Chapter Ninety-Four: Reaching a Balance

At the end of a recent journey, before dawn had yet broken, the local magistrate of Treasure County had sent over two imminent revenants. Now the aggrieved party had come knocking, and the conflict between the two sides might well erupt at any moment. For Wan'an County, which no longer had the backing of the court, this was no small matter.

Yet when Zhao Fusheng heard Fan Bisi's words, she did not grow uneasy.

Instead, she seemed remarkably composed and answered offhandedly with a simple "Mm."

"My lord! The people from Treasure County are here!"

Seeing how calm she remained, Fan Bisi first thought she had not heard him clearly, and so repeated himself.

Zhao Fusheng's expression did not change. She nodded and said, "I heard you. Drive properly. We will talk when we return to the yamen."

The people from Treasure County could not possibly have come as guests. It was certain that the matter of Zhao Fusheng sending away the ghosts had come to light, and they had come to settle the score.

Fan Bisi still wanted to speak, but after Zhao Fusheng boarded the carriage and finished speaking, she closed her eyes to rest. Clearly she had no intention of discussing the matter any further.

She had already handled several ghost cases and now possessed a steadily growing reputation. She was no longer the Zhao Fusheng she had once been. Though Fan Bisi was anxious, seeing this, he could only suppress his unease and focus on turning the horse around, heading toward the Demon Suppression Office.

By the time the carriage returned to the Demon Suppression Office, people inside had heard the noise and hurried out. The thin County Magistrate Pang ran the fastest, followed by several elderly local gentry. When they saw the carriage stop before the main gate of the Demon Suppression Office, Pang asked Fan Bisi in a flurry of questions, "Any news of Lady Zhao?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Zhao Fusheng stepped out of the carriage, and the stone weighing down everyone's anxious hearts finally fell away.

"My lord—"

Pang Magistrate's voice trembled, and he nearly burst into tears.

Last night, the carriage driver from the Demon Suppression Office had gone to Beggar Lane at the appointed time to pick up Zhao Fusheng, only to return empty-handed. They learned that Zhao Fusheng had left the Confucian Temple in the evening and gone to Granny Meng's stall.

Granny Meng, however, said that Zhao Fusheng had left some time earlier, apparently in a strange carriage.

After the driver returned to the Demon Suppression Office with this news, no one paid much heed at first. Only later, when people from Treasure County came to Wan'an County to demand an explanation and Fan Bisi and the others needed Zhao Fusheng to step forward and steady the situation, did they discover that she was still missing.

At that point, the Demon Suppression Office in Wan'an County fell into panic.

The local gentry were the first to learn of it, and in the middle of the night they summoned Pang Magistrate, who had already gone to bed. When everyone rushed to the Demon Suppression Office and found that Zhao Fusheng truly was not at the yamen, they grew frantic.

The county office sent constables out to search, and the gentry in the county dispatched their servants as well. A whole group searched through the night, even wondering whether Zhao Fusheng had met with some misfortune.

She had no relatives left in Wan'an County. Whether before or after she took command of ghosts, the range of her life had been confined to the vicinity of the Demon Suppression Office. Apart from Liu Yizhen in Beggar Lane, she had no friends. So where could she have gone overnight?

Some guessed that her revenant had revived. Others thought she might simply have had urgent business.

Opinions were divided, and Pang Magistrate was so anxious he nearly wore a rut in the floor.

Only now, seeing Zhao Fusheng return safely, did the people in the county office, who had been in utter disarray, finally calm down.

Within a single night, several boils had risen on the lips and chin of Pang Magistrate, proof of how worried he had been.

"W-Where did you go, my lord? You gave us such a fright."

Zhao Fusheng waved a hand and strode up the steps into the inner courtyard.

Pang Magistrate, with a crowd of local gentry behind him, followed at her heels, afraid she might vanish again into thin air.

By now, Zhao Fusheng was the core of the entire county. Her safety concerned the lives and fortunes of the majority of Wan'an County's people. Her disappearance the previous night had thrown the whole county office into turmoil.

When Zhao Fusheng returned to the main hall of the yamen, all the frightened attendants, upon seeing her appear, breathed a collective sigh of relief and then went back to their own tasks with newfound steadiness.

Fan Bisi, as though finding the pillar that held him up, signaled for the attendants to prepare food and drink.

"My lord has gone hungry all night, hurry—"

"No need."

Zhao Fusheng took the seat of honor, motioning for everyone to sit one by one before saying, "I already ate at Granny Meng's stall. I'm not hungry for now. Tell me first what happened last night."

The more imposing she seemed at such a moment, the more she steadied the people's hearts.

Pang Magistrate collected himself and, feeling his heartbeat gradually slow, considered for a moment. Just as he was about to speak, he suddenly heard crying from outside.

"My lord—has my lord returned?"

The battered Zhang Chuanshi rushed into the main hall clutching the Register of Souls and Fates. The instant he saw Zhao Fusheng, he froze. Then tears burst from his eyes.

"My lord, my good lord, thank heavens you're not dead yet."

The tears washed over the wounds on his face and turned into a gruesome trail of blood.

"I hadn't even prepared your coffin—"

"..."

The corner of Zhao Fusheng's eye twitched. Fan Bisi hastily scolded him, "Old Zhang, what nonsense are you spouting? My lord is blessed by heaven. How could she, how could she die!"

Still sobbing, Zhang Chuanshi lifted his swollen eyelids like those of a goldfish and argued, "How could she not? Last night, my lord's name had vanished from the register!"

The moment he said this, everyone's hearts tightened.

Once one entered the Demon Suppression Office and one's name was recorded in the Register of Souls and Fates, it was tantamount to signing a contract with a ghost and becoming its thrall.

And if a name disappeared from the register, there were only two possibilities: either the court had issued an order and the person had been temporarily reassigned elsewhere, or the person was already dead, and the register naturally no longer held power over them.

"All right, stop howling," Zhao Fusheng said.

She motioned for Zhang Chuanshi to shut up, then went on, "Continue with last night's events."

Zhang Chuanshi immediately fell silent, then took up a vigilant position behind Zhao Fusheng. Seeing that she did not object, he pursed his lips in smug satisfaction and even lifted his chin at Fan Bisi in a show of challenge.

Pang Magistrate wiped his face and said, "Yes."

"Yesterday, my lord had made an appointment with Zhang Xilai—" He said this, then worried that Zhao Fusheng might not know whom he meant, and quickly added, "Zhang Xilai was the carriage driver who took you yesterday."

"I know." Zhao Fusheng nodded. "Go on."

Her demeanor remained as steady as ever, and her temper was good. Pang Magistrate breathed another sigh of relief and said, "Yesterday he said you instructed him to take you to Beggar Lane, so as not to disturb your small gathering with a friend, and that he should come to pick you up in the evening."

But when Zhang Xilai went as arranged, he found no one to collect.

These matters Zhao Fusheng already knew from Liu Yizhen and Granny Meng. She said, "Tell me directly about what happened in the county."

"Two major things happened. One concerns your whereabouts, and the other is—"

As he said this, Pang Magistrate turned to look at Fan Bisi, his face showing a headache of an expression.

At once Zhao Fusheng guessed that he was referring to the people from Treasure County.

"Last night, you ordered us—"

Because the matter of Zhao Fusheng sending off ghosts, and later trying to dig back the door panel from that great disaster, was not exactly honorable, Pang Magistrate and the others knew of it, but they only had a hazy understanding of where the bodies of the Zhao couple had finally been buried. They did not know the details.

Fan Bisi did not explain the matter clearly, speaking only in vague terms.

"We wanted to gather men early this morning and had originally planned to set out for Treasure County tonight, hoping to settle the matter as soon as possible. Who would have thought that people from Treasure County would arrive last night instead?"

Zhao Fusheng's first reaction was, "Did Zheng He come?"

"No, no—how could that be?" Fan Bisi shook his head without hesitation, then suddenly realized something.

"How does my lord know Deputy Commander Zheng's name?"

The original Zhao Fusheng had merely been an ignorant countrywoman from Nine Gates Village, and in all her life had never left Wan'an County.

The reason she later knew of Deputy Commander Zheng in Treasure County was that the Fan brothers had once considered seeking refuge under him.

Fan Bisi was cautious by nature; after much thought, he had never mentioned Deputy Commander Zheng's name. How did she know that his name was Zheng He?

Could it be—

Thinking of this, he looked toward Zhang Chuanshi.

Zhang Chuanshi hurriedly shook his head.

"I don't know. I never said anything."

At this, Zhao Fusheng gave a cold laugh twice.

Zhang Chuanshi sensed trouble and quickly tried to remedy it.

"It was my fault, my lord. If I hear any news next time, I will be the first to tell you."

Fan Bisi still found it deeply strange that she should know Deputy Commander Zheng's name. She had vanished in such an uncanny way last night, even her name disappearing from the Register of Souls and Fates. Now that she had returned and casually called out Deputy Commander Zheng's name—

He could not think of an answer, and did not dare ask further.

Zhao Fusheng could not be bothered to bicker with Zhang Chuanshi and went straight to the point.

"What did the people from Treasure County come about?"

"..."

Fan Bisi's mouth twitched, and he reminded her, "My lord, the bodies of your parents—"

"The revenant revived?" Zhao Fusheng immediately understood.

"Yes."

Fan Bisi nodded.

Zhao Fusheng fell silent for a moment, then said, "We will discuss this later."

Although this ghost case did not occur on Wan'an County's soil, the bodies of the Zhao couple had always been sent there by her hand. Now that the revenant had revived and caused trouble for Zheng He, that was one thing. But if it began killing indiscriminately, the dead would still be common people. In her heart, she had already decided to clean up this mess.

"After I disappeared last night, was the situation in Wan'an County still stable?"

She set aside the matter of Treasure County and asked another question.

When Pang Magistrate and the local gentry heard this, they exchanged glances. Their faces showed embarrassment, and for a moment they did not know how to begin.

Zhao Fusheng's gaze swept across the hall.

Since she had taken control of Wan'an County, she had met nearly all the local gentry who remained in the county, and with her memory, she naturally kept these ever-generous benefactors firmly in mind.

At this moment, several of the gentry were absent from the hall of the Demon Suppression Office, clearly proof that her disappearance had stirred unease in their hearts.

"How many people packed their bags and prepared to leave Wan'an County?" she asked.

After saying this, she even laughed to herself.

"Or rather, who has already left?"

Pang Magistrate, seeing that she had guessed the truth yet did not fly into the rage everyone had expected, could not help but feel relieved. He said softly, "Only one man, Xu Shu."

At present, only one gentry by the surname Xu had left.

Because Zhao Fusheng had already handled two ghost cases in succession, and because of the extraordinary talent she had displayed while solving them, the remaining gentry and wealthy households in Wan'an County still had great confidence in her.

Even though she had mysteriously vanished last night, and her name had once disappeared from the Register of Souls and Fates, most people were still waiting to see how things would turn out. A small number refused to believe that anything had happened to her and were even busily sending servants out to search.

"Forget it. Every man has his own fate." Zhao Fusheng waved a hand.

"Let him go. Magistrate Pang, have men guard the county checkpoints later. Record the names of everyone who has left, and in future none of them may enter Wan'an County again!"

She was usually fairly easy to talk to, but on this matter her attitude was unusually forceful.

Pang Magistrate and the others were startled, then all answered in unison.

For the moment, the important matters came to a close.

Zhao Fusheng's return restored order to the Demon Suppression Office, which had fallen into confusion. With Fan Bisi's taut nerves finally easing, he then saw Pang Magistrate constantly signaling him with his eyes.

He knew exactly what Pang Magistrate and the others were thinking, and in truth he was also curious about Zhao Fusheng's whereabouts last night. After hesitating for several breaths, he gathered his courage and asked, "My lord, did you encounter some mishap last night? We searched for a long time and were terribly worried."

As soon as Fan Bisi spoke, the others quickly echoed him.

"Yes, yes! We were all very worried for your safety, my lord."

"Last night I ran into a ghost case—" Zhao Fusheng thought of the scene from the night before and felt lingering fear.

"I nearly never came back."

In truth, the others had also guessed that she might have encountered a ghost last night.

But this was still within Wan'an County itself. In the past, perhaps because the afterglow of the Demon Suppression Office still lingered, the likelihood of ghost disasters occurring in the county had been extremely low. Even if there was a ghost case, it would be swiftly resolved by the people of the Demon Suppression Office.

The haunting in Beggar Lane had already been delayed for too long because of the troubles in the Demon Suppression Office.

After Zhao Fusheng solved that ghost case, no one had imagined that another one would appear in the county seat. They were immediately frightened pale.

"A ghost case actually appeared in the county again?"

Zhang Chuanshi jolted and asked, "What kind of ghost case could have trapped my lord and even caused the name on the Register of Souls and Fates to nearly vanish?"

As he spoke, he took out the Register of Souls and Fates, which he had been gripping tightly in his hand, only to find that although Zhao Fusheng's name was indeed there, the strokes and the shadow of the crimson little figure were faint and indistinct, unlike those of others, whose spiritual presence was clear.

"This—"

He looked again and even rubbed it lightly a couple of times, yet Zhao Fusheng's name still did not become clear.

Instead, his fingers seemed to be pricked by the register. Zhang Chuanshi cried out in pain as a hole the size of a grain of millet split open on his fingertip, and blood gushed out in torrents, quickly swallowed by the register.

"Ow!"

He was so startled that he nearly dropped the jade book in his hands, crying out in shock, "What is going on?"

Seeing this, Zhao Fusheng faintly understood something.

The Register of Souls and Fates held restraining power over those recorded within the jade book. The ledger was generally kept in the hands of the commander, and if the commander wished to punish a disobedient subordinate, the register could be used to make them suffer.

She had once used this very method to deal with Zhang Chuanshi.

Yet at this moment, when Zhang Chuanshi rubbed her name, she felt nothing at all...

"My life soul—substitute—"

In an instant, Zhao Fusheng understood everything.

The moment the substitute paper figure was released by her, it had taken the place of her identity. Not only had it been bound in her stead to the carriage, it had also borne the restraint of the Register of Souls and Fates in her place.

Although the person recorded in the Register of Souls and Fates was indeed her, because of the substitute paper figure, all causality had in truth already been transferred to the substitute ghost.

When two ghosts contended, the ghost thrall, by rights, held the higher rank, but being far away in the imperial capital, it should instead have been suppressed by the sinister substitute ghost.

Yet the substitute ghost was itself fully restrained by the ghost carriage, and thus, in turn, was also governed by the Register of Souls and Fates, thick with ghostly curses.

One force restraining another, a delicate balance was achieved, and Zhao Fusheng, who should have been bound by the Register of Souls and Fates, had cleverly slipped free!

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