Part 2
“Who was it?” She was acting a bit mysterious, and her expression seemed strange, making the family curious for a moment.
Li Yufen looked at Luo Wenshu and began, “It’s like this, Little Luo…”
The caller was Xu Zeyi, the grandson of Mr. Xu who had saved Pengpeng’s life years ago.
Xu Zeyi had called to warn the Fang family the night Pengpeng had the accident.
Later, the Fang family called back and unexpectedly learned that Mr. Xu had passed away.
No one expected Xu Zeyi to call today. He said on the phone that he had come to Chunshan City and wanted to visit, asking Li Yufen if it was convenient.
Normally, Li Yufen wouldn’t agree to a stranger suddenly proposing a visit.
But Xu Zeyi’s situation was special.
However, she had specifically invited Luo Wenshu over for dinner today.
So Li Yufen was a bit unsure and decided to tell Luo Wenshu about it.
“To be able to foresee events three years in advance, that Mr. Xu must have been a master with true skills. His grandson should have learned some abilities as well.” It had been only a few days since Luo Wenshu transmigrated to this world. Strictly speaking, this would be her first time meeting a cultivator of this world. “I am actually somewhat curious.”
“Then… I’ll have your Brother Fang go pick him up?” Li Yufen asked.
Luo Wenshu nodded. “Okay.”
About an hour later, Fang Dahao returned with a young man who looked to be in his early twenties. It was Xu Zeyi.
As soon as he entered the house, Xu Zeyi was awed by the atmosphere in the room, realizing belatedly that he seemed to have picked an inappropriate time to visit.
Coupled with being stared at by many pairs of eyes, he felt awkward for a moment, standing at the door at a loss, redness spreading from his face all the way to his ears.
Li Yufen stepped forward to greet him. “Little Xu, come sit over here.”
At this moment, Luo Wenshu also spoke up. “Sit here.”
As soon as she spoke, everyone’s eyes in the room instantly fell on her.
Luo Wenshu’s expression remained normal as she continued, “I have something I want to ask you.”
So Xu Zeyi sat next to Luo Wenshu.
Seeing she was about the same age as him but treated specially by the others, he was unsure of her identity. So, slightly awkwardly, he introduced himself first, “Hello, I’m Xu Zeyi.”
“Luo Wenshu.”
Hearing this, Xu Zeyi was stunned.
He hadn’t heard this name before, and her surname was Luo, not Fang or Xu…
Before he could sort out his thoughts, he heard Luo Wenshu speak again, “You came for Pengpeng’s matter, right?”
Surprise in Xu Zeyi’s eyes grew. He nodded, “Yes.”
Luo Wenshu didn’t continue questioning but changed the subject. “Sister Yufen told me you are Mr. Xu’s grandson, and I heard he has passed away. I didn’t mean to bring up your sad memories, but what I want to know relates to him, so I apologize in advance.”
Hearing his grandfather’s name, Xu Zeyi’s eyes were momentarily sorrowful, but he quickly composed himself. “It’s okay, go ahead and ask.”
“From the time you were young, Mr. Xu should have started helping others solve various troubles, right?”
“Yes.”
“Regardless of whether the person was rich or poor, he only charged a small amount of money, never taking more. Over the years, he lived a very impoverished life, correct?”
“Yes.”
“Then do you believe that the troubles he solved for others were real?” Luo Wenshu looked at Xu Zeyi and asked.
The latter looked momentarily bewildered, then shook his head slightly after a moment. “I don’t know.”
Xu Dashan was a well-known master far and wide. People in the vicinity would invite him to check dates for weddings and funerals.
If a child fell suddenly ill or adults encountered strange things… they would also come to him.
Since childhood, Xu Zeyi had often seen all kinds of people entering and leaving his home.
From their conversations, he knew his grandfather was powerful and had solved many troubles for people.
But he had never seen it with his own eyes.
Xu Dashan doted on his grandson Xu Zeyi, except he never took him along when handling those matters.
Later, Xu Zeyi went to junior high in town, then high school in the city, always boarding at school. He only went back on weekends, and not every week.
Later still, he was admitted to a university in another province, returning only for a period during winter and summer vacations each year.
He spent less and less time with Xu Dashan, who also seemed to intentionally avoid handling those matters while he was home.
In a flash, Xu Zeyi graduated from university. He rejected high-paying offers from big companies in other places, planning to work back in his hometown to spend more time with Xu Dashan.
But before he could act on it, he received a call from the village saying Xu Dashan had passed away.
He booked a flight and rushed back overnight to handle Xu Dashan’s funeral. After a period of grief and depression, he found a notebook while sorting through his belongings.
It was a prize he had won for first place in a school calligraphy competition back in junior high. When he brought it back that weekend, Xu Dashan said he happened to need a notebook and took it.
For many years after that, the notebook had stayed with the old man.
The pages inside were frayed, but the cover was still well-protected, showing that the user cherished it.
The evening breeze blew gently, and bamboo leaves drifted in the air.
Xu Zeyi sat under the eaves of the old house, lying on the rocking chair where Xu Dashan had lain for many years, polished smooth everywhere. Under the soft light from the bulb hanging from the eaves, he opened the notebook.
“Having studied for so many years, I actually don’t believe in these things. But reading between the lines of that notebook, Grandpa poured his feelings into it, I can feel it…”
Therefore, when Xu Zeyi turned to the page about the Fang family and saw the approaching time node, he suddenly hesitated.
“I didn’t know whether to make that call to warn them. I was afraid that before I finished speaking, I would be scolded as a scammer and hung up on.”
But ultimately, he chose to dial that string of numbers.
“In my opinion, you did very well,” Luo Wenshu’s voice softened slightly. “But if you had hesitated a little less and called a bit earlier, Pengpeng’s situation might have been different.”
Hearing this, Xu Zeyi was startled, suddenly having a bad feeling.
Luo Wenshu spoke again, interrupting his thoughts. “You don’t need to worry. The child is fine; I saved him.”
Xu Zeyi looked at Luo Wenshu blankly, his tone hesitant. “Are you… like my grandfather, also… a Master?”
Luo Wenshu nodded. “We are both cultivators.”
She continued, “My words might not be pleasant to hear. The first moment I saw you, I could tell there was a problem with your Ba Zi (Eight Characters). Logically speaking, you shouldn’t have lived past six years old.”
“I don’t know if you still have any impression, but when you were six, did you have a serious illness that the hospital couldn’t cure?”
Average people wouldn’t remember things clearly from such a young age, but Xu Zeyi had been smart since childhood, with early memories and a good memory. He indeed remembered that illness.
But…
“How do you know?” Xu Zeyi asked in surprise.
Things about his grandfather could be known with a little inquiry, so he wasn’t surprised. But this matter, even he couldn’t remember the details clearly, only that such a thing had happened.
“I told you, the moment you entered the door, I saw it.” Luo Wenshu pointed to her eyes.
“Your life was saved by your grandfather. Or rather, he exchanged the rest of his life for it.”
“Equivalent exchange, karma cycle. These are the basic laws of the world. To get something, you must pay the corresponding price. Your grandfather saved you from the gates of hell. As a price, he paid with the merit he accumulated in the first half of his life. But that wasn’t enough, so for the rest of his life, he did good deeds to repay the debt he owed.”
“That is why you were able to grow up safe and sound.”
“He never took you with him to handle matters because he didn’t want you to get involved in these karmic ties again. He hoped you would be an ordinary person and live a mediocre life.”
After speaking, Luo Wenshu stared at Xu Zeyi for a few seconds and shook her head slightly. “Unfortunately, he was wrong.”
“From the moment he saved you, your fate was already sealed.”
Luo Wenshu sensed a special karma from Xu Zeyi. This person would have an intersection with Luo Xingyu, and not just a passing acquaintance, but a deep involvement.
That was why Luo Wenshu said so much.
“You might not believe these words, but it doesn’t matter. I won’t force it.” Luo Wenshu gave her phone number to Xu Zeyi. “If one day you encounter something special that you can’t solve, you can call me.”
Xu Zeyi indeed didn’t believe it, but he still saved the number.
During their conversation, Grandfather Li had finished cooking, and his loud voice came from the kitchen.
“Ready to eat!”
So Luo Wenshu withdrew her gaze and stopped talking to Xu Zeyi.
The Fang family busied themselves, placing dishes full of color, aroma, and taste onto the large round table in the dining room, setting the bowls and chopsticks, and inviting Luo Wenshu to be seated first.
Xu Zeyi also stayed for dinner, only his mood was very complicated due to the words he had heard earlier.
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