The Xie Family, the Second Day of Fortune-Telling
After agreeing on a time with the patron, Xu Keke watched him leave. The moment he disappeared from sight, Xu Keke suddenly sprang to his feet and threw his arms around Xie Qingmian.
“Holy crap, you really can tell fortunes!”
Xie Qingmian was caught in the embrace without warning. Somewhat puzzled, he pushed Xu Keke away.
“That was your fortune to begin with.”
If Xu Keke had not kindly lent him his things, Xie Qingmian would not have called out and told him to wait. If Xu Keke had not believed Xie Qingmian and really waited ten minutes, he would never have obtained this stroke of fortune.
Every fortune had traces that could be followed.
Xu Keke understood none of that. He felt the thick wad of deposit money in his pocket and happily decided to treat himself to a big dinner that evening.
But just as he was packing up to leave, he caught sight of Xie Qingmian out of the corner of his eye, slowly counting the little stones behind him.
He touched the money in his pocket again, gritted his teeth, turned around, and asked, “Do you have somewhere to go tonight? Do you have any money on you?”
Xie Qingmian stared blankly for a moment, then slowly shook his head.
“I checked. There won’t be any strong winds tonight, so I can sleep under the bridge.”
Hearing Xie Qingmian say that he planned to sleep under the bridge, Xu Keke felt even more sorry for him.
He thought about the money he had made that day. If Xie Qingmian had not told him to stay, he would never have had the chance to earn it.
“Why don’t you stay at my place for now? Then tomorrow, I’ll take you to the police station.”
Xie Qingmian muttered to himself, “Do constables still handle missing-person cases? Wouldn’t household registration be managed by the Ministry of Revenue?”
“Handle what?” Xu Keke had not heard him clearly and raised his voice as he asked again.
Xie Qingmian shook his head. “Nothing.”
“Then come home with me. But let’s be clear, you can only sleep on the sofa, and you’re not allowed to make too much of a mess.”
Xie Qingmian nodded obediently, his round black eyes full of docility.
Seeing this, Xu Keke’s heart softened even more. He gestured for Xie Qingmian to follow him.
He took Xie Qingmian onto the subway, changing lines several times before arriving at an old residential complex, one with a strong sense of everyday life.
Along the way, Xie Qingmian looked around curiously, which only made Xu Keke feel more sorry for him. At the entrance to the complex, he even bought some braised food for an extra dish with dinner.
Xu Keke lived on the top floor. Once they entered, he took a pair of pink teddy-bear slippers from the shoe rack. “Here. They’re new.”
He had bought them on Taobao. The men’s pair had come with a women’s pair, and he had chosen the largest size in the women’s style, thinking he could change into them himself someday.
Xie Qingmian put them on. The sensation was unlike anything he had experienced before, so he curiously stamped his feet a few times.
Fortunately, Xu Keke was busy putting the braised food on the dining table and did not notice.
He walked toward the kitchen. “Come give me a hand.”
Xie Qingmian withdrew his curious gaze and followed him. “Okay.”
***
At the Xie family’s hillside estate, famous for being the finest-kept property in Hai City’s celebrated luxury hillside development, no one slept a wink that night.
“How can we not find him? Could a person just disappear?” Pei Junshu sat on the sofa with red-rimmed eyes. Her hair, which she had not had time to tend to, was disheveled.
Xie Fu held his wife in his arms, his face dark with worry as well.
He looked at his eldest son, Xie Chenque. Even his usually steady voice carried a harsh edge. “Have those people been investigated thoroughly?”
Xie Chenque’s eyes were filled with exhaustion, bloodshot from lack of sleep.
“We have. They’ve all been taken to the police station, but based on the location they gave us, we didn’t find Mianmian below the cliff.”
Pei Junshu looked ready to cry again. She covered her face and broke down.
Just then, Xie Chenque suddenly received a phone call. After listening to what the person on the other end said, the tension in his jaw eased slightly.
When he hung up, Xie Chenque abruptly raised his head. Veins bulged across the hand gripping his phone.
“The cameras at the foot of the mountain caught Mianmian leaving on his own. He went to a spot under an overpass and eventually left with a young man.”
A hopeful light flashed in Pei Junshu’s eyes. “Have you found the address where they are now?”
“We’re still looking.” Xie Chenque rose to his feet. “Dad, Mom, I’ll go to the police station myself.”
“Good, good, good.” Xie Fu helped Pei Junshu to her feet as well. “Call us as soon as you have any new information.”
“I will.”
“I’ll call Old Liu again, too.”
“Mm.”
…
Xie Qingmian had no idea what turmoil was engulfing the Xie family. He was eating the meal Xu Keke had prepared, nodding enthusiastically as he ate.
Delicious, delicious. This was good, and so was that.
The modern world’s diverse seasonings instantly won over the Great Yuan State Preceptor’s stomach.
After dinner, Xu Keke got up, intending to ask Xie Qingmian to clear the table. But just as he was about to speak, he noticed Xie Qingmian’s long, pale fingers, as delicate as green onions. They were clearly the hands of someone who had been pampered from childhood and never done any work.
The words died in Xu Keke’s throat. He sighed silently and cleared the dishes himself.
When Xu Keke came out of the kitchen, he saw that Xie Qingmian had finished bathing and was sitting on the sofa in the clothes Xu Keke had given him, watching the television with curiosity.
He noticed that Xie Qingmian was also holding a black phone.
“You have a phone?” Xu Keke walked over. “Do you have your parents’ numbers? Give them a call.”
At first, Xu Keke had thought Xie Qingmian was a young man whose mind had been damaged by abuse. Later, he realized that Xie Qingmian seemed not to understand anything at all when it came to daily life. He was more like a young master who had been spoiled rotten.
Xie Qingmian handed him the phone. “It seems to be broken.”
Xu Keke took it and tried to use it, only to find that the screen was shattered like a spiderweb.
He handed the phone back to Xie Qingmian. “I’ll take you to get it fixed tomorrow. If it can’t be repaired, we can get you a new one.”
As he spoke, Xu Keke returned to his room and brought out a quilt, placing it on the sofa. “The sofa’s pretty big. You should have enough room. If you’re still cold, come wake me.”
Xie Qingmian gave a slight nod, then went back to studying the little black box in front of the sofa.
Xu Keke asked him, “By the way, what’s your name?”
“Xie Qingmian. Qing as in light and heavy, mian as in sleep.”
“That name sounds much better than mine,” Xu Keke muttered.
“Well, time for bed. If you want to watch television, use the remote, but don’t turn the volume up too loud.”
After Xu Keke went into his room, Xie Qingmian shook out the quilt, lay down on the sofa, and closed his eyes.
He had far too many questions.
Why had he suddenly awakened in this body? What exactly was this body’s identity?
And… what had happened to the Great Yuan dynasty after his death?
Xie Qingmian exhaled the stale air from his chest and stared at the patterns on the ceiling, wide awake.
When he had left the foot of the mountain, he had seen this body’s face reflected in the water.
It looked exactly like his own. What was more, he could not divine a single thing about this body.
That was rather strange. As the State Preceptor of the Great Yuan dynasty, aside from the one time he had failed before the dog emperor, when had he ever encountered a destiny he could not read?
Thinking of that rather handsome dog emperor made it even harder for Xie Qingmian to sleep.
He wondered what fate had awaited the dog emperor after death. After taking the throne, he had dealt with corrupt officials with ruthless methods, leaving a heavy trail of blood and sin. Who knew how the underworld would judge him?
The thought made it even harder for Xie Qingmian to sleep.
The clock in the living room ticked steadily. He had no idea what time it was. His body had, after all, been through so much during the day, and before long, Xie Qingmian was fast asleep.
Perhaps because one dreamed of what one thought about during the day, he had spent the day wondering why he could not divine anything about this body, and that night, he dreamed. In the dream, he experienced everything this body had gone through during its twenty years of life.