Chapter 275: Colleagues

A few days later, in the early morning, Feng Wei, dressed in a fitted outfit with a long braid tied at her waist, returned to her home.

She let down her tightly bound hair, allowing it to drape over her back, and tidied her slightly disheveled clothes from the journey. Then, she picked up the large bags of candies and pastries by her feet.

Before even stepping inside, she could hear an elderly woman calling out, “Slow down, slow down,” along with the playful laughter of a young boy.

She knew right away—it had to be her son, who had never left this small town, causing trouble for her mother again.

Hurriedly pushing open the door, Feng Wei saw her son chasing after the family’s big goose, laughing as he ran, while her mother followed behind, panting and trying to catch up.

Her expression changed instantly. In a flash, she rushed forward and scooped her son into her arms. “Little Nan! What are you doing? Haven’t I told you before—you can’t run so fast! You can’t!”

“Did you forget what happened last time? You ran once and coughed so badly you nearly lost your life!”

The boy named Little Nan looked about seven or eight years old, his eyebrows and eyes bearing a striking resemblance to Feng Wei. Seeing his long-missed mother suddenly appear and embrace him, he was overjoyed.

Completely ignoring the fact that she was scolding him, he threw his arms around her neck and laughed, “Mom! You’re back!”

Looking into her son’s bright, sparkling eyes, Feng Wei’s own eyes reddened. She reached out to wipe the sweat from his forehead. “Mm, Mom is back… Did you miss me?”

Little Nan nodded vigorously. “Yes!”

“Come, see what Mom brought you!” As she spoke, Feng Wei held her son with one arm while lifting several packages of candied fruit with the other.

Little Nan eagerly took a yellow oil-paper-wrapped packet, sniffed it, and immediately swallowed a mouthful of saliva. “Mom! It’s candied fruit!”

“You really have a sharp little nose!” Feng Wei pinched his nose playfully before turning to look at her mother, who stood nearby. Smiling, she asked, “Mom, has Little Nan taken his medicine today?”

Hearing this, the elderly woman with snow-white hair paused for a moment. “Huh? Little Nan is better now. Why would he need medicine?”

“What?” Feng Wei’s expression stiffened. She asked urgently, “How could Little Nan’s illness just… go away? Mom, he needs to take his medicine on time, or something could happen!”

Startled, the elderly woman opened her mouth to respond, but before she could, Little Nan interjected, “Mom! I’m better now! I don’t cough anymore…”

“Little Nan! You’re being naughty again!” Feng Wei frowned, holding her son as she headed inside. “Come on, Mom will make your medicine. Once you finish it, we’ll have candied fruit.”

“Mom! A few days ago, a great mister came by. He gave me a fruit, and after I ate it, I got better…”

Hearing this, Feng Wei froze. The moment she heard the word “mister,” the first person that came to mind was Gu Ning’an.

“What was that mister’s surname? What did he look like?”

The elderly woman standing in the courtyard replied, “Weiwei, that mister said his surname was Gu. He called himself your colleague and said he came specifically to cure Little Nan.”

“At first, I didn’t believe him. I thought he was some kind of swindler.”

“But then, he told me a lot about you. That’s when I believed he really was your colleague, so I let Little Nan eat the fruit.”

“I originally thought he was just playing with the child, but to my surprise, after eating that golden fruit, Little Nan didn’t have any asthma attacks that night—or for the next two or three days.”

“That’s when I realized… that fruit really did cure him.”

Hearing this, Feng Wei gently put her son down. She stepped into the courtyard and faced east, bowing deeply. “Thank you, Mr. Gu!”

The elderly woman watched and couldn’t help but ask, “Weiwei, was that fruit very valuable? Little Nan’s illness was something no doctor could cure…”

“And how can a fruit cure an illness?”

“From your reaction, it seems like you didn’t even know about it. Is he really your colleague?”

Feng Wei straightened up and replied with a smile, “Mom, Mr. Gu truly is my colleague. And if he said the fruit could cure Little Nan, then it definitely did… As for doctors, they can’t compare to him at all.”

…

Hiccup—

Grandpa Donkey let out a satisfied belch, picked up a peanut, and tossed it into his mouth. As he chewed on the crispy, oil-fried peanut, he said, “Liu Feng, do you remember our sect’s mission?”

Beside him, Liu Feng replied solemnly, “I remember.”

“Tell me what you’ve learned.”

“First, step forward when others are in trouble!”

“Second, never let our lineage be severed. Before dying, one must find a disciple to pass on their skills!”

“Third, treat the black donkey like your own son—find it a mate so that its lineage doesn’t end.”

“Fourth, master our sect’s ghost-summoning technique and revive this lost art!”

“Good!”

“Hee-haw! Hee-haw!”

Both Grandpa Donkey and the black donkey in the courtyard let out sounds of approval for Liu Feng.

Liu Feng sighed helplessly. “Master, the first three are doable, but the fourth… even you don’t know how to do it! How am I supposed to learn?”

“Why wouldn’t you? We have a manual, don’t we?”

“It’s all written down in there!” Grandpa Donkey smirked.

Liu Feng continued, “Then why haven’t you mastered it after all these years, Master?”

“Bah! My master didn’t know it either!” Grandpa Donkey spat and went on, “I’m not saying you must figure it out completely. If you can’t, just pass it down to your disciple. If we keep this tradition going, sooner or later, we’ll find someone with the talent to grasp it, won’t we?”

“Anyway, if you or your future disciple ever manage to learn it, remember to burn some incense for me and let me know.”

Hearing this, Liu Feng spat three times. “Master, don’t jinx yourself like that! Spit three times and knock on wood!”

“Tch, you’re so superstitious.” Grandpa Donkey grumbled, but he still did as Liu Feng said.

Liu Feng chuckled bitterly. “How could I not be? We’ve seen demons, ghosts, and even immortals—how could I not believe?”

Grandpa Donkey nodded in agreement, then spat three more times and tapped the wooden table. “Fair point!”

Liu Feng smirked, then picked up the worn-out book titled Ghost-Summoning Technique from the table. As he flipped through it, he found a slip of paper tucked inside. The handwriting on it was bold and strikingly elegant.

“Heaven is divided into yin and yang. At yin time, ghosts walk in the yang realm; at yang time, ghosts walk in the yin realm. To summon ghosts, yin and yang must merge—only then can one command spirits in the mortal world.”

After reading it aloud, Liu Feng turned to Grandpa Donkey and asked, “Master, what does this mean?”

Grandpa Donkey took a sip from his wine cup, slurping noisily, then grumbled impatiently, “What nonsense! If you don’t want your eyes, go give them to that blind kid on West Street! When the hell did my book ever have this sentence in it?”