Xie Qi sat cross-legged opposite him, slowly turning the Fozhu in his hand. With each new observation Qu Yanning made, the smile in his eyes deepened.
“Not bad, your observations are sharp.”
Xie Qi looked at him kindly. “But do you know why things are like this?”
Qu Yanning shook his head blankly. “No idea.”
Xie Qi slowly turned the Fozhu, his expression calm. “Wind Household Village is nestled by the mountains and water, located at a wind gate. It was originally a blessed place to bring fortune and longevity. But now…”
“What about now?” Qu Yanning asked urgently.
Xie Qi continued, “The villagers don’t believe in Shen Ling or in the Gods. The houses are built against the principles of feng shui, ruining this blessed land.”
“Don’t believe in Shen Ling or in the Gods…” Qu Yanning repeated softly. Suddenly, he remembered the man calling on Shen Ling with the porcelain doll. “So what will become of this place?”
Xie Qi said gently, “Haven’t you already seen part of it?”
Qu Yanning was stunned, not quite understanding. “But the village seems fine right now.”
Xie Qi shook his head and said no more. He blew out the candle on the table and said gently, “Go to sleep. You’ll understand more as you see more.”
Qu Yanning mumbled an “okay” and burrowed under the covers.
The warmth beside him and the faint scent of sandalwood soothed him. He snuggled into the soft pillow and quickly drifted off to sleep.
The night in the village was anything but quiet. The half-hanging moon glowed with a pale, ghostly light, its edge tinged faintly red.
In the narrow alley, a slender figure darted quickly, stopping in front of a house. The villagers slept early, and by now, everyone was deep asleep.
The figure moved lightly, climbing up the rough wall and slipping in through a window.
Inside, there were faint rustling sounds.
After a while, the figure came back out, carrying a bulging bundle on their back.
The figure moved quickly, and in a few steps, passed through the small grove Qu Yanning and the others had seen during the day.
There was no wind in the grove, but the leaves rustled as if cheering.
The figure entered the woods and softly hummed a tune. Suddenly, a few children ran over, their voices clear as they called out, “Auntie.”
The figure took the bundle off their back, patted each child’s head, and spoke gently. “Eat up.”
The children cheered, formed a circle, and began to eat.
As they ate, they looked up at the figure. A younger child puffed out his cheeks and asked, “Auntie, now that big brother is back, are you happy?”
The figure said she was happy. She didn’t know what she was thinking of, but sighed softly.
The child clung to her arm and stammered, “Then… can we go find big brother to play?”
The figure pinched his cheek. “No, if big brother sees you, he’ll be scared.”
The child pouted in disappointment. “Okay.”
The figure patted his head. “Eat up now.” Then she got up and quietly slipped back into the village.
……
Xie Qi pushed open the wooden window and came face-to-face with the figure on the upper floor.
The figure’s face was illuminated by the moonlight. Xie Qi narrowed his eyes, his pupils reflecting a golden glint in the moonlight.
“Still awake this late?”
Xie Qi replied, “Nature calls.”
The figure smiled. “It’s dark outside and the roads aren’t safe. Just make do in the room—the Urine Pot is under the bed.”
Xie Qi agreed, then closed the window.
Beside him, Qu Yanning turned over, missing the warmth at his side. Feeling cold, he curled into a ball, even tucking his face into the covers like a little hamster.
Xie Qi lay down beside him again, poked his cheek, and chuckled softly. “Silly thing.”
******
Before dawn, voices could already be heard outside. Qu Yanning woke up groggy, seeing Xie Qi sitting at the head of the bed quietly reading.
From Qu Yanning’s angle, he could see Xie Qi’s red lips and long, thick lashes.
Qu Yanning didn’t know why, but his face flushed. He burrowed deeper under the covers and muffled a greeting, “Good morning, Second Master.”
Xie Qi looked at the bulging quilt with a smile and returned the greeting.
After a while under the covers, Qu Yanning’s face turned red from holding his breath. He finally poked his head out and gulped in air, but didn’t dare look at Xie Qi.
Xie Qi put down his book, got up, and put on his coat— while others wore padded jackets, he just wore a slightly thicker jacket.
“Aren’t you cold, Second Master?” Qu Yanning sat up and struggled into his sweater.
Xie Qi curled his lips. “Not cold.”
Qu Yanning replied with envy, struggling into his thermal pants.
The village was warm during the day, but Qu Yanning always felt a chill sinking into his bones, so he dressed extra warmly.
Xie Qi watched him bundle up like a ball, narrowed his eyes slightly, and picked up the Fozhu in his left hand, slowly turning it.
After they’d gotten ready and gone downstairs, Chu Zhou and Zhang Ren were already up. Zhang Ren was helping Zhuang Meng pour a large bucket of water into the water vat.
The village had no outside contact, so of course there was no running water. Every household relied on carrying water from the River at the front of the village, storing it in big vats.
The vat was already half full. Zhang Ren, carrying the shoulder pole, walked out with practiced ease, quickly returning with two more buckets of water.
Qu Yanning watched Zhang Ren, who was being especially diligent, with mixed feelings. No matter how he looked at it, he seemed like a silly son-in-law trying to please his mother-in-law.
Chu Zhou took the shoulder pole from him and set it aside, telling him to rest.
Zhang Ren waved it off, saying it was just a few buckets of water— no big deal.
Zhuang Meng shooed them all into the main room, then started preparing breakfast in the kitchen. Breakfast was poached eggs— the eggs from the village’s own chickens.
Zhuang Meng had been saving them for a while, and now they finally came in handy. Once the water boiled, she cracked the small eggs into the pot. The golden yolks quickly became surrounded by a layer of white.
Zhuang Meng carefully watched the timing, scooping the eggs out before the yolks set completely. She added half a bowl of water and a spoonful of sugar, making a bowl of steaming breakfast for each person.
Chu Zhou and Qu Yanning helped bring the bowls to the table. The five of them sat around the Eight Immortals Table, slowly eating breakfast as sunlight streamed in, bringing a gentle warmth.
The hot sweet soup chased away the chill. Qu Yanning stretched his arms and legs and suggested they go for a walk. The others agreed. Zhuang Meng, afraid they might offend any taboos, pulled them aside and whispered, “Don’t go into the South-North Facing House in the middle of the village.”
“Is there something special about that house?” Qu Yanning asked.
Zhuang Meng smoothed her hair, a faint smile on her lips. “That’s where the Shen Po lives. Inside, they worship the Shen Ling.”
Qu Yanning replied, “Oh. What kind of Gods does the village worship?”
Zhuang Meng straightened Chu Zhou’s collar and answered softly, “Just the Shen Ling. You don’t need to go over there.”
The four nodded and set off together down the alleyways.
There weren’t many houses in the village. It looked like there should be many residents, but as they wandered through the alleys for a long time, they barely heard any sounds from inside.
Everywhere was eerily quiet. If they hadn’t heard people busy in the morning, they might believe this was a deserted village.
After wandering deeper for a while, the door of a house ahead suddenly opened.
Someone bundled up tightly and hunched over peeked out, said something loudly in dialect when they saw them, then slammed the door shut.
Qu Yanning caught a whiff of a faint stench, glancing at Xie Qi.
Xie Qi happened to look down at him. The two exchanged glances, quickly looking away. Xie Qi asked softly, “Did you see anything?”
Qu Yanning replied, “No, I just smelled something bad, the same as that villager before.”
Xie Qi said, “Try gathering Qi from your Dan Tian and focusing it in your eyes.”
“?” Qu Yanning stared blankly at him, stammering, “H-how do I do that?”
Xie Qi moved closer, tapping his abdomen with a finger. “This is your Dan Tian.” He gently slid his fingers up, pressing on Qu Yanning’s eyes. “Gather the Qi here.”
Qu Yanning: “???”
Xie Qi patted his head. “It’s just a kind of feeling. This is your gift. You need to learn to feel it and use it.”
Qu Yanning tried as instructed, holding his breath until his face turned red, but still couldn’t sense the Qi gathering in his eyes.
Chu Zhou and Zhang Ren watched with complicated expressions, feeling like they’d just witnessed a cult initiation.
After wandering through the maze-like alleys, the four finally headed out. Once they left the alleys, there were more people around.
Occasionally, a passing villager would see them and, especially when looking at Chu Zhou, would praise, “The Shen Ling will surely like you.”
Zhang Ren frowned and asked Chu Zhou, “What does it mean, ‘The Shen Ling will like you’? That kind of compliment sounds strange.”
Chu Zhou looked off into the distance, smiled, and said it was just a local custom. “For the villagers, being favored by the Shen Ling is the greatest honor.”