Xie Lian didn't know if it was an illusion, but he felt that Hua Cheng's shoulders seemed to stiffen for a moment.
After a moment, Hua Cheng said calmly, "I told you. The next time I see you, I'll use my original appearance."
Xie Lian smiled, patted his shoulder, and said sincerely, "Very good."
Neither teasing nor comforting, he simply let it go. Hua Cheng smiled, this time with a genuinely normal expression. After they walked a few steps, Xie Lian suddenly remembered something very important he hadn't confirmed with Hua Cheng. He removed the silver chain from his chest and asked, "By the way, is this something you left behind?"
Hua Cheng glanced at the ring and smiled, "This is for you."
Xie Lian asked, “What is this?”
Hua Cheng said, "It's not something valuable, just take it with you for fun."
Although he said so, Xie Lian knew that this thing must not be that simple. He said, "Thank you very much, Sanlang."
Seeing him put the ring back on, Hua Cheng's eyes flickered. Xie Lian glanced around and said, "When I heard you say you were coming to Paradise at the gambling house, I thought it was some kind of brothel. Now, it looks more like a dance hall."
Hua Cheng raised his eyebrows and said, "Brother, what are you talking about? I never go to places with fireworks."
This really surprised Xie Lian. He asked, “Really?”
Hua Cheng said: "Of course I take it seriously."
The two walked to the edge of the black jade couch and sat side by side. He continued, "I built this place for fun. It's considered one of my residences. Come and hang out when you have time. If you don't, I'll just leave it alone."
Xie Lian said, “So this is your home.”
Hua Cheng corrected her, "Residence. Not home."
After chatting for a while, Xie Lian said, "Sanlang, I have something I might need to ask of you. I wonder if you're free."
Hua Chengdao: "What's the matter? I'm here, just tell me if you have something to say."
After a moment's silence, Xie Lian said, "While dealing with some matters at Yujun Mountain a while ago, I met a young man who might have some connection to my homeland."
At the mention of "origin," Hua Cheng's eyes narrowed, and he remained silent. Xie Lian continued, "But I mishandled the situation and scared him away. Later, I asked someone to search for him, but he was nowhere to be found. Just now, while wandering around your ghost market, I think I stumbled upon him. Sanlang is the owner of this place, so could you help me find him? The young man had bandages wrapped around his face, and he just ran away from the gates of Paradise Place."
Hua Cheng didn't say much. He stood up and whispered a few words, as if communicating with someone. After a moment, he sat down again and said with a smile, "Okay, wait."
He was the master of the Ghost Market, so naturally, he could do things more easily than him. Xie Lian breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Thank you so much again."
Hua Cheng said, "That's nothing. But, are you just going to abandon Lang Qianqiu like that?"
Xie Lian thought, if Lang Qianqiu were here, with his straightforward nature, there was no telling what would happen next. It would be best if they reunited later. He casually said, "I'm sorry that His Highness Taihua may have caused you some trouble at the gambling house."
Hua Cheng's face once again showed that slightly contemptuous smile, and he said, "Of course not. He's not qualified enough to be a problem."
Xie Lian said, “His Highness Taihua is just like that by nature. When he saw that gambling situation, he felt he had to stop it, so he acted on impulse.”
Hua Cheng said calmly, "That's because he's too inexperienced. Between giving himself ten more years to live and ten fewer for his enemy, he chose the latter without hesitation. That's human hatred." He sneered again, crossed his arms, and said, "A fool like Lang Qianqiu can ascend to heaven. There really is no one in the heavens."
“…”
Xie Lian rubbed his brows with a guilty conscience, thinking, "You can't say that. After all, a rag collector like me can ascend..."
After hesitating for a moment, he said, "Sanlang, I might be overstepping my bounds by saying that, but I'll say one more thing. Your gambling house is extremely dangerous. I'm afraid something bad will happen one day."
This kind of gambling, betting on men and women, life spans, and sudden death, is truly a sin. Moreover, small-scale gambling is fine, but if the stakes get too big one day, the Heavenly Realm will sooner or later be unable to sit idly by. Hearing this, Hua Cheng looked at him and said, "Your Highness, have you asked Lang Qianqiu why he rushed out?"
Xie Lian was slightly startled, unsure why he suddenly asked that question. Hua Cheng continued, "I bet he told you that if he didn't do it, no one else would."
Xie Lian said, “You guessed right. He did say that.”
Hua Chengdao said, "Then, I am in the exact opposite situation. If I don't control a place like this, someone else will. Rather than letting someone else control it, it's better to have it in my hands."
Xie Lian understood.
Everyone has their own path. He didn't know what the situation was like in the ghost world, so it was not easy to say more. Hua Cheng added, "But thank you for your concern, brother."
At that moment, Xie Lian heard a voice coming from the doorway. A young man said, "City Lord, I've found the bandaged boy."
Xie Lian looked toward the door and saw a masked young man in black standing at the entrance to Ji Le Fang. Beyond the beaded curtain, he bowed slightly. In his hand, he was clutching the ragged, bandaged young man.
Hua Cheng said without even turning his head, "Bring it here."
The young man in black came in, carrying the boy, and gently placed him on the ground. The bandaged boy, perhaps realizing he couldn't escape, simply lowered his head after being put down. Xie Lian accidentally glanced at the young man's wrist and suddenly noticed a black curse circle on it.
He is very familiar with this thing.
Cursed shackle!
The young man brought the person over, bowed again, and then withdrew. Xie Lian should have looked at him a few more times, but there were people who needed his attention more. He leaned closer to the young man and quickly said, "Don't be afraid. I was wrong last time, and I won't do it again."
The young man's eyes were wide with uncertainty. Perhaps he had already escaped so many times that he no longer had the energy to run. Xie Lian glanced at him, then at the small table on the black jade couch. Following his gaze, Xie Lian saw a plate of brightly colored fruit on the small table.
This young man must have been hiding for a long time and hadn't eaten in days. Xie Lian turned to Hua Cheng, but before he could say anything, Hua Cheng said, "Do as you please. No need to ask me."
Xie Lian didn't bother to be polite anymore and said, "Thank you." He took the plate of fruit and handed it to the bandaged boy. The boy snatched the plate away and began to stuff it into his mouth without hesitation.
It looked like he had been starving for days, utterly starving. Even when Xie Lian was at his lowest point, starving like a stray dog, he wouldn't have eaten as voraciously as he did. Xie Lian didn't know what to say, so he just said, "Slow down."
After a pause, he tried to ask, "What's your name?"
The young man ate while mumbling something as if he wanted to speak, but he couldn't get his words out clearly. Hua Cheng said, "He might not have spoken to anyone in years, so he's not very good at it."
Indeed, it seemed that the young man had barely spoken to Xiaoying. It was probably a long time ago. Xie Lian sighed, "Take your time."
At this moment, the young man suddenly opened his mouth and said, "... Firefly..."
Xie Lian immediately looked at him and said, "What did you say? Are you talking about Miss Xiaoying?"
The young man nodded, pointed at himself, and said, "... Firefly."
Xie Lian understood and said, “You mean, I can call you Ying?”
The young man nodded again. By this time, he had devoured the entire plate of fruit with a whirlwind of energy. Xie Lian looked at the blood-stained bandage on his face, dark and red. After a moment's thought, he said gently, "You have a facial injury. It looks serious. Let me take a look at it for you."
At the mention of this, fear flashed in the young man's eyes again. However, Xie Lian continued to persuade him gently, and he sat down obediently.
Xie Lian walked over to him, pulled a bottle of medicine powder from his sleeve, and was about to untie the stained bandage. Hua Cheng said, "Let me do it."
Xie Lian shook his head and slowly untied the tangled bandage.
As expected, although the boy's face was a mess of blood and flesh, those horrible human faces had all disappeared, leaving only a series of bright red scars.
The last time I saw Junshan, although his face was burned, the bandages weren't bloody. This young man had indeed used a knife to cut or slash the faces left behind by the human-faced plague.
Xie Lian's hands trembled slightly as he applied the powder to the boy's face. Hua Cheng grasped his wrist and said, "Let me do it."
Xie Lian shook his head, gently pulling away from his hand, and said in a deep voice, "No need. I can do it myself."
Eight hundred years ago in the Imperial City of Xianle, many people infected with the Human Face Plague, left with nowhere else to go, chose this very act. The scene was a veritable hell on earth. Some made mistakes, cutting where they shouldn't have, bleeding to death. Others, though having their faces removed, suffered wounds that would never heal.
As Xie Lian applied layer upon layer of new bandages, he increasingly discovered that the boy's face and features were actually quite regular, with a straight nose and distinct black and white eyes. He should have been a handsome young man, but now his appearance was so suffocating. He was the same as those people. Even if the deformities were removed, it would still be a face that gave people nightmares. From then on, it would never return to its original appearance.
Xie Lian finally managed to re-bandage him and asked in a trembling voice, "Are you from Xianle Country?"
The young man's large eyes darted over. Xie Lian repeated his question several times, but he shook his head. Xie Lian asked, "Then who are you?"
Ying seemed to think for a moment before answering, "...Yong...An..."
This young man is actually from Yong'an Country!
Xie Lian felt his vision go dark for a moment, and blurted out, “Have you ever seen… Bai Wuxiang?”
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