Chapter 4: The Master

One large and one small figure were making their way downhill on the small path. It looked rather funny, though, because both wore clean, genuine Taoist robes but were barefoot, their feet squelching in the muddy path.

They also each wore a Taoist crown, concealing the wounds on their heads. If you ignored their bare feet, the older man actually looked a bit like an immortal.

“Master, where are we going?” Ye Tian knew there were two pairs of brand new cloth shoes inside the bundle on the Old Taoist’s back. He also knew why his Master wouldn’t let them wear shoes. Yet, he was still puzzled by the Old Taoist’s actions. Dressed so brightly, weren’t they going down the mountain to trick people?

“Yesterday, going downhill, I saw white banners hanging before a house. Likely someone has died there. I’m taking you to perform a rite…” The Old Taoist spoke, but quickened his pace. That place was closer to Maoshan’s main peak. If they called down the Taoists from there, this trip would have been for nothing.

“A… a funeral rite?” Ye Tian was shocked. Wasn’t that supposed to be a monk’s job? For a Taoist to do it, wasn’t that a bit like a dog trying to catch a rat – meddling in someone else’s business?

Seeming to read Ye Tian’s mind, the Old Taoist snorted. “What? Haven’t I taught you The Lingbao Wuliang Duren Shangpin Miaojing, shortened to the Duren Jing – Scripture of Salvation? It can save people from the three paths, the five sufferings, and the eight difficulties, transcending the three realms…” What the Old Taoist said made sense. Both monks and Taoists could perform funeral rites, especially here in the Maoshan region. Taoism was far more widespread than Buddhism. For funeral matters, people mostly invited Taoists anyway.

Though, having just lived through those sensitive years and with reforms only recently begun, most families didn’t have much spare money left. So, the old formalities had faded. At his young age, Ye Tian naturally didn’t know any of this.

“Master, where do those people live?” Ye Tian pressed. As a child, he cared about face. He didn’t want his classmates to see him dressed like this; he’d be laughed to death!

The Old Taoist, unaware of Ye Tian’s little worry, answered, “In Maolu Town. Walk faster, or we won’t make it by noon.”

“Okay!” Knowing the destination, Ye Tian happily agreed, quickening his steps. His school wasn’t in Maolu Town, and he didn’t know anyone there. So, he didn’t need to fear losing face.

Once down at the foot of the mountain, the Old Taoist and Ye Tian found a stream to wash their feet, put on their shoes, and headed towards Maolu Town. Though it was only a bit over twenty li (about ten kilometers), they didn’t reach the town until noon.

“Hey, it’s market day today!” Upon entering the town center, Ye Tian exclaimed excitedly.

In their region, there was a market in the town on the 1st and the 15th of every month. Folks from ten li around came to set up stalls and sell goods. It was the liveliest time. The relatively spacious town streets were already packed with people.

Deep in Maoshan, no one looked twice at the pair in their robes. Among the crowd, there were actually quite a few Taoists.

“Master, look! There’s a monkey show!”

“Ah, Master, look quick! Puffed rice!”

Squeezed within the throng, Ye Tian was already dazzled. In his young mind right then, this might have been the liveliest place on earth.

“Ahem, Master, aren’t those our colleagues? Claiming ‘Iron Truth Predictions’. Master, who’s better, you or that old fellow?” Ye Tian, spotting a fortune-telling stall among the crush, pointed and grabbed the Old Taoist’s sleeve.

“Pah! How can you compare us? Your Master used to come and go in the houses of the wealthy! If I ended up like that, how could I face our Ancestral Master?” The Old Taoist’s face turned an unflattering shade at Ye Tian’s question. How could the formal heir of the Hemp Robe Lineage possibly stoop to setting up a roadside stall? While Divination and Fortune-telling were common in the Jianghu, there were definite levels.

Practices like roadside Physiognomy or character divination, charging only eighty cents or one yuan per reading, were the absolute lowest echelon in the trade. Most practitioners like that had little real talent or learning. The Old Taoist wouldn’t deign to do such a thing.

“Stinky kid, you tired this old Taoist to death!” Only after truly expending great effort did he manage to drag Ye Tian out of the crush. Panting slightly, he pointed forward, sounding annoyed, “Hurry up, or we won’t even have lunch!”

They pushed their way from the east end to the west end of the town, leaving the bulk of the market crowd behind. Following the Old Taoist’s finger, Ye Tian saw a household living in a two-story house.

In this era, still transitioning from a planned economy to a market one, still operating with Grain Coupons, building such a house was an enormous accomplishment. At the very least, it meant a “ten-thousand-yuan household.”

Usually, such a household would be the absolute envy of others. But today, passersby looked toward it with pity. On some less kindly faces, you could even spot a trace of malicious glee.

…

Inside the walled courtyard surrounding this two-story house, a mourning hall had been set up. A woman in her twenties held a sleeping boy of about eight or nine months old, her face clouded with worry.

“Cousin-in-law… maybe take Xiaojun to the county hospital? This won’t do… he wakes and just cries…” Holding the pale-faced child, her heart ached terribly. If something happened to this child after her husband was gone, how could she go on living?

It was the fifth day already. In the first few days, many people had come to pay their respects; she hadn’t had time to dwell on much else. But now, her husband had been buried, everyone who was going to come had been, and the courtyard was quiet again. The infant’s wails seemed heartbreakingly loud.

A man in his thirties sat hunched, smoking silently. Hearing the woman, he viciously stubbed his cigarette out on the ground and stood up. “Alright. Your sister-in-law will stay and look after things here. Get something to eat, and we’ll head to the county hospital…”

Miao Laoda felt deeply troubled. Ever since starting his transport business the year before last, life had been getting better every day. Not only had he become a famous “ten-thousand-yuan household” known far and wide, but more importantly, his younger brother’s wife had given birth to a healthy, plump son last year.

For the Miao family, this was a huge deal. Miao Laoda had fathered nothing but daughters, a total of four, with his wife. So when his younger brother’s son was born, the entire family doted on him as their most precious treasure.

But who could have predicted that the moon has its waxing and waning phases, and misfortune can strike in a single morning or evening? Just as life felt like it was steadily improving, disaster struck. On one routine trip, Miao Laoda’s younger brother had a severe car accident. They hadn’t even recovered his body whole.

The worst part was, after his brother’s accident, his little nephew had gotten sick. The child cried constantly, refused to eat, and there seemed nothing wrong according to the town doctors. The string of misfortunes had added streaks of grey to Miao Laoda’s head. Though only in his thirties, his shoulders seemed to stoop already.

“Sigh, Xiaojun’s awake again. Cousin-in-law, what do we do?” Talking must have woken the child the woman held. As soon as he opened his eyes, the little one started wailing miserably. The woman, heartbroken, shed continuous tears.

“No, we leave now! To the Hospital!” Miao Laoda threw down his newly lit cigarette, reached out, and took the child. As he walked towards the courtyard entrance, he noticed two figures standing right outside the gate.

“Venerable Master… how may I help you?” As one of the first to get rich during the reform era, Miao Laoda maintained courtesy despite his worry. He tried to soothe his wailing nephew while turning to the Old Taoist Priest. The boy beside him, Ye Tian, was ignored entirely.

“Limitless Blessings, peace be with you.” The Old Lay Practitioner made a respectful Taoist gesture. He looked at Miao Laoda, raised his right hand to chest level, curling his index finger (signifying the transformative power of the One into the Three Pure Ones) and spoke, “My disciple and I were passing by and noticed an alarming concentration of Yin Sha energy within this residence. Given it rests in a sacred site of Taoism, may I ask why the master of this house hasn’t sought aid to dispel it?”

The Old Taoist’s words made Ye Tian roll his eyes inwardly. “Sought aid? Then why were you running as fast as rabbits? Aren’t you just scared someone else might get here before us?” However, hearing his master mention the Yin Sha, Ye Tian became curious. He lifted his head to look around the courtyard, recalling the Earth Qi and Geomancy techniques he’d learned but had never observed real Dragon Qi or Yin Sha.

“Huh? Wha… what’s this?” Just as Ye Tian applied those techniques to observe the courtyard, the Tortoise Shell that had appeared in his mind earlier that morning suddenly manifested again, startling him so much he almost cried out.

This time, however, it was different. The Tortoise Shell spun briefly within his mind, and the patterns on its back shone brightly. Suddenly, a stream of energy surged towards Ye Tian’s eyes.

“Is… is this what Master means by Yin Sha?” As this energy flowed into his eyesight, his field of vision seemed to change slightly. In the right-hand corner of the mourning hall were indistinct wisps of greyish mist.

Despite the bright sun overhead, this particular spot was shaded by the canvass of the mourning hall. The faint mist remained thick and unmoving, sharply distinct from the sunlight around it.

“Is this what the ancients meant by explaining Yin and Yang?” Observing this strange sight, the thought popped into Ye Tian’s mind. Raised under the red flag as a Young Pioneer, he absolutely didn’t believe in gods, ghosts, or the supernatural.

The mist felt only slightly chilly; it wasn’t like the ghosts or goblins from weird tales. It was closer to the ancient character ‘侌’ (yin), representing “churning, gathering mist,” cold, dark, concentrated energy.

“Kid, what’s the matter?” Just as Ye Tian was mentally leafing through his own “Why?” encyclopedia to explain the sight, he felt a tug on his arm. Pulled back from his thoughts, he realized he was now standing inside the courtyard.

“Nothing, Master. I was observing the Yin Sha you spoke of.” The interruption broke Ye Tian’s focus. The scene returned to normal; the faint mist was no longer visible.

“The little Master can see it too? Is there really something wrong with my house?” Hearing Ye Tian, Miao Laoda turned a skeptical eye on the little Taoist. The elder priest definitely carried an air of a true master, but what could this little kid possibly know?