Si Teng (Rattan) – CH 020

Chapter 20

After speaking with Old Lady Huang on the phone, everyone’s sentiments shifted almost collectively. Times had changed, and the old philosophy of irreconcilable demon-human strife was no longer in place. Even after being poisoned, the majority still sympathized with Si Teng.

Everyone discussed that Si Teng wasn’t so hateful after all. A person’s initial living conditions most strongly influenced their later worldview and behavior. Si Teng’s character was heavily influenced by Qiu Shan during her formative years, and the intervention of love had the opposite effect. Such a person should have grown into an anti-human, anti-social demon. Yet, she could still speak in a clear and polite manner. It was a true miracle.

However, Yan Furui was in a somewhat awkward position. Everyone looked at him as if he were Qiu Shan’s reflection, with a look of disdain on their faces. Yan Furui felt deeply aggrieved. Deep down, he also felt Qiu Shan was wrong, but he was his disciple and couldn’t just curse him like everyone else.

Also isolated was Chen Yindeng. When planning to kill Si Teng, she had handed over a blank scroll. While the others kept silent, they all remembered it, saying it was no wonder she looked good but was useless now. It turned out that her Grand Master had died early, and her descendants had never inherited the true teachings. It was no shame to not know the secrets, but don’t pretend to know when you don’t.

Chen Yindeng, proud and arrogant, could not tolerate this insult. That night, she packed her bags and left. When Abbot Cang Hong of Baiyun Temple heard the news and rushed over, the house was empty. Her phone was turned off, as if she had refused to see him again. Abbot Cang Hong sighed and said, “This is just nonsense! Miss Chen is still poisoned. She’s playing with her own life! How can she be irresponsible?”

***

Si Teng’s Hongmen Banquet was scheduled at an upscale club near Qingcheng Mountain. They would dine on a glass terrace extending out over the lake, overlooking the water and facing the tranquil green hills. It was rumored that one or two girls in blue calico dresses would be arranged to sail across the lake in a small boat, holding oil-paper umbrellas. If it rained, they would be treated to a scene of “no need to return home in the slanting wind and drizzle.” If the sun came out, they would be treated to a scene of “the water shimmers and the clear sky is beautiful.”

The proprietress strongly recommended it to Qin Fang: “It’s delicious! Eating here isn’t just about eating; it’s about spiritual enjoyment.”

The Taoist priests were probably nervous, so a little spiritual enjoyment would be a welcome change of pace.

***

Yan Furui received Qin Fang’s final confirmation call and trotted to the rooms of the Taoist priests to make the announcements. It seemed that this active running around could at least make up for the mistakes of his master, Taoist Priest Qiu Shan. The Taoist sect and the Taoist cave were located in the front and back temples, respectively. As he was taking the mountain path to the front temple to make the announcements, someone suddenly called out from behind, “Master Yan.”

It was Chen Yindeng. Yan Furui was extremely surprised and asked, “Miss Chen, didn’t you leave?”

Chen Yindeng’s face was sullen, and she didn’t answer. She only asked, “When is the dinner scheduled?”

Yan Furui quickly told her the news and advised, “Miss Chen, Abbot Cang Hong of Baiyun Temple said they want to charter a car to leave together. We can all stay together and look after each other.”

Chen Yindeng didn’t say either way but frowned, unsure of what she was thinking. Yan Furui could only wait patiently. He accidentally noticed the ornaments she was wearing and thought, “No wonder her name had the word ‘silver’ in it.” Miss Shen really loved wearing silver jewelry. On her ear hung a golden bellflower filigree lantern pendant. Around her neck was a silver ring with a silver leaf pendant, a seven-spotted ladybug dangling precariously from its edge. On her wrist was a bracelet made of thin strands of phoenix feathers. Then he thought of the time she’d used an old silver flower branch lantern to free Wang Qiankun from the vines…

“Let me ask you, you said before that Si Teng was accompanied by a man named Qin Fang. Wasn’t that a monster?”

“He’s not,” Yan Furui shook his head. “He’s just an ordinary person, a nice guy who takes good care of our Wafang… I was speculating before; maybe he was forced to run errands for this monster.”

“Does Si Teng trust him?”

Yan Furui frowned. “She trusts him quite a bit… She takes him with her wherever she goes.”

Chen Yindeng was skeptical. “Si Teng doesn’t seem like a monster who would trust people. Isn’t there something special about this Qin Fang? Just any random person could become her confidant? Who would believe that?”

Something special?

Yan Furui pondered. What was so special about Qin Fang? Kind-hearted? Ordinary people were kind-hearted, right? Rich? Being rich wasn’t that special, was it?

After a while, he cautiously asked, “Is being handsome considered special?”

Chen Yindeng stared at him for a long moment, then smiled sweetly. “Yes, of course.”

She turned and left. Yan Furui was stunned for a long moment until her figure disappeared around the corner before he remembered the important matter: “Miss Chen, are you coming with us?”

***

Yan Furui called to say that a group of ten people—Zhang Shaohua from Qingcheng, Cang Hong and Wang Qiankun from Wudang, Ma Qiuyang from Longhu, Liu Hexiang from Qiyun, Pan Qinian from Taoyuan Cave, Liu Jinding from Kongtong Cave, Ding Dacheng from Tianjin, Bai Jin from Nanjing, and himself—were all on their way. There was also Chen Yindeng from Magu Cave, who wasn’t coming with them but would also be coming.

It was estimated to arrive in the next two days. In the evening, Qin Fang took the menu to Si Teng for review. It was said that there were differences between Taoists in the temple and at home, and not all of them were vegetarians. However, to be on the safe side, a fully vegetarian banquet was prepared. Seeing the vegetarian chicken, duck, and goose dishes, Qin Fang was afraid that Si Teng would be unhappy, so he explained that the reason for this arrangement was to respect all the Taoist priests.

There was nothing wrong with it, and everything was going smoothly. Normally, Si Teng wouldn’t pay much attention to Qin Fang’s situation, but today, she was in a good mood. As she closed the menu, she asked, “Have you found your fiancée?”

Qin Fang was silent for a moment.

Since Shan Zhigang wasn’t a professional investigator and An Man had likely been hiding a lot, progress had been slow even though he checked in with him every night these days.

Reading his expression, Si Teng knew there was little progress. With a hint of disdain, she said, “How hard can finding someone be?”

How hard could it be? It was easy to speak without feeling the pain. Qin Fang laughed in anger. Suddenly, an idea struck him, making him a little nervous. He stared at Si Teng and said, “Go find her if you can.”

Si Teng didn’t even raise her eyelids: “Provocation? It won’t work on me.”

As expected of a monster, Qin Fang was very cunning. He paused, took the menu, and tried to leave, but Si Teng stopped him again: “Anyway, I’m in a good mood tonight, so tell me about it.”

Qin Fang didn’t react: “What?”

“What happened to you and your fiancée the day the accident happened? It would be best if you could go back a day or two. Who did you meet? What did you say…?”

***

Remembering things was never easy. An Man must have a secret, but the turn of events was so sudden. That night, he fell asleep before falling to his death and woke up in a completely different world.

Si Teng listened intently, occasionally interrupting him to confirm details. She mostly listened. After he finished, she asked, “So, since then, have you been asking people to investigate An Man? Why didn’t you investigate the other person?”

Qin Fang was puzzled. “The other person? Who?”

“The man who claims to be Mr. Ma, who does business in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi.”

What did this have to do with Mr. Ma? Qin Fang was a bit amused and confused. “He’s just a random tourist we met on the street.”

Si Teng looked at him. “Really? Are you sure?”

Her gaze was cold, and Qin Fang’s smile gradually faded. A hint of unease rose in his heart. “Si Teng, why do you suspect him?”

“He said something wrong.”

“What did he say?”

“He said he was staying in room 188 of the Golden Horse Hotel.”

Qin Fang was bewildered. “What’s wrong with that? We’re in the Tibetan area; there are very few Han Chinese, and it’s rare for us to see them, so they’re certainly more enthusiastic than usual…”

Si Teng interrupted him. “If you were out and about, and you met a stranger you connected with, and you wanted to stay in touch, what would you do?”

Qin Fang hesitated: “Leave him your phone number…”

“Yes, would you just give him your room number?”

“You said you didn’t want to talk to him at the time. Businesspeople are good at reading people’s expressions. Why bother trying to get in front of someone who doesn’t like you? Besides, when they’re out and about, businesspeople are always reserved about where they live. Why give you his room number right away?”

Qin Fang hadn’t initially thought the act of giving him his room number was anything to go by, but after Si Teng pointed it out, he realized there was something a little off about it.

“If you truly had never met him, then his words weren’t meant for you… Didn’t An Man look a little off then?”

Yes, Qin Fang remembered Boss Ma asking An Man with concern, “Sister, you look a little off. Are you carsick or do you have altitude sickness?”

Thinking back now, it seemed Boss Ma’s words had a hidden meaning. Was An Man’s face a little off because she saw him?

“That night, you said you slept so soundly that you had no recollection of An Man helping you downstairs and into the car. You were drugged—didn’t you have a conversation about sleeping pills before bed? An Man drugged you. Then, during that time, she went to the Golden Horse Hotel and met with Boss Ma. I don’t know what happened during that time, but as soon as she returned, she was eager to leave, or rather, to escape.”

“The accident happened on your way to escape. That means Boss Ma’s men caught up with you and attacked you right away. This suggests An Man acted drastically, perhaps even murdering Boss Ma. You’d better call the Golden Horse Hotel and ask what happened.”

“Also, that person might not really be named Ma.”

With that, she lifted the teapot from the table and poured out the tea. Was it jasmine tea or rose tea that night? Qin Fang was so lost in thought that he couldn’t even distinguish the flavors of the two scented teas. His mind was in a state of chaos. As he stared blankly at the clear stream pouring from the kettle, his ears filled with not only the tinkling of tea but also the sound of wind chimes from the eaves above.

He always recited the Prajna to himself, ding dong ding dong ding dong.

Si Teng filled two cups, one for him and one for herself. She gently tapped the cup against his, using tea instead of wine, with a crisp, porcelain-like sound: “Gān.”

She brought the cup to her lips with one hand, gently covering it with the other. Her eyes shone with a strange light, and her brows seemed painted with springtime pride.

She said, “Fate has brought us together, and we’ve walked together all this time. I hope you find your fiancée soon. Whether she’s good or not, you must finally free yourself from all obstacles and become a clear-sighted, discerning person. At the same time, I congratulate myself: I’ve accomplished three of the five things.”