Chapter 78 (Completely Rewritten, Major Overhaul) Fate...
It feels like no one can say "no" to a cat.
Anyway, Pingyu won't work.
The pigeon, which had just been pampered, was suddenly neglected; the affectionate little human girl had already fallen for someone else.
The next second, the devil whispered in her ear: "Touching means you agree."
Pingyu: ! !
You bastard, are you a demon?!
She was still able to maintain her composure and forcefully pulled her hand back with her eyes closed.
She warned herself: This guy isn't a cat, he's Nezha! If I'm fooled by his cute appearance, I'm doomed, I'll definitely go to hell!
Ping Yu was very principled: "No, no way!"
If there hadn't been a stutter, perhaps the refusal would have sounded more believable.
The first element of hunting is to cross the prey's bottom line, to break down her inner resistance so that she will submit. Nezha has been hunting since birth; he understands this principle well and is the best hunter.
Taking advantage of his current position, Nezha Cat crouched down and moved forward.
Its fur was soft and delicate, nuzzling affectionately against the girl's calves, which were bent in front of her. Even with her eyes closed, Pingyu could feel the cat's tail stickily wrapping around her wrist, which was resting on her knee.
The cat let out a soft, sweet meow.
And then, Pingyu's rationality collapsed with a "boom".
In the blink of an eye, the world spun around. The girl who had just been so resolute now looked completely bewitched. She picked up the cat, buried her face in its fur, and let out an epic, heartfelt cry: "I do! I do! I do!"
A kitten willingly sleeps with you and warms your bed—who could resist?!
She was both happy and in pain; a little voice inside her was shedding tears of joy while simultaneously sending out hearts.
She still sold her soul to the devil!
Having achieved his goal, Nezha transformed back into human form with satisfaction.
The cat in his hand instantly transformed into a cold, male ghost. Even though the boy facing him was handsome enough, Ping Yu could no longer feel a ripple of emotion.
She immediately calmed down and said coldly:
"Change back."
Nezha: ?
He had no choice but to turn back into a black cat, letting Pingyu rub and play with him.
How can anyone call a small animal "Mom"?!
He didn't want Pingyu to be a mother; a mother can't be a wife!
After a while, Pingyu's cat-cuddling session finally came to a temporary halt. By then, Nezha's fur was disheveled, and his Universe Ring apron was loose. His eyes were lifeless, and he lay there listlessly and weakly.
Pingyu held it in his arms and stood up, full of energy.
Nezha noticed her reaching out to the pigeon and asked, "What are you going to do?"
"Aren't we going to make a nest for it?"
Despite having a cat, Pingyu hasn't forgotten her roots. She explained, "Let's go now; I don't want to come back too late."
Pingyu > Nezha > Me (the pigeon)
It was no longer as unruly as it had been when it first appeared; instead, it even fawned over the other's wrist.
Pingyu was flattered and hurriedly asked Nezha, "Was it being this affectionate just now?"
The cat stared at the timid pigeon for a while, then snorted, "It's just afraid of dying."
Huh? I clearly didn't intend to make it into roast pigeon.
Ping Yu was completely baffled and confused.
.
To build a nest, the girl brought a cat and a bird to the woods by the river.
"The last time I was here was because of Miss Shen's matter." Looking at the familiar surroundings, Ping Yu felt a pang of emotion. It was late summer then, a summer that had vanished completely with Nezha's death. Now, this forest was already in autumn. Everywhere were withered branches and fallen leaves, which creaked underfoot with every step.
Nezha was held in Pingyu's arms as she bent down to pick up things from the ground.
She chose mostly slender branches, the kind that were quite resilient.
He was surprised: "You really know how to do it?"
When hunting, birds were also one of Nezha's targets. He had observed the nests of birds, and the material they were made of was the same thin twig that the girl held in her hand.
Pingyu paused, then became smug: "Of course I can!"
"In addition, weeds, moss, and mud are needed. This makes it stable and comfortable, and birds will like to crawl into it."
"You've studied it?"
Nezha did not believe that this was what Pingyu had learned here.
Of course, it's not like a skill we'll master in the future.
He believed that in a highly civilized era, hunting activities had been eliminated by weapons, and that Pingyu no longer lived in the wild.
These words stirred up memories for the girl.
"I learned it from my grandfather!"
She chuckled and gestured, "I lived in the countryside before elementary school."
"Rural areas...?"
He repeated it, and the cat looked confused.
In Nezha's mind, most of the villagers were as ignorant and uncouth as Ba Lai. He couldn't see any trace of the villagers in Ping Yu, not even in the body behind the door.
As she grew up, she became tall and slender, with skin as smooth as milk, a testament to her pampered upbringing.
Pingyu nodded, confirming his statement once again.
"Yes, in the countryside."
She found a slightly cleaner spot to sit down and happily shared her past with Nezha: "My parents... well, my parents. They were office workers. At that time, they had just been transferred to a new city. Their jobs weren't stable yet, and they didn't have time to take care of me, so they left me in the countryside to be cared for by my grandparents. When I was young, I was a militiaman, and even in my old age, I couldn't stay idle. They would take me to wander in the forest every day to catch birds."
Nezha hadn't heard many of the terms before; he needed time to process them. The boy, focusing on the parts he could understand, asked, "Catch birds to eat?"
In Pingyu's account, it was about her childhood.
Her grandfather was a retired soldier who lived in the countryside, fishing and bird watching. Her grandmother was a cook who was skilled at making delicious and oily big pot meals, which made Pingyu a picky eater.
His grandfather said that he was injured and lost in the mountains in his early years, and it was the birds in the forest that led him to rejoin his troops. From that day on, unless there was a food shortage, he would not go into the forest to hunt wild game.
“Grandpa said that wild animals have a spirit, just like people. Eating wild animals is like eating people. That’s why people get sick, it’s retribution. But domesticated animals, which are born to be raised, don’t have a spirit. They are destined to go to the kitchen to fill people’s stomachs. He doesn’t eat wild animals, and neither do I.”
“We rescued birds in the forest, so I have a good understanding of bird habits and nests.” Ping Yu waved the fledgling bird's nest in his hand, looking quite proud: “Look, isn’t it decent?”
He seemed to understand where Pingyu's subtle peace and romance came from. Influenced by his blood relatives, Pingyu, who grew up in the mountains and fields, had a reverent yet cruel understanding of life.
She firmly believed that all things have spirits, so she did not support Nezha's killing of life.
She also believed that the existence of some creatures was destined to end, so she was decisive and ruthless, never hesitating to take action when necessary.
The more Nezha learned about her past, the more he felt he couldn't keep her.
To thrive here, you need to learn to be chaotic. You need to learn to use others and diminish the concept of life.
She is a humanitarian, but because she makes too light a distinction between "deserving to die" and "not needing to die," Pingyu does a very poor job of "integration."
Pingyu stood out from her surroundings, making her easily noticeable.
Listening to the other person's description, it was as if Nezha could be constructed in another form before one's eyes.
She should have a healthy body, running through the woods with hope in her hands, or reading poetry and books indoors.
Instead of looking sickly like this, dressed in fine clothes, like a fragile hairpin.
This era has been unkind to her.
The boy's mind was in turmoil, and a sudden feeling of self-consciousness arose within him. The time he spent with Pingyu felt unreal; she was both near and far, like a tormenting mirage in the desert.
Mixed with desires, it becomes a tangled mess that cannot be untangled.
For a moment, he couldn't think of any reason to keep Pingyu.
The cat purred listlessly, its ears drooping and its tail hanging limply on the ground.
Pingyu felt strange and thought to himself: "Everything was fine just now, what happened?"
The dead Nezha was even more capricious than the living one.
However, considering the psychological trauma the other party is currently experiencing, Pingyu cannot simply leave him there and ignore the situation.
She grabbed the cat's paw and said, "You learn from me, and then you can make it up yourself."
Nezha: !
The indecision has been paused.
His whole body seemed to explode with cat-like energy, which was met with a smile that read "it's all perfectly natural."
"?"
Thinking wildly means he's too idle; Pingyu needs to find him something to do.
The next second, the forceful act was stopped. Her vision blurred, and her wrist was grabbed by a hand.
"don't want."
Nezha, who bluntly refused, glared at the carrier pigeon that had been feigning death since the beginning: "It can not exist."
Pingyu thought he was throwing a tantrum and smiled, "That's not how you say that!"
Soon, the expression on her face froze.
Because the boy looked at her and asked, word by word, "Would you like to eat roast pigeon?"
Pingyu, Pigeon: !?
Why did things suddenly turn out this way?
She sensed that Nezha was angry, and hesitated whether to continue what she was doing. Nezha noticed the girl's uncertain expression, which made him consciously soften his tone.
He was about to speak when he suddenly heard laughter beside him:
Pfft.
The loud laughter instantly ignited the wariness in Nezha's eyes.
Pingyu's vision blurred as she was pulled behind her by a tremendous force. She stumbled, but was caught by the Hun Tian Ling (a magical sash). Following Nezha's gaze, the two looked towards the source of the sound.
Not far away, there was a man riding an old donkey. His jet-black beard was matted and greasy, and his clothes were inexplicably stained with patches of color, dirty and tattered, their original color unrecognizable. The man was hunched over, laughing so hard he was doubled over like a broken spring.
"who?"
This person was able to get here without him noticing, so his cultivation level must be quite high.
Nezha warily shielded Pingyu behind him.
"Young friend, why are you so nervous?" The man wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth and chuckled, "I was just passing by and heard about roast pigeon, which made me so hungry that I laughed out loud."
Pingyu noticed that the area where he had wiped his saliva had turned white, revealing his original skin color. Apart from that, the rest of his skin was black.
Just how much mud has accumulated?!
She paused for a moment, then quickly retorted, "It's just a pet, we don't have any roasted pigeon!"
Although it's Nezha's carrier pigeon, it belongs to her now that it lives in her house!
Even Nezha himself is not allowed to eat it!
The girl was in high spirits. Seeing this, the man smirked and glanced at the other person with a mocking look.
The boy's complexion was indeed not good.
He almost couldn't suppress the leakage of yin energy; strands of black energy seeped out, only to be pushed back under his skin.
Sensing the other's gaze, he glared back menacingly. Unexpectedly, the man seemed fearless, giving him a knowing smile. Assuring him that Nezha wasn't in charge, the man feigned regret: "Looks like there really won't be any delicacies to eat."
"Strange person," Nezha thought.
Seeing that the other party had given up the idea, Pingyu lowered her guard a bit. She peeked out from behind Nezha and asked curiously, "But I haven't even started roasting the pigeons yet, how did you get attracted here?"
"I'd like to ask why you've trespassed into my bathhouse?" The Taoist stroked his long beard, shaking his head. "Eating roast pigeon is secondary; bathing is the main thing. We can't bathe here!"
The two children turned together towards the river behind them. The river was swift, good for washing away filth, but a bit dangerous.
"You can jump into the river, we won't save you."
Nezha was not pleased with the old man who suddenly appeared and disturbed their time together.
After saying that, Pingyu tugged at him: Don't do that.
He was unconvinced, but only clicked his tongue.
"Grandpa, what do you want?" Pingyu couldn't help but laugh.
Judging from his appearance, he probably wants either gold or silver or food.
Pingyu was willing to grant him any request, as long as it wasn't an exorbitant demand.
But the Taoist priest extended his dark fingertip and pointed it towards her bosom: "Would you mind giving me this?"
Pingyu looked down and saw the bird's nest she had just woven.
"Just this...?"
The girl was genuinely confused.
Giving it away was fine, but she asked one more question: "What do you need this for?"
"Fishing!"
He suddenly fell silent, his clear gaze fixed on Nezha.
Nezha's heart skipped a beat...
No, it's strange that this person can see him!
He is a ghost now, not a human.
Ping Yu, who had just given the bird's nest, suddenly realized this, and a layer of cold sweat broke out on his forehead.
If someone can see Nezha, they must be either a Taoist or a demon!
But the man showed no sign of making trouble. After saying that, he took something out of his pocket.
He took the bird's nest from Pingyu's hand and stuffed something else on it.
She looked into her palm and saw a simple brocade pouch.
Unlike the Taoist priest's dirty and greasy appearance, this brocade pouch was unusually clean, without even a speck of dust on it.
Before Pingyu could open it, two fingers lifted the brocade pouch away first.
This person is unusual; we must not act rashly.
Nezha, having accepted the danger, asked, "What is this?"
"A brilliant plan." The Taoist put the bird's nest on his head as a hat and said, "You hold it, so only you can open it. If others see it, this plan will not work."
After saying that, the donkey beneath him let out a groan.
What kind of brilliant strategies are those? They're not as useful as absolute strength.
Therefore, Nezha did not avoid mentioning Pingyu and opened the brocade pouch to take a look.
There was only one roll of paper inside.
Take it out and flatten it in your hand.
The moment he glanced at Nezha, a surge of murderous intent rose from his body.
The golden ring flew off his earlobe and struck the still-present Taoist priest with malevolent energy.
Pingyu reacted quickly, grabbing the other person's arm and exclaiming, "What are you doing?!"
Nezha turned his head, startling the girl. She saw that his eyes were red, and blood vessels like spider webs covered his pupils.
"Didn't you see the words on it?"
Every word and phrase seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth.
"What word?"
Ping Yu was even more confused: "Isn't this just a blank note?"
Nezha froze, the almost tangible ferocity in his eyes vanishing completely. Just then, the Taoist dodged the Universe Ring and returned to his side.
He stopped attacking the Taoist priest and let him leave. His murderous intent and ferocity dissipated in Ping Yu's question, transforming into his gaze as he looked back at the paper.
Nezha asked again, "Are you sure you can't see the words on it?"
Ping Yu picked up the paper roll and flipped it over a couple of times, confirming, "There's nothing on it."
After she finished speaking, she asked Nezha, who seemed suspicious, "What did you see?"
Nezha pondered for a moment, then finally shook his head: "It's nothing."
He took the scroll back, crumpled it into a ball, and stuffed it back into the brocade pouch.
It must contain something incredible.
But since Nezha wouldn't say anything, Pingyu had no way to resolve the situation.
After the incident, he led Pingyu back to their original positions.
He picked up a branch and began weaving, mimicking the girl's earlier movements.
The movements were perfectly synchronized, down to the smallest detail. Ping Yu's attention was drawn to them; she exclaimed incredulously, "You can do that!?"
"Let's see how well you learn it."
His nonchalant attitude left Pingyu somewhat frustrated. The girl watched his hand gestures and muttered, "It's true what they say, comparisons are odious."
The genius Nezha smiled briefly, then quickly returned to his expressionless state.
He watched the girl teasing the pigeons, still thinking about the contents of the paper.
The brocade pouch contained two passages:
Second, love between children and ghosts is a separate path... Little ghosts are hard to deal with, so please return to human form and do not disturb my disciple!
The first sentence was abrupt and incoherent, while the second sentence made Nezha realize the other party's identity.
I remember Pingyu saying that after her life-threatening ordeal, the Taoist priest who predicted her fate would come and take her as his disciple.
Since Pingyu was called a disciple...
Doesn't this prove that this Taoist priest is Pingyu's future master?
Why did he arrive early?
Nezha felt a heavy weight in his heart, pressing his fingers against the sharp tip of the wooden branch.
Has Pingyu's life-threatening condition been brought forward?
After finishing their busy work, it was already evening when they returned to the Lin residence.
Pingyu is in poor health and has limited energy.
After finishing dinner, the girl in green was dragged to wash up. As soon as she entered the room, she collapsed.
As the girl's breathing gradually calmed, the cat lying beside her suddenly opened its eyes. It used its tail to curl up the blanket and cover Pingyu, its golden eyes gleaming like will-o'-the-wisps in the darkness.
The moment the black cat landed, it transformed into a boy.
He was about to leave when a voice suddenly came from behind him: "Nezha..."
Nezha shuddered and turned back: "What's wrong?"
He knelt on one knee before Pingyu's bed, listening as Pingyu, half-asleep, asked him, "Does the pigeon have a name?"
Pingyu was almost asleep when she remembered this incident while reviewing what she had done that day.
The pigeons are meant to live in her house for a long time; without a name, they feel like they don't belong and aren't affectionate enough.
It's inconvenient to call out to them!
Nezha was silent for a moment, then said, "No."
"Why don't you give it a name?"
Pingyu rolled over, from lying on her back to lying on her side, facing the boy.
For Nezha, carrier pigeons were something that could be replaced, and there was no need to give them a special name. Of course, he wouldn't tell Pingyu this and spoil the mood, so he said softly, "Then you can give it a name."
Pingyu's mind was completely muddled.
She recalled what the pigeon looked like, only remembering that its feathers were gray. Having absolutely no talent for naming things, Pingyu decided to become a documentary writer.
The prolonged silence led Nezha to believe that Pingyu had fallen asleep.
As he was about to get up and leave, the girl uttered two words: "Little Grey."
Then her voice trailed off, softer and softer: "Its name is Little Gray..."
All that's left is breathing.
Having finished the last task, Pingyu finally fell asleep peacefully.
Nezha was really not impressed with her naming skills. He pulled up the girl's blankets to tuck her in, and then went out the door.
Nezha arrived at the eaves where the bird's nest was placed.
Little Grey seemed to sense something.
Before it could even poke its head out, someone grabbed it by the neck and dragged it away from the nest.
Animals are most sensitive to danger; it was so frightened that it almost went into a state of suspended animation.
Little Grey met the boy's eerie eyes.
He was no longer as gentle as he had been with Pingyu, and said expressionlessly to the bird, "She's good, isn't she? She's good to you, and she's good to me. You should thank her for giving you a name, otherwise I would have just gone to get a different pigeon to replace you."
Little Gray trembled all over, too afraid to make a sound.
It could sense that its young master truly wanted to kill it, and if it were to act, Nezha would not hesitate in the slightest.
Having a name brings ties. Fortunately, Little Gray was his pet before, which added another layer to his relationship with Ping Yu. After saying this, Nezha let go, letting it flap its wings and float in mid-air.
The boy removed the bamboo tube from the pigeon's chest and took out a cloth bag from his pocket.
As the outer cloth was lifted, the contents inside were revealed in the moonlight:
It was a very long piece of flesh, with several blood vessels and tendons connected to its base. If Ping Yu were here, he would definitely recognize it as the tongue that had been pulled out from Wang Shanzai's body.
Nezha wrapped the tongue with his spiritual power, attached a note to the outside, and then stuffed it and the note into the bamboo tube.
After sealing the lid, the boy stroked the pigeon's head and commanded, "Alright, go and report back to her."
Little Gray made two "coo-coo" sounds and flapped its wings to fly away.
It flew from Chentang Pass to Chaoge and then into the palace gates.
It was late at night, and Xu Shanzai was awakened by a noise in the rest area of the kitchen.
He opened his eyes and saw a dark shadow outside the window.
The man got up and opened the window, seeing a white dove perched on the windowsill. It lowered its neck, and the bamboo tube hanging on it slid down.
Xu, the Imperial Kitchen Attendant, was a palace servant and was no stranger to carrier pigeons. He recognized the carrier pigeons of acquaintances, but this one in front of the window was unfamiliar. Seeing that it had obviously come to see him, the Imperial Kitchen Attendant opened the window.
The moment the seal was broken, a soft lump wrapped in paper slid out from inside.
Xu Shanzai had a bad feeling, and he cautiously peeled back the paper.
Once the covering was removed, the tongue was revealed to the man.
Perhaps due to Nezha's spiritual power, the tongue even shimmered with a seven-colored light. He didn't know who would deliver a tongue to him in the middle of the night, and thought it was a threat. Xu Shanzai was so frightened that he broke out in a sweat and hurriedly began to examine the paper in his hand.
It says on it:
Xu Yu.
Now that Wang Mugen is dead, I will give you his tongue.
If you cut out your own tongue and put another tongue into your mouth, it will become fused with your flesh and blood and be used by you.
Whether it succeeds or not is up to you.
The Imperial Chef is dead!?
Upon learning that the tongue in his hand was the other party's tongue, Xu Yu was filled with astonishment.
Xu Yu was so overwhelmed by this unexpected good fortune that he was at a loss for what to do.
Should we exchange it?
If that doesn't work, what should be done? A person will die if their tongue is removed!
He stared at the tongue, hesitant to move, and after a long while, he suddenly sighed:
That's all...
Although cowardice and timidity are not the actions of a great man, once a person dies, everything is gone.
Tomorrow will be the day when the Food Bureau presents delicacies and snacks for Lady Daji to choose from.
We'll talk about it then.
The king has become increasingly unpredictable lately; if used properly, this item might just save his life.
He convinced himself and put the paper and the tongue back into the tube.
Author's Note: This super-drastic overhaul has completely overturned what I wrote before.
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