dmims Chapter 69: Master Ma's Tea Mug Lid Shatters the Night
Chapter 69: Master Ma's Tea Mug Lid Shatters the Night
The driver fiddled with the air conditioning in the front, muttering to himself, "That's strange, it was hot just now."
Cheng Xiaojin stared at the rearview mirror. Her small face in the mirror was pale from being soaked in water, and there were two red marks under her eyelids.
The little girl whispered in his ear and asked again, "Uncle, is the water tank full?"
Cheng Xiaojin touched the Qianlong Tongbao coin with his right hand and pressed down on the ashtray in his pocket with his left.
The ashtray is no longer cold.
A sliver of old heat emanated from the copper base. He lowered his voice and said, "Not full."
The driver glanced at him in the rearview mirror. "Dude, who are you talking to?"
Cheng Xiaojin looked up. "Follow the navigation."
The driver chuckled, "My car doesn't have a GPS."
The little girl in the back seat turned her head and looked at the driver.
The storytelling on the car radio was interrupted, and the storyteller's voice was replaced by a young girl's.
He's lying.
The driver's smile vanished, his hands slipped on the steering wheel, and the front of the car veered half a foot off course.
Cheng Xiaojin quickly slapped the Qianlong Tongbao coin onto the car door armrest. The coin fell, and the condensation on the car window receded by half a circle.
"Master, stay calm, don't listen to the radio."
The driver's throat bobbed. "What, what are you playing at?"
"Folk Culture Experience Package"
Cheng Xiaojin stared at the little girl in the rearview mirror. "Don't participate in the extra-cost projects."
The driver pressed harder with his foot, accelerating much more smoothly than before.
The little girl's hand peeked out from the back seat, her five fingers swollen from being soaked in water, her fingernails filled with black mud from the bottom of the water tank.
She didn't pinch Cheng Xiaojin, but gently tugged at his sleeve.
"My dad said that once the water tank is full, we'll have enough money."
Cheng Xiaojin felt a lump in his throat; he remembered the words Tie Chi had shouted when he broke down.
Don't sell her.
Her own parents pressed her head down. This girl didn't accidentally fall into the water vat before she was born; she was forced in by someone.
For money.
For the son in the family.
It was for a sum of money that could pay off debts and fund a wedding.
Cheng Xiaojin slowly pulled his sleeve out of her hand.
"Even if we don't have enough money, we can't use our daughter to fill the vat."
The little girl tilted her head, and water dripped from the ends of her hair onto his trouser leg.
"But they say, a daughter is like water spilled from a bowl."
The car fell silent; even the driver dared not breathe heavily.
The Qianlong Tongbao coin in Cheng Xiaojin's hand was so cold it felt numb.
He tucked the copper coin into his palm and said in a low voice, "Then don't splash it on me yet. I owe you an explanation. I'll investigate tonight."
The little girl looked at him.
"Do you keep your word?"
"The Cheng family is poor, and they're selective about who they default on debts to. I won't default on debts owed to the dead."
The tears in the little girl's eyes subsided a bit. She loosened her grip and slowly retreated into the shadows of the back seat.
The storytelling on the radio resumed, and the storyteller was saying that with a single stroke of the knife, the thief was brought to justice.
The driver's forehead was covered in sweat.
"Dude, you'll have to give me an extra ten bucks when we get there. My soul almost ran to the passenger seat just now."
Cheng Xiaojin breathed a sigh of relief.
"Sir, ten yuan is fine, but you need to give me a two-part invoice, one for the front and one for the back."
The driver didn't dare to reply; he just wanted to get the person to their destination as quickly as possible.
The car drove to Gulou Back Street, where the black Land Rover was still hanging in the distance.
Cheng Xiaojin asked the driver to stop at the alley entrance in advance, paid the fare, and then gave him an extra twenty yuan.
The driver clutched the money, glancing at the back seat. The back seat was clean and dry, with no water or little girl, but a red ribbon was stuck in the seam of the leather seat.
The driver's lips trembled.
Cheng Xiaojin picked up the red ribbon and clenched it in her palm.
"Master, don't go near the water tonight. Put a red paper packet in the car with three grains of rice and a pinch of salt inside. Throw it at the intersection tomorrow morning."
The driver nodded repeatedly, and the car almost scraped against the wall as it drove off.
Cheng Xiaojin stood at the alley entrance and saw the black Land Rover stop in the distance, but the man with the nose scar didn't get out.
Cheng Xiaojin ignored him and turned into the alley where Master Ma lived.
A light shone through the crack in the courtyard door; before I even knocked, the door opened.
Aunt Zhang peeked at him and immediately asked, "Why do you smell so rusty?"
Cheng Xiaojin lowered his head and sniffed his sleeve.
"Auntie, if your nose were any better, even police dogs would be out of a job."
Aunt Zhang pulled him inside and closed the gate behind her.
The courtyard lights cast a yellowish glow. The well was covered with a stone slab, and a ring of yellow paper was pressed between the cracks in the slab. The edges of the yellow paper were already soaked and the color had darkened.
Master Ma sat in the main room, an enamel teacup beside him, the lid of the teacup rubbing back and forth against the rim of the cup.
Tieguai Li was also there, his prosthetic leg leaning against the table leg, holding a frighteningly thin watch knife in his hand.
Zhou Banxian dozed off in his chair, clutching the wine jug to his chest.
Tong Kexin stood by the door. When she saw Cheng Xiaojin come in, her gaze first fell on his hands, and then moved to his face.
"What kind of mess have you made of yourself again?"
Cheng Xiaojin took the ashtray out of his pocket and placed it on the table.
The bronze piece was placed on the table, and the lamp in the main room flickered.
Master Ma stopped holding the teacup lid and stared at the ashtray, remaining silent for a long time.
Cheng Xiaojin pointed to the bottom.
"Boss Lin is using this thing to pressure me; it was left to me by my dad."
The veins on the back of Master Ma's hand bulged, but he pressed them back down.
"What did he say?"
"They said my dad sat in the same spot back then, with wet rubbings on the table, asking the ouroboros about collecting nine items, whether it was iron or doors."
Zhou Banxian sobered up halfway and opened his eyes.
Master Ma slowly lowered the lid of the teacup.
"You touched it?"
"Touched some old memories."
Cheng Xiaojin pulled his hands into his sleeves. "I saw the third array diagram, and also half a rubbing of a piece of paper. There were also words under the ashtray."
Tieguai Li put down the clock-shaped knife.
"What character?"
Cheng Xiaojin wrapped the ashtray with a handkerchief and turned it upside down.
The black grime is still there.
He gently lifted the dry skin with the edge of his fingernail.
The vertical hook is exposed, and four small characters engraved on the side are also revealed.
Half a paper box waist.
When Master Ma saw those four words clearly, the color drained from his face. He stood up and walked to the rosewood bookcase.
The hidden compartment of the bookcase was opened, revealing the genuine Zhenhai Iron artifact, fragments of scrolls, Cheng family handwritten notes, and an old wooden box.
Cheng Xiaojin had seen that wooden box before; his grandfather had repaired it years ago, and it had been kept by Master Ma ever since.
Everyone checked the bottom and the lid, and the interlayer was empty, with only a trace of moisture remaining.
No one has ever touched the waistline.
Master Ma took the wooden box out and placed it on the table.
The wooden box has a dark exterior with a thin wood grain along the waistline, and looks no different from ordinary patchwork.
At this moment, moisture seeped from the wood grain, the edges of the veneer curled up, and the color was so white it looked unnatural.
Tieguai Li leaned closer, and after just one glance, his expression changed.
"The old man sealed it with a hidden tenon."
Cheng Xiaojin asked, "Can it be driven?"
Tieguai Li rolled up his sleeves.
"It's possible to drive it, but you'll end up cursing after you're done."
"Who are you insulting?"
"You're cursing my grandpa."
Cheng Xiaojin nodded, "Then be gentle with your scolding. He has a bad temper and might come to you in your dreams to beat you."
Tieguai Li ignored him, picked up the clockwork knife, and slowly probed the tip of the knife along the waistline.
No one spoke in the main room.
A very faint gurgling sound came from the well outside.
Aunt Zhang closed the door even tighter.
Tong Kexin walked over to Cheng Xiaojin, took his hand and examined it.
The gauze was soaked, and the bluish-black color on her fingertips had crept up a little further. She turned around to get the medicine box.
Cheng Xiaojin tried to pull her hand back.
"Don't rush, look at the box first."
Tong Kexin pressed down on his wrist.
"Shut up."
Cheng Xiaojin watched her cut the gauze with scissors and softened her voice, "Boss lady, be gentle. I'll still need this hand to make a living by touching things in the future."
Tieguai Li finally managed to peel off a piece of bark from the wood.
A damp smell wafted from the waistline of the wooden box, carrying the scent of well mud and old blood.
Zhou Banxian sat up straight in his chair.
"Don't just take it."
Master Ma took out a white cotton cloth from the drawer and handed it over.
Tieguai Li used tweezers to hold the contents inside and slowly pulled them out.
It was a roll of thin paper.
The paper had been damp in its early years and was protected with mugwort ash and beeswax. The edges were blackened, but the middle was still relatively intact.
When unfolded, the corners of the paper stuck together, making a loud clattering sound that made the back of the paper feel tight.
Cheng Xiaojin noticed dark red marks on the edge of the paper.
is blood.
Mr. Ma's hand rested on the edge of the table, remaining motionless for a long time.
"The blood of Shouyi."
No one asked him how he knew.
The blood, dried for over twenty years, still carried a familiar, old smell, mingling with the lingering scent in the ashtray.
When the rubbing paper was unfolded halfway, a blurry inscription appeared on it.
The characters were rubbed from a stone, and the strokes vary in depth.
Master Ma brought out a lamp and flattened the rubbing paper.
Zhou Banxian leaned closer, and the smell of alcohol dissipated considerably.
"The Yin Gate turns north, the water outlet returns south, three channels lead back to the foot, fifteen towns are located."
Cheng Xiaojin stared at the rubbing paper. It looked like a verification formula. There was no complete route on half of the paper, only the door inscription and a few sets of incomplete numbers.
Tieguai Li frowned. "Does this thing even deserve the attention of the entire city?"
Zhou Banxian nodded, "Yes, the array diagram is a ruler, and this half of the rubbing paper is the marking on the ruler."
Master Ma didn't speak; he reached out and slowly peeled off the last corner of the rubbing paper.
A line of words was pressed under the corner of the paper.
It was written by Cheng Shouyi himself, with sharp strokes, blood mixed in with the ink, and broken characters at the end.
The seventh thing is not to be measured, for if it is, the door will be locked from the inside out.