Chapter Twelve: Liu Laogen - When Did I Gain a Junior Disciple?

“Tsk tsk, with ten taels of silver for a fortune, I’ve now got the travel expenses for the journey to the capital.”

Xu Boqing clicked his tongue inwardly, watching the old man leave in his carriage. As he observed the surroundings a bit longer, he saw, as expected, that the guards disguised as vegetable sellers had also melted away.

He was just about to leave when he noticed another customer approaching.

This time, it was a woman dressed in lavish clothing, her figure plump to the point of resembling a ball, though she appeared quite young. Two girls dressed as maids followed closely behind.

When the plump woman caught sight of Xu Boqing, her eyes seemed to gleam strangely from between folds of flesh.

“Little Daoist~”

She intended to sit on the small stool but found it far too small to accommodate her, so she simply stood, throwing a greasy, flirtatious look as she said, “Little Daoist, I want to have my romantic fortune told.”

Xu Boqing felt his scalp prickle at her repeated address. He cupped his hands and said, “My apologies, miss. I have already completed my three readings for today. If you wish to have your fortune read, perhaps you could return tomorrow.”

He was about to take his leave when he found the woman blocking his way, pouting her lips and ‘coquettishly’ pleading, “Just one more, please, just one more, all right?”

“I…”

Seeing that she was about to grab him, Xu Boqing instinctively took a step back. At this point, not just his scalp but his whole back was breaking out into a cold sweat.

If this woman had lived in my previous world, she would undoubtedly have brought ruin to nations. After all…

So greasy that even the prettiest country would have to declare war.

“Miss, I am a man of the cloth. Please, conduct yourself with propriety!”

When he saw that his words had no effect and the woman was inching ever closer, he hastened to say, “Fine, I’ll do it! Didn’t you wish to have your romantic fortune read? I’ll do it!!”

“Oh, you’re terrible~”

Seeing that her act of coquettishness had worked, she stamped one foot shyly, sending ripples through her flesh—an alarming sight.

Xu Boqing’s temples throbbed with shock, but he still managed to force a professional, gentle smile onto his face. “Since you wish to inquire about romance, may I ask if there is someone you favor?”

“Could it be… you?”

“????”

The two maids behind her covered their mouths to stifle their laughter when they saw Xu Boqing’s face turn a shade of green. One of them, seeing how awkward things had become, stepped forward to smooth things over. “The Daoist is handsome and dignified. It’s only natural that my lady should be fond of him.”

‘Shallow women. My true worth lies far deeper than just my appearance—what I carry in my pockets is ten thousand times more substantial than what’s on the surface.’

Xu Boqing cupped his hands and said in a righteous tone, “I’m afraid I must disappoint you, miss. I was dedicated to the Dao from childhood and have no intention of marrying…”

Fearing he hadn’t made himself clear enough, he added, “Not now, nor ever in the future.”

As expected, the peculiar woman looked crestfallen at these words. Yet since she had come all this way, it would be inappropriate to leave without a reading, so she said with a huff, “Then I suppose I have no one in mind.”

Xu Boqing nodded. “Then, may I ask what qualities the lady hopes for in her beloved? Tell me, and I’ll see what the stars say.”

“He must be no less than seven feet tall, handsome, hold an official post not below the seventh rank, and own property with at least seven courtyards in the capital or Hongyang.”

She paused to consider, then added, blushing and bashful, “Money doesn’t matter much, but he must have muscles and be skilled in the bedroom.”

“……”

Xu Boqing’s expression froze, as if stricken by a severe case of constipation, and after a long struggle, he finally managed to say, “Miss, I read fortunes here, not grant wishes. For that, you should visit a temple.”

“You… you…”

The peculiar woman pointed at Xu Boqing, her face full of grievance. She tried to sit on the ground and hug her knees, but found herself too plump to reach them, and began to cry pitifully.

The two maids rushed over to comfort her.

Xu Boqing, seeing his chance, cupped his hands and said, “I have pressing matters at home. Farewell, farewell.”

With that, he turned and ran, not daring to linger a moment longer.

The peculiar woman, overwhelmed by grievance, rolled on the ground in a tantrum, her maids unable to lift her.

A while later, as the city officials returned from their errand, Liu Laogen hurried back to his stall, only to hear someone crying before he even arrived.

When he drew closer, he saw the young lady from the Wang family weeping at his stall and hurried over to ask the two maids, “What happened to Miss Wang?”

One of the maids, seeing Liu Laogen return, snapped, “It’s your blabbermouth of a junior brother!”

“Huh? Junior brother??”

…………………

While Liu Laogen and the Wang family’s servants scoured Hongyang for ‘the junior brother,’ Xu Boqing was already seated in a carriage bound for the capital.

Hongyang was not far from the capital, but having once been robbed on the road, Xu Boqing knew well how dangerous the world outside the city gates could be. One moment you might be singing with a girl in your arms, and the next, you’d be robbed blind.

Now, with a bit of spare cash on hand, he decided to spend five whole taels of silver for the safety of a post station carriage on this hundred-mile journey.

The carriages run by the postal station were government-operated—expensive, yes, but secure. After all, bandits and highwaymen usually only targeted merchants or common travelers—they wouldn’t dare risk the wrath of the authorities by attacking an official coach and bringing calamity upon their kin.

He spent the night at a post station along the way, and by the next morning, the capital gradually emerged on the horizon.

In Xu Boqing’s eyes, the sky above the capital shimmered with purple-gold aura, coalescing faintly into the shape of a dragon—though it seemed an old, weary one.

While he was lost in thought, the driver up ahead called out, “Young master, we’ve arrived. The capital is not like other places—one must have travel documents or proper identification to enter.”

“I have them, I have them…”

Xu Boqing alighted, handed over his travel documents to the guards for inspection, and entered the city.

As the emperor’s seat of power, the capital’s streets were impeccably clean. The recruitment notice, printed on apricot-yellow paper, was even more eye-catching here than it was in Hongyang.

His second uncle, Xu He, had served as an inspector in the capital for over ten years and had long since settled his family in the southern quarter.

The former owner of this body had visited often, so the route was familiar.

All the way there, Xu Boqing pondered how best to display the depths of his grief for his uncle’s sake.

But human joy and sorrow are not shared. The original Xu Boqing was gone; though he had inherited his memories and body, the searing grief for lost kin was absent.

Such was the helplessness of his situation.

Yet when he arrived at his uncle Xu He’s residence, he stood in shock—for the vermilion gates were tightly shut, crossed with two strips of paper, each bearing in bold black characters the word “Sealed,” stamped with the bright red mark of the authorities.

His uncle’s house… sealed?

Judging by the freshness of the seal, it hadn’t been long—no more than a week, at most.

Xu Boqing stood dazed before the vermilion gates, feeling even more lost than when he first crossed into this world.

This body had lost its parents before he arrived, and with no family left but his uncle’s household, it could be said his family was utterly broken.

He had come to the capital to seek refuge with his uncle—partly out of kinship, partly for a foothold in the world.

But now, all of it was gone?