Stranger Danger

Chapter 138: My Name Is Pockface Zhang

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“The fog’s gone!” It was only now Ye Qing realized that the thick fog surrounding both the ship and the river had disappeared without warning. He immediately scanned the passengers with his spirit and discovered that their breathing was calm, and their lips were curled into an unconscious smile of relief. It was confirmation that the nightmare plaguing their mind really was gone.

“May you all have a nice dream tonight!” Ye Qing said with a smile. Not only was the Fog of Nightmare gone, it looked like everyone was going to have a nice dream tonight. He wondered if they would ever find out that they had nearly slept to death tonight. Sometimes, ignorance really was bliss.

“Speaking of which, I feel like I’ve heard the woman’s voice before. I think I’ve heard her playing her qin as well. But where?”

Ye Qing rubbed his forehead firmly as if trying to jolt the memory back from his mind. “Where? Where have I met her, exactly?”

“Wait, was it Firewind Valley? It must be! She’s the one who saved my life back then!”

Overjoyed, Ye Qing immediately shouted, “Miss! Miss! Are you still here?”

Earlier, the woman had made it so that her voice seemed to be coming from nowhere and everywhere at the same time. Even with his powerful spirit, he was unable to pinpoint her location. That was why he had no choice but to call out to her and pray that she would respond.

Unfortunately, nothing happened after he waited for several breaths.

“Miss? Miss Goddess?” Ye Qing called out again, but still not one responded to him. Disappointed but unwilling to give up without exhausting all of his options, he started singing,

“Goddess, I know that you are good

You came to rescue me

So please, hear my humble plea…”

He stopped and waited after singing the first half of the song, but the only sound he could hear was silence. Knowing that she probably wouldn’t speak to him anymore, he let out a mournful and disappointed sigh.

It was at this moment he heard a giggle. “I see you haven’t improved at all even though it’s been a few days since we last met. Just how tone deaf are you?”

Ye Qing’s expression morphed into one of pure happiness when he obtained her answer. “Of course my singing is nowhere as good as yours, Miss Goddess!”

“Oh right, my name is Ye Qing, and my moniker is Joyless. Thank you for saving me at Firewind Valley that day!” Ye Qing declared seriously and performed a salute even though he couldn’t see her.

“You’re welcome, but I just happened to be at the right place at the right time!” She replied.

Ye Qing beamed. “Perhaps, but that doesn’t change the fact you have saved my life. It is a favor that I will remember for a lifetime! If I may be so bold, may I know your name?”

The woman giggled again. “You’ve already given me a name, haven’t you?”

“You mean ‘Miss Goddess’?” Ye Qing exclaimed in surprise, but she interrupted him before he could say anything more, “It’s a good name.”

Ye Qing didn’t press the issue since the woman obviously didn’t want to reveal her name. “If that is what you wish, then so it shall be. Instead, can I visit you so I may thank you in person?”

She turned him down again, “Perhaps another time!”

Ye Qing felt disappointed, but he asked hopefully, “Will there be another time, Miss?”

This time, she answered, “If fate deems it so, then why not?”

“Fate?” Ye Qing exclaimed in surprise, but he quickly burst out laughing. “It’s a promise then! The next time we meet, you must tell me your name, Miss Goddess!”

The woman neither agreed nor disagreed with his presumptuous statement. In fact, she didn’t say anything at all after that. That was the end of their conversation.

Ye Qing was disappointed, but not nearly as much as he was at the beginning. It sounded like the woman was letting him down gently, but fate was a fickle thing. Not long ago, Miss Goddess had saved his life at Firewind Valley. Just days later, he had run into her on the Luo Shui River, and she had taken care of the Fog of Nightmare for him. Who could say they weren’t fated for each other?

Someone else might say that it was just a coincidence, but who gave a shit about their opinion? What mattered was that he believed that they would meet again someday. He couldn’t wait.

“Hehe…” Ye Qing let out a silly chuckle as he imagined how their first—technically second, but he was more or less unconscious the first time they met—meeting would turn out.

It was at this moment a wary voice snapped him back to reality, “Brother Ye… what… are you doing?”

From Xu Banren’s perspective, it looked like Ye Qing had suddenly launched into conversation with himself, sang a song that was equal parts creepy and off-key, and finally laughed like he had gone completely cuckoo. Who wouldn’t be alarmed in his position? He even took a few steps away from Ye Qing just in case the guy had gone insane or something.

“Oh, ahem… Worry not, Brother Xu. I was just, er, happy is all!” Ye Qing let out an embarrassed cough. Clearly, Xu Banren hadn’t been clued in on their conversation. If he thought about his own behavior from Xu Banren’s perspective, he could see why the man was looking at him like he was a mental patient. A seriously ill mental patient no less.

Luckily, Xu Banren wasn’t a very curious person. After confirming that Ye Qing had truly returned to normal, he said, “I’m glad you’re okay. Did you know where that woman went?”

Ye Qing answered, “I have no idea. She probably left.”

Xu Banren paused for a second before asking another question, “The Fog of Nightmare is gone, so the people on the ship should be safe now, right?”

Ye Qing nodded. “Not only that, they’re all gonna enjoy a pleasant dream tonight.”

Xu Banren had no reason to disbelieve Ye Qing’s words, so he saluted him and said, “In that case, I shall return to my room to catch some rest.” He then walked toward the passenger cabins.

But right before he slipped into the shadows, he suddenly turned as if he just recalled something. He added, “You should catch some rest as well!” before finally stepping through the entrance and disappearing.

“Hah… he’s a little cold, but he really is a good man!” Ye Qing smiled.

Despite Xu Banren’s advice, Ye Qing did not go back to his room. Instead, he remained on the ship’s railings to enjoy the scenery and the beautiful night sky of Luo Shui with Wawa. The duo would continue to make idle chat with each other until the first golden ray pierced through the sky, and a gorgeous red sun slowly rose from the far end of Luo Shui River.

“This is sunrise and light…” Ye Qing whispered as his eyes reflected the rising sun and white moon still hanging in the sky. At the same time, it looked like he was carrying the invisible weight of the world on his shoulders.

“And this too, is humanity!”

……

Chu had nine prefectures in total, and Luo Shui was one of the nine commanderies under the jurisdiction of Tian Yong, a prefecture of Chu. If Jin Xiu was the prefecture of culture, and Tian Liang the prefecture of might, then Tian Yong was the prefecture of wealth.

At least eighty percent of Tian Yong’s wealth came from Luo Shui, but it wasn’t just referring to Luo Shui, the commandery. A good part of that wealth came from the cantons bordering the Luo Shui River as well. But of course, the commandery was definitely the biggest contributor to their prosperity.

As soon as Cloud Mountain passed through the borders,the river immediately became much wider and stable. Despite this, it nearly wasn’t big enough to fit the sheer amount of vessels that were traversing it. It was the picture of prosperity in Chu.

“Man, just look at the hustle and bustle!” Ye Qing couldn’t help but raise a compliment as he stared at the countless ships and boats populating the area. The young man was currently standing on the bow of the ship and admiring the view right now.

Xu Banren replied in his usual impassive voice, “This is just the outskirts of Luo Shui. Once we pass through the gates, you will be bombarded to colors, lights, and people like you’ve never seen before. I promise that the hustle and bustle you witness then will be tens of times greater than this.”

“Really?” Ye Qing exclaimed in pleasant surprise, “I can’t wait to explore the commandery already!”

It was at this moment Ye Qing suddenly frowned and looked in a certain direction. A few breaths later, Xu Banren did the same thing and said, “That’s… the Little Sword King of Sunset Hill, Xu Wushang!”

A young man about twenty-five or twenty-six years old carrying a broadsword behind his back was making a beeline for the ship on a bamboo raft. The vessel was moving on its own very quickly even though it looked like Xu Wushang wasn’t doing anything.

Sunset Hill? Ye Qing’s heart skipped a beat. Is it just a coincidence… or did they already find out that I’m on this ship?

Xu Banren frowned under his hood when Xu Wushang came closer and closer toward them. It looks like he’s coming toward our ship!”

Ye Qing asked, “Who is this Xu Wushang?”

At this point, Ye Qing had no doubt that Xu Wushang was coming for him. That was why he wanted to learn about the young man as much as possible.

Xu Banren suspected nothing as he answered, “Xu Wushang is the third disciple of the Hill Lord of Sunset Hill, Wang Luori. Although silent and unsociable, he is exceptionally talented with the sword and single-minded in his pursuit for the pinnacle of swordsmanship. He is on the same level as the Sword Gentleman of Luo Shui, Chen Cang.”

“Chen Cang?” Ye Qing’s heart skipped another beat. He loathed to admit it, but he had nearly forgotten that Chen Cang existed until Xu Banren brought him up. That was yet another sworn enemy he had to watch out for even though he had never met the man in his life.

Meanwhile, Xu Wushang had come closer enough for Ye Qing to see his face. As Xu Banren described, Xu Wushang was an ordinary-looking man with listless, clouded eyes. His expression was extremely wooden as well. If he didn’t know better, he would’ve thought that Xu Wushang was mentally handicapped or something.

The bamboo raft slowed down when it was about ten meters away from Cloud Mountain. Then, Xu Wushang looked up and carefully examined every face aboard the ship.

Xu Wushang gave Xu Banren a slow nod when he saw him. Xu Banren also responded in a similar fashion. Both men were pretty unsocial, so they didn’t say a single word during the exchange.

Xu Wushang moved onto Ye Qing next and stared at him for a bit. A few seconds later, he finally asked, “Are you Ye Qing?”

I bloody knew it, Ye Qing mentally sighed as he answered, “I am not. My name is Pockface Zhang. Have you perchance gotten the wrong person?”

Xu Banren glanced at Ye Qing incredulously. There isn’t a single pock mark on your face, and you call yourself Pockface Zhang? Can you be any more obvious that you’re lying?

Ye Qing didn’t react to his reaction though. Whoever said you couldn’t have a name that didn’t fit your appearance at all?

Xu Wushang mulled over Ye Qing’s words seriously before answering, “I’ve seen your portrait before, so I’m sure you’re Ye Qing, not Pockface Zhang.”

Ye Qing argued, “But I’m not Ye Qing. There are plenty of people who share similar or even identical faces in this world. Maybe I just happen to look like Ye Qing!”

Xu Wushang mulled over Ye Qing’s words again and nodded in agreement, but he said, “That is a possibility, but I also heard that Ye Qing is accompanied by a frog Stranger and a servant, and it so happens that you are the same. Therefore, you must be Ye Qing!”

Ye Qing threw his arms up. “It’s just a coincidence! Coincidences can happen!”

“Warrior Ye! It’s nice to see you again. I—”

Ye Qing was just about to argue some more when suddenly, Jiang Yuzhen walked out of the passenger cabin and saw him. He immediately greeted the young man and tried to say something, but he paused when he noticed that something was off. Unfortunately, the damage had already been done.

For a time, Ye Qing and Xu Wushang stared at each other without a word. Then, Xu Wushang declared, “You are not Pockface Zhang. You are Ye Qing, the one they call Joyless Ye in the jianghu!”

Xu Wushang didn’t get angry despite Ye Qing’s denial. He simply said in his impassive voice, “You killed my junior brother, Xiao Yang, and my master has ordered me to take you back to Sunset Hill. Please comply.”

Xu Banren and Jiang Yuzhen were silent for a second. Then, they exclaimed in shock at the same time, “You did what, Ye Qing?!”

Ye Qing looked at the sky and let out a long sigh. What must be, must be.