The Sorrowmender

Chapter 2 – The small river's promise cannot be forgotten, Mister save me

Looking at the beautiful face of the young lady, her large eyes were filled with worry.

Xu Qingzhou suddenly felt that the autumn wind carried a hint of melancholy.

"Of the three thousand maladies in the world, only lovesickness is incurable."

The young lady sighed softly upon hearing this, her jade-like hand holding the oiled paper umbrella trembled slightly.

"Indeed, is there no cure for lovesickness? Then I shall not trouble the master any longer."

As she spoke, the young lady was about to turn and leave, but Xu Qingzhou hurriedly called out to her.

"Young lady, don't be hasty. Although I cannot cure the world's lovesickness, I do have a way to treat your lovesickness."

Her delicate brows furrowed slightly.

"I don't understand what the master means?"

Xu Qingzhou raised the painted fan in his hand, pointing to the yellow flag behind him, and said proudly, "I said, the worries of all the young ladies in the world can be resolved. Although lovesickness has no cure, since it is your worry, it can be resolved."

"Really?"

"Since you are here, why not give it a try? The truth cannot be faked, and the fake cannot become true. Please, have a seat."

Though she did not understand Xu Qingzhou's actions, his words were not without reason.

The young lady, half-believing, wiped the water droplets with her sleeve and then sat down on the bamboo stool with her umbrella.

"Please, young lady, extend your right hand."

The young lady tilted her head, her expression calm but with a hint of hesitation.

Xu Qingzhou explained.

"Whether I am treating illness or resolving troubles, I must first read the palm. It's quite accurate."

She didn't dwell on it further, thinking that since he was blind, reading the palm lines seemed reasonable, so she placed her hand on the table.

Xu Qingzhou skillfully touched it, the delicate skin was smooth and supple, feeling exceptionally good, even in this late autumn, it wasn't dry at all.

"Quite firm, seems like she's a practitioner!" he murmured to himself.

Perhaps he lingered a bit too long, the young lady was visibly displeased, her brows furrowed, and her voice turned a bit colder.

"Master, how long do you intend to hold on?"

"Ahem, that's enough." Xu Qingzhou, a bit embarrassed, released the young lady's jade hand.

Then he opened an ancient-looking book in front of him.

The book was wordless, its pages as white as snow. Xu Qingzhou took a pen from the side, without dipping it in ink, and directly made a stroke in the book, his aura imposing.

The young lady watched with a face full of suspicion, her curiosity deepening.

This book was the Worry-Free Book provided by the system. For any young lady with a wish, Xu Qingzhou only needed to touch her hand and make a stroke in the book.

All information about the seeker, including their wish and how to resolve it, would appear on it.

Of course, only Xu Qingzhou could see this; ordinary people would only see a blank page.

It could be said that with a touch of the hand, the young lady's worries were gone.

Regarding this setup, Xu Qingzhou expressed that he liked it very much. After all, who could refuse to touch a young lady's hand, especially when it was a different one every day?

Of course, let it be clear, he was not a lecher nor someone taking advantage.

Qingzhou just wanted to help all the young ladies in the world.

As the pen fell, the ink gathered, and Xu Qingzhou became unsettled.

He murmured in his heart, "Hmm... why are the words purple?"

In the past, the ink gathered to form blue words, but this time it was purple, which surprised him.

He then communicated with his thoughts.

"Foster Father, what's going on?"

[Answering the host's question, there are countless people in the world, each with different worries and desires, and the difficulty of resolving them varies. It's more convenient to distinguish the strength by the color of the words.]

[As you have seen before, blue is the lowest level of worry, easily resolved. But purple is more advanced, a level higher than blue, and thus harder to resolve.]

[However, the host can rest assured, the rewards will be much higher.]

Xu Qingzhou understood immediately, his gaze shifted to the Book of Forgetting Worries.

[Name: Lin Shuang'er]

For the full version, visit [ pawℝead.com ].

[Age: 20 years old.]

[Realm: Innate Stage, Second Layer.]

[Status: First kiss gone, but still a virgin.]

Personal Information: Daughter of the City Lord of Frostsky City, the first female prodigy of Frostsky City, possessing a high-grade water spiritual root, a favored child of heaven.

Has a childhood sweetheart named Jian Lintian, known each other since childhood, innocent and carefree. At fifteen, they sealed their fate with a kiss by the river outside the city.

Later, Jian Lintian sought the path and joined the Supreme Dao Sect, leaving without a word, never to return, leaving Lin Shuang'er waiting in vain for five years, lovesick to the bone.

Wish: To relieve the pain of lovesickness.

Solutions are as follows:

(1) A cup of Water of Forgetting Worries, to forget this sorrow. Cost: 1000 Merit Points.

(2) Summon a golden sword, to cut down Lin Shuang'er, end this life, and reincarnate anew. Cost: 1000 Merit Points.

(3) Heal her with your love, start pursuing her passionately now, let her fall in love, and use love to soothe her heart's wounds. No cost, takes time, labor-intensive, success not guaranteed.

Xu Qingzhou's brow twitched, this system was truly audacious.

However, he was used to it. For every seeker, the system would provide three solutions, and he summarized them as three main points.

First: Always make you spend.

Second: Kill and silence, regardless of who it is, though this was the first time he saw an option to kill the seeker themselves.

Third: Emphasize sincerity, no cost, sacrifice yourself to fulfill others.

Every time he saw a beautiful young lady, the third option always tempted him greatly, but he knew that choosing the third option would lead to much suffering.

A simp is a simp—those who understand, understand.

Although he was confident in his looks, this young lady was a cultivator, he couldn't gamble on it.

As for the second option, forget it, he was the confidant of the young ladies, how could he let them down?

So he could only choose the first option, though the 1000 Merit Points did sting a bit.

Resolute, he put down the pen, touched the fake beard he had applied himself, and said in a deep voice:

"Jian Lintian has joined the Supreme Dao Sect, pursuing the path of immortality, he probably won't return to this mundane world in this life. Why should you, young lady, wait in vain for a promise made by the river at fifteen? It's not worth it."

Lin Shuang'er trembled upon hearing this, her eyes widened as she looked at Xu Qingzhou. She had thought she encountered another charlatan, but didn't expect him to speak directly to her heart's worry.

It wasn't strange for him to know Jian Lintian's name. That young man had entered the Innate Realm at ten, becoming famous in Frostsky. At fifteen, he was said to be unparalleled in talent.

But the promise by the river was known only to her, she had never mentioned it to anyone.

"How does the master know?"

"I told you, I can read palms."

Lin Shuang'er was stunned, her eyes lowered, "Then... is he well?"

Xu Qingzhou replied calmly.

"Whether he is well or not has nothing to do with me, nor with you. It's been five years without a word, even if he's still alive, what difference does it make?"

Lin Shuang'er was puzzled, "What does the master mean? I don't understand."

Xu Qingzhou waved his folding fan.

"As the saying goes, if you truly care, you wouldn't leave without a word, five years without news. Miss Lin is a smart person, you must understand, why deceive yourself?"

In Lin Shuang'er's eyes, disappointment and pain alternated, her oiled paper umbrella quietly slipped from her hand onto the long street.

She looked up at the sky, letting the drizzle hit her face, the cold rain couldn't compare to the chill in her heart.

"Yes, it's been five years. If he truly remembered the promise, why wouldn't he send a letter? I've always been here."

She murmured softly, her eyes filled with the melancholy of late autumn.

"Master, what should I do?"

Proofreader & Editor: Peter Pan