The rooster had roosted, hence, the Hour of the Rooster settled.
At that same moment, colorful sparks exploded in the sky. It was smoke flowers, yanhua, as the free people called them, which indicated that the ceremony was commencing. But for the girl standing still on the hill, hearing the faint sound of safety bells ringing—
Surely, that was an unperceived event.
The dim surroundings shifted through distinct hues, but her heart raced like the explosions above. Clink! The bells hadn't had time to rest, either.
What could she do?
Biting her lip, she slowly scanned her surroundings, eyeing the many stone tablets. Her Aunt Li's grave was situated near the bottom left; though it wasn't at the outer edge, the sound seemed to come from nearby.
A commoners' graveyard usually had random placement since they shared a communal burial ground, though the plots were still lined in neat rows. However, Shengsi knew the concept: the bottom rows were for the newest burials, while the top rows near the entrance held the oldest plots. This meant she could only look ahead, as the plots in front of her were newer than her aunt's.
Shengsi clenched her fists and stepped through a gap, treading a narrow path as she searched from left to right. She wasn't fearing the bells, nor did she fear that someone had been buried alive, since the bells were merely a precaution against premature burial. But why had this person been buried in the first place?
Ba-dump, ba-dump. Her heart raced faster as she neared the last row. One step, two steps, then quick, hurrying strides...
Clink, clink, clink!
When Shengsi reached the grave, the first things she saw were the moving bells. Next, with the help of the smoke flowers lighting up the sky, she saw the stone tablet where the bells were attached. Then, her eyes fell on the freshly piled soil beneath the tablet, covering a coffin. Beside the mound was a shovel left in the dirt, but Shengsi couldn't seem to move.
On the tablet, the name engraved was:
Xie Chuanhu.
She tried to keep her poise, but her legs shook, and the strength was draining from her hands.
"Calm down, Shengsi," she whispered to herself. She breathed slowly, but the more she tried to grip the shovel, the more her body resisted.
Clink!
She dropped the shovel and bit her nail nervously.
"No, no, no, this is wrong..." She shook her head. "I should call the authorities."
She was well aware that unauthorized grave digging was strictly forbidden, which was a grave offense equivalent to disturbing the dead and disrupting ancestral feng shui.
She turned and dashed away, but the further she ran, the heavier her guilt became. Should she unbury it herself? She skidded to a halt. By the time she found help, it'd be too late!
"Looks like I'll be digging my own grave!"
She turned once more and dashed back to the plot.
Gritting her teeth, she gripped the shovel as the ringing continued. She began to dig, and dig, endlessly muttering, "Heavens forgive me! Law forgive me!" With each firework explosion came another heap of unearthed soil. "Aunt Li, forgive me!"
She tried to console herself by believing that a life-saving emergency could override ritual law. Couldn't rescuing someone buried alive be seen as a righteous violation, driven by benevolence and a duty to preserve life? It was ren and xiao! Though she should've reported it, time was too critical. If the person inside were found dead because she hesitated, the guilt would weigh on her for the rest of her life.
THUD!
Shengsi wiped the dripping sweat from her forehead and neck. She gasped for air, her sparkly button-like black eyes looking at the unearthed coffin with anxiety.
Then she blurted, "I just wish I'd be pardoned! I hit too hard!"
Biting her lower lip, she pried open the coffin, hoping that she didn't hurt the one inside. What she saw shocked her. Her lips twitched as the sparkling sky helped her perceive his condition.
There was a guy in a single-layer hemp, covered in filth. Though it was dark, she could see his striking features and lean build. It was indeed, without doubt, a figure of the male species!
But it wasn't just his face that caught her breath. Her eyes landed on his hands. Thin, silver-white strings were looped tightly around his pale fingers, stretching upward like a spider's web toward the bells above. As his hand spasmed, the strings yanked taut.
Clink.
He was still conscious, but his eyes were closed. Aside from the filth, he also seemed to be sinking in a pool of blood, which made the once pure white tainted with crimson and dirt. Shengsi didn't hesitate to check for his pulse. She sensed that his skin was cold, and the beat was weak.
"He must be losing a lot of blood..." Right then, she seemed torn, as his clothes were soaked in thick crimson. "What do I do..." She couldn't maintain her calm expression, which was still a bit frantic.
Until she decided to do something necessary.
"Forgive me, but I need to touch you..." Shengsi closed her eyes for a second and took a long, wuthering breath. She checked his arms and saw several deep cuts that seemed to be slashes from a blade. "I promise I won't do anything malicious... I just have to..." Next, she untied his upper garment and tried to move them sideways to check his body, but he let out a pained groan of protest.
"Forgive me, forgive me..." she kept mumbling, the brumal gust caressing her face. "You can scold me later, punish me, or imprison me..."
Gladly, Shengsi was taught many things by her aunt. Even if she seemed impulsive, she didn't feel an ounce of regret, as this could save him. Since it was dark and the smoke flowers weren't bright enough to see his body, Shengsi had an idea.
Thankfully, she was carrying her necklace, just as her brother Chengxu had reminded her.
Holding the lace and revealing that it was a custom locket necklace, she opened it, and took the coin out of the locket.
As she looked at the coin, it sat between her thumb and index finger.
It wasn't like the copper coins that resembled wen. Always strange to Shengsi, it was a perfect circle with many small, multi-colored gemstones arranged like dots to form a ring on one side. This created the illusion of a snake devouring its own tail. On the other side, four dots formed a square, mimicking the four corners of a ritual space. The former was the tail; the latter was the head.
"Aunt Li... I've been committing a lot of trespasses right now, as many as I could count... How about I join you in the afterlife?" Her voice was weak, and so were her knees. If this continued, perhaps she should've just buried herself! "I'll try and make amends later and ask for your forgiveness... but right now, I don't have a choice, do I?"
Her eyes began to stare at the wind.
Shengsi held her breath as she tossed the coin. Catching it midair, she opened her palm and envisioned fire. A flame burst from the coin like a little blazing sun, hovering inches above her open palm. Her aunt had taught her how to summon light without having to utter an incantation.
Even though her aunt had no power, she was wise and helped Shengsi harness magic through the coin.
Although she knew what she had.
What she shouldn't have.
And what she shouldn't be doing now.
Fortunately, the coffin was several chi underground, so the light wouldn't create suspicion if a guard on the eastern gate spotted the hilltop. She was spared from that worry. However, his body had two deep cuts on his bare chest — long slashes from a blade, similar to the ones on his arms. How did he get these kinds of wounds?
Being buried soaked in such blood... wasn't this a bit odd?
With furrowed brows, Shengsi extinguished the fire and thought of the trick she'd learned years ago: how to stop a blood flow. Although it would only last a short time, it would be enough to get him to her home. Grandfather Li could tend this dying stranger himself!
Shengsi tossed her coin once more. "I summon the Yang!" The coin she caught was facing the "head" side. She tossed it again and chanted, "I summon the Yin!" This time, it showed the symbol of the four corners, indicative that it was the tail.
Luck was truly with her.
"The river is a rushing water, but to live, one must be calm..." She paused. "I calm the tide!"
The coin on her palm floated and emitted phantom threads, flowing like running water. She caught the coin then the threads. She placed them over the stranger's wounds.
These threads looked like ghostly stitches, making the wounds stop from bleeding temporarily.
"This will help you for now."
He only groaned as the cold crept into his wounds.
As one problem after another was solved, she was left with a final challenge: how to transfer him without anyone noticing.
As the fireworks continued to create colorful visual sparks above, a figure of a slender lady in the hilltop carried a frame on her shoulders, arms wrapped around her neck... and legs around her waist.