Daomu Biji: A Thousand Faces

The lights in the living room were still on when Xie Yuchen returned to the house. He never said he wasn’t afraid of ghosts, but human hearts were far more terrifying than any ghost. After everything he had experienced, he’d much rather deal with non-human problems. He settled into a lounge chair on the patio, put on his headphones, and dialed a number.

He heard the sound of a beer can opening as soon as the person on the other end answered the call.

"Don't people usually get gout at your age?" Xie Yuchen asked.

"It's soda." The other person laughed.

"There should be some results."

"Liang Yanyan? She’s called Caifeng (1) in the field. Did you see her today? What did she look like?"

"About twenty-seven or eight. Good-looking."

"Oh, that’s similar to when I met her two months ago. I guess she'll be using that face for a while. But rumor has it that she changes her appearance every six months. She does makeup and helps change people’s appearances in the field. It’s unusual for her to actively look for help, though. Are you nervous about her coming to you? Is that why you need her info?"

"I thought she had something up her sleeve for me, but I don't think that’s the case anymore. She really asked me for help."

"Then use your charm to turn her into your confidant."

“I'm not interested in her. I'm interested in the other one.”

"Ah Tou? She’s just an ordinary person."

"Based on Liang Yanyan’s attitude towards her, I doubt it. Have you been lazing around?"

"They have a strong bond, so I don't think you can get in between them," the other party said. "When Liang Yanyan was sixteen—well, around sixteen— there was a huge fire that killed about sixty people. The whole factory burned to the ground and she inhaled too much smoke and was declared dead. Ah Tou’s parents also worked in the same factory. Ah Tou was about seven or eight at the time, and the skin on both of her arms was burned completely. At that time, Ah Tou's grandparents had some power, so they forced Liang Yanyan's parents to donate the skin from their daughter’s back so Ah Tou could get a skin graft."

"And?"

"Hear me out.” The other part took a sip of beer, "At that time, Liang Yanyan had a whole tattoo on her back, which also got transplanted to Ah Tou. After the transplant was complete, Liang Yanyan woke up in the morgue. Her death had apparently been misdiagnosed. To cover the whole incident up, the two families went through a series of conflicts. But things had already reached a certain point, so Liang Yanyan’s family could do nothing but agree to a compromise."

"Wow, God is such a good writer."

"It's normal that Liang Yanyan would have special feelings for Ah Tou. Do you really think you can get between them? You’re better off butting into the Wu family’s affairs."

"So, that girl’s tattooed arms weren’t acquired, but given as a result of an accident."

"She didn't think those tattoos were good enough, so she studied art and fixed them up herself. Covering up tattoos is a difficult task, so it made her famous in her field. But everything happened when she was seven or eight years old. When she woke up after falling into a coma, everything was already resolved. She doesn't know what exactly happened."

"Do you think Liang Yanyan is trying to get her skin back?" Xie Yuchen asked. Even if it were to help heal the arms of a seven- or eight-year-old girl, taking the skin off of her back must have been painful and horrible. Liang Yanyan was only a teenager at that time, so she must have really hated her life.

"I…don't know. Studies have shown that organ donors develop special feelings for the recipient," the other party said. “You can do some research. Why? Are you interested in Ah Tou?"

"I need someone like her to help me get things done."

The other party laughed, "What a capitalist."

As Xie Yuchen hung up, he had a very interested expression on his face.

**

Meanwhile, on the other side.

As Liang Yanyan stared at the cup of boiled water in front of her, Ah Tou looked particularly embarrassed, "Except for boiled water, I only have beer." She had already told Liang Yanyan everything that had happened to her just now. She had been in such a hurry that she felt a little stupid for forgetting her manners.

Liang Yanyan flicked the cigarette ashes into the cup, “Don’t you normally feel scared living alone here?”

“Why should I? There wasn’t any problem with the house before.”

“Living alone in a place like this, don’t you imagine all sorts of things?”

Ah Tou looked at Liang Yanyan and shook her head, why would anyone ever want to bring trouble to themselves? Now that someone else was in the room with her, Ah Tou had completely calmed down and her first thought was to wonder how much this sister was going to charge.

She had just made forty thousand yuan and could take it all out. But if Liang Yanyan charged her more than that, it wouldn’t be worth it. She had to negotiate the price first. If they couldn’t come to an agreement and the other woman left, then she’d be helpless again. Will this house even be livable?

"Uhhh…" she didn’t know where to start.

“Where should I sleep?” Liang Yanyan asked.

Ah Tou summoned up her courage and interrupted the other woman, "Well… how much do you charge, sister?"

Liang Yanyan chuckled and looked at Ah Tou with a smile, "Just listen to yourself! First you called me a delivery person—which I tolerated—and now you’re asking me my price for staying over."

"That's not what I meant." Ah Tou just now realized what Liang Yanyan’s earlier words meant (2). "Since Boss Xie recommended you to come here, I have to ask about the price. I run a small business and can’t afford someone who's a prestigious expert."

Liang Yanyan looked at Ah Tou’s artwork and said, "Xie Yuchen has already paid, so you don't need to give me anything. But a drawing will do.”

"Ah, what do you want me to draw?” Ah Tou was relieved, but also a little surprised. She usually charged four thousand yuan for one of her pieces, and most of her clients were her friends. There were also some family friends whom her parents sent over to indirectly give her some living expenses. She hadn’t yet developed a solid style and knew that she still needed a little work.

"I’ll let you know once I have an idea." As Liang Yanyan spoke, she took out Ah Tou’s sketch from the Boss Xie’s house and pointed to the hanging man, “We need to have a serious talk, but before that, tell me where I should sleep for the next few days.”

****

TN Notes:

(1) Tailor/dressmaker

(2) Staying over (过夜) has an implicit meaning of sleeping together.