Lin Hui sat upright on the bed in the dim inner room.
He held a bowl of corn and yam paste his mother had left for him that morning, eating it one spoonful at a time.
From outside the window came the constant sounds of children playing in the alley, seemingly skipping stones. Faintly, on the wind from even farther away, he could hear someone playing a two-stringed fiddle, its melody mournful and desolate.
BANG.
Suddenly, the wooden door to the inner room was thrown open, and his father, Lin Shunhe, stormed in with a face full of fury.
"As soon as your mother gets back, we're moving! We're never coming back to this Lin Family Mansion again!"
"?" Lin Hui was completely baffled. He had been pondering what he should and could do with his future when his father suddenly burst in, talking about moving.
"Don't you worry about it. Son, your chance fell through, but don't be scared. Don't worry. Your old man still has a way! I still have a way!" A fierce look flashed across Lin Shunhe's usually stoic face, as if he had made up his mind about something.
"You're my only son! I'll be damned if I let you end up with nothing!" Lin Shunhe repeated.
With that, he began looking around for wooden baskets to start packing.
Lin Hui watched for a moment before it dawned on him, and he started packing as well.
He wasn't sure what had happened, but it had to be related to the greater Lin Family. Otherwise, his father wouldn't be so furious, wouldn't be talking about leaving the clan.
In this day and age, especially in the Outer City, being part of a large and prosperous clan meant you weren't to be trifled with. It meant safety.
While the Lin Family wasn't fabulously wealthy, they were much better off than the common folk.
At a time when many people had nothing to eat but chaff and water aside from Wanfu Meat, even the lowliest Lin Family Members could get by on coarse grain rice with a bit of meat.
Unless it was an absolute last resort, his father would never have spoken of leaving the family.
After they had been packing for a while, another visitor arrived: Lin Shunjiang, the father of Lin Hongzhen from the main branch of the family.
Lin Shunjiang was a portly, middle-aged man with a completely different air about him than Lin Shunhe. His small eyes darted around, revealing a subtle shrewdness.
He and Lin Shunhe spoke privately in a corner for some time. He seemed to be trying to persuade him, but in the end, he left alone, sighing repeatedly.
His father continued to pack in silence. By the time his mother, Yao Shan, came home, the sky was already growing dim.
"Husband, what on earth is going on?" Yao Shan asked urgently as she walked in, setting down her work bag with a weary look on her face.
Lin Shunhe opened his mouth, but upon seeing the worry on his wife's face, his own expression began to tremble, and tears welled up in his eyes.
He had no idea how to tell his wife that the opportunity they had saved up for all these years had been forcibly snatched away by his own father, Lin Chaoyi.
All their years of hard work as a couple had been for nothing. This would undoubtedly be a huge blow to his wife as well.
"Alright, don't say it... sigh..." In truth, Yao Shan had already heard some whispers before she came home. Now, she was just getting confirmation from her husband.
She glanced at her son, who was in the courtyard nearby, gathering the clothes that had been hung out to dry.
"It's okay... I know what kind of man your father is... Whatever you decide, just like before, I'll follow you."
"Shanshan..." Hearing this, Lin Shunhe couldn't hold back any longer. He grabbed his wife's hand, his eyes red. "Don't worry... I'll never let you suffer again... I swear!"
"I believe you!" Yao Shan gently hugged her husband. For a moment, they stood quietly, as if frozen in time.
In the courtyard, Lin Hui caught a glimpse of this scene and shook his head inwardly.
'It seems that although this life is a mediocre one, at least the family atmosphere is pretty good.'
'I was just drifting along before, but now that my memories are back, I should start planning for the future. Never mind thriving; the first step is to ensure basic safety, food, and shelter. I can't rely on my parents for everything.'
Lin Hui wasn't an ambitious person. His only wish was to find a quiet place where he could immerse himself in studying something, enjoying the pleasure of research and discovering secrets others couldn't.
In his past life, he had enjoyed things like puzzle boxes and Rubik's Cubes. But in this environment, he certainly couldn't afford to neglect his responsibilities for such pastimes.
Thinking of this, he instinctively raised his right hand and looked at its back.
There, clearly etched on the skin, was a complex, blood-red pattern resembling a rhombus.
He had only just discovered it. According to his old memories, this pattern hadn't been on his hand before. It had clearly only appeared after he regained his memories.
He just hadn't figured out what this thing did yet.
'It can't just be an ordinary tattoo, can it?'
Lin Hui mused to himself.
In the afternoon, they had a simple meal of meat buns, leftover five-spice pig's head meat, and some stir-fried, unknown wild vegetables. It smelled delicious, but apart from Lin Hui, neither Lin Shunhe nor Yao Shan had any appetite. They just watched as their son wolfed down most of the food.
The night passed without incident. The next morning, just as the fog began to dissipate, some Lin Family Members were seen craning their necks and peering from outside, watching as Lin Shunhe's family of three, laden with bags and bundles, rented an ox-cart. They spent the entire morning moving all their belongings away from the mansion.
His father, Lin Shunhe, had clearly made arrangements in advance. He quickly led his wife and son to a small, square courtyard made of grayish-white stone and swiftly moved their things in from the ox-cart.
Next came the task of settling in, relighting the stove, and replacing any missing household items.
His parents wouldn't let him do any of this, telling him to rest off to the side. They even gave him a small bag of sunflower seeds that had been prepared with spices, leaving a sweet aftertaste that was quite tasty.
Lin Hui tried to help a few times but was pushed away, so he gave up. He took the seeds, walked out the front door, and sat down on a yellow rock outside, watching the flow of people, carts, and horses on the dirt road.
The new house was a bit farther from the town center. It was in the opposite direction from the Lin Family Mansion, situated on the symmetrically opposite side of town.
"Hui Zi, what are you doing sitting out here?"
He hadn't been sitting for long when a lanky young man with a roguish air, his coat unbuttoned, approached from the passing crowd. He stared at Lin Hui with a familiar expression and asked his question.
"Peng Mountain? What are you doing here?" Lin Hui had been studying the Blood Seal on the back of his hand. Hearing the voice, he looked up and grinned.
The newcomer's name was Peng Mountain. Like Lin Hui, he was an idle loafer who came from a family with some standing.
As fellow loafers, the two got along well. After all, misery loves company, and their personalities clicked. Over time, they had slowly become friends.
Peng Mountain hailed from the prominent Peng Family, another major clan in town that was even larger and wealthier than the Lin Family.
Peng Mountain himself had once lived a prosperous and carefree life. But unexpectedly, a few years ago, his doting father fell ill and passed away, leaving him and his four older sisters unable to support their branch of the family. They could only live off their inheritance, slowly draining their wealth.
After being swindled out of a good deal of money by his own clan members, the guy wised up and moved out with his sisters. Now he was busy trying to play matchmaker for his sisters, hoping to find good families for them to marry into.
All things considered, although he didn't have many skills, he was good-natured at heart and a decent person.
"Don't get me started... sigh..." Lin Hui briefly told him about the move.
"Moving out was the right call!" Peng Mountain was delighted to hear it. "Let me tell you, big families are nothing but trouble. Everything you do, you have to 'think of the clan, think of the clan.' I thought of the clan at every damn turn, but they sure as hell didn't think of me!"
"Isn't that the truth," Lin Hui nodded.
"So what if I slacked off for a few years? I'm still young! There'll be chances to get my act together! Who do those blind bastards in the family think they're looking down on, anyway!" After a few curses, Peng Mountain changed the subject.
"Anyway, you're at the age where you should be working. How about it, found anything yet?"
"Not yet, but my dad says he has a way," Lin Hui shook his head.
"We definitely don't qualify for the Government Office's public selection. The Shayue Sect has high standards, so that's out. And the Chen Family... let's not even talk about it. With our prospects, we can only find some second-rate place to get by. What about Huang's Trading Company? Their chain of taverns? They're hiring a lot of people recently."
"No. What's so great about being a waiter who delivers food?" Lin Hui shook his head.
"Then let's spend some money to rent land and become farmers!" Peng Mountain suggested. "I've been looking into it recently, and I've already got some ideas."
"Heh." Lin Hui gave a noncommittal laugh. He knew Peng Mountain's personality all too well. With his lazy and pleasure-seeking nature, him, farming? It was more likely the farm would 'farm' him.
"Hey, don't be like that! Ugh, you're looking down on me!" Peng Mountain was speechless but didn't argue further. "However, my eldest sister actually knows of an opening. The work isn't hard, just helping with cleaning and keeping things tidy."
"A janitor?" Lin Hui said.
"Ah, right, right! A janitor! That's a great word for it," Peng Mountain gave him a thumbs-up.
"Not interested," Lin Hui refused again.
"Sigh, you refuse this and you refuse that. For a guy with your skill set, your standards are way too high. What do you think you can even do?" Peng Mountain was exasperated.
"You didn't go either, did you?" Lin Hui retorted.
"..." Peng Mountain was choked up by that comeback.
The two of them sat on the rock together, watching the endless stream of cargo carts and pedestrians on the yellow dirt road.
Among the passersby, they would occasionally see young men and women about their age.
They wore work clothes as they came and went. Some wore long robes, others short tunics. Many had the names of workshops, taverns, or family clans on their attire. A few even bore the mark of the Shayue Sect: two intersecting crescent moons forming a cross.
"Sigh... You know, in a world like this, with Gate-Breaking Ghosts by day and Mist Ghosts by night, life is already so hard for the living. Why do we still have to work so painstakingly every day?" Peng Mountain lamented.
"How about we learn martial arts!?" Lin Hui suggested. He felt a profound lack of security. The Gate-Breaking Ghosts and the door-knocking Mist Ghosts at night made him feel increasingly uneasy about the future.
If his memories hadn't returned, it might have been fine. But now that they had, he couldn't bring himself to pin all his hopes on a Jade Talisman he'd begged for.
"Martial arts? What's the use of that? Can you beat a Cultist who's joined a sect?" Peng Mountain scoffed. "Putting aside everything else, just look at your cousin, Lin Hongzhen. She's just a newcomer to the sect, but as long as she accepts the Summoning, she'll instantly gain Copper Skin and Iron Bones and become immune to poisons! A lifetime of martial arts training might not achieve what she got in one night!"
"Is it really that bad?" Lin Hui's memories on this subject were hazy. Hearing this, he was stunned.
"What do you think? Nowadays, only families with absolutely no connections are willing to send their kids to learn martial arts. If you have connections—the Government Office, the Chen Family, the Shayue Sect—getting into any of those three is a life-changing opportunity!" The more Peng Mountain said, the more precious that stolen spot with the Chen Family seemed.
Lin Hui felt increasingly uneasy and unconsciously began to trace the Blood Seal on the back of his hand.
"But if there's really no other way, working as a helper at a martial arts hall, temple, or Daoist monastery isn't a bad choice either. The pay is low, but you can't beat how laid-back it is." Peng Mountain's eyes suddenly lit up as he thought of a benefit.
"Is there any way to deal with the Gate-Breaking Ghosts and the Mist Ghosts?" Lin Hui suddenly asked.
"The three major powers can. Only them. No one else stands a chance. Otherwise, why do you think everyone is scrambling to get in?" Peng Mountain shook his head. "As for the others, for martial artists, the only use is being able to run fast when you're in danger. That's the main reason most people learn martial arts, which is why almost all the martial arts halls in town basically just teach Qinggong."
"Running fast... That sounds good." Lin Hui was a little tempted.
"We're too old to start learning martial arts anyway," Peng Mountain shattered his fantasy. "We can only learn some of the lousier, low-level Outer Strength techniques that have no entry requirements. That's what the poor learn. The harder you train, the shorter you live."
Lin Hui said nothing.
Neither of them spoke again. They just watched the people bustling back and forth, the busy crowd forming a stark contrast with the two idle onlookers.
But as they watched, they noticed that quite a few more ox-carts carrying household goods had appeared on the road. And judging by their direction, it seemed they were all heading toward the Inner City.