“I certainly didn’t believe it at first, because this was not the first time my dad spoke gibberish. But what happened next alarmed me. Day after day, my father’s condition worsened and he quickly got sick. At that time, I began to suspect that the deal he talked about was probably true. So when I visited him at the hospital yesterday, I asked about it. He told me that a year ago, he traded his longevity so our whole family could become wealthy. He became a millionaire overnight, but in exchange, he would die a year later.”

I looked at him, stunned. “Did he tell you who he made this deal with?”

Liang Kaifeng shook his head. “No. He only said that it was a monster, a scary monster. He said that at first he thought that it was just a coworker playing a prank on him, and he said yes without thinking. The whole life for the richness of a year, this sounds absurd, everyone would think this is just a prank. But he didn’t expect that it would become real. Then my dad started to panic. He’s very weak now. He told me that next week would mark the end of this year-long contract. That is to say..when the time arrives, my dad will be dead.”

Liang Kaifeng bit his lips. He said with a trembling voice, “So I came to beg you. I beg of you, you must help me find the exorcist named Wen, or my dad will die! My mom has left me, and if I lose my dad as well.. even if he is an asshole, I don’t want him to die like this!”

Looking at Liang Kaifeng, I was unsure of what I should tell him.

“Liang Kaifeng, now that I’m aware of what happened to your family, I empathize with your pain,” I forced myself to tell him. “But the problem is that the exorcist Wen Jiubo you’re looking for is on a trip and isn’t in the city, so..”

“Then you call him back!” Liang Kaifeng became agitated.

“No, I can’t,” I shook my head and tried to explain it to Liang Kaifeng. “He is on a trip to do something very important. It’s impossible for me to just ask him to come back. I’m very sorry, Liang Kaifeng, you’re gonna have to ask someone else to help your dad.”

Surprisingly, the minute I finished my last sentence, Liang Kaifeng stood up. His chair fell on the ground, making a loud noise. Before I could react, he rushed over and grabbed my collar.

“Liang Kaifeng!”

“What are you doing?”

“This is not a joke!” Liang Kaifeng had shouted himself hoarse. “My dad is dying! What could be more important than saving a human life? I don’t care, you must help me find the exorcist named Wen! Otherwise, I won’t spare you!”

“Liang Kaifeng! Is this your attitude when begging for help?” Shi Yitong immediately rushed over. He pulled Liang Kaifeng away from me. “We’ve patiently listened to your story, is this how you treat your friends?”

Shi Yitong was so angry I was afraid that he would start fighting with Liang Kaifeng, so I quickly stood between those two.

“Okay, relax, both of you. Don’t be like this. I know that what Liang Kaifeng did wasn’t intentional, he’s just very anxious. After all, no one would feel fine if such a tragedy happened to their family.”

“Is that so?” Shi Yitong said sarcastically. “Didn’t his father deserve all of this? Who asked him to be blinded by greed, otherwise how could he end up like this!”

“You!”

Watching Liang Kaifeng waving his fists again, I quickly pulled them further apart.

“Alright, alright, Liang Kaifeng, please calm down, okay?” I lowered my voice and said. “I’m not saying that I won’t help you, it’s just, I can’t. But I’ll try to contact him. If there is anything I can do to help, I’ll definitely give it a try, it that all right?”

Liang Kai glared at me, and then he pushed my hand away and said in a threatening tone, “You’d better find him!”

Then, he left without saying anything. We could still feel him radiating anger.

“God, who does he think he is?!” After Liang Kaifeng walked away, Shi Yitong rubbed his arms and snarled. “A leopard never changes its spots, people like Liang Kaifeng will never know how to ask people for help in a proper way.”

“You’re right.” Su Xiaoyun frowned. “His attitude when asking for help is just wrong. How can you ask for someone’s help like this? I’m with Shi Yitong this time. His father is not completely innocent, if he hadn’t been tempted by money a year ago, he would never have made such a deal.”

“But, on the other hand, he’s still our classmate, and if what he said is true, we’re letting someone die.” I sighed. “But Wen Jiubo isn’t here now, and it is unlikely that we can do anything helpful unless Zhu Xuan is willing to help.”

Zhu Xuan shook his hand and firmly stated his opinion, “Me? No, I don’t like being involved in such things. Besides, I have my own mission.”

That made sense. I already felt embarrassed since we dragged Zhu Xuan into our issues so many times in the past, so I could understand if he didn’t want to help.

“Wait, Gu Yu. Wen Jiubo isn’t in the old residence right now?” Shi Yitong abruptly asked. God knows why a nitwit like him could suddenly detect the key point. “I thought you just said that to fool Liang Kaifeng.”

“Of course not.” I did not know whether to laugh or cry. “He really isn’t at the old residence, he’s.. on a business trip?”

“A business trip?” Su Xiaoyun enquiringly looked at me. “What kind of business?”

“Um..” I tried to find an excuse. “He needs to solve a very tricky case, so he won’t be able to come back for a while.”

Su Xiaoyun clearly did not believe me. “Really? Gu Yu, tell me the truth, are you hiding something from us?”

“Uh..”

Just when I felt that I was going to tell her, Zhu Xuan suddenly opened his mouth to help me out.

“Gu Yu didn’t lie to you.” There was a very convincing smile on his face, and he said affirmatively, “I saw Wen Jiubo pick up that tricky case. I wanted to come with him, but Wen Jiubo refused, so I had nothing to do and I came to your school to find you.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. I looked at Su Xiaoyun and Shi Yitong, they seemed convinced.

“Well, if that’s the case, I will believe you,” Su Xiaoyun said with her arms crossed. “If what you said is true, then we should not get involved in Liang Kaifeng’s case. Wen Jiubo is not here, and our goodwill should be within the limits of our abilities. Gu Yu, I know you. Don’t try to be a hero. It won’t do you any good to get involved in this mess.”

Shi Yitong nodded as well.