Chapter 101

The cellar's smell of blood hadn't cleared yet, and Li Ping'an stared at the kneeling, crying Liu Suya; the little girl's shoulders trembled, and she still clutched tightly the blood‑stained dagger in her hand.

"You knew all along you weren't Ping Le?" Li Ping'an crouched down, his throat a little hoarse.

Liu Suya wiped her face, her eyes red like a rabbit's: "Last year my father drank too much and slipped up... he said the real Ping Le was sold to Zhoufu, a great household."

"Zhoufu?" Li Ping'an's heart gave a sudden thud, "Which Zhoufu?"

"He only said it was a great household, surname Zhou…" Liu Suya suddenly grabbed his arm, "Master Li, I'll take you to a place!"

She led Li Ping'an to the cloth shop's accounting room, moved aside the blue brick in the corner, revealing a hidden compartment. A yellowed ledger lay there quietly.

"My father recorded every transaction here," Liu Suya turned to a certain page, "Look here—Winter of the 30th year of the Republic, sold a young girl to Zhoufu, received fifty silver dollars in cash."

Li Ping'an's hand trembled a little. In black ink on the ledger were the characters "Li Pingle", followed by "Zhoufu".

"Where is Zhoufu?" he asked urgently.

Liu Suya shook her head: "Father never mentioned a specific location, only said it was in the inner city, with a pair of stone lions at the entrance."

At that moment, a clamor erupted outside. Liu Suya's face changed: "It must be the police again! Brother, you hurry and leave!"

Li Ping'an hesitated and looked at her: "What will you do?"

"I'm fine!" Liu Suya pushed him toward the back door, "I said it was Biao's people who did it! You go quickly find Sister Ping Le!"

Emerging from the cloth shop's back alley, Li Ping'an's mind was in chaos. Four years had passed, and finally there was a clue, but "Zhoufu" was too common. Beiping City had countless great households surnamed Zhou; which one's entrance didn't have stone lions?

He sat at a tea stall and ordered a large bowl of tea. The stall owner was a chatterbox, wiping the table while rambling: "Did you hear? Lin's cloth shop had a death! They say it was black eating black…"

Li Ping'an felt something stir inside, and pretended to ask casually: "Boss, do you know which Zhoufu are in the inner city?"

The stall owner perked up: "Oh, that's a good question! The Zhou family in East City runs a silver bank, the Zhou family in West City are former Qing aristocrats, and there's a Zhoufu in Nan Cheng that does foreign trade... which one are you asking about?"

"The one with stone lions at the entrance."

The stall owner laughed: "Then there are even more! Which great household doesn't place a pair of stone lions at its doorway to show off?"

Li Ping'an cursed himself for being muddled. While he was worrying, three dark‑skinned police officers shuffled over: "Boss, have you seen a fresh face? About twenty years old, Henan accent?"

Li Ping'an lowered his head to drink tea. The stall owner chuckled: "We see new faces every day here, which one are you talking about?"

The police muttered and left. The stall owner leaned in and whispered: "Sir, if you want to inquire about Zhoufu, you should go to the sky bridge and find Sun Banxian. That kid specializes in feng shui, and no great household in Beiping City is unknown to him."

Li Ping'an tossed a few copper coins: "Thanks, boss."

The sky bridge was still bustling. Sellers of big‑strength pills, monkey performers, crosstalk artists—people packed together. Sun Banxian's stall stood in a corner, its banner reading "Iron Mouth Direct Cut".

Li Ping'an had just approached when Sun Banxian squinted: "Sir, your forehead shines; you're looking for someone, aren't you?"

Li Ping'an sat down: "How do you calculate?"

Sun Banxian snapped his fingers and said: "The person you're looking for should be in water."

Li Ping'an felt a sudden jolt inside. Ping Le loved playing in water as a child...

"But this water is not that water," Sun Banxian shifted tone, "I think it's a place whose name contains the character for water."

Li Ping'an recalled that next to the "Zhoufu" characters in the ledger was a faint "tan" (pool) character! He immediately set down the large silver coin: "Continue!"

Sun Banxian took back the silver coin and lowered his voice: "In the western part of the inner city there's a Zhou Tan mansion, its owner is Zhou Shichang. He made his fortune early on by trafficking people, and now he's rebranded himself as a gentleman."

Li Ping'an sprang to his feet. Sun Banxian added: "Sir, that place is very sinister; take care."

The Zhou Tan mansion was indeed imposing. In front of the vermilion gate crouched two imposing stone lions, and a plaque bearing "Zhoufu" hung on the lintel. Li Ping'an walked around to the outer wall of the back courtyard and heard the sound of girls studying inside.

"Heaven and earth are dark yellow, the universe vast and wild..." The crisp child's voice rose and fell.

Li Ping'an felt heat rise within. Ping Le should be at this age studying, too...

He waited until nightfall, then, like a cat, scaled the wall into the back courtyard. The mansion was frighteningly large, with pavilions, towers, and halls all present. He held his breath, focused, and his Divine Perception gradually unfolded, spreading like a net to cover the entire yard.

In the East Wing Room three guards were gambling, in Xi Kua Yuan a maid was soothing children, and in the main hall... huh? Zhou Shichang was drinking with a Japanese merchant!

Suddenly, his Divine Perception swept to a small hut in the back courtyard, where a little girl was staring dreamily out the window. Her eyebrows, eyes, and demeanor were exactly like his mother's when she was young!

"Ping Le..." Li Ping'an felt his nose tingle with sorrow.

Just as he was about to go, two guards emerged from behind a rock garden: "Who is that?!"

Li Ping'an remained calm, assuming the opening stance of Tai Chi: "Just passing by."

The two guards lunged, one was knocked down by his Lan Quei Wei, the other was smashed away by an Elbow Bottom Hammer.

The commotion attracted more people. Li Ping'an stepped with Carefree Step, weaving through the crowd; the ferocity of Ba Ji Quan and the softness of Tai Chi blended perfectly, beating the guards into cries of "my father! my mother!"

"Useless! All useless!" Zhou Shichang heard the shouts and rushed over, stamping his foot in anger, "Get a gun! Kill him for me!"

Li Ping'an's gaze hardened, his Carefree Step unfurled, and like a phantom he flashed before Zhou Shichang: "You were the one who bought my sister?"

Zhou Shichang recoiled in fear: "Spare me, brave man! I... I'm just a businessman..."

"Businessman?" Li Ping'an grabbed his collar, "Does trafficking people count as business?"

At that moment, the Japanese merchant suddenly drew his sword and slashed! Li Ping'an didn't even glance, and with a reverse-hand Mountain‑Clamping Strike he slammed the merchant so far that he flew away and died instantly.

"Speak! Where is my sister?" Li Ping'an pressed harder with his hand.

Zhou Shichang's face turned bright red: "At... at Xi Kua Yuan..."

Li Ping'an dragged Zhou Shichang toward Xi Kua Yuan like a dead dog. The guards, wary of the mouse, dared not advance.

Inside Xi Kua Yuan, the little girls huddled together in fear. Li Ping'an instantly recognized the one standing at the front—it was exactly the girl his Divine Perception had seen!

"Ping Le!" his voice trembled.

The little girl stared blankly at him, tears suddenly streaming: "Brother... is it really you?"

Li Pingle sobbed and leapt into Li Ping'an's arms, clinging tightly as if fearing that letting go would mean losing her life.

Li Ping'an comforted his sister and asked Zhou Shichang: Why did you traffic people?

"Spare me, brave man! I was just... providing thin horses for big figures..." Zhou Shichang bowed his head like crushing garlic.

Li Ping'an's gaze hardened, he drove force from his feet. Zhou Shichang didn't even have a chance to gasp before he fell dead.

"Brother... Ping Le is shaking in fear."

"Don't be afraid. Li Ping'an covered her eyes and said, 'Brother will take you home.'"

He first sent Ping Le over the wall to go out, then returned to the mansion himself. A sweep of his Divine Perception quickly located the storeroom. What a haul! The room was full of boxes and baskets, gold, silver, and jewels piled up like mountains.

The cellar was even more astonishing. Yellow fish were packed in boxes, and silver dollars stacked up to waist height, plus many antiquities and paintings. Inside the innermost part lay grain, at least several thousand catties.

It was all the people's fat and ooze. Li Ping'an snorted coldly, swept everything into his space with a wave of his hand. Finally he splashed an oil lamp, and the flame shot up.

He brought his sister back to the rented house, Ping Le still shivering. Li Ping'an heated water for her to bathe, then went to the clothing shop and bought new clothes. The little girl changed into new clothes, finally showing a smile.

Brother, we won't go back to Zhoufu anymore, right?

No more. Li Ping'an rubbed her head, Brother will make you something delicious.

He made an excuse to go to the kitchen, took Spirit Spring Water from his space to cook porridge. The rice aroma mixed with a strange fresh fragrance; Ping Le ate without lifting her head: Brother, this porridge is really sweet!

At night, Ping Le clung to the corner of his shirt as she slept, just like when she was little. Li Ping'an watched her sleeping face, his heart feeling both sweet and bitter.

Ping Meng murmured, snuggling into his arms.

Li Ping'an gently patted her: Sleep, Brother is here.

The night was dark, yet his eyes shone amazingly. At last he had fulfilled his mother's dying wish; his parents' spirits in heaven could now rest. The souls of his two lives had finally fully merged, his Soul Sea continually expanding, the range of his Divine Perception scanning expanded to sixty meters, feeling light and at ease, he could finally sleep soundly.