Wandering Gods of Day and Night-Chapter 43 - 40 Shadow of the Cat in the Bamboo Forest
43: Chapter 40 Shadow of the Cat in the Bamboo Forest
43 -40 Shadow of the Cat in the Bamboo Forest
“Which Tangkou should I worship at?”
Zhou Lingyi always spoke briskly, not asking Zhou Xuan why he wanted to offer incense.
“Storyteller, I want to learn the craft from Lao Yuan, but I doubt he will agree.
I was thinking of discussing the matter of apprenticeship with him openly.”
“Okay, I understand,” Zhou Lingyi nodded gently and said, “I drank a bit too much just now and am feeling a bit dizzy, I’ll head back to rest first.
I’ll talk to Elder Yuan later for you.”
“No need…”
Zhou Xuan wanted to say it wasn’t necessary, but his sister had already turned and left,
So cool, so awesome!
Having spoken, Zhou Xuan felt a bit relieved and went back to his seat to continue drinking.
The drinking continued until late into the night.
Zhou Xuan was the last one to leave the table—he was waiting!
Waiting for Yuan Buyu,
But he waited until the table was empty and still saw no one.
“If Lao Yuan isn’t coming, then I’ll go look for him.”
Zhou Xuan stood up, and while passing the third banquet table, he noticed something strange—this table of food was designated for “them.” Now, all the other dishes were still there, except the “raw fish” was missing.
“Meow!”
A cat’s meow sounded from a nearby rooftop.
“Perhaps a cat took it away?”
Zhou Xuan didn’t think much of it and walked towards Yuan Buyu’s dormitory.
His dormitory was located at the most northern part inside the Zhou Family’s Troupe, unlike the outer courtyard, which was simply a piece of open land, the inner courtyard had many rockeries and quiet pavilions.
Outside Yuan Buyu’s dormitory was a pavilion with a small bamboo grove adjacent to it, a place seldom visited.
As Zhou Xuan passed by the bamboo grove, he heard rustling sounds, not like the sound of wind on the bamboo leaves, but like wild cats gnawing on something…
“The cats are quite busy this late at night.”
He was just about to continue walking when the corner of his eye caught sight of a figure in the bamboo grove.
Who is it?
Zhou Xuan tilted his head, crouched down, and carefully approached the edge of the bamboo grove, pulling aside the blocking bamboo leaves, and smelled a faint scent of yellow wine.
Then he saw a man squatting deep within the bamboo, holding a raw carp, and gnawing on it voraciously, like a wild beast.
The flesh of the fish’s tail and belly had been cleaned off, leaving only half of a stark white fishbone, swinging like a rope.
“So the raw fish from the table wasn’t taken by a wild cat but taken by someone?”
Zhou Xuan felt the scene was somewhat horrifying and disgusting.
Damn it, how could the Zhou Family’s Troupe have such a perverted person?
He wanted to walk forward to see who it was, staying up late gnawing on raw fish here.
He was just about to take a step when a hand landed on Zhou Xuan’s shoulder.
“Not good…”
A sinister thought surged from the bottom of Zhou Xuan’s heart.
During the banquet, Xu Li said the raw fish was for “them”,
Which means,
This person eating the raw fish might be…
Zhou Xuan’s breathing became heavy with nervousness, yet it only lasted for a second or two before his courage returned.
Where was this?
Zhou Family’s Troupe!
With two Great Divine Men residing here, afraid of “them”?
He boldly turned to see whose hand it was, “them”… he didn’t see, but instead, he saw Yuan Buyu.
“Yuan…”
“Shh!”
Yuan Buyu placed his index finger to his lips, signaling Zhou Xuan to keep quiet, then he pointed towards the direction of the dormitory.
Afterwards, he made a slow walking motion with his right-hand index and middle finger on his left palm, meaning “leave quietly, do not disturb the person eating fish.”
Zhou Xuan trusted Yuan Buyu and did as he said.
As he left the bamboo grove, he thought he heard the person eating the raw fish emit a contented cat’s meow…
Once the two reached the dormitory, Zhou Xuan asked, “Elder Yuan, who is that person eating the fish?”
“Ah, I’m not going to mention his name, but I assure you he is a good man, the very best.
Wherever disaster strikes, he’s there to donate money.
Eating raw fish is due to necessity, related to the natural disasters he experienced as a child, so don’t bother him.”
“Elder Yuan, how is that different from just naming him?”
In the entire Zhou Family’s Troupe, besides Yu Zhengyuan, who else could afford to donate everywhere?
Zhou Xuan leaned back in his chair, not mentioning Yu Zhengyuan’s name out loud.
He felt Old Man Yuan did right by taking him out of the bamboo forest…
If he truly saw Big Brother wolf down raw fish, bloodandall, and saw it clearly, it would be remembered in every interaction thereafter, creating a barrier as time passed.
It’s like accidentally digging up someone’s bones; though quickly reburied, one always knows what lies beneath.
Even if flowers bloom and trees grow above, thoughts of the bones below linger.
Zhou Xuan didn’t continue discussing Yu Zhengyuan, nor inquire about the natural disaster that led to Big Brother eating raw fish, and he definitely didn’t want to think about why Big Brother made a cat-like sound.
He didn’t wish to unearth those bones,
because Big Brother is a truly good person.
Yuan Buyu also tacitly switched topics, seemingly having forgotten about the incident in the bamboo forest, only telling Zhou Xuan, “Why did you come to find me now?
Apprenticeship is a serious matter, I need to give it some thought.
Even if I’m considering it, preparations must be made.
Go back and wait for a few days.”
“I didn’t say I came to discuss apprenticeship.”
“Then why did you come?”
Zhou Xuan took out a cigarette from his pocket and lit one for Yuan Buyu: “I just wanted to advise you not to feel pressured.
Being accepted by your Tangkou would naturally be good, but if you truly refuse, it’s also fine for me to seek other Tangkous to offer incense.
Accepting a disciple requires mutual willingness…”
“Where do you see that I am under pressure?”
“Don’t I know you?
You’re quick-tempered.
Last time when you didn’t lend me the book and I was waiting at the door, if you weren’t under pressure, you would have accepted my incense in the afternoon, why wait for a few days?”
Yuan Buyu hissed a breath, this kid is sharper than a monkey, managing him after he’s accepted could really be a headache.
“Anyway, we’ve cleared things up, I’ll head back first.”
Zhou Xuan pocketed the cigarette before opening the door, just then he heard Yuan Buyu speak.
“Xuanzi, if I really don’t accept you as a disciple, how would you feel?”
Zhou Xuan stood there, thought seriously for a moment, then turned back with a smile: “It just means, Father and I, our affinity has come, but fortune has not!”
“Fortune?
How do you explain that?”
“You didn’t get a good disciple, and I…
haven’t found a good master.”
After saying that, Zhou Xuan gently closed the door and returned to his room.
Yuan Buyu stood like a stone sculpture at the door, stunned for a long time.
Remembering something, he wiped the corner of his eye with his sleeve, fetched a stack of ointments from a drawer, and rushed out the door.
“Xuan kid, I made some ointments this afternoon, forgot to give them to you…”
…
The Zhou Family’s Troupe wasn’t doing business today, and thus the Silence Hall, which dealt with corpse funerals, had no masters at work.
Zhou Lingyi stood with hands behind her back, gazing at the twenty-seven ancestral Nuomian masks on the wall.
“Ancient ancestors, let my brother be accepted into the Great Nu, even if he’s not of Zhou Family’s blood, he acknowledges Zhou Family and respects me as his sister.
Yesterday Zhou Family’s Troupe faced a crisis; he was the one who resolved it.
He is talented, a rare talent!”
The ancestral Nuomian masks remained unmoved, their attitude clear.
Zhou Lingyi’s hands hidden behind her back clenched tightly, her nails nearly piercing her skin.
After a long while, she sighed, relaxed her hands, and left the Silence Hall to return to her room.
The lamp in the room had just been lit when a lithe shadow appeared on the wall.
“Oh my, Zhou Lingyi, you knew well the ancestors wouldn’t agree to Zhou Xuan joining the Great Nu, why bother pleading?”
Zhou Lingyi didn’t bother with the shadow, rummaging through a trunk as she looked for a letter.
“Still want to help Zhou Xuan?
Your judgment is clouded, Zhou Xuan is adept, I admit.
But it’s precisely such capable people who know how to win hearts, he’s won yours and Zhou Family Troupe’s…
…
Wait and see, you’ve forgotten what kind of person your brother is, Zhou Xuan will make you remember all of it, hehehe!”
Found it!
A letter sealed in cowhide appeared in Zhou Lingyi’s hands.
She stuffed the letter into her sleeve, picked up a kerosene Wind Lamp, and shot the shadow a glance: “I don’t have time for you today; if you speak out of turn tomorrow, be careful.”
“Hmph.”
The shadow let out a cold snort but didn’t dare talk back further, feeling she was nearing Zhou Lingyi’s limit.
A bit of verbal sparring was enjoyable, but actually being scolded by Zhou Lingyi could be agonizing.
“Seven days to return the soul, three days to awaken the corpse, tonight is the third day since those six corpses died, they will come looking for Zhou Xuan.
When I’m not here, keep a close eye.
If anything happens to Zhou Xuan, you’ll no longer be Zhou Family Troupe’s dog, but go to Burying Bull Ridge, to accompany your deceased elder brother…”
Zhou Lingyi lit the Wind Lamp, walking into the night,
She intended to use the cowhide letter to trade for something,
Something that could make Yuan Buyu agree to accept Zhou Xuan into the ‘storyteller’ Tangkou.
