I Only Want to Lie Flat But Am Forced to Cultivate Immortality-Chapter 159 - 101 A Cup of Cloudy Wine_2

"If only I could request Brother Xu to accompany me on my journey to the Northern Territory, and upon arrival, let Brother Xu decide to stay or leave as he pleases, would that be acceptable?"

Xu Qing still shook his head in refusal.

"Old Hu from the Funeral Shop on the street, I treat him as a senior with filial respect. He is already old, and his health is poor. I have promised to take care of him and give him a proper burial, so I truly cannot free myself."

"Is there such a matter? Then it was indeed my mistake."

Seeing Zhu Huai’an’s embarrassed look, Xu Qing eased the atmosphere:

"These are all small matters. The main issue is that my cousin still depends on me to earn money to support her. You have no idea how much she eats in one meal. Such a big fish is not even enough for her in one bite...."

"Splash!" Just as Xu Qing was talking about how his cousin was gluttonous, a feathered shuttlecock suddenly flew from afar.

Xu Qing casually swatted it down.

Zhu Huai’an glanced over but did not see Sun Erniang’s figure, only a black cat leaping down from the counter and then exiting the shop without looking back.

Xu Qing bent down to pick up the shuttlecock made from Xuan Yu thrown at him and said, "Every family has its own hard-to-read scripture; let’s not bring this up."

He patted the non-existent dust off the shuttlecock, placed it on the table beside him, and smiled: "I know your journey will be fraught with difficulties. As a friend, I don’t have much to give you, but here are a few talismans. You may take them for peace of mind."

As he spoke, Xu Qing took out a few talismans, including peace talismans he had drawn and those for exorcism and soul calming he had obtained while transcending corpses.

Zhu Huai’an straightened up solemnly and received the talismans with great appreciation.

"Thank you, Brother Xu."

Xu Qing smiled faintly.

Honestly, he had always had some good feelings towards this Crown Prince.

The other had never elevated his gaze because of his princely status.

Like the Wu family brothers and him, they were ultimately from a lower class, but the chubby fellow had never cared about their origin and was always willing to make genuine friendships.

Such a temperament, looking across the circle of noble children, might be hard to find a second one.

Yet, talent meets jealousy, and the virtuous face troubles. If not for Zhu Huai’an’s father being too dazzling, he might have lived a carefree second-generation life for his entire lifetime.

Zhu Huai’an did not bring up the matter of getting Xu Qing to leave his seclusion again, instead, he cheerfully talked about the past mischief with the Wu family brothers.

"If I hadn’t come this time, I wouldn’t have known Brother Zhiyuan had already married. Why didn’t you send me an invitation..."

Xu Qing shook his head: "It’s not that we didn’t think to send one to you. Wencai first thought of you, but Zhiyuan thought that the Wang household was still in mourning and felt bad about celebrating under those conditions..."

Zhu Huai’an fell silent.

"Next time I meet him, I will definitely make him punish himself by drinking three glasses."

Zhu Huai’an laughed lightly, trying to appear as carefree as always.

"Brother Xu, I must depart now."

Xu Qing nodded upon hearing this.

"A poor home is hard to leave, warm soil is hard to abandon. You were born in a wealthy family, surely it will be even more difficult to part. This ladle of turbid wine is for your farewell." freēnovelkiss.com

Zhu Huai’an took the ladle, drank only a mouthful, and poured the rest on the ground at the door.

"I drink only a mouthful, and the rest I offer to this warm soil. Someday, I will return here."

Xu Qing watched Zhu Huai’an ascending the carriage and suddenly called out: "Brother Zhu, wait a moment, I have something that might be useful to you."

...

At Linhe Wharf, a large crowd had gathered around a fishery.

The crowd stretched their necks and stood on tiptoe, all just to catch a glimpse of the legendary ’Spirit Fish’.

"This new Wang family boy really has some skill, actually catching a Spirit Fish."

"That’s not just any fish, that’s silver coins. Such a big Spirit Fish must weigh seven or eight pounds. At twenty silver coins per pound, it should be worth between one hundred and two hundred silver coins."

"Even if we fish for a lifetime, we might not earn this much money."

In front of the fishery, a dark-skinned youth stood guard over his fish basket, waiting for the fishery steward to assess its value.

"The fish’s head has seven stars, and its body has a crescent moon pattern, undoubtedly a Celestial Starfish."

"You are lucky indeed. This fish only appears at night, with teeth sharp enough to bite through an iron net. How did you manage to catch it?"

The youth from the Wang family seemed uninterested in conversation and simply said, "How much do you intend to pay?"

The fishery steward grinned: "It’s not about how much to pay; if this fish comes from someone else’s basket, and they come asking me for it, what should I do?"

"You need to tell me the origins of this fish so that I can safely accept it."

Spirit Fish is not a regular fish. At the entire wharf, only martial artists or occasional visitors would buy Spirit Fish, besides the steward managing the fishery.

"Previously, Sir Li Si collected fish without asking these questions." The youth from the Wang family frowned.

"Sir Li Si? Are you talking about Li Si from the Linhe broker? I’m afraid he doesn’t make the rules anymore. The wharf is now managed by the Jinmen Gang."

The youth from the Wang family had no choice but to invent a story to dispel the steward’s doubts.

If he couldn’t sell this fish today, someone with ill intentions would surely target him. Only by quickly converting it to silver coins, purchasing real estate or a shop in town, or fleeing the wharf overnight for a period of time would he be safe.

"You say this fish was chased by a wild creature in the river, stranded onshore, and you took advantage of it?"

"Do you think people will believe that?"

The youth from the Wang family grew irritated: "Every word I say is true. If you don’t want it, I’ll sell it to the martial artists at the dojo."

"Hold on, hold on, why are young folks so impatient these days? Fine, I’ll take the risk and buy your fish."

The fishery steward felt assured as the Jinmen Gang members had already surrounded them, taking advantage of his deliberate delay.

The youth sensed the sudden quietness in the crowd and looked back. He noticed over ten fierce-looking strangers had appeared within the inner circle.

Confident of his backing, the steward became even more brazen.

He repeatedly lowered the price, ultimately reducing the fish worth nearly two hundred silver coins to fifty.

Disheartened, the youth took the silver coins, exchanged them for five coins, and started distributing them publicly, asking the fishermen to act as witnesses to protect him.

As long as he left the wharf and reached Li Si’s jurisdiction, he would no longer fear the Jinmen Gang taking his silver coins.

The fishery steward watched with a smile, letting the fishermen escort the youth away.

A gang member approached: "Brother Cai, should we..."

The fishery master, Brother Cai, shook his head: "Leave some room, don’t push people too hard."

"We’ve earned quite a bit from the fish today. Young Master Yao has practiced martial arts for years and is about to start inner cultivation. He needs to replenish his energy with Spirit Fish, and he pays generously. Selling this Celestial Starfish will fetch at least two hundred silver coins."

The fishery steward stroked his moustache, brimming with self-satisfaction, when suddenly a gang member shouted: "A wild cat! Steward, beware, don’t let the cat steal your fish!"

The steward quickly lowered his head and saw a pitch-black cat grabbing his fish basket.

The fish basket dragged along the ground, spilling water as it moved.

The crowd reacted immediately, trying to block the black cat’s path, only to find the cat’s agility exceptional, darting through the crowd and escaping.

The black cat leaped to the fishery’s roof, then momentarily paused to glance back at the crowd beneath, seeming to wait for them to catch up.

The Jinmen Gang had many martial artists, and seven or eight of them followed suit, closing in on the roof.

With a blink, the black cat jumped down.

As it landed, an unexpected gust of wind whipped up a cloud of dust, blinding the gang members. As the dust settled, they searched around, finding no trace of the cat.

The fishery steward cursed aloud after a futile search.

"Damn cat, if caught, I’ll skin and crush its bones!"

At the Funeral Shop, Xu Qing looked at the vast space emerging from the Mountain and River Totem, feeling delighted.

That troublesome Emperor’s Purple Qi was finally disposed of.