Chapter 72
Chapter 72
There was no way there could be so many coincidences in this world!
When coincidences pile up, they only point to one thing: my suspicion was correct.
I quickly looked down at the signature on the Pawn Ticket.
That one glance made me feel physically ill.
The signature was Zhao Zixun!
How could it be Zhao Zixun?
This meant that this Red Banner was personally pawned by Zhao Zixun a hundred years ago.
If Zhao Zixun and that Child Ghost came to redeem the pawn tonight, according to the rules, I would have no choice but to hand the Red Banner over to Zhao Zixun.
What was the relationship between Zhao Zixun and that Child Ghost?
Did this Red Banner belong to Zhao Zixun, or did it belong to the Child Ghost?
After the incident with Cao Yu-shi’s Commendation Document, I had reflected on whether the existence of the Wufu Town Pawnshop was a force for good or evil.
Later, both Li Qingying and Jin Wuya seemed to have given me an answer.
According to Jin Wuya, the Wufu Town Pawnshop was a place that absorbed sinister energy and malevolence, a gathering point for all things evil.
Li Qingying had also said that everything we were doing now was to resolve all the evil that the Wufu Town Pawnshop had accumulated in the past!
Therefore, the predecessor of the Wufu Town Pawnshop was evil.
The chances of this Red Banner belonging to Zhao Zixun were slim; it likely belonged to that Child Ghost.
However, Zhao Zixun still existed. We had crossed paths, and starting from today, for the next five days, only Zhao Zixun himself could come to redeem the pawn.
If Zhao Zixun did not appear within these five days, then starting from the sixth day, the item would be considered overdue and become the property of the Pawnshop.
Only then would I have the right to use various means of exchange to strike a deal with the Child Ghost.
Those were the rules of the Pawnshop.
Of course, there was another possibility. Every transaction in the Pawnshop was recorded in duplicate: one copy for the Pawnshop and one for the owner. If the Child Ghost came to redeem the pawn while holding the Pawn Ticket, then I would have to honor the ticket regardless of who was standing in front of me.
I called out toward the back, “Sister Qingying!”
Li Qingying arrived quickly and asked, “Xiao Jiu, do you need something?”
I motioned for her to come over. “Sister Qingying, do you know about the Red Banner?”
“The Red Banner? Where is it?”
Li Qingying clearly knew of it. I took the Red Banner out again and handed it to her.
It was ice-cold to the touch and felt quite heavy.
Li Qingying unfurled it and examined it carefully, her expression turning solemn. “It really is the Red Banner!”
She then explained, “In ancient times, the Red Banner was a symbol of the disasters of war. It usually appeared at the boundaries of battlefields. Legend has it that the one who holds the banner is called the Red Banner Child. He wears red clothes and has piercing eyes. Anyone who sees him will fall seriously ill for at least three days…”
At this point, Li Qingying’s eyes suddenly widened as if she had realized something.
I knew she was thinking of the Child Ghost we had encountered that day.
But I asked doubtfully, “Many people in Wufu Town have seen that Child Ghost recently, but I haven’t heard of anyone falling ill for three days.”
“That’s because the Child Ghost didn’t have the Red Banner in his hand.” Li Qingying looked at the Red Banner in her hand, her face filled with worry. “This one… couldn’t be his, could it?”
I handed her the Pawn Ticket and pointed to the signature.
When Li Qingying saw the bold, powerful signature of ‘Zhao Zixun,’ her brow furrowed even tighter. “How can it be him?”
Indeed, why was he involved in everything!
I put away the Red Banner and the Pawn Ticket and sat behind the counter. Watching the sky gradually darken outside, I said, “If things don’t go well tonight, we might have a hard battle ahead of us. Sister Qingying, I don’t want porridge tonight. I want something sweet.”
Li Qingying turned to leave. “Alright, I’ll go buy you some small cakes.”
That night, I stayed behind the counter with Li Qingying as usual. Someone had ordered two paper horses during the day, so I was busy constructing them while Li Qingying sat nearby, polishing her Long Whip.
Li Qingying had used up nearly half the bottle of oil Jin Wuya had given her.
However, the Long Whip was indeed polished to a brilliant shine by the oil.
We kept busy like this until past eleven o’clock. Once the two paper horses were finished, Li Qingying helped me carry them over to the Funeral Supplies Shop. When I stepped back out, I massaged my aching shoulders and neck, then walked out the door of the Southern Study and glanced toward the west.
The west was a void of darkness, so silent it made one’s heart race with unease.
There was less than a quarter of an hour left until midnight.
Zhao Zixun had not appeared.
The Red Banner Child hadn’t shown up either.
Could it be that tonight would pass by peacefully after all?
I waited a bit longer. As midnight approached, Li Qingying and I decisively prepared to close up and go to sleep.
It was for the best if Zhao Zixun didn’t come.
It would be even better if he didn’t show up for the next five days.
But just as we bolted the door, the sound of hurried footsteps came from the west, heading straight for the Pawnshop.
Li Qingying and I immediately exchanged a look.
Before long, there was a knock on the small street-facing door of the Southern Study. I took a deep breath and went to open it, resigned to my fate.
Standing outside was the pale-faced Red Banner Child.
He had arrived in a great hurry, clutching a pale green Pouch embroidered with a branch of Plum Blossoms.
The Red Banner Child held the Pouch out to me and said, “Sister, I’ve come to Redeem Pawn.”
I didn’t take the Pouch, instead asking a question I already knew the answer to: “May I ask what you wish to redeem?”
“Redeem my Red Banner.”
Just as I thought.
I patiently explained to him, “To Redeem Pawn, you need the Pawn Ticket issued by this Pawnshop at the time, as well as the sufficient Redemption Fee. Do you have everything ready?”
The Red Banner Child nodded vigorously and pushed the Pouch forward again. “Sister, this is the Redemption Fee. But I can’t get the Pawn Ticket out myself. I need you to come with me.”
This was a situation I hadn’t anticipated.
He couldn’t get the Pawn Ticket and needed me to help him get it?
Could it be a trap?
Surely he didn’t want me to go pick a fight with Zhao Zixun to help him get the ticket back, did he?
The more I thought about it, the more absurd it seemed.
I weighed my words and asked, “Red Banner Child, I know the Red Banner belongs to you, but the person who pawned it wasn’t you. That person’s name is Zhao Zixun. Do you know him?”
At the mention of Zhao Zixun, the Red Banner Child began to tremble all over, looking terrified.
My heart sank along with his reaction.
To my surprise, however, the Red Banner Child said, “The Pawn Ticket… Officer Zhao gave it to me.”
Huh?
Did I hear that right?
Zhao Zixun gave the Pawn Ticket to the Red Banner Child?
Isn’t that a paradox?
The Red Banner belonged to the Red Banner Child, but Zhao Zixun pawned it at the Pawnshop; then Zhao Zixun turned around and gave the Pawn Ticket to the Red Banner Child?
Li Qingying was also losing her patience. “Are you playing tricks on us, Child Ghost? If you’re going to make up a story, at least make it plausible!”
The Red Banner Child defended himself, “I’m not making it up!”
I said, “But you’re clearly terrified of Zhao Zixun, aren’t you?”
“I…” The Red Banner Child’s body was still trembling slightly. “I am afraid of him because he was the one who killed me back then. It took me over seventy years to reform my child-form, and nearly another thirty years to remember the matter of the Pawn Ticket. Fortunately, there’s still time.”
Li Qingying scratched her hair in frustration. “Child Ghost, do you even understand what you’re saying?”
“Everything I’m saying is true.” The Red Banner Child struggled to organize his words. “Over a hundred years ago, Officer Zhao and I met on the battlefield. He was ordered to take my Red Banner. Later, Officer Zhao met with disaster. Before he completely lost his sanity, he pawned the Red Banner at the Pawnshop and had his confidant secretly deliver the Pawn Ticket to me.
“Unfortunately, before his confidant could find an opportunity to deliver the ticket, I was killed by the corpse-transformed Officer Zhao…”