Hidden Moth-Chapter 255 - 140: Stirred Emotions and Lingering Affections

Chapter 255: Chapter 140: Stirred Emotions and Lingering Affections

As for how to handle it, Zhou Yan and He Changshan can decide.

At first, the aunt interrogated her daughter for a long time like she was questioning a thief, only to find out that this had been hidden for several years. It all started with borrowing a few thousand yuan while she was in school...

He Changshan was so angry he wanted to break his daughter’s legs, but in the end, he couldn’t bring himself to do it. The aunt grabbed the stick saying she’d do it, but ended up being stopped by her husband... She didn’t end up being beaten, but He Shan got scolded harshly.

After scolding her daughter, the aunt still couldn’t vent her anger and called He Kao to ask if the matter was true. With the IOU in her hands, what’s there to doubt?

Yet the aunt still hoped to hear the answer she wanted from He Kao, to hear him say it wasn’t true or that Xiaopang didn’t pay off this debt for He Shan.

Of course, He Kao didn’t comply with her wishes and stuck to his original statement. Then the aunt questioned him, saying since he and Xiaopang didn’t mention it back then, why did they think of delivering the IOU to Xiaopang’s mother now?

Mrs. Chen came with the IOU, wasn’t this just to embarrass their family on purpose?

Upon hearing this, He Kao hung up the phone. Later, when the aunt called again, he didn’t answer because he was busy with work at the time.

By dinner time, the uncle called with a relatively gentle tone, first asking when He Kao would return for Chinese New Year, saying they were waiting for him to have New Year’s Eve dinner together or such.

He Kao responded, saying he plans to take a drive during the New Year, which is currently a popular activity, and he wants to visit his uncle in Kuan Chun City in the Northeast.

Then the uncle subtly hinted, saying since He Kao went to the lending company with Xiaopang, why didn’t He Kao take the initiative to pay off his sister’s debt instead of letting an outsider pay, implying he wasn’t short of money!

He Kao answered that at the time he had only been at his job for less than six months and truly had no money. As for getting rich from his father’s legacy, that happened a few months later.

The uncle then followed the trend and said since he’s doing so well financially now, could he help pay Xiaopang on his sister’s behalf, and then it would be all settled.

He Kao refrained from mentioning that the money had already been returned. Instead, he replied, "Uncle, are you asking to borrow money from me?"

The uncle remained silent, which was a tacit admission.

Then He Kao stated that they could go ahead with it, but the uncle had to write an IOU. His condition was that the money would be borrowed in the name of the aunt and uncle, not Xiaoshan.

The reason was simple; an adult’s income comes from work, and Xiaoshan didn’t have a regular job income. She was just helping her parents with their business, and the family didn’t pay her a salary, only giving her some pocket money under the guise of helping her save for her dowry.

More importantly, it was the uncle who came to He Kao to ask, not Xiaoshan herself. So let the uncle borrow it; He Kao was still willing to give this face.

In He Kao’s view, this was already a perfect solution. As long as the uncle was willing to write the IOU, he would tell Mrs. Chen that he had already helped Xiaoshan pay Xiaopang back.

Unexpectedly, the uncle hesitated, saying he needed to discuss it with the aunt.

After hanging up, He Kao sat there recalling everything carefully, feeling that something wasn’t right, like he had intentionally manufactured a conflict. The thing with the 150,000 yuan, in fact, had never existed.

Xiaopang resolved the matter for He Shan without spending a single penny by relying on his Invisibility Ability and professional Technique.

The origin of the dispute was that after hearing about this matter, He Kao specifically asked Xiaopang to transfer 150,000 yuan to him. Perhaps his intention was to provide a plausible explanation for this incident.

When Xiaopang lost his memories about the Invisibility Ability, in his imagination, he truly believed he spent 150,000 yuan to help He Shan solve her troubles.

The loan contract and IOU documents for He Shan were with Xiaopang, and the record of him transferring 150,000 yuan to He Kao was traceable, everything seemed entirely reasonable!

In fact, simply returning the IOU documents to the aunt and repaying Xiaopang, then telling the aunt it was his money would have calmed things down, and it would’ve just looked like he helped Xiaoshan pay back 150,000 yuan.

Whether Xiaoshan returned the money or not, He Kao didn’t care, even if the aunt’s family did pay it back, He Kao would find a way to give the money back to them. He wouldn’t and shouldn’t accept it.

But currently, it seemed he was intentionally looking for trouble, colluding with Xiaopang on what to say and then handing the IOU to Mrs. Chen, clearly intending to stir things up.

Why was he doing this? It felt like a spontaneous decision yet also seemed premeditated. It seems that due to previous matters, he still harbored resentment towards the aunt’s family, unable to let it go.

Yesterday was just an opportunity, and he retaliated against the aunt’s family, knowing full well that this would make the aunt furious, it was intentional.

The uncle once said that He Kao’s mind was too deep, and indeed it wasn’t a baseless claim.

Why exactly yesterday though? Yesterday his mood seemed great; he hosted a meal for two elders, acquired treasures, and most importantly, he not only comprehended the true meaning of Dragon Tendon Training but also successfully broke through to Tier Three Cultivation!

Within every technique’s inheritance, it highlights that the most critical test in Tier Three Cultivation is not just the difficulty of the Technique itself, but also guarding against the growth of the Heart Demon.

The so-called Heart Demon, for those who read too many novels, might misunderstand it as mere illusions arising during sitting meditation, magic thoughts transforming into various scenes that either make someone indulge or cause fear...

The illusions arising after entering are certainly one form of the Heart Demon. Some may interpret it as evil demons tainting the mind, Celestial Demons hindering cultivation, Desire Demons capturing souls, and so on, making it sound like there indeed exists some external demon.

The reason it’s called a Heart Demon is actually that it originates from within a person; external disturbances in cultivation are typically called Afflictions.

The source of the Heart Demon is very simple, it’s summed up in three words—unresolved anger.

Who in this world hasn’t faced unresolved anger? Therefore, the growth of Heart Demons is unavoidable and often goes unnoticed. It could be something trivial, yet it might subtly and indescribably affect one’s usual mindset.

The Heart Demon doesn’t only appear in Tier Three but has always been there, constantly appearing and vanishing. But at Tier Three, its influence on cultivation becomes increasingly apparent, even unconsciously enlarging and growing.

It’s like when grass and trees sprout leaves, all kinds of insects emerge from dormancy.

Some believe the Heart Demon’s test appears only when breaking through to Tier Four from Tier Three. This is a misunderstanding. In fact, it’s at that stage that it becomes conspicuous, and if not discerned, one cannot break the gate and advance.

He Kao originally had knots about the aunt’s family, and it happened that on the day he broke through Tier Three, he inadvertently stirred up chaos in the aunt’s house, probably ruining their New Year!

Does this incident seem serious? It doesn’t seem so severe, just trivial daily matters, yet it reflects He Kao’s mindset, indeed mirroring his unresolved anger.

The unresolved anger might not only stem from the aunt’s family, perhaps there are other reasons, but He Kao hasn’t figured it out yet.

After a round of introspection, He Kao also realized some agitation in his mindset. He turned around and walked to that apartment in Guanliu District, sitting in meditation on the terrace facing the direction of the river flow.

The meditation seemed ineffective; even when emptying his mind, he could still feel the restlessness preventing calmness, so he stood up, took a step, and the next moment appeared deep in Gu Mountain.

**