I went to An Yuan Tang in the afternoon for a bit, and as soon as I came out, I ran into Bai Hanyan.
She was dressed casually as always, wearing a backpack, with her long hair cascading over her shoulders. At first glance, she looked a bit like a college student.
"You good-for-nothing Xiang Fei! You came back and didn't even tell me!" Bai Hanyan said with a fierce look.
I forced a smile, "I just got back, didn't I? I was planning to invite you to dinner yesterday, but something came up and it got delayed."
"When did you get back?" She walked over and nudged my shoulder.
I said, "Can you not be so handsy?"
"What? You don't like it?" As she spoke, she grabbed me and asked, "Where did you go this time? Did you go tomb raiding?"
"How did you know?"
She raised an eyebrow, "You actually went tomb raiding?"
I nodded, "It wasn't exactly a tomb, more like I went to an underground palace with a friend."
"Did you get anything good?"
I couldn't help but laugh, "When did you become so greedy?"
"I'm just curious," Bai Hanyan pouted. "What are you doing later?"
"Nothing much."
Her face lit up, "Then it's perfect, let's find a place to chat and you can tell me about this tomb raiding trip."
I shook my head helplessly, unable to refuse, and suggested going to the antique shop near Hong Yuan.
This antique shop was usually empty. Hong Yunpeng and Fatty hadn't returned yet, so it was the most suitable place to chat and have tea.
When we got there, everything was the same. Hong Yunpeng hadn't changed much of the layout.
I took out a box of tea from the drawer, brewed a pot, and sat on a lacquered rosewood chair. Bai Hanyan sat opposite me.
"You have no idea how boring it's been while you were gone," Bai Hanyan pouted. "I've been staying at home every day, it's so dull."
"Didn't you go out with your friends?" I asked.
"What's fun about hanging out with them? It's just eating and drinking, even more boring."
I chuckled, "You don't know how lucky you are."
"Hurry up and tell me about your tomb raiding trip," Bai Hanyan urged.
I took a sip of tea, "Where should I even start?"
"Just start from the beginning."
"Alright."
I thought for a moment, skipped the part about Qin Jing, and started directly from going to Shangdu.
As for how I met Fu Honglang, I also glossed over it.
After I recounted the whole story, Bai Hanyan listened with great interest.
"There were really such giant corpse beetles?" she asked.
"Of course! If Wang Yang hadn't stepped up at the time, I probably would have been living there permanently..."
"I didn't expect Wang Yang to have some skills. Why didn't he return to Guangling with you?"
"Who knows? He said he had something to take care of," I replied.
Bai Hanyan pursed her lips, "And then?"
"And then?" I lit a cigarette and took a slow puff as I continued.
When I got to the part about the crystal corpse that emerged from the monster's belly, Bai Hanyan gasped, "Xuanmen Parasitic Gu!"
"What is Xuanmen Parasitic Gu?" I asked, puzzled.
Bai Hanyan said, "I read about it in an ancient book. It said that in ancient times, there was a Gu-refining master who created a method for longevity by parasitizing himself with his life Gu, nourishing himself with Gu, and controlling Gu with himself..."
I was lost in her explanation. Bai Hanyan herself only had half a clue, and after rambling for a while, she couldn't make it any clearer.
"And then?" she asked.
"Then I fainted. When I woke up, I was already out of there..."
"Is that underground palace still there?" Bai Hanyan asked.
I shook my head, "The underground palace had a self-destruct mechanism. It collapsed after we came out."
"What a shame. Otherwise, I really would have liked to see it," Bai Hanyan said regretfully.
"You said earlier that that Gu... it could make people immortal?" I asked.
"That's just a legend. I don't know the exact process. If you're interested, I can lend you that ancient book another day, and you can research it yourself," Bai Hanyan said.
We chatted until dinner time. I suggested treating Bai Hanyan to a meal, and she didn't hesitate, saying she wanted to go to a fancy restaurant.
As we were preparing to go eat, I called Hong Yunpeng, wanting to invite them along.
As soon as the call connected, Fatty's voice came through, "Master Xiang, where are you?"
"Hong Yuan."
"Wait for us, we'll be right there!"
Hearing his tone, I couldn't help but ask, "Did you find anything about that flute?"
"I'll tell you when we get back!"
After hanging up, Bai Hanyan asked me what flute.
I told her about Fatty going to the antique market yesterday. She listened and said, "Your friend is really something. Why did he come to Guangling with you?"
"He's my full-time assistant now," I said.
Bai Hanyan covered her mouth and giggled, "You hired a full-time assistant?"
"What do you mean by that? Can't I hire a full-time assistant?" I asked irritably.
"Of course, you can. After all, you're the owner of An Yuan Tang. Hiring a full-time assistant is nothing. But is one assistant enough for you?" Bai Hanyan raised an eyebrow.
"What do you mean?"
She grinned and leaned closer to me, saying, "Why don't you hire me too? I don't ask for much, just food included."
I laughed, "Don't joke with me. How could I afford you? What would happen if people knew you were working as my assistant?"
Bai Hanyan said, "I don't care. I never take back my words. Anyway, from now on, I'm your full-time assistant too."
As she said this, she boldly leaned towards me and linked her arm through mine.
I quickly dodged, saying, "Men and women should not touch..."
Bai Hanyan rolled her eyes at me, "Look at how timid you are."
Half an hour later, Fatty and Hong Yunpeng arrived at the shop. As soon as Fatty walked in, he looked excited, as if he had won the lottery.
"Master Xiang! We're rich this time!"
I raised an eyebrow, "Rich from what?"
"Someone offered thirty thousand for that flute!" Fatty said.
Hearing this, I was stunned and looked at Hong Yunpeng. He grinned and said, "Fatty is telling the truth."
"Who offered thirty thousand?"
"An old customer of An Yuan Tang," Hong Yunpeng said.
It turned out that during the day, Hong Yunpeng had gone to get the flute's material analyzed and met an acquaintance from An Yuan Tang.
That person had bought quite a few antiques from An Yuan Tang before. They exchanged pleasantries, and the conversation naturally turned to the flute.
Hong Yunpeng showed it to the person. After looking at it, the person not only revealed the flute's origin but also offered to buy it for thirty thousand.
"What's the story behind this flute?" I asked.
Fatty raised an eyebrow, "Guess?"
At this moment, Bai Hanyan became interested, "What flute? Can I see it?"
Fatty said, "Oh, Miss Bai, it's been a while. Have you gotten even prettier?"
"Really?" Bai Hanyan beamed. "You're quite the talker. Not like some people who are as stiff as a board."
"Some people?" Fatty deliberately raised his voice and glanced at me.
I couldn't help but laugh, "Hurry up and tell us what the story behind that flute is."