Immortality: Starting with a grave, I'm invincible when burying corpses.

The heavy snow fell all night, and finally stopped around 9 a.m. the next day.

The snow on the street had already covered the calves and was approaching the knees.

In this kind of weather, the people in the small town all stayed in their homes, huddled around the stove to keep warm.

Even Mu An didn't think that any customers would come to his pawnshop on such a snowy day, so he closed the door early in the morning.

Unexpectedly, a month later, on the last noon before Lunar New Year's Eve, the pawnshop welcomed back customers after a long absence.

……

Noon, 3:45.

"Knock knock knock—"

The sudden knocking startled Mu An, who was reading behind the counter.

The knocking wasn't loud, but it carried a strange urgency; three knocks followed by two, indicating that the person outside was in a hurry.

Since she was alone in the pawnshop, and it was snowing heavily, Mu An didn't consider having lunch. Instead, she brewed herself a pot of hot tea and leisurely read a book.

Mu An was genuinely surprised to hear a knock on the door.

Logically speaking, with such terrible weather, there shouldn't be any guests.

Heavy snow was falling, the streets were deserted, and there was only one person in the shop...

These scenes are often associated with feuds in the martial arts world or supernatural tales.

Especially in these times of global turmoil, acts of revenge are common.

Furthermore, without the suppression of the Great Qi Kingdom's fortune, some ghost stories gradually appeared in some remote places.

These things, which were once just stories, have gradually come to have the potential to take lives.

If it were an ordinary martial arts practitioner, they would certainly not choose to open the door directly in this situation, but would instead cautiously probe the door.

But it was Mu An here, and he opened the door naturally, without considering whether there might be a ruthless killer or a ghost wandering in the snow outside.

To be honest, life at the pawnshop is a bit too mundane, not even as good as when I was in Shuzhou City. If there were more "little surprises", it would be nice.

Unfortunately, the heavy snow did not bring Mu An the "little surprise" she wanted.

……

The first thing you see is a peasant woman standing at the doorway, her shoulders covered in a layer of snow and her clothes patched in dozens of places.

When Mu An looked up at her, the peasant woman was standing nervously at the pawnshop entrance.

Perhaps because she was too nervous, or perhaps because she was shocked by Mu An's revealing attire, the peasant woman standing in front of the pawnshop did not enter the shop for a long time. Instead, she took a few steps back and paced back and forth in front of the pawnshop.

The peasant woman would approach the pawnshop one moment and then hide in a place out of Mu An's sight the next, vigorously patting her clothes in a secluded spot to check if there was any snow left on her.

The peasant woman's anxiety and unease were vividly displayed.

Because Mu An remained silent, a hint of fear gradually crept onto the peasant woman's face.

What Mu An didn't know was that even though he had no expression on his face, the oppressive feeling that had been building up over time could make most people feel extremely uneasy.

Someone like Bai Ling, who treats him like a fool, is truly an anomaly.

……

At first, Mu An did not take the initiative to pay attention to the peasant woman.

But as the peasant woman paced back and forth, growing increasingly frightened, Mu An suddenly recalled the scene of Bai Ling receiving guests.

Since we have a guest, let's say a few more words.

"Sir, is there anything you wish to pawn? It's windy outside, please come inside and we can talk."

When Mu An spoke, the peasant woman stiffened for a moment. Her head, which was already lowered, drooped even lower, and her eyes were fixed on her cloth shoes with a hole in them. She hesitated for a long time before entering the house.

"Guest, please come in first and we can talk about it then."

Only after Mu An repeated it again did the increasingly uneasy peasant woman cautiously step into the pawnshop.

"Clothes make the man, and a saddle makes the horse"—this seemingly materialistic saying is actually a true reflection of real life.

The practice of treating people differently based on their appearance is prevalent in all aspects of life, and the attitude towards hospitality is often determined by a person's clothing and attire, a common practice in shops across the five countries.

No matter the era, human dignity is inseparable from the clothes on one's body. If one's clothes are unkempt and tattered, one will feel ashamed.

Even a magnificent place can instinctively deter people who lack self-confidence.

The peasant woman was in this situation; Mu An's demeanor and clothing exerted a great deal of pressure on her.

Moreover, compared to ordinary pawnshops, Mu An's pawnshop was decorated in a much more upscale style, which made her already uneasy heart even more flustered, feeling that this was not a place she was qualified to step into.

Fortunately, Mu An didn't care about these things. Or rather, no matter how ordinary people dressed or what their status was, it made no difference to him.

Faced with this rare customer, Mu An, who had walked behind the counter, introduced the pawnshop's business scope to the person for the first time.

"What do you want to pawn? Our shop accepts anything that can be pawned. Just bring out whatever you have."

Although it was an introduction, the words spoken by Mu An naturally carried a commanding tone.

Before she could finish her sentence, the peasant woman's body, which had just relaxed a little, tensed up again. Her head, which had been hanging down, seemed to want to touch the ground, and her hands, hidden in her sleeves, began to tremble unconsciously.

In that instant, the peasant woman recalled all sorts of rumors about pawnshops, and fear and panic began to spread through her.