Dream Walker: Feng Shui Master Bai Ya

Although Shang Muchen wasn't particularly afraid in broad daylight, there was indeed something eerie about the northeast corner of the 157 Art District.

The moment I stepped into this courtyard, all the sounds of cars outside the park, and the noise of men and music inside, disappeared. It became instantly quiet, as if I had left the world.

The smell also changed drastically; a damp and gloomy scent rushed into his nostrils, reminding Shang Muchen of the Jiangnan water towns he had visited during his travels, with their moss-covered stone steps along the streams.

Even the temperature seemed much colder than outside. The early summer sun shone evenly in the courtyard, but the temperature seemed several degrees cooler than outside, making my hair stand on end.

A huge black rat suddenly rushed out of the entrance of the Special Treatment Department, ran wildly in front of Shang Muchen without regard for anything else, and plunged into the depths of the holly bushes opposite, disappearing from sight.

There really are rats!

Shang Muchen had lived to his twenties and had never seen such a large rat before.

In his mind, a mouse should only be the size of a mouse.

He only ever saw one tiny mouse at the back gate of the university cafeteria, being chased around by seven or eight large tabby cats. The scene wasn't scary at all; it was more like the cats playing a football match.

This rat was terrifying. Its body was as big as a forearm, black with a white tail tip, and a tail that was a full foot long.

Shang Muchen was really afraid that the rat would bite him. Although his sneakers were thick, he still felt uneasy.

He paced around nervously for a long time, then hesitated for a moment, wondering if he should ask his fourth uncle for advice before venturing deeper into the area.

But then I thought, since I'm already here, I'll just have to see what happens.

So he lifted his leg high, landed lightly, and carefully entered the [Special Treatment Clinic].

Entering this very old-fashioned stairwell is like stepping back into childhood. The long and tidy stairwell is painted waist-high with green paint, and the terrazzo floor never looks dirty.

The ceiling light had been broken for a long time, making the hallway dark even during the day.

After taking only a few steps, there was another rustling sound. The hairs on the back of Shang Muchen's back stood on end. He craned his neck to look in the direction of the sound and saw that it was a hospital room.

Summoning his courage, Shang Muchen tilted his head and peered into the ward. The room seemed brighter than the hallway, and the tattered curtains swayed, casting the sunlight on and off in the private room.

The moment the bright sunlight shone on the now-abandoned hospital bed, a huge rat suddenly crawled out from under the mattress. Startled, it froze on the spot, not running away, but staring straight at Shang Muchen with its pair of bright red eyes.

"Hello..." Shang Muchen waved weakly at the mouse, "Brother Mouse, you're busy, I'm fine, I was just passing by..."

Shang Muchen timidly shrank back from the door of the ward.

"squeak--"

After a loud squeal, a giant rat, about a foot long, rushed out of the ward, darted past Shang Muchen's feet as if fleeing for its life, and suddenly dashed out of the corridor and disappeared into the grass.

Hmm, it doesn't seem that scary.

Shang Muchen had gotten used to it.

As I walked along, there were wards or examination rooms on both sides of the corridor, nothing particularly strange about it.

Shang Muchen pondered that if the building was cleaned up, there shouldn't be any problems. If all else failed, they could just demolish it and rebuild it. Although it would cost a lot more money, Wang Da Pangzi wouldn't be unable to afford the investment.

It's just a rat, isn't it?

What's so scary about it?

With this thought in mind, Shang Muchen went to the stairwell, looked up and saw that the second floor was brightly lit, and looked down and saw that the basement was as dark as hell.

Shang Muchen rationally chose to go upstairs.

What he saw next made him regret his choice.

The moment he stepped onto the second floor, what he saw almost made him throw up his breakfast.

In the very middle of the second-floor corridor, a huge, indescribable "rat ball" occupied the entire corridor.

This is a three-dimensional, one-meter-long, living ball of rats made up of countless giant black rats.

All the mice had their tails tangled together, a complete mess. Each mouse was wriggling, struggling, and thrashing about desperately, as if trying to break free, but unable to separate itself from the other mice.

Shang Muchen's arrival disturbed the giant rat ball.

In an instant, all the mice turned their bright red eyes to Shang Muchen, and they even stopped squeaking.

Without any hesitation, Shang Muchen turned and ran.

He ran all the way to the outside of the northeast corner of the hospital, pushed open the door and rushed onto the street. The bustling music and the voices of tourists filled his ears, and only then did Shang Muchen catch his breath.

Looking back at the yard, the mouse ball hadn't chased after them.

Shang Muchen quickly relocked the large iron gate, and then tugged hard on the lock, afraid that it wasn't secure enough.

Sigh, I advise Fatty Wang to find a company specializing in controlled demolition and just blow up the whole building.

No, if we do that, the rats will just scurry everywhere. There are so many restaurants and residents around here, wouldn't that cause an ecological disaster and make things even worse?

What's going on? Where did all these rats come from?

The overwhelmed Shang Muchen stood under the sun for half a day before he could finally calm himself down.

Having no idea what to do, he wandered into a coffee shop and called his fourth uncle, but he didn't answer. So he sent him a text message explaining the situation.

Fourth Uncle replied quickly:

[It's a minor issue; I can solve it myself by looking it up in a book. I'm out running errands for the next few days, I'll talk to you when I get back.]

Looking for a book?

Shang Muchen did buy several books related to feng shui, including the "Hanlong Jing" and "Yilong Jing" by Master Yang Yunsong of the Tang Dynasty, as well as contemporary university textbooks such as "Introduction to Feng Shui" and "Environmental Geography and Feng Shui Humanities".

Shang Muchen was not good at reading, and these books didn't have any particular order or structure. He flipped through them randomly without any clue.

Remembering his fourth uncle's requirements for him—to avoid being pedantic and to learn to "observe qi"—Shang Muchen sighed slightly, thinking to himself, "Observing qi" is easy to say, but it's not so simple to do."

Sitting in the coffee shop, lost in thought, Shang Muchen suddenly had a whim and sent Liu Qingyang a message:

"Want to go out for dinner tonight?"

Soon, Liu Qingyang replied:

Okay! Where to?

The moment Shang Muchen received those four words, all his worries vanished, and overjoyed, he immediately replied:

Let's go eat Japanese food! I'll book a private room right now!

【OK. 】

Shang Muchen happily put aside the rats, feng shui, haunted houses, and all other messy things, and cheerfully chose a small shop with rave reviews, convenient transportation, and a private environment, and booked a delicate little private room.

Shang Muchen took the subway early to the restaurant, sat in the private room, and waited anxiously for Liu Qingyang, filled with anticipation for the romantic time that was about to begin.

The appointed time arrived, and a cheerful, bell-like female voice rang out from outside the private room. The moment the door opened, Shang Muchen was genuinely excited for a moment, but then felt a little disappointed.

Liu Qingyang arrived, accompanied by Xu Lele.