"We were genuinely afraid that if we gave him a large sum of money all at once, he would change. You must know what eventually happened to many of those in Nanwu County who struck it rich suddenly, don’t you?" Cai Qidong said.
"Ah, yes, yes, you’re absolutely right," Wen Yan replied smoothly.
"I oughta..." Cai Qidong’s temple throbbed violently, his blood boiling from Wen Yan’s provocation.
Wen Yan continued, "He didn’t steal or rob; he earned that money through his own abilities. Don’t you think he knows how to spend it? If he can’t resist this temptation and changes completely, well, that’s his own choice. Who’s to say this isn’t a form of cultivation itself? Oh, but of course, you’re the Minister. What you say goes. You can withhold people’s bonuses, and no one can do a thing about it."
"I..."
CLICK.
Cai Qidong clenched his teeth. He hung up right after getting his point across again!
He looked at the phone and sighed helplessly. Actually, Wen Yan did have a point this ti. After all, the person earned the money through his own abilities. And this really is a form of cultivation, a test. If he can’t resist temptation now, it will probably be even harder for him in the future, and the problems then would be much greater. The progress of a Professional can be peculiar like that.
He summoned Feng Yao and discussed the matter.
Feng Yao had initially harbored so reservations about Cai Qidong’s "it’s for your own good" approach. However, upon reflection, he conceded it was likely a more stable thod and less prone to affecting one’s Professional Ability, so he hadn’t voiced strong objections.
Now that Cai Qidong had brought it up, Feng Yao took out his phone, opened his mo app, and tapped on a note.
Listed were two simple thods to discreetly award the large bonus without the recipient’s knowledge: First, compensation for land expropriated for road construction in his hotown. Second, give him a winning lottery ticket.
Cai Qidong knew at a glance that Feng Yao had already thought this through.
"Go ahead and take care of it. The finance departnt will cooperate with you."
"Understood."
「...」
Early in the morning, having found an excuse to call and "greet" Cai Qidong, Wen Yan felt refreshed and invigorated.
Just as he was about to step into the Funeral Ho, Director He’s car pulled up nearby, honking twice.
When He Jian saw Wen Yan, a sense of unease settled over him.
The Funeral Ho was incredibly peaceful on the days Wen Yan wasn’t at work. Lately, despite a noticeable increase in Ghosts, the Funeral Ho hadn’t experienced any incidents whatsoever. He Jian found it increasingly difficult not to be superstitious.
He’d woken up that morning with his eyelids twitching, and upon arriving at the Funeral Ho and spotting Wen Yan, Director He’s heart had lurched.
He quickly intercepted Wen Yan, stopping him just outside the Funeral Ho entrance.
"You’ve been away for so long, it must have been exhausting. Why not take a few more days off? There’s nothing urgent here. You don’t need to co in; just get so proper rest at ho."
"No, Director! I’m going to work diligently from now on. What happened before was just an accident. I love my job! I want to work!"
"No, you don’t!"
"Director, is sothing wrong?"
"Pah! Don’t say such things so early in the morning, you’ll jinx it! Just rest well. You really don’t need to co in," Director He said with utmost sincerity. If it ca down to it, he’d willingly pay Wen Yan’s salary out of his own pocket just to keep him away from work. The Funeral Ho was just that peaceful when he wasn’t around. Today, the mont Wen Yan showed up, I just knew those tranquil days were probably over.
Wen Yan was puzzled. What’s gotten into the Director?
As they were speaking, Wen Yan suddenly lifted his head and looked towards the main building of the Funeral Ho.
Even though it’s broad daylight, he thought, it feels as if the rear of the Funeral Ho has plunged into darkness, emanating that oppressive feeling unique to the dead of night.
The oppressive sensation pulsed a few tis and then vanished, and daylight seed to return to normal.
Director He followed Wen Yan’s gaze, and his expression shifted subtly. He imdiately pulled out his phone to check. Sunrise was indeed getting later each day. Although it was bright out, the actual ti of sunrise hadn’t arrived yet.
He grabbed Wen Yan’s arm. "I’m serious, just go ho and rest. Don’t co here. You don’t need to co to work for the rest of the winter. We have enough staff, really. Don’t worry, your colleagues definitely won’t have any objections."
"Am I that unwelco?" Wen Yan asked, taken aback.
"It’s not that! It’s just... whenever you’re here, things happen. When you’re not, it’s perfectly peaceful."
"..."
Wen Yan glanced towards the Funeral Ho again, hesitated for a mont, then nodded.
The Sun isn’t fully up yet, he thought, feeling a genuine flicker of fear. What if I step inside and end up in so other place again?
He decided against entering the Funeral Ho and figured he’d just call a cab and go ho to lie down.
Director He didn’t enter either. He asked Wen Yan where he was going, offering to drive him personally.
A few minutes later, as they were driving, Wen Yan looked ahead. A Spiritual Vehicle was approaching, heading towards the Funeral Ho. Perched on its roof was a Ghost, radiating resentnt and wearing a long, mournful face.
"Director, do you see that?"
"I see it..." He Jian sighed deeply.
Just as their car and the Spiritual Vehicle were passing each other, a loose stone, flicked by the Spiritual Vehicle’s tire, rolled directly under He Jian’s front tire.
The car shuddered violently, then fishtailed wildly like a Divine Dragon swinging its tail before crashing into the roadside guardrail. The sh of the guardrail tore, and an iron rod, as thick as a thumb, punched through the passenger-side window and embedded itself in the steering wheel.
The vehicle lurched to a complete stop.
Wen Yan looked at Director He. Director He looked back at him. Both were speechless.
"You can’t bla this on , right?" Wen Yan said. "I didn’t even step foot in the Funeral Ho today!"
"..." Director He said nothing. He rely sighed, climbed out of the car, took out his phone, and made a call. "Tell that Spiritual Vehicle not to enter the Funeral Ho. Have them wait."
Wen Yan also climbed out of the car. He took out a reflective warning cone and placed it a good few ters behind their damaged vehicle.
He stared at a fist-sized stone lying on the road, lost in thought. Such a large stone, sitting right there in plain sight on the road—how could I have missed it earlier? And Director He is an experienced driver; he wouldn’t have overlooked it either.
He turned, looking back in the direction of the Funeral Ho, his heart thumping uneasily. Could it really be that I’m a jinx? Thinking about it, it’s not like sothing disastrous happens *every single ti* I show up for work. It’s just that... things do seem to go wrong a bit too often.
Wen Yan was beginning to doubt himself. Could this really be my fault?
User Comments
0 comments from readers