The Green Hand

"The third rule concerning transactions of Trafford’s Trading Club is, only guidance can be provided to the buyers, any forced sale is forbidden…"

Upon reading this part, Luo Qiu put down this ‘Club Owner’s’ instruction manual and thought: if so, then the me who is reading this booklet now, can be considered a victim of irregularities?

"Master, here is your lunch."

A bowl of Borscht with a tempting scent was laid in front of him. You Ye had even arranged the tableware which Luo Qiu needed, then stood aside to await his further instructions.

You Ye was the servant girl of this club.

But Luo Qiu had mistook her age previously, she was actually pretty old.

In addition, You Ye was not human being, but a puppet made from special materials through alchemy.

Because of the excellent alchemy skill, she looked just like an ordinary person, the most important thing though, was that there was a living soul sealed in You Ye’s body.

This was not a joke, because Luo Qiu had seen You Ye removed her head and left arm, then reassemble them again in front of him.

As You Ye said, she was made by an alchemist to pay a price for some commodity. Thus she became a servant girl.

...

When he woke up, the boss had disappeared, leaving behind a letter stating some facts that Luo Qiu needed to know.

As an object that was exchanged for something, Luo Qiu had the right to own and control the ‘Trafford’s Trading Club’ in the future, but he was also imprisoned here forever.

The only way to free himself was if another person willingly exchange their freedom in a transaction..

Then, he was told to check the information in the booklet if there was something he didn’t understand.

Luo Qiu was relatively calm. After reading the content of the letter, he tried to open the club’s door and walk out. Without any obstruction, he rushed out of the club…

The so-called imprisoning was not physical captivity, but an imprisonment of the soul.

"So does that mean, to keep me from dying, I have to offer sacrifices to the ‘club’ at set intervals?" Luo Qiu consulted the booklet humbly about his queries.

Even though You Ye already belonged to Luo Qiu, as the club’s possession, but somehow, he felt unnatural to face the puppet.

"Yes." You Ye nodded, completing her duty commendably: "Your lifespan depends on the quality of the sacrifices you provide."

"I’m still healthy so I should have a pretty long life." Luo Qiu laughed at himself.

Hearing this, You Ye suddenly left, not long after, she came back again with an hourglass.

It was set in front of Luo Qiu, "This is your remaining time, my host. When all the sand falls, your life will be over."

Anyone would be terrified to see this—but it was useless. So Luo Qiu calmed down soon, "How long will it take for all the sand to fall?"

"Thirty days."

"..."

It seems like life was not as wonderful as he thought. He took a deep breath. After collecting himself, he said, "In other words, if I can’t find customers, I’ll die?"

"The person who needs something will enter. Master is the best example of that." You Ye said quietly, "The former owner also used to release some passes. Whoever obtains them will be able to come in too."

"So, just wait for people to come in. Is that ok?"

"Yes, generally you won’t die."

Generally, won’t die…

OK…

As stated in the letter the former boss left, he would be "imprisoned" here forever. But based for this price, he possessed everything in this club.

...

...

"Looks like I don’t have to worry about the spontaneous trip with my classmates."

"Fine, the message has been sent…fortunately cellphones can still be used." Luo Qiu said to himself, "I'm worried, but not to the extent of calling the cops…Anyway, I better turn off my cellphone, right? It would be troublesome to explain to my parents if they called. Well, for now, so be it…

Luo Qiu made up his mind not to return home first. He wanted to understand his situation.

As for the university…It was fine to skip one or two days’ classes.

Thus Luo Qiu braced himself up after planning.

Simply stated, other could replace him using the same method as the former boss ...Or was there any other method that had not been discovered, which could get rid of the shackles of this club, yet retaining the ownership?

Luo Qiu regarded himself as a greedy guy.

But he had to be cautious, after experiencing such schemes, it would be unwise to be careless.

Anyway, let’s just waited for the first sale.

Luo Qiu was confident in his patience.

Maybe due to his isolated nature, he could just stare into space for a whole afternoon, unlike other who would rather play with their cellphone than read a book.

Take things as they come.

There were only a few pages to the booklet, hence Luo Qiu finished it quickly. Then he started to observe the club carefully.

Actually, the inside was more spacious than it seemed from the outside. It was a building with many floors. However, you could only see the hall from outside.

And as You Ye said, only a portion of people could see them. The view that others saw would be the original scene of the shop.

Was it one of the magical points of this club? On the contrary, Luo Qiu thought there was nothing wrong with it…After all he had witnessed the horrible sight of You Ye moved her head and arm then reassembled.

…The 3 floors were: the hall, the living room and bedroom, it also included the kitchen and the washroom, etc.

As for the 3 basement levels, they were: the storeroom for depositing commonly traded commodities; one floor for storing valuable commodities; the third floor... had a weird sacrificial altar.

Luo Qiu walked around the altar, there he felt a bone chilling terror, so he went back to the hall at first floor.

The third floor was too weird. As soon as he closed it, there was a sense being monitored thoroughly.

When he left the third floor, Luo Qiu calmed down and started to recall the situation then.

Normally, he would never have said that sentence.

"I was cheated."

Getting used to something was a scary thing, he didn’t sigh or get mad.

"Master, what did you say?" You Ye stopped cleaning the shop, turning around suddenly, and asked wonderingly.

"Nothing." Luo Qiu smiled, ordering the girl to continue working.

And then he started to observe You Ye.

He wondered who was the subject the alchemist chose, You Ye was tall and graceful like a mixed blood of the East and West.

Of course Luo Qiu couldn’t deny she had a good figure… but she was actually a puppet.

But who was the living body? And why it was sealed in her body?

Interesting questions popped up, and Luo Qiu started to be distracted again.

Ding--!

The sound came from the bell on the door—it rang when someone came in.

Luo Qiu was awaken up by the bell, he looked towards the door, it was a middle-aged man with a worn out face.

"Excuse me…Is this Trafford’s Trading Club? Can I really buy anything I want here?" The man asked uncertainly with a tone of expectation.

Luo Qiu found the man holding a black card in his hand.

This might be the so-called pass that was released outside.