Chapter Ninety-Six: The Discussion

Zhang Qinglin looked around. In the distance were green hills, and before him lay a vast expanse of open ground, illuminated by the full moon in the pitch-black night. As he prepared to stand up, he realized he was holding something. He brought it before his eyes for a closer look, and his scalp instantly went numb.

He tried to recall his recent actions. After leaving the Good Fortune Inn and sending Wu Cheng'an away, he had followed a small trail next to the inn. Everything that had happened and everyone he had encountered since then felt deeply bizarre.

Cheng Che pointed curiously at the Pixiu in Zhang Qinglin’s hand. "Where did you pick up such an incredibly ugly thing? I noticed you were clutching it tightly when I found you. I thought it might be some valuable treasure, but it’s just a broken stone."

"It’s not a broken stone; it’s an obsidian Pixiu."

"A Pixiu?" Cheng Che’s eyes widened. He stared at the black stone in Zhang Qinglin’s hand and suddenly burst into a grin. "Old Zhang, stop joking around. Let’s head back."

The two found the trail and made their way back toward the inn. Along the way, Zhang Qinglin recounted the strange events he had experienced.

Although Cheng Che appeared calm on the surface, he was actually quite terrified. He had heard many of Zhang Qinglin’s past supernatural encounters, which were usually triggered by artifacts, but this time it felt different.

Upon returning to the inn, they happened to run into Wan Qing at the entrance. Seeing that she looked unwell, Cheng Che rushed over to ask if she was alright.

Wan Qing glanced at the two of them and said in a low voice, "Let’s go inside first."

Once in the courtyard, they saw several police officers in uniform going from room to room, asking questions.

Seeing them enter, a stout officer holding a notebook walked over and said, "You three, come here for a moment."

"Are you guests or staff here?" He opened his notebook, his sharp gaze sweeping over the three of them.

Zhang Qinglin glanced to the side. "We are guests, Officer. What happened here?"

"Show me your IDs. What are you doing here, and where were you at seven o'clock tonight?"

Cheng Che glanced toward their rooms and saw that Wu Cheng'an and Chi Tan had also been brought out for questioning.

After the police left, they learned that a murder had occurred nearby. Someone had reportedly found a body at the foot of the mountain; the victim had been stabbed to death. Witnesses had seen the culprit flee in a panic toward the local inns.

"Brother Xiaolin, where did you go? When are we leaving this place? The police say the killer might be in this very inn," Chi Tan said, grabbing Zhang Qinglin’s arm.

Zhang Qinglin followed Cheng Che into their room and patted Chi Tan on the shoulder with a weary hand. "We’ll see. It would be best if we could leave as soon as possible."

"Brother Xiaolin, that officer just asked me if I knew someone named Wu Guangen, said he was an artifact smuggler."

Cheng Che walked over upon hearing this, looking surprised. "Could it be that Wu Guangen isn't dead?"

"That’s right, it’s Wu Guangen. Brother Peng said earlier that Master Wu was bitten by poisonous bats and trapped in an ancient underground tomb, surely meeting his end. I never expected to run into him at the tile kiln this afternoon and even get into a fight with him," Wan Qing said, leaning against the table while rubbing her left arm.

Cheng Che walked up to her and asked with concern, "Where are you hurt? Let me see."

"It’s nothing, just a minor scrape. By the way, did you see Wu Mingshi today? How did it go? Did he say where Master Ma is?"

Zhang Qinglin pulled the Pixiu from his pocket and fell into deep thought. He had not yet recovered from the bizarre events of the night, as he had heard those villagers mention Master Ma.

Master Ma, Fan Ni—what was the connection between them? Zhang Qinglin kept asking himself.

Wu Cheng'an had been standing by the window with his head down, deep in thought, ever since they entered. He glanced at Zhang Qinglin by the bed. "We didn't go in; only he did. It seems the conversation didn't go very smoothly."

"Let me tell you, he ran into something strange when he went out tonight," Cheng Che said, sidling up to stand beside Wan Qing.

He continued, "Old Zhang said he encountered some strange villagers beating him—well, not him, but someone else. It was as if a soul had possessed that person; his consciousness was in that man, and then the consciousness left, the man was dragged away by the villagers, and the figures vanished before his eyes. I think he was terrified. When I found him, he had fainted."

Chi Tan turned to look at Zhang Qinglin. "That’s so bizarre. Could it have been a dream, Brother Xiaolin?"

Cheng Che shook his head firmly. "No!"

Zhang Qinglin stood up, looked at them, walked over to Chi Tan, pulled two hundred-dollar bills from his pocket, and handed them to him. "Chi Tan, go back to your room and sleep. Tomorrow morning, have Cheng Che take you to the bus station. Go home."

Chi Tan looked at the money in Zhang Qinglin’s hand, pouting unhappily. "Brother Xiaolin, are you trying to chase me away? I finally managed to run away, and you want me to go back like this? My grandmother will kill me. I’m not going back; I’m staying with you!"

"You all have things to discuss, don't you? I won't bother you then, but I’m not going back anyway." Watching Chi Tan push the door open and leave, Zhang Qinglin sighed, put the money away, and said seriously to the three people before him, "I saw Wu Mingshi today, but he wouldn't say where Master Ma is. At first, he was willing to help for the sake of Uncle Cheng, but he changed his mind later."

"What? My old man’s reputation isn't enough? Why did he change his mind?"

Zhang Qinglin’s gaze fell on Wan Qing. "Wan Qing, do you know if there is any bad blood between Wu Mingshi and Sister Xiao’s father?"

Wan Qing tilted her head slightly. "I’m not sure. She isn’t my biological cousin; I was a child she brought back from an orphanage. She rarely talks about her family affairs with outsiders. Besides, by that time, my cousin’s father was no longer in Yangzhou, and very few people knew about his business. Why do you ask?"

"Wu Mingshi made a demand. He wants me to do something for him. If I don't agree, he won't help me contact Master Ma."

"What demand?"

"He wants the project contract for the Boyang Building development," Zhang Qinglin said.

"What? The Boyang Building project is very important to my cousin. Why does he want that contract?"

Cheng Che exclaimed in surprise, "That’s an unreasonable demand! So, Old Zhang, how did you answer him?"

"I refused him right there. By the way, he also knows about Hu Ren’s murder and the bronze tripod, so I told him I would go back and consider it."

"The bronze tripod?" Cheng Che and Wan Qing looked at each other with confusion. Although Cheng Che knew Hu Ren was dead, he had no idea about the bronze tripod.

Wu Cheng'an recounted the story of his second uncle’s murder back home. Cheng Che stared at Wu Cheng'an and Zhang Qinglin, dumbfounded. "So, what are you planning to do?"

Wan Qing said calmly, "Even so, we cannot steal the Boyang Building development contract. If we can't find another way, I’ll have Brother Xun arrange things. I don't believe he won't talk."

"Wan Qing, don't get excited yet. Let’s see what Old Zhang thinks."

Wan Qing lifted her chin and glanced at Cheng Che sideways. "I am very calm." She then turned to Zhang Qinglin. "Tell me, what do you want to do?"

Zhang Qinglin pondered for a moment. "I was wondering if we could discuss it with Sister Xiao and create a fake contract to stall Wu Mingshi for now."

"For someone who has been through the underworld and experienced corporate warfare, he will likely see through a trick like that the moment you bring it up," Wu Cheng'an said.

Cheng Che squinted at him and said, "Then what do you suggest? We can't actually give him the contract."