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Translator: Silavin
On the way home, they saw several patches of fresh soil scattered in the bamboo forest, left behind after the villagers had relocated the graves.
Hansheng glanced over and noticed that Li Laoer’s Family Ancestral Grave had also been moved.
*Caw…* A strange cry came from above. Hansheng looked up to see an angry large crow with red eyes staring intently at him. This crow had a tuft of white feathers on the top of its head.
“The crows are upset because the relatives of the deceased have disturbed them these past few days,” his Father explained.
“Since ancient times, crows have been associated with graves. Now that there are no graves to rely on, they naturally feel lost.” Someone with a Lingnan accent laughed heartily from the bamboo forest.
Two men stood on the small path in the grove. One was a short, stout man in a Zhongshan suit whom Doctor Zhu recognized as Meng Zhuqi, the chairman of the Nanshan Town Revolutionary Committee.
The person who had just spoken was an outsider in his fifties, dressed in a Western suit. He had a unique bone structure, eyes that extended to his temples, a hooked nose with orange-peel texture, and two drooping eyebrows like brooms. His voice was high and clear when raised, and like a mouse, gnawing when low. There were even lingering echoes at the end of his sentences.
Doctor Zhu was shocked. This man’s Five Elements were strange; he must be someone of significance.
“You must be Doctor Zhu from Nanshan,” the short, stout Chairman Meng, who rarely spoke and often kept a solemn expression, said. He turned and whispered to the other man, “He’s the barefoot doctor of this village.”
“Barefoot doctor’?” The man seemed puzzled.
“It means rural doctor,” Chairman Meng explained.
The man nodded, his gaze sweeping past Doctor Zhu and landing on Hansheng’s face.
“Wuyuan is truly a place of outstanding people and beautiful landscapes. Young man, do you know the meaning of the character ‘Wu’ (婺)?” he asked Hansheng with a slight smile.
Hansheng shook his head; he had never thought about it.
The man smiled again: “‘Wu’ means ‘literal woman with spear.’ This place produces talented individuals in both civil and military affairs, as well as beautiful women. I can see that you have an extraordinary aura, young man. Given time, you’ll surely achieve great success in the imperial examinations and become a talented scholar.”
“Comrade, you flatter us. This is my son, Hansheng,” Doctor Zhu said, feeling more favourably towards the man for praising his son.
“Doctor Zhu, this is Master Wu Daoming, a renowned Feng Shui Master from Hong Kong, invited by the county,” Chairman Meng proudly introduced.
“You’re too kind. I’m merely a Cyan Bird Scholar. Wuyuan is truly a place where hidden talents and recluses abound,” the man said modestly, waving his hand.
“Chairman Meng, if you’re busy, we’ll first take our leave.” Doctor Zhu said as he and Hansheng turned to walk.
“Wait. May I take a look at that Earth Spawn in the young man’s hand?” Wu Daoming’s cold voice came from behind.
※※※
Doctor Zhu’s body trembled, and he turned around with an expressionless face. His eyes revealed a hint of unease. Hansheng had never seen his Father so serious.
“Mr. Wu, what Earth Spawn are you referring to?” Doctor Zhu asked calmly.
Wu Daoming chuckled, “Isn’t that a Tai Chi Earth Spawn in the young man’s hand? Where did you get it? I’m willing to pay a high price for it.”
“We don’t know anything about Earth Spawns. It’s just a child’s toy he’s had for years,” his Father replied, still calm.
Wu Daoming stepped forward, staring at the Earth Spawn in Hansheng’s hand, and said softly, “Young man, tell me where this came from, and I’ll give you two hundred yuan.”
Two hundred yuan was half a year’s living expenses for him and his Father. But naturally, his Father refused to reveal the location of the Tai Chi Halo. So, he could not say anything either. “I bought it at a fair when I was little,” Hansheng said.
“Oh, is that so? May I at least take a look?” Wu Daoming asked.
Hansheng reluctantly opened his palm, and Wu Daoming snatched it away.
“Doctor Zhu, it still has moisture from the soil. It certainly isn’t an old item, am I right?” Wu Daoming chuckled.
“Master Wu, what’s so special about this Earth Spawn that you’re so interested in it?” Chairman Meng asked dismissively from the side.
Wu Daoming replied seriously, “This is no ordinary Earth Spawn. It can also be called a Tai Chi Spawn, green in colour, which makes it a Wood Egg, born from the Tai Chi Halo.”
“Tai Chi Halo! Aren’t we just…” Chairman Meng’s face suddenly changed upon hearing this.
“Exactly. That’s why I want to know the origin of this egg,” Wu Daoming gave him a meaningful look.
Chairman Meng turned to Doctor Zhu with a serious expression, “Doctor Zhu, where did this egg come from? All underground artifacts belong to the state. I trust you wouldn’t lie to the government.”
His Father’s face turned red, and Hansheng saw the veins on his neck slightly quivering.
“I buried it in the soil,” Hansheng suddenly said.
“Why did you bury it in the soil?” Chairman Meng’s gaze fixed on Hansheng.
“My Grandfather bought it for me at a fair when I was little. Later, I didn’t want to play with it anymore, so I buried it in front of his old grave. I dug it up when we relocated the graves. It’s a memento from my Grandfather, and I won’t sell it for anything,” Hansheng snatched back the Earth Spawn. “Dad, let’s go.”
As Doctor Zhu and his Son walked away, Wu Daoming seemed unsatisfied.
“I’ll make that barefoot doctor talk,” Chairman Meng said with confidence.
※※※
Back at home, his Father seemed gloomy.
“Dad, that Feng Shui Master from Hong Kong seems to be quite knowledgeable. Why would he come all the way to our small mountain village?” Hansheng asked.
His Father thought for a moment and said with a dire voice, “That man is far from ordinary. You see his unique bone structure, eyes extending to his temples, high hooked nose – he’s definitely not a common man. An eagle nose suggests he preys on people, eyebrows like brooms indicate facing execution, and his facial features are truly inauspicious. In any case, we must be cautious of him.”
“Dad, we’re just village doctors. We don’t have anything to do with them, so they can’t harm us, right?”
His Father looked at Hansheng and sighed, “A few days ago, the town asked us to relocate the Ancestral Graves in front of Linggu Cave. Today we saw Chairman Meng with this Feng Shui Master. There must be something fishy going on.”
“You mean the grave relocation is related to them?” Hansheng guessed.
His Father nodded.
“Then their intention is…” Hansheng seemed to understand.
“They’ve come for the Tai Chi Halo.”
“Don’t worry, Dad. I won’t tell anyone.”
“But what do they want to do with the Tai Chi Halo?” his Father mused.
That night, Hansheng tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep. He decided to take out the green ruler from the wooden box. It was a Luban Ruler, also known as a Yin-Yang Ruler, about thirty centimetres long, divided into ten sections. It was inscribed with ten characters: Ding, Hai, Wang, Ku, Yi, Guan, Si, Xing, Shi, Cai. Under each section were four smaller divisions with many small characters like ‘wealth’, ‘leaving home’, ‘widowed’, and so on.
He had seen such a ruler before when rummaging through older objects. His Father had told him that it was used to determine good or bad fortune when building burial sites and ancestral tablets. Though, it was all just superstition.
The ruler was dark green and felt cold to the touch. It was surprisingly heavy. He remembered his Grandfather once saying that the rarest wood in the world was green, formed after being buried underground or underwater for ten thousand years. It was extremely precious.
[This ruler must be made of that wood] Hansheng concluded.
In the early morning, his Father got up early to make porridge and called Hansheng to get up, saying there was a big market fair in Wuyuan County’s town today, and they needed to buy some Chinese Herbal Medicines.
Hansheng jumped up eagerly. He had always loved going to fairs since he was young. He often lingering there, not wanting to leave. Furthermore, this was a town fair!
It was a seventy kilometres journey to the town, meaning they had to take a bus from Nanshan Town. So Father and Son hurriedly ate a few bites and set off.
The early autumn morning was a bit chilly. Dewdrops hung on the wild grass by the roadside, and birds in the woods chirped incessantly. Hansheng recognized a local species of Mynah with black feathers.
There were many people heading to the county town from Nanshan Town. Father and Son even struggled to squeeze onto the bus.
The old public bus rumbled along, spewing black smoke, bumping along the gravel road. The bus was full of locals going to the county fair. The cabin was packed with strings of chilli peppers, dried wild vegetables, and sweet potato noodles.
Two speckled chickens occasionally clucked, earning a slap on the head from their owner.
Some passengers recognized Doctor Zhu and greeted him respectfully. Everyone then quieted down, smiling at the Father and Son.
A Beijing 212 Jeep honked its horn as it sped past, leaving a cloud of dust behind.
Hansheng saw clearly that Chairman Meng and the Hong Kong Feng Shui Master, Wu Daoming, were sitting in the Jeep.
After more than two hours, they finally arrived at the county town.
The market was located in the west of the town. From afar, they could see the bustling crowd. Indeed, the county fair was incomparable to village markets.
“Go and have fun. Meet me at Feng’s Noodle Shop for lunch,” his Father said with a smile.
Hansheng agreed and disappeared in an instant.
Doctor Zhu smiled wryly. [Ah, he’s still a child.]
He turned and went to the Chinese Herbal Medicine Stalls at the edge of the market, greeting familiar vendors and casually chatted with them. Before noon, he had bought some cooling herbs like Rehmannia Root and Scrophularia. Some compounds like ‘Return from the Grave’. Blood nourishing herbs like Ginseng and White Peony Root. He had filled up a whole basket of them. Seeing that it was getting late, he said goodbye and left the market for Feng’s Noodle Shop.
He sat on a wooden stool outside Feng’s Noodle Shop, resting and waiting for Hansheng.
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