Misty Rain of the Old Times

He clapped his hands, and the pebbles that had flown in from who-knows-where, along with the note, turned into ashes and scattered.

Chen Xuan disappeared into the night, filled with sorrow. It was all Wu Jinxun's fault. He was just trying to set up a stall to sell some goods, and then Wu Jinxun messed things up. Now he had no business and his whole family was ruined. If he hadn't been stuck to the wall and couldn't be pried off, he would have wanted to kill him again...

At Xiaoming Residence, Gao Jingming, who had just finished his job, changed into casual clothes and stood in front of the window of his study on the second floor, looking at the gloomy night sky. On the table in front of him was a half-written official document, and the ink on his brush was half-dry, showing that his mind was not at peace. Countless thoughts were swirling in his clever head at this moment.

"There are flowers in the sky, aren't there? It's late at night, and you've been standing there staring at them for quite a while now," Chen Xuan's voice suddenly rang out in the room.

He had now regained his original appearance, wearing a loose gray-white robe, his hair disheveled, and a stick tucked crookedly into his waistband, looking as casual as could be.

If Su Roujia saw him like this, she would definitely make him sit down and straighten up; he really doesn't care about his appearance.

The note that Xiao Gao had asked Geng Hong to drop for him an hour ago went unnoticed. Since they were old friends and had already spoken to each other, Chen Xuan had no choice but to come and meet him.

Even if Chen Xuan had simply disguised himself as a drug dealer, Gao Jingming would still know it was him even if he had transformed into a woman.

As he spoke, he sat down in the chair that belonged to Xiao Gao, playing with the waist token he used to enter the palace for court. He glanced at the night sky in the direction Xiao Gao was looking, but there was nothing there.

The sudden sound made Gao Jingming shudder. He turned around speechlessly and said, "Ah Xuan, are you a ghost? You walk without making a sound! You scared me half to death. Don't you know how to use the front door?"

Chen Xuan casually tossed his waist token aside, shrugged, and said, "How old are you? You can't even be scared by something like this. You're an official, aren't you? Aren't you supposed to be protected by the nation's fortune, warding off gods and ghosts, and remaining unmoved even with a woman in your lap? I was thinking of going through the main gate, but wouldn't that just cause you trouble?"

"What nonsense is this?" Gao Jingming almost had a blank look on his face. Suddenly realizing what was going on, he quickly closed the window and looked at Chen Xuan with a troubled expression, "You just ran here like that? Did no one notice?"

Waving his hand dismissively, Chen Xuan said nonchalantly, "Stop being so cautious. Don't worry, no one knows I'm here, and no one else can hear what we're saying."

"It's easy for you to talk when you're not in the same boat. This is a sensitive time... never mind what I said," Gao Jingming said, but he couldn't continue. Considering Chen Xuan's cultivation level, what was there to worry about?

Looking at his desk, Chen Xuan joked, "Hey, when did you get off work? Why are you still working overtime at home? How much does the court pay you for being such a high-ranking official? You're working so hard."

It's only been a few days, but the buzz surrounding the top scholar seems to have almost died down. People are indeed forgetful.

"Ah Xuan, don't interrupt me. Tell me, what are you doing? Do you know how big a mess you've made?" Gao Jingming said with a furrowed brow.

I knew I couldn't hide it from him. I told Xiao Gao about selling Xiaoyao Pills in Mo City back then, so he immediately connected last night's events to Chen Xuan. That's why he rushed over in the midst of his busy schedule to secretly ask Chen Xuan about it.

This guy was definitely up to no good; that act was purely faking it. Chen Xuan knew him well enough to know better, so he pretended to be clueless and said, "Young Master, what are you talking about? I don't understand. I only just got home early the day before yesterday. What happened?"

"No, Ah Xuan, you got home the day before yesterday and came to the capital today?" Gao Jingming was speechless and couldn't keep up the act anymore. Only Ah Xuan could do something like this.

Actually, it was the afternoon before yesterday. Chen Xuan nodded and said, "Yes, I'm still at home right now. I'm going to sleep soon."

"So, is the person talking to me now a human or a ghost?" Gao Jingming rolled his eyes.

Shaking his head, Chen Xuan said, "Who knows? Young Master is probably dreaming."

With a long sigh, Gao Jingming had long since adapted to the way he got along with Chen Xuan. In recent years, Chen Xuan had been quite unruly, but surprisingly, his mood brightened up in just a few words, just like before.

After thinking for a moment, he pondered and asked, "What did the Wu family do to offend you?"

Chen Xuan felt a headache coming on and raised his hands in surrender, saying, "My dear young master, this matter is in the past for me, can we please not mention it again?"

“Ah Xuan, you’ve gone over there, but do you know that for many people, a huge mess has only just begun?” Gao Jingming said with a troubled expression.

Of course I know, but what does that have to do with me? That's what he thought, but Chen Xuan still asked, "Will it affect the young master?"

“The impact is huge. To be honest, Ah Xuan, with what you’ve done, I’ll probably get a promotion next month, at least half a rank, and if I’m lucky, I might get promoted to the first rank,” Gao Jingming said helplessly.

Ignoring how he so readily concluded that it was him, Chen Xuan felt a surge of anger and said, half-laughing and half-crying, "Young Master specifically called me here just to show off to me?"

"We should share the good fortune," Gao Jingming said with a smug look on his face.

Chen Xuan hesitated for a moment, then reached out and said, "Then give me half of your salary. Young master, you know I don't have a livelihood these days, I just rely on scraping around and freeloading."

"Ah Xuan, don't go too far. I haven't even settled accounts with you yet," Gao Jingming said anxiously at the mention of money.

They've known each other for years, so they know each other well. Chen Xuan said that this matter was in the past for him, and Gao Jingming, who was joking around, didn't bring it up again.

As for Gao Jingming, how many positions were vacated after Chen Xuan slaughtered so many people last night? He's caught up with the trend and getting promoted is a good thing, but is it really that simple? How many people did Chen Xuan kill in total? And how many people are eyeing those positions? In short, it's not that simple.

There's no need to dwell on those complicated things; just be happy.

After both sides tacitly let the matter drop, Chen Xuan changed the subject, saying, "If Young Master called me here just to show off, then I won't keep you company any longer. I'm going back to sleep." Seeing that he was really going to leave, Gao Jingming quickly said, "Three things, finish them, Xuan, then you can do as you please."

"Why didn't you do this earlier? This is a waste of time," Chen Xuan gestured, "Release."

“No, Ah Xuan, you're educated, can't you be a little more civilized?” Gao Jingming said helplessly, then continued, “First of all, the day before yesterday, my sister wrote to ask me about your situation.”

Upon hearing this, Chen Xuan became slightly more serious and nodded, saying, "After I went back, I met with the young lady and roughly figured out what she was thinking. That's why she came to hide in the capital. What do you say, young master?"

"Thank you," Gao Jingming said sincerely, understanding that Chen Xuan was giving him face. Otherwise, given Chen Xuan's personality, his older sister would likely have met with a bad end for provoking him. He then added, "What else could I say? I didn't say anything."

"Dujier, you're too kind," Chen Xuan said with a smile. This is good, so as not to put everyone in an awkward position. If Xiao Gao sided with his sister, that would be really difficult.

Gao Jingming brushed it off with a single sentence, then asked seriously, "So, how exactly did the Wu family offend you? I'm just asking. If you don't want to tell me, that's fine too. It's just out of personal curiosity, nothing more."

"Just say I don't like his family," Chen Xuan said casually, not wanting to bring his emotions to others, even though the person was Gao Jingming, whom he had known for many years.

Gao Jingming certainly didn't believe this, but he didn't intend to ask further. Ah Xuan must have his reasons for doing things; he would never slaughter an entire family for no reason. There must be something about the Wu family that made him feel unworthy to live in this world.

Then, under Chen Xuan's questioning gaze, Gao Jingming closed the window and door from the inside with a smooth and natural movement, which made Chen Xuan more wary. What kind of trouble was this kid up to? He knew Gao Jingming wasn't up to anything good.

Under Chen Xuan's wary gaze, Gao Jingming rubbed his hands together and said with ill intent, "Hey, Xuan, we've known each other for so many years, I won't hold it against you for taking my money."

"No, young master, what exactly do you want? Just say it. I'm a little scared," Chen Xuan said 'trembling with fear,' his mind racing. He wasn't even concerned about money, so he must have big plans. He had to be careful and not be fooled by his words. He was too stupid to outsmart him.

Fortunately, Xiao Gao is still relatively normal. If he dared to make that "jie jie jie" sound, Chen Xuan would definitely beat him up and run away.

Xiao Gao coughed lightly, a little embarrassed, but his words were anything but. He said, "Xuan, hurry up, how many Xiaoyao Pills do you have left? Give me half, no, two-thirds, that's not too much to ask, is it?"

Patting his chest, Chen Xuan breathed a long sigh of relief. He had thought something serious had happened and had startled him. He then looked at him and glared at him, saying, "Young Master, you've become weak so quickly? With the two young mistresses, Xiao Cai and Xiao Ye, not around, have you been going to brothels every day with the title of 'Top Scholar'?"

“I’m fine, I’m perfectly fine,” Gao Jingming said anxiously.

Nodding, Chen Xuan said, "I don't think so either, but what do you need that thing for?"

“Although it’s useless to me, it’s extremely useful to me,” Gao Jingming said with burning eyes.

It was fortunate that the two had known each other for many years, otherwise they wouldn't have been able to keep up at all. Chen Xuan sighed and said, "I took tens of thousands of taels of silver from you, and you just ask for two-thirds of the Xiaoyao Pill. I've lost a lot of money."

"Stop talking nonsense and hurry up," Gao Jingming urged incessantly, just as he felt no remorse for Chen Xuan taking his money without any guilt, so it was only natural for him to ask for it back.

Rolling his eyes, Chen Xuan said, "Do I look like I'm carrying around some 'Carefree Pills'? Let me make it clear, I gave some to Wang Le yesterday, and now I have less than two thousand left."

“I don’t want it even if he doesn’t take it. Now I have an excuse. I, a top scholar, have connections to get Xiaoyao Pills from the Wang family. There are less than two thousand of them. Give them all to me,” Gao Jingming said without hesitation.

With a wide-eyed glare, Chen Xuan said speechlessly, "Seriously? You didn't even leave me a single one? Isn't that going too far?"

"You didn't leave me a single copper coin. Hurry up, you're not going to eat it yourself anyway, just make some more yourself," Gao Jingming said without any politeness.

Chen Xuan rolled his eyes non-stop, then stood up and said, "Wait a minute. I shouldn't have come here if I believed your nonsense. I spend my days hunting geese, but I never expected to get pecked in the eye by you. I was careless, so careless!"

"You've even had time to sigh?"

Left with no other choice, Chen Xuan made a trip to the place where he hid the items and brought the remaining Xiaoyao Pills to Xiao Gao.

"Take this and eat it. Goodbye," Chen Xuan said, handing him the Xiaoyao Pill and turning to leave.

Gao Jingming feigned an attempt to persuade her to stay, saying, "It's so late, Ah Xuan, why don't you stay the night? Your room is still reserved for you."

"I'm afraid you'll steal all my bitter tea if I stay even one night, so it's better to stay away from you." As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Xuan disappeared.

Chen Xuan was truly not suitable to be publicly recognized here at the moment. Although there was nothing wrong with it, Gao Jingming knew this, which was why he didn't try to keep him.

They called Chen Xuan over, and the two seemed to be joking around without saying anything, but in fact they said everything, it was all unspoken understanding.

Now it's time for Xiao Gao to seize the opportunity and show his skills, while Chen Xuan can just live a carefree life.

This is the unspoken understanding between the two... (End of Chapter)