Gu Shi Tong had always been swift and decisive when doing things. Once he met Jiu Jie, they only exchanged a few simple greetings before bidding farewell to Luo Yi De.
That night, they got on a plane headed toward Nanjing.
After the plane had smoothly taken off , Gu Shi Tong was resting his eyes in the first-class cabin because he was a bit tired of the harried day that he had.
On the side, Jiu Jie, who was bored to death, took out the red book that he brought and looked through the pages.
For five years, this red book has never left his person. If he had any free time, Jiu Jie would take it out to read. He had already memorized the three pages written in the book by heart.
The good-quality bag he used to hold his red book in had suffered quite some damage. The book wasn’t thick, and the pages in the front have already become slightly black, but the pages at the back were still pristinely white.
The first three pages of the red book taught Watchmen how to attract, enter, and leave a dream. Jiu Jie had already looked through these pages countless times, but he would always read them very seriously with no exception.
An unknown amount of time had passed when a voice came from the side, while asking, “Is that your red book?”
Jiu Jie was jarred from his thoughts, so he turned his head towards the sound and saw that Gu Shi Tong was already awake.
Jiu Jie nodded his head with a noise of assent. Gu Shi Tong was Luo Yi De’s friend of many years. Since he knew about the Watchmen, it wasn’t surprising that he knew about the red book.
Gu Shi Tong stretched his waist, and while yawning, “I’m definitely old. The amount of energy I have now will never compare to when I was younger. If this continues on, my old bones can’t take it. That’s right, I didn’t disturb you, did I?”
Jiu Jie shook his head. Even though Gu Shi Tong was his senior of many years, his words had no traces of arrogance. He also had a very courteous attitude, so Jiu Jie had a rather good first impression of him.
Gu Shi Ting eyed the red book in Jiu Jie’s hand, and smilingly asked, “Can I have a look?”
Jiu Jie hesitated at first, but passed the book over.
Jiu Jie knew that only the Watchman could read the red book that they were issued.Anyone else would just see blank pages.
Gu Shi Tong casually flipped through the pages while the corner of his mouth curled up into a mysterious smile. After that, he returned the book.
“I heard from Old Luo that your red book only has three pages?” Gu Shi Tong asked.
Jiu Jie hummed in agreement while nodding again.
“How long have you been a Watchman?” Gu Shi Tong asked.
“Five years.” Jiu Jie replied.
Gu Shi Tong heard that, and then began to laugh. “That’s strange.”
“What’s strange?” Jiu Jie inquired.
“You have more power than other people by far, but you’ve only seen three pages despite being a Watchman for five years. Isn’t that strange? If it were a normal person, with your talent, they would have still reached five pages at least.”
When Jiu Jie heard this, his heart started thumping. Gu Shi Tong’s words had struck a crucial point. Actually, for these past few years, there were a lot of new people who joined the Watchmen that weren’t stronger than him, but the number of pages in their books had already surpassed his. Regarding this problem that Jiu Jie had, he has brooded over it since the beginning, and he still hasn’t been able to understand why.
Despite that, he pretended that nothing had happened and tapped the red book with his forefinger, and self-deprecatingly said, “Li Bi Duo’s strength will only affect the control over dreamland. Regarding the red book, one needs to look at their strength of conviction. In five years, only three pages have been shown, so I think maybe the red book doesn’t find my conviction strong enough.”
Gu Shi Tong leaned against the back of the chair when he heard that, and while sneering, “That’s right, conviction. You Watchmen believe in modesty, honesty, mercy, bravery, just, selflessness, and being honourable. Just like how air is needed for the plane, it also obstructs it, but the plane also needs it to fly. It’s really interesting.”
Jiu Jie was more and more surprised as he listened. Gu Shi Tong had an understanding of the Watchmen that far exceeded his expectations that unconsciously made him wary.
Gu Shi Tong saw the changes in Jiu Jie’s facial expression and continued to ask, “Don’t you feel that the so-called conviction you believe in is instead a restriction?”
Jiu Jie frowned when he heard that. Instead of answering, he asked, “To the ordinary person, the Watchmen are like ghosts in the dark night. Very few people would know anything related to us, even our existence is known only to a small group of people, but you seem to understand us quite a bit though? Who exactly are you?”
Gu Shi Tong smiled, “I’m a merchant who is covered in the stench of copper, nothing more. On the contrary, who are you?”
“Me?” Regarding Gu Shi Tong’s sudden ramble, Jiu Jie was too slow in coming up with a reply.
“The surname ‘Jiu’ is quite rare. My whole life, you are the second person i’ve ever met with that surname.”
Jiu Jie’s heart throbbed as he hurriedly asked, “You’ve met a person with the surname ‘Jiu’ before?”
“That’s right,” Gu Shi Tong breathed in deeply while his thoughts went back many years. He unhurriedly said, “When I was young, I was a hot-blooded youth. Very few people were able to catch my eye, common people were useless to me. . Just as I was getting complacent, that person appeared. He was a peerless talent that was unmatched in his generation, he drew both terror and envy. Even the proud and arrogant me couldn’t help being subdued. Being compared to him was like comparing a worn-out horse to a Qilin, or a bird to a phoenix. It just made people love, be envious, respect, and hate him…”
Jiu Jie’s pupils shrank, and in a split second, an idea had burst into his mind while great waves were roiling in his heart. He forcefully controlled his emotions, and questioned him, “What is the name of this person you speak of?”
Gu Shi Tong let out a long breath, while regretfully saying, “A pity, too much time has passed, I only remember his surname. I forgot his first name.”
Jiu Jie wrinkled his eyebrows, his face darkening. The first reaction in his mind was, “Bullshit! He’s lying! He obviously knows my father, but why is he concealing it?”
At the same time, Jiu Jie felt a trace of wariness. Throughout the whole talk, regardless of whether it was the topic or his state of mind, he was being unknowingly led by the nose. Thinking of the repeated warnings that Uncle Luo gave, it looks like he was right that this old fellow was really not quite so simple.
“Okay, let’s not speak of these irrelevant things anymore.” Gu Shi Tong changed the subject again, “Do you have a plan regarding my daughter’s illness?”
When Gu Shi Tong suddenly asked this question, Jiu Jie just went with the flow.“If she really has a few problems on her mind, then let’s use the method that the Watchmen are experts in to solve them.”
“What method?” Gu Shi Tong asked.
“It’s very simple. Let me sleep with her for a while.” Jiu Jie said.
Gu Shi Tong, “….”
“Ah, it’s not like that, please don’t misunderstand.” Jiu Jie hurriedly tried to explain. “I mean for me to enter her dreams and spy into her heart. After that, we can find the root of the problem.”
Even though Jiu Jie has been living in Beijing for about five years already, he still unwittingly gave off a Northeastern vibe that he hasn’t been able to conceal.
“It’s that simple?” Gu Shi Tong asked.
“Yes, it’s that simple.”
Gu Shi Tong shook his head and smiled, “It’s too simple.”
“Even though this method is very simple and rough, it’s still the most effective.”
“No, this method may be effective for other people, but this is my daughter, i’m afraid it won’t be as effective for her.”
“Oh? Why?”
“Jiu Jie, let me ask you, what are dreams?” Gu Shi Tong asked firmly.
Regarding this question, Jiu Jie immediately answered, “Dreams are someone’s desire for accomplishment. To be exact, dreams are repressed and disguised desires hidden within someone’s subconscious. Using Dreamland, one can look into their hearts and know their true self.”
Gu Shi Tong laughed, “Well said. That’s a model Watchman answer. According to what you said though, dreams will usually have a disguise. If someone painstakingly changed its form, how will you get into the heart of a person? Just take my daughter as an example. You’ve never met my daughter before, you have no understanding of her. You don’t know her personality, her experience, nor do you know the disguise her dreams will take on. If so, how will you know her real dream?”
“Even though it does have a disguise, unconscious behaviour still have their own rules to follow. To see through disguises is the expertise of the Watchmen. You don’t have to worry about this.”
“What you said only applies to some people. What if there was someone able to add a lock onto the plane of unconsciousness? What will you do? Your red book currently only has three pages. According to what I know, you are still unable to enter a person’s subconscious.”
Jiu Jie was slightly shocked when he heard that. “You mean, your daughter is proficient in the Mind Defense Art?” (Occlumency?)
Gu Shi Tong nodded, while saying, “She’s a student of a renowned teacher, she majored in psychology in a famous school. Even though she’s young, she has quite a reputation in the industry. I have already found many famous psychologists in the industry, but in the end, they only confirmed that ordinary methods have no effect on her. I think this also includes the methods of junior Watchmen.”
When Jiu Jie heard this, he was not happy. Unable to contain himself, he asked, “That may not be true. Even though the Watchmen are supposed to be humble, speaking truthfully, those so-called psychologists’ methods, in front of the worst Watchman, is just like the skill of a three-legged cat (jack of all trades). There is something confirmed from that though. If the case in T city was handed over to those psychologists, i’m afraid that half of T city would have been blown up.”
Gu Shi Tong laughed when he heard this. “The confidence of young people is a good thing, but they need to know how to take a loss. No matter what I say now, you may not believe. Wait until you’ve seen her, then we can continue this topic. I believe at that time, you’ll change your mind.”
On the surface, Jiu Jie was amiable, but inside he was in disagreement. He believed that Gu Shi Tong had praised his daughter too much as a result of his fatherly pride,praising their children is a parent’s illness.
The two of them casually exchanged a few words before Jiu Jie opened the red book to continue reading, completely disregarding what Gu Shi Tong had said previously.
Gu Shi Tong had always been swift and decisive when doing things. Once he met Jiu Jie, they only exchanged a few simple greetings before bidding farewell to Luo Yi De.
That night, they got on a plane headed toward Nanjing.
After the plane had smoothly taken off , Gu Shi Tong was resting his eyes in the first-class cabin because he was a bit tired of the harried day that he had.
On the side, Jiu Jie, who was bored to death, took out the red book that he brought and looked through the pages.
For five years, this red book has never left his person. If he had any free time, Jiu Jie would take it out to read. He had already memorized the three pages written in the book by heart.
The good-quality bag he used to hold his red book in had suffered quite some damage. The book wasn’t thick, and the pages in the front have already become slightly black, but the pages at the back were still pristinely white.
The first three pages of the red book taught Watchmen how to attract, enter, and leave a dream. Jiu Jie had already looked through these pages countless times, but he would always read them very seriously with no exception.
An unknown amount of time had passed when a voice came from the side, while asking, “Is that your red book?”
Jiu Jie was jarred from his thoughts, so he turned his head towards the sound and saw that Gu Shi Tong was already awake.
Jiu Jie nodded his head with a noise of assent. Gu Shi Tong was Luo Yi De’s friend of many years. Since he knew about the Watchmen, it wasn’t surprising that he knew about the red book.
Gu Shi Tong stretched his waist, and while yawning, “I’m definitely old. The amount of energy I have now will never compare to when I was younger. If this continues on, my old bones can’t take it. That’s right, I didn’t disturb you, did I?”
Jiu Jie shook his head. Even though Gu Shi Tong was his senior of many years, his words had no traces of arrogance. He also had a very courteous attitude, so Jiu Jie had a rather good first impression of him.
Gu Shi Ting eyed the red book in Jiu Jie’s hand, and smilingly asked, “Can I have a look?”
Jiu Jie hesitated at first, but passed the book over.
Jiu Jie knew that only the Watchman could read the red book that they were issued.Anyone else would just see blank pages.
Gu Shi Tong casually flipped through the pages while the corner of his mouth curled up into a mysterious smile. After that, he returned the book.
“I heard from Old Luo that your red book only has three pages?” Gu Shi Tong asked.
Jiu Jie hummed in agreement while nodding again.
“How long have you been a Watchman?” Gu Shi Tong asked.
“Five years.” Jiu Jie replied.
Gu Shi Tong heard that, and then began to laugh. “That’s strange.”
“What’s strange?” Jiu Jie inquired.
“You have more power than other people by far, but you’ve only seen three pages despite being a Watchman for five years. Isn’t that strange? If it were a normal person, with your talent, they would have still reached five pages at least.”
When Jiu Jie heard this, his heart started thumping. Gu Shi Tong’s words had struck a crucial point. Actually, for these past few years, there were a lot of new people who joined the Watchmen that weren’t stronger than him, but the number of pages in their books had already surpassed his. Regarding this problem that Jiu Jie had, he has brooded over it since the beginning, and he still hasn’t been able to understand why.
Despite that, he pretended that nothing had happened and tapped the red book with his forefinger, and self-deprecatingly said, “Li Bi Duo’s strength will only affect the control over dreamland. Regarding the red book, one needs to look at their strength of conviction. In five years, only three pages have been shown, so I think maybe the red book doesn’t find my conviction strong enough.”
Gu Shi Tong leaned against the back of the chair when he heard that, and while sneering, “That’s right, conviction. You Watchmen believe in modesty, honesty, mercy, bravery, just, selflessness, and being honourable. Just like how air is needed for the plane, it also obstructs it, but the plane also needs it to fly. It’s really interesting.”
Jiu Jie was more and more surprised as he listened. Gu Shi Tong had an understanding of the Watchmen that far exceeded his expectations that unconsciously made him wary.
Gu Shi Tong saw the changes in Jiu Jie’s facial expression and continued to ask, “Don’t you feel that the so-called conviction you believe in is instead a restriction?”
Jiu Jie frowned when he heard that. Instead of answering, he asked, “To the ordinary person, the Watchmen are like ghosts in the dark night. Very few people would know anything related to us, even our existence is known only to a small group of people, but you seem to understand us quite a bit though? Who exactly are you?”
Gu Shi Tong smiled, “I’m a merchant who is covered in the stench of copper, nothing more. On the contrary, who are you?”
“Me?” Regarding Gu Shi Tong’s sudden ramble, Jiu Jie was too slow in coming up with a reply.
“The surname ‘Jiu’ is quite rare. My whole life, you are the second person i’ve ever met with that surname.”
Jiu Jie’s heart throbbed as he hurriedly asked, “You’ve met a person with the surname ‘Jiu’ before?”
“That’s right,” Gu Shi Tong breathed in deeply while his thoughts went back many years. He unhurriedly said, “When I was young, I was a hot-blooded youth. Very few people were able to catch my eye, common people were useless to me. . Just as I was getting complacent, that person appeared. He was a peerless talent that was unmatched in his generation, he drew both terror and envy. Even the proud and arrogant me couldn’t help being subdued. Being compared to him was like comparing a worn-out horse to a Qilin, or a bird to a phoenix. It just made people love, be envious, respect, and hate him…”
Jiu Jie’s pupils shrank, and in a split second, an idea had burst into his mind while great waves were roiling in his heart. He forcefully controlled his emotions, and questioned him, “What is the name of this person you speak of?”
Gu Shi Tong let out a long breath, while regretfully saying, “A pity, too much time has passed, I only remember his surname. I forgot his first name.”
Jiu Jie wrinkled his eyebrows, his face darkening. The first reaction in his mind was, “Bullshit! He’s lying! He obviously knows my father, but why is he concealing it?”
At the same time, Jiu Jie felt a trace of wariness. Throughout the whole talk, regardless of whether it was the topic or his state of mind, he was being unknowingly led by the nose. Thinking of the repeated warnings that Uncle Luo gave, it looks like he was right that this old fellow was really not quite so simple.
“Okay, let’s not speak of these irrelevant things anymore.” Gu Shi Tong changed the subject again, “Do you have a plan regarding my daughter’s illness?”
When Gu Shi Tong suddenly asked this question, Jiu Jie just went with the flow.“If she really has a few problems on her mind, then let’s use the method that the Watchmen are experts in to solve them.”
“What method?” Gu Shi Tong asked.
“It’s very simple. Let me sleep with her for a while.” Jiu Jie said.
Gu Shi Tong, “….”
“Ah, it’s not like that, please don’t misunderstand.” Jiu Jie hurriedly tried to explain. “I mean for me to enter her dreams and spy into her heart. After that, we can find the root of the problem.”
Even though Jiu Jie has been living in Beijing for about five years already, he still unwittingly gave off a Northeastern vibe that he hasn’t been able to conceal.
“It’s that simple?” Gu Shi Tong asked.
“Yes, it’s that simple.”
Gu Shi Tong shook his head and smiled, “It’s too simple.”
“Even though this method is very simple and rough, it’s still the most effective.”
“No, this method may be effective for other people, but this is my daughter, i’m afraid it won’t be as effective for her.”
“Oh? Why?”
“Jiu Jie, let me ask you, what are dreams?” Gu Shi Tong asked firmly.
Regarding this question, Jiu Jie immediately answered, “Dreams are someone’s desire for accomplishment. To be exact, dreams are repressed and disguised desires hidden within someone’s subconscious. Using Dreamland, one can look into their hearts and know their true self.”
Gu Shi Tong laughed, “Well said. That’s a model Watchman answer. According to what you said though, dreams will usually have a disguise. If someone painstakingly changed its form, how will you get into the heart of a person? Just take my daughter as an example. You’ve never met my daughter before, you have no understanding of her. You don’t know her personality, her experience, nor do you know the disguise her dreams will take on. If so, how will you know her real dream?”
“Even though it does have a disguise, unconscious behaviour still have their own rules to follow. To see through disguises is the expertise of the Watchmen. You don’t have to worry about this.”
“What you said only applies to some people. What if there was someone able to add a lock onto the plane of unconsciousness? What will you do? Your red book currently only has three pages. According to what I know, you are still unable to enter a person’s subconscious.”
Jiu Jie was slightly shocked when he heard that. “You mean, your daughter is proficient in the Mind Defense Art?” (Occlumency?)
Gu Shi Tong nodded, while saying, “She’s a student of a renowned teacher, she majored in psychology in a famous school. Even though she’s young, she has quite a reputation in the industry. I have already found many famous psychologists in the industry, but in the end, they only confirmed that ordinary methods have no effect on her. I think this also includes the methods of junior Watchmen.”
When Jiu Jie heard this, he was not happy. Unable to contain himself, he asked, “That may not be true. Even though the Watchmen are supposed to be humble, speaking truthfully, those so-called psychologists’ methods, in front of the worst Watchman, is just like the skill of a three-legged cat (jack of all trades). There is something confirmed from that though. If the case in T city was handed over to those psychologists, i’m afraid that half of T city would have been blown up.”
Gu Shi Tong laughed when he heard this. “The confidence of young people is a good thing, but they need to know how to take a loss. No matter what I say now, you may not believe. Wait until you’ve seen her, then we can continue this topic. I believe at that time, you’ll change your mind.”
On the surface, Jiu Jie was amiable, but inside he was in disagreement. He believed that Gu Shi Tong had praised his daughter too much as a result of his fatherly pride,praising their children is a parent’s illness.
The two of them casually exchanged a few words before Jiu Jie opened the red book to continue reading, completely disregarding what Gu Shi Tong had said previously.
