Chapter 17: 17

Chapter 17: Cry of Indignation 

The young master of Dragon City Fu Nanhua sat opposite to Song Jixin. He held a small pot in his hands delicately and scrutinized the engravings. He leered at it like he was looking at a beautiful woman. He stared, caressed, and exhaled. After ruffing it up for quite some time, he just could not bring himself to put it down. It was love at first sight for the picky Fu Nanhua. To think he would stumble across such a rarity. He had struck gold. 

Dragon City, the place he belonged to, was among the top sects south of the East Aquarius Continent. Fu Nanhua was no stranger to wealth. This was why Cai Jinjian deferred to him. 

Song Jixin yawned and laid back in his chair, changing to a more comfortable position. “Since Brother Fu has appraised the item, how about we talk about the price?”

Fu Nanhua felt slight discomfort from being called “brother.” Few addressed him like that. He put away this discomfort and put down the pot reluctantly. He smiled and said, “Brother Song must realize my intentions are pure, otherwise, I wouldn’t have been so upfront with how valuable this pot is. Me showing my determination to obtain this pot is to prevent us from haggling and deceiving each other over price. That will only waste energy and risk our friendship. I, Fu Nanhua, have already regarded you as a friend on the path of cultivation. We should do business at ease. Us being together through thick and thin, entrusting our lives to each other, all starts with us getting on the right foot today.”

Song Jixin pointed at the sincere young master and snickered. “Brother Fu, forgive me, but money is money. About us being friends, sure. It’s just when one brings up friendship during business, I can’t help but ask if such a person has other designs? Perhaps one of greed?”

Fu Nanhua turned frigid. He leaned back and tapped the table softly.

Song Jixin seemed to ignore the change in Fu Nanhua’s attitude. “Let’s do this clean and simple. Name a price and I will tell you if it’s enough. I will give you two chances. After two chances, a great opportunity will be missed. Even if you promise me a mountain of gold, I won’t be selling.”

“That jade pendant I gave to you before, treat it as a greeting gift. It’s called “Dragon Rain.” It’s not a particularly powerful immortal treasure. It can only help protect from heat and purify the mind, useful for meditation. If paired with a secret mantra, its effectiveness increases.”

Fu Nanhua flashed another smile, no traces of arrogance on his face. He put an embroidered bag on the table and pushed it toward Song Jixin. He said solemnly, “The copper coins in this bag are called Buddha offering coins. One of the many god offering coins in the world. Coins often offered in famous temples and statues, each coin having its own particular function. But that’s not important. The thing is, these coins are made of ‘gold essence,’ far more precious than gold. It is hard to say which is more valuable, this bag of gold essence Buddha offering coins or that pot. This is a fair deal after all. If you account for the pendant, I dare say, Brother Song, you will not be on the losing end of this deal.”

After saying these words of candor, Fu Nanhua waited quietly for a reply.

Song Jixin fell silent for a moment. Then, he asked, “That all?”

Fu Nanhua smiled wryly, “Yes.”

The boy scrunched up his face and slammed his hands on the table. “Fuck off! Think I am some sort of fool? Before entering the town, everyone has three bags of copper coins. One is given out as the gate toll. Every time one obtains a treasure, no matter how small, a bag is supposed to be given out. A bag of copper coins has between twenty and thirty coins, but how come this bag has only 12 coins?! Forget integrity, you dare try to finesse this young master?”

Fu Nanhua’s finger began tapping the table again, this time louder and faster. 

Song Jixin felt his chest tighten. He had trouble breathing, his face turned red, his eyes bloodshot. The boy pressed his hand to his heart. His heart beat like a drum. Thump. Thump. As if it was going to burst.

Fu Nanhua’s finger gradually slowed down. The boy’s complexion improved. He smiled and said, “Since that was no good, how about 24 coins? Now will you sell?”

Sweat trickled down Song Jixin’s face. He was still indecisive and was about to say something to de-escalate the precarious situation he was in.

The young master of Dragon City began to increase his tapping speed. Tap. Tap.

Song Jixin clasped his heart with both hands, his face contorted, a grim smile on his face.

Fu Nanhua had the urge to beat this wolf cub to death, but, at the last moment, the allure of the path of immortality overcame his personal feelings. His finger stopped tapping. He let the boy off.

Song Jixin began panting, his eyes teary. Then, he chuckled dryly.

Fu Nanhua looked at this scene puzzled. There seemed to be no hatred in the boy’s eyes, but Fu Nanhua did not put much importance on it. On the road of cultivation, there was no lack of strange things and strange people. Out of curiosity, he asked, “Why are you laughing?”

Song Jixin steadied his breathing and leaned in his chair. After wiping the sweat on his forehead, he said with sparkles in his eyes, “Just thinking of the future. Soon, I will also be able to kill people with a snap of my fingers. It makes me happy.”

Fu Nanhua brushed off his words with a smile. As expected as a fellow man of Dao.

This sort of person was the best to deal with when one held a position above them. They may also become the worst to deal with if the roles were reversed.

However, the young master of Dragon City doubted that would happen. Since he successfully obtained the item here, how could he ever be inferior to this teenager who still hadn’t left this town?

Song Jixin glanced at the pot on the table and the bag of copper coins. “I have two requests. Agree to them, and I will not only sell you this pot but also an item similar in value.”

Fu Nanhua looked on with glee. Trying to remain calm, he replied, “Speak.”

Song Jixin got straight to the point. “First, give me three bags of gold coins!”

“Yes!”

Song Jixin stared into his eyes.

Fu Nanhua smiled. “Think what you will. However, before I leave, take out that thing worth two bags of gold essence. I’ll need to have a look at it.”

Song Jixin nodded. “Of course.”

Fu Nanhua asked, “And the second request?”

“Kill someone for me.”

Fu Nanhua shook his head. “Since you know about the copper coins, you should also know that us ‘outsiders’ are forbidden to kill the townsfolk here. We will be forced out of this town and there will be permanent repercussions. The saints could strip away our fortune and our right to this treasure trove.”

Song Jixin’s lip curled up. “Don’t be in such a hurry to refuse. Just wait and see.”

Fu Nanhua asked with a smile, “I’m curious then, who do you want to kill?”

Song Jixin said enigmatically, “I’m still thinking.”

Fu Nanhua picked up the pot and began feeling its slick texture. He said casually, “Then, I shall wait.”

On the other side of the table, Song Jixin began rubbing his neck, his face pale.

…

Cai Jinjian pushed open the door and entered. She froze. When she saw the old man sitting on the bench, she asked in a trembling voice, “Is Senior the River Severing True Monarch of Shujian Lake?”

The old man asked, “How did you come to know of this old man?”

Cai Jinjian said respectfully, “Junior Cai Jinjian of Alpenglow Mountain went to Shujian Lake with her father a decade ago. Was fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of Senior from a distance. This memory is still fresh in my mind.”

The old man nodded.

Cai Jinjian paused before saying, “True Monarch, Junior wants…”

The storyteller known as the “River Severing True Monarch” glanced at her and said placidly, “For the sake of Patriarch Song Xia, I can ignore you barging in uninvited. But only once. Remember to close the door.”

Cai Jinjian fell silent before nodding. “Junior will take her leave.”

She left and did not forget to close the door. Her movements were fluid, footsteps light.

Inside the yard, the mother looked towards the door and asked worriedly, “Immortal, she doesn’t seem to have given up. Will there be trouble?”

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The old man revealed a smile full of disdain. “No different from a fly.”

The mother no longer talked.

The old man smiled, “Let me ask you, Mrs. Gu, if you had the choice, would you have Gu Can go to Alpenglow Mountain or follow me to Shujian Lake? No rush to answer.”

The old man explained slowly, “Alpenglow Mountain is a second-rate sect in the East Aquarius Continent, but do not write them off just yet. They possess a special stone. The cloud stone produced by Alpenglow Mountain is indeed a heavenly treasure. In the entire world, there is only one sect. As such, Alpenglow Mountain has an elevated status and everyone shows them some respect. Most notably, the Alchemy School of Dao is well-acquainted with Alpenglow Mountain. This old man is a mere cultivator in Shujian Lake. Only occupy a small island in the middle of the lake, a couple of disciples, under a hundred servants.”

Mrs. Gu put on a smile. “The difference between me and that girl of Alpenglow Mountain is the difference between her and Immortal. How can I let Gu Can follow that girl to the plains when he can live in a blessed land?”

The old man smiled gleefully. Suddenly, as if remembering something, he said in a solemn voice, “Mrs. Gu, tell me about the boy, in detail. Best to be cautious.”

The woman paused, stroked the side of her head, and said softly, “The poor child’s name is Chen Pingan. His parents both grew up in this town. I was friends with his mother. Her personality was respectable and her appearance good. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her get mad at anyone. Her husband was worse for wear but was good at firing pottery. If he had not died early, he may have become the head of the imperial kiln after a couple decades of hard work. His death though is a bit of a mystery. There was no body. Some say he stumbled into a stream on a stormy night because he was in a hurry to protect the kiln fire. Others say he, greedy, went to the mountain restricted by the imperial court to find firewood and got eaten by the animals. That man, although difficult to talk to, was good to his children. He would bring back little stuff like treats, broken pottery, and toys every time he came back. It was a happy family. Once he died, the mother suffered from a heart disease and her weak body collapsed. Within a year, she was so thin that our old neighbors were frightened by what they saw. They could not recognize the pretty woman from the past. At that time, Chen Pingan, who took care of her, bought medicine, cooked food, did everything. He was too short at the time so he had to step on a stool to cook. To save money to buy medicine for his mother, he searched outside the town for herbs easy to reach. He would sell it to the nearby herb shops.“

”I think one time he ate the wrong herb. When he came back to Muddyrun, he suddenly fell to the ground, foaming at the mouth, rolling on the ground. We thought that this might be the end of the family. Back then, my mother-in-law was still alive and said that it would be better if the whole family just disappeared. That way, they would all be together in the underworld. Later, someone, the child survived, but the child’s mother didn’t make it past winter. Oh, yeah, Immortal, Chen Pingan was born on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. The elders here said that that was a very inauspicious day. Many thought that might be why this tragedy befell the family.”

The old man finally spoke, “Oh, that birthday, interesting, let me do some divination.”

 His five fingers curled, performing a mystic art.

Seeing the woman’s stare, the old man smiled. “Continue.”

“Emm, ‘cause of all that, those of us in Muddyrun were too afraid to let Chen Pingan into our homes, but, sometimes, there would be a few bowls of food and small stuff given to him. People still have compassion. To be honest, if it wasn’t for his really scary birthday, it would be hard not to take pity on such a sweet child. Of course, there were some unruly people around here. There was one who always bullied the child. Chen Pingan ended up having no choice but to become an apprentice to a potter. You see, before his mother died, she made the child promise her that he would never work near the imperial kiln. For such a pure child to break his oath, something big must have happened.”

The old man asked, “The boy’s parents, do you know their names and birthdays?”

The mother only knew their names, not their date of birth. The old man carried on anyway. After a while, he revealed a cold smile. “Mere tricks.”

The mother was befuddled.

The old man explained, “The man died because he accidentally learned the secret of this town. Pity, that his family’s luck can’t compare to your family, no luck with his ancestors. The man secretly smashed his son’s natal porcelain vase to protect his son. This caused some sect outside the town to lose their treasure. They invested a lot of resources into it, so that potter naturally had to pay, and pay he did, with his life. Though one life was not enough. They killed his wife too. How amusing. Probably the death of some potter was insignificant to those people so they didn’t bother to thoroughly cover their tracks. They just used some shoddy concealment art to deceive the town. How crude.”

The mother looked grim.

The old man noticed what she was thinking and smiled. “What’s the matter? Feel guilt, regret?”

The mother forced out a miserable smile. “Guilt, yes, I watched that child grow up after all, but regret, none at all!”

The old man nodded. “I see.”

The woman murmured to herself, “If Chen Pingan’s mother was in my current position, I believe she would do the same.”

The old man shook his head. “Perhaps not.”

The mother raised her voice inexplicably. “She would definitely!”

The old man did not grow angry at her impoliteness. He just sighed, “A pitiful family.”

…

A boy in straw sandals sat at the doorstep. “Miss Ning, can I ask you something?”

The girl in black sat with her back against a wall, cross-legged, a green sheath knife across her knees. “Sure, but if it involves private matters I will not answer.”

Chen Pingan asked, “How long do you foreigners usually stay here before leaving?”

The girl frowned. “Different for everyone. Some people are lucky and may come and go on the same day, while some are unlucky and may be stuck here for the rest of their lives. I can make some guesses but they might not be accurate. Use your own judgment. Let’s see, there were eight people in our group. Two of them belong to damn rich families. Stupid people with a stupid amount of money, they aren’t the type to come and go in a hurry. They should at least stay in the town for a few days. The young man with the jade pendant should probably have a smooth journey. There’s also that idiot who is obsessed with that well. Whether he can actually succeed, God only knows.”

Chen Pingan continued to ask, “Anyone else?”

“Huh?”

“A tall, young woman.”

“You like her?”

Chen Pingan just smiled.

The girl in black also realized that her joke was in poor taste. She said seriously, “I actually overheard your chat with Taoist Lu. There is bad blood between you and her, so you want… revenge?”

She sighed, “Let me give you a word of advice, to the ones on top, people like you, who are only halfway, are really no different from those at the bottom. Them looking down on you does not come without merit. Outside this town, even that little kid in the red robe, not to mention that woman from Alpenglow Mountain, could cripple you with just a punch. If you punch him back, it won’t even scratch him. It would at most make him feel a little uncomfortable. Eh, as for why this is the case, it’s kind of difficult to break down, well, mostly because I’m not good at explaining it.”

Chen Pingan turned his back to the room and looked towards the door. “I want to know why she wants to kill me. It was our first time meeting.”

The girl mulled over it for a long time before saying, “She isn’t necessarily the kind of person who kills senselessly, eh, how should I put it, on the road of cultivation, while walking through mountains and wading through rivers, on a dangerous journey, walk too fast, accidentally trample an ant to death, catch a few fish from a river when hungry, get some enlightenment in Dao, accidentally kill the birds, snakes, and rats and stuff on the way, mm, didn’t put it very well, you know what I’m getting at though, right?”

“Got most of it.”

The boy looked at the gate of the yard glumly.

He had trouble understanding. Why people could be so indifferent to the lives of others.

After a while, Chen Pingan turned around and said with a smile, “If Miss is fine with it, Miss can stay here. If you need anything, just say it.”

“Then what about you?”

“I know someone. I’m going to be living with him for a bit. Don’t worry, his name is Liu Xianyang, he’s my… friend. Yes, a good friend!”

The girl looked at the thin figure at the door and smiled. “Thank you!”

The boy grinned, scratched his head, and said nothing. After a moment of hesitation, he finally mustered the courage to turn his head again and said, “Miss Ning, if I don’t come back, please give my bag of gold copper coins to Liu Xianyang and ask him to help take care of this house. He doesn’t need to clean it, just repair it, add some new tiles to stop leaks, make sure the walls don’t collapse, and the gate doesn’t look so shoddy. If possible, if it isn’t too much trouble, maybe even put up some Spring Festival couplets for the Spring Festival at the entrance.”

The boy’s eyes sparkled in excitement as he talked about decorating for the Spring Festival.

It was obvious that this orphan in Muddyrun had been thinking of this for too many years. He wished to join in the festivities.

He had thought about it ever since his parents died.

At last, the boy had untied the last knot in his heart. He could rest at ease. He exhaled, patted his knees, and stood up slowly.

The flying sword in the sheath on the table suddenly rang.

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