Chapter 511: The Ceramic Fox


    When we left the theatre, the sky was dark. There was a group of people wearing strange costumes outside. They weredancing and singingas afew floats carrying drums moved behind them.Some burly andshirtlessmen were hitting the drums. Another float had a woman wearing a red costume with fox ears and a big tail. Shewas shakingher appealing body anddancinglike a water snake.


    All of the people on the street were stirred up. They cheered and roared as theysurroundedthe floats.


    I guessed it was afestival. Since wehad to wait forLi Mazisgroup, Chuyi and I went to buy oden from a food stall. We ate and watchedthe street performance.


    The chef of the food stall talked to us. I told him I didnt speak Japanese. He realized itandtook out a piece of paper. Hewrote something then gave me the note.


    Although it was in Japanese, there were a few traditional Chinesecharacters. I could somewhat understand. He said that this was the annual Inari OkamiFestival, also known as theGod of Rice Festival. We were lucky that we came here in thisperiod.


    I wrote a line that asked,Is it forthe sake of having agood harvest?


    The chef didntunderstand. Chuyi took the pen and re-wrote it with traditional Chinese letters. The chef noddedand wrote, Right, do Chinese people worship Inari Okami too?


    I also used traditional Chinesecharactersto answer him. I oftenreadthe old books my grandpa had left me. Thatwaswhy I knew traditional Chinesecharacters. I told himthatfox immortals were famous in China and that we used to worship many statues. However, after theReform, peoplestoppedbelievinginthis stuff, except for the viges in the Northeast. At the same time, I showed my interest and respectforJapanese traditional culture.


    The chef said, Arigato!Then he wrote, I really like Chinese cuisine. There are so many techniquesand different dishes.Its different from the simple techniques we have in Japan.


    He even expressed his fondnessforChinese soapoperaslike My Fair Princess and Nirvana in Fire. These werepoprdramas in Japan for a while. He thought that the scenesinChinese dramas were all spectacrly filmed,unlike theirnational dramas.


    Then, he reyed a scenefromMy Fair Princess. He raised his handand usedhis stiff Chinese to say, Ziwei, dont go! We burst outughingand thoughtthat this chef wasreallyinteresting.


    I wrote on the paper that I loved reading manga and watching anime. Naruto and Cooking Master Boy were my favorites. They were good memoriesfrommy childhood.I also wrote thatthe gaming industry in Japanwassuperb. When I was young,I oftenyedSuper Mario, Contra, King of Fighters,and more.Of course, I didnt tell himabout the manyJAVmovieson mputer...


    We were chatting to our hearts contentsand exchanged our interests in eachotherscultureeven though there was anguage barrier. Later on, Xiao Gao told me that Japanese people used bothKanjiand their own Katakana. Chinese people couldreadKanji, so therewould be no hindrancetoreading. For example, Dr. Sun Yat-sen used tomunicate with Japanese fishermen by writingaswe had just done with the Japanese chef. EvenLiang Qichao,whotranted many Japanese books, didnt learn or know Japanese.


    The chef gifted us two bottles of wine. I didnt bring anything to repay this favor, and it wasnt appropriate to give him money. As such, I gave him aKsitigarbhaTalismanand wrotehim a note: This is a spirit talisman that can protect you from incidents and ghosts.


    The chef held the talisman in his hands as if it was a little treasure.He carefullyadheredittohis food cart.


    Heh, this chef is nice,I told Chuyi.


    Yeah. He nodded.


    We drank wine and ateoden. Then, we continuedto watch the festival as it hade toagreat part. Many Japanese people were dressed like ancient deities, shuttlingthrough the crowd. I saw Amaterasu, theGoddess of the Sun and Universe, as well as Princess KaguyaandSusanoo.I didnt know the rest. On a ck float,anactor and actressfought asAbe no Seimei and Tamamo no Mae. Their moves were really beautiful and impressive.


    Chuyi suddenly pointed in a direction and asked me to look. I saw a float slowly moving toward us. A white fox was lying on a lotus pod on that float. A few witches were dancing gently around that fox with their magical instruments. That white fox looked the sameasthe fox spirit we had encountered in Osaka!


    When he saw us, he squinted as if he was giving us a mocking smile. Iquicklyturned and asked the chef,Whats that foxsorigin?


    The chef answered that the fox was from a shrine that was very famous here.Hesaid that many peoplecameto worship it.


    Has this fox ever left Kyoto?


    The chef was bewildered for a while. Heughed, pointed at the float, and askedme to look carefully. I then recognized it was just an exquisitely made ceramic fox.


    The chefquickly wroteonthe paper. Its not a real fox. Its made of ceramic. They found that fox in the ruins of a pce. They brought it into a shrine and started to worship it. It has be the spiritual mascot of Kyoto since then. We can see it outside the shrine only once a year, and that day happens to betoday!


    Its an otherworldly item. Moreover, its really powerful, said Chuyi.Its possible the white fox spirit we metyesterday came from here


    I noddedandcouldnt believe that we were lucky enough to see an otherworldly item in Japan. An experts knowledge determines what he sees. Its like how ageologist will notice the sondhow abotanist will pay attention to the nts wherever they go.


    With such a concept, after two years in this business, I could be considereda qualified otherworldly merchant.


    After the parade passed us, Ifelt a little reluctant.After a while, Li Mazisgroup returned.They hadshopped aroundandcame backwith bags of all sizes. They looked as though they hada goodtime.


    I told them about the awesome event they missed. Ru Xue wasnt convinced. What goodis there aboutfloats? Ive seen themon TV many times!


    Oh yeah? Were going to eat seafood tonight. You can just watch useat. Its the same, right? I shrugged.


    Ru Xue fumedand redat me. She askedLi Mazi for help. Li Mazi was reluctant. LittleBrother Zhang, could you pleasego along withmy wife sothatshewillfeel better? You know how narrow-minded she is.


    Whos narrow-minded?! Ru Xue took out a wooden hammerand started to chase and hitLi Mazi. Li Mazi ranand screamedfor mercy. Theyranlike that for a while.


    I sighed.Sometimes, I wonder if theyre lovers and foes.


    We said goodbye to the chef then wenttosupper. After that, we returnedto the hotel to rest.


    Everybody was excited, so we didnt want to go to bed right away.We decided to visit the hotels bar for a few drinks.


    Li Mazi stared at thebeautiful women walking around. Ru Xue pulled his earand gavehim a lesson. Japanese womenworespecial makeup which made them lookreally good.It wasno wonderthatJapanese makeup techniques were poprin China.


    I asked Yin Xinyue for permission. Boss, can I watch?


    You can! Yin Xinyue generously waved her hand. I also think that theylook pretty with makeup. I want to learn from them.


    After a while, Ru Xue said that she was tiredand askedLi Mazi tohead backto their room to rest. The married couple wanted to spend timebythemselves, so wedidn''tstopthem. I ordered another round of cocktails and a ss of orange juice.


    I had justtakena sipwhenmy phone rang. It was Li Mazis call. I thoughtthat the manwas crazy. We were staying in the same hotel, and he still made a phone call to me. He must have thought international calls were cheapor something.


    Since thephone kept ringing, I had to ept the call. Whats wrong, man?


    LittleBrother Zhang,this is bad. Were trapped! Li Mazi sounded anxious.


    You are stuck in the elevator? Dont worry.I''ll askthe hotel staff to help you right now! I was also startled.


    No, no. The stairs, we are trapped at the stairs!