Four Guests from All Sides

Fortunately, Zhao Yijiu had only been speaking offhandedly and had no intention of abusing his authority for revenge. A gentle push from one hand sent Yu Xing out of the shadow, restoring him to solid form.

He stretched and headed for the supply box he hadn't checked earlier, rummaging through it with practiced ease.

Scissors, needles and thread, paints, scattered handwritten notes...

After the apprentices had searched it earlier, the contents of the supply box had been rearranged. It was impossible to tell what might be missing, especially since Yu Xing hadn't known what was in it to begin with.

But in one corner of the box, he found some stove ash wedged into a crack. It was so hard to see that he might have missed it if he hadn't looked closely.

There was no censer in the box, but there was a bundle of thin incense sticks.

So a censer was missing.

Yu Xing tried to pick up a little of the ash with his fingertip, but it had melded with the box, leaving behind only a barely visible discoloration.

He picked up the incense sticks and examined them. Watching from beside him, Zhao Yijiu asked, "Is something wrong with the incense?"

"It's ordinary incense. You can buy it anywhere that sells funeral supplies." Yu Xing put it back and narrowed his eyes. "But this bundle's been here a long time. It's damp and moldy, and there are marks where insects have nibbled at it. It's been left at the bottom of the box, too. They could've thrown it out ages ago."

"So the troupe hasn't burned incense in a long time." Zhao Yijiu followed his reasoning. "Why?"

Yu Xing pondered for a moment. "I don't know what the customs are around here, but a long time ago,