Chapter 24

Chapter 24

"Liu Daming, male, 59 years old, ID number 3XX... has been living in H Province. He arrived in S Province by plane last night, reaching Shangyang Village around midnight, and went up the mountain this morning..."

An older and a younger police officer stood between Chen Ji and Liu Daming, verifying Liu Daming's identity and travel records: "Liu Daming, you don’t even know Chen Ji. You flew hundreds of kilometers just to scatter paper money at his doorstep? He doesn’t recognize you, so why would you do such a thing?!"

"I was... I was..." Liu Daming stammered, repeating "I was" without completing his thought.

Chen Ji stated indignantly, "Exactly, I don’t know him at all—never even met him once. He came to my door asking for some 'Master Chen.' Since my surname is uncommon, I figured I must be the only one in this area. I was just about to ask what he wanted when he threw a handful of paper money into my house! How utterly offensive!"

The two police officers exchanged glances. The younger one, feeling a touch of sympathy for Chen Ji, asked, "Could you have inadvertently offended him?"

"No way, right?" Chen Ji said incredulously. "I only moved back here a little over a week ago—not even half a month. I’ve hardly left the mountain, and when I did, I only went to the village. He’s from hundreds of miles away—how could I have possibly offended him?"

The middle-aged officer nodded, reviewing Chen Ji’s travel records. "You’ve been living in J Province all along... There really isn’t any possibility of you two knowing each other..."

Liu Daming glanced at Chen Ji’s angry and wronged expression, then at the stern-faced police officers. He scuffed his foot in the dirt and suddenly seemed to recall something. "Officers, this is all a misunderstanding! A genuine misunderstanding! I didn’t mean to do it. I heard the Mountain Lord temple here is very effective, so I came to pay respects and make an incense offering. I must’ve grabbed the wrong thing... This paper money was meant to be burned at the Mountain Lord temple for my late father. I truly did mix them up!"

The two officers' expressions softened slightly. If it was truly a mistake, then it was just a misunderstanding. "Are you sure you grabbed the wrong thing?"

"Yes, yes, absolutely!" Liu Daming insisted repeatedly.

Before anyone could say anything else, Chen Ji produced a tablet. He didn’t speak, but his actions conveyed a clear message: "Please watch the video."

The tablet played back the scene of Liu Daming scattering the paper money, then turning and running without a word. The footage then showed Chen Ji catching up with him in a few strides and immediately calling the police. The audio confirmed that Chen Ji was indeed reporting the incident.

The old man, who had initially seemed honest and simple, was clearly lying.

The middle-aged officer’s face darkened. "If it was a mistake, why did you run? Why not just explain it properly?"

Chen Ji nodded in agreement. "Exactly! If it was a mistake, why not just apologize? Why run away?"

The younger officer said sternly, "I think it’s better if you come with us to the station! Your behavior constitutes disturbing public order. If you don’t want to settle this amicably, you could face at least seven days of detention, and possibly even civil liability!"

Upon hearing "detention," Liu Daming panicked. He hadn’t expected that scattering paper money at someone’s door could lead to detention—that meant a criminal record! People would point fingers at him wherever he went!

He looked at the stern-faced officers, then at Chen Ji, and, steeling himself, said, "I was scared of being beaten when I realized I’d thrown the wrong thing, so I ran..."

The younger officer turned to Chen Ji and asked quietly, "Are you willing to settle this? If he apologizes, we can let it go."

Chen Ji frowned. "It’s not that I’m unwilling, but what he did is too unlucky! I’m the only one left in my family, and he scatters paper money at my door—isn’t that like cursing me to die?"

"Would some compensation help?" the younger officer picked up on Chen Ji’s implication.

Chen Ji refused without hesitation. "It’s not about the money. I don’t need it."

The other officer turned to Liu Daming. "Hear that? He doesn’t need your money. Think about what you’ve done! It's only because he's young and even-tempered that he called the police instead of hitting you! Hurry up and apologize! If you don’t settle this, you’re coming to the station with me!"

Just as Liu Daming was about to speak, Chen Ji interjected, "No."

The older officer turned back. "Young man, what do you suggest then?"

Chen Ji frowned. "I don’t care about anything else. I don’t need an apology or compensation. But he must clean up every last bit of the paper money he scattered and take it all away. Not a single sheet can be left behind!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Daming’s face turned pale. He forced a dry laugh. "How about I compensate you with some money? My old bones..."

Chen Ji held his tablet without saying a word. The replay showed Liu Daming running away with surprising speed.

The older officer also frowned. "Hey, what’s wrong with you? The young man has laid down the terms—he doesn’t want your money. Shouldn’t you clean up the mess you made? Do you think his home is a garbage dump where you can throw whatever you want?"

The younger officer added, "Forget it, Brother Wang. Let’s just take him back to the station."

Liu Daming was about to speak again when he suddenly noticed a fully brown-yellow weasel appear on Chen Ji’s shoulder. Its fur tips shimmered with gold, and its dark eyes held an almost human-like expression, looking incredibly lively. He was startled, and the two officers were also taken aback by the weasel. "...What’s this?"

Chen Ji glanced at the weasel, a hint of ease in his expression. "It’s fine. There are many animals in the mountains. I often feed them, so they come to play with me."

Second Master Huang tilted his head, examining the people in front of him. "Wow, young Chen, your place is really lively today!"

Chen Ji took out an egg yolk pie and brought it to Second Master Huang’s mouth. Second Master Huang, originally intending to say more, forgot everything at the sight of the treat. He grabbed the pie, jumped off Chen Ji, and went off to the side to eat.

The older officer watched as the weasel scurried away to eat, clearly familiar with the place. With his experience, he could tell that the young man had clear, honest eyes and a scholarly demeanor—hardly the type to engage in illegal activities. Combined with the records, it seemed like another case of a young person returning to the countryside for a simpler life. He was probably one of them.

The older officer cleared his throat. "Alright, that’s settled. Young man, where’s the broom? Liu Daming, don't just stand there! Start cleaning!"

The younger officer noticed a broom leaning against the temple door and asked Chen Ji if he could use it. Chen Ji fetched it and handed it to Liu Daming. Under the gaze of all three, Liu Daming broke into a cold sweat and had no choice but to take the broom.

As Liu Daming began sweeping, Chen Ji’s frown eased slightly, but he kept a close watch. The younger officer was about to say something when an orange-and-white kitten carrying two bottles of drinks trotted over, meowing cutely. Chen Ji bent down, took the drinks, and handed them to the officers. "Sorry for the trouble. If this hadn’t been so unlucky, I wouldn’t have called you all the way up here."

The younger officer took a drink first. After climbing the mountain, he was quite thirsty. "No problem, we understand."

Chen Ji smiled apologetically and then went back into the temple to supervise the sweeping. The younger officer was slightly taken aback, expecting Chen Ji to chat more. The older officer took a sip of his drink and said, "I’ve heard of him. The villagers mentioned that his family has been temple keepers at the Mountain Lord temple for generations. Probably a family tradition, with taboos about these things."

Even without being temple keepers, many people would find such actions offensive.

The younger officer understood. "Should I go keep an eye on things?"

The older officer waved his drink. "Sure, go ahead."

The younger officer entered the temple. The paper money wasn’t too much—about a hundred sheets. The wind wasn’t strong, so it hadn’t scattered far, at least not beyond the temple grounds. Liu Daming swept with a bitter expression, clearly reluctant. Seeing the younger officer enter, he sped up a little.

Chen Ji said softly, "Faster."

His voice was eerie, sending chills down Liu Daming’s spine.

Soon, Liu Daming had mostly gathered the paper money. He said bitterly, "Can I go now?"

Chen Ji glanced lightly at the dustpan, then at the red paper still on the ground. "Take everything back the way you brought it... Pick up the red paper and take it with you."

The younger officer urged, "Hurry up, it’ll be dark soon."

Liu Daming had no choice but to pick up the red paper and gather the paper money from the dustpan.

The younger officer, looking around, suddenly spotted another sheet of paper money in the corner. Remembering Chen Ji’s aversion to it and thinking he’d be patrolling the area later, he decided to help pick it up—Shangyang Village had few young people, most having left for work. He thought he might visit occasionally. But as he approached the paper money and bent down, Chen Ji shouted, "Don’t move!"

The younger officer froze and turned to see Chen Ji striding over, pulling his arm away. "Let him pick it up. Don’t touch it."

"I was just trying to help. It’s just paper money—we’re not superstitious," the younger officer said, puzzled. But Chen Ji shook his head. "Whosever stuff it is, they should handle it. It’s not about superstition."

His gaze passed over the younger officer’s shoulder, focusing on a faint red shadow outside the temple gate.

He didn’t know what it was, but it was certainly nothing good. That old man had tried to shift the blame onto him, but Chen Ji wasn’t having it. By throwing the paper money into the temple and running, Liu Daming likely thought Chen Ji would have to clean it up. But Chen Ji didn’t touch it—he caught Liu Daming and called the police, forcing him to clean up his own mess.

Liu Daming said weakly, "It’s just one sheet. I’ve already packed the rest..."

Chen Ji replied, "You’d better take it all."

The younger officer felt a sudden chill, though he didn’t know why. Just then, he felt a tug on his pants leg. Looking down, he saw the weasel that had been eating the egg yolk pie staring up at him, utterly adorable. He glanced at Chen Ji, who gestured and said, "You can try petting it. If it likes you, it might climb onto your shoulder."

The young policeman said excitedly, "Really?"

As he spoke, he crouched down, and Second Master Huang immediately climbed onto his hand, scampering up to his shoulder in a heartbeat. The young policeman couldn't help but laugh, turning his head to look, only to see the weasel standing up like a human, one paw on its hip and the other pointing outside the door—which was hilarious.

"It can even stand up!"

But Chen Ji heard Second Master Huang shout toward the door, "Young man outside! Don't blame the wrong person. This area is under Second Master Huang's protection—you'd better look carefully before making a move!"

The red shadow outside flickered and slowly replied, "Oh~ I'll keep watching a while longer."

Second Master Huang shot back, "What, you looking for trouble?"

The red shadow replied, puzzled, "...Is it illegal to get a longer look at a handsome guy?"