Превратись в лебедя и прилети к тебе

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This is what Xiao Zhengrong and Chang Wu experienced in the well. After they came up and encountered Feng Junzi again, they learned that the two people in the well were actually Feng Xingzhi and Yazi. In other words, apart from the two of them who were alive, everyone else in the well was actually a ghost from sixty years ago.

After Chang Wu and Xiao Zhengrong left, Momoki Kenjiro finally spoke in a sinister tone: "Feng Xingzhi, you actually came after all."

Feng Xingzhi: "With such an unyielding spirit as you still lingering in this world, how could I not come? Momoki Kensuke, don't forget, we still have an unfinished duel. I think it's time to settle things today!"

However, Chang Wu and Xiao Zhengrong did not hear this part of the conversation.

...

"Is Feng Xingzhi a hero or not?" Yuan Xiaoxia asked thoughtfully after listening to Xiao Zhengrong and Chang Wu's story.

"Him? I don't think he's a hero, just a reckless fool!" Feng Junzi sighed.

Xiao Zhengrong tilted his head and looked at Feng Junzi, saying with some confusion, "Why do you and Feng Xingzhi look so alike? Almost everyone mistakes one person for another. My grandfather mistook you for Feng Xingzhi, and Chang Wu and I mistook Feng Xingzhi for you."

“I know,” Chang Wu replied, “It’s the resemblance. Although Feng Junzi doesn’t know martial arts, he still has some integrity. Nowadays, people may be rich or poor, talented or incompetent, virtuous or treacherous, but people with integrity are too few. In this respect, Feng Junzi is three-tenths similar to Feng Xingzhi.”

"What is integrity?" Yuan Xiaoxia asked.

Feng Junzi remained silent. After listening to Chang Wu's words, Xiao Zhengrong muttered to himself, "Integrity is the foundation of being a person. If the majority of people in a nation lose this foundation, then the very foundation of that nation will be shaken and it will be lost in history. This kind of thing can only be understood intuitively and cannot be explained in words. It may be a kind of sedimentation over thousands of years, a kind of spontaneous and conscious consciousness."

Yuan Xiaoxia: "Isn't it a bit exaggerated? Someone as traditional and conservative as Feng Junzi, or someone like Feng Xingzhi who kills a few Japanese soldiers, is that what you call integrity?"

Feng Junzi, feeling somewhat smug after hearing Chang Wu and Xiao Zhengrong's praise, was immediately dampened by Yuan Xiaoxia's cold water. She couldn't help but retort, "I'm not Feng Xingzhi, don't lump me in with him. I know what Officer Yuan means; one shouldn't be conservative, but neither should one be habitually arrogant or self-deprecating. Look at all the people around us today! They worship opportunistic success, no one thinks about the meaning of existence. There are certainly many good things we should learn, but we shouldn't forget the fundamentals of life. Look at the reality of the last hundred years—why are we still considered inferior even on our own land? Is it because of our magnanimity? It's because of our own emptiness! Why? We've given everything from the outside world a superior, domineering attitude, yet we fear the growing self-awareness of our people. Therefore, from top to bottom, we're all caught up in a pursuit of power and profit without principles. If this continues, we're destined to never be able to hold our heads high again..."

Feng Junzi's words made the three shake their heads. By the end, even he himself was a little unsure of what he was saying, so he could only sigh and stop. Xiao Zhengrong murmured, "I wonder how Feng Xingzhi and Taomu Jianxiong are doing now? Who won between them?"

Chang Wu was also moved by Feng Junzi's words: "Who won or lost between the two of them is no longer important. To be honest, although Momoki Ken'o is a villain who deserves to die, there is something about him that we do not possess."

Yuan Xiaoxia: "What is this? Is this what you call integrity? What integrity do those villains have?"

Feng Junzi didn't want to dwell on the topic any longer, so he looked up and asked Xiao Zhengrong, "What else did you find down there besides weapons? Only counterfeit money and no gold?"

Xiao Zhengrong: "You money-grubber, you didn't find any gold, but you did find a box full of skulls."

"Skull? What does it look like? Tell me about it."

Xiao Zhengrong: "It's very strange. There's only a skull, and it's been repaired. It looks like the remains of some important person."

"The remains of an important person?" Feng Junzi suddenly had a thought. He gestured with his hands for a while, asking as he did so, "Is this what the skeleton you saw looked like?"

Chang Wu, who was on the other side, examined the thing more closely and nodded repeatedly: "Yes, that's it. The brow bone is very thick, and the skull is relatively small. Feng Junzi, how did you know that? You didn't go down either."

Feng Junzi: "These could indeed be the remains of a very important person, more important than you can imagine... I always thought the Peking Man might be in New York, could he be buried here?... No, this is of great importance, I have to go down and take a look." With that, he reached out and untied the rope around Xiao Zhengrong's waist, and walked towards the well.

The group reached out to stop Feng Junzi: "We finally managed to escape up here, what are you going to do going down again?...Aren't you afraid of the heavy yin energy?...The yin spirits down there are not something you can handle."

Feng Junzi: "It's strange, but I'm not cold at all now. Besides, the truly terrifying thing in the world is people. Why would I, a living person, be afraid of these ghosts? ... With Feng Xingzhi down there, what do I have to be afraid of? ... Let me go, I really want to see Feng Xingzhi!"

Chang Wu waved his hand and said to the other two, "Let him go. If I were Feng Junzi, I would also really like to meet that Feng Xingzhi."

Xiao Zhengrong thought for a moment and said, "In that case, I'll go with you."

...

Feng Junzi and Chang Wu changed their clothes and walked to the well with Xiao Zhengrong, while Chang Wu and Yuan Xiaoxia watched helplessly from the side. Suddenly, the big yellow dog named Baobao darted out, grabbed Feng Junzi's trouser leg, and pulled it back forcefully, whimpering as it tore at it. This unexpected turn of events made Xiao Zhengrong and Feng Junzi stop in their tracks.

"Baby, what's wrong with you?" Yuan Xiaoxia shouted.

Before Yuan Xiaoxia could finish speaking, a rattling sound of an iron chain suddenly came from the well. Feng Junzi, who was standing closest to the well, saw the chain being pulled with great force, producing a series of teeth-grinding sounds. He wondered what was happening down below. Just as he was wondering, he vaguely heard a low, rumbling roar, like muffled thunder, coming from the depths of the earth. Seeing this, Feng Junzi's earlier courage vanished. He grabbed Xiao Zhengrong and shouted to the others, "Get out of here! Get as far away as possible!"

The sudden anomaly made everyone realize almost simultaneously that they needed to leave. The four of them, along with their dog, quickly moved away from the well, with Feng Junzi and the large dog Bao Bao running the fastest. As they retreated, the muffled rumbling from the ground grew clearer, like the whimpering and struggling of a wounded black dragon, carrying far along the mountainside. The ground beneath their feet trembled slightly. Chang Wu tried to steady himself, Xiao Zhengrong supported Yuan Xiaoxia, while Feng Junzi lost his footing, falling to the ground before getting back up. They ran until they reached the clearing where they had picnicked in the woods the day before before stopping.

Part Four: A Pair of Chopsticks, Chapter 54: A Gentleman Breaks a Willow Branch, the Bell Rings Crisp.

The rumbling from underground continued, carrying like rolling thunder into the distance, seemingly following the mountains towards the distant sea. The earth trembled, and the group sat on the open ground, bewildered by what had happened. Chang Wu and the others first suspected an explosion at the underground armory; the sound suggested the blast had spread far beyond their underground traverse. About half an hour later, the noise gradually subsided, and the opening of the Black Dragon Well had long since collapsed and was gone. What Feng Junzi and his companions didn't know was that even the air-raid shelter at the Dragon King Pond flounder fishing grounds, several kilometers away, had collapsed in this bizarre event.

"The explosion was quite large. It's a pity. The entire underground fortification looks like it's been completely destroyed," Xiao Zhengrong sighed.

Yuan Xiaoxia: "What's there to regret? Should such things be left in the world?"

Chang Wu: "Of course it's a pity. These are all evidence of crimes, irrefutable proof of the Japanese invasion of China..."

Before Chang Wu could finish speaking, Feng Junzi burst into inexplicable laughter, so loud that even the big yellow dog beside him barked. Seeing the strange looks he was getting, Feng Junzi stopped laughing and said, “Evidence? That’s ridiculous! Does this kind of thing need any more evidence? Do you think it’s like a child getting into a fight and crying to his mother? ‘Wang Xiaomao hit me, look at this bump on my head!’ Today they dig up two artillery shells from a construction site and call it ironclad proof of the Japanese invasion of China; tomorrow they find an old document in the archives and call it ironclad proof of the Japanese invasion. But they’re still revising textbooks and visiting shrines! And our martyrs’ cemetery has been contracted out! Is this meaningful? Less than twenty kilometers from here is the Wanzhong Cemetery. Do you know how many bones are buried there? Some things don’t need others to acknowledge; it’s about whether we ourselves remember them. Remembering history and reflecting on ourselves is enough!”

This time, Yuan Xiaoxia unusually didn't argue with Feng Junzi, but instead chimed in, "More than sixty years ago, the invading Japanese army built a secret military base here. Thirty years later, we dug an air-raid shelter next to this base. And now, thirty years later, this air-raid shelter, which has never been used, is being used by a bunch of money-grubbing scoundrels to store Japanese nuclear waste. Don't you think that's even more ridiculous? Although I don't yet understand what integrity is, I do know what kind of people lack integrity!"

...

Binhai News: On a certain day in June 2004, a 4.6-magnitude earthquake occurred in the Longwangtang area. The epicenter was in the mountains near Jinsha Village, Longwangtang. Due to the relatively low intensity of the earthquake and the remote location of the epicenter, there were no casualties, only a few buildings suffered varying degrees of damage.

Two months later, at Binhai International Airport. Tao Muling was finally about to embark on her journey back to the United States. Feng Junzi, Chang Wu, Lin Zhenzhen, Xiao Zhengrong, Xiao Yunyi, and Yuan Xiaoxia all came to the airport to see her off.

Feng Junzi held Tao Muling's hand, his expression full of reluctance: "Lingdang, have a safe journey, and don't forget to come back and visit when you have time."

Tao Muling stared at Feng Junzi with a dazed look: "By this time next year, I should have already received my degree, and I will come back to see you."

The announcement for boarding came over the loudspeaker again. Tao Muling walked toward customs, and Chang Wu, who was behind Feng Junzi, leaned over and whispered, "If you can't bear to part with her, then leave her here."

Feng Junzi: "Can she stay? She has her own life to live!"

Chang Wu: "Then you should go with her."

Feng Junzi: "Can you really go? It's not that easy! I have my own world."

Chang Wu sighed and stopped talking. Tao Muling, who had already reached the checkpoint, suddenly turned around and ran back, holding a wrapped box in her hand. She said to Feng Junzi with slightly rapid breathing, "I have a gift for you. I've thought about it and decided to give it to you now!"

Feng Junzi glanced at the size of the package, which was exactly the same as the original wooden box containing the chopsticks, and asked curiously, "What gift? It's not the chopsticks, is it?"

Tao Muling looked up at him: "If it's those chopsticks, will you accept them?"

Feng Junzi gently shook his head: "If it's those chopsticks, then forget it. To be honest, I'm a little afraid of them."

Peach Bell: "I knew it. Don't worry, this isn't the pair of chopsticks." She handed over the gift box.

Just as Feng Junzi reached out to take it, another pair of hands reached out and took it from him. It was Xiao Yunyi. As Xiao Yunyi took the box, she said, "Peachwood Bell, you can go back to America without worry. Don't worry about Feng Junzi. This gift is so exquisite, Feng Junzi, shall I hold it for you?"

Feng Junzi glanced at Xiao Yunyi without saying anything, then turned to Tao Muling with a wry smile. Tao Muling said nothing, gently embracing Feng Junzi and leaving a faint lip print on his cheek before turning and leaving. Feng Junzi stood there waving until her figure disappeared. Suddenly, a light, tinkling sound came from behind him.

It turned out that Xiao Yunyi was quick; the moment Tao Muling left, she immediately opened the package. When Feng Junzi turned around, he saw Xiao Yunyi pull out a string of sparkling objects from the gift box, which made a melodious sound in the air—it was a string of wind chimes. (The End of "Spiritual Chopsticks")

Part Four: A Pair of Chopsticks - Epilogue: Nian Nu Jiao

Ancient jade, devoid of luster, stained with lingering resentment, its blood-soaked spirit returning to the dark night.

The landscape remains the same, yet more desolate and murky; the precious blade whistles within its sheath.

The dragon is bound, the hero sings a tragic song, and all that remains is the sigh of the Azure Peak Sword!

A lone warrior, brave and resolute, his spirit remains steadfast even amidst the smoke of war.

A weak populace and an empty, powerful nation; elegance and refinement are lost, and we are ashamed to face our ancestors!

Vanity and prosperity bring hidden wounds, and a magnanimous heart is mistaken for a humble demeanor.

A virtuous man drifts away, his will buried in gold, his life stained with drunkenness.

The common people are speechless, lamenting the plight of Heaven above them!

This song, "Nian Nu Jiao," is likely a sixty-year-long duet between the characters Feng Xingzhi and Feng Junzi! The story of the "spiritual chopsticks" isn't entirely my fabrication; it's based on the experience of an elder in the cultivation world of Dalian. The old gentleman's account was very brief, but when I combined it with my own understanding, it became a lengthy piece. Whether the legend of these chopsticks is true or false is impossible to verify, just like the whereabouts of the Peking Man skull remains a mystery. However, I believe it must have happened at some time in some form. I'm writing a supernatural story, or rather, a ghost story. Writing this kind of subject matter was a last resort, merely a form of expression. I started writing this story in August 2005, the sixtieth anniversary of the victory against Japan. Perhaps it was for commemoration, but commemoration for its own sake is meaningless.

This novel is part of my "Ghost Stocks" series, but most of the plot has little to do with the stock market. The reason is simple: no one, or even a market, can exist in isolation; we always live within a larger environment. Of course, this is also one of my weaknesses; I can't tell a story from a completely detached perspective. I always hope my narrative can have some connection to real life. I wrote this novel intermittently for eight months, from August 2005 to April 2006, during which time I also experienced a series of unexpected setbacks in my personal life. Thankfully, it's finally finished!

On a side note, why did I write about a person like "Feng Junzi"? This person is certainly not like the real-life Xu Gongzi Shengzhi. When we were young, we always talked about "good people" and "bad people." This kind of division is simplistic and naive, but it's also straightforward, just like how knowledgeable people discuss "gentlemen" and "petty people." There's a saying that it's hard to be a good person, and it's true! A good person has to be smarter and more capable than a bad person to be a good person peacefully; otherwise, they can only learn to be bad and become bad themselves, or be obediently bullied by bad people. People who have never done anything bad are not necessarily good people. They will criticize bad people too, but once these people have the means to be bad, they will be even more like bad people than the bad people they criticize, because they know how to better bully good people. That's history.

Gangster novels are all the rage in the literary world right now. Have you ever seen a gang? Actually, the largest gangster organization in world history is today's so-called developed countries, the ones who set the international norms. They committed the largest-scale plunder and looting in human history, shaping today's world order, and then spent decades whitewashing themselves, becoming models of advanced human civilization. Our ancient nation is probably the only civilization that has barely survived this game of Earth. Don't take it for granted; this is reality.

"The Psychic Chopsticks" Side Story: Introduction to the Soul's Departure

The Legend of the Psychic Chopsticks: Soul Separation

Warning: The text may be disturbing; please read with caution!

introduction:

There's an old saying that goes, "Washing a concubine's feet earns one the title of Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations)." The esteemed scholar Qian Zhongshu added, "Hoping for a promotion from associate professor to full professor." What may seem like a small difference in status is actually like being separated by an incredibly thick layer of paper. And Huang Dongbo now feels like he's about to break through that paper.

Huang Dongbo, a former secretary, enjoyed writing and reporting on others. He was noticed by his superiors and served as their secretary for three years, then as deputy director of the office for another three years, followed by three years as deputy manager of a business department at Jinjiang Securities. Now, he has finally risen through the ranks and been transferred to the Binhai branch as general manager. After so many years, he has finally become the top leader.

Although the branch office was just a basic unit within the securities company, it was still a head office, and Huang Dongbo felt like a local tyrant. That day, Huang Dongbo sat in his own office, enjoying the sense of accomplishment from his large desk and soft executive chair, when an employee knocked and brought him a package. Huang Dongbo opened it and found a strange doll inside: a small yellow body with a large red head, no nose, no mouth, no ears, and a huge eye in the center of its face.

There was also a printed text message in the package, informing him that he had recently won a prize for a post he made on a certain website forum. The doll, called "Little Wanderer," was a souvenir for winning the prize. Huang Dongbo then remembered that some time ago, when he was working as an assistant in the business department, he was bored and spent his days online. He had occasionally participated in an online essay contest and never expected to actually win such a ridiculous prize.

The prize was small, but Huang Dongbo was deeply moved. This seemingly insignificant incident had stirred up his narcissistic tendencies. He felt incredibly talented and wronged; someone as gifted as him had served as someone else's assistant for nine years—God was truly blind to his worth. Holding a doll, he swayed his head and recited: "On the seven strings, the sound of wind rustling through the pines is clear. Though I cherish the ancient melody, few play it today."

He certainly had many things to reflect on, things that he couldn't share with outsiders.

"The Psychic Chopsticks" Side Story: Soul Separation Part 1, Full Moon Night

What's her name? That depends on Feng Junzi's mood. When Feng Junzi is in a good mood, he calls her Bell; when he's not, he calls her Wood; when he has an appetite, he calls her Peach; but when he calls her Peach, he notices her chest and immediately changes his name to Papaya. Actually, her real name is Peach Wood Bell, and she's a foreign woman that Feng Junzi "accidentally" picked up from the street (see Part Four of this book, "The Spirit Chopsticks").

Momoki Rin's background is not simple. Her biological father was a Chinese-American, and her mother was Japanese. Momoki was her stepfather's surname. She grew up in Japan and later studied psychology in the United States, earning her doctorate at the age of twenty-six. Her trip to China was for a so-called academic exchange program; how she ended up with Feng Junzi is another story.

It was an evening when Feng Junzi was sitting on a beach chair, admiring the moon on the beach. The moonlight was like water, and the wine in his glass seemed to flow with an unusual hue. Tao Muling, with her slender hands holding a bottle, stood behind him, pouring him wine, and exclaimed, "What a beautiful moonlight! I want to sing."

Feng Junzi: "Stop singing, or you'll attract something."

Peach Bell: "With wine, a beautiful woman like me, and such a beautiful moon, I'll sing you a song. That's what real enjoyment is."

Feng Junzi: "I'm afraid I can't handle this. Do you know why the moon is so bright tonight?"

Peachwood Bell: "Today is the fifteenth of the lunar calendar."

Feng Junzi: "That's right, but today is the fifteenth of the seventh lunar month. How dare you sing your incomprehensible Japanese songs in this gloomy little valley and on this deserted beach? Aren't you afraid of attracting ghosts?"

Tao Muling clearly didn't know what the fifteenth of July was, and was a little unhappy: "Who told you not to learn foreign languages? You can never understand what I sing."

Feng Junzi remained silent, and Momoko Rin assumed he had no further objections, so she began to sing. She sang an English song; while Momoko Rin was actually quite fluent in English, her pronunciation wasn't very smooth and sounded strange—a common problem among Japanese people. Feng Junzi couldn't understand a single word.

The song, melodious yet eerie, like a ghost's lament or weeping, drifted away on the sea breeze. In a nearby resort, a couple was arguing when the strange song carried on the wind. The girl shivered and buried herself in the boy's arms. The song continued its journey, reaching a stray dog wandering by the roadside. The dog growled and dashed home. Further down the street, a sweet potato vendor, preparing to pack up, heard the song on the wind and nearly knocked over his oven.

...

On the night of July 15th, Huang Dongbo lay in bed, faintly hearing a strange song. He couldn't understand the meaning of the fragmented lyrics, but felt a chill run through him, and all sleepiness vanished. When he was fully awake, the song suddenly stopped, and the surroundings became eerily quiet. Huang Dongbo prepared to go back to sleep when he suddenly heard a strange rustling sound.

The sound was like the stealthy footsteps on the floor. Such footsteps are usually hard to hear, but in the quiet night, they were exceptionally clear and jarring. The footsteps were coming from the living room, and Huang Dongbo felt a sudden, inexplicable fear. There was no one else home; had a thief broken in?

The rustling sound traveled from the living room through the hallway to his door, followed by a suppressed sigh, like the sound of wind rustling through the treetops, and then silence returned. For a moment, Huang Dongbo was at a loss, too afraid to open the door. After a while, he was drifting off to sleep again when the rustling sound suddenly returned, just as before, traveling from the living room through the hallway to his bedroom door, ending with a sigh and then falling silent. Not long after, as sleepiness returned to Huang Dongbo, the same sound began again. He didn't know how he got through that night.

"The Psychic Chopsticks" Side Story: Soul Separation Part Two, A Huge Eye

The next day was Saturday, but Huang Dongbo's branch still required employees to come to work. He was thinking about the strange things that had happened the night before, but he quickly forgot about them as he got back to work. He figured it was because he was too tired from his new job these past few days, or maybe he misheard the noises coming from upstairs and downstairs; the fear wasn't as strong during the day.

After get off work, Huang Dongbo ate dinner outside, then went to a bathhouse for a steam, and found a prostitute to "rest" in a private room for an hour, feeling completely refreshed. Huang Dongbo currently lives in a rented apartment by the business department. Since he was recently transferred here, his family is not with him. Huang Dongbo usually lives alone at night, and he takes care of all his "activities" outside. He never brings any women back to his place; it's a "good habit."

After returning home, he couldn't help but think about what happened the night before, and a strange tension welled up inside him. He left the light on for a long time before going to bed, but there was no sound. He turned off the light and drifted off to sleep.

Huang Dongbo was awakened from his sleep by rustling footsteps. This time, the sound was clearer than yesterday, and the footsteps seemed much heavier, stopping just outside the bedroom door. Huang Dongbo tried to sit up, but found himself unable to move while lying in bed, his body feeling like it had turned into a pool of mercury—a strange, uncontrollable sensation.