Chapter 18 Chapter 18 Endure it all!
"etc!"
Jinzha interrupted the peddler.
He successfully drew the man's attention to himself, and then, seemingly unintentionally, placed his palm on Nezha's shoulder.
He used the strength he had when hunting wild animals to suppress his impulsive younger brother.
Ping Yu's dazed state of mind snapped back to reality the moment she heard the word "kitchen." She recalled Tong'er's description of the man chopping people up, and a chill ran down her spine.
Thinking back to the strange feeling the statue had given her, she thought:
Are you going to cook me?
The peddler looked at Jinzha with a curious expression and asked, "What's wrong?"
“I’ll do it,” Jinzha replied. “My daughter’s cooking skills are not good, and if the master is willing, we’ll probably need to freshen up a bit before we go into the kitchen.”
If she hadn't mentioned it, the peddler would probably have truly forgotten that these three were refugees.
The man looked closer and saw that the three of them were covered in mud, oil, and grime, emitting a pungent stench. The woman lowered her eyes and continued, "It's been more than three months since we last bathed. If we cook soup like this, the food will probably be contaminated with dirt. I don't want it to upset your stomach, sir."
What you said... seems to make some sense.
The peddler hadn't intended to kill anyone so soon, but the statues on the altar seemed possessed, constantly urging him on.
She said the girl smelled wonderful, a top-quality product, and she wanted to taste the blood right now.
After worrying for so long, now that the customer order has been secured, he deserves to enjoy a quality life!
"Go fetch the water yourselves," the peddler relented, pointing in a direction. "The buckets and firewood are in the backyard. If you use the firewood, you'll have to fetch more tomorrow. Go to that side room to wash, and after you're done, go to the kitchen and cook for me."
As he pointed to the room, a surge of heat emanated from Pingyu's chest. Excessive fire often leads to legal troubles and disputes; therefore, a person's anger is like a feverish flame.
"It's ours."
Tong'er's voice faintly rang out.
Like a thin cotton thread inserted into the ear canal: "That's the room where Xiao Bei and I live."
Since he had already killed his own son and daughter, what did it matter if he used their room to provide a room for a dying slave to wash and groom? The peddler didn't care about anyone else but himself.
With the crisis temporarily averted, Ping Yu breathed a sigh of relief.
After bidding farewell to the peddler, the three went to the backyard to fetch buckets.
Upon entering the room, Pingyu discovered that there was no threshold.
Jinzha took out a talisman and stuck it on the closed door. The young man turned around and said, "Now you can speak."
"What just happened?" Ping Yu immediately asked. "I heard that statue talking to me! And this place is so strange, why are all the houses, including the main entrance, without thresholds?"
Pingyu remembered that in the past, during the Qingming Festival when they went to their hometown to pay respects to their ancestors, the elders would often grab some children by the ears and scold them:
The threshold is a treasure trove, and also the gateway to the underworld.
Stepping on it with one foot will overturn the valuables in the basin; stepping on it with both feet together will be considered by the ghost messengers as a troublesome wandering ghost, which will then steal a person's soul.
If a peddler wants to make money, why wouldn't he set up a barrier at the very entrance that's crucial to his fortune?
That doesn't make sense!
Nezha sat heavily on the mat.
"Because this is not a house for humans to live in at all."
After saying that, the boy glared fiercely at his elder brother: "Why did you stop me just now?"
If Jinzha hadn't stopped them, the peddler and the demon would have been killed on the spot.
"A house that isn't for humans to live in?" Pingyu repeated the question, glancing to her left at Nezha and then to her front at Jinzha. A huge question mark hung on her little head, as if the words "What does this mean?" were practically written all over her face.
The handkerchief in the girl's arms also floated away lightly.
It landed on the table, and Tong'er poked her head out.
The infant spirit also asked, "Brothers and sisters, can my sister and I go find our mother now?"
The grumpy face, the confused face.
Jinzha looked at the children below him, each with their own distinct expression, and thought they resembled chattering little birds.
Sigh... I've become a bird mother too, Jinzha thought with a sense of helplessness.
He rubbed his temples and answered each question one by one.
The young man spoke to his younger brother first: "If you had acted just now, and someone who doesn't know the truth saw it, they would have smeared you. In that case, all of Pingyu's hard work would have been in vain! Nezha, remember, as long as things are under control, never act impulsively."
Nezha wanted to argue back at the first half of the sentence, but he wilted when he heard "Pingyu's scheme". He snorted and said coldly through gritted teeth, "When we finally slay the demons, those two will be mine."
"It's up to you."
Jinzha was very good with cats; he knew that when Nezha exploded into a flower, he should stroke his fur in the right direction.
After saying that, he turned to Ping Yu: "Your destiny and constitution are like a red crane's crest to mortals, but to ghosts they are a panacea. The statue is craving your flesh and blood, and she can't wait any longer, so she took the initiative to establish a connection with your mind. I think that's why that man suddenly asked you to go to the kitchen just now."
Being tempted by a demon... That sounds so strange!
Ping Yu covered her face, speechless: She couldn't even wait for the appointed time before she wanted to eat someone; she was really impatient. But she was quite polite, giving a heads-up before she even considered eating someone.
"As for the threshold..." Jinzha continued, "This house has more than just this one unusual feature."
“When Nezha and I arrived, we saw a giant tree at the entrance of this courtyard. In geomancy, a door facing a tree is considered a ‘piercing evil,’ which is believed to bring death and ruin to the family, leaving no descendants. The altar under the tree is also directly opposite the entrance, attracting evil spirits that haunt women and wives. The threshold is not only for accumulating wealth, but also to prevent ghosts from entering the house. Living people can step over the threshold, but ghosts can only float on the ground and cannot lift their legs to cross it. Since he removed the threshold…” The young man paused, tapped his chin with his fingertips, and after a moment’s thought, he said his guess: “I think it’s to make everything unrestricted. To allow all kinds of ghosts to come and go freely, and to let the demons he worships have eyes and hands that can reach the heavens in this small house.”
She asked again, "Since that tree by the door is specifically meant to bring about the death of the head of the household, why is the peddler still alive and well? And..." Pingyu, grasping the key point in Jinzha's words, probed, "If that altar by the door is used to entangle the wife, wouldn't that prove..."
“Their mother isn’t dead yet,” Nezha interjected.
The boy turned to the side and leaned against the wooden table.
The infant spirit's head was placed upside down on the table, and he was being spun around by Nezha like a top.
Tong'er's pupils turned into mosquito rings, and he stumbled back into the handkerchief, dizzy and disoriented. He vaguely heard the pretty little fairy say, "Didn't you come here wanting to know why your father was keeping your mother alive? Now it's very clear. The spirit vessel needs to be kept alive with yin energy and ghostly energy, and all the evil spirits and demons you find are piled on your mother... Humph."
The boy said with disgust, "He wants both, but he only takes the yin energy to make money and won't take any responsibility at all."
“However, I reckon death would be the best outcome for her.” His red lips uttered nothing but harsh and cold words: “After all, having her bones removed and being kept alive by sorcery, even if she were alive, she would be far removed from humanity.”
"But I just have to find my mother!" Tong'er held her head, her resolute voice coming from behind the red-glowing handkerchief: "If she's dead, Xiao Bei and I will be with her; if she's alive, we'll punish that beast in front of her and avenge her! Whether she's a human or a ghost, dead or alive, we have to see our mother!"
"Then stay put for now and behave yourself."
An arc of light drew an arch in mid-air, and finally, as Nezha spoke, the handkerchief fell straight into Pingyu's arms. He stood up and asked Jinzha, "Didn't you consider the actual situation when you used the talisman?"
"Huh?" The older brother was a beat slow to react: "I used a concealment talisman, which can block ghosts from spying on and tracking me... It works very well, doesn't it?"
Ping Yu vaguely understood what Nezha meant.
Birds hunt by closely watching their prey's movements, striking when the prey is off guard and killing it instantly. Since she was the prey of the Guhuoniao, the great demon would surely keep a close watch on her, not allowing Pingyu to leave for a moment. Jinzha used a concealment talisman, making it seem as if Pingyu had vanished from the spot for a brief moment.
The Guhuoniao will definitely notify the peddler to come and arrest the person.
Sizzle!
The talisman was torn apart.
As the spell dissipated, Ping Yu felt a chill run down his spine.
A feeling of unease, like thorns in her back, enveloped her, as if her every move was under the control of external forces. And outside, just as the boy had predicted, hurried, heavy footsteps approached, almost running. The shadow on the windowpane gradually widened, quickly transforming into a blurry human figure.
The peddler is here!
While using a cleaning technique might leave you feeling clean, the complete absence of watermarks on the floor is hard to explain. If the deception is discovered, trying to lie and cover it up will be troublesome!
She looked around, her mind racing. Finally, her gaze sharpened as she looked at a certain spot. To make the act convincing, there were still tubs and basins filled with water in the room. In her haste, Pingyu picked up the wooden basin from the floor and scooped the tub full. Jinzha, watching her actions, looked slightly puzzled: "Pingyu, what are you doing…?"
"There's no time to explain, hold your breath!"
As soon as they finished speaking, they heard the sound of rushing water.
A chilling sensation began to wash over him, starting from his face. Before Nezha could react, he wiped the water from his eyes and realized that the girl was still holding the basin up, splashing water.
Hair, cheeks, clothes...
Every inch of my body was soaked. A sticky, cold feeling belatedly crept up on me.
Nezha took a deep breath.
endure……
Prioritize the overall situation.
endure……
She had her reasons for doing this.
endure………
…………………
To hell with it!
The damp water pooled on the ground, and the dust and grime he had rubbed on his face to disguise himself as a refugee trickled down his skin, forming a yellowish liquid. An unbelievable rage, like a boulder smashing into a well, inevitably erupted from Nezha's body. He spoke, his mouth seeming to overflow with sulfurous explosives: "You..."
Before he could utter the words "Are you sick?", a huge, hard object was shoved into his arms.
Nezha subconsciously looked down and found that it was the wooden basin that the girl had just given him.
He looked up, gazing into a pair of bright, sparkling eyes. Ping Yu stood tall and proud, pointing at herself like a puppy eager to play in the water. Ignoring Nezha's anger, she urged:
"Quick, hurry up! It's your turn to splash me!"
A note from the author:
Cats are generally helpless against puppies.
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Ugh, I really enjoy reading the comments. Then I opened the backend and saw that the administrator had inexplicably deleted a lot of your comments, and my appeal wasn't approved. These were comments that didn't say anything, comments that made me really happy!! I'm so angry! [crying emoji] [crying emoji] [crying emoji] Regarding the extra chapters, I update daily before VIP membership, and extra chapters will be added depending on the situation after VIP membership.
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