“It’s already showing some results regarding the task you assigned, Director Mei.” Zhao Dayou hurried over as soon as he saw Mei Qing return, whispering excitedly.
“Oh? Tell me about it.”
“After you gave the instructions that day, I found a few ruffians and had them hang around the Liangshui Well area, keeping an ear out through the local toughs they know. As luck would have it, there’s a fellow called Cheng the Elder near Liangshui Well, the leader of the beggars. That area has always been his turf, and there’s nothing around Liangshui Well that he doesn’t know inside-out. Well, Cheng the Elder said that the house where Yang Zui lived has been sealed ever since he got into trouble and his corpse was dumped there. Later, no one paid any attention to it, so some bold beggars started sneaking in through a dog hole in the courtyard wall to use it as a resting spot. But since last year, for no apparent reason, ghosts started appearing!”
“Ghosts? What happened?”
“Well, details are a bit hazy. Supposedly, people really saw something—a white figure covered in long hair, quite terrifying. And…” Zhao Dayou seemed to grow fearful as he spoke, gripping the handle of his knife tightly: “Last month, strange noises began to emerge too. Sounds like a ghost crying, scaring people away from the area. Even in broad daylight, no one dares to walk nearby; they’d rather take a detour.”
Mei Qing listened with a satisfied expression, then said after a moment’s thought: “Zhao, are you interested in joining me to catch this ghost?”
“Catch… ghosts…?” Zhao Dayou’s eyes widened instantly. Stammering for a while, he swallowed hard and hesitated: “You see, sir… this ghost doesn’t seem particularly evil. There’s no record of it oppressing the locals or harassing women… I mean, this probably isn’t even our jurisdiction. Master Zhang would sue us for infringement…”
“Stop stammering! I’m telling you we’re going after the ghost. Do you agree or not?” Mei Qing snapped.
“Fine! Fine!” Zhao nodded vigorously like a pecking sparrow, but his face quickly turned gloomy: “But sir… it’s a ghost!”
“Catch ghosts! Catch ghosts! Master, when shall we go?” In stark contrast to Zhao Dayou, Hou Shen, who had just returned to the garrison, was thrilled to hear about Mei Qing’s plan. His eyes sparkled with excitement as he eagerly declared he wouldn’t miss this opportunity for anything.
“Probably in two days, on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival.” Mei Qing, looking confident, shared his plan with Hou Shen.
“Oh?” Hou Shen’s eyes twinkled: “Master, you mean the ghost is Yang Jin? He’s hiding in his old family home, causing disturbances and scaring people into thinking it’s a ghost?”
Mei Qing nodded: “That’s exactly my deduction. Last time we captured Yang Jin and Zheng Jiu, we estimated it was one of their sect’s safe houses. Since Zheng Jiu died and Yang Jin escaped, if possible, he would naturally return to his family’s old home. The ghostly disturbances at the house must be related to him somehow.”
Hou Shen nodded: “True enough. As long as he’s in the capital, he wouldn’t ignore his father’s remains lying there. However, if he was taken by someone else, he might no longer be at his family’s old home.”
“I’m just doing what I can. Besides, he mentioned that retrieving the inkstone was related to saving his father’s spirit. So this matter is even more closely tied to his family home. As for whether he was taken by someone else, we can only speculate. Even if we end up chasing a phantom, we still need to check it out.” Mei Qing explained.
“Why are you so sure he’ll appear on the fifteenth of August?” Hou Shen asked, still puzzled.
Mei Qing smiled: “Firstly, the fifteenth of August is a time for family reunions. Especially for Yang Jin, who is now all alone. During such a festive occasion, he’s bound to return to his ancestral shrine to pay respects. Secondly, since he mentioned saving his father’s spirit, you must understand that spiritual matters often peak during a full moon. So while catching ghosts might sound absurd, we might indeed encounter something unusual. You should prepare accordingly.”
“Great, let me go prepare first to ensure we’re fully ready.” Hou Shen’s eyes gleamed as he took his leave.
“What exactly are you preparing?” Mei Qing frowned at the large assortment Zhao Dayou had brought.
“Oh, sir, these are all top-notch items.” Zhao Dayou eagerly displayed his collection: “All painstakingly acquired by me. Look, this is a ghost-sealing talisman personally drawn by Master Bai of Taqing Palace in the western capital; this is a demon-subduing mace blessed by Master Wuming of Jingming Temple in the southern city; these two peach-wood swords were obtained by my wife at the Guanyin Nunnery; and here’s a black donkey’s hoof, a sack of glutinous rice, and this bottle contains black dog’s blood. And this one here is especially powerful…”
“What is this?” Mei Qing, curious about the item wrapped most carefully in multiple layers, asked.
“This one…” Zhao Dayou looked around cautiously before whispering into Mei Qing’s ear, then proudly added: “Specifically for countering all sorts of magical artifacts and evil sorcery! Impressive, right? It was really hard to get from my old flame in Fenzihutong.”
“Ugh!” Mei Qing exclaimed in anger: “What disgusting stuff! All this nonsense! Besides, have you ever heard of getting peach-wood swords from a nunnery? Where did you learn this?”
Zhao Dayou clung tightly to his collection: “Don’t be angry, sir. These are all treasures I painstakingly gathered. The storyteller Huang Mazi by the Front Gate said that this is how people exorcise evil spirits…”
“Nonsense!” Mei Qing snapped: “You think you’re the real deal now, don’t you? You even imagined yourself as Master Zhang? Did you wear a Taoist robe underneath by any chance?”
“How did you know, sir?” Zhao Dayou was startled, secretly opening his jacket to reveal a corner of the Taoist robe: “I thought, one thing counters another, so wearing a Taoist robe might help intimidate the ghosts…”
In contrast, Hou Shen’s preparation was much simpler.
“These two daggers I specially borrowed are said to be effective against evil spirits.” Hou Shen didn’t reveal the daggers but merely gestured with his legs.
But Mei Qing knew that these two daggers were incomparable to Zhao Dayou’s collection of junk. Though not shown, Mei Qing’s spiritual sense could faintly detect a powerful energy attached to them, along with an uncontrollable killing aura. These daggers must not only have been blessed by a powerful practitioner but also had drunk much blood, hence their fierce killing aura.
When too many lives are taken with a weapon, the killing aura accumulates. During full moons, this aura becomes especially potent. These daggers might even howl when hanging on the wall. While calling them able to repel gods and ghosts might be an exaggeration, ordinary spirits would definitely dare not approach.
In addition, Yao Dingguo and Zhou Chang stood quietly nearby. Normally, on the Mid-Autumn Festival, everyone should be at home with their families. But upon hearing Mei Qing had a mission for them, they showed no signs of dissatisfaction, which Mei Qing appreciated greatly.
The moon had risen a pole’s length, a clear, full orb casting bright light all around. It was only the first watch of the night, yet everything was already quiet, with only faint barks echoing from deep alleys.
“It’s time to go.” Mei Qing nodded, then suddenly thought of something and turned to call out loudly: “Senior masters, since you’ve kindly chosen to help us again, please reveal yourselves!”
Zhao Dayou, Yao Dingguo, and Zhou Chang looked around, knowing Mei Qing must be referring to Sun Busan and Sun Busi. They had witnessed the two’s ability to appear suddenly from hiding before, so they weren’t surprised this time. Hou Shen, however, was visibly startled. Originally a thief, his senses were far sharper than ordinary people. Hearing Mei Qing call out like that, he looked around carefully but couldn’t detect anyone hiding nearby, which naturally surprised him.
“Huh? This time I was extra careful. Why did the kid spot us again?” A familiar sharp voice sounded, filled with surprise and confusion.
“Apologies, brother. You’re wrong again,” a deep voice replied. “He definitely can’t see us. He must be guessing again.”
Sun Busan’s sharp voice retorted angrily: “How come you keep saying I’m wrong? He clearly mentioned us as two people just now. If he was just guessing, how could he know there are two of us? Hey, kid, let me test you. Since you say we’re two people, which two of us can you guess?”
As Sun Busan proudly posed his supposedly profound riddle, Mei Qing, Zhao Dayou, and the others exchanged glances in silence, at a loss for words.
Yang Zui’s old house wasn’t particularly large—three halls and two courtyards. A few tall buildings at the back of the courtyard were the ancestral shrine.
Since Yang Zui’s downfall, his family had been exiled, their property confiscated, and his corpse discarded. The house had been abandoned for a long time. Weeds overran the courtyard, and the doors and windows of the buildings were riddled with holes, making the place look especially desolate and eerie under the bright moonlight.
“This time we need to enter without anyone noticing,” Mei Qing whispered softly. “I’m afraid we’ll have to rely on your esteemed seniors’ superior techniques.”
Sun Busan cackled: “I knew you’d need my expert help eventually. I’m already prepared. Impressive, right? Don’t bother praising me—I’ve always been this clever.” As he spoke, he swiftly produced several small talismans and slapped them onto everyone.
Mei Qing and the others felt their bodies suddenly become light, just like that night when they floated. This time was even more different. Suddenly, everyone’s vision went blank, and they could no longer see each other. Panicking, they looked down at themselves and found they had vanished from sight.
“Mommy!” Zhao Dayou cried out: “Where am I? Where am I?” A flurry of sounds followed, and after a while, he sighed in relief: “Okay, okay, I’m still here, just invisible. Haha, if I’d had this trick earlier, I wouldn’t have wasted money in Fenzihutong—I could’ve done anything I wanted…”
“Silence!” Sun Busan snapped angrily: “How dare you speak such filth about my sacred talismans! I’ve thought about it for ages but never dared to try it, and you actually wanted to go ahead and do it!?”
“…”
Yang Zui’s old house wasn’t particularly large—three halls and two courtyards. A few tall buildings at the back of the courtyard were the ancestral shrine.
Since Yang Zui’s downfall, his family had been exiled, their property confiscated, and his corpse discarded. The house had been abandoned for a long time. Weeds overran the courtyard, and the doors and windows of the buildings were riddled with holes, making the place look especially desolate and eerie under the bright moonlight.
“This time we need to enter without anyone noticing,” Mei Qing whispered softly. “I’m afraid we’ll have to rely on your esteemed seniors’ superior techniques.”
Sun Busan cackled: “I knew you’d need my expert help eventually. I’m already prepared. Impressive, right? Don’t bother praising me—I’ve always been this clever.” As he spoke, he swiftly produced several small talismans and slapped them onto everyone.
Mei Qing and the others felt their bodies suddenly become light, just like that night when they floated. This time was even more different. Suddenly, everyone’s vision went blank, and they could no longer see each other. Panicking, they looked down at themselves and found they had vanished from sight.
“Mommy!” Zhao Dayou cried out: “Where am I? Where am I?” A flurry of sounds followed, and after a while, he sighed in relief: “Okay, okay, I’m still here, just invisible. Haha, if I’d had this trick earlier, I wouldn’t have wasted money in Fenzihutong—I could’ve done anything I wanted…”
“Silence!” Sun Busan snapped angrily: “How dare you speak such filth about my sacred talismans! I’ve thought about it for ages but never dared to try it, and you actually wanted to go ahead and do it!?”
“…”
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage