Wuwei Mountain was much like Yunlin Mountain, known as “Ten Thousand Ghosts Mountain”: both were covered in graves.
At the foot of the mountain, Old Tao bought incense, candles, joss paper, offerings, and a small sickle, then led the way. Tao Mo and Gu She walked in the middle, with Gu Xiaojia and Hao Guozi bringing up the rear.
Because they had arrived two days late, Qingming Festival had already passed, and there were not many people climbing the mountain. Despite the graves covering its slopes, the air was actually quite pleasant.
Seeing Hao Guozi take two deep breaths, Gu Xiaojia said disdainfully, “This place is full of yin energy. Breathe in too much and you’d better watch out for ghosts possessing you.”
“Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey.” Hao Guozi glared fiercely at him. “Whose yin energy could possibly be worse than yours, with that weird yin-yang way you talk?”
Elio’s Notes: Gu Xiaojia warns about 阴气, “yin energy,” which is traditionally associated with death and ghosts. Hao Guozi answers with 阴阳怪气, an idiom for speaking in an oddly cutting or sarcastic manner; the phrase literally contains “yin-yang,” creating the wordplay.
Gu Xiaojia said, “Who told you to steal my meat bun this morning?”
“You were the one eating too slowly. What does that have to do with me?”
“That’s enough!” Old Tao, walking ahead, finally could not bear it any longer and turned around. “Do not disturb the peace of the ancestors resting on this mountain!”
Gu Xiaojia and Hao Guozi glared at each other and fell silent.
Halfway up the mountain, Old Tao suddenly slowed. He pushed aside the weeds, raised his hands, and began climbing the rock face. With his martial arts, he could easily have used his lightness skill to leap up such a short distance, but Tao Mo, Gu She, and the others did not know martial arts, so he first needed to show them how to climb.
Gu Xiaojia’s face went green. “We still have to climb?”
Tao Mo glanced worriedly at Gu She. “Old Tao was afraid Huang Guangde might disturb my father and deny him peace even after death, so he buried him on a steep slope. There isn’t much room up there. You can stay here. Hao Guozi and I can go.”
Gu She stretched out one arm to stop Hao Guozi from stepping forward. “How could I come all this way and not pay my respects?”
Gu Xiaojia suddenly threw himself at the place Old Tao had climbed and began scrambling upward on all fours.
Tao Mo and Hao Guozi: “…”
Riiip.
A section of Gu Xiaojia’s clothes caught and tore. He awkwardly tugged it free and muttered, “If Hao Guozi can do it, so can I.”
Tao Mo turned to look at Hao Guozi.
Hao Guozi was secretly laughing himself silly.
Tao Mo shook his head and slowly began climbing behind Gu Xiaojia.
Gu She followed behind him. His movements were slow, but every step he took was steady.
Hao Guozi brought up the rear.
The grass was deep and the path steep.
By the time they reached the grave, everyone except Old Tao looked somewhat disheveled.
Even Gu She’s outer robe had been torn in several places.
Old Tao arranged the incense burner and offerings one by one, then lit the incense and handed it to Tao Mo.
Tao Mo accepted it. Ignoring the sharp stones scattered across the ground, he dropped heavily to his knees and kowtowed three times before the gravestone. “Father, I became the county magistrate of Tanyang County. I’ve even handled several cases. Only now do I truly understand how difficult it is to be illiterate. I can’t read or write properly, I don’t know the statutes, and even official documents have to be read aloud to me by my adviser… Father, Old Tao has gathered a great deal of evidence against Huang Guangde. I hope your spirit in Heaven will protect us and help us bring him to justice as soon as possible.” His arms trembled slightly as he inserted the three sticks of incense into the burner and slowly stood.
Gu She reached up and removed a strand of grass caught against Tao Mo’s forehead.
Tao Mo took hold of Gu She’s arm and smiled at the gravestone. “Father, this is Gu She, Gu Xianzhi. He is a great scholar renowned throughout the realm. I… I married him…” His voice gradually softened. After a pause, he continued, “He’s teaching me to read and write. It may be a little late, but that’s still better than going my whole life unable to read.”
Gu She took the incense from Old Tao, bowed three times with solemn respect, then placed the incense in the burner. Afterward, he knelt and kowtowed once. “I will take care of him.” His eyes remained fixed on the gravestone as he made the promise firmly.
Tao Mo turned his head aside and wiped away his tears.
Gu Xiaojia and Hao Guozi each took a turn offering incense.
Old Tao burned the joss paper.
The flames illuminated the cold gravestone, somehow lending it a trace of warmth.
They descended the mountain and returned to the inn.
Tao Mo and Gu She were both exhausted and went directly back to their room to wash and rest.
Only after Old Tao had finished arranging everything for them did he return to his own room. The moment he stepped inside, he found the head of the local Demon Sect branch waiting for him.
“What happened?” Old Tao asked with a frown.
The branch head said, “Two days ago, Huang Guangde sent a wagonload of goods to the capital.”
Old Tao raised an eyebrow. “Do you know what was inside?”
“Not yet. They sent a great many men to guard it and seem to value it greatly. Judging by the wheel tracks, whatever is in the wagon is extremely heavy.”
Old Tao said, “Two days ago was Qingming. Sending something to the capital on Qingming? He must truly be in a hurry to court death.”
The branch head asked, “Would you like this subordinate to seize it?”
Old Tao said, “They have an entire wagon of goods, so they cannot be traveling quickly. Tell me exactly which route they are taking and every place they will pass through. I’ll go after them myself.”
The branch head looked surprised. “But Young Master Tao and Young Master Gu do not know martial arts.”
Old Tao said, “Have some of our people follow them secretly.”
The branch head replied, “Elder Lu, rest assured. This subordinate will do everything possible to protect Young Master Tao and Young Master Gu!”
Old Tao nodded, but his thoughts had already drifted to that wagonload of goods.
Sending something to the capital at a moment like this—what could Huang Guangde possibly intend? His purpose was as obvious as Sima Zhao’s.
Elio’s Notes: “Sima Zhao’s intent is known to every passerby” is a historical saying meaning that someone’s ambition or purpose is so obvious that everyone can see it.
Old Tao had always been swift and decisive. Once he made up his mind, he acted immediately. He did not even bother bathing and simply packed his luggage, gave Tao Mo and Gu She a brief explanation, and set out.
Tao Mo, Gu She, and the others were thoroughly exhausted and had been on the verge of falling asleep, but after hearing what Old Tao had said, they could no longer sleep.
Hao Guozi asked, “Do you think Huang Guangde knows his schemes have been exposed, so he’s preparing a lavish gift to curry favor with someone?”
Gu Xiaojia said, “Do you even need to ask? It couldn’t be more obvious. First he framed Shi Qianshan, then he tried to assassinate my young master. Now he wants to turn things around? Not likely.”
Hao Guozi said, “But didn’t Shi Qianshan say he was on good terms with the Ninth Prince?”
Gu Xiaojia said, “So what if he is? Would the Ninth Prince really offend my master and Grand Preceptor Shi for Huang Guangde’s sake? His Majesty still hasn’t named a crown prince. The Ninth Prince may be favored, but whether he can eventually ascend the throne—”
“Insolence,” Gu She interrupted evenly.
Gu Xiaojia ducked his head and immediately fell silent.
Hao Guozi had been listening with great interest and could not help glancing at him several times.
Tao Mo asked worriedly, “Will Old Tao be in danger?”
Gu She replied, “If he dares go alone, he must have something to rely on. There is no need to worry.”
Hao Guozi asked, “Then what should we do next?”
“We continue according to the original itinerary,” Gu She said. “If we travel quickly enough, we may even be able to meet up with Old Tao.” Seeing Tao Mo suddenly sit upright, he reached back and caught hold of him. “Even if we need to hurry, there is no need to rush this very moment. If you exhaust yourself and fall ill on the road, you will only delay the journey instead.”
Tao Mo scratched his ear. “I was too impulsive.”
Hao Guozi teased, “With Young Master Gu here, Young Master can afford to be a little more impulsive.”
On that point, Gu Xiaojia happened to agree completely. The two of them began joking, half seriously and half in fun.
Once Tao Mo stopped worrying, drowsiness washed over him and his head kept drifting toward Gu She’s shoulder. Only then did Gu Xiaojia and Hao Guozi tactfully leave the room.
After they were gone, Gu She gently pressed Tao Mo down onto the bed.
Tao Mo truly was exhausted. He merely shook his head once before sinking into a deep sleep.
In his dreams, he lay upon the boundless surface of a river. The water was gentle, cradling him as it rocked him softly back and forth.
He slept peacefully through the night.
When he woke the next morning and opened his eyes, Gu She’s lips were right in front of him.
Judging by his features, Gu She’s lips were perhaps a little too thin and severe, giving him an air that made him seem difficult to approach. Yet as Tao Mo stared at them, he found their very thinness extraordinarily alluring. The longer he looked, the stronger the irresistible urge to kiss them became.
He偷偷瞄了 Gu She once—then, seeing that he was still asleep, grew a little bolder and secretly leaned his face closer.
Perhaps he was too nervous. He did lean closer, but it was not his lips that reached Gu She’s mouth. It was his nose.
The tip of his nose ended up against Gu She’s lips. Tao Mo was horrified and had just begun to pull away when he suddenly felt something wet against it.
Gu She had licked the tip of his nose.
“I-I…” Tao Mo stared blankly at Gu She, whose eyes were now open, and stammered helplessly.
Gu She said, “Aim a little better next time.”
“…”
Tao Mo buried his entire head beneath the quilt!
From the moment he left the room, Tao Mo kept his face lowered toward his chest.
He ate like that. He walked out like that. Even after getting into the carriage, he remained like that.
Hao Guozi finally could not resist asking why, only for Tao Mo to mumble evasively and refuse to explain.
Gu Xiaojia said, “Do you think Madam slept wrong and got a stiff neck?”
Hao Guozi said, “When you get a stiff neck, does your head get stuck bowed down like that?”
Gu Xiaojia said, “Who can say? Everyone sleeps differently.” Once he finished speaking, both of them suddenly turned strangely meaningful looks toward Gu She.
Gu She stepped into the carriage and calmly waved a hand. “Set out.”
Gu Xiaojia said, “…Yes.”
Looks like we’ll still have to get the answer out of Madam.
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