Chapter 38: Playing the Game in Person
"Anything else?" Ding Songyan asked on his own initiative.
Yan Changqing thought for a moment:
"At dusk, go to Potter's Field for a stroll. No need to stay too long."
Leaving the city... Ding Songyan's first reaction was whether this might be a bit dangerous, but on second thought, he realized that he was already surrounded by crises on all sides and didn't care about one more; perhaps this could even generate some unexpected variables.
Besides, he was no longer someone with no power to truss a chicken. As long as it didn't exceed two blows, he could well be considered half an expert.
Anyway, since he couldn't escape a desperate situation, he might as well think in a positive direction:
Wealth and honor are sought in danger!
He agreed on the spot, and Yan Changqing also brought this exchange to a close.
After advancing the story to the point where Lady White was forever suppressed under the Leifeng Pagoda, Ding Songyan concluded today's storytelling and left the Zhen Estate.
He didn't go straight to the Dangkang Temple to offer incense. Instead, as usual, he wandered around the outer market, listening to other storytellers recount martial arts legends and Jianghu anecdotes.
After a long while, he saw Li Wu leading a squad of constables on patrol.
A thought stirred in Ding Songyan's heart. He hurried over and lowered his voice, saying:
"Brother Li, it seems someone has been tailing me recently."
"How did you notice?" What baffled Li Wu even more was this very question.
Ding Songyan had already prepared a draft, his tone carrying a hint of fortune as he said:
"I've made the acquaintance of Young Hero Ren Youyang of the True Spirit Sect. He possesses the spirit of an ancient knight-errant and specifically tipped me off about this."
"Ren Youyang?" Li Wu gave Ding Songyan a rather surprised look.
He hadn't expected Second Brother Ding to have such fortune.
Pondering for a few breaths, he also lowered his voice and told Ding Songyan:
"We'll help you keep an eye out. You yourself are already a clue we attach considerable importance to."
Having achieved his goal, Ding Songyan repeatedly expressed his thanks and returned to the storyteller's stall that had just rewarded him two copper coins.
His primary purpose wasn't really to have the official authorities root out the people from the Moth God Sect-of course, rooting them out would naturally be best. More than that, he wanted the official authorities to secretly "monitor" him, causing them to discover that the Zhen Estate also had an Attendant trailing him, thereby casting suspicion on the Zhen Estate in their eyes.
Only by stepping into the game himself could he drag everyone harboring malicious intentions down into the water and expose them halfway to the sunlight!
With the conversation just now, Ding Songyan suddenly remembered one thing:
Ren Youyang seemed to still be waiting for him at Cuiliu Tower on Hongxiu Street to "drink flower wine"!
This wait had already lasted an entire afternoon...
Startled by the Vermilion Moth incident, I rushed home to verify things, and then I was busy going to the Zhen Estate to "sign in," completely forgetting about Brother Youyang... Ding Songyan felt a bit guilty, and could only hope that Ren Youyang was capable enough to drink his share of flower wine as well and taste it.
After listening to some more Jianghu matters, he walked into the Dangkang Temple with its yellow walls and brown tiles, arriving in front of the main hall for the first time.
Enshrined inside the hall was a huge pig-shaped divine statue, painted with green lacquer, with protruding tusks, wind-catching ears, and a majesty that still revealed a bit of generosity and gentleness.
The Temple Host here likewise had pig-like large ears, a belly bulging out beneath his robe, and a nose that was thick, large, and slightly protruding forward, with a sharp, elongated tooth on each side.
In a daze, Ding Songyan seemed to see Bajie, but the Temple Host's face was still a human face, his nose wasn't that exaggerated, and his teeth were distinctly different.
An expert indeed-to have multiple anomalies, even if not a Martial Grandmaster, he couldn't be too far off... Ding Songyan steadied his mind, spent three copper coins to buy three sticks of incense, and ignited them using the fire from the censer.
Amidst the gradually curling green mist, Ding Songyan closed his eyes, emptied his mind, and earnestly began to pray.
As long as it could help his current predicament, he could believe in anything, and be extremely devout!
Kowtowing three times, Ding Songyan inserted those three sticks of incense into the censer and turned to leave the Dangkang Temple.
With his current sensory perception, there was no way for him to know whether anyone was spying on him during this process.
After finishing this matter, Ding Songyan hurried over to Beili Ward; being late was better than not showing up at all.
Before even entering Hongxiu Street, he saw Ren Youyang with his dog ears pricked up, squatting by the roadside; despite wearing feather robes and a tall crown, he didn't care about his image in the slightest.
How does he somehow suit squatting by the roadside... Ding Songyan muttered to himself as he drew closer.
"Second Brother Ding, you're finally here!" Ren Youyang sprang up at once, making no effort to conceal his grievance.
He really was waiting the whole time... Is this what they call a promise being worth a thousand pieces of gold... Ding Songyan apologized on the spot, and only then said to Ren Youyang:
"Brother Youyang, I discovered some things and had to rush off to verify them, completely forgetting about you."
Without waiting for Ren Youyang to speak, he leaned close to the dog ears and lowered his voice, saying:
"The person tailing me is suspected to be a 'Mothman' of the Feng Kingdom's Moth God Sect, controlled by the 'Moth Father' or 'Moth Mother'."
"How do you know?" Ren Youyang had no impression of the Moth God Sect whatsoever, and inevitably reacted with shock and suspicion.
His feelings were thus diverted from the dissatisfaction and restlessness of waiting for so long.
"I made a trip to the Zhen Estate and heard people talking about it." Ding Songyan spoke sentence by sentence, terrified he would "forget."
This was the truth, but the order of events had been reversed.
"The Zhen Estate..." Ren Youyang repeated the phrase.
Taking the opportunity, Ding Songyan repeated all the words he had spoken to Little Qing earlier-things about whether the Zhen Estate had been stalling all along, whether they might be waiting for the right moment, and whether what they wanted to trade might not be silver at all.
Ren Youyang took a breath:
"This Zhen Estate is full of mystery."
Brother, you are so right! Ding Songyan said hurriedly:
"Though I am half a member of the Zhen Family, I feel the same way."
He preemptively distanced himself from the situation.
"I have to go back and consult with someone." Ren Youyang cast his gaze toward Ding Songyan.
He hesitated for a moment, then added with a somewhat embarrassed look:
"I really didn't spot the issue with that tracker earlier; the martial arts I practice aren't very skilled in that area."
"Which divine art does Brother Youyang practice?" Ding Songyan asked casually, not expecting Ren Youyang to answer.
If the other party truly gave an answer, he could incorporate it into his considerations when formulating plans or improvising later.
Ren Youyang fell abruptly silent. Just as Ding Songyan prepared to say, "It was my presumption, Brother Youyang needn't be troubled," he let out a long sigh and said:
"The Useless Divine Art."
"Uh..." Ding Songyan was somewhat dazed.
What kind of lousy name was that? You couldn't tell at all what it was good at or not good at; it felt like it wasn't good at anything, yet it actually claimed to be a "divine art"!
Ren Youyang gave a sheepish smile:
"You can't judge a book by its cover, and you can't judge martial arts solely by their names.
"I'll head back first, and treat you to brothel wine next time."
Saying this, he lamented with lingering fear:
"You didn't come in the afternoon, and dealing with it all by myself left me completely overwhelmed by the end."
Ah, a martial artist shouldn't be this feeble, right? Ding Songyan looked suspiciously at Ren Youyang as he walked away into the distance.
Returning to Chengyu Lane for dinner, by the second quarter of the Youshi hour, Ding Songyan found an excuse to look for Xu Chang'an and left the Ding Family courtyard alone.
He first sought out Xu Chang'an, instructing him to remember to help cover for him, and then took advantage of the late summer twilight to exit through the nearest city gate and head toward the Potter's Field.
Along the way, everything remained under the surveillance of the watchtowers. Pedestrians coming and going either hurried along or appeared quite leisurely, as if they had just returned from an outing in the countryside.
By the time Ding Songyan reached the Potter's Field, the sky had grown considerably darker. Lush trees with thick foliage cast numerous shadows here, refusing to let the light from the setting sun, which had yet to sink below the horizon in the distance, spill over.
Walking among them, Ding Songyan occasionally felt the evening breeze carrying a slight chill, and occasionally caught sight of white bones scattered among the grass and tree shade, though he was not overly frightened.
This was partly because he had the "qi" given by Yan Changqing to protect him, and partly because he had already opened his Yin Eye to witness the sights of the netherworld, making him much less fearful of the Potter's Field.
Walking and walking, Ding Songyan gritted his teeth and took the initiative to enter the back mountain.
He wanted to see if detaching himself from the watchtowers' surveillance would fish anything out.
The back mountain grew increasingly gloomy as night drew closer. The howling of wild beasts occasionally rang out, and faint whiffs of putrefaction drifted by.
Suddenly, a swirling mist blending into the dark emerged before Ding Songyan's eyes, alongside shifting, forward-rocking ghost figures.
His Yin Eye had activated on its own.
Was I stimulated by the gathered yin energy and death energy in the back mountain of the Potter's Field? Ding Songyan thought to himself while surveying his surroundings.
Tree after tree and shallow grave after shallow grave were enveloped by the mist and separated from one another, with lonely ghosts and wandering spirits still lingering near some of them.
Among them, one ghost figure was quite peculiar, its body extending various phantom images while the phantoms swapped places with its actual body from time to time.
Ding Songyan suppressed his unavoidable feelings of fear and drew a little closer.
As the distance closed, he heard that bizarre, nearly dissipating ghost figure muttering in a dazed and hollow voice:
"Blocked me nine times...
"Killed me nine times..."
What is this talking about? Do you have this many lives to be killed? Nine times... Ding Songyan desperately racked his brain to recall the contents of the Secret Classic of Mountains and Seas, finally finding a match that barely fit:
"The Heluo Fish, eating its flesh grants ten lives; it has a hundred hands and is without blame."
"It has one head and ten bodies, its voice sounds like a dog, and it can cure carbuncles."
Ten lives is about the same as nine... Had it already lost one life originally? Relying on his "qi" to embolden himself, Ding Songyan asked the bizarre ghost figure with considerable interest:
"Who killed you?"
The ghost figure repeated its earlier mutterings, paying no attention to Ding Songyan whatsoever, nor did it come over to harm him.
Ding Songyan thought for a moment, and while his Yin Eye remained active, he transferred the hazy "seed" from his Sea of Consciousness to his throat.
Perhaps he needed to rely on this to trigger it, just like before.
Ding Songyan opened his mouth once more, his voice tinged with a degree of chill and etherealness:
"Who killed you?"
That ghost figure replied in a daze:
"Sect master..."
"Which sect are you from?" Ding Songyan blurted out in astonishment.
The peculiar ghost shadow did not answer, merely repeating its previous words.
Ding Songyan immediately changed his question, yet failed to obtain any further information.
He could not help but suspect that this ghost shadow had been dead for too far too long, relying on having been a moderately skilled expert in life and burdened by a profound obsession to have its remnant soul survive until the present, yet it possessed only this tiny sliver of memory remaining.
Thinking of this, and thinking of the location of the Potter's Field, Ding Songyan suddenly formed several notions:
The original body died in the Ruined Temple along the way to the Potter's Field, and today happened to be just over seven days by a couple of hours.
There was the saying of the return of the soul on the seventh day... and it was fast approaching nighttime... if he were to go to that Ruined Temple or return home to open his Yin Eye, would it be possible to see the ghost of his predecessor and converse with him for a few words?
If he could learn of his true encounter and know the person who killed him, many mysteries would be untangled, and the enemy would also become clear...
Ding Songyan narrowed his eyes slightly, rapidly pivoting his body to head toward the Ruined Temple situated between the Potter's Field and the city gate.
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