Madmen don't keep diaries

Chapter 381 The Taboo of Thousand Island City
Fang Youliu opened the door and went inside first. He stood in the entryway and quickly scanned the surroundings. Then he found the key on the shelf next to him and turned to Feng Xiuhu, saying, "Now I have it."

Feng Xiuhu quickly pulled Shunzi into the house and slammed the door shut behind him.

He asked Fang Youliu, "What is this? Trespassing? Well, I knew you were a good candidate for robbery! Just tell me straight, besides breaking and entering, what other skills did the Secret Arts Academy teach you?"

Fang Youliu couldn't help but smile wryly: "This really is our place—the last person to stay here was Constance."

He held up the key for Feng Xiuhu to see: "This is the habit of traveling scholars. Before leaving, they leave the key in a conspicuous place inside the house and then cast a spell to leave a restriction—only scholars who know the corresponding unblocking spell can unlock it."

"These two spells are now only known to people from the Academy of Arcane Arts, so you can think of them as a key that is unique to the scholars of the academy."

Feng Xiuhu's eyes darted around: "What kind of spell? Teach me one too."

Fang Youliu smiled helplessly: "I'm not qualified to teach you, but I can explain it to you. Both of these spells come from the Third Era, and they point to the two authorities of 'forbidden' and 'unfreezing' respectively—which are now the guardian spirits of the house."

"So in principle, the cultivators of the Zhenzhai Temple can also enter this house, but because the spells they are learning now are somewhat different from those of the Third Era, they cannot do the unspelling process as smoothly as I have."

Feng Xiuhu nodded thoughtfully.

Shunzi went out and brought the luggage in, then asked Fang where the six bedrooms were.

Fang Youliu made the following arrangement: "I go out early every day, so I will stay on the first floor. The second floor is for you."

While Shunzi went back to her room to pack her luggage, Feng Xiuhu explored the entire house.

They then realized that the place they had just entered was actually the back door of the house; the front door was on the other side.

Stepping out of the main gate leads to a normal street, but it is just as lively, with teahouses and tobacco shops still dominating the area.

"This is Chayanzhu."

Fang Youliu, who had changed his clothes, came out of the house: "Because of its unique geographical structure, Qianyu City has almost every island with corresponding functions and characteristics. For example, Chayanzhu, whether it is drinking tea and chatting, listening to stories for leisure, or buying and selling tea and tobacco, the residents of the city know to come here; and Caoshiting and Tiezhanjiao, one is the location of the market and the other is an industrial cluster."

Feng Xiuhu turned to look at him, and now he understood why Fang Youliu said he left home early every day—he had changed back into that familiar outfit.

He wore a cotton hat, a plaid vest over his shirt, and a pen tucked into his breast pocket.

It turns out he's going back to his old profession—becoming a reporter.

Feng Xiuhu was furious when he saw his outfit: "Is there a single word of truth in your writing? It's not enough that you've already ruined Fancheng, you're not going to let Qianyu City off the hook either?"

These words left Fang Youliu completely bewildered, unsure whether Feng Xiuhu was referring to him or to him.

Fang Youliu said, "This is a legitimate profession of mine, how can it be called a scourge?"

Feng Xiuhu sneered: "The profession itself is respectable, but whether the people involved are respectable is another matter."

Fang Youliu earnestly said, "Being a reporter is just for convenience. My main purpose is to gain a deeper understanding of this city—and the newspaper is the fastest way. Whether it's the newspapers from previous years or interviews with residents from all walks of life, they can all help me to deepen my understanding."

Feng Xiuhu snorted twice: "You think you can just take the job like that? Do you think the newspaper would hire a complete newcomer like you?"

Unexpectedly, Fang Youliu was prepared. He took out a letter from his pocket: "This is a letter of recommendation written to me by the president of Fancheng Newspaper, which is enough to prove that I have rich interviewing experience and excellent professional skills."

Seeing Feng Xiuhu's stunned expression, Fang Youliu smiled somewhat embarrassedly: "Speaking of which, I have to thank you for this. If you hadn't become famous in Fancheng, I wouldn't have been able to write so many good articles, nor would I have gained the appreciation of the editor-in-chief. You don't know, every issue of the newspaper that has content about you sells out."

Upon hearing this, Feng Xiuhu flew into a rage. Seeing that things were not going well, Fang Youliu threw the key to the house to Feng Xiuhu first: "Don't forget to lock the door when you go out."

After saying that, he slipped away. Not long after, Shunzi also came down from the second floor.

He said, "There are two bedrooms upstairs. The bigger one has a balcony overlooking the water. You can have that one, and I'll sleep next door."

"Brother, where are we going now?"

Shunzi rubbed his hands together and asked, though it was a question, his eyes couldn't hide his hope.

The styles of Qianyu City and Fan City are very different, and Shunzi was full of curiosity and wanted to go out and explore.

But right now, being unfamiliar with the area, even if I wanted to explore, I wouldn't know which way to go.

Feng Xiuhu thought for a moment and replied, "Let's find someone to ask around first."

He led Shunzi out through the back door, and after walking a few more steps, they crossed the arched bridge to the commercial street on the other side.

It was the same teahouse where he had greeted him earlier. Feng Xiuhu went in and found a seat by the river.

The teahouse owner spotted them as soon as they entered, so he quickly told his servant to greet them, and then followed them over.

Shunzi tossed a silver plate to the servant: "Bring tea and food as you see fit."

One silver plate is obviously too much, but it contains more than just the money for tea and food.

There are also fees for gathering information.

Feng Xiuhu beckoned to the shopkeeper with his finger, and the shopkeeper understood immediately and quickly came over to sit down.

A businessman has a keen eye; he recognized Feng Xiuhu as the one who had spoken, so he cupped his hands in greeting to Feng Xiuhu and said, "You two look unfamiliar. May I ask your guidance?"

"Ma Erye San".

Feng Xiuhu waved his hand: "We're new here and don't know anything. For example, tell us what good places there are in the city, and what taboos there are."

The shopkeeper smiled apologetically: "Qianyu City is the capital of a prefecture, with plenty of good places to go, food, drinks, sights, and entertainment. But nothing is particularly special. Perhaps I should first tell you two some taboos to avoid any misunderstandings."

Are there really taboos?
Feng Xiuhu raised his eyelids—he had only said it casually, but he hadn't expected there to be a real reason behind it.

He nodded in agreement: "Then tell me about it."

The shopkeeper held up one finger: "If we're talking about taboos, the first one is this—in Qianyu City, we don't fish, we don't fish, we don't kill fish, and we don't eat fish."

Feng Xiuhu was stunned. He had secretly thought that since Qianyu City was built on the river, there must be plenty of river delicacies to eat. But this is what happened.
"What's the point of this?"

Shunzi was also puzzled: "What if the fish saved your lives?"

Unexpectedly, the shopkeeper nodded: "That's not wrong."

Seeing Feng Xiuhu and Shunzi looking at each other in bewilderment, the shopkeeper explained the reason.

"Actually, this is a rule set by Lord Jiang Liu."

PS: Shi Dajiao mentioned that selling fish is very profitable.

(End of this chapter)