As Feng Qishi watched Mu Anxiao, arms crossed, Mu Anxiao suddenly turned and looked at him.
Feng Qishi calmly looked at Mu Anxiao, a smile playing on his lips. "What, are you giving up?"
"You win," Mu Anxiao pointed at Feng Qishi, then began to try and cast a spell.
Seeing this, Feng Qishi said again, "What, you're willing to waste spiritual energy now?" As he spoke, he glanced down at the 'pocket watch' in his hand. "It's almost time, you'd better hurry."
"No need for you to tell me, annoying ghost," Mu Anxiao muttered, turning around, swiftly lunging forward to grab the hemp rope dangling from the rooftop. Then, using her magic, she pushed off the wall and climbed towards the roof.
Watching Mu Anxiao's agile movements, Feng Qishi sighed. "Don't cry when you come down later." He then tilted his head back and saw the dirty-faced man sitting on the rooftop.
In the next moment, Mu Anxiao stood on the rooftop. The dirty-faced man looked up at her, surprised. "It's you."
Mu Anxiao calmly replied, "It is. What are you doing here?" Remembering Feng Qishi's words, she decided to probe first.
Below, Feng Qishi leaned against the wall.
The dirty-faced man asked, "Why aren't you down there with A Chu?"
"Everything that needed to be said has been said."
"Xiao Er sent you to find me," the dirty-faced man suddenly said.
Mu Anxiao feigned composure. "He did ask me to come. You..." She took a step forward, crouching beside the dirty-faced man. "You overheard."
"Your Qinggong..." the dirty-faced man began, glancing at the hemp rope, then back at Mu Anxiao. "It's not bad."
"You don't need to praise me," Mu Anxiao said directly, lowering her gaze. She continued, "Help me with something."
"Help you?" The dirty-faced man thought Mu Anxiao would ask him to leave. He found her request inexplicable.
"Yes," Mu Anxiao nodded, her expression serious. "I need to go somewhere. Can you help me..."
"I heard your conversation with that person," the dirty-faced man interrupted.
Mu Anxiao's expression froze. She felt awkward. "Oh, really? You didn't say anything." She hesitated, then suddenly reached out and tapped his forehead. He closed his eyes.
A few seconds later.
The moment Mu Anxiao withdrew her hand, the dirty-faced man's eyes reopened. He looked at Mu Anxiao with a dazed expression and exclaimed, "Why are you here?"
That's right, Mu Anxiao had erased the dirty-faced man's memory. It wasn't for any other reason than that he had heard too much he shouldn't have, leaving Mu Anxiao with no chance to speak, and also giving him an opportunity to reject her. And since Mu Anxiao disliked being directly rejected, she acted this way.
"Why am I here? How do you think I'm here?" She provocatively asked the dirty-faced man.
The dirty-faced man frowned.
Mu Anxiao continued, "If you want to know why I..."
"You did it on purpose, didn't you?" the dirty-faced man suddenly said.
Mu Anxiao's expression stiffened. "How did I do it on purpose?" She looked genuinely puzzled.
"A Chu was so enthusiastic towards you, you must have felt quite pleased. If I'm not mistaken," the dirty-faced man said, staring intently at Mu Anxiao's face, "you came here specifically to show off, didn't you?"
"What kind of mindset is that?"
"That's your thought process."
"That's not my thought process."
"It's not your thought process," the dirty-faced man scoffed. "If that weren't your thought process, why would you come to me? If I'm not mistaken, you've already told A Chu about my identity."
"I'm not that bored."
"Don't pretend to be a good person."
"I don't need to pretend to be good; I am good. Speaking of which," Mu Anxiao knew that arguing with him was a waste of time, so she changed the subject. "Why did you come here?"
"You..."
"Don't worry, I just wanted to ask A Chu something I wanted to know. After I finished, I naturally came out. It's just," Mu Anxiao's lips curved into a smile, "I didn't expect to run into Xiao Er the moment I came out."
"What do you want to say?" The dirty-faced man was utterly bewildered by Mu Anxiao.
Mu Anxiao smiled. "I want to say that the people here both look down on you and fear you. Do you understand what I mean?"
"They called me a beggar," the dirty-faced man said calmly.
"You know that."
"With this dirty clothing, anyone who saw me would think that," the dirty-faced man stated with clear-sightedness, narrowing his eyes. "If I'm not mistaken, it's that Xiao Er who has something he wants from you."
"Aren't you curious why Xiao Er only sought me out and not others?" Mu Anxiao countered.
Hearing Mu Anxiao's words, the dirty-faced man recalled his process of entering the 'inn'. His gaze sank. "None of them could pull me out of A Chu's room, but you could. Naturally, they would seek you out."
"Clever."
"However, I don't understand why you would help them?" The dirty-faced man frowned slightly.
Mu Anxiao replied, "I'm doing it for money. That Xiao Er said if I brought you away, he'd give me silver. For the sake of the silver, I'd... help out a bit." She smiled as she said this.
"Greedy."
"Of course, besides that, I also value your abilities," Mu Anxiao stated directly.
The dirty-faced man was taken aback. "My abilities? What abilities could I possibly have?" He averted his gaze, clearly reluctant to accept something.
"Stealing," Mu Anxiao uttered succinctly.
"Stealing..." The dirty-faced man stopped himself from saying more and stood up. "I refuse."
"I don't like being refused," Mu Anxiao said, tilting her head up to stare at the dirty-faced man.
Similarly, the dirty-faced man lowered his head and stared at Mu Anxiao's face. "..." He was shocked.
"I can see that you are different from the other men who pursue A Chu," Mu Anxiao remained seated, looking up at the dirty-faced man.
The dirty-faced man said, "That's what you think, but they don't see it that way. This is a place that requires money. I only want to give A Chu money, but..."
"I don't want to hear your heartfelt narration. I just want to ask you one question," Mu Anxiao became serious. "Do you genuinely like A Chu?"
"Yes," the dirty-faced man affirmed firmly.
"Then that's enough," Mu Anxiao said, gesturing to an empty seat beside her. "Sit down, I have something to tell you."
"You..."
"Hurry," Mu Anxiao said resolutely.
The dirty-faced man, startled, quickly sat down.
Leaning against the wall, Feng Qishi listened to the conversation between the dirty-faced man and Mu Anxiao. He suddenly felt a sense of guilt towards Mu Anxiao. "..." He then let out a faint sigh.