Translator: CinderTL
"Is this song widely known in your homeland?" Luo He asked, his sapphire-blue eyes making him stand out among the crowd.
Under his gaze, the woman lowered her head, her voice growing softer. "Not really. It's only popular around my hometown."
Through the woman's explanation, they learned she came from a small village. In her village stood a Shinto shrine dedicated to the deity representing straw men.
Every year, as the cherry blossoms began to fade, people would visit the shrine to request straw men from the presiding Shinto priest. These straw men would then be taken home and placed beneath cherry trees.
Luo He's gaze swept across the faces of the women. Those who met his eyes quickly lowered their heads, their bodies trembling.
Withdrawing his gaze, Luo He turned back to the woman who had spoken. "Are all of you from the same place?"
"Yes," she replied softly. "We migrated here together. Everyone in Grey Stone Town... they all came from my hometown."
Everyone understood what the woman meant: all the Easterners in Grey Stone Town came from the same place. It seemed military forces had first occupied the area by force, then brought their families and fellow countrymen to join them.
After all, the Eastern Lands was an island nation, severely lacking in land and resources.
This was a common tactic in wartime, a rudimentary form of a colonial settlement.
Building on military occupation with cultural aggression, gradually eroding the locals' sense of national identity—this was a far more insidious method of destroying a nation and its people than mere military force.
"What's your name?" Jiang Cheng asked, staring at the woman.
Clutching her child tightly, she whispered, "You can just call me Yangzi."
Jiang Cheng nodded and didn't waste time. "Alright, Yangzi, have you been living around here all along?"
At this, Yangzi suddenly looked up, a flicker of panic in her eyes. Seeing this, Jiang Cheng calmly explained, "Don't be afraid. I might have some questions for you over the next few days."
"We haven't always been here," she began, then trailed off. "We're all... all..." Clearly, their current situation was far from ideal.
I fear they'll go wherever they can find a meal, with no fixed abode, even being chased from place to place.
"Here's what we'll do," Jiang Cheng said. "Stay nearby for the next few days. I might need to find you at any moment. As payment, I'll take all your belongings. How does that sound?"
At these words, the women's eyes lit up. They cautiously raised their heads, studying Jiang Cheng's face as if trying to discern whether he was being genuine or simply toying with them for amusement.
"Cut to the chase. How much?" Jiang Cheng frowned.
"No money. One... one item for one steamed bun," Yangzi said quickly, holding up a finger. She still clutched the steamed bun Jiang Cheng and his companions had just given them, which she hadn't had a chance to eat yet.
"Fine," Jiang Cheng agreed. He pointed to a corner not far away, where a crude stall stood. White steam billowed from its stove, and a giant steamer held tier upon tier of steamed buns.
That's where they had bought their own buns.
"See that stall over there?" Jiang Cheng said. "I'll go talk to the owner later. You can all get steamed buns there for the next few days. I'll prepay, and your meals will be deducted from that account."
"But only steamed buns. Don't even think about vegetables or buns with fillings. And you can only eat them there, not take them away. Understood?" Jiang Cheng asked.
Yangzi and the others nodded repeatedly. "Understood."
As he was leaving, Jiang Cheng turned back to warn them: "If I come back and find you gone, our agreement is void."
"Wait." Jiang Cheng had already taken a few steps when he heard someone call out. He turned around to see Yangzi hurrying towards him, a bulging cloth bundle in her hand. She stopped in front of him, her expression earnest. "You forgot your things."
The remaining Eastern Lands women stood nearby, watching.
Jiang Cheng opened the bundle. Inside were small trinkets they had seen before: crude dolls sewn from scraps of fabric, small mirrors, and wooden combs.
They were all things they had no use for.
"Keep it yourself. It's useless to us," Linghu Yong said curtly, showing no warmth toward the women.
As everyone was preparing to leave, Yangzi seemed to make a decision. She reached into her wide sleeve and pulled out a small cloth pouch.
The pouch was wrapped tightly around her arm, as if it contained something precious.
This gesture piqued everyone's curiosity. They watched Yangzi carefully unwrap the pouch, as if afraid of damaging its contents.
But when they finally saw what was inside, they were stunned, followed by a chilling wave of coldness that enveloped them.
"Please, accept this gift," Yangzi said, holding the gift in both hands and bowing deeply to Jiang Cheng. "Consider it my repayment!"
Under a dozen pairs of eyes, a crudely made straw doll lay silently in Yangzi's hands, identical to the ones they had seen earlier at the Feng Manor's ritual altar.
"This straw doll..." Zhao Xingguo swallowed hard, looking at Yangzi. "Where did you get it?"
Half an hour later, in a tea house facing the street, a waiter carried a massive teapot upstairs to serve tea to the guests in a private room.
He had originally intended to say something flattering to earn a tip, but sensing the oppressive atmosphere within the room, he wisely retreated.
Inside, four people sat around the only table: Jiang Cheng, Lin Wan'er, Luo He, and Zhao Xingguo. The others stood behind them.
A straw doll wrapped in cloth lay silently in the center of the table.
Perhaps it was psychological, but the faceless doll's appearance grew increasingly eerie the longer one stared at it, as if it might suddenly twist into a grotesque smile.
Zhao Xingguo seemed agitated. He drained his scalding tea in one gulp, slamming the cup down on the table with a loud thud. "This doll is identical to the one on the altar. I suspect Pan Du's current state is also related to it," he said fiercely.
After all, everyone remembered that Pan Du had been the first to touch the doll on the altar.
What surprised them even more was Yangzi's revelation that she had obtained the doll from a Shinto shrine in her hometown. Since she hadn't found a suitable opportunity to make a wish, she had kept it with her ever since.
"Could this Ghost not be local, but from the Eastern Lands?" Pi Ruan's question seemed odd at first glance, but upon closer consideration, it made perfect sense.
"Perhaps not just the Ghost behind the Gate, but the Disciple of the Door who carried it might also be from the Eastern Lands," Luo He analyzed. "The Disciple was an Easterner who followed his companions across vast distances to Grey Stone Town. But unable to withstand the corruption, he was consumed by the Gate, allowing the Ghost behind it to escape."
(End of the Chapter)
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