Chapter 59: The Market [2]

Chapter 59: Chapter 59: The Market [2]

As Xi Yunxui and Auntie Zhang continued through the market, Xi Yunxui’s curiosity only grew.

She had already seen Auntie Zhang purchase several vegetables, fresh meat, fish, mushrooms, and other ingredients. They had even stopped at a seafood stall where Auntie Zhang carefully selected several fresh scallops and other seafood.

Xi Yunxui watched everything with interest before a thought suddenly occurred to her.

"Auntie Zhang?"

"Yes?"

"Is this how the Huo family usually buys ingredients?"

Auntie Zhang glanced at her.

"What do you mean?"

"Do you normally come to a market like this to buy vegetables, meat, fish and other ingredients?"

Auntie Zhang immediately shook her head.

"No. We wouldn’t normally need to."

Xi Yunxui nodded slowly.

That made sense.

With the Huo family’s wealth, they could probably have ingredients delivered directly to the residence every morning.

Auntie Zhang continued, "It’s only because the patriarch is coming."

Xi Yunxui looked at her curiously.

"The patriarch specifically likes ingredients from ordinary markets like this?"

"Yes."

Auntie Zhang smiled.

"The Huo family didn’t become wealthy overnight, you know."

Xi Yunxui blinked.

"Of course."

"The patriarch was once an ordinary man. He came from a very humble background before building the Huo family into what it is today."

Xi Yunxui listened attentively.

"He has always retained some of his old habits. One of them is his love for food."

Auntie Zhang gestured toward the surrounding stalls.

"He believes that some of the freshest ingredients can be found in ordinary markets like this. He especially dislikes overly processed ingredients and food that has been sitting in storage for too long."

Xi Yunxui nodded in understanding.

"So this is why we’re buying everything ourselves."

"Exactly."

Xi Yunxui smiled.

She suddenly felt a little more respect for the patriarch.

Someone who had risen from an ordinary background but still remembered where he came from was rather admirable.

The two continued shopping.

Auntie Zhang purchased fresh river fish, several cuts of meat, mushrooms, scallops, leafy vegetables, carrots, ginger, spring onions, garlic and several other ingredients.

Xi Yunxui occasionally helped carry the lighter bags while Auntie Zhang handled the heavier ones.

By the time they had finished most of their shopping, the number of bags had increased considerably.

Auntie Zhang looked at the time.

"There’s still something I need to buy."

Xi Yunxui looked at her.

"What is it?"

"Something sweet for the patriarch. There’s a cake shop nearby."

She pointed toward a small but elegant bakery across the street.

"Wait for me here. I’ll be back shortly."

"All right, Auntie Zhang."

Xi Yunxui stopped outside the bakery while Auntie Zhang walked inside.

For the first time since arriving at the market, Xi Yunxui had nothing to do.

She looked around.

People continued to move through the crowded street.

A vendor shouted enthusiastically about his fresh vegetables.

A child tugged on his mother’s hand.

Someone hurried past carrying several bags.

Xi Yunxui smiled faintly.

The ordinary liveliness of the market was strangely comforting.

Then something caught her attention.

An elderly man was sitting beneath a simple umbrella a short distance away.

A small wooden table was positioned in front of him.

Several objects lay neatly arranged across it—fortune-telling sticks, a small compass-like instrument, and several old-looking books.

A sign beside him read:

FORTUNE TELLING

Xi Yunxui’s smile disappeared.

Her steps slowed.

The sight brought back an unpleasant memory.

A fortune teller.

In her previous life, after her parents died, her paternal grandmother had once taken her and her siblings to a fortune teller.

The old man’s words had convinced their grandmother that keeping them would bring misfortune upon the family.

Not long afterward, they had been driven out of their home.

Xi Yunxui still remembered standing outside that house with her younger siblings, carrying the few belongings they had been allowed to take.

Her grandmother had been responsible for her own decision.

But that fortune teller’s words had helped push her toward it.

Since then, Xi Yunxui had developed a deep dislike for fortune tellers.

She knew better than most how dangerous careless words could be.

She looked at the elderly man.

The old man happened to glance up at precisely that moment.

Their eyes met.

Xi Yunxui hesitated.

She wasn’t someone who would normally insult an elderly person.

But the old man’s profession had already touched a particularly unpleasant memory.

She walked over.

Not exactly storming.

But certainly with enough determination that the old man raised an eyebrow.

Xi Yunxui stopped in front of the table.

"Old sir."

The old man calmly looked up at her.

"Yes, young lady?"

Xi Yunxui glanced at his fortune-telling equipment.

"May I ask you something?"

The old man smiled.

"Of course."

"Do you really believe you can tell someone’s future with those things?"

The old man’s smile deepened.

"Perhaps."

Xi Yunxui frowned.

"Then please don’t deceive people."

The old man blinked.

Xi Yunxui immediately softened her tone.

"I don’t mean to be disrespectful. You’re an elder, and I respect you. But there are people who are already frightened about their lives, and telling them that terrible things will happen to them can make them even more afraid."

The old man stared at her.

For a brief moment, his expression became unreadable.

Then he suddenly chuckled.

"Young lady, you’ve come here to lecture an old man?"

Xi Yunxui’s ears turned slightly red.

"No."

She paused.

"...Perhaps a little."

The old man laughed.

Xi Yunxui sighed.

"Fortune telling isn’t reliable. People shouldn’t let a few words determine how they live their lives."

The old man studied her for several seconds.

Then, unexpectedly, he picked up three fortune sticks.

He shook them gently.

Clack.

Clack.

Clack.

One stick fell onto the table.

The old man’s eyes narrowed.

Xi Yunxui folded her arms.

"What?"

The old man looked at her.

"Your fortune..."

He paused dramatically.

Xi Yunxui waited.

The old man’s expression became solemn.

"...is extremely troublesome."

Xi Yunxui’s eyebrows twitched.

"Troublesome?"

"Very."

He picked up another stick.

"Young lady, the road ahead of you is filled with twists and turns."

Xi Yunxui stared at him.

"Is that so?"

"You will encounter people you should not encounter."

Xi Yunxui’s expression slowly became skeptical.

"You will enter places you should not enter."

"..."

"And you will offend people you absolutely should not offend."

Xi Yunxui’s mouth twitched.

This old man is really something.

The fortune teller leaned closer.

"And if you’re not careful..."

He lowered his voice mysteriously.

"Your future may be extremely bleak."

Silence.

Xi Yunxui stared at him.

The old man stared back.

Finally, Xi Yunxui sighed.

"Old sir."

"Yes?"

"Is that supposed to frighten me?"

The old man’s lips twitched.

"I was trying."

Xi Yunxui almost laughed.

She shook her head.

"You’re very mischievous for someone your age."

The old man laughed heartily.

Then Xi Yunxui’s expression softened.

"Still, I don’t believe fortune telling can determine someone’s future."

The old man looked at her quietly.

"No?"

"No."

"Then what do you believe determines it?"

Xi Yunxui thought about it.

After everything she had experienced, the answer seemed simple.

"Our choices."

The old man fell silent.

Xi Yunxui continued.

"Perhaps there are things we cannot control. But we can still choose what we do afterward."

For the first time, the amusement disappeared from the old man’s face.

He looked at Xi Yunxui deeply.

Something seemed to flicker through his eyes.

But Xi Yunxui didn’t notice.

She simply gave him a respectful nod.

"Old sir, please don’t use people’s fears to make money."

The old man smiled again.

"You really dislike fortune tellers."

Xi Yunxui’s expression stiffened.

"I have my reasons."

"I see."

The old man nodded thoughtfully.

Then he suddenly smiled.

"Perhaps one day, you’ll understand that not every fortune teller is trying to deceive people."

Xi Yunxui shook her head.

"Perhaps."

She turned around.

"But until then, I’ll remain skeptical."

The old man watched her walk away.

His smile slowly faded into something much more profound.

His fingers lightly touched the fortune stick on the table.

"The revered Phoenix..."

he murmured under his breath.

His eyes, which had seemed cloudy moments earlier, suddenly gleamed with an astonishing depth.

"So she really has appeared again."

He glanced toward the direction Xi Yunxui had gone.

A faint smile appeared on his lips.

"And she certainly has quite the temper."

Meanwhile, Xi Yunxui had already forgotten the strange old fortune teller.

She returned to the bakery entrance just as Auntie Zhang stepped outside carrying a beautifully packaged cake.

"Sorry for keeping you waiting."

Xi Yunxui smiled.

"It’s all right, Auntie Zhang."

She took one of the lighter bags from her.

"Are we done now?"

Auntie Zhang nodded.

"Yes. Let’s go home."

Xi Yunxui followed her toward the waiting vehicle.

She had absolutely no idea that the harmless-looking old man she had just lectured was far from an ordinary fortune teller.

And when she eventually discovered exactly who he was, she would desperately wish the ground could swallow her whole.