dmims Chapter 79: The Copper Button Conceals Cold Energy
Chapter 79: The Copper Button Conceals Cold Energy
As soon as the copper buckle was brought into Master Ma's courtyard, the yellow paper at the wellhead in the courtyard became soaked.
Those few sheets of yellow paper were originally pressed at the four corners of the well, with red thread wrapped around the edges, and Tang Wanqing's water-suppressing talisman was drawn on the paper.
As soon as Cheng Xiaojin stepped across the threshold, he saw the talisman pasted on the blue brick. Black liquid seeped through the paper, and something licked the back of the talisman's image.
The smell of rust first filled the courtyard, then a damp, grayish odor crept along the ground into the main room.
Aunt Zhang stood under the eaves, wearing a coat and clutching a thermos in her hand; her face was deathly pale.
"W-why does it taste like this again?"
Master Ma sat at the entrance of the main room, an enamel teacup resting on his lap, the lid brushing against the tea foam, brushing once, then stopping.
"Come inside."
Cheng Xiaojin tucked his hands into his sleeves and walked around the red line in the yard.
What he fears most now is the old.
Every brick in Master Ma's courtyard is quite old. If he touches it, he might just find out which old man hid silver coins in the middle of the night, or which wife shed tears by the stove.
Tong Kexin bolted the door and turned to stare at him.
"Don't touch me like that."
Cheng Xiaojin nodded.
"Don't worry, I know the rules better than tourists from out of town who are visiting the antique market for the first time. I don't dare to touch anything."
Tang Wanqing came in carrying the compass box, glanced at the well, and frowned.
"The door's energy has returned."
Zhou Banxian carried a wine jug on his back, his shoes smearing mud from the alleyway. As soon as he entered, he was met with a glare from Master Ma.
"Wipe your feet."
Zhou Banxian rubbed his feet on the threshold twice.
Master Ma stopped holding the cylinder lid.
That's the threshold.
Zhou Banxian looked down and then went to rub against the wall.
Cheng Xiaojin raised his hand to stop him.
"Old Zhou, don't bother with the blessing ceremony for Master Ma's courtyard wall. We have a lot to do today."
Tieguai Li was the last to enter, carrying that oil paper package in his hand.
The copper buckle was inside, wrapped in a layer of red cloth, then a layer of oiled paper, and tied with the clean red thread left by He Xiaoman.
The red thread was originally a light color, but after entering the hospital, the end of the thread was already wet.
Tieguai Li placed the oil paper package on the Eight Immortals table, but didn't rush to open it. He looked at Cheng Xiaojin first.
"Where to?"
Cheng Xiaojin didn't move too close to the table.
"In the main room, keep it away from the well, away from the water basin, and away from Master Ma's teacup."
Master Ma raised his eyes.
"Did my tea offend you?"
"Your tea leaves have been steeping in the vat for three days; the resentment there is heavier than half an alley."
When Aunt Zhang heard this, her lips twitched, finally bringing a bit of life back to her face.
"Don't talk nonsense. There's hot water on the stove, do you want some more?"
Cheng Xiaojin glanced at her.
"Aunt Zhang, don't get it wet today. Go back to your room and sleep. Don't bring the thermos either."
Aunt Zhang was stunned, and Grandpa Ma put the teacup aside.
"Listen to Xiao Jin."
Aunt Zhang put down the thermos, muttering that these people were getting more and more wicked, and turned back to the west wing.
Cheng Xiaojin watched her enter the room before taking the ashtray out of his pocket.
The copper ashtray was placed on the table, and the light in the room flickered twice.
The bottom of the jar was facing upwards, and the three short lines and the vertical hooks gleamed with an old ash color under the light.
He then placed the Qianlong Tongbao coin next to the ashtray, covering it with a red cloth.
Tang Wanqing asked, "You want to use them to block the air?"
"The things my father left behind are my family's secret mark. A Qianlong Tongbao coin was placed over the fish tank, and a red cloth was used to block bad luck. There were three layers of protection. Brother Li opened the clasp, but I didn't touch it."
Tieguai Li grinned.
"This job is like defusing explosives."
Cheng Xiaojin looked at him.
"Don't be modest. When you used to make fake rust, a single blow with a hammer was far more unethical than using explosives."
"That's called craftsmanship."
"Yes, I'm counting on your shameless skill to save my life today."
Tieguai Li removed his prosthetic leg, leaned against the table leg, and took out his clockwork knife after settling down.
The blade was first dipped in wine, then wiped dry on a white cotton cloth.
Tang Wanqing placed three copper coins on the corner of the red cloth and put the compass on the corner of the table.
The pointer had just approached the oil paper package when it shifted half a notch to the southeast.
Zhou Banxian came over.
"Three guides return to the ruler, the ruler returns to the living, the button is a guide, the button is also considered half a small ruler."
Master Ma raised his eyes.
Speak like a human.
Zhou Banxian took a sip of wine.
"This button has been near the array diagram for a long time, so it has a sense of direction."
Cheng Xiaojin nodded, "So the nose scar wasn't just a random button he threw at us; it was a signpost."
The room fell silent.
Tieguai Li unwrapped the oil paper, revealing the small copper button in the red cloth. The water droplets around the edge were still attached to the copper, not dripping onto the table.
When the light shone on it, fine water droplets connected together, forming a circle of cold sweat that hadn't been wiped away.
Tong Kexin stood behind Cheng Xiaojin, her hand on his shoulder.
"Move back a bit."
Cheng Xiaojin was pushed back half a step by her.
"Boss lady, with this kind of service, you'd get a complaint if you did this in a restaurant."
"You have to be alive to file a complaint."
As soon as he finished speaking, the water droplets on the edge of the copper buckle moved.
A water droplet extended a thin line from the tabletop, reaching towards Cheng Xiaojin.
Tang Wanqing flipped her sleeve, and a copper coin slid across the table, pressing down on the water line.
The water line retracts into the copper clasp.
Tang Wanqing's expression darkened.
"It recognizes life."
Cheng Xiaojin hid his hands even deeper.
"Just admit it, don't admit the wrong debt. It's Boss Lin who owes the money, don't come after me."
Tieguai Li stopped joking.
The watchmaker's knife probed inside the brass clasp, carefully scraping away at the small details.
The brass buckle looks ordinary, but there is a very fine embossed line on the inner circle. The outside is polished to a shine, and the inside is covered with old verdigris.
As soon as the knife tip pried open the first layer, the lamp wick inside the room made a soft rustling sound.
A gurgling sound came from the wellhead.
Tang Wanqing pressed down on the compass. "Continue, don't stop halfway."
Tieguai Li's hands were very steady, and the tip of the knife circled half a circle around the inner edge of the copper buckle.
A thin layer of skin suddenly curled up on the back of the copper buckle.
There was a copper shaving embedded inside, smaller than a grain of rice. The copper shaving wasn't brass-colored; it was bluish, with watermarks in the bluish hue.
After it emerged from the button, it didn't fall down; instead, it stuck to the red cloth and spun halfway around, with the pointed end facing southeast.
The compass needle followed the turn, and Tang Wanqing stared at the compass.
"The directional energy drawn by the third array diagram."
If Mr. Lin were to return to the Jianguomenwai Hotel after leaving Liulichang tonight, he shouldn't be going in such a strange direction.
If the location is changed midway, or the array diagram is moved, this piece of copper can provide the first breath.
Tieguai Li used tweezers to remove the copper shavings, and the shavings returned to their original position, still pointing southeast.
"Quite stubborn."
Cheng Xiaojin looked at the ashtray.
"Let it meet some old acquaintances."
Tang Wanqing frowned.
"Don't let the air get too close."
"One foot apart."
Tieguai Li moved the red cloth, along with the copper shavings, a little closer to the ashtray.
It was still a foot away when the water droplets on the edge of the copper buckle started to move.
Water droplets, one after another, crawled from the edge of the copper buckle onto the red cloth.
Just as Tang Wanqing was about to press down, Cheng Xiaojin raised his sleeve.
"wait."
The water droplets arranged in a vertical hook.
After the vertical hook takes shape, it breaks apart into four crooked water characters.
The bag has a double bottom.
No one in the room spoke.
The wick burned down, and the flame dipped lower.
Tong Kexin looked at those four words and tightened her grip on Cheng Xiaojin's shoulder.
"briefcase?"
Cheng Xiaojin nodded.
"Boss Lin's briefcase has a double bottom."
Tieguai Li looked down at the copper buckle.
"He had removed the inner clasp from the nose scar and had also felt the interlayer, so he knew where the array diagram was located."
Zhou Banxian carefully put away the wine jug, thinking, "This kid didn't just leave a simple road sign."
Cheng Xiaojin pushed the Qianlong Tongbao coin half an inch away from the ashtray, using his sleeve as a cushion so that it didn't touch the copper surface.
"He almost got eaten by the door today, and he'll be investigated by Boss Lin when he gets back. He gave me the copper buckle for two reasons: first, to tell me the bag has a double bottom, and second, to tell me he can get close to the array diagram."
Master Ma spoke up, "What does he want?"
Cheng Xiaojin looked at the damp yellow paper in the yard.
"life."
The light in the room flickered again.
Cheng Xiaojin continued, "Last night in Master Ma's courtyard, his shadow was half an inch shorter. Tonight in Liulichang, his cuffs are gone. If he measures the door again with Boss Lin, he'll lose his life. He knows Boss Lin won't stop."
Tong Kexin said in a low voice, "So he bought himself a way out."
"right."
Cheng Xiaojin watched as the four characters for "water" slowly dispersed.
"This isn't about seeking fame; it's about buying your life."
Tang Wanqing wrapped the copper shavings back up.
"How do I use it?"
Cheng Xiaojin looked at Master Ma.
"Let's not chase after him yet. If we do, we're unprepared and could easily be counterattacked by Boss Lin. Copper dust can calm us down, and the nose scar can catch us. Let's wait for him to deliver the message a second time."
Tieguai Li frowned.
"What if he goes back and dies?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the well outside the main room started gurgling again.
Cheng Xiaojin looked at the red cloth bag.
"That means Boss Lin saved us time in negotiations."
Tong Kexin looked at him, and Cheng Xiaojin's lips twitched.
"Just kidding. We'll save people if we can. Employees are people too. We can't let the boss use them as spare parts for a copper ruler."
Master Ma rubbed the tea foam with the lid of the teapot.
"Put the copper buckle in a hidden compartment, don't put it with the Zhenhai iron."
Tang Wanqing put away the compass.
"It's tainted by the air, and by the door; the wellhead won't be peaceful tonight."
Zhou Banxian looked into the courtyard.
"It's not just unsettling; the three strokes return to the ruler, and the ruler returns to the living. With this copper dust exposed, the one below probably heard it too."
Cheng Xiaojin looked up.
The yellow paper pasted on the well in the courtyard had become translucent, and black water seeped out little by little from under the paper.
He pulled the ashtray back into his clothes and pressed it down over his chest.
The cold, ashen smell pressed against his chest; even after twenty years, a smoldering cigarette lingered in his heart.
"Brother Li, fasten the buckle properly."
Tieguai Li made his move.
Cheng Xiaojin looked at the red cloth where the character for "water" had disappeared and spoke very softly.
"I'll see Glasses King tomorrow noon; let's remove the copper coating tonight."