The boatman looked at Lu Zheng, utterly bewildered.
Lin Wan’s eyes widened, staring at Lu Zheng in shock.
“Wow! It’s raining!” Lu Zheng gasped dramatically. “That’s amazing!”
The boatman let out a sigh of relief, glanced at the noticeably darker sky, and shook his head. “Weather forecasts these days, they’re almost never accurate. Unbelievable.”
The light, misty drizzle didn’t require umbrellas or raincoats, so the boatman paid it no mind, continuing to row while explaining the sights to the pair.
The boatman might have been easily fooled, but Lin Wan wasn’t so gullible. She knew her man’s abilities, and Lu Zheng’s performance was far too exaggerated.
She patted Lu Zheng, and when he turned, she glared at him silently.
Lu Zheng grinned, pulling her into an embrace. “A West Lake tour needs this kind of misty drizzle to truly experience the hazy south of the river scenery.”
That was as good as an admission.
Lin Wan sighed. He could summon wind and rain, yet still claimed he wasn’t an immortal?
Relaxing, they followed the boatman for a tour around West Lake before returning to the dock.
As soon as the boat reached the shore, the misty rain abruptly stopped.
“Hey, that’s uncanny!” The boatman was astonished. “You two have incredible luck. Though it’s a pity it didn’t start raining right when you boarded.”
Lu Zheng laughed. “A life half-fulfilled is enough; no need to chase perfection.”
The boatman gave a thumbs-up. “That’s wisdom.”
…
After disembarking, they continued their stroll, but Lin Wan’s interest in touring West Lake had waned.
“You can actually summon wind and rain?”
“Don’t make a fuss!”
“What fuss! Just how powerful is this ability?”
Lin Wan’s questions came nonstop.
“How large is the range? What are the prerequisites? How intense is the rainfall? How long can it last?”
Lu Zheng was speechless. “Are you planning to turn me into a human rain machine?”
Lin Wan paused, her brow furrowing. “I was just…”
“It’s fine, I understand.”
Lu Zheng patted her hand. “I get it. Food security is a national priority. If I can help, I will. My cultivation is still low, so I can’t sustain large-scale rain for long. But if there’s a drought somewhere this year, I’ll go lend a hand.”
With the *Wind and Rain Flying Immortal* technique and his current 400-plus years of cultivation, Lu Zheng could summon clouds and create light rain over an area spanning dozens of miles, as long as it wasn’t for combat.
The boasts he made to Liu Qingyan were coming true, and it seemed another would be realized within the year.
Unbelievable!
“You’re too good,” Lin Wan said softly, holding his arm. “One question: does casting this rain spell cause any major side effects, like excessive depletion?”
Though Lu Zheng’s spell seemed effortless, Lin Wan needed to be sure.
Lu Zheng raised an eyebrow. “Do I strike you as someone so selfless I’d sacrifice myself for others?”
Lin Wan smiled, stood on tiptoe, and kissed his cheek. “You are!”
Nearby, four college-aged guys hurried past, pretending not to notice.
But with Lu Zheng and Lin Wan’s keen hearing, they caught their muttering from a distance.
“Damn it, a mouthful of dog food.”
“She’s so gorgeous and clingy. I’m so jealous!”
“That guy’s not even as handsome as me. Why don’t I have a girlfriend that pretty?”
“Fahai, grant me a Bai Suzhen!”
…
Lu Zheng and Lin Wan exchanged smiles, ignoring the single guys’ complaints, and continued strolling along West Lake’s shore.
They passed Yue Wang Temple, visited Lingyin Temple, saw Leifeng Pagoda, and walked along Su Causeway.
Eventually, their leisurely walk brought them to the antique trading area in a corner of West Lake.
Though called antiques, there were no fools left these days. It was all modern artworks and imitation antiques.
Shops, pushcarts, and street stalls had everything imaginable.
Perhaps times had changed, and no one fell for fakes anymore. Even the “aged” items were gone, replaced by brand-new objects.
“With my eye, if there were real antiques, I’d spot them,” Lu Zheng said.
“I believe you!” Lin Wan nodded.
“But there’s nothing here!” Lu Zheng sighed. “Not even fakes.”
Lin Wan giggled. “That just means the city’s management is doing a good job.”
Lu Zheng shook his head. “Boring. Not even a chance to find a bargain.”
They wandered along the street.
Some shops did have genuine items, but mostly worthless copper coins or low-value folk kiln pieces, priced exorbitantly, with fakes sold as real.
The items weren’t attractive, and there was no chance for a bargain, so Lu Zheng had no interest in collecting.
But as they left a particularly quiet shop, they brushed past two backpackers.
“Hm?” Lu Zheng sniffed, his brow furrowing instantly.
“What’s wrong?” Lin Wan noticed his reaction and turned to ask.
“Work’s come up,” Lu Zheng said.
Lin Wan’s eyes narrowed. She pulled Lu Zheng to a stall near the shop’s entrance, pretending to browse while whispering, “Those two have something suspicious?”
Lu Zheng nodded. “Their backpacks have freshly unearthed items.”
Lin Wan’s eyes sharpened.
Freshly unearthed items? That meant tomb artifacts.
“I’ll make a call,” Lin Wan said, glancing at the shop. “This place is probably involved too.”
Lu Zheng nodded.
The shop was large but in a remote location. Its inventory was sparse and overpriced, and the owner had greeted them with cold indifference.
How did a shop like this survive?
Instead of leaving, Lu Zheng and Lin Wan stopped not far from the shop, across the street.
Lin Wan didn’t call 110 directly. She first contacted the Haicheng City Bureau, explained the situation, and was quickly transferred to the Hangzhou City Bureau’s serious crimes unit.
With insider information about a potential major tomb-robbing case, the serious crimes unit’s first team mobilized, arriving in plainclothes nearby.
“Comrade Lin Wan!” A sturdy man in his forties approached.
He greeted Lin Wan, nodded to Lu Zheng, and introduced himself. “Gong Jianguo, captain of Hangzhou’s serious crimes unit, first team.”
“Hello!” Lin Wan shook his hand, introduced Lu Zheng, and whispered, “Those two entered the shop an hour ago and haven’t come out.”
Gong Jianguo nodded, then said with some difficulty, “If they come out with the items, we can stop and check them. But if they’ve left the items in the shop, we’ll need a search warrant.”
Gong Jianguo looked at Lin Wan. “Comrade Lin, are you certain they’re tomb robbers carrying freshly unearthed artifacts?”
Lin Wan nodded firmly. “I’m certain! If there’s any issue, I’ll take responsibility!”
