Chapter 8: Tasting Melons at the Liu Residence

Master Liu's mourning hall was set up in the center of the main hall; according to the Book of Funeral Rites, the main hall is the most sacred and inviolable place in a household, where ancestors and deities are enshrined.

If someone in the residence passes away, the bereaved family moves the body to the main hall and places it on a temporary plank bed, for the deceased must not lie long upon a regular bed.

Since a person spends half their life with eyes closed upon a bed, if they remain on one too long after death, their soul may become bound to it and fail to reincarnate.

Thus, whenever a household senses an elder is nearing the end, they carry the elder to the main hall to attend them; this is what is called "dying peacefully in one's proper place."

Xu Qing stepped through the gate and, upon reaching the outer main hall, immediately spotted that this household had a seasoned hand who knew the ropes.

Even if not born into the Yin arts trade, they must have walked through fields of the dead or been a veteran with hands-on experience at home!

Yet experience notwithstanding, they had still committed a taboo.

Just look: who ever heard of shouting and shoving right before a mourning hall?

Xu Qing looked closely and realized the two quarreling parties were Su Hongxiu, whom he knew unilaterally, and another noble lady also clad in hemp mourning and white robes.

"You shameless vixen still have the nerve to show your face! It was all your doing that ruined my husband and caused his death; now you come here shedding crocodile tears, pretending to grieve. I say you harbored malicious intent from the start, waiting for the day my lord would die so you could carve up our Liu family fortune!"

"Today I lay down my words: as long as I draw breath, you shall not take a single copper coin!"

With that, the two women could not resist and began fighting again.

Xu Qing found it amusing, so he simply stopped advancing and stood outside the mourning hall to watch the grand drama unfold within.

In the hall, one was a courtesan by birth, with a seductive, delicate figure, having seen all manner of strange people and oddities; the other was the wife of a Squire, born to a scholarly and wealthy family, well-preserved and refined.

At this moment, they were tearing each other's hair and ripping each other's clothes, nearing a fever pitch, when suddenly the retainer who had led Xu Qing here shouted aloud.

"First Lady, Second Lady, please stop fighting! I have invited the gentleman from the Well Under Street Office to handle affairs; let us first send my lord off to his burial..."

As soon as the words fell, the bustling mourning hall instantly fell silent.

The Liu family's First Lady ceased tearing at Su Hongxiu's clothes; she curled her little finger to smooth her disheveled hair at the temples and walked casually toward the entrance of the main hall as if nothing had happened.

Judging by how swiftly she regained her composure, even Sichuan Opera face-changing could not match such speed!

Xu Qing reached out to stop the young servant from speaking, but he was a step too late.

'Don't! Just pretend I'm not here and keep going; I'll find a small stool, wait until you finish your private matters, and then begin my work—I'm in no hurry at all!'

Xu Qing felt a pang of regret; just now, Su Hongxiu's undergarment had been exposed, and Lady Liu's shoulders were smooth as silk—why did they stop so abruptly?

"Are you the handling gentleman?"

"Indeed."

The Lady Liu with the smooth shoulders was originally named Li Xiangyun; she was about thirty-five or thirty-six, but thanks to her wealthy upbringing and diligent self-care, she showed few signs of age, instead exuding a mature charm.

Though now drenched in fragrant sweat with disheveled hair, her gait still retained the reserve unique to a lady of noble birth.

It was as though the person who had just spewed curses and torn clothes was someone else entirely...

"Now that the gentleman has finally arrived, I, a mere woman, can manage needlework and supporting my husband and raising children, but all external affairs were managed by my husband and our steward. Now that my husband has left me, my heart feels as if my soul has departed, and I have no idea how to proceed..."

Moved by emotion, Li Xiangyun took out a handkerchief, wiping away tears as she sobbed her grievances.

"Now I must ask the gentleman to take charge and help my ill-fated husband find peace in the earth as soon as possible..."

Watching her appear so pitiable as a widow, Xu Qing thought to himself that this woman was truly terrifying; one moment she was a fierce, vicious tiger guarding her food, and the next she had become a delicate, timid domesticated rabbit.

But thoughts aside, the business at hand still had to be done!

"My Lady, please restrain your grief and accept change; leave the following arrangements to me."

As they spoke, the Liu family steward, who had gone to the coffin-bearers' shop to hire pallbearers, returned to inquire further.

Upon learning Xu Qing's identity, the steward Song Cai frowned; though he said nothing, he clearly harbored some distrust.

As the saying goes, "A mouth without hair cannot handle affairs reliably."

This lad didn't even have a single fuzz on his face; could he really manage a funeral properly?

Xu Qing was unaware of Song Cai's thoughts; otherwise, he would never have shaved the corpse hair from his face this morning, and then we would see if this steward dared to judge by appearances!

Arriving at the mourning hall, nearly all of Master Liu's relatives and friends who could come had done so; those unable to attend due to other matters had sent letters and gifts to express their condolences.

The only son of Master Liu and Li Xiangyun, the Young Master of the Liu family, was kneeling on the ground keeping vigil.

Before the Young Master stood a fine nanmu coffin lacquered in black; at the head of the coffin, a white board curtain concealed the deceased's face, upon which was written a large character for "Mourning."

When one dies but has not yet been buried, one bows in "Dian"; after burial, one bows in "Ji."

In simpler terms, while the person lies below, it is "Dian"; once the person rests above, it becomes "Ji."

These are the most basic elements of funeral rites.

Approaching the coffin, Xu Qing set down his satchel and took out his tools for preparing the deceased's appearance; just as he was about to apply powder and comb the hair of Master Liu, Steward Song Cai suddenly stepped forward to block him.

"Do you even know what you're doing? Your master already prepared the body the day before yesterday; why are you stirring things up again?"

Xu Qing, like an air-conditioning installer, turned and stared at Song Cai for a while.

Just as Song Cai frowned and began feeling utterly uncomfortable, Xu Qing posed a soul-searching question: "You washed your face the day before yesterday; does that mean you won't wash it today? Or would you like to do it?"

Song Cai, finding himself rebuffed, simply stopped interfering.

After dismissing the bystanders, Xu Qing calmed his mind, and the pages of the Scripture of Degree began turning in his consciousness.

Master Liu's original name was Liu Fuchun; he was originally a minor temple attendant in a poor village, earning only a meager income when devotees and pilgrims came to offer incense, make petitions, or fulfill vows.

Until one day, the young lady of the Li family, who owned a cloth shop, passed by the small temple in a carriage and casually offered a stick of incense to the deity enshrined there.

As the temple attendant, Liu Fuchun fell instantly in love with this young lady; he felt her legs, her buttocks—in short, every part of her grew exactly where his heart desired!

He wished to associate with the Li young lady, but being penniless and of humble origin, how could he win the heart of a beauty?

What was to be done?

Liu Fuchun tossed and turned sleeplessly all night, then finally decided to stop suffering alongside the deities and plunged headfirst into the mortal world.

Perhaps because he had served the temple deities well over the years, Liu Fuchun's luck was not bad; no sooner had he left the village than he encountered an itinerant Daoist Priest.

The Daoist Priest saw he had the makings of a cultivator and, after much persuasion, blending coaxing with deception, lured him up the mountain to become his disciple.

The itinerant Daoist Priest initially taught him two skills: the Spiritual Crane Body-Nourishing Art and the Four Seasons Qi-Guiding Method.

Liu Fuchun practiced for two months but remained absent-minded, constantly thinking of the Li young lady's legs and buttocks...

By the third month, the itinerant Daoist Priest suddenly summoned him before him, sighed, and said their master-disciple affinity was thin; as a disciple, his mortal heart had not faded, and even with a canopy of fortune over him, he could not be forcibly retained.

However, in consideration of their time as master and disciple, the Daoist Priest transmitted to him a skill capable of striving for wealth and honor in the mortal world, called the Civil and Martial Feng Shui Art.

This was a technique of Feng Shui and geomancy; civilly, it could enhance fortune and household luck through auxiliary objects, while militarily, it could alter mountain and water formations and geographical orientations, digging channels and opening roads to guide "channel waters" from all directions to augment the fortune and destiny of one's yin and yang dwellings.

Having obtained this secret art, Liu Fuchun's first act upon descending the mountain was to divert the yin and yang pool waters of local gentry and wealthy families to his own home; after accumulating some money, he added various household-guarding objects, such as the Literary Talent, Great Fortune, and Prosperity Beast, and the Wealth-Attracting, Treasure-Gathering Double Pixiu—anything useful, he acquired a set of...

In the short span of the next two years, Liu Fuchun, blessed with fortune, passed the imperial examinations and became the magistrate of a county.

Unfortunately, he did not know that the art of Feng Shui and geomancy heavily depends on one's own destiny pattern and cultivation base; if one's cultivation is shallow and destiny insufficient, even if wealth and glory are gained through this method, unknown future prices await.

Indeed, once Magistrate Liu gained official status, he immediately hired a matchmaker to propose marriage and brought home the cloth-shop young lady Li Xiangyun, whom he had loved at first sight.

At that time, Liu Fuchun was high-spirited and everything went according to his wishes; the only flaw was that he still had no children or heirs.

What was to be done? Liu Fuchun's first idea was to alter the geomancy layout. Strangely, no matter how he adjusted it, Li Xiangyun's womb remained still.

Pondering long until doubt arose, Liu Fuchun began to suspect his wife suffered from an "infertility" ailment.

Thus, he took Li Xiangyun everywhere to seek medical treatment and divination, even entertaining the notion of taking a concubine.

Strangely enough, two months after he merely mentioned taking a concubine, Li Xiangyun became pregnant.

Liu Fuchun thought nothing more of it, believing only that Heaven, seeing his sincerity, had manifested its power!

As days passed, the Liu family's young son, spoiled by the couple, began to become good-for-nothing; daily, he either visited courtesans and gambled or bullied the kind and virtuous.

As the saying goes, "Raising a son without teaching him is like raising a donkey; raising a daughter without teaching her is like raising a pig."

Liu Fuchun felt this could not continue, so he began strict discipline; to have more time to educate his heir, he even resigned his official post, moved to Linhe to engage in commerce, and became a Squire.

The Private Secretary who had resigned alongside him transformed overnight into the Liu family steward.

Thereafter, Liu Fuchun focused entirely on educating his child, but whenever his son erred, before he could even raise a hand to scold, his wife and the steward would step forward to dissuade him.

Over time, his own child became even more unruly than during his days as a county magistrate.

However, since children and grandchildren have their own fortunes, Liu Fuchun eventually grew weary at heart and simply stopped managing that rebellious son, turning instead to enjoy himself.

By day he played chess and teased birds; by night he joined business friends to visit courtesan houses and listen to songs, living as happily as an immortal!

Later, he lavishly spent gold and silver to redeem Su Hongxiu, the popular girl of the Cuiyun Tower, and took her into his household.

At this point, Liu Fuchun completely forgot his master's warning, believing that even if he neglected cultivation, he could easily bear the blessings brought by Feng Shui and geomancy; where was there any so-called price to pay?

Xu Qing read this far and found nothing abnormal; however, just as he too began to think the Civil and Martial Feng Shui Art had no side effects, Master Liu's life story suddenly came to an abrupt halt on a certain day!

And it was a physically abrupt halt!

On that day, Master Liu heard that a bathhouse had opened in Shitang; since the weather was turning cold, he took his wife, son, and the steward who had loyally followed him for years to cleanse themselves in the baths.

Upon arriving at the bath pools, Li Xiangyun found a private room where maids attended to her bathing, while Master Liu, along with the steward and his own son, reserved a large pool, thinking that since the three had not been this close in a long time, they might as well strip bare, sit in the pool, scrub each other's backs, chat, and deepen their bonds.

Unexpectedly, the moment Steward Song Cai removed his clothes, Master Liu's expression changed drastically!

He splashed up from the pool, disregarding all decorum, and shouted in fury: "You, surnamed Song! You dare seduce my wife and make me raise your son for so many years for nothing; I will flay you alive!"

Song Cai, having served as a Private Secretary, was no fool and immediately realized—

On his buttocks was a peach-blossom birthmark identical to that of the Liu family young master, and moreover, a pair of them, unique to no other!

In these times, adultery was a grave crime; seeing Master Liu truly enraged and intent on charging him, Song Cai decided to go all the way and simply drown Master Liu in the bath pool to settle the matter!

The Liu family young master was watching nearby; how could he let the other succeed, for this was his own father!

But just as he moved to intervene, Song Cai shouted to stop him: "Do not come over; I am your biological father! If you don't believe me, look at the peach-blossom birthmarks on our buttocks; the Master never had the ability to sire children, and your mother knows this too!"

"If we do not kill him today, once the matter is exposed, do you think any of us will fare well?"

Upon hearing this, the Liu family young master immediately halted.

Not my biological father? Then it's fine!

And so, Master Liu was drowned in the bath pool; when the government office officials came to inquire, the Liu family young master and Steward Song Cai gave remarkably consistent accounts, both claiming Master Liu had died at the hands of a ghost!

In the Liu family mourning hall, beside the heavy nanmu coffin, Xu Qing, having finished consuming the Liu family's massive scandal, took quite a while to recover.

This melon was too huge; it nearly choked him!

Who could have imagined that Squire Liu, who had sailed smoothly through most of his life, would meet such a calamity on his very last day?

The aftermath of this disaster was even more devastating than a bolt of lightning from a clear sky!

Yet this was no one's fault; as the saying goes, even an honest official struggles to settle family disputes, and even immortals cannot wash away the tribulations of the mortal world.

If Liu Fuchun had simply followed the itinerant Daoist Priest in cultivation and never entered the dusty mortal realm, how could so many troubles have arisen...

At this moment, having reviewed his life, the Scripture of Salvation graded the corpse: Human Grade, Upper Quality.

The reward was a copy of "Civil and Martial Geomancy," rated Human Grade, Middle Quality, and a technique of Qi Observation, rated Human Grade, Upper Quality.

After absorbing the knowledge within "Civil and Martial Geomancy," Xu Qing suddenly understood.

Geomancy and Feng Shui lie in correcting bad layouts and adding appropriate enhancements; going too far is as bad as not going far enough. If one were to arrange their own Feng Shui to a specification higher than the imperial palace, they might suffer harm instead, simply because their own fortune is insufficient to bear it.

Liu Chunlai was a typical negative example, which led to such a severe backlash.

In comparison, although the Human Grade, Upper Quality Qi Observation technique could not see the treachery of the human heart, it could perceive transformations of humans into demons, as well as the purity and filth hidden between heaven and earth.

Xu Qing cleared his mind of stray thoughts, circulated the Qi Observation technique within, half-closed his eyes to enter meditation, looking yet not looking, fixing his gaze to reach his heart.

The next moment, he opened his eyes to see that everywhere his gaze fell, colorful mists rose gently, thin and ethereal.

It could be said that the five elements and five colors were all present.

Looking again at the crowd in the hall, each person had mists of different colors and depths hovering above their heads; among them, Su Hongxiu and Li Xiangyun were surrounded by ambiguous hues, while the Steward Song Cai had a faint aura of blood and killing intent above his head, clearly indicating he had killed someone recently.

(End of Chapter)