Xue Xian swept his eyes over the wall and motionless twig, then looked at the copper coins dangling from the monk’s waist.
He’s truly enigmatic, Xue Xian thought.
Xuanmin had hidden them just in time. Right as the edge of his robe fell back behind the wall, Scribe Liu and his friend exited through the back door. Both men were getting on in years—their hearing was no longer sharp, so neither of them noticed anything was amiss.
Jiang Shining caught sight of Scribe Liu’s back from his spot behind the wall. Despite his unhappiness at seeing him, he was also a little confused. Why was Xuanmin avoiding Scribe Liu like the man was trouble he didn’t wish to waste time on?
Fortunately, Jiang Shining was deeply afraid of inconveniencing others. He never spoke out of turn, never acted on impulse, and never created trouble for anyone else. Swallowing all his questions, he stayed behind the wall and hardly dared to breathe as he watched Scribe Liu and the stranger pass through the courtyard into the main hall.
Just as Scribe Liu was about to step through the door, a somewhat muffled voice rang out. “Dad?”
From their hiding place, Xue Xian said dully, “Fantastic, the real fool’s here. Such great timing.”
Sure enough, Liu Chong had found his way here. He stood beneath the eaves of the corridor as he called out to Scribe Liu.
The first thing Xue Xian did was inspect what Liu Chong was wearing. The young man they’d met at the Death Gate earlier had been wearing a robe of maroon, but the one standing in the corridor was wearing a padded gray-blue robe, just like the one they’d met before entering the array.
Without warning, Xuanmin stepped out of the gap where he was hiding. Before Scribe Liu could react, Xuanmin had already leaped in front of Liu Chong. He didn’t even have the chance to scream before he was dragged toward a narrow door.
Fortunately, the courtyard was quite small—the door was only a few steps away from the narrow wall, and Xuanmin reached it in a flash. Scribe Liu, who’d been frozen in front of the main hall, snapped back to his senses. His expression changed as he surged into action.
But Xuanmin was faster. With a spin and a step, he was already behind the door.
Bang!
Xuanmin slammed the door closed. Without a second thought, Jiang Shining latched it shut. He then looked up at Liu Chong, who was still in a daze, and gasped in surprise.
“What are you so shocked about?” Xue Xian snapped.
“Why has the mole on his face changed places?” Jiang Shining pointed at Liu Chong before realizing how rude that was and pulling back his hand. “Wasn’t it on the left before? Why did it move to the right?”
Doesn’t he realize those words make no sense?!
Jiang Shining could not help shivering as he spoke. Xue Xian peeked out, caught sight of Jiang Shining’s trembling, and decided he was done with this bookworm. What kind of ghost feared ghosts?!
Xuanmin’s brows knitted, then relaxed. “I understand.”
“Are you kidding?! You don’t understand shit!” cried Xue Xian.
He was an impatient person by nature, yet now he was stuck with the slow-witted Jiang Shining. Xuanmin was even worse—the type who wouldn’t run even if the sky came crashing down! Xue Xian felt like he’d aged ten years in an instant. Thoroughly out of patience, Xue Xian flipped out of the pouch to latch onto Liu Chong’s pants. In the blink of an eye, he’d disappeared under Liu Chong’s padded robe.
This sequence of sounds brought Liu Chong back to reality. Jiang Shining looked up and met Liu Chong’s gaze. His eyes were large and unfocused, devoid of life. The effect was dreadfully uncanny. Staring straight at them could make anyone wet their pants.
Alarmed, Jiang Shining backed away. What he didn’t realize was that ghosts were not so different from stray dogs. One might refrain from biting you while you were standing still, but it would attack the moment you moved.
Letting out a low growl, Liu Chong lunged at Jiang Shining.
The bookworm’s face twisted with fear. He started to scream, then forced it back down, still unable to abandon the “gentleman’s decorum” delineated within his books. He wanted to run but feared looking disgraceful. With one foot braced to jump while the other remained planted in place, he practically twisted himself into a knot.
With a thump, the uncoordinated Jiang Shining finally lived up to expectations and fell to the ground in a heap. With no other options, he used his hands to scuttle backward.
The Liu Chong conjured by the array had the same clumsiness as the real Liu Chong—every move was slow and lumbering, yet full of terrifying strength. Jiang Shining watched as that creature sprang at him. He gasped and shrank back, squeezing his eyes shut.
There was a muffled thud. Air gusted over Jiang Shining’s face and the tiles beneath his feet shook. Somehow, no cold fingers wrapped around his neck.
Cautiously opening his eyes, Jiang Shining found Liu Chong sprawled on the ground, having inexplicably fallen face-first. He hadn’t expected to stumble, and his slow reaction time meant he’d failed to catch himself with his hands, landing solidly on his face.
Jiang Shining was stunned for a few moments, then he scrambled to his feet and shook the dirt from his clothes, his eyes wide with disbelief. As he looked down, he saw Xue Xian sliding out from beneath Liu Chong’s robe, holding a strip of cloth that suspiciously resembled…
A belt?
Jiang Shining did a double take and realized why Liu Chong was on the ground: His pants had fallen to his ankles mid-lunge, tripping him. Liu Chong was already uncoordinated; with his pants sagging, he’d taken a nasty tumble. Because he’d hit his forehead, he lay flat and showed no signs of coming to.
Xue Xian tossed the belt at Jiang Shining’s face. “Don’t just stand there! Tie his hands and feet together!” Then, he turned to Xuanmin with a look of disdain. “Pick me up already. Come on now. I almost tore my arm off getting rid of that thing.”
Pick me up? Jiang Shining could hardly believe his ears. What kind of paraplegic spends his day jumping and bouncing around?
Then, Jiang Shining suddenly realized he must have been a burden who’d brought this trouble on them, and he grew ashamed. Without agonizing over whether removing someone’s belt went against his gentleman’s decorum, he tied Liu Chong’s left hand to his right foot.
“Sorry,” Jiang Shining mumbled.
Xue Xian scoffed, thinking Jiang Shining ridiculous. To help these assholes escape danger, he’d been forced to denigrate himself by removing someone’s belt, all while dragging around two useless legs. Xuanmin should have fallen to his knees and picked him up with both hands before putting him back in his proper spot, but he was still standing there, completely oblivious.
Useless bastard! Xue Xian glared up at Xuanmin, wanting to stare some guilt into him. Instead, he saw Xuanmin’s left hand hovering over the coins at his waist, clearly about to unfasten them for some purpose. Could it be? Had Xuanmin been about to take matters in his own hands?!
Xuanmin had never thought of removing someone’s belt to subdue them, nor had he foreseen such a development, so he’d been taken aback until he recovered from the shock.
Xue Xian watched intently—until Xuanmin drew his fingers away from the coin string and picked up Xue Xian to return him to the pouch.
Xue Xian immediately regretted his actions. Had he known Xuanmin would act, he wouldn’t have rushed to remove Liu Chong’s belt. Perhaps he would have gotten to see just what Xuanmin was made of! Feeling the loss of his chance, Xue Xian deflated, his paper body going limp and his head drooping like a hanged man’s as he dangled from the pouch’s opening.
Xuanmin frowned, certain that Xue Xian was up to something. His fingers brushed over the paper head dangling from his pouch. When his fingers touched the material, the flimsy head rose just a little. The moment he let go, however, it flopped back down.
After silently fiddling with the paper doll for a while, Xuanmin concluded that Xue Xian was probably suffering from some malady. Shaking his head, Xuanmin said to Jiang Shining, “Let’s go.”
Right then, the narrow door rattled as Scribe Liu started ramming into it from the other side. After two slams, the latch began to loosen.
Bang, bang!
Jiang Shining shuddered hard at the noise and rushed after Xuanmin.
They navigated the labyrinthine courtyard, taking several doors along the way and running into more than one group of people. The moment the people saw them, they broke from acting out their roles and lines. Ghostly energy enveloped them and they started howling as they moved—some fast, some slow as they trailed after them like kites.
Jiang Shining turned a corner and fled through a door, his heart thumping as he counted their pursuers. Among them were maids and servants he didn’t recognize, three different Scribe Lius, two Liu Chongs, and two Old Lady Lius gripping wooden canes. Two unfamiliar, frail-looking maids tore apart an entire tree in their way while giving chase. It was true that the tree was old, withered, and on the brink of death, but to tear it apart regardless? Were their fingers as sharp as knives?!
Jiang Shining shuddered in fear at the memory. He’d woken up alone in an empty room earlier. After going through two narrow doors, he’d run into Xue Xian and Xuanmin immediately. That had been a bout of incredible luck.
Fortunately, Xuanmin remained quite composed. He walked swiftly, but there was no sign of panic or anxiety on his face. He seemed to know what he was doing as he moved through each door without a shred of hesitation. Jiang Shining didn’t think he had a terrible sense of direction, but he still found himself thoroughly disoriented after all the twists and turns. Meanwhile, Xuanmin remained alert and focused.