"But... aren't we both from the Eastern Depot?" I asked.
Seeing Ma Jiaojiao frown and remain silent, I quickly added, "Please don't misunderstand, I'm not shirking responsibility. I just fear we don't have the authority."
"Apu—" Ma Jiaojiao burped, her brow smoothing out. "You don't misunderstand either. I was just choking— You haven't officially joined yet, so you aren't considered people of the Eastern Depot. Therefore, there's no issue of authority."
"If we're not from the Eastern Depot, nor the Western Depot... temporary workers? Then we definitely have no authority!" Zheng Bingbing finally dared to speak. However, unlike my rational analysis, one could tell from Zheng Bingbing's tone that she simply wanted to ditch this ghost-related task that involved dealing with over a thousand ghosts!
"As long as one is a Yin Messenger from the Department of Underworld Messengers, one has the authority to take in any ghosts. The problem is, there are too many ghosts and too few messengers. It's a case of too few people and too much work. If there's meat porridge, who would want to drink millet porridge? So, we have to divide the work. Only by dividing the work can we assess performance. Alas... you wouldn't know, but the current young King Yama in charge of the Department of Underworld Messengers, commonly known as 'the Involution King,' is afraid we'll slack off at work, and has set performance points that are simply sky-high..." httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
Zheng Bingbing and I exchanged glances. This term sounded even more familiar. Had the trend of involution already swept into the underworld?
"Sin, sin, I shouldn't complain. The young King Yama said this is a blessing!" Ma Jiaojiao patted her small mouth and returned to a serious tone. "For example, your Eastern Depot is responsible for ghosts who died naturally. Ghosts who died naturally have low soul power and are easy to contain. It's equivalent to millet porridge. For each one contained, you get one performance point."
"And we in the Western Depot are responsible for ghosts who died unnaturally, such as those who died violently, in accidents, unjustly, or by suicide. Such ghosts have heavy resentment and strong soul power, making them difficult to contain. It's equivalent to meat porridge. For each one contained, depending on their soul power, you get between ten and two hundred performance points."
"We have monthly assessments. Out of thirty days in a month, twenty-eight days must be spent containing ghosts according to their classifications. No deviation is allowed. But there are still two days of flexible leave, usually scheduled at the end of the month."
"For example, if at the end of the month, your Eastern Depot's Commander Xie hasn't met his performance targets and is still short by a hundred points, and if Lord Xie were to go out and contain ordinary ghosts who died naturally, he would have to run around and contain a hundred of them. The workload would be too great, and he might not be able to complete it. What should he do?" Ma Jiaojiao paused, posing the question to me.
"Could she go and take a risk, and contain a ghost who died unnaturally?" I guessed.
Ma Jiaojiao nodded. "Exactly! If she's lucky and encounters a ghost who committed suicide with extreme resentment, she might get 100 performance points at once, and thus easily complete the task! Here's another example. This month, I'm only short by two performance points. Do I need to go through all the trouble to contain those fierce ghosts? I could just go to a crematorium and grab a couple of newly deceased ghosts, and that would be enough! If I get more performance points, my salary won't increase, so why would I exert myself!"
"I understand. So, anyone can contain those twelve hundred ghosts who died unjustly? That's not a small number!" I said, my professional instincts kicking in as I automatically assumed the identity of a Yin Messenger and felt like I had discovered a gold mine.
"After all, they've been dead for over a hundred years. Their resentment is... a bit heavy, and they aren't easy to contain," Ma Jiaojiao chuckled.
Zheng Bingbing couldn't help but frown. "Not easy to contain? Then why are you sending us? Neither of us has learned how to contain them! We'll get eaten by them!"
"Containing them is very simple. Don't you two have tokens? Just show them your tokens, and they'll know your identity and follow you. Take them to the nearest City God Temple and hand them over to the presiding judge there, and your task is complete," Ma Jiaojiao explained. As if she suddenly remembered something, she reached out for my phone.
I gave her my phone. Ma Jiaojiao operated it skillfully, opened the map, found a location, marked it, and then handed it back to me. "Here, this is the closest City God Temple to Black Mountain Fortress. It's only about ten li away. You can stroll over there; it'll take a little over an hour on foot."
"It's that simple?" I couldn't help but doubt. It seemed impossible!