Shen Le

Biodata

Feature	Detail
Full Name	Shen Le 1 2 17
Alias	None
Species	Human 1 4
Gender	Male (he/him) 1 2 4 15 23
Occupation	Artifact restorer and antique repairer; formerly a graduate student in artifact restoration at Beijing University 1 34 49
Affiliation	Independent; inherits the Shen family estate at 18 Nanhua Street; no formal organizational ties 2 5 15 30
Status	Alive and active 49

Physical Description

The Little Puppet, later named Xiao Ling by Shen Le, is a wooden puppet of exquisite craftsmanship, standing roughly half the height of a seven- or eight-year-old child 5. Her appearance is dominated by a vibrant red brocade skirt adorned with large silver-threaded flowers, a costume that, while occasionally tattered, remains dazzling 5 16. The puppet’s makeup is meticulously applied: a faded but still vivid cinnabar mole—often described as a "cinnabar tear"—marks the corner of her right eye, and her face carries the remnants of elaborate paint 5 9. When fully attired, she may also wear a glittering crown and hold a red-tasseled spear, presenting a regal and theatrical image 16. The outfit is made of fine silk and brocade with vibrant colors, and during performances her clothing is chosen to match the operatic role (though Shen Le notes that a bright red costume is occasionally inappropriate for certain scenes) 15 23. Xiao Ling’s body is carved from wood and repaired with dovetail joints, patches, and paint; cracks and seams have been carefully covered, leaving a smooth, polished surface 12. She moves via a system of silk threads that she can control herself—levitating, grabbing objects, and walking with a soft patter—and she is capable of changing her own attire and even applying makeup under guidance 30 34.

• Hair: Not depicted; likely absent or represented only by carved wooden forms, as the puppet’s head is part of the carved figure.
• Eye Color: Not specified in the text; the eyes are painted, with the most distinctive feature being the cinnabar mole at the corner of the right eye 5 9.
• Typical Attire: A bright red brocade dress or flowing red skirt decorated with large silver-threaded flowers, occasionally accompanied by a glittering crown and a red-tasseled spear 5 16.
• Height: Approximately half the height of a child (roughly 60–80 cm, based on the child described in flashbacks) 5.
• Material & Construction: Carved from wood (likely jujube wood, inferred from Shen Le’s restoration work), with patches, dovetail joints, and layers of paint covering repair work. The body is jointed and operated by a system of silk threads that can be pulled to manipulate movements, but the puppet can also move on her own using those same threads 12 30 34.
• Distinctive Mark: A vivid red, teardrop-shaped mark (cinnabar mole or “cinnabar tear”) at the corner of her right eye, a constant feature even when makeup is otherwise faded 5 9.
• Accessories: When performing, she often holds a red-tasseled spear; her crown is described as "glittering" 16. She can also be dressed in other opera costumes (e.g., white for the Broken Bridge role) 23.
• State of Repair: After Shen Le’s restoration, her surface is smooth and polished, with all cracks, patches, and joints made invisible by careful carving and painting 12 34.

Personality and Traits

• Compassionate and brave: Shen Le jumps into a river to rescue what he believes is a drowning child, only to find it is a puppet 4. He feels empathy toward struggling day laborers and considers hiring them in the future 34. He uses the Ink Marker to create a picture frame that helps reconcile a quarreling couple, showing his willingness to help others resolve conflicts 47.

• Patient and meticulous: He spends an entire night and a day carving a Jujube Wood Bead despite finger pain, and applies multiple layers of paint and intricate wood-grain details during restoration work 34 38. His careful cleaning of a dirty artifact with acetone demonstrates his commitment to precision 33.

• Determined and persistent: He refuses to hand over the Ink Marker to the Special Affairs Department, insisting he can handle it safely 30. When the Five Animal Frolics fail to protect his fingers, he tries a different circulation technique and keeps working until the bead is completed 38.

• Resourceful and adaptable: He orders an industrial dust mask and considers building a fume hood to safely use acetone 33. He experiments with different auras in the Copper Fragment, testing how they fuse or repel, to understand their nature 50.

• Empathetic and understanding: He sympathizes with the financial struggles of the couple he bought the Ink Marker from, and feels for the wife who cries over her husband’s minor faults 35 39. He puts himself in the puppet’s shoes when he accidentally startles it 17.

• Protective and responsible: He sets strict rules for Xiao Ling – no talking, no moving unless he controls her – when taking her to the hospital 18. He refuses to let the Special Affairs Department confiscate the Ink Marker, believing he can keep it safe 30.

• Curious and observant: He uses his Spirit Eye to examine the auras on the Ink Marker, Xiao Ling, and other objects, noting differences in color and density 27. He becomes obsessed with understanding the auras in the Copper Fragment and how they interact 50.

• Cautious and safety-conscious: He seeks proper safety equipment before working with hazardous solvents and tests techniques cautiously to avoid injury 33. After being whipped by the sentient camphor tree, he decides not to pester it further 23.

• Appreciative of companionship: He watches a supportive couple and wishes he could meet a similar partner, reflecting on his isolation as a shut-in 36. He feels comforted when Xiao Ling helps him in the workshop, contrasting her helpfulness with the Ink Marker’s troublemaking 40.

• Obsessive-compulsive tendencies: He notices a disrupted aura on a repaired chair and feels compelled to fix it, even though it may not be necessary 50.

• Self-reflective: He considers that the Ink Marker’s lack of a name stems from its previous owners never treating it as a person, and he deliberately gives it identity 49. He also acknowledges his own lack of social interaction has limited his romantic prospects 36.

• Honest and direct: When the police call about ink lines on a door, he immediately denies any intentional wrongdoing, though he later admits the Ink Marker acted on its own 40.

• Has a dry sense of humor: He internally scoffs at the notion that not smoking, drinking, gambling, or beating a spouse count as merits for a husband, thinking “basic human decency” 39. He sarcastically wonders if the sentient camphor tree is a sister or brother 23.

Background and History

Shen Le was a graduate student specializing in the restoration of ancient architecture at Beijing University, where he spent nearly two years working in the field alongside his supervisor on various heritage sites. Upon completing his studies, he found himself unemployed, sending out dozens of resumes without a single offer. He possessed a family heirloom, a mottled copper fragment roughly half the size of a palm, which had been passed down through his family. This fragment, whose jagged end suggested it had broken off from a larger object, possessed unusual properties: when he pressed it against his neck after long hours of hunching over his work, a surge of heat would relieve his accumulated stiffness. Over the course of his three years of graduate study, he discovered that only repairing artifacts seemed to trigger changes in the copper fragment, causing a faint cyan glow to spread across its surface. Facing financial hardship, he had resigned himself to returning to his hometown to study for the civil service exams, hoping to secure a position in a museum’s artifact restoration department where he could access a steady supply of items to repair. On the day he finished packing, a phone call informed him that he had inherited an estate from a granduncle he had never known existed 1.

The lawyer explained that the property—an ancient mansion located at 18 Nanhua Street in Zhuxi Town—had been the family property of Shen Yinmo, a granduncle who had gone abroad as a young man and had no descendants. According to the will, it was bequeathed to the descendant with the closest blood relation whose household registration remained in his hometown. The mansion was vast, covering two thousand square meters with two sections—east and west—each containing three courtyards. The property rights could not be transferred within twenty years, so Shen Le would have to develop it himself. Though initially overwhelmed, Shen Le signed the documents quickly, his mind racing with the possibility of renting out the extra courtyards. Upon arriving at the street, he found the mansion standing out from the surrounding old buildings: a pair of vermilion-lacquered doors beneath an intricately carved brick gatehouse, with relief carvings of pomegranates, magpies, lotus flowers, and auspicious clouds, and the characters “Jiayi Youchang” inscribed in the center. Inside, he discovered a treasure trove of antique furniture—a rosewood thousand-work bed, a sandalwood daybed with magpie-and-plum carvings, a black-lacquered five-drawer chest inlaid with mother-of-pearl, and a twelve-panel floor screen behind two grandmaster chairs. The mansion and everything inside it belonged to him, and he realized he could potentially sell the contents or, more enticingly, restore them to charge his copper fragment 2 3.

Despite the mansion’s grandeur, Shen Le soon faced practical challenges. The location on an old street with low foot traffic made renting difficult, and the costs of maintenance and security were alarming. When he consulted the local police officer, Shi Guangbing, about installing a surveillance system, the price proved prohibitive. A search for a missing child on the property required the use of a life detector borrowed from the fire department, and Shen Le became acutely aware of the burden of upkeep 7 8. Nevertheless, his involvement with antiques and the supernatural began almost immediately. To test whether repairing the mansion’s furniture could charge the copper fragment, he selected a small, damaged rosewood screen with gold-painted landscape motifs tucked away in a corner of the west side room. He disassembled it piece by piece, cleaned the mortise and tenon joints, scraped the dirt out with a small chisel, reassembled the components with wood glue, and touched up the gold paint. Upon completing the repair, he checked the copper fragment and found that a faint bump on its surface had lengthened into a curved stroke resembling ancient seal script—proof that it could indeed be charged through restoration work. This discovery meant he no longer needed to hunt for antiques or endure the drudgery of civil service exam preparation 3.

The copper fragment’s powers soon extended beyond charging. After saving an injured ginger cat, Shen Le used the fragment to heal it, and the cat transformed into a fox and ran away. Shortly thereafter, while exploring the river near the mansion, he heard a child’s distress call and jumped in to rescue what turned out to be a puppet. He brought the puppet home and began restoring it, accidentally activating a memory from its past. The puppet, which he later named Xiao Ling, proved to be sentient and could invite people into the mansion—though a large camphor tree in the courtyard, referred to as Sister Ah Lu, controlled who could enter. Through Xiao Ling, Shen Le learned of a paralyzed child, Zhang Zihan, and used the copper fragment to secretly restore feeling to the boy’s legs 4 5 18. His restoration work also uncovered a chest of antique woodworking tools in the family’s old house, including an unusual ink fountain shaped like a crouching lion with a ghost-work ball embedded on its plumb bob. Using his “Spirit Eye” ability, amplified by the copper fragment, he perceived that the tools carried a unique quality—perhaps from being deeply involved in manual labor 26. He later restored a valuable ink marker (which he named Zheng Mo) and taught Xiao Ling to paint. The ink marker itself exhibited intelligence, leading him back to the couple he had purchased it from and seemingly wanting him to intervene in their dispute 34 38. As he continued repairing the mansion’s furniture, he earned a substantial sum that allowed him to upgrade his workshop and purchase new equipment, and he began learning new skills from the copper fragment, including a carpentry technique that came with a forced infusion of memories from his grandparents’ dedication to their work 44 49. Through these events, Shen Le’s inheritance of the ruined mansion set him on a path not only of restoring antiques but of engaging with supernatural artifacts and entities that had lain dormant within the old house.

Plot Summary

The Inheritance

• Shen Le inherits an ancient mansion from a granduncle he never knew existed, located at 18 Nanhua Street in Zhuxi Town. The property rights cannot be transferred for twenty years, and he must develop it himself. The mansion is in poor condition but features a richly carved brick gatehouse with patterns such as "pomegranates and magpies" and "lotus flowers and begonias" 2.
• After completing the property transfer, Shen Le travels from Shanghai to Zhuxi Town. Behind the scenes, a lawyer and an older man named Old Hu have been manipulating the inheritance for their own purposes, with Old Hu’s grandson being the intended recipient. The lawyer’s silver glasses were damaged by some mysterious force 2.
• Shen Le initially feels overwhelmed and disheartened by the mansion’s remote location and low foot traffic, but becomes excited about the potential value of the antique furniture, which he hopes to restore to charge his copper plate 2.

The Little Puppet

• Shen Le finds a wooden puppet floating in a river and brings it home with the help of community officer Shi Guangbing. He adds Shi Guangbing on WeChat and begins restoring the puppet 5.
• While repairing the puppet, Shen Le accidentally activates a memory from its past: he sees a seven-or-eight-year-old boy (likely a younger Shen Le) clutching the puppet and defiantly telling an adult man, “Xiao Lin is my friend!” The puppet is shown as a precious companion from the 1980s 5.
• The puppet triggers an alarm in the Special Affairs Department’s equipment, leading Gu Yulin and Zhang Bingxin to investigate. They try to seize the puppet, claiming it is linked to a child’s fall from a building, but Shen Le refuses, shouting “Get out!” which causes a massive spike in spiritual pressure, revealing his hidden power 15.
• Shen Le later learns that the child who fell kept asking for his “big sister” – the puppet. He also witnesses a puppeteer using a similar puppet to cheer up crying toddlers, performing a scene from Tianbo Mansion 16.
• The puppet, which Shen Le names Xiao Ling, begins to move on its own at the Heavenly Fragrance Restaurant, emitting a halo that absorbs black gas from diners, alleviating their sorrows. The Special Affairs Department duo arrives at the restaurant, heading toward Xiao Ling, worrying Shen Le 23.
• Shen Le teaches Xiao Ling how to paint, using the Ink Marker as a practice piece. He also instructs her to be careful not to get her clothes dirty before a performance 30 34.

The Ink Marker

• Shen Le discovers a chest filled with antique woodworking tools in his family’s old house, including an unusual ink fountain shaped like a crouching lion with a ghost-work ball embedded on its plumb bob. The police report strange events involving ink lines appearing in a house 26.
• Using his Spirit Eye, Shen Le observes that the ink marker has black mist similar to Xiao Ling’s. He decides to repair it to see if it gains intelligence. The ink marker requires repairs to the lion head, ink line wheel, and the Devil’s Work Ball 27.
• The Special Affairs Department duo confronts Shen Le again, demanding he hand over the tool chest and ink marker due to suspected yin energy. He refuses, believing it is safe in his hands. He adds them on WeChat and asks them to buy concentrated nitric acid for him 30.
• Shen Le begins removing rust from the Ink Marker’s shaft using dilute acid. Xiao Ling watches and asks questions. Shen Le feels the Ink Marker is well-behaved, though he suspects it may have its own will 30 34.
• The Ink Marker begins to act independently: it marks an ‘X’ on a poor couple’s backs without Shen Le’s consent, and Shen Le has a vision of his father from decades ago as a woodworker, discussing factory closure and job prospects with his wife 35.
• While Shen Le struggles to manually find the North and South poles of a wooden ball for carving a new Devil’s Work Ball, the Ink Marker (which he calls Mo Dou) unexpectedly helps set the poles and divides the equator into five parts 36.
• Shen Le completes a Jujube Wood Bead after a night and a day of carving. The Ink Marker activates, pulling him out of the house and leading him back to the couple he bought it from, where they are arguing loudly about divorce and money 38.
• The Ink Marker forces Shen Le to follow the arguing couple to their home. It snaps ink lines all over their door, causing the couple to report it. Shen Le tries to understand the Ink Marker’s intentions, sensing that it wants him to mediate their dispute 39 40.
• With Xiao Ling’s help using silk threads, Shen Le successfully repairs and reattaches the Devil’s Work Ball. The Ink Marker comes to life with a bad temper, hitting Shen Le on the forehead 42.
• Through the Ink Marker’s memories, Shen Le sees the previous owner’s parents arguing about sending their son (Zheng Xiaohua) to vocational school or high school, and the father’s back surgery. The Ink Marker reveals its desire to be used for carpentry, but the previous owner resisted 43.

The Ink Marker’s Special Functions

• Shen Le uses the Ink Marker to create a picture frame that helps the quarreling couple, Zheng Xiaohua and his wife, reconnect by appreciating their shared past. He observes the harmonizing effect on their auras 47.
• He is called about being late for Xiao Ling’s performance at the Heavenly Fragrance Restaurant. At the restaurant, two massive men are fighting, causing destruction. The proprietress intervenes, makes them pay damages, and gives Shen Le a large payment to restore the old furniture in the restaurant 47 48.
• Shen Le develops a new skill from the Copper Fragment, which allows him to absorb brownish-yellow energy. The Ink Marker works diligently on restoring the furniture, but Shen Le criticizes its repair technique as incorrect 49 50.
• Shen Le considers naming the Ink Marker to give it a sense of identity, explaining that its first owner was Zheng Aijun and the second was Zheng Xiaohua. The Ink Marker falls silent after being shown that “Ink Marker” is a generic term 49.

Abilities and Skills

Antique Restoration

Shen Le possesses professional expertise in artifact restoration, having graduated as a graduate student in the field 1. His skills are grounded in a deep understanding of materials, historical techniques, and meticulous handcraft. He demonstrates patience and a systematic approach, whether restoring a small rosewood screen with gold-painted motifs or a complex piece of furniture 3. His methodology includes disassembly, cleaning, sanding with increasingly fine grits, applying wood glue, reassembly with clamps, and final finishing with varnish 3 35. He also shows resourcefulness in identifying wood types by measuring density and using various solvents like acetone for cleaning, while being mindful of safety hazards such as flammability 27 33. His craftsmanship improves after absorbing memory infusions from the Copper Fragment, allowing him to tackle more demanding tasks such as carving a Devil's Work Ball and repairing an old ink marker 37 38 41.

• Applications: Restoring antique furniture (tables, chairs, cabinets, screens), repairing and reactivating spiritual artifacts (e.g., the Ink Marker "Zheng Mo"), performing fine joinery and carving, selecting appropriate lumber and tools for specific repairs.
• Limitations: High difficulty tasks, such as creating a three-layered Devil’s Work Ball, require a skill level far beyond his baseline; initial attempts using power tools fail, forcing a switch to manual tools 37. The hardness of certain woods (e.g., jujube wood) causes physical strain and finger injuries, requiring supplementary techniques to protect his hands 37 38. Restoration of larger batches demands significant time, material costs, and proper safety equipment (e.g., industrial dust masks, fume hoods) 33 49.

Spirit Eye

The Spirit Eye is a supernatural perception ability granted and enhanced by the Copper Fragment. Shen Le activates it by circulating a surge of heat flow through his meridians—rising from the lower dantian, passing through key acupoints, and condensing into his eyes 26. This grants him the power to see auras, energy flows, and spiritual fields around objects and beings. He uses it to inspect artifacts for lingering spiritual essence, detect disruptions in the aura of repaired furniture, and observe the black mist indicating sentience in tools like the Ink Marker 26 27 50. The ability also allows him to perceive the colored breaths within the Copper Fragment’s dimensional space 49.

• Applications: Identifying whether an antique tool or artifact possesses spiritual energy (e.g., the ink fountain’s unique aura), diagnosing damage to an object’s energetic integrity, guiding precise aura-restoring strokes on furniture, and seeing through supernatural phenomena.
• Limitations: The duration of the Spirit Eye is strictly limited—one cycle of cultivation grants only about five minutes of active use before the vision fades and the ability must be recharged by repeating the circulation technique 50. It requires conscious effort and heat flow expenditure, and its endurance does not improve with base-level practice 50.

Copper Fragment Skills

The Ancestral Copper Fragment, a family heirloom, functions as a supernatural tool that can be "charged" by repairing antiques, which causes it to grow in size and develop new strokes of ancient seal script 1 3. It grants Shen Le a suite of evolving abilities:

Memory Infusion: Activating certain light spots on the Copper Fragment triggers forced memory infusions—dense packets of sensory and technical knowledge from past craftsmen. These infusions transmit carpentry skills, techniques, and even emotional experiences directly into Shen Le’s mind, rapidly improving his craftsmanship 44. The infusion is described as exhausting and overwhelming, with the experience of "forced feeding" 44.

• Applications: Rapidly acquiring advanced woodworking skills (e.g., precise carving, historical joinery methods) without years of practice.
• Limitations: The process is mentally draining; Shen Le finds it overwhelming and recoils from additional infusions until he recovers. The Copper Fragment does not allow control over the timing or content of the memory transfer—it delivers the knowledge involuntarily when a light spot is triggered 44.

Aura Manipulation: After completing three cycles of the Five Animal Frolics and guiding heat flow to the second light spot, Shen Le is pulled into a strange space filled with swirling, colored breaths 49. These auras can be caught and manipulated only when he extends heat flow through his fingertips; without it, they evade touch. Identical auras can be fused together by pinching two into one 49. He discovers that a brownish-yellow aura can be absorbed and integrated into his cultivation technique, opening new meridians and accelerating energy growth 50. Other auras prove useless or even painful—such as a white speck that causes pain upon contact 50. The Copper Fragment provides no identification function, so all practical applications must be discovered through trial and error 50.

• Applications: Absorbing specific auras (brownish-yellow) to speed up cultivation, directing the heat flow to attack new acupuncture points, and potentially filtering or combining auras for future uses. The ability also allows detection of aura damage and the need to restore a chair’s disrupted energy field 50.
• Limitations: The space is disorienting; the auras are initially difficult to catch without mastered heat flow control. There is no inherent labeling of auras—Shen Le must experiment blindly, risking wasted time or discomfort (e.g., the white aura causes pain). The absorption process appears to be tied to his cultivation technique’s energy type, so incompatible auras are rejected 50.

Healing and Object Sentience Support: By using the Copper Fragment’s energy, Shen Le can stimulate healing in living beings (e.g., partially restoring movement to a paralyzed child) 18. He can also "charge" repaired artifacts to the point where they develop sentience—such as the Ink Marker Zheng Mo, which gains the ability to work autonomously and express preferences (e.g., choosing its own name) 49. The Little Puppet Xiao Ling also gained an ability to emit a faint light that dispels dark aura from a hospital ward, contributing to a child’s recovery 20. These events suggest that Shen Le’s work with the Copper Fragment can imbue objects with beneficial properties.

• Applications: Healing injuries and paralysis by applying the Copper Fragment’s energy, awakening spiritual artifacts to serve as autonomous workers (e.g., furniture restoration), and enhancing objects with light-based purification abilities.
• Limitations: The healing effect is not guaranteed—full recovery is not immediate and may require sustained efforts or additional factors. The Copper Fragment’s feedback on sentience is indirect; Shen Le uses trial-and-error (tapping, knocking) to confirm spiritual activity. Not all repaired objects become sentient; the process seems contingent on the artifact’s original nature and the level of energy absorbed 38 49.

Supporting Techniques: Five Animal Frolics and Circulation Method

To access and utilize Copper Fragment abilities, Shen Le must first perform the Five Animal Frolics—a qigong-like exercise that generates and circulates a warm current (heat flow) through his body 49. This heat flow is essential for activating the Spirit Eye, entering the aura space, and protecting his fingers during strenuous carving. When carving jujube wood, which is extremely hard, he discovers that the standard Five Animal Frolics does not provide finger defense; instead, he must use a more specific circulation technique—the "circulation of the heavenly cycle"—to channel heat flow to his fingers, granting temporary protection for about fifteen minutes at a time 38. This technique must be continually re-circulated as the effect fades, and its endurance is limited by his overall cultivation progress 38.

• Applications: Generating and directing internal heat flow to enhance perception (Spirit Eye), manipulate auras, protect body parts during demanding manual work, and support cultivation growth.
• Limitations: The protection is short-lived and requires frequent reapplication, interrupting workflow. The techniques do not inherently improve finger toughness or provide lasting resistance; they merely buffer against immediate physical damage. The amount of heat flow available is tied to the Copper Fragment’s charge level and Shen Le’s own cultivation stamina 50.

Power Progression

Stage	Ability/Skill	Event/Chapter
Initial awakening	Basic heat surge from Copper Fragment	Shen Le first uses the Ancestral Copper Fragment to relieve neck stiffness and feels a surge of heat; later charges it by repairing a rosewood screen, causing a visible change 1 3
First activation	Guidance for movement and martial arts practice	The Copper Fragment emits a phantom image guiding Shen Le’s stances and breathing during exercise, synchronizing his movements with a cyan template and generating internal heat 4
Puppet repair	Enhanced Copper Fragment growth; ability to experience memories	After repairing the Little Wooden Puppet (Xiao Ling), Shen Le experiences its memories twice, and the Copper Fragment grows to cover three-quarters of his palm 10 16
Healing intervention	Basic healing via Copper Fragment	Shen Le visits the paralyzed child Zhang Zihan and uses the Copper Fragment to restore feeling in his legs, leading to the boy regaining sensation and movement 18; later rewarded with a meal 20
Awakening Spirit Eye	Spirit Eye Technique	Using the Copper Fragment to boost his senses, Shen Le activates the Spirit Eye, seeing auras on an old ink fountain and understanding its sentience 26; later refines the technique to detect aura disruptions 50
Internal energy circulation	Heavenly Cycle circulation (Ren and Du meridians)	Shen Le learns to circulate internal energy along his Ren and Du meridians using the Copper Fragment, protecting his fingers during carving 38; after completing nine cycles he recharges the Spirit Eye for five minutes of use 50
Carpentry memory infusion	Carpentry skills via memory infusion	The Copper Fragment forcibly injects a memory of his grandparents’ carpentry work, teaching him woodworking techniques; the fragment expands to palm size 44
Devil’s Work Ball (practice)	Carving technique; manual tool proficiency	Shen Le spends days carving practice wooden balls (pine/fir), failing repeatedly but eventually creating a three-layer rolling ball; learns he must use manual tools instead of electric drill 37
Jujube wood carving	Finger protection technique (heavenly cycle)	While carving the jujube wood bead for the Ink Marker, Shen Le suffers finger pain; he adapts the heavenly cycle circulation to protect his fingers, allowing sustained carving 38
Ink Marker repair	Tool consciousness; ability to delegate work	After completing the jujube wood bead, the Ink Marker activates, pulls Shen Le to its previous owners, and later works independently on furniture restoration, showing sentience 38 42 49; named Zheng Mo 49
Third skill – Colored breath manipulation	Interaction with colored breaths in Copper Fragment space	Shen Le, after performing Five Animal Frolics and Spirit Eye, enters a strange space filled with colored breaths; by extending internal heat flow he catches and fuses identical breaths 49
Refined aura repair	Aura manipulation using Spirit Eye	Shen Le notices a disrupted aura on a repaired chair and uses the Spirit Eye to fix it, demonstrating advanced control over energy fields 50

Relationships

Xiao Ling

Xiao Ling, the sentient string puppet Shen Le rescued from a river and meticulously restored, is his closest companion and the central figure in his life. Their bond began when Shen Le experienced the puppet’s memories during restoration, realizing it was alive and had been discarded 5 10 17. He named her Xiao Ling—the “Ling” with the person radical, meaning a performer of traditional opera—after she begged for a name, rejecting generic labels like “Little Puppet” 17. Their relationship is one of mutual care and dependence: Shen Le acts as a protective guardian, teaching her about the world and negotiating for her well-being, while Xiao Ling offers unwavering loyalty, obedience, and practical help in his work.

From the start, Shen Le fiercely defends Xiao Ling against perceived threats. When the Special Affairs Department tried to seize her, claiming she was a “dirty thing” that could harm people, Shen Le physically pushed them out of his home, shouting “Get out!” with such force that their detection devices screeched 15. He later rented her out for performances at the Heavenly Fragrance Restaurant but only after negotiating strict terms: the proprietress could not break her, throw her away, discard her into a soup pot or stove, or take a hammer or axe to her 22. He also demanded that any mysterious changes be reported to him immediately 22. His protectiveness extends to arranging her performance schedules—he was momentarily alarmed when the proprietress discussed taking her to a hospital, and he carefully monitored the Special Affairs Department personnel who filmed her 24.

Xiao Ling, in turn, demonstrates deep trust and affection. She eagerly agreed to perform at the restaurant, cheerfully demanding that part of her earnings go toward buying clothes 21. She is curious and eager to learn, watching Shen Le restore the Ink Marker and asking to paint with him 30 34. She helps him with his craft: threading ink lines, pulling cords like a plumb bob, and even scrubbing the mansion’s furniture and windows without complaint 31 42. Shen Le appreciates her assistance, noting that she never asks for wages or bathroom breaks—only the occasional new outfit or makeup session 42. She also reveals her past friendship with a child, Zhang Zihan, who jumped off a building; Shen Le takes her to the hospital where she helps heal the boy’s paralysis via the Copper Fragment 18. Their bond is one of mutual healing and companionship, with Shen Le feeling “deeply comforted” by her help 40.

The Proprietress of Heavenly Fragrance Restaurant

The proprietress is a shrewd, resourceful, and authoritative figure who becomes a key collaborator in Xiao Ling’s public performances. Shen Le first meets her when she tastes the mutton noodles at her restaurant and is impressed; she immediately proposes renting Xiao Ling for daily shows at 100 yuan per day, plus free meals for Shen Le 21. Their relationship is professional but cordial, built on mutual benefit and a shared understanding of Xiao Ling’s special nature.

The proprietress commands respect from everyone, including the Special Affairs Department duo, who were warned that “in her shop, it was best to listen obediently” 24. When two massive men start fighting in her restaurant, she coolly intervenes, sings a verse from the Legend of the White Snake to calm them, and then demands immediate payment for the damages—both men obediently pulling out thick wallets 47. She also manages the logistics of Xiao Ling’s performances with impressive efficiency: when Shen Le is reluctant about hospital shows, she smoothly suggests a school instead, using her connections to arrange tours for stressed children during summer vacation 24. She even orders a second puppet—a male young scholar—from Shen Le, paying a deposit of 1,000 yuan and agreeing on a 10-day delivery for 2,000 yuan total 22.

Shen Le respects her ability and trusts her to handle Xiao Ling, but he also stays vigilant. He overhears her discussing hospital visits and feels undermined, though she quickly soothes him with a charming smile 24. Their silent understanding is evident when Shen Le observes her handling the fighting men and her assertive business tactics 47. She also acts as a bridge between Shen Le and the Special Affairs Department, mediating their requests and ensuring Xiao Ling’s safety 24.

Gu Yulin and Zhang Bingxin (Special Affairs Department)

Gu Yulin and Zhang Bingxin are a duo from the Municipal Bureau of Culture’s Special Affairs Department, specializing in anomalous events. They first appear when a police officer, Shi Guangbing, brings them to Shen Le’s mansion under the pretext of an intangible cultural heritage project 14. Shen Le initially welcomes them, hoping they can help designate his ancient mansion as a protected building, but their true interest quickly emerges: they want to seize the puppet Xiao Ling, claiming she triggered alarm equipment and may be connected to a child’s fall from a building 15.

Shen Le’s relationship with them is adversarial from the start. When Gu Yulin shows his ID and explains their mission, Shen Le refuses point-blank, shouting “Get out!” and physically pushing them out of his home 15. Their detection devices screech at his outburst, revealing his hidden power, and the two Maoshan Taoists turn pale 15. Despite this confrontation, Shen Le later encounters them again at the Heavenly Fragrance Restaurant, where they are filming Xiao Ling’s performance under the proprietress’s supervision 24. The proprietress orders them to keep a two-meter distance and not to touch the puppet, and they obey submissively 24.

Their interactions remain tense. They later approach Shen Le about the Ink Marker, claiming it harbors yin energy and wanting him to hand it over. Shen Le again refuses, believing the Ink Marker is safe in his hands, but he adds them on WeChat and asks them to buy concentrated nitric acid for him—a grudging cooperation 30. The duo exhaust their connections to facilitate Xiao Ling’s school tours, showing dedication despite Shen Le’s distrust 24. Overall, the relationship is one of uneasy coexistence: Shen Le tolerates their investigations and even uses their resources, but he never fully trusts them, and they remain wary of his power and his sentient possessions.

Shi Guangbing (Police Officer)

Shi Guangbing is a community patrol officer who first helps Shen Le out of a river when Shen Le fishes out the puppet 5. Their initial interaction is friendly; they exchange WeChat contacts, and Shen Le develops a favorable impression of him as a reliable and professional person 5 14. Shi Guangbing later becomes a bridge between Shen Le and the authorities, introducing the Special Affairs Department duo under the guise of cultural heritage work 14. He also investigates the child who jumped off a building and, learning that the child cried for his “big sister” (Xiao Ling), informs Shen Le 15. Throughout these events, Shi Guangbing remains neutral and sympathetic—he gives Shen Le a bitter smile when relaying the child’s condition, and Shen Le notes that he is “easy to get along with” 14. They have a moment of shared understanding over the child’s fate 15. Later, Shi Guangbing calls Shen Le about a problem with the Ink Marker’s ink lines appearing on a couple’s door, but Shen Le deflects, saying it has nothing to do with him 40. Their relationship is built on trust and convenience; Shen Le sees him as a dependable contact in official circles.

The Ink Marker (Mo Dou)

The Ink Marker—a tool imbued with a degree of sentience—is Shen Le’s second supernatural companion, though far more independent and less communicative than Xiao Ling. Shen Le buys it from a couple, Zheng Xiaohua and his wife, and immediately sets to restoring it. Initially, the Ink Marker shows no obvious reaction, but as Shen Le works on it, it begins to demonstrate unexpected capabilities: it helps him set the North and South Poles of a wooden ball and divides the equator into five parts when Shen Le struggles manually 36. Shen Le tries to communicate with it, but the Ink Marker remains unresponsive most of the time, leading to frustration—he once complained that it “only knew how to cause trouble” compared to the helpful Xiao Ling 40.

The Ink Marker, however, possesses a strong will. When Shen Le completes a Jujube Wood Bead after a full day and night of carving, the Ink Marker activates and physically pulls him out of the house, leading him back to the couple he bought it from, Zheng Xiaohua and his wife, who are arguing loudly 38. Shen Le realizes the Ink Marker wants him to mediate their dispute 38. It later reveals the couple’s history through a picture frame it helps create, harmonizing their relationship 47. The Ink Marker also sends bewildered vibrations to Shen Le, asking for its own name—Shen Le patiently explains that it can’t just be called “Ink Marker” because many tools share that name, and suggests it had a prior owner named Zheng Aijun 49. Their relationship is a work in progress: Shen Le is both impressed by its abilities and exasperated by its autonomy, while the Ink Marker seems to trust him enough to guide his actions.

Zheng Xiaohua and His Wife (Changle)

Shen Le’s interactions with this couple are limited but significant, driven by the Ink Marker’s fascination with them. He first encounters them when buying the Ink Marker; later, he overhears them arguing in a pig trotter rice shop: the wife berates her husband for charging only 100 yuan for a ceiling installation job, suspecting he has feelings for the client, a widow 34. Shen Le silently memorizes their situation, feeling empathy. Later, the Ink Marker leads him back to their home, where the wife is screaming for divorce 38 39. Shen Le stands outside, listening to an old woman’s mediation, and finds it pathetic that basic decency (not smoking, drinking, gambling, or domestic violence) is considered a virtue 39. The Ink Marker wants him to intervene, but Shen Le only comforts the tool, not the couple. Eventually, he uses the Ink Marker to create a picture frame that helps them reconnect by appreciating their shared past 47. Their relationship is one of detached observation—Shen Le does not befriend them, but he becomes an instrument of reconciliation through the Ink Marker.

Minor Relationships

Xiao Yu: A waitress at Heavenly Fragrance Restaurant who initially handles Xiao Ling. She demonstrates skillful puppet manipulation and treats Xiao Ling kindly, asking for her name and cooperation 21. Shen Le is satisfied with her ability, feeling confident that she won’t ruin the puppet 22.

Zhang Zihan (The Child): A boy who jumped off a building and became paralyzed; Xiao Ling reveals she played with him often 18. Shen Le takes Xiao Ling to the hospital and secretly uses the Copper Fragment to heal the boy’s legs, restoring feeling 18. The mother thanks Shen Le, and the boy’s condition improves, though Shen Le’s connection with the child remains indirect—mediated through Xiao Ling’s affection.

Senior Sister (Online): Shen Le receives a CAD file from her for carving a Devil’s Work Ball; he shows respect and appreciation for her help 36. Their interaction is purely professional and digital.

The Old Puppeteer (Memory): Through the puppet’s memories, Shen Le experiences the life of the old man who performed puppet shows for children during the Japanese occupation, telling stories of resistance 14. Though they never meet directly, this memory inspires Shen Le to value and restore the puppet, shaping his relationship with Xiao Ling.

Key Items

Ancestral Copper Fragment

The Ancestral Copper Fragment is a mysterious, coin-like relic that Shen Le discovers while taking stock of his inherited residence. Initially small and seemingly unremarkable, the fragment responds to Shen Le’s work repairing antiques by undergoing physical changes, growing in size and developing additional strokes of ancient seal script on its surface 3 44. Its most fundamental ability is to be “charged” through the restoration of antique objects — when Shen Le completes a repair, a tangible shift occurs in the fragment, confirming a direct link between his craftsmanship and the artifact’s power 3.

The Copper Fragment serves as Shen Le’s primary conduit for supernatural skills and knowledge. It grants him access to the “Spirit Eye,” a heightened perception that allows him to see auras, mist-like energy signatures, and the spiritual nature of objects and beings 26 27 30. It also imparts internal energy and a cultivation technique that absorbs brownish-yellow energy, accelerating his training 30 50. More critically, the fragment stores and transmits memories and skills. By pressing the fragment against an object or tool, Shen Le can enter a “soul space” where he experiences the item’s history, often forcefully — as when the Ink Marker’s memories are infused into him 44. This process is mentally exhausting and can include carpentry knowledge, personal histories, and the intended purpose of the item 44. Over time, the Copper Fragment has grown from three-quarters the size of his palm to the full size of his palm, and multiple light spots have appeared on it, each corresponding to a key item — notably, a second light spot lit up after Shen Le fully repaired the Ink Marker 44.

The fragment is deeply significant to Shen Le as the engine of his new life. It allows him to turn his antique restoration skills into a means of empowerment, granting him both practical abilities (carpentry, spirit vision) and a growing repository of memories. He constantly checks its condition, treating its changes as a gauge of his progress 49. Its sentience is minimal — it does not speak, but it responds to his intent and the act of repair, making it a passive but essential partner in his journey.

Little Wooden Puppet (Xiao Ling)

The Little Wooden Puppet, soon named Xiao Ling by Shen Le, is a string-puppet made of wood that he rescues after it was thrown from a height and abandoned 15 10. When he first picks it up, it triggers alarms in the Special Affairs Department’s detection equipment, marking it as a supernatural artifact with strong residual yin energy 15. Shen Le repairs her meticulously, and during the process experiences flashes of her memories, hinting at a deep and possibly tragic past 10.

Xiao Ling’s primary ability is to absorb the sorrows and melancholy of people around her. When she performs at the Heavenly Fragrance Restaurant, Shen Le notices a flame-like orange-red halo around her that actively draws out a black gas from the diners, alleviating their emotional burdens 23 27. This power makes her highly valued by the restaurant’s proprietress, who rents her for daily puppet shows — performances that attract customers and bring comfort 21. Xiao Ling is also fully sentient and independent. She can move on her own, communicate with Shen Le and other items like the Ink Marker, and even use silk threads to manipulate objects, lifting paint boxes or reaching high places 23 30 34. She is eager to learn, asking to watch Shen Le work and later learning to paint under his instruction 34. She expresses desires, such as wanting to buy clothes with her earnings, and forms genuine bonds — she and the Ink Marker become friends 21 49.

To Shen Le, Xiao Ling is far more than a tool. He is fiercely protective of her, refusing to hand her over to the Special Affairs Department even when they claim she is a dangerous spirit 15 30. He names her, treats her with patience, and integrates her into his daily life and work. She is his first real companion in the supernatural world, and her power to heal emotional pain aligns with his own growing sense of compassion and responsibility.

Ink Marker (Zheng Mo)

The Ink Marker is a woodworking tool — an ink fountain used for marking straight lines — that Shen Le discovers in a chest of antique woodworking tools found in his family’s old house 26. The chest is inherited from his family, and the Ink Marker is notably crafted with exceptional skill: its plumb bob contains a tiny, multi-layered “ghost-work ball” of jujube wood, an intricate carving that bespeaks a master artisan 26 33. When Shen Le activates his Spirit Eye, he sees a layer of black mist swirling around the Ink Marker — a mist similar in density to that of Xiao Ling, but distinct in color, indicating its own unique spiritual nature 27.

The Ink Marker’s abilities are rooted in its function as a tool. It can snap ink lines that carry supernatural effects — when it inadvertently marks a couple’s door with ink lines, the lines are later found to have a harmonizing influence on the couple’s relationship, reconnecting them with their shared past 40 47. It is also highly autonomous and intelligent. After Shen Le repairs it — scavenging the correct jujube wood for its Devil’s Work Ball, cleaning its metal shaft, and restoring its lion-head top — the Ink Marker becomes fully active 30 33. It can move its lead weight on its own, spin the ink line wheel, and even “kick” Shen Le out of the house to lead him to the old couple who owned it 38 49. It communicates through vibrations and buzzing of its ink line, expressing emotions like joy, excitement, and bewilderment 49. Shen Le eventually names it Zheng Mo (Ink Measure), a name the marker enthusiastically accepts 49.

The Ink Marker is defined by a deep-seated belief in the value of labor. Crafted by its first owner — a carpenter named Zheng Aijun — and used for decades, it carries an unbreakable conviction that “labor is the most important thing, labor is the most glorious, and labor is the best reflection of one’s own value” 49. When Shen Le tasks it with repairing a batch of old furniture, the Ink Marker works tirelessly with full vigor, even kicking Shen Le out of the workshop to focus on the task 49 50. However, its temperament can be troublesome: it has a mischievous streak, snapping ink lines at inappropriate times and forcing Shen Le to access its memories through the Copper Fragment to understand its intentions 40 43 44.

For Shen Le, the Ink Marker is both a powerful assistant and a responsibility. It marks his deepening involvement in the supernatural world, and his refusal to hand it over to the Special Affairs Department — who deem it a yin-energy threat — underscores his commitment to preserving and nurturing such artifacts 30. The Ink Marker’s abilities directly support Shen Le’s work, allowing him to restore furniture with precision, while its independent will challenges him to balance control and cooperation. Its connection to the Copper Fragment — the second light spot that lit up after its full restoration — confirms its integral role in Shen Le’s growing arsenal of supernatural tools 44.