Chương 11: Red Flower Immortal

Yuan Min hadn't eaten that morning. He had been with the City God's burial arrangements. Now that things were mostly done, he walked to a noodle shop outside the forest, intending to order two bowls of plain noodles to fill his stomach. The shop was quiet. Most people were still at the forest cemetery paying their respects. Only the owner was there, sweeping the floor. He looked up as Yuan Min entered.

"Is the City God's burial taken care of?"

"It's all done." Yuan Min replied. The owner sighed.

"Just yesterday, everything seemed fine. And today, he's gone without a word." Yuan Min's face darkened. He didn't respond. The owner continued, "Yesterday morning, the City God had noodles here. When I gave him change, I accidentally gave him an extra coin. He counted it immediately and gave it back. He really didn't seem like someone who wanted to die."

"Good point." Fang Cheng appeared from nowhere, agreeing wholeheartedly.

"Shop owner, who do you think is most suspicious?" he pressed. The owner waved his hands.

"Sir, why ask me? I'm just an old noodle cook. What would I know? You should ask the Underworld Officer, or that new City God."

"Alright, never mind that. Go make your noodles." Yuan Min waved them off, signaling the owner to get cooking. The owner nodded.

"What'll it be? Same as always, two bowls of egg noodles with white broth and some braised pork?"

"Just one bowl. I can't eat more than that." Yuan Min replied.

"Yeah, I lost my appetite when I heard about the City God this morning too." The owner sighed, then turned to Fang Cheng.

"What about you, sir?" Fang Cheng pointed at Yuan Min.

"Same as him."

"Coming right up." The owner turned and carried his basket to the kitchen, lighting the fire to boil the noodles. Yuan Min sat at a table near the door. Fang Cheng immediately followed and sat across from him.

"Sir, you don't need to follow me. Once my lord's funeral is over, I'll resign my post. You can find someone else." Yuan Min heard about the matter of Fang Cheng showing his appointment letter outside the City God Temple, and thought he was the newly appointed Zhu Youchang. Fang Cheng heard "resign" and thought the man was trying to run. He quickly said, "Young man, running is only temporary. You need to face this bravely. I know you're not the mastermind. You're just a mortal.

You don't have the power to kill Lord Zhang. Confess, and you'll get leniency. Tell me, who's behind this?" Yuan Min's face turned black. He'd held back for a long time, but this was the breaking point. He raised his head, eyes blazing with fury, staring at this fast-talking fool.

"Ask, ask, ask! You keep asking why our City God died. Isn't the Hall of Eternal Life well aware? Yes! My lord offended you, and you exiled him from the capital to this godforsaken dump. He'd already been punished. Why couldn't you leave him alone? Fine. You're ruthless enough. Now that he's dead, what else do you want? To slander his name? Hah. I won't say a single bad word about my lord. Kill me if you want. I don't care." Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

"I see." Fang Cheng nodded in realization.

"Lord Zhang offended some high-ranking official at the Hall of Eternal Life. That official held a grudge, sent a flying sword with some kind of blackmail, and forced Zhang to kill himself. The killer's in the capital's Hall of Eternal Life. No wonder I couldn't find him." He slapped his thigh and stood up, looking at Yuan Min with something like apology.

"Sorry, Yuan, I was wrong about you. Now I have just one question. Who's the official?" It might be the same official Zhu Youchang had bribed. But Fang Cheng hoped it was someone else. That way, he could take down two villains. Yuan Min laughed bitterly, pointing at Fang Cheng's nose.

"Still acting! As expected from a cultivator aiming for immortality. You know exactly who the official is. I'm just a local nobody from White Flower City. What would I know?"

"Fair point. You're not a cultivator. You wouldn't have contact with the Hall." Fang Cheng nodded.

"There are only a few high-ranking officials in the Hall. Once I get to the capital, I'll ask around." Yuan Min couldn't take it anymore. He didn't want to play along with this act. He stood to leave. Fang Cheng quickly stopped him.

"Where are you going? You haven't eaten your noodles yet." Yuan Min snorted.

"I'm going to Heavenly Blessing Teahouse to buy three qian of Hehuai Mountain white tea. Then to Butcher Zhang's for two liang of pig intestines. Then to Harmony Wine Shop for a jar of yellow wine. Anything else you want to ask? Go ahead!"

"Uh... Yuan, don't be angry. You might have misunderstood me." Fang Cheng tried to explain, because he couldn't bear any creature thinking he was a bad person. Yuan Min wouldn't hear it. He waved his hand.

"Sir, if you have no other questions, I have things to do."

"Fine. I know you're upset. I'll come find you when you've calmed down." Fang Cheng sat back down. As a good person, his first principle was never to force anyone. Just then, the owner brought out two bowls of egg noodles. Seeing Yuan Min about to leave, he asked, "Want these to go?"

"No. Let him eat both. He looks hungry. I've paid. No change needed." With that, Yuan Min slammed a small silver ingot on the table and strode out of the shop, not giving Fang Cheng a chance to speak. The owner quickly pocketed the silver.

"That Yuan Min, complete opposite of the City God. Stubborn as a mule and spends money like water. Our City God was so kind. This morning, he counted every single coin and returned the extra." He shook his head, then asked Fang Cheng, "What do you think, sir? Will the new City God be as good as Lord Zhang?"

"Of course not." Fang Cheng shook his head.

"But don't worry. He's already dead."

"Ah! You shouldn't say things like that." The owner lowered his voice.

"I heard the new City God arrived this morning. If he heard you, you'd be in trouble."

"You're right." Fang Cheng nodded and started eating his noodles. He'd slipped up. Until he found the accomplices, he couldn't announce Zhu Youchang's death. The egg noodles were delicious. Fang Cheng ate ravenously. He'd been traveling for days without a proper meal.

"Sir, take your time. I've got braised beef coming right up." The owner went to the kitchen and brought out two plates of sliced beef, setting them before Fang Cheng. With no other customers, the owner sat down to chat.

"I heard the City God was buried in red burial clothes, a red coffin, and covered in red petals."

"A lucky funeral, I heard it's a custom in White Flower City." Fang Cheng replied, popping a slice of beef into his mouth. The food filled his stomach, and the demon sword's bloodlust faded. The owner leaned in mysteriously.

"It's not just a lucky funeral. Sir, you're not from White Flower City, so you probably haven't heard the legend of the Red Flower Immortal."

"What's that?" Fang Cheng took a sip of noodle broth, his face full of curiosity. The owner said, "Two hundred years ago, a great cultivator from White Flower City attained immortality. But he could only go to the immortal realm alone. His wife had to stay behind. She wept so bitterly that her cries reached heaven and moved the Everlasting Emperor. The Emperor was touched by her devotion and told her a way: lie in a coffin, and He would use divine power to stabilize her spirit.

After forty-nine days, her spirit would ascend to the immortal realm and reunite with her husband. The wife was overjoyed and followed the Emperor's instructions. She loved red, so she had a red coffin made, dressed in red, and lay inside. That coffin was placed in the crabapple pear forest. Sure enough, after forty-nine days, the wife broke out of the coffin and flew to heaven. That day, the entire crabapple pear forest bloomed: red flowers, redder than fresh pig's blood." Fang Cheng laughed.

"So you're saying Zhang Ruilin was imitating the Red Flower Immortal, trying to ascend?"

"That's just a legend. Who knows if it's true? But I hope it is. A good man like Lord Zhang deserves to become an immortal."

"Yeah. I hope so too." Fang Cheng nodded, continuing to eat. As a cultivator, he knew ascension required real Divine Energy. Those vague legends were just stories for common folk. Besides, Zhang Ruilin's spirit had already been extinguished.