I was exhausted and didn't care whether Chen Kai was kneeling or calling me "father." I simply gave some brief instructions: "Supervisor Chen, if I'm not mistaken, there should be a coffin under the pit. If you plan to bury everything there, you might as well bury the statue of Fang Xiang as well."
"Of course, my suggestion is to dig out the coffin and report it to the relevant authorities. That way, you, Mr. Zhang, and everyone else will benefit."
The Wǒng Xiàng (魍象) is a fierce beast, and ordinary people would avoid it. Burying it here would only be an act of revenge—like grinding its bones to dust and not allowing it to rest in peace. This was why I was certain there was a coffin under the pit. The fact that the Wǒng Xiàng had gained power even buried deep underground indicated that the site had a very long history. I had studied for a few years, and I knew it might be a piece of cultural heritage.
Having said my piece, what Chen Kai decided to do was up to him.
At this point, Huang Jiu had returned to normal and jumped back into the cat bag. My uncle was about to take back the Golden Money Sword and leave when Chen Kai held it tightly in his hands, stammering, "Master Li, can I buy this Golden Money Sword from you?"
I noticed that the sword my uncle was carrying wasn't the one I had taken from Liu Changxuan's apprentice—it was only slightly better than the street vendor's goods. Holding it in his hand was just for a sense of reassurance.
Before my uncle could respond, I casually said, "Supervisor Chen, the tools we use are expensive. This one my uncle carries was consecrated by a Heavenly Master. It's a rare item."
Upon hearing this, Chen Kai tightened his grip on the sword and said, "Master Li, just name a price."
Since I was just bluffing, I wasn't worried about asking too high a price. I casually said, "One hundred thousand, not a penny less."
My uncle was startled, but before either of us could exchange a glance, Chen Kai shakily pulled out his phone and was about to transfer the money via online banking.
It wasn't that he was scared of the price—it was clearly his fear of what had just happened. No wonder real estate is a get-rich-quick industry—Chen Kai, a safety supervisor, didn't bat an eye when pulling out one hundred thousand.
My uncle hesitated for a moment but, unable to resist my hint, took out his phone and accepted the payment.
Chen Kai didn't dare stay alone on the construction site and followed us out to the gate. Just as we got into the car, we heard him calling the foreman. He was a completely different person now, shouting, "I'm giving you five minutes. Get your people over here to start working, or you're fired!"
I suddenly felt that one hundred thousand wasn't enough.
Such is society—some live in deep valleys, while others live in tall towers; some are rusted through, while others shine brightly. For the sake of survival, many people bite their teeth and carry on.
By the time we returned to the shop, it was already late at night. My uncle was worried that people from the Lu Ban Men would come again and cause trouble, so he planned to stay at the shop with me.
But when we opened the door, both of us froze in shock.
In the middle of the shop, there were four large wooden boxes, each about the height of a person and half as wide.
My first thought was that the Lu Ban Men had come, and I instinctively reached into my pocket to grab a talisman. But just as we stopped in our tracks, Huang Jiu suddenly jumped out of the cat bag, ran into the room, and opened the first box.
In an instant, a burst of colorful light shot out from the box.
Huang Jiu slammed the lid shut and rubbed its eyes with its paws, unable to believe what it had just seen. It opened the box slightly again, and the sight inside made both my uncle and me gasp in shock.
It was a box full of jewelry—jade, pearls, gold, and silver jewelry, all dazzling in appearance.
From the radiant light emanating from it, it was clear that all of it was genuine.
Looking at the box full of jewelry, instead of feeling excited, I was covered in a cold sweat.
This was like finding an unexpected ten thousand dollars in your house one day—you'd be happy. But if a whole box of money appeared out of nowhere, no one would be happy about it.
My uncle snapped back to reality and quickly closed the shop door. Breathing heavily, he asked, "What's going on here?"
I was just as confused. I speculated, "Could it be Huang Jiu's wife sent this?"
Huang Jiu heard this and, still stunned, started to limp in place. It looked like it had just received some bad news, sitting down with an expression of utter despair.
But after thinking for a moment, I realized that it probably wasn't possible—Huang Xian'er was only half-transformed and wouldn't be able to come into the city.
I approached the second box and carefully opened it.
Inside was another box full of clothes—ancient-style dresses, neatly folded and stacked.
As I got closer, I could even smell a faint fragrance.
I sniffed a little and my expression became strange. I turned to my uncle and said, "It's her!"
"Your wife?"
After taking multiple readings of her heartbeat, I was familiar with her scent, so I nodded with certainty.
I quickly walked toward the back of the shop and opened the rear door.
But the next moment, disappointment hit me—the room inside was empty. What was the meaning of this? She sent the jewelry and clothes, but didn't show up?
"Stop looking, she hasn't arrived yet. This is just her dowry!" My uncle called out from behind.
I turned around and saw that he and Huang Jiu had opened the other two boxes. One contained more clothes, and the fourth box had some dried fruits like dates, peanuts, longans, and melon seeds.
I asked, "How do you know this is a dowry?"
Huang Jiu pointed at the dried fruits and said, "Isn't it obvious? 'May you bear children soon!'"
I was left speechless. It seemed that he was right. But what was she trying to tell me? Was she warning me in advance that she would be coming soon, or was she just letting me know she was safe and not to worry?
Huang Jiu pawed through the jewelry box, clicking its tongue and saying, "Look at all this, this is definitely from a rich family!"
I shot it a glare. "You're not worried there might be poison in there to kill you?"
Huang Jiu shuddered at the thought, quickly pulling its paw back and running to wash its paws in the sink.
My uncle looked at the four large boxes and said, "It's good that she's coming, fulfilling your grandfather's wish. But with so many valuable things, it's not safe to leave them in the shop. If they get stolen, we can't afford to pay for it."
I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed. She showed up with this kind of trouble.
And judging from the fragrance, it was clear that these items were part of her daily life. Selling them was not an option.
My uncle thought for a moment and gritted his teeth, saying, "I'll go to Mr. Zhang tomorrow to settle the money. We'll gather a bit more to buy you a house, so when she comes, at least she won't think we're poor and look down on the Li family."
Buying a house wasn't something I had thought about. To me, even sleeping on a mat on the floor would work.
But if that woman really comes, then it won't be enough.
No matter how poor I was, I couldn't let her sleep on the floor with me.
However, even with the money from Mr. Zhang, my uncle probably didn't have enough to buy a house in the city.
I asked my uncle, and he waved his hand, saying, "It's a little short, but not by much. I'll think of something."
My uncle's solution was simple.
The next morning, he left early. By noon, he returned with Su Yimei following behind him.
Looking at the two of them, all affectionate and lovey-dovey, I almost teared up.
In the end, it was still my uncle who bore the weight of everything.