Chapter 11- The Copper Roof Inn

Hong stood on the stern of the weathered wooden rowboat, working the oar as she drove the boat up the river. Her motions were casual, almost effortless, but the boat was going fast enough to make passers-by blink and narrow their eyes before they determinedly looked away. Tian was sitting up in the bow, keeping a casual eye on the crane and answering questions about West Town for Little Treasure.

The crane was keeping a steady pace, flying up the river, over the canyons and darting boats. Tian and Hong knew it well enough to see that it was hunting. Which was odd. Cranes did not hunt from the air. At least, not as far as Tian knew.

Another thing he didn’t know was where this increasing feeling of wrongness was coming from. It was as if he would become irritated if he happened to be looking in a particular direction. That direction happened to be up river and on the right bank. And it was getting worse the further they went up the river.

He got a flash of memory from the Snow Grace Crane- there was an inn up ahead, just outside a little village. It looked quite ordinary, except that it had a bright green roof. Not painted or glazed, it appeared to be sheets of green metal formed into a roof. Accompanying the memory was a feeling of discomfort and a sense of wrongness.

“Interesting.”

“Hey, Sis Liren?”

“Yeah?”

“Random question, but how do you feel about staying in an inn tonight? An inn in exactly that direction.”

“Huh. You too?”

“And her Highness.” Tian pointed towards the sky.

“I would love to stay in an inn tonight.” Her face was still veiled, and yet the sunny smile shined right through.

From the river, the village seemed quite ordinary. Some houses had thatched roofs, the nicer, newer ones had tiles. The paths between buildings weren’t wide enough to be called proper streets, but you could fit a cart down them. Fish, silver, green, grey, some faintly striped, others dappled, dried on racks under the setting sun, as fishermen dragged their boats ashore. The women of the village came out to help carry the day’s catch, or to lead visiting travelers to the one inn just outside the village proper. There weren’t many visitors. There weren’t many women. There were no children at all.

Tian and Hong didn’t need to share a look. The way the women looked at Treasure then quickly looked away was entirely enough. Other visitors to the village were led by women. In their case, it was a gruff, older fisherman who ‘volunteered’ that the best inn on this stretch of the Agate River was the Copper Roof Inn, just outside the village.

“You will like it. Clean sheets, warm beds, good food.” The old man spoke only to Censor Henshen. It took Tian an embarrassingly long time to realize why. The slim man was the only adult in the group. At the very least, the only visibly adult man. Tian had gotten used to the deference of mortals.

He sighed silently. He still owed the daoist masters a report on how to fix the situation in the Broad Sky Kingdom. As he watched fisherwomen shuck freshwater oysters and pack them into brine barrels, he really wished all his learning hadn’t led him to the same sorts of ideas the Monastery had already come up with. The old way was entirely understandable. It just couldn’t keep happening.

Yelling at people to make better choices wasn’t likely to be useful. They were, after all, making the best choices they could from the limited options available. What were they supposed to do? Not eat salt? Not preserve food? Get sick? Starve? Die? Pray to be born in a better run kingdom?

Maybe they should file a petition.

He should ask Censor Henshen why it was hearing about a petition being filed that alarmed him so much. Tian racked his brain, but couldn’t come up with an explanation that made any sense. Wouldn’t a full-scale assault on a city deserve more concern? Tian let his eyes wander as his brain wrestled with the absurdness of the situation.

There was an old woman peeling burdock roots, sitting on a bench next to her front door, tan toes digging into the rich yellow earth. Tian smiled. The woman was real. The earth was real. Judging by the burdock root, dinner was likely real too. Better to focus on what was in front of him, rather than being lost in his wonderings. The crane agreed.

The Snow Grace Crane flapped away, having no desire to trap herself in a box with no food and a lot of humans. There were a few fishermen who thoughtfully picked up nets or slings, but Tian wasn’t worried about them. The crane was functionally level nine. The mortals couldn’t hurt her unless she let them. Besides, she really didn’t like the inn. Something about it revolted her.

The inn was a long, three story building coated in white plaster. The green metal roof was rather dark under the deepening red sky. Heavy wooden shutters were propped open, ready to be closed in case of rain or wild animals. Horses were kept around the side of the inn in the stables.

Tian glanced at the stables, feeling a little odd. He didn’t know how to ride a horse. Why would he ride a horse, when he could run faster and for longer? But for mortals, a coach or a good horse was the fastest way to get around the country. That didn’t involve rivers, anyway.

Little treasure tugged on Tian’s robes. “Immortal Tian?”

“Yes, Little Treasure?”

“There is something wrong with this inn. I don’t know what, but it looks like there is a black cloud over it. Really, really dark. Like it’s on fire.”

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Sin. Not exactly the opposite of merit, but it’s the best word for it. The place is steeped in sin and evil. Grandpa Jun murmured. How interesting that all three of you sensed it, and from so far away. If it had just been you, I’d have half expected it, but all three of you? Hmm.