Chapter 68

Chapter 68: A Live Pawn Turned into a Dead Pawn
After Yu Zhao and Wang You Cai left, the little restaurant exploded with noise.

“Goodness, that young woman is really an Immortal? She doesn’t look like one at all.”

“Shh, how dare you talk nonsense about an Immortal! Do you want to die?”

“Isn’t Squire Wang’s family just one of the local big households? How are they tied to an Immortal now? Is Wang You Cai about to rise up?”

“Hahaha, the Immortal ate my boss’s pastries!”

“And she drank my family’s rice wine too!”

The waiter from the pastry shop and the waiter from the restaurant jumped up and down with joy, waving their arms.

Everyone else looked at one another.

If they had known that Wang You Cai actually knew an Immortal, they would have sold even their pots and pans to scrape together those five hundred spirit beads for him. Maybe they would have gotten to say even a single word to the Immortal.

…

Wang You Cai led Yu Zhao to a pawnshop and stopped outside. He lowered his head in shame and said: “Immortal, my Wang clan’s family heirloom is inside this pawnshop.”

All his valuables had either gone to pay his debts or been sold to this shop. He hadn’t kept a single good item on him. Otherwise, the gambling house would not be chasing him so hard for money.

“But please be at ease, Immortal. That is my family’s heirloom, so I pawned it as a live pawn. I only need one thousand spirit beads to redeem it.”

There were two ways to pawn goods at a pawnshop. One was a live pawn, and the other was a dead pawn.

A live pawn meant you agreed on a time limit and left the item there as a mortgage. If you managed to put the money together in time, you could use the pawn ticket to redeem your item.

A dead pawn was a one-time deal. You sold the item directly to the pawnshop, cut all ties with it, and could never redeem it again.

A dead pawn brought in more money than a live pawn. Even when driven to the very end of his rope, Wang You Cai had refused to dead-pawn this so-called ancestral treasure to pay off his debts. That showed how much he valued it.

To Yu Zhao, one thousand spirit beads was nothing. She only wanted to know what secret was hidden in the Wang clan’s family heirloom that had to do with her.

The two of them walked into the pawnshop.

The young waiter looked at Yu Zhao, his eyes lighting up. Then he saw Wang You Cai behind her and his mouth curled in a pout.

“So it’s Young Master Wang. What, you pawned off everything at home, and now you want to pawn off a living person? Our shop runs an honest business. We don’t sell people. You should go somewhere else to do that kind of dirty thing.”

Wang You Cai was a regular customer here. The pawnshop waiter often mocked him, and he had long since grown used to letting the insults go in one ear and out the other.

But being mocked so harshly in front of an Immortal made his face burn. He couldn’t help shouting at the waiter: “What nonsense are you spouting? I’m here to redeem my family heirloom. Go call your shopkeeper out here!”

“Redeem something? Not pawn something?” The waiter looked at him in confusion.

Wang You Cai snorted. He pulled the pawn ticket from where he had hidden it in his sock and slapped it hard on the counter: “Hurry up and call your shopkeeper out. Are you doing business or not?”

The young waiter saw how serious he was, and when he glanced at Yu Zhao, she looked calm and carried herself with a noble air. He quickly ran into the back room.

Not long after, a thin middle-aged man came out with a big smile.

“Young Master Wang,” he greeted Wang You Cai. Then he looked at Yu Zhao. “And this young miss is…”

The rest of his words stuck in his throat.

He stared at Yu Zhao as if he had seen a ghost.

Wang You Cai ignored what he had been about to say and instead looked him up and down, muttering in surprise: “Something’s wrong, Shopkeeper Qian. You always talk business with me from behind the counter. How come you came out from behind the counter today?”

As soon as he finished speaking, it was like a light turned on in his head. His eyes popped wide and he lunged forward, grabbing for Shopkeeper Qian’s collar as he roared: “You damn money-grubber! Tell me, did you sell my family heirloom?”

Shopkeeper Qian’s face turned red in seconds under the grip on his collar.

The waiter rushed over to help. It took a lot of effort to pull Wang You Cai off him, and then the waiter raised his hand, ready to throw a punch.

Shopkeeper Qian coughed as he held the waiter back and said: “You, go close the door, then go straight home. We’re not doing business today.”

The waiter was completely confused, but he still did as he was told.

As soon as the door closed, the inside of the pawnshop turned dim.

“Please, both of you, come with me to the back courtyard,” Shopkeeper Qian said with a bitter smile.

Wang You Cai looked at Yu Zhao. Seeing that she had no objection, he gave a cold snort and said: “Fine, lead the way, Head Shopkeeper Qian.”

Shopkeeper Qian led them through a corridor into the back courtyard.

As soon as they entered, he dropped to his knees and kowtowed again and again to Yu Zhao.

“Immortal, I have offended you. I am guilty, I am guilty!”

Yu Zhao had more or less guessed what the Wang clan’s family heirloom was.

If it could make both Wang You Cai and Shopkeeper Qian recognize her at a glance, then it had to be a portrait, a painting of a young woman that looked extremely similar to her.

“Where is the painting?” Yu Zhao asked calmly.

Shopkeeper Qian’s body shook. He answered in a small voice: “I sold it to the county magistrate.”

Wang You Cai was almost driven mad with rage. He wanted to rush over and kick Shopkeeper Qian to death.

That was his Wang clan’s family heirloom. Even when more than a dozen strong men had chased him and beaten him up, he had never thought of dead-pawning that painting. He had only thought that one day, when he got the chance, he would redeem it and pass it down.

Who would have thought that this miser was really blinded by money and had actually sold off something that was a live pawn, and had sold it to the county magistrate at that. He clearly meant to pin him down for life!

Yu Zhao’s expression held a hint of a smile as she said: “Shopkeeper Qian, Young Master Wang said he pawned it as a live pawn.”

Shopkeeper Qian’s face twisted with bitterness. “Yes.”

Just as Wang You Cai had guessed, Shopkeeper Qian had been sure that he would never turn his life around.

A few days ago, the county magistrate had celebrated his birthday. Shopkeeper Qian had had no suitable gift on hand and grew greedy. He came up with a crooked idea and offered the painting as the birthday gift.

The county magistrate had been very pleased and had even sent someone to reward him.

He was still happy with himself and his cleverness when Wang You Cai came to his door, bringing the very Immortal from the painting.

Now Shopkeeper Qian’s guts were almost green with regret.

He had thought that the painting was just a made-up portrait of the Wang clan’s ancestor. Who would have thought it was real?

If the Immortal in the painting had not appeared alive right in front of him, he would never have believed it, no matter how anyone beat him.

“Shopkeeper Qian, since you were the one who gave the painting to the county magistrate, you must get it back. Otherwise, you will not be able to bear the consequences!”

“Th-this…” Cold sweat covered Shopkeeper Qian’s forehead.

He could not afford to offend the county lord, but he also could not afford to offend an Immortal. No matter which side he chose, he would not have a good end.

In truth, it did not have to be so troublesome. With Yu Zhao’s cultivation level, she could have curled her finger and pulled the painting out of the county magistrate’s residence without anyone noticing.

But she did not want to interfere in the mortal court’s affairs as a cultivator and create unnecessary karmic ties.

So she stayed quiet and waited for Shopkeeper Qian’s answer.

After struggling for a long time, Shopkeeper Qian gritted his teeth and said: “This happened because I was greedy. I will go to the county magistrate and get the painting back.”

[That’s more like it,] Wang You Cai thought.

Then he heard Shopkeeper Qian continue: “I would like Young Master Wang to go with me. With the pawn ticket in Young Master Wang’s hand, I will have something to explain to the county magistrate.”

In the past, Wang You Cai had often followed Squire Wang to visit the county magistrate’s home, so he agreed without even thinking.

Yu Zhao stayed in the pawnshop’s back courtyard to drink tea, while the two of them rushed off toward the county city.

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