Chapter 98: The Wan Zhu, Master Liu

The mortuary workshop enjoyed peaceful days; although the paper-burning shop next door had fallen silent on the sound of reading, Xu Qing had nonetheless inherited that spirit of diligent study.

Holding a scripture, burning a censer of incense, swallows chirped under the eaves; the shop contained cats and chickens, and a maid who made no noise, moving silently as she dusted and swept.

Such a tranquil and serene life, one would not trade even for an Emperor!

In contrast to Xu Qing's peaceful days, the young master of the Wang Fu in Changting Pavilion of Jinmen was currently in deep water and raging fire.

Ever since the Prince of Changting, loyal to the monarch and devoted to the state, took his own life at the mouth of the Baishui River and passed away following the late Emperor, many 'rumors' had circulated among the common people.

In the eyes of the people, whether the late Emperor lived or died mattered little; if he had died, the crowd might even add a chicken leg to their evening meal to celebrate.

But the Prince of Changting was different; this prince was truly a pillar of the nation. In his day, he purged traitors, drove out barbarians, and protected Shanhe; he accomplished nearly every good deed possible, and precisely because of this, the people enjoyed decades of peace and prosperity.

How could such a savior and capable minister die so inexplicably?

In an instant, rumors of poisoning, assassination, ambushes, imperial suspicion, and the maxim "if the monarch orders a subject to die, the subject must die" began to spread through every street and alley in Jingcheng.

Truth mixed with falsehood, and the fact that the late Emperor summoned the Prince of Changting before his death was somehow leaked by someone.

The current Emperor, seated on the dragon throne, initially paid little attention; after all, these subsequent effects were within the late Emperor's expectations, and all the blame was borne by the deceased late Emperor; as long as the fire did not reach him, with time these matters would naturally dissipate.

Until one day, a secret agent's letter appeared before the dragon desk in the Imperial Study, containing a piece of street gossip claiming that just before the Prince of Changting's death, a close minister of the current Emperor, formerly a retainer in the late Crown Prince's residence, had witnessed the Prince of Changting taking his own life at the mouth of the Baishui River.

Though described as an onlooker, it was effectively no different from an executioner.

Seeing the fire burn to his own backside, Zhao Rong could no longer sit still!

He summoned his confidants late at night and pondered countermeasures through the night.

After that, a folk organization dedicated to digging up dirt on the Prince of Changting suddenly appeared in the streets.

But was the dirt on the Prince of Changting really so easy to dig up?

After digging and digging, this folk organization unearthed little dirt; instead, they deeply relearned the glorious deeds of the Prince of Changting.

Seeing that his own people would be affected if this continued, Zhao Rong's personal strategist, Cai Shichun, began to execute the backup plan.

Since there was no dirt, then we shall manufacture dirt.

In an instant, rumors that the non-surname Prince Zhu Cheng, during his northern expedition, had condoned his soldiers massacring civilians, raping, and looting, suddenly began to dominate the 'headlines' of Jingcheng.

Later, rumors spread that the young master of the Prince of Changting had been seduced by demons of the Tianxin Sect, intending to rebel, and that the true culprit behind the assassination of the late Crown Prince Zhao You bore the shadow of Prince Zhu.

Stories of the young master sleeping on brushwood and tasting gall, feigning madness and eating feces, thus spread throughout Jingcheng.

Those with ulterior motives said the young master sought to emulate the ancients, weeping blood while resting on his weapon, and what he plotted was surely the Great Yong Empire.

And after the late Crown Prince's remains were escorted back to the capital, Prince Zhu immediately became lively and vigorous again; this was the flaw.

Some who did not understand the situation asked, "Is the young master planning to rebel?"

"What else?"

The common people, upon hearing this, thought, "What a wonderful thing!"

Unfortunately, they could only think it in their hearts; on their lips, it was absolutely forbidden to speak.

Emperor Yongxing Zhao Rong sat high in the hall, unafraid of the rumors rebounding on him, letting the tiles before the hall strike his body.

Anyway, he was having quite a good time; once the rumors fermented to a certain extent, he conceived a plan and sent an envoy to the Wang Fu of Changting to deliver a verbal edict.

At this time, inside the Wang Fu of Jinmen, the young master, who had grown thin, was discussing with the family elders how to respond to the suddenly arrived imperial decree.

The edict contained only a verbal order, no written decree; the special envoy conveyed it on behalf of the Emperor, asking if Prince Zhu's family had any intention of going to the Northern Frontier.

Initially, Zhu Huaian thought the Emperor was testing him, but at the end of the verbal order, Emperor Yongxing mentioned the chaos in the Northern Frontier, and that as the son of the Prince of Changting, the young master ought to emulate his late father and go to the Northern Frontier to temper himself; only thus would he not disgrace the family name.

Besides the verbal order, the special envoy delivering the decree deliberately mentioned some street rumors; the meaning in his words and between his lines was only one.

That was to urge Prince Zhu to depart immediately, leave the borders of Jinmen, and go to the frontier to avoid suspicion.

Prince Zhu pondered, "How is this avoiding suspicion? This is clearly releasing a tiger back to the mountains, allowing him to reorganize the forces of the Northern Frontier and avenge his father!"

But was Emperor Yongxing truly so foolish?

Prince Zhu naturally did not believe it; in his view, this was undoubtedly a death warrant hanging over his head; whether he advanced one step, retreated one step, or remained in the center, none could solve Zhao Rong's desire to harm him.

"If I agree, I fear I will be ambushed and killed by bandits and rebels halfway before even stepping onto Northern Frontier soil."

"If I do not agree, defying the monarch's command, I will equally gain no good."

Much the same; 'The monarch has no jesting words' is not something said lightly.

Zhu Huaian found sleep and food difficult, losing handfuls of hair; at this moment, he even began to miss the feeling of briefly forgetting everything after taking the Forget-All Pill.

The world is full of troubles, and the officialdom even more so.

"I recall the Prince left a brocade pouch, instructing the young master to open it only in dire necessity."

Hearing the reminder from the family elder, Zhu Huaian suddenly realized.

He eagerly retrieved the brocade pouch kept close to his body; inside was a white silk cloth with only eight characters written upon it.

"The monarch's grace is ended; all prohibitions are lifted."

Zhu Huaian trembled all over, feeling his chest pound like a drum; his face flushed red, and his hands holding the silk cloth could not help but shake.

"Did the brocade pouch contain any instructions?"

"No instructions."

Zhu Huaian silently put away the silk cloth; his calm tone revealed a tremor difficult to detect.

"Uncle, before going to the Northern Frontier, I wish to visit a few old friends in Linhe."

On this day, a character with a festive style suddenly appeared on the streets of Jingkou.

That person wore a large-sleeved square jacket of jujube-red Ning silk, topped with a melon-skin cap, and held a birdcage in hand; yet inside the cage was not a bird, but a small rooster, pure white from head to toe, without a single stray feather.

"Second Master, take it easy today; don't scare that little cat into a daze!"

The person called Second Master held the little white chicken in one hand and twirled two 'Lion's Heads' in the other; opening his mouth, he spat a mouthful of saliva:

"Nonsense! Is your Second Master that kind of person!"

"But speaking of which, within the circle of professional idlers, your Second Master is a well-known figure of high standing; these little cats, dogs, and mice, upon seeing me, must always straighten up and recognize who the patriarch of teasing animals is!"

"Don't you agree, Uncle Bo?" This remark was made by Second Master Feng, whistling, to the little white chicken in the cage; 'Bo' was actually 'Bai' (white), but this person had an accent, so it came out as 'Uncle Bo'.

Beside him stood a middle-aged scholar in wide-sleeved robes, holding a folding fan painted with a white snake spitting a pearl, exuding a refined and amiable air.

"Mr. Liu, which road is this? Why does this place feel so unfamiliar? I've never been here before."

Mr. Liu wasn't actually surnamed Liu; his original name was Ji RuiNian. But people in the Yin trade always called him Mr. Liu, and after so many said it, the name stuck!

"Does this place have some background? Even Second Master doesn't know?"

"What background? Could it be greater than Second Master's own?"

Ji RuiNian lightly fanned himself and joked, "Not at all. It's just that this street is famously the Funeral Street. Custom-made burial robes, dressing the deceased, coffin preparation, setting up the spirit hall, moving the coffin for burial—if you want to move and change your Yin dwelling, they can handle the whole process on one road."

"What on earth?"

"So it's just a place for funerals? Don't say that; I can't compete with that reputation. It's so ominous!"

While chatting and gossiping, the two arrived in front of the coffin shop.

At the entrance, an utterly ordinary old man was basking in the sun.

"Old grandpa, may you be auspicious!"

"I'd like to ask you something. May I inquire if there is a Cat Immortal Hall on this street?"

Hu Baosong asked in confusion, "What hall?"

"The Cat Immortal Hall."

"Never heard of it!"

Second Master Feng frowned, puzzled. "That's right. The place I saw on my eldest uncle's body was this street. Could we have taken a wrong turn?"

Ji RuiNian helplessly said, "As the saying goes, 'A chicken with a slanted eye.' Since a chicken's vision is poor to begin with, it's no wonder you can't see clearly."

"Nonsense! Pure fabrication! Your Second Master has never been wrong in his life! It must be that this old grandpa is getting old, confused, and can't remember things clearly. It definitely wasn't a mistake on my part!"

The two left the coffin shop and searched along the shops selling burial robes, shrouds, and paper effigies, finally stopping in front of a shop with a coroner's sign.

"Finally found this shop. This sign, this pitch-black door panel... Eh, something seems off. Mr. Liu, did you notice?"

"There is Yin Qi." Ji RuiNian closed his fan, his eyes flickering.

"I know there's Yin Qi. People in our line of work wouldn't have any Yin Qi on them? I mean, this shop is strange. Look at my eldest uncle!"

Ji RuiNian glanced sideways and saw the small household spirit in Second Master Feng's cage fluttering its wings, desperately trying to escape the cage.

It looked as if it didn't want to enter the shop.

"This is the first time I've seen my eldest uncle so afraid. Logically, that shouldn't happen. When he came here last time, he wasn't like this..."

"Since we're here, let's go in and take a look. Tianjin isn't Jingcheng; powerful immortals are rare here, let alone a Cat Immortal. Don't forget, you're the master of feeding cats and walking dogs. What's there to fear?"

As the two were talking, a white, graceful figure suddenly flashed across the doorway of the coroner's shop.

"Did something just float past?"

"..."

Second Master Feng's hand, which had been polishing his walnuts, froze. Beside him, Ji RuiNian asked in surprise, "If my eldest uncle isn't possessing Second Master, how can Second Master see a ghostly shadow?"

"That's obvious; I'm not blind!" Second Master Feng pointed to his own eyes with his walnut-polishing hand and said, "In my youth, I spent a huge sum to have a great master open my spiritual vision. It counts as an acquired Yin-Yang Eye. Don't say just ghostly shadows; even if a demon transforms into a human, I can see through to its true form!"

"They say money can make the ghost push the millstone; I never expected it could also enable one to communicate with ghosts and spirits."

Ji RuiNian sighed and said, "Are you sure the Daoist inside is a Cat Immortal manifesting, and not a disciple of the Sorrow Immortal?"

"Make sure you're clear. I was dragged here to a banquet without knowing the details. If I attend the wrong meeting or go to the wrong venue, next time I won't go along with your nonsense no matter what you say!"

"That's right, absolutely right. Just come in with me and investigate."

While the two chatted nonsense outside, Xu Qing inside the shop had already noticed the commotion at the door.

The embroiderer, a menial maid, was quite sensible and even came to the counter to inform him.

As for whether keeping such a female ghost wandering around was safe, Xu Qing was not worried at all.

He had now firmly established his identity as a manifesting medium; having a Sorrow Immortal disciple by his side was quite normal, wasn't it?

Not to mention one female ghost; even if another one appeared, he felt he could still control it.

Xu Qing put away his paper, brush, and talismans, adjusted his robes, and then went out to welcome the guests.

Second Master Feng had a very loud voice, and although Ji RuiNian spoke softly, Xu Qing's hearing was too good to miss them.

Hearing these two constantly mention "Immortal" and "Immortal," along with the familiar titles "Second Master" and "Mr. Liu," Xu Qing immediately realized that this was the "Second Master Feng and Mr. Liu" who had never attended the Immortal Banquet.

"Two Daoists, I am Xu Qing, the Hall Master of the Xu Family of the Cat Immortal Hall. Please, come inside."

"Hall Master Xu of the Cat Immortal Hall? Does the Daoist bear the surname Xu? Could it be that the Daoist also practices Martial Manifestation, serving as an assistant to the Immortal?"

Xu Qing smiled and said, "I accompany the Immortal through the mortal world; there is no so-called distinction between big and small."

Ji RuiNian's eyes lit up, and looking at Xu Qing, he couldn't help but nod in approval.

This manifestation is impressive; it's more refined than Second Master Feng's.

Beside him, Second Master Feng stepped over the threshold, and the first thing that caught his eye was a coffin.

Sitting atop the horizontally placed coffin was a female ghost in white robes.

"Does your ghost bite people?"

Hearing this, the embroiderer's willow brows shot up, and she immediately bared her ghostly fangs.

Speak of ghosts, speak of ghosts; why twist it to compare her to a dog, and dare ask if she bites?

"It doesn't bite. My ghost is quite understanding."

"..."

The embroiderer was so angry she almost came back to life.

You're the one who's understanding! Your whole family is understanding!

With a hiss, she exhaled a breath of chilling Yin Qi, turned around in a huff, and floated to the backyard.

It was time to feed the old hen in the backyard again.

"Daoist Xu, isn't your hall the Cat Immortal Hall? Why do you keep a ghost?"

Ji Ruinian asked curiously.

"I figured that if I'm opening one hall, I might as well open two, so I kept this Ghost Immortal. But this one was actually invited by a martial artist."

"."

Ji Ruinian put aside his previous judgment; this Outfit Youth didn't seem as particular as he had imagined.

"My surname is Ji. The Immortal Family is a Willow Immortal. I and it are peers, and everyone around calls me Brother Willow or Mr. Willow.

The one beside me surnamed Feng is a famous ruffian master in the Tianjin Flower and Bird Market; people call him Second Master. His Immortal Family is this spiritual white chicken, half-literary and half-martial, invited with silver from a master!"

"Willow Chatterbox! What nonsense are you spouting? Speak clearly. What do you mean by half-literary and half-martial? Big Uncle is my heart's treasure. I've always raised him like my own son. In terms of affection, he's infinitely better than your scoundrel snake. Don't try to sow discord between me and Big Uncle."

Second Master Feng's tongue was sharp. After a bout of arguing, he finally looked at Xu Qing.

"Daoist Xu, serving an Immortal Family is like serving a small animal. You must feed it well, burn good incense, and take it to do good deeds."

Second Master Feng looked down his nose at people, wearing an air of high society: "If we're talking about experience raising cats and dogs, your Second Master won't even need to speak; it's this!"

Second Master Feng raised a thumb, then raised a middle finger, meaning he was either big or long, in short, very outstanding.

People of this era didn't know what raising the middle finger meant. Seeing the gesture, Xu Qing felt the other person was cursing him.

"By the way, where is your Cat Immortal? I remember it was a black lump of coal. Go invite it out so I can check what breed it is."

Ji Ruinian translated: "Second Master Feng cares about face and likes taking care of young people. Just treat him seriously and don't mind it."

Xu Qing raised an eyebrow. Was he treating him as a junior and establishing seniority?

"I don't mind, but I'm afraid my cat might."

At that moment, Xuan Yu, who had been out for a stroll, walked through the shop door.

Hearing Second Master Feng's disrespectful words, its tail had already switched to sweeping mode, swaying left and right.

(End of this chapter)