Chapter 53
The wedding banquet hosted by Granny Mouse for her daughter finally ended before midnight.
Although the banquet was over, the capital city was already under curfew. At this time, any monsters without permission who were to roam the city would be severely punished if they were captured, at the Strange People's Temple.
Fortunately, many guests stayed in the millet garden.
Since everyone was a monster, there weren't many formalities between them. Granny Mouse removed the large round table from the garden, and the guests either turned back into their original forms, with all sorts of creatures lying haphazardly on the ground, or went to the front yard reserved for the guests to rest.
Only Xiaoman and Baozhu, preoccupied with their own thoughts, were not sleepy at all. While Granny Mouse was settling the guests, they quickly exchanged information about where they had been during this time.
Xiaoman spoke first, recounting what he and Saixue had done over the past few months.
After parting ways at Gejiabao that day, Xiaoman and Saixue dared not venture into the mountains again, fearing they might encounter another terrifying monster that would capture and devour them.
After discussing it, the two little demons realized that although it was inconvenient for demons to be in a mortal town, at least there was a Celestial Master in charge. As long as they did not do evil, it was much safer than the mountains.
They randomly chose a town with ordinary people, took out a pair of genuine travel permits they had picked up from the mountains, and honestly pretended to be an ordinary brother and sister. They found a cheap house in the town, exchanged the game they had hunted from the mountains for money, and rented the house to live in.
Although things have settled down, this has created other problems. Ordinary people need to make a living, so they have to work every day to earn money to rent houses and buy food. If Sai Xue and Xiao Man want to better pretend to be ordinary people and not arouse suspicion among the people around them, they also need to choose a business to earn some money, just like ordinary people.
They originally intended to go up the mountain to hunt and earn money, but soon they realized that for ordinary people, the mountains also have owners, especially the mountains near the city, which belong to wealthy families. Ordinary people can't even go there to collect firewood, let alone hunt. If they are discovered, it will cause trouble.
The two little demons had no choice but to find another way.
Xiaoman, the bull demon, was extremely strong, but not very bright. After thinking for a long time, he decided to go out and do manual labor every day. He worked as a porter at the dock. While ordinary people could carry two bags at most, he could carry six bags at a time, earning six times the wages of an ordinary laborer in a day.
He also went to deliver goods to shops in the city, delivering several times more goods than ordinary people could at a time.
This was still the result of Xiaoman conserving her energy to avoid attracting attention.
Xiaoman settled down contentedly, stretching her muscles and bones every day, and soon she made a name for herself in the city.
However, Sai Xue did not find it as easy to make a living as Xiao Man.
She was born weak, a yellow-haired girl who looked no more than seven or eight years old in human form. She was thin and small, with no strength and no magic skills. Mortals would never hire such a little girl. Sai Xue could only stay at home all day, waiting for Xiao Man to come back with money.
Sai Xue was unwilling to admit that Xiao Man, that big, silly girl, was much more useful than herself. She spent all day thinking about what ordinary jobs she could do.
Finally, a few days later, she found him.
At that time, the daughter-in-law of the family they rented from was pregnant. This family had already given birth to four or five chubby boys and really wanted a girl. The family even went to the temple to burn incense and prayed to God to give them a girl.
That day, Sai Xue was bored, so she went to find the boys to play with. She heard the boys say that their mother wanted a little sister. She went into the house, found the daughter-in-law, and with a gentle sniff, she was certain that it was a girl, and a twin at that.
The daughter-in-law smiled and assumed that Sai Xue, this young girl, was just sweet-talking, so she gave her a piece of candy and that was it.
Not long after, the daughter-in-law gave birth prematurely, and their family indeed gained a pair of twin daughters.
This was quite a surprise. The landlord brought red eggs to Sai Xue's room and also brought her nephew's wife, who was about to give birth, to ask her whether the baby was a boy or a girl.
Sai Xue sniffed and said it was a boy, then frowned and told the landlord that he smelled bad and might have a hidden illness.
The landlord was so frightened that he immediately went to see a doctor, who found out that he had a chronic ailment that hadn't bothered him when he was younger, but was now showing signs of.
Not long after, his nephew's wife gave birth to a boy, just as Sai Xue had predicted.
The charlatan Sai Xue's reputation quickly spread throughout the city.
Since then, ordinary people have been coming to Sai Xue to see her children and to inquire about her lifespan, almost wearing down the already dilapidated threshold of her house.
Sai Xue also went along with the trend, accepting countless sums of money and becoming a well-known charlatan in the city.
This angered the local bullies in the city, who spread rumors that when Sai Xue first came to the city, she was just an ordinary little girl with no skills and was a fraud.
Sai Xue was furious, but when she first entered the city, she hadn't intended to become a charlatan, leaving many loopholes in her not-quite-charlatan behavior—for example, as soon as she entered the city, she found a wealthy family and wanted to work as a maid, with room and board provided and the option to return to Xiao Man anytime to reunite, etc.
Sai Xue immediately decided to leave the city and start over, to become the most powerful charlatan in another mortal town!
Xiaoman, who was always carrying heavy bags wherever she went, naturally agreed. The two little demons, now experienced, simply blindfolded themselves with ribbons, pretended to be blind, bought nice clothes, and with their hands behind their backs, transformed from a young girl into a dignified and otherworldly figure.
They no longer settled in any particular town, but instead traveled from town to town among ordinary people, making a fortune while hoping to encounter the precious pearl.
Until one day, Sai Xue went out, holding a large gold ingot given to her by a mortal. She removed the blindfold and told Xiao Man that she wanted to go to the capital.
Xiaoman said to Baozhu, "She met a monster outside. The monster told her that there are many monsters living in the capital, and there is also a rat granny who can help deal with the relationship between humans and monsters. So we moved to the capital and bought a small courtyard to live in."
Baozhu listened to Xiaoman recount their experiences along the way and was greatly impressed, exclaiming, "I never imagined that Saixue had grown so much."
However, remembering what Xiaoman had said earlier about Saixue being imprisoned, Baozhu frowned and said, "She has been dealing with many mortals these days, so she must have gained some experience. What happened this time?"
Just as Xiaoman was about to answer, Granny Mouse had already settled the guests and was waving to them from in front of the moon gate, saying, "Come to my study."
So Xiaoman and Baozhu moved from the garden to Granny Mouse's study. Granny Mouse had the big rat brew a pot of tea and poured a cup for the two demons. She then asked Xiaoman, "Tell me, what trouble has Saixue gotten into?"
Xiaoman quickly told the two demons about the trouble Saixue had gotten into in the city.
It turned out that after Sai Xue and Xiao Man entered the capital, they bought a small courtyard in the south of the city where commoners lived. Sai Xue continued to do her business as a charlatan, while Xiao Man went to the southern dock to carry heavy loads during the day.
In this capital city, there are important people everywhere. Sai Xue was quite cautious at first. The more wealthy the guest she saw, the more careful she became in her speech. However, she did not expect that there were such wealthy guests who were frugal in their daily lives and dressed no differently from ordinary people.
The distinguished guest's surname was Zhu. His family was a well-known medicinal herb merchant in the south of the city. His parents only had him as their son, and they cherished him dearly. When he was a teenager, they arranged a marriage for him. His wife was the daughter of Mr. Zhu's business partner, and her surname was Yuan.
For the first few years after their marriage, Mr. Zhu and Miss Yuan enjoyed a period of blissful happiness together. However, Mr. Zhu later changed.
Originally, Miss Yuan was strict with Young Master Zhu, forbidding him from drinking and frequenting brothels. During the time when their relationship was good, Young Master Zhu was obedient. However, after Miss Yuan gave birth to three daughters in succession, Young Master Zhu began to occasionally stay out all night.
Until the beginning of this year, Ms. Yuan gave birth to her fourth daughter.
This time, Young Master Zhu completely changed his mind. Apart from occasionally visiting Miss Yuan's courtyard to see his daughters, he spent his days wandering around outside.
Miss Yuan went to complain to her in-laws. Her father-in-law remained silent, while her mother-in-law advised her that since she couldn't have a son, she should turn a blind eye to her husband's behavior.
Miss Yuan was so angry that she went back to her parents' home, but her own mother kicked her back and told her to endure it for the sake of her four daughters.
While his wife was seeking help everywhere, Zhu Gongzi met a pitiful woman who was selling herself to bury her father. He generously buried her father and bought her a house outside to settle her down. The woman's body went limp, and she generously conceived a child for him.
The mistress didn't tell him at first, but only when her belly was big and the pregnancy was stable did she tell Young Master Zhu. This time, Young Master Zhu couldn't sit still. He wanted to marry this woman and make her at least a noble concubine.
Upon hearing this news, Miss Yuan collapsed to the ground. When she came to her senses, she declared that since Young Master Zhu already had four daughters, if this woman was carrying a daughter, then he should bring her back. Only if it was a son would he allow the mistress to enter the house.
Young Master Zhu said that his mistress must be carrying a son, and that he would bring her back now.
The two had a big argument, neither willing to back down.
However, after Master Zhu and Madam Zhu learned of this matter, they had other ideas after thinking about the four daughters born to Miss Yuan.
Coincidentally, Sai Xue was gaining fame in the south of the city at this time, and everyone was saying that the new blind woman was really accurate in her judgment.
Master Zhu then took it upon himself to have his son, Zhu Gongzi, take his mistress to see Sai Xue.
Young Master Zhu and Miss Yuan, along with Young Master Zhu's mistress, went to find Sai Xue and begged her to take a look.
Sai Xue was blindfolded, but with only her peripheral vision, she saw a pair of drab gray shoes on Young Master Zhu's feet, and the two women's very simple dresses.
She didn't take it seriously, sniffed the air, and told Young Master Zhu that the concubine was carrying a boy.
Young Master Zhu happily married his mistress, and nearly a month later, she gave birth prematurely to a full-term girl in the Zhu family.
Young Master Zhu was dumbfounded.
The mistress was also dumbfounded. After the child was born, she knelt on the bed, crying and wailing that it must have been a boy and that someone had switched the babies.
Miss Yuan from the main courtyard sneered and said that she had done nothing.
Enraged, Young Master Zhu had a huge argument with his wife, but since she was his lawfully wedded wife, he couldn't divorce her. So he vented his anger on the poor Sai Xue, reporting the charlatan Sai Xue to the South City Military Command, saying she was a fraud.
Zhu happened to have a relative who was the deputy commander of the South City Military Command. He immediately led his officers to the prison and locked the confused Sai Xue in jail.
Xiaoman went out early this morning, and when she returned from work and went to find Saixue to go to Granny Mouse's wedding banquet together, she found that Saixue had been captured.
He immediately inquired everywhere about what had happened, and it wasn't until dark that he found someone with connections. He bribed a lowly guard at the military headquarters to find out what had happened.
By this time, a curfew had already been imposed in the capital. Xiaoman, risking great danger, secretly slipped out of the city to seek help from Granny Mouse.
Granny Mouse's expression didn't change when she heard what Xiaoman had said earlier, but when she heard Xiaoman say that she had secretly slipped out of the city after curfew, she was so frightened that she patted her chest and said, "You little rascal, even if you come looking for me first thing tomorrow morning, so what? If you are caught by the Heavenly Master patrolling the city, Sai Xue will be fine, but you will be in big trouble."
Xiaoman said with a pained expression, "I'm worried."
Baozhu patted Xiaoman's arm and turned to Granny Mouse, saying, "Don't worry, since Granny has said so, she will definitely be able to get Saixue out of jail."
Granny Mouse chuckled and glanced at Baozhu, saying, "No need to provoke this old woman. As long as Saixue doesn't reveal her monster identity in front of others, it should be easy to handle. I'll go and inquire about it. At worst, I'll just spend some money."
Seeing that Baozhu and Xiaoman had relaxed, Granny Rat slapped the table again and said seriously, "This time, Sai Xue only offended a relative of the deputy commander of the South City Garrison, and was easily imprisoned. What if she offended an even higher official? Mortals are not like us demons. The higher the status, the more petty we are. You must keep my words firmly in mind."
Baozhu and Xiaoman nodded repeatedly, both saying they understood.
Grandma Mouse was finally satisfied and told them to go and rest for a while. She would go into town early the next morning to retrieve Sai Xue.
Baozhu couldn't sleep at all. She and Xiaoman squatted together in the covered walkway of the millet garden. The two little demons chatted incessantly, and Baozhu explained her experiences over the past few months.
Xiaoman was stunned and stared wide-eyed, saying, "Baozhu, you're still alive. It's really not easy. These past few months have been much harder for you than for me and Saixue."
Baozhu sighed and said, "Yes, I've been lucky."
The two little demons squatted all night and finally waited for dawn. They were just waiting for Granny Rat to be ready so they could set off for the capital when a young master appeared in the backyard. He walked along the covered corridor and saw Baozhu. His eyes lit up and he said, "Why is Miss here?"
It was none other than Granny Rat's adopted son-in-law, Young Master Shi.
Baozhu felt a little awkward, and before she could answer, Xiaoman's huge body blocked her way, and he said in a muffled voice, "My sisters and I are waiting for Grandma here."
Young Master Shi blinked, and as if he had just seen Xiaoman, he said "Oh," and politely said, "Grandma should be out soon."
Before he finished speaking, Bai Yutuan, supporting Granny Shu, walked out of the backyard together, the two of them close together.
Granny Rat was whispering something to Bai Yutuan when she looked up and saw the three people in front of her with an awkward atmosphere. She stopped abruptly, a glint of light flashing in her eyes. She smiled kindly at Young Master Shi and said, "My son-in-law is quick to leave; he disappeared in the blink of an eye."
Before he could answer, she said to Baozhu and the others, "Baozhu and Xiaoman are waiting for me. Let's go."
After saying this, Granny Mouse patted Bai Yutuan's hand and walked ahead, leaning on her cane.
Baozhu and Xiaoman quickly followed.
Xiaoman didn't say anything in front of Young Master Shi. When the three monsters walked to the main courtyard, he took advantage of Granny Rat's inattention and whispered to Baozhu, "Young Master Shi is not proper. If he weren't Granny Rat's son-in-law, I would beat him up."
This fool, one should look at him with new eyes after three days of separation.
Baozhu gave Xiaoman an approving look and whispered, "If any bad people look at Saixue like that outside, beat them up."
"I've beaten up so many already," Xiaoman said, shaking her head and showing Baozhu her fists.
The old woman in front twitched her ears, smirked, and turned back to them, saying, "Young little monsters, how come you can't even walk as fast as this old woman?"
Baozhu and Xiaoman immediately fell silent and quickly followed Granny Mouse out of the millet garden and onto the carriage pulled by the big rats.
As soon as the carriage started moving forward, the large rats transformed into two unremarkable middle-aged men with small mustaches. After about half an hour, they said in front of the carriage, "Grandma, we're about to enter the city."
Grandma Mouse, who was dozing in the carriage, responded. The carriage paused for a moment, then started moving forward again.
At this moment, the sound of the horses walking on the road became crisp and clear, indicating that they had entered the city.
Baozhu felt a little itchy and couldn't resist lifting the curtain a little to look outside.
As expected of the capital, the people there looked different from those in the lower prefectures. As Baozhu looked around, she recalled her previous life. Unbeknownst to her, the carriage arrived at the yamen of the Military Command in the south of the city.
After the carriage stopped, Granny Mouse opened her eyes and sighed, saying to Xiaoman, "Give this old woman a hand."
Xiaoman and Baozhu quickly and carefully helped Granny Mouse down from the carriage.
Granny Rat stood in front of the yamen, looked up at the words "South City Military Command" on the plaque, and muttered to herself, "Since he is a relative of the deputy commander, we should at least find someone with comparable qualifications."
After saying that, Granny Mouse instructed Baozhu and Xiaoman, "You two go to the prison to visit Saixue and hear what she has to say. I'll go find someone."
The giant rat, now in human form, pulled out a token and winked at Baozhu and the others.
Baozhu and Xiaoman followed, turned around, and headed towards the prison of the Military Command in the south of the city.
When they arrived at the prison, the place where Xiaoman had begged and pleaded to learn a little about Saixue, the big rat showed the token to the soldiers and led two little demons swaggering inside.
Baozhu and Xiaoman exchanged glances, both agreeing that Granny Rat was truly formidable.
Half of the prison was buried underground. As the three demons walked underground, they sensed a cool, damp chill.
It was only late September, and the weather in the capital had just stopped being hot, but the prison was so cold that even the monsters shivered.
Behind the iron bars on both sides of the prison, the mortals imprisoned were all wrapped in thick clothes.
Baozhu glanced at it and whispered to the big rat, "Where did they get these thick clothes?"
The big rat rubbed its index finger and thumb together, then glanced up again.
Baozhu said "Oh," and then belatedly said to Xiaoman, "We should also bring some clothes."
The big rat pulled a package from its bosom as if by magic and said to Baozhu, "Grandma has given me instructions."
Before Baozhu could even remark to Xiaoman on Granny Mouse's thoughtfulness, she suddenly stopped in her tracks.
By this time, they had reached the deepest part of the prison. In one of the cells, a thin, small, blond girl was imprisoned. Her hair was disheveled, and her clothes were dirty. She was huddled in a corner, hugging her knees and burying her head.
It was Sai Xue, whom we hadn't seen in a long time.
What a beautiful white cat, always so clean, how did it get like this?
Baozhu felt a pang of sadness, her eyes reddening, and she softly called out, "Sai Xue, it's me."
Sai Xue heard Bao Zhu's voice, suddenly raised her head to look outside the prison door, and then got up and walked forward in disbelief, looking at Bao Zhu's face from left to right.
After watching for a while, Sai Xue pouted, grabbed the iron bars, and wailed, "Baozhu, why did you take so long to come? I... I've been locked up! I'll never be a charlatan again!"
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