Teasing

Looking at the smiling, flower-like face of the young woman before him and feeling the icy, slick serpent tail slowly coiling around him, the psychological trauma Ding Songyan had acquired in his childhood from watching movies and television shows like *New Legend of Madame White Snake* and *Anaconda* surged back in an instant. Forcing out a smile, he answered her question: "Understood." Heaven have mercy, who could have guessed that a white snake would actually come to listen to his *Legend of the White Snake*? The young woman nodded in satisfaction. With a soft *whoosh*, the thick serpent tail retracted and vanished without a trace. "Can you show me the story you wrote today now?" "Of course, of course." Ding Songyan half-turned, picked up the stack of papers, and offered them with both hands. By the mingling glow of the oil lamp and the moonlight, the young woman read through them with great care, letting out an occasional "Oh." Upon reaching the final page, she lifted her head and said with deep satisfaction, "So Lady White is even more formidable than I imagined, able to ascend to the Heavenly Court to steal the elixir of immortality. Hmm, what about Fahai? He has already confirmed that Lady White is a snake demon, so why hasn't he come to subdue her?" *Good question, that was precisely where I got stuck just now... And why are you looking forward to Lady White being subdued? If she really were subdued, you'd be weeping and wailing. As a fellow white snake, you identify strongly with her, don't you?* Ding Songyan remained tense from head to toe while instinctively scoffing in his thoughts to relieve his urge to urinate. With no time to deliberate, he blurted out, "Didn't you just say it yourself? Lady White can go to the Heavenly Court to steal the elixir of immortality, making her far more formidable than Fahai. Fahai is busy seeking helpers far and wide to ensure that nothing goes awry." "Lady White has only just given birth to Xu Shilin, so her body is still very weak. Wouldn't that put her in grave danger?" The young woman instantly grew anxious about the subsequent plot, her eyes shining intently as she waited for Ding Songyan's explanation. *Are you planning to interrogate me all the way to the ending?* Ding Songyan let out a helpless sigh. "Lady White has helpers of her own. "There is a great hero in the jianghu named Yan Nantian, who loves nothing more than seeing lovers united and sees nothing wrong with a demon and a human falling in love. When the time comes, he will happen to come across them and draw his sword to assist." Under dangerous conditions and pressing time, Ding Songyan had evolved from adapting the story to simply making things up on the fly. The young woman let out a long "Oh," visibly relieved. "Then I'll hear the details tomorrow." She rose to her feet with a smile. Seeing that she harbored no malice, Ding Songyan gradually recovered from his initial dread of encountering a snake demon. Half out of curiosity and half to build rapport, he asked, "Is your surname and given name Bai Suzhen as well, Miss?" The young woman burst into a giggle. "Things aren't quite that coincidental. Didn't I already tell you? My name is Xiaoqing." "Aren't you a white snake...? I assumed Xiaoqing was your maidservant, since she wears green garments," Ding Songyan explained. "Can't a white snake be called Xiaoqing?" The young woman was in high spirits, her smile tinged with mischievous playfulness. "Is it forbidden for my name to have a 'Qing' in it?" *Right, right, whatever you say is right!* Ding Songyan was just about to speak when a sudden wave of dizziness washed over his head. In merely a flash, he returned to normal. What met his eyes was cool and still as water—there was no sign of a white-dressed figure anywhere. He himself was still in the posture of having just laid his brush upon the rest, without ever having turned toward the wooden bed. Everything just now, that white-skirted snake demon, seemed like a fleeting dream of yellow millet he had stumbled into while drafting the story outline. The dim yellow glow of the oil lamp intertwined with the clear moonlight, hazy as an illusion. *I wasn't asleep...* Ding Songyan focused his senses for a moment, yet detected no lingering fragrance. Even so, he remained convinced that the young woman named Xiaoqing had truly come. The papers spread out over the wooden chest, bearing his detailed story outlines, had shifted from their original positions. *Alas, being a storyteller in this world is truly a high-risk profession. Ghost knows what bizarre creatures might turn up to listen to your tales. If you leave them hanging too long, or if the ending fails to please them, hiss... the consequences don't bear thinking about...* Ding Songyan earnestly considered whether he should report this to the authorities. It took him only half the time to drink a cup of tea to make up his mind: So what if she was a snake demon? Could a snake demon not become a friend? His initial reason for valuing Xiaoqing and wanting to establish a connection with her was that her family background seemed extraordinary, her nature appeared kind, and she still retained an innocent charm. None of that had changed, so naturally, his thinking would not change either. Whether she was human or demon had no bearing on that judgment; it was not as though he intended to become Xu Xian. Furthermore, after this incident, Ding Songyan felt that he and the young woman Xiaoqing were no longer so distant. They shared a bit of a secret, meaning he could now attempt to ask about many matters he had previously found difficult to broach or inquire about. Ding Songyan exhaled, feeling a headache coming on as he recalled the plot points he had improvised on the spot before Xiaoqing. Those had to be incorporated now. One could swindle anyone, but never the God of Wealth—especially a God of Wealth capable of swallowing you whole in a single bite! Reviewing what he had spoken earlier in his mind, he felt it was acceptable enough. At least it explained why Fahai dared not confront Lady White head-on, opting instead to abduct Xu Xian to Jinshan Temple and lure Lady White to his doorstep. Having formed his plan, Ding Songyan picked up the brush, dipped it into the ink, and resumed his work. *** Dingjiang Prefecture only closed its city gates at night without enforcing a curfew, yet at such a late hour, walking through the narrow alleys felt deserted and quiet. The maidservant dressed in a blue-green silk skirt hurried after the young woman Xiaoqing, asking worriedly, "Miss, why did you use a transformation technique to scare Ding Erlang?" Xiaoqing was still wearing the purple attire from earlier in the day, looking slender and delicate. Breathing in the cool night breeze, she swung her arms in high spirits. "He deceived me first! It was clearly a story he had just concocted on the spot, yet he claimed it was a newly learned storybook. That song too—I asked around, and no such tune exists!" "B-but will he go to the yamen and report that he encountered a snake demon?" The maidservant was fraught with worry. Xiaoqing gave a chuckle. "He might not know, but could the people from the Yi clan and Xiaoming Sect remain ignorant? Ever since Emperor Zhuanxu severed Earth from Heaven, how could there possibly be any snake demons left capable of taking human form?" "That is true." The maidservant relaxed, murmuring to herself, "And there are quite a few martial disciplines that cultivate a serpent form, so it won't be easy to guess." Walking with light footsteps toward the main street outside, Xiaoqing swung her arms back and forth and said with a giggle, "Maintaining human form normally and revealing a serpent tail only when one wishes—that is something only those in the Heaven-Man Realm can achieve. If Ding Erlang reports to the authorities, it will surely give the people from the Yi clan and Xiaoming Sect quite a fright." "Mm-hmm!" The maidservant cheered up along with her mistress. "Apart from grand masters of the Heaven-Man Realm, only a few martial arts specialized in transformation could pull this off..." Speaking to this point, she suddenly froze. "Miss, could the Yi clan and Xiaoming Sect guess our identity because of this and ruin our subsequent business?" "Oh, right..." Xiaoqing blinked, halting in her tracks. After a few breaths, she pursed her lips and said, "Ding Erlang probably won't report it. "Even if he really goes to the yamen, the one to fret will be Second Uncle. At most, I'll face a bit of scolding and get grounded. I'm used to it anyway." The maidservant was left speechless for a moment. Seeing that her mistress was no longer fretting over the matter, she also set her mind at ease. After a moment's thought, she asked, "Miss, do you think we'll be able to hear the end of *The Legend of the White Snake* before we leave Dingjiang Prefecture?" "We should be able to." Xiaoqing pondered for a moment before saying with mock ferocity, "If not, on the night before we depart, I'll kidnap Ding Erlang and make him tell the story the whole night until the very end!" "Yes, yes, splendid!" The maidservant agreed wholeheartedly. Free of worries once more, the mistress and servant strolled through the sparsely populated streets and alleys with soft laughter and gentle banter, heading toward Tianyang Guildhall. *** Beneath the blazing sun, under a large tree outside Duokang Temple. Relying on the detailed outline from the previous day, Ding Songyan wove Yan Nantian into the narrative, driving the story forward all the way to Fahai "abducting" Xu Xian to his old den, Jinshan Temple. Seeing Xiaoqing wearing that indignant expression of "How can it end here?" once again, he knew she would probably pay him another nocturnal visit tonight. He therefore restrained his impulse and refrained from asking about anything on the spot. With so many eyes and ears around, this was hardly a suitable place for conversation. It would be better to ask in the dead of night when all was quiet. After hastily making do with lunch, Ding Songyan recalled Qin Nuansheng's reminder from yesterday and searched his way to Longxing Street, locating Divine Physician Shao's Yannian Medical Hall. Just as he stepped through the door, before he even had the chance to inquire, he spotted a familiar figure seated on a chair to the side. It was Qu Zhongheng, with his single leg and three eyes. *Qingyan told me to bring the prepared gift to Baoping Lane tonight to thank Qu Sanlang, but who knew I'd run into him at Yannian Medical Hall at midday...* Ding Songyan walked over and asked Qu Zhongheng, whose horizontal third eye on his forehead was tightly shut: "Qu Sanlang, what brings you here?" Qu Zhongheng glanced up at him and replied weakly, "My father suddenly suffered unbearable abdominal pain, so we had no choice but to bring him to Divine Physician Shao. Divine Physician Shao said the situation looked grim and required opening the abdomen." *Opening the abdomen?* Ding Songyan instinctively wanted to dig out his ear, suspecting he had misheard. Wasn't the style of that term a bit out of place? Just as he sat down, the wooden door separating the inner and outer rooms swung open, and Divine Physician Shao emerged wearing a blue silk straight-robe, followed by two youths and two young boys. One of the boys held a wooden tray bearing bloodstained willow-leaf lancets, flat-bladed scalpels, curved needles, forceps, scissors, catgut sutures, and the like. Qu Sanlang sprang up at once, hopping forward to meet Divine Physician Shao. Divine Physician Shao gave a gentle nod. "Your father suffered an intestinal obstruction. I have already excised that segment and sutured the two ends back together..." As the physician explained the situation, Ding Songyan listened with his mouth agape. *The medical arts of this world have developed to such an extent?* "He will need to stay at the medical hall for at least a month for recovery," Divine Physician Shao said, turning toward Ding Songyan. "Wait a moment; I shall go wash up." "Understood, Divine Physician Shao." Only today did Ding Songyan notice that Divine Physician Shao's pupils seemed tinged with a faint shade of white. After sitting back down, Qu Sanlang visibly relaxed, sighing to Ding Songyan beside him, "Before Emperor Zhuanxu severed Earth from Heaven, our clan possessed the divine steed Jiliang. Merely by riding it, one could attain a lifespan of a thousand years. Nowadays, not only can the Jiliang scarcely survive for long themselves, bordering on extinction, but even if one were truly blessed by great fortune to encounter one, riding it grants a lifespan of two hundred years at most." *Two hundred years is plenty... In my past life, I only lived to my early thirties...* Ding Songyan muttered inward. "In this day and age, a lifespan of two hundred years isn't bad either," Qu Sanlang continued to himself. "If the divine steed Jiliang were still around, how could my father have suffered such torment before even reaching seventy?" "At least Divine Physician Shao was here to save him," Ding Songyan offered as comfort. He did not ask why Qu Dalang or Qu Erlang had not shown up. Ding Qingyan had not mentioned them earlier either, and given what he knew about the Qu family's obsession with mechanical contraptions and their frequent accidents, it seemed wiser not to pry. After chatting for a while, Ding Songyan produced the ingenious mechanism his sister had purchased, handing it to Qu Zhongheng along with its box to express his gratitude. A faint smile appeared on Qu Zhongheng's face. "Sister Qingyan is truly thoughtful; I shall accept it without ceremony, then. "Ding Erlang, I used to think you were timid and cowardly, hardly a real man. If not for Sister Qingyan, I wouldn't have bothered paying you any mind. Looking at you now, you're actually a decent person." *Brother, if you don't know how to speak, don't speak at all... You can forget about ever marrying my sister in this lifetime!* Ding Songyan realized that Qu Sanlang's emotional intelligence was truly abysmal—the sort where he couldn't even pretend. Still, dealing with someone like this meant one did not need to keep up eight hundred layers of scheming, nor worry about him being two-faced. After a moment's thought, Ding Songyan shifted the subject: "Qu Sanlang, do you usually not use that eye on your forehead?"