Miss Shuyu had three cosmetic boxes. One was made of ceramic and usually held mirrors, combs, hairpins, hair clasps, scented powder, rouge, and other delicate things—ordinary items women used to dress themselves up. Another, a large lacquered cosmetic box, was piled with expensive silk brocades, woven gauze, and satin. Judging by its appearance, most of those had probably been gifts from customers.
As for the Yin Ghost Jade, it was kept in the silver cosmetic box. The moment Xu Qing opened it, a dazzling array of jewels and treasures came rushing into view. Inside were nothing but valuable items—gold and silver jewelry, agate, jade bracelets, and the like.
But he had no interest in such things. He was no highway robber.
Besides, thieves did not steal from the sick, and robbers did not rob prostitutes. Even the great thieves of the world would rarely come to a brothel to steal things, because that would be far too humiliating!
Xu Qing could not be called a great thief, but he had no interest in pulling off the despicable act of stealing from a prostitute and freeloading.
By the bed, Miss Shuyu remained completely unaware of everything else. She merely panted coquettishly and instructed her personal maid, "Huan'er, put in some effort. Push the great man back a little. Don't leave all the work to me."
Meanwhile, Xu Qing turned a deaf ear to the affairs taking place in the bedchamber and simply reached into the cosmetic box, rummaging around. Yet no matter how he searched, he could not touch the Yin Ghost Jade.
Something was wrong. He was absolutely certain that the Yin Ghost Jade was hidden among these glittering treasures. The burst of baleful energy that had spilled from the cosmetic box earlier could not have deceived him.
How could he be unable to find it?
Xu Qing cast the Qi Gazing Technique again, only to discover that the slippery object, so dark green it was almost black and resembling black jade, was actually avoiding his hand, playing hide-and-seek with him inside the tiny cosmetic box.
He searched back and forth, and the dark-green jade pendant circled around his hand, darting into every nook and cranny. It was practically a mole rat that could burrow underground!
After fumbling around for quite some time, Xu Qing was actually laughed into a fit of irritation. So it was not that he could not find the thing—it was afraid of him! The moment it saw him, it acted like a mouse that had spotted a cat, terrified that it might fall into his hands!
"Who are you hiding from, your father?"
Xu Qing grabbed at it for a while but failed to catch it. Irritated, he simply scooped out all the jewelry from the cosmetic box, leaving only the Yin Ghost Jade cowering in one corner.
Even then, it still tried to fly out of the cosmetic box, but the shameless Xu Qing caught it in one clench of his hand.
The gambling ghost that had been nurtured inside the Yin Ghost Jade could no longer hold itself back. It drilled out of the jade pendant and tried to possess the person before it, only to discover that the other party was like a solid iron lump, leaving it nowhere to enter.
How could Xu Qing know what tricks the gambling ghost inside the Yin Ghost Jade possessed? When he saw that it refused to give up and repeatedly rammed itself into his body, he instinctively activated the baleful energy within him to defend himself.
After several exchanges, the Ghostly Shadow dissipated, while the Yin Ghost Jade took the opportunity to absorb all the shattered ghostly spiritual energy.
Xu Qing watched as the last trace of green faded from the jade pendant. The Yin Ghost Jade had now turned as black as ink.
The Corpse Nurturing Scripture records that Yin Ghost Jade is divided into three grades. Low-grade quality is emerald green, middle-grade is deep green, and high-grade is ink green.
This Yin Ghost Jade had probably been fed by the gambling ghost until it became a supreme-grade piece.
Xu Qing clicked his tongue in amazement. Fortunately, Zhang Jun's bootlicking nature had been even stronger. If it had been anyone else, they might truly have found it difficult to withstand the gambling ghost's temptation.
Yin Ghost Jade, Old Cat Sha, Ghost Face Soil Three Feet Below Grave.
Now that he had this jade, he could begin refining and nurturing the Silver Armored Corpse. He simply did not know whether his feng shui treasure residence had produced any Ghost-faced Soil.
After putting away the jade pendant, Xu Qing felt, before leaving the pavilion, that he could not be like a Free Rider and take a lady's hair-combing gift for nothing.
After thinking it over, he took out a Great Strength Pill, scraped off a layer, and poured it into the teapot.
That old lecher already struggled to climb onto the kang. With this enhanced tea, he could at least let the lady properly experience the flavor of an eighty-year-old youth.
Helping others was a joy, and merit was boundless. Xu Qing felt that he had taken another step toward becoming a sage through accumulated merit.
On the way back to Xiangyin Small Pavilion, constables from the Patrol Office had come to clean up the scene and were investigating the area.
Xu Qing looked toward the main hall from afar, but he could no longer see Zuo Zixiong or Bai Luo. Instead, more than a dozen corpses lay sprawled across the ground in utter disarray.
Most of them were dressed like underlings of the Tianxin Cult, though a few corpses belonged to guards at the Crown Prince's side.
The Martial Commandant led the garrison soldiers in sealing off the scene, while people from the Patrol Office were checking the identities of the customers.
Before Xu Qing had even returned to Xiangyin Small Pavilion, the soldiers had brought him into the main hall as well.
Most of the men inside the hall were wearing nothing but undershirts and underpants. Few of the women from Shuhuang Pavilion had been brought here.
Xu Qing found Zhu Huai'an, who was wrapped in nothing but a thin quilt from head to toe. Beside the little fatty, the Wu Family Brothers, their necks covered in lip and teeth marks, were wearing only underpants and chatting idly.
The mental fortitude of these three was truly extraordinary. Was this really the time to be chatting?
"Did you fellows sleep well?"
"Oh, Brother Xu is here. We just woke up, and then we heard that the Crown Prince had been assassinated by criminals."
"Exactly. If we had known about it, my cousin and I would definitely have come out to protect the Crown Prince. How could we have stood by and watched His Highness the Crown Prince suffer a fright?"
"Indeed, the Tianxin Cult is simply too vile!"
The few of them chimed in one after another, resolutely putting on the appearance of a group of concerned, upstanding citizens.
When the constables finally came close to them, Zhu Huai'an still did not panic in the slightest.
"Relax, everyone. With me here, they won't dare make things difficult for us."
Xu Qing watched as the Patrol Office constable captain, who had clearly come with him as his target, walked straight over. He thought, Little fatty, you'd better show some usefulness. Don't let this oaf really send us to jail for a few days.
Fortunately, Zhu Huai'an did not disappoint him.
"My father is King Changting. These men are my brothers."
Young Master Zhu Huai'an had added another stroke to his reputation today. It had long been rumored throughout the streets that the only son of that Prince of a Different Surname from Jinmen was a wastrel, spending his days either carrying a birdcage and teasing birds or visiting brothels to listen to songs.
Now that the Crown Prince had come here in disguise, the Heir Apparent had created another new joke right under the Crown Prince's nose.
"King Changting? That's the man who was granted a princely estate equivalent to the Three Judicial Offices and once commanded the armies of the realm! Who would have thought that the few of us would actually get the chance to visit a brothel together with the Heir Apparent of a Prince of a Different Surname?"
On the way back to Jingxia Street, Wu Wencai's steps were unsteady, and he still felt that everything he had seen and experienced that day was like a dream.
Wu Zhiyuan sighed when he heard this. "What a pity. King Changting's achievements are extraordinary, and I have always revered him. Brother Zhu, His Highness the Heir Apparent, should not have humiliated his father's reputation like this."
At this point, Xu Qing, who had remained silent all along, suddenly spoke.
"Zhiyuan, that isn't entirely true. You only consider King Changting's illustrious accomplishments, but have you ever thought about how his achievements might overshadow the sovereign? Young Master Zhu previously joked that his father and uncle visited a brothel together. He also completely played the part of a spoiled young master. But was he truly disgracing himself of his own accord?"
Wu Zhiyuan was rendered speechless. Only after a long while did he say somewhat dejectedly, "That's right. I only considered King Changting's accomplishments and failed to think of that. But is Young Master Zhu really acting? And if so, were our actions with him today also merely a performance?"
Beside them, Wu Wencai furrowed his brows and interrupted their speculation. "As long as Brother Zhu doesn't look down on our backgrounds, why should we care about his identity as the Heir Apparent? Even if we never associate again in the future, the person who made friends with us today was simply Brother Zhu. Why are you thinking so much?"
Xu Qing laughed helplessly. He had never expected Wu Wencai to be such a man of feeling.
"Wencai is right. Let's stop thinking about all this nonsense. The thing you two should be thinking about right now is how to explain those plum-blossom marks on your necks to Old Wu when you get back."
"You can't exactly say that mosquitoes bit us, can you?" Xu Qing teased, his face full of mockery.
"We're doomed! If Father discovers this, I'll die of shame on the spot."
"It's over. Uncle has a loose tongue. If word reaches my mother's ears, I'm afraid I'll be in for it too."
"Cousin, quickly smell me and see whether I have any rouge powder on me."
"Wencai, check whether there are still any marks on my neck."
Xu Qing paid no attention to the two men descending into chaos and kept walking until he returned to his shop.
He was alone, with no ties or burdens. Naturally, he would not linger in place like the Wu Family Brothers.
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