At that moment, amid the swirling yellow sand.
In the silence, old Madam Evelyn's pupils shifted slightly, as though she had awakened from a long slumber.
Yet there was no confusion or bewilderment in those eyes.
The instant she saw Huai Shi, her eyelids lifted slightly.
"Hmm? Is that you?"
Evelyn sighed in realization. "I see..."
It was as though she had understood something in that instant, yet she was not particularly shocked and said nothing more.
She lowered her head to sniff the tobacco in the tin, packed it into her pipe, and only after taking her time did she speak softly. "Well, well. You really pulled a fancy trick right under this old lady's nose."
Sensing the deeper meaning in her words, Huai Shi instinctively shrank back a little, wanting to explain himself.
"The reasons behind it are truly hard to explain in a few words..."
"It doesn't matter. I'm dead anyway. The affairs of the living have nothing to do with me. You, on the other hand, will probably have a harder time ahead."
Evelyn tilted her head, drew a breath, lit her pipe, slowly exhaled a wisp of smoke, and suddenly asked:
"Is she well?"
"She?" Huai Shi was stunned.
Then he realized that the gaze behind the smoke had suddenly turned sharp.
Like a blade pointed at some scumbag.
Brightly gleaming.
Huai Shi involuntarily straightened his back and answered loudly, "Thank you for your concern, ma'am. She eats well and sleeps soundly!"
"Oh."
Evelyn nodded slightly, then asked, "And her?"
"..."
After a brief silence, Huai Shi wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and smiled ingratiatingly. "The same."
"The same, is it?"
Evelyn's sigh became meaningful once more, making Huai Shi increasingly nervous beneath her gaze.
But in the end, the old lady suddenly