Chapter 27: Victim of Theft Part 1

Wang Ya didn’t answer but instead asked, “What do you think?”

Old Tang looked at Wang Ya calmly and said, “Wang Ya, you’re a smart person.”

Wang Ya said sincerely, “I’m pretty dumb.” As she spoke, she unintentionally glanced at Zheng Yanxia and Zhang Qingshui, who sat at the small tea table by the window sipping tea and chatting idly. The sunlight that day was excellent, and the bright rays fell on the two of them, making for a pleasing sight. Both had fine features, nurtured by wealthy families, exuding a natural elegance. They weren’t like her, a girl from the countryside who always carried a bit of the rough-and-tumble tomboy vibe. Zhang Qingshui and Huang Qi clearly ran in the same circles; she, Wang Ya, was from a completely different world. In a daze, Wang Ya recalled her childhood, when a few girls from her class huddled together laughing and talking. When she approached, they glanced at her with unwelcoming, estranged looks in their eyes, then turned their backs and continued playing. She had asked, “What are you all talking about that’s so fun?” and everyone scattered. Honestly, it had been quite disheartening, but over the years, she had grown used to it—used to being alone, used to facing everything around her by herself. From the corner of her eye, she saw Old Tang turn his head to look in the direction she had glanced, then pull his gaze back to her. She looked at Old Tang without speaking, and Old Tang looked back at her without speaking. Staring at each other with big eyes and small eyes wasn’t going to work forever. Wang Ya said, “I guess you’re thinking this matter is still related to me obtaining the Zhongyin Feng Family Inheritance?”

Old Tang nodded and said, “This matter is sensitive. If you don’t bring it up, I wouldn’t mention it. Since you have, it means you trust me to some extent, so I’ll speak plainly. If they were just coming for revenge, it wouldn’t be hard to resolve. In the end, it’s just about accidentally damaging Ghost Granny’s corpse during construction and a few fights. We could arrange a meeting and negotiate. The trouble is that Ghost Granny revealed you obtained the Zhongyin Feng Family Inheritance. Wang Ya, to be honest with you here, I was indeed tempted by the Feng Family Inheritance, but whether I could obtain it is another matter entirely!”

Wang Ya said amusedly, “I only know Ghost Catching, and what I learned are all Ghost Capturing Arts. What’s so valuable that so many people are after it? What exactly does the Feng Family have that brought such a calamity of extermination upon them?”

Old Tang asked in surprise, “You don’t know?”

Wang Ya said, “I’m not a Feng. How would I know! Even the little bit I learned was something my grandma picked up decades ago during the chaotic times of 1960 from a nameless old Taoist priest who was dying by the roadside. My grandma had attended a few days of school and knew some characters. I was weak as a child and always cried at night. My grandma thought I was haunted by ghosts, so she studied the things recorded in that book bit by bit. The more she learned, the more useful it seemed, and later she taught it to me.”

Old Tang asked, “What did your grandma pick up from that Taoist priest?”

“Just a book, a few ancient bronze coins, and this Ghost Collecting Bell.”

Old Tang asked, “Nothing else?”

Wang Ya spread her hands and said, “My grandma never told me there was anything else, and I’ve never seen anything else in our home growing up.”

Old Tang suddenly realized something, coughed lightly in embarrassment, and said, “Sorry, I asked too much.”

Wang Ya said, “It’s fine; it’s not like it can’t be known.” She asked Old Tang again, “What exactly does the Feng Family have that’s worth everyone coveting it so much?”

Old Tang said, “The Zhongyin Feng Family had a thousand-year inheritance with many things passed down, but the one that brought the calamity of extermination was a scroll.”

Wang Ya asked, “A scroll?”

“Yes, the Yin-Yang Scroll. The Zhongyin Feng Family was based in the Bardo Realm, with feet in both the Yin and Yang worlds, all thanks to this Yin-Yang Scroll.”

Wang Ya asked, “What does that scroll look like?”

Old Tang said amusedly, “How would I know? I’ve never seen it.”

Wang Ya said, “Is that why the Dead Old Lady is after me?” She suddenly felt deeply wronged and said, “When I watched wuxia films as a kid, the protagonists at least had a secret manual on them when they were chased for it. I don’t have a damn thing here!”

Old Tang said, “Many people covet this thing. They’ve searched for so many years without a clue, and now you suddenly appear. Whether you have the Yin-Yang Scroll or not, people will come looking for you.” Old Tang sighed and said, “Wang Ya, I told you all this just to give you a heads-up, and also to thank you for helping out last night. Our agreement still stands—if you face a life-or-death crisis, you can come to me for shelter.”

Wang Ya asked, “What about the Dead Old Lady’s side?”

Old Tang said, “We don’t want to get involved in Zhongyin Feng Family matters. To put it bluntly, even if we got the Yin-Yang Scroll, we couldn’t hold onto it and would only invite disaster. If Ghost Granny’s side tries any petty tricks to pressure us into dealing with you, I, Old Tang, won’t hold back against them!”

Wang Ya laughed, drawing out her words meaningfully, “Seeking self-preservation and withdrawing!”

Old Tang felt a bit embarrassed too and said, “Wang Ya, I’ll arrange to meet Guizi and talk it out, while ensuring your safe departure.”

Wang Ya was silent for two seconds and asked, “You’re telling me to run?”

Old Tang nodded lightly.

Wang Ya asked, “You don’t want it, but does the Yunnan Zhang Family not want it either?”

Old Tang said, “Little Zhang is trustworthy in character.”

Wang Ya neither confirmed nor denied it. She didn’t believe Zhang Qingshui was trustworthy, and she only trusted Old Tang halfway at best. She inquired further about Ghost Granny’s descendants, but Old Tang said he didn’t know much—just that there was such a family in the business. Since everyone operated in the same area, the local circle wasn’t that big, so passing a message or arranging a meeting was easy. But digging into Guizi’s detailed background was hard. Old Tang’s advice to Wang Ya was to leave; she was unfamiliar with the place, while Guizi had generations of operations here with a complex network of connections. Catching her would be too easy.

Wang Ya hadn’t decided whether to leave, but she was truly pissed off. In all her life, she’d never seen anyone try to rob someone so brazenly. The robbers don’t run, but she has to? What kind of world was this!