Inside the hotel, Manager Xue was smiling so widely that his eyes were barely visible, his already small eyes squinting into narrow slits. His laughter hadn't stopped since he picked up his wine glass.
"Come... Mr. Song, a toast to you. You've helped me out immensely this time. If it weren't for you dealing with those sinister ghosts, I don't know when my construction site would have been able to start!"
I quickly said it was my duty, that taking money meant taking on troubles, and it was the proper way of doing things in our line of work.
Despite Manager Xue's enthusiasm, I didn't want to get too involved with him. It was clear he had offended someone, otherwise, they wouldn't have targeted him like this. Therefore, my first thought after dealing with the evil spirits was to collect the money and leave as quickly as possible.
Seeing me take only a small sip, Manager Xue suddenly realized and slapped his forehead, saying, "Look at my memory. I was so caught up in the joy that I forgot to give you the money. Mr. Song, give me your account number, and I'll transfer the money to you..."
I said I wasn't in a hurry, but my hands were quite honest as I gave Manager Xue my account details. This job, while appearing low-risk, had nearly cost me my life. If someone hadn't secretly warned me, it wouldn't have been about making money, but about losing my life.
Seeing the six zeros on the bank deposit notification on my phone, I smiled. I was one step closer to the amount my master required, and the accounts in the underworld could also be settled by half.
I only drank a little wine, and Zhang Dabiao didn't drink much either. Although Manager Xue kept urging us to drink, I only went through the motions. After all, drinking too much could lead to saying the wrong thing and offending people, so it was best to drink less.
After three rounds of drinks, Manager Xue was half-drunk and was being helped away by his driver, babbling incoherently. The banquet thus dispersed, and we returned to the hotel arranged for us.
"Brother Zhang, do you have any news about the Hu family?"
Zhang Dabiao shook his head and said, "What do you think?"
His question stumped me, and I wanted to slap myself. Judging by Zhang Dabiao's actions, he detested foxes immensely, so how could he possibly know news about the Hu family?
It was likely that the Hu family also considered Zhang Dabiao a mortal enemy. I didn't know why they harbored such deep hatred. Even if Zhang Dabiao was a demon hunter, he should only be killing heinous demons, not the direct descendants of the Hu family, right?
Although I had a dark thought, I couldn't voice it. "Brother Zhang, the old monk let us off the hook, so we have to deliver his message. Don't forget that old monk is no ordinary person, and I always feel that there is a great terror lurking in Beishan Mining Town. If we don't inform the Hu family, something bad might happen."
Although the old monk easily let us go, I always felt like he was watching me. The feeling was very strange. Fearing that it might lead to karmic entanglement, it was best to inform the Hu family as soon as possible. As for how much they wanted to do and how they wanted to do it, that was entirely outside my consideration.
Zhang Dabiao also understood the importance of the matter and frowned. "I really don't know where the Hu family's dojo is. The Hu family has rarely appeared in the public eye over the years, and even their spirit mediums are few and far between. They seem to have vanished into thin air."
"Vanished into thin air? When did this happen? Isn't the Hu family the largest spirit medium family in the Northeast? How could they just disappear?"
"I'm not clear about this either. This matter has to be traced back to the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China..."
When the Japanese invaders invaded, the Hu family, as a prominent family in the Northeast's spiritual world, naturally wouldn't stand idly by. Among their spirit mediums, there were undoubtedly those with fiery spirits who joined the army in countless numbers.
However, war was not something that one or two people could turn the tide of. Therefore, after joining the revolution, the Hu family members also died one after another, until the victory of the Anti-Japanese War.
The Hu family lineage had become sparse, with only the old and young remaining. They intended to live in obscurity and restore their family's livelihood, but then the civil war broke out across the country. As a prominent family that had participated in the resistance against the Japanese, they were naturally paid attention to by both factions.
Fortunately, the Hu family was not foolish and did not choose the wrong side when taking a stand. However, this further dwindled their already meager population. With the great leader's declaration that "superstition and feudal practices are not allowed to flourish," the decline of the Hu family began.
Although they were recognized for their contributions, it was no longer possible to restore their former glory. However, since the Hu family had indeed contributed and shed blood for the nation, they were not completely eradicated by the state. Instead, the land of the Northeast was left to them for their prosperity.
But with the advancement of the technological era, fewer and fewer people believed in the practice of spirit mediumship. When the number of people who knew about a spiritual practice decreased year by year, it accelerated the decline of that profession, and the downfall of the Hu family became inevitable.
"It can be said that the current Hu family is just a grand name, but in reality, it is an empty shell. Otherwise, how could so many ghosts and monsters have emerged to wreak havoc in the spiritual world of the Northeast?"
"But Huang San said that to practice as a spirit medium in the Northeast, one still needs the consent of the Hu family, otherwise..."
Zhang Dabiao raised his hand and interrupted me, "The Hu family that Huang San spoke of and the Hu family that the old monk mentioned are not the same family at all. The current Hu family is just a group of disreputable individuals using the Hu family's name to swindle and deceive. They do not possess the former power of the Hu family."
I never expected to hear such a secret from Zhang Dabiao. However, this was not what I was concerned about. The old monk had only asked me to deliver a message to the Hu family, but he hadn't specified whether it was the current Hu family or the former Hu family, which put me in a difficult position.
If I were to deliver the message to the former Hu family, I would first have to find a living spirit medium from the Hu family. But from Zhang Dabiao's words, it seemed that the former Hu family had almost no spirit mediums left.
How should this message be conveyed?
Moreover, although the current "Hu family" is backed by fox spirits, judging by Zhang Dabiao's tone, they are likely the kind of fox spirits who do not follow the righteous path. If that were the case, then this matter would be very difficult to handle.
It was clear that the old monk wanted us to deliver the message to the former Hu family, perhaps because they had some kind of agreement. Now that they no longer had spirit mediums walking the world, where was I supposed to find the Hu family?
Zhang Dabiao, however, paid no mind to my worries. He simply lay down on the bed and started snoring. After drinking a bit and being influenced by him, I rolled over on the bed and also fell asleep.
The matter of finding the Hu family was thus cast aside.
In my dream, I appeared in a wilderness, and a pair of enormous eyes were staring intently at me. The two vertical pupils were as tall as a person. No matter which direction I fled, they were always hanging in the sky.
Until I accidentally fell off a cliff, and they disappeared, and I woke up. I found myself having fallen off the bed, and the sky was already bright.
Due to the nightmare, I hadn't slept well. Coupled with the worries in my heart, when I looked in the mirror, I saw that I had dark circles under my eyes.
I woke up Zhang Dabiao, who was still sleeping, and we decided to go downstairs for breakfast and then head back.
But before we could leave, we heard a loud banging on the door, so loud that it almost felt like they were trying to kick it down.