"Boss Li, you're quite the lucky man."
The moment he came out, Ye Fan's voice came from across the counter. He was sitting on the tall stool in front of the counter, flipping through Li Zhi's Huangdi Neijing.
"Why haven't you left yet?" Li Zhi asked.
"Boss Li, I'm not a peeping tom. On the contrary, I stopped quite a few customers who might have disturbed your elegant mood. You should be thanking me." Ye Fan grinned.
Li Zhi was slightly stunned, then looked at Ye Fan strangely.
No wonder Ye Fan would later be known as Ye Hei.
That shameless ability to spout nonsense without changing expression wasn't something he had developed only after stepping into the cultivation world.
It was no wonder he would be able to achieve financial freedom soon after graduating from university.
"Student Ye, you came back after leaving. You're not here to buy something, are you?" Li Zhi also pulled a chair over from behind the counter and sat opposite Ye Fan.
Ye Fan nodded. "Boss Li is indeed wise."
Then his eyes lit up as he said, "I want to buy that Oracle Bone Script calligraphy you have."
His instincts told him that calligraphy was very important, as if it possessed some kind of magical power.
Ye Fan had loved books about "seeking the extraordinary" since childhood, and he was deeply fascinated by the description in the Huangdi Neijing that "the people of ancient times all lived to be over a hundred."
However, because of his age and limited experience, he had never come into contact with the circle of cultivators. That did not stop him from paying attention to such matters.
Earlier, when Li Zhi had brought out that piece of Oracle Bone Script, Ye Fan had felt something strange stir in his heart.
Although he had only glanced at it, that single glance had been enough to move his heart.
Those incomprehensible words seemed to transform into bizarre, dazzling worlds that assaulted his mind.
After accompanying Li Xiaoman and the others around for more than ten minutes, Ye Fan could no longer suppress his curiosity. He took the opportunity to slip away and returned to Li Zhi's shop alone.
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Inside the Antique Style Jewelry Shop,
two grown men stared at each other across the counter.
"Student Ye Fan, I believe I said earlier that this is a priceless treasure and isn't for sale." Li Zhi cleared his throat.
"Don't you want to figure out the true meaning of those Oracle Bone Script characters as soon as possible?" Ye Fan looked as if he was determined to obtain that piece of writing.
"You recognize those Oracle Bone Script characters?" Li Zhi looked at Ye Fan in surprise. Even archaeology professors who specialized in Inscription studies couldn't recognize them. Could Ye Fan really identify them?
Ye Fan said, "To be honest, Boss Li, one of my neighbors when I was little was a Taoist priest. I once saw books written in Bronze Script at his place. I don't recognize them, but I can ask my neighbor for help."
It was impossible to tell whether he was telling the truth. But seeing Ye Fan's confident expression, Li Zhi subconsciously felt that perhaps Ye Fan really had a way to decipher the writing.
As the absolute protagonist of the Shrouding the Heavens World, it was normal for Ye Fan to have connections Li Zhi knew nothing about.
However, Li Zhi wasn't going to hand the writing over to Ye Fan so easily.
Instead, he said, "Student Ye Fan, if you really have the ability to decipher the meaning of those Oracle Bone Script characters, I might even give you that piece of calligraphy. However, words are cheap. Shouldn't you leave something behind?"
A brilliant smile appeared on Ye Fan's face. "Boss Li really is an interesting man. I wonder, would it count if I kept what I saw just now in my heart?"
Li Zhi smiled as well. "What do you think?"
Ye Fan then said solemnly, "Boss Li, perhaps I should remind you of something. When you're enjoying yourself, you must choose the right person. That lady boss next door seems to be married, doesn't she? I never thought you had a bit of Cao Cao's style in you, Boss Li."
Li Zhi's expression changed drastically. He had been too busy dealing with Zhou Mei's eager advances to remember that she had a husband.
Now that Ye Fan had brought it up, he immediately felt a splitting headache.
In the past, he had kept his distance from Zhou Mei in every possible way precisely because he feared something like this happening.
But these past few days, his mind had been restless, and Zhou Mei had actually taken advantage of the opening.
Moreover, this kind-faced, black-hearted fellow, Ye Fan, was using the matter to threaten him.
"Haha, Little Brother Ye, let's talk this over. A man's romantic escapades are like passing clouds. What matters is the process, not the result." Li Zhi immediately acted as if he didn't care, and even seemed to regard it as an honor.
Ye Fan secretly despised him. Did he turn his back on her the moment he pulled up his pants, or am I already out of touch with the times? Are people out there really this wild?
However, he didn't echo Li Zhi. Instead, he kept staring at him with the clear yet foolish eyes of a college student.
Li Zhi began to feel uneasy under Ye Fan's stare.
He sighed inwardly, then took a sheet of white paper from beneath the counter in front of Ye Fan and wrote two sentences in Oracle Bone Script. Together, they contained fifteen characters.
"I'll give you half a month. If you can decipher these two sentences, I'll give you that piece of writing." Li Zhi pushed the sheet covered in fifteen Oracle Bone Script characters in front of Ye Fan and said seriously.
Ye Fan picked up the paper and examined it carefully. His brows drew tightly together, but he still couldn't make heads or tails of it.
Yet his instincts told him that the writing was extremely important. If he missed it, he might lose a supreme treasure.
Ye Fan tore off the lower half of the white paper, wrote his phone number on it, and handed it to Li Zhi. "Boss Li, this is my phone number. I'll notify you the moment I have news."
Li Zhi took the number. "Ye Fan, I have to remind you of something. That writing really is a priceless treasure. You'd better keep it confidential and not reveal it casually. If your leak brings disaster upon you, don't blame me for not warning you."
"Don't worry, Boss Li. I know what matters." Ye Fan nodded.
"Then I'll await your good news," Li Zhi said.
After watching Ye Fan leave with the note, Li Zhi sat behind the counter with his chin propped in both hands and thought for a long time.
Ye Fan truly was extraordinary when it came to seizing opportunities at a glance.
At the very least, Pang Bo, Li Xiaoman, and Xia Siyu, who had come with him and had clamored to see the writing, had failed to realize its true value.
Yet Ye Fan had returned after leaving, going so far as to use "threats" to force Li Zhi to yield.
In fact, even without Ye Fan "pressuring" him, Li Zhi had already planned to find an opportunity to reveal the writing to Ye Fan.
He also hoped to borrow Ye Fan's abilities to decipher it.
After all, Ye Fan's life was tough enough. This little trouble shouldn't be able to stump him.
Afterward, Li Zhi spent ten days in anticipation and anxiety.
During that time, Ye Fan never called him.
It left Li Zhi with no heart to study.
That afternoon, the sun blazed overhead, and there was hardly a single customer on the pedestrian street.
The shops on both sides of the street were also empty.
Some had even drawn their sunshades inside to block the sunlight.
The Antique Style Jewelry Shop happened to be directly exposed to the afternoon sun, so Li Zhi simply pulled down the rolling shutter outside for the time being.
Inside the shop, the cold air from the air conditioner kept the temperature exceptionally comfortable.
But Li Zhi didn't lie down to rest in the recliner behind the counter.
Instead, he was working hard in the Storage Room.
Ever since Zhou Mei had taken advantage of his moment of weakness, that Storage Room seemed to have become their private entertainment venue.
Whenever she found an opportunity, Zhou Mei would come over to visit.
Having tasted its pleasures to the marrow, the two naturally wouldn't let any chance to spar and exchange pointers slip by.
At that moment, Zhou Mei, her face full of bliss, rose from Li Zhi's body with overflowing affection and asked, "Darling Li, have you been taking medicine these past two days? You've made my legs go weak."
Li Zhi patted his sturdy chest. "Mei'er, who do you think you're looking down on? With my physique, do I even need medicine?"
In truth, Li Zhi knew his own condition. The reason he had become increasingly frenzied was simply to conceal the growing restlessness in his heart, seeking brief moments of comfort from Zhou Mei again and again.
Zhou Mei reached out and caressed Li Zhi's abdominal muscles. "I'm worried you'll hurt yourself."
Li Zhi pulled Zhou Mei into his arms and whispered into her ear, "Actually, I..."
Just then, the phone he had placed on the table beside them suddenly rang.
When he saw that Ye Fan was calling, Li Zhi immediately released Zhou Mei, grabbed the phone, and answered.
His voice even trembled slightly. "Hello?"
"Boss Li, I've translated those two sentences. They mean: 'The Way of Heaven lies in sacrifice; the Way of sacrifice lies in understanding principle; the Way of understanding principle lies in breathing.' It should be the opening summary of a Breathing Technique."
Ye Fan's voice over the phone was also slightly excited. Without wasting a single word, he directly told Li Zhi what he most wanted to know.
From Ye Fan's voice, Li Zhi could sense that he was also extremely curious about this breathing technique recorded in Oracle Bone Script.
"Are you at school? I'll go deliver that piece of writing to you right now." Li Zhi then forcibly suppressed the excitement in his heart, his legs trembling slightly.
He failed to notice the trace of worry in Zhou Mei's eyes as she was left neglected to the side.
"I'm not at school right now. Boss Li, I'll be returning to school tomorrow. I'll go to your shop to pick up the writing." Ye Fan continued.
"All right, I'll wait for you." Li Zhi spoke with excitement.
After hanging up, Li Zhi grabbed Zhou Mei and hugged her, then happily kissed her hard.
He then said, "Mei'er, do you know? This is the happiest day I've had in years."
Zhou Mei had never seen Li Zhi genuinely happy before, so she said, "Then let's celebrate properly today. Later, we'll go to Bright Moon City by the Sea."
Bright Moon City by the Sea was a newly opened super entertainment complex in the city, combining dining, leisure, and entertainment.
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