A Prophet - Chapter 2 (Part 2)
Chapter 2 - Saving the Mortal Enemy Who Killed One's Family at the Risk of One's Life
Grandfather walked closer and saw that the chest was nailed together from thick wooden boards. He threaded the iron poker through the gaps in the planks and, using a great deal of effort, finally managed to pry the box open. Inside were two people tightly bound hand and foot. They had been tied up with expert skill: both hands bound together, both feet bound together, and then a rope drawn from the middle to pull the hands and feet forcefully inward. This forced all four "claws" together into a bundle, leaving the entire person curled up like a shrimp lying inside, utterly unable to move. Grandfather dug out the rags stuffed in their mouths. After a fit of coughing, the two men expressed endless gratitude, saying, "Thank you, little brother, for saving our lives!" By the dim light of the lamp, Grandfather looked at the pair. One was around fifty years old with a wispy goatee, while the other appeared to be sixty or seventy, his face covered in wrinkles but completely clean-shaven. Grandfather began trying to untie their ropes, but they were all hard knots that couldn't be undone even with teeth. Finally, the older man said, "Little brother, take off the glass shade of this oil lamp, bring the lamp over, and burn them directly." Grandfather slapped his forehead and thought, "That's right, why didn't I think of that!" He hurriedly fetched the oil lamp, and the two men stretched the gaps between the ropes to cooperate, quickly burning the ties through. Suddenly, Grandfather felt his scalp tingle: why did the older man's voice just now sound so different from a normal person's? It was strange and eerie. The fifty-year-old man also spoke up at that moment, asking, "Little brother, may I ask where you hail from? How did you come to be here and rescue us?" His question left Grandfather stunned. Grandfather thought to himself: I originally came here to look for clues and avenge myself on my enemies, but I ended up saving two people along the way. How am I supposed to explain this? Should I tell them the truth? I can't! For all I know, they might be in cahoots with the others, and telling the truth could easily stir up trouble! The drastic upheaval of his family had dealt Grandfather too heavy a blow; he could no longer trust a single soul. Smiling, Grandfather said, "I... actually lead a desperate life wandering the rivers and lakes. Last year, because of a dispute over paying land rent, I came into conflict with the local bailiff. In a fit of anger, I beat that black-hearted bailiff, and since then I've bid farewell to my hometown and drifted to the ends of the earth. Passing by here just now, I happened to see several people carrying you both into this residence. I'm a person who loves to stand up for justice, and besides, saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. So, I couldn't help myself and took the risk to rescue you! It's really nothing much—when you see injustice on the road, you draw your sword to help. That's just what righteous travelers do." Hearing this, the two men looked at each other in blank dismay for a long while before saying, "To be so young and yet possess such daring and a chivalrous heart, little brother, we truly admire you!" The fifty-year-old man cupped his fists in a salute and said, "I am Zhou Zhenlong." He then pointed to the sixty-or-seventy-year-old man and said, "This is my master, Zhang Dancheng. May I ask your esteemed surname and given name, little brother?"
Grandfather also cupped his fists and replied, "I dare not assume such praise. This humble one's surname is Wang, and my given name is Yixing, meaning a single-minded dedication to cultivation." Zhang Dancheng nodded and murmured, "Ah, a good name, a good name!" Once again, Grandfather felt his scalp tingle and goosebumps rise all over his body. The old man's voice was too peculiar—thin and reedy, resembling the bleating of a sheep, making one feel chilled to the bone. In truth, Grandfather was lying. Ever since his family was wiped out because his father offended the warlords, he never dared reveal his true name. He had thought of this name on the spot, and only he understood its meaning: Yixing, walking alone and forlornly through the world. Zhou Zhenlong said, "This place is not safe to linger. Let's move somewhere else to talk!" Grandfather had no wish to go with them, but reflecting that these two men could mix with those scoundrels, they were either enemies or accomplices—in any case, they were connected. Why not seize the opportunity to gather some information? Of the three villains who had set up the scam on the main street that day to swindle Grandfather and his siblings, two were now dead, but the third one wearing glasses had yet to be found. Thus, the three of them hurried away under the moonlight. Wading across a small river and turning through several alleys, they arrived in front of a courtyard. Zhou Zhenlong produced a key and unlocked the door. Day was just beginning to break. After the three of them entered, Zhou Zhenlong did not rush everyone to sit down; instead, he lifted the mat on the brick-bed kang, revealing a wooden board underneath. Lifting the board exposed an opening with a vertical ladder leading down. Zhou Zhenlong said to Zhang Dancheng, "Master, let's go down and talk." Zhang Dancheng nodded, and Zhou Zhenlong supported him, letting him descend first. Then Zhou Zhenlong turned to Grandfather and said, "Brother Wang, please." Staring in astonishment at the large opening in the kang, Grandfather stood frozen, wondering what kind of secret mechanism this was—digging a massive pit right in the middle of a heated brick bed—before leaning over and descending himself. Zhou Zhenlong was the last to go down; once below, he propped himself up and restored the wooden board and kang mat to their original positions. After Zhou Zhenlong lit an oil lamp, Grandfather finally saw clearly that this was a cellar supported by four pillars, with a tea table in the middle and a dark tunnel on the right side extending deep inward, leading to some unknown destination.
Once the three of them were seated, Zhang Dancheng started up his reedy voice again: "Old man has no way to repay Brother Wang for saving my life. Big Dam Master, fetch some gold later and present it to Brother Wang as a token of your appreciation." Zhou Zhenlong nodded and said, "Yes." This was the first time Grandfather had ever heard the term "Dam Master." With his mind entirely fixed on clues and revenge, always wanting to squeeze some information out of these two, Grandfather cared very little about the gold and said, "A true man born between heaven and earth should share mutual loyalty. For Mr. Zhang to dismiss me with gold is simply treating this humble one with disrespect!" Zhang Dancheng and Zhou Zhenlong exchanged glances again, completely baffled by the young man before them. "Then... what... how shall we repay you?" Grandfather smiled. "Meeting the two of you is also a matter of fate. In other words, it was destined that the two of you should not die; fortunate people have their own heavenly protection, and I merely played the role of a savior. If the two gentlemen wish to thank anyone, thank the heavens." The two men were momentarily stunned, then burst into roaring laughter, laughing until tears streamed down their faces. They felt the young fellow before them was simply too endearing. Listening to Zhang Dancheng's thread-like, shrill laughter, Grandfather felt another ripple of goosebumps. Unable to wait any longer, Grandfather asked, "Why were the two gentlemen bound by those bandits? Could it be that you offended them?" The two men reined in their smiles, and Zhou Zhenlong said, "We were betrayed from within!" Grandfather didn't understand what that meant. "Betrayed how?"
After Zhang Dancheng had been captured by that Manchu prince, he had prepared himself to die. Unexpectedly, the prince still harbored some sentiment for the old days and said, "Capital punishment can be avoided, but the punishment of living cannot be escaped. Since you are so daring, I will temper your arrogance."
Consequently, Zhang Dancheng was pinned down by several Qing soldiers while a young eunuch used a knife to slice off one of his testicles. Blood immediately flooded the ground, and he nearly died on the spot. From then on, Zhang Dancheng became a true "single-egg" man, and his voice gradually grew strange and eerie. Since it was still the era of the Great Qing, there was nothing he could do but return to the countryside to live under an assumed name. After the Xinhai Revolution overthrew the Manchu government, Zhang Dancheng popped right back up, setting off firecrackers for three full days in celebration before reorganizing his gang and resuming his swindling.
Zhang Dancheng's gang was not large, with four Dam Masters under his command. Zhou Zhenlong was the First Dam Master, having started out alongside Zhang Dancheng, while the other three were gradually discovered and groomed later on. This time, those three Dam Masters had joined forces to stage a betrayal. It wasn't that Zhang Dancheng hadn't caught the scent of it; he had simply acted too late.
According to the accounts of Zhang Dancheng and Zhou Zhenlong, the ringleader of the mutiny among the three Dam Masters was the Fourth Dam Master. This fellow had long been insubordinate, complaining that Zhang Dancheng wasn't ruthless enough and that the gang's silver was dwindling. Starting last year, he had begun inciting Zhang Dancheng to "slaughter the rich"!
"Slaughtering the rich" was a supreme taboo in the con artist underworld; violating this guild rule would invite a collective manhunt from the entire swindler fraternity. So-called "slaughtering the rich" meant "cutting" a particularly wealthy target and outright looting all their money.
Swindling differed from robbery and theft in that it emphasized a steady, long-term flow of income; otherwise, it would sever the gang's financial lifeline. Even if someone was a mortal enemy, "cutting" them without seeking prior authorization from the leadership incurred the most severe penalties. Therefore, barring desperate circumstances, one must never "slaughter the rich."
Zhang Dancheng understood that the Fourth Dam Master's pretext of "slaughtering the rich" for the sake of the gang's interests was entirely an excuse—at the end of the year, it all boiled down to being blinded by lust. Zhang Dancheng had long seen through his shallow schemes. Last year, while visiting a wealthy landlord's estate to adjust the feng shui, the Fourth Dam Master had caught sight of the landlord's beautiful wife. Racking his brains without finding a good way to snatch the beauty, he had repeatedly demanded to "slaughter the rich" under the guise of tight gang finances. Once they killed that landlord, he would have his chance.
Lately, Zhang Dancheng had sensed that the Fourth Dam Master was acting increasingly suspicious and was just about to discuss countermeasures with Zhou Zhenlong when the scoundrel teamed up with the other two Dam Masters and struck first. They tied you up without killing you immediately, forcing you to watch with your own eyes as he embraced the beauty and "ascended the grand throne," only to execute you afterward so you would die in humiliation—that was their idea of pleasure!
At this point in the tale, Zhang Dancheng gnashed his teeth in hatred, cursing relentlessly!
Grandfather understood completely now: it was an internal power struggle. Grandfather asked, "Then what about the immortal children appearing in dreams and walking against the current the other day..."
Zhou Zhenlong chuckled. "What immortal children in dreams? It was all fake, all a setup staged by us. This particular scam was actually executed by the Fourth Dam Master. It was just a smoke screen to put on a good performance before his mutiny. Both my master and I were lulled into complacency."
A shudder ran through Grandfather's body, a dull ache throbbing in his heart before he quickly regained his composure. He had his clues now: Zhang Dancheng was the mastermind, and among the rebellious Dam Masters under his command was undoubtedly the murderer of his younger brother and sister. Although Zhang Dancheng and Zhou Zhenlong hadn't done the deed themselves, they were still complicit. Grandfather's brain spun at high speed: Should he kill these two men he had just rescued? He had no weapon on hand right now, and fighting the two of them probably wasn't a winning proposition... No, he couldn't kill them! If he killed them, he would never find the Dam Master who murdered his siblings. He had to use their hands first to eliminate that Dam Master, and settling accounts with these two later would not be too late!
Various schemes collided in Grandfather's mind like shooting stars as he fell deep into thought.
Noticing Grandfather staring blankly, Zhang Dancheng asked, "What's wrong, Brother Wang?"
Grandfather hurriedly replied, "This... this Fourth Dam Master is truly beyond despicable! I am furious on both of your behalf!"
Zhang Dancheng and Zhou Zhenlong looked at each other. Zhang Dancheng said, "Little brother, since you've helped someone all the way, you might as well help them to the western paradise. The two of us cannot show our faces right now, and most of the brothers in the stronghold have been subverted. We can't fight our way back relying solely on ourselves. I will write a letter immediately; take the ferry to Shanghai and deliver it to a man named Ninth Master. I'll give you the specific address, and he will help me. I must trouble you, little brother!" Grandfather didn't know who Ninth Master was at the time, but history later provided the answer: Ninth Master was none other than Wang Yazhiqiao, the legendary Jianghu hero who shook China and the world. Three days later, Grandfather met Wang Yazhiqiao for the first time. Grandfather was only 15 years old then, while Wang Yazhiqiao was 31. Wang Yazhiqiao patted Grandfather on the head and said, "Kid, what nerve, what spirit!" Wang Yazhiqiao was an old acquaintance of Zhang Dancheng and valued brotherhood above all else. He quickly dispatched a dozen armed subordinates to accompany Grandfather back. After secretly conferring with Zhang Dancheng and Zhou Zhenlong, those assassins decided to launch a full-scale assault on the stronghold on the night the Fourth Dam Master ascended to his "throne."
After all, con artists were no match for professional assassins. The stronghold only had a few firearms—German-style Mauser Model 1898 rifles manufactured during the Qing dynasty, their wooden stocks rotted and constantly jamming. Consequently, more than a dozen assassins wielding revolvers vaulted over the walls and opened heavy gunfire. In less than half an hour, the con artists were either dead or wounded, and the rest were crouching against the walls with their heads in their hands.
Zhang Dancheng had issued a strict decree: "You must capture these Dam Masters alive!" He wanted to carve these bastards up with his own hands!
As a result, aside from the Second Dam Master who slit his own throat upon seeing that the situation was lost, both the Third and Fourth Dam Masters were captured alive, bound with ropes, and tied to pillars. Hiding behind the crowd, Grandfather peered out and instantly recognized the Fourth Dam Master—it was precisely the man who had swindled him and his siblings on the street that day. Although he wasn't wearing glasses tonight, Grandfather would have recognized his silhouette, his chin, and the large black mole at the corner of his mouth even if he were reduced to ashes.
Grandfather's teeth ground together audibly, but he dared not act rashly. He worried that the Fourth Dam Master might recognize him; although the gang members were fighting among themselves, they were still family, and he was an outsider. If the man shouted out, "That's the little bastard who got away!" nobody could predict what kind of complications might arise.
Sitting in the main courtyard of the stronghold, Zhang Dancheng asked the Fourth Dam Master, "Do you submit?"
The Fourth Dam Master looked up and laughed aloud. "You eunuch! If you want to kill me, just do it!"
Hearing this instantly infuriated Zhang Dancheng. To be precise, a "single-egg" man wasn't strictly a eunuch, but hearing the word "eunuch" was his ultimate taboo. In truth, the reason the Fourth Dam Master had succeeded in his mutiny was that he had been spreading rumors behind the scenes: "The old man is a eunuch himself, yet he restricts the brothers in the stronghold from finding women?!" Most of the con artists were consumed by greed and lust; stirred up by the Fourth Dam Master's incitement, their desires were fully aroused, and one and all they stubbornly resolved to follow the Fourth Dam Master to the end. Waving his hand, Zhang Dancheng commanded, "Big Dam Master, cut out his tongue for me!" Zhou Zhenlong acknowledged with a crisp "Yes" and stepped forward with a knife. In reality, cutting out a person's tongue was extremely difficult—it was completely different from slicing a pig's tongue. A pig's tongue was large and long, and before being slaughtered, pigs squealed constantly, leaving their mouths half-open even after bleeding out; you simply removed the pig's head, pried open its jaws, pulled the tongue with one hand, and chopped with a knife in the other. But a living human's bite force was immense, and two foot-soldiers straining with all their might couldn't pry the Fourth Dam Master's mouth open. Finally, Zhou Zhenlong swung an iron rod, smashing the Fourth Dam Master's jaw open and knocking out his front teeth. Then the two foot-soldiers pried apart his upper and lower jaws while Zhou Zhenlong stepped in and sliced off half his tongue. The Fourth Dam Master's mouth filled with blood, though one could still tell he was cursing, but the sounds had become completely blurred and indistinct.
Zhang Dancheng laughed coldly. "Do you submit?"
The Fourth Dam Master tilted his head, blood continuing to flow freely, his expression still reeking of defiance.
Enraged, Zhang Dancheng snatched up a pistol, stood up, and prepared to blow a hole in his head. Grandfather had been silently watching everything unfold, thinking that the time for revenge had finally arrived. He walked over to Zhang Dancheng and said, "Blowing his brains out with a single shot is letting him off too easy! He's courting death right now and is desperate for you to pull the trigger!"
Zhang Dancheng was startled. "Little brother, what do you mean?"
With his mind entirely filled with the image of his younger brother and sister, Grandfather paused for a moment before squeezing out a few vicious words through his teeth: "Light—the—heaven—lamp!"
His declaration startled Zhang Dancheng—why was this kid so ruthless? How could Zhang Dancheng know that this was pure hatred on Grandfather's part? By then, the Fourth Dam Master had recognized Grandfather. He opened his mouth as if trying to say something, but with his mouth a bloody, mangled mess, nothing came out clearly. In the end, he shook his head and actually managed a smile—he accepted his defeat.
"Lighting the heaven lamp" and "death by a thousand cuts" were two of the most brutal punishments in ancient times. While the latter involved slicing flesh away piece by piece, lighting the heaven lamp entailed submerging a person in a vat of oil, fishing them out, and binding them upside down to a pillar with the feet pointing upward. The fire was then ignited from the feet upward, allowing the victim to watch the flames creep up from the soles of their feet, hear the sizzling sound of their own skin charring, feel the rendered meat-oil dripping onto their faces, and finally die in agonizing pain and terror.
Grandfather wanted to light his heaven lamp because this man had personally murdered his younger brother and sister, burned them to ashes, mixed those ashes into clay, and molded them into mud dolls. At this very moment, retribution had arrived, precise down to the smallest detail.
Soon, the Fourth Dam Master was stripped naked, doused entirely in oil, and tied upside down to the pillar. Due to excessive blood loss, his consciousness was already fading. Grandfather placed a torch against his feet, and flames surged upward instantly. Accompanied by a sizzling burning sound, his skin began to blister. The Fourth Dam Master actually chuckled, then let out a strange, "Uh—uh—" sound, looking utterly gratified and entranced as though the person being burned wasn't him at all.
Everyone was dumbfounded, while Grandfather silently watched the billowing smoke and fire. Suddenly, he picked up a gun and, with a loud bang, put the Fourth Dam Master out of his misery. He simply couldn't bear to watch any longer.
Lowering the gun, Grandfather let out a long sigh toward the heavens, thinking in his heart: Little Brother, Little Sister, you may rest in peace. Older brother cannot kill everyone! Suddenly, Zhang Dancheng pointed at Grandfather and shouted, "Tie this kid up for me."