Go all out

Chapter 27: Yin Fang

“Sigh… You trust your brother so much, but what about your master? What about the master who raised you from childhood? Do you think your master would ever harm you?” My master’s voice sounded aged, tinged with sadness. “I…” I fell silent, at a loss for words. Tian Zhan is my brother, but the man standing outside the door is the master who raised me from childhood—my benefactor. Who should I believe? All the evidence up until now had pointed to my master, but now he was saying that Tian Zhan was the one who killed the person—and Tian Zhan was indeed not there at the time; he only showed up afterward. So who should I believe? “Never mind, Xiao Tian. Your master won’t blame you for not opening the door. Here’s what we’ll do: go to my room and fetch the box from under my bed,” my master said with a sigh. “Okay, Master, just give me a moment.” “Go on, then.” I nodded, turned around, and ran toward my master’s room. I’d only been inside his room a few times, and that was when I was very young. After I turned twelve and began studying divination with him, I hadn’t set foot in his room again. I walked up to the door of Master’s room, grabbed the doorknob, and turned it—the door opened. It was pitch black inside. I felt along the wall and flicked the light switch a few times, but the light was broken. With no other choice, I pulled out my phone and used the flashlight to make my way to the side of my master’s bed. I crouched down, reached under the bed, and felt around for a moment. My fingers touched something; I grabbed it and pulled it out. It felt quite heavy in my hand. I shone my phone’s light on it—it was a square wooden box covered in a layer of dust, as if it had been under the bed for a long time. It looked quite old, with worn scratches on the surface. Older people usually have boxes like this, so I didn’t think much of it—maybe my master just liked to collect trinkets. I picked up the box and walked out. But as I stood up, the light from my phone illuminated a corner where there was a table—a very ordinary rosewood table. What caught my eye, however, was a wooden plaque resting on it, resembling a memorial plaque for the deceased. It bore the three characters “Hui Sanlang”—a name, but who was this person? I didn’t think anyone by that name lived in the village. Could he be a deceased friend of my master’s? There was also an incense altar set up in front of the plaque. Both the table and the plaque were spotless—clearly, they were being used for worship. I found it quite strange that there would be a memorial plaque for a deceased person in my master’s room. How unsettling! I couldn’t help but shiver. I hurried out and ran back to the shop. I called out to my master, and he mumbled a “Mm-hmm” from outside. “Did you find it? Bring it to me quickly.” “Yeah.” I turned the knob and opened the door. When I saw him standing outside, he wasn’t looking at me; instead, he was staring down at a spot in the lower corner of the doorway and gave a soft snort. The Master took the wooden box from my hands, and only then did he look at me. “I’ll be gone for a few days. Run the shop properly, and make sure to keep all the money you earn. Also, I don’t blame you for not trusting me, but don’t trust that kid either! Do you hear me?” I nodded instinctively, then said to my master with tears welling in my eyes, “Master, your injury hasn’t healed yet. Please come inside and rest first; I’ll go boil some water for you to soak your feet.” “No need. Spend these next few days thinking carefully about what I’ve said. There’s definitely something off about that kid. If he comes back later, he’ll surely say the spirit monster got away and he couldn’t catch it. Why would he say that? Because that spirit monster is his own creation! How could he possibly bring himself to kill it?” “Master, Tian Zhan…” I shook my head. I no longer knew whose words were true and whose were false. “Ah, never mind. I’ll be in touch!” With that, my master turned and walked away, quickly disappearing into the darkness. “Master, where are you going?” I shouted after him, but Master paid me no mind. I stared blankly at the street, now empty of any sign of him, and slumped helplessly to the ground. Master must be so disappointed in me—he’s raised me since I was a child, and yet I didn’t even trust him. No wonder he didn’t even want to come home anymore. My mind was in turmoil. These were the two people I had trusted most, yet each accused the other of murder. I truly didn’t know whom to believe. In a daze, I closed the shop door, but just then, a hand suddenly grabbed the doorframe, giving me a start. A breathless figure ran inside. I looked up and breathed a sigh of relief—it was Tian Zhan. “Why is the door open? Didn’t I tell you not to open it? Who just came in?” Tian Zhan asked, catching his breath. I looked at Tian Zhan without answering, but instead asked, “What about that spirit? Is it dead?” “No, damn it. That spirit ran way too fast—like Bolt had possessed it. How was I supposed to catch up? It even made me take a tumble. Never mind that for now—I’m going inside to change my clothes first…” After saying that, Tian Zhan looked down at the tear in his shirt with a pained expression, then turned and walked into the backyard. I stood there frozen for a full minute before finally sighing and closing the door again. I didn’t feel the slightest bit sleepy anymore. I just sat behind the counter, staring blankly into space. Where could Master have gone all by himself? He’s injured, too—where could he possibly go? And so I sat behind the counter until dawn, when Tian Zhan came out, yawning. “Xiao Tian, why didn’t you sleep last night? Did you get scared?” “No, I just couldn’t sleep.” I shook my head, then asked, “So what do we do now?” “We don’t know if your master is dead or alive, and that spirit has vanished without a trace. This case is on hold for now. But my colleague from the feng shui department just called me. She said she couldn’t make out the details from the photos I sent her, so she wants to come here in person to take a closer look,” Tian Zhan said helplessly. I nodded. It was true—the background of that old photo might indeed be connected to this case. Although the fourth person in the photo was my master, which had genuinely taken me by surprise, the fact that the other three were already dead couldn’t be explained by mere coincidence. Perhaps that location would be a breakthrough. “But my colleague will be here soon. Don’t talk to her—she has a strange temper and seems to look down on all of us men,” Tian Zhan said with a hint of regret. I was taken aback. That woman was like a tigress—what was Tian Zhan feeling sorry about? Anyway, as long as I don’t say anything unnecessary, what can she do to me? Tian Zhan said his colleague was already on her way and would arrive around noon. Tian Zhan stayed in the shop while I went to the farmers’ market to buy some nice ingredients. After all, since his colleague was coming, she was technically a guest. I didn’t have the money for a fancy meal, but I figured I should at least do my best to treat her, right? When I got back, the shop hadn’t even opened yet. I was speechless. I’d been gone for about an hour, right? And she hadn’t sold a single thing? Tian Zhan really isn’t cut out for business. Shaking my head, I went to the kitchen to wash and chop the vegetables. After a long while, I’d cooked up a whole tableful of dishes. Just as I’d finished arranging them and was about to go out and ask Tian Zhan when her friend would arrive, I saw a woman with a cold expression walk in. I froze for a moment, about to ask if she wanted to buy anything, when Tian Zhan poked her head out from behind the woman and gave me a subtle nod. It suddenly clicked. I smiled and reached out to greet her. “Hello, I’m Li Tian.” “Yin Fang.” She glanced at my outstretched hand but made no move to shake it, which left me feeling a bit awkward. This woman was indeed a bit peculiar, which made me instinctively glance at her a few times. Her facial features—the key to her destiny—were also obscured by an indescribable aura. I could make out that she was a rather delicate-looking girl, but when I tried to analyze her according to the principles of fate divination, I encountered some obstacles. Needless to say, this woman was the Level 3 Feng Shui Master Tian Zhan had mentioned. She certainly had some skill—she could easily use a subtle aura to conceal the past revealed in her facial features. “What are you looking at? Did I ask you to read my face?” Yin Fang stared at me coldly. I was at a loss for words. “Don’t get the wrong idea—my brother’s a fortune-teller. He just can’t help but take a few extra glances at a beautiful woman.” Tian Zhan walked over with an sheepish grin to smooth things over. He motioned for Yin Fang to sit down first. “You’ve come all this way—you must be hungry, right? Go ahead and try my brother’s cooking. I’ll tell you, his cooking can rival that of a five-star chef. Once you taste it… Hey, what are you doing?” “You guys eat. I’m not hungry… Besides, the food looks terrible.” With that, Yin Fang had already walked out. I was speechless inside. What does eating have to do with the food looking unappetizing? Tian Zhan gave me a sympathetic look. “Xiao Tian, don’t take it personally. Just think of her as a refrigerator.” I shook my head. Judging by her expression just now, this woman didn’t seem like the cold, aloof type at all—it was clear she had her own story. I was actually a little hungry, so Tianzhan and I picked up our chopsticks and dug in. We ate until we were full before heading into the restaurant. To be honest, my cooking might not look very appealing, but it really does taste good. Yin Fang stood at the doorway, looking at the two of us and said, “Now, take me over there to have a look.” “Don’t you need to rest a bit?” I couldn’t help but ask. According to Tian Zhan, Yin Fang had taken the overnight train, skipping dinner and probably not getting any sleep either. Even a man wouldn’t be able to handle that, right? “No.” Yin Fang shook her head. “The feng shui there is a bit off. I need to take a closer look.” Tian Zhan signaled for me not to say anything more, as I sensed her expression had grown a bit cold. I could only tidy up a bit, prepare to close the shop, and then the three of us would head back up the mountain together. Hearing Yin Fang say that, it really did seem like there was something unusual about that place! It appeared that the four masters taking photos there wasn’t just a casual act after all. But just as I closed the shop door, a luxury car pulled up outside. The window rolled down, and Old Tang—the man who’d come yesterday—stuck his head out. “Oh my, Master Li, I did exactly as you said yesterday, but those rats haven’t left at all—in fact, they’ve gotten even worse. You’ve got to come take a look right away.” “Well…” I glanced at Tian Zhan and Yin Fang. Tian Zhan shrugged—he certainly wouldn’t mind taking a little time for this—but Yin Fang didn’t even look at me. I had to consider her; after all, she’d come all this way. I could only smile and shake my head. “How about tomorrow? I’m actually heading out anyway.” Old Mr. Tang shook his head urgently. “No, that won’t do. Yesterday, those rats were just hanging around my house, but after I put up what you gave me, today my son seems like a completely different person. He bites anyone he sees, and I can’t hold him back no matter what. I’ve had to tie him up now… If it weren’t for that stuff of yours, my son wouldn’t have suddenly turned into this. You’ve got to fix this for me right away.” Hearing this, I wasn’t happy. Why does it sound like it’s my fault? You’re the one who’s been keeping things from me, okay? But then it occurred to me—why on earth would that Mountain God rat spirit do me any favors? “That’s not fair. I…” Just as I was about to explain, Yin Fang turned her head and glanced at Old Tang, then said something so cold it startled me: “100,000. I’ll take care of it for you!” 100,000? My God, is Yin Fang trying to rip me off?