The Creatures That We Are

Chapter 933: Fortune Abounds

The first was a sealed sample bag with a pinch of dark red mud. It came from the shoal on the Li River bank, drenched red by someone’s blood.

The second was an airtight glass jar filled with a few pieces of broken stones in water tinged pink—a result of the blood on the stones washed into the water.

The third was a sample box with two pieces of charred tissues.

The fourth was a vial. Inside were three teeth.

Rain River placed the four things on Qilin’s desk. “These are what the enemies left on the battlefield. I’ve treated them so that they can be used within the next month.”

Qilin nodded with satisfaction. "Good work. Go. Enjoy the holidays with the others."

Rain River hesitated before bowing. "Happy New Year, Guildmaster, Deputy Guildmaster."

After she left, Qilin studied the items in silence.

"We get one chance." He turned to Surnamed Li. "Let's review the plan."

“Of course.”

Surnamed Li took out a jammer and activated it.

They quickly finished their discussion. Then someone else knocked on the door.

“Come on in,” Surnamed Li said.

The door opened. In walked a woman whose skin hung on her bones due to how skinny she was. She wore a blue nurse uniform. Her hair was frayed and dry, her skin rough and dim. Combined with her deep-set eyes, she looked like misfortune incarnate.

Back slightly hunched, she looked at Qilin with unfocused eyes.

“Happy New Year, Sunny.”

“Happy New Year,” Sunny said stiffly.

Qilin's lips curved as he adjusted his glasses. "Time to give our enemies a New Year's gift."

Sunny's heart plummeted. The dreaded day had arrived.

...

Spectres’ Mansion, Xijing District. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Morning light filtered through the windows as Gao Yang surfaced from shallow sleep at eight. Fresh Snow was already awake, perched cat-like on the sofa. Her red cotton shirt brightened the room, her hair gathered into festive buns. She'd been watching, waiting for his eyes to open.

“Gao Yang! Happy New Year!” Fresh Snow beamed.

“Happy New Year.”

"I'm the first to say it to you!" Her eyes crinkled with pride.

Gao Yang nodded. "You are."

"Ta-da!" Fresh Snow sprang up, revealing what she'd hidden behind her back. A couplet unfurled like a banner. "Gao Yang, I picked this one!"

Yesterday's grocery shopping had led them to an old man selling hand-written couplets. Fresh Snow, proud of her growing literacy, had lost herself in the artistry. She'd bought twelve, planning to change them monthly, leaving the calligrapher beaming with joy.

Gao Yang read the verses she held:

Beautiful is the land with the return of spring, Blessed is the mortal world welcoming a series of fortunes.

"It's perfect," he nodded. "This one goes up first."

After washing up, they moved to the front door. Fresh Snow balanced on a small stool, positioning the couplets while Gao Yang directed from below. Together, they completed the decoration by sticking a fu sign—the character for good fortune—onto the metal gate of the front yard.

The sound of doors opening upstairs announced Gao Xinxin and Wang Zikai's awakening. They emerged from their bedrooms in rumpled pajamas, hair tousled from sleep, and took their positions on the adjacent second-floor balconies.

"Fresh Snow! That's wrong!" Wang Zikai called down, scratching his nape. "The fu sign needs to be upside down! When fu is upside down, fortune arrives—get it?"[1]

"Oh!" Fresh Snow immediately flipped the character.

"Don't listen to that idiot!" Gao Xinxin leaned over her balcony railing. "Turn it right-side up! Think about it logically, Fresh Snow. If you turn a cup of water upside down, what happens? All the water spills out! Do you want to lose an entire year's worth of fortune?"

"Oh!" Fresh Snow returned the sign to its original position.

"Fresh Snow, trust me!" Wang Zikai twisted around to glare at his neighbor. "Put it upside down! My family's been doing this for generations, and look how well we've done! You can't argue with results!"

"Ha! Money isn't everything. Having a loving family matters more!" Gao Xinxin countered. "Listen to me, Fresh Snow. I know what I'm talking about!"

"Upside down!"

"Right-side up!"

"Down!"

"Up!"

Fresh Snow's head swiveled between them like a spectator at a tennis match. Finally, she turned to Gao Yang with pleading eyes. "What should I do?"

"Only children have to choose." Gao Yang's lips twitched. "Adults can have both. Go get another fu sign."

Fresh Snow's face brightened. She darted inside, returning moments later with a second sign.

Gao Yang placed the first sign right-side up, then glanced at Fresh Snow. "Now put yours upside down, directly above mine. They need to line up perfectly."

"Got it!" Fresh Snow carefully positioned the second fu on the gate.

Gao Yang nodded sagely, his expression serious though his eyes danced with mirth. "This creates the pixiu fortune formation[2]. When fortune arrives, it spills downward, but the bottom sign catches it all. Nothing escapes. The fortune circles endlessly through the year."

"Gao Yang, you're brilliant!" Fresh Snow beamed, absorbing this newfound wisdom with complete conviction.

On their respective balconies, Wang Zikai and Gao Xinxin stood speechless, trying and failing to find fault in his logic. They exchanged one last disapproving look before retreating to their rooms with matching huffs.

...

They began cleaning at ten, preparing the mansion for the new year. Despite limiting themselves to essential areas, the task proved exhausting.

Under Gao Xinxin's watchful eye—she'd transformed into a proper matriarch for the occasion—they finally finished at three in the afternoon. She declared it was time for new year's baths and fresh clothes. Then they would seize the magic hour to have a group photo.

Half an hour later, everyone had cleaned up and emerged except Fresh Snow, who remained sequestered in her room after going to change.

Gao Xinxin dispatched Gao Yang upstairs to investigate.

He found her door open. Fresh Snow sat by her bed, legs tucked neatly beneath her, examining something in a white box roughly the size of a microwave.

"Fresh Snow?"

She startled, quickly closing the box. "Gao Yang! You should knock!"

"The door was open," he said with gentle resignation.

"Well..." Fresh Snow set the box aside and stood. "How do I look in my new clothes?"

Twin tails draped over her shoulders, complementing her loose blue sweater and white skirt. White cat slippers completed the ensemble. She looked perfectly at home—like any other young woman enjoying a holiday with family.

"You look good," Gao Yang smiled.

"Let's go!"

...

A few minutes later, the four of them went to the front yard for a group photo. Fresh Snow and Gao Xinxin stood in the middle, arms in arms, while Gao Yang and Wang Zikai stood on the sides.

Gao Yang’s double raised his phone as the photographer. “Gentlemen, stay on the sides like bodyguards. Stand behind the two beautiful ladies. Yes. But don’t just stand. Do something. Put your arms on each other’s back or something else. Nice, nice. Stay that way...”

The double raised an index finger. “Ladies, turn to the camera. Yes, good. Stay that way. The lady on the left, your smile is a little stiff...”

“You’ve been at it for ages, can I not be stiff?!” Gao Xinxin rolled her eyes before quickly putting on a sweet smile, worried that a photo would be snapped while she was scowling. Seriously, she was under great pressure standing beside a pretty girl who looked like she had stepped out of an anime.

“The lady on the right, look up a little at the camera. Focus your eyes...”

“Yeah.”

Spring sometimes took group photos of the family as memento, while White Dew didn’t like having her photos taken. Thus, Fresh Snow had never had group photos with her friends. While it was new and fun to her, she was also somewhat nervous.

"Are you taking the picture or not?!" Gao Xinxin's smile threatened to crack.

"Wang Zikai, hair in your eyes! Fix it!" The double's anxiety mounted.

“Huh? Wait!” Wang Zikai valued this opportunity a lot, and, unlike usual, his face had been stiff like he was getting his ID photo taken. He didn’t notice that the wind had messed up his hair.

“A sec, a sec...” he quickly sorted out his fringe. “How do I look?”

“Hot! Hot like the sun! Just take the photo already!” while urging, Gao Xinxin quickly adjusted her smile and the angle of her head.

“Three, two...”

Snap.

1. Since "upside down", dao, is pronounced the same only in a different tone as "arrive", there's a tradition of having the word fu, fortune, upside down to signify the arrival of fortune. ☜

2. Pixiu is a mythological creature that signifies good luck and fortune. ☜