Late Night Bookstore - Chapter 29

“Do you want to replace me?”

The question caught Zhou Ze off guard.

What did this mean?

Was he about to go from a shadowy fugitive, dodging the authorities in a foreign city, to a legitimate local official in one step?

The surprise was so sudden that Zhou Ze hesitated to accept it. Sure, opportunities fall from the sky occasionally, but most people who catch one end up crushed by the weight of it.

Most importantly, Zhou Ze didn’t feel that saving her life was enough to warrant this kind of treatment.

After all, the matter with that driver still hadn’t been fully resolved. This little girl might be cute, but that was just her appearance.

Xu Qinglang had told him she’d appeared in his store, expressionless, extending her tongue to collect the souls of his deceased parents. No matter how much Xu Qinglang cried and begged, she remained unmoved.

Someone like her—how could anyone expect her to return a favor? I’d be lucky if she didn’t turn against me.

As an official underworld emissary, how many separations and reunions have you witnessed?

How much of the darkness of human nature have you seen?

How much resentment from ghosts have you encountered?

She is not a simple young girl, nor could she be.

“What’s wrong? Not saying anything?” the little girl asked again.

“I’m not sure what to say. Are you just asking casually?” Zhou Ze asked cautiously.

“You could always say you don’t want it,” she replied.

A silence followed, then she added, “Then I’d drag you down below.”

“……” Zhou Ze.

Well then, wasn’t this much more straightforward? Who needs a choice question when you could just fill in the blank? The answer was clear—anything but “yes” would be a death sentence.

“I agree,” Zhou Ze responded, this time without hesitation or second thoughts.

The little girl turned around, smiled innocently, and then slowly walked over to Zhou Ze. Acting like a little adult, she pretended to adjust his collar.

This seemed to be an expression of a superior’s appreciation for a subordinate, reminiscent of how ancient emperors would sometimes honor their ministers by dining with them.

But the little girl was too short. Standing before Zhou Ze, she couldn’t reach his collar and instead helped straighten his belt.

“Pick me up,” she commanded, pouting slightly.

Zhou Ze bent down and lifted her up.

She reached out and adjusted his collar. Then, as if feeling awkward about being held like a daughter, she frowned.

“Do I look silly like this?”

“You look cute.”

She reached out to slap Zhou Ze on the cheek, but as she did so, Zhou Ze’s fingernails lengthened and darkened, and his eyes took on a swirling blackness.

She paused, an ambiguous smile forming on her lips.

Zhou Ze made no further moves.

“Do you know that showing anger or resistance in front of me is a very foolish thing to do?” she asked.

“Doesn’t matter. I’m already someone who has died once.”

“That’s only because you were lucky enough to leave after walking just a short distance on the Path of the Yellow Springs. You haven’t experienced the pain and torment of the journey through hell!” the little girl said loudly. “That kind of suffering makes every suicide who descends into hell regret their choice immensely. ‘Better a rough life than a good death’ is far more than just empty words.”

“Is that so?”

“Put me down.”

Zhou Ze set her back down.

Leaning back slightly, she looked at him and asked, “Do you know why I chose you?”

Zhou Ze shook his head.

“It’s because you’re clever, or perhaps because you’re calm and know your boundaries,” the little girl counted on her fingers. “The underworld has its order, and the living world has its laws. For various reasons, there are many who cross over, but you’re the most peaceful one I’ve ever seen.”

“I don’t believe that’s the real reason,” Zhou Ze replied.

“Well, I’m not telling you the real reason.” She stretched her arms. “I’m tired and want to take a break. And you’ll do just fine without causing me too much trouble, so I chose you.”

She chuckled. “Recently, there was a guy in Rongcheng causing quite a stir. Although he was just a pitiful fugitive, he fancied himself a judge. Imagine a ghost, trying to administer justice in the living world. Foolish, don’t you think?”

“Foolish,” Zhou Ze replied. Then, he remembered that the old Taoist happened to be from Rongcheng. “What happened to him?”

“He was silenced.”

The little girl tilted her head, her face innocent and bright. “Rules can be flexible, but once you cross the line too far, there’s no hope.”

“Is he dead?” Zhou Ze asked. “I mean, was he dragged back to the underworld, or did he simply vanish?”

Upon hearing this, the little girl’s face showed a hint of anger, as though a sensitive nerve had been touched.

“You don’t need to know that.”

She took Zhou Ze’s hand, her small palm pressing against his. Instantly, he felt a searing heat in his hand. When she let go, a black sigil—a symbol resembling an eye—was etched onto his palm.

“The underworld has order, and the dead should be sent across the Yellow Springs,” she said solemnly. “If someone needs to cross over, send them down. If they need to be dispersed, disperse them.

Of course, if you want to take action against injustices, you can do that too—but bear the consequences yourself. If you mess up, you pay for it.”

The little girl yawned as if she were truly exhausted.

“You say you’re tired—how long will you be gone? Am I just filling in for you?” Zhou Ze asked.

“We’ll see when I get back,” she replied, preparing to go downstairs.

Zhou Ze continued, “So what am I supposed to do? Patrol every night, look for ghosts, and handle them?”

“The door’s in your hand; do as you see fit. You can keep running your bookstore. As a resurrected ghost, all kinds of otherworldly things will naturally be drawn to you. To them, you’re like a candle in the dark, and they’re the moths. And now that you bear my mark, you’re upgraded from a candle to a lightbulb, practically blinding them.”

“……” Zhou Ze.

The little girl went downstairs, and Zhou Ze followed.

“I’ll read a bit, then leave. The mother of this body will come to pick her up soon.” She sat down on a plastic chair, flipping through an illustrated book.

Zhou Ze stood nearby, not really serving her, but he had questions to ask.

“Um… Will I get paid?” Zhou Ze asked. “You know, my work here isn’t exactly profitable.”

“The economy isn’t doing well. It’s getting harder to earn a living as a mortal,” she sighed.

“Exactly,” Zhou Ze agreed.

“Then earn money from the dead.”

“Dead people’s money isn’t spendable,” Zhou Ze shrugged.

“That’s because you’re not using it right.” She opened her hand. “Bring me some ghost money—the kind dead people offer.”

Zhou Ze pulled out a wad of ghost money, handing her half of it.

“You’ve made quite a bit,” she noted with a smile.

Zhou Ze didn’t mention that half of his current circumstances were due to the old Taoist from Rongcheng. Somehow, he felt that revealing this to the little girl would bring him trouble.

She took the money, walked out of the bookstore, and squatted by the road.

“Lighter.”

Zhou Ze handed her the lighter.

She burned the ghost money, and the ashes quickly scattered in the wind.

She stood up, and dusted off her hands, “Done.”

Zhou Ze stood there, feeling a bit lost in the breeze.

“So that was an advance payment to my underground bank account?”

“Let’s wait a bit longer. The energy here still isn’t sufficient,” she said. The two of them, a big person and a little person, stood together at the store’s entrance, waiting for about half an hour.

The little girl’s delicate face was flushed slightly red from the wind. Zhou Ze, unbothered by the cold, felt odd just standing there, idling at the roadside like a fool and watching passersby.

Finally, a potbellied man walked past the two of them, and then, a wallet fell from the man’s body without him noticing, as he continued walking forward.

Zhou Ze picked it up and saw a few thousand yuan in it, along with an ID and bank cards.

“Should I give it back?” Zhou Ze asked tentatively.

The little girl chuckled, “That guy had a guilty conscience. Losing this money is his punishment. You’ve earned it.”

The little girl pushed the door open and entered the bookstore. She rubbed her hands together, clearly chilled from the wait outside, and relieved to feel the warmth inside.

Zhou Ze followed with the wallet, a bit incredulous. “Won’t he report it?”

“Take this money. It won’t burn your hand,” the little girl said impatiently.

“Oh, so if I’m short on money in the future, I can just burn some ghost money at the entrance, and people will come over and give me real money, right?” Zhou Ze asked, finding the idea oddly amusing.

At that moment, Xu Qinglang entered with a large bottle of plum juice.

“Hey, the store’s ingredients only made this much. The rest will…”

But the moment he saw the little girl sitting there, he stumbled, dropping the bottle, which shattered on the floor, spilling sour plum juice everywhere.

Zhou Ze gestured for him to keep calm.

The little girl barely acknowledged Xu Qinglang.

Indeed, a person who was merely lucky and had a bit of spiritual awareness was hardly worth her extra attention.

“Whose daughter is this? She’s adorable!” Xu Qinglang chuckled awkwardly. “Say, little one, I have a fish tank at my place. Want to come see it?”

Xu Qinglang forced a smile.

The little girl looked at him and simply said, “Get lost.”

Xu Qinglang forced another smile, turned, and walked back to his own shop.

The little girl looked up at Zhou Ze, “Do you think I’m too much?”

“A bit,” Zhou Ze replied honestly.

“Then let me tell you something: that driver died because I was bored in the school bus, revealed my true form, and decided to have a little fun. Does that make you think I’m going too far?”

The little girl tilted her head, looking at Zhou Ze with wide-eyed innocence.