Chapter 270: Linggu

The long-distance bus pulled off the highway and dropped passengers at the station. I followed close behind Lu Qianshan as he skirted around to the parking lot and climbed into a dilapidated sedan. I hopped in after him, and as soon as he buckled his seatbelt, he started driving toward the middle of nowhere. For a moment, I honestly thought he was looking for a secluded spot to do away with me.

It wasn’t until I saw several antique courtyard houses clustered together that I decided he probably didn’t have such dangerous intentions. Standing before those residences, I felt a strange sense of displacement. Such courtyards had essentially vanished from my hometown, yet the Lu Clan’s estate was perfectly preserved.

I followed Lu Qianshan inside. The front hall opened onto a grand courtyard, its central space supported by pillars carved with flowers, birds, fish, and insects. Looking up at the scenes of children playing carved into the beams and pillars, I couldn’t help holding my breath as I stared.

After parking the car, Lu Qianshan trotted into the front hall and gave my shoulder a casual pat. “Stay here for a bit. I’m going inside to call Linggu^[1].”

I quickly grabbed him. “Wait, why are you calling Linggu? I don’t even know her.”

Lu Qianshan turned back, explaining with clear impatience, “It’s the rule around here. You’re an outsider, so you can’t just wander into our residence. To enter, you need either the Master’s permission or the Lamp Keeper’s approval. The Master is up on the mountain offering incense right now. You’re the head of the Gan Clan now, after all, so I can’t exactly leave you squatting at the front gate for a few days.”

I rolled my eyes inwardly. Oh, so now you care about saving face? You didn’t seem all that embarrassed back in Nanjing.

With that, Lu Qianshan disappeared behind a folding screen to find her. A gust of cool wind swept through; though the sun was brilliant outside, the courtyard felt bone-chillingly cold. I pulled up a chair and sat down, letting out a sneeze. I thought to myself that it was no wonder women trapped in these deep estates in ancient times often suffered from depression. Just sitting in the front hall for a few minutes felt incredibly lonely and desolate. It felt unnatural, like a place not meant for the living.

I hadn’t been sitting for ten minutes when a woman emerged from behind the screen. Lu Qianshan followed behind her, looking uncharacteristically subservient and meek. It was a rare sight that almost made me laugh, but the moment I saw the woman walking ahead of him, the smile died on my lips.

She didn’t look much older than me. She had an oval face and was exceptionally beautiful, with ink-black hair held up by a single wooden hairpin. She was slender and elegant, but her expression was utterly cold. The moment I saw her, a sudden chill raced down my spine.

I stood up instinctively. The woman walked briskly toward me and extended her hand. “Young Master Gan, a pleasure to meet you. I am Lu Ling.”

“Hello.” I hadn’t expected her to be so direct. I hurriedly reached out to shake her hand, only to find her touch icy. The cold was so sharp it made my arm shiver. Fortunately, she didn’t seem interested in small talk. As she withdrew her hand, only one thought occupied my mind: The people of the Lu Clan are truly bizarre.

Lu Ling looked at me and said flatly, “Since this is Young Master Gan’s first visit to the Lu Clan, you may have Qianshan accompany you if you wish to wander the surrounding area. You must be exhausted from your journey; I’ll have Qianshan take you to the guest rooms to rest shortly.”

“Huh?” Lu Qianshan’s mouth hung open.

Lu Ling gave him a sharp, sidelong glance, and he immediately clamped his mouth shut, not daring to utter another word.

Lu Ling turned to leave after saying this to me, but I quickly called out to her. “Linggu, please don’t misunderstand. Lu Qianshan probably didn’t explain things clearly just now. I’m not here for a tour. I came to find Lu Ayao. I want to ask for his help, and I’m willing to pay whatever it takes.”

As I spoke, Lu Qianshan shot me a fierce glare. He surreptitiously gestured for me to stop, waving his hand so frantically it nearly left an afterimage. He clearly had his reasons for wanting me to stay quiet, but I wasn’t about to let the imposing presence of the Lamp Keeper make me forget why I had traveled a thousand miles to get here.

Lu Ling stopped mid-stride and turned back. She crossed her arms and asked, “So, Young Master Gan is here to bring business to the Lu Clan? How unfortunate. The Lu Clan does not accept business from the Gan Clan. Please see yourself out. Qianshan, escort the Young Master to the door.”

Lu Qianshan and I had grown somewhat familiar over the last two days. He knew that between my various naps on the road, I’d had less than ten hours of sleep in total. Consequently, he didn’t move to kick me out. Instead, he turned back and scratched his head, trying to find a way to talk to Lu Ling.

As for me, the severe sleep deprivation had pushed my patience to the breaking point. In that moment, my temper finally flared.

I chuckled, shoved my hands into my pockets, and said, “There’s no need to start throwing people out right off the bat, is there? We’re all prominent figures here, part of the famous Five Masters. How could the head of such a wealthy and powerful clan be so short on cash that they can’t afford rice? Oh, I remember now. Is this how your Lu Clan kicked Lu Xiaosu out back then? Is that why my grandfather had to send her grain from a thousand miles away just so she could eat?”

As the words left my mouth, Lu Ling’s composure visibly faltered. Lu Qianshan looked at me with an expression of pure shock, clearly not expecting me to be so cutting.

Yet Lu Ling refused to take the bait. She said, “Since Young Master Gan insists on clinging to us, I suppose I cannot have someone throw you out. However, the Lu Clan truly cannot help with this matter. I hope the Young Master uses the next few days here to think things over. Once you understand, you will leave on your own.”

She gave Lu Qianshan a few instructions and stepped over the threshold. Lu Qianshan grabbed me and began dragging me across a covered bridge, scolding me as we went. “Of all the people to provoke, why her? Go ahead and ask around. Who in the Lu Clan dares to give Linggu attitude? Even the Master is wary of her. Besides, Linggu holds a grudge like no one else. You embarrassed her today; she’ll remember this for the rest of her life.”

I remained indifferent, leaning over to look at the small bridge and flowing water in the courtyard. “I’m not one of your Lu Clan people,” I said. “And I’m not here to ask for her help. I’ll be here for a few days at most. Once I’ve convinced Lu Ayao, I’m going home. We have nothing to do with each other, so what could she possibly do to me?”

After traversing two or three courtyards, Lu Qianshan opened a sunlit door and pointed inside. “I’ve brought you to your spot. Someone will bring food by in the morning, noon, and evening, so you won’t starve. The bathroom is right across from here. If you get lost, just ask someone. I’m off. Don’t come bothering me over nothing, I’m busy. And another thing: once you’ve thought it through, you’d better just head back. Don’t linger here.”

I waved my hand to tell Lu Qianshan to stop his nagging. Then, I stepped over the threshold and scanned the guest room. Compared to the front hall, the decor was rather plain, but the conditions were far better than sleeping on the curb. Since the Lu Clan had given me a place to stay, I planned to play the long game.

First, I took off my backpack, hung it in the wardrobe, and locked it. Then I opened a window, propped it up with a wooden rod, and leaned against the sill. I watched the butterflies fluttering in the neighboring courtyard and the flowers blooming in the grass. Bright sunlight spilled across the lawn, but it couldn’t reach me. Shadows draped over my windowsill. I felt like an insect craving a sliver of light, hiding in a dark, sunless place while peering out at the world.

After washing away the dust of travel, I changed my clothes and lay down on the bed. Closing my eyes, I drifted into a dream. In the dream, the words He Yu spoke to me before he died echoed in my mind:

“Didn’t you see the prophecy! Out of those four, you’re the only one who can open the Tomb of King Ne! The prophecy of the A-Clan from thousands of years ago has already set this in stone!”

I saw that Phoebe zhennan coffin again. This time, however, it rested in the dark. The flickering firelight reflected off the casket, making the gold dust on its surface shimmer against the darkness. But I wasn’t afraid this time. I stepped forward and pushed open the heavy lid.

The dream ended.

I sat up calmly from the bed, walked silently over to the table, and poured myself a cup of tea.

I had dreamed of Master Jiyun’s coffin again. I kept feeling like he was trying to hint at something. Why did he keep showing me his coffin? Was he signaling for me to go find it? But even if I found it, what information could I possibly get from it?

The thought left me utterly perplexed.

I stayed in the Lu Clan’s great compound for half a month. Almost every day, I would wander out, spending most of my time keeping watch near the entrance. I desperately hoped for a “chance encounter” with Lu Ayao, but I didn’t know if they had other entrances I was unaware of, or if the Lu family was intentionally avoiding me. In any case, after keeping watch for over half a month, I hadn’t managed to catch so much as a hair of Lu Ayao.

However, every single day I stepped out, I ran into Lu Qianshan in the courtyard. He seemed to be just as idle as me, teasing cats, chasing dogs, climbing walls, and scaling trees. He was energetic as could be, with nothing he wouldn’t dare try. As the saying goes, the person you don’t want to see is the one you run into every single day.

The food here was very bland. Some dishes the clansmen enjoyed tasted sickeningly sweet to me. Over the past few weeks, I had unknowingly lost several pounds, leaving the clothes I had brought with me a size too large.

Still, I hadn’t spent the past half-month completely idle or empty-handed. I had learned the basic social structure of the Lu Clan. The Lu estate was divided into separate sections, and the three large courtyards where I stayed were just one part of it, belonging to the oldest section nearest the ancestral hall. Several dozen clansmen lived here, forming the core branches of the family.

Due to how the Lu Clan rose to prominence and certain lingering historical factors, they didn’t rank people by seniority. By Lu Ayao’s generation, even bloodline was no longer crucial. The most capable person was chosen as the family head, while those second in ability took turns serving as the annual Lamp Keeper. The Lamp Keeper rotated every year, and ordinary clansmen could only enter the ancestral hall to offer sacrifices under their guidance, and only once a year. Even the family head was no exception.

Lu Ling was this year’s rotating Lamp Keeper. According to Lu Qianshan, she had been chosen to perform the Lamp Keeper sacrifices since she was ten years old. I had seen her a few times as well, and she often scrutinized me with a strange look in her eyes. Intuition told me this woman was likely very dangerous, but at the same time, she probably held a wealth of information.

In the blink of an eye, another day passed. Sitting bored on the threshold, I reckoned that if Lu Ayao kept hiding from me, I would go find Lu Ling instead. Either way, I couldn’t keep wasting time like this.

Just as the thought crossed my mind, Lu Qianshan came jogging over from the front courtyard, shouting as he ran, “Gan Ji! Linggu is looking for you. She said to hurry over!”

“What is it about?”

“Ah, I don’t know! Maybe she wants to give you some guidance. Either way, hurry up, she’s in the front hall. Miss this, and you won’t get another chance!”