Another day of college life passed. It was plain and unadorned, yet not at all dull.
Zhou Li shared the food his aunt had brought with his roommates, but they were all too reserved and polite to accept much. Most of it remained, and Zhou Li, not having the heart to eat it himself, brought it all home.
Upon hearing this, Lord Dumpling, perhaps thinking the sentiment was precious, ate it with great relish.
Zhou Li took the opportunity to take a shower.
The warm water washed down, capable of cleansing away the day’s weariness, although he wasn’t actually weary.
As he showered, Zhou Li thought he heard a knocking sound. Paying closer attention, he suddenly looked up—outside the bathroom vent window, a delicate face was peering in. Seeing him look over, the person finally stopped knocking on the window and began to shout:
"Zhou Li, open the door!"
"Open the door for me!"
Zhou Li was utterly bewildered.
After coming to his senses, he hastily covered his vitals with a towel, his eyes widening in disbelief.
Just then, Huai Xu, looking perplexed, said, "What are you doing? I’ve been drifting for so many years; I’ve seen countless..."
... Zhou Li was speechless.
A moment later, wrapped in a bath towel, Zhou Li went out and opened the door for Huai Xu. "There’s food on the table," he said awkwardly. "My aunt brought it for me. If you don’t eat it now, Tuanzi will finish it all."
Huai Xu’s eyes lit up.
Tuanzi raised his head from his bowl, complaining discontentedly, "Lord Dumpling is just a little cat. How much can a little cat possibly eat?"
Zhou Li didn’t argue with them and continued to shower.
When he emerged again, the sky had turned completely dark. Huai Xu had tidied up the coffee table, leaving it spotless.
The room was brightly lit.
The living room chandelier had several settings, allowing for adjustments in both brightness and color temperature. Huai Xu preferred warm light. He liked to have the downlights and the chandelier by the French windows turned on as well, as it made the room feel cozy.
"Did you find anything?" Zhou Li asked, toweling his hair.
"Didn’t find anything."
"No!" Huai Xu pulled out today’s portion of dried pork. "If it were an ordinary Demon causing trouble, I would have found him by now. So, we can basically conclude that this matter is related to that faction."
"So-so. He acts unscrupulously, so he’s probably easy to deal with." Huai Xu sighed, feeling compelled to emphasize to Zhou Li once again, "You should know that standing before you is a Great Devil King!"
"Will they want to mess with you?"
"Definitely not!" Huai Xu paused, then added thoughtfully, "They’re a large and established organization. As for me, I’m a loner, and a Great Devil King known for slaying Demons, no less. They definitely wouldn’t want to draw my attention, especially since it’s not worth it for such a minor matter."
I see. Zhou Li didn’t expose him, deciding to humor him and pretend he believed Huai Xu was a Great Devil King.
"What do you think?" Huai Xu asked.
"All right, I will protect you!"
"What about Lord Dumpling’s cardboard box?" Tuanzi’s voice piped up from the side, the tone a stark contrast to their serious conversation. "Where have you guys hidden Lord Dumpling’s cardboard box?"
"Huai Xu put it away for you," Zhou Li said.
"Why did he do that?"
"He’s going to sell it for money."
"Give it back to Lord Dumpling!"
"I’ll go get it for you."
Zhou Li thought about it and felt a bit guilty. Before meeting him, Lord Dumpling had been living in luxury. Now, day in and day out, he could only eat ’junk food’ and sleep in cardboard boxes. Huai Xu, too, used to be a carefree Great Demon; when had he ever worried about money?
Soon, Zhou Li came out with the cardboard box.
Huai Xu asked, deeply perplexed, "You’re such a big cat. Why do you need so many boxes to sleep in?"
"This small box is just the right size for Lord Dumpling to fit into. Lord Dumpling likes it to be ’just right’."
"And this bigger one?"
"In this bigger one, Lord Dumpling can turn over and roll around. Lord Dumpling likes to turn over and roll around when sleeping."
"And this biggest one?"
"In this one, Lord Dumpling can play inside..."
"Lord Dumpling likes to play..." Huai Xu mimicked Tuanzi’s voice and tone, then stared at Tuanzi, eyeball to eyeball.
Wearing shorts and a t-shirt, Zhou Li lay on his bed, texting his senior:
"Have you encountered many bad Demons doing evil deeds?"
Zheng Zhilan’s responses were always quick.
Little Zheng: "Very few."
Little Zheng: "Did you encounter any troublesome Demons?"
Little Zheng: "Then you must be careful. Most Demons are law-abiding, so those who cause trouble must have the ability to do so. You should avoid provoking them to stay out of danger." Discover more novels at NoveI(F)ire.net
Three messages arrived in a row.
Zhou Li thought for a long time, typed and deleted several times, and finally asked, "How would you handle it if you encountered one?"
Little Zheng: "The ones I meet aren’t very powerful. I can deal with them myself and then charge a bit more money."
Zhou Li: "What if it’s difficult and unrewarding? Like, if there’s no money?"
Little Zheng: "I’d still do it."
Zhou Li: "What if it’s dangerous?"
Little Zheng: "I might weigh my options. Sometimes I’d do it, and sometimes I’d have to give up."
Zhou Li: "For example?"
Little Zheng: "It’s like if someone fell into the water. Whether the current is strong or gentle, whether you’re a good swimmer or not, and whether there are other people around—all these factors would influence your decision. You’d have to decide whether to put yourself in danger, leave it to others, or give up."
Zheng Zhilan is a very kind person, Zhou Li thought.
After some thought, Zhou Li added, "I’ve taken on a job to earn some pocket money. It’s ..."
This brand of phone had a built-in feature that allowed text messages to be sent over the internet, free of charge. They chatted for quite a while. In the end, Zheng Zhilan stressed for the nth time that he should be careful and protect himself. Zhou Li thanked her, said goodnight, and then closed his eyes to rest.
In the dream, he was like a protagonist from TV shows and novels, fully armed and fighting villains in close combat, every punch landing with a meaty thud.
He got beaten up badly.
Thankfully, he woke up just in time.
A cool, gentle breeze was blowing. A BMW sedan parked in front of Tianruikang Garden, marking the first time Zhou Li would skip class.
The driver was a young man, apparently the client’s nephew. He frowned slightly upon seeing Zhou Li’s youth but said nothing. After reminding Zhou Li to sit properly and introducing himself, he fell silent.
His name was Hu Xing.
Zhou Li could feel Hu Xing appraising him through the rearview mirror, but he pretended not to notice.
This was how things often were in this line of work, Zhou Li thought. He would slowly get used to it.
The incident hadn’t occurred in Chunming, but in a small county near it called Lufeng County. Lufeng County wasn’t under Chunming’s jurisdiction but belonged to an autonomous prefecture. It was more than a hundred kilometers away, about a two-hour drive.
Once they left Chunming, the scenery became beautiful. The sky was clear, and layers of green mountains stretched into the distance.
Zhou Li turned to watch the landscape whizzing by outside the window, while Huai Xu, beside him, kept giving instructions on what to do when they arrived.
"Soft approach first, of course. Try to reason with them..."
"I’ll hide my aura initially..."
"If things get rough later, I’ll step in. But your attitude needs to be firm. You have to act like you’re the boss and I’m just your enforcer..."
The more Zhou Li listened, the more he felt that he and Huai Xu weren’t going to confront some nefarious demonic faction, but rather to pull a scam on them.
Midway through the journey, Zhou Li finally broke the silence. "May I ask how Old Master Hu is doing now?"
Hu Xing seemed taken aback that Zhou Li had suddenly spoken to him. He hesitated for a moment, then replied honestly, "He’s not in a good state. He’s been bedridden recently, and these past few days, he’s been terrified... He says the Demon will come for him tonight."
Well, that’s a coincidence! Zhou Li thought.
"Are you confident?" Hu Xing asked tentatively.
"We’ve sought the help of many experts these past few days..."
"If I can’t handle it, there’s no charge."
"My apologies for being presumptuous! Master Zhou, if you have any questions, please feel free to ask."
Afterward, Zhou Li occasionally asked Hu Xing questions. Huai Xu’s previous investigation, after all, had focused on the Demonic aspects of the case, and he hadn’t communicated directly with the client. Zhou Li’s questions helped fill in many informational gaps.
By integrating their information, the picture became much clearer.
Hu Xing’s uncle, Hu Weimin, was a fairly well-known entrepreneur in Lufeng County, making his living in the tobacco industry.
A few years ago, after struggling in business for a long time and suffering repeated setbacks, he began making offerings to a so-called ’celestial being.’ After that, his financial luck took a sharp turn for the better, and in just a few years, he amassed an estate worth tens of millions.
The price he paid was a rapid decline in his health and a dulling of his senses. Despite being not yet fifty, he looked like a man in his seventies.
Now, he wanted to stop, but he couldn’t extricate himself.
His most recent transaction with the ’celestial being’ had been last month. Hu Weimin’s wife had been in a car accident and was in the hospital with critical, untreatable injuries. She was his childhood sweetheart and had been his companion for half his life; he loved her deeply. To save her, he made a desperate, solemn vow to the ’celestial being’. However, his wife passed away a few days later, and it seemed the ’celestial being’ had no intention of letting him off the hook.
Just as Huai Xu said, Zhou Li thought, utterly unscrupulous!