The chivalrous spirit is fickle

Shi Gu picked up the sword with disdain and blew on the sword. A cloud of dust instantly rose on the sword. Then Shi Gu took out a rag and wiped the sword again and again. Finally, the sword did not look too shabby.

"It's OK, but it's still usable."

After muttering to himself, Shi Gu put away his sword and took out a black sword case from the secret chamber.

Suddenly, Shi Gu's eyes softened, and his palm gently stroked the long black box, and his fingers lightly stroked the sword box. His movements were gentle, and his expression was somewhat complicated.

Shi Gu slowly closed his eyes, feeling the biting chill between his fingers, and murmured softly.

"Kill."

After a brief moment of distraction, Shi Gu reluctantly withdrew his hand, picked up the long sword that he had placed aside, and opened the black sword box.

I saw that the sword box, which was as black as ink, was empty. However, judging from Shi Gu's expression, this sword box was much more important than the sword.

Shi Gu placed the sword into the sword case and gently closed it. His eyes wandered, but he would glance at the sword case from time to time, as if he could sense the owner's intentions. The ink-colored sword case began to tremble slightly.

"Ugh……"

Shi Gu let out a long sigh, pressed down the trembling sword case, and his gaze fell on his right arm. His eyes were vague, and there was a hint of loneliness in them.

……

The next day, early morning.

The sun was rising, and the golden sunlight was shining on the streets and alleys of Antian City. Streams of white steam, accompanied by wisps of gray smoke, were floating towards the sky.

"I'm selling fried dough cakes. Hot and fragrant fried dough cakes."

The streets and alleys are filled with the shouts of vendors, and there is a hint of fragrance mixed in, following the walking crowds, walking through the entire city.

Shi Gu also opened the shop early, sat on a recliner, and asked a bowl of tofu pudding and some fried dough sticks from a passing vendor.

The milky white tofu pudding was still emitting a lot of heat, and even the temperature of the bottom of the bowl was a little hot. A few pieces of sour beans were sprinkled on the surface of the bowl, which looked quite good.

Shi Gu held the bowl very comfortably, greeting his familiar neighbors while biting the fried dough stick in his hand.

This town is very small. Not as thrilling as the martial arts world, but it also lacks the bloody smell of people killing each other. It is plain and comfortable.

Apart from not making any money, Shi Gu was very satisfied with this kind of life, which was why he did not leave Antian City in five years.

After eating a bowl of steaming hot tofu pudding, Shi Gu felt that his whole stomach had warmed up and he felt very comfortable. Even when a cold wind blew on his face, he did not feel much chill.

After breakfast, Shigu lay lazily on the recliner, basking in the sun while picking up a book to read.

Such a comfortable life lasted until noon, when a group of people showed up and interrupted Shi Gu's enjoyment of life.

"Excuse me, sir, are you the owner of the store?"

The voice was gentle, polite, and a little old. Shi Gu put away the book in his hand and saw an old man in black, looking at him with a smile.

There were several people behind him, including a young man with a knife on his back, who looked at him with sidelong glances and an arrogant expression. But the most obvious one was the one in the middle of the crowd, who was wearing a green skirt, with a graceful figure and pupils as blue as the sea. Although she was wearing a veil, she had a somewhat seductive look.

But Shi Gu was stunned, staring at the woman in the green skirt in a daze, and for a moment he had mixed feelings.

At the same time, the woman in green skirt also cast her gaze over here. She was not angry at Shi Gu's misbehavior. Instead, a hint of curiosity flashed in her blue eyes.

At this moment, the young man with a knife on his back had a hint of displeasure in his eyes. He stepped between Shi Gu and the woman in green skirt and said coldly.

"Have you seen enough?"

After hearing the angry question from the man with the knife on his back, Shi Gu finally came to his senses. He frowned slightly, looked at the man with the knife on his back blocking him, and waved his hand to dismiss him.

"I haven't seen enough. Get out of my way. You're blocking me."

Hearing this, the man with the knife on his back gasped. He seemed to have not expected Shi Gu to be so frank. He acted like a shameless gangster. Moreover, because Shi Gu's attitude was so bad, he had more murderous intent.

The man with the knife on his back held the handle with one hand and spoke coldly to Shi Gu.

"Boy, do you want to die?"

Hearing this, Shi Gu didn't give any face at all. He sneered, turned over, and left his back to these people, as if he was bullying his customers because of his big store.

The veins of the man with the knife on his back popped out, he gritted his teeth and took a step forward, chopping Shi Gu. The old man in black saw this, his expression remained unchanged, but he stepped in front of the man with the knife on his back and said to Shi Gu with a smile.

"Shopkeeper, please don't be angry. I came here today to see the Thousand Miles of Mountains and Rivers in your shop. Can I take a look?"

Hearing this, Shi Gu slowly stood up this time, stretched lazily, then changed his expression, smiled gently, and spoke to the old man in black.

"What the old man said is correct. I do have a map of mountains and rivers in my store. Please come and take a look."

The old man in black smiled when he heard this, and said nothing more. He walked into the store, and the others followed him into the store. Only the man with a knife on his back stayed at the end. When he walked in front of Shi Gu, he stopped, looked at Shi Gu coldly, and said in a cold voice.

"If you have the guts, fight me."

Shi Gu twisted his mouth and spat toward the side of the road in a sarcastic tone.

"You are a swordsman, and you challenge me, a weak scholar who can't even lift a chicken, to a duel."

"You are really brave. You really make yourself proud."

Chapter 7: Uncomfortable

"You are a swordsman, and you challenge me, a weak scholar who can't even lift a chicken, to a duel."

"You are really brave. You really make yourself proud."

The man with the knife on his back had obviously never been ridiculed before. He couldn't think of how to respond. His face twitched, and he snorted coldly without letting himself down, then turned and walked into the store.

Shi Gu shook his head and chuckled, putting away the joking expression on his face, and stepped in. The antique shop, which was not small, was now gray and looked like it had not been cleaned up in time.

All kinds of sundries were randomly placed around the store, making it look messy. However, the fake "A Thousand Miles of Mountains and Rivers" was kept relatively clean and hung in the middle of the wall.

As soon as the old man in black entered the shop, he went straight to "A Thousand Miles of Mountains and Rivers". After staring at it for a long time, he turned around and asked Shi Gu politely.

"Shopkeeper, can I take it down and have a look?"

Shi Gu smiled and nodded, walked in front of him and spoke softly.

"Of course you can, old sir."

Upon hearing this, the old man in black could not wait to take down the "A Thousand Miles of Mountains and Rivers" and examined it carefully with an excited look. Several people beside him also took a few glances at it, and then turned their eyes away with boredom. They obviously had no interest in the "A Thousand Miles of Mountains and Rivers", but were more interested in other strange things in the store.

The girl in the green skirt obviously had no interest in calligraphy and painting. What was interesting was that although she looked as if she wanted to keep strangers away, she was quite interested in a bronze statue of Shi Gu placed in the store and stared at it for a long time without taking her eyes off it.

There was nothing special about the bronze statue, nor was it cute at all. It looked like a bearded man beating a fat man, which was quite funny.

After Shi Gu took a look at the girl in the green dress, he quickly looked away and turned to look at the old man in black.

The old man in black stared at the "A Thousand Miles of Mountains and Rivers" in his hand for a long time, but the excitement in his eyes gradually faded, and was replaced by a bit of disappointment.

He suddenly sighed and said with some disappointment.

"What a shame, it's a fake."

Shi Gu's eyelids twitched and he cursed to himself that he was unlucky. This shabby shop had not been open for five years, but as soon as it opened, a knowledgeable person came. His luck was really too bad.

The old man in black looked at the painting in his hand again, frowned, and said.

"Shopkeeper, do you have anything else in your shop that you can sell?"

Upon hearing this, Shi Gu smiled awkwardly. When he was about to answer "no", something moved in his heart, and then his face became strange, and he said with subtle eyes.

"There is one special painting, which is not a masterpiece, but it can be considered a masterpiece."

The old man in black raised his eyebrows, a little surprised, and continued.

"Then I'll trouble you, the shop owner, to let me take a look at it."

Shi Gu did not refuse. He turned and walked to the counter. After searching for a while, he took out a painting and handed it to the old man in black.

The old man in black didn't think much about it. He shook his arm and the scroll opened straight up, revealing the person in the painting.

The next moment, the wrinkled face of the old man in black trembled and became strange, while the few people on the side who had no interest in calligraphy and painting suddenly lit up their eyes and came over with excitement.

Even the girl in the green dress shifted her gaze over and looked at the painting intently.

There was a pretty figure in the painting, who was shy and wanted to cover herself, with eyes full of lust, very charming and seductive, and anyone who saw it would make some obscene noises.

"Hey, you annoying little goblin."

Yes, this painting is the erotic picture that Shi Gu stole from the Confucian scholar five years ago.

"..."

Under the eager gazes of the others, the old man in black, with a sullen look on his face, quickly closed the painting. At the same time, sighs of regret were heard from all around.

"Ugh……"

Seeing this, the old man in black immediately turned around and glared at the people who were accompanying him. Those people shrank their necks and looked away in fear.

"How dignified! How dignified!"

The old man in black said "how disgraceful" several times in annoyance, as if he was afraid of dirtying his hands, and threw the painting to Shi Gu. Shi Gu reached out to take it with a natural expression, not feeling embarrassed at all.

After a brief silence, the old man in black took a deep breath, regained his composure, quickly glanced around the store, pondered for a moment, and then spoke to Shi Gu.

"Shopkeeper, I'll buy all the stuff in your shop for three thousand taels, what do you think?"

Shi Gu was startled for a moment, then he raised the erotic picture in his hand and asked.

"Including this?"

The old man in black's eyes twitched, veins popped out on his forehead, and he waved his sleeves angrily.

"Of course not! Who do you think I am?"

Shi Gu smiled when he heard this, then put away the erotic picture and said with a smile.

"Since the old gentleman likes it, there is no reason for me to refuse. This deal is done."

Hearing this, the old man in black relaxed his expression a little, then smiled again and spoke in a gentle voice.

"As long as the store owner agrees, I like straightforward people."

"It's just that there are too many things in this store, and the people I'm with are clumsy and rough, so it's not good if something gets bumped and damaged."

"Can the store owner help me by delivering these things to the White Bird Temple where I am staying later?"

Shi Gu naturally would not refuse. He secretly glanced at the girl in the green skirt and smiled freely.

"Of course there is no problem with this matter, old man, don't worry."

Hearing this, a gleam of light flashed in the old man's eyes. Without saying anything more, he gently bowed to Shi Gu, then turned and left, and the others followed closely behind.

Only the man with a knife on his back stayed at the end. He glanced at Shi Gu and walked slowly towards him with a subtle look on his face.

Shi Gu frowned, looked at the man with a knife on his back who came with ill intentions, curled the corner of his mouth and said.

"Why, Your Excellency, you are not really going to fight with me, a powerless person?"

The man with the knife on his back raised his eyebrows when he heard this, looked at Shi Gu, and suddenly came forward and asked.

"Would you like to sell your pornographic painting?"

"..."

"Why don't you say anything? Just tell me straight out loud, are you going to sell it or not?"

“…Get out of here.”

In the end, Shi Gu failed to sell the pornographic picture, and the man with a knife on his back could only glare at Shi Gu fiercely, then turned around and quickly chased after the old man in black.

The man with the knife on his back quickly came to the old man in black, bent his body slightly, and spoke in a low voice.

"Senior Ma, isn't the Thousand Miles of Mountains and Rivers a fake? Why did you buy it and buy everything in that boy's shop?"

The old man in black stepped forward, looking calm and speaking slowly.

"Although the painting is a fake, it is impossible to make a fake of this quality if you have not seen the original."

"I suspect this guy has an authentic work hidden in his shop, but he is reluctant to sell it, so he uses a fake as a store treasure. If I am wrong, this fake is indeed worth three thousand taels."

The man with the knife on his back had a flash of eyes, a bit more hostility on his face, and asked in a low voice.

"Does this junior need to ask the store owner?"

The old man in black waved his hand gently and said lightly.

"That's not necessary. We should not cause any trouble on this trip. After he delivers the things to where we are staying, you can lead people to sneak into the store and search it thoroughly."

"Remember, don't let him notice."

The man with the knife on his back suddenly realized, then bowed and nodded, smiling.

"I understand. I won't reveal anything."