Buying and Selling

Strictly speaking, Luo Qiu did not count as an orphan, because he had a legal guardian and a relative.

That was his father's second wife—in simpler terms, his stepmother.

So she really was a stepmother...

However, topics like that never came up in Luo Qiu's words or his life.

Because when he looked at the woman who worked tirelessly day and night for him, the woman who seemed determined to give him all her maternal love, Luo Qiu still acknowledged her.

Of course, if the owner of the name added to his household register—the woman who was his legal "mother"—had not been in the most beautiful years of a woman's life, Luo Qiu felt he might have been more willing to call her "Mom."

People were creatures who grew accustomed to—or habitually avoided—sorrow, and they also grew accustomed to the people around them.

In theory, no one should yearn for loneliness.

"But why do I?"

Luo Qiu wrote "Going out" on a sticky note, then stuck it to the refrigerator door. He left the house while the weather was still cool.

It was the weekend, and there were no classes at the university. He only wanted to be alone and quiet. That was all.

The morning streets had already begun to bustle.

It was probably because people were taking advantage of the weekend to go out early.

Fathers took their daughters out to have fun, elderly couples held hands as they strolled along the riverbank, some people planned to exercise over the weekend and feel the vigor of life, while others had already begun their day's work.

All kinds of people appeared in Luo Qiu's field of vision, then vanished again, like actors on the stage of a grand opera house—as if they had been born to be top-tier actors, playing their respective roles.

Luo Qiu was accustomed to observing, but not to speaking. He wanted to explore what people were thinking, yet did not wish to come into excessive contact with them.

What was this, exactly?

A belated period of youthful confusion and contradiction?

He only wanted to be alone and quiet... But the area around him was beginning to grow lively, so Luo Qiu shook his head and walked toward the shopping street, whose shops should not have officially opened yet.

It should be quieter at this time. Perhaps he would find one or two pedestrians and observe them properly?

He plugged his earphones into his phone and listened to some unpopular songs. Before he knew it, Luo Qiu had entered the pedestrian street.

Just as he had expected, most of the shops here were still closed or only half-open. The few that had opened were merely one or two places selling breakfast buns and the like.

Luo Qiu bought two steamed buns and sat down on a bench at the edge of the street... It seemed no one was paying attention to him, even though he looked rather strange sitting there alone.

--"Trafford Buyers Club"--

That name suddenly entered Luo Qiu's field of vision.

It was not as though he remembered every object around him, but a shop with such a strange name should have left some impression on him, shouldn't it?

The sign was made up of individual characters pieced together. The entire storefront was wooden. On the left stood an Oil Lamp with a strong European flavor, while the other side had a relatively clear display window.

He could barely make out some small ornaments inside the display window, and they drew Luo Qiu inside.

A gorgeously dressed doll, a small pendulum clock that seemed to have stopped moving, an artwork resembling a grizzly bear's paw, and a battered fisherman's hat that nevertheless possessed a peculiar appeal.

"Customer, would you like to come in and have a look?"

Just as Luo Qiu stood by the display window, examining the strange decorations, a voice suddenly appeared beside him.

It was an exceptionally pale girl who appeared to be about his age.

Black and white—the eternal colors of Gothic Maid attire. The woman had an overall sickly beauty to her. But Luo Qiu had no more time to pay attention to that.

He was looking at her sapphire-blue eyes. They were truly captivating, like gems imbued with a strange magic.

Like whirlpools.

By the time Luo Qiu came to his senses, he had already entered the strange club. He could not even remember how he had walked inside.

It was like the sudden scene change in a movie.

"Customer, please have some tea."

The girl with sapphire-like eyes, a slender figure, and a Gothic Maid outfit—actually not uncommon in this era—brought Luo Qiu a cup of flower tea.

"Hibiscus tea can help you feel at ease, customer. Only when people feel at ease can they think of what they truly need."

"Oh... are you the only one working here?"

Luo Qiu really could not think of what to say. But since he had somehow wandered in, he decided to go with the flow. Looking without buying anything was hardly unusual.

It was just that this strange shop had aroused a curiosity in Luo Qiu unlike anything before.

Although he had come inside, he still had no idea what the place actually sold.

"No. As for the master, he will come out to discuss things with you shortly." The girl smiled faintly before walking into the back room.

The master? Was that the owner's particular taste?

Heh...

Luo Qiu shook his head and began to examine everything inside.

The interior seemed to continue the style of the display window outside. Everything was strange, seemingly completely mismatched, yet not at all awkward when placed together. Instead, it all carried an air of mystery.

The area where the shop received its customers resembled the fortune-telling rooms Luo Qiu had seen in the West. The overall colors were dim, and the lighting did not even come from incandescent bulbs. Instead, white candles stood properly inserted into candleholders.

It seemed the owner had indeed put considerable thought into this place.

The wait lasted somewhat longer than Luo Qiu had expected, but his curiosity kept him there. His attention had already been drawn to the object on the display cabinet beside him.

It was two beads fixed one above the other by a stand. They were crimson, like some kind of gemstones, and enclosed within an exquisite glass container.

For some reason, Luo Qiu imagined them as moons in the night sky. But when he wondered how two moons—especially crimson ones—could appear in the sky, he could not help laughing.

"Do you like this pair of 'Crimson Moon'?"

At last, he heard another voice besides the girl's. This must be the so-called owner who had been so slow to appear.

Luo Qiu turned around and saw a neatly groomed, well-dressed middle-aged man—or, more accurately, a middle-aged foreign man.

Unlike the Maid attendant, his eyes were a murky gray... And he spoke the local language with remarkable fluency. If one did not look at him, it would probably be impossible to guess that he was a foreigner.

The fact that he was also a very handsome middle-aged man was quite striking...

"I'm just looking." Luo Qiu answered instinctively.

Like the Maid attendant, the owner gave Luo Qiu a mysterious feeling.

The owner smiled faintly, walked to the display cabinet, and gently lifted out the glass container.

Looking at Luo Qiu, he said, "This pair of 'Crimson Moon' is something possessed only by the people of a tribe that once lived on the ancient continent of Latin America. Whenever members of this tribe experienced unbearable sorrow, fury, or joy, their eyeballs would transform into this beautiful crimson color. Under the night moon, they would even emit a wondrous radiance. Of course, that tribe has gone extinct... wiped out because of these beautiful eyeballs. This may be the only surviving pair of 'Crimson Moon' in the world."

Those were eyeballs?

Luo Qiu froze. He felt he was listening to an utterly ridiculous story. More ridiculous still was the fact that he had listened to the whole thing.

Yet the owner's manner of appearing had been rather unusual, so Luo Qiu instead asked, "If they're so precious, how much do you plan to sell them for, Owner?"

The owner chuckled. "You, customer, must set the price yourself. This is a buyers' club, after all... So if you want this pair of 'Crimson Moon,' please take out something you believe to be suitable. And let me add one more thing: we do not accept currency of any kind."

So... this was a strange shop run by a lunatic of an owner?

"Don't you like it?"

The owner did not seem disappointed. He put the item away, then warmly pulled Luo Qiu back into his seat. "Then let us discuss what you would like to buy, customer."

"What I would like to buy..." Luo Qiu laughed. "I don't even know what this place sells."

Shaking his head, Luo Qiu stood up. "Sorry for the trouble, but I don't think there's anything I want to buy... Of course, this shop is very special. If I have the time, I should come back and take another look."

"Anything can be bought here. As long as you are willing, anything can be bought... Of course, you must pay a sufficient price. So... what is it that you want, customer?"

The owner simply sat there quietly, wearing an extraordinary confidence and smile as he silently watched Luo Qiu.

Today did not seem to be as boring as usual.

Luo Qiu looked into the owner's eyes and lost himself for a moment.

What did he truly want?

Luo Qiu instinctively pondered the question... The surroundings grew utterly tranquil, so quiet that Luo Qiu felt at ease.

This place... It was as though it had become another world. He could see the pedestrians outside... but those pedestrians seemed never to notice its existence.

He watched them alone, watching, watching, watching...

"This place... I want this place."

Luo Qiu slowly voiced the thought in his mind.

Of course, only a moment later, it was as if he had awakened. He sensed that everything here was bizarre beyond belief and suddenly broke into a cold sweat.

The owner's expression abruptly turned strange. There seemed to be delight, anticipation, and above all... urgency.

"Respected customer, one of the rules of the 'Trafford Buyers Club' is that once you state what you want, the transaction enters the procedure. If you do not state what you are willing to pay, I will set the price myself. Therefore... as you wish. I will sell you the 'Trafford Buyers Club,' with your freedom as the price of the transaction..."

The world seemed to turn completely upside down, and darkness devoured everything around him.

Before Luo Qiu, an ancient parchment slowly unfurled. He could not even make out the writing on it, but he saw his name begin to appear on the parchment, stroke by stroke.

Then it caught fire.

It burned rapidly.

Darkness swallowed him.