Chapter Eighty-One: The Mystery of Brother Xu

Hua Sheng still floated in the void, unable to comprehend why, when the Golden Staff pierced through the Saturn Veil, these scenes unfolded before his eyes.

The Wish-Fulfilling Golden Staff had become a medium of time and space, transmitting fragments of information into his mind.

The details of these images seemed to originate from Ming You’s memories, many years in the future.

The moment Hua Sheng sensed Ming You’s memories, a locked recollection within him was suddenly released.

It began with someone he called “Brother Xu.”

At that time, Hua Sheng was still living among mortals. To him, the world held no trace of the supernatural.

That night, he was being beaten, his head forcibly submerged in a basin brimming with water.

All he could hear was the bubbling sound of water flooding his ears. He must have been underwater for more than two minutes; golden specks danced before his eyes, and he started to choke.

Cough, cough, cough! If this continued, he was sure to drown!

He flailed his arms in a desperate struggle to break free, but the hand pinning his head in the water lifted him up. The thick, tattooed arm was draped with a gold chain around the neck, resembling the bullies of old county streets.

“Speak!”

“Speak? Like hell!” Hua Sheng spat.

The man with the gold chain glared at him. “You’ve got quite the stubborn mouth for someone so young. It’s your boss who’s run off—why are you fighting so hard for him?”

Hua Sheng kept coughing. The water was surely spoiled—foul and filthy! It burned his lungs and sent his stomach into turmoil.

The gold chain man followed up with a punch to Hua Sheng’s face.

Instantly, Hua Sheng’s face felt like a riot of colors, and something warm trickled from his nose.

Blood, most likely.

“Why take the fall? Trying to play the hero? Your boss and the staff have all fled, leaving you alone! I want your boss. Tell me where he is, and you’re free!”

Hua Sheng gritted his teeth. “I don’t know! I haven’t seen him in ages!”

The gold chain man punched Hua Sheng in the abdomen.

A subordinate standing behind him stepped forward. “Boss, seems he really doesn’t know. You’ve been beating him for half an hour—if you accidentally kill him, that’s trouble.”

The gold chain man shot his subordinate a glare, then looked at Hua Sheng’s bloodied face. “He won’t die.”

He let go of Hua Sheng’s hair, and Hua Sheng collapsed to his knees.

“Enjoy playing the hero—you can wait to be a martyr!” The man spat on Hua Sheng and strode away with his henchman.

Hua Sheng gasped for air, time slipping by unnoticed. His hands slowly reached for the ground above, pushing himself up. He found the nearest wall and leaned against it, pulling up his shirt to wipe the blood from his face.

Being an orphan, getting beaten was hardly a novelty for him. As long as the injuries weren’t too severe, he could endure. A few days later, he’d be lively again.

He rested against the wall, soon slipping into a hazy sleep.

Unaware of how much time had passed, Hua Sheng heard someone calling his name.

“Hua Sheng! Hua Sheng! How did you get beaten so badly?” It was a middle-aged man’s voice.

Hua Sheng opened his eyes, realizing his eyelids were so swollen he could barely see, only able to make out the outline of the man before him.

“Brother Xu? Why are you back?” Hua Sheng spoke slowly, laboring with each word. “Didn’t I tell you to run?”

Brother Xu spoke urgently. “Those people were too ruthless! These days, debt collectors don’t beat people like this. There are cameras in the company—evidence of their assault!”

He opened a laptop, displaying footage of Hua Sheng being surrounded and beaten. “I’m calling the police!”

“Forget it. Even if you get them arrested, once everyone’s back together, the debt still needs repaying.”

Brother Xu rummaged in a desk drawer, finding a clean towel to help Hua Sheng wipe the blood from his head.

“My bones are tough. I can take the beating.” Hua Sheng took the towel and pressed it to his wound.

“You need stitches. That cut is big—this blood won’t stop.” Brother Xu supported him by the shoulder.

The hospital was only two streets away, not far at all.

By the time they left the hospital, two hours had passed. A gentle drizzle had begun outside—early spring, still cold despite hints of warmth. Just when you thought warmth was arriving, the temperature would drop unexpectedly.

In this vast city, day and night blurred together as people flowed everywhere. Nighttime wanderers weren’t just the young; people of all ages could be found on the late-night streets. Many who seemed like “lost souls” were merely exhausted office workers, fresh from overtime.

The more prosperous and developed a city, the more people seemed intertwined—yet in truth, the connections were as chilly as the early spring air, ready to send a shiver through you at any moment.

After over twenty stitches, Hua Sheng’s head was wrapped in thick gauze, making him look like a mummy. He said, “Brother Xu, working as an internet troll isn’t making any money. In half a year, you’ve lost everything and are deep in debt. Maybe it’s time to try something else.”

Brother Xu placed a cigarette in his mouth, searching his pockets before producing a disposable lighter from a convenience store. He lit up and took a deep drag. “Things should get better soon.”

Hua Sheng asked, “Sister-in-law passed away about six months ago, right? It’s been hard for you. How’s her family?”

“At first, they couldn’t accept it. People have feelings—her parents only had one daughter, and she married me, a guy from the countryside, not long after they met. They always had doubts. The business was fine at first, but then it all went wrong. We planned to travel to Jeju Island to clear our heads, but who could have expected what happened?”

Hua Sheng said, “You shouldn’t have gone near the cliff—just for a few photos, and it cost her life.”

Brother Xu stared blankly at the orange streetlight; the raindrops beneath it were tiny yet dense. Beyond the light, it was too dark to see, as if the rain only existed in the glow.

Occasionally, a taxi passed by, tires slicing through the wet roads, the sound of rain tearing the night’s silence. Not far across the street, a sedan slowly stopped—perhaps a man was dropping his girlfriend home, chatting affectionately through the window. In the distance, drunken voices sang popular songs, venting their frustrations at life through alcohol.

Brother Xu held the cigarette between his middle and ring fingers, his preferred way. He said softly, “Life is a one-way street. You never know which fork is best. That’s the path of living—drifting with the current.”

Hua Sheng squatted, peering at the ground under the dim streetlight, noticing a few ants crawling past his feet.

Brother Xu inhaled deeply. “Later, I sent my two younger sisters to night school, hoping they’re still young enough to get back on track. But it takes money—I became the family’s pillar and started taking odd jobs here. Now everyone talks about the internet, so I learned as I went, bought a few computers, and took on subcontracted work from big companies. My parents are getting old and sick. I want to bring them to the city for better medical care.”

“Brother Xu, I guess you really need money…”

“These days, money matters more to me than life.”

“How much debt is out there?”

“With compound interest, sixty or seventy thousand.”

“So much? But you’re strong—even through hardship, you’ll make it.”

“There’s no choice. In the end, you can only rely on yourself in this world. I can’t afford to lose.” Brother Xu coughed twice, patting his waist. “I figured those debt collectors would come by these days. If you stayed in the office, they’d vent their anger on you. I brought a knife—if things get tight, I’ll fight them if I have to!”

“Brother Xu, there’s something I’ve wanted to ask you for a long time.” Hua Sheng furrowed his brow. “Did you…push sister-in-law off the cliff?”

The damp air seemed to freeze into ice, the surroundings falling silent. The rain under the streetlight had stopped, and one lamp flickered.

Brother Xu stared at him, his expression twisted. “How can you say that?”

The atmosphere was so tense it seemed impossible to speak, as if each word required immense effort.

“Because you said, once her insurance payout comes, you can clear your debt.” Hua Sheng’s voice was hoarse. “Now, not only can you pay off the debt, but solve many other problems too.”

Blood still seeped from Hua Sheng’s head bandage. Was it because the stitching wasn’t secure, or because his muscles were too tense, reopening the wound?

Brother Xu looked at Hua Sheng, tossed the remaining cigarette butt to the ground, and crushed its faint ember underfoot. “Whether pushed or not, the result is the same. Sliding down, a push, or a push leading to a slip—what’s the difference in outcome?”

“Even with little income, she chose to stay with you. How could you treat her like this?”

Brother Xu stared vacantly at the sky. “I miss her too. I had no choice. We both bought insurance, thinking if one of us had an accident, the other might have an easier life. She said she was too busy—despite earning little, we never had a honeymoon, so she wanted to travel. There was a discount online, so we booked for two and bought travel insurance.”

He recalled, “She walked to the cliff’s edge, stood there—why take photos in such a dangerous place…”

“So you really pushed her?”

Brother Xu didn’t answer, but continued, “She stepped to the edge and handed me her phone to take a picture. When I touched her hand, she seemed possessed, as if I pushed her, and…”

Tears spilled from Brother Xu’s eyes. “I don’t know what happened. Then she just slipped down!”

Hua Sheng bowed his head in contemplation, the silence broken only by the sound of a heartbeat. “What are you going to do?”

“When I get the money, I’ll pay off the debt, settle the family, and leave.”

“Brother Xu, you didn’t have to go down this path. If you persevere, life will gradually improve.”

“It’s too late for regrets. She married me, and my life was a failure. Both of us fell into ruin—it was fate.”

Hua Sheng wiped the raindrops from his forehead and said quietly, “Let it be. It’s over.”

Brother Xu didn’t respond; across the street, the sedan’s door opened, and the couple who seemed to be saying their goodbyes stepped out from the front seat. Then, the back door opened and two men got out. He grew alert—the car had four people, not just a couple?