Chapter 16 The Person Seeking Help from Jingcheng
"Don't scare me, is it real or fake?"
Zhang Qian was really scared at this moment; her face turned pale with fright.
"Haha, you actually believed that? I was just kidding!"
"Bastard, shameless!"
Zhang Qian was filled with shame and anger, and picked up another chopstick and threw it out.
Chen Cheng chuckled and accepted the chopsticks. He wasn't joking; he was telling the truth. He only said that to avoid scaring her. Ordinary souls or ghosts wander the streets at night unconsciously. They don't know they are ghosts; they have lost their consciousness from their previous life and wander aimlessly. There's no need to worry about them.
However, it's different when you encounter fierce ghosts or vengeful spirits. They have developed their own thoughts and will harm people to become their scapegoats. When encountering such a person, Chen Cheng will not stand idly by. He will either negotiate with it and help it reincarnate, or he will take action to destroy it and make its soul disappear.
Chen Cheng's half-truthful words made Zhang Qian lose interest in the topic. The roasted lamb leg was served, but she couldn't use her arm because it was hanging in front of her chest. Chen Cheng carefully removed the meat and placed it on the plate in front of her.
"Thank you. Are you planning to go back tomorrow? There are still many fun places in Xijing. Why don't you go and see them before you leave?"
Zhang Qian asked while taking small bites of meat.
"Why not go back? Eating, drinking, and playing all cost money here. It's better to go back!"
"Hey, how can you be so stingy at such a young age? You're probably not married yet, what do you need so much money for? To let your girlfriend spend it?"
Zhang Qian asked indirectly.
Chen Cheng swallowed a mouthful of meat, then downed a glass of beer in one gulp, burped, and said, "What kind of girlfriend am I supposed to have? I'm all alone, and I don't have a job. If I don't work hard to earn money, will I starve?"
In fact, Chen Cheng was not short of money; on the contrary, he was quite wealthy. However, he had many expenses. He did charity work in both the human and underworld realms, performing rituals for homeless souls and donating money and goods to families or children in need. All of these required money.
The two finally started chatting normally. Zhang Qian also observed Chen Cheng intentionally or unintentionally. His skin was neither fair nor dark. His short hair was casually scattered. He had deep and bright eyes, thick and long eyebrows that were as black as ink, a high nose bridge, and thin lips with a slightly upturned curve that added a touch of unruliness and confidence to his face.
"Is he handsome?"
Chen Cheng suddenly stared into her eyes and asked with a grin.
"You're going to die!"
Zhang Qian blushed when she was caught peeping, and reached out her small hand to slap him from a distance.
"Hey, this is the third time you've ambushed me tonight. A gentleman uses words, not fists, you know?"
"Pah, I'm not a gentleman, I don't need to abide by this agreement!"
The two had finally managed to have a normal chat, but now they started arguing again.
After finishing their meal, it was already past midnight. This time, Chen Cheng very gentlemanly escorted her to the police station entrance. As they parted, Chen Cheng took out a yellow talisman and handed it to her, saying seriously, "Keep this talisman close to your body. Nothing unclean can get near it, and it can save your life in critical moments!"
"Tch, charlatan, I'm a police officer, I have an aura of righteousness about me!"
Although he said that, his hands betrayed him. He took the talisman and folded it into a small piece with his other injured hand, then put it in his pocket.
"Leaving tomorrow morning? Should I see you off?"
Zhang Qian smoothed her hair and said.
"No need, I'll just go to the station and head back."
"Um, thank you this time."
"No need to thank me, just transfer the entire bonus to me if you're in a hurry."
Looking at Chen Cheng's wicked grin, Zhang Qian gritted her teeth and muttered resentfully, "You miser!"
"Haha, goodbye, little sister Sisi!"
After Chen Cheng finished speaking, he smiled, turned around, got into the waiting taxi, and drove away.
"You little rascal!"
Zhang Qian watched the taxi drive away and blurted out softly.
Around noon the next day, Chen Cheng returned to the old teahouse his master had left him. There were still four or five old customers drinking tea in the teahouse. When they saw Chen Cheng, they greeted him. Old Zhang also came up to him and said, "You finished your business so quickly?"
"Yes, Uncle Zhang, it's nothing. Did you get any work while I was away for the past two days?"
Old Zhang was hired by the master when he was alive. When Chen Cheng was not at home, he was responsible for offering incense to the ancestral master, running the old teahouse, and receiving information about people who came to Chen Cheng for business.
There's a family in Xiguan who might have been haunted by a ghost. They came to your door for help, but you weren't home. So I gave them a talisman you drew, and the owner gave them 500 yuan. It's in the counter. Also, a family surnamed Chu from Jingcheng came looking for you, saying their house is haunted. I gave them a house-protecting talisman first, and told them to try it last night. If it doesn't work, they can come back.
As they were talking, a black Mercedes-Benz pulled up in front of the old teahouse, and a middle-aged man and woman got out and hurriedly went inside.
"Mr. Zhang, has Master Chen returned yet?"
The man wiped his sweat and strode in, asking a question.
"He's back. So what? Didn't the talisman from yesterday work?"
Chen Cheng recognized their voices; these must be the two from Jingcheng.
"Ah! You must be Master Chen?"
The woman stared in disbelief at the incredibly young man.
"Hehe, I wouldn't call myself a master, but I am Chen Cheng, the owner of this old teahouse."
"This, this," the middle-aged man looked at Lao Zhang with doubt. In his heart, he felt that Lao Zhang was more like a master.
"Mr. Chu, he is indeed Master Chen. Don't let his young age fool you, he has been learning magic from Master Xiao since he was a child. After Master Xiao left, he single-handedly supported the sect and helped many victims catch ghosts and demons. Everyone in Fengjiang knows this."
"Yes, don't underestimate Chen Cheng just because he's young. He's really good at catching ghosts!"
Two regular customers said to the couple.
"Sit down and talk slowly."
Chen Cheng looked at the middle-aged man and said.
"good".
The two sat down, with Chen Cheng sitting opposite them, while Old Zhang turned to the counter to get tea leaves and brew some.
"Master Chen, this is what happened..."
The middle-aged couple, Chu Tianqing and Liu Mengjie, were small business owners in a steel market in Jingcheng. They were quite wealthy and had a son studying at a university in Beijing. The incident began a while ago when the couple went to Beijing to visit their son. In his spare time, Chu Tianqing, who was an avid collector of antiques, visited the famous Panjiayuan Antique Market in Beijing. Although he was in the steel business, he had a keen eye for antiques. Most of the items there were fakes, and after browsing around, he didn't find anything he liked. Just as he was about to leave, a mysterious man stopped him and told him that he had an old item that he had dug up from his own land.
Chu Tianqing knew that these people were either swindlers or had encountered something genuine. Driven by curiosity, he followed the man to a secluded alley and saw his companion, a rustic countrywoman squatting by the roadside with something wrapped in cloth in front of her. When she saw that her husband had brought a customer, she hurriedly stood up, unwrapped the cloth, and revealed a porcelain bottle about thirty centimeters in diameter.
Chu Tianqing was startled when he saw the object, then squatted down to examine it carefully. He took out his magnifying glass and examined it closely for a long time. Suppressing his excitement, he told the two that it was just a piece from a Qing Dynasty folk kiln. It was indeed an old object, but it did not have much collectible value.