AEDBE CHAPTER 8
A Eunuch’s Dream of Being Emperor by Li Ximin
CHAPTER 8
The weather grew progressively colder. While the flowing waters of Tang Creek remained unfrozen, thick layers of ice locked up the small drainage ditches and irrigation canals. Whenever people exhaled, their warm breath instantly crystallized into biting frost.
Abao woke up exceptionally early that morning—or rather, he was jarred awake by his father, Zhang Faqiang. Having finished the carpentry work inside the Earth God Temple, Zhang Faqiang was now tasked with constructing the two massive town gates, a project set up on the open ground directly outside the temple. Whether working on the temple or building the gates, these were community public-works projects executed purely through unpaid volunteer labor, earning not a single copper in wages. Yet the undertaking threatened to consume his entire winter. Tormented by anxiety over this complete lack of income, he worried intensely about how they would survive the coming Lunar New Year. Procuring pork for the festive feast was out of the question, let alone sewing new garments for the children. He had previously appealed to Zhu Yinshan, the overseer of the city wall construction, hoping for some modest financial compensation. Zhu Yinshan had dismissed him with a stern rebuff: "Building the city wall is a collective duty for everyone in the community! Look at Lord Shunde—he has poured a massive fortune into purchasing materials without uttering a single complaint. Everyone else is contributing volunteer labor, and people from neighboring villages are even arriving to pitch in without demanding a fraction of a reward. How on earth can you have the audacity to ask for money? If every person participating in this project demanded pay, how much would that total, and who is supposed to foot the bill?" Left utterly speechless, Zhang Faqiang never dared raise the subject again, sinking into a gloomy depression that consumed his every waking hour. Up before dawn this morning to head to the work site, he vented his bitter frustration by slamming his broad axe violently into the dirt as he marched out, cursing aloud: "Building this damned bird-brain of a wall—are people even supposed to stay alive?!"
The sharp thud of the axe striking the earth startled Abao awake.
Before waking, Abao had been immersed in a wondrous dream.
He had dreamed of a theatrical stage where a stunning maiden, her coiffure studded with sparkling floral hairpins, flashed bright, starry eyes and bewitching glances. Shimmering long silk water-sleeves trailing from her wrists, she expressed profound emotion through her expressive brows and sang the operatic verses in a sweet, warbling voice like an oriole... Yet in the audience seating below the stage sat no one but him. The beautiful maiden was performing exclusively for him! Honey seemed to flood Abao's soul; in that moment, he felt like the happiest mortal in all of Tang Town. But his euphoric dream was shattered with brutal abruptness by his father's axe. Ever since live theatrical troupes began performing in Tang Town, Abao had become completely infatuated with the theater, attending every single show. He simply could not fathom why his best friend, Dongzi, showed zero interest in the stage.
Springing from his bed, Abao slipped out of the house.
He harbored a desperate wish that the moment he stepped outside, someone might announce an evening theatrical performance.
On the narrow streets, pedestrians hurried past with grim, preoccupied expressions, breathing nary a word about the theater.
Spotting Wang Hairong, Abao watched the bedraggled laborer trudge toward the eastern edge of town wearing a tattered cotton tunic, shivering violently while shouldering a carrying pole with wicker baskets. Abao knew Hairong was heading off to toil on the city wall construction. He remained entirely oblivious to the purpose of the wall or what consequences its completion might bring, deeming the project utterly irrelevant to his own existence. His singular obsession at that moment remained the theater.
Driven perhaps by the lingering magic of his dream, he drifted aimlessly into Xinglong Alley.
Arriving before the imposing gates of the Li estate, he gazed out across the open plaza with a hollow, unsettled ache in his chest. The heavy red-lacquered doors of the Li manor stood unlatched, flanked by militia guards clutching long spears who glared at him with hostile suspicion. Intimidated, Abao lacked the courage to peer inside, yet a stubborn conviction rooted itself in his mind: the performers had never left; they were concealed right inside the Li estate. The thought startled even himself.
He desperately yearned to slip inside the Li manor and verify whether the theatrical star of his dreams remained within its walls.
Far from gaining entry, however, he was met by a harsh bark from the sentry guarding the gates: "You little brat, what are you skulking around and peeking for? Get the hell out of here before I skin you!"
Inherently timid, Abao panicked, trembling violently as he turned tail and fled in blind terror.
Yet regardless of the threat, his stubborn heart insisted that the performer was hidden deep within the Li estate.
While Abao failed to penetrate the Li manor to satisfy his curiosity, Dongzi crossed its threshold that very morning.
Having prepared breakfast for Dongzi, Li Hongtang wound her long braids into a neat coil atop her head, wrapping them securely in a blue-patterned cotton kerchief to conceal the stark strands of silver creeping through her tresses. Setting off once more in pursuit of her missing mother, her destination today lay within the rugged mountain ridges stretching east of Tang Town.
Before departing, she instructed Dongzi: "Little brother, be a good boy while I'm gone. I might not return tonight—perhaps not for a day or two. Look after yourself and wait for me to come back."
"Don't go looking anymore, Big Sister," Dongzi pleaded quietly. "Mum is never coming back."
Reassuring him with a gentle pat on the head, Hongtang insisted: "We must believe she's still alive. Even if it kills me, I will drag her back. We cannot survive without Mum, can we?"
Tears welling in his eyes, Dongzi choked out, "Then let me come with you!"
"Don't talk nonsense," Hongtang scolded softly. "Stay here and guard the house. I have to go now—remember, you must wait for my return, and absolutely do not wander off!"
That morning, Dongzi neither crossed paths with Abao nor received a visit from him.
Abao sat alone upon the grassy banks of Tang Creek, a blade of grass clenched between his teeth as he stared blankly into the briskly flowing, crystal-clear water. Oblivious to the biting cold, he watched the stream project the phantom visage of the operatic performer from his dream. Her name was Zhao Hongyan. Anyone in town who frequented the theater recognized her as the troupe's leading dan actress.
Up in the gloomy loft, Dongzi’s thoughts drifted to his uncle, You Chengtuo.
You Chengtuo's voice and laughter remained vividly alive in his memory. His uncle had once promised to teach him martial arts during the winter, yet he had vanished into the sky riding a white paper steed. His aunt and the others had likewise disappeared, whisked away presumably by his uncle. He yearned desperately to mount a white paper horse and fly away alongside his uncle, growing intensely weary of the monotonous, blood-drenched existence that defined Tang Town.
Bitterly cold and damp, the loft left Dongzi shivering in his bones, his nose running with clear mucus.
He remained completely unaware when his father, Li Cilin, returned to the house.
Calling up from the ground floor, Li Cilin commanded: "Dongzi, get down here!"
Snapping out of his reverie, Dongzi heard the summons. Dreading disobedience, he scrambled hurriedly down the ladder and stood trembling before his father. Fixing him with an intense, piercing stare, Li Cilin spoke in a harsh baritone: "Dongzi, do you remember what I told you? Our prosperous days have finally arrived! I promised I would secure a life of effortless abundance for you!"
Dongzi remained silent. The "good life" promised by his father felt utterly spectral and devoid of meaning to his young mind.
"Come with me," Li Cilin ordered.
"Where are we going?" Dongzi finally managed to ask.
Visibly annoyed, Li Cilin snapped: "You'll see when we get there. Why ask so many questions?!"
Swallowing his apprehension, Dongzi followed.
Strutting ahead with an arrogant swagger, Li Cilin kept one hand resting casually upon the hilt of his sabre while swinging the other dramatically. Dongzi trailed behind, his face drained of color and his lips quivering from the biting chill. As they passed, merchants operating shops along the lane stepped out to bow and greet Li Cilin; only Hunchback Li remained inside his funeral goods shop, quietly fashioning paper horses while fixing a cold, hardened gaze upon the father and son as they marched past.
Li Cilin led Dongzi straight to the imposing gates of the Li estate.
Halting in his tracks, he turned back to announce: "Do you understand now? I am bringing you inside the grand manor."
"I understand," Dongzi whispered.
"Then let's go!"
Hesitating instinctively, Dongzi found his hand seized in a firm grip as his father dragged him forward. He felt like a hostage being pulled across the threshold of the Li estate against his will. Having never witnessed a compound of such staggering scale, Dongzi was rushed through a sequence of courtyards, grand halls, winding covered corridors, and arched stone moon-gates that opened into yet more courtyards fronting sprawling residential wings. Reaching the main reception hall of the innermost wing, Dongzi confronted Eunuch Li, who sat draped in a white silk padded robe atop a master's armchair, sipping tea with his carved dragon-head walking stick resting against the armrest.
Noticing their arrival, Eunuch Li rose, glided across the floor toward Dongzi, and emitted a soft, wheezing chuckle: "What a strikingly handsome boy! I take an instant liking to whatever I lay eyes upon!" Stooping slightly with his permanently curved spine, he took Dongzi's hand within his own and began gently stroking the skin. Though the snake candy gifted previously had blunted Dongzi's initial terror, the soft, clammy touch of the eunuch's palm sent an instinctive wave of unease and goosebumps rippling across his flesh. He had not seen Eunuch Li for quite some time; aside from making a public appearance during the groundbreaking of the Earth God Temple, the eunuch rarely stepped foot outside the inner gates of the Li manor.
Eunuch Li remained an inscrutable, shadowy figure.
"Child, your hands are freezing cold!" Eunuch Li fretted.
Pivoting to glare at Li Cilin, he rebuked: "What kind of father are you? Dressing the boy in such thin rags—what would you have done if he froze to death?!"
Standing stiffly in place, Li Cilin offered a foolish, ingratiating grin without uttering a word.
Releasing Dongzi's hand, Eunuch Li raised his voice toward the rear of the hall: "Attendant!"
An elderly maid emerged from the shadows behind the hall, stepping forward with a deferential bow: "Master, what are your instructions?"
"Mother Wu, quickly fetch that padded robe," Eunuch Li commanded.
Acknowledging the order with a scurry of mincing steps, Mother Wu vanished into the inner chambers, returning moments later cradling a meticulously folded white silk padded tunic. Stepping carefully before Eunuch Li, she presented the garment. Smiling warmly, Eunuch Li instructed: "Dongzi, strip off that wretched cotton jacket of yours. Look at it—caked in patches, grimy and black. It doesn't match your looks in the slightest! Take it off right now and slip into this new robe lined with the finest silk floss! It's both distinguished and wonderfully warm!"
Paralyzed by disbelief, Dongzi stood frozen in confusion.
"Hurry up, take off the old jacket and put on the new one," the eunuch urged.
Flustered and sweating despite the chill, Dongzi flushed crimson with tension. His mother, You Sidi, had ingrained a strict rule into him from infancy: never accept unearned charity from strangers, not even a scrap of gold. Confronted now by such an extravagant gift from Eunuch Li, his mother's admonition echoed instinctively in his mind.
Standing nearby, Li Cilin snapped angrily: "You ungrateful little wretch! Lord Shunde tells you to change, so why are you dragging your feet?!"
Shooting Li Cilin a sharp glare, Eunuch Li chided: "There's no need to frighten the child!"
"My apologies, Lord Shunde," Li Cilin muttered.
Stooping forward personally, Li Cilin stripped the tattered jacket from Dongzi's shoulders and forced him into the luxurious white silk robe.
Beaming with absolute delight, Eunuch Li circled the boy, inspecting him from every angle: "Exquisite! My eye for aesthetics remains unmatched—I knew precisely what size to prepare. Look at those sleeves—neither too long nor too short! This robe transforms you completely. What a magnificent, handsome boy! My servant—no, no, my heart is simply overflowing with joy."
Prompting his son, Li Cilin ordered: "Dongzi, thank Lord Shunde properly!"
Blushing furiously, Dongzi stammered, "Thank you, Lord Shunde."
"There's no need for thanks!" Eunuch Li purred. "Before long, we shall be a single family!"
Though the new silk robe provided instant warmth, it sat heavily and unnaturally upon his shoulders, making him squirm with discomfort. He desperately wished to pull his old patched jacket back on for psychological comfort; stitched laboriously by his mother's own hands, it carried a familiar presence he craved. Yet he dared not voice the demand. Dongzi could not foresee how donning this silk garment would alter the trajectory of his destiny—though in truth, the very moment he crossed the threshold of the Li estate, his fate had fractured irrevocably away from every other child in Tang Town, including Abao.
Gazing intently at Dongzi, Eunuch Li felt as though he were staring straight into his own vanished childhood.
Before his father's spice enterprise in the capital collapsed into bankruptcy, he too had been dressed in fine, warm garments and paraded before visiting dignitaries, who routinely praised his youthful beauty. The young Eunuch Li had basked in the sweetness of those adult compliments. His father's downfall had stemmed entirely from an uncontrollable addiction to gambling. Wasting away his spice shops, family residences, and eventually pawning his own legal wife to creditors, the destitute father found himself utterly incapable of feeding his son. Amidst this desperation, he recalled an elderly palace eunuch who had frequently patronized his spice boutique. During past visits, the old eunuch had routinely pinched the young boy's cheek with a teasing smile: "Come serve with me inside the imperial palace—the Empress is certain to adore you."
Consequently, the father dragged his son to an outbuilding situated just outside the Xihua Gate of the Forbidden City—a rundown shanty reeking of a peculiar, medicinal stench. Unaware of why his father had brought him to such a desolate spot, the boy watched with mounting dread as several indifferent men stared him down. These were the specialized blade-wielding surgeons who performed castration procedures. Seized by sudden terror as a profound sense of foreboding gripped him, he watched his father exchange murmurs with the men before they lunged forward, pinning him ruthlessly down onto a wooden workbench as if he were a sacrificial lamb.
His piercing screams and desperate thrashing proved entirely futile.
Wiping a stray tear from his eye, the father turned on his heel and walked out the door.
The surgeons bound his lower abdomen and upper thighs tightly with white linen strips, then washed his groin with scorching chili water. Wide-eyed with horror, the boy wept and shrieked. The executioners retained utterly vacant, impassive expressions, operating with the detached mechanical efficiency of men executing an irrelevant chore. One surgeon gripped a razor-sharp curved blade in one hand while using the other to clamp down firmly upon his genitals, severing the penis and scrotum from the root in a single, brutal stroke. A shriek of unimaginable agony tore from his throat before he collapsed into unconsciousness. Indifferently, the surgeon jammed a white wax plug into his urethra, secured it with cord, and slapped a layer of cold-water-soaked paper dressings across the mutilation before binding the wound. Following the surgery, patients were forbidden to rest in bed immediately; the surgeons hoisted the semi-conscious boy to his feet, forcing him to shuffle around the room for over two hours before permitting his father to carry him back home. For three agonizing days and nights, he could not retain a single drop of water; slipping repeatedly between consciousness and the abyss of pain, the wretched child endured a living hell. After seventy-two hours, the wax plug was extracted, releasing a sudden jet of urine that confirmed the castration had succeeded, sealing his altered destiny forever... On the day his father delivered him into the Forbidden City, the boy had fixed the old man with a cold, hollow stare and asked: "I'm entering the palace—where are you going?" Weeping openly, the father had replied: "I'm begging my way back to our home village." He remembered that place; he had been born in a settlement called Tang Town, brought to the capital by his parents only after reaching an age of rudimentary understanding. Offering no further words, he turned silently and followed the old eunuch deep within the towering red walls of the Forbidden City...
Eunuch Li exhaled a long, shuddering sigh.
Reaching out, he gently stroked Dongzi's cheek once more.
Meanwhile, Shen the Sow radiated renewed vitality.
Carrying a shoulder-pole laden with crisp, dew-kissed green vegetables down the main street, she flashed broad, beaming smiles at everyone she crossed. The townsfolk observed her transformation with astonishment; her normally bloated, porcine visage seemed almost radiant, softening into a pleasing expression. An acquaintance teased her: "Shen the Sow, did Yu Gouzi finally manage to satisfy you in bed today, putting you in such high spirits?" Flashing a coquettish, flushed grin, she spat playfully toward the heckler: "So what if he did, and what if he didn't? What business is it of yours if this old lady is happy?" Laughing off the retort, the villager shook his head and walked away.
Her joyous mood stemmed entirely from Li Saogu.
Having finally deduced that Li Saogu was the mysterious man who had crept into her bedroom that midnight, she possessed a concrete target, eliminating the exhausting guesswork of previous days when she had suspected virtually every lean-framed man in Tang Town without finding an answer. She nurtured high hopes that on another lonely night when Yu Gouzi frequented the gambling dens, her mystery lover might return to her chamber—a hope now successfully realized. Shen the Sow felt as though the withered flower of her existence had burst into renewed bloom.
In the past, Shen the Sow had held absolute contempt for Li Saogu.
What manner of man was he? Merely a pathetic, spineless failure within Tang Town whose household hovered on the brink of starvation. To make matters worse, after taking a wife, he routinely frequented the squalid confines of Urine-Stale Alley, crawling on his belly to spy through the floor-level cracks of public latrines to watch women defecate. On one occasion, caught red-handed while peeping, his head had been shoved unceremoniously into a cesspool, soaking him head-to-toe in human filth... Such a vile creature commanded the respect of no woman, least of all his own wife Wang Haihua, who routinely cursed him behind his back as a "doomed bastard."
Yet Shen the Sow now realized how profoundly mistaken she had been.
Her past judgment had been entirely clouded; she had completely misread this slender, gaunt man.
His prowess between the sheets proved nothing short of astonishing. Though her body had been repeatedly bartered away by the worthless gambler Yu Gouzi to settle mounting debts, she had never encountered a single partner capable of providing genuine physical fulfillment—those degenerate gamblers were universally useless cowards. Having endured a bitterly bleak existence without experiencing a single day of genuine happiness since wedding Yu Gouzi, she believed that if a man could grant her physical release, life retained a glimmer of golden warmth. She recognized long ago that survival boiled down to simple mechanics: since the mouth above rarely tasted delicacies, the body below deserved its satisfaction, ensuring one's existence wasn't entirely lived in vain. Li Saogu had injected hope and fantasy back into her soul; she trusted implicitly that he would climb back onto her bed under cover of night.
Moreover, Li Saogu's social standing bore no resemblance to his past obscurity. He currently wielded supreme authority as the deputy commander of the Tang Town militia—who wouldn't look upon him with profound awe? Did he still need to skulk around Urine-Stale Alley eavesdropping on women or spying on privies? Acquiring female companionship was effortless for him now. If Shen the Sow formally attached herself to his fortunes, would he fail to shelter her? Even if she gossiped maliciously in Urine-Stale Alley, no one would dare lay a hand on her or hurl insults anymore... Mulling over these prospects, how could her heart not blossom with joy? She smiled even within her dreams!
Having sold the bulk of her produce, Shen the Sow delivered the remaining vegetables reserved for Hu Xilai directly to his cookshop.
Hu Xilai stood over a wooden tub, aggressively scrubbing raw pork intestines.
Shen the Sow could never comprehend why so many individuals developed an addiction to the foul-smelling delicacy of pig offal; she despised the stuff. The batch she had previously pilfered from Hu Xilai's shop had gone completely uneaten by her, devoured entirely by the ravenous wolf-pack of Yu Gouzi and their children.
The unmistakable, beaming euphoria radiating from Shen the Sow rubbed Hu Xilai the wrong way. Frowning with irritation, he snapped: "Shen the Sow, did you unearth a pot of gold ingots? You're grinning so hard your teeth are about to drop out!"
"I've encountered something infinitely better than finding gold ingots, you old turtle!" she retorted cheerfully.
Flaring up instantly as he always did, Hu Xilai snarled: "Drop the vegetables and get the hell out of my shop! If your produce weren't decent, I wouldn't waste a second on a thousand-man-ridden, rotten bitch like you!"
Unfazed by the venomous curse, Shen the Sow laughed lightly and departed.
"That woman has lost her mind," Hu Xilai muttered bitterly.
As Shen the Sow stepped outside the doorway, she spotted Li Saogu striding past with a dark, thunderous expression. She greeted him with an inviting smile. To her utter shock, Li Saogu refused to cast a single glance in her direction, marching past as if she were a total stranger before vanishing down the lane. Staring longingly at his retreating back, she murmured to herself: "My lord is certainly imposing—now that is a real man!" She convinced herself that Li Saogu merely maintained appearances to avoid public scrutiny in broad daylight, leaving her eagerly anticipating their midnight tryst.
Shen the Sow remained entirely oblivious to the fact that Li Saogu signaled her impending doom.
That very midnight, however, no visit materialized. Consumed by a feverish, maddening wave of unrequited lust, she paced her bedroom howling like a wild boar.
Deep within a secure subterranean chamber in the rear courtyard of the Li estate, Eunuch Li and Li Cilin huddled under the dim glow of an oil lamp, deliberating momentous strategies. Armed with his sabre, Li Saogu patrolled the inner courtyards alongside several militia guards, acting on strict instructions from Li Cilin to maintain absolute vigilance during this critical juncture.
Unaware of the high-level secrets unfolding between the eunuch and his commander, Li Saogu maintained his watch.
"Lord Shunde," Li Cilin reported, "resistance within Tang Town is essentially neutralized, and all strategic nodes are securely under our control. You Prefecture is the largest village under Tang Town's jurisdiction; following You Chengtuo's demise, I successfully neutralized the prominent figures there and established a subordinate village militia that answers directly to our command. Every outlying hamlet within Tang Town's territory has likewise organized its own auxiliary militia. These armed forces rest firmly in our grasp, ensuring absolute stability. At present, the popular sentiment of Tang Town leans entirely toward Lord Shunde—I declare the timing fully ripe."
Resting his smooth, hairless chin in his palm, Eunuch Li contemplated in silence for a moment before cautioning: "We must still exercise comprehensive preparation. Ensure no oversight compromises our position..."
"Understood!" Li Cilin affirmed.
Pondering further, Eunuch Li added: "Li Shihuai contributed a substantial sum of silver bullion. Treat him with civility moving forward."
Gnashing his teeth, Li Cilin growled: "I ache to cleave him in two with a single stroke!"
"Exercise restraint—you must practice restraint!" Eunuch Li warned. "A minor impatience ruins a grand scheme! Once we consolidate absolute mastery over Tang Town, you may dispose of him however you see fit!"
Nodding in agreement, Li Cilin fell silent.
...
Accompanied by two guards, Li Saogu patrolled toward the exterior of the Left Courtyard. The guards carried paper lanterns in one hand and naked broadswords in the other. The Left Courtyard functioned as an isolated, self-contained compound within the broader Li estate. The sole circular moon-gate serving as its access point remained tightly locked. Approaching the portal, Li Saogu paused to push against the heavy wooden panels before inspecting the massive brass padlock securing the latch. As he prepared to move away, a muffled, feminine sound drifted from deep within the Left Courtyard—a soft, whimpering sob.
Li Saogu’s heart skipped a beat.
Why is someone weeping in there?
A chilling draft crept up his spine, instantly recalling the exquisite, blood-streaked face from his visions and setting his frame trembling.
A guard inquired nervously: "Deputy Commander, is something—?"
Suppressing his surging panic with a forced display of calm, Li Saogu stammered: "It's nothing, nothing at all. I just had a sudden urge to relieve myself!"
November 15th in the 29th year of Guangxu—an exceptionally auspicious date designated for the blessing and consecration ceremony following the completion of the Tang Town Earth God Temple. Transforming into a scene of festival-like celebration rivaling the Lunar New Year, the community readied sacrificial offerings of pork, chicken, and fish to be consecrated inside the shrine immediately following the ritual. All work on the city wall construction was suspended for the day, mandating universal attendance. Li Hongtang abandoned her search for her mother to attend the ceremony, praying fervently that the Earth God and Earth Goddess would bestow their blessings and accelerate her reunion with her mother. Rising early, she carefully combed her silver-streaked hair, braided it, coiled the tresses atop her head, and wrapped them snugly in her blue kerchief. She even donned a semi-formal outfit that she ordinarily kept reserved for special occasions, believing firmly that sincere devotion required utmost reverence. When the hour arrived, she stepped out of the house accompanied by her younger brother, who wore his pristine white silk padded robe.
Strolling through the main street, the siblings inevitably captured every pair of eyes. Though Hongtang's complexion retained a pale, weary exhaustion, it failed to mask her natural elegance and graceful posture, while Dongzi’s striking, erect handsome features completed a picture resembling a pair of celestial youths. Low murmurs rippled through the crowd: "Look at Li Cilin—how on earth did a brute like him father such breathtakingly exquisite children?" Young unmarried swains cast burning, impassioned glances in Hongtang's direction; ordinarily, they would have stepped forward with flirty provocations, but against Li Hongtang, none dared risk untoward advances for fear of Li Cilin's wrath. Anyone daring to pluck a single hair on Hongtang's head would undoubtedly be split in two by the commander's broadsword. They could only channel their adoration inward, whispering among themselves that whoever ultimately claimed Li Hongtang in marriage would possess the greatest fortune under heaven.
Among the onlookers, however, two pairs of eyes observed them with entirely distinct intentions.
The first belonged to Wang Hairong. Lurking at the corner of an alley, Hairong pinned his gaze upon Li Hongtang, his throat working convulsively as he swallowed hard. In that instant, he formulated a monumental life decision: he would enlist in the militia! The move might afford him rare opportunities, elevate his impoverished, lowly status, and perhaps position him as Li Cilin's prospective son-in-law.
The second individual was the dwarf Shangguan Wenqing. Grown drastically emaciated with a waxy, jaundiced complexion, he hid within a shadowed alcove, fixing hollow, lifeless eyes upon Hongtang. His physical condition was rapidly deteriorating, bringing him visibly to death's door. Sensing the ominous decline, his mother Zhu Luniang had previously dragged him to consult the veteran herbalist Master Zheng. After examining the youth, Zheng had furrowed his brow and stated: "Wenqing is suffering from severe internal depletion and toxic stagnation. I shall prescribe an initial decoction to stabilize his vital essence, but I cannot guarantee its efficacy." Zhu Luniang had departed with her son in silent despair. Though Wenqing remained ignorant of the medical diagnosis, an unshakeable premonition told him his time was running short. He reconciled himself to his impending demise, harboring only one final wish: to witness the return of Li Hongtang's mother and catch sight of Hongtang's joyful smile before his eyes closed forever.
Hongtang remained entirely indifferent to the multitude of gazes directed at her, including those of Wang Hairong and Shangguan Wenqing.
The newly completed Earth God Temple seemed to infuse the populace of Tang Town with a renewed flicker of hope.
Within the shrine's central altar, the sculpted effigies of the Earth God and Earth Goddess remained shrouded beneath crimson silk banners, awaiting the conclusion of the consecration ceremony to be unveiled and draped in ceremonial vestments before being hoisted onto the shoulders of strapping youths for a ceremonial procession through the streets, lanes, and agricultural fields of Tang Town.
The consecration rites commenced at high noon.
The ancient camphor tree fronting the temple stood bedecked in festive red ribbons and colorful silks. Directly before the tree, a wooden ceremonial platform rising over two meters in height had been erected. Bathed in brilliant midday sunlight, the townsfolk blanketed the open plaza. Eunuch Li was present, accompanied by the various clan patriarchs occupying the front row. Dressed in a yellow silk padded robe and wearing an enigmatic smile, Eunuch Li stood flanked by the armed, grim-visaged figures of Li Cilin and Li Saogu.
Zhu Yinshan presided over the ceremony as master of ceremonies.
Stepping before the raised platform, Zhu Yinshan drew out his voice in a resonant chant: "The consecration ceremony now commences—fire the salutes!"
Instantly, a deafening barrage of firecrackers erupted, punctuated by the booming concussions of several matchlock cannons that shook the earth, prompting many bystanders to clap their hands over their ears.
As the echoes of the ordnance died away, Zhu Yinshan prolonged his chant once more: "Summon the shaman—Madam Wang, ascend the platform!"
All eyes pivoted toward Madam Wang, standing several yards off to the right of the platform. Attired in a five-colored ceremonial robe and wearing a distinctive five-pointed cloth hat with each vertex dyed a different shade, she resembled a colorful butterfly in Dongzi's eyes. Her weather-beaten face resembled cracked pine bark, while her clouded eyes radiated an unsettling, otherworldly psychic intensity. In each hand, she clenched a bundle of burning long incense sticks.
A palpable shudder of dread rippled through the gathering. Madam Wang commanded universal fear; she maintained virtually zero social intercourse with the townsfolk, retreating into perpetual seclusion unless specifically summoned for rituals. Rumors credited her with possessing an arsenal of supernatural talismans capable of staggering feats—such as crafting a yellow paper charm inscribed with arcane characters that, when reduced to ash and brewed into tea for an unrequited crush, would instantly compel the target to follow you with unswerving devotion... Not a soul dared show the slightest disrespect toward Madam Wang, not even the haughty apothecary Master Zheng. Whenever she entered her trance states, villagers watched with bated breath, terrified that any perceived offense might draw down a fatal curse.
Twirling the bundles of incense, Madam Wang began spinning in place, accelerating her revolutions into a blurring, colorful vortex that rendered her facial features entirely indistinguishable. From her lips poured a rapid, high-pitched stream of incomprehensible incantations, the piercing syllables spiraling upward into the blinding sunlight... The superstitious villagers firmly believed that a genuine deity had descended to possess her aging frame.
With mounting momentum, Madam Wang suddenly launched herself into the air, her colorful apparition clearing the distance to land squarely atop the two-meter-high wooden altar.
The assembly gasped in collective shock.
Halting her dizzying rotation, Madam Wang dropped to her knees upon the platform, eyes squeezed shut while her lips continued murmuring her incomprehensible invocations.
At that exact instant, someone gazing upward toward the heavens cried out in sheer terror: "A solar eclipse! The heavenly dog is devouring the sun!"
High above, the golden orb of the sun was slowly being chipped away, growing progressively darker... A solar eclipse was considered an extraordinarily rare and ominous phenomenon; occurring on such a monumental occasion, it carried the terrifying weight of an apocalyptic omen, signaling that catastrophe was about to descend upon Tang Town. Panic rippled instantly through the crowd. Even Eunuch Li, the undisputed anchor of the community, turned pale with shock, muttering repeatedly: "A disaster... an absolute disaster..."
Kneeling upon the elevated altar, Madam Wang abruptly snapped her eyes open, her chanting snapping off dead silence.
Slowly rising to her feet, her facial muscles twitching violently while raw terror filled her clouded eyes, she stammered: "A great calamity is descending... whether it brings fortune or doom remains entirely unclear..."
Her ominous pronouncement plunged the assembled townsfolk into a surging wave of panic.
Stepping forward beneath the wooden altar to restore order, Eunuch Li suppressed his inner dismay, raised his carved dragon-headed cane, and boomed out: "Elder townsmen, do not panic! Listen to my words. Today is an auspicious day—nothing will go awry. Let us all kneel together before the Earth God and Earth Goddess to pray for peace, favorable weather, and deliverance from pestilence..." With that, Eunuch Li strode directly into the temple sanctuary, tore the red silk veils away from the divine effigies, and dropped heavily to his knees to offer incense in devout supplication.
As his knees struck the floor beneath the altar, the masses outside surged downward into the dirt, erupting into a synchronized chorus of fervent prayers.
Dongzi dropped to his knees as well.
Yet he offered no prayers, keeping his head tilted rigidly upward.
He stared directly into the sky as the celestial dog ruthlessly swallowed the remainder of the sun.
Complete, suffocating darkness enveloped the earth—an obsidian gloom without precedent, heavy enough to crush the spirit. This is a waking nightmare, Dongzi thought, far more terrifying than the horrors of the Mid-Autumn Festival. An acute, lucid realization gripped him: Tang Town was hurtling toward a cataclysmic catastrophe of unimaginable proportions.
The swelling chorus of prayers grew deafening, clashing wildly within the gloom.
Weeping cries mingled freely with the supplications.
The darkness persisted only briefly before a razor-thin sliver of golden light split the horizon.
The slender thread emitted a blinding glare that seared Dongzi's retinas, shooting spikes of intense pain through his eyes.
Gradually, the sun re-emerged, flooding the landscape with returning daylight. As the golden disk fully cleared the horizon, the sky suddenly released a fluttering descent of bright yellow cloth banners. The cascading fabric riveted every pair of eyes; kneeling motionless upon the earth, the populace tilted their heads upward to watch the slow, drifting descent of the crimson banners, their expressions fractured across a spectrum of profound uncertainty...
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