**[Nine: Where are you?]**
Xu Qi'an stared at the mirror surface, dazed for a long while. The mirror was talking? Was it a sentient treasure?
What did "Nine" mean? Was the mirror called Nine?
No, if it were the mirror's own consciousness, it wouldn't ask "Where are you?" Because I'm sleeping in the same bed as you, sharing the same pillow every night.
Xu Qi'an stared at the mirror, sinking into deep thought.
He was pondering four questions:
First, what kind of treasure was this mirror? Besides storing items, could it also receive messages?
Second, was this a message? If so, who sent it?
Third, who was that old Taoist priest, and why did he give the mirror to me?
Fourth, should I respond?
Out of caution, Xu Qi'an adopted the mindset of "As long as I pretend this didn't happen, it doesn't exist" and quietly put away the mirror, planning not to respond.
Besides, he didn't know how to respond.
He went to the courtyard, dunked his head in the water vat, dried off with a towel, and left the small yard.
He had already joined the Night Watchers, but his official start date was the day after tomorrow. The Night Watchers' office needed to prepare his uniform and copper gong.
It was still early, just a quarter past noon.
Xu Qi'an first went to the Changle County magistrate's office to inform his colleagues and Magistrate Zhu about becoming a Night Watcher.
Magistrate Zhu had already received the news because the Night Watchers had提前taken Xu Qi'an's household registration from the Changle County office.
Xu Qi'an arranged with his colleagues and Magistrate Zhu to have dinner together that evening, both as a farewell feast and a celebration of his promotion and fortune.
The location was naturally chosen as the Xiaoyue Pavilion, not far from the magistrate's office—for official socializing, the pleasure quarters were the top choice.
Before that, Xu Qi'an planned to go to the pleasure quarters, listening to music while solving his lunch problem.
...
The farewell feast started at the hour of the Monkey and lasted until a quarter past the hour of the Rooster.
During the meal, Magistrate Zhu sighed: "Ningyan, you're a man from my Changle County magistrate's office. Becoming a Night Watcher is a blessing for our Changle County. I always had high hopes for you..."
He paused, raised his cup, and drained it in one gulp.
If I can continue to climb higher... Magistrate Zhu might be the first truly trustworthy contact in my official career... Xu Qi'an understood the unspoken words and also drank his cup of wine dry.
After the dinner, none of the constables from the magistrate's office left. The madam called over a group of young, beautiful women and brought them to the private rooms for the officials to choose from.
Their looks were decent enough—in my previous life, they'd be like young models lined up in a club... Xu Qi'an shook his head. After tasting the sweetness of a beauty like Fu Xiang, he wasn't too impressed by ordinary women.
After arranging everything for Magistrate Zhu and his constable colleagues, Xu Qi'an left the Xiaoyue Pavilion and headed home.
When he reached the courtyard gate, he found the lock had been opened, and candlelight was visible from inside the house.
Had Second Uncle come to see me?
Xu Qi'an pushed open the courtyard gate and entered the house.
In the dim candlelight of dusk, a young woman in a plain long dress sat at the table, propping her forehead with one hand, her head nodding slightly.
Xu Qi'an immediately glanced at the cabinet by the bed. Seeing no signs of it having been opened, he felt a slight relief.
"Maybe I should consider writing my diary in English."
He walked over and gently woke Xu Lingyue.
"Big Brother, where did you go..." Xu Lingyue opened her eyes, her beautiful gaze confused for a moment before filling with joy.
Her delicate oval face in the candlelight looked like a warm, flawless piece of jade. Her eyes sparkled with light.
"My little sister is so beautiful," Xu Qi'an sighed with emotion.
Xu Lingyue shyly lowered her head, a stunning blush rising to her cheeks.
She said softly: "Big Brother, why didn't you come home for dinner? Dad said you must have gone to the pleasure quarters."
Second Uncle really freaking... understands me!
Xu Qi'an said: "No, no, it was just normal socializing. I went to the Night Watchers' office, so I treated my colleagues to dinner."
But it was normal for Second Uncle to think that way. For a normal martial artist who had finally entered the Qi Refining realm after being pent up for ten or twenty years, they would definitely want to exhaust themselves before stopping.
"Big Brother, you've been drinking... Since you've already eaten, I'll head back now. There's still food warming in the kitchen." Xu Lingyue believed her brother's explanation and smiled happily.
Xu Qi'an felt a bit moved. In this family, besides Second Uncle, his little sister treated him the best.
"Mm... It's dark now, and it's not safe to walk at night. Let me walk you back."
Xu Lingyue didn't refuse. From the small courtyard to the main gate of the Xu residence was about two to three hundred meters, and it wasn't safe for a young woman to walk alone.
But she didn't expect that Xu Qi'an would take her to the corner of the courtyard, wrap his arm around her slender waist, leap into the air, and actually choose to jump over the wall.
As soon as her feet touched the ground, she hurriedly pushed Xu Qi'an away, both embarrassed and angry: "Big Brother, how can you be so frivolous?"
Men and women didn't sit together after the age of seven. She was already seventeen. What kind of brother would embrace his sister like that? Holding her hand at the Yunlu Academy was already breaking the rules. The Xu residence wasn't a strict scholarly family, so it wasn't necessary to be overly concerned.
But just now, hugging her waist like that... Was a woman's waist something you could casually hug? Horseback riding was another matter, and even on horseback, her waist had never been hugged.
Xu Lingyue's legs went a bit weak. Seeing Xu Qi'an standing there in a daze, she stomped her foot in frustration and hurried away with quick, small steps.
She seemed angry, but it felt more like a mix of embarrassment and flirtation rather than genuine fury... Xu Qi'an sighed and reminded himself to be more mindful.
In his previous life, even people with a casual relationship wouldn't be too concerned about some physical contact. Some strangers would even press closely together, feeling each other's heat and strength with their bodies, faces flushed, brows furrowed, gasping for breath... referring to rush-hour subway commutes.
But in this feudal era with its strict moral codes, even with his sister, he couldn't be too intimate. Xu Qi'an had been somewhat careless in this regard.
Watching Xu Lingyue's back disappear, Xu Qi'an leaped back into his own courtyard.
At that moment, he felt that strange palpitation again. He took out the small jade mirror from his pocket, and on the clean surface, a line of small text slowly appeared:
**[Nine: Where are you?]**
Xu Qi'an frowned. What exactly was going on here?
Messages kept coming in one after another. If he didn't resolve this, it would always feel like a hidden danger.
Xu Qi'an leaned against the wall, pondering for a long time, and decided to reply.
There were two reasons for replying: First, the mirror was now his property anyway. If he could fully understand the mirror's functions and mysteries, it would be a beneficial thing for him.
It was like having an AK-47 in your hands but using it as a walking stick.
Second, he suspected this message was from that old Taoist priest. If so, he could find out why the priest had given him the treasure.
Unknown gifts always made one uneasy.
Xu Qi'an tried voice input: "Haha, taking a bath."
The clean mirror surface remained unchanged.
Xu Qi'an switched methods, using his finger as a pen to write the message on the mirror surface.
A magical scene occurred: a line of text appeared on the mirror surface: **[Three: Haha, taking a bath.]**
Through touch, thoughts could be transmitted?
Did Three represent the serial number of my mirror? The other party was Nine... He also had a mirror?
**[Nine: Who are you?]**
Xu Qi'an didn't answer him.
The other side also fell silent. After a few minutes, another message came: **[Nine: Where is Senior Brother Jinlian? Is he dead or alive? How did you get this mirror? Are you from the Heaven and Earth Society?]**
Senior Brother Jinlian must be the Taoist priest who gave me the mirror. This Nine called him "senior brother," so they were from the same sect...
The Heaven and Earth Society? How could there be an "Overthrow Qing, Restore Ming" movement in another world?
After roughly figuring out the other party's identity, Xu Qi'an felt relieved and, using his finger as a pen, typed:
**[Three: I'm not from the Heaven and Earth Society. An old Taoist priest gave me this mirror.]**
**[Nine: How can you prove you're not from the Heaven and Earth Society? State your name for this poor Taoist.]**
Xu Qi'an felt like a reader asking for his shipping address, planning to send him some local specialties. He instinctively resisted and didn't agree.
**[Three: Taoist priest, I'm just a nobody.]**
After a while.
**[Nine: Where is the Taoist priest who gave you the mirror?]**
**[Three: I don't know.]** After sending this, Xu Qi'an quietly waited to see what the other party would say.
**[Nine: I am Purple Lotus. The Taoist priest who gave you the mirror is my senior brother. This mirror is a treasure of our Earth Sect.**
**Haha, since my senior brother gave you the mirror, you must not be an ordinary person. You must have heard of our Earth Sect's great name.]**
Xu Qi'an replied: **[Three: Sorry, I know nothing about it.]**
The other side was silent for a long time, then replied without showing emotion: **[Nine: The Dao Sects are divided into three: Heaven, Earth, and Man.]**
So they're from the Dao Sects... Xu Qi'an's spirit lifted.
PS: Today's the weekend. I woke up at one o'clock, startled awake from a dying state. I scrambled to turn on the computer and update. The chapter I finished writing yesterday—I actually forgot to schedule it...