Another downside of being dead

The rain fell in a lazy drizzle, chilling the air and bringing with it the threat of an incoming snowfall. Xie Bian jumped from one foot to another to keep himself warm. He didn't expect that he could still feel cold, and for a moment missed the mildness of the weather in Youdu.

Moments later he saw a shadow jump down from a window into the bush below, Fan Wujiu emerged from it unscathed and joined Xie Bian behind the wall.

"It worked," he said, keeping his voice down. "Neither of them can stand more than a moment on their feet without feeling painfully dizzy."

"Is the rest of the troupe panicking yet?" Xie Bian asked.

Fan Wujiu nodded. "I overheard them asking the other two to join them for dinner in the inn's restaurant but both are too sick to move. The leader is furious."

Xie Bian sighed. He couldn't really fault Fan Wujiu's plan, even though he thought it was overcautious.

"Fine, let's get this over with," he said, adjusting the fall of his robes and walking towards the brightly lit doorway of Longbei's most expensive inn.

The restaurant downstairs was lively, filled with patrons drinking and chatting, as the waiters went around serving steaming platters and bowls of fragrant food. Xie Bian's nose itched at the mouthwatering scents, but he knew from bitter experience that while he could eat the food it would taste like nothing much.

Yet another downside of being dead.

It was easy to find the people they were looking for. There were about twenty of them, all spread across nearby tables and none looking too pleased.

Fan Wujiu made a beeline for the closest available table. Xie Bian sat down across from him and flagged down a waiter. Even while they placed their orders they could overhear what the sword dancers were loudly complaining about.

"It's just rotten luck that something like this would happen! Brothers, I'm not even sure what illness they have, but neither of them can stand on their feet. I haven't seen anything like it."

All the dancers were lean with athletic builds, but their looks varied greatly. A man with a small nose and beady, triangular eyes snorted contemptuously.

"If you ask me they're faking it! Got cold feet! This is our biggest event in a year. Times were running lean before we were invited to perform at Master Yu and Lady Wei's wedding. All of the city's richest families will be attending, half of them cultivators! We came such a long way, and now this!"

A young man standing next to him nodded in eager agreement. "That's right, that's right! Just last month I overheard Jiuxin complaining that it was too short notice. He couldn't handle it. We all know we can't afford to make mistakes and offend those wealthy patrons, but neither can we afford to say no to their gold. Can any of you remember the last time we stayed in an inn this good?"

There were several cries of assent. Xie Bian felt somewhat guilty for the two people he and Fan Wujiu had temporarily poisoned.

Fan Wujiu waited for a lull in the conversation, brought about by the arrival of the troupe's dishes, to tell Xie Bian. "This wasn't a good time for us to come to Longbei."

"Yes, if we had known about the wedding, we would have gone somewhere else. There's no room for wandering theatre performers like us. What if the families take offense to us putting up a show and distracting from the bridal parade? I wouldn't dare."

Xie Bian knew they had been overheard when the man with the triangle eyes froze in place with his chopsticks halfway to his mouth.

His name was He Ming and he thought himself very smart. These two actors were tall and they looked strong -- good looking too. Many theatre performers knew a rudimentary bit of martial arts to put on a good show for the crowd. They wouldn't use real weapons, or be as refined and powerful as sword dancers, but in the middle of a group of twenty others would anyone be able to tell the difference?

Most importantly, from their conversation, it seemed they were in dire straits. He Ming was sure that any bit of silver he threw their way would do.

He gestured at his table companions to quiet down while he rose to his feet with a bottle of wine in hand and walked over to the other table.

"Good evening, esteemed sirs, I couldn't help but overhear your conversation. I think we could really help each other..."

Xie Bian exchanged a look with Fan Wujiu. It pained him to admit that everything had happened just as he said it would. Now all they had to do was seem initially reluctant before gratefully accepting whatever paltry sum he threw their way.

---

Xie Bian was alone in their room. He and Fan Wujiu had done a demonstration for He Ming and a few other sword dancers in the inn's courtyard, to ensure they were up to the task. The drizzle hadn't let up all the while Xie Bian shivered through the routine Fan Wujiu had drilled into him.

At the end of it they were considered good enough, offered twenty silver taels, and told to return next morning to practice with the rest of the troupe.

As soon as they got back, Fan Wujiu announced that he had something to do and left.

There was no use in arguing with him and asking to go along, so Xie Bian had just hummed in acknowledgement and let himself fall backwards onto the bedroll.

He took out Yanluo's book from the inside of the infinity pouch and laid it out on the mattress. He hadn't been reading it, too preoccupied with Fan Wujiu walking in and noticing that that was in fact what he was doing despite the book being 'blank'. But he had just left and judging by past behaviour it would take him at least an hour to return.

Xie Bian flipped until the page where he had stopped the last time. He was curious to see how Fu Shulin would handle that arrogant brat.