Volume Three - The Tomb of the Fox Immortal, Chapter Five - The Phone

After Xu Jianguo finished speaking, Li Kun and Xu Tian came over. Seeing Xu Jianguo wearing an apron and still holding bowls and chopsticks in his hands, they hurriedly said, "Dad, you're cooking yourself today?"

Xu Jianguo nodded and said, "Yes. It's been a long time since I ate at home. Since we have a guest today, I'll cook myself and let your friend taste my cooking."

When he said that, I could clearly see that Xu Tian's face darkened. A glimmer of tears flickered in his eyes for an instant, then vanished.

Seeing him like that, I was a little puzzled. It was only his father cooking a dish himself. Was there really any need for such a reaction?

Li Kun, on the other hand, paid it no mind and walked straight to the table. His eyes fixed on the many dishes laid out there. Looking up at Xu Jianguo, he said in surprise, "Uncle Xu, you made all this by yourself? Your cooking is incredible. It looks, smells, and must taste amazing too."

Xu Jianguo smiled faintly. "These were all taught to me by Xu Tian's mother. Fortunately, I haven't forgotten them yet."

After saying that, Xu Jianguo said no more and told Xu Tian and me, "You two sit down and eat as well."

I nodded, and then Xu Tian and I sat down in our chairs and began eating.

After we had eaten our fill and drunk our fill, it was already past seven. Old Master Xu said to Li Kun and me, "Xiao Liu, you should rest early tonight. You probably still have something to do tomorrow, don't you?"

I looked at Old Master Xu with some confusion, not quite understanding what he meant. Old Master Xu continued, "You youngsters should turn in early tonight. Tomorrow, something will come knocking at your door. But don't be afraid. It's a good thing, not a bad one."

At that moment, Xu Tian walked over to Old Master Xu's side and asked softly, "Grandfather, did you divine this from a hexagram for us?"

Old Master Xu patted Xu Tian on the shoulder and said, "Xiao Tian, from today onward, follow Xiao Liu. The future of our Xu family can only depend on you now. I only hope that, as the hexagram says, our Xu family can reverse this great calamity. Sigh..."

With that, Old Master Xu turned and walked outside. Xu Tian watched his grandfather's unsteady figure, and doubt rose in his heart. He thought silently, What did Grandfather mean just now? What disaster is our family facing? Why have I never known? It seems Grandfather and Father have deliberately kept it from me.

Seeing this, I winked at Li Kun, signaling for him to leave with me first. Li Kun gave me a slight nod, and the two of us stepped out in turn.

As for the conversation between Xu Tian and Old Master Xu, Li Kun and I had no idea what they had said. Perhaps it had something to do with me, or perhaps it had something to do with the Soul-Suppressing Bell and the Soul-Slaying Blade in my possession.

After returning to the room, I poured two cups of tea, and Li Kun and I sat down on the sofa. Holding his cup in both hands to warm them, Li Kun said to me, "Old Liu, have you noticed something?"

I looked at him in confusion. "Hm? What is it?"

Li Kun turned to glance behind him. Seeing that no one was there, he lowered his voice and said, "Old Liu, have you noticed that Xu Tian's family is all men? There isn't a single woman. We've been here so long, and we still haven't seen Xu Tian's mother or his grandmother."

After hearing him out, I said, "Stop making such a fuss. They're just not at home. What's so strange about that?"

Li Kun nodded as well. "Now that you put it that way, that does make sense. Maybe I'm overthinking it."

Just as he finished speaking, Xu Tian slowly walked in. After entering the room, he sat down beside me and said, "Old Liu, Old Li, what are you two talking about?"

I said, "We were just talking about this Soul-Slaying Blade."

Xu Tian said, "Speaking of that, Old Liu, I still haven't properly thanked you. If it weren't for you, I might have really lost my life that day."

I waved a hand and said, "We're brothers. Saying things like that is just too distant."

After a bit more polite conversation with Xu Tian, the three of us lay down on the kang and began chatting casually.

Time passed slowly. After we chatted for a while, all three of us fell into a deep sleep. During that time, Li Kun even asked Xu Tian about the jade medallion we had previously handed over to the state. Xu Tian did not know much either; he only knew that the medallion was now on display in a museum.

After hearing that, I thought carefully about what Old Master Xu had said today: that someone would come looking for us tomorrow. Was he referring to this very matter?

I pondered for a long while and still could make no sense of it. Listening to the ticking of the clock on the wall, I gradually fell into sleep.

Early the next morning, Xu Tian's phone rang exactly as expected. He took it out and glanced at it. Seeing that it was a call from the museum, he pressed the answer button.

An elderly voice came from the other end. "Hello, is this Mr. Xu Tian? I am calling from the museum. Didn't you donate a Song-dynasty waist token to our museum a few days ago? Do you have time today? I'd like to meet and talk."

Li Kun and I all raised our heads to look at Xu Tian. He frowned slightly and asked, "The donation procedures were all completed, weren't they? Why do you suddenly want to meet? What's this about?"

The old man on the other end said, "Mr. Xu, you've misunderstood. I'm asking to meet you not on behalf of the museum, but in my personal capacity. So you needn't worry."

Hearing that, Xu Tian nodded and said, "In that case, let's set a place."

After arranging the meeting place, Xu Tian hung up. I asked, "Old Xu, what's going on?"

Xu Tian said, "That man was the museum's former curator. He probably has something to discuss with us. Later, you two can come with me and see what that old man is up to."

With that, the three of us got up and began putting on our clothes. Once everything was in order, Old Master Xu was sitting in a reclining chair beneath the big tree by the doorway. Seeing the three of us come out, he turned his head and said, "You three youngsters are setting off, I suppose."

Xu Tian nodded. "Yes, Grandfather. Then we'll be going."

Old Master Xu waved a hand. "Go on. Better early than late."

Xu Tian nodded and, not paying much heed to Old Master Xu's words, turned and left. But I kept those words in mind. This Old Master Xu was no ordinary man; perhaps even a casual remark from him could conceal many things. As for our trip today, would some unexpected change arise?

After all, Xu Tian dealt in antiques, while Li Kun and I were the only two remaining Heaven Masters of the Dragon-Finding lineage in this age. And the old man who had invited us to meet him—I had no idea what he was thinking.

It seemed I would need to be especially careful on this trip.

At the foot of the mountain was the Xu family's parking lot. As expected of a wealthy household, there were seven or eight cars parked there. Near the parking area at the mountain's base stood many small houses, and inside them a number of people were even playing mahjong. It looked as though these people were the Xu family's maids and some of its security guards.

After all, one had to be cautious in this line of work. Just the antiques and porcelain stored by the Xu family would already amount to an astronomical sum. Moreover, anyone who could buy a whole mountain as their private estate was hardly an ordinary person.

The three of us got into a black sedan, and Xu Tian started the car, slowly driving toward the city center.

About half an hour later, Xu Tian parked the car inside a residential complex.

The complex looked rather old and run-down, only three stories high. Xu Tian and I opened the car door and got out. After glancing around, he said to me, "It's just up ahead. Let's go."

Li Kun walked over to Xu Tian and said, "Didn't you say this man was the former curator of the museum? Then shouldn't he be rich? Why is he living in such a shabby place? It's not even as good as my old house in the countryside."

I laughed. "Maybe he's frugal."

Xu Tian also smiled and said, "Even though he was a curator, his salary wasn't that high. Not like nowadays. Back then, a curator made just over two hundred yuan a month. In earlier years, ninety-odd yuan a month was already the most."

Li Kun scratched his head. "Well, that's true. Everyone was poor back then."

I said with a laugh, "Everyone else may have been poor, but this one beside us grew up with a silver spoon in his mouth."

Hearing me tease him, Xu Tian also smiled helplessly. "All right, you two, stop making fun of me. Let's go upstairs. He's waiting for us."

With that, the three of us went straight to the third floor. Xu Tian walked in front, raised his hand, and knocked on the door. From inside came an old man's voice: "Ah, coming, coming."

A moment later, after a click, the iron door in front of us slowly opened.

Standing at the doorway was an old man who looked to be around seventy. Though already past seventy, he was remarkably vigorous, his back straight as a spear. His eyes were bright and alert, and he stood nearly six feet tall.

Seeing the visitors, the old man opened the inner iron gate and said, "You must be Mr. Xu. Come, come in quickly." With that, he stepped aside and made an inviting gesture.

The three of us walked in. The room was simply furnished, with only a few basic wooden pieces and a television set.

The old man pointed to the chairs and said, "Please, sit first. There isn't much at home to offer you, so I hope you don't mind."

Xu Tian said, "You are too polite, sir. We happened to get up too early and haven't had any water yet. Having some tea here would be very nice."

The old man smiled and said, "Actually, I asked you here because I have something I want to consult you about, or rather..." As he spoke, the old man turned to look at Li Kun and me, and continued, "I would like to consult the two gentlemen beside you."