CALID Chapter 20

Transaction

Each ghost king had their own abilities and temperaments, but there was one surprisingly unified aspect—they were all about appearances, or rather, about ghostly appearances.

Whenever they manifested in the mortal world, they had to make a grand entrance, creating a scene that would make heaven and earth pale, and then they would appear, causing fear and trembling among the living, much like a wolf baring its fangs in front of lambs.

The scene He Simu created was already impressively eerie and menacing, with hundreds of crows landing and ghostly fires burning people.

However, the lamb in front of her seemed to have a rather peculiar problem; not only was he not afraid, he seemed somewhat excited. Not just excited, he even dared to talk nonsense with his eyes wide open: “Your Highness Ghost King, what are you talking about? I am Duan Xu, with the surname Duan, the name Xu, and the style name Shunxi. It’s the name given by my maternal grandfather and the style given by my father, all genuine.”

He Simu smiled faintly, lifting him up by the collar with one hand and said kindly, “You’re lying.”

And indeed, he was truly good at lying.

Duan Xu didn’t struggle as He Simu lifted him, he blinked calmly and responded, “It’s not suitable to stay here for long. Your Highness, why don’t we discuss matters further after we return to Shuozhou Prefecture?”

“Are you trying to beat around the bush with me?”

“How do you know I’m not asking for your help?”

Duan Xu smiled openly, and his round, bright eyes even carried a hint of innocence. He Simu squinted at him for a moment, thinking she hadn’t seen someone so tough to deal with when asking for help.

When Han Lingqiu woke up with a start, he found himself leading a grain cart back along a mountain path. He was bewildered for a moment, looking at the reins in his hand, the grain cart beside him, and the soldiers ahead and behind him, his mind a mess.

Just now… they had seized the grain cart, only to find themselves ambushed, and then… for some reason, the Huqi people who ambushed them inexplicably withdrew when victory seemed within their grasp, so they took the grain cart and headed back along the mountain road.

It seemed to be the case, but the twists and turns of events were incredibly strange, as if something had suddenly gone missing.

As Han Lingqiu carefully recalled, the image of Duan Xu shooting an arrow through an enemy’s eye flashed in his mind again, making him shudder. Some blurry images began to flash back and forth in his mind, indistinct but disturbing. Just then, someone tapped him on the shoulder, and he instinctively drew his sword and pressed it against the person’s neck, but the person reacted even faster, spinning away and standing three steps away.

Duan Xu rubbed his neck with a smile, saying, “That was close, Captain Han, what’s wrong with you?”

Han Lingqiu widened his eyes, breathing heavily as he stared at Duan Xu, as if trying to bore a hole through him. It wasn’t until he noticed that the soldiers on the mountain road had stopped and were looking at the standoff between the general and the captain with unease and confusion that he stiffly said, “I was… too nervous just now, General, please forgive me.”

Duan Xu shook his head as if he didn’t mind Han Lingqiu’s unusual behaviour at all, and said kindly, “It’s alright. I just wanted to tell you that once we’re out of the mountain pass, we’ll blow up the rocks on both sides of the mountain road to block it. There are spies in the army; they must already know about this route since they knew we were coming to seize the grain. Leaving it open would be a great danger.”

Han Lingqiu saluted and said, “Yes, General.”

Duan Xu walked past him, calmly making his way to the front of the group. He appeared warm and smiling, but his hand tightly gripped the Broken Illusion Sword.

Han Lingqiu suddenly had a feeling amidst this chaotic memory and familiarity. If he had truly known Duan Xu before, their interaction should have been like just now.

They had this kind of tense relationship, with swords drawn and facing each other.

When Duan Xu reached the front of the group, he didn’t even look back at Han Lingqiu. He sighed softly, “Look at you, making everyone jumpy with your suspicions.”

Walking beside him, the pale beauty that only he could see turned her head slightly. The tassels of her silver hairpin trembled as she did so, and she gave a slight smile, apparently disapproving but too lazy to say anything.

This raid for grain was perilous, but the captured provisions could sustain the city for more than twenty days. When Duan Xu’s group returned to Shuozhou Prefecture from the mountain pass, General Wu Lang showed rare warmth, sending many to welcome them. Seeing Duan Xu injured, he even showed a hint of guilt. This truly surprised the other captains, but Duan Xu acted as if it were only natural, graciously accepting General Wu Lang’s hospitality.

Watching this rare scene of harmony, He Simu thought that the little fox’s words before the raid were indeed meant to win people over. General Qin repeatedly put him in danger, perhaps truly intending to kill him, but he probably hadn’t anticipated it being so perilous before raiding for grain. Yet he managed to put on an expression of melancholy, making General Wu Lang feel guilty.

Duan Xu was truly a man of many layers, hiding his true intentions beneath many layers of deception.

As night fell, Duan Xu arranged matters for the troops and could finally rest in his room. As soon as he entered and sat on the bed, Meng Wan entered with medicine and bandages, intending to dress the wound on his arm. Duan Xu declined, saying he could do it himself, but Meng Wan became anxious, placing the medicine on the table and saying, “Shunxi, it’s inconvenient for you to dress your arm by yourself. Even if you don’t want my help, you should find someone else to take care of you.”

Duan Xu found this somewhat amusing. He picked up the bandages and medicine from the table, partially undressed to reveal his injured left arm. The wound stretched from his upper arm to his forearm, about half a finger deep and still oozing blood, previously only roughly bandaged. He removed the old bandage with his right hand, and Meng Wan saw him about to dress the wound himself but then watched as he poured the medicine directly onto it from the bottle. Then, taking the fresh bandages, he wrapped them around his arm, using his mouth to hold one end while his right hand wound it around his arm, finally tying it off neatly before relaxing.

The entire process was swift and efficient, unbelievably skilled.

Meng Wan’s hand froze in mid-air, and Duan Xu smiled, even having the composure to wave his newly bandaged arm, saying, “I didn’t find it inconvenient. This little injury doesn’t need anyone else’s care. Ah Wan, go rest early.”

Meng Wan thought to herself, having known Duan Xu for so many years, there had never been a time when he needed someone else’s care. You might say he was competitive and unwilling to show weakness, but he wasn’t that kind of person, even showing a bit of laziness.

Yet from that laziness, there emanated a faint, unshakeable toughness.

As Meng Wan left the room with nothing to say and closed the door behind her, a sardonic laughter filled the room.

Duan Xu glanced over, seeing a pale beauty dressed in rust-red garments sitting on the sandalwood chair in his room, idly playing with a jade pendant in her hand, her smile delicate and charming.

He wasn’t surprised, dressing himself and saying, “Your Highness Ghost King seems quite familiar with this place; it doesn’t seem like your first visit. Last night…”

“Last night, I was indeed here. I saw you completely undress your upper body. Putting your clothes back on won’t restore your innocence.” He Simu’s tone was indifferent, even comforting: “It’s just a shell, don’t worry about it.”

Pausing for a moment, she gestured towards the direction outside the room. “When did you meet Meng Wan?”

“After I returned to Nandu from Daizhou, I studied under Scholar Yang with her.”

“Oh? The title of Scholar Yang doesn’t sound like your master, the one who was blinded by geese.”

“As the saying goes, ‘where three walk, there must be a master among them’. I couldn’t possibly have only one teacher.”

He Simu looked at Duan Xu with what seemed like genuine eyes and smiled slightly, “Why are you so pitiful? Friends and teachers whom you can call by name are all those you met after the age of fourteen. What were you doing before the age of fourteen?”

She stood up, stepping delicately in her pale red embroidered boots, walking step by step towards Duan Xu. She lowered her head to look at the always smiling and sincere young man, and said softly, “Is that blind master your teacher before you were fourteen? Is that forgetful Captain Han your friend before you were fourteen?”

Duan Xu looked straight into He Simu’s eyes without flinching.

“The master was indeed my teacher before I was fourteen, but the friend was not. Before I was fourteen, I had no friends.”

He Simu’s gaze flickered, her eyes shifting from casual to serious. “Who are you exactly?”

Duan Xu looked at He Simu in silence for a moment, gradually revealing a bright smile, and said slowly, “I am Duan Xu, Duan Shunxi.”

The air seemed to momentarily stagnate, the gaze of the two locked, the candlelight dancing on their faces, and the subtle yet dangerous atmosphere thickening in the silent scene. He Simu’s figure flickered, and the next moment Duan Xu found himself pinned down on the bed, his neck gripped tightly by He Simu.

He Simu sat on top of him, leaning down to stare into his eyes, her grip tightening gradually.

Duan Xu’s fingers tightened on the sheets, blinking a few times before he managed to say with some difficulty, “Your… Highness… please… spare… me.”

Even in such a moment, he was still smiling.

He Simu leaned closer to him, her long hair falling onto his face, perhaps causing him some discomfort as he slightly furrowed his brow.

“With your martial arts skills, why aren’t you struggling or resisting?” she asked indifferently.

“In the face of absolute power, all skills are useless.” With He Simu’s grip loosening slightly, Duan Xu was finally able to say this sentence smoothly, and he added an explanation, “I can’t beat you, so I have no choice but to beg for mercy.”

He did have a good sense of self-awareness.

He Simu chuckled softly and said, “What if I don’t spare you?”

The pressure in her grip started to increase again.

Duan Xu thought for a moment, then raised his hand to point at his own head and joked, “Does Your Highness want to collect my skull?”

This off-topic remark raised He Simu’s eyebrows.

“That’s a good suggestion,” she replied.

“I think my skull will look even better when I’m fifty. Would Your Highness consider waiting until then to consume me?” Duan Xu continued with a smirk.

He Simu squinted at Duan Xu for a while, as if she could see a series of idioms such as “bold and daring,” “fearless,” “eloquent,” “sophisticated,” and “deceptive” written all over his face.

And she would add “unyielding” to the list.

After facing off with Duan Xu for a moment, she chuckled softly and released her grip, looking down at him from above and slowly saying, “I won’t consume you. I’m here to make a deal with you.”