The Little Fox's Immortal Cultivation Encyclopedia

Chapter 123 Museum

Three days later.

Young Master Shaoxiu carried the painting of the Battle of Lanjiang on his back and held an exquisite fish tank in his hands. Red fish swam in the tank, and the wounds on their bodies had already scabbed over.

"You're living the good life, having a fox carry you when you go out."

"Who cares? This broken jar is too narrow. I'd rather go back to the river."

The fox ignored it and placed the fish tank in the sun, where the morning light shone through the fish scales, reflecting off the tank full of sparkling light.

It nodded in satisfaction: "Not bad, looks quite valuable."

The red fish slapped its tail, splashing water everywhere. The fox, prepared, turned its head to dodge.

"Stop fooling around." Hu Nianshuang's face was covered by a thin veil, her eyes crinkling into a smile. "Brother, let's set off quickly."

The group went downstairs and headed towards the city center.

In the center of Yunxi County stands a stone bridge, said to be over a hundred years old. At the eastern end of the bridge is a crossroads, where crowds from all directions have made it impossible to move.

It wasn't just people, but also stalls. Most of them were just a few layers of tattered mats spread on the ground, with antiques displayed on top, and vendors squatting behind them shouting their wares. That was considered decent; some vendors simply carried a load on a shoulder pole and put it on the ground as their shelf.

There are also those who are particular, but those are all established shops with sunshades over their stalls, fine silks spread on their tables, and boxes that look exceptionally exquisite, not to mention the antiques on them.

The fox walked in the direction of the crowd, its eyes scanning the area like a brush, and the functions of various objects came to mind.

A moment later, the fox frowned slightly, realizing the limitation of its voice. While its voice was detailed and thorough when introducing things related to cultivation, it only briefly mentioned common, ordinary objects, offering only a brief description of their effects before falling silent. This wasn't inherently a problem, but for a fox focused solely on finding the obvious, it was rather simplistic.

After all, the value of these antiques is not determined solely by their utility.

The fox didn't give up; with so many items here, surely something would be useful. It pricked up its ears, listening for the calls of vendors around it.

"Come, come, gentlemen, take a look at this!" A plump vendor held up a jade bowl. "This is a bowl used by the late emperor!"

"This looks precious, but it doesn't seem to be an item used by the imperial court?" people around questioned.

"The late emperor loved cats, and this is the food bowl he prepared for them. Look at the quality of the jade, the craftsmanship—"

The fox's eyes widened: "Giving such good stuff to a cat? Isn't that a waste?"

The red fish blew bubbles: "You think everyone's like you, able to just throw something on the ground and eat it?"

The fox retorted, "That's still better than you drinking bathwater, hey, fish poop in the water—"

Hu Nianshuang coughed lightly and changed the subject: "Brother, look over there, someone is selling things for money."

The fox looked in the direction and saw an elderly man calling out, "Gentlemen, this is the mother coin."

After saying this, he adopted an expression that said, "Those who know the stuff will understand," and said no more.

A man suddenly appeared from the crowd, exclaiming in surprise, "Could it be the legendary 'Money Mother'? I've heard that if you gather the 'Money Father' as well, money can generate more money!"

"Hehe, that's right!"

The fox hurried over to take a look. The coin looked a size larger than a regular coin, and the hole in the middle was blocked by rust.

Noticing the wealthy young man's gaze, the man quickly asked, "Why is the hole gone? Could it be pregnant and about to produce money?"

"Hehe, that's right!"

"If it were true, why doesn't he keep it to make money?" Red Fish said coldly. "He's just fooling you, little fox."

"Indeed, humans are too cunning. A fox knew a fish and was almost tricked into growing wings by a few sticks of incense."

Hu Nianshuang covered her mouth with her hand, suppressing a laugh. Compared to these two conspirators, her brother and Hongyu were much more interesting. Her eyes were full of joy, completely unaware that her cultivation, which had not increased for a long time, was slightly fluctuating.

After walking for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the fox suddenly let out a soft exclamation.

A small crowd had gathered around the stall in front of me. The stall only displayed a few porcelain vases, with slender necks and simple, antique shapes. One of the vases had a dozen or so black dots of varying sizes imprinted on it, which seemed out of place with the patterns on the body of the vase.

The stall owner explained, "On the first day of each month, a black spot will appear on this bottle, and by the full moon, it will cover the entire bottle."

After this day, it will gradually subside, returning to its original state by the last day of the month.

Seeing the fox deep in thought, Hu Nianshuang said, "If brother wants it, sister will buy it for you."

"The fox was just wondering, aside from the full moon and the new moon, how do you distinguish between profit and loss on other days?"

Red Fish remained silent for a while, wanting to refute, but unable to find a reasonable point to make, so it could only grunt.

"This bottle was used by the Imperial Observatory, and it comes in a pair." The stall owner took out another bottle. "This one can predict wind and rain. As soon as you see a damp spot on the bottle, it will rain in no time."

The onlookers gasped in amazement, and a man dressed as a wealthy businessman spoke up: "How much? I'll take it."

The stall owner waved his hand, spreading his five fingers.

"Five hundred taels?"

The stall owner shook his head.

"Five thousand taels?"

"It can't be fifty thousand taels, can it? Are you kidding me, brother?"

The stall owner said, "This item is not for sale."

"Why put it out there if you're not going to sell it?"

"To be honest, I was originally from an official family, but my family suffered a misfortune, and now all I have left is this. This bottle was passed down from my ancestors. I am bringing it out now in the hope that it can help my son find a way out. If I can get an introduction from some noble person and help my son get a position, I will give this bottle away for free."

The fox's eyes darted around.

"What mischief are you up to now, you little fox?"

"Are you saying that underworld officials are considered government officials?"

The red fish flipped over, letting one of its fish eyes stare at the fox: "You'd better release me quickly, or I don't want to be implicated and taken to the underworld with you."

The fox snorted coldly: "Foxes have plenty of connections among humans too."

"Little Fox has connections? Maybe he's a complete idiot."

"That's still better than you being all alone. By the way, didn't Fox see a small fish hanging on your tail before? Where's that fish now?"

"I lured away the pursuers, so she's perfectly fine." The red fish was very wary. "You don't need to worry about her. She's just an ordinary fish, she doesn't attract attention, and nothing will happen to her."

"Is she your child?"

"She is my maid."

The fox was shocked. How come both the fox and the fish beside him had maids? The fox wanted one too!

The three of them watched for a while longer. Since the whole state had gathered here, naturally some people with exceptional eyesight and high status would step forward to chat with the stall owner. The fox saw this but didn't say anything and continued walking forward.

The fox wasn't particularly interested in the bottles; he'd inquire if he felt a connection, but otherwise, so be it. The museum had only just begun; the best stuff was yet to come.

The fox continued wandering around, and not far ahead it saw a group of people dressed as scholars, and could smell the fragrance of ink from afar.

The fox's eyes lit up, and it walked in that direction.

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