Chapter 109 When soldiers come, generals will block them; when water comes, earth will dam it.
Lin Huairou was still somewhat shaken.
"Um."
Zhou Wei had already reached the corner of the ancestral hall and used his foot to clear away the clutter. "We've found the missing steward."
It turned out that there lay a shriveled corpse, drained of blood, which was none other than the Liu family steward who had been missing for several days.
"So, the so-called 'housekeeper missing person' request for help,"
Liu Xiuyuan gasped, "It was a trap from the very beginning?"
Ah-Can approached Xie Xun with lingering fear, "Brother Xie, your Daoist partner Fu..."
Xie Xun didn't speak, but his gaze was fixed on Fu Qinghuai, showing obvious concern.
At this moment, Fu Qinghuai was almost indistinguishable from a living person, but his face was terribly pale.
He barely managed to stand by holding onto the offering table, his forehead beaded with cold sweat, and he swayed precariously.
"Retrieving two fragments of my soul at once, it's so painful, Xunxun..."
Fu Qinghuai's voice was weak, filled with deep grievance. He looked at Xie Xun with pleading eyes, his peach blossom eyes glistening with tears, like a badly injured dog seeking comfort from its master.
Seeing this, Xie Xun frowned and quickly stepped forward to support him.
The movements may seem rough, but in reality, they are carefully taking on most of the person's weight.
Fu Qinghuai immediately seized the opportunity, burying his head in the crook of his neck and rubbing against him pitifully.
"My head is spinning... Xunxun, shall we go home?"
Before Fu Qinghuai could finish speaking, he leaned against Xie Xun again as if all his strength had given out, and whimpered softly, "I want to hold you while I sleep..."
Xie Xun's ears burned, and she glared at him.
Liu Xiuyuan and the others immediately lowered their eyes and pretended not to see anything.
"Captain Zhou, we'll be going now."
"Alright, be careful on the road. I'll have my men take you back!"
...
Back at the paper craft shop, Fu Qinghuai leaned against the door and breathed a sigh of relief; his face was paler than usual.
Xie Xun locked the door, turned around and took his arm for support, "Can you hold on?"
"Is Xunxun concerned about me?"
Fu Qinghuai leaned most of his weight against her, speaking softly, "I feel a little dizzy."
Xie Xun didn't reply, but helped him sit down on the recliner, poured him a glass of warm water and handed it to him, saying, "Drink some water to soothe yourself."
After a while, once Fu Qinghuai had recovered, Xie Xun finally spoke, "What's the situation with those two remnant souls now?"
"Is Xunxun only concerned about them?"
"Be serious."
"It's been suppressed. It just needs some time to be slowly refined, so you might be quite sleepy these next few days."
Fu Qinghuai held the warm cup, looked up at Xie Xun, and said with just the right amount of grievance in his voice, "When the Mirror Spirit hugged your waist, I almost couldn't control my temper."
Xie Xun raised an eyebrow at him. "You've been awake the whole time?"
"Um."
Fu Qinghuai responded softly, his gaze fixed on his face, "Seeing my Xunxun handle things for me and shield me from disaster... I feel both heartache and immense pride."
Xie Xun ignored the clingy tone in his words, carefully put the drawn talisman and the prepared calming herbs into a sachet, and bent down to tie it around Fu Qinghuai's waist.
"Don't take such risks next time; prioritize your own safety."
"Worried about me?"
Fu Qinghuai took the opportunity to grab his wrist, and tried to kiss him.
Xie Xun didn't move, letting him hold him, and used his other hand to check the temperature of his forehead again, his brows furrowing slightly.
"Using such a radical method to fuse remnant souls in the mural world is too dangerous; a slight misstep could lead to a backlash."
Xie Xun looked at him disapprovingly, "What if you really suffer a backlash? Is it worth it?"
"worth."
Fu Qinghuai tightened his embrace, his tone resolute, tinged with a hint of obsession, "Only by recovering sooner can I better protect you and prevent anyone or anything, including my uncontrollable self, from having the opportunity to hurt you."
Xie Xun didn't show anything on the surface, but he was actually deeply moved inside.
Just then, a verdant figure silently swam out from the shadows beneath the counter, deftly spiraling up Xie Xun's trouser leg.
Finally, it wrapped itself securely around his shoulder, proudly raising its triangular head and gazing expectantly at Fu Qinghuai.
Because Xiao Lü was injured by a sea cockroach last time, Xie Xun didn't take it with him and has been staying alone in the paper craft shop lately.
At this moment, it was gently rubbing its head against Xie Xun's face, its forked tongue flicking. When it occasionally met his gaze, a hint of obvious grievance was revealed in its snake eyes.
Xie Xun raised his hand and gently pinched the snake's head, his eyes smiling and softening.
"Did you suffer?" he asked softly, his voice unusually gentle.
Little Green seemed to understand, nuzzling him even more eagerly, its little tail swishing back and forth, just like a clingy little snake.
Seeing this, Fu Qinghuai glanced lazily at the little snake vying for favor and snorted, "Tsk, the little thing knows how to pick its time."
Little Green flicked its tongue at him without showing any weakness. Although it was instinctively afraid of this thousand-year-old evil spirit, it was much bolder with its master around, and it still clung tightly to Xie Xun and refused to leave.
Xie Xun wasn't unaware of the undercurrents between the ghost and the snake; he simply found it somewhat amusing, a faint smile appearing in his eyes.
Xie Xun has been drawing talismans these past few days, and in the meantime, he has been feeding Fu Qinghuai with his blood to refine the two unruly fragments of remnant souls.
Taking advantage of the time he had, he checked in on Jiang Lehui.
Upon learning that Jiang Le had recovered, Shen Zhaoyao was in a more serious condition, suffering not only psychological but also mental and physical stress, to the point that she would never dare to eat seafood again.
I've completely developed sea cockroach PTSD.
By the time Fu Qinghuai recovered and was no longer so sleepy, it was already the beginning of the next month.
Xie Xun had only had a couple of days of peace and quiet when he received a call from Zhou Wei.
"Xiao Xie, it's me, Zhou Wei."
The voice on the other end of the phone sounded a little tired, but the tone was still relatively relaxed. "The follow-up search and evidence collection at the Liu Family Ancestral Hall has finally come to an end. Everyone has worked hard. I was thinking of organizing a get-together, having a meal together, to help us relax."
"Old Liu, Ah Can, and Huairou are all coming. You and your...boyfriend absolutely must come!"
After the incident at the mural world, Zhou Wei seemed to have become much more familiar with him.
They no longer address him as "Mr. Xie," but rather "Little Xie," sometimes with a slightly awkward teasing tone. But strangely, this feeling isn't too bad.
He turned on speakerphone, and Fu Qinghuai, who was sprawled on the sofa with his head on his lap and pretending to doze off, lazily lifted his eyelids and hummed a meaningless sound from his nose, which could be considered as tacit consent.
"Okay, where should we eat?"
"It's settled then. Let's go eat there tonight. The place is a newly opened Sichuan-Hunan skewers restaurant on Hefang Street. They say it was opened by a master chef from Chongqing, and the taste is quite authentic."
Zhou Wei added, "You can all handle spicy food, right?"
"Okay, see you then."
After hanging up the phone, he saw Fu Qinghuai hugging him and couldn't help but chuckle without even opening his eyes.
"You find it strange?"
"Yes, Xunxun must have noticed it too, right? She's been resting for half a month, and only now she suddenly calls to have dinner. I'm afraid her real intention is not what she's looking for."
Hearing this, Xie Xun remained silent, his fingers unconsciously combing through Fu Qinghuai's hair, his eyes growing darker.
Although Fu Qinghuai was somewhat of a conspiracy theorist, his speculations were not without merit.
Although the matter of the Liu family ancestral hall has been temporarily put to rest, the human skin lantern of the Liu family has never been seen, which is quite different from what Liu Yongchang said.
This left Xie Xun unsure whether to believe what he saw or to believe Liu Yongchang.
But ultimately, they are in the open now, while that old monster from the Liu family is in the shadows. Even if it's aimed at him, he's not afraid.
When soldiers come, generals will block them; when water comes, earth will dam it. Whoever has the ability has the right to speak; this has always been the case throughout history.
With that thought in mind, he stopped worrying about it.
Regardless of whether Zhou Wei's gathering was simply about having a meal, he took it all in stride.
...
In the evening, the two walked along the bluestone path of Hefang Street towards the shop.
The faint fragrance of osmanthus blossoms mingled with the aromas of food wafting from various restaurants, instantly making one hungry.
That Sichuan-Hunan skewers shop is located on the street corner, decorated in a bright red style, with two huge red lanterns hanging at the entrance, which are particularly eye-catching in the twilight.
Before even entering, the overwhelming aroma of butter, chili, and various spices instantly overwhelmed the surrounding osmanthus fragrance, so rich it was almost overwhelming, making one's stomach rumble.
Pushing open the door to the private room, I found it already bustling with activity.
Zhou Wei had taken off his usual formal uniform jacket and was wearing a gray fleece jacket, confirming the hot pot base with the waiter. Lin Huairou was still dressed in her usual energetic and youthful attire, a cute little JK style with pigtails.
Right now, they're already taking pictures of the bubbling nine-grid hot pot with chili oil on their phones.
Liu Xiuyuan and Acan sat opposite each other, with half-finished bottles of West Lake Longjing tea in front of them. Liu Xiuyuan looked much more relaxed than before, but a hint of weariness still lingered between his brows.
"Xiao Shen, Brother Fu... Brother Fu is here!"
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