Chapter 127

Chapter 127

Chapter 127: Punishment

Some people, as a result, became despondent, gloomy all day, and naturally did not participate in the rehearsals of The Dream-Seeking Chronicle.

The troupe leader originally didn’t want to bother with them. But thinking of his responsibilities, he added one more word: “The Immortal Master didn’t summon us here just to feed us silver and food for free.”

This wasn’t flattery toward the “Immortal Master,” but an undeniable fact. After the group arrived at this courtyard, every morning someone would come to deliver vegetables, and every few days there was even meat to eat.

They had stopped the delivery person to ask, but learned nothing. They only knew that someone had paid in advance for them, instructing that enough ingredients be sent daily for about twenty people.

Seeing the delivery person’s gaze gradually become suspicious, the troupe leader decided to let him go.

Reflecting on the current situation, he felt even more confused, but ultimately decided: “The Immortal Master treats us so well, we must not disappoint his expectations. Rehearsing properly is the most important thing.”

In the following days, the troupe leader truly kept a close eye on the rehearsal progress, just as he said. He also tried to persuade those who were despondent; some were convinced and thought the troupe leader made sense. After all, since they couldn’t return home, it was better to first find a way to survive.

Some remained sullen but not for long. On the third day, someone who stayed motionless in the room, lying on the bed, simply disappeared.

The troupe leader was the first to notice this. He felt both surprise and a subtle unease. But when others asked, he suppressed his worry and calmly said, “If he doesn’t want to take the Immortal Master’s livelihood, we can’t force him. The Immortal Master has already sent him back. The rest of us should focus on rehearsals.”

Whether it was the phrasing of “sent back” or not, after that day, a few others began to slack off. They thought that by doing nothing, they could go home.

However, like the previous person, they didn’t slack off for long and eventually disappeared from everyone’s sight.

Perhaps thinking that this left the troupe understaffed, the “Immortal Master” sent new people over the next day.

The group stumbled through the rehearsals. Luckily, some of those chosen by the “Immortal Master” already had experience in performing arts. With their guidance, the play finally took shape. Day by day, it became more structured.

Sometimes the troupe leader treated himself as an audience; while others performed, he would sit in the courtyard and listen. After listening often, he began to nod along and quietly hum with them.

This life continued for several months. Finally, one day, the “Immortal Master” appeared again, telling everyone that it was time to perform for outsiders.

Hearing this, some in the troupe felt reluctant to leave the courtyard they had been at for months, while others grew excited in anticipation. But in the troupe leader’s mind, it was a different matter. He quietly wondered: if he disobeyed the “Immortal Master” now, and the others left while he remained alone in the courtyard, would he live safely, or would he “disappear” like those before him?

The thought made the troupe leader break out in a cold sweat.

He did not show it on his face but instead smiled: “I just remembered. When I used to watch plays, those troupes always had a striking name. We’ve been rehearsing so long but haven’t had time to name our troupe.”

“I once heard a name, something like ‘Joyful Virtue Troupe,’” suggested a girl who had been sold into a troupe by her parents in childhood and later abducted to Jingzhou. “Why don’t we just call ourselves that?”

She spoke casually. But the others present had no objections. In this way, the troupe’s name was settled.

That night, the troupe leader, as before, offered three incense sticks on the “Immortal Master’s” altar, murmuring about subsequent plans, then prepared to go to bed.But just as he was about to move his feet, he suddenly heard a gust of wind. Immediately after, the candle flickered out, and the “Immortal Master’s” voice came through again.

It wasn’t as gentle and kind as usual; it was much deeper, much colder. He asked the troupe leader: “Are you afraid of me?”

How had he answered back then?

The troupe leader was shocked to realize he couldn’t quite remember. But he must have guessed long ago that the “Immortal Master” wasn’t as lenient and compassionate as he appeared, but rather—

“Your servant is wronged!” the man knelt before the Old Wolf deity statue, panic-stricken, eyes full of fear. “Your servant didn’t know it was ‘evil arts’! Ancestor Grandfather, see clearly! You must see clearly!”

Bai Zhengliu sneered, “You didn’t know it was evil arts, yet you went to the Cheng family to draw formations?”

The troupe leader’s face twisted into a smile worse than crying. “The Imm… ah no, the ‘evil sorcerer’ told me. The formations he taught me were meant to make the girl of the Cheng family like our play. We had just arrived, with no solid foundation, unable to establish ourselves in Jingzhou City. Only a prominent family like the Chengs could give us a boost at the very beginning.”

“Oh?” The Old Wolf deity’s tone seemed to soften considerably. “Is that so?”

The troupe leader kowtowed forcefully. “Of course! Of course! Had I known it was evil arts, that it was something harmful, how could I have done it?”

Bai Zhengliu remained silent. The Old Wolf deity stared coldly and silently at the kneeling man, making him tremble even more.

“Ancestor Grandfather, see clearly, see clearly!”

Receiving no response, the troupe leader grew even more terrified. Blood had streaked across his forehead from the intensity of his kowtows.

“If you truly want me to ‘see clearly’—” At that moment, a faint wind seemed to brush past his ear. His body hair stood on end, and he trembled violently, unable to move. In the midst of his fear, he finally heard the next words from the Old Wolf deity.

“I do want to know!” Bai Zhengliu suddenly raised his voice. “At a time like this, how can you still lie?!”

Troupe leader: “……”

Troupe leader: “…!”

“I didn’t! Your servant didn’t!” The troupe leader’s tears and snot streamed together; his whole body shook like a sieve. He wanted to prove himself, but the more he tried, the more Bai and Mei could see his guilt.

After hearing him repeat “I didn’t” for a long while, Bai Zhengliu sighed and ended the last one decisively:

“You say ‘I didn’t,’ yet you even performed the ritual with live flesh and blood. There is no place for you in our theatre circle.”

The troupe leader felt as if struck by lightning. “N-no, no!”

Bai Zhengliu said coldly: “You are to go to the Cheng family today, clarify the facts, and then accept whatever disposition they see fit.”——Originally, Bai Zhengliu had intended to send the troupe leader to the government authorities. But upon reconsideration, he felt that given the troupe leader’s actions, going to the authorities would only make things difficult.

After all, he hadn’t personally done anything truly heinous. Regarding drawing formations on Cheng Yaoniang’s rooftop, he only did it briefly; the subsequent events had nothing to do with him. As for buying raw meat to offer the “evil sorcerer,” if one didn’t explain everything from the start, the officials would be completely confused. If explained fully, Bai and Mei would inevitably face delays.

Given this, it was better to let the Cheng family make the decision. They were the victims, and Master Cheng and Madam Cheng were both upright yet decisive. Bai Zhengliu thought this was the best choice for now.

After speaking, he turned his gaze to the middle-aged man before him, still dazed.

Bai Zhengliu added: “If there are others like you—knowing the evil sorcerer is dangerous but pretending ignorance to harm others—they must go along as well.” Pausing, he recalled something, palm facing upward, revealing a glimmer of spiritual light.

Bai Zhengliu intentionally gathered the light, then gently flicked his palm, sending tiny sparks flying out.

The troupe leader watched, wide-eyed, as these visible yet untouchable sparks entered his body.

Objectively, this was beneficial to his body. But the troupe leader didn’t know that! He only felt a sudden heat, followed by his internal organs feeling as if roasted on a fire rack. Excruciatingly painful, yet despite all this, his hands and feet remained icy cold.

“If you do not go…” Finally, the Old Wolf deity spoke half in threat, half casually: “You may try and see if, later, even at the ends of the earth, I can find you.”

Hearing this, the troupe leader immediately lost heart. He sat dazedly on the ground, and after a long while, finally lowered his head, covering his face, and began to sob.

Taking advantage of his crying, Bai and Mei left the room.

The person was gone, but Bai Zhengliu still held something in his hand. Mei Yinghan looked closely and saw it was a piece of silver.

Noticing Mei Yinghan’s gaze, Bai Zhengliu explained: “Even though I said all that to him, what if he really doesn’t fear or believe me? Don’t be fooled by his continuous crying, looking terrified. Once he finishes crying, he might think that by running early, the Old Wolf deity can’t touch him.”

Mei Yinghan smiled: “So you took something that can locate him.”

“Mm-hmm.” Bai Zhengliu lifted his chin. “We’ll find out when we see your brother. Even a copper coin can identify its owner; silver will surely work. Actually, I wanted to take something else, but time was short, so I couldn’t find it.”

Mei Yinghan: “I think silver is fine.”

Bai Zhengliu smiled: “Right? I think so too.”

Mei Yinghan: “If the Old Ghost of the Chang family is a man-eating tiger, the troupe leader is at least a malevolent spirit harming others.”

Bai Zhengliu admitted: “What I worried about most was that he really knew nothing. Then, if I didn’t punish him, I’d feel uneasy. If I did punish him, I’d feel uneasy too. Now, like this, there’s no fault to pick.” He glanced at the silver taken from the troupe leader. “Hopefully, we won’t have to use this.”

Mei Yinghan: “Agreed.”

Bai Zhengliu continued: “When the troupe leader was crying and shouting, did he mention that many people there were abducted?”

Mei Yinghan: “He did mention it.”Bai Zhengliu was silent for a long moment, then murmured, “This world—on the surface, it seems peaceful, but in reality, it’s still far from it.”

Mei Yinghan remained silent, inwardly agreeing with the sentiment.

On the surface, one could say that the lives of the common people now were naturally far better than a hundred or even several decades ago. There were no wars, taxes from the court weren’t harsh, and the emperor had no “hobby” of killing people indiscriminately.

They knew this. Yet they also knew that beneath the prosperity, suffering still existed, and from a macro perspective, what seemed like minor “suffering” could become an immense, crushing mountain for any individual who experienced it.

This thought left the wandering heroes powerless and helpless—but even so, they had to lift their spirits.

They were willing to be those who move mountains. Even if it meant hardship, toil, or even seeming futility, every action taken could help one more person escape suffering.

…

…

After leaving the troupe, the two rode straight out of the city, galloping toward Du Village.

Since the script for The Dream-Seeking Chronicle had come directly from the Old Ghost of the Chang family to the troupe, Bai Zhengliu felt he could now mark a big X on the question of whether Hengsheng really existed.

Why hadn’t he thought of this before? Heng… Chang…

Although the Old Ghost of the Chang family hid his true identity, the concealment was far from thorough.

Author’s note:

Second update~