Chapter 105: North Of Gushan Temple, West Of Jiatin…..
After the storm stopped, they had been waiting for flights to resume. The route resumed first, and since there was nothing for them to do on the island, they simply took a boat back to the port and waited for the airplane in Haikou.
Two days later, flights finally resumed. Wu Xie and Lin Yan boarded the plane to Hangzhou, parting ways with Fatty and Zhang Qiling. Fatty said he had some business to attend to in Sichuan, so he didn’t head back to Beijing first, and mentioned that he’d have someone send the things he’d been keeping in his shop back to them later.
Zhang Qiling was a very mysterious person. After saying goodbye to them at the airport, he slipped away, and no one knew where he went. Seeing this, Wu Xie felt his inner cat’s claws starting to scratch again. He was the type with extremely strong curiosity—the more mysterious something was, the more he wanted to know. Besides, he still didn’t know what had happened between Zhang Qiling and his Third Uncle twenty years ago. Come to think of it, he really did need to look into it.
Back in Hangzhou, Wu Xie checked on the situation at Wu Shan Ju as usual. Sure enough, there wasn’t a single deal, but for him, having one would be the abnormal thing. Lin Yan still didn’t have a place to stay for the time being, so he went back to Wu Xie’s home with him.
It had to be said that being in one’s own territory was still the most comfortable. Wu Xie and Lin Yan gave the place a good cleanup, then went to a familiar shop to properly satisfy their hunger and thirst, before returning to that previous salted fish state.
“Lin Yan, what are your plans next?” After eating and drinking their fill, Wu Xie and Lin Yan returned to their comfortable routine of sunbathing in the backyard every afternoon. Lin Yan shook his head: “No plans. If anything, how about you keep an eye out for a good place for me to live? I feel like after selling those things of mine, I could probably swap for a small siheyuan here.”
Lin Yan stroked his chin thoughtfully. In his previous life, he’d always been in Beijing with no chance to go out, and he’d grown tired of the fast-paced life. Things were just right on Wu Xie’s side here—the environment was good, the food was delicious. It had to be said, he loved it; it was really a great place for retirement.
Wu Xie thought for a moment and nodded: “Adding the money from the jade inlay set, it should be about enough? But you’ll probably have to wait a year or so—the auction side won’t be that quick.”
Lin Yan figured there was no rush anyway, so he might as well stay at Wu Xie’s place. Not to mention anything else, the quality of life here was genuinely good, and he didn’t have to worry about anything. Thinking about moving out and having to deal with utilities, coal, and three meals a day himself, Lin Yan suddenly felt like maybe he shouldn’t move out. This was pretty good as is.
However, the carefree days didn’t last long before trouble came again.
That day, the shop assistant from Wu Sansheng’s shop called Wu Xie: “Third Master Xiao, a strange guy just came to our place specifically looking for you. He doesn’t look like a good person, but I figured I should tell you. How about you come take a look?”
Who would go to Wu Sansheng’s shop looking for him? Wu Xie just found it strange and quickly asked: “What does that guy look like? How old is he? Any distinguishing features?”
The shop assistant replied: “About the same age as you, buzz cut, triangular eyes, wearing glasses, and an earring on one ear. As for features… he stutters quite a bit?”
Same age as him, triangular eyes, wears glasses, and stutters… A figure flashed through Wu Xie’s mind, and he felt a surge of joy. He hurriedly said: “Did he leave a phone number? Give me the number!”
The shop assistant hesitated: “You know him? Is he really your friend? Mainly, he doesn’t look like…” Wu Xie interrupted him: “I know who it is. He’s an old playmate from back in the day. We haven’t been in touch for a few years. Just give me the number!”
The shop assistant then gave him the number.
Lin Yan saw him light up with joy and asked curiously: “Who is it? It’s rare to see you this happy.”
Wu Xie dialed the number while saying: “An old playmate of mine. Three years ago, he went tomb raiding in the Qinling Mountains, got into trouble, was locked up for three years. Didn’t expect him to be out… I’ll tell you later. Let me ask him first.”
As soon as the call connected, Lin Yan heard Wu Xie laughing heartily: “Fuck your grandma’s eggs, you can’t even recognize my voice anymore?” He was so shocked he nearly spat out his water. Although Wu Xie had sworn before, it was always mild stuff. He’d never seen him drop an f-bomb so casually in conversation.
However, Qinling Mountains… Lin Yan, sharply catching the key word, fell into thought. It wasn’t that he was overthinking—Qinling was just too creepy! Not to mention that the place Zhang Qiling had taken him last time was Qinling. If he remembered correctly, Wu Xie’s next instance was also Qinling, where there was that eerie bronze tree deep in the mountains!
Guarding the bronze tree, there seemed to be something… ghost soldiers? He couldn’t remember the exact name, but it was a super cool one, the kind that sounded badass just saying it. If he remembered right, there should be clues about longevity inside. Though he didn’t remember very clearly, later the Queen Mother of the West seemed to have gone there too?
Last time in Qinling, he’d suspected Zhang Qiling was taking him ahead to scout for Wu Xie, but facts proved they hadn’t gone to the same place—he hadn’t seen that bronze divine tree anyway. But hadn’t Zhang Qiling said going into tombs more would be good for him? He was still worrying about what to do now that the little zombie’s beads were all eaten up. Speak of the devil—here came a Qinling experience baby!
While Lin Yan was lost in thought, Wu Xie had already hung up: “Order takeout for yourself tonight. Or if not, have Wang Meng cook for you. I’m going to welcome my old playmate!”
Lin Yan saw him beaming with excitement and couldn’t bear to dampen his spirits, so he nodded and watched as Wu Xie happily packed up to leave. Looking at Wu Xie’s back, he silently mourned for him. Wu Xie might not know, but how could he not? Lao Yang was not just an NPC for Qinling—he’d also given readers a psychological shadow.
As the saying goes: North of Gushan Temple, west of Jating, Lao Yang’s mom sewing machine ah!
He didn’t remember the other stuff, but this he remembered crystal clearly. Even after so long, the description of “his mother’s skin stuck to the sewing machine” was still bouncing around in his mind, fresh as ever. Thinking about it, he shivered. He hoped Wu Xie wouldn’t come back ranting about it, or else… he wouldn’t be sleeping tonight.
Fortunately, when Wu Xie came back, he was drunk but still mostly conscious. Lin Yan didn’t see Lao Yang either. He’d thought he’d meet Lao Yang soon and they’d head to Qinling, but the next day Wu Xie told him: “It’s been arranged, but it’ll probably be a few weeks later. What’s the rush? This isn’t like you!”
Lin Yan sighed helplessly: “It’s not that I’m in a rush… Look, what’s in my hand?”
Wu Xie looked at Lin Yan’s outstretched left hand, which had nothing on it: “There’s nothing there?”
Lin Yan slumped on the sofa: “Jade Pendant! I need a Jade Pendant! Beads will do too! Otherwise, I’ll have to go hang out inside the tomb ahead of time!”
Wu Xie was stunned for a few seconds, then burst out laughing. The past few weeks had been too intense, making him forget about this. But these days he’d also been building connections for the shop, and he had a few big clients he could contact. He really wasn’t in a hurry. In his view, on this patch of land in Hangzhou, a few Jade Pendants should still be findable.
He smiled and asked Lin Yan: “This stuff should be available, but do you still have money?”
