Chapter 32: Wang Ergou

2022-05-20

Old Zhang couldn’t have been running this operation alone. What we needed to do now was use these corpses to uncover the whole network behind him, to bring the entire hidden group lurking in the shadows to justice. And I had a nagging feeling that this whole thing might be connected to Lai San as well.

We notified the person in charge in Qingcheng and had all the bodies transported to the funeral home to await the forensic examination.

For the moment, though, our focus was on figuring out where these missing bodies had come from. Stealing a corpse isn’t exactly easy—I’d bet the families reported it right away. And given the logistics, these bodies had to be taken from somewhere close to Qingcheng.

After cross-referencing all the identities and burial sites of the deceased, I spread out a map of Qingcheng and the surrounding area. My finger landed on a spot not far from the city—a place called Jiazi County in Linfen.

According to my source, that was the region with the heaviest ghost marriage customs around. He’d actually tried to sell that female corpse there before.

“I think it’s worth checking out,” I said to Team Leader Shao.

Team Leader Shao nodded. “I know you’ve got your own connections, but are you certain these corpses Old Zhang took were for more than just hiding contraband? Are you sure they’re connected to ghost marriages? If we’re wrong, we’ll be further from catching Old Zhang than ever.”

I paused, thinking it over. “I can’t say for sure, but my gut is pointing me in this direction. And even if Old Zhang isn’t one of them, busting a criminal group would still be a good thing.”

“Alright. I’ll assemble a team back at the office. If you need anything, just let me know.” Team Leader Shao agreed to my plan without much hesitation.

“Without any evidence, let’s keep our identities under wraps for now. I might need to go undercover under another identity. But I do have a special request,” I said.

Team Leader Shao made a sound of surprise. “Honestly, I didn’t expect you to have any requests. Go ahead—I’m listening.”

“I need you to help me get someone out,” I answered, locking eyes with Team Leader Shao.

He traced circles on his teacup for a moment. “Oh? Where’s this person locked up?”

“He’s not in there,” I replied, shaking my head.

Team Leader Shao looked genuinely surprised and asked, “Then… in a psychiatric hospital?”

The look on my face gave it away and Team Leader Shao grinned. “So it’s really the psychiatric hospital then?”

There’s someone I know, but he doesn’t see himself as a person. He sees himself as a dog—the fiercest one there is. I don’t know his real name; he only calls himself Wang Ergou.

Wang Ergou really is like a dog, or maybe there’s honestly no difference between him and a real one.

If someone tosses a stone, he’ll sprint over and bring it back in his mouth.

He might be the only dog in the world that can talk.

But a year ago, Wang Ergou wasn’t a dog. Back then, he was still a man.

People in his trade have a saying: three years of learning, three years to honor your teacher.

And apprenticeship was a must—the risks of learning on your own were just too high.

Once you took a master, he’d teach you all his skills. But as apprentices usually had no income, the master would feed and support him for three years. After those three years, once you graduated, no matter what treasure you managed to unearth, valuable or not, it all went to the master first. He’d decide how much you kept. If he was stingy he might not even give you a cent, but nobody dared complain.

That’s the custom. Three years of learning, three years of honor. No one dared break it. Because if you did, you’d be shut out by everyone in the trade, and if you angered the wrong people, someone might take you out quietly.

Grave robbing’s a team sport. The most important thing is trust.

Everyone’s scared of betrayal. If you die in the tomb, who’d ever find out? The only way to survive is for everyone to play fair. People who betray their partners always end up punished by the rest—sometimes even tortured to death.

If you asked anyone in the business what they feared most, it wasn’t the candle in the southeast corner going out, or corpses turning into zombies, or hidden traps and mechanisms, or even running into ghosts.

They’d tell you: the scariest thing in this world is human nature.

Early on, without a master-apprentice relationship, it was all just about money.

After digging the tunnel, one person would go down to collect the loot, another waited above with a rope to haul it up. But the one holding the rope often got greedy and left his partner below. So over time, people started bringing their sons along, but even then, sons sometimes abandoned their own fathers.

Eventually the method changed—the son would go down, the father would stay up and pull the rope. They say no one’s abandoned in the tomb with that system anymore.

By this time, Wang Ergou had finished his apprenticeship.

He’d started working on his own, but never dared break the custom. For those first three years, every treasure he dug up—priceless or worthless—went to his master. But working alone made it hard to get things out or climb back up.

Wang Ergou found his father.

His dad was an idle villager, which is probably why he’d sent Wang to learn this trade in the first place.

“Alright! I’ll stay up and pull the rope, you go down and get the treasure. Once you’ve got something, tug the rope and I’ll haul it up. When you’ve cleared everything out, tug twice and I’ll pull you up.” His father grinned, “Never thought you’d turn out so well-off.”

“It all has to go to the master, then he’ll decide what I get. It depends how generous he’s feeling,” Wang Ergou quickly reminded him. “That’s the rule for three years.”

His father smashed his wine bottle on the ground. “What a load of garbage rules!”

They put the plan into action.

Wang Ergou knew he wasn’t ready to find some undiscovered royal tomb, but he could still track down an old landowner’s grave.

This particular mound belonged to a once-rich family. Time and weather had smoothed it out, and the headstone was long gone. It was hidden away in the mountains, unknown to anyone else. But Wang, relying on his years of experience, found it easily. One shovel in, and he could tell he was in the right place.

He dug the tunnel straight down, right onto the coffin.

These tombs weren’t like imperial ones. No elaborate traps, and though the loot inside wouldn’t be worth a fortune, Wang Ergou just considered it good practice. If he impressed his master, maybe he’d get a bigger cut.

Reaching into the darkness, he groped around.

His hand found clothing—the owner had long since turned to bones. He searched and pulled up whatever valuables he could. It was too dark to see, but after years traveling with his master, he could tell by touch if something was valuable.

He kept tugging the rope, sending treasures up one after another.

Finally, it was time to get out. As agreed, Wang Ergou tugged the rope twice. Then something strange happened—the rope dropped down into the hole from above. Wang thought maybe his father had slipped and let go, so he quickly called out, “Dad, grab another rope and pull me up!”

“Sorry, I let it slip. Hold on!” his father shouted from above.

Sitting on the coffin, Wang Ergou couldn’t help feeling excited. Surely after this, his master would give him a bigger share. What could he do with the money? He remembered how his girlfriend Xiaocui always complained her phone was too slow. He wanted to buy her a new one.

Smartphones were cheap now, he thought. Just about a thousand.

He grinned to himself. It was weird: the older something was in the tomb, the more it was worth, but for high-tech stuff, the newer it was, the cheaper.

Maybe he should get himself a motorcycle instead. Then again, if you didn’t have a license, you couldn’t bring it into the city, and getting a license cost more than the bike itself.

Years in the mountains had left him feeling out of touch with the world outside.

He sat on the coffin, waiting happily. Looking up, he could only see a tiny patch of sky through the shaft. For a second, he remembered the old story about the frog in the well, and burst out laughing. The more he thought about it, the funnier it seemed.

Deep in the mountains, no one could hear Wang Ergou’s laughter.

He waited from day into night. His whole world shrank to that coffin and the slice of sky overhead, just half a moon and a few stars. He remembered Xiaocui saying she was a Pisces, and that Pisces loved romance. But Wang Ergou never really understood what romance meant.

Day broke again, but his father never returned.