WangXian Forever Book 9: The Flower Demon

Chapter 33 Storyteller

Xiannu begins to speak.

"It is said that if a person was to die, filled with anger, malice and hatred, if those feelings override any sense of decency then...then that person comes back as a demon. That is not to say that all demons are like this...but most are.

"A while back, we were travelling from one city to another and the road in between was sparse and devoid of human interaction. We met an old man there who spoke of a local beauty, one whose hair was as black as velvet and just as sleek. Her eyes were like pearls hidden in the very depths of the ocean and her skin.....smoother than polished jade. He described her as being more beautiful than the reflection of Chang'e at the Mid-Autumn Festival.

"News of her beauty spread throughout the lands, catching the attention of infamous bandits which roamed the Central Plains. The leader of the bandits decided to kidnap her and sell her off to the highest bidder. This is one part." Xiannu pauses, checking to see if Wei Ying is listening carefully.

"Does he know what happened to the local beauty?" Wei Ying asks her.

"He said that she had indeed been kidnapped on the day of her wedding, no less and by the Bandit Chief. But he knew nothing else and as with all of these types of stories, no one keeps up with them unless they are sensational." She says. "But this carnival had to travel through the Central Plains and we were accosted by Bandits. This is the second part of a story."

"I have a question though." Wei Ying quickly interrupts her because it is about the first part.

Xiannu nods at him to ask it.

"Why wait to kidnap the local beauty on her wedding day? And who was she getting married to?"

"As for the timing, he did not know and perhaps it is an embellishment to the original story? Who knows except for the people involved? But he did say that she was to marry a man whose family were in the flower trade. That's all this old man knew."

"Ah...I see." Wei Ying keeps his thoughts to himself now.

Xiannu is building to a climax in her stories and for now, it is better to hear her out.

"The bandits recognised us as fellow tradesmen..."

Lan Zhan snorts.

Wei Ying glances at him, aware he finds that amusing.

"Well...I won't lie to you...anyone who deals with carnival folk should be aware that they will be parting with coin in return for entertainment." She sniffs with disdain. "Either way...they asked us to entertain them. But their Chief was interested in him." She jerks a disgusted thumb towards the Shaman behind her.

"Why?"

"He asked to have his fortune told. By this point, my rebounded curse was in full effect and all we had to do was tell him some vague truths, which could be taken either way in a flowery tongue and he was happy. He said he'd had a string of bad luck recently and didn't understand it. Then he met a Buddhist monk who explained Karma to him. The Bandit Chief said he had nothing to pay the monk in return and instead, ended up giving him something of great value instead. He said he had no regret over anything he did in his life except one thing, which involved an innocent life. And now I have a question for you." Xiannu says.

Wei Ying is still processing this, but he nods.

"Where did you get your JingLing from? Who did you buy it from...or rather, where?" She asks. "Only because, given their rarity, I cannot believe you just found it. And all known sellers are nowhere to be found. They're either dead or packed up and left."

"Um...well, we did find it." Wei Ying tells her.

"Where?"

"It was the strangest thing. We were on another mission entirely and we came across a temple where we decided to rest for the day. There was a disturbance and a sinkhole appeared in the ruins. When we went to investigate, both of us felt a pull towards a hidden shelf in the wall and this JingLing was calling to us." Wei Ying thinks there is no need to mention Dunshi or why they were passing through.

"Was it...was it a Buddhist temple?" Xiannu asks breathlessly now, suddenly excited.

"Yes."

She shrieks with jubilation at that.

"That's the final piece." She declares.

"So the only thing missing in your story is the whereabouts of the local beauty then?"  XiChen says, from the floor where he's cradling Jiang Cheng's head.

"There are too many gaps in the story." Jiang Cheng says. "They can be anything and of course you can make them fit so your story doesn't have any holes but it's a stretch."

"I agree." Wei Ying decides. "You want us to believe that the local beauty is the one after the JingLings...right?"

"It was just to satisfy my own curiosity." Xiannu says defensively. "It doesn't matter if you don't believe me. But I hope you never have to meet the Hunter. She has nothing to lose and is extreme in her dealings. I fear word will get back to her on what we have discussed here today. I would rather not remain here any longer." She holds her hand out for Wei Ying to make good on his promise.

Wei Ying pulls out the JingLing.

It is bigger than Xiannu and for a moment, Wei Ying wonders how this will work, other than them getting a Xiannu-flavoured pancake out of it. But Xiannu has had a lot of time to figure things out and she zaps the crystal ball.

When it's suspended right in front of her, she rubs the surface with her forearm.

The green smoke clears and the pink JingLing is visible. Xiannu tells it something and it nods enthusiastically. The whole place floods with light and when it dissipates,  Xiannu is suddenly free.

The JingLing shoots back towards Wei Ying and he pockets it carefully.

Xiannu bows to them.

"I think the Bandit's monk was the one who stashed this JingLing in the ruins...because that makes the most sense. But now I have no reason to care any more. I am going to find my people."

They bow back, happy that this meeting went well.

"Xiannu..." Wei Ying calls out before she disappears. When she turns around, he smiles kindly at her. "Be well. I hope you find peace and happiness."