Chapter 443: What is Constantly Remembered Will Eventually Echo Back

“Mr. Gu, my wife didn’t lie to me, right?”

“She’s been refusing to reincarnate all this time—could she be punished by the judges of the underworld for it?”

“I burn a lot of joss paper for her every year, just hoping she can use it to grease some palms down there.”

The moment he started talking about his wife, Old Shopkeeper Wu seemed to open the floodgates, muttering on and on to himself.

“Sir, is reincarnation real in this world?”

“What if my wife is waiting for me, and we end up reincarnating together? Wouldn’t we be too close and accidentally end up as siblings in the same family?”

“If that happens, wouldn’t it be a terrible sin?”

Seeing how worried Shopkeeper Wu looked, Gu Ning’an couldn’t help but think of an elderly man he once knew.

That man had traveled across mountains and rivers with only a portrait of his wife, visiting all the places they never managed to see together while she was alive.

Love and affection arise from the world of mortals, and in the end, they also return to it.

Gu Ning’an believed he could keep Old Shopkeeper Wu alive for a very long time, resolving many of his troubles. But there was only one thing he couldn’t do—give that longing a place to rest.

After a while, Gu Ning’an raised a hand to stop Shopkeeper Wu’s ramblings and said calmly, “No one can say for sure whether reincarnation is real. But I can tell you one thing… What is constantly remembered will eventually echo back.”

What is constantly remembered will eventually echo back!

Just eight simple words, yet they filled Old Shopkeeper Wu’s heart with a nameless sorrow. His eyes turned red as he repeated softly, “What is constantly remembered will eventually echo back…”

“Alright!”

“Alright then! I’ll remember that!”

Seeing this, Gu Ning’an finished the tea in his cup and stood up. “That’s that. It’s getting late—I should be going.”

Still absorbed in those eight words, Wu Lan quickly stood and called out, “Mr. Gu, you’re leaving already? Stay for dinner at least!”

“No need.” Gu Ning’an shook his head. “But this year’s new tea, I must…”

Before he could finish, Old Shopkeeper Wu, coming back to his senses, quickly pointed to a side room beyond the pavilion. “Right, right! You must take the tea with you!”

Wu Lan nodded. “I’ll go get a carriage for you, sir. That big jar of tea can’t be carried by hand.”

“No need to trouble yourself.” As he spoke, Gu Ning’an casually picked up the purple clay tea canister from the table and lightly lifted the lid.

Creak—

The sound of old hinges echoed out. From the side room, the tea leaves suddenly surged forth like water being sucked in by a dragon, transforming into a stream that flowed entirely into the clay canister.

Watching this magical sight, the father and daughter merely showed slight surprise before returning to their usual expressions.

After all, the man before them was an immortal, someone who had achieved longevity. Was a little spell like this anything to be surprised about?

“Shopkeeper Wu, I’ll just go ahead and take this tea canister too.” Without waiting for a reply, Gu Ning’an took the tea canister and stowed it away.

To the side, Old Shopkeeper Wu waved a hand with a laugh. “It’s just a tea canister. We’ve got plenty in the tea house.”

“I’ll walk you out, sir.”

Gu Ning’an nodded. “Mm. Oh, right—outside, there’s a young man named Gao Hu. Pass along a message for me…”

…

The walk from the inner room to the front of the tea house wasn’t long, but the Wu father and daughter insisted on seeing Gu Ning’an off with every few steps.

Even when they reached the front, Old Shopkeeper Wu was still holding Gu Ning’an’s hand, saying things with a mix of smiles and sentiment.

At the counter, Wu You glanced at the scene at the door, then said, “Dad, I’ve got a hunch—this Mr. Gu might not actually be that immortal.”

“If he were, why didn’t he take the fresh tea leaves you just roasted?”

Hearing this, Wu Hai shot a glance at his son. “Look at you—can’t even understand a story properly.”

“If he’s an immortal, you don’t think he has some kind of ‘mustard seed holding Mount Meru’ kind of ability?”

“Huh?” Wu You looked surprised. “You even know that term, dad?”

Wu Hai rolled his eyes. “Of course I do. It’s not like I haven’t read those storybooks.”

Wu You gave a loud “hey!” and grumbled, “So it turns out you’ve been reading them yourself, yet you don’t let me?”

Wu Hai gave a scornful laugh. “Well, I am your father, aren’t I?”

Wu You: …

On the other side, after parting with the Wu family for the thirty-second time, Gu Ning’an finally walked away without looking back, stepping onto Muyun Road.

Behind him, the Wu father and daughter stood just as they had all those years ago, silently watching him disappear into the distance.

It was a long time before they reluctantly turned and went back inside.

As soon as they entered, they headed straight for the counter. Old Shopkeeper Wu stretched out a hand toward Wu You. “Give me the tea money Gao Hu left today.”

“Oh.” Though unsure of what the old man was up to, Wu You immediately did as told, taking the silver coins Gao Hu had left from the money jar and handing them over.

Taking the few broken silver pieces, the old shopkeeper muttered, “This much… I’ll need change,” and grabbed the money jar to look for smaller coins.

…

“Husband, what’s wrong?”

“Are your legs hurting again?”

Watching Gao Hu’s pale face, dripping with cold sweat, and legs trembling uncontrollably, his wife looked at him with heartache as she gently massaged his thighs.

Gao Hu forced a smile through the searing pain. “My legs, they’re practically divine now. I figure they must’ve sensed rain coming and are giving me a heads-up.”

“You can still joke?” As she spoke, she glanced outside and saw the sky had indeed turned dark—it really looked like rain was coming.

At the same time, Gao Hu, still bearing the pain, caught sight of the long-absent Old Shopkeeper Wu approaching. He patted his wife’s hand and stood with a smile. “Old Master Wu, you…”

Noticing Gao Hu’s unwell state, Old Shopkeeper Wu raised a hand, motioning him to sit back down. “What’s going on with you?”

Gao Hu sat back down and waved his hand. “It’s that old injury flaring up again. A chronic problem.”

“Ah…”

Knowing full well what he meant, Old Shopkeeper Wu nodded, then placed some silver down in front of him. “This is the money you left today. After deducting the price of a bowl of tea, take the rest back. From now on, you don’t need to leave tea money here anymore.”

As soon as he heard this, Gao Hu grew anxious and was about to protest when Old Shopkeeper Wu added, “Mr. Gu has already drunk your tea. He said there’s no need for you to spend any more.”

“What!”

“Mr. Gu!”

Gao Hu shot to his feet with a shout, drawing everyone’s attention in the tea house.

Seeing the sudden hush, Old Shopkeeper Wu cupped his hands to the crowd and smiled, “It’s nothing, it’s nothing. He just scalded his tongue with tea.”

Once the patrons turned back to their tea, the old man gently pressed Gao Hu’s shoulder, making him sit again, then said, “Don’t get so worked up. The man you saw just now was Mr. Gu—the very immortal who saved your life twenty years ago.”

“He also gave you a golden kumquat, right? Go ahead and eat it now.”

“Don’t worry about poison. I’ll vouch for it myself.”