The Mystic Nine

Chapter 14: Three Drumbeats

The leopard tugged at the whip the manager still held in his hand, but he couldn't move it even after half a minute had passed. If it was ordinary times, he would have realized the manager had some skills and wasn't a pushover. But after drinking a few glasses of wine and having people insult him again, the evil fire in his heart suddenly flared up.

In such troubled times, it wouldn't do to offend a military man, especially now that they were at war. And even if he knew a lot of higher ups, he wasn't as valuable as a gun in a soldier's hand. But Er Yuehong's manager was so deceptive that he couldn't swallow his pride and walk away. The leopard held the whip with one hand and reached for the knife in his jacket with the other. "I've been offended enough," he said viciously. "Since you're the manager of the Hong estate, you might as well escort us a little further. We're too drunk to find our way."

The leopard's men watched their boss's movements and knew that he was set on killing the manager. Their faces darkened and they also put their hands into their jackets one after another. When the manager saw this, he immediately dropped the whip with a smile and started making apologies: "I'm afraid I have to go back and wait on my master, but I'll have this young servant send you on your way. Please don't take offense."

As soon as he spoke, Chen Pi came out and bowed. The manager ordered him, "Show these masters out of the city. There's no rush. Let them walk along the river and sober up. Remember, this gentleman was the one who sent us the opera house, so don't neglect him." After he was done speaking, he quickly turned and walked back into the opera house. The leopard wasn't willing to let him go and went to step forward, but the young man named Chen Pi stepped up and blocked his path: "Sir, let's go quickly while the night is still cool." The manager didn't hear the next sentence as he had already returned to the hall.

Zhang Qishan was standing in front of the stage, thinking about what had happened just now. Er Yuehong's family was full of old people who had been with them for several generations. All of them were as close as relatives and extremely loyal to Er Yuehong's family, but they were inevitably long-winded. When he heard the manager return, Zhang Qishan wanted to ask him to see if Er Yuehong would hurry up, but he suddenly heard the sound of a chain come from onstage. Er Yuehong came out wearing casual clothes, but he still had on the makeup from the performance.

"What a surprise. Is this the same Fo Ye who doesn't like listening to opera? What brings you to my pear garden?" Er Yuehong made a gesture to the manager, who quickly withdrew. As he sized Zhang Qishan up with clear eyes, he had a strong and majestic aura about him. Anyone who still had clear eyes after working in this business made Zhang Qishan feel deeply moved.

"There's something I need to ask you." Zhang Qishan truthfully told him. Any sign of hesitation in front of a wise man would instantly put them on guard.

When Er Yuehong smiled, Zhang Qishan secretly laughed. If he was asking for help, the other person wouldn't dare agree so casually. Changsha's Nine Gates were so powerful that they would definitely get involved when the Japanese came, whether they wanted to or not. If Zhang Qishan was looking for him during this time, it definitely had something to do with these things, which meant it wasn't a trivial matter.

Without waiting for him to ask, Zhang Qishan told him all about what happened at the railway station earlier that morning. After he was done, he said, "In Changsha, Er Ye is an expert when it comes to the Northern and Southern Dynasties. That's why I'm here to ask you for advice."

After listening, Er Yuehong looked at him and quietly asked, "That's it? Fo Ye, our friendship isn't so shallow that you have to beat around the bush."

Zhang Qishan remembered Er Yuehong telling him something when they had first met after he came down south. Er Yuehong quickly became friends with him because he knew that Zhang Qishan had too many stories to tell. He made a remark about people with stories being more interesting and never bad people, which touched Zhang Qishan very deeply. That was why he didn't mention everything when he recounted the morning's events, because the story behind the thimble may not be what the other party wanted to hear. Since Er Yuehong was asking, however, he gave it some serious thought before throwing the thimble at him.

Er Yuehong looked up and frowned. He drew his sleeve across the back of his hand and bounced the thimble back towards Zhang Qishan accurately. When Zhang Qishan raised his hand and caught it, Er Yuehong said, "Fo Ye, you know I haven't touched anything underground for a long time. I can't help you with this."

"This thing was found in the coffin. It belongs to the Hong family. Considering the Japanese had it, it's probably related to the Hong family." Zhang Qishan said. "Aren't you interested? As far as I can tell, the Hong family rarely makes mistakes. If this thing was in the coffin, that means someone went to rob the tomb in modern times. Er Ye, as a second-generation master, you can't be that ignorant. As long as there are one or two clues, I won't have nothing to go off of. Now that the Japanese are approaching, this kind of thing may hinder the overall situation. So, I'd like your advice."

Er Yuehong looked at the thimble in Zhang Qishan's hand and fell silent. "I'm afraid I can't help you with my family's affairs, Fo Ye. If I could, I would definitely tell you everything."

At this time, the sound of the manager beating a drum three times came from backstage, urging Er Yuehong to step down from the stage. Er Yuehong said quietly: "Fo Ye, my performance is over. Please go back."

With that said, his dignified eyes unexpectedly softened, as if he were pleading for Fo Ye to drop the matter.

Zhang Qishan inwardly sighed. He had long heard that Er Yuehong wouldn't go down into the tombs for his wife's sake, but he didn't expect that he would actually be rejected. At this time, he felt a little remorseful. It was very difficult for those in the Nine Gates to make such a decision, so maybe he had gone too far.

He put the thimble on a nearby table and said, "This thing belongs to the Hong Family. I'll figure it out myself. If you change your mind, you can—"

"I'm afraid I won't change my mind about going underground." Er Yuehong interrupted him.

At this point, Zhang Qishan had no other choice but to salute and turn to leave. After two or three steps, however, Er Yuehong suddenly said, "Fo Ye, a word of advice. This is dangerous, don't act rashly."

Zhang Qishan looked back into Er Yuehong's eyes, but Er Yuehong was looking down at the thimble on the table.

Lieutenant wanted to press him for more, but Zhang Qishan stopped him. He pressed the brim of his military cap and walked out of the pear garden. When Chen Pi came back, he glanced at Zhang Qishan, but walked right on by without greeting him. The manager could be heard yelling in the background: "Why did you come back so quickly? Did you send those people off?"

Back in the street, Zhang Qishan decided to have the car follow him as he walked by himself. He drew up short and tossed a silver coin to the beggar outside as Lieutenant Zhang said, "Er Ye must know something."

"If it was a small matter, he would have already told us. What Er Yuehong doesn't want to say... tsk. Whatever's behind that train appears to be a big deal. I'll have to think it over carefully."