The fault of yin and yang

Chapter 17

"Ah, ah... be gentle! Do you think I'm dead?!" This was my first time visiting since Lü Hantian moved out.

"Baby, I've been very gentle. The wound is too deep. How did you get so many injuries?" Ignoring my cries, Lü Hantian lifted my leg and continued applying the medicine.

This injury is really embarrassing; how did it happen to be on the inside of my leg?

"What are you thinking about? Have some bird's nest soup," Lu Hantian's entrance interrupted my thoughts.

"I don't want to drink," I answered honestly.

"Is there anything I can help with?" he asked as he sat down, looking at me earnestly with his misty, peach-blossom eyes.

"What can you do to help?" I replied weakly. I still couldn't figure out what that thing was. There must be something else besides that little girl to have such power, but if it was so powerful, why didn't it just eliminate me? If it wasn't just the little girl as a ghost, why didn't Grandpa Qian react at all? And what about the Endless Lamp? ...

As I organized my amulet bag and toolbox, I pondered. I'd hardly ever used anything inside, yet I kept going over and over again. I needed some clues, but I couldn't find any in my head…

"I'm sorry," Lu Hantian suddenly blurted out after a long silence.

"Huh?" I didn't react.

"I'm sorry, I can't help you." Although Lu Hantian's apology felt a little sentimental to me, it still warmed my heart.

"Do you know about the Endless Lamp?" I asked, though I didn't hold out much hope.

Lü Hantian shook his head.

“I need the ninth lamp of the Endless Lamp, but I don’t know where to get it,” I shook my head and continued tidying up.

“Baby, I’m back,” Lü Hantian always calls me baby, regardless of the occasion. Even when the prince is present, he still calls me that. Although I always scold him, he still does it. He’s such an unrepentant guy.

"Hey, you've got work to do so early in the morning?" Lu Hantian said as I was eating my breakfast when she came in.

"Did you sleep well last night?" Lu Hantian put down the box she was holding, came over and snatched my eggs.

"Thanks to Young Master Lü's care, it's not bad." I only managed to snatch back half of it; the other half had already been swallowed by him.

"Is there anything going on today?" Lu Hantian's smile was a little strange.

"First, go find the prince and admit your mistake."

"prince?"

"Well, didn't I mention a lamp to you yesterday? It was borrowed from the prince's school, but it broke when we started working on it yesterday, and then in the afternoon..." I couldn't finish my sentence.

Lu Hantian opened the box he had brought in; inside was—the Ninth Endless Lamp.

"Ah—", I stuffed the half egg I hadn't had time to eat into his mouth again, and hugged him and gave him a big kiss.

"This is it, this is it, how did you get it?" I asked excitedly, holding the Endless Lamp, while Lü Hantian was trying to flush down the egg that was choking him.

"I am Lü Hantian!" the young man said, patting his chest.

"Where did you get this? It's hard to find. How much did it cost? I'll pay you back. Tell me," I said, pouring him a glass of juice and handing it to him obsequiously.

“Honey, you’re right, you can’t buy this at all, and why bother being so calculating with me?” Lu Hantian took the juice and put an arm around her. This guy is always like this.

"Hey, hey, take it away," I said, patting Lü Hantian's hand that was wrapped around my waist. Before Lü Hantian could take her hand away, my phone rang.

It was Fu Weiping. He said the morgue door couldn't be opened; anyone who touched it would be thrown back, and the skin on their hand would peel off where it touched the door…

(vi) The Morgue, Chapter Five: The Last Solution

"Oh, Miss Zuo, you've finally arrived!" Fu Weiping greeted her as soon as she got out of Lü Hantian's car.

"I'm leaving," I said to Lü Hantian, and then rushed into the hospital with Fu Weiping.

"What happened?" I asked as I walked.

“This morning, Lao Qian tried to go in, but he was turned away and is still lying in the emergency room,” Fu Weiping replied, wiping the sweat from his brow.

“Two young men went to open the door, and the result was the same,” he continued, then paused and said, “Miss Zuo, what exactly happened yesterday…”

"Dean Fu, I'm afraid you're hiding something from me, about the morgue," I stopped and asked. Fu Weiping also paused, standing there without answering.

“Since you’ve come to me, I hope you’ll tell the truth. Otherwise, you should find someone else for this business!” At first, I was just guessing that there was more to the story, but now, seeing Fu Weiping’s expression, I was almost certain. “If I don’t know the truth, then I’m afraid not only I will be in danger, but judging from the current situation, the entire hospital is probably in danger,” I turned around and continued.

“No, Miss Zuo…” Fu Weiping thought I was about to leave and quickly called out to me.

“It’s like this… well, let’s go to Lao Qian’s lounge to talk,” Fu Weiping said, taking off his glasses and walking towards the lounge with his head down.

"Yes, that's how it is," Fu Weiping said in a low voice, clenching his fist as he stood by the window.

“Many medical students are willing to come to our hospital for internships, largely because we can provide practical experience,” Fu Weiping opened the window, took a deep breath, and continued, “To make a long story short, it’s precisely because we want to provide practical experience for interns that we immediately persuade the families of patients with simple social relationships to donate their bodies. For those without relatives, we use them directly for practice.” After a long pause, Fu Weiping continued, “Two years ago, an ambulance brought in a homeless man who had been hit by a car. He had a comminuted fracture of the spine and a cracked skull. You could say his chances of survival were only a few percent. And because no family could pay the fees, we were hesitating when he suddenly died. So we used him directly as a fresh cadaver for practical experience. But unexpectedly, it turned out to be just temporary nerve paralysis caused by the spinal fracture. We only discovered this when we did the autopsy…” At this point, Fu Weiping looked up at me and said, “Our hospital really didn’t do it on purpose, and this is the only time. So, Ms. Zuo, please don’t make this public.” Sweat beaded on Fu Weiping’s forehead, which was covered with wrinkles.

"Yes, don't worry, I understand. What I want to know is, how long did it take for this patient to actually die?" I asked, stopping Fu Weiping from expressing his gratitude.

"We stopped after we found his heart was still beating, but we didn't perform any emergency treatment..." Fu Weiping's voice trailed off. "About fifty seconds later, his heart stopped beating." After saying this, tears welled up in Fu Weiping's eyes. As a doctor, he must have felt remorse.

"Two years ago? Nothing happened before that?" I handed him a glass of water.

"Yes, not long after that incident, the morgue's freezer compartments would keep popping out for no reason," Fu Weiping said, taking a sip of water. "We also had people come up with solutions, and nothing happened again until about two weeks ago."

"Was it Old Qian who stitched up the dissected corpse later?"

"Ah, yes, how did Miss Zuo find out?" Fu Weiping was somewhat surprised by my question.

"Oh, it's nothing, Dean Fu. Please evacuate everyone from this courtyard. Don't go near it until I get back."

...

"Hey? What are you two doing here?" Upon returning to "Weiyang," she found Prince and Lü Hantian both there.

"Why are you back? Has everything been resolved?" Lu Hantian asked.

"How can it be so fast? I'm coming back to get something, I need to go over there later," I said, leaving the two of them behind and running upstairs.

If what Fu Weiping said is true, then the most likely explanation is that the thing that suppressed this guy two years ago was damaged or failed for some reason. This time, it's preparing to be reborn, fueled by the grievances of the suicidal girl and the spiritual energy of the black cat. Old Qian has been safe all along, thanks to him stitching up the corpse. Old Qian certainly didn't expect that his job would save his life. But judging from the situation this morning, even Old Qian was injured. I must have angered him yesterday.

The biggest problem is that it refuses to communicate with me...

"What are you thinking about?" Lu Hantian and Wang Zi appeared out of nowhere.

"Weren't you here to get something? Is there something you need?" the prince asked, sitting on the sofa.

"Hmm, it's okay, for now." I sat down too. Actually, I was a little afraid to think about it. If we wanted to resolve this matter, we would have to communicate with him. But now the only way to communicate with him was through spirit mediumship.

"What are you saying, baby? Why are you talking nonsense? Are you okay for now? You're not okay for now," Lu Hantian said, pressing me down onto the sofa.

"Is there anything we can do to help?" the prince asked, putting his hand on my shoulder.

This feeling is wonderful, as warm as first love. It's just—a little complicated.

"Okay, shall we do that?"

"What?" they both asked, completely bewildered by my actions.

...

"Passing through the underworld" is prone to errors when performed by only one person, but it is currently the only way to resolve this matter quickly...

"Did you remember, Young Master Wang and Second Young Master Lü?" After giving the instructions, I was still a little worried looking at them in their flustered state.

"I know, I know. If I see you making any big movements, I'll hold your head down and use the incense to guide you to stop. I understand." Lu Hantian said nonchalantly, but he was still seriously lighting the incense.

"If you open your eyes, burn the talisman on your head. I understand," the prince replied, kneeling on the ground as he helped me arrange my things.

I hope it will succeed.

"Smoke billows from the incense burner, the music begins... Hundreds of ghosts from the east scurry about, the spirits of heaven and earth part on either side... Accurate! Accurate! Accurate!"

(VI) The Morgue, Chapter Six: A Journey to the Underworld

"There probably aren't many people like me who have already been to the underworld several times before they were even thirty," I thought to myself, standing in front of the gates of Fengdu. I couldn't help but find it funny.

In truth, the underworld and the human world developed in tandem. I had visited this place before, following in the memories of Lady Li, but that was over a thousand years ago. The current Fengdu City truly surprised me; it seems much more prosperous than it was a few years ago. Department stores abound, along with one-stop shopping centers, gyms, restaurants, schools, kindergartens, and bars—it has it all. However, one type of entertainment venue still remains—brothels…

"Come on, come on, year-end clearance sale!" A heavily made-up middle-aged woman grabbed me.

I never expected that the concept of promotions would become popular here in recent years.

However, all this prosperity belongs only to this place. There is an old saying: Yin and Yang are separated, and humans and ghosts are separated by a path; therefore, when I first visited the underworld at the age of nineteen, my grandmother repeatedly warned me: first, I cannot go shopping; second, I cannot speak carelessly; and third, I cannot go to high places.

"Shaanxi Yuanbao (a type of ingot), delicious and inexpensive, don't miss it!" Just as he escaped the woman's entanglement, he was stopped by a little girl at a roadside food stall. The two-meter-long stall was filled with candles and ingots, with stools and tableware placed next to it.

"Looking for a room? We have air conditioning and offer soil from all over the world..."

"Grand opening specials..."

"Sports apparel starting at 50% off..."

"New afternoon tea items launched..."

...

By the time I arrived at "Fengdu Mansion" after walking through the commercial district, I was exhausted.

When I visited a few years ago, this place was still a traditional Chinese bungalow. In Lady Li's memory from a thousand years ago, it was a government office with glazed red tiles and stone lions guarding the entrance. Now, it is a magnificent high-rise building with a tall staircase in front and the three large characters "Fengdu Prefecture" carved on the gate. It looks more like a "municipal people's government" than a government building.

Fengdu Mansion was very quiet, as was the area in front of it, a stark contrast to the previous commercial district. It seemed as if everything here was still.

Upon entering the gate, the place was bustling with activity, with people in business attire coming and going, but there was no sign of life. In fact, that was nonsense; they were all ghosts, so how could there be any "life"?

Although it looks like a tall building, it is actually a long house.

A sign hangs on the large window on the left – Guard Room.

Before I could finish speaking, the person inside pointed to the right.

"Elevator, 1332," the guard was a man, with features that looked painted on, and rosy cheeks. He was clearly a paper effigy burned from the ground. Who would have thought the underworld would employ "outsourced personnel" as civil servants?

The elevator was new and white. When the doors opened, there were already many "people" inside. Although these people didn't make me feel uncomfortable, I still didn't want to get in because this elevator was made of paper.

Ghosts have no weight, but souls do, though only about twenty grams, it's still weight. These staff members standing in the elevator, floating with the movement of the elevator's paper, made me even more uneasy. But I couldn't expect so many ghosts to be waiting for me in the elevator, so I had no choice but to bite the bullet and go up.

Actually, it's more like an elevator than a subway, except it's a box that moves horizontally, and there's no going up or down here.

Stepping out of the elevator was a nightmare; it felt like standing on a trampoline, and in the middle of a bunch of ghosts.

"Zuo Weiyang? What are you doing here again?" The person in charge of the F City household registration department was already very familiar with me. This place operates on a regional division of labor. Different "people" are responsible for different regions. For example, the person in charge of F City is only responsible for F City; they are not allowed to inquire about anything else. To put it bluntly, they are like the local earth gods of ancient times.

Although there are quite a few highly skilled people in F City, including about a dozen who can communicate with the spirit world, unfortunately, for some reason, I was remembered by this guy. Actually, it's not surprising. A few years in the human world is just a moment here, so it's understandable that he remembers me.

"You haven't been promoted yet, sir?" I joked, sitting down as if to say something. The person in charge of F City was the youngest among the many household registration officials, only a few hundred years old. It was said he was a wandering Taoist priest in his lifetime. This local deity, though a minor immortal, was also the most free. Because they could freely come and go from the mortal realm, their views were the most open. Therefore, although there was a difference of several hundred years between them and the local deity in front of me, they weren't really that far apart in age.

"What are you doing here all the time, girl? You're such a nuisance," he asked, stroking his beard.

"Yeah, it's pretty troublesome," I scratched my head and continued, "I need to investigate two people and a cat."

"Hmm, name and address," the old man opened the household registration office. Unfortunately, there was no computer available here, so their working methods hadn't changed much.