Chapter 126 Fame
No sooner had the fat monk finished speaking than the drumbeats outside suddenly quickened.
First came two long-interval drumbeats, then the drumming suddenly became rapid and intense, like a torrential downpour.
But the rapid drumbeats don't make people feel uncomfortable; instead, they have a peaceful and gentle power.
Chu Ci listened for a while and felt completely comfortable.
Just as she was immersed in the magical drumbeats, a piercing scream suddenly shattered the silence of the stadium.
Min Min, who had been hiding to the side pretending to be a quail, screamed and rolled around in pain.
"Stop the drumming! Stop the drumming!"
Her features were contorted in a ferocious grimace as she struggled with all her might.
"Stop! Stop banging! Stop now!"
The body, bound by the Soul-Hooking Rope, struggled and twisted, emitting wisps of white smoke.
"My God!" the fat monk exclaimed.
"Her soul is about to be scattered!"
Chu Ci hadn't expected the exorcism ritual to be so effective; even the simple beginning had caused the ghost so much suffering.
Those of them who were alive felt comfortable, but Min Min, who was lying on the ground, was writhing in pain.
"Quick! Get her downstairs first!"
Chu Ci had the fat monk take Min Min away, while he quickly ran out of the gymnasium.
The fat monk, under the questioning gazes of the parents and the young police officers, chased after her for a couple of steps but couldn't catch up.
Hey! Where are you going?!
Chu Ci's voice, accompanied by increasingly dense drumbeats, reached his ears.
"Go to the woods over there! Come back right away after you're done delivering!"
Hearing that there was still work to be done, the fat monk quickly took Min Min's soul out.
Under the watchful eyes of the parents and the police, he smiled and said he needed to go to the toilet, using the excuse of going out the door to go to the underworld.
The Black Shadow Charioteer was already waiting in front of Hall 4.
The fat monk handed the nearly lifeless Min Min to him, then moved his obese body to help Chu Ci.
When he arrived at the woods, Chu Ci was in the trees carrying down those dazed and foolish infant souls.
Compared to Min Min, who had committed numerous evil deeds, the innocent souls of these babies were largely unaffected.
Instead, they perched on the tree, staring with curious eyes in the direction from which the sound came.
"If it's inconvenient for you to climb up, just wait for me down here."
Chu Ci nimbly climbed down from the tree and handed the baby's soul to the fat monk.
Looking at the nearly translucent, chubby baby in his arms, the fat monk cursed inwardly for his misfortune.
Looking up, the trees here are dense and the long tree-lined avenue is filled with the transparent soul of an infant on each tree.
"To run such a large school in such an expensive place like Hong Kong, and then use evil methods to grow trees!"
"This is absolutely outrageous!"
His cheeks trembled with anger.
"This kind of beast should stay in the eighteenth level of hell until he dies!"
"Say less, save your energy."
Chu Ci climbed the tree, took out an infant's soul, and handed it to him.
Looking up at the countless souls before him, he sighed.
"This job will be finished soon."
Soon, the fat monk couldn't hold all the children in his arms.
He bound a dozen or so children with a soul-snatching rope, looked up at Chu Ci in the tree, and shouted:
"I'll send these children down first, you can take your time!"
Upon hearing Chu Ci's response, he sent the children's souls to the underworld.
He repeated this two or three times and soon realized that he had exceeded his exercise limit for the day.
He sat on the ground, dragging his obese body, panting heavily, a metallic sweet taste rising in his throat.
Seeing Chu Ci carrying another child's soul, he waved his hand with a wry smile.
"I can't go on, Sister Chu, I need to rest. I can't walk anymore!"
Seeing the sweat beading on his fat face, Chu Ci frowned.
"You really should lose some weight. You're exhausted after just a few steps. Your weight is already threatening your health, isn't it?"
The fat monk chuckled.
"Don't worry, we can live to be a hundred years old by working for the underworld!"
Chu Ci rolled her eyes at him, "Being paralyzed in bed is still living, being able to jump and hop is still living."
"If you continue like this, you'll definitely be bedridden."
Fat monk: "..."
The image of spending the rest of my life in a hospital bed and working for the underworld flashed through my mind, and I was suddenly jolted awake.
"No! I want to get up, I want to move!"
He struggled to his feet, clinging to a nearby tree, and led the children to the underworld.
Chu Ci watched as the ghosts of the children were taken away by him, and couldn't help but sigh.
Going to the underworld only requires his soul to leave his body; he doesn't need to move at all. How did he manage to exhaust himself like this?
I thought that after this experience, the fat monk would have a change of heart and start exercising.
Unexpectedly, his passion only lasted for a mere two minutes.
When he returned from the underworld, he had an extra helper with him.
Chu Ci's eyes widened as he saw the familiar figure behind the fat monk.
"Inspector Shen?!"
Shen Zaikun, whose head was wrapped in blood-soaked gauze, was also stunned when he saw Chu Ci.
"Miss Chu?"
"So you two know each other!" The fat monk dragged his heavy body over.
Chu Ci looked at him in confusion and pointed at Shen Zaikun.
"This is……"
She still thought that Shen Zaikun had been injured or had an accident, but then the fat monk explained it to her.
"This is our colleague, 001!"
"001, this is our colleague, 003!"
He rubbed his hands together happily.
"I just went down to send off the souls of those children, and I unexpectedly ran into 001."
"He happened to be free, so I called him over."
"The three of us are as strong as metal; we'll definitely be able to finish the job quickly!"
Chu Ci and Shen Zaikun stared at each other, wide-eyed.
Chu Ci never expected that this Inspector Shen had joined the Underworld earlier than she, a professional.
Looking at the blood-soaked gauze on his head, he hesitated and asked:
"Your head..."
"Oh, I accidentally got hurt."
Shen Zaikun touched the gauze on his head and pointed in the direction of the school's main gate.
"Just now, my colleagues and I were guarding the gate when we were pushed by the crowd of reporters."
"I bumped my head, but it's okay, it's already bandaged."
"Oh right, 001." The fat monk remembered something.
He looked Shen Zaikun up and down and asked, "You came straight here from the hospital. Did the doctors and nurses think you were dead?"
After the soul leaves the body, a person stops breathing.
"No." Shen Zaikun shook his head.
"I have a private room, and the room is locked from the inside."
"No one will come into my room to check on me until I get back."
Fat monk: "A private room?"
Are the police that rich?!
His question was practically written all over his face. Chu Ci chuckled and handed him the soul of a child.
"His family is very wealthy, and the meager salary he gets at the police station isn't even enough for him to buy a single piece of clothing."
Fat monk: "!!!"
He stared at Shen Zaikun from head to toe, a sour feeling rising in his heart.
There are so many rich people in the world, why can't there be one more!
He simply channeled his grief and anger into motivation; while Chu Ci and Shen Zaikun went to retrieve the children's souls, he sent those souls to the underworld.
I was busy for almost half an hour and didn't even complain of being tired!
With Shen Zaikun joining them, their speed has improved significantly.
Even after all the children had been sent to the underworld, the exorcism ritual outside the school was still not over.
Without the nourishment of those children's souls, the once lush and towering tree withered at a visible speed.
When they finished their work and wanted to leave, the ground was covered with a thick layer of fallen leaves.
"Oh, these trees!"
The withered, brittle leaves lay scattered on the ground, crunching underfoot, their thickness almost reaching knee-deep.
Shen Zaikun, whose soul had left his body, felt nothing, but Chu Ci and the fat monk had difficulty walking.
The fat monk, in particular, almost fell after taking just a couple of steps with his obese body.
Having finally gotten out, they planned to leave through the side door, but suddenly heard a cheer coming from the direction of the main entrance.
Mingguang Middle School has a large area, and the main gate is far from the side gate. Normally, you can't hear any noise from the side gate.
But the fact that we can hear it now is enough to show how loud the commotion is over there.
The fat monk stared longingly in the direction of the main gate, his heart skipping a beat.
"Sister Chu, do you think... our hard work has been stolen?"
They've been gone for so long, those parents and children probably went out a long time ago.
Once they go out like this, who can say for sure whose credit it is?
In an instant, the fat monk, exhausted from a long day, almost broke down and cried.
His glory and wealth were within his grasp!
Chu Ci stood still and looked into the distance. The sounds from the main gate were getting louder and more lively.
She and the fat monk worked up a sweat, keeping their achievements hidden.
To be honest, even if she didn't care about these things, the comparison still made her feel a little sad.
"never mind."
After hesitating for a moment, she patted the fat monk on the shoulder to comfort him.
"We've sent so many babies' souls down there; they'll definitely reward us."
"If those above don't get anything good, those below will always compensate us."
Her words only made the fat monk more upset.
"What good things can they give us down there? Just lifespan!"
Just like she said before, she could jump and leap her whole life, or be paralyzed in bed her whole life.
If he becomes paralyzed and bedridden in the future, he won't be able to die even if he wants to, and he'll have to continue working for the underworld.
The underworld's plan is far too clever for its own good!
However, before he could even complain, Shen Zaikun, who had been mostly silent, suddenly spoke up:
"It shouldn't be lifespan; I heard it's related to merit."
"Merit?!"
Is it really meritorious?
The fat monk's dejection vanished instantly, and he became excited.
Shen Zaikun nodded, "Yes, when we were sending the children down together for the last time, I overheard two underworld officials discussing this matter, saying that they might reward us for our merits."
The fat monk's smile vanished instantly upon hearing the word "we".
"You have one too?"
Shen Zaikun blinked in confusion, "What's wrong with me?"
Fat monk: "..."
How come all the good things happen to this person?!
Although he felt incredibly jealous, he knew they would have to get along in the future, so he grumbled twice in dissatisfaction and then fell silent.
After finishing their work, the two of them either left or went back to the hospital.
After meeting with Wu Jiangxue, Chu Ci handed her the list he had obtained from Zhong Jia.
Wu Jiangxue had just solved the most difficult problem and hadn't even had a chance to thank Chu Ci when she saw Chu Ci hand her a note.
"What's this?"
Chu Ci stared at her smiling eyes for a while, then curled her lips into a smile.
"The list of the drug cartel that harmed your father back then."
Wu Jiangxue: "..."
The smile on her face gradually disappeared, and she stared blankly at Chu Ci.
I instinctively clenched the paper in my hand, and it made a soft rustling sound.
"you……"
"Hey, don't thank me yet."
Chu Ci interrupted her emotional outburst.
He pointed to the paper in her hand, "This list is only half complete; I haven't received the other half yet."
"So don't thank me yet. I'll get a reward for catching the criminals on this list sooner."
Wu Jiangxue looked at the names on the paper; some she recognized, and some she had never heard of before.
But this list is very detailed; in addition to the names, it even includes the addresses of these people.
With this half-list, finding evidence and making arrests won't be difficult.
She gripped the paper tightly in her hand, a mix of emotions welling up inside her.
She lowered her eyes and smiled, then looked up at Chu Ci.
He raised an eyebrow and smiled, "Thank you for the list. I'll catch the people on it as soon as possible so you can get your reward sooner."
"Thank you very much, Officer Wu!"
Chu Ci smiled and patted Wu Jiangxue's arm.
Having done everything he needed to do, Chu Ci planned to go back and rest.
Wu Jiangxue called out to her, "Those parents want to see you. Do you want to go and meet them?"
"Hmm...they're all near the school's main gate?"
"Yes, their children have all recovered and are now being interviewed by reporters."
Thinking of that noisy scene, Chu Ci shook his head.
"Forget it, I don't like giving interviews."
"Besides, I'm quite tired today, and I want to go back and rest."
Noticing the weariness that she couldn't hide between her brows, Wu Jiangxue nodded.
"Okay, I'll have someone send it to you."
Chu Ci is really tired after visiting the underworld several times today.
As soon as I got home and sat down on the sofa, I fell asleep instantly.
She was awakened by the landline at home when she regained consciousness.
"Hello?"
She groggily reached out and answered the phone, and the fat monk's excited voice came through.
"Sister Chu! We're going to be famous!"
His excited laughter came through the receiver.
"We didn't do the work for others! Do you remember giving one of the parents your business card?"
"They gave your address to the reporters, and now the reporters all know that we saved those children."
"Everyone's eager to interview us! Come to the store entrance quickly, everyone's waiting for you!"
"What did you say?"
Chu Ci's drowsiness was completely scared away by his words.
She sat up abruptly from the sofa. "A reporter is standing in front of my shop?"
"yes!"
The fat monk was all smiles.
"They've all been interviewing Grandma since you weren't here! You have no idea how happy Grandma is!"
"And your former neighbors, they've all heard about your story and are coming over now!"
"Hurry up, we've been waiting for you!"
Chu Ci: "..."
Just imagining that scene, Chu Ci couldn't help but shudder.
So many people?!
She quickly got off the sofa. "Okay, okay, I'll go to the store right now, I'll be there soon."
After hanging up the phone, she wanted to rush downstairs, but thinking that she might be photographed later, she went back and combed her hair.
She ran all the way to her store entrance, only to find that the scene was even more exaggerated than she had imagined.
The shop, which was originally quite large, is now packed with people from all walks of life.
The parents and children she had previously saved all came, each carrying a bag full of gifts.
Grandma and her former neighbors were surrounded by reporters and being interviewed.
The neighbors who used to find the original dog annoying are now gathered around Grandma, beaming with joy.
"Oh, Ah Ci, I knew she would amount to something!"
“She was different from other children from a young age. While other children went to school, she followed her grandmother to learn rice.”
While other children were taking exams, she went around telling fortunes!
“I told my husband at the time, ‘Aci has loved this kind of thing since she was little, she’s bound to achieve something great in the future!’”
Chu Ci: "..."
She remembered the old woman who spoke.
On the day she first arrived, the old woman said she would bring trouble to her family and wanted to send her and the old woman to live somewhere else.
When the original owner was a child, she went around asking fortune tellers for help. She even called the original owner a little liar and chased her for two whole blocks.
A flood of memories washed over Chu Ci, who glanced at the old woman beside the old woman.
Grandma was surrounded by people, trying hard to suppress her laughter, and the wrinkles on her face smoothed out.
"..."
Alright, it's not easy for Grandma to be this happy.
After the neighbors finished praising her, Grandma took the microphone and pointed to the shop behind her.
"Hey handsome guys and beautiful ladies, if you're looking for a partner, come to our shop!"
She gestured for everyone to look at the billboard behind her for the "Hope for a Lifetime of Love" marriage agency.
"We're looking forward to Bai Shou opening in a couple of days, and we'll be giving everyone a 20% discount!"
"No matter what kind of person you are looking for, we can help you find the right one!"
"You can even get your birth chart read for free!"
As soon as her advertisement was published, a female reporter asked with a smile:
"Grandma, if we're not looking for a partner, is it okay to just have our birth charts analyzed?"
"Sure!" Grandma looked at her with a smile. "Beautiful lady, are you getting married? Bring your spouse to our shop for a visit."
"If there are problems, we'll find them in time; if there aren't, we'll live happily ever after!"
Grandma quickly started chatting with the reporters.
When she got tired and looked up, she found Chu Ci standing not far away, smiling at her.
Grandma's eyes lit up, and she quickly pointed at her.
"Aci! Master Chu is over there!"
The reporters all turned their heads, and the parents who were waiting to personally hand over the gifts also hurried over.
In order to capture a photo of Chu Ci with the parents, reporters made way for them.
Twenty or thirty parents, along with their children, were moved to tears of gratitude.
"Master, thank you so much! If it weren't for you, my wife and I would have really gone with our child to that point!"
The parents were about to hand their gifts to Chu Ci.
Chu Ci wanted to shake her head and refuse, but a smiling female student shoved the item into her hand.
"Master, please take it! We went straight to the mall after leaving the school."
"I picked all of these things out myself; they're all things that young people like!"
She had a bright smile, clear eyes, and her eyebrows curved when she laughed.
"Master, this is a token of our family's appreciation; you must accept it!"
After she set an example, other students' parents followed suit.
Chu Ci's hands and arms were quickly stuffed with things.
Seeing that there was nowhere to put the things, Grandma opened the shop door.
"Everyone, come to the store!"
Parents flocked into the store, all looking for a place to put their gifts down.
The once spacious shop was suddenly crammed full of gifts.
The fat monk stood beside Chu Ci, posing for photos with the reporters.
Just as the fat monk was about to give a speech, someone shouted:
"A master has arrived!"
Chu Ci and the fat monk both felt a chill run down their spines, thinking the other party had come to cause trouble.
The Hong Kong Paranormal Masters Exchange Association caused such a commotion, only to have it all hijacked by these two.
It's normal for people to come looking for us.
But to their surprise, the other party wasn't there to cause trouble; instead, they came to offer their blessings.
Chu Ci dazedly accepted the plaque the other party presented, while the fat monk sourly muttered to her:
"I never expected that they would actually take the initiative to invite people to join the membership."
"Master Chu, you're really going to be famous!"
He whispered, "Whether you want to join the association or not, let's not forget each other when we become rich and powerful."
"If you have a chance to make money, don't forget your good colleague!"
Chu Ci smiled and glanced at him, while the fat monk winked at her.
The eyes, which were already small, were completely obscured by this squeezing.
"Master Chu."
The person sent by the association was a capable young woman.
She gestured for Chu Ci to proceed and smiled, saying:
"Whether you want to join the association or not, we can discuss that later. Shall we take a picture together?"
Chu Ci nodded, "Okay."
The moment the camera clicked, firecrackers arranged by the association went off.
They exploded and crackled together, creating quite a lively scene.
Chu Ci stood in the middle, smiling as she looked at the camera, her nose filled with the distinctive smell of gunpowder from firecrackers.
Today was truly the most exciting day she'd had since she transmigrated.
...
The reporters, association representatives, and parents who brought gifts left one after another as night fell.
Grandma closed the shop door, pulled Chu Ci to sit in the middle of a pile of gifts, and excitedly unwrapped them.
"Wow, so many gifts! Let's see what good stuff they have!"
Grandma was enjoying the fun of unpacking packages with scissors, while Black Bean joined in the fun.
When it saw a box open, it meowed and tried to crawl inside.
Seeing the black bean's fluffy little body, Chu Ci breathed a sigh of relief.
"It would be good if we knew that it was Master Jin who wanted to harm us, not the entire association."
Otherwise, it would be too difficult for her to take on the entire association by herself.
Grandma excitedly unwrapped the gifts without looking up.
"That Master Jin doesn't look like a good person, but I've heard those associations are pretty good."
She looked at Chu Ci with a smile, reminiscing about her youth.
“That association has been around for many years. When I was young, I worked as a medium and I always wanted to join them.”
"Back then, with their endorsement, the average order value was much higher each time, and more people came."
"As a result, I'm almost retired, and instead of getting in myself, they're inviting you."
Chu Ci never expected that his grandmother and the association had such a connection.
Originally, I had no intention of joining the association, but now I'm starting to feel a little tempted.
But we can talk about that later; right now, the most important thing is these gifts.
She and her grandmother were unwrapping gifts, and as they did, they found quite a few envelopes containing money.
There are five or six hundred small ones, and several hundred or even a thousand large ones.
They were all packed in gift boxes, and no one knew who gave them to them, let alone return them.
Grandma smiled as she looked at the money.
“These parents are all reasonable people, and it was worth it for you and Master Shuai to go and save their children.”
After she finished speaking, she put all the money together.
I counted them, and there were about twelve thousand.
Divide the money into two parts, and hand one part to Chu Ci.
“This is for you and Master Shuai. You've worked hard, so you should get paid.”
"As for the rest," she said, waving another coin in her hand, "we'll take this one to the orphanage later."
As she spoke, she picked out the items from the gifts that couldn't be kept for long.
“Let’s go and carry these to the orphanage together.”
"I went to their place today to hear where the donations went, and I even wrote down the money for buying two candies for the children."
“That director is reliable. All the things we sent can be used on those children.”
After tidying up the shop, the two of them took the money and their belongings and went to the orphanage.
The orphanage director also heard about Chu Ci's situation, and after accepting the money and gifts, he repeatedly expressed his gratitude.
As he left, he looked at Chu Ci, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping himself.
Tired from a long day, Chu Ci didn't look into the dean's eyes, but asked:
"Is there anything else, Dean?"
The dean hesitated for a long time, then looked at Grandma Chu Ci's expression, and finally shook his head with a dry laugh.
"It's okay, you look a lot like someone I know."
"I heard that you are an orphan, and that your grandmother took you in?"
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