The Little Fox's Immortal Cultivation Encyclopedia

Chapter 124 Gu Xi

Contrary to the fox's expectations, the stall did not sell paintings, but only displayed several old-looking boxes containing several ink sticks, which were jet black and shiny, with a layer of white frost on their surface.

The stall owner, also dressed as a scholar, was introducing the ink to his customers: "These inks were made by hand by the disciples of the hermit Meixue."

"Is Master Meixue the Crown Prince's tutor?" a young man exclaimed. "It's said that a single inkstone he makes is worth a gold ingot!"

"Indeed, in his later years, the recluse Meixue resigned from his official post and went into seclusion, devoting himself to ink making and taking on several disciples to pass on his skills. These inks were made by one of his disciples."

The stall owner smiled and said, "It was quite a coincidence. I just happened to get some lacquer boxes, and when I took them home, I found that they were engraved with the seal of the layman's disciples. It seems that the disciple made them and gave them to a friend, and somehow they ended up in the market."

Everyone nodded in agreement, then beat their chests and stamped their feet, regretting that they didn't have this opportunity.

The fox sniffed, uninterested. Its gaze swept across the room, when suddenly a voice rang out: "Gu Xi is the third of the twelve mirrors cast by the Sage of Music."

"By taking the name of the twelve musical pitches, Gu Xi, one can distinguish truth from falsehood and expose evil spirits."

"The twelve pitch pipes are six each of yin and yang, with yang being the pitch pipe and yin being the pitch pipe. The Huangzhong pitch pipe begins and the Yingzhong pitch pipe ends, corresponding to the twelve months. They are the foundation of rites and music and the origin of tonal patterns."

The fox hurriedly stretched its neck to look into the crowd, trying to see who was holding the ancient mirror, but after looking around, it found nothing. "I am also a lover of ink, but with the imperial examinations approaching, I have no choice but to part with it—"

"I don't think so." A middle-aged man with a bright, jade-like face, who looked to be in his forties, suddenly stepped out from the crowd.

"Wash, sir!" the young man exclaimed.

The fox's gaze fell on the middle-aged man, and a strange expression immediately appeared on its face. It moved closer to the young man and asked unwillingly, "What, Mr. Wash?"

"Who else could it be but the one who can recognize all the ancient artifacts in the world? Nothing that has passed through his hands has ever been misjudged!"

Hu Nianshuang opened her lips: "My sister has also heard of Mr. Xi's great name, and it is indeed as they say."

The fox's lips twitched: "What's so impressive about that? If I put a rabbit, a weasel, and then a fox in front of you, could you recognize the fox?"

Hu Nianshuang was taken aback: "What do you mean, brother?"

"If you can recognize him, you can be Mr. Washer too," the fox explained. "He's an artifact that has come to life, and his magic is artifact appraisal!"

Red Fish popped up: "So it's about appreciating antiques from antiques. Little Fox, your example isn't very good. You might as well just say it's like a fox smelling fox odor."

The fox wouldn't back down: "The fox thinks even that's not as good as the river turtle catching river fish."

While the foxes were making a ruckus, the scene in front of the stall owner was quite different. His face darkened: "What makes you say that!"

"The lacquer box is an old thing, but this ink..." Mr. Xi shook his head, "The ink frosting is produced in wetlands, and the ink sticks are made of clay and then dyed black."

"Nonsense!" The stall owner's face turned bright red.

Mr. Xi remained silent and turned to leave. Those who had just paid immediately surrounded him, clamoring for their money back.

"Come on, let's follow him and see. Fox will show him how much this dead fish is worth." Fox followed immediately. "At the very least, let him see if this dead fish is really the river god. He's always going against Fox; is he just putting on an act?"

Hu Nianshuang smiled and couldn't help but say, "Brother, why don't you ask your sister how to cook fish to make it delicious?"

The fox suddenly turned around and looked at her with a pleased expression: "You've finally become like a fox."

Hu Nianshuang was suddenly stunned. She was always poised and elegant, and would never normally say such a teasing thing. Why did she say it unconsciously today? Not only herself, but Hongyu did the same.

Looking at the fox before her, at this free-spirited fox, at this lively fox, she suddenly realized, and said with a hint of reproach in her tone, "Brother is teasing me. It's clearly your personality that's so endearing that your sister can't help but join in the fun."

Hu Nianshuang's eyes were almost overflowing with laughter. Unconsciously, she had rediscovered the playfulness and casualness hidden in her bones, and her tone had also taken on the agility of a fox.

Who could resist going along with the fox's whims and playing along?

Her magical power flowed continuously throughout her body.

"Indeed, the way you shirk responsibility is just like a fox."

"elder brother!"

The three followed Mr. Xi, who walked slowly, going against the flow of people, and entered a teahouse. He ordered a cup of tea, but set out four cups.

The fox followed without any hesitation, sat down opposite Mr. Wash, and placed the fish tank in the center of the table: "Look at my fish, are they real or not?"

Mr. Xi took a sip of tea and said slowly, "You guys are quite bold, daring to wander around the city in broad daylight."

"A fox demon, a fish spirit, and another—" Mr. Xi looked at the fox, "a very special fox demon. You do have some skill; I didn't even realize your origins at first glance."

"We're all spirits, who are you trying to scare?" The fox picked up the tea and poured it into the fish tank. "This is the former water god of Taoxi, who loves to drink tea. Don't be stingy."

May you suffer to death, you fox!

Hu Nianshuang bowed slightly: "I am Hu Nianshuang, greetings to Mr. Xi."

Mr. Xi remained as calm as ever: "What makes you say they're all spirits and monsters?"

"What, is it not considered a spirit if an ancient mirror becomes sentient?" the fox said bluntly.

Mr. Xi nodded with a slight smile: "That's right, a fake is a fake. You have such a good eye, I can be friends with you guys."

"You've been following me on purpose, you should at least give me an explanation, shouldn't you?"

"Not bad, fox—cough cough cough!" While the fox opened its mouth, the red fish stirred the water and splashed the tea into the fox's mouth.

Hu Nianshuang continued, "We have indeed come here today to ask for your help, but we don't know if you would be willing to assist us."

She took down the painting depicting the battle on the Lanjiang River and handed it to Mr. Xi, saying, "May I ask you to look at the provenance of this painting?"

Mr. Xi did not rush to open it, but closed his eyes and felt it for a while before slowly opening it.

He looked at it very carefully and said, "At the end of the previous dynasty, before the founding of the Great Xuan Kingdom, the rebel army and the local garrison fought fiercely in the Taoxi River basin. Relying on the advantages of the terrain and the ingenious strategy of naval warfare, they defeated the strong with the weak. The number of dead and wounded was countless. Later, the staff accompanying the army drew this map."

Mr. Xi handed the scroll back: "An artifact from the previous dynasty, a unique battle map, and the handwriting of a witness. You won't find another piece like it in the entire Daxuan. In terms of value, it cannot be measured by gold or silver."

The fox stopped its playful antics and pondered, "So, according to this painting, we can find the battlefield from back then?"

Mr. Xi nodded: "Every detail in this painting is clearly recorded. Even if Taoxi was later rerouted due to a natural disaster, it can still be found by following this map."