The Hand of Confession – Chapter 323

Volume 10: Days of Cultivating in the Republic of China

The Strange Man

Could it be that Kang Yuanhuai has made a move?

“You…” Shen Maomao opened her mouth, just about to mention the other girl’s strange behavior. But out of the corner of her eye, she saw the stone statue’s head turn slightly. Its two eyes were staring straight at her, as if warning her not to be nosy.

The heavy stone statue made no sound as it moved. Behind her, Golden Retriever secretly poked her in the back, having clearly noticed the statue’s abnormality as well.

She didn’t dare say another word. Sisi was looking at her intently, waiting for her to continue.

Shen Maomao’s mouth hung open, her body stiff as she asked, “What wish are you thinking of making?”

Seeing that she hadn’t said too much, the statue immediately turned back, as if nothing had happened, continuing to gaze forward with a compassionate expression. At the same time, the tension in Shen Maomao’s body eased, and the feeling of being locked onto by something dangerous vanished.

Sisi said, “What else could it be? Nothing more than getting out of this game, that sort of thing.”

Shen Maomao forced a smile.

Sisi didn’t notice that something was wrong with her. She turned and continued walking deeper inside, saying as she went, “Looking at the situation here, there should be a temple keeper¹, right? The candles and incense look like they were just lit not too long ago. Should we wait for a bit?”

Shen Maomao and Golden Retriever quickly followed her. “Maybe… but how about we wait outside after we’ve had a look?”

The words had barely left her mouth when the sunlight outside suddenly dimmed. A few seconds later, a pitter-patter of rain began to fall, splashing against the water’s surface.

Sisi said, “Looks like he doesn’t want us to leave.”

Shen Maomao glanced at the statue, then quickly averted her gaze to prevent being bewitched by it.

Golden Retriever shook the umbrella in his hand, indicating that he could use it to leave. But He Bo had clearly thought of this as well. In the blink of an eye, the rain outside grew heavier, practically smashing down from the sky. It hammered against the roof with a loud thumping, as if someone were beating a war drum above their heads.

This time, it was obvious they were completely stuck.

The effectiveness of the oil-paper umbrella was unknown; there was no need for them to risk it.

Shen Maomao retreated to the doorway, standing as close to the outside as possible. Her calves and leather shoes were splattered with a line of muddy dots. Golden Retriever also went to the opposite side, leaning against the doorframe. At a glance, they looked like a pair of guardian Door Gods².

Sisi looked at their shoes with some disdain and decided not to go outside. She turned her head and curiously examined the interior of the He Bo temple, saying, “There’s nothing much to see here. How are we supposed to report back to Kang Yuanhuai when we get back?”

Shen Maomao said, “Just report what happened. What else can we do?”

Sisi sighed and changed the subject again. “Right, are you two really not going to sleep with me? Three people together is fine, it’s safer than being alone.”

“No, no.” Shen Maomao refused again. Opposite her, Golden Retriever also shook his head frantically.

They hadn’t agreed when nothing was wrong before. Now that there was clearly a problem with her, it was even more impossible.

Sisi thought they were looking down on her. Coupled with the irritation from being rejected time and again, she turned her head and stopped talking to them, continuing to observe the temple.

…

The rain fell for a full three hours. The three people in the temple went from standing to sitting, and finally, they were slumped against the wall on the floor, feeling drowsy.

In a haze, a figure appeared before them. Shen Maomao jolted awake, her eyes wide as she looked at the person at the entrance wearing a bamboo hat and a straw rain cape.

She pushed Golden Retriever awake, kicked Sisi, and then scrambled to her feet, looking warily at the person before them.

The person walked straight into the room as if he hadn’t seen them, bypassing the flustered trio and heading towards the divine statue before taking off his bamboo hat.

Under the hat was not some strangely shaped creature, but the back of a very normal man’s head.

Shen Maomao breathed a sigh of relief.

The man stood before the altar, casually tossing the bamboo hat aside. With his back to the three of them, he asked, “Who are you?”

Shen Maomao glanced at Sisi.

Sisi replied, “We came to worship Lord He Bo, but it started raining right after we finished, so we wanted to wait here for the rain to lighten up before leaving.”

The man said, “This is not a place you should be. Leave quickly, and don’t come back again.”

Sisi said, “But the rain…”

She had only gotten halfway through her sentence when the rain outside abruptly stopped. In an instant, the dark clouds scattered, and the sky cleared up completely.

Golden Retriever looked at the man in astonishment.

The man still only showed them his back. “Go.”

The rain had stopped, and the order to leave had been given. The three of them felt too embarrassed to linger any longer and could only walk out of the He Bo temple one by one.

Shen Maomao pulled the hesitant Sisi along, quickly passing through the exit, and then silently led her along the riverbank.

Sisi was pulled forward, stumbling for a while before she finally couldn’t help but ask, “What’s wrong? Why are you pulling me in such a hurry?”

Shen Maomao let go of her and said, “Just now, you…”

Halfway through her words, that feeling of being watched returned. Her body stiffened, and she immediately looked around, but after a full circle, she couldn’t find what was staring at her.

Last time it was He Bo; this time it was probably related to him too.

Sisi and Golden Retriever followed her lead, looking left and right, but they too came up empty.

“Did you discover something?” Sisi asked.

As she asked, the gaze became even sharper, making Shen Maomao’s scalp tingle and her heart pound wildly.

She had a premonition that if she insisted on telling Sisi what had just happened, she would have her blood splattered on the spot.

Shen Maomao said seriously, “I discovered that the man from before was quite handsome.”

Sisi: “??”

Golden Retriever: “???”

But even after saying that, the feeling of being monitored didn’t disappear. Could it be because she was already on He Bo’s blacklist?

Shen Maomao didn’t dare to act rashly. She could only blink at Sisi, hoping she would understand the meaning in her eyes.

Sisi paused for a moment, looking thoughtful. Within a few seconds, she picked up the thread of conversation. “Who do you think that man could be?”

Shen Maomao said, “Maybe the temple keeper?”

Sisi retorted, “How could a temple keeper prevent believers from coming to worship a god?”

Shen Maomao: “That’s true. So what should we do next?”

Sisi looked up at the sky. The brilliant golden sun made it hard for her to open her eyes. “It should be almost noon, right? Let’s go get something to eat first, and then wait for the others to come back at the teahouse.”

The group returned the way they came and were lucky enough to run into the same boatman who had brought them.

The boatman cheerfully asked them how their worship went. Sisi told him about the man. “We were kicked out by him. Who is he? Is he the temple keeper of the He Bo temple?”

“What temple keeper!” the boatman said. “Where would a temple keeper come from? Lord He Bo’s temple was built with money we all voluntarily chipped in. Believers often take the initiative to clean it, and there’s never a shortage of offerings. There’s no need for a temple keeper at all.”

“Then who is he?”

“I reckon he’s some beggar who wandered here from who-knows-where, trying to chase you away so he could steal the offerings!”

Sisi said, “He dares to steal He Bo’s offerings?”

The boatman said contemptuously, “Hmph, I’m afraid he has the mouth to eat but not the life to enjoy it…”

…

After getting off the boat, the three of them found a small food stall in the marketplace to eat wontons.

The air was slightly cool after the rain, perfect for a bowl of fragrant, hot wontons.

The group sat under the eaves of a building, waiting for the wontons to be served while chatting about what had just happened.

Putting aside the fact that the man’s attire and demeanor didn’t resemble a beggar’s, the boatman’s confident tone alone was enough to make one feel that something was off.

If He Bo was truly a benevolent god who saved people from suffering, he probably wouldn’t take a person’s life over a few plates of offerings.

Unless it wasn’t a god.

Shen Maomao had experience with this. Nowadays, all sorts of things dared to call themselves gods. False gods and evil deities were emerging one after another, while the true gods remained silent.

Piping hot wontons were brought to the table. Golden Retriever had been starving and immediately picked up a pair of bamboo chopsticks and started eating.

Shen Maomao had a ‘cat’s tongue’³ and was afraid of the heat, so her table manners were, by contrast, more elegant than they had been in the morning.

The dampness from the rain was dispelled by the wontons. With their bellies full, the three of them ambled towards the teahouse, preparing to while away the remaining few hours.

Time passed minute by minute. The water stains on the ground were completely evaporated by the sun. The sun slowly sank in the west, casting a magnificent glow across the sky. In the evening twilight, pedestrians returned home, children were let out of school, and boat oars slapped against the water, creating ripples that spread out in circles, shimmering like a dreamscape.

At their usual spot in the teahouse, Mingyue, An Jing, and A Nan had already joined them. Now, only Kang Yuanhuai’s group of three—Gauss and Dahai—remained.

The hour hand on the large grandfather clock in the teahouse was already pointing to five. An hour had passed since their agreed-upon meeting time, yet those three had still not returned.

Mingyue said, “Could it be that Kang Yuanhuai has made a move?”

A Nan said, “Maybe those two made a move.”

Neither of these scenarios was what they wanted to see. Although the peace between them and Kang Yuanhuai was an illusion, as long as this facade remained, they could continue to deceive themselves and others, and not have to begin the daily routine of being exhausted from running for their lives⁴.

For a moment, the six players fell silent, each gripping their teacups and taking a few sips.

Another two hours passed. It was seven o’clock, and the sky was beginning to darken. There were fewer pedestrians on the streets and no boats on the river. The owner of the teahouse came over to remind them that they were about to close. The group had no choice but to pay the bill and leave, collectively squatting at the base of the teahouse—damn it, they didn’t have the key to the Western-style building⁵, so they couldn’t even go back if they wanted to.

Sisi was worried. “What do we do? Are we going to have to sleep on the street tonight?” She didn’t know if there were hotels in this era. But even if there were, with so many of them, they probably didn’t have enough money.

Shen Maomao idly glanced around. In truth, throughout this whole time, she could feel that the gaze monitoring her had never disappeared. It was like a maggot on the bone⁶, constantly observing her every move. That was why she couldn’t help but look around, wanting to catch the demon or ghost that was watching her, but to no avail.

As she was looking, she suddenly noticed three figures stumbling towards them at the far end of the road. She couldn’t help but stand up at once, exclaiming, “Look over there!”

---

---