I stood up, brushed off my cheap shirt, and glanced at Jiang Fei, who was dressed head-to-toe in luxury brands but sat dumbfounded on the sofa. She seemed to have not yet grasped the manager's meaning.
"Mr. Gao, this way, please," the manager said respectfully.
"Stop right there!" Jiang Fei shouted, her anger barely contained. "I'm calling your headquarters! Why is he being served first? Does my Jiang family's account worth tens of millions at your bank mean less than some poor guy in knockoff clothes?"
"Miss Jiang, please mind your words. This gentleman is a distinguished guest of our bank—" The manager's explanation was cut off mid-sentence.
"Shut up! This is none of your business!" Jiang Fei barked. "Bring out your higher-ups. Today, I'm going to get to the bottom of this—what's more important, Jiang Jin Real Estate's projects or this country bumpkin's trivial matters?"
I couldn't deny Jiang Fei's beauty; even in this situation, she maintained a breathtaking allure. But that didn't mean I appreciated her. On the contrary, for an unreasonable woman like her, I usually gave her a four-word evaluation: "Big chest, no brain."
"What did you say?" Jiang Fei gritted her teeth, clearly fuming. If there weren't so many people watching, she might have slapped me right then and there.
Unwilling to waste time on her tantrums, I followed the bank staff into the basement. Through the thick iron doors, I could still hear Jiang Fei's shouting outside. "Whoever marries this woman in the future is going to have bad luck," I muttered.
After swiping my black card and entering the password, I retrieved a heavy black package from my personal safe. Among the items I exchanged for this time was a jar of Tongsian Wine, so I handled it with extra care.
"Mr. Gao, we apologize for not handling this matter well. Please forgive us," the staff said courteously.
"Encountering that unreasonable woman was just an accident; it has nothing to do with you," I replied. Holding the black package, I only wanted to return safely to Ting Tang Road without any more incidents.
When I emerged from the basement, Jiang Fei was still arguing with the lobby manager, her voice loud enough to draw a crowd to the VIP passage.
"Excuse me, please make way," I said, eager to leave. But Jiang Fei, as if determined to provoke me, came after me again.
"We're not done here!" She stormed over, her high heels clicking as she grabbed my arm with her slender fingers. "You're not allowed to leave!"
"Unreasonable! Do I need your permission to leave? Is this bank owned by your Jiang family?" I shot back, shaking off her grip and pushing my way out.
Perhaps she didn't expect to be treated so roughly. Stumbling in her thin high heels, Jiang Fei lost her balance and fell against my back.
Thud!
I felt something soft press against my back, followed by a strong impact that nearly made me drop the black package in my hands.
"Hey! Are you out of your mind?" I snapped. If the package had fallen and the jar of Tongsian Wine worth five points shattered, I would have exploded with rage.
Turning around, I glared at Jiang Fei. She looked disheveled, sitting on the ground with her short skirt barely covering her thighs, revealing a faintly mysterious glimpse.
"I…" The anger and grievance brewing in her chest were about to erupt, but then her eyes fell on a red string made of talisman paper slipping out of my package. "Is this what you took out of the bank?"
She reached out to grab it, and I panicked. That was the Marriage Fate Red String, something that absolutely couldn't be touched carelessly.
"Don't touch it!"
Holding the package in my right hand, I reached with my left to snatch it back. But Jiang Fei was faster, grabbing the red string with her right hand.
"What is this thing?"
Man on the left, woman on the right—both of us tugged at the red string.
"Let go!"
"Why should I? I picked it up!"
As we bickered, neither of us noticed the talisman paper beginning to burn on its own. One end wrapped around Jiang Fei's wrist and disappeared, while the other end circled my left ring finger before turning to ash.
"What… what just happened?" Jiang Fei stared wide-eyed at her wrist, stroking it in disbelief.
I stood frozen, staring at the ashes left by the string. "It's over. Three points worth of Marriage Fate Red String, and it got used on this woman!"
Every point in the Hell Show was earned with my life on the line. This string was originally intended to bind a ghost marriage and secure a supernatural match, but by a twist of fate, it ended up being used on Jiang Fei.
Three full points, wasted on a woman who, besides her looks, had nothing going for her. My feelings were complicated.
"Forget it. It's used now. What can I say?" I muttered, getting up with the package and preparing to leave.
"You're just going to leave? Thanks to you, I twisted my ankle!" Jiang Fei called out as she struggled to her feet, leaning against the wall for support.
"And what do you want me to do about it?" Suppressing my anger over the wasted points, I glared at her. If she kept acting up, I'd feel obliged to teach her a lesson her family hadn't.
Jiang Fei, cornered by my gaze, realized something strange. When I got angry, my eyes turned slightly red, like the cunning, fierce gaze of a fox.
Under that gaze, the words she had planned to say were stuck in her throat. After hesitating for a long time, she muttered, "I twisted my ankle and can't drive. You need to take me home."
"Take you home?" Her sudden change in tone left me baffled. "What nonsense!"
With more people gathering to watch, I hurried to escape, clutching the black package and diving into the crowd.
"Hey, what's your name?" Jiang Fei shouted after me.
"Ask your brother. I'm one of the people he hates most in this lifetime," I replied.
Feeling the complex mix of anger, envy, and jealousy in the men's gazes around me, I quickened my pace. "White Qi, let's go!" I shouted, leaving Jiang Fei behind but planting a mysterious seed in her heart.
Leaning against the wall, she found herself drained, her face flushed, and her chest heaving. "What did I just do? Asking a stranger for his name in public? Jiang Fei, you have suitors lined up from Jiang City to Xinhu. Why are you acting so strange with this bumpkin? Still, he's quite the mystery. How does he have higher privileges at the bank than Jiang Jin Real Estate? I need to ask my sister-in-law!"
Women become interested in men for many reasons: good looks, humor, family background. But sometimes, it's something indescribable, a feeling akin to destiny. Often called "love at first sight."
Back at Happy Pinnacle, I opened the package. The jar of Tongsian Wine was heavy, but it held only about two pounds of wine.
Opening the seal, the wine's aroma filled the adult store, even making White Qi perk up its ears and look eagerly at the jar.
"Hold on. I'll pour you a cup to try," I said. The wine was amber-like, fragrant as orchids, and crystal clear.
Scooping out a small amount, I tasted it carefully. The wine was sweet and smooth, with a long-lasting aroma. It finished clean with a faint hint of bitterness.
After drinking, I felt a warmth flowing through my body, as if my meridians had been rejuvenated. "This is excellent wine!"
"Woof, woof!" White Qi wagged its tail, circling me like a pet dog for once.
"Just one scoop. This wine is for keeping me alive," I said, giving White Qi a small scoop. The once-mighty guardian dog of Changbai Mountain lapped it up delicately, then lay down contentedly at my feet, falling asleep soon after.
"Such poor tolerance?" I dragged White Qi aside, sealed the jar, and locked it in a cabinet.
Then, I took out another item—the Manual of Mystical Daoist Techniques. Like the Fundamentals of Celestial Vision, it was an old, thread-bound book that, though ancient, was well-preserved.
"All things are one; the great Dao is truth. Its mystery cannot be grasped, its wonder indescribable. It is called 'Mystical Truth,'" read the introduction.
Flipping to the first page, I found the Ode to the Southern Sage.
I knew of the Southern Sage—Zhuangzi from the pre-Qin era.
"Southern Sage, source of the Dao, profound and unfathomable. Moving in harmony with creation, resting in perfect unity…"
"Transcending life and death, roaming the realm of spirit. With nine elixirs, ascending lightly to the supreme Dao."
"All disciples entering this sect must memorize this," it said.
I didn't fully understand it, but it seemed akin to a thesis statement in an essay.
"Every time I read Daoist classics, I feel so ignorant…"