I was forced to cultivate immortality when I just wanted to lie down

Chapter 305 Finally, I've met my family!

"I want to build a cenotaph for my master."

What was originally an ordinary sentence took on a completely different meaning in Xu Qing's ears!

He had seen the nameless old woman's revolving lantern; when the old woman first encountered the nine-tailed fox, the little white fox was happily playing by itself in the ruins of Qingqiu.

Finding a skull, she could play with it all day long by wearing it on her head. However, this carefree and simple-minded little white fox was tricked by an old woman into going to the quagmire of the mortal world by the excuse of a great mission to avenge the ancestors of Qingqiu.

In the old woman's memory, Xu Qing saw that every time the old woman came to the nine-tailed fox, the fox would nervously rub the corner of its clothes.

The reason was simple: every time the old woman tested its homework, she would show an expression of utter disappointment.

Even after one of her tails was severed, leaving her an incomplete and crippled nine-tailed fox who could never grow eight tails, the old woman still wore a face full of disappointment.

So much so that when the little white fox encountered the old woman again outside the capital after many years of cultivation, it could only flee in a sorry state.

When Xu Qing first saw this scene, he thought the nine-tailed fox was just afraid of the old woman because of her severed tail.

But when this fox spirit, now experienced in the coldness and warmth of the mortal world, spoke of building a cenotaph for her master, Xu Qing suddenly received an unbelievable answer.

That is, when the fox saw the old woman fleeing in panic, it wasn't just because she had lost a tail, but because she hadn't met the old woman's expectations, and she felt extremely ashamed and couldn't bear to see the old woman's disappointed expression again.
Seeing that the young shopkeeper of the mortuary remained silent for a long time, the female fortune teller had no choice but to ask again, "Shopkeeper, are you able to take on this task?"

Xu Qing snapped out of his daze and looked the female fortune teller up and down.

The divination robe, worn for who knows how many years and faded from washing, and the yarrow hairpins worn on her hair tied in a bun.
It's actually just a yarrow stalk. This outfit is the standard attire of those poor fortune tellers on the overpass who go hungry for three days and two meals a day.

Xu Qing withdrew his gaze and gestured for the female diviner to take a seat.

The female fortune teller glanced at the armchair beside her and shook her head.

Xu Qing wasn't surprised. He rolled up his sleeves and asked casually, "May I ask your name and hometown, sir?"

The female fortune teller nodded and said, "My name is Bai Qiuyu, and I am from Qingzhou."

Qingzhou's surname is Bai, and his given name is Qiuyu.
Xu Qing's thoughts drifted back to when Hu Baosong visited the Qingqiu Ruins years ago and met a female fortune teller.

The fortune teller was very kind and acted as his guide, leading him around the dilapidated ruins of Qingqiu.

During this time, the diviner was able to answer all questions about the past of Qingqiu fluently.

During his travels, Hu Baosong acquired some cultivation methods, including the Cave Heaven Treasure Scroll, which he passed on to Xu Qing.

After the two left Qingqiu, Hu Baosong couldn't help but inquire about the female fortune teller's identity.

The female diviner then replied:
"My name is Bai Qiuyu, and Qingqiu is my hometown."

Xu Qing was now completely certain of the other party's identity. Not only that, he also gleaned some other information from Bai Qiuyu's words.

For example, fox spirits that are over 500 years old are mostly surnamed Bai or Kang, while those that are over 1000 years old are mostly surnamed Zhao or Zhang. 'Hu' is the common surname of all fox spirits. This is the common knowledge about fox spirits that Hu Baosong told Xu Qing.

Although Xu Qing didn't understand the reasoning behind it, he could still estimate the level of skill of the female fortune teller in front of him based on this pattern.

It's probably over five hundred years, but less than a thousand years.

"So it's Aunt Bai, my apologies for not recognizing you."

Xu Qing bowed respectfully and addressed him with the same respectful tone.

He called the other party "aunt" not to facilitate the business deal by randomly claiming kinship, but because "this aunt is not that aunt".

There is an old saying about "three aunts and six grandmothers". The three aunts are nuns, Taoist nuns, and fortune tellers, while the six grandmothers are matchmakers, sorceresses, prostitutes, herbalists, and midwives.

The professions mentioned here are very common in the secular world. The sorceress is a witch who makes a living by pretending to be a god or ghost and performing rituals to exorcise evil spirits; the brothel madam is the madam of a brothel who manages the affairs of prostitutes; and the medicine woman is a folk female doctor who can heal the sick and save people, or she can poison people. They are collectively called medicine women.

As for the other professions, they are even more well-known. Among them, the nuns on the opera stage are called "Gugu", the Taoist nuns are also called "Gugu", and the fortune tellers are the same.

It's similar to how all fox-like spirits share the surname "Hu".

Upon hearing Xu Qing call her aunt, Bai Qiuyu quickly nodded and bowed in return.

“My master passed away a few days ago, and as her only disciple, it is my duty to see her off on her final journey.”

At this point, Bai Qiuyu sighed and said, "But my master's body was not preserved. Only some clothes and some miscellaneous items were left behind. Now I want to build a cenotaph for my master. I would like to trouble you, shopkeeper, to take good care of her and help me send her off on her final journey."

Xu Qing raised an eyebrow. His only disciple.
So that old woman was a womanizer, claiming that every disciple she took on was her only disciple.

But to some extent, this statement is not entirely untrue. After all, most of the disciples the old woman had taken in before had died in the great calamity, so the disciples she took in later, even if not the only ones, were still the only ones.

If Bai Qiuyu and Xuan Yu hadn't been born with extraordinary bloodlines and possessed more than one life, they might already be a handful of dust behind the old woman.

"Aunt, please accept my condolences."

Xu Qing led Bai Qiuyu into the shop, where samples of various paper offerings, coffins, and funeral clothes were available.

Bai Qiuyu looked at the coffin placed in the middle and asked, "How much silver does this coffin cost? What are the procedures for the funeral?"

Xu Qing said with great familiarity, "Ordinary funerals are carried by eight, sixteen, or thirty-two people; as for the coffin, the materials used to hold the body are not all the same, and it depends on what the guests choose."

"This cedar and cypress wood, which lasts for centuries, is solid and weighty, best reflecting the status of a teacher, and costs a little over a thousand coins; pine wood, with its smooth grain and natural charm, is most suitable for a diviner, and eight hundred coins are enough; and then there is elm wood, which is the most durable."

Seeing Bai Qiuyu's furrowed brows, Xu Qing changed the subject and said, "If you're not satisfied with the wooden coffin, our shop also has stone coffins, iron coffins, and even crystal coffins if you want one."

Bai Qiuyu's eyes lit up, and she asked with a hint of anticipation, "Are these coffins cheaper than those wooden coffins?"

Xu Qing shook his head: "Aside from the precious wood, the latter is much more expensive than the former."

Upon hearing this, Bai Qiuyu immediately looked troubled.

Xu Qing observed the other person's expression and noticed again the faded divination robe.

He vividly remembered that in the revolving lantern of the Heavenly Heart Sect's Golden Luo Protector, this nine-tailed fox demon had stopped Jin Wanshan to divine his fate, and the divination fee was the roast duck with chicken hearts in the other party's hand.

A divination only costs a few coins, or a few treats to satisfy a craving. How could a monster like that have the money to buy a coffin?

This is similar to the rules in the world of spirit mediums, where the medium is not allowed to charge high fees for telling fortunes, but can only accept red-sealed blind boxes or exchange them for rice, flour, or clothing.

Because most of the disciples who become spirit mediums serve the spirits, and the spirits don't care about worldly money the most; all they want are believers and incense offerings.

Once a shaman demands exorbitant fees, the believers' faith and devotion will diminish or even turn into a complete transaction, let alone genuine gratitude.

Over time, this has led to a situation where most of the shamanic disciples do not have much money to spare and live a precarious life.

In times of peace and prosperity, this wouldn't be a big deal, but in times of chaos and disaster, not only would the number of jobs requiring their help decrease, but the red envelopes from clients would mostly be only one or two copper coins, not even enough to buy a baked bun. Understanding the intricacies, Xu Qing's gaze towards Bai Qiuyu immediately became strange.

"Auntie, are you perhaps short of money and unable to come up with the funds for the funeral arrangements?"

Seeing that she had been exposed to her face, Bai Qiuyu was extremely embarrassed, as if she were on fire.

Even a hero can be brought down by a single penny, let alone a thousand!
If she were to lack money for food, clothing, and daily necessities under normal circumstances, it wouldn't matter, but this is a major event—arranging a funeral for her teacher!
Bai Qiuyu felt extremely uncomfortable under Xu Qing's gaze. Finally, she stubbornly abandoned all shame and said:

"When I arrived, I saw a notice on the bulletin board outside the city gate that said in black and white on paper that it was for funeral loans and that funerals could be paid on credit."

Xu Qing clicked his tongue and nodded, saying, "That's true. Does the customer intend to handle the coffin loan and burial on credit at the same time?"

“This is no small sum of money. If the customer confirms it, we will have to sign and put our fingerprints on it, and swear an oath by the light of the lamp.”

Bai Qiuyu looked at the inexplicably excited shopkeeper in front of her and felt that something was not quite right.

She said cautiously, "I saw on the notice board that it says no interest will be charged during the loan period and there is no repayment deadline. That should count, right?"

“Of course it counts,” Xu Qing nodded and then shook his head. “However, it is clearly written on the notice board that interest-free funerals will only be provided if the body is found. This measure is only to relieve the worries of the living and to allow the deceased to rest in peace.”

“But if the guest is a cenotaph, then it is different again.”

"I can lend money to my aunt on credit, but there's a repayment deadline. My aunt needs to pay off the debt within ten years. How about that?"

Bai Qiuyu's eyes lit up, and she pressed, "No interest?"

"No."

"Really ten years?"

"really."

Bai Qiuyu finally felt relieved.

Even if she only did one divination a day for ten years and earned one copper coin, it would be enough to pay off her debts in ten years.

"How much silver would be needed for the best funeral arrangements?"

Xu Qing glanced at Bai Qiuyu in surprise.

Wait, are the nine-tailed fox clan really this respectful of their teachers?
"That's unpredictable! There's no upper limit to the best specifications. As long as the guests can afford it, even if my aunt wants the grandeur of an imperial mausoleum, we can secretly arrange for a replica of eight or nine tenths of the original for my teacher's funeral procession."

"."

Bai Qiuyu had seen the emperor's funeral procession before. The scale of it was such that the funeral road was paved with real gold and silver. If she were to use the rules to tell fortunes, she probably wouldn't be able to pay off the debt even if she told fortunes for a thousand years!

"There's no need for that! My master isn't one to indulge in extravagance. Shopkeeper, just do it as usual."

Xu Qing nodded and said, "When the emperor is being carried in a funeral procession, there are at least 128 people carrying the coffin. For wealthy families, there are 64 people carrying the coffin, and for ordinary families, there are 32 people carrying the coffin. For poor families, there are 8 people carrying the coffin."

Bai Qiuyu thought for a moment and chose a team of thirty-two people.

Xu Qing took an abacus from the counter, leaned leisurely against the counter, and said while calculating with the abacus: "Auntie is a thrifty person. This team of negotiators can be considered both respectable and not extravagant."

"Auntie has a good eye for choosing. With the pine and cypress coffin, it's truly a perfect home."

After calculating the cost of the coffin, Xu Qing continued to patiently persuade him: "Our esteemed master has passed away, so we can't be careless about his attire. Our shop has Suzhou embroidery with cranes and pine trees, as well as brocade with subtle patterns; the prices are slightly different."

“For commoners, three sets of clothing are sufficient for a decent appearance. But for teachers and elders, while they don’t necessarily need to wear gold-embroidered jade suits like emperors, they can’t be too sloppy either. What does Aunt think of the Five Bats and Clouds Brocade style?”

Xu Qing's abacus kept moving. After calculating the approximate cost, he suddenly asked, "We still don't know where your ancestral tomb is?"

Bai Qiuyu was stunned for a moment. Ever since she started following the old woman to cultivate, she had been wandering all over the world and had never known where the old woman's hometown was.

Seeing the female fortune teller lost in thought, Xu Qing spoke up at the opportune moment: "We can't do without a burial site, but luckily our shop has a ready-made feng shui treasure land."

"Gravesites too?" Bai Qiuyu was a little confused. Has the funeral industry become so all-encompassing now?
"Of course! About twenty miles west of the city lies Wujiu Slope. That place is nestled against green pines, facing a flowing stream, a place where the wind is sheltered and energy gathers, like a dragon and a tiger embracing each other. Moreover, it's regularly maintained, and the scenery is lush with flowers and plants, tranquil and carefree."

"How much silver?"

"Not much, just twenty taels of silver will be enough to find a good home for your master."

Seeing Bai Qiuyu hesitate, Xu Qing pressed on, saying, "Death is a serious matter; we can't be ambiguous about it, can we?"

The female fortune teller's brow relaxed upon hearing this: "Let's do it your way."

After settling these matters, Bai Qiuyu thought it was over, but Xu Qing continued, "Aunt, don't be impatient. This is just the beginning. Funerals and funerals always require rituals and burning offerings, don't they?"

"This four-season flower umbrella, symbolizing the enduring virtue of teachers, is definitely necessary; a paper horse, to send teachers on a smooth journey ahead, is also indispensable; a pair of paper cranes to guide teachers on their final journey are equally essential. Furthermore, as disciples show filial piety to their teachers, longevity hats and crane-and-deer hats are certainly indispensable."

Xu Qing's five fingers flew, striking out a flurry of blows.

"The total is forty-four taels, eight mace and nine li. I'll round it down for the guest, so it'll be forty-five taels! I can also send some more joss paper to the master later."

"How many?"

"Forty-five taels, to be repaid in ten years, with no interest required."

Xu Qing drew a blank sheet of paper, and without caring what Bai Qiuyu thought, he quickly wrote three copies of the debt contract.

Bai Qiuyu looked at it and saw that it said if the debt was not repaid by the due date, the debtor would have to work in the coroner's shop to pay off the debt.

There are no additional provisions.

After signing the contract and making a solemn oath, Bai Qiuyu carefully took out her master's old clothes and belongings and placed them on the counter.

"These are my master's belongings. Please take good care of them, shopkeeper."

"That's natural."

Xu Qingyuan didn't care about these old things, but Xuan Yu, who had been quietly sitting at the counter, suddenly rushed over.

As it looked at the clothes and the familiar scent emanating from them, its entire cat-like eyes trembled.

"How did she die? How could she just die?"

Xu Qing, the culprit, looked at Xuan Yu, who was completely shocked, and thought to himself, "This is bad!"

Unexpectedly, the cat still managed to find its family in the end.

(End of this chapter)