Chapter 25: Conditions

The atmosphere seemed to have frozen at that moment. All I could hear was the sound of my heart beating, ‘thump, thump, thump,’ resounding in my head. My throat was dry, and I really wanted to say to Jiang Yi, “Give me all the records, no matter what the cost.”

But deep down I was tired of being led by the nose by others. Even if the bait he threw would make me willingly be led by the nose, but taking the initiative to “go to the door” would make being led by the nose a more passive thing.

The topic of such a thrilling moment has now become a strange silence. In the end, Jiang Yi spoke first. He said with a hint of a mocking laugh, “Well, that impulsive little guy has really matured a lot after the master left. The bait has been thrown out, but he doesn’t bite.”

This was the second time I heard Jiang Yi speak with emotion. I laughed twice. God knows, if he had just kept silent for a little longer, I would have shouted out that sentence: “Give me the record, I’ll pay any price.”

“Do you know me?” From his tone, I always felt that he was quite familiar with me. Now, I was happy to change the subject and let my overheated brain calm down for a while.

“Your master often mentioned you to me. I know all about your childhood pranks, your rebelliousness as a teenager, and your emotional outbursts in your twenties. Hmm…” Jiang paused for a moment and continued, “Your master loved you very much. He often talked about you to me. You can say that he raised you as his own son. Chengyi, don’t be resentful. Don’t blame him.”

I was silent. Bamboo forest cottage, Beijing courtyard, deserted village, Miao village, ancient tomb… scenes from the past flashed through my mind. In every scene, I saw my master. I couldn’t help but love my master, but I wouldn’t hold a grudge because of Jiang Yi’s words!

I don’t blame him for leaving without saying goodbye.

At that moment, I had the urge to cry. If it had been a few years ago, maybe tears would have fallen, but at this time I rubbed my sore nose and in the end I didn’t cry. Instead, I took a deep breath and said, “You just said on the phone that you were protecting me because of your friendship with my master?”

“My friendship with your master is one of the reasons. Before he left, he asked me to take care of you. And the identity of Kunlun after that cannot be exposed. That involves some power games. In short, you remember, you are actually under the protection of the department.” Jiang Yi said lightly.

“So, what does it mean to send me a fax? Is it to tell me that there is a record?” In fact, I don’t care about the game of power. After all the nonsense, I’m still worried about the record.

In fact, the sentence that before he left, he asked Jiang Yi to take care of me still made my chest very warm. My master left without telling me anything at all. Maybe I really was the only thing he cared about in the mortal world.

And God knows that this feeling of warmth in my chest has not appeared in my life for many years after my master left.

This warmth is like the time many years ago when my master took my hand and walked back to the Bamboo Hut step by step…

“Record, in fact, the last one you saw is the last one. After that, there is no way to record anymore. There is only one requirement, if you can settle the matter with the little devil, you will get the record, how about it? Then, I will give you a big gift, I will tell you why your master is so persistent, okay?” Jiang Yi’s tone was as calm as always, but I felt as if I could see an old fox on the other end of the phone, already smiling smugly.

But there was nothing I could do. The conditions he had proposed to me were like a banquet for a hungry man. I had no way of resisting, and I could only say helplessly, “Little ghost, do you think I can handle it? You think too highly of me, don’t you? Why must it be me?”

“Who asked you to deal with the ghost? In fact, do you think that we knew about the ghost from the beginning? I’m sorry to tell you that we only found out about the ghost after the investigation. What do you think is the reason? It’s because no matter who investigates this matter, there are constraints, but you don’t have any, so you easily found out that there is a ghost! You won’t be in danger, many people don’t dare to let you die, do you know? You just need to find the key and get the evidence, and the ghost will naturally be dealt with by us.” Jiang Yi said a long speech.

But I was confused. In fact, this was the second time he said it had to be me, but this time it was even more obvious. Why wasn’t I bound? Why was I not in danger of life and limb when I was careful in the face of such a dangerous investigation?

But with Jiang Yi’s status, he would never fool me. I remembered that night when Feng Wei’s senior brother appeared, he also said something similar, that he wouldn’t dare let me die, but he could play me to death.

Is there something about me that I don’t know myself?

But no one told me, and I couldn’t figure out why. So I said to Jiang Yi, “Tell me a reason!”

Jiang Yi of course knew what I meant by the reason, and he said, “Don’t underestimate your old Li lineage. A skinny camel is still bigger than a horse. Didn’t your master’s generation grow up? You will too! There is a big sister, called Jenny.”

What do you mean by a big sister called Jenny? Is she a gangster? What does that have to do with anything? I guess Jiangyi didn’t want to tell me anything, so he just talked nonsense to me.

But the phrase “a skinny camel is bigger than a horse” made me think of many things. I knew very little about my master, but I knew that he had also left very early. And from what I knew about him, I knew that he was a person who did things according to his heart and was unrestrained. I estimated that he had many enemies in his life, but really, didn’t my master and his friends grow up?

I didn’t think about it anymore. Jiang Yi’s appearance made me feel that I was closest to my master. I gritted my teeth and nodded, saying, “Okay, deal! The key thing is the location of the little ghost’s body. I will investigate it clearly.”

“You understand. Although I think you are the least likely person to be in danger in this matter, I still want to tell you to be careful. After all, nothing is guaranteed. It’s just that people with no entanglements will not kill you, but some things have no scruples.” Jiang Yi said to me calmly.

I laughed and said, “Don’t you want to protect me?”

There was a moment of silence, and then he suddenly said, “You little brat!” and then hung up.

After hanging up the phone, I felt physically and mentally exhausted. Because my emotions were so high and low, I simply lay down on the bed, tried to calm myself down, and then beckoned to Huigen, asking him to come over.

Hui Gen sat on the floor by the bed with tears still on his face. I put my hand on his bald head as I asked, “Are you sad?”

“Mmm,” the boy nodded.

“I’m sad too, but we still have hope, don’t we? And that hope is getting bigger and bigger.” I said to Huigen.

Hui Gen’er wiped his nose with his sleeve and said, “I believe in you.”

“From now on, we will have to face something very dangerous. This is the most crucial step in eliminating the little ghost, and we need to complete it. Are you afraid?”

“I’m not afraid. I’m just sad, sadder than you.” Hui Gen said, pouting, as if he was being wronged again.

This made me a little strange. I sat up in bed and asked the kid, “Why do you think you’re more upset than I am?”

Hui Gen took the fax and said to me very seriously: “Brother, Master Jiang still has his face and body in the photo, but why does my master only have one arm?”

“This…” I was stunned.

Hui Gen’er was like a little child, suddenly crying out again. Silly boy, I said to myself in my heart, and then sat down next to Hui Gen’er, patting his bald head. His eyes were inexplicably red again, and his gaze fell on the face of the master on the fax.

I miss you too, Master!