Pan Dehai

“If I want you by my side, to cling through the night until tomorrow...” Chu the Second sat in the grand ballroom of the Paramount, quietly watching the performance of the song queen, Jiang Mengting. She was the only person in the grand ballroom, yet the stage was not lacking in the slightest. The orchestra, the backup dancers, the color-changing gas lamps—every detail was flawlessly executed. Jiang Mengting felt intensely awkward. Singing for an audience of one in the Paramount's grand ballroom was an absurd affair. Yet she dared not utter a single complaint. She knew Miss Chu the Second's temper; one minute she might call you a song queen, and the next, she might flay the skin right off your face. As the song "I Want You" ended and the orchestra prepared for the next piece, Yang Yanzheng stepped up to Chu the Second. Chu the Second gestured for Jiang Mengting not to stop, then left the ballroom. Now, with not a single guest remaining, Jiang Mengting still had to keep singing. ... Up in a third-floor suite, Chu the Second looked at Yang Yanzheng. "Have you found out?" Yang Yanzheng nodded. "Monkey Qiu spread word throughout the city: whoever dares step foot in the Paramount will have the Lu family knocking on their door the very next day." Chu the Second refused to believe it. "How many people live in Lüshui City? Do they all jump to Monkey Qiu's whistle?" "It isn't just Monkey Qiu. The Eldest Master of the He family, He Haiqin, issued orders as well: anyone under the He family's care is forbidden from visiting the Paramount. The Ma family did the same. Even the Chu family..." Yang Yanzheng trailed off. All Four Great Families were targeting Chu Huaiyuan now. Chu Huaiyuan looked up at him. "The families can't control every commoner, can they? Are they afraid to come too?" Yang Yanzheng smiled wryly. "Miss, you must be joking. How many commoners would ever spend good money to visit the Paramount?" Chu the Second countered, "I'll slash prices. Twenty bucks to come dance, and they can pick any dancer they want!" Yang Yanzheng was at a loss for words. Doing business like this would bleed them dry. Besides, let alone twenty bucks, even if it were free, no one could get in. "The Lu family has stationed several guards nearby, armed with magical treasures. Ordinary folks take one look at our sign and take a detour." Chu the Second glared. "Call Wen Hongyan. Tell her to kill those guards for me!" Yang Yanzheng urged, "Miss, calm yourself. If we kill those guards, do you think Monkey Qiu will just let it go?" "Then kill Monkey Qiu along with them!" Kill Monkey Qiu? Chu the Second had completely lost her mind. What could she possibly kill him with? She would be lucky if Monkey Qiu didn't kill her first. It was only because this was Lüshui City and Monkey Qiu didn't want to make too big a scene; otherwise, he would have moved against Chu the Second long ago! Yang Yanzheng could no longer afford to mince words. He had to be blunt: "The strongest fighter you have is Wen Hongyan. How could we ever kill Monkey Qiu?" "Hire someone! Hire hatchet men!" "Which hired blade would dare touch the chief steward of the Lu family?" "I'll pay them! I'll sell my house! From now on, I'll live right here in the Paramount! It's either him or me!" Yang Yanzheng rubbed his temples. Waiting until Chu the Second seemed slightly calmer, he advised, "Miss, let's just return the Paramount to the Lu family. We can negotiate a reasonable price with them. We won't lose that much." "No! The Paramount is mine! I'm not giving it to anyone!" Chu the Second grew agitated once more, and Yang Yanzheng held his tongue. After a long silence, Chu the Second stood up. "Ready the carriage. We're going to Lanyang Village." "What are we going to Lanyang Village for?" "To find Ma the Fifth. When he opened Xiaoyaowu, the great families made life difficult for him too, and he knew how to handle them. I have to find him for this. He'll definitely have a plan." Yang Yanzheng shook his head repeatedly. "Miss, Xiaoyaowu and the Paramount are completely different matters. How big was Xiaoyaowu's business? The Paramount is the flagship of Lüshui City!" "What the hell do you know? Ma the Fifth is the real expert at making money. He'll definitely have a way!" "Miss, please stop this reckless nonsense. The Lu family has only blocked our business for now, but who knows what they'll do next. You can't leave the city right now. Once you're outside, the Lu family might ambush you. Miss... Miss!" Despite Yang Yanzheng's repeated, earnest pleas, Chu the Second refused to listen. She readied her carriage, gathered her entourage, and set off for Lanyang Village. ... Lanyang Village, Changchun Garden. Head Guard Zuo Wugang paced from the dance hall to the restaurant, and from the restaurant to the inn. After pacing two circuits around the inn, he headed toward the tavern. Xiao Chuanzi followed behind, drenched in sweat. "Chief Zuo, you've paced around twenty times now! Come up with something, at least!" "What are you shouting about!" Zuo Wugang knitted his brows tightly. "Aren't I trying to figure something out right now?!" Chu the Second had arrived! With both Li Banfeng and Ma the Fifth away, she refused to leave. She booked over a dozen rooms at Mengchun Garden and settled in. She was currently a thorn in the Lu family's side, and the other families were targeting her from the shadows as well. Under these circumstances, she could not be allowed to stay in Lanyang Village for long. Zuo Wugang had thought of this layer. But as for what to do specifically, he had no idea. Xiao Chuanzi was anxious, and Zhen Jincheng and Cao Zhida were just as worried. Cao Zhida was the first to offer an idea. "Chief Zuo, I say we just play rough and drive them out! We can handle the few people Chu the Second brought with her!" Zuo Wugang waved his hand dismissively. "On what grounds do we play rough? They came to Changchun Garden to enjoy themselves, and they paid for their rooms and drinks in full. Why should we drive them away? Does that follow the rules?" Zhen Jincheng said, "Then let's go reason with her and urge her to leave!" Zuo Wugang spat. "Reason my foot! You haven't even read a damn book, and you want to reason with a young lady of a great family?" Cao Zhida said, "If open methods won't work, let's use underhanded ones! Trip them up behind the scenes and make her back off!" "That won't do either," Zuo Wugang shook his head. "Miss Chu the Second might actually have some affection with Young Master Five. If we play too dirty, Young Master Five will hold it against us when he gets back." Zhen Jincheng sighed. "Then what do you say we do? Once the Lu family comes knocking at our door, it'll be too late!" "I've been thinking, it shouldn't come to that. Miss Chu the Second is someone of status; the Lu family wouldn't go so far as to wipe her out completely." Cao Zhida said, "In Lüshui City, the Lu family still has some scruples. But this is Lanyang Village. Killing someone here is like slaughtering a chicken. The Lu family won't hesitate to strike! Even if we manage to steer clear of them, if Chu the Second dies here, we're finished too! We'll never be able to clear our names!" Zuo Wugang had thought of this layer too. Yet he truly had no idea how to deal with it. Flustered and irritable, Zuo Wugang snapped, "All of you, go back! Stop shouting in my ear! Out, get out of my sight!" The three found a room in Changchun Garden to sit down in, while Zuo Wugang continued pacing in circles outside. Xiao Chuanzi sighed. "How can Chief Zuo not come up with a single idea?" Zhen Jincheng shook his head. "That's his flaw. When someone gives him an order, he's a tiger; when no one gives him an order, he's not even equal to a cat." Cao Zhida slammed his fist onto the table. "Why isn't Fifth Master back yet? And there hasn't been a peep from Seventh Master either!" ... Twenty hours later, Li Banfeng woke up inside the Portable Abode. "Oh my, husband, did you have a sweet dream just now?" Li Banfeng shook his head. "I had a nightmare. I dreamed a swarm of bugs ate me down to nothing." Chhh—chhh— "Oh my, husband, that shouldn't be. Everyone who meets that slut has good dreams; some never wake up for the rest of their lives." Li Banfeng sat by the bedside and asked, "The slut you're talking about—is she that girl surnamed Feng?" "If this humble servant isn't mistaken, husband must have met Feng Daiku." "Feng Daiku? What kind of name is that?" The gramophone hissed and sang, "When this woman was born, she brought disaster upon her family, earning her kin's deep resentment. So they gave her such an ugly name. Feng Daiku was a mouthful to say, so over time, people started calling her Feng Koudai. That sounded far smoother to the ear, and the name stuck." "Feng Koudai? Isn't that even worse?" Chhh—chhh— "That was already the pleasant version. As more years passed, whether through word of mouth getting distorted or some other cause, people began pronouncing koudai as kudai. Later on, everyone just called her Feng Kudai." "Kudai? Trouser belt? And she could tolerate that?" "She could! Give the slut her due, she does have some breadth of mind. She accepted the name Kudai, and she even renamed her domain. Originally, the place was called Koudaikan, but later she changed it to Kudaikan." Kudaikan... Kudaikan! "Wife, you're saying Kudaikan is her domain? And she was the one who named it?" "Indeed! She is the local spirit of Kudaikan. What kind of entity a local spirit is—surely husband knows that much." Local spirit! Those three words echoed back and forth in Li Banfeng's mind. That Miss Feng was a local spirit—the local spirit of Kudaikan. Then what about Old Mr. Yao of Yaowanggou? Was he a local spirit too? The local spirit of Yaowanggou? Logically, it made sense. Old Mr. Yao was a departed soul, and local spirits were departed souls as well. Was Miss Feng a departed soul? He should have looked closely with Golden Eyes Discerning the Minutest Detail back then. Li Banfeng asked the gramophone, "Wife, what is the origin of local spirits?" "This humble servant cannot recall." "Good wife, just tell me. I'll go get food for you—fresh, sweet, crisp souls, as many as you want." Li Banfeng leaned closer to the gramophone. "Oh my, husband, this humble servant isn't being coy with you. I truly cannot remember. The origins of local spirits involve the Inner States, and matters of the Inner States are things this humble servant does not wish to recall." The Inner States? Li Banfeng had caught a new term. "What kind of place is the Inner States?" "On the outside lie the Outer States, on the inside lie the Inner States, and right in the middle is Puluo Province." "Wife, tell me more about these Inner States." "Husband, this humble servant truly does not wish to recall it." "Wife, think carefully. I'll go buy groceries in a bit." "Husband, if you force this humble servant to think, I can try, but remembering will drive me mad." Li Banfeng gave a calm smile. "Going a little mad is fine. Who hasn't gone mad before?" Chhh—chhh— The gramophone's singing suddenly slowed down drastically: "Once mad, I might not recognize husband anymore. Husband, do you truly want this humble servant to remember?" Li Banfeng fell silent for a moment, then stepped slightly further away from the gramophone. "Then I won't force my wife." Clang-clang-clang—tai! The wife's singing grew much livelier: "Oh my, husband, that reminds me. I recall you've been staying in Lüshuiwan all this time. How did you come across that slut Feng Daiku?" Li Banfeng shook his head. "I don't know either. She said she was injured." "Oh my, how strange! Who in Lüshuiwan could possibly injure her? Could she have been hurt by that beggar? But why would she run all the way to Lüshuiwan to provoke that beggar?" The beggar of Lüshuiwan? The master of Lüshuiwan? Did they fight? Was it a turf war? There was too much information to digest; the more Li Banfeng listened, the more bewildered he felt. Suddenly, he remembered something—the thing Feng Daiku had given him, that lump of flesh wrapped in bamboo leaves. He pulled the flesh from his suit pocket. "Feng Daiku gave me this." Whoosh— A cloud of steam enveloped the bamboo leaves, sensing them for a long while. "The slut has grown quite capable. Even I couldn't sense through the seal she placed. Husband, unwrap the bamboo leaves and let this humble servant take a look." Li Banfeng untied the grass stem around the bamboo leaves, revealing the flesh inside. Da—da—da... tai! Only after the gongs and drums had clattered for a long time did the gramophone speak: "If this humble servant is not mistaken, this is the flesh and blood of Pan Dehai." Li Banfeng looked completely blank. "And who is Pan Dehai?" "A Virtue Cultivator. The world calls him Mr. Dehai. He is a local spirit as well. But why would he end up fighting Feng Daiku?" PS: Why would the local spirit of Kudaikan appear in Lüshuiwan? And get into a fight with someone there? Was she looking down on the boss of Lüshuiwan?