Chapter 235: Climbing the Wall

"This token isn’t just for you," Gu Fei said. "If your friends or family come to stay, they can also get a discount as long as they have it."

Uncle Du took the token and tucked it away, then left the shop with his servant.

When it was time for bed that night, Gu Fei thought of the potted crabapple flower in her space and quickly immersed her consciousness within it.

She saw that the buds on the crabapple plant were beginning to open.

She checked the Spiritual Energy in the space. Not only had it not decreased, it was even more plentiful than the day before, and the mist had grown thicker.

Gu Fei squatted down carefully in front of the crabapple plant. It showed no signs of dying; in fact, it seemed even more vigorous than before.

Its leaves trembled slightly, as if they were breathing.

’Plants have to breathe, too,’ Gu Fei mused. ’Does that mean it inhales Spiritual Energy and then exhales the same? If so, the Spiritual Energy in the space won’t be depleted by the plant.’

She stood up and went to look at the green jade bok choy and the Mutton Fat Jade Treasure Bowl. The green jade bok choy had completely turned into a stone bok choy, and the Treasure Bowl was just a pale stone basin.

’This must mean all the Spiritual Energy inside them has been completely drained.’

After checking on her space, she closed her eyes and went to sleep.

In the middle of the night, Gu Fei was startled awake by the ringing of a bell.

She shot out of bed, grabbed her pistol, loaded it, and raced out the door.

The storefront was to the south of the courtyard. The western wall was shared with the neighboring property. To the east was an alley where the side gate was located. Beyond the northern courtyard wall was another small alley.

’If anyone was trying to break in, they’d have to climb over the wall from the alleys to the east or north.’

Gu Fei burst out the door. She first scanned the eastern wall, but seeing nothing, she sprinted toward the back of the courtyard.

Just as she reached the back, she spotted a figure on the wall, who immediately leaped to the other side.

Gritting her teeth, Gu Fei called out in a low voice toward the wall, "Er Laizi, I know it’s you! How dare you come back!"

A muffled "Ow!" came from beyond the wall, followed by the sound of footsteps fading into the distance.

Gu Fei stood by the wall for a moment but didn’t give chase.

She walked over to the doghouse. The dog, startled awake, scrambled to its feet and looked at her. Gu Fei shook her head at it. "All you do is sleep! What’s the point of having you? A thief shows up, and you don’t even make a sound!"

She made another circuit of the courtyard. Finding nothing else amiss, she returned to her room to sleep.

The shop had started to get busy, so Lan Zhi came over first thing in the morning.

Gu Fei put her in charge of the front counter, handling guest registrations and collecting Silver. When the lunch rush began, she went to the back kitchen herself to help Sister Hua.

She was in the middle of stir-frying when Tie Niu rushed in, a nervous look on his face. "Cousin Gu, that Er Laizi is back! And he brought a few other guys with him!"

He had spotted Er Laizi and his group approaching the entrance from a distance and had immediately run in to warn her.

Gu Fei tossed her spatula aside. "Lian’er, take over!" she yelled. Snatching a rolling pin from a nearby counter, she charged out.

She reached the entrance just as Er Laizi and his men were about to step inside.

Gu Fei brandished the rolling pin. "You dare to come back?"

"You were climbing my wall last night. It’s a shame you didn’t fall and break your neck!"

Er Laizi flinched but immediately puffed out his chest. "Don’t you spout nonsense, you little wench! Who said anything about climbing your wall?"

Gu Fei couldn’t be bothered to waste words on him. "Get lost! And get as far away from here as you possibly can!"

Er Laizi sneered. "Don’t think for a second I’m scared of a little brat like you. You don’t fight fair! You sucker-punched me yesterday, so that doesn’t count. Today, I’m gonna show you what your Grandpa Er is made of!"

"Boys, get—"

Before he could finish, Gu Fei cracked the rolling pin over Er Laizi’s head.