"The Southern Branch Troupe is gone."
Mei Sijun's very first words were unexpected.
"No one can find its old site except the old opera troupes in Fu City." Mei Sijun's expression changed slightly. "It's a taboo. I only learned a little about it from overhearing my elders chatting."
"Just now, I dreamed of the Southern Branch Troupe a hundred years ago. It was winter, with heavy snow falling, close to the New Year. The troupe's star performer had drowned herself in a well, and the troupe leader, Zhao Qigong, had found a group of newcomers and was preparing to make a fresh start..."
With his eyes slightly closed, he recounted it unhurriedly.
The dream did not seem long, nor did it reveal much information, but as he told it, an impression of an old opera troupe gradually took shape in everyone's minds.
"The fat boss, Wang Youde, took a fancy to one of the new performers and summoned Zhao Qigong. Zhao Qigong said there were six newcomers and asked which one he wanted..."
He stopped and opened his eyes to look at everyone. "That was where the dream ended."
Zhao Qigong, the Southern Branch Troupe's leader; the two lecherous, money-grubbing merchants, one fat and one thin; Yu Ji, the star qingyi performer who had drowned herself in a well; the Overlord, whose whereabouts were unknown; and the stunning new performer...
"Judging solely from your dream, that qingyi performer who drowned herself in the well is the one haunting the place," Chen Zhiyuan said.
"May I ask why you said the Southern Branch Troupe is a taboo in your profession in the modern era?" asked Dense Forest, the handsome older man.
Mei Sijun looked at him and slowly explained, "First, opera is ethereal and can reach ghosts and gods. Second, performers