Chapter 135: Chapter 135: Return_1
Wu Cheng slumped onto the bed weakly, staring fearfully at the eerie blue and white porcelain, his lips quivering violently, incapable of uttering a word.
Wu’s wife noticed sothing was wrong. Not wanting to stress her husband any further, she quickly put away the porcelain artifact and turned to Wu Cheng, "Stop fretting about it. If there’s anything to discuss, we’ll do so tomorrow. Let’s get so sleep."
Wu Cheng answered, the color drained from his face, "No, I can’t sleep. If I fall asleep, that black tiger will eat ."
Wu’s wife felt her heart pounding, but she still managed to reassure him gently, "We’re at ho, how could there be a tiger here?"
"No, there is one, really, believe ," Wu Cheng said incoherently. While explaining, he clung tightly to his wife. "Don’t leave, I’m scared; Don’t leave
alone."
"Alright, alright, I won’t leave," Wu’s wife hastily agreed.
Seeing her husband disoriented and panicking, she felt a great sympathy for him. She gently helped him lie down on the bed and softly said, "I’ll watch over you. Nothing will happen. Sleep now."
After a while, Wu Cheng gradually cald down in his wife’s arms; his emotions stabilized, and he dared to close his eyes again.
However, less than a minute later, Wu Cheng scread and leapt out of bed, gasping for breath.
"What’s the matter now?" Wu’s wife asked, with a frown and slight impatience.
"The black tiger! The black tiger is back, it wants to bite , it wants to eat !" Wu Cheng babbled feverishly.
Wu Cheng’s eyes were dull and panicked, not an act. This frightened Wu’s wife although she didn’t see anything unusual around.
Braving up, she tried to reassure her husband, "There’s no black tiger, nothing at all. You’re just dreaming."
In despair, Wu Cheng vigorously shook his head, "It’s a real black tiger. As soon as I close my eyes, it appears. I am telling the truth."
Wu’s wife had no choice but to continue consoling him.
However, Wu Cheng was too scared to close his eyes again. He managed to stay awake until dawn, and then finally drifted off into a deep sleep.
Unable to sleep comfortably for two consecutive nights, Wu Cheng was too drained to take care of the shop. So, he left business matters aside for the mont and stayed in bed to recuperate.
Once Wu’s wife had taken their child to school, she quickly returned ho to care for Wu Cheng. Seeing the deep dark circles under his eyes and his profound exhaustion, she couldn’t help but worry.
So, she called one of Wu Cheng’s friends for advice. This friend happened to be one of the ones who had accompanied Wu Cheng to Ju Ya Zhai to retrieve the blue and white porcelain.
He recounted the episode of collecting the porcelain to Wu’s wife, though he couldn’t clarify the specifics of what had happened.
After piecing together what had transpired, Wu’s wife felt even more uneasy but she couldn’t do anything. All she could do was wait for Wu Cheng to wake up and explain everything clearly.
The friend, learning about Wu Cheng’s abnormal behavior in the last two days from Wu’s wife’s recount, felt it necessary to assemble the group who had visited Ju Ya Zhai with Wu Cheng. They purposely left Wu Cheng out of this assembly.
The group discussed the matter again and contemplated on Qin Sisi’s warning to Wu Cheng about the potential harm he might face due to his lack of Yang energy, with the blue and white porcelain too close for comfort.
A chill went down everyone’s spine, despite the mutual reassurances that "everything will be alright." They were left on edge, hoping that Qin Sisi’s words weren’t real or that if they were, they wouldn’t impact them.
It wasn’t until early afternoon that Wu Cheng finally managed to get out of bed.
Eagerly, Wu’s wife served so warm food. Wu Cheng didn’t have much of an appetite, but he still managed to eat a little.
Taking this opportunity, his wife asked about the blue and white porcelain. Wu Cheng then honestly explained everything to his wife.
The reason he hadn’t said anything before was that he didn’t want to worry his family. But now, as the situation was getting increasingly bizarre and he felt that he couldn’t handle it alone, he turned to his wife for advice.
After hearing the entire story, Wu’s wife didn’t bla him; she gently suggested, "In the antique business, artifacts are aged, and filled with inexplicable rules. It’s better safe than sorry. If we lose money, we can make more, but if we lose our lives, no amount of money can buy them back."
The words "if we lose our lives" made Wu Cheng’s heart shudder. On giving it deep thought, he realized that if his nightmares continue to disrupt his sleep every night, he may not be physically capable of dealing with it for much longer.
Wu Cheng looked at his wife hesitantly, "Do you an..."
She gently replied, "I an, return the porcelain piece. You also felt that there was sothing wrong with it, didn’t you?"
Wu Cheng remained hesitant. He was sure that the vase appearing next to his pillow for two consecutive nights without any seeming damage was not normal, and it might even be tainted.
But having sold it once for a dollar to relieve his pressure and then fiercely recovering it only to return it again, wouldn’t that just make him look foolish?
After pondering over it, Wu Cheng finally concluded, "Alright, let’s wait one more night. If things go awry tonight too, I’ll return the porcelain to Boss Zheng tomorrow."
While Wu’s wife wished for an imdiate resolution, she decided against pushing her husband who seed sowhat reluctant. Thus, they both waited anxiously for the night to fall.
Wu Cheng held a glimr of hope, wanting to believe that what he experienced in the past nights was only a hallucination and that the third night would return everything to normal.
Unfortunately, fate wouldn’t grant him such a wish.
In the dead of the third night, Wu Cheng was unable to close his eyes. Every ti he tried, the mammoth-sized black tiger would appear in front of him.
The black tiger moved silently, its eyes shooting piercing icy rays, inching closer to Wu Cheng, its bloodthirsty mouth wide open...
In utter panic and desperation, Wu Cheng was forced to stay awake once again until dawn. Fortunately, he’d slept enough during the day to make it through the night.
Once dawn arrived, under his wife’s persuasion, Wu Cheng carried the blue and white porcelain and set off to the antique market to return it to Boss Zheng.
When he arrived at Ju Ya Zhai, Boss Zheng wasn’t at the front desk. The shop assistant, who knew Wu Cheng and had already received instruction from Boss Zheng, led Wu Cheng into a private room at the back of the shop.
As Wu Cheng entered, he was imdiately taken aback.
The room was filled with not only Boss Zheng but also several prestigious figures in the antique business and owners of large nearby shops.
They were gathered around an intricate Redwood Eight Immortals Table, savoring tea and engaging in lively conversations.
Wu Cheng stood awkwardly at the entrance, unable to decide whether to enter or retreat.
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