The Mystic Nine (8) Er Yuehong’s Problem

Before doing something, there are bound to be consequences. Staying behind closed doors doesn’t always mean that things will be peaceful and quiet. Under persistent questioning, you might find it’s not just your heart’s demon that you’re afraid of.

“Why are you here?” Er Yuehong asked as he stopped the scissors in his hand. The red bamboo in front of him had been trimmed to take shape, and all the buds that had grown in various directions had been cut off. In summer, they would put the bamboo into a pot to be placed in the front hall, where its color would complement the green baskets there.

“Master is still so focused on these elegant things.” Chen Pi Ah Si stood on the front hall’s threshold with his hands behind his back, but he didn’t step in.

“Elegant things are still things. When you do them, time passes by quickly.” Er Yuehong said. “You won’t understand even if I say it.” He sighed, put the scissors away, and then wiped the sweat from his hands with a handkerchief.

“This apprentice doesn’t understand, and Master doesn’t seem to want to teach anymore.” Chen Pi Ah Si replied.

“I told you, you’re no longer my apprentice. Stop calling me Master. I’ve heard a lot about what you’re doing outside, and I don’t want to have anything to do with you.” Er Yuehong didn’t look up at him, but took a sip of tea instead. “Now go. You won’t be living in poverty anymore. You won’t gain anything from me if you stay here.”

Chen Pi Ah Si smiled and said, “Everything this apprentice does outside was taught by Master. After only a few words, Master wants to separate himself from it? I’m afraid you know in your heart that it’s impossible.”

“I’m different from you.” Er Yuehong finally looked at him. The boy was much more glamorous than when he had followed him as an apprentice. He was wearing a satin jacket, and the worn-out cloth bag with iron pellets that used to adorn his waist had now been replaced with a mink one. “You’re bound to get results whatever you do. But no matter how many wicked things you do with what I’ve taught you, I’ll still just be spending my time here planting flowers and writing. Everything that goes on outside has nothing to do with me.”

“Yes, Master, you’ve always been the type of person who could live their life behind closed doors.” Chen Pi Ah Si said. “But you didn’t expect that people would still come to trouble you despite you closing the door and trying to ignore everything. Now that the situation is turbulent, do you really think you can stay quietly behind these four walls for the rest of your life?”

Er Yuehong sighed. He knew what Chen Pi Ah Si meant, but he—he just wanted to finish his life quietly with Ya Tou. But even if he used every means possible to stay on his own little plot of land, he knew that the wind and the waves outside were so big that they seemed to engulf everyone in the whole country.

He thought that he was strong enough to continue being infatuated, willful, and unruly. He could do anything and face the world without shame.

But he was wrong.

“You know all about it?” Er Yuehong asked.

“Everyone in this business knows about Master’s wife. Although this apprentice hasn’t been active in Changsha for a long time, there are still some eyes and ears here.”

“If you know, you know. What else can you do?”

“This time, I just want to ask Master a question. Once I get an answer, I’ll leave.” Chen Pi Ah Si’s eyes seemed to flash.

Er Yuehong sighed deeply. He hadn’t wanted to pay attention to him originally, but maybe mentioning Ya Tou had made him soft-hearted. He paused and decided to listen to his apprentice, even though he had a premonition that he would regret it.

“Ask away.”

“Did you agree to Fo Ye’s request?” Chen Pi Ah Si asked.

Er Yuehong looked at him for a long time before he nodded his head.

“So, are you sure you can’t do anything else for your wife?” Chen Pi Ah Si asked.

“What else can I do for her?” Er Yuehong countered. “If I can’t do it, no one can.”

Chen Pi Ah Si shook his head, “I think if people really want to, they can always find a way.”

Er Yuehong closed his eyes and sat down on the rattan chair. He knew the meaning behind every one of Chen Pi Ah Si’s words, but he didn’t want to think about it, let alone remember it.

When he opened his eyes again, Chen Pi Ah Si was gone. There was a bamboo basket sitting on the front hall’s threshold that held some fat crabs and a handful of incense.

Ya Tou loved eating crabs. It wasn’t the season for them now, but these crabs were very fresh and looked very fat.

They must have been brought from further south.

Seven years ago, Chen Pi Ah Si had been kicked out of his master’s house. At that time, Er Yuehong had said to him, “You will never set foot across this threshold again.”

Today, the boy had brought crabs from far away and stood on the threshold without taking a step further.

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