Chapter 91: Past And Present

The two quickly returned to their daily life of cooking and writing, as if the previously notorious fugitive on the run was nothing more than a trivial episode.

The resulting uproar seemed completely unrelated to them.

Instead, the book club chat group, which had no connection to it whatsoever, had news circulating: “Escaped serial killer captured by vigilant citizens.”

The news sparked discussions among the group members, not about the capture of the serial killer, but about the street photos of vigilant citizens who had captured the criminal. In those heartwarming images, one person with a mischievous smile stood out.

“Even with a mask, the physique is impressive.” This was Chu Ge, the group leader’s objective comment. “This vigilant citizen must be very handsome.”

“??? Brother Chu, is your focus a bit off?”

“The alpha male has been confirmed…”

“Chu Chu, my Chu Chu~”

Chu Ge: “?”

“‘Chu Chu, my Chu Chu~’ was designated as an essential message by the administrator, Qiu Wuji.”

Chu Ge: “…”

You have no idea what this meme means, and you randomly designate it as an essential message? Do you think the name is amusing enough?

“Rong Fu has gone mentally unstable, acting all foolish and only talking about cultivation.” Lin Wuyang called to report the situation. “This time, don’t even bother keeping it a secret. Even I don’t know anymore.”

“Uh…”

“I told you not to hit him so hard, smashing his head relentlessly. Isn’t it normal for someone to go crazy after that? It’s good enough that you didn’t kill him. Thank goodness it was a serial killer who deserved to be shot on the spot. If it were someone else, you would’ve been in trouble.”

“Yes, yes, noted. I won’t act so impulsively in the future.”

“Even in the current situation, there’s still a bit of trouble. Well, there won’t be any commendations for being a vigilante, and the reward money might be meager, if any. But the reward for assisting in the capture of a wanted criminal is substantial. It’s been issued from higher up, and you’ll get a fair share of it. It’s a hundred thousand. When should we go out for a meal?”

“Only a hundred thousand? Just reporting an internet user from the northern part of the continent can get you five hundred thousand.”

“Just be content,” Lin Wuyang said. “Think about how many words you have to write to earn a hundred thousand.”

“Hiss… When you put it that way, it’s true. Should I consider making money in this direction in the future?”

“There are already people like that. They’re like bounty hunters of the new era. They think they have some special abilities, but they don’t realize that it’s a risky business,” Lin Wuyang sighed. “Speaking of which, I want to remind you guys in the Black Room. Now that Rong Fu is in this state, revenge should end here. If you shift your focus onto the Wang family, I’m afraid you’ll end up being the criminals.”

Chu Ge hummed softly without an immediate response.

Lin Wuyang knew what he was thinking. The mastermind is fine, but losing a knife just doesn’t feel right, and what about the future? It’s understandable to have such thoughts, but it goes against the legal system.

Theoretically, there’s still a lack of evidence to determine whether it was the Wang family who orchestrated everything. The police cannot conclude like that.

Who asked you to beat Rong Fu to the point of madness? It’s difficult to gather evidence now. Lin Wuyang sighed and said, “You need to exercise restraint.”

“I won’t make it difficult for you,” Chu Ge smiled. “I’m not a meddlesome person by nature.”

“Hmm.” Lin Wuyang actually believed that Chu Ge wasn’t a meddlesome person, but he was worried that Panda, Wan Zijun and the others would be infuriated once they were discharged from the hospital. After a moment’s thought, he realized that it was pointless to discuss this further with Chu Ge, who was just an auxiliary masked individual and not even a core member. It would be better to talk to Zhong Yi instead.

Lin Wuyang ended the call, and Chu Ge happily skipped next door to share his good news. “Unexpectedly made a hundred thousand!”

Qiu Wuji had actually been eavesdropping and looked somewhat envious. Just a hundred thousand, but the money comes in fast with this kind of job. Why didn’t I think of it before…

But without an identity before, she couldn’t have made this money either. Just now, when Chu Ge asked, she knew that part of it was intentionally asking on her behalf. Now it seems like she can earn this kind of money too…

However, for some reason, she didn’t feel like moving. She had only written the beginning of her autobiography: “Just a hundred thousand, not even enough to brag about buying a toilet.”

Chu Ge: “…”

Qiu Wuji tugged at his sleeve. “Come and see if this beginning is better.”

Chu Ge peeked over and read, “My name is Qiu Wuji, from a humble farming family, nothing special…”

“Huh? Huh??” Chu Ge looked surprised. “Your writing style has become more colloquial, and you even know how to use the first-person narrative!”

Qiu Wuji looked up, thought for a moment, and smiled. “Because I’m really recalling my memories, just like talking to someone about the past and sharing the memories…”

“Good, good… But is there something off about this?”

“Huh? What’s wrong?”

“A farming family wouldn’t come up with a name like Qiu Wuji, and how can someone as naturally beautiful as you be considered nothing special?”

“… That doesn’t seem to be my problem.” Qiu Wuji looked at Chu Ge disdainfully. “Being born into poverty is the original text from a certain master. It’s your problem to deal with the loopholes that arise in the derived stories.”

The literary master felt embarrassed and his face flushed. “Matters concerning scholars can’t be considered problems. They’re called bugs, inevitable… As for being nothing special, cough, well, it’s a good term, a good term. I myself look nothing special.”

Feeling embarrassed, Chu Ge quickly returned to his room to continue writing.

Qiu Wuji watched him leave, her eyes filled with curiosity.

Today, Chu Ge often came over to stroll around while writing, saying a few inappropriate words. It was quite different from his previous appearance of being immersed in writing.

What happened to him?

Well, perhaps it was because he had just become a literary mentor and felt a sense of responsibility.

Speaking of which, Chu Ge praised her for her beginning, and it seemed like it was quite good. Qiu Wuji felt energized and continued to write with fervor. It was strange, though. When she created stories herself, she didn’t know the details, and it became dull and tasteless when she went into unnecessary specifics. But when it came to recalling the past, she knew exactly which events were worth elaborating on and which ones could be brushed over.

Learning from the stories that had been dismissed with a smile, she knew not to write about boring things like sunbathing or catching lice. Instead, she wrote about how her family was bullied by the village landlord, her mother’s illnesses, her father’s hardships, how she took charge at a young age, how she would cut her feet in the fields at a tender age, and how she would sit on the field’s edge, feeling satisfied as she gazed at the ripe rice ears and fantasized about buying a piece of candy from a peddler during the New Year, how sweet it would be.

She described the subsequent crying and unwillingness after the tyrant seized their land, the pain of losing her parents one after another, and her fear of being forcibly taken by the tyrant, causing her to flee alone into the mountains… The emotions seemed to burst out from the pages for Qiu Wuji herself.

She realized that she had once had a family.

Back then, she wanted to practice martial arts, to eliminate all the injustice in the world…

She considered herself lucky. Wandering in the mountains, seeking immortality, an immortal touched her head and asked, “Little girl, do you want to learn swordsmanship from me?”

Qiu Wuji withdrew her thoughts from the manuscript and realized that it was already dusk outside the window.

She let out a gentle sigh.

This was a background sketched by Chu Ge in passing, but it was the vicissitudes of life she had been looking back on for thousands of years.

This was her life, the impressions etched deep within her heart… What did it matter who created the world?

Qiu Wuji suddenly felt that this wasn’t just practicing writing, but rather cultivating herself.

Someday, I will be myself.

Suddenly, the aroma of food came from outside. Qiu Wuji was startled for a moment, sniffed the air, and confirmed that it was coming from the kitchen, not a takeout. Upon listening carefully, she also heard the sound of stir-frying. She was extremely surprised and quietly went out to peek.

Chu Ge was clumsily frying eggs, and the rice cooker beside him was emitting hot steam—the rice was cooked.

Qiu Wuji stared at his figure, unconsciously biting her lip.

As if sensing someone’s gaze, Chu Ge turned his head and glanced at Qiu Wuji, who was peeking through the door frame. . Her small expression was like the “secretly observing” QQ emoticon, very cute.

Chu Ge grinned and said, “You were so engrossed. I didn’t want to disturb you, and ordering takeout doesn’t seem interesting… Hmm… I can’t promise anything else, but the fried eggs should be decent. Want to give it a try?”

Qiu Wuji instinctively blurted out, “They must taste terrible.”

“Go away, let me do it.” She walked up and gently pushed Chu Ge aside, taking over. However, she realized there was nothing left to do; the eggs were already cooked.

Silently, Qiu Wuji plated the fried eggs. She didn’t know what it tasted like, but perhaps in this moment, she could experience some of the feelings Chu Ge had when he watched her cook. It felt incredibly tender.

Even if it tasted bad, she felt like she could eat it all up.

Crossing thousands of years, traversing two realms, did she now have a home of her own?

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