Baishui Temple, the Abbot’s Meditation Room.
“Back then, the Master of Ginkgo Studio entrusted this item to this old monk.” The abbot took out a wooden box. “Now, it is time to return it to its rightful owner.”
The room was extremely quiet. The two men sat kneeling on round cushions woven from white bamboo. Mu Geshen looked at the handwritten calligraphy hanging on the wall. The ink flowed freely, the strokes wild and unrestrained. It was a piece of cursive script.
“Indeed, it has the bearing of a true master. Is this one of your treasured collections, Master?”
The abbot smiled peacefully. “It was personally gifted to me by the Master of Ginkgo Studio back then.”
Mu Geshen was startled. “These are my master’s characters?”
In his impression, the Master of Ginkgo Studio’s handwriting had always been elegant and refined, with particular skill in the Liu style. It was truly difficult to imagine such an uninhibited piece of cursive calligraphy coming from someone who had been so frail and sickly.
Three feet of water in the ancestors’ box,
Chopped from the blue light to write the Songs of Chu.
“This verse comes from Li Changji, the Ghost of Poetry,” the abbot said slowly. “Its poetic meaning is solemn and carries an air of warfare and slaughter. It is not particularly suited to the meditation room of an ancient temple. However, before the Master of Ginkgo Studio passed away, he once asked this old monk to hang this piece of cursive calligraphy here. Perhaps only Young Master Mu can understand his intention.”
“My master’s attainments were beyond what I could learn even half of.” Mu Geshen shook his head at this. “Does Master know anything about my master’s life?”
“The lineage of Tian Suanzi has always been passed down through solitary practitioners. The Master established Ginkgo Studio in this temple more than thirty years ago. As for what came before that, even this old monk knows nothing.”
“More than thirty years ago…” Mu Geshen sighed. “My master looked no older than thirty.”
“To be honest, I know absolutely nothing about my master’s life or past. Tian Suanzi does not enter the Book of Life and Death. Even Fengdu cannot find any records of him. Thinking about it now, we disciples were truly unfilial.”
“What has passed cannot be undone, but what lies ahead can still be pursued.” The abbot softly recited a Buddhist prayer. “Now that the wooden box has been returned to its rightful owner, this old monk has at least not failed the Master’s trust.”
“I had some misgivings about what I was going to do today, but after seeing my master’s handwriting, it seems everything was already within his expectations.” Mu Geshen smiled. “That puts my mind at ease, too. However, I must ask Master not to tell the Seven Families’ disciples that I took the Shanguí flower coins.”
“Rest assured, Young Master. The person who entrusted them to this old monk was not the Seven Families, but the Master of Ginkgo Studio alone.”
Mu Geshen took his leave of the abbot and returned to the studio, walking into the incense hall.
The wooden box the abbot had given him was quite ordinary. It was dark and ancient-looking, without the slightest decoration or even a lock or copper clasp. It looked more like a smooth, square block of wood. Mu Geshen placed his hand on the box, wondering how to open it, when he suddenly heard a click. A narrow gap appeared right in the middle of the box.
Seeing this, Mu Geshen smiled and lifted the lid. “As expected of Mohist craftsmanship.”
Inside were forty-nine Shanguí flower coins, a letter, and a brocade pouch.
Mu Geshen opened the letter and saw just fourteen characters:
When someone from Fengdu arrives, take the flower coins;
When a great upheaval befalls you, open the brocade pouch.
He stared for a moment before suddenly bursting into laughter. “Master, oh, Master. Did you already foresee absolutely everything?” Then his tone changed. “And ‘when a great upheaval befalls you, open the brocade pouch’… Do you think you’re Zhuge Liang or something? Besides, the strategist gave Zhao Yun three brocade pouches. Yours is so miserly. Do you really have to be this stingy?”
As he spoke, he put away the brocade pouch and poured out all the flower coins at once. But then he discovered a slip of paper at the bottom of the box. It was still in the Master of Ginkgo Studio’s handwriting:
You’re not Zhao Zilong, so don’t complain about your master’s poverty.
Mu Geshen: “…”
He had to admit, a master was still a master. His own disciple had been understood inside and out.
Mu Geshen was left speechless. He could only put away the flower coins, place the wooden box on the altar table, and respectfully kowtow three times.
The next day, Fengdu received a letter from Mu Geshen.
Ninth Month, Twentieth Day of the Lunar Calendar: The Ghost Soldiers will emerge from the pass.
For the next several months, Mu Geshen was so busy that he barely had time to catch his breath. More often than not, he would collapse into bed late at night, only to get up and get to work before dawn the following morning.
The army’s training was beginning to show results, but there was still a mountain of troublesome matters waiting for him to deal with.
The country’s weapons and equipment were far behind those of foreign nations. Most of the troops were primarily equipped with Zhongzheng rifles, whose effective range was far inferior.
“Damn the late Qing Dynasty for signing some kind of international convention!” Mu Geshen stood on the shooting range, cursing under his breath. “The military is prohibited from using expanding bullets!”
Dumdum bullets were extremely lethal. After entering the human body, the bullet would expand and deform, which was why they were also known as “exploding bullets.” However, the domestic military was severely underfunded. They were equipped with nothing more than light and heavy machine guns and hand grenades. Things like rifle grenades and grenade launchers were entirely nonexistent. As for submachine guns and automatic rifles, the veteran soldiers had never even heard of them.
Mu Geshen was so furious that he cursed up a storm every other day. He had been poor while studying abroad, but had he known things would turn out like this, he would have sold the entire Mu residence to bring back a shipment of military supplies. Now, with wars breaking out all over the country and transportation routes blocked, even having money would be useless. All he could do was sigh helplessly.
Although Commander Mu had raised his son like a dog, the troops he had left him were already equipped with the best weapons available in the country. There were only twenty-six artillery guns in the entire nation. It was difficult to imagine what things were like on the front lines.
In the end, it was the veteran soldiers who came up with a solution. Since the Zhongzheng rifles had a short range, they would have to make up for it in terms of lethality. They ground the tips of the bullets against stones until they became blunt, creating a rough surface. Once they hit a target, the bullets could tumble around inside the human body, often causing severe injuries.
He had learned all sorts of things abroad, but once he returned home, there was no money and no food. In the end, they still had to rely on crude, improvised methods. Mu Geshen felt that his four years studying overseas had been a complete waste. He might as well have followed his father into battle, or at the very least, gone into business to make money. Either would have been better than standing around helplessly like this.
The old staff officer, on the other hand, looked at him and chuckled. “The young master has grown up quite a bit.”
“Please, don’t make fun of me. Once my father comes back and gets himself another wife, I’ll be a father too. How am I still young?” Mu Geshen had been busy all day again. He hurriedly shoveled down a couple of mouthfuls of cold rice. “Besides, with the situation as it is now, who has the leisure to act like some young master?”
The old staff officer left the telegram logbook on the table. Before leaving, he was still smiling. “The young master is right.”
The staff officer was one of the veteran soldiers Commander Mu had brought up himself. He had practically watched Mu Geshen grow up. Mu Geshen didn’t dare talk back to the old man, so he could only lower his head and shovel down his food. He nearly choked to death and had to rummage through the cabinets looking for a thermos flask.
“Damn it, what kind of young master has to eat like this?”
He finally found the thermos, only to discover that it was completely empty. Mu Geshen had no choice but to go fetch some hot water. On the way, he stopped by the communications room to make a phone call.
“Hello? Aunt Zhao, is Second Brother there?”
Song Wentong happened to be at Guanshan Yue. He came over to answer the phone.
“What is it?”
“Come bring your father some food tomorrow\…” Mu Geshen hadn’t finished speaking when a deafening explosion suddenly rang out in the distance. The call was abruptly cut off, leaving only a busy signal.
The entire military camp was thrown into an uproar. Mu Geshen dropped the thermos and ran straight for the rooftop. The outskirts of the city were on elevated ground, and from the rooftop, one could overlook half the city. He had heard it clearly just now. The noise had come from within the city.
Mu Geshen raced upstairs. Smoke and dust were rising in the distance, and the cold wind howled, limiting visibility. He had the orderly who had followed him fetch a pair of binoculars. Then he took out several flower coins and arranged them according to the places in the city where smoke was rising. Finally, when he looked at the formation formed by the coins, his expression changed.
“What date is it today?” he asked the orderly beside him.
Seeing his serious expression, the orderly immediately answered, “October twenty-ninth.”
October twenty-ninth was precisely the twentieth day of the ninth lunar month.
Mu Geshen took off running, hurriedly leaving an order behind. “Send a small squad to help. Everyone else stays where they are. Without my orders, no one is allowed to enter the city.”
Although Mu Geshen had told everyone else not to act rashly, he himself rushed into the city at the head of the charge. He ran all the way to the Wu residence. Without even knocking, he climbed straight over the wall and happened to run into Wu Zixu, who was heading out.
“You came at just the right time.” Wu Zixu grabbed him by the arm. “The telephone lines are down. I was just about to go to the outskirts to find you.”
Mu Geshen noticed the Guwang smoking pipe in his hand. “Was the disturbance in the city just now related to Fengdu?”
“The Ghost Soldiers are emerging from the pass.” Wu Zixu got straight to the point. “The Yamas are about to lose control of the situation. Lord Tai Sui and the elders of my family have already rushed over. I’ll tell you what you need to know. Remember it carefully…”
“I’ve always wanted to ask,” Mu Geshen interrupted. “When you say the Ghost Soldiers are emerging from the pass, exactly which pass are they coming through?”
“The West Pass of the City,” Wu Zixu replied. “The Ghost Soldiers emerge from the pass, and ten thousand ghosts descend upon the border. The Ghost Soldiers are suppressed in the Land of Avici. Their numbers wax and wane in relation to the resentful spirits and vengeful ghosts within the pass, maintaining a balance. But in times of great chaos, resentment surges, and that balance is broken. The Land of Avici can no longer suppress those things. Once the Ghost Soldiers break through the West Pass of the City, Fengdu will inevitably be plunged into devastation.”
Mu Geshen grabbed him by the arm. “You’re going too?”
“You’re a member of the Mu family, and I’m a member of the Yin-Yang School.” Wu Zixu looked at him with a smile. “We’re in the same boat. Fourth Brother, is there anything else you want to say?”
“What are your chances?”
“Hard to say.”
“…Come back alive.”
“Of course.” Wu Zixu patted him on the shoulder. “This is my hometown. After I die, my soul will return here. Even if death truly separates us, I’ll definitely come back to find all of you.”
After seeing Wu Zixu off, Mu Geshen took out the flower coins and cast a divination. He located the most critical spot in the city and hurried there.
At the intersection, he saw a massive pit that had caved in. It was so deep that he couldn’t see the bottom, and gusts of sinister wind blew from within. He immediately recognized the place. It was where Fifth Brother had gone missing all those years ago. It was also the Yin-Yang Stairway, which connected the world of the living to the world of ghosts.
Apart from members of the Yin-Yang School, only someone with extraordinary power could open the Yin-Yang Stairway. The one that had appeared back then had been opened personally by Lord Tai Sui, Wu Nie. Now, however, it had appeared on its own. This meant that the earth’s ley lines had fallen into tremendous disorder. The situation inside Fengdu was far from merely troublesome.
In the middle of the night, the residents had all been awakened by the disturbance. The streets were packed with people, and the noise of their chatter rose and fell.
Mu Geshen tossed out a Shanguí flower coin to suppress the sinister energy around them. Then he took a string of red lanterns down from the eaves of a nearby shop and arranged them in a circle around the pit.
“Everyone, please quiet down!” Mu Geshen called out loudly. “The ground has become unstable due to years of disrepair, and a section has collapsed. Please make sure to avoid this area! It’s late and dark, so everyone, go home and get some sleep! Someone will come to repair it tomorrow!”
The most urgent thing was to disperse the crowd first. Once the Yin-Yang Stairway opened, no one knew what might come crawling out. The situation was already chaotic enough. If all sorts of supernatural creatures started appearing as well, the entire city would probably descend into madness.
“Officer.” An elderly woman leaning on a cane asked, “Are we going to war?”
“Was that a cannon just now? Did a shell hit us?”
“Isn’t the war happening in the south? Has it already reached here?”
Mu Geshen paused. That was a plausible explanation, too. He seized the opportunity and said, “Things have been unsettled lately. Everyone, please disperse! Gathering together will only make you an easier target! The soldiers guarding the city will ensure your safety!”
“Who are you?” Someone noticed Mu Geshen and, seeing the military uniform he was wearing, asked, “A soldier? Can you people even defend the city?”
Mu Geshen was speechless. With so many eyes watching, he couldn’t very well say anything, so he could only reply, “Ma’am, why don’t you go home and get some rest first? The city will post an official notice tomorrow. We’ll definitely give you an explanation.”
“What explanation? Ever since July, you officials haven’t stopped giving us explanations!” The woman’s brows shot up. “If you’ve got the guts, go out and fight the war! What are you doing here, putting on official airs?”
“Exactly! Exactly! Since the war began, you haven’t won a single battle! You soldiers are all a bunch of cowards!”
“A bunch of useless bullies who only dare to pick on their own people!”
“You demand grain and taxes from us every day. This country has been ruined by parasites like you!”
The crowd was seething with anger. It was as if one stone had stirred up a thousand waves. The atmosphere had been oppressive lately, and everyone was on edge, afraid that they might lose their lives in the chaos of war at any moment.
Mu Geshen understood that he had walked right into this mess. Regardless of what nonsense these people were spouting, they simply wanted to vent their anger on him. He had always been shameless and thick-skinned, so it didn’t matter how creatively they cursed him. The problem was that the Yin-Yang Stairway had already opened. If these people kept gathering here, sooner or later, they would attract something. By then, with countless pairs of eyes and countless mouths watching, if one or two unfortunate souls died a gruesome death, who knew what kind of rumors would spread?
“Th-that…” Someone spoke timidly. It was a young woman. “This big brother is Commander Mu’s son. He’ll help us. Everyone, please calm down…”
“Oh, would you look at that!” The woman grabbed her braid. “You little brat! You see a handsome face and immediately jump to his defense? Have you thrown your conscience to the dogs?”
“Commander Mu’s son? That little tyrant from back then?”
“Didn’t he go overseas to study? He didn’t even come back when the Master of Ginkgo Studio passed away. What is he doing here now?”
“Betraying his master and ancestors! A fake foreign devil!”
Mu Geshen couldn’t take it anymore. He rolled up his sleeves, ready to start cursing right back at them. So what if they were making a scene? Who wasn’t a woman in this day and age?
Just as he took a deep breath, preparing to open his mouth, someone suddenly grabbed his hand and said in a low voice, “Don’t curse at them. I’ll handle this.”
Mu Geshen’s breath caught in his throat. He turned around angrily. “How did you know I was going to curse at them?”
Chai Shuxin raised an eyebrow and looked at him, his expression clearly saying, Isn’t that obvious?
No one knew when the other man had arrived. He pushed Mu Geshen behind him and spoke in a steady, resonant voice.
“The winter nights are cold, and medicinal supplies in the city are scarce. Why don’t you all go home and take shelter first? Don’t risk catching a chill.”
As he spoke, he bowed politely.
“The city will not turn a blind eye to what happened today. First thing tomorrow morning, we will definitely give everyone an explanation.”
“We’ve already given them an explanation,” Mu Geshen muttered from the side. “The ground is old and poorly maintained, so an occasional collapse is to be expected.”
Chai Shuxin glanced back at him.
Mu Geshen made a zipping gesture across his lips.
Chai Shuxin had spent years practicing medicine and treating patients in the city, and his reputation was excellent. Once he spoke, the crowd found it difficult to argue further and gradually dispersed.
He walked up to Mu Geshen. “Did you enter the city alone?”
“I sent a squad to help with the rescue, but this place is too dangerous, so I didn’t let them come here.” Mu Geshen glanced at the hole in the ground. “This is the Yin-Yang Stairway.”
“I remember.”
“There’s something down there.” Mu Geshen said, “I’ve temporarily suppressed it with the Shanguí flower coins, but that won’t hold for long. Someone has to go down and close the Yin-Yang Stairway.”
“Don’t even think about going.” Mu Geshen could tell from Chai Shuxin’s expression what he was about to say. “You’ve only been down to Fengdu a handful of times. You don’t have enough experience. What about Second Brother? Get him over here.”
“Half of Guanshan Yue has collapsed. Mozi is over there helping with the rescue.”
“Guanshan Yue collapsed too?” Mu Geshen frowned. “Fine, then I’ll go down. You stay up here and keep an eye on things. Don’t let anyone else come near.”
With that, he leaped into the air and jumped underground.
Chai Shuxin had just started to stop him. He stretched out a hand, but caught nothing but empty air.