Afterword
I am a scholar, often frequenting a teahouse. Within it, an elder would recount tales, including Eighteen Shadow Forts. I recorded his stories into a book, naming it Anecdotal Chronicles of Eighteen Shadow."
I took it to visit the elder. The elder remarked that my account was not comprehensive, as there were stories untold in the teahouse. The elder proceeded to narrate the remaining tales, which I recorded as follows:
There was once an escort Chen who found an infant boy by West Lake. He named it "Chen Guang."
Chen Guang was intelligent and clever. Even before he could walk, he had devised a set of moves called "Thief-Catch and Treasure-Guard Forms" with a dagger. He said, "I want to be an escort protecting treasure like my father."
How could such a good child end up with bandits? What did you say in the forest that day that made him abandon even the dagger?
The elder suddenly drew the dagger and lunged at me. The hidden guards quickly restrained him.
I said: "How do you know he only wanted to protect it and not possess it?"
After saying this, I took my leave. Even after walking for a long time, the elder's sorrowful cries echoed in my ears.