CH 18

While the sun had just started rising, Luo Xiao went after his little uncle out of the house. With his feet stepping on the ground of Linchun Street, he looked at the worn-out bungalows on either side of the road and was deeply moved. Who would have thought that this place, also known as a slum by the residence of City S, would turn out to be a hard-to-find commercial center ten years later?

He thought of the housing prices a few years later, and he couldn’t stop his eager mood. It was a pity that he doesn’t have much money now. But, he will have it soon!

With these thoughts in his mind, Luo Xiao continued to walk towards his destination.

‘A Grocery Store’, Luo Xiao turned his head up to look at the words written on the signboard. The corner of Luo Xiao’s mouth twitched. He had to admit that the owner of this shop really had the talent for choosing names for shops.

He composed himself and adjusted his expression similar to the curious look of a typical ten-year-old, and entered the shop. Inside the shop was an old man of more than fifty years old. The old man sat on the chair just behind the counter. He briefly looked at him then closed his eyes again before leaning on the back of the chair to resume his sleep.

Despite the fact that the old man only threw a single look at him, Luo Xiao had a feeling that he had been stripped naked and all his secrets were revealed in front of him. He composed his surging mood and finally made up his mind, and wandered his eyes around the shop. Before long, he found the thing he was looking for at one glance. But in order not to let others become suspicious, he still looked left and right for a few minutes.

Moving his legs slowly, he moved to the direction of the thing he was looking for. At last, he finally arrived and stretched out his hand to touch it. This thing was a tiny box measuring about ten centimeters in diameter. The outer layer was coated with rust spots, and a thick layer of dust could be seen falling on the ground as he picked it up. If it wasn’t for the fact that he remembered his little uncle describing it to him in detail, he would never have believed it. With a dirty appearance like this, no one would think that inside it were things with great value.

Putting the small box in his hand, Luo Xiao took two more things he also found with just one look. One was a tiny peach nut full of dirt about the size of his thumb, and the other was a few rusty coins. Although he didn’t intend to buy these two things at this start, there was a special feeling inside him telling him that these things were fated to fall into his hands.

Luo Xiao knitted his eyebrows and made up his mind to follow his instinct. After all, ever since the seed pattern on his palm appeared, his instinct, like his sixth sense, improved immensely.

“Grandpa, I want to buy these things.” Luo Xiao spoke to the still sleeping old man, and pointed to the three things in his arms.

“En?” The old man opened his eyes with a slit and a glint fleeted across his eyes. He yawned and opened his mouth, “Kid, the things you chose are not cheap. Do you have enough money in you?”

“I still have other things to buy, so I didn’t bring a lot of money. The money in my hand is not much.”

“Well, considering that you’re a child, the old man won’t cheat you. You just need to pay five dollars for these things.”

“Five dollars?” Luo Xiao’s eyebrows creased, his teeth biting his lips involuntarily. All the money was in his little uncle’s possession, and the only money left in him was the pocket money and the New Year’s money he saved from the past few years, with four dollars in total. This money was not sufficient, but his urge to buy these things was especially strong.

As such, after thinking for a few moments, he opened his mouth again to ask, “Grandpa, I don’t have that much money on me. Can you make the price a little cheaper?”

“Eh? Don’t have much money?” Inside, the old man became joyous. Luckily, this kid didn’t have enough money, or else he didn’t know how to continue.

However, he still said outwardly, “However, the price that I said is already the cheapest.”

Luo Xiao also knew that the old man was telling the truth. He still recalled that his little uncle told him that someone bought this tiny box for only four yuan. Besides, unlike the man in his little uncle’s mouth, he also brought two other things, and with these three things in total, the five-yuan price was already cheap.

His mind spun hurriedly. After a while, he asked carefully, “Grandpa, this, can I work as a part-time job in your shop to pay for the money left?”

“Part-time job?” The old man’s eyes scanned his body starting from the bottom to the top, “With such a small body?”

Adding to the fact that he was still a ten-year-old child, coupled with Grandma Yu’s habit of taking things from their home for a long time, and his hospitalization recently, Luo Xiao’s figure looked skinny compared to the kids of the same age as him.

Upon hearing his words, Luo Xiao couldn’t stop his shoulders from dropping slowly. It looked like he could only give up. Just when he was about to speak, the old man opened his mouth again, “Since you’re very reluctant to part with these things, you can do as you say.”

“Ah?” Luo Xiao’s mind was unable to react for a while.

“What? Are you just lying with this old man just now?” The old man narrowed his eyes angrily.

“No, no, I didn’t lie to you.” Luo Xiao quickly waved his hands after coming back to his senses, “Then how long do I need to work?”

“Why? Feeling lazy already?”

“No, it’s just that I still need to attend school. This time, I came here with my uncle so…” Luo Xiao explained.

“What’s your name, and where are you from?” The old man put the teacup in front of his mouth and drank a little, “How old are you now?”

Luo Xiao responded without hiding anything, “My name is Luo Xiao, and my home is in a town located in City C. As for my age, I’m ten years old this year.” With a soul of thirty, he developed a good impression on this old man and told him the answers truthfully. He was a child after all, and the old man had nothing he could get from him. Moreover, he also asked about the old man along the way, and found through the neighborhood that even though the old man didn’t socialite with neighbors much, he was still a kind-hearted man.

“Ten years old…” The old man said softly in his heart. Although the age was a little older, there was still hope. If the talent is high, then those guys would definitely be jealous. Anyways, he just needed to observe the first few days, and see if the body was suitable for cultivation. If it was, then he needed to immediately start lest those old fogies take away this kid after finding out his talent. When he thought of that, some memories of the same scenario flashed through his mind. Just by thinking about it, the old man became bitter.

“Huh?” What’s the matter with ten years old? Luo Xiao became perplexed but he didn’t bother to ask again. He just waited for the old man to speak again.

Sure enough, before some time could even pass, the old man opened his mouth again, “Alright then, I’ll sell these three things to you. Right, how much did you bring?”

Luo Xiao removed the shoe of his right foot, and took out a few crumpled banknotes from the inside of sock. After that, he placed them on the counter and double checked them before saying, “Four dollars and six cents.”

The old man observed his series of actions and subconsciously lifted his eyebrows, this kid is not bad. Just his action of hiding the money under his feet implied his vigilant nature. But this money should not have been stained with a foot odor, right?

If Luo Xiao got to know the thoughts inside the old man’s head, he would definitely jump up and yell at him with his shoes in hand: You have foot odor, you whole family has foot odor! How can someone who always washes his feet every day have a foot odor? He loves to be clean, got it?

“Then if that’s the case, this old man will only charge you three yuan.”

“Ah? Are you sure?” Luo Xiao was pleasantly surprised and wondered if there was something wrong with his ears, “Three yuan? For all of it?”

“Well, yes.” The old man took another sip of water, “But with the condition that you have to work for me for a week. From nine in the morning until four in the evening. What do you think?”

Luo Xiao nodded immediately, “Okay, no problem.” He already told his mother beforehand that he will be gone for one week when he was still at home, and the time was just right. He just hoped that his little uncle wouldn’t find out about this, after all, he went to work at eight o’clock in the morning and got home by five o’clock in the afternoon.

“It’s decided then. You can go back now, just remember to be here at exactly nine o’clock tomorrow morning.” The old man kept the three one-dollar notes, and motioned for him to keep the remaining money, then waved his hand to signal him to leave the shop.

Keeping the three things he bought inside his pocket, Luo Xiao’s heartbeat was similar to a drum. He was afraid that someone would appear all of a sudden and take away his things, or do something bad. His tiny legs moved so fast, causing the people around to let out a sigh inside their hearts: Being young is great, look at this little guy, he runs quite fast.

Stepping inside the place he and his little uncle were temporarily staying in, Luo Xiao quickly closed the door in a careful manner. Then he pulled down the curtains, and after he made sure that everything was alright, he unhurriedly pulled out the three things out of his pocket and placed them on the table.

He lifted the tiny box and wiped it carefully with the towel beside him. After doing that, a tiny mottled iron box appeared in his sight. He picked out the scissor he had prepared beforehand and pried open the box with care through the lines.

Without much surprise, upon opening the tiny box, a wooden box in a rectangular shape about eight centimeters long and five centimeters wide was revealed inside. Despite being not aware of was inside, Luo Xiao could assume that the things inside should be of great value just by seeing the exquisite carvings on the wooden box. If not, why would it be kept inside an iron box?

Luo Xiao let out a long breath. With a solemn look on his face, he opened the wooden box. The content inside was a piece of worn out paper. He touched it and moved it on the table.

Just as he expected, the paper was a treasure map also mentioned by his little uncle. It must be known that the person who bought this box in his previous life found plenty of treasures. It was a pity that after the news leaked, the treasures were taken away by other people. But it was also because of this that the man who snatched a few treasures by virtue turned into a millionaire.

As his mind played the scene of those treasures hidden in the place mentioned on the treasure map, a surge of excitement struck Luo Xiao’s heart. And the thing that made him more happy was that the place mentioned in the treasure map was the usually deserted Broken Head Mountain found in their hometown.

The explanation behind why that mountain was called Broken Head Mountain was due to the head of the mountain being chopped off with an axe. Over time, the mountain became Broken Head Mountain.

After the excitement passed, Luo Xiao turned his attention to the few rusty coins and the peach nut lying on the table. The coins remained rusty even after wiping them with a towel, so the coins’ appearance were still the same as before he bought them. Luo Xiao looked at them again and again but ended up to no avail. In the end, he could only put them down.

Next, he lifted the peach nut. After wiping it with a towel just now, it became somewhat clean. He looked at it for a long time but found nothing unusual. All of a sudden, his eyes fell on the part of the peach nut that had a little wood sticking out, and his hand automatically moved to remove it using his nail. Who would have thought his hand would slip all of a sudden, and the sharp point of wood that was sticking out would cut his palm?

The seed pattern on his palm heated up. A flash of white appeared without any warning in front of Luo Xiao’s eyes, causing Luo Xiao to close his eyes.