Different kinds of rice nurture different kinds of people, and children raised by the same mother can have different dispositions.
Even in courage, there are differences.
Matters in this context can’t be easily explained, just like how people say there is black and white, and good and evil, yet some things are not so clearly defined.
Guan Xiaohu bringing back a dead infant to repay Guan Huapo’s upbringing cannot be deemed wrong; but neither can her expelling of the fostering, grateful adoptive son be considered entirely right.
These conflicting matters resemble the tangled threads in a sewing basket, impossible to unravel clearly.
Xu Qing shook his head slightly; regardless of the process, Guan Xiaohu ultimately went astray and committed irreversible wrongs.
Now that Guan Huapo’s body has been rendered salvation, the Sutra of Salvation provided the corresponding evaluation of the corpse: Earth Top Grade.
The reward included a craft skill named the Mother and Child Needle Technique, and a mourning staff named the Filial Piety Stick.
The Mother and Child Needle Technique can rejuvenate broken items, restore what was thought shattered beyond repair; it transcends mere worldly craftsmanship, nearing the divine and mystical.
The Filial Piety Stick is a mourning staff crafted from Fusang Wood.
The Classic of Mountains and Seas tells that in Tang Valley there exists the Fusang Tree, where ten suns bathe, situated north of the Black-Toothed folk.
The Fusang Tree grows in Tang Valley, serving as a pivotal medium linking the Divine Realm, Human Realm, and the Netherworld. Some say it’s the gateway connecting these three realms.
According to ancient legends, a Great Witch once stood on it to shoot down the suns, breaking the tree and thus forever severing the connection between the three realms.
Hence, the Fusang Tree is also known as the Heaven-Piercing Tree or the Heavenly Mother Tree.
It is called a mother tree because, in the original tale, nine of the ten suns bathe in its lower branches, while one resides in the upper branch.
The Fusang Tree regarded these ten suns as foster children, and when only one sun remained after the others fell, the tree became a tree of grief.
Mourning the loss of a child is akin to mourning oneself—such is the depth of its sorrow.
Yet, even so, the Fusang Wood still retains warmth; anyone approaching it would not fear the cold.
The Filial Piety Stick that Xu Qing received shares this characteristic of warding off the cold.
Additionally, this mourning staff has another function: it can awaken children’s memories of their biological and foster mothers.
There’s an old saying: "A filial child grows under the cane."
If the Filial Piety Stick strikes someone, it can also shake their spirit, making them feel as if they’re facing their parents, recalling their childhood memories.
However, there is a drawback: it has no effect on orphans.
Upon learning the effects of the mourning staff, Xu Qing’s expression turned quite peculiar.
What would happen if he used this staff during a fight?
One must know that distraction is the greatest taboo in combat, and this staff could influence the mind. If used properly, it would be a formidable tool for teaching and disciplining.
At the stroke of midnight, the rain outside the temple began to lighten. Xu Qing glanced at Dazhuang and Erzhuang, seeing them quietly keeping vigil, and he silently moved to the damaged wall, taking out the Mother and Child Needle set awarded by the Sutra of Salvation.
The Mother and Child Needle set includes a three-inch long mother needle and several smaller needles.
Xu Qing picked up the thread used for sewing corpses and began working on the damaged wall of the Incense Hall.
He carefully lifted and stitched the scattered bricks and debris, the rustling sound reminiscent of termites gnawing at a dam. The hulking yellow-clad man by the coffin turned his head toward the sound and, seeing Xu Qing repairing the wall, was surprised but did not overthink it.
Humans were born with dexterity, adept at construction and craftsmanship—skills lacking in his kind. However, this was his first time witnessing someone using needle and thread to mend a wall.
Guan Dazhuang watched for a while before looking away.
Xu Qing’s needlework reminded him of the scenes of his foster mother doing needlework in her lifetime...
The wall outside the Incense Hall, damaged by Guan Xiaohu, shrank and mended visibly fast.
Xu Qing focused solely on his work, his hands more adept with every move. By the time the incense candles in the mourning hall were nearly burnt out, the damaged wall was fully repaired.
Though he couldn’t stitch the wall plaster and putty, the fact that he could mend the broken bricks and stones was a feat beyond conventional skills.
Observing his handiwork, Xu Qing felt pleased; the Mother and Child Needle could seemingly sew anything and everything, greatly enhancing his funeral business capabilities.
After all, besides embalming and stitching corpses, there were post-burial services at the Funeral Shop. If tombstones or coffins were damaged by natural or human causes, he could repair them using this technique.
With the wall mended, Xu Qing eagerly scanned the surroundings, looking just like a child who had just learned to use a slingshot, itching to shoot at something.
When his gaze landed on Guan Dazhuang, Xu Qing’s eyes lit up.
The burly man, resting with closed eyes, felt a chill on the back of his neck. Opening his eyes, he saw Xu Qing staring at him with a gentle, kind expression.
For a moment, he thought his foster mother’s spirit had returned.
"Dazhuang, does your wound still hurt?"
Xu Qing’s tone was gentle, like speaking to a pet cat.
Guan Dazhuang was unsure what the young man before him intended, only noticing that the young man replaced the incense candles by the coffin and then approached him with needle and thread and a maternal smile.
"Dazhuang, come, let me stitch up your wound."
"No need to trouble you, sir, I’m not in any pain!"
For some reason, seeing the needle and thread in the young man’s hands made Guan Dazhuang uneasy.
"That won’t do. Even if it doesn’t hurt, the wound needs proper stitching. Dazhuang, you wouldn’t want the old lady’s spirit to see you neglecting your body, would you?"