That night had certainly been quite an ordeal!
By the time Shui Miao returned, Lin Xue had already taken An Pei and the idiotic Lang away.
However, the looks Li Lan and Zhao Xiao Lu gave Shui Miao were somewhat strange—flickering and oddly unsettling. Shui Miao couldn’t help but think of the surveillance cameras. They must have seen everything from last night—the wild and passionate moment he’d shared with Lin Xue. The realization made him feel instantly awkward.
Early the next morning, everyone was busy bustling around.
Sister Tang and her friends had already gone to buy groceries and hadn’t returned yet. The porridge and other food were placed inside the tent, available for anyone who wanted to eat—there was plenty prepared.
Wang Xiao Mi and the others had also gotten up. After a night of hard work, Li Lan and Zhao Xiao Lu had snatched a bit of sleep.
With nothing particular to do, Shui Miao went down to the dry well and stone cave.
The cave had filled with more water, reaching up to his knees now, but compared to the entire cave, it was still just a drop in the ocean.
Shui Miao took out a copper coin and summoned Jin Chan Zi. Jin Chan Zi mastered earth-diving techniques and used one to bring his true form. His true form was a three-legged toad. Shui Miao told him that this cave would now be his home, and Jin Chan Zi was delighted. Transforming into human form, Jin Chan Zi was then asked by Shui Miao whether he knew anything about other treasures hidden in the cave.
Jin Chan Zi replied that there was indeed a very well-hidden ancient tomb here. However, inside the tomb resided a terrifying thousand-year-old female ghost, whose power was formidable—no less than Zhang Yuan’s. She had created an illusion, making the entrance to the tomb vanish. The seven copper coffins, however, had been placed there many years later, belonging to an important official and members of his family—seven in total. The monsters guarding the tomb were yin corpses created by northern shamans using witchcraft, and they had nothing to do with the thousand-year-old ghost. They didn’t even know she existed.
A thousand-year-old ghost whose power rivaled Zhang Yuan’s—this shocked Shui Miao greatly.
Seeing Shui Miao’s worried expression, Jin Chan Zi added, “Don’t worry, Master. My mother once told me that this thousand-year-old ghost has already attained spiritual cultivation and hasn’t appeared for centuries. As long as we don’t touch the treasures in her tomb, we should be safe.”
“Oh, Jin Chan Zi, where did your mother go?” Shui Miao, curious after hearing him mention his mother several times, asked. Jin Chan Zi’s mother was likely a large three-legged toad, probably very powerful—maybe even capable of sneaking into a bank vault to steal gold bricks. Why hadn’t she shown up?
Jin Chan Zi smiled. “You still don’t know, Master? Once a Jin Chan Zi follows a master, we can only live for three years. After three years, our physical bodies die, but our souls can reincarnate in the immortal realm. My mother has already gone there. She told me that we Jin Chan Zis were punished to come to the mortal world because we committed grave offenses in the immortal realm in our previous lives. Following you, Master, is simply our destined fate!”
“Wow, that’s pretty cool!”
Seeing Jin Chan Zi’s cheerful attitude and fearless view of life and death, Shui Miao couldn’t help but admire him, gently patting his head. “Alright, Jin Chan Zi, tell me more about that thousand-year-old ghost. Doesn’t she get bored staying hidden in her treasure chamber for over a thousand years?”
“I don’t know if she gets bored or not,” Jin Chan Zi shook his head. “But once I accidentally entered her treasure chamber and saw her—she was so, so beautiful! Absolutely more beautiful than any fairy! And there was so much immortal energy in her treasure chamber. I even suspect she might be a fairy herself!”
“Immortal energy!!”
Shui Miao’s heart stirred.
“Yes, very strong immortal energy. I became stronger just from absorbing a little of it.”
“What happened after that?” Shui Miao felt a surge of excitement.
“She told me that if I ever returned to her treasure chamber, she’d kill me. And if I ever revealed the existence of the chamber, she’d kill me too. I promised not to go back, so she let me go. When I returned, my mother scolded me badly. Ever since then, I’ve never dared to go back again,” Jin Chan Zi pouted, as if his mother had just scolded him moments ago. “That’s all I know.”
“Then why are you telling me this now? Aren’t you afraid she’ll kill you?” Shui Miao frowned.
Jin Chan Zi shook his head helplessly. “You’re my master. I can’t lie to you. Since you asked, I have to tell the truth.”
“Alright, understood. From now on, stay here. Just remember—never go near her again. I have other things to do, so I’ll be leaving now.” There was nothing more to do down here. Going after the thousand-year-old ghost now would be practically suicide. Rather than idling around, he might as well go out and help people with feng shui, maybe even discover hidden treasures to boost his cultivation. Once his strength improved, he could think about confronting the ghost again.
Shui Miao was convinced that the thousand-year-old ghost’s treasure chamber must contain rare and wondrous immortal artifacts—otherwise, why would she remain hidden underground for a thousand years?
For now, there was nothing he could do but take things one step at a time. But he was determined—someday, he would meet this thousand-year-old ghost in person.
※※※
After returning above ground, Shui Miao was called by Xiao Shuang and Wang Xiao Mi to review the accounts.
Xiao Shuang was very responsible. Even though Shui Miao didn’t personally manage the finances, she still insisted on keeping the books meticulously, never wasting a single coin.
Wang Xiao Mi was equally diligent. Both were deeply loyal to Shui Miao.
Of course, Shui Miao trusted them completely. For both major and minor matters, if they deemed something acceptable, they had the authority to decide.
After finishing the account review, Xiao Shuang suggested to Shui Miao, “Boss, you should go check out the tea house. Zhi Ling has already started operations ahead of schedule.”
“What! Started operations early?” Shui Miao was taken aback. “Didn’t she say she needed ten days for renovation and adjustments?”
“No. She insisted on saving costs. She said the current decoration and layout of the tea house were fine. She believed that every extra day of delay meant unnecessary losses. As long as the business strategy and service style were adjusted, she believed the business would improve. As her friend, I know she’s capable, but this matter is too important. Since she insisted so strongly, I felt it might be a bit rash. Only you, Boss, can go see for yourself. If things aren’t going well, you need to stop her quickly.” Xiao Shuang was completely acting in Shui Miao’s best interest, hoping he would personally supervise and prevent Zhi Ling from ruining the business.
In fact, not only Xiao Shuang, but everyone else was worried too. Everyone thought it was reckless of Shui Miao to hand over such a large business to someone who had only recently joined the company.
Since Zhi Ling had been introduced by Xiao Shuang, she naturally felt even more anxious.
So today, she felt she had no choice but to speak up.
“This Zhi Ling… she’s quite something!”
Shui Miao furrowed his brow, thinking. What exactly was she planning? As an employee, she had ignored her boss’s instructions. What was going through her mind? Either she was a business genius, or she was just an incompetent fool. If she turned out to be the latter, she would definitely not be someone he could keep around!
“Hmph, well then. I’ll go test her using my shape-shifting technique…”
With his mind made up, Shui Miao had Wang Xiao Mi drive him over there.
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