Chapter 15

The sound of hooves was like a sudden storm, swiftly approaching. When the carriage stopped, it was the third-row brother's carriage again. As soon as the door opened, he jumped down in a hurry and shouted, "What's going on? Why are you just sitting outside?"

In the Brotherhood Society, the first-row brother was the most respected, followed by the third-row brother responsible for finance and operations, the fifth-row brother responsible for law enforcement, and the sixth-row brother responsible for external relations with other gangs. These three were collectively known as the Three Halls. The head of each hall was called a "brother," and they were all equal in rank, each handling their own responsibilities.

The second and fourth rows were left vacant for a reason. "Second and Stay" was to avoid surpassing the position of the second brother, a tradition that all martial arts sects followed. "Fourth and Pass" was because, in the Peach Garden Oath, Zhao Zilong was missing and would have been the fourth brother—this was a strict rule in Sichuan and Chongqing.

The fierce one, who did bloody business, was usually more aggressive than the third-row brother. Although today's matter went against the first brother's wishes, he still wouldn't back down in front of the fat man. Seeing the third-row brother charge over, he immediately frowned and said, "Fat Mao, do you think you can teach me how to do things? What's the problem? If you're not comfortable, do it yourself!"

The third-row brother, Fat Mao, immediately wilted when he saw him angry and quickly put on a smile. "Oh, Fifth Brother, don't be angry. I was just worried and spoke rashly... Brother Luo has asked me over ten times since this morning. I really don't know what to do!"

"Ah! Don't tell me these things!" Fifth Brother waved his hand. "Whether you're really worried or not, I don't want to get involved in this. Don't try to pull me into it, or I'll make you pay!"

Fat Mao was taken aback by his words. He immediately looked confused and said, "Fifth Brother, what do you mean?" His small eyes darted around and landed on Zhenbao. He pointed at him and said, "Is this kid using some kind of magic to bewitch you, Fifth Brother? You're not even helping with the boss's matter..."

"Bewitch my ass, it has nothing to do with him!" Fifth Brother shouted, interrupting him. "Our Brotherhood Society has always helped the poor against the rich. Even when we make a little money, we don't go as far as to take people's livelihoods. But this time, look! The boss is trying to buy someone's land, and if they don't sell, he wants us to threaten them. This is ridiculous! If this gets out, we won't be able to walk down the street with our heads held high!"

Fifth Brother then explained his thoughts, stating that he would not participate in forcing people to sell their land.

Fat Mao was at a loss, but after some thought, he decided that Zhenbao was not an ordinary child and decided to approach him. He took two pieces of candy from his carriage and called Zhenbao over. "Kid, let me tell you, we won't force you to sell your place. We just want to buy it. We can help with your living arrangements—can you tell me what it would take for your master to sell?"

Fat Mao's mind was racing, but he couldn't figure out how to proceed. He had just asked casually, but Zhenbao had already thought it through. He took the candy and smiled sweetly. "Master said we can sell the place, but we're afraid you can't afford it and will just cause trouble. If you really want to buy it according to our rules, we might consider it."

Fat Mao was delighted and almost hugged Zhenbao. He immediately asked what the price would be. Zhenbao, holding the candy, ran into the temple and came out with a square chessboard.

He placed the chessboard on the ground and pointed to the first square in the top left corner. "We don't want money, just rice. For the first square, one grain of rice. For the second square, two grains. For the third square, four grains. For the fourth square, eight grains..."

Fat Mao immediately understood. "Sixteen for the fifth square! Thirty-two for the sixth! So each square is double the previous one, right?" He almost couldn't believe his ears. At the time, a silver dollar could buy nearly a hundred pounds of rice. A thousand silver dollars would buy so much rice that it would fill several large carts!

Zhenbao smiled inwardly but kept a innocent look on his face. "Yes!"

"Is this a deal?" Fat Mao still didn't believe him. "What if your master doesn't agree to what you say?"

Before he could finish, a voice came from the temple. "It's a deal! As long as you prepare the rice according to the chessboard, the deed will be yours!"

Everyone turned to see the temple keeper, Liu Piyun, a dirty and ugly old man, step out with a yellow paper in his hand.

Before Fat Mao could speak, the old man continued, "But my disciple said he's afraid you won't be able to afford it and will just cause trouble. So we'll only come once." He had Zhenbao place the chessboard on a stone table at the temple entrance. "Prepare the rice, and you can take the deed. If you can't, don't mention it again. Do you agree to these terms?"

Since the old man had agreed and the price was so low, Fat Mao had no reason to refuse. He shook hands with Fifth Brother and made a pact with the old man.

As they shook hands, both had the same thought: "You fool!"

***

Go is one of the ancient arts of China, with a board of 19 lines by 19 lines, forming 361 intersections, representing the 361 days of the year. However, the board has only 324 squares.

Seeing the old man agree, Fat Mao left immediately to prepare the rice, and Fifth Brother, seeing the matter resolved, also returned. The quiet afternoon was left to the ghost market crowd.

Not only the old man but also the ghost market crowd were overjoyed when they learned the reason.

The ghost market had both new and old ghosts, some of whom were knowledgeable and fond of Zhenbao. They often shared strange stories, including the story of the Go board.

By the time the board reached the 100th square, the number of grains of rice would be a 31-digit number. One pound of rice contains about 26,000 grains, and the amount required would be more than the Brotherhood Society could gather, or even the entire country could produce in many thousands of years!

Let alone the 324th square!

The Brotherhood Society was just a martial arts organization, and Fat Mao, though better at math and business, was not well-read. He was easily tricked by Zhenbao.

That night, Fat Mao ran back and forth to the rice store in Chengdu, finally returning to Brother Luo with a dirty face. He was kicked out immediately.

Brother Luo then rushed to the inn where the Sky Observer lived...

***

Night fell.

It was neither the first or fifteenth of the month, nor a special day for the ghost market, so it didn't open. The ghost market crowd was busy with their previous tasks and didn't stay at the city god temple. Even the old man who rarely went out had something to do, leaving only a few people who went to bed early.

Zhenbao managed to get a gourd of wine from the old man and, along with the sweet potatoes drying outside, drank to his heart's content and went to bed early.

He fell into a deep sleep.

In the middle of the night, Zhenbao suddenly woke up, feeling extremely thirsty. He stumbled out of bed to find the water jar. After a few steps, he heard a voice calling him, and in a daze, he walked out of his room and all the way to the river.

Cats turn, dogs open doors, and little ghosts come to guard graves!

When he fully woke up, he found himself standing next to a fire. A table nearby held offerings, a black bowl, white candles, and a pair of small carved figures, made of jade or bone.

The white candles burned with a heavy, rotten smell, and the cold wind from the fire made it even more unbearable. But Zhenbao didn't notice these things. He curiously watched what the man by the fire was doing, feeling lost.

The man held a decapitated black cat, walking around the table and sprinkling cat blood on the ground, forming a circle. He muttered incantations and occasionally held up the cat's body, as if showing it to someone.

After a moment, the man turned around—it was the wax stick man, the Sky Observer.

He bared his white teeth in a grin. "Little boy, I didn't expect you to wake up... Ah, you have bad luck. Why did you wake up? You'll suffer more now. Why bother?"

Saying this, he inserted two fingers into the cat's neck and pulled out a drop of blood, flicking it at Zhenbao's forehead.

"Wait!" Zhenbao didn't wipe it off and called out urgently, "Why did you bring me here? You can at least tell me, right?" He remembered a phrase the ghosts often said. "Even if I die, let me die with understanding!"

"Die? Ha, no," the Sky Observer laughed strangely. "You're my ticket to the deed. If you die, what will I use to get it? Don't worry, kid. Just sleep, and everything will be over."

Zhenbao shouted, "No! Explain clearly! How are you going to get it..." But the Sky Observer ignored him, flicking two more drops of blood onto the figures on the table and shouting, "Life and death, as it should be—rise!"

Strangely, the figures on the table jumped twice.

To outsiders, it looked like the figures were jumping, but Zhenbao clearly saw a black, sinister wind emerge from the figures, coalescing into two small, completely black figures in the air.

These figures, though small, had faces filled with cold, vicious, and hateful expressions, more terrifying than any evil ghost.

Such extreme malevolence and resentment were rare!

PS: The first sentence of the preface is inspired by the Tao Te Ching: "In settling great hatred, there will always be some resentment left. How can this be considered good? Therefore, the sage holds the left side of the contract and does not blame others. The virtuous hold the contract, while the unvirtuous hold the law. The way of heaven is impartial, always favoring the good."