Section 11
Ian Lu is a well-known fishmonger in the market, renowned for his bountiful catches whenever he sets out to sea. His remarkable ability to reel in grouper earned him the moniker "Lu," meaning "a measure of fish."
This morning, as was his routine, he opened his stall. By midday, his stock had dwindled, leaving only three grouper behind. Suddenly, a figure wearing a conical hat appeared, squatting silently without inquiring about prices. By the time Ian snapped back to reality, all that remained in his basin was water.
"Hand over the fish!" Ian shouted, gripping the stranger's hand tightly. "Once the guards arrive, you won't be able to escape."
The fishmongers in the market were well-acquainted with one another, and while they might compete for customers, they stood united in the face of trouble. As soon as Ian called out about the thief, fellow vendors quickly surrounded him to prevent the culprit's escape.
Grasping the thief's wrist, Ian noticed the slenderness of their arm and the pale skin, suspecting he was dealing with a woman. He intended to pull her up to expose her to the crowd.
However, despite her seemingly frail appearance, she possessed surprising strength. Ian, a broad and robust man, found himself unable to lift her. Frustrated, he waved his hand dismissively, knocking off her conical hat.
At this, a chorus of gasps erupted from the onlookers.
Beneath the hat, her face was exceptionally pale, contrasting sharply with her strikingly red lips and dark eyes. As the sunlight hit her, her expression twisted in shock.
Ian was momentarily taken aback by her appearance, loosening his grip. The woman swiftly retrieved her hat and stood up, exclaiming, "You've gone too far!"
Another gasp resonated through the crowd; the figure was tall and had a deep voice—it was a man.
Although he was taller than Ian, the thief appeared weak and unwell. Surrounded by his allies, Ian was undeterred and declared loudly, "You steal my fish, and now you accuse me of wrongdoing? If you refuse to return the grouper, then you'll wait here for the guards."
Someone chimed in, "You won't be able to run!"
Another voice shouted, "With two arms and two legs, why resort to thievery in a fish market?"
"…"
Luna Wu stood quietly behind the man in the conical hat, whispering to Leo Lee, "You wouldn't happen to be looking for grouper too, would you?"
"Why do you ask?"
"You don't strike me as the type who would waste time watching a spectacle."
"Miss Wu has a sharp sense of humor," Leo replied. "I do intend to buy grouper."
"Are you not going to check other stalls?"
"This is the only place with any."
As they conversed, a voice called out, "The guards are coming!" Luna turned to see three officers approaching the fishmonger.
"The fish isn't his," she stated.
"It seems Miss Wu has already deduced something," Leo observed. "Do you wish to help him?"
"It's not a deduction; I know who stole the fish."
The officers, dressed in official attire, arrived, parting the crowd. After assessing the situation, they prepared to take both Luna and Leo for questioning.
The man in the conical hat stood tall, unyielding, and addressed the officers, "On what grounds do you arrest me?"
"A single grouper can be worth a hundred coins. If you truly stole it, you could face prison time," one officer replied.
Facing the officers, the man suddenly spread his arms wide, exuding confidence. "If you doubt my innocence, feel free to search me."
On that summer day in Lingnan, dressed simply, the officers quickly conducted a search. They were thorough, even inspecting the man's conical hat, but found not a single fish scale.
The onlookers exchanged astonished glances, murmuring, "Could it really not be him?"
After conferring briefly, the lead officer turned to Ian. "Be aware that false accusations can lead to your own downfall. Do you have any evidence that he stole the fish?"
"I, I…" Ian's round face scrunched in distress as he pointed at the man in the conical hat. "Before he arrived, I had three grouper in this basin, and now there's not a single one left—he was the only one at my stall—"
"Who says there's nothing left?" the man interjected. "Take a closer look."
As his words fell, all eyes turned to the fish basin at Ian's feet, where three live fish swam freely—clearly, not a single one was missing.
Now, the crowd's expression shifted once more, and Ian's face drained of color.
The lead officer angrily pointed at Ian, "You have a lot of nerve, openly selling contraband!"
In a panic, Ian waved his hands, "I didn't! It's not me! I'm innocent!"
Ignoring his protest, the officer commanded, "Take him and the fish basin into custody!"
Though Ian was known for his stinginess and never shared his fishing secrets, he was well-liked in the market. Even now, as the truth of his guilt loomed, many rushed to speak on his behalf.
But this only created chaos.
At first, Luna believed the man in the conical hat was being wronged. In the blink of an eye, the suspect shifted to Ian, and as the crowd's demeanor darkened, she felt a swell of confusion. She turned to Leo, "Why are they—"
"Miss Wu, please wait here; I'll be back shortly," Leo said.
Without waiting for her reply, he swiftly navigated through the crowd. Luna followed his departing figure, catching a glimpse of the conical hat, realizing he was pursuing the man.
Section 12
Since she could remember, the fish market had always been Luna Wu's most familiar environment. After Leo Lee departed, she quickly regained her composure, focusing intently on the theft at hand.
Listening to the officers and fishmongers converse, Luna learned that Ian Lu was apprehended for illegally selling contraband, which in her eyes amounted to nothing more than three green leaves.
"...Ian Lu, you must accompany us to the office. Sixty lashes is all you'll receive; you can withstand that," one officer, evidently familiar with Ian, spoke with a hint of leniency.
At this moment, Ian had collapsed to the ground, his face a mask of despair. "I won't pursue the matter of the stolen fish any longer, but I swear, this contraband is not mine!"
The contraband was currently being held by two other officers. Initially, Luna suspected she might have misjudged, but observing the reactions of those around her, it became clear that she alone could see that the basin contained only leaves; to everyone else, it appeared to hold three red carp.
As a peer of Luna's mother, Ian enjoyed the support of his fellow fishmongers, who rallied to defend him, indicating his good character. Determined to help, Luna stepped back to the edge of the crowd, swiftly surveying the local market tools, formulating a plan.
With a newfound purpose, she approached the officer holding the fish basin, feigning surprise as she gazed at it. "Oh dear, the water is so dirty! With the journey to the office still ahead, we mustn't let them suffocate—"
Luna hesitated, prompting the officer to ask, "What do you mean?"
"It would be better to change the water… it's for the best."
Unsure if changing the water would prove effective, Luna considered it a low-cost verification method; if it failed, she would not incur any trouble.
Under the officer's direction, Luna requested a basin of clean water from other vendors, along with a bamboo scoop net. When the net was presented to the two officers, they exchanged glances, hesitant to act.
"Miss, you do it," the officer urged.
"I couldn't possibly! What if something goes wrong? I can't bear the responsibility."
"You suggested changing the water; if you don't do it, who will?"
Luna pointed toward Ian. "Since he sold the fish, let him do it."
Startled by the sudden appearance of contraband in his own basin, Ian was already in a daze. When commanded by the officer to change the water, he complied in silence.
Little did he anticipate that the day would unfold in such bizarre fashion.
Carefully, he used the scoop net to retrieve the fish from the old basin. As he lifted it, he noticed something was amiss. Upon closer inspection, he was shocked to find only a single willow leaf in the net. Unable to believe his eyes, he continued to scoop for a second and third time, only to uncover more willow leaves.
The spectators, along with the officers, bore witness to this strange occurrence.
A voice from the crowd pierced the air in a state of panic: "Ghost! There's a ghost!"
Even the officer holding the basin was startled, dropping it along with the leaves onto the ground.
At this point, the market descended into chaos, with fishmongers hastily packing up their stalls and fleeing at the fastest pace they could manage. As Luna retreated to a less populated corner, she pondered the new questions swirling in her mind:
Is this the Tang Dynasty?
Why can only she see the woman in red?
Why do the fishmongers mistake willow leaves for red carp?
What is the connection between Leo, the woman in red, and the man in the conical hat, all seeking grouper?
…
Why has she come to this world?
By the time Leo returned, the once-bustling fish market had nearly emptied.
Observing his demeanor, Luna guessed he had accomplished his task. After briefly recounting the aftermath of the theft, she asked, "Did you also notice that the basin contained three leaves?"
Leo shook his head.
"But you know those three leaves are part of the man in the conical hat's trick."
"The man in the conical hat?" Leo chuckled, "...His surname is Wei."
"Does he perform magic?"
Raising an eyebrow, Leo appeared unexpectedly intrigued. "What else do you suspect, Miss Wu? Feel free to share."
Uncertain if Leo's scrutiny of her had concluded, Luna resolved to address these seemingly casual inquiries seriously, a reflex honed from over twenty years of academic life.
"In this era, the illegal sale of carp is a crime, as the surname Li is associated with the national identity, and 'Li' sounds like 'carp.' I suspect this is the Tang Dynasty—though not the one from history books. According to the logic of parallel worlds, on the same timeline, there cannot be two versions of me, thus this is another Tang Dynasty in a different dimension."
Leo slowed his pace.
"Do you remember when I told you I knew who stole the fish?" Luna inquired.
"Who?"
"It was a young girl in a red dress. I saw her take grouper from Ian Lu using a bamboo basket, thinking she was just an ordinary customer. Yet, no one else could see her, especially you; she was right next to you, and you didn't even react."
Leo's previously relaxed demeanor shifted to one of seriousness as he turned to face Luna—his expression and gaze confirmed that he indeed hadn't seen the woman in red.
They continued walking until they reached the city gate. Luna was eager to keep the conversation with Leo going, but from the corner of her eye, she noticed the city gate seemed to grow legs and was approaching her. Suddenly, a familiar and profound fatigue washed over her, and her eyelids grew too heavy to lift.
Luna jolted awake from the cacophony of birdcalls, sitting upright to find a jade pillow on the tea table still shimmering in the light.
"You just said you saw someone I couldn't see?" the person beside her asked, urgency in their tone.