The cook walked out of the mountain cave and found the water bucket outside. The water bucket was fine, but beside it were also placed a teapot, teacups, and bowls. The cook’s lips twitched—why didn’t you guys bring the bed to the master as well?
There was no need to ask, these things were definitely prepared by the shadow guards hidden in the dark.
The cook carried these things into the cave. Cheng Zimo’s gaze fell on these complete daily necessities, and his neck stiffened as he looked towards the altar.
So, she intended to live in the mountain cave for this period of time?
Living in a mountain cave was fine, but shouldn't the corpse on the altar be dealt with?
Moreover, if they were to live here, these black-robed figures had been gone for too long. Wouldn’t their companions come to check? Wouldn't they then be caught in a trap?
“Yes, yes, yes, this is called lying in wait for a rabbit!”
The cook held the little girl and solemnly taught her an idiom.
Cheng Zimo: “……?”
Being trapped in a cave is called lying in wait for a rabbit? The teacher’s coffin lid would be pressed down!
Teacher: I’m not dead, thanks for the invitation!
Nan Shiying boiled a pot of water. Shouyi walked up to her and handed her the tea in his arms: “I originally intended for the donor to sell the tea and earn some silver, but drinking it is also excellent.”
Nan Shiying looked at the tea Shouyi handed her. If she hadn't smelled it wrong, the aroma emanating from the tea bag was the calming tea she had drunk with Aunt Wang that day.
Nan Shiying took the tea and asked, “Master, do you regret getting involved in this mess?”
Shouyi sat on a nearby stone and looked at the boiling water. The water bubbled, and the steam rose, creating a hazy mist that blurred the appearance of the person in front of him. Only a pair of eyes were deep and bright. In fact, the process was important and also not important. At least he had completed what he wanted to do: “No regrets!” Shouyi shook his head, nonchalant and composed. “I just wanted to hand the tea to you personally, that’s all.”
Nan Shiying disliked monks, always feeling they were too utilitarian. But now it seemed, it wasn't that monks were too utilitarian, it was just that the monks she had seen before were not so pure.
“Thank you!”
Nan Shiying said this thank you very sincerely.
Shouyi did not refuse as before; he accepted Nan Shiying’s gratitude.
As she said, kindness with a purpose is still kindness.
Nan Shiying brewed a pot of tea. The aroma filled the air. She handed it to Shouyi, who took it with both hands and savored it.
Master Uncle’s calming tea tastes really good.
Cheng Zimo felt that this damned monk had no self-awareness of being a hostage at all.
…
Yesterday, the Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce’s cargo ship finally returned from Liaojiang, and this afternoon, it was filled with goods again.
The Langhuan Army meticulously inspected the Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce’s cargo. This time, in addition to transporting silks, satins, rouge, and powder, the Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce only transported some animal offal, claiming it was for making dried goods.
“Dried goods?”
Lin Xie frowned, his brow furrowed. Would offal be used to make dried goods? Even if it were, why would they buy it from Lin Yuan? Liaojiang’s grasslands were vast, with herds of cattle and sheep. Wouldn’t it be easy to get offal?
“Chongyu, do you think there might be…”
Lin Xie felt there was a problem, but he couldn’t figure out what it was, so he decided to ask Cheng Chongyu for his opinion. Cheng Chongyu chuckled and said, “It’s just some offal, why bother dwelling on it? As long as it’s not…” He paused and swallowed the rest of his words.
Lin Xie was silent for a moment, then slowly nodded.
The Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce’s ship set sail as scheduled.
The next morning, a servant from the Cheng manor hurried to the military camp and found Cheng Chongyu: “Master, the young master did not return all night yesterday!!”
…
Cheng Zimo, the second son of the Cheng family, was missing.
According to the city guards, they saw the second young master leaving the city with companions yesterday, heading in the direction of Zhongshi Village.
This was the last time Cheng Zimo appeared in front of everyone.
“Search, keep searching!”
Cheng Chongyu ordered all the servants to search outside the city. They searched for two full days and still found no trace.
Madam Cheng cried until she fainted, and cried again upon waking. Madam Cheng cried for as long as Cheng Zimo had been missing. Cheng Chongyu was extremely anxious, but to comfort his wife, he could only suppress his inner worry and fear.
The wind blew against the window frame, making a faint sound.
A green snake, as thick as a finger, crawled in through the crack in the window.
Cheng Chongyu tucked the quilt over his wife, who had fainted from excessive grief. His peripheral vision caught a glimpse of a green shadow, and he turned his head sharply.
The green snake did not stop crawling because of the human gaze. It crawled to a position about one meter from Cheng Chongyu and stopped. It flicked its tail, delivering a folded paper, no bigger than a thumb, tied to its tail to Cheng Chongyu’s eyes.
Cheng Chongyu took the paper without making a sound. The little green snake had completed its mission but did not leave.
Cheng Chongyu ignored it. He opened the paper, and the message that met his eyes caused his expression to change dramatically. He reached out and pinched the snake’s seven inches, lifting the snake.
With a little more force, he could have crushed the snake, but in the end, he let go and tied a jade token from his waist to the green snake’s tail.
Cheng Chongyu opened the room door and walked out. The green snake followed and crawled out.
Watching the green snake disappear into the night, Cheng Chongyu pondered. He didn’t look for Yu Dabao, nor did he alert anyone in the manor. He silently followed behind the green snake.
…
The Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce’s ship docked on time, and Agu Jiao sent people to collect the porcelain jars filled with blood and hearts.
The priest blew the bone flute, and the baby spiders, which were two sizes smaller than the previous ones, crawled out from all directions. They were dense and covered the ground, scrambling into the porcelain jars.
This scene was eerily familiar.
Even though Xiong Shi’s soldiers had seen this scene before, they still felt their hearts palpitate at the sight.
…
Snake Shadow swung her long legs and looked sideways at Shouyi.
Her features were exquisite, her figure slender, and her eyes, with a faint greenish hue, seemed to ripple like spring water. Shouyi was powerless to resist and lowered his head slightly, looking at his toes.
“Heh~”
Snake Shadow turned her head and looked at Nan Shiying: “You really are a magnet for trouble.”
Nan Shiying raised her hand and slapped her. The sound was crisp and the force was strong. Five clear finger marks soon appeared on half of her pretty face.
“You have some use, but you are not indispensable. If you don’t want to die, put away that expression. You should know, you are not worthy!”
Snake Shadow’s expression changed again and again, but she couldn’t help but retort, “And you? Are you worthy?”
Nan Shiying seemed to have heard the funniest joke in the world. In this world, only things were worthy or not worthy of her, but there was nothing she was not worthy of.
“More than enough!”
She did not list one, two, or three, nor did she analyze why she was worthy, but Snake Shadow felt her inner strength and confidence from these two words.
“I finally understand why you insisted on having me!”