Crossing the Threshold

Ah Yue had already woken up.

She sat by the roots of the old locust tree, staring blankly at Zhou Laizi's corpse.

The corpse knelt in the mud, the blood flowing from the severed neck had slowed down, the blood mixed with the mud and water trickling downhill, slowly flowing away along the small ditch beside the country road.

The man who had bullied her for three years had his head rolled not far away, his eyes still open.

A-Yue stared at it for a long time.

Then she clapped her hands, once, then again.

"Run!"

She laughed, "Keep running! Why did you stop?"

Those villagers who hadn't run far felt a chill run down their spines when they heard the laughter. Some covered their children's ears, while others cursed "crazy woman," but dared not speak loudly.

Ah Yue was still smiling.

She clapped her hands very hard, like a three-year-old child seeing something new, or like squeezing out a breath that had been stuck in her throat for three years.

Shen Gui stood not far away, holding the necklace in his palm.

The stone pendant remained calm and warm, the four cracks still there, neither missing nor added.

"Zhou Laizi is dead, but the stone pendant hasn't changed. Did I misjudge the situation, or did I fail to do enough?"

Shen Gui took a step closer, and the shadow blocked the sunlight from Ah Yue's face, causing her laughter to gradually subside.

She looked up at him; their eyes were very similar, both somewhat empty.

Shen Gui spoke directly, without beating around the bush: "I need to use you to test some things. In return, I'll help you escape this cage, how about it?"

Ah Yue seemed to hear it, yet also seemed not to understand it.

get away?

cage?

Shen Gui pointed in the direction of the county town:

"Shall we go? To seek justice."

"No."

"Not going?...Are you afraid of dragging me down with you? Like that peddler?"

"Um."

"Let's reason things out, not fight."

"Those people...are unreasonable."

"That makes things even easier."

Shen Gui said no more, and moved towards the edge of the village, leaving only the words, "If you don't want to, you don't have to go."

As A-Yue watched the receding figure, her unfocused pupils suddenly focused.

She struggled, her dirty eyebrows furrowed together, and she looked down at her legs.

Her leg was crooked, and it hurt when she stood up, when she walked, and even when she sat still. It had been hurting for three years, to the point that she sometimes forgot it was pain.

She reached out and touched the protruding bone in her ankle, then tried to stand up by bracing herself against the tree roots. She lost her balance on the first try and fell back into the mud.

Some villagers were watching, but no one stepped forward to help. The old man moved, as if he wanted to go over, but he stopped after taking only half a step.

A-Yue got up by herself. She held onto the old locust tree and straightened her body little by little. Her feet were in the mud, and she was swaying and looked like she could fall at any moment.

The gray figure didn't turn around, but walked slowly.

Ah Yue bit her lip and tried her best to catch up. Her legs hurt when she went fast, but she was already used to the pain.

The figure ahead was clearly very thin, yet every step was steady. A-Yue's forehead was covered in sweat as she tried her best to catch up, chasing after a hope.

No one in the village dared to stop them; they voluntarily made way for them.

She just kept walking forward.

He was limping.

One step is very short.

But every step did indeed land on the ground.

Three years ago, she ran out of this road and was dragged back.

Later, she crawled, cried, and begged.

Later, she stopped running away. She sat under the old locust tree, singing nursery rhymes to scare children, women, and the men who peeked at her through the crack in the door at night.

She thought she would never get out of there in her lifetime.

The road is still the same road, and the mud pits at the village entrance are still the same mud pits.

But no one stopped her. There was no cursing from Zhou Laizi, no screaming from the woman, and no one shouted, "This slut is trying to run away! Catch her!"

Ah Yue finally caught up and followed closely behind the man in gray. She asked:

"What...should I call you?"

"Shen Gui".

"Mr. Shen...you said...you wanted to use me as a test...I can cooperate now...how can I help you..."

Ah Yue spoke haltingly, wanting to express herself but extremely timid.

It's unclear whether it's because she hasn't communicated normally with people for a long time, or because she's worried—worried that if she doesn't fully cooperate, Shen Gui will suddenly leave, and everything will go back to yesterday.

"You don't need to worry about being implicated now. With me, there's no danger in Changluo County, no danger in Beiyang Prefecture, and no danger in the whole world."

Shen Gui walked ahead, speaking calmly as if he were stating something perfectly natural.

A-Yue hummed in response, it was unclear whether she understood the meaning of those words.

Shen Gui stopped talking and looked in the direction of the county town, planning in his mind how he could help.

He helped Ah Yue for three reasons.

The test stone weight showed an anomaly.

The second point is about the old grievances of the Liu family.

As for the third point... it's when you encounter someone who is also "trapped," you want to lend a hand, as if saving the other person is saving yourself.

However, getting someone out of a cage is not easy; it's certainly not as easy as killing someone.

It takes more than ten miles to travel from Guhuai Village to Changluo County.

What might not seem like a long distance to an ordinary person was like a grinding stone through the very marrow of A-Yue's bones.

Halfway there, her feet started bleeding. The straw sandals were old to begin with, and after the soles wore through, mud and sand got in, causing the blisters on her feet to burst, and the flesh and blood stuck to the straw sandals.

She didn't cry out in pain; she would walk a bit, stop, look down at her feet, and then look up again to continue walking.

Shen Gui bought a steamed bun by the roadside. The bun seller was a middle-aged man carrying a load on a shoulder pole. When he saw that A Yue had disheveled hair and blood on her feet, he subconsciously took a half step back.

"Two." Shen Gui put down the copper coins.

The porter didn't dare ask any questions, took the cake, wrapped it in a lotus leaf, and handed it over.

Shen Gui handed one of them to A Yue.

A-Yue took it, smelled it first, then used her fingers to pick off a small piece and put it in her mouth, chewing it slowly.

As she chewed, her eyes welled up with tears. As if she had just remembered something, she quickly stuffed the rest of the cake into her bosom, afraid someone would snatch it away.

The two continued walking.

The sky gradually darkened.

The city gate of Changluo County appeared in the twilight. The city wall was not high, and some of the plaster was peeling off. Two lanterns hung at the city gate, their light pitifully dim.

The gatekeeper, who had been dozing in the gatehouse, raised his eyelids slightly when he saw Shen Gui and A Yue enter the city: "Where are you from?"

A-Yue lowered her head, clutching the steamed bun in her arms, and unconsciously shrank behind Shen Gui.

"Go to the Liu family." Shen Gui's answer was irrelevant, but it worked.

The constable waved his hand: "Those who are looking for Third Master should know the rules. Don't cause trouble once you're inside."

Changluo County is still quite lively after nightfall.

Inside the restaurant, there was the sound of drinking games; at the meat stall, someone was tidying up the cutting board; the tea shop waiter was taking the leftover tea home to make soup; and the street vendors were carrying their loads home, cursing that business was bad that day.

A-Yue followed behind Shen Gui, her eyes looking around. She paused when she saw the silk shop. The shop door was closed, but a little light shone through the crack in the door. Inside, someone was using an abacus, and the sound of the beads clinking together was very crisp.

Shen Gui found a small inn.

A wooden sign reading "Yunlai Inn" hung at the entrance. The innkeeper was adjusting the treasury with his head down. Hearing footsteps, he didn't even look up.

"Two coins for an upper room, eighty coins for a lower room, and twenty coins for a shared room. Pay first, then you can see the room."

Shen Gui put down the silver.

The shopkeeper's eyes lit up, and he immediately looked up. Just as his smile spread across his face, he saw A-Yue behind Shen Gui.

There were still a few people drinking in the lobby.

A man in a short jacket, holding peanuts, squinted at Ah Yue for several moments before suddenly putting down his chopsticks.

"Hey, who's this woman?"

People nearby also looked over.

"That crazy guy... from Ancient Locust Village?"

"No way, isn't she Zhou Laizi's wife? She caused quite a stir last time, why is she in the county again?"

When A-Yue heard the name Zhou Laizi, her shoulders trembled involuntarily, and the corners of her mouth slowly turned up. She wanted to laugh and scare others.

But Shen Gui turned around and glanced at her.

She lowered her head, suppressing her laughter, and scratched her palm with her fingernails.

The shopkeeper emerged from behind the counter, a smile returning to his face, and asked knowingly, "Sir, who is this...?"

Shen Gui said, "Not welcome?"

The shopkeeper smiled even more politely: "Welcome, of course you're welcome. Our shop is open for business, how could we not let our guests stay? But this young lady doesn't look too well, should I call a doctor?"

"Need not."

"That's it."

The shopkeeper put the silver away and called upstairs, "Xiao Liu, take the guest to the east wing of the backyard, boil some water, and bring a pair of clean shoes and socks."

The two were led into the backyard by the waiter. The east wing was small, and the bed was a bit hard. The waiter brought hot water and shoes and socks and then ran off.

A-Yue stood by the door, not going inside. Shen Gui pointed to a chair: "Sit."

Ah Yue then slowly sat down. She took out the steamed bun from her arms and placed it on the table, but then felt it was inappropriate, so she put it back in her arms to protect it.

Shen Gui pointed to the basin of hot water beside the bed: "Clean the wound."

A-Yue looked at the basin:

"And you?"

"I don't need it."

"Um."

A-Yue bent down to untie her shoes, which were already stuck to her blood. When she tore them apart, a small piece of skin was also pulled up. She gasped in pain, but did not cry.

Shen Gui walked to the window, his back to her.

The room was quiet, with only the chirping of insects.

After a long while, A-Yue suddenly whispered, "Please don't abandon me. My father will come looking for me. I will give you a lot of money."

Shen Gui neither turned around nor replied.

Ah Yue realized she had said something wrong and quickly apologized, "I'm sorry, I disturbed you, sir."

After saying that, she put her foot in the water. The hot water washed over the wound, and she shuddered. Tears fell into the basin, and she quickly wiped them away with the back of her hand, biting her lip and daring not to cry anymore.

She was afraid that something she did might disturb Mr. Shen.

She even felt that the sound of her tears falling into the water was a bit loud and excessive, so she couldn't cry.

In the main hall of the front yard.

The talking returned to normal, and the drinkers discussed loudly. The shopkeeper stood behind the counter, slowly turning the abacus.

He ran his inn business not because of good food or good wine, but because of his sharp eyes and ears. He knew who in Changluo County he could mess with and who he couldn't.

Liu Sanye's men come to his place twice a month, sometimes to drink, sometimes to ask him questions.

The shopkeeper looked down at the account book, his finger pausing on the four characters "Liu's Rice Shop".

He glanced up at the backyard, then smiled and greeted the guests in the lobby: "Please enjoy your drinks, everyone. I'll go check on the wine in the back."

Half an hour later, the back door of the inn opened slightly, and the innkeeper, who had changed into a dark short coat, squeezed out through the crack in the door, closed it behind him, and walked very quietly down the back alley toward the city center.

As night deepened, Changluo County was no longer so lively. The streetlights were sparse, and the night watchman banged his clapper as he passed by from the other end. The shopkeeper walked close to the wall, his pace quickening.

In the center of the city stands a grand mansion with three courtyards. The two stone lions at the entrance are so clean that they seem to be open even at night.

The shopkeeper ran to the door, raised his hand and knocked, once lightly, twice heavily, and then paused.

Someone behind the door asked, "Who is it?"

The innkeeper lowered his voice: "It's urgent for Third Master from Yunlai Inn."

In the inn.

Shen Gui sat in the chair with his eyes closed.

Ah Yue was already asleep, curled up, her clean shoes and socks still on, holding half a cold steamed bun in her arms.

A breeze blew through the window, making the old curtain paper pasted on the window rustle softly.

Shen Gui slightly raised his eyelids, glanced in the direction the shopkeeper had left, and then closed them again.