Emotion Is a Knife

Xu Bai stopped in his tracks and looked around.

The street bustled with people, each busy with their own affairs. No one noticed what was happening here.

After making sure no one was around, he picked up the envelope from the ground and returned inside.

"Someone's handing me a love letter first thing in the morning?" Xu Bai muttered as he opened the envelope.

Inside was a clean sheet of white paper, covered in handwriting that looked like a dog had crawled across it.

As the saying went, one's handwriting reflected one's character.

The moment Xu Bai saw those words, he felt uncomfortable all over.

Ugly. Extremely ugly.

It looked as though the strokes had been cobbled together at random. If not for the fact that each stroke had been written one by one, he would not even have been able to make out the contents.

Was this postmodern style fashionable these days? Even if they did not want anyone recognizing their handwriting, there was no need to make it look this much like a dog's crawl.

It even affected his appetite.

First thing in the morning, Xu Bai's good mood for the day was gone.

Fortunately, his self-control was strong. He endured the discomfort and read the letter from beginning to end.

The very first sentence gave him an inexplicable sense of déjà vu.

"Sir, you wouldn't want others to know about what you've done, would you?"

Wait!

Xu Bai abruptly raised his head.

If he had not been in the Great Chu Kingdom, he might even have thought someone else had transmigrated just like him.

Forget it. He should keep reading.

"More than a dozen lives. Your saber skill is indeed exquisite. In fact, someone has already set their sights on you, but fortunately, I covered it up for you."

Covered it up? Xu Bai stroked his chin. It seemed this person's intentions were far from simple.

"At midnight tonight, let us talk at the Blacksmith Shop."

That was the end of the letter.

Xu Bai placed the paper on the table and sighed.

How ridiculous. Why were they pulling this threatening routine on him now?

It was like kidnappers taking a hostage—after demanding ransom, they would still have to kill the hostage.

Only an idiot would believe them.

"I shouldn't have left any flaws, aside from using a saber." Xu Bai thought for a moment, lightly tapping the table with his fingers. "Right. There were also the wounds."

As he carefully sorted through it all, Xu Bai finally discovered the anomaly.

There was no such thing as a perfectly flawless crime scene. At last, he had thought of a loophole.

The wounds left by hidden weapons.

"As expected, I'm still too inexperienced in the ways of the world. Next time, I'll burn everything in one fire," Xu Bai thought to himself.

A fall into the pit, a gain in wit. If he got another chance, he felt it would be better to simply burn it all.

"This Blacksmith Shop has grown greedy." Xu Bai read through the letter once more before burning it with a single flame.

He had even paid them silver back then and told them not to speak of it, yet now they had turned around and threatened him.

The sunlight outside the window was warm, but Xu Bai's heart was ice-cold as he gripped the Ghost-Head Saber.

After all, he had come from an age of peace. When it came to ordinary people, Xu Bai had softened his heart once.

"After this, I can't soften my heart again."

His voice echoed through the dim room. His state of mind was changing.

Night fell.

Accompanied by the sound of the watchman's bronze gong, Xu Bai opened his door and stepped onto the dark street.

He still wore his usual clothes, with the Ghost-Head Saber still hanging at his waist. He walked through the deserted streets, winding around twisting roads before finally stopping outside a shop.

At this moment, the shop's lights had already been extinguished.

Xu Bai raised his foot and kicked the door open.

The shop was pitch-black.

As the door was kicked open, an oil lamp inside was lit.

The flame was weak, casting mottled shadows.

"I knew you would come, sir." The proprietress and the blacksmith sat in their chairs, calmly waiting.

Xu Bai entered the room and sneered. "Since you knew I'd figure it out, why take your pants off just to fart and put on this whole act?"

"We only want money." The proprietress smiled.

Though she was smiling, mockery lingered in her eyes.

They had already invited him into the jar. Yet the man before them remained so composed.

Was he putting on an act?

Perhaps.

But no matter what, they had to have the money.

"Let's skip the unnecessary words. We only want money. And don't even think about making a move—we have someone else. If anything happens to us, he'll report it to the authorities at once." The proprietress spread her hands as she spoke.

A threat, along with revealing her backup plan—put together, the proprietress believed the other party could not remain unmoved.

After all, although Sheng County liked to muddle things over, it would still eat meat delivered right to its mouth.

Xu Bai tossed down a silver ingot.

The ingot landed on the floor and rolled in circles several times.

Silence fell over the room.

Veins bulged on the proprietress's forehead. "One silver ingot? Are you trying to fob off beggars? When you had those Iron Beads forged, you were lavish with your money—you did not even blink."

"Who carries a large amount of money on them?" Xu Bai gripped the hilt of the Ghost-Head Saber. "Would you?"

"What do you mean?" the blacksmith beside her asked in a muffled voice.

"I have a hundred silver ingots, but I buried them somewhere very secret. If you don't give me time, how am I supposed to retrieve them?" Xu Bai raised one finger.

At those words, the proprietress and the blacksmith exchanged glances.

"Fine. We'll give you one more day."

The proprietress quickly spoke.

With things having reached this point, she did not believe Xu Bai could pull any tricks.

First, when Xu Bai had entered, she had explicitly stated that someone else was working with them. If Xu Bai made a move, the matter would be exposed.

That alone could cut off any thought Xu Bai had of killing them to silence them.

Second, neither of them was easy prey.

If they had not been wanted by the authorities, they might even have considered killing him and taking his goods.

Of course, they would not do that now, because Xu Bai still had silver hidden away.

"That works. In one day, I'll bring the silver here." Xu Bai nodded and turned to leave.

Throughout the entire exchange, he had not uttered a single harsh word, nor had he even tried to argue.

Things had gone smoothly, almost unexpectedly so.

"Oh, right. Are you two people of the martial world?" Xu Bai suddenly turned back and asked.

The unexpected question stunned the proprietress, and she nodded instinctively.

"Good. People of the martial world should have some sense of honor too. I'll treat this as using money to ward off disaster." Xu Bai left those final words behind and turned away.

The night deepened, and Xu Bai's figure vanished into the darkness.

After Xu Bai left, the Blacksmith Shop fell silent once again.

The proprietress said nothing, as though she were pondering something.

Then the blacksmith spoke first.

"I feel very uneasy. That last look in his eyes before he left made the hairs on my body stand on end."

Whenever he thought of that calm gaze, the blacksmith felt a chill creep through him.

"But he showed no resentment. He was not even angry." The proprietress frowned.

"I remember a saying: emotions are a knife. They wound others and wound oneself. Only those who can hide their emotions are the ones wielding the knife." The blacksmith stood and swung his hand forcefully. "No matter what, once we get the money, we must kill him. As long as we do it cleanly, we won't draw the authorities here."

"Until then, keep a close watch on him," the proprietress added.

The two reached an agreement and nodded together.

"Even if he's an Eighth Rank Martial Artist, with you here, we can restrain him—especially those hidden weapons of his." The proprietress leaned against the blacksmith, her smile deepening.

By then, Xu Bai had already returned home.