dmims Chapter 103: Defeat Has Its Results, Shen's Bronze Medal
Chapter 103: Defeat Has Its Results, Shen's Bronze Medal
The wasteland is no longer what it used to be.
Copper coins shattered in the mud, red threads broke into pieces, braised oil mixed with insect ash, and black smoke still rose from the edge of the old pit.
The Zhenhai Iron was locked by iron chains, with half of it pressed against the broken water vein and the other half protruding outside the pit.
It failed to return to the starting position.
The gray water in the pit stopped flowing out.
Zhou Banxian squatted by the pit and wiped the bloodline in the compass pool with his sleeve.
"If we seal off 30%, we can hold out for a few more days."
Tieguai Li tightened the iron chain one more turn.
"What exactly are the dates?"
Zhou Banxian looked up and cursed at him.
"You think you're buying vegetables by weight? The fact that the entire city of Shuikou isn't being bombed yet is already thanks to Xiao Jinzi's skillful efforts."
Tang Wanqing knelt beside Cheng Xiaojin and cut open his sleeve.
The area below the wrists was a heavy, bluish-black color.
She touched Cheng Xiaojin's fingertips through the dry cloth.
Cheng Xiaojin did not react at all.
The color drained from Tieguai Li's face.
"No feeling?"
Tang Wanqing placed a dry cloth in his palm and pressed it against the web of his hand.
Cheng Xiaojin's fingertip twitched.
She breathed a sigh of relief, then suppressed it.
"Pain sensation is still present, but tactile sensation has dropped to less than 30%."
Zhou Banxian's lips moved slightly.
"Did it drop that badly?"
"The fourth hand soak must be done immediately."
Tang Wanqing wrapped his hands back up. "If you drag this out any longer, these hands will only hurt and you won't be able to feel anything."
Tieguai Li cursed under his breath.
"How will he eat after that?"
Tang Wanqing did not respond.
Master Ma stood beside the array diagram, looking down at the broken line on the back.
The moonlight pressed down on the three lines, making the ends of the lines appear dark and heavy.
Zhou Banxian walked over and lowered his voice.
"Old Ma, I've checked it three times. Seven steps and three inches is correct, and the underwater angle of three and a half inches is also correct."
Master Ma simply responded with a single word.
"Um."
"The mistake was made even earlier."
Zhou Banxian stared at him. "Did you remember something?"
Master Ma raised his hand and wiped away the mud from the array diagram bit by bit.
"Save lives first."
Zhou Banxian stared at him for a long time before closing the compass.
"Okay, let's save them first."
Tieguai Li returned from the edge of the pit, holding two things in his hands.
A small bronze plaque.
Half a protective copper coin.
"It's all here."
Tang Wanqing took the half copper coin and turned it over to the side with the hole.
The old patterns from the protective stake waist tag still remain on the edge of the coin hole, while the other half has been blackened by the Gu fire.
"It works."
Tieguai Li asked, "Can it really press down on that short shadow of the nasal scar?"
"The gap can be covered within seven days."
Tang Wanqing put the copper wallet into the dry cloth. "Whether it can be repaired depends on how it is handled later."
Zhou Banxian snorted.
"If that kid hadn't tripped me up tonight, Cheng Xiaojin's shadow would have already been measured."
Tieguai Li glanced in the direction Boss Lin had retreated.
"He's definitely not going to have a good time when he gets back."
Master Ma carefully kept the protective copper coins separately.
"So this thing must be delivered to him."
Tieguai Li then handed over the bronze plaque.
"What about this one?"
The edges of the bronze medal were polished to a shine.
One side is carved with an ouroboros biting its own tail.
On the other side is engraved the character "沈" (Shen), with the black mud from the old pits of the whole city embedded in the strokes.
Zhou Banxian took a closer look and his face darkened.
"Nose Scar said that there was an old man surnamed Shen on the Nanyang line who knew Cheng Shouyi's ashtray."
Tieguai Li looked at Master Ma.
"Mr. Ma, is this the line?"
Master Ma wrapped the bronze plaque in cloth and tied it in two knots.
"Return to Beijing to investigate."
Zhou Banxian frowned.
"Back to Beijing for another investigation?"
Master Ma looked up.
"You want to investigate here? The old pit is still churning. Boss Lin's men haven't gone far. Xiao Jin is lying down, Miss Tang is injured, and Tie Zhu can't even stand up straight."
Tieguai Li opened his mouth, but didn't argue back.
Tang Wanqing suddenly spoke.
"He's awake."
Cheng Xiaojin's eyelids twitched a few times.
He opened his eyes and first saw the moon, then Tang Wanqing's pale face.
My throat tastes like blood.
"Where's the pit?"
Tieguai Li approached him.
"First ask yourself if you're capable."
Cheng Xiaojin glanced at him.
"Brother Li, if I don't make it, are you all gathered around here to divide the inheritance?"
Tieguai Li's eyes were still red, and he cursed rapidly.
"Give me those two boxes of fake copper coins? Even a dog wouldn't want to eat them."
Cheng Xiaojin twitched the corner of his mouth and then turned to Zhou Banxian.
Has the floodwaters at Mancheng subsided?
Zhou Banxian picked up the wine pot and put it back.
"If we seal off 30%, how many days can we hold out?"
Cheng Xiaojin closed his eyes briefly, and when he opened them again, a smile appeared on his lips.
"Okay, the stall fee wasn't wasted."
Tang Wanqing lifted his hand slightly and added another layer of dry cloth.
"Don't laugh. Before the fourth hand soak, don't touch old things, don't touch water, don't touch iron, and don't touch copper."
Cheng Xiaojin looked at her hands, which were wrapped up in two bundles.
"Can I touch the rice bowl instead?"
"Let someone feed you."
Tieguai Li immediately responded.
"I won't feed it, it's disgusting."
Cheng Xiaojin turned her head to look at him.
"The way you were acting just now, I thought you were going to cry at my grave."
"I'm crying because you owe me the wages."
Zhou Banxian stood up.
"Shut up, all of you, load it onto the truck."
Zhou's cousin turned the old bread cart upside down.
The iron chain tightened little by little, and Zhenhai Iron was dragged back to the side of the wooden box.
This time, it was colder than when it arrived.
As soon as the wooden box approached, a layer of frost appeared on the edges of the old cotton quilt at the bottom of the box.
Tang Wanqing used the red thread to re-wrap the remaining energy around the iron body, avoiding the iron surface with her fingers.
"It wasn't fully compacted, the iron oxide dissipated, making it even harder to compact on the road."
Master Ma guided the formation diagram, and carefully packaged the bronze plaque with the character "Shen," the protective bronze coins, and the fragments of the protective iron scales.
When Tieguai Li saw the two cracked iron scales, he lowered his voice.
"What should we do about the pile maintenance workers?"
Master Ma also put the half of the waist token into his cloth bag.
"Return to the capital to check names, write memorial tablets, and burn travel permits."
Cheng Xiaojin heard this and raised his eyelids slightly.
"Add a bowl of braised pork."
Tang Wanqing looked at him.
"You still care about this?"
"My brother helped me twice."
Cheng Xiaojin's voice was terribly hoarse. "We can't let him eat only insect ash."
Everyone fell silent for a moment.
Zhou Banxian hung the wine pot back on his waist and cursed very softly.
"You may have a sharp tongue, but you're at least somewhat decent."
Tieguai Li and his cousin Zhou Jie worked together to lift the Zhenhai Iron into the wooden box.
The car body sank down.
Cheng Xiaojin was helped to the side of the car, and leaned against the tire to catch his breath.
He looked at Master Ma.
Just as Master Ma was putting the array diagram into his bag, Cheng Xiaojin spoke up.
"Master Ma."
Master Ma looked up.
"explain."
"Have you seen that falsely accurate figure before?"
The wasteland fell silent. Zhou Banxian turned around, and Tang Wanqing stopped holding the red thread in her hand.
Master Ma did not answer immediately.
He tied the cloth bag tightly and put it into a small box next to the wooden box.
"Go back to Beijing first."
Cheng Xiaojin looked at him.
After a moment, he nodded.
"OK."
He didn't ask any further questions.
Tieguai Li helped him into the car.
"Stop fussing around. If your hands hurt after soaking them when you get back, don't call me."
Cheng Xiaojin leaned against the back seat, her hands tucked into her sleeves.
"I call her Miss Tang."
Tang Wanqing sat down next to her, her tone firm.
"If you dare to shout, I'll add more medicine."
Cheng Xiaojin smiled with his eyes closed.
"Then I'll call him Master Ma."
Master Ma got into the car, placing the teacup on his lap.
"Xiao Jin, getting back alive is more important than anything else."
Cheng Xiaojin's eyelids twitched.
"I know."
Outside the car, Zhou Banxian aimed the compass at the old pit for the last time, the compass needle pressing between three and seven, and shook it twice.
The lightning-struck wooden abacus in the toolbox also started beeping.
Tieguai Li looked down.
"Three beads, seven beads, still moving."
Zhou Banxian's face darkened.
"The third case wasn't fully resolved, and the seventh case was affected."
Tang Wanqing looked up.
"Liulichang?"
Master Ma looked towards the direction of the capital.
"Go back to Beijing."
Zhou's cousin closed the car door, the old van started, and the wasteland slowly receded behind the vehicle.
From the depths of the old pit, another low heartbeat echoed.
Boom!
Cheng Xiaojin leaned against the car window, eyes closed, bloodstains still on the corner of her mouth.
No one spoke in the car anymore.