Love on the Turquoise Land

Yan Tuo said, "There's one more thing. There's a little rhyme—I wonder if Miss Nie has heard it. The first two lines go: 'With blade and hound tread the green earth, ghost hands whip bright with pearl light.'"

Nie Jiuluo paused before responding, "Crippled Father told you quite a bit, didn't he?"

"Not much, just a few lines."

Nie Jiuluo: "It's just a rhyme. The Tuan Tou Army used to form their own villages, didn't they? During festivals, they'd set up stages for operas. 'With blade and hound tread the green earth'—the 'hound' refers to the Gou family, and 'blade' is a weapon. In ancient times, cold steel was common, and blades were the most widely used. To 'tread the green earth,' of course, you'd need both blade and hound."

"'Ghost hands whip bright with pearl light'—that's about capturing the Dixing. The Dixing have a beastly nature and won't submit willingly, so you have to whip them. Opera costumes are ornate, with whips adorned in gold and jade. When they're swung, wouldn't they shine with pearl light?"

Yan Tuo: "What about the line about the mad dog?"

"The mad dog is the vanguard? Hunters always bring dogs on hunts. Dogs are the vanguard—the fiercer, the better."

Yan Tuo remained expressionless: "And the line about the frenzied blade?"

For this line, Crippled Father had only managed three words before his mouth was gagged.

"'Frenzied blade in the central tent'? The central tent is the commander's tent, where the marshal resides—it symbolizes the one who makes the decisive moves. To capture the Dixing, the decisive figure must be the most extraordinary, usually the one with the best blade skills. As for why it's called 'frenzied blade,' it's just to match 'mad dog'—it rolls off the tongue better in song."

Yan Tuo gave an "Oh," stared at her for a moment, then said, "You're lying."

Nie Jiuluo pursed her lips slightly.

Interesting. How did he figure that out?

"How am I lying?"

"Before, you were either indifferent or outright refused to answer. But when it came to this rhyme, your attitude changed noticeably. You answered whatever I asked, even elaborating unprompted, breaking it down line by line to convince me the rhyme was meaningless and ordinary. But that precisely proves it's anything but ordinary—it's likely connected to you. You don't care much about others, but you're very concerned about yourself."

Nie Jiuluo raised an eyebrow: "Really? Don't you think you're just being paranoid and overthinking it?"

So what if I lied? As long as you have no proof and I refuse to admit it, my word stands.

Yan Tuo smiled and finally, as she wished, stood up, picked up his tray, and politely excused himself.

Before leaving, he said, "After all, we're not familiar with each other. I don't mind if you're hiding something. But Miss Nie, if you happen to know someone nicknamed 'Frenzied Blade,' you can pass along a message for me: Gou Ya's accomplices are very interested in them."

Nie Jiuluo watched Yan Tuo walk away.

He was right about one thing—she didn't care much about others, but she was very concerned about herself. Just as her curiosity about outsiders and external matters was low, when it came to herself and those close to her, she would dig to the bottom.

—If you happen to know someone nicknamed 'Frenzied Blade,' you can pass along a message for me: Gou Ya's accomplices are very interested in them.

Back in her room, she contacted Jiang Baichuan and had a phone call with him.The other party's message was "On the eighth, come to the Cripple at Nanba Monkey Head," but Jiang Baichuan was no fool. In movies and TV shows, cunning kidnappers always change the delivery location repeatedly. You set up an elaborate trap at location A, and with one phone call, they demand an immediate switch to location B. By the time everyone scrambles to relocate and arrives panting at the new spot, they announce that C is the final transaction point.

Therefore, Jiang Baichuan didn’t commit his best forces to Nanba Monkey Head. So far, he had only sent a three-person advance team, including one member of the Gou family, into the mountains. Their mission was to scout the area and locate the "intersection" around Nanba Monkey Head.

This "intersection" was for Nie Jiuluo.

Tracing back to their ancestors, whether it was her, Jiang Baichuan, or Xing Shen, they all belonged to the ancient lineage of Bashan hunters.

Before liberation, there was a saying: "North Bashan, South Meishan." The Bashan hunters and Meishan hunters shared equal fame. However, because Meishan was located in the western Hunan region, it carried an aura of mysterious witchcraft. Legends claimed that Meishan hunters all knew a bit of magic, with the highest-ranking ones being tiger hunters—hence the old saying, "Average Meishan hunters hunt in the mountains; the best Meishan hunters bend their bows to slay tigers."

In contrast, the Bashan hunters relied purely on skill—tracking by sound, scent, identifying droppings, and hoofprints. At their peak, a saying also emerged: "Average Bashan hunters hunt in the mountains; the best Bashan hunters descend to subdue the owls." But this saying faded over time because those who didn’t understand its meaning found it problematic. The term "owl" in ancient Chinese referred to "evil birds and raptors," creatures of the sky—how could one "descend" to subdue them? It made no sense.

Moreover, the descendants of the Turbaned Army deliberately kept their secrets, so over time, while many knew of the Bashan hunters, almost no one remembered the "best Bashan" hunters.

The Bashan hunters had a tradition: when hunting, they liked to find an "intersection." Simply put, when operating in an area, they would first identify a spot ideal for concealment and ambush—this was called the "intersection." The hunter with the best marksmanship and most refined skills would guard it, known as "holding the intersection." During the hunt, the others would do everything possible to drive the prey toward the intersection, where the holder would lie in wait and take them down one by one.

When dealing with the underground owls, there was no question—she should be the one to hold the intersection.

In the past, she wouldn’t have objected. But this time, she felt uneasy.

She said, "Jiang Shu, you’ve seen that guy named Gou Ya. He’s completely in human form now. Don’t you find that strange?"

Jiang Baichuan chuckled. "Of course it’s strange. That’s exactly why we’re so eager to find out how they came to be—our Golden Man gates are supposed to be securely locked."

Nie Jiuluo replied, "That’s not what I mean. I’m saying that over the past thousand years, our understanding of the underground owls has remained stuck in the era of our ancestors, with no further discoveries. When you went down to Qingrang in ’91, you were still relying on handwritten notes passed down through generations."

In biological classification—domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species—if Gou Ya really was an underground owl, he certainly wasn’t the same as those from the past.

"They’ve changed. Yet we’re still using the same old methods to deal with them. Isn’t that too risky?"Jiang Baichuan was more optimistic than her: "Nie Jiuluo, I've thought about everything you mentioned. But think carefully—although Gou Ya resembles a human, Da Tou still sniffed out his scent, and your attack took him down. So I believe that no matter how much they change, their weaknesses remain the same."

This made sense. Nie Jiuluo said, "There's another issue. That Yan Tuo comes from a wealthy family, and money can be used for many things—some of the people on their side might not be earthbound fiends or ghostly minions but just hired hands. Have you considered that? If a conflict breaks out and you accidentally injure or kill these people..."

Jiang Baichuan had clearly thought about this: "That's why the Gou family is crucial this time. I've already informed Xing Shen, and he's on his way."

Nie Jiuluo hummed in acknowledgment. "One last question: Crippled Father has been captured. No matter how tough he is, can you guarantee he won't talk? If he's already confessed, what's your plan?"

Jiang Baichuan let out a long sigh.

He said, "I have faith in Crippled Father, but I can't guarantee anything. Fortunately, he's only dealt with a few people, so there's limited information he could reveal. I've already had those who need to lay low notified. I'm not worried about Xing Shen—Lao Dao and Mazha are always by his side. As for Yu Rong, I sent her to stay at the villa. She should be arriving soon. As for you..."

Jiang Baichuan lowered his voice. "No matter what Crippled Father says, it won't lead back to you. After all, only Xing Shen and I know about you."

At dusk, Lao Dao drove into Shihe County.

As soon as they entered the city, the traffic and crowds noticeably thickened. Even though the car windows were tinted for privacy, Xing Shen in the back seat still said, "Mazha, glasses."

Lao Dao glanced in the rearview mirror: Mazha was putting on a pair of children's glasses with bright yellow frames.

Its face was already covered by a small mask. If not for its hands—brown-black, withered like chicken claws, with slightly protruding and shiny fingertips—resting on the frames, anyone would have thought it was just a child.

Once the glasses were on, its claws swiftly retracted into its sleeves.

Lao Dao remarked, "Incredible. Just like a human."

Xing Shen said, "Even a dog can learn simple commands after two or three years of training, let alone it."

A red light ahead prompted Lao Dao to slow to a stop. He picked up the thermos from the cup holder, unscrewed the lid, and took a sip. "Sometimes, seeing it act so human gives me the creeps. You told me about this before—what's it called? The cuckoo effect?"

Xing Shen chuckled. "The uncanny valley effect."

The uncanny valley effect is a theory proposed by Japanese scholar Masahiro Mori, originally describing the emotional response between humans and robots. It has since been expanded to other fields. Simply put, when faced with a humanoid object, people may feel affection due to slight resemblances in movement or appearance. But as the similarity increases to a certain point, this affection quickly turns negative, even to the point of fear or revulsion.

For example, a pet dog following commands to sit, stand, or drink water seems cute and endearing. But if one night, you found it standing upright by the kitchen counter, gripping a boning knife with its front paws, sharpening it on a whetstone with a click-clack , then grinning as it held it up—you'd probably bolt out the door in terror.Lao Dao said, "Yeah, that's the terrifying... cooing effect. Gives me the creeps."

Xing Shen replied, "You'll get used to it."

Lao Dao thought to himself: How could anyone get used to this? You don't care because you can't see it. If you could...

The more he thought about it, the creepier it felt, so he quickly changed the subject: "Shen-ge, everyone's guessing Nie Er might show up on this trip."

Actually, he was older than Xing Shen, but calling him "Shen-ge" had just become a habit—after all, Xing Shen's skills spoke for themselves.

Xing Shen said, "Why worry about whether she comes or not?"

Lao Dao: "Just curious. 'Mad Blade Nie Er, Rabid Dog Xing Shen.' As the old saying goes, 'When Mad Blade meets Rabid Dog, legends are born.' I just wanna see you two powerhouses team up."

Xing Shen responded indifferently, "That was in the old days. 'Mad Blade and Rabid Dog, hunting underground with great fanfare.' Nowadays, there are no more legends."

Lao Dao sighed, "I see you often enough, and I've met Yu Rong too. But Nie Er... I only saw her when she was thirteen or fourteen, and even then, her face was covered. It's embarrassing to think about—a big guy like me, losing to her."

Xing Shen knew about this incident; he'd witnessed it himself: "It's not really embarrassing. She just loves to cheat. In terms of pure skill, she wasn't your match back then."

Lao Dao said, "That's what I told myself at the time too. But later I realized—deception is also a skill. 'All's fair in war,' right? It's just 'honest deception' in battle. If your skills fall short, so does your cunning..."

Just then, Mazha suddenly leaned over and clawed at the right car door, scratching wildly at the interior while making guttural noises in his throat.

Xing Shen snapped, "Sit properly!"

Lao Dao paid no mind and tried to continue: "So falling short is falling short. Losing is losing..."

Instead of sitting back, Mazha twisted around and grabbed Xing Shen's sleeve with one claw, tugging it toward the right.

At this point, even an idiot could tell something was wrong. The car fell silent as Xing Shen turned to look right. The vehicles on their right weren't aligned—there were two of them. From what he could "see," nothing seemed amiss; each car had only a driver inside.

Lao Dao grew nervous: "Shen-ge, did you smell something?"

Xing Shen found it eerie—not because he smelled anything, but precisely because he smelled nothing at all.

The light changed. The cars on the right began moving, and impatient drivers behind them started honking. Lao Dao had no choice but to start driving.

Xing Shen said quickly, "Lao Dao, help me check—what do the cars and drivers on the right look like?"

Lao Dao didn't hesitate. While slowing down, he quickly rolled down the passenger window for a better look: "The first one's a... Tesla, female driver, thirties, she's turning..."

A driver behind them leaned out and yelled, "The hell you going or not? Driving this slow—learning to crawl?"

The car behind the Tesla also turned. Hearing the shouting, the driver glanced sideways at Lao Dao's car.

It was a middle-aged man. Lao Dao considered himself broad-shouldered and sturdy, but this guy looked a whole size bigger. Even in a spacious Grand Cherokee, he seemed cramped. Maybe the heater was blasting—despite the cold, he wore only a black T-shirt with the words "Punch the Idiot Dead" stretched taut over his bulging muscles.

"Next is a Grand Cherokee, male driver, thirties, buffer than me, looks pretty tough. He's turning too..."Lao Dao's lane was straight ahead, forcing him to accelerate. If he didn't speed up, the idiot driver behind him—who was hurling endless curses—would likely rear-end them.

Straight for a stretch, then two turns later, the distance between the cars gradually increased. Mazha was scratching anxiously—clearly, if something was wrong, it had to be one of those two vehicles.

Xing Shen steeled himself. "Catch up with them!"

Rules be damned. Lao Dao jerked the steering wheel, swerving amidst a chorus of screeching brakes and angry shouts, then sped off. He asked again, "Shen-ge, did you smell something?"

Xing Shen shook his head. He hadn’t smelled anything, but he trusted that Mazha wouldn’t be restless without reason.

"Overtake the Grand Cherokee first. Watch Mazha’s reaction. If there’s no response, then go after the Tesla."

Lao Dao followed the instructions.

As they neared the Grand Cherokee, Mazha visibly calmed down. But the moment they passed it, the dog grew agitated again, pawing and leaning toward the rear.

Lao Dao understood now—the target was the Grand Cherokee. He gradually slowed down, falling behind the SUV and following at a distance.

The Grand Cherokee wove through streets and alleys, maintaining a steady pace before finally stopping at the entrance of the county’s only quasi-four-star hotel.