Chapter 21: Three-Inch Golden Lotus

When I saw that knife, I froze for a moment.

That knife was only palm-sized, its blade sharp and thin, the handle wooden, with a ferocious ghost head carved on top, yet the blade below the ghost head was etched with a bagua diagram.

Such a thing is rarely seen on the market nowadays; I have only seen it once in the provincial museum.

It is a type of small ghost-head knife.

It also has another loud name, called the Lingchi Blade.

As the name suggests, it was formerly a knife used to execute criminals by lingchi.

Right now, blood is seeping out from the blade in a steady trickle, dripping drop by drop.

"It hurts…… I hurt so much…… help me……"

The woman sobbed and pleaded, her weeping quite different from the hysteria of ordinary ghosts.

She seemed afraid of something, not daring to cry too loudly.

My heart stirred slightly; I was about to step forward to examine the Lingchi Blade closely when a lithe figure suddenly leapt out from behind, a long whip slicing the air with crackling sounds, swinging straight at the woman's head.

Li Qingying moved with great agility, in just a few motions she had already shielded me behind her.

The woman's silhouette at the doorway had already vanished.

As she left, the bloodstains on the ground disappeared as well.

Everything just now seemed like an illusion.

Li Qingying turned back, concerned: "Xiao Jiu, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," I replied helplessly, "but you just scared away my customer."

Li Qingying furrowed her brows: "Customer?"

I nodded: "Yes, she came to serve as the blade."

"As the blade?" Li Qingying's expression was hard to read, "That bloody, mangled wretch just now—you're not afraid of her?"

I pointed at my eyes: "I can see these things all thanks to Seventh Lord, and Seventh Lord's cultivation requires merit's support; my way of earning merit is to run this pawnshop well—just now… you disrupted a deal of mine."

Upon hearing that the pawnshop's fortunes were tied to Liu Junyan's, Li Qingying instantly regretted: "Then I'll go drag that person back?"

As her words fell, she had already leapt into the night.

I stepped behind the counter, recalling the woman's condition just now.

It is obvious that the woman came to serve as this blade so that I could help her find the cause of her death.

Although she is dead—and has been dead for an unknown length of time—her present state suggests she is still being threatened and confined by something, needing my assistance.

I am currently in urgent need of merit; I will treat every incoming business with care.

Not long after, Li Qingying returned.

Her complexion looked a little odd as she stood at the door holding her whip, lost in thought.

I asked: "Didn't catch up?"

Li Qingying shook her head.

I then asked: "So you scared her off, and she refuses to serve as the blade?"

Li Qingying still shook her head: "I caught up with her, but… on the road to the Town Mayor's house."

At that, my expression changed: "The Town Mayor's house?"

"Yes," Li Qingying said, "I personally saw her sucked into the Town Mayor's house by some force, never to emerge again, Xiao Jiu— that woman might be from the Town Mayor's household."

I expressed agreement: "However, she could also have died inside the Town Mayor's house."

"That kind of death… tsk tsk."

Li Qingying clicked her tongue, shaking her head repeatedly.

Lingchi, this method of execution, was a top-tier torture in ancient times— who would have thought that even today someone could still die by lingchi?

And it happened right here in our small town.

No matter what, this matter is inseparable from the Town Mayor's house.

Late into the night, neither Li Qingying nor I dared sleep; we stayed in Nan Shu Fang, yawning as we chatted.

But no further business came knocking.

The next morning, when I woke up, Li Qingying was no longer in the pawnshop.

The pot was simmering congee, fragrant and steaming, with two small dishes laid on the stove.

I must say, since Li Qingying arrived, I have felt as if I were back when my grandmother was still alive, always taking good care of me.

Not long after breakfast, Li Qingying hurried back.

She placed a small brown porcelain bottle before me and I asked, "What is this?"

"Ox Tear," Li Qingying said, "Apply it to your eyes and you'll be able to see whatever you wish to see."

It turned out she had gone early this morning to do just that.

This is indeed a good thing; I quickly put it away and then asked, "Li Qingying, do you think that woman will come again?"

"I don't know," Li Qingying said, "Better safe than sorry—but if she really does come again, will you help her?"

Having probed into that woman's background, Li Qingying grew wary.

After all, the group of Yellow Skins behind the Town Mayor are not easy to deal with.

"I will help," I declared firmly, "The pawnshop has its rules: those from the yin realm making requests must not be refused; furthermore, perhaps by following her lead we could uncover more."

Li Qingying pondered, then said, "Rules are dead, people are alive—we ought to know how to adapt, right?"

I thought for a moment, grunted: "I will act within my limits."

That night, I left the pawnshop's door open.

Li Qingying stayed with me, waiting the whole time.

Just past eleven o'clock, there was movement outside.

I raised my head and glanced, seeing only a blurry silhouette, and quickly took out cow's tears to apply.

That person saw Li Qingying and instinctively shrank back.

Li Qingying said coldly: "If you have business, come in and speak."

She said, making way to the side.

I applied cow's tears, my eyes stung sharply, and upon looking outward again I saw a woman without skin, her whole body spurting blood, standing just outside the doorstep.

The woman's eyes had been gouged out, leaving only two black sockets.

She still gripped that Lingchi blade in her hand, walking furtively into the pawn shop.

With her movements, fresh blood dripped down, carrying along some bits of flesh.

However, that blood and flesh were not substantial; they fell to the ground and moved with her, leaving no trace.

After the woman entered, Li Qingying had already slipped out from the main door, leaning with arms crossed against the doorframe of the small street-facing door of Nan Shu Fang, staring outside: "Speak if you have business; even as a ghost you're still so weak—don't worry, I'll help you close the door."

The woman seemed to stagger for a moment, her whole body trembling.

She was like a startled bird, unable to bear even the slightest fright.

I dared not delay, asking directly: "Do you want to wield this blade?"

The woman nodded, and as she moved, a large chunk of flesh and blood fell: "To… to be the blade."

I asked: "Is this blade the weapon that killed you? Do you want to wield it so I can help you take revenge?"

The woman still nodded, but the words she murmured remained those few: "To be the blade…"

I asked several times, and it was always the same.

I then realized that this ghost-head blade that had sliced her in lingchi was her obsession; because her obsession ran deep, she could barely utter the words "to be the blade".

Other than that, she would say nothing else.

I could only eliminate possibilities: "Was it Town Magistrate Huang Youcai who killed you?"

The woman shook her head.

Or was it his son Huang Jiaobao?

The woman still shook her head.

Moreover, at this moment she suddenly became especially agitated, continually turning her head to look outward, as if an invisible force outside threatened her.

But Li Qingying had been guarding the doorway; if there were danger, she would notice it immediately.

Just then, my gaze suddenly halted, falling on the woman's feet.

Although her feet were also a blur of flesh and blood, I could still clearly make out that they were a pair of … three‑inch golden lotuses …