Story Under the Tree

They said that ten years ago, the Willow River flooded and the stone bridge in the middle of the river was snapped in half by an arch. In truth, it was not caused by the floodwaters. Someone passing by that day had seen a black shadow beneath the water, extremely long, most likely a rising dragon.

It was this "dragon" that had snapped the bridge.

Unfortunately, it failed to ascend and thus could not become a dragon, so it ended up living long-term in the river, bringing disaster to the region and eating quite a few people in recent years.

They said that the year before last, in Luojiadwan outside the city, a family suffered a death. Yet, because the household was poor and could not afford a coffin and a burial plot, the corpse was placed in the main room where it absorbed human breath. For a long time, it did not smell, and its fingernails and hair grew longer and longer. In the end, the villagers grew terribly frightened, scraped together money to buy a plot of land, and hastily buried it.

As a result, that very night amidst thunder and lightning, the corpse actually crawled out of the earth, leaving tracks that extended all the way from the burial mound to the village entrance.

Fortunately, it crawled slowly, and dawn broke just as it reached the village entrance.

They also said that the pauper's graveyard outside the city was frequently haunted...

Naturally, the old man's stories were not entirely true.

Some were made up—made up by others, made up by himself. Some were things he had heard—heard when he was young, or even heard when he was a child—and he had remembered them all the way to the present, passing them on to the next generation.

There were also those he had truly witnessed with his own eyes.

These stories were not necessarily all that interesting, and many were even very short, telling a whole matter in just a couple of sentences. Yet their strength lay in how close to home they were, with many located just outside the city, inside the city, or even on neighboring streets. The other adults would sometimes join in too, adding a word here and a sentence there to enrich their verisimilitude and details. Either they said they had also seen it and heard of it, or else, following their own imaginations or hearsay, they would explain the reasons for the appearance of these demons and ghosts with a grave and serious air—though of course, using mystical, strange, and bizarre words and logic.

Many very true ghost and demon legends came about precisely like this.

Passed down from generation to generation, the fake eventually became the true.

At least these children believed them implicitly.

One could see them staring with wide-open eyes, both terrified and excited, reluctant to leave.

Some with stubborn dispositions, afraid of losing face, either sought out idle chatter to bring up or tossed and turned everywhere, using clumsy acting to put on a relaxed air of neither being scared nor caring. Or else they asked their companions whether they were afraid; the moment the other showed the slightest hesitation, their own heart was comforted, and they immediately mocked them, using this method to dilute the fear within their own hearts so as to welcome this addictive sense of thrill.

However, the old man's internal reserves were also limited, and he often catered to the preferences of these children here, so he was almost squeezed dry. Having told a few, he could not really tell any more.

Yet the children were pestering him fiercely. When he said his mouth was dry, they went to pour him water; when he said he was tired, immediately someone came to pound his back. Having truly no alternative, turning things over in his mind, the old man's gaze shifted to the woman standing aside clasping a saber:

"Stop pestering me, go pester this hero."

The children glanced at the woman, but did not dare to step forward.

Which youth did not yearn for the jianghu? This jianghu martial artist had just attracted their attention the moment she arrived, and they had secretly stolen goodness knows how many glances at her. Yet having listened too much to stories of jianghu martial artists killing people, besides yearning, a measure of dread was hidden in their hearts. How could they casually dare to strike up a conversation with this strange hero?

"Don't be afraid. This hero has listened for so long, and surely she must also be a person who loves hearing stories. People of the jianghu travel north and south, so they are bound to have some marvelous experiences. Perhaps she has even encountered demons and ghosts personally. If you draw close and say a few nice words, maybe she will tell them to you."

Hearing this, the woman turned her head and actually looked at this group of children.

At last, a bold one appeared, looking at her with that pair of pure yet timid eyes:

"Hero? Have you ever encountered demons and ghosts?"

"I have, quite a few."

The woman spoke, her voice calm, yet her gaze toward the child was very gentle, unwittingly bringing a smile. "I've even hacked demons and ghosts to death with my own hands..."

"Ah?"

The crowd was immediately taken aback.

They were startled both that this face-wrapped hero was a woman, and startled by what she said.

As for the children, their eyes lit up.

"Really?"

"I'll tell you one."

"Okay."

Children naturally felt close to females, and humans possessed an innate instinct to care for young children. With the silence between both sides broken, they immediately grew much more affectionate. Once the hero's identity shed its sense of alienation, nothing was left but yearning.

Only the woman's somewhat rough voice was heard:

"That was a matter of last year. Oh, right now it's already the new year, so that would be the year before last.

"Once I was coming from Yi Capital—oh, Yi Capital is the seat of Yizhou, and Yizhou borders this place. On my way back to my sect from Yi Capital—oh, my sect is the sect and school that taught me martial arts.

"On my way back to my sect, I took a shortcut, walked the wrong way halfway, and delayed a lot of time. The dry rations I carried were also eaten up, and I was so hungry I couldn't stand it.

"At that time it was autumn. Though there were wild fruit in the mountains and one could also bag a few birds to roast, the wild fruit was sour to death, and birds roasted dry were also excruciatingly unpalatable.

"Just right, I saw human habitation in the distance. Going over to look, it was a manor, and the wealthiest household in the manor was holding a funeral.

"Heh! I thought to myself! Shouldn't I go and have a meal?

"I wouldn't eat for free either; I'd just say I was a distant niece of the old person, who went up the mountain to study martial arts since childhood, offer a condolence gift, and at worst kowtow to him as well, wouldn't that settle it? With so many people eating there, could it be that someone would really come and question me clearly?

"So I went and ate!"

Seeing the group of children display rapt and nervous expressions, her tone carried a bit of smile.

"The meal went smoothly.

"The food was good too, great fish and thick meat.

"I hadn't eaten such good food in a long time.

"People who practice martial arts naturally have big appetites to begin with, and having starved miserably, I ate to my heart's content. Tsk tsk, you lot haven't eaten a feast in my Yizhou, best to be a rich family's feast—that is what you call delicious."

With just a few sentences, describing nothing else besides, relying solely on her tone, she successfully stirred up the children's appetites.

Some even began to swallow their saliva.

There were also those who asked what dishes there were, and the woman answered them one by one.

Having spoken a couple of other words, she turned back again and continued, "After eating and drinking my fill, the people all dispersed. I didn't want to leave, so I randomly found a place to sleep. Sleeping to the middle of the night, I felt someone pushing me. Opening my eyes to look, it was an old man. Seeing that the fabric of the clothes he wore was very fine, most likely he was the master of this household, and moreover he was quite old, I didn't have much guard. Looking back on it later, that someone could approach my side imperceptibly while I was fast asleep and push me until I woke up—I ought to have drawn my saber immediately.

"Later he spoke with me, asking who I was.

"I said I was the distant niece of the person inside the coffin. He said he didn't recognize me; I said I went up the mountain to study martial arts since childhood; he said that person had no niece.

"I still wanted to make up a story, but when I thought about it, look, I had already eaten and drunk my fill, patted my backside and left tomorrow, and furthermore I gave the condolence gift and kowtowed too, so what of it if I ate a meal of yours? By what right could you lot make me spit it out?"

The woman wedged her long saber against her arm, right hand striking left, with a sharp clack:

"I just said it straight: I was only passing by, walked the wrong way, the things I carried were eaten up, and I was truly so hungry I had no recourse. Seeing someone holding a feast here, I therefore came over to offer condolences and eat a meal.

"That old man smiled. He said that most of the people who came here he didn't recognize either, and some hadn't seen for a dozen years. Every time, some people not only came empty-handed, but also had to ask for some money when leaving. Still others purely came to eat a good meal, refusing to kowtow even. As for the old friends they used to associate with, even if they weren't dead yet, they were all old, unable to walk, and utterly unable to come. The people who came today were not even as sincere as me, a freeloading diner.

"I smiled too.

"Later on, after chatting with him a bit longer, feeling sleepy, I went to sleep."

There were no other sounds beneath the ancient tree.

The adults were lost in thought, the children stared at her with dark, glossy eyes, and Three Flower Lady—though feeling that climbing this tree to catch birds was still much more fun—obediently sat beside Song You, wrapping her small paws with her tail and lowering her head to lick the fur on her chest so as to groom it neatly and cleanly.

"Waking up from another sleep, it was the morning of the next day, foggy and hazy. Someone came to find me, saying I was an honored guest and inviting me to sit at the table and eat the best feast.

"Did this even need thought?

"It was definitely because the old man last night had a congenial chat with me and felt I was a decent person, which was why he had the younger generation invite me.

"As a result, on the way they told me that last night they had a dream, dreaming that their already deceased father told them I was a distant niece he hadn't seen in a long time, telling them to treat me well. Waking up from sleep, they were both astonished and felt it miraculous; discussing it with one another, they came to look around, and didn't expect they really managed to find me."

At this, the children had already cried out in surprise.

"At first I didn't believe it, but when I drew close to the coffin to look... Oh, I don't know if you know or not, where we hold funerals, during the ritual the coffin is not sealed tight; a crack must be left, and only after the ritual is finished do they put the lid on and carry it up the mountain to bury it, so by drawing close one can see the person inside.

"I drew close and looked—

"It was precisely the old man from last night!

"The clothes were all the same!"

The children opened their eyes wide.

"Then what?"

"Then I just ate breakfast there, you see. When I left, they even prepared chicken legs, dried meat, and steamed buns for me, found someone to point the way, and insisted on giving me five taels of silver."

"How much money is five taels of silver?"

"About six thousand."

"How much is six thousand?"

"Anyway, a lot."

"Did you take it?"

"Haha, how could that be? Such a huge sum of money, how could I have the face to take it? I only went to eat a meal, and having eaten and drunk my fill, it was time to leave. However, I did bring the chicken legs and dried meat back to my sect, and let my master and martial brothers taste them. Delicious as could be."

"Wa..."

Compared to the stories the old man had previously told, the story told by the woman was neither as fantastic nor as terrifying, yet personal experience excelled in truth. Its details, the emotion and demeanor when telling it, were not something the stories told by the old man could compare to.

And this story naturally possessed its own clever charm; the children did not know where the charm lay, yet hearing it, they also found it pleasing.

"Tell another one."

"Female hero, tell another one."

"Big Sister~"

"Such sweet mouths! I have indeed encountered demons and ghosts several times, and heard quite a few as well, but today I don't want to tell any." Having spoken, the woman once more cast a sideways glance at the Daoist priest beside her, and seeing this Daoist priest with the appearance of a lingering, contemplative aftertaste, she could not help smiling softly, saying to the children, "There is a Daoist priest standing right beside you; why aren't you pestering him instead of pestering me?"

Hearing this, the group of children turned to look at Song You once more.

Perhaps their prior interaction with the woman had given them experience and courage, so they immediately came to pester him to tell a story.

Song You truly could not withstand it.

Having listened for so long, it was also hard to just leave.

He had not expected that he had just told quite a few stories on the boat a few days ago, and now he had to tell them here again.

Yet the same story was not told twice.

Then what should he tell?

Song You looked at this group of young children before him, seeing that having listened to many frightening stories earlier, and having just listened to the one the woman told, they had relaxed somewhat. Yet feared it was only temporary, and once they returned home and night arrived, most of them would still be too scared to sleep, or even harbor a shadow for a period of time...

Then let him dilute it once more.

Hence he lowered his head and glanced at the well-behaved Three Flower Cat by his feet: "I will also tell a story I truly witnessed—the story of a roadside cat temple and a cat god."

Hearing the sound, the Three Flower Cat raised her head, staring at him in bewilderment.

Yet Song You only smiled slightly:

"Around late summer and early autumn last year, half a year ago, I was traveling down the mountain, walking Jinyang Road, when I saw a small temple. What was enshrined inside the small temple was not a person, not an immortal, but a cat..."

Song You also narrated in detail.

A smile could not help but carry onto his face.

At first the Three Flower Cat did not understand, but later she too fell into a daze.

Time often brings a sense of trance.