Chapter 7 The Pavilion of Love and Lust

Swallowing hard, I reverently lifted the adorable little coin pouch from the table with both hands, and happily opened it. Inside was a small bag full of coins—round, with a square hole in the center, genuine "square-holed" coins! Both the obverse and reverse had rims, the rims being the same height as the characters to protect the inscriptions from wear. The coins were inscribed with the seal script characters "五铢" (Wu Zhu), authentic "五铢钱" (Wu Zhu coins)! What? Curious why I recognize those two characters? Money! This is money! How could I not recognize it! If I took this back to the modern era, it would be an antique…

“Backdraft! Backdraft…” Such a hopeless and anxious voice came intermittently from outside the window.

"Don't hit my dad! Don't hit my dad!" Gou'er's voice suddenly rang out.

I snapped out of my reverie, staring at the ancient coin in my hand, and looked out the window at the dog's thin body leaping onto its father, trying to shield him from the punches and kicks.

"Stop." A gentle voice sounded so out of place amidst those pitiful screams.

I tilted my head slightly and saw a woman standing at the gate of the house. Although she was not a stunning beauty, she was gentle and quiet, with a unique charm, which was very different from the other gaudy and seductive women around her.

“Hui Feng…” The man, who had been beaten and looked disheveled, lay on the ground, looking at the woman in front of him, and struggled to get up.

"I... don't like you." Looking down at the man on the ground, the woman called Huifeng spoke softly, her voice gentle, but her words were icy.

Under the scorching sun, the beggar lying on the ground was disheveled, with large beads of sweat rolling down his forehead. He looked up at the woman he longed for with such humility.

"Then why..." Dog's father paused slightly, then asked in a trembling voice, panting.

Hui Feng smiled faintly, turned around, and looked up at the plaque hanging high above. "Fengyue Tower... Fengyue Tower, ha, he didn't hesitate to ruin me to this extent in order to get me, yet I have to submit to a beggar who is the lowest of the low." Her slightly raised lips broke her gentle tranquility, and she spoke softly, then turned back to look at the beggar whose face was covered with mud and sweat. "Even the lowest prostitute has no right to be deflowered by him. Isn't this the greatest irony?"

Who is he?

"My dear girl, what brings you here? Master Huang has been waiting for you for a long time." A plump woman walked out, fanning herself with a round fan, and then went into the house.

Hui Feng twitched her lips, lowered her eyes, and bit down two clear teeth marks on her luscious red lips. "You, stop having unrealistic dreams. Once you wake up from those dreams, that's it. Don't keep lingering on them..."

The dog remained kneeling beside his father, motionless, staring blankly as Hui Feng followed the woman into the brothel.

The old beggar lay prostrate on the ground, his hand trembling as he reached out, his eyes wide as he stared at Feng Juejue's resolute back, blood gushing from his mouth.

The dog remained motionless.

I was terrified! Good heavens, someone's going to die!

I turned around and hurriedly ran downstairs.

I rushed to the other side of the street and grabbed the dog. "Stop spacing out, quickly help your dad to find a doctor."

The dog was still in a daze. I pulled it aside, but its eyes were still fixed on the ground, and its dirty face made it impossible to see what kind of expression it had.

"Stop glaring! Glaring won't make it bloom! Your father's about to die if he doesn't get medical attention soon!" I shouted, helping the old beggar to his feet.

"It's better that he's dead," the dog suddenly said, his voice very soft.

I froze, then gritted my teeth and slapped him across the face.

The dog was stunned by my hit and looked up at me.

“A son doesn’t despise his father for being ugly. Even if he’s a beggar, even if the whole world looks down on him, you can’t!” I said to Gou’er, emphasizing each word. “You should be grateful that even though your father is a beggar, even though he can only beg for a living, he… no matter how hard life was, he never abandoned you!”

The dog stared at me blankly, its eyes red.

"Stop spacing out, I don't know the way, finding a clinic is the priority, you lead the way!" I said gruffly, helping the old beggar who was already delirious.

The dog didn't say anything, but went forward to help support his father.

"Go away, you stinking beggar." Standing at the entrance of the clinic, a man with a goatee waved his hand as if shooing away flies.

"Hey, he's dying, are you going to just stand by and watch him die?" I was a little annoyed.

"Heh heh, these days, the more filthy beggars like you die, the less there are left." The man with the goatee laughed shamelessly.

I gritted my teeth, resisting the urge to punch his incredibly irritating face.

"Seeing a doctor costs money, getting medicine costs money, you stinking beggar, money! Understand?" The goatee grinned, his mouth, with only a few teeth left, was a disgustingly dark hole.

The dog lowered its head and didn't speak.

I was so angry that I ripped the bag of coins Liu Bei had just given me from my pocket. “You snobbish bastard, help me inside!”

The man with the goatee paused for a moment, then looked at me with suspicion. "Huh? Not only a beggar, but also a thief."

Enraged, I stepped forward and grabbed his goatee. "You wretched old man, how dare you stand by and watch him die!" I yelled. Then, turning to the dog, I helped the old beggar up, ignoring the goatee-bearded man's attempts to stop me, and stormed into the clinic, placing him on the couch. "If anything happens to him today, I'll tear your clinic down!"

The man with the goatee was trembling with anger, and it looked like he was about to explode.

I took out the brand-new Swiss Army knife from my shoulder bag and played with it in my hand. The sharp blade gleamed coldly, so bright it hurt my eyes.

The man with the goatee turned pale and turned to examine the old beggar.

Indeed, in this world, some bandit-like behavior is still necessary.

The dog kept its lips pursed, remaining silent and standing straight to the side.

"I...I tried my best..." After a long while, the man with the goatee turned around, his face pale and trembling, "He...he's dead..."

"What?!" I exclaimed in surprise.

The dog trembled violently, but still didn't speak.

The old beggar lay quietly on the couch, not moving at all.

I instinctively looked at Gou'er, who slowly stepped forward, bent down, and carried his father on his back.

"I...I really tried my best..." The man with the goatee stared at the Swiss Army knife in my hand with a deathly pale face.

I ignored him, put away my knife, and followed Gou'er out of the clinic.

The sun was blazing. The dog, with its thin body, carried such a heavy body across most of Xuchang City. Then it collapsed to the ground and sat silently on the busiest street. It took a clod of mud and wrote four big characters in front of it. Then it laid its father down and knelt down on both knees.

I followed behind him, completely baffled. What was he trying to do?

"Uh, Doggy, what are you doing?" I squatted down next to him and asked.

He lowered his head and remained silent.

I looked down at the four big characters on the ground. Sigh, the feeling of being illiterate is really unpleasant.

Suddenly, a thought flashed through my mind, and I looked up abruptly, "Could this be... about selling oneself to bury one's father?"

The dog remained silent.

It was accepted by default.

Good heavens, the most cheesy plot on TV is actually playing out in front of me?

“My father wandered his whole life without a home… I don’t want him to be a lonely ghost even in death… I want to give him a proper burial.” After a long while, Gou’er spoke, his voice very low.

"How much do you want?" I asked, pursing my lips.

"Twenty coins, buy Father a thin coffin, find two people to carry it, and give him a proper burial."

My hands, without my control, automatically reached into my pocket. I touched the small purse, counted it, and there were exactly twenty coins—no more, no less.

Ah, fate...

After a long pause, I let out a long sigh and placed the coins in front of the dog. "Twenty coins," I said, though it hurt.

The dog looked up, its bright black eyes staring blankly at me.

"Get up." I smiled and helped him up.

The nameless old beggar was buried in a wasteland in the north of the city. I stood behind Gou'er and watched him with his head down, very quiet.

It's so quiet. Not a single tear has been shed from the beginning until now. It's so quiet.

"If you want to cry, then cry." I walked over to him, knelt down, stroked his head, and said in a soft voice.

He looked at me, his pale lips bitten until they bled, but he remained silent.

My heart skipped a beat. I looked down, took a chocolate out of my bag, unwrapped it, and put it in his mouth.

"Is it sweet?" I reached out and pulled him into my arms. "If you want to cry, then cry. Don't hold it in."

His body stiffened slightly, and then he began to sob softly.

"I thought that woman had some unavoidable difficulties... but it turns out that in her eyes... I was just a lowly being..."

I patted his shoulder gently, feeling a pang of sadness in my heart, speechless.