still so young?

With her gaze sweeping over Lin Sicheng's profile, looking at his handsome features, Xu Qin turned her head and stared at Tang Nan Yan.

Subconsciously, she recalled the first time she met Lin Sicheng, the day of the training, and the joke she made with Tang Nan Yan:

The young man is quite handsome, and his abilities are so strong. Tsk, his personality doesn't seem bad either, quite steady.

How about it, should I introduce you?

It was indeed just a joke at the time, but thinking about it now: it didn't seem impossible.

The two are three years apart, which is indeed a bit of a gap, but that's not a problem at all.

With Lin Sicheng's ability, if he said: I want to come to Beijing, every unit at the Municipal Bureau would absolutely fight to have him. Things like residency and work wouldn't be anything he'd need to worry about.

The two are only three years apart; how does that saying go: a woman three years older is like holding a gold brick...

As she thought, Xu Qin revealed an auntie-like smile. Tang Nan Yan was confused and touched her face: "Sister Xu, is my makeup ruined?"

"No, wait, I didn't even wear makeup today."

Xu Qin rolled her eyes at her: A blockhead who doesn't get it.

Your mom and dad are so anxious, yet you, on the other hand, don't take anything to heart?

Secretly changing her train of thought, the five of them strolled slowly forward, and before they knew it, they arrived at the west gate of the market.

That Xingyi Quan manual from last time was found right here.

The stalls were still the same, the items were still the same, and the bosses were still the same.

So, as soon as they entered the aisle, someone recognized them.

The contrast was truly too strong and too recognizable: Jing Zeyang had his hands in his pockets, looking sloppy and arrogant, with "I'm a big deal" written all over his face.

Lin Sicheng was unhurried and spoke kindly; in both his words and his demeanor, he exuded an air of "youthful maturity."

Furthermore, it had only been a few days since Liu Dongzi and his gang were arrested, and these past few days were exactly when the discussion was at its peak. Lin Sicheng was so striking in appearance that it would be hard not to remember him.

Suddenly, many pairs of eyes looked over.

"Hey, look guys: was Liu Dongzi put away by those two?"

"It's those two!"

"The people are right, but when the Police came that day, they had already left?"

"Believe me, it's them. Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence: they just left the stall, and the Police arrived?"

"That's true too, anyway, just don't provoke them, definitely don't call out to them..."

Several vendors pointed and whispered. The voices were very low and they were far away, so they definitely couldn't hear clearly. But Tang Nan Yan was a Police officer after all, and she knew how to read expressions.

She glanced twice and turned back: "Jing Zeyang, did you cause trouble again?"

"Why is it me?" Jing Zeyang squinted his eyes, "Why couldn't it be Cousin Lin, or Assistant?"

Assistant?

He looks like a bookworm; he'd probably jump if he saw a mouse.

As for Lin Sicheng... that's absolutely impossible.

Tang Nan Yan would rather believe Jing Zeyang is a pig than believe Lin Sicheng would cause trouble.

The key is, having Jing Zeyang follow him every day, she always feels like he's going to bring disaster and trouble to Lin Sicheng...

Tang Nan Yan's eyes were like needles; Jing Zeyang felt his scalp tingle from being stared at: "Why are you looking at me?"

"Behave yourself in the future and stop adding trouble for Teacher Lin."

"You eat so little but manage so much..."

Tang Nan Yan clenched her fist, and Jing Zeyang shrank his neck: "It really has nothing to do with me, if you don't believe me, ask Cousin Lin?"

Lin Sicheng smiled: "It did indeed start because of me; that Xingyi Quan manual was found right here..."

He gave a rough account of what happened, and Tang Nan Yan's eyes flickered; her impression of Lin Sicheng deepened by another notch.

Righteous and eager to help, rooting out the strong to aid the weak, brave and resourceful.

Unlike that guy surnamed Jing, who knows nothing but causing trouble from morning till night.

Tang Nan Yan's eyes swept back and forth; when she looked at Lin Sicheng, it was full of admiration, but when she looked at Jing Zeyang, her face was full of disdain.

Even a fool would know what she is thinking?

Jing Zeyang secretly curled his lip: This woman's brain is sick, comparing me to Lin Sicheng?

If you've got the ability, go ahead and pull everyone you know over here, compare them one by one, and see which one can compare to me?

In a flash, his heart skipped a beat: This tomboy isn't blooming like an iron tree, is she—has she gone into heat?

But looking at her expression, it doesn't quite feel like it?

Just as he was guessing wildly, a voice came from the side: "Where are you bosses going? Come over here and take a look."

The accent was quite strange; Jing Zeyang didn't understand a single word, and Tang Nan Yan and Xu Qin were more or less the same.

Fang Jin only understood two words: "Bosses."

Hearing the familiar hometown accent, Lin Sicheng stopped in his tracks.

This is the Southern Shanxi dialect; to be able to speak it so authentically, he must be from Yuncheng.

But it was mixed with a bit of the Beijing "er" sound, indicating he had been in Beijing for many years.

This wasn't strange; what was strange was that after walking this whole way and passing twenty or thirty stalls, the other vendors looked at him and Jing Zeyang as if they were seeing tigers clearing the streets, avoiding them at all costs, yet only this one took the initiative to greet them.

"Just wandering around." Lin Sicheng smiled: "Manager, business is booming!"

The stall owner's eyes lit up: "Is the boss also from Yuncheng? Last time you asked Liu Dongzi in our hometown dialect if he was from Yuncheng, I felt we must be fellow townsmen; sure enough, we are..."

As he spoke, he handed over a few folding stools: "Boss, sit, sit, sit, let's sit down and talk!"

Lin Sicheng took them and looked at the nearby vendors: they all had strange, slightly terrified expressions.

It was as if they were saying: Others are avoiding you like the plague, and you, of all people, are taking the initiative to provoke them?

Lin Sicheng sat down: "Manager, aren't you afraid I'll cause you trouble?"

"Setting up a stall to do business, it's all voluntary; if the deal doesn't go through, the goodwill remains. I don't cheat, I don't swindle, I don't hoodwink, and I don't deceive, so why would you cause me trouble?"

The Manager didn't care at all, took out a cigarette case to offer a smoke, and seeing Lin Sicheng didn't smoke, he put it back.

Then he looked left and right, and lowered his voice: "That boxing manual of Ji Shenquan, it's not bad, right?"

Huh?

Lin Sicheng paused and looked at him twice.

The Manager's expression seemed calm, but his eyes were a bit Floating.

Understood, this is testing him...

Lin Sicheng was noncommittal: "It's alright!"

The Manager's spirits lifted: Just as expected.

"After you left last time, Liu Dongzi was arrested. A lot of people here said: You spent two thousand yuan on a broken book just to set a trap for Liu Dongzi. But a bunch of blind fools, how would they recognize a good thing? Only I know, Boss, you have eyes like torches and knew the value of that boxing manual..."

The stall owner paused: "Actually, that book of Liu Dongzi's, it was taken from me..."

Lin Sicheng's heart stirred: "Is that so?"

"Absolutely true... Liu Dongzi and I are both from Yuncheng, we were originally partners, collecting things from our hometown and bringing them here to flip."

"Later, he thought this made money too slowly, and I don't know how he started talking to some local thugs in the market and wanted to change trades to stage accidents. I didn't want to do it, so later we split the goods and broke up... That boxing manual was something I collected from our hometown."

"Ji Jike, Ji Shenquan, how famous is he in our hometown? So I've always suspected that the book was copied by the descendants of the Ji family, but no one believed it..."

Lin Sicheng suddenly realized: No wonder he dared to call out to him and was so attentive; it turns out there was such a connection?

He really is quite observant; he remembered him just because he said one sentence in the Southern Shanxi dialect.

"You mean you have more here and want to sell them to me, right?" Lin Sicheng smiled, "Also boxing manuals?"

"The Boss is a straightforward person!" The stall owner gave a thumbs up, "I'll tell you the truth: there was only that one boxing manual, but there are others, and they are definitely old books. If you take a liking to them, just give me any price..."

"Fine, take them out and let me see!"

The stall owner stood up immediately and pulled a rattan trunk from behind him. It was partitioned inside and filled with old books.

The stall owner hugged them out stack by stack and laid them out one by one. Lin Sicheng glanced at them, his eyes slightly bright.

I have to say, there really were quite a few strange, rare, and uncommon old books.

There were vernacular novels from the Qing Dynasty, local gazetteers from the late Qing, miscellaneous books on daily life, and historical notes. There were even travel guides to the Wind and pleasure quarters and gambling dens of the Jiangnan Qinhuai region written by ancients.

Anyway, it was a hodgepodge of everything.

While Lin Sicheng was still looking at the titles, Jing Zeyang was quick-handed and snatched one of them into his hand.

"Cousin Lin, is this a book specifically about setting up scams in the old society?"

Lin Sicheng glanced at it; four large characters were written on the cover: Prostitution and Gambling Mechanisms.

He smiled: "This was written by a Nanjing person during the Ming Dynasty, but this 'mechanism' doesn't refer to a trap, but rather to places, destinations, tricks, and methods. It's perfectly fine to treat it as a Ming Dynasty Qinhuai River travel guide..."

"Tricks for prostitution and gambling, Qinhuai River... Huh?" Jing Zeyang's eyeballs rolled around, and he flipped it open quickly.

This book was written early, probably in the mid-Ming Dynasty, specifically introducing the Wind and pleasure quarters in the Jiangnan region, as well as guiding tourists on how to visit painting boats, choose courtesans, and how to gamble. It also taught courtesans how to choose guests and how to serve them, and even taught pimps and madams how to train them.

But things have changed, so Jing Zeyang was just looking for novelty and a bit of fun.

Tang Nan Yan let out a "Tsk," her face full of disgust.

After looking, she also picked one up. The book was titled *Guwangyan* (Idle Talk); seeing these three characters, she thought it was a work reflecting ancient social life and moral concepts.

It was quite normal when she first opened it, but the more she read, the more wrong it felt, the more wrong it felt. When she flipped to the third page, her hand couldn't help but tremble, and the book fell onto the stall.

"Did the book prick your hand?" Jing Zeyang was sharp-tongued and mocked her, but then felt something was wrong, "It's just reading a book, why are you blushing?"

"Read your own book!" Tang Nan Yan narrowed her eyes, "Itching for a beating, are you?"

Jing Zeyang immediately cowered.

Having been beaten since he was a child, he had long gained experience: once this woman showed this kind of look, she was two hundred percent going to make a move. The only reason she didn't today was ninety-nine percent because Lin Sicheng was here.

He very wisely shut his mouth, not even daring to look at Tang Nan Yan's eyes. While looking down, he snuck a glance like a thief.

Doesn't feel like much, does it?

He had previously assumed that this woman lacked discernment and had inadvertently picked up an erotic book, mistaking it for an ordinary old volume.

But "Gu Wang Yan"—looking at the title, it seems quite normal, doesn't it?

Lin Sicheng also took a glance, a strange expression surfacing on his face: It isn't an erotic book, but this book is truly quite erotic, even more so than "Jin Ping Mei."

"Jin Ping Mei" uses the perspective of an observer and a cold, detached brush to depict the various states of life among the lower classes in ancient times.

But this book has every kind of scene description imaginable; with just a few strokes, it presents the entire scene before your eyes. The various perverse techniques and the ugliness of human nature within the book are manifested to the fullest. There is nothing you cannot imagine that the author has not written.

What is even more rare is that, beyond the eroticism and passion, the book's critique of society, as well as its realistic color and pragmatic tendencies, are extremely intense.

To give an example: "Jin Ping Mei" can only be counted as a mildly erotic novel of manners; although it also depicts the warmth and coldness of the world, to be honest, its core theme is a hundred times gentler than "Gu Wang Yan."

This one is more like a dark novel; in the book, no one is not lewd, no one is not base. But peeling back this layer of "lewdness and baseness," what one sees is a bloody social tragedy, with every strike stabbing at the human heart.

If one were to remove the erotic parts and read it with a critical eye, the literary value of this book is even higher than that of "Jin Ping Mei."

Therefore, it was listed as a banned book during the late Ming Dynasty and was lost during the Qing Dynasty, circulating only within the imperial court. Later, in 1966, someone discovered a hand-copied manuscript from the late Ming period in the Lenin Library in Moscow.

Then, it wasn't until 1999 that it was brought back to the country.

Lin Sicheng took it over and flipped to the back cover: Published in Taiwan in '97, complete edition.

It's actually the first-generation Han Dynasty version, and an uncensored one at that?

He casually placed it by his feet.

Tang Nan Yan looked slightly strange: "This isn't an ancient book, is it?"

"Correct!" Lin Sicheng nodded, "But this book was lost domestically during the Qing Dynasty; it was later brought over from Russia and was re-edited and reviewed before being published. Because the domestic version was heavily abridged, it isn't as complete as this Taiwan edition!"

Tang Nan Yan was stunned: "Is it very valuable?"

"It can't be called very valuable, but it can serve as supporting material for researching the history and social phenomena of the mid-to-late Ming Dynasty."

Hearing Lin Sicheng speak this way, Tang Nan Yan felt even stranger. She looked at the one by her feet, then looked at the one in Jing Zeyang's hand.

Both are erotic books, yet given to different people, their value and utility are worlds apart?

While she was secretly pondering, she was startled again: Lin Sicheng had opened another book, which had strange, peculiar diagrams drawn on it:

"Teacher Lin, what book is this?"

"Jade Marrow True Classic, specifically about Feng Shui, compiled by the Song Dynasty occultist Zhang Dongxuan, with annotations by Cai Yuanding; it has quite a bit of research value."

Tang Nan Yan was shocked: "A Song book?"

"Of course not. Although it was written in the Song Dynasty, this is a Republic of China woodblock print. It's just that the annotations on this one are relatively valuable..."

Lin Sicheng explained, "Cai Yuanding was a disciple of the Southern Song Rigaku scholar Zhu Xi. He himself was also a famous Southern Song Rigaku scholar and a master of pitch pipes and music theory. 'Zhu Xi Rigaku' was founded and established by him; history refers to him as the 'Leader of the Zhu School'..."

"At the same time, he was also a famous geomancer. The annotations in this book contain the understanding and insights of Zhu Xi Rigaku regarding ancient geomancy and Feng Shui. If one is researching this aspect, it counts as a very good reference material..."

"This book wasn't lost, but there were too many derivative schools later on, and many were altered. This copy is relatively complete and counts as an earlier, authentic edition that has been passed down..."

"Does that mean Teacher Lin also does research on geomancy and Feng Shui?"

Lin Sicheng nodded: "I flip through them occasionally."

Tang Nan Yan blinked her eyes, looking at the book, then looking at Lin Sicheng.

If he only flips through them occasionally, how could he explain it so clearly?

This includes the previous two as well, such as the "Gu Wang Yan" by his feet, or the "Mechanism of Prostitution and Gambling" that Jing Zeyang was holding in his hands, unable to take his eyes off of. If he hadn't conducted in-depth research, it would be impossible to know the origin, content, and source so clearly just by looking at the title without even flipping the pages.

For a moment, Tang Nan Yan couldn't quite understand: How studious must Lin Sicheng be, and how good must his memory be, to have so much "spare" time to learn these miscellaneous bits of knowledge so thoroughly—knowledge that made her head spin just by looking at it?

Xu Qin was even more shocked than she was.

Because her experience and worldly wisdom were far, far richer than Tang Nan Yan, who had just stepped into society: human ability has its limits; no matter how energetic or intelligent a person is, it is impossible to reach the level of being learned and knowledgeable about the past and present while in one's twenties.

But looking at Lin Sicheng again, what he understands is not just antiques and Cultural Relics; it seems that as long as it involves knowledge of antiquarianism, there is nothing he does not understand.

Just as she was secretly suspicious, Tang Nan Yan gave her a wink.

Xu Qin looked carefully: Lin Sicheng was holding a book in his left hand, muttering to himself, while the index finger of his right hand tapped on his thigh one beat at a time.

But it wasn't a very rhythmic tapping; rather, he would tap once, pause twice, or tap twice, pause once.

Listening carefully, what he was muttering seemed to be "dao," "duo," "fa," "mi."

Looking at the content of the book, it looked like Chinese characters, but she didn't recognize nine out of ten of them.

When she saw the two characters "Qin Score" on the top of the page, Xu Qin suddenly realized: this is an ancient musical score.

What Lin Sicheng was muttering was not "dao, duo, fa, mi," but solfège syllables. The finger that kept tapping on his thigh was keeping the beat.

But the problem is, this is an ancient musical score; he can actually read it?

And looking at it, he seems quite fluent?

The two women looked at each other, not knowing what to say.

Lin Sicheng was very focused; after reading a few sections, he flipped backward.

A full half of the book was dance scores:

The more Lin Sicheng looked, the more surprised he became: if he wasn't mistaken, this should be the "Yuan Palace Dance Score."

It wasn't very complete, but even as a remnant score, it was enough to be considered a rarity.

Because the original score had long been lost domestically; it was first lost in the early Ming Dynasty: Zhu Yuanzhang personally issued an imperial decree to confiscate and burn them, and strictly forbade officials and commoners from keeping them privately.

The reason is simple: it contained the famous "Sixteen Heavenly Demon Dance."

Don't look at the palace maids in the diagrams wearing a lot of clothes; when performing, they wore very, very little.

"History of Yuan · Annals of Emperor Shundi": The Emperor created the Heavenly Demon Dance; sixteen palace maids wore Ivory Buddha crowns, draped in beaded necklaces, and wore red silk short skirts, dancing while praising the Buddha... Only palace officials who had received precepts (eunuchs) could enter; others were not allowed to participate.

The necklaces were bead chains, the red silk short skirts were gauze skirts; besides that, they only wore Ivory Buddha crowns on their heads and nothing else.

The key is that wearing this was even more seductive than wearing nothing at all...

Miscellaneous histories also record: The dancers Sanshengnu, Miaolunu, and Wenshunu were all of peerless beauty, wearing red shoes on their feet; after the dance, they would remove the dance accessories from their shoes, which were sacred sandalwood items... The dance took place at night, and the lamps and candles in the tent were all extinguished, with only the sound of lewd, sobbing voices heard.

Lin Sicheng could only say that they really knew how to play.

Therefore, one of the reasons in Zhu Yuanzhang's "Northern Expedition Manifesto" against the Yuan was: "They created the Heavenly Demon Dance and abducted virgins for offerings; Heaven detests their lewdness!"

After ascending the throne, Zhu Yuanzhang further issued an imperial decree: "The Yuan used the Heavenly Demon Dance to bewitch the world; now, those who possess its instruments and records (scores) shall cast them into the fire."

From then on, Yuan court dance music was lost in China, but it continued to circulate in the Temur Empire of Central Asia (founded by Temur, a noble of the Chagatai Khanate, one of the four Mongol khanates) and the Mughal Empire of India (founded by the descendants of Temur).

It was not until the late Qing Dynasty that it was brought to China by Mongol princes and presented to the palace as tribute.

But not long after, the Tongzhi Emperor died of smallpox, and Cixi issued a decree: ban its scores and instruments; those who privately possessed them would be treated as traitors.

However, Qinghai-Tibet and Mongolia were not included in this; the "Zan Fo Wu" of the Esoteric Buddhism dual-cultivation sect of Tibetan Buddhism originated from this.

And this book is likely a fish that slipped through the net during the Cixi era; it is also possible that it was a Han Dynasty version treasured by a Mongol prince, which then flowed into Shanxi.

After all, it is close by.

As for research value, it certainly has it: firstly, it is, after all, a lost ancient score; although it exists abroad, it is troublesome to find.

Secondly, by 2016, the Dunhuang Academy researched the P. 3501 dance score fragments and the music and dance murals of Cave 220, discovering that the so-called Heavenly Demon Dance actually originated from the "Court Zhezhi Dance" of the Tang Dynasty.

Therefore, this thing is not as mysterious as the legends say, and even less evil; the key lies in the people.

Moreover, it is much easier to research than the "Wei Family Music Score" and "Yuedian Music" I found at the Guandu Temple in Yuncheng, or even the Tang Dynasty "Startling Soul Dance."

One reason is that it is closer to the present, and it uses the Lülü notation, which is much easier to translate than the Gongche Notation.

The second reason is that in his previous life, Lin Sicheng participated in the Artifact Research of the "Court Zhezhi Dance" with Senior Brother Dan Guoqiang. Although he was just a bystander, out of curiosity, he truly learned quite a lot.

With some effort, it is not impossible to restore a few ancient melodies and a few Yuan Dynasty court dances...

(End of chapter)