Famine

Chapter 25

He became both ashamed and angry, "That's never happened! I've been given this false reputation for nothing!"

"Let me see your hand, do you have fingernails like spring onions?" I teased him, quoting Dream of the Red Chamber.

That made him laugh and not care so much.

But in the end, something still happened.

Tang Chen and I were about to go home when Xiao Ting rushed over and stopped me.

"Mo Niang, Mo Niang, come and see... Yu Ying is acting strangely, we can't wake him up no matter what we do..."

I paused for a moment, "...Shouldn't we call an ambulance?"

"The ambulance is still on its way." She cried, terrified. "Come and see me first, I'm so scared..."

I handed the keys to Tang Chen, saying, "You go home first."

He refused, saying, "I'll wait for you to come with me."

I didn't have time to argue with him and ran after Xiaoting. When I entered the room, I understood why Xiaoting was so afraid. It was truly something science couldn't explain, and a mystery beyond comprehension. Yu Ying lay on the bed, hovering about an inch off the edge.

Several girls huddled together, trembling, "This must be...a ghost..."

"Don't blame everything on ghosts." I suddenly got angry. "Why blame all your troubles and misunderstandings on ghosts? Is life that simple?"

I climbed the stairs and tried to shake the jade bell, but she was fast asleep, with a dazed, ecstatic smile on her face.

Her bed was spotlessly clean, with only a dreamcatcher hanging above the headboard. But Tang Chen had made it; there was absolutely no way there could be anything wrong with it…

I looked closely at the dreamcatcher and found that not a single needle had slipped through.

So, can instinct sometimes go wrong?

"Scissors! Find me a pair of scissors!" I shouted.

Xiaoting handed me a small pair of scissors, and I carefully cut a strand of the dreamcatcher's thread. As soon as it was cut, Yuying suddenly opened her eyes wide, fell onto the bed, and let out a terrifying scream.

"Ghosts! So many ghosts!" She curled up in a ball, clutching her head. "Don't look for me! Don't look for me! It wasn't me, it wasn't me! I was just saying it casually, how was I supposed to know you'd take it seriously?"

"You just had a nightmare!" I yelled at her. "Wake up!"

She stared at me blankly, like a deflated balloon. Just then, the ambulance arrived, helped Yu Ying down, and took her to the hospital.

I stuffed the troublesome dreamcatcher into my pocket.

"Are you alright?" Xiaoting asked, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Oh dear, look how scared you are." I laughed, trying to sound relaxed. "It's alright. Yu Ying probably has some superpowers, she's using her powers while she's asleep... Isn't she practicing Tantric Buddhism? Maybe she's gone a little crazy. I guarantee there are no ghosts."

They then stopped crying and started laughing.

But I'm in a hurry to get back. I need to ask Shuo why he did this.

I rode my motorcycle as fast as I could and rushed back to the coffee shop.

Tang Chen glanced at me, but I didn't look at him. "Don't ask anything yet," I said, my voice still tight. "I'll tell you everything later."

I rushed through the door and threw the dreamcatcher onto the counter.

"Oh dear, you still got involved." Shuo's tone was very calm.

"Shuo!" I roared.

"I've said it before, I don't like that kind of girl," she said indifferently.

I had so much to say, but I couldn't bring myself to say it. Yes, I hate Yu Ying too. But she's a life; I can ignore her, but I shouldn't torment her.

"...Does the Chaos you serve allow you to do this?!" I knew perfectly well that my tone was harsh, but I just couldn't help it.

“No.” Shuo straightened his back proudly. “But I have my own temper too. If she wouldn’t listen to reason, I had no choice but to give in to her wishes and send her out. Didn’t she get the result she wanted? Didn’t she get the salvation the psychic was supposed to give her?”

I was speechless. Shuo Mingming's words were clearly a sophistry, but I couldn't retort. My uncle was willing to do good for the world, but she was a witch; she only cared about herself, while she was vengeful to those who dared to offend her.

“…She doesn’t deserve this.” I replied weakly.

"Is that so?" She sneered twice. "To blame all setbacks and misfortunes on ghosts and gods, to speak falsely of ghosts and gods that cannot be seen at all—isn't that a sin? Fine, that's a minor sin. But do you know that words can be as sharp as a blade? You know, I know, we shamans all know to be careful with our words and actions. Such arrogant fools bring disaster upon themselves, and now they want to blame me?"

Her unusual outburst of anger immediately deflated my confidence. I lowered my head and thought about it carefully, and had to admit that she had a point, but I still didn't approve of her behavior.

After a suffocating silence, Shuo's voice softened. "Misfortune and fortune have no fixed gate; one brings them upon oneself. I didn't attach any curses to the dreamcatcher I gave her... it was just a bit too powerful, and it didn't 'show leniency.' She was drowning in her inner demons, unable to extricate herself; who can she blame?"

"Inner demons?" I asked, puzzled.

She didn't answer for a while before saying, "Although the demons and ghosts are fierce, their connection with humans is extremely weak, yet everyone fears them. On the contrary, the inner demons, which are deeply ingrained in people's hearts, are not feared by anyone." She refused to say anything more, closed the shop door, and went back to her room.

I think I understand, but I also think I don't.

Later, I told Tang Chen about it, but I told a little white lie. I said I was supposed to take the dreamcatcher he made, but I mistakenly took mine. He was afraid I would be upset, so he comforted me for a long time.

The next day, I made up with Shuo. I bowed my head and apologized, but she just smiled. "There's no such thing as a grudge that lasts overnight between father and son. You're my last student... even though you're not very obedient. But just stay like this, it's much more interesting this way."

I didn't say anything.

Yu Ying never returned to school... She took a leave of absence and was hospitalized to recuperate. Gradually, gossip started circulating about her, saying she was faking things online and seemingly involved in fraud. It even led one particularly distraught netizen to commit suicide.

Gossip is just something to listen to and forget. But I'll be extra vigilant from now on, and I'll check Tang Chen's work. If he doesn't "go easy on me," I'll make an extra cut for him.

Judging from the old man's words, Tang Chen was probably a reincarnation of some great god or Buddha in his previous life, whose supernatural powers have not been extinguished to this day.

But he has already been reincarnated, so what does his past life have to do with his present life? Unless he is willing, I will never push him to become a monk.

That would be perfect. He'd be a happy classmate of mine, able to sing Peking Opera, play tennis, and even banter with me using lines from Dream of the Red Chamber or classical Chinese poetry. That would be perfect.

Hmm, out of curiosity, I hung the dreamcatcher I got from Yu Ying all night. Luckily, I made a cut... otherwise, I really wouldn't want to wake up.

I woke up feeling incredibly melancholy, my pillow half wet with tears.

Yu Ying had a beautiful spring dream, but I became Tang Chen. I was cherished by my parents and elders, learned to sing Peking Opera, and went out for spring outings and tennis on holidays.

At night, my dad reads Journey to the West to me in front of my bed, and my mom brings me warm milk to drink.

A dream that can never be realized.

Later, I hung the dreamcatcher outside the window instead of above the bed. Through the window, I could see flames of various colors lingering around the dreamcatcher.

Is that a will-o'-the-wisp?

This is my small offering, since there's no other comfort. I think it can at least alleviate some of their suffering.

Because of their suffering, I felt their pain deeply.

The desolate creature flapped its wings at me, and I pressed my tearful face against it.

Then… she vomited, unsurprisingly.

I wiped my face, and the sadness vanished without a trace.

"...Thank you for comforting me so much."

(The Dreamcatcher Ends)

The Three Divine Matchmakers

Coughing, I felt my way down the wall as I slowly walked down.

Ever since scales grew on my face, the effects of herbal teas have weakened considerably, and I can't even touch the old man's incense ash water. Although Shuo is a skilled doctor, I know perfectly well that her skill lies in her human abilities; I'm currently just an awkward half-baked doctor.

This made Huang'e very depressed. She made a ruckus every day and even found several terrible "medicines" for me to swallow. I was very grateful for her kindness, but I really didn't dare to swallow a poisonous spider alive.

Finally, I begged her to go out for a walk instead of staying home with me.

"If you don't go out on patrol, all the monsters and spirits at the foot of this mountain will tremble, thinking you're too sick to get out of bed," I coaxed her. "You need to establish your authority once in a while, don't you?"

Only then did she fly away arrogantly, her flight accompanied by a chorus of squawking and squeaks.

I wasn't seriously ill, it's just that the weather was late this year; it was warm until November, then suddenly turned cold and warm again in December, the temperature fluctuated wildly. No matter how careful I was, I still caught a chill. Then a few monsters from out of town came to talk to me about the division of Tang Sanzang's flesh, we fought a few times, and I caught a cold, so things got even more out of control.

When Tang Chen saw how sick I was, he almost canceled his trip with Miss Lioness. This year, Christmas included the weekend, so taking two days off would connect it with New Year's Day. He had originally planned to go on vacation with his girlfriend.

Long-distance relationships are hard to maintain. Why not take a vacation to nurture your relationship? And you shouldn't have missed it because I'm sick. I kicked him out, "You're not going to die from illness! Go away, don't bother me at home. Let me rest for a few days, okay? Shuo will take care of me!"

“How about,” he said, tug-of-war with me, “you come along too, Hengzhi! Don’t worry about the travel expenses… I’ll be worried about you otherwise…”

"What kind of Philip would I be?" I yelled. "Get lost! You're so nagging..."

For once, no one was making noise around me. I slept for a while, then felt a bit hungry, so I got up to find something to eat.

Shuo saw me and smiled, "It's one thing to come down in your pajamas, but you changed into proper clothes."

"...If customers in the store see this, wouldn't that be inappropriate?" As I spoke, I coughed a few more times and laboriously climbed onto the high chair behind the counter.

"Would you like some multigrain porridge?" she asked.

I nodded and saw a letter on the counter, which looked like my uncle's handwriting. I reached for it, but Shuo grabbed it before I could.

“This one is mine.” She pulled another one out from under the counter. “This one is yours.”

I even forgot to cough and stared up at her blankly. She looked back at me with an amused expression.

Wait, wait! Uncle wrote a letter to...Shuo?

"The deeper you get to know someone, the harder it is to let them go." She was heating up porridge behind the counter. "It's a pity I'm too old; I can only let go of such a good man."

The heart, which had been pounding in the throat, slowly returned to its normal position.

"...However, if I were to offer myself up, it would be impolite to refuse."

I sprayed boiling water all over the counter, coughed violently several times, and almost choked to death.

She wasn't angry; instead, she laughed heartily.

With trembling hands, I wiped the counter. "...Shuo, you're joking, right? Uncle is a monk..."

"The thicker the city wall, the more interesting it is to destroy it." She placed a steaming bowl of multigrain porridge in front of me.

…What should I do? Holding the spoon, I started to freeze. Should I write a letter to warn my uncle to be careful? But I didn't know if Shuo was joking; writing such a letter in such a hot and steamy way would be too embarrassing.

But what if Shuo is serious? I must say, while Shuo isn't exactly a beauty, she possesses a captivating charm. She quietly runs a small, unassuming café here, yet she's never short of suitors.

If she really sets her sights on a man, I think he won't be able to escape her no matter what.

What about my uncle's innocence?!

I don't know how I finished the multigrain porridge; I just felt dizzy and disoriented.

"Hengzhi, what are you so nervous about?" Shuo propped his cheek up and looked at me. "The balance of Yin and Yang is the foundation of following nature. I won't use any tricks to deal with your uncle... but if he comes to me, I'll happily accept him. As for you... shouldn't you find a lover?"

My heart sank. Actually, I understood what she meant. Excessive abstinence breeds a host of illnesses.