Meng Po waved her arms. In a flash, four cups of tea emerged out of thin air to hover in front of Ashley, Jordan, Ren, and me. “Now, drink,” the old woman commanded. “Don’t make me force you.”
The demons let out a collective growl. Meng Po’s assistant raised their sword high in the air, threatening to swing it down at a moment’s notice—on me.
I couldn’t see another way out of the situation, so I did the only thing that made sense. I grabbed the teacup and smashed it to the ground, where it shattered into a thousand pieces.
CHAPTER
21
If we Chinese love one thing, it’s tea. So smashing Meng Po’s Five-Flavored Tea to the ground wasn’t just an act of defiance against the old woman and her demon guards. To my ancestors, it probably made me the black sheep of the family. It probably made the entire Chinese diaspora disinherit me.
Oh well. “I’d rather die than drink your yucky tea!” I declared.
“How dare you. That tea is our most expensive import!” Meng Po shrieked with rage.
Ashley, Jordan, and Ren smashed their teacups into smithereens on the ground as well.
“Five-Flavored Tea sounds disgusting anyway,” yelled Jordan. “Give me oolong or give me death!”
I was pretty sure Meng Po was prepared to take him up on that.
When the demon guards attacked us, I was ready. A red-skinned one stabbed its spear at me. I ducked out of the way. In the same motion, I walloped it on the head with the butt of my sword, knocking it out. The second demon charged at me so fast that I couldn’t react in time. I brought my sword up to shield my face from the pointed jab of its spear. But it was far too slow and far too late.
“Get away from her,” snapped Moli. She kicked the demon in its side, sending it sprawling to the ground.
“I won’t forgive you just ’cause you helped me,” I said coldly.
“Whatever. Just don’t let down your guard,” Moli replied. A demon charged right for her, and she elbowed it aside.
“Moli, we had a deal!” Meng Po snarled. “Your dear father’s life hangs in the balance, remember?”
Moli hesitated. Then her expression hardened. She retorted, “If my father knew I let harm come to my friends just to save him, he would die of sadness anyway.” Although tears shone in her eyes, Moli seemed decided.
“Moli …,” I said.
“Besides, if my father can lead a rebellion, then so can I!” Moli shouted.
“Fine! See to it that Zhao Boyang is put to death at once!” Meng Po barked to her minions.
“No!” Moli and I yelled in unison. I lunged forward to stop Meng Po’s minions, but they’d disappeared from sight.
“C’mon!” I motioned for Moli to follow me. If we were fast enough, maybe we could catch them before they got to Mr. Zhao.
Meng Po blocked our path. Her eyes flickered bright with fury. “Oh, no. You’re staying right here,” she growled.
My eyes searched for any possible path of escape. Ashley was locked in heated combat with Meng Po’s cloaked assistant, trading them blow for blow. Ren and Jordan held off an entire horde of demons, their swords slashing so quickly, I could hardly track the movement.
There was only one escape route—and I’d have to forge it by defeating the Lady of Forgetfulness. I swung my sword in an arc and pointed it right at the old woman. The adrenaline surging through my veins propelled me forward into motion. I didn’t stop to think. I just ran at her.
“Go save your father, Moli!” I shouted without turning back. I swung wildly at Meng Po with my sword.
Although she appeared to be old and frail, Meng Po moved much faster than I’d anticipated. Using just her bare hands, she chopped down on my shoulders, then my back, knocking the breath out of me before I could react. Each blow was sharp and painful and almost brought me to my knees.
But years of bearing intense training had made me resilient. Plus, Meng Po thought she had the upper hand, which made her complacent. I was the one who had nothing to lose.
“Give up, Faryn Liu.” Meng Po sneered. “You’re not a warrior of the gods. I’m doing you a favor by letting you forget what a disappointment you are.”
I sliced upward with my sword. Meng Po shrieked. I’d sheared off her long braid of gray hair.
“You stupid girl! Don’t you understand you’re holding on to the memory of ancestors who don’t even want you? They haven’t shown up to greet you once since you’ve been in Diyu, and it’s not because they don’t know you’re here. They do know—and they don’t care.” Meng Po practically spit out the last few words. I winced despite myself. “Give up on your noble quest, child. Trust Meng Po ā yí. I’m doing you a favor.”
The old woman’s expression appeared almost gentle and might have fooled me—if her demon guards weren’t intent on slicing my friends into pulled noodles all around me.
“I don’t know why my family hasn’t shown up,” I growled, “but I know it isn’t because they’ve abandoned me.”
I hadn’t been confident in my words until I spoke them aloud. In that moment, I became certain. Ye Ye, Ba, and everyone else in my family—they believed in me, had been watching over me all along.
And now I needed to believe in them. Please protect me, ancestors, I thought.
Meng Po’s face twisted into a snarl. “You’re a bigger fool than I thought, Faryn Liu.” She lunged at me. I raised my weapon and ran toward her.
Ashley’s scream shattered the tension. “Someone’s coming!”
A gust of wind blew into the room. Demons and warriors alike scattered from the force of the blast. But I held my ground. When the wind had died down, I hardly dared to believe my eyes as I drank in the sight before me.
Spirits. Dozens of them. In shades of ghostly gray and blue, they flooded the room, bringing with them warmth that reminded me of a fireplace.
“Wh-what’s going on?” Jordan stammered.
I recognized these spirits. One had Ye Ye’s kind, crinkled eyes. One had Ba’s wider-set eyes. One had my narrow jaw and higher nose.
These ghosts couldn’t be who I thought they were. Could they?
“Sorry we’re so late,” said the spirit of a middle-aged woman with curly black hair. “Hongyi was pigging out in the human world.” She tugged on the ear of a nearby man who looked slightly older than she was. He still gnawed on a drumstick.
“It’s called the Hungry Ghost Festival, not the Starving Ghost Festival, Cixi,” Hongyi protested. Cixi yanked on his ear again. “Ow! Let go, woman!”
The demons stirred on the ground. Meng Po pointed a finger at the newly arrived spirits. “Get them!” she screamed. A few demons got to their feet and tried to attack the ghosts, but the ghosts simply blasted them away with a wave of their hands.
“It would be a grave mistake to attack us right now,” warned Cixi. “We’ve just eaten a grand feast prepared for us by our living descendants. Our souls will be fortified with extra energy until the end of the Hungry Ghost Festival, and even for many days afterward.”
Meng Po rolled up her sleeves and shot across the floor so fast that her image blurred. Ashley and Jordan dove out of her way, and Ren coolly stepped to one side. Meng Po didn’t seem to notice any of them. Her gaze was fixated on the spirits.