It was much later that I learned General Bamanzi was a highly renowned heroic figure in Tujia history. The Huayang Kingdom Annals: Ba Records recounts Bamanzi's deeds: "In the waning years of the Zhou Dynasty, chaos erupted in the Ba state. General Manzi sought aid from Chu, promising three cities. The King of Chu rescued Ba. Once the Ba state was pacified, the envoy from Chu demanded the cities. Manzi declared: 'We borrowed the spirit of Chu to quell the disaster. Though I pledged cities to the King of Chu, I would offer my head instead; the cities cannot be obtained.' He then drew his sword and committed suicide, presenting his head to the Chu envoy. The King of Chu sighed, saying, 'If only I had a subject like Bamanzi, what need would I have for cities!' He then buried the head with the honors of a Grand Preceptor. The Ba state buried the body, also with the honors of a Grand Preceptor." During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, the Zhou Dynasty collapsed, feudal lords carved up territories, powers vied for dominance, and the strong devoured the weak. The state of Ba, small and feeble among the principalities, was constantly bullied by Chu. In 676 BCE, the state of Chu ordered Ba to attack the state of Shen. The inherently valiant Ba people, facing such aggression, not only refused to mobilize against Shen but instead sent troops to attack the tyrannical state of Chu, forcing a truce between Chu and Ba. Later, when internal strife broke out in Ba, leaving them unable to restore order, the aforementioned heroic episode in Tujia history occurred.

Even later, I heard a legend, perhaps true, perhaps false, from a nearly centenarian Tujia elder. It was said that after General Bamanzi’s death, because his head and body were separated, the Ba people commissioned a famous craftsman from their country to carve a false head from a mythical sacred wood, fashioning it to resemble General Bamanzi's likeness to place upon his body. Furthermore, because General Bamanzi died a violent death, local taboos of that time dictated that such a person could not be interred in a heavy wooden coffin, only one crudely assembled from ordinary planks. However, as General Bamanzi was a hero of the Ba state, he naturally could not be treated like an ordinary person. Moreover, because the presiding Tima (shaman) at the time declared General Bamanzi's fate was aligned with Water, the Ba people buried him grandly in a boat coffin.

As for how Bamanzi’s boat coffin ended up in the underground imperial city, or how that vague, dark object came to be in Tan Ping'er’s belly, I never found the answer. Later, when I mentioned this to Ji Ye, his expression shifted instantly, but he said not a single word to me.

Digressing—

Only when I neared the pontoon bridge did I realize it wasn't a floating bridge at all, but a short bridge supported by pillars. The deck was simply so close to the water's surface that from a distance, the structure appeared to be resting on the water. I couldn't tell what material the supporting pillars were made of, but the bridge deck was indeed paved with countless sections of Phoebe wood.

Man Niao Niao glanced back at me, cautiously stepping onto the bamboo bridge and slowly standing up. Although the Phoebe wood was quite decayed, the sections were tightly packed and laid in three layers—top, middle, and bottom. As Man Niao Niao walked, the bridge creaked incessantly, but it held. This set my mind at ease. With my back to the bridge, I placed Tan Ping'er on the deck, then climbed aboard myself.

Reaching the end of the bamboo bridge, I saw the black boat anchored just beyond the far end. Ahead of the bridge lay a space that felt vast and utterly dark, and the two giant turtles were nowhere in sight, either having swum away or submerged.

When I turned around, I saw Man Niao Niao standing before the entrance to the main hall of the thatched hut, one leg already raised, clearly intending to kick the door open. A sudden chill ran through me, and I shouted urgently, "Wait a moment!" Man Niao Niao turned back, perplexed, and gently lowered his thick leg. "What's wrong?"

"Don't go into the main hall first; check the side rooms on either side," I commanded with an irrefutable tone.

I made this decision because I harbored a deep concern. Generally speaking, the main hall (Tangwu) in Tujia homes is a place strictly governed by taboos; ancestral tablets are enshrined on the altar there. Had it not been for my recent experiences, I would have dismissed such unscientific prohibitions out of hand. But my mindset had changed. I worried that rushing into someone else’s main hall might stir up some "Riguizi" trouble and cause a huge ruckus—I simply lacked the energy to handle that calmly. In comparison, the side rooms (Xiangfang) had far fewer restrictions. I told Man Niao Niao to check the side rooms out of this very consideration.

Though Man Niao Niao was full of suspicion, seeing my earnest expression, he dared not be careless and opened the door to the left side room as instructed.

Thanks to the intense glow of the Xuanyi Duyu Bead, my vision was certainly not impaired. Even without the bead, my eyes could discern the environment of the side room. The furnishings were common but extremely cluttered. All the old furniture was dilapidated and covered in a thick layer of dust, with cobwebs everywhere in the corners. As soon as we entered, the various frightened rodents and insects, large and small, scattered and fled in a rustling heap, kicking up a roomful of choking dust.

After those fellows settled down and the dust in the room gradually subsided, I told Man Niao Niao to tidy up the space simply and placed Tan Ping'er on a stone platform to sit. I looked around and found nothing dangerous in the room besides the decay. I let out a heavy sigh, thinking we could finally catch our breath.

Hua'er had far more energy than the three of us. Seeing the large rats scurrying everywhere, she became animated, plunging about with her mouth wide open. The recently dispersed dust rose again. After several sharp rebukes that went unheeded, Man Niao Niao’s eyes lit up watching Hua’er cause chaos. He picked up his sharp sword, gripped the Xuanyi Duyu Bead, and crept toward a rat hole in the corner, poking and prodding until he quickly dispatched several dull-witted, large rodents. Man Niao Niao burst into hearty laughter. "Damn it! No one ever died because they held their piss in. We can finally have a proper feast!" As he spoke, he skinned the dead rats, split their bellies open to remove the entrails, gathered some rotten wood scraps in the room, lit a fire, and began roasting the unfortunately deceased large rats on his sword. Soon, a mouth-watering scent of roasting meat permeated the side room.

Impatiently, I snatched two half-cooked rats, tossed one to Hua’er, and began devouring mine, mumbling around a mouthful, "Ping'er, you wait a bit longer until these rats are fully cooked before you eat..." Tan Ping'er stared at me with wide eyes, the flesh of her cheeks twitching, showing an expression of profound reluctance.

Tan Ping'er finally swallowed the roasted rat meat, making a face.

As Man Niao Niao had predicted, in that small, dilapidated side room, we ate the most delicious meal of our lives.

After eating the rat meat, Tan Ping'er’s condition improved significantly, and much of my fatigue vanished, but sleepiness began to creep in. I deeply understood this was no place to settle down permanently; we had to figure out a way to move forward. I had no idea how long we had been wandering this sunless place, whether it was day or night at this moment, or where Ji Ye might be... In short, I felt the three of us and the dog had been utterly forgotten by the world. If it weren't for the unwavering belief that I had to find Tan Cheng, I truly would have given up and slept soundly right there.

Man Niao Niao finished tearing off the last piece of rat meat, chewed, spat out the bone fragments, stood up, and said to Tan Ping'er and me, "You two rest here first. I'm going to check the main hall to see if I can find some water to drink!" I had the same thought, but my earlier reservation still lingered. Seeing that nothing unusual had happened for a long time, I felt much more at ease and was about to stand up to go with him. But Tan Ping'er remained slumped on the stone platform, unwilling to move. Not wanting to leave her alone, I turned back to caution Man Niao Niao, telling him to be careful and not act rashly, and instructing him to take Hua'er along for company. Hua'er whimpered twice, but seeing my stern look, she reluctantly trailed behind Man Niao Niao.

Faintly hearing the sound of a door creaking open, there was silence for a long time.

I listened intently for a while, just about to get up and check the door, when Man Niao Niao rushed back like a whirlwind, his voice brimming with barely suppressed excitement. "Damn it! The main hall is spotless! The most unbelievable thing is, there's a wine jar buried right in the center of the hall! The aroma... tsk tsk... I didn't dare drink first, so I came back to call you two to go together!"

When Man Niao Niao said the main hall was clean and there was a jar of wine, my heart leaped. Could it be that this thatched hut was actually inhabited? This was an incredible surprise.

I helped Tan Ping'er into the main hall and indeed saw that it had been swept clean, a stark contrast to the dilapidated, insect- and rodent-infested side room. In the very center of the main hall’s earth floor, a round wine jar was buried, only the width of a palm exposed above the ground. Several dry bamboo tubes were inserted into what must have been the lid, and the wine's fragrance seeped out, wafting a delicious scent.

"Zhazhi (Sipping wine)!" I exclaimed excitedly.