Volume Six: Blue and White Porcelain Chapter Three: Enchantment

Volume Six: Porcelain in Azure, Chapter Three: Enchantment

“Sister Phoenix, the antique shop Professor Zhou mentioned earlier—doesn’t it sound just like the one we visited last time?” Huo Mingkun asked.

“Master, is Professor Zhou referring to the shop that sold me the Qingyou Sword? That place was so peculiar,” Jiang Yun added.

“Yes, it’s that very shop. Who else but him could sell such a masterpiece for a price lower than cabbage?” Yaoguang said, her gaze lingering on the porcelain vase the guards had brought before her. “But this time, what is that fellow Bilu up to again?”

“Master, do you think this vase came from that shop owner? I always felt he wasn’t an ordinary person,” Jiang Yun mused.

“I can’t say for sure. That man certainly has the ability. Let’s discuss this tomorrow. For now, let’s focus on how to get through tonight,” Yaoguang replied, picking up the porcelain vase and examining the painted lady upon it. The pattern was strange—why paint a lady? This wasn’t a popular motif during the Xuande period. Yaoguang stared at the blue-and-white porcelain, lost in thought.

Unbeknownst to them, night had already fallen. After supper in the drawing room, Yaoguang and the others settled back onto the sofa, waiting for darkness to deepen.

“Miss Phoenix, is there something wrong with this porcelain? You’ve been staring at it the whole afternoon,” Professor Zhou asked, unable to contain his curiosity as he saw her cradling the vase once again.

“Oh, it’s nothing. I just find the pattern odd. I’m not well-versed in blue-and-white porcelain, but I’ve seen some. Folk kilns usually feature floral patterns—flowers and plants—while official kilns depict dragons, phoenixes, and the like. But a lady like this? It’s the first I’ve seen. Look: a maiden standing beneath a peach tree. I’ve never seen such a motif. Too strange. This is an official kiln piece from the Xuande era, correct? Most items were made for royalty or high officials, so this pattern doesn’t fit the aesthetic standards of the time,” Yaoguang said, still examining the vase.

Professor Zhou took the vase and studied it carefully after hearing her words. “You’re quite right. Xuande blue-and-white porcelain is famed for its decorative motifs, which are meticulously drawn and never stray beyond the lines. The brushwork is divided between fine lines and rough strokes, the former for details, the latter for patterns. The lines are fluid, the motifs crisp, with a sense of effortless completion. Main patterns include entwined branches and flowers—peonies, lotuses, chrysanthemums, lingzhi mushrooms, morning glories, pine and bamboo, camellias, loquats, daylilies, water plants, banana leaves, and more. Most commonly, several types of flowers are intertwined in repeated combinations. Entwined lotus flowers are also prevalent, often with double-edged petals. The brushwork is bold and lively, the arrangement varies according to the vessel’s shape, flexible yet regular, demonstrating the advanced decorative artistry and skilled painting of the era. Fruit motifs include pomegranates, persimmons, lychees, grapes, and peaches. Dragon patterns feature cloud dragons, round dragons, kui dragons, hornless dragons, sea dragons, pearl-chasing dragons, winged dragons, dragons amid flowers, dragons in lotus ponds, and dragon-peony combinations. Phoenix patterns include round phoenixes, cloud phoenixes, double phoenixes, phoenixes amid flowers, and dragon-phoenix motifs. Other animals include fish in water, magpies, flying elephants, qilin, sea creatures among waves, lion balls, loquat-ribbon birds, and so on. Human figures are rare, due to the tendency of the Sumali blue pigment to blur; most commonly depicted are ladies, flute-playing to attract phoenixes, immortals riding phoenixes, children at play, scenes of music, chess, calligraphy, and dance. Ladies are often drawn with garden pavilions, creating a serene mood—ladies strolling, appreciating the moon, or worshipping the moon.” After educating them on blue-and-white porcelain, Professor Zhou continued, “The motif here—a woman standing beneath a peach tree—is indeed odd. I hadn’t noticed before, distracted by the color and sheen.” He scrutinized the vase again.

Time slipped by. Yaoguang checked her watch and said, “Professor Zhou, please return to your room. No matter what you hear, don’t come out.”

“Alright. Here’s the key to the upstairs collection room. I’ll go now. Old Zheng, aren’t you coming?” Professor Zhou glanced at Zheng Ting, who was sipping tea.

“Ah, for your sake, old fellow, I can’t even go home. Let’s go upstairs and play chess.” Zheng Ting stood, and the two ascended. When they disappeared around the bend in the staircase, Yaoguang withdrew her gaze and formed a spell sign over the porcelain vase, covering it with a spiritual talisman.

“Miss,” Yitian entered from outside, “everyone in the house has been asked to return to their rooms. What should we do now?”

“Set up the formation,” Yaoguang stood.

“Very well.” Yitian nodded, and four immortals appeared behind her, leaping onto the ceiling. They drew talismans in the air with spiritual power, setting up a spirit-confining array. Meanwhile, Yitian stretched red cords across the drawing room. Once everything was arranged, the group sat and waited, the porcelain vase placed on a stand in the hall as the array’s focal point and bait for ghosts and spirits.

Yaoguang turned off the chandelier, leaving only a few spotlights. The room grew dim.

Midnight drew near.

“It’s coming,” Yaoguang said softly, watching the gently swaying curtains.

Everyone followed her gaze, seeing the curtains move without wind. No one spoke, all waiting quietly.

“Phoenix, Phoenix!” Suddenly, a heart-wrenching cry echoed from upstairs—Zheng Ting’s voice.

“Not good!” Yaoguang reacted instantly, rushing upstairs. Locating the source of the cry, she pushed open the door to find Professor Zhou strangling himself on the floor, legs kicking, his face purple from suffocation. The chessboard lay overturned, pieces scattered everywhere.

“Break!” Yaoguang shot a golden light at Professor Zhou. A shadow sprang from his body and darted out the window. Yitian responded quickly, leaping after it through the window.

“Old Zhou!” Zheng Ting recovered, helping Professor Zhou up. Xuanchen slapped Professor Zhou’s back hard, and he gulped air, coughing violently. His complexion began to return to normal.

“What happened?” Yaoguang asked.

“I don’t know. We were playing chess, and Old Zhou suddenly acted strange, flipped the board, glared fiercely at me, then started strangling himself. Before I could react, you all came in,” Zheng Ting replied, clearly shaken.

“Miss, I lost it—the thing was too fast,” Yitian reported, entering through the door.

“He was possessed. That ghost’s resentment is intense—it’s determined to kill Professor Zhou,” Huo Mingkun observed.

“We’ll deal with that later. There’s still another entity in the house.” Yaoguang formed a spell sign, and a pink shadow darted out the door.

“After it!” Yaoguang led the chase, but found nothing in the drawing room. The group looked around in astonishment as Yaoguang scanned the room.

“You’d best not look up,” Yaoguang said, rubbing her nose. The more she warned, the more they looked; all glanced upward and gasped. At the staircase railing on the second floor, a female ghost in pink crouched, her long hair shrouding a face half lovely, half flayed, as if burned by acid—bloody, mangled, one eye dangling out. Yaoguang’s group kept their composure, but Zheng Ting and Professor Zhou turned pale, their nerves barely holding.

“Why do you harm people?” Yaoguang asked the spirit.

“Hee hee...” The ghost laughed and lunged at them. Yaoguang waved her hand, sending a fierce sword aura at the ghost, striking her. She howled in pain and fell, and everyone felt something drop onto their faces. Wiping it away, they found it was ink.

“What’s going on? Is this ghost part octopus? Spraying ink when beaten,” Jiang Yun grumbled, wiping his face.

“Sister Phoenix, it’s not a ghost—it’s that enchantment,” Huo Mingkun called, pointing at the figure.

Yaoguang nodded, activating the array. An invisible net descended upon the enchantment.

“No!” The enchantment screamed, collapsing to the ground. “Please, don’t hurt me—I haven’t harmed anyone.” She trembled.

“Didn’t you try to kill me?” Professor Zhou approached, fearfully eyeing the enchantment.

“No, it wasn’t me. It was another one, not me. You created me—how could I harm you?” The enchantment stammered.

“You created me?” Professor Zhou said, bewildered.

“Don’t you remember me?” The enchantment gazed at him.

“You seem familiar, as if I’ve seen you somewhere,” Professor Zhou mused.

The enchantment rose, her terrifying face shifting, the right side slowly healing into the features of a delicate young woman.

“Sister Phoenix, doesn’t she resemble the lady depicted in Professor Zhou’s study painting?” Huo Mingkun said.

“A painting?” Professor Zhou was startled, immediately running upstairs and returning with a scroll. As he unfurled it, everyone gasped—the enchantment before them was identical to the woman in the painting.

“A spirit from the painting?” Xuanchen exclaimed.

“What’s happening? Explain yourself,” Yaoguang said, sensing no malice and withdrawing the array, releasing her.

“I’m not a ghost, and calling me an enchantment is a stretch. I am merely a wisp of soul born from Professor Zhou’s brush. I emerged from the painting because he always spoke to me, smiled at me, wept before me. I quietly watched him from across the canvas, wishing to comfort him but unable to do so. I felt helpless, so helpless. Then, one day, I discovered I could move—I could step out of the painting and watch him. But he couldn’t see or hear me. Still, it didn’t matter; I was content to accompany him silently.” The enchantment looked at Professor Zhou, her eyes full of longing.

“So there really is a spirit in the painting. How did you come to be?” Jiang Yun inquired.

“I was formed from a drop of Professor Zhou’s blood. He painted with blood, and thus I was born,” she replied.

“I remember now. I painted this many years ago. I recall being cut by the packaging of some new pigments. Not wanting to waste, I mixed my blood with the paint and created this piece. I never expected...” Professor Zhou faltered, gazing at the enchantment.

“Phoenix, don’t you find the painting and the porcelain vase’s motif quite similar?” Xuanchen said, holding the vase.

Everyone looked and were struck dumb. The scroll depicted a girl in pink standing beneath a peach tree, petals falling around her delicate, stunning face. The vase, too, showed a woman beneath a peach tree.

“Could they be connected? Professor Zhou, can you recall why you painted that picture?” Yaoguang asked.

“Let me think... I remember, years ago, I had a dream—a woman stood smiling at me beneath a tree. I woke and painted her. Yes, yes, she looked exactly like this enchantment,” Professor Zhou said, looking from painting to enchantment.

“It wasn’t her—she has no reason to harm Professor Zhou,” Yaoguang said, settling onto the sofa.

“Then how do you explain the strange events Professor Zhou encountered?” Xuanchen asked Yaoguang.

“Ask her.” Yaoguang gestured toward the mournful enchantment.

“I’m not entirely sure. After Professor Zhou brought home the vase, I noticed two other spirits in the house—a man and a woman. The man tried to harm Professor Zhou, while the woman constantly intervened, though she seemed weaker. Later, the woman discovered me in the painting. Whenever the man tried to hurt Professor Zhou, the woman sought my help to stop him. She never explained why. Fearing harm to Professor Zhou, I stayed close to him. That’s all I know. There’s one thing I did—I moved things around in the house for fun, but I never harmed anyone,” the enchantment explained.

“Good heavens, is this a haunt of demons?” Chu Tianyou muttered, frustrated that a single porcelain vase had brought forth so many spirits.

“In that case, why did you assume such a terrifying appearance to frighten people?” Yaoguang pressed.

“It wasn’t intentional—I wanted to confuse the male ghost. I can’t defeat him, so I tried to scare him, making him think I was more powerful, just to prevent him from hurting Professor Zhou,” she replied.

“One more thing: Professor Zhou’s family members, who fell from the stairs or into the pond—what happened?” Chu Tianyou asked.

“It was the male ghost. He tried to harm the family, but the female ghost intervened. She couldn’t overpower him, so she could only push people out of harm’s way,” the enchantment explained.

“I see.”

“In view of your innocence, I won’t trouble you. Until this matter is resolved, I’ll entrust Professor Zhou’s protection to you. Though you are an enchantment, you possess some spirit. When this is over, I’ll seal your soul into the painting, allowing you to cultivate further. In time, you may choose a sacred mountain or cave-dwelling, and perhaps become the Zhou family’s guardian spirit—a fitting fate. What do you think?” Yaoguang raised her hand, and a stream of radiant light enveloped the enchantment. “This is a reward for your loyalty and protection. If the evil ghost returns, you’ll be able to stand against it.”

“Thank you,” the enchantment bowed to Yaoguang, glanced at Professor Zhou, and returned to the painting.

“Professor Zhou, keep the painting safe. I’ll set up a protective formation in your home for now. This situation is complex; I need to investigate further before deciding how to handle it. Until it’s resolved, don’t leave the clubhouse.”

“Alright, alright. I’ll follow your instructions. Thank you, Miss Phoenix.” Professor Zhou took the scroll, nodding earnestly.

“There’s no need for formalities—just call me Phoenix. That’s all for tonight; we’ll take our leave. Zheng Ting, how will you arrange matters?” Yaoguang asked, seeing Zheng Ting still stunned.

“Ah? Oh. I’ll stay with Old Zhou. I’m on annual leave anyway, here for vacation, and now with this happening, I certainly can’t leave. Phoenix, I’ll count on you for this,” Zheng Ting replied, coming to his senses.

“Don’t worry, Zheng Ting. I’ll leave Yitian to protect you. Professor Zhou, I’ll take the vase with me—the investigation must start there. Once it’s over, I’ll return it to you. And don’t tell anyone about what happened here; otherwise, if you’re taken away for psychiatric evaluation, don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Yaoguang waved and headed out.

“Yitian, stay here with the four immortals and remain alert. That male ghost is skilled, you understand,” Yaoguang whispered to Yitian, who nodded. Yaoguang patted his shoulder and left with her group.

“That girl...” Zheng Ting was speechless, watching them go.

“Master, what’s our next step?” Jiang Yun asked as they sat in the car.

“We’ll stay at my place tonight. Tomorrow, we visit the antique shop.” Yaoguang stepped on the accelerator, and the car sped away.