On the way to the entrance, Xia Jiang turned off all the lights in the living room. The light quickly evacuated from the room to give way for the darkness. If someone looked from outside the house, they wouldn't be able to tell the light has been turned off manually. He also made sure to close the door leading to the bedroom. After re-checking to make sure nothing seems amiss, he opened the door and welcomed the unwanted guest.

“Yes?” Xia Jiang peeked through the door opening and he was greeted by a man in his forties. The man has nicely combed dark hair and dull gray eyes, giving off a sense of sophistication to onlookers.

The man habitually adjusted his navy-colored robe before he said with a grin. “Good Afternoon, Mr. Cheng Zhu, I hope you and your wife are well.”

“Sigh, the last few days have really taken a toll on my body, you see.” Xia Jiang lamented with a hoarse voice and shook his head. “My wife has fallen sick, apparently from the stress of moving, and now the light crystals in the living room are broken, dampening my mood further.”

Before the visitor could give his condolences, Xia Jiang interrupted him with an apologetic look, “Ah! My bad, my bad, it was impolite of me to let you stand there. Please come in. I’m sorry for the bad lighting, as you know, haha.”

“What are you saying, Mr. Cheng Zhu. It’s me who was rude in the first place. But I will gladly accept the invitation. Please, excuse me.” The man promptly went inside and sat down on the wooden chair with intricate design.

Xia Jiang quickly followed suit.

“So, may I know the reason you visited me today, Mr. Uhm…” Xia Jiang pretended to be deep in thought.

“You must have a lot to think about lately. It’s okay. My name is Tan Xuan and I live in the adjacent house. Though it does sadden me a bit to leave so little impression on you at the welcome party a few days ago. Do you think I should wear bright clothes so I can become more recognizable?” Tan Xuan chuckled.

“I am really grateful for your understanding, Mr. Tan Xuan. I’ll make sure to never forget your name again.” Xia Jiang bowed. “I have also realized it’s disrespectful of me to not be serving you tea. Sigh, your impression of me must have plummeted.”

Tan Xuan laughed out loud before he said, “Ridiculous, my reputation would be gone if I was so petty. I’m just here to discuss the recent news I’ve heard people talking about on the streets, no need for any formalities.”

“Oh? It must have been released this morning and for you to come here, I guess it’s not a small matter?” Xia Jiang inched his body forward, wishing to learn more.

“I thought I must have misheard it but after I confirmed it with some of my close friends, it’s really true. The High Court has announced a public execution will take place tomorrow morning, the first time in a hundred years!” Tan Xuan answered. “Holy Ancestors, is this the reason for the increase of patrol? I just hope this isn’t a sign for something worse to come.”

Xia Jiang recalled what he read about the Ancient Pavilion and they indeed still carry out public executions from time to time. He then asked, “Are you planning to invite us to watch it?”

“Yes, it would be a shame to miss such a rare event. However, now that I know your wife doesn’t feel well, it might be improper for me to insist on it.” Tan Xuan nodded.

After hearing that Tan Xuan had no intention of forcing them to go out in public, Xia Jiang was a bit relieved. However, he also fell into contemplation because this would be a great opportunity for him and his companions to try the ‘Livestream’ function of the Universal Assist. By presenting such an exciting ‘scene’ to the viewers as their debut, they would be able to earn more Credits as assurance for any future emergencies. Of course, there was a considerable risk that their identities would be checked by the patrol. But the risks just made Xia Jiang feel more excited.

Not to mention, it will also help them build a closer relationship with Tan Xuan, who is presumably an influential person to be able to live in this neighborhood. Though, it’s still not an ideal situation considering they are pretending to be someone else and might have to abandon this identity soon.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Xia Jiang finally made a decision and said with a slight smile, “When Cheng Yuan and I married, we promised to not burden each other when it comes to living our own lives. She would be sad if I missed out on these ‘festivities’ because of her. So, I will gladly accept your invitation, Mr. Tan Xuan.”

“I envy your relationship with her Mr. Cheng Zhu. I can only hope fate is kind and let me experience the same level of connection.” Tan Xuan said as he stood up and patted his clothes before he continued. “It’s decided then, I will come here to pick you up tomorrow morning. I presume you didn’t have the time to acquire a carriage yet.”

Xia Jiang went to the door and opened it for Tan Xuan, “I have to trouble you, Mr. Tan Xuan. May I also invite my two friends? They’ve come here to the capital to help me with a business deal. It would be nice if we could go together.”

“Certainly, the more the merrier as the saying goes. Alright, please let Mrs. Cheng Yuan know that I wish her a quick recovery and if there’s anything, don’t hesitate to ask me for help. As neighbors, we should take care of each other.” Tan Xuan said.

“Many thanks, Mr. Tan Xuan. Please take care.” Xia Jiang bowed once more as the guest departed.

When he couldn’t see Tan Xuan’s shadow anymore, he closed the door and went to the room where Li Jiangsu and Xian Er were. He didn’t bother to turn the light back on. The moment he opened the door, Xian Er’s voice could be heard.

“Really? Cheng Yuan would be sad if you didn’t go out and watch someone get killed instead of taking care of her? If I were her, I would have shut the door of this house to you forever!”

Xia Jiang was startled for a moment before he shook his head and ignored Xian Er's remarks. “So, what do you guys think? It will be a little risky for us to go out right now but as long as we are traveling inside a carriage of someone important like Mr. Tan Xuan, it should be alright. I am actually really looking forward to it!”

“Are you sure Mr. Tan Xuan didn’t suspect you of being an imposter? He seems to be observant and knows his way around people. If it’s not the appearance, maybe your voice and word choices made him suspicious. He has talked with the real Cheng Zhu at the welcome party after all.” Li Jiangsu asked with raised eyebrows and didn’t directly answer Xia Jiang’s question.

“He could, I won’t deny this. I did try to mimic as much as possible but in the end, it’s difficult to act perfectly. If he sees through my cover, then we should prepare some tea for the law enforcement officers later today. Hehe, that sounds fun too.” Xia Jiang nonchalantly replied.

“Anyhow, this was unavoidable. We can only hope for the best. To answer your question Xia Jiang, I am not opposed to it. After all, this public execution might count as an important contribution in the eyes of the Dragon Gate. In addition, even though we live in an upper-class area, this doesn’t prevent the patrol from making an inspection.

“Together with the fact that this is a rare event, if an inspection was made at the same time, we would have no way to explain ourselves without exposing our suspicious identities. They won’t be as easy to convince as Mr. Tan Xuan.” Xian Er analyzed the advantage of going out to watch the public execution with Tan Xuan.

Li Jiangsu also added his thoughts, “I agree, this bet is worth taking. And before we go out, we also have to make sure to administer more sedatives to the couple so they don’t wake up while we are gone. But if they do, it wouldn’t cause as much harm as long as the black market dealer delivers our forged identities documents.”

“Now that you mentioned it, I am going to head out to deliver this ‘Photographic Storage’ to him now.” Xia Jiang put on his coat and checked his appearance in the mirror before going out without doing any more chit chat.

Xian Er turned around to look at Li Jiangsu and the dark metallic book and said, “Use your remaining time well, I recommend you to finish ‘A Comprehensive Book on Traditional Amarin Language’ before anything else. I am going downstairs to administer more sedatives to the Chengs."

“Um-hum, if you need any help, come and find me.” Li Jiangsu replied and started to read the book while leaning on the headboard.

The time passes by in a blink, the day turns into night. Li Jiangsu spent his time mostly learning more about Traditional Amarin and the three great civilizations. He also thought more about his short and long-term goals.

I should focus on healing myself and adapting to living in this New World as well as find a way to earn money for now. Once I have established a stable foundation, I can try to find out if this New World has discovered Interuniversal Travel yet. Moreover, the abnormality inside the Void’s Domain is a hidden danger I must resolve. But it’s unknown how long this will take and there’s currently no lead to start from. I will have to categorize it as a long-term goal together with returning home.

While doing all of this, I will also need to strengthen myself to increase the likelihood of survival. It seems I can’t avoid becoming a cultivator after all, sigh.

This is the worst bet of my life for sure.