Speaking of the situation from that time and day, the waiter’s face carried a look of reminiscence, clearly there were indeed points that made it unforgettable for him.
Hearing these words, the three martial brothers became even more energised.
Yu Qing steadied his expression again and probed, “It seems that customer truly left an impression on you. Could it be a woman?”
Being spoken to like this, the waiter chuckled and said nothing, continuing to pour tea for everyone.
This manner meant he admitted it. Yu Qing immediately pressed again, “What kind of woman was she, that you can still remember her after several years?”
After pouring some tea for Xiao Hei as well, the waiter put down the teapot, letting them serve themselves. “She should have been a very beautiful woman.”
Nan Zhu immediately had an objection, “What do you mean by ‘should’? If she left a deep impression on you, how could it be ‘should’?”
The waiter did explain, “She wore a cloak, the brim covered most of her face. I could only see her mouth and chin. I had always wanted to see what she looked like, yet from entering to leaving, even when eating and drinking, she never lifted her hat. However, even that half of her face was enough to feel delicate and beautiful. She should have been very beautiful.”
The three martial brothers looked at each other speechlessly. So it was a hazy beauty.
Yu Qing raised his hand to stroke his small moustache, putting on the airs of a romantic wanderer, and laughed heartily, “The way you put it, I am interested too. Do you know where that woman came from, what her name was?”
The waiter shrugged and pointed to the window side, “She came quietly alone, sat alone by that window drinking a pot of wine. The small dishes she ordered, she barely touched with chopsticks. The rain had not stopped, and she left alone again. I do not know where she came from, nor where she went. How could I know what she was called?”
Nan Zhu tilted his mouth in amusement, feeling that the woman had indeed struck the waiter’s fancy, observing her so carefully.
Yu Qing: “You never saw her again after that?”
The waiter thought about it, “At any rate, I never saw her again while I was working here.” Having said that, he turned to leave.
Yu Qing stood up again and called out to stop him, “Waiter, you have made my heart itch. That, which way did she go, you must know at least. Did she go to the outside world, or towards the Sea Market?”
A slightly suspicious look appeared on the waiter’s face, clearly sensing Yu Qing was overly concerned, but he still replied politely, “I vaguely saw her go to light the lantern at the pier. She should have gone towards the Sea Market side.” Having said that, he bowed slightly, pointed downstairs, indicating he had to get busy.
Yu Qing cupped his hands and let the other go, slowly sitting back down.
The heads from the seats to the left and right also leaned in. Nan Zhu asked in a low voice, “Is it her?”
Yu Qing indicated the ring on his hand, “If this ring truly only has two of its kind, if the waiter did not see wrongly, if it is not her, then it is still connected to her.”
Nan Zhu: “If it really is her, having lived until now, how terrifying would her strength be? It feels somewhat unrealistic.”
Yu Qing: “No matter who holds that ring, find her first.”
Mu Aotie reminded, “We just arrived and already have a lead. Could it be another trap?”
The loss from last time was still fresh in memory. That trap had been too deep, nearly burying everyone.
Nan Zhu: “I believe someone is watching us. But I do not believe someone dug another trap on this ring waiting for us. Unless another traitor appeared inside our group, this matter could not possibly be known by outsiders.”
Yu Qing nodded slightly, approving of his seventh brother’s statement.
Nan Zhu asked again, “What next?”
Yu Qing: “Having confirmed such a person exists makes things easier. From here on, there are only two methods, either open investigation or secret inquiry.”
Nan Zhu: “What kind of open investigation and secret inquiry? Go to the surrounding islands to ask around, ask if anyone saw the woman the waiter saw?”
Just then, there came the sound of someone coming upstairs again.
Yu Qing glanced towards Xiao Hei, “Bringing this fellow, it is not good to make a commotion here. It is not safe here either. Go to the Sea Market first, settle the little one safely, then handle this matter. It is not too late. Besides, the target is more likely at the Sea Market.” Having said that, he stopped.
Nan and Mu understood, and said nothing more.
The waiter carrying a tray brought the dishes, all three dishes were ready. He placed them on the table one by one, invited them to enjoy their meal, and withdrew.
The dishes were not anything special, but they were still fragrant, and presented quite nicely. After tasting with chopsticks, the flavour was not bad either, counting as having colour, aroma and taste.
However, after Xiao Hei tasted the three dishes one by one, he threw down his chopsticks, unhappy, and shouted, “I want to eat meat. ‘Big Stick’ also wants to eat meat.”
Yu Qing raised his eyebrows, “No money. If you do not want to eat, do not eat.”
But Nan Zhu picked up the chopsticks and stuffed them back into Xiao Hei’s hand, speaking gently and kindly, persuading earnestly, “We spent a lot of money for you on the road. We have no money left. When you see your father later, remember to ask him to give us money, understand?”
Xiao Hei gave an “mm”, but then slipped his bare feet off the stool, saying to the three, “I will go ask them for meat.” Having said that, he reached back to take the big stick hanging behind him, hoisted it onto his shoulder, and was about to go negotiate with the inn.
The three martial brothers panicked. They really wanted to ask him, do you think this is Youjiao Port? If you smash someone’s shop or eat and drink without paying, your father will pay for it, right? If you cause trouble here, that is us who pay, and we might even have to fight.
Nan Zhu quickly got up and went to grab him, using threats and bribes, a whole lot of reasoning to coax him back.
The little one was unwilling to eat, but the three adults could not stop using their chopsticks.
As they ate, Nan Zhu suddenly spoke in a low voice again, “I remembered. It is said that the current ‘Nether Monk’ of the Sea of Darkness is the elder brother of Duke Xuan Ying Xiaotang of the Jin Kingdom. That one is someone even the Great Sage of Qianliu Mountain must give some face to. Do you not know Ying Xiaotang? If you could use Ying Xiaotang’s connection to invite that ‘Nether Monk’ to help, finding one or two people at the Sea Market would be twice the result with half the effort.”
Yu Qing had also heard this rumour. It referred to a person elected by the sea clans of the Sea of Darkness to communicate with the outside world. Those who took this position had to become monks, called the monks of the Sea of Darkness. It was also an ancient profession, like the Taoist priests of Linglong Temple, a profession basically about to die out. ‘Nether Monk’ was the abbreviated title.
The current ‘Nether Monk’ was the one Nan Zhu mentioned, the elder brother of Duke Xuan Ying Xiaotang of the Jin Kingdom. It was said his cultivation was profound, belonging to the rank just below the few most top-level experts. Because he enjoyed a lofty status among the sea clans, even the Great Sage of Qianliu Mountain had to give him face.
It was said this was also the confidence that allowed Ying Xiaotang to stand up to the Earth Mother of Sinan Mansion in the Jin Kingdom. The Earth Mother did not dare to act recklessly against Ying Xiaotang either.
Yu Qing scoffed, “Knowing him is useless. We only met once. The friendship is as thin as paper. Can that kind of figure be connected to? In his eyes, what are you? Do not think too much.”
Nan Zhu thought about it and agreed, shrugged his shoulders, and said no more.
Three dishes, the three martial brothers did not waste them either, eating them clean. After all, it was over a thousand taels of silver.
When settling the bill, they did not feel it was unjust either. Spending over a thousand taels to learn an important message was still quite worth it.
Leaving the shop, the three big and one small went down the mountain, no longer planning to stroll around, heading straight for the pier in the direction of the mist.
The sun was probably about to set. The light had dimmed again. Even nearby scenery could only be seen hazily.
The wooden pier extended from the seaside into the sea mist. When they stepped on it, they could hear the wooden planks creak. The quality did not seem much better than the one Nan Zhu had previously stepped through and broken. There were no handrails on either side. In this light, one careless step and you could walk into the sea.
The group carefully advanced. Mu Aotie opened the way in front. The three adults all held a fluorescent stone for illumination.
Although it was the seaside, the environment was very strange, because it was very quiet. The seawater was calm and waveless, like dead water. There was a faint, faint mist.
A hundred-zhang pier, the three big and one small walked to the end, already standing in faint, faint mist.
At the end stood a pole, with a white lantern hanging from it. Mu Aotie took it down, took out a fire starter and blew it alight, lit the lantern, then hung it back on the pole. The lantern’s light, perhaps because of the environment, appeared ghastly white, feeling somewhat creepy.
The three martial brothers’ fluorescent stones also dimmed, letting the lantern shine alone.
Moving their feet slightly, the wooden planks beneath would emit creaking sounds.
Faint mist slowly drifted about.
The seawater was waveless, deathly still. Looking down from above, it was like a black mirror. The reflected images were clear, yet from time to time blurred by the rising faint mist.
The group could only stand here waiting idly. Looking around, other island shores also had such lantern lights being lit from time to time, or swaying unsteadily towards the deep sea, turning into faint points of light that gradually disappeared.
Xiao Hei seemed curious about everything. For example, the creaking sounds beneath his feet. The little one deliberately stepped on them, even jumping up and stomping with his feet, just to keep hearing the sounds, getting more and more into it.
Bouncing and jumping over, bouncing and jumping back.
What was called eeriness in the dark? For someone who could see in the dark, it did not exist.
It somewhat ruined the atmosphere here, making people somewhat annoyed.
Waiting and waiting, after quite a while, Yu Qing, who had been staring at the mist drifting around the lantern light, suddenly spoke, “The boat is coming. Make him stop.”
Nan and Mu looked ahead with effort. It was pitch black. Apart from faint mist, they could not make out anything. They did not know how he could be certain a boat was coming. But since he said so, it was probably correct.
Nan Zhu immediately grabbed Xiao Hei, pinching the back of his neck, keeping him controlled at his side.
Not long after, indeed there came the sound of water rippling. Faint ripples also appeared on the sea surface.
A boat slowly emerged in the darkness, gently drifting towards this side. After the boat drew near, it gave everyone an eerie feeling again. The boat was empty, not a single person in sight, like a ghost drifting over on its own.
A lantern of the same kind hung on the boat too, but it was unlit.
The boat reached the pier head, slowly adjusted direction, slowly sidled up to the pier head, also revealing a person hiding at the stern. That person lay with both hands on the stern, most of his body submerged in the water. The part above water was also blocked by the stern, no wonder no one could be seen.
This boatman in the water had dishevelled hair, a dark greenish complexion. He grinned at the people on the pier, revealing saw-like teeth. His upper half was a human body, his lower half was a fish tail covered in scales, lightly and nimbly swaying in the water, steadily controlling the boat.