Chapter 71

Chapter 71

It wasn’t until the middle of the night that Liu Junyan finally carried me to the bath.

When we returned to bed, I felt something was off. Usually, after such a long night of exertion, I wouldn’t even be able to keep my eyes open. I wouldn’t want to do anything but sleep.

But tonight, not only was I not sleepy, I felt exceptionally energetic. A warm current seemed to have quietly merged into my veins, very similar to the feeling when Liu Junyan used to transfer True Qi to me.

This made me realize that after Fengwu returned to my body, my constitution had been slowly changing. Once it reached a certain level, I would be able to use Fengwu to cultivate.

Then tonight…

I shifted restlessly, and Liu Junyan’s slightly raspy voice reached my ears. “Xiao Jiu, don’t move.”

I looked up at him. His eyes were closed, one arm pillowed under the back of my neck while his large hand reached around to gently knead my earlobe.

His complexion was also surprisingly good tonight. Before, I had only ever thought of him as pale. But that was a sickly pallor caused by a lack of sunlight; now, it was a cold white tinged with the color of healthy blood, making his whole person look much healthier.

I asked somewhat shyly, “Liu Junyan, are we… are we dual cultivating right now?”

“Yes,” Liu Junyan answered affirmatively.

He then began to teach me the mantras for converting True Qi, the essentials of meditation, and so on.

We talked until the eastern sky began to pale. I benefited greatly from the night’s lessons.

I snuggled affectionately into Liu Junyan’s arms and asked, “Will you be able to leave the house soon?”

“Yes,” Liu Junyan said. “A friend helped a bit, but it’s mainly because Xiao Jiu is so capable and helped me recover another Golden Scale. Xiao Jiu, thank you.”

He lowered his head to kiss the top of my hair. Nestled in his embrace, I thought to myself that Lord Xiao had indeed helped.

“Liu Junyan, do you know who took this Golden Scale of yours?” I asked.

Liu Junyan shook his head. “Was it not purchased from outside by Jiyu Temple?”

I thought about it and said, “Probably not. This Golden Scale was taken by Second Master Liu of Wangting Mountain.”

At the mention of that name, Liu Junyan’s body visibly stiffened.

I took the opportunity to ask, “Is Second Master Liu of Wangting Mountain a relative of yours?”

Liu Junyan remained silent for a long while before saying, “In a way. But our paths are different; we do not share the same goals.”

I could hear a trace of disappointment in Liu Junyan’s tone. It seemed there had been some friction between him and this Second Master Liu, and their relationship was nowhere near as good as his relationship with Lord Xiao.

I made a mental note of it. Liu Junyan’s network of connections was essentially mine now; I needed to know who was a friend and who was not.

After chatting for a while longer, Liu Junyan had to return to the Black Coffin.

Before leaving, he said to me, “Xiao Jiu, I need to go into seclusion for the next half-month. With so much Merit suddenly flooding into the Pawnshop, it will surely attract attention. You must be careful.”

I nodded repeatedly. “Don’t worry about your seclusion. I’ll wait for you to come out.”

Liu Junyan couldn’t help but hug me again. “When I come out again, I should be able to accompany you outside. Xiao Jiu, I owe you too much. In the future, I will make it up to you.”

I wanted to say that he had saved me so many times that he didn’t owe me anything. But I also craved the tenderness of this moment.

Regarding the matter of Ah Li-even though he was certain about me and I had my own suspicions-that girl had ultimately appeared in our lives, and it was hard to ignore her completely.

She was like a thorn driven deep into my heart. Even if I pulled it out myself, it would still leave a bloody hole behind. That hole… would need the warmth of absolutely loyal love to slowly heal and fill.
In the afternoon, I rode my electric scooter to the Driving School to sign up.

This Driving School in Wufu Town was privately owned and not very formal, but their unconventional methods got results quickly. The local residents were all willing to sign up there, giving it a bit of a reputation.

Since we were all old acquaintances, I paid the fee, completed the paperwork, and arranged my training schedule. By the next day, I was already behind the wheel practicing.

During a break, I stood in the shade drinking water when I overheard a few people nearby chatting.

“Hey, have you heard? That Little Ghost over by the Small Stream has been coming out again lately.”

“You mean the one from a few years back who would ask everyone if they’d seen his red flag?”

“Oh, you’ve got it wrong. It’s not a red flag, it’s a Red Banner!”

“Isn’t a Red Banner just a red flag? What else would you call it!”

“A Red Banner is a Red Banner, not just some red flag!”

“Stop arguing, you two. I heard that this time, the Little Ghost isn’t asking about a banner anymore. He’s asking everyone he sees for money.”

“Borrowing money? Now that’s a rarity! These days, are even ghosts so poor they have to come out and borrow money?”

“Heh, don’t joke. He’s asking for quite a bit-thirty-three Silver Coins.”

“He doesn’t want bills, he wants Silver Coins? I haven’t seen those in years.”

“Exactly. Where are you going to find thirty-three Silver Coins nowadays? Even if they exist, Xiao Jiu is probably the only one who could scrape that many together.”

My eyelids suddenly twitched at the mention of my name, and an inexplicable sense of unease settled in my heart.

When we were returning from Jiyu Temple that day, we had encountered that Little Ghost, and he had asked us for money too.

It really was thirty-three Silver Coins.

It had been several days since then; was he still trying to borrow them?

“Stop talking, stop talking. I heard that the Little Ghost hasn’t been near the Small Stream the last two days. Someone supposedly saw him at the West Street Entrance before dawn today.”

“That’s not right. Didn’t he always stay by the Small Stream in previous years? Why would he change locations this time?”

“The West Street Entrance? Isn’t that…”

The West Street Entrance was the area directly facing the Pawnshop.

In other words, was it possible that the Little Ghost really was coming for me?

After I finished training and went back that day, I started rummaging through every chest and cupboard to see if I could actually put together thirty-three Silver Coins.

This Little Ghost’s obsession had trapped him for many years. If I gave him the thirty-three Silver Coins, would it resolve his obsession and help him enter reincarnation sooner?

Unfortunately, I searched everywhere I could think of and only managed to find nine Silver Coins.

As I sat behind the counter, resting and fiddling with the coins, I suddenly remembered something.

Red Banner… red flag?

I stood up abruptly and rummaged through a corner of the Antique Shelf behind me. After a moment, I pulled out a Rosewood Box.

Opening the box, a dark red banner lay revealed inside.

The banner wasn’t large and was triangular in shape. The center was a dark red triangle surrounded by a black-and-white patterned border. Three narrow streamers, covered in strange runes, were attached to the longest diagonal edge.

The pattern embroidered in the middle of the dark red fabric depicted a blade striking a flame, and the side was fixed to a pole made of Sophora Wood.

A yellowed Pawn Ticket was pressed against the side of the banner. When I opened it and looked, I froze in place.

Red Banner. Live Pawn. Principal: 30 Silver Coins. Pawn Period… one hundred years!

I calculated the time-the Pawn Period expired exactly today!

How could it be such a coincidence?

Even more coincidental was the rule for a Live Pawn at the Wufu Town Pawnshop: when the item was redeemed, the Redemption Fee consisted of the principal plus a ten percent comprehensive fee-essentially interest and the like.

Therefore, if someone came to redeem this Red Banner today, the Redemption Fee they would have to pay was exactly thirty-three Silver Coins!