Moonlit Reunion [子夜归]

Chapter 5

During the day, the East and West Markets bustled with people, and by night, these same streets were prowled by all manner of spirits and creatures. Even in such lively places, constantly busy both day and night, there were always a few isolated, deserted corners.

Wu Zhen darted along rooftops, traversing most of the East Night Market until she reached a high wall. A narrow alley lay here, cluttered on both sides with random items, forming a quiet, secluded spot. In this corner lay the person Wu Zhen had come to find.

The man appeared to be a thoroughly disheveled, downcast figure of middle age, sound asleep against the wall with a tattered cloth covering his face, rising and falling with his breaths. If one looked closer, they'd see four characters scribbled on the cloth: Seeking Fortune for a Coin. At his feet sat a bowl, completing the classic image of a street beggar.

Wu Zhen leapt down, landing in front of him without making a sound. She crouched to peer into the bowl, finding seven coins there. She clicked her tongue in surprise—how did he manage to collect seven coins in such a deserted place, where not even a ghost would wander? Casually, she gathered up the coins and slipped them into her pouch, then nudged the sleeping man with her foot.

"Get up, get up."

The man shifted deeper into the corner, clearly reluctant to be disturbed from his dreams. But Wu Zhen, a notorious instigator, reached down and whipped the cloth from his face, tossing it aside, before giving him another kick. "Wake up, you old charlatan. Got work for you."

Finally, the man roused himself, yawning as he looked up at Wu Zhen. His face was utterly plain, with small eyes and a flat nose, and one side of his cheek was puffed up from sleeping. Wu Zhen pinched his face, examining it critically. "Your face is especially hideous today. Do me a favor, as your leader—get a better-looking face to present to me."

The man replied sluggishly, "Sure, sure, tomorrow I'll put on the face of a handsome young lad. But only if you give me some meal money. Today's earnings were seven coins, and you didn't leave me a single one—I'm going to starve."

Wu Zhen leaned against the wall, completely unfazed by her own thievery. "You're one of the top lieutenants of Yanlou, one of my two trusted aides, yet here you are begging on the streets every night. What does that say about our reputation? If you didn't want to stay in Yanlou, why not take on a job like Huzhu did?"

His tone was still indifferent. "If the work weren't so exhausting, I wouldn't be begging."

Wu Zhen sighed, "If you must beg, at least pick a spot with more spirits around. Staying here where nothing ever comes by, what are you begging for?"

He replied, "Too noisy where the spirits gather; can't sleep well. Sleep is crucial once you get to my age."

Wu Zhen finally burst out laughing. "Nonsense! You're not even human!"

This man, called Shen Gun, was one of Wu Zhen's two lieutenants, a spirit of indeterminate age whom everyone in Yanlou called 'the charlatan.' He liked to spend his nights hiding in a corner of the night market, dozing and begging, while by day, he set up a fortune-telling stand beneath an old locust tree at a street corner in the East Market.

"Alright, enough idle chatter. Get up. I need a fortune read," Wu Zhen commanded.

Shen Gun yawned, groggy. "No can do. I only read fortunes during the day, not at night, even if you're a cat... ow!"

Before he could finish, Wu Zhen had shoved him against the wall, forcing him to curl up and cover his head, yelping in pain. Wu Zhen stepped back, looping an arm over his shoulder with a roguish smile. "Did you just say, no can do?"