Folklore and Strange Tales: At the Start, You Retrieve the Sea-Suppressing Black Iron

Chapter 121 Old Tobacco Oil Mixed with Ginger, Drawing a Circle to Define the Forbidden Zone

"Don't pour it into the well."

The young man from the sesame seed cake shop was carrying a bucket of ash, with one foot already on the edge of the well.

Cheng Xiaojin called out to him through the crowd, "Lie down, they'll shrink for a while, then come out from another opening, covered in gray dust, and surround the well."

The young man held the bucket, his toes dangling over the edge of the brick, afraid to step down.

How wide is the circle?

Cheng Xiaojin drew an arc on the floor tiles with a wooden stick.

"Three feet."

Aunt Liu stared at the gray line, her eyebrows almost standing on end.

"Three feet? You think stove ash is Han Shaobai's money?"

Cheng Xiaojin looked up at her.

"With so many stoves at Huguo Temple, can't you even gather enough ash from a single well?"

Aunt Zhang slammed her hand on the cutting board, and the minced ginger on the board jumped up.

"Hey! Who burns coal briquettes in the morning? Don't pretend you're deaf upstairs."

Someone poked half their head out from upstairs.

"We don't burn coal briquettes at home."

"Where did you put the stove ash yesterday?"

"In the flowerpot."

"Bring it down, pot and all."

Before long, someone came downstairs carrying a flowerpot.

The leaves and flowers were still covered with night dew, and a layer of black ash was turned up from the bottom of the pot.

The ash was poured out basin by basin.

Cheng Xiaojin squatted three feet away, not moving towards the well, but using a wooden stick to clear away the pile of ash and have someone mix in dried ginger powder.

Zhou Banxian took out a small porcelain bottle, and as soon as he opened the bottle, the smell of tobacco oil wafted out.

It was oily black and shiny, clinging to the ash and refusing to disperse.

The aroma of ginger mingled with the smell of cigarette smoke, and several young men rubbed their eyes and backed away.

Zhou Banxian's jaw tightened as he looked at it.

"Be careful, I've been saving this half bottle for half a year."

Tong Kexin took the bottle.

"If you keep nagging, I'll mix your pipe and its ashes into the ash."

Zhou Banxian moved his lips a couple of times, but ultimately didn't retort.

Tang Wanqing attached the red thread to the outer edge of the gray circle, making sure the thread ends avoided the well water and only fell on the dry brick seams.

"How long can it hold out?"

Cheng Xiaojin used a wooden stick to pick at the gray edges.

"As long as they climb up using the wet skin, they will rot if touched. They are afraid of being trampled and also afraid of being washed away by the black water."

Aunt Liu turned around and yelled at the neighbors.

"Everyone back off! Don't step on the gray circle!"

The neighbors returned the eggs faster than they had received free ones.

Old Li was helped to the tofu pudding stall, his legs were tied with ginger cloth, and he was holding a strainer in his hand.

"The left side is too thin, sprinkle some more."

Aunt Zhang turned her head and scolded him.

"Can you sit down?"

"I'm just lying here, if I don't look at it, who will?"

Tong Kexin lowered her head and moved Sister Zhou's pancake cart back half a foot.

The wheels had just rolled over the cracks in the brickwork when a crisp sound came from the overturned bowl of dough.

Cheng Xiaojin immediately raised his hand.

"Don't move."

Tong Kexin held onto the handlebars, her hand never letting go.

"Sister Zhou?"

The batter bowl stopped making noise.

Frost seeped from the crack along the edge of the basin, turning into water droplets that rolled along the cart towards the wellhead, stopping just outside the ash circle.

Tang Wanqing stared at the drop of water.

"Her line is still tied to the well."

Cheng Xiaojin pressed the wooden stick against the brick, and his fingers went numb with pain even through the cloth.

"Don't run over the wheels with the gray ring, and don't put the basin too far from the well. Sister Zhou is still down there recognizing this pot."

Tong Kexin straightened the car, her eyes reddened slightly, and then she raised her chin.

"Then let her watch. Nobody will get out of her stall."

A scream came from the well.

The first water monkey emerged, its body halfway over the edge of the well, its hands pressing into the gray circle.

When the black ash clung to the damp skin, white smoke immediately rose up.

Blisters formed on its palms, and when the blisters broke open, pale muscles and tendons were exposed.

The water monkey tried to shrink back, but the thing behind it kept pushing upwards.

Tieguai Li took a wrench and smashed it against the edge of the well.

"Roll down!"

The water monkey flipped back into the well, bumping into its kind behind it, causing several loud noises below.

Aunt Liu hugged the pot lid and cheered.

"Come on, I've prepared ginger powder for you!"

The second round was even more intense.

Two water monkeys were stacked on top of each other. The one on top had half its face burned by the stove ash and was still opening its mouth towards the fire.

Tong Kexin scooped up half a spoonful of boiling soup, but instead of pouring it over the animal, she poured a line of it along the outer edge of the gray circle.

The oil seeped into the ash, salt crystals clung to the tobacco oil, and steam rose up along the edge of the well.

As soon as the water monkey's nose and mouth approached, the whole face immediately shrank back, and the climbing momentum dissipated.

Cheng Xiaojin's eyes lit up.

"Don't waste the broth, pour a thin layer along the edge of the ash."

Tong Kexin did as instructed, her wrist remaining steady without wobbling.

Tang Wanqing looked at the gray circle.

"The soup contains salt and oil, which helps to trap the ash."

Cheng Xiaojin tapped the edge of the brick with a wooden stick.

"It can also make them smell the food, tempt them to come up, and then scald them to go down."

Tieguai Li clicked his tongue.

"You're so shameless, even ghosts would avoid you."

During the third round of shoveling, at least five or six people in the well squeezed upwards together.

The manhole cover was pushed aside, black water gushed out of the brick surface, and half a palm's width of the gray ring edge was washed away.

Zhou Banxian hugged the compass to his chest.

"gap!"

The young man from the pancake shop was about to rush over with the ash bucket in his arms when Tang Wanqing grabbed him by the back of his collar.

"Don't cross the line."

Cheng Xiaojin looked at Tieguai Li.

"Brother Li, Tie Zhai."

Tieguai Li picked up the iron shovel used for shoveling furnace ash from the wall and shoveled the ash over a distance of three feet, just enough to fill the gap.

A water monkey's finger peeked out from the gap and pressed into the new ash.

The dried ginger powder seeped into the gaps between its fingers, making it squeal so loudly it almost cracked its throat, and left several black marks on the brick when it fell over.

There was a moment of silence underground.

The silence was so oppressive that it made it hard to breathe.

The neighbors dared not stop watering the plants.

When someone's wrist gets sore from tapping, they switch to the other hand.

The enamel basin upstairs was making a lot of noise, but none of the window lights were off.

Aunt Liu stared at the well opening.

"Refunded?"

Cheng Xiaojin tilted his ear, the tip of the wooden stick pressed against the edge of the brick seam.

"No, they're looking for another way."

Zhou Banxian lowered the compass, and the needle veered towards the sewer at the street corner.

"It's tangled in the pipe."

Tieguai Li looked up at the street corner.

"Just now, the blood from the corpse-raising process was splashed onto that iron grate over there."

Cheng Xiaojin's face darkened.

"The three dogs throwing pots was just the pretext; the real paving the way was at the street corner."

Tong Kexin slammed the iron spoon against the edge of the pot.

"Circles are drawn at street corners too."

Aunt Liu raised her voice.

"Is there enough ash?"

No one responded.

Aunt Zhang cursed upstairs.

"Stop hiding! Bring down all the ashes from the bottom of the pot, the stove, and even the ashtray!"

Cheng Xiaojin's eyelids twitched when he heard the word "cigarette ash".

Tang Wanqing immediately kept an eye on him.

"Don't even think about that girl in the courtyard."

"I wasn't thinking about it."

"Your eyes are already wandering to Master Ma's courtyard."

Tieguai Li dragged the three floral shirts to the side of the street and tied them together with a piece of old rope.

"What about these three?"

Cheng Xiaojin glanced at the black knots on their collars.

"Don't kill him, keep him alive to question Boss Lin."

The man in the floral shirt collar had a swollen mouth, yet he was still laughing incoherently.

"The Shen gang is here, you all have to get out."

Tong Kexin scooped up half a spoonful of soup and held it in front of his face.

"Say one more word, and I'll let you try the Huguosi signature dish first."

The man shut his mouth.

Zhou Banxian moved the compass outside the gray circle. The compass needle wobbled twice in the third position and was then dragged away by the north.

"The base of the northern city wall also moved."

Cheng Xiaojin looked up.

"Deshengmen?"

Zhou Banxian's forehead was sweating.

"Like Deshengmen, the waterways and underground ditches are all connected, while Huguosi is just an opening."

Tang Wanqing took the compass, and the end of the needle brushed against the seventh position again.

"I don't feel safe there either in Liulichang."

Cheng Xiaojin understood what she meant.

The third incident involved a water monkey, while the seventh incident involved someone still relying on nightclubs for survival.

Before Shen Jiulou even arrived in Beijing, Boss Lin had already begun dismantling the human anchors on both sides.

Tong Kexin suddenly spoke.

"Go back to Master Ma's residence."

Cheng Xiaojin looked at her.

"This isn't over yet."

"The gray circle stands firm, I'll guard the stove."

She inserted the iron spoon back into the pot and turned up the stove.

"If you stay here, you can't go down the well, you can't touch water, and you can't touch iron. I also have to keep an eye on you."

This time, Tieguai Li didn't argue with her.

"Little Goldie, she's right. Let's go back and figure out what to do next. The next one might not be the same Water Monkey."

Cheng Xiaojin looked at Sister Zhou's pancake cart.

The red cloth on the handlebars was blown by the night wind and gently patted against the iron pole.

He stood there for a moment, then nodded.

"Don't let the fire go out. If the ash ring breaks, fix it at the street corner first. Change Old Li's leg with ginger cloth every half hour. Those three should stay away from the well. If they keep talking nonsense, stuff them with dried ginger."

Liu waved the pot lid to chase people away.

"I know, hurry up and go. If you stand here, the needles in Miss Tang's sleeve are about to poke into our pot."

Tang Wanqing put the silver needles back into her needle pouch.

"Walk."

As Cheng Xiaojin left Huguosi Street, the scratching sound came from the well again.

This time, the sound didn't rise to the top.

It was dragged northward along the underground pipe.

The compass in Zhou Banxian's hand tilted slightly, and the seventh digit jumped a little.

"North."

As Cheng Xiaojingang entered Master Ma's courtyard, the compass in Zhou Banxian's sleeve bumped against the table first, the needle swung around a few times, and then got stuck diagonally next to a dark ditch line on the map.

Han Shaobai stood guard at the threshold with a rolling pin in his arms, and immediately stood up when he saw people return.

"How is Huguo Temple?"

Tieguai Li threw off his coat, his shoulder still covered in stove ash.

"It didn't collapse, but Old Li got three bite marks from the water monkeys."

Han Shaobai swallowed.

"Are there really water monkeys?"

'

Tang Wanqing pushed the medicine basin in front of Cheng Xiaojin's knees.

"Soak your hands."

Cheng Xiaojin looked down at the gloves; two black holes had been burned into his palms, the edges of which were charred yellow.

He stopped joking and put his hand into the medicine.

The water surface immediately turned a rusty blue.

"Miss Tang's medicine is deadly to drink, and she didn't even consult anyone before brewing it."

Tang Wanqing unfolded the medicine cloth.

"If you think it's unreasonable, then don't throw stove ashes into the well."

"I call that making reasonable use of kitchen supplies."

Tong Kexin didn't come back, but the news of the pot burning at Huguosi Temple, though separated by half a city, was still ringing in Cheng Xiaojin's ears.

Only Master Ma, Zhou Banxian, Tang Wanqing, Tieguai Li, Han Shaobai, and the old ashtray in the center of the round table remained in the main room.

The ashtray was lined with three layers of coarse cloth, its edges stained black with soot, and three strings of copper coin wind chimes jingled erratically under the eaves without any wind.

Master Ma spread out a map of Beijing's underground water network, pressing down the four corners with copper coins.

The bronze plaque with the character "Shen" was placed under the lid of the teacup. The rim of the lid smelled burnt, and the chirping of insects underneath intensified.

Cheng Xiaojin glanced over.

"Is it still making noise?"

Master Ma said, "It called out the whole way."

Han Shaobai hurriedly said, "I'm keeping watch. If it barks, I'll hit the table leg with a rolling pin."

Tieguai Li glanced at him.

"Useful?"

Han Shaobai hugged the rolling pin tightly.

"I feel at ease."

Zhou Banxian pressed down on the compass.

"The water monkeys retreated from Huguo Temple, but they didn't disperse; they burrowed into the dark ditch to the north."

Master Ma pulled out a piece of yellowed old paper, with two corners missing from the edge, and drew a waterline at the foot of the city wall in the early years.

The tobacco pipe was parked at the foot of the Deshengmen city wall.

"This old culvert had a drainage outlet left during the Yongle era when the city was being built. Later, the surface was blocked, but the cavity underneath remained."

Tang Wanqing asked, "Will Shen Jiulou enter the capital from here?"

Master Ma stared at the line, while the chirping of insects under the teacup lid grew even louder.

"If he brings along a sorcerer from Southeast Asia, the hidden drains are the most convenient place. Corpse Gu can be soaked in water, and puppet corpses can stick to the walls. They can hide in the mud during the day and be released through the water outlet at night."

Han Shaobai's back is pressed against the door frame.

"Should we call the police to block the road?"

Everyone in the room looked at him.

Han Shaobai immediately stood up the rolling pin.

"I was just asking."

Cheng Xiaojin soaked his hands, his voice hoarse.

"Electronic devices will malfunction as soon as they come near the crack in the city. When people arrive, all they see is water accumulation, construction, and clogged old pipes. Water can't fill a police report receipt."

Tieguai Li took out a piece of scrap iron wire and wrapped it around his finger.

"Before Shen Jiulou even showed up, Boss Lin first splashed blood on the corpse and then released the monkey. This is to probe the Huguo Temple's trump card."

Master Ma shook his head.

"Boss Lin doesn't dare to make a third move on his own. Shen Jiulou's people have already entered the Beijing circle; at least their informants have reached out."

Zhou Banxian moved the compass onto the map.

The needle first pierced Huguo Temple, then jumped to Liulichang, and then wandered aimlessly along the base of the city wall within the Second Ring Road.

He cursed.

"Third, seventh, both ends are being pulled along."

Tang Wanqing draped the medicine cloth over the edge of the basin.

"Is he trying to break two living anchors at the same time?"

Master Ma placed his pipe across the hidden line between the third and seventh stakes.

"He wants to cut off contact."

Cheng Xiaojin looked up.

"The third one relied on the fireworks of Huguo Temple to identify the location, and the seventh one relied on the night market in Liulichang to block the door. Once the two sides broke, my door bolt was singled out."

Han Shaobai asked in a low voice, "Why did you bring it out?"

Tieguai Li answered for him.

"Open the door."

Han Shaobai shrugged.

"What if we don't agree?"

Cheng Xiaojin looked at him.

Did your boss consult you before turning around?

Han Shaobai shut up.

Master Ma's hand paused on the old map of the underground ditch.

"Shen Jiulou has preferred to walk the underground path for twenty years. He dislikes the rules and the eyes of others on the yang path. He believes in the path of the corpse, the water path, and the shadow path."

Zhou Banxian looked up.

"Old Ma, you've been with him?"

Master Ma picked up the teacup and put it back on the table.

"Shouyi has played against him before, and I've watched Shenmen make two moves."

Cheng Xiaojin's fingers, which were soaking in the medicinal solution, twitched, and the bluish tinge spread from between his fingers.

"My dad was one of his men back then?"

"Nominally yes."

Master Ma looked at the ashtray.

"Shou Yi entered the Ouroboros using the identity of the seventh generation of the 'walking snake.' Shen Jiulou gave him a way, but also guarded against him."

Tang Wanqing pressed further, "Why did you fall out later?"

Master Ma did not answer.

Beneath the teacup lid, the bronze plaque bearing the character "Shen" made another sound, black smoke billowed from the rim of the lid, and a half-circle mark was burned onto the tabletop.

Master Ma looked at the ashtray.

"It might be in this tank."

Cheng Xiaojin looked down at his hands.

His hand was blue and heavy in the medicine.

The short, metallic scraping sound I heard when I listened to the ashtray's inner chamber is still lingering in my ears.

Thin, short, the nail head brushed against the porcelain body.

Tieguai Li twisted the scrap wire into a loop, then loosened it.

"Then let's open it. If we wait for Shen Jiulou to enter the city, we'll only be at a greater disadvantage."

Tang Wanqing looked over.

"He doesn't want his hand anymore?"

Tieguai Li pointed to himself.

"I opened it, he told me the position of the tenon, so I disassembled it."

Master Ma shook his head.

"The tenon joint left by Cheng Shouyi cannot be pried open by force. If you make a wrong move, the things inside may self-destruct, or you may lead the seventh gate into the courtyard."

Han Shaobai couldn't help himself.

"Was there really a nail in the ashtray?"

Zhou Banxian touched the map with the compass.

"Why do you keep asking if it's true or not? Was it true that the water monkey bit someone tonight?"

Han Shaobai shrank back to the door.

"real."

"Then shut up."

Tang Wanqing lifted Cheng Xiaojin's hand out of the medicine and wiped it with a dry cloth.

A ring of blue dye appeared on the corner of the cloth.

"You can't touch it again tonight. I'll give you the fifth dose of medicine tomorrow morning, depending on the situation."

97

Just as Cheng Xiaojingang was about to speak, his phone rang.

Tang Wanqing put him on speakerphone.

The pot on Tong Kexin's side was churning with noise, and the sound of neighbors banging on pots seemed to crash into the house through the electric current.

"The gray circle worked. The water monkey stopped flushing the well, and the iron grate at the street corner was put up. Those three in floral shirts were tied up, and Old Li's legs didn't turn black."

Cheng Xiaojin asked, "Where's Sister Zhou's car?"

There was a pause on the other end of the phone.

"Nothing was touched, and another crack appeared in the pot."

No one spoke in the main room.

The water in the medicine basin sloshed, and the old grime on the edge of the ashtray was licked by the lamplight.

When Tong Kexin spoke again, the spatula hit the edge of the pot.

"Cheng Xiaojin, don't do anything reckless. I can hold Huguo Temple here."

Cheng Xiaojin looked at the ashtray in the center of the round table.

"Know."

"You always ask for a beating when you say you know."

Tieguai Li leaned closer.

"Kexin, when he does something reckless, I'll hold him down for you."

The phone call ended, and the only sound in the room was the faint ticking of the compass needle against the wall.

Zhou Banxian lowered his head.

"It's stopped."

The compass needle stopped turning and pointed directly to the base of the northern city wall.

Three strings of copper coin wind chimes fell to the ground under the eaves.

The rope had a clean cut, and the copper coin rolled over the threshold and stopped at Han Shaobai's feet.

The rolling pin in Han Shaobai's hand fell to the ground with a thud.

"Who did it?"

No one answered.

Cheng Xiaojin's hands, still damp from soaking in the medicine, vibrated from the bottom of the basin.

Boom, boom, boom.

The heavy object was dragged through the underground ditch, each movement echoing with the sound of water pipes.

Tieguai Li squatted down beside the paving stones, his ear two inches off the ground. After listening for two breaths, the madness on his face completely disappeared.

"This doesn't belong to the water monkey category."

Master Ma pushed the map forward.

"Shen Jiulou's sorcerer has started transporting things."

97

Tang Wanqing put away the medicine cloth.

"What is it?"

Zhou Banxian stared at the compass, his lips moving slightly.

"Corpse Gu, or Puppet Corpse, can cut copper coin ropes and has iron wires on its body."

Cheng Xiaojin rested his hands on his knees, the cloth strips soaking up the blue water, which dripped onto the floor tiles.

He looked up at Tieguai Li.

"Brother Li, I won't be able to sleep tonight."

Tieguai Li opened his toolbox and laid out the pliers, watchmaker's knife, and broken saw blade under the lamp.

"Need to work?"

"I'm afraid we need to rush to get things done."

Cheng Xiaojin looked at the pile of scrap wire in the yard, then looked at the kitchen.

"Bring out all the scrap wire, pliers, and Aunt Zhang's jar of aged brine. The wire puppet is going to enter the city, so let's prepare a cage for it first."

Han Shaobai spoke cautiously.

"How can I help?"

Cheng Xiaojin glanced at him.

"You have money."

"What should I buy?"

"I buy as much scrap wire as you can, ten yuan a bundle. I also buy pliers, tattered quilts, and gasoline cans. Don't pick new ones, just old ones, the cheaper the better."

Han Shaobai paused for half a second, then took out his phone.

"I'm calling the flea market now."

Tieguai Li threw a bundle of scrap wire into the center of the yard. The wire hit the ground and bounced around with a series of loud noises.

"Young Master Han, take a look at the Panjiayuan Arsenal."

As soon as he finished speaking, the bronze plaque with the character "Shen" under the lid of the teacup rang even more loudly.

From the alleyway outside the courtyard, the sound of an iron wire dragging across the blue bricks could be heard.