Chu Ge turned around and saw Wang Xiuyun.
Her features were delicate, her eyes like a limpid pool of clear water. She was beautiful, with skin as smooth as jade. There was no denying that wealthy families really did have an easier time raising beauties.
Still, her sudden arrival caught Chu Ge by surprise.
As for this old friend, who in his previous life had almost become his childhood sweetheart, he felt rather indifferent toward her. The reason he hadn't paid her any mind was that, after crossing over, all his habits had changed.
Out of a sense of self-preservation, he kept his distance from anyone familiar to his predecessor whenever he could.
So when Wang Xiuyun mentioned that she had written to him in the past, he naturally hadn't replied.
But since he was a guest in her family's home, he still had to maintain the courtesies expected of him. With a smile, he explained that he'd been too engrossed in studying martial arts to notice her letters, and that he hadn't meant to distance himself from her.
"You've really changed a lot... It's like you've become a completely different person."
Wang Xiuyun watched the seemingly warm yet distant smile on Chu Ge's face. A flicker of confusion crossed her lovely features, but she quickly regained her composure.
"You said you've been engrossed in martial arts. Have you made any progress? It's been several years, so you should be close to entering the Bone Tempering stage, right?"
"Well... I'm almost there. Just a little short."
Chu Ge smiled faintly and shook his head.
Even Hu Xuezhi didn't know the extent of his strength, so why would he go around announcing it?
It wasn't that he refused to keep a low profile. It was a matter of whether there was any need to draw attention to himself.
Having lived two lives, he was mature and knew that there was always a stronger hand above the strong. Never boast in front of others. With care, one could travel the world; with recklessness, one couldn't take a single step.
But to Wang Xiuyun, his words sounded like a young man stubbornly trying to save face.
Chu Ge was just about to change the subject and ask about Spiritual Aptitude.
Just then, Wang Youcai approached the two of them with a hearty laugh. With a bold, magnanimous air, he took Chu Ge by the arm and reminisced with him, calling him "my worthy nephew" at every turn.
Chu Ge could only humor him. When Wang Youcai asked whether he had any business that needed help with transport, Chu Ge's thoughts stirred, and he smiled.
"Uncle Wang, I've actually been considering selling off my various assets in Linyuan City. If you're interested, I'd be happy to sell them to you."
"Oh?"
Wang Youcai was startled. On the surface, he looked taken aback and regretful, and tried to talk Chu Ge out of it. Inwardly, though, he was already doing the math.
In business, it was business: no talk of feelings, only money.
Wang Youcai seemed hearty and straightforward, but he saw this as a major business opportunity.
"You're selling your family's assets? Would your eldest sister agree?"
Wang Xiuyun asked in surprise. She only felt that she understood this man less and less.
Chu Ge shook his head. "Ever since my sister joined the Hidden Water Sect, I've inherited the family's assets. I can do as I please with them."
Wang Xiuyun was puzzled. "What do you need so much money for?"
Chu Ge didn't hide it. "I'm planning to leave Linyuan City and go to the prefectural city, just like you, to pursue martial arts. Learning martial arts takes a great deal of money."
Wang Xiuyun froze. She hadn't wanted to discourage her young companion or risk being misunderstood.
But seeing how fired up he was, she worried he might act too rashly, and couldn't help warning him. "Chu Ge, you have to understand that many people misjudge their martial arts talent and end up wasting a lot of resources and effort.
"Linyuan City is too small. There are many martial arts prodigies in the prefectural city, but even they rarely stake everything on it like this. You may want to think it over carefully."
"Hey!" Wang Youcai hurriedly cut in. "Xiuyun, how can you say that? Everyone has the right to pursue their dreams..."
He didn't want the deal to fall through.
At the same time, he was always careful to keep up appearances and maintain a cordial atmosphere.
Chu Ge could tell that Wang Xiuyun was genuinely trying to advise him, with no ill intent.
But he understood his own situation and would make his own arrangements. Of course, he wasn't going to take her advice to heart.
Before long, after Wang Youcai promised to give the matter careful consideration, Chu Ge politely took his leave, satisfied.
His main reason for coming this time had been to sell off his assets in Linyuan City.
Since Wang Youcai was interested, that was for the best.
As for the small Martial Arts gathering Wang Xiuyun had suggested at the end, he declined.
"Big Brother Chu... He's changed so much since he started practicing martial arts, and he's shut himself away too much.
"Maybe it would do him good to go out and see the world. Once he comes to his senses, I can try talking to him again."
Watching Chu Ge's departing figure, Wang Xiuyun sighed inwardly. She felt that martial arts might have ruined him.
Some people misjudged their own talent and took the wrong path. They walked into a dead end and wasted their whole lives.
She faintly remembered how spirited Chu Ge had been when they were close in the past. Later, she had left Linyuan City and seen more of the world, broadening her horizons.
Now, after returning, she saw a young man who had changed beyond recognition and grown ever more distant. All she could feel was regret and sorrow.
He'd wanted to buy osmanthus flowers and take them on a wine-filled outing, but it could never be like their carefree days of youth again.
Meanwhile.
Not long after leaving the Wang Family compound,
Chu Ge faintly sensed that someone was watching him.
The strange power inside the Shadow Lanterns hanging outside the carriage activated on its own, and the yellow paper in his waist pouch began to burn black.
"Interesting..."
Chu Ge traced a finger across the yellow paper. The strange power within it was immediately consumed. Since it was linked to the Shadow Lanterns, the paper soon showed what the lanterns had observed.
A charred-black figure appeared on the yellow paper.
To the southwest.
"Uncle Liu, turn into the alley."
Chu Ge instructed the coachman outside. He was about to climb out through the carriage window in the alley and track the person who was watching them from the shadows.
But just then, he made another discovery. As the carriage turned into the alley, the wind blew the curtain aside, revealing Constable Xiao Qin hiding around the corner of a nearby wall.
"Hmm? The yamen's already watching us?"
Chu Ge's thoughts stirred. He held back the urge to get out and track the spy, letting the carriage pass through the alley before turning onto another street.
At the same time, the feeling of being watched gradually faded. The spy had apparently left.
"Looks like it was someone from the Heaven and Earth Incense Cult. The Iron Token Envoy from that cult has probably realized that the Thirteen Golden Spear Bandits have gone missing."
Chu Ge made a rough guess.
The leader of the Thirteen Golden Spear Bandits, Fu Wei, had already admitted that he'd reported the operation before coming to rob him.
Now that the Thirteen Golden Spear Bandits had disappeared, the Iron Token Envoy would naturally suspect Chu Ge first—or one of the other wealthy merchants on the list.
Even if he wasn't sure whether Chu Ge alone had wiped out all his men, he would still send someone to keep an eye on him.
But Constable Xiao Qin's appearance proved that the County Yamen had begun paying close attention to the safety of wealthy merchants like them. Any suspicious person would be watched.
"The County Yamen's pretty capable after all—not just sitting around collecting dust. Looks like the City Guard Captain will be making a move soon, too."
After some thought, Chu Ge told Uncle Liu to change course and head for his own Fulailai Inn.
He planned to hang two Shadow Lanterns at the inn himself.
Fulailai Inn stood in the eastern part of the city, on the street diagonally opposite the County Yamen.
The four-story building towered above the surrounding structures. From up high, one could see far.
He only needed to hang Shadow Lanterns on the top floor of Fulailai Inn to keep an eye on the County Yamen's movements at all times.
That way, he would know as soon as City Guard Captain Tian Youji led his people to raid a Heaven and Earth Incense Cult hideout.
Before long, the carriage arrived at Fulailai Inn.
Seeing that it was the master's carriage, a quick-witted waiter immediately hurried over and offered his back as a mounting block.
Chu Ge casually tipped him ten copper coins, then told Uncle Liu he could head back.
He planned to stay at Fulailai Inn for the next few days.
Even when the inn was fully booked, the rooms on the top floor were never rented to guests. The manager usually stayed there, but now that the owner had arrived, the manager would naturally have to move out and sleep with the staff.
For the Shadow Lanterns to observe and relay what they saw, Chu Ge, the one controlling them through the yellow-paper medium, also had to be nearby.
Otherwise, the connection between their strange powers wasn't unlimited by distance; it could easily break.
Before you continue