Chapter 37

Chapter 37

It is human nature to admire the strong.

In my eyes, Tang Ao was already powerful enough, but based on Tang Tang’s description, Tang Xun’s abilities were even more immeasurable.

As we were chatting, someone outside called for Tang Tang.

Tang Tang answered and said to me, “Junior Sister, I have to head back to school. Keep an eye on your bank card activity later. Those antiques have been sold, so watch for the incoming transfers.”

With that, she hurriedly hung up the phone.

I got out of bed and washed my face to wake myself up.

When I picked up my phone again, I saw bank notifications. Four payments had been deposited in succession: 50,000, 128,000, 150,000, and a massive sum of 300,000!

Having so much money suddenly hit my account made me incredibly excited. I immediately dragged Li Qingying out to go on a shopping spree.

Li Qingying lived a very simple life. Aside from essential daily necessities, she hardly spent any money, but I still forced her to buy several outfits and some skincare products.

I originally wanted to give her some money for living expenses, too. After all, since she moved into the Pawnshop, she had been covering all the household costs.

However, Li Qingying adamantly refused. “Xiao Jiu, do I look like someone who lacks money?”

I said hesitantly, “But I can’t just keep spending your money, can I? It doesn’t feel right.”

“Xiao Jiu, you’re overthinking it,” Li Qingying said. “I’ve always worked under Seventh Master. He shares a bit of the Merit the Pawnshop accumulates with me. Truth be told, I’m making a profit here, not a loss.”

So that was how it worked.

For practitioners, Merit was far more precious than wealth.

I nodded and negotiated with her. “Sister Qingying, let’s agree on this: for now, since it’s just the two of us, I won’t argue with you. But once we start hiring more people for the Pawnshop, we need to be professional. When that time comes, I’ll allocate specific funds for specific purposes.”

Li Qingying immediately asked, “Xiao Jiu, are you planning to recruit people for the Pawnshop?”

“I don’t have immediate plans, but I definitely will in the future,” I said firmly. “We’ve already clashed with the Bai, Huang, and Dou families. It’s impossible to back out now. If we want to firmly uphold the banner of this Pawnshop, our strength alone is clearly not enough.”

If Liu Junyan weren’t restricted to the Pawnshop, we wouldn’t be so passive.

Li Qingying agreed with my perspective. “Fine. If that day comes, I will definitely follow the rules and keep the Pawnshop’s affairs perfectly organized.”

We were in complete agreement and didn’t head back until after we had dinner out.

Early the next morning, I was already awake when Li Qingying opened the Pawnshop doors.

She seemed to have spotted someone she found extremely repulsive, as she shouted several angry rebukes.

I was about to get out of bed to see what was happening when I heard Bai Jingmo’s voice. “I’m here to apologize to Xiao Jiu…”

Well, he certainly was a repulsive fellow!

I lay back down.

What was he here to apologize for?

Was it for the Bai Family going back on their word and tricking me into going to the Riverside for the Sacrifice?

Or was it for kidnapping Tang Tang to trade her for my presence at the ritual?

Bai Jingmo was truly the definition of a hypocrite trying to play the saint after doing the dirty work!

He had completely squandered every bit of goodwill he had built up with me during our youth.

From now on, our paths would remain separate. It was already an act of ultimate kindness that I didn’t consider him my primary enemy.

The Pawnshop was my territory, and Li Qingying quickly chased Bai Jingmo away.

Over the next few days, Li Qingying and I enjoyed some genuine peace and quiet.

I organized the money from the antique sales and sent ten percent to Tang Tang as a thank-you for acting as the middleman.

However, Tang Tang refused to take it. She said she was the broker and had already taken her cut from the price difference, so she wouldn’t take advantage of me.

After going back and forth, I eventually had to take the money back.
I went to the bank to open a separate account so that all the pawnshop’s future transactions would go through it.

In a short while, it would be the fifteenth day of the ninth lunar month. I carefully drew up a list, preparing to make another trip to the Ghost Market when the time came.

The Tang Family had done me such a huge favor that I definitely needed to pay them a visit to express my gratitude. However, given the Tang Family’s vast estate and business, I wasn’t sure what would make a suitable gift.

After much thought, I decided to head to the Ghost Market to scavenge for something good. It seemed like the best way to find something that would suit their tastes.

To my surprise, before I could even make it to the Ghost Market, Tang Xun sent a grand gift my way.

It happened like this: that day, I was standing behind the counter drawing talismans. I needed to practice the Thunder Summoning Talisman that Liu Junyan had given me as often as possible. A low-profile black BMW pulled up in front of the pawnshop, and a middle-aged man in a black suit stepped out.

The man was slightly balding and didn’t look very well. After getting out of the car, he took a few steps back to check the plaque over the pawnshop door, then compared it with an address on his phone to confirm he was in the right place.

Then he stepped into the pawnshop and asked politely, “Excuse me, are you Shopkeeper Xiao Jiu?”

I set down my brush, put away the few sheets of Talisman Paper I had just practiced on, and looked at the man. “I am. Is there something I can help you with, sir?”

The man immediately smiled and reached out with both hands to shake mine. “Shopkeeper Xiao Jiu, I was referred here by Ms. Tang Xun of the Huicheng Tang Family. I’d like to pawn something at your shop.”

I was surprised to hear he was sent by Tang Xun and immediately gave him my full attention. “And what is your name, sir?”

“My name is Cai Bin,” the man replied.

“What would you like to pawn, Mr. Cai?” I asked.

“A painting,” Cai Bin said. “But the painting is at my house, and I can’t bring it out. I’d like to ask you to come with me to Huicheng, Shopkeeper Xiao Jiu.”

Huicheng was adjacent to our province, so it wasn’t too far away.

If anyone else had asked me to go out to collect an item, I probably would have declined for safety reasons. But since this person was recommended by Tang Xun, I had to go.

To be safe, however, I first contacted Tang Tang and asked her to check with her aunt to see if Cai Bin had truly been referred by her. Tang Tang told me that Tang Xun was away on business and couldn’t be reached for the moment, but she knew Cai Bin personally-she even had to call him ‘Uncle’ when they met.

That put my mind at ease, and I decided to make the trip with Cai Bin.

Li Qingying came with me.

Cai Bin seemed rather unsettled, so I had Li Qingying drive while I chatted with him about the painting along the way.

“My wife is particularly fond of collecting calligraphy and paintings. About a month ago, she acquired a painting and hung it in the small sitting room of our bedroom suite. she looks at it every day, as if she can’t get enough of it.”

Cai Bin seemed to recall something, and his expression grew even more troubled. “At first, she just looked at it. But then, as she watched, she started to sing. I’ve never heard her sing that song before. Every time she starts, my whole body goes cold. I feel like the woman in front of me isn’t my wife anymore.”

Curious, I asked, “What kind of painting is it?”

Cai Bin thought for a moment and said, “The style is very strange. A massive palace takes up almost most of the frame. Sunlight spills down over the palace, and below it are layer upon layer of steps. The steps are covered in tiny black and red dots. It feels like… like women in Red Wedding Dresses going on a pilgrimage.”

Just hearing Cai Bin’s description gave me goosebumps.

I asked again, “And what song is she singing?”

“When she sings, she’s in a strange state and her pronunciation is slurred. I can’t make out every word clearly,” Cai Bin said. “But a few of the lines go-Red Wedding Dress, Black Hemp Rope, the night of the fifteenth, hanging in a row, don’t cry, don’t cry…”