Midnight Planting of Kumquats

This explanation might make sense to humans, but for a gathering of ghosts and deities? A ghost god claiming to have their throat tickled by the wind was downright absurd!

"Marquis Lingyou, perhaps we should hasten to pay our respects to Mr. Gu. It's already late, and delaying any further might seem discourteous."

"Indeed, I agree. It would be best to proceed without delay."

Two of the City Gods, seeing City God Xu's awkwardness and recalling their own gratitude toward him earlier, chimed in to help change the subject.

Marquis Lingyou was no fool. He could clearly see that his subordinates were acting as if he harbored a grudge against Mr. Gu due to the events at the Eight-Zhang River, all because of a child's words.

The issue was that he had never entertained such thoughts to begin with.

Initially, he hadn't even planned to explain himself, but the unnecessary speculations of these City Gods made it seem like he was truly some petty, narrow-minded individual!

"Everyone, let me make this clear—I hold no grievance against Mr. Gu over the Eight-Zhang River incident."

"There is no need for you all to behave so cautiously, as though walking on thin ice."

"Don't let it be that when we meet Mr. Gu, he comes to think that we, as ghosts and deities, are all small-minded and petty individuals."

After finishing his statement, Marquis Lingyou clasped his hands respectfully toward the tailor shop's signboard and then strode off decisively.

Seeing this, the group of county City Gods exchanged glances. Following their superior's example, they each bowed toward the signboard before quickly catching up with him.

...

At three quarters past Hai hour (11:45 PM), Gu Ning'an would normally already be in deep meditation, his mind empty and dreaming of ancient sages.

However, fate had other plans tonight.

That morning, while visiting the early market, he had suddenly remembered his plan to add some greenery to the Ansi Courtyard.

Unfortunately, he hadn't found any suitable plant seeds at the market. Instead, he ended up buying some mouth-puckering kumquats from the hand of the rattle-drum vendor, Zheng De.

Gu Ning'an was quite surprised to see kumquats at this time of year, as they typically ripened in autumn and winter.

Unlike the modern world, where fruits could be stored in cold chains and enjoyed year-round, this world's mortal realm didn't have such luxuries. Seeing such fresh out-of-season fruit in Zheng De's hands was indeed a rare curiosity.

When Zheng De noticed Gu Ning'an's intrigue, he didn't hold back and promptly explained the origins of the kumquats.

As it turned out, his wife was pregnant and had developed a strong craving for sour fruits.

But where would one find sour fruits for sale?

While Zheng De was fretting over the matter, Meng Wu, the snake catcher, came looking for him.

Meng Wu's visit had two purposes: first, to inquire about Gu Ning'an's whereabouts, and second, to give Zheng De five taels of silver as a token of gratitude for enthusiastically recommending Gu Ning'an's fortune-telling skills.

By then, Zheng De had already heard the rumors that the fortune-teller he had once shared a market stall with might actually be an immortal. Naturally, he had also learned that Gu Ning'an resided at Ansi Courtyard.

Thus, it was thanks to Zheng De's vague directions that Meng Wu eventually managed to find Ansi Courtyard.

As for the five taels of silver, Zheng De adamantly refused to accept them. To him, his enthusiastic promotion of Gu Ning'an's skills was simply an act of goodwill between friends.

The fact that it had incidentally saved Meng Wu's life was merely a stroke of coincidence, a good deed done unintentionally.

Zheng De considered this a form of accruing virtue for his wife and their unborn child, so he resolutely declined the money.

The snake catcher Meng Wu was the kind of person with a straightforward, chivalrous temperament—repaying kindness and avenging grievances were second nature to him. When Zheng De refused to accept his money, Meng Wu felt he owed him something and argued with him for half an hour.

During their discussion, Meng Wu learned that Zheng De's wife had a strong craving for extremely sour fruits but couldn't find any.

It just so happened that the forest where Meng Wu had nearly died contained a wild kumquat tree. After regaining consciousness in that forest, starving and freezing, he had no choice but to eat the unbearably sour kumquats. The acidity jolted him awake, and their juices gave him the energy he needed to make it out of the woods.

After leaving the forest, he kept the bag of kumquats he'd picked.

Now hearing of Zheng De's plight, Meng Wu handed over the entire bag without hesitation.

Zheng De originally wanted to pay him for the fruits, but Meng Wu was incredibly swift on his feet. After dropping off the kumquats, he vanished before Zheng De could catch up with him.

With no choice but to accept the fruits, Zheng De brought them home. His wife devoured them joyfully, but when he tried one himself, the sourness made his mouth water uncontrollably.

As is often the case, a pregnant woman's tastes soon shifted, and her craving for sour fruits passed. However, the kumquats were not yet finished, and Zheng De, not wanting to waste them, brought the remaining ones to his stall to help keep him alert.

After listening to Zheng De recount this series of events, Gu Ning'an immediately asked for a few kumquats.

First, he was curious to taste just how sour they were. Second, he wanted to try planting their seeds and growing a kumquat tree in his courtyard.

At the moment, Gu Ning'an was seated cross-legged in his courtyard. In front of him was a circular pit, three feet wide and three feet deep. Beside it were some moist soil and a wooden shovel.

In his right palm, he held five kumquat seeds, each the size of a soybean, waiting for midnight to arrive.

Midnight, or the zi hour, is when yin energy is at its peak. Since kumquats ripen in autumn and winter, seasons associated with yin energy, and it was currently midsummer—a time when yang energy is at its strongest—Gu Ning'an chose this hour to plant the seeds, hoping the tree would grow successfully.

As midnight approached, a group of unexpected "guests" appeared outside Ansi Courtyard.

Knock, knock, knock!

A light tapping on the door was followed by the voice of an elderly man:

"City God Qiu Zheng of Xiangzhou, accompanied by the City Gods of nine counties, requests an audience with Mr. Gu."

Xiangzhou's City God?

He was the highest-ranking ghost deity in Xiangzhou!

They had likely come regarding the matter of the demonic flames...

Gu Ning'an stood, opened the door, greeted the group, and led them into the courtyard. Returning to the pit, he smiled and said, "Honorable City Gods, please wait a moment while I finish planting these kumquat seeds. Then I will attend to you all."

Seeing that Gu Ning'an was occupied, Marquis Lingyou was in no rush. He took a seat, patiently waiting for Gu Ning'an to complete his task.

Behind Marquis Lingyou, the group of county City Gods, unable to find enough seats, stood awkwardly. They exchanged confused glances and directed questioning looks at City God Xu.

After all, City God Xu had assured them that while Gu Ning'an was a true immortal, he was approachable and easygoing.

So why was Marquis Lingyou showing such deference in "requesting an audience," only for Gu Ning'an to let them in and then proceed to plant kumquat seeds?

To them, it seemed impossible that Gu Ning'an was unaware of their arrival in Lexiang County. Otherwise, how could the characters on the tailor shop's signboard have dispelled the demonic flames from their bodies so effortlessly?

After all, it wasn't an offensive technique. How could it have activated and helped them without deliberate intervention?