Mo Sang – CH 269

Chapter 269. Seventh Master’s Troubles

A fleet of ships, linked together, entered the Yangzhou dock, slowly forming two layers along the riverbank.

On the lead ship, Pan Dingbang paced back and forth on the deck, circling twice and glancing back twice more.

“They are all experienced boatmen; they will be fast,” his advisor, Master Wang, reassured Pan Dingbang with a smile.

“Boats are not fast! They are not horses! It is almost dark!” Pan Dingbang did not stop, continuing to circle, circling twice, and glancing back.

He was eager to disembark, but one of the four rules his father had laid down for him was: no one was allowed to leave the ship or its cargo until the fleet was fully moored.

But these ships moved slowly, incredibly slowly, like snails!

Pan Dingbang broke out in a sweat; finally, the fleet was moored.

The Ministry of War clerk and the palace guards in plain clothes, who were escorting the ship, planted “Keep Out” signs and set up defenses on the ship and shore. They reported this to Pan Dingbang, who took a deep breath, jogged onto the gangplank, and ordered Ting-Xi, “Go quickly and ask where the rice shop is! Hurry!”

Ting-Xi could not outrun Pan Dingbang and followed behind, repeatedly agreeing.

Pan Dingbang rushed ashore, waving his folding fan. “Why are you behind me? Go quickly and ask where the rice shop is! Hurry!”

“Ask what? It is right there! The characters are so big! Even I, who cannot read, can recognize it.” A porter nearby tossed a grain sack onto a cart, glanced at Pan Dingbang, and added.

“Huh? You cannot read; how do you recognize it?” Ting-Xi asked, puzzled.

“Thank you, thank you!” Pan Dingbang bowed in thanks, then rushed towards the rice shop.

Ting-Xi hurriedly followed behind, “Sir, slow down! Wait for me! Slow down! Do not run, do not fall!”

Pan Dingbang plunged into the rice shop, heading straight for the open hall on three sides.

The hall was bustling with people, all moving at a brisk pace.

Pan Dingbang and Ting-Xi stood in the middle, feeling somewhat of a hindrance.

“Where’s the shop owner?” Pan Dingbang looked around, grabbed a young man passing by, and asked.

“The shop owner is not here; he’s over there,” the young man pointed out, broke free from Pan Dingbang, and hurried outside.

“Over there, over there.” Pan Dingbang pointed with his folding fan at the two-story building the young man was pointing to, pushing through the crowd and rushing towards it.

Rushing four or five steps to the small building, Pan Dingbang stopped and gestured to Ting-Xi, “Go find the Guild Head, ask where the boss lives, and do not tell him my surname is Pan! This is official business!”

“Do not worry, sir.” Ting-Xi ran into the building.

“Hey! Who’s this rascal? What are you doing here? This is all accounts, no unauthorized personnel allowed. Get out, hurry up!” A clerk standing at the door, stretching his neck, was startled when he saw Ting-Xi rush in and quickly pushed him out.

“Sir, I am looking for your Guild Head; it is urgent,” Ting-Xi said hastily with a smile.

“Looking for the Guild Head? Go over there, there’s a staircase; see it? Go up there, the Guild Head is upstairs. he should be here now; I just saw him go up.” The clerk replied, pushing Ting-Xi out as he went.

Ting-Xi pointed to the staircase at Pan Dingbang and ran up it.

Upstairs in a large room, seven or eight people sat, facing dishes of rice on a long table, seemingly studying something.

“Excuse me, which one of you is the guild leader?” Ting-Xi asked with a forced smile, standing in the doorway.

“I am. And you are?” A tall, thin old man with his back to Ting-Xi turned around, sizing him up.

“Could you…” Ting-Xi beckoned to the guild leader, “…could we speak in private?”

“Forgive my poor eyesight, young man, and who are you?” The guild leader approached the door, smiling politely.

“We’ve never met before. This is my first time here.

My master sent me. He and your Boss are close friends.

My master is passing through Yangzhou and heard that your Boss is currently there. He wants to pay her a visit and sent me to inquire about her address in Yangzhou.” Ting-Xi spoke with a smile.

“Oh,” the guild leader said, still polite and courteous. “Our Boss is in Yangzhou? I really did not know…”

“Our master is truly a close friend of the Boss, as are Master Ma and Master Chang. They are all on good terms with him, especially Master Ma, who’s his closest confidant,” Ting-Xi quickly explained, quite astute as ever.

“So he’s a close confidant with Master Ma,” the guild leader chuckled.

“Not just Master Ma, but everyone around the Boss is a close confidant,” Ting-Xi pressed, seizing the opportunity.

“Everyone’s a close confidant? That’s truly rare! Please wait a moment,” the guild leader instructed, stepping back a few paces and leaning out the window, calling out, “Xiao Gu, go to the small accounting room and invite that gentleman over.”

A response came from outside. Ting-Xi blinked, slightly taken aback. That gentleman? Which gentleman? Could it be Master Ma?

“Young man, please wait downstairs for a moment; he will be here shortly,” the guild leader said with a smile, gesturing to Ting-Xi.

Ting-Xi hurried downstairs and had just finished reporting to his Seventh Master when Dong Chao strode over from beside the small building. He spotted Pan Dingbang, his eyebrows arching in surprise. He quickly stepped forward, cupped his hands, and smiled, “It’s Seventh Master! What brings you here, Seventh Master?”

“And you are?” Pan Dingbang did not recognize Dong Chao.

“My surname is Dong, my given name is Chao. I serve under Master Meng, taking orders from the Grand Boss,” Dong Chao said with a smile.

“Oh! I know Old Meng! Is Old Meng here? I am looking for your Boss. You all live in Yangzhou City? Where do you live? I came here to ask you where you live,” Pan Dingbang quickly explained his purpose.

“Perfect timing! I’ve finished my work here. I will take Seventh Master there,” Dong Chao said with a smile, gesturing to Pan Dingbang.

Upon hearing the words “Seventh Master” again, Pan Dingbang’s eyes widened, a finger to his lips, and he sternly shushed, “Keep your voice down! I am here escorting military equipment; I cannot leave the ship. Cough, do not call me Seventh Master, do not mention ‘Seven’!”

Dong Chao gave an “Oh,” then smiled, “Do not worry, Master. Wait a moment, Master. I will find a suitable person to go to the dock and keep an eye on things. Once we get home, I will have Meng arrange for a few more men to go over so you can talk to the Boss without worry.”

“Alright, alright!” Pan Dingbang breathed a long sigh of relief, his shoulders slumping slightly.

Shouzhen had told him that the Boss was currently in Yangzhou, and when he escorted the ship there, it would be best to rest there, get a good night’s sleep, and buy groceries.

Although he did not quite understand—how could he sleep soundly in Yangzhou just because she was there?

However, matters concerning him were usually best left ununderstood; if he understood them immediately, something would be amiss.

Dong Chao called his two companions who had come with him, instructing them to watch over the arsenal ships while he took Pan Dingbang back to Yudai Lane.

Li Sangrou was not in Yudai Lane, but Hei Ma and Da Chang were. Dong Chao entrusted Pan Dingbang and his servant to Hei Ma and hurried to find Meng Yanqing to arrange for someone to watch over Pan Dingbang’s arsenal fleet.

Upon seeing Pan Dingbang, Hei Ma exclaimed happily, “No wonder we were setting up lanterns yesterday, and the magpies were chirping in the trees this morning! It is you!”

Pan Dingbang chuckled, “Old Ma, is this a line from an opera? Have you heard a new play?”

“A folk song, ‘The young lady misses her husband!'”

“Why are you here? Are you not busy with official duties and your wife’s pregnancy, having to report to the Ministry of Works every day?” Hei Ma put his arm around Pan Dingbang, gesturing for him to sit down in the corridor, and brought over a red clay stove from a corner of the corridor, lighting it to boil water.

“Do not even mention it, I did not want to come at all!

Where’s the Boss? I need to see her urgently! I have to get back right away; there are dozens of boats to go!

My father said that if anything goes wrong, I will die on the boat. If the cargo is lost and I survive, he will drag my whole family into the Court of Judicial Review prison! Sigh!” Pan Dingbang sighed deeply.

“Do not worry, Old Dong and Old Meng are watching over things. With them watching, if anything still happens, it is just fate.” He paused, then turned to look at Pan Dingbang. “If that happens, do not worry; Xiao Lu and I will make it look like you died protecting the boat; at least it will not implicate your family.”

Pan Dingbang found the first part agreeable, but the second part made him glare at Hei Ma, practically wanting to spit in his face!

“What do you want with the Boss?” Hei Ma asked.

“Just a small matter,” Pan Dingbang replied quickly.

“Good, a small matter!” Hei Ma glanced at him sideways. “If it is nothing serious, then you do not have to see the boss; it will not interfere with anything.”

“How can it not interfere with anything? I left dozens of military ships behind and came all this way; how can I just not see her? I have important business!” Pan Dingbang glared at Hei Ma with displeasure.

“What is it? Can you not tell me?” Hei Ma stood up, took half a tea cake from the bamboo basket hanging under the eaves, dragged over a small bamboo chair, sat down, and began to pry the tea cake apart.

“Fine, I can tell you about it.” Pan Dingbang frowned, thought seriously for a moment, and sighed.

Hei Ma looked up at Pan Dingbang, gesturing for him to speak.

“Do you know, from Yangzhou all the way to the Shizi’s army camp, there are dead bodies everywhere!” Pan Dingbang dragged a chair closer to Hei Ma, his voice low.

“Huh? There are still dead bodies? Were they not all cleaned up?” Hei Ma’s eyes widened.

“Clean up my ass!” Pan Dingbang cursed weakly, “I’ve delivered them four times. The first time, I was riding my horse, perfectly fine, and then the horse stomped down, missed a step, and plop, a stench hit me so badly I vomited on the spot.

The horse missed a step, lurched forward, and then I was hit by that stench; I almost fell off.

Do you know what that horse stepped on?” Pan Dingbang glared at Hei Ma, his expression saying, “You’d never guess.”

“It stepped on someone’s stomach?” Hei Ma answered with certainty and speed.

“How could you?” Pan Dingbang glared at Hei Ma.

“When people die in battle, they are buried on the spot. These must be Southern Liang soldiers, not ours.

You need to talk to Master Wen about this. They did not do a good job; they buried them too shallow. It is still hot now. If they buried them, they’d swell up in a couple of days, and the soil would be exposed,” Hei Ma said nonchalantly.

Pan Dingbang glanced at him, took a few deep breaths, and forcefully suppressed the nausea.

“That was the first time, alright.

The second time was peaceful. The third time, near the camp, we were ambushed, and a fight broke out!” Pan Dingbang’s voice trembled as he spoke of the fight.

“General Wu is a formidable man. What happened next?” Hei Ma clicked his tongue.

“Later, I do not know what happened. I was walking at the front, and the people coming to meet us were right in front of me. Just as the fight started, a gush of hot blood sprayed all over my face and head. It was really hot blood, scalding hot!

My eyes were completely blinded; I could not see anything. Luckily, Ting-Xi grabbed my arm and ran forward.

Later, you know, when we got to the camp, I found out not only was my face and head covered in human blood, but there was also a human eye in my boot!” Pan Dingbang almost cried when he mentioned the human eye.

“Have some hot tea.” Hei Ma had already brewed some tea and pushed it in front of Pan Dingbang. “That was the fifth time? So why did you come to see the Boss? To learn martial arts?

It’s definitely too late to learn martial arts now. Besides, you cannot learn the Boss’s martial arts, and you cannot learn mine either.”

“Learn martial arts? Look at you, so haphazard.” Pan Dingbang rolled his eyes at Hei Ma. “It’s not about learning martial arts; it is just… sigh! I’ve always been a coward.

The first time I stepped on a dead person, it was alright; I had nightmares for the first half of the night, but I could still sleep for the second half. The second time, however, I had nightmares the moment I closed my eyes! Every time I closed my eyes, I had nightmares!

Look how thin I’ve gotten! Look at my eyes; they are practically sunken in!” Pan Dingbang leaned forward, pointing to his face.

“Not bad, not bad, not much thinner!

Why are you looking for the Boss if you have nightmares?” Hei Ma’s lips twitched downwards as he looked at Pan Dingbang’s left eye, then his right.

“Last time, I was delivering weapons to the Shizi’s army. Hearing that I kept having nightmares, Shouzhen gave me an idea,” Pan Dingbang said in a low voice. “He said the Boss is in Yangzhou and told me to ask her for a flag when I pass through. The Boss even has a flag?

Shouzhen also said the Boss’s flag has a smaller version, and I should just get a smaller one. He said that’s the best for warding off evil spirits; keep it close to your body, and you will definitely stop having nightmares.”

Hei Ma leaned back, glaring at Pan Dingbang.

“Look at you! What do you mean by this? What’s wrong?”

“Do you not know about warding off evil spirits? Shouzhen said everyone in the army knows that your Boss is the best at it!” Ting-Xi said he heard from the clerks that your Boss’s crossbows, the used kind, were said to be effective at warding off evil spirits—they were amazing! It was just that they were so rare; they said you could not even buy one for a tael of silver! “

Pan Dingbang leaned back, glaring at Hei Ma.

“Speaking of this!” Hei Ma raised his index finger, shaking it smugly. He shifted his chair, beckoning Pan Dingbang closer. The two men touched heads, and Hei Ma leaned in to whisper, “When we were in Tanzhou, you know those people from some kind of ravine or cave? They drive corpses. You’ve heard of corpse driving, right?”

Pan Dingbang nodded repeatedly. He’d heard it from an official in the Ministry of Works from Shimen County.

“I heard they cannot call them corpses; they have to call them ‘Gods of Happiness.'”

“You really know your stuff!” Hei Ma gave Pan Dingbang a thumbs-up. “We encountered them once. In the middle of the night, those ‘Gods of Happiness’ would not move. They only started moving again after we passed by.

That’s right,” Hei Ma drawled, crossing his legs and shaking them a few times. “Our Boss has too much malevolent energy; the ‘Gods of Happiness’ are afraid!

You came to the right person for something to ward off evil from our Boss. You know your stuff! However, you have to wait for our Boss to come back. She has to give her approval before you can take anything. If she does not approve, you cannot take a single thread. Our Boss has strict rules.”

“Where did your Boss go? Look, it is almost dark. I get scared when it gets dark!”

Before Pan Dingbang could finish speaking, Datou’s voice came from the courtyard gate: “The Boss is back!”