chsdbacks Chapter 215 Teahouse
Chapter 215 Teahouse
"I know things aren't peaceful; I've heard some rumors." Nie Lingfeng smiled bitterly, his expression growing even heavier. "But our eldest brother's fate is unknown. How can we, as his younger siblings, ignore it? No matter how dangerous it is, we have to try. Otherwise... we just can't live with ourselves."
His display of "deep brotherly affection" and "unwavering sense of duty" seemed to have moved Feng Zhenghao. Feng Zhenghao nodded, a hint of approval on his face: "It's rare to find a young man as loyal and righteous as you these days." He paused, then suddenly changed the subject, "However, the situation in Mengla is complicated, with all sorts of people. Courage alone might not be enough to find someone, and could even get you into trouble. I see you're an honest man, and it's not easy raising a sister. How about this..."
He glanced at a bodyguard beside him, who immediately handed him a gold-embossed business card. Feng Zhenghao handed the card to Nie Lingfeng: "This is my business card. I have some business friends here on the border, and I know a little about the situation in Mong La. If you need any help or want to inquire about anything, you can call the number on this card. Just say you are... a friend of Mr. Feng."
Nie Lingfeng's heart skipped a beat, and his face showed an expression of "overwhelmed with gratitude" and "disbelief." He accepted the business card with both hands and thanked him repeatedly, "This...this is too much trouble for you, Mr. Feng! Thank you so much!"
The business card was simple, containing only the name "Feng Zhenghao," a mobile phone number, no title, and no company information. But the name itself was enough within the world of supernatural beings and certain specific circles.
"It was nothing, no need to be so polite." Feng Zhenghao smiled slightly, stood up, and Feng Shayan and Jia Zhengliang beside him immediately followed suit. "We have other matters to attend to, so we'll take our leave first. Young man, please... be careful in everything you do."
After saying that, he nodded to Nie Lingfeng, then gave Chen Duo, who was still sipping her soup, a meaningful look. He then turned and left the breakfast stall with his people, quickly disappearing into the mist and crowds of the street.
Nie Lingfeng looked at the business card in his hand, then glanced in the direction where Feng Zhenghao had disappeared, his eyes deep.
Why did Feng Zhenghao extend an olive branch? Did he see something? Or was it simply because of his "loyalty"? Or... did he also have ulterior motives regarding what happened in "Mong La," wanting to use him, a "local stranger," to do something?
The favors owed to the vice president of the World Society are not easy to come by. But right now, with Feng Zhenghao as a contact, there might be some unexpected convenience and intelligence to help us get to the perilous town of Mengla.
Whether it will bring good fortune or misfortune remains to be seen.
"Brother," Chen Duo's voice interrupted his thoughts. She pointed to the last bit of rice noodle soup in the bowl, looking at him expectantly, "I've finished eating. When...when are we going to find that 'Azan Ki' teacher?"
Nie Lingfeng snapped out of his reverie, carefully put the business card away, ruffled her hair, and a gentle smile returned to his face: "Let's go find it now. Let's go, 'little sister'."
He paid the bill, took Chen Duo's hand, and walked towards the "Old Burmese Tea House" across the street, a place with a faded sign and two elderly locals squatting at the entrance smoking water pipes.
As the morning mist gradually dissipated, Daluo Town revealed its true face, which was both clearer and more bustling and chaotic.
Their chance encounter with the World Society was like a pebble thrown into a calm lake. Although it only created small ripples for the time being, no one knew what kind of waves these ripples would eventually spread into.
The "Old Burmese Tea House" has a small storefront, and the paint on the signboard is already peeling, with only a few faded Dai and Chinese characters barely legible. The two local elderly men squatting at the entrance smoking water pipes have dark, wrinkled skin and wear faded cotton shirts. Their eyes are cloudy, as if they are indifferent to everything, just casually puffing out smoke, letting the pungent smell of tobacco permeate the humid air.
Nie Lingfeng pulled Chen Duo into the teahouse. Inside, the light was dim, and the air was thick with the pungent smells of cheap tea, water pipes, and sweat, along with a faint, peculiar odor reminiscent of herbs and mildew. The teahouse was small, furnished with seven or eight greasy wooden tables, already quite full. Among them were border merchants in floral shirts, dark-skinned and wary-looking; local mountain people with headscarves, silent and withdrawn; and several men and women, dressed incongruous with their surroundings, tense, and talking in hushed tones, who appeared to be tourists from inland China. Everyone spoke in hushed tones, creating a tense and guarded atmosphere.
Nie Lingfeng's gaze swept quickly across the room, but he didn't see anyone with similar characteristics to "Azanki" ("Eagle" was only given as a code name, without any specific description). He pulled Chen Duo and found an empty table near the door, in a relatively inconspicuous corner, and sat down.
A middle-aged woman wearing a longyi (a traditional Dai long skirt), with dark skin and a blank expression, walked over and asked in broken Mandarin, "What would you like to drink?"
"Two cups of black tea, please," Nie Lingfeng replied in Mandarin with the same slight accent, adding casually, "I heard that the tea here is specially made by a master tea master named 'Ajarn,' and that it can dispel miasma and refresh the mind?"
This is one of the agreed-upon secret codes.
The middle-aged woman's cloudy eyes flickered slightly. She glanced at Nie Lingfeng, then at Chen Duo sitting quietly beside him. She didn't answer immediately, but simply nodded and turned to leave. Soon, she returned with two cups of deep red, steaming coarse tea, placing them on the table. Then she pointed to a darker area at the far end of the teahouse, separated by a bamboo curtain, and said in an almost inaudible voice, "Azanji is in the back. Finish your tea and go in."
Nie Lingfeng nodded, picked up his teacup, blew on it to cool it, and took a small sip. The tea was very astringent, with a strong earthy and stale wood flavor; it was hardly pleasant. Chen Duo imitated him, also picking up her cup and carefully taking a sip. Her little face immediately scrunched up, she stuck out her tongue, and muttered softly, "So bitter..." (๑•́ ₃ •̀๑)
"It'll cheer you up, have a little something to drink," Nie Lingfeng said softly, slowly sipping his own drink. His senses extended subtly, trying to penetrate the bamboo curtain, but the curtain seemed to have some kind of special treatment, or there was interference in the space behind it, making his senses very blurry. He could only sense a human-shaped life force inside, very weak and steady, but... it gave him an uncomfortable feeling, like withered wood or... the shell of some insect, cold and hard.
About five minutes later, Nie Lingfeng finished his bitter tea and gave Chen Duo a wink. The two got up and walked towards the bamboo curtain at the back of the teahouse.
Lifting the bamboo curtain revealed an even smaller, almost completely enclosed room. There were no windows, only a single incandescent bulb hanging from the low beam, casting a dim, yellowish light. The smell of herbs and mildew in the air was even stronger, mixed with an indescribable, faint scent, similar to the embers of some kind of burning spice.
The cubicle contained only a small bamboo table and a few similarly woven bamboo cushions. An elderly man, dressed in dark blue traditional Dai clothing that almost blended into the darkness, with a black headscarf, a hunched and thin frame, and a face etched with deep, knife-like wrinkles, squatted on the ground with his back to them. He was slowly roasting something over charcoal in a small, dark earthenware pot, producing a soft crackling sound. The peculiar aroma of spices in the air emanated from the pot.
Hearing the noise, the old man didn't turn around, but said in hoarse, dry Mandarin with a heavy Dai accent, as if he hadn't spoken in a long time, "Sit."
His voice was flat, devoid of any emotion, as if he were simply stating a fact.
Nie Lingfeng and Chen Duo sat down on the futons opposite the low table. In the dim light, Nie Lingfeng could finally see the old man's profile. His skin was an unhealthy grayish-yellow, his eyes were deep-set, his cheekbones were high, and his lips were thin and tightly pursed. Most striking were his eyes; the whites were cloudy and yellowish, while the pupils were unusually black, like two deep pools that absorbed light. His gaze seemed unfocused, yet it appeared to see right through people. His hands had large, coarse knuckles, skin like old tree bark, and his fingernails were filled with a black substance that looked like dirt or medicine residue.
Is this "Ajarn Ki"? Rather than a "teacher," he seems more like a "witch doctor" or "sorcerer" who lives in seclusion in a border town and deals with mysterious things.
"Did you bring the things?" Azan Ki asked in a hoarse voice, still not turning around, his eyes fixed on the earthenware pot on the charcoal fire.
Nie Lingfeng took out a palm-sized, hard object wrapped in oil paper from his pocket (actually a lining of his backpack), placed it on the low table, and pushed it over. This was a "token" that "Eagle" had given him beforehand. It was said to be an ancient token with special significance in border areas, capable of proving identity and sincerity.
Azan Ki finally stopped what he was doing and slowly turned around. His movements were slow and stiff, as if every joint was rusted. He stretched out his withered hands, picked up the oil paper package, but did not open it. Instead, he brought it to his nose, took a deep breath, and then, for the first time, his deep, pool-like eyes truly and intently looked at Nie Lingfeng and Chen Duo.
His gaze lingered on Nie Lingfeng's face for a few seconds, as if assessing and scrutinizing him, before shifting to Chen Duo's face. When his gaze fell upon Chen Duo's clear, emerald-green eyes, his expressionless face, as if carved from stone, twitched almost imperceptibly, and his deep, pool-like pupils seemed to contract slightly for a moment, but quickly returned to their lifeless state.
"The 'person' you're looking for is no ordinary person." Azan Ki set the oil paper package aside, turned back, picked up a thin bamboo skewer, and poked at the dark, unidentifiable object roasting in the earthenware pot. "Mong La is now a place targeted by 'unclean' things. It's easy to get in, but hard to get out. Especially..." He paused, adding meaningfully, "...to go in with something 'special'."
Nie Lingfeng's heart skipped a beat. This "Azanji" was indeed extraordinary, seeing through Chen Duo's "specialness" at a glance? Was he referring to her phoenix bloodline, or the contrast between the pure life force within her and this "polluted" land?
"Teacher Azan Ki, we understand the risks. But we must go," Nie Lingfeng said earnestly. "How much do you know about the recent events in Mong La? Is there any... information that could warn us or offer assistance?"