I returned to the yard and continued practicing Da Hong fist until Zhao Jie had to leave. After dinner I headed to my room to find something to read. I stopped by the spare room and stood in the doorway. "Can I come in?" I asked timidly.
Master Liu's voice called, "Come on then."
I walked in and my feet followed my gaze to the bed where a pile of things was accumulating. There sat Master Liu's frock, paper amulets, the peach-wood sword and some sticky rice.
"What are you doing?" I asked.
"We're going into the tomb." He said. "If you're lucky, we might find a cure for those eyes of yours."
My head shook with a will of its own. "I can stay here, Godfather. I won't be any help..."
He only smiled and said, "Don't worry. I'll take care of you. Plus, we'll have a guest."
"Someone else? Who?" I asked Master Liu in amazement.
"You'll see in a couple days." He told me. "In the meantime, we'll prepare."
I thought this over, and remembered someone who could help me too. So I asked, "Can Zhao Jie come with us?"
"No!" He almost shouted.
I stepped back and felt my foot hit the dresser. I pulled my eyes from his fierce look and found the golden box sitting next to him on the bed. "Godfather, did the monster put that doll inside the box?"
The old man looked down at the closed box beside him, and then said simply, "I don't know."
He continued to prepare his things for the evening while I fell into a restless sleep. The next morning he awoke me and we practiced Da Hong fist for a while. After breakfast we headed to the village.
Master Liu went to the post center and made a phone call to his mysterious guest. I tried to eaves drop, but he pointed at the door with an unquestionable look. I walked outside and waited for him. Afterwards we walked to You Xiaoqing's home. Her parents were there. We chatted for a moment, passing sweetly through niceties when Master Liu asked them, "What's your daughter's favorite food?"
In a voice that embodied absolute trust, her mother said, "Boiled eggs."
"Okay." He said, "You should boil some, and I will pick them up in a few days." He paused for a moment and added, "Remember to salt them."
You Xiaoqing's father lit up, asking immediately, "Master Liu, did you see my daughter?"
Master Liu shook his head and said, "Not yet, but I've found several hints to her well being. You'd better keep quiet though. Prepare everything I've told you. Don't tell anyone."
The nervous parents before us nodded in unison.
While we were leaving, I asked, "Why do they need to salt the eggs?"
Master Liu said, "You Xiaoqing is afflicted by a bloody curse. Her souls may not be steady. It's possible they've been removed from her body. If we are to help her, we should lead her souls back to her body and there's no greater incentive than one's favorite food. The inclusion of salt and the love that her parents put into preparing them will make it easier for her to find.
"Oh." I said, wrapping my head around the idea of sniffing down one's own body.
We walked to the school where I watched Master Liu circle the building again. "What is it?" I asked him.
"We must find the entrance." He said, tapping a finger to his chin. After a second revolution, he came to me and asked, "Are there any special caves in the vicinity?"
At first, I shook my head. And then I remembered something. As if following my thoughts, he put his hands on my shoulders. "Yes?"
"There's a desolate well around the back! The kids say that villagers used to pull water from it until it dried up. Nobody uses it anymore! Somebody said a boy fell down when he was playing next to it. I think they topped it with something after that.
"Did this child die?" He asked in a low voice.
I shook my head, "No…" I said uncertainly, "Word is that it was the Widow Wang's son…"
Still holding my shoulders, Master Liu led me around the back of the building where a large stone sat on a raised surface. It barely came to my stomach and didn't look like a well at all.
"Here?" He asked.
I nodded.
Master Liu picked up a nearby brick and raised it above his head. Without looking around, apparently unafraid of getting caught smashing school property, Master Liu brought it down onto the center of the large stone with a heavy smash. A thin crack appeared in the center of it and a dark murky liquid bubbled out.
"The water is very close to the top." Master Liu said.
"Is this it?" I asked, "Is this the entrance?"
"We'll find out soon enough." He said, "Now though, we need to go home. I have something for you."
When we got back to the house, Master Liu rushed in before me and locked himself into his room. An hour later he poked his head out the door and beckoned me inside. I walked in, not sure of what to expect.
He handed me a yellow paper amulet, saying, "This amulet can invite a…" He trailed off, "A god to help you. You should carry it closely. If you are in danger inside the tomb, you can use this amulet to protect yourself." His eyes were bright and serious. "It will, however, take a toll on you. Its power will only last for fifteen minutes or so and after that you will be weak." His fingers closed mine around the amulet. "Don't use it if it's not necessary."
I gaped at my closed fist wielding such an unknown power. "How do I use it?"
He took the amulet out of my hand and taught me several incantations of Taoism. We practiced them a few times making sure my pronunciation was perfect.
Next he handed me the golden box that once housed a tiny fluorescent snake. "This box was a nest of the darkness that You Xiaoqing was raising. You knew about it, so I ask you to hold it. The darkness will not hurt you." His face fell as if he were handing me a live scorpion. "If I hold this box, it will regard me as an enemy. I am not sure what we will find down there, but I don't want to be its enemy before we even begin."
"What about the doll?" I asked.
"It stays inside the box for now. I've written runes that will contain the curse so the doll is harmless. You mustn't take it out of the box, lest you'll unleash its ferocity." He placed a hand atop the lid to hold it closed in my hands. "If this curse gets out it can call on many foul things. Given the chance, they will stop us from saving You Xiaoqing."
"Oh." I said, feeling a tense fear holding my tongue in place. You Xiaoqing was my friend and I wanted her safe.
The following day, Master Liu and I were practicing kung fu in the living room. Two strangers appeared in the doorway. One of them wore a grey frock and looked as old as Master Liu. The other was younger with a bushy moustache. He was tall too, standing a head higher than Master Liu's generous height.
A knowing grin crept over Master Liu's face when he saw the two men, "Lao Ge, why are you in uniform? And Zhou Tong, how long has it been since you shaved?" He burst into a loud friendly laugh.
I stood in place and kept silent, staring at them.
Lao Ge, who was in uniform smiled and said, "Today is my master's death day. You know the rules, I'll wear my frock and only eat vegetarian in respect."
Zhou Tong bowed low with his bushy moustache. "Master Liu, how are you? Master Ge brought me to attend this situation, I hope it's no inconvenience."
Master Liu said, "Absolutely not. You are proficient in ancient tombs! I've got a mind that you're better than Lao Ge and myself combined! Without a doubt you should be here."
My parents came into the room and welcomed the two men. They invited them in with the same warmth they'd come to give Master Liu.
Master Liu turned to introduce them to us. Lao Ge was Master Liu's colleague, a Taoist. Zhou Tong with his bushy face decor was an archaeologist.
After the brief introduction, Lao Ge knelt down and beckoned me to him. "Come here boy. I've heard much about you. Let me see you clearly."
I didn't move, feeling strange being called on by an unknown man as if I was something to be bought.
Before I could hesitate long enough to embarrass my mother, she gave me a light shove in the middle of my back. She'd never be one to pass up the expertise of another Taoist, potentially powerful enough to cure her boy's eyes.
I looked back at her only to see an impatient, but polite smile.
Lao Ge touched my head when I was within reach and said, "He was born with a heavy Yin air." He peered into my face, "And those eyes! He has supernatural eyes!" He turned to Master Liu, "His Yin air is stronger than his Yang air! Master Liu you've picked one who'll never be a Taoist as a godson? I don't understand."
Master Liu smiled lightly and said, "It's our destiny."
The expression on my mother's face seemed to pucker at the lack of cure-talk happening between the two masters.
Lao Ge smiled at Master Liu, and then he looked at me, saying, "As you are his godson, I will give you a present according to our friendship. Here you are. It's a copper."
"Copper?" I said, looking at the mundane metal in my hand. Copper was not rare in my village. Many people had coppers left from their ancestors. Most were made by the Qing dynasty.
I started to roll my eyes and tell the old man I didn't want his simple gift when Master Liu said to me in a low voice, "Xiao Yong, say thank you to Master Ge. That is not a normal copper. It's a magic tool once touched by the blood of a child. It's called Tong Mei and is used to repel spirits."
Zhou Tong added, "It's said that ancient copper has heavy Yang air because it's used by so many people. What you have there boy, is priceless, a true Wu Zhu coin of the Han dynasty."
Soaking in this barrage of history and value, I closed my hand around the coin and thanked Master Ge respectfully.
Zhou Tong knelt down and said to me, "As Master Ge has granted you a gift, so shall I. Here you are, it's a compass."
He handed me a mini compass and I accepted it with thanks, not wanting another lecture.
Looking up at the adults around me, I saw Master Liu and Master Ge regarding Zhou Tong with surprise. My eyes darted from their astounded looks to the small copper compass that seemed to be vibrating lightly in my palm. I had been given two things, it seemed, that were extraordinary.