The Mysterious Card Maker: Starting with Zhang Jiao's Deification

Qin Chuan was taken aback: "Dad, that... that's something we've passed down, and you're letting an outsider..."

"Go get it."

Qin Chuan opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but when he met the old man's gaze, he didn't say anything. He turned around and left the testing area. A few minutes later, he returned carrying a sandalwood box.

Old Master Qin took the box but didn't open it immediately. He stroked the patterns on the lid, remained silent for a while, and then looked up at Lin Fanxun.

"Xiao Fan, how did you create that Zhang Fei? Did he just shout 'Zhang Yide of Yan is here!'?"

Lin Fan's heart skipped a beat, but before he could speak, Qin Muyao interrupted, "I also feel like I've heard that somewhere before, but I just can't remember where."

Grandpa Qin smiled, said nothing, and carefully opened the wooden box.

Inside the box lay a pair of bronze paperweights. Qin Muyao leaned closer to take a look, and her eyes immediately lit up: "Isn't this what I played with when I was a kid? You used to say that these were things passed down from generation to generation and that I couldn't play with them."

As she spoke, she reached out and picked up the paperweight, turning it over and over in her hand. Her movements were much gentler, clearly indicating that she still remembered being scolded by her grandfather when she was a child.

She looked at the paperweight in her hand. On the front was engraved a line of words: "General Fei of Han, leading 10,000 elite soldiers, defeated the bandit leader Zhang He at Ba Meng. The inscription was immediately carved." The three characters "Zhang Yide" at the end were engraved neatly.

"Zhang Yide, I remember now, that's where I saw him! I knew that name sounded familiar!"

Lin Fan also went over and saw the words engraved on the paperweight. He said, "This is the inscription left by Zhang Fei after he defeated Zhang He. It is also Zhang Fei's achievement."

"It's him?" Qin Muyao pointed to Zhang Fei behind her. After Lin Fan nodded in confirmation, she handed the paperweight to Zhang Fei: "Zhang Fei, this is for you!"

Zhang Fei took the paperweight, looked down at it for a long time, and his expression changed from curiosity to confusion, followed by an inexplicable bewilderment.

"I do see my name," he said, scratching his head, somewhat puzzled. "But what's written here... I don't remember at all?"

Lin Fan's heart tightened. Zhang Fei didn't remember Ba Meng Mountain, nor did he remember the merit he had inscribed on the monument back then. It seemed that only one name remained shining in his past.

Old Master Qin's gaze returned to Lin Fan's face: "You recognize these things!"

Lin Fan nodded.

Grandpa Qin said calmly, "This thing has been passed down from our ancestors, and no one has ever known what is written on it. Since you know its origin, perhaps this thing is destined to be with you. I will entrust it to you."

Lin Fan was taken aback: "Elder Qin, this..."

"Dad, this is something we've passed down through generations. How can we just give it to an outsider like this!" Qin Chuan immediately objected.

Old Master Qin didn't even lift his eyelids: "What do you know?"

"I..." Qin Chuan choked for a moment, but still said, "Even if we're going to give it away, we should at least consider who the recipient is, right? We don't even know his background, yet we're going to give him this old item that's been passed down for generations."

Old Master Qin spoke calmly, but his words left no room for argument: "These things are only truly wasted when they are in the hands of those who understand them."

Before Qin Chuan could say anything more, Qin Muyao leaned close to his ear and said, "Second Uncle, don't be stubborn. Can you change what the old man has decided? Besides, you don't know what to do with it. Do you really want to pass it down as a family heirloom?"

Qin Chuan looked at his niece, then at Old Master Qin, sighed, and said nothing more.

Lin Fan looked at the paperweight that Zhang Fei was playing with in his hand and suddenly realized something: those lost myths, discontinuous history, everything forgotten by this world.

They may not have truly disappeared; they have simply changed form and are scattered throughout the world, waiting for someone to recognize them again.

"Alright, Xiao Fan, stay for dinner today." Old Master Qin patted Lin Fan on the shoulder.

"Yes, yes, let's eat!" Zhang Fei's eyes lit up at the mention of food. "Do you have any wine?"

Qin Muyao glared at him: "What are you, a mere Kaling, drinking?"

"Why not?" Zhang Fei chuckled.

......

Northern suburbs of Jiang City.

In the study of an old villa, a lamp that was always on barely illuminated the area in front of the desk. A person sat in the shadows behind the desk, tapping the surface of the table with his fingers, the tapping sound echoing in the empty room.

"click"

The door opened, and a man walked in, his hat pulled low, obscuring most of his face.

"Zhang Li is dead," the newcomer said calmly, as if he were talking about something insignificant.

The person in the shadows was silent for a few seconds, then said in a slightly hoarse voice, "That guy has been too active lately, making cards for people everywhere, as if he's afraid people won't know what he does. It's better if he dies sooner, so he won't cause us any trouble."

The visitor didn't reply, but simply stood there, waiting for him to continue asking questions.

"How did he die?"

"He was killed by a girl from the Qin family and a man named Lin Fan. They used two cards, one named Zhang Fei and the other Zhang Jiao."

"Zhang Jiao..." he murmured, his hand that was tapping the table stopping. "This name... it makes me feel very uncomfortable."

"There's one more thing." The person took a folded piece of paper out of his pocket, unfolded it, and placed it on the table.

The man in the shadows picked up the note and glanced at it. It contained a few lines of text and some numbers, and the title read: "List of Wealthy Businessmen of the New World Foundation." He looked at it for a few seconds, chuckled, and then burned the note on the ever-burning lamp.

"Zhao Zhong?" he said with a hint of amusement. "That idiot, does he really think he's surnamed Zhao anymore?"

"Zhang Li used our All Souls Society's name to make money, and Zhao Zhong followed him in his schemes. Now that Zhang Li is dead, what about Zhao Zhong...?" The man paused, then tentatively asked, "Once we're done using him, shouldn't we throw him away?"

"Throw it away." The person in the shadows nodded, tapping his fingers lightly on the table as if finalizing a trivial matter.

The person in the shadows added, "Don't waste what he has. Take back what's usable, and get rid of what's not."

"Understood," the person replied.

"That guy named Lin Fan." The person in the shadows leaned back, his entire face hidden in the darkness, with only his hand adorned with a jade thumb ring remaining in the light. "I'd like to give him some trouble and see what kind of person he is."

"Yes."

The door closed.

The person in the shadows started tapping on the table again, one tap at a time, very slowly.

"Zhang Fei..." he murmured, "Zhang Jiao... interesting."