False evidence

Chapter 60: The Republic of China Train (Part 2)

This sudden shout startled many people.

A child who was engrossed in eating suddenly jolted and burst into tears.

The newly arrived man was startled by the sound, but upon looking up, he immediately smiled, took the hand of the woman beside him, and strode over.

Before the two could get close, the man in the green robe and the man in the white robe both stood up.

The man in the green robe smiled and clasped his hands in a fist salute to the man, while the man in the moon-white robe turned around and stood beside him with a smile.

(Bai Jing deliberately explained at this point: The man who came later was named Zhao Boqing, and the beautiful woman was his new wife.)
(Meng Chao couldn't help but ask: What's that beautiful woman's name?)
(I rolled my eyes, feeling that going into detail about this at this point was a bit distracting. Bai Jing was already straightforward enough, and this only made things more uninteresting.)
However, Bai Jing's expression was rather puzzling when Meng Chao asked the question.

She seemed to be struggling with something, frowning and remaining silent for a while before shaking her head.

"Everyone has a name, but the God of Life has never told us what the woman's surname and given name are."

Meng Chao scratched his head: "Born an immortal? Which one?"

Bai Jing said, "It's the man in the blue robe. He and Zhao Boqing both practiced martial arts; in those days, they were considered outlaws. Zhao Boqing was a lay disciple of the Southern Shaolin Temple, skilled in external martial arts, and nicknamed 'Zhao Tiezhong' (Iron Bell Zhao). Zhao Boqing was from Guangdong, and in his hometown, his family were known as 'Sitting Pools' (a euphemism for martial arts practitioners)."

Meng Chao was even more bewildered: "What's the point of sitting in the pool? Does your family have a family tradition of running a bathhouse?"

I couldn't help but say, "They were the high-ranking bodyguards of the early days! By the Republican era, there weren't many people escorting goods anymore. The people in the escort agencies were somewhat similar to the bodyguards of celebrities and the wealthy today. But back then, their main job was protecting private residences and businesses from local thieves and robbers. This service was called 'sitting in the pool'!"

Bai Jing asked in surprise, "You seem to know a lot about this?"

Meng Chao laughed: "You don't know this, do you? My grandfather, who was twenty-one, was a traveling doctor who went from village to village. In the old days, he was called a 'bell doctor,' which is what we now call a 'Mongolian doctor'! His grandfather is seventy-three this year. If it were twenty or thirty years earlier... he would have been considered a bandit, right?"

Hey, let me tell you something. Twenty-One's grandpa is no ordinary guy. Take Twenty-One, for example. Don't let his lazy, laid-back attitude fool you; he didn't learn any real skills from his grandpa when he was young. But with his fighting skills, most people wouldn't even get close to him before he'd beat them to a pulp!
Just think about it, how amazing is his grandpa? Let me tell you this: I might not believe in all things supernatural or ghostly, but if you're talking about reclusive masters, damn it, there are countless like that in this world! Hey, look at me, I'm 1.8 meters tall, and 21-year-olds are shorter and thinner than me, right? If we were to fight one-on-one, I wouldn't stand a chance against him! Just imagine how powerful his grandpa is! It's terrifying!"

Bai Jing said with great interest, "I know what a itinerant doctor is. He's the kind of quack doctor who used to walk the streets and alleys ringing a bell to treat people. My master was even saved by one of those itinerant doctors in his early years! By the way, Sanqi, what's your grandfather's name? If you tell me his name, my master might even know him!"

I shook my head: "My grandfather was a peddler of wild herbs, and he didn't like people mentioning his name."

Bai Jing and Meng Chao were about to speak when I quickly clapped my hands: "Shouldn't we get back to the main topic?"

It's not that I have no questions, nor that I lack curiosity.

Actually, when Bai Jing mentioned her master, I couldn't help but ask her a question.

Because when I was a child, I heard my grandfather and Grandpa Bai tell me so many strange and wonderful stories.

Bai Jing is a disciple of the shamanic path, specifically a page in the Hu Huang Shamanic shrine.

The master she spoke of was not a person, but a so-called "seat master" in the shamanic profession!

When the disciple goes out, the master sits on his shoulder.

She's a disciple of the Huang family, so her master must be a powerful weasel spirit! If I said I wasn't curious, that would be utter nonsense.

However, although Bai Jing's story wasn't particularly captivating, I had a vague feeling that what she was telling was most likely related to the wolf head mark that had suddenly appeared on my back.

The story told by Bai Jing was not captivating enough.

However, it is precisely because of this, because her wording is so detailed and rigorous, that people feel that what she says is highly credible, and there is almost no doubt that she would lie.

Given this premise, how could I not pay attention to what she said—the curse of the wolf's head?

I said bluntly:

"The later 'unexpected man' is called Zhao Boqing, and the beautiful woman beside him is his wife, whose name you don't know; the man in the blue robe who is nearly two meters tall is nicknamed Sheng Shenxian, do you know his real name? Also, what is the identity of the 'moon-white robe' who is with Sheng Shenxian?"

"The name of the immortal is Chen Zudao."

Bai Jing said something, then suddenly asked me, "Do you know if it's okay to walk with your toes pointing outwards?"

I nodded: "Besides the 360 ​​trades, there are eight other trades. Thieves, Gu poisoners, swindlers, mechanics, orchid makers, spirit mediums, life-stealers, and red handkerchiefs. Because they are all unorthodox, they are called the Eight Outer Trades."

Afterwards, I gave Meng Chao a simple and blunt explanation:
Thieves are called "Dao Men" (盗门); Gu (蛊) refers to witchcraft and sorcery; Qian Men (千门) refers to swindlers; Ji Guan Men (机制门) worships Lu Ban as their patriarch, but they mostly make a living by setting up traps in tombs; Lan Hua (兰花) is a euphemism for prostitutes (some of whom are men); Suo Ming Yi Men (索命一门) is a gathering of assassins; Hong Shou Juan (红手绢) refers to the traditional magic and illusion lineage.

As for the "Divine Adjustment Gate" among the Eight Trades, it mostly refers to itinerant sorcerers, underworld shamans, and the like.

Logically speaking, fortune tellers, diviners, and even people like my grandfather who sold wild medicines should also be included.

Bai Jing said, "Sheng Shenxian's real name is Chen Zudao, and he belongs to the Thieves' Sect among the Eight Outer Trades."

She suddenly laughed, and to me, her laughter seemed rather inexplicable.

"If you met Chen Zudao, you would be very surprised."

Seeing a hint of mischief in her expression, I couldn't help but chuckle: "Aren't you being a little mean?"

I say this because she had made it very clear beforehand that the immortal Chen Zudao was born during the Republic of China era. Moreover, her words almost explicitly stated that Chen Zudao lived during the early to mid-Republic of China period.

That era is undoubtedly too far removed from the present.

How could I possibly meet Chen Zudao?
Isn't that the same as cursing me to die?
Bai Jing couldn't help but chuckle to herself for almost a minute before finally managing to stop. She then looked at me with a charming smile and said:

"Right now, I can only tell you the names of three main characters in the story. The man in the blue robe is Chen Zudao, nicknamed 'The Immortal of Life'; Zhao Boqing, as you said, is the bodyguard Daguan, nicknamed 'Iron Bell,' which shows how domineering his external martial arts are?"

Bai Jing downed her drink in one gulp, leaned back in her chair, and crossed her long legs, which were tightly encased in jeans.
"The third one is the man in the moon-white robe. His name is—Lü Xin!"

(End of this chapter)