Chapter 23: Dung is a good thing

  Before I arrived at the old man's house, I subconsciously thought that his granddaughter was a 10-year-old loli or even younger. It wasn't until I entered the old man's two-story villa with a European style and a small lawn in front of the door that I realized. The girl in front of me, who was lying on the refrigerator eating chicken legs with cold eyes, was not a loli at all, but a beautiful young girl.

  But this girl's eating posture is really ugly. She just hugged a chicken leg with blood on it, stuffed it into her mouth and chewed, occasionally making a "humming" sound in her nostrils. The saliva at the corner of her mouth mixed with the blood on the chicken leg, dripping onto the ground. Her hair was messy, her pajamas were wrinkled, and there was no shyness on her face except for ferocity. Suddenly, I felt that I had no love for this girl anymore.

  "Jingxiang, you've woken up? My dear granddaughter, you've woken up." The old man who brought me and Dengcao here rushed forward, embracing the girl in his arms and bursting into tears. This shows how deep his feelings are for his own granddaughter.

  "Old man, don't get excited. Let her go first, let her go!" The old man was self-absorbed in his excitement, completely unaware that his "granddaughter" was staring at the pulse on his neck, drooling. If she hadn't been holding back for my sake and Lamp Grass', I reckon she would have pounced already.

  How did I know she was concerned about me and the lamp grass? As the saying goes, the eyes are the windows of the soul. As soon as I entered the house, I found that this "sister" didn't dare to look at us straight in the eye. Moreover, every time I intentionally or unintentionally looked over, she would flash her eyes and avoid my line of sight. With me being such a handsome young man, is this a normal reaction for a girl? Even if she doesn't throw herself into my arms, shouldn't she at least look at me straight in the eye?

  This also indirectly proves that the goods hidden in the body of the sister, think that I can pose a threat to it. For someone who can pose a threat to it, its first reaction is naturally retreat and dodge. For an opponent who doesn't even dare to collide with me with his eyes, what reason do I have not to pinch this soft persimmon? Hehehe!

  "She last woke up half a month ago. If she falls asleep again this time, I don't know how long it will take for her to wake up again. Every time she wakes up, the time she spends in a coma gets longer and longer. From just a few hours at first, to one day, two days later... all the way to half a month now... I'm an old man, I'm getting on in years, I'm afraid that one day I'll die, and there won't be anyone left to prepare food for her. What will my poor granddaughter do then?"

  The old man slowly released his granddaughter from his arms and sat on the floor, tears streaming down his face. Because of his love for his granddaughter, he knew that eating these raw and cold foods would be bad for her health in the long run, but he still stored them away for her. He knew that the granddaughter before him was no longer the obedient one she used to be. Yet, he still used his love to carefully protect her! All he hoped for was that one day his granddaughter's strange illness would get better.

  But as time went by, the old man gradually became desperate. His mood became more and more anxious, and he even knelt down to two young fortune tellers on the street. He had lost hope in all medical means in the world, and now he was just holding onto a dead horse as if it were alive. He prayed for heaven's mercy to grant him a miracle.

  "Don't worry, old man, I'll ask you a few questions, okay?" After helping the old man up from the ground and settling him onto the sofa in the living room, I comforted him.

  "Master, what questions do you have? Just ask, and I will answer truthfully as long as I know." The old man said to me after calming down his excited mood.

  "Was your granddaughter always like this, or did something happen to her that made her become like this?" Before entering the house, I took a look around and found that it was located in a good spot with mountains behind and water in front. In theory, such a place shouldn't have any ghosts or evil spirits.

  But looking at the old man's grandson and granddaughter, it was a real case of being possessed by a ghost. What on earth was going on? Unable to think of an explanation, I had no choice but to ask the old man about it. Let's see if I could get some clues from him.

  "There's nothing special that happened, it just became like this one day. Master, what are you suspicious of?" The old man stroked his white beard and furrowed his brow, trying to recall something for a long time but couldn't think of anything. He got up and went to the refrigerator, took out two bottles of drinks, one for me and one for Deng Cao, and asked back.

  "I suspect that your granddaughter has contracted something unclean outside. So, think carefully again. Did she come into contact with any unusual person or thing before she fell ill?" I opened the can in front of me and took two sips of the drink before saying to the old man.

  "No, this kid doesn't usually like going out. The only hobby is to go to the West Lake to see the scenery and paint two sketches. Ah, she participated in a certain club before? It's said that it's a place for people who love painting to communicate with each other. Not long after joining, the child became like this."

  In his impression, his granddaughter was so well-behaved. Normally not speaking much, even at home, she spoke in a soft and gentle voice. Such a child would find it hard to make enemies outside, who would bear the heart to hurt such an innocent and obedient girl?

  "Wait, old man, you just said your granddaughter joined some kind of club? Do you still remember the name?" Since there's no other suspicious points, for now I can only start investigating from what this old man said about that club. My sixth sense tells me that this club is very likely to be the main culprit behind this girl's situation.

  "What village was it? You see, I'm getting old and can't remember anything. Let me think, let me think!" The old man saw that I seemed to have found a clue, but he himself had forgotten the name of the place. He got up from his seat, looking frustrated, and paced back and forth in the living room.

  "Ah, I remember now, Danqing Society! That's the name. At that time, I even praised it, saying what a great name it was." After a while, the old man suddenly slapped his forehead and said...

  "Tan Qing Society? Does old man know the address? I want to go and take a look!" I asked the old man, playing with the can in my hand.

  "In the Hilton Hotel in the city, the president is said to be an overseas Chinese. He wants to promote traditional Chinese painting and provide a place for enthusiasts to exchange and improve their skills. To join the club doesn't require any fees, not even membership fees. The president also promised that every quarter, he would invite famous Chinese painting masters from all over the country to come and guide them. I remember it was even reported in the news, causing a big stir in the city."

  "Huxton Hotel! ....... As soon as I heard the name, I was in trouble. This place is run by British guys in our country. I'm wearing a Taoist robe and bringing a monk with me, but the doorman might not even let us in. We can't even get through the door, how are we going to investigate the Danqing Society?"

  Moreover, the foreigner's status in the country is still relatively high. Even if he is just a beggar, many people will still fawn over him. If things get out of hand, even if I am in the right, I will end up being in the wrong.

  "If the two masters want to go and ask about Danqing Society, this attire might need to be changed. Moreover, it's best not to carry too little money on you." The old man stroked his beard, looking at me and Dengcao as he spoke.

  "I looked down at the Taoist robe on my body, which had been washed to a faint whiteness, and then looked at the wrinkled monk's robe on Lamp Grass. I shrugged my shoulders at the old man."

  "These things don't require the two masters to worry about, later let the housekeeper take you both to pick out a few sets of clothes. Everything will be put on my account, Li Dongcheng's." As soon as money was mentioned, the old man changed from his previous depression and became very spirited.

  "A rich man is a gentleman, but a poor one is just a guy! The ancients were not deceiving me!" I said with a sigh, stroking the extremely dark Armani suit on my body.

  "Amitabha, I'm really anxious!" Beside him, Dengcao, wearing a white suit and tie, with the demeanor of a bodyguard, loosened his tie, which had been tied by the charming waitress in the store earlier, and said with a bitter expression.

  "This is the old master's activity fee for the two masters, don't worry, these are all extra gifts from the old master. It won't be counted in your pay." Seeing that I and Deng Cao seemed very satisfied, the steward, who was over 50 years old, handed over the two donkey skin document bags he was holding and said so. It wasn't until later that I knew this was "Ahier Wei".

  "This must be several tens of thousands, right?" After the butler had arranged everything and brought me and Dengcao to the Hilton Hotel to open two business suites, he bid farewell and left. After he left, Dengcao opened the package and looked at the stacks of cash inside, asking me with a tongue-tied expression. And I, at this time, was deeply emotional, gently counting the money one by one, fifteen twenty...

  "I said, I'm asking you a question!" Lamp Grass waited for half a moment, but I still hadn't finished counting the money neatly. Suddenly, he became somewhat impatient and said!

  "Hold on, I haven't finished counting yet. Huh? Can't you count it yourself? You're already rich, what's with the 'poor monk' act?" I pushed Lantern's chubby hand away, spat a wad of phlegm onto my fingers, and continued counting the money as I spoke to him.

  "Remember me, Lou Mengmeng!" The lamp grass poured the money from the bag onto the bed, counting it while licking his lips and speaking to me in a huff.

  "Haha, I said lamp grass! The two of us, are we now playing with dung? Suddenly, I remembered what Master said about money being like dung."

  "I'd rather drown in a pit of filth than that!" The monk said with his head down.