Something Not to Be Told to Outsiders

They held their breath, lying prostrate on the ground, not daring to lift their heads. After a moment, they heard the soft clink of a teacup being set down on the table.

They heard the wondrous immortal speak.

"Very well, then."

"Aside from returning the money, for every silver coin you swindled, you must pay back an equal amount in restitution, until all the families' stolen property is fully repaid. Only then will your transgressions be considered atoned. Can you do this?"

The two acolyte youths grimaced and fell silent. Zhang Zhenmei's heart ached as well, but he quickly replied.

"We can, we can."

"As for the matter of deceiving people with Daoist arts..."

Zhang Zhenmei's cold sweat dripped to the ground. He lay prostrate, instinctively holding his breath, awaiting the reprimand, only lowering his back a little further.

Jiang She paused.

"Then you shall chant scriptures here for ten years, awakening the spiritual nature of the birds and beasts. Two hours each day, without cease."

"How about it?"

Zhang Quan and Zhang Zhenmei knelt on the ground. In that moment, he recalled the words this gentleman had spoken when he revealed his age, the words about his lifespan being forty-seven years.

His heart suddenly seized.

To chant scriptures and receive precepts in Xiangyang, reading sutras to the birds and beasts of the mountains for ten years—no one in the world had ever heard of such a thing. It was a sheer waste of time. After ten years, how many years of his allotted lifespan would remain?

Thinking this way, the human world—wind, flowers, snow, moonlight, tea-drinking, music-playing—all of it, in an instant, seemed fleeting as this.

Noon sunlight was splendid, spring birds chirped without end. Behind him, in the courtyard vat, several goldfish were kept, and he could hear them popping bubbles with a pata sound. The air still carried the lingering scent of wine from the just-finished meal. The leftover cups, plates, and bowls were being cleared by the Lu family servants, occasionally clinking against each other.

He could hear the guests and servants whispering and murmuring in hushed discussion. Behind him, the constables brought by the county magistrate stood at the door, their spears propped up, shifting from left foot to right foot, muttering to their colleagues without pause.

Amid the gazes of everyone around, Zhang Zhenmei straightened his back, bowed again in salute, and knocked his forehead against the ground, saying—

"I willingly submit to this punishment and dare not refuse."

"I shall obey."

Jiang She looked toward the Mountain God.

"Then I ask the Mountain God to oversee them."

The Mountain God clasped his hands in salute. "Rest assured, sir. I shall naturally supervise and inspect them, and will not fail your trust."

Jiang She raised his hand, and the three swindling masters and disciples were lifted to their feet by an unseen force. They looked somewhat dazed, then sensed something.

Their hearts tightened.

Was this the means of an immortal?

Like this... Zhang Zhenmei couldn't quite describe it. To make his deceptions flawless and convincing, he had put real effort into reading many Daoist scriptures and chanting mystical hymns.

But none of those contained such Daoist arts.

Seeing the matter settled, the county magistrate set aside his brother-in-law Wang Erlang, pushed through the crowd, and hurried forward a few steps.

Cheng Zhi, the county magistrate, already knew this exalted man was formidable and couldn't afford to put on airs. Yet as a court-appointed official, he also couldn't address himself with humble terms.

So he said.

"I am Cheng Zhi, courtesy name Yuanze, magistrate of Xiangyang County."

"The Lu family is a respectable household in my Xiangyang County, known for good deeds. I never imagined they would be ensnared by these three, who schemed to swindle away much of their wealth. If not for you, sir, I fear Lu the Eldest would have sold off even the last few acres of his meager land."

He stroked his beard, glanced at the three men, and continued.

"These three have deceived the Lu family, and who knows how many more households they would have tricked. With their appearance and attire, and claiming to possess Daoist arts and cultivation, they put on a frightening show—surely many would believe them!"

"I, Cheng, on behalf of the people of Xiangyang, thank you, sir!"

The magistrate clasped his hands in salute.

Jiang She stood up from the table and sidestepped slightly to avoid the gesture.

He said, "Your Honor is too courteous."

"This humble one is Jiang She, traveling and passing through your esteemed region. I have imposed upon you."

He smiled. "These men deceived people with Daoist arts. If they had only swindled a bit of incense money, that would have been one thing. But to trick people into selling off their family property—even if not for me, sooner or later someone else would have dealt with them. Wasn't the magistrate already on his way here?"

Zhang Zhenmei's face turned pale.

Tree shadows swayed gently, stirred by the wind.

Everyone stared in wonder at the man in blue robes in the courtyard, watching from afar, afraid to approach, only whispering to those beside them.

The magistrate thought of the strange matter of the missing people. Weighing his words, he asked again, "These nineteen people in the county were missing for seven days. We searched everywhere and couldn't find a single trace. I overheard just now in this courtyard—they had merely slept a long sleep."

"Is that true?"

Jiang She said, "It is true."

Magistrate Cheng Zhi's eyes widened slightly. After a few breaths, he spoke again.

"When they dreamed, Wang Er told me that in a single dream, they lived through forty years of spring and autumn—the people, the emotions, the affairs, all as real as life..."

"When they woke from the dream, they learned that only seven days had passed in the world."

Jiang She watched this County Magistrate Cheng, who seemed hesitant yet filled with longing and reverence.

He smiled inwardly.

"It happened just so."

The magistrate's heart itched with curiosity, wanting to inquire further, but the courtyard was crowded with people, and beside him stood an old man of peculiar bearing. He already knew this was the Mountain God of Lumen Mountain, the lord of these lands and peaks.

Yet despite the Mountain God's exalted status.

In his manner and speech, he showed great respect toward this gentleman.

Cheng Zhi grew even more cautious, daring not to overstep.

He said, "I shall not trouble you further today, sir. Another day, I will call upon you again. I hope Jiang, sir, will not bar me from your door."

"You are always welcome."

"As for the matters that follow, the magistrate may judge according to the law." Jiang She lifted his tea cup and took a sip.

This was not the time for conversation. The magistrate stared eagerly, but could only take his leave and depart.

Just before stepping out of the courtyard gate.

He heard a voice, from the man drinking tea at the table.

"Ah, one more thing."

Magistrate Cheng Zhi turned back, full of hope.

He saw that gentleman leisurely set down his tea cup, swept his gaze across the crowd in the courtyard, smiled warmly, and said in a gentle tone:

"What happened today is not for outsiders' ears."

After delivering that parting remark, Jiang She looked down at his stomach.

The guests and servants who had dreamed had all eaten, and Lu the Eldest and the Grand Matriarch had not gone hungry either, but he himself had yet to dine.

Counting back, his last meal had been at the temple, mooching off their food.

He walked to the locust tree, picked up the bamboo basket, and shook the mountain delicacies inside. The tender tea leaves had dried a bit, but that was fine. The wild berries, whatever fruit they were, were still edible.

He looked at the dried fish, its dead eyes staring white.

The fish stared back at him.

Jiang She sighed, offered it up with both hands.

He bent down and gently placed it before the ant hole beneath the tree, watching the insects crawling to and fro.

His voice was very soft: "Thank you all for sheltering me these seven days."

"I have troubled you greatly."

The dust and filth on the dried fish seemed to part automatically when his hands touched it, as if some power repelled the grime. From start to finish, not a speck clung to him.

Jiang She rose and looked at Li Bai and the Mountain God.

Behind the two stood Yuan Danqiu and Meng Haoran, who had shamelessly stayed behind.

He smiled.

"Let's go."

"They've eaten their fill, but it seems some haven't had their meal yet."

"Mountain God, could you gift me another fish?"

At the same time.

Several dozen yards away, the swindler Zhang Zhenmei and his two young attendants, having received their punishment, were dejectedly packing their bags, ready to leave the Lu residence.

One boy buried his head in the clutter of odds and ends, counting copper coins with care, reluctant to part with them. As he searched, he suddenly let out a delighted cry.

"How did twenty extra coins appear?"

The boy beside him glanced over. "Maybe you miscounted."

"I count them three times every day—how could I be wrong?" The boy refused to accept it, carefully pocketed the twenty copper coins, and continued packing.

As he rummaged.

"Huh?"

"So this umbrella was here all along. You said you couldn't find it, but wasn't it right underneath?"

The two of them crouched down together to tidy up, tied the bundle, and stuffed it into a stack of woven baskets. Qingyu pressed his fingers against the bamboo strips as he counted, a bit puzzled.

"We're missing one of our bamboo baskets. Where did it go?"