Chapter 42 Now that this matter is resolved, let's go home...
"Shouldn't we just use the same old trick?"
Pingyu advised, "We only attracted the help of the Thunder God and Lightning Goddess during practice. I don't think they would agree to this intentional attack on the Earth God."
Although they weren't in the same work area, they all worked at the Heavenly Court headquarters. They'd run into each other all the time; who wanted to make enemies for no reason? Offending a lower-level employee could lead to being impeached and fired by the Emperor. Nezha pouted, thinking it made sense, and reluctantly let go of his hand.
Ping Yu stroked his head gently, as if stroking his fur.
Just then, the dog's surprised voice rang out: "You also received the mountain god's inheritance?"
Nezha glanced up and slapped Pingyu's hand away, saying, "Explain yourself."
“Exactly!” With money to pave the way, Gou’er was surprisingly easy to talk to: “My dad can also do that move you just demonstrated.”
The action just now was...
Sword pointing?
Speaking of which, Gou'er's father was the village chief of Balai, Xue Xuliu's husband, and the one who invited her parents to this village. Pingyu glanced back; the man was in the room where the Great Ancestor had just been. She recalled his appearance—a young man not yet thirty.
"If I remember correctly, your father is the village chief of Balai, right? This is the first time I've ever seen such a young village chief."
It's important to know that leaders wield real power and are usually highly respected individuals. The dog raised its head, looking proud: "That's because my father was the only one among this generation who went into the mountains to survive and inherit the tradition!"
"Brother Gou'er," Pingyu called out immediately, smiling as she helped the boy to the side, saying earnestly, "Tell me more, I love hearing these amazing stories!"
The dog was flattered.
Although Pingyu's manner of ordering Nezha around was despicable, he didn't actually do it himself.
And...she called me brother!
Pingyu was the prettiest little girl Gou'er had ever seen; at least, no one in the village was as beautiful. The girl had jet-black hair and a fair complexion. When she smiled at him, her eyes curved into bright crescent moons. Gou'er, being treated so gently by this wealthy city girl, awkwardly wiped his hands on his clothes: "Then...then I'll tell you more!"
He blushed.
Nezha found it irritating no matter how he looked at it.
The dog's thick, bushy eyebrows twitched like worms, and he really wanted to burn them.
Such a pleasant tone, her voice is so sweet it makes your teeth ache.
She clearly said I was her only best friend, you liar!
"oops!"
The girl whispered to him helplessly, "We're trying to coax a child. Come listen too. After we've listened, we won't play with him anymore."
Hearing that he could throw the dog away in a little while made Nezha feel a bit better.
The three children found a stone block and sat in a circle under the tree.
Gou'er said, "It's not exactly a secret, so I can say it. We, Balai, are a village that was born and raised in the mountains, and we have two traditions since ancient times."
"The second is the village chief. The village chief not only manages the village, but also has the responsibility of leading the elders to the Peach Blossom Spring. When the previous village chief steps down, all those who intend to become the new village chief are gathered together and go to the mountains to receive the inheritance from the mountain god. Of those who go to the mountains, only the one who returns can become the village chief. Of the five people last year, the one who received the inheritance was my father!"
As he spoke, he stood excitedly on the rock.
Ping Yu gave a supportive performance, while Nezha delivered a stilted reading.
"Are the elderly in your village very long-lived?" Ping Yu thought of Xue Xuliu's words: "But your mother said that the village hasn't had a big banquet in a long time, otherwise she wouldn't have invited my parents."
"Actually, it wasn't because of that that we invited your parents..." Gou'er hesitated for a moment, then shut his mouth: "Never mind, it's really nothing. I think what my dad wants to do is impossible, because we're from the mountains!"
This concerned her parents, and Pingyu wouldn't let Gou'er gloss over it so easily. She frowned, her tone urgent: "Weren't my parents invited because of the birthday banquet? Explain yourself!"
The dog shook its head: "I overheard it, but I'm not sure."
The three of them turned around at the same time. The man and Xue Xuliu stood outside the fence waving. They said, "Let's go back!"
The dog breathed a sigh of relief: "I still have to go and ask for more birthday wishes. I have to do it before the Emperor sends them to the mountains to be completed. I'll be going now!"
After saying that, the boy slipped away like an eel.
The village chief and his family of three left right under the noses of the two men.
She thought: Her mother was polite and kind, and she could remember everyone in the clan she had ever met. If she didn't even recognize a relative, it must be from a distant collateral branch. What reason could the village chief have had to go through the family tree so thoroughly and specifically bring her parents here?
A person can reveal a lot of information unconsciously. From Gou'er's words, Pingyu could tell that the village chief wanted to do something that contradicted his own stance. The chances of success were very low, and it was closely related to her parents.
“My family is just a small-scale farmer-merchant with a bit of money.” Ping Yu bit his thumb, a little anxious: “What could possibly be so important that the village chief here would go to such lengths to invite them all the way from Chentang Pass? ...Could it be because of me?”
The girl felt she had finally understood, since she was the only one in her family who was worth the spiritual practitioner's attention.
“Not necessarily.” Nezha, seeing her somewhat dazed expression, had to speak up. “You can’t let yourself be blinded by a single leaf, Pingyu. Maybe it’s for money. After all, although cultivators cultivate immortality, they still have to live in the mortal world as mortals. You yourself said, what’s the difference between firewood, rice, oil, and salt and money? Your family…”
He hesitated for a moment, then finally blurted out, "It is indeed a bit flashy."
It's more than just ostentatious.
Judging from Lin Dong's demeanor, he practically wanted to have the words "rich dog" written all over his face.
“No!” Ping Yu stood up abruptly: “I have to talk to Dad and tell him to change his temperament, otherwise he will suffer a great loss.”
If wealth is leaked out, disaster is sure to follow.
Nezha's words calmed Pingyu down a little. But then she felt something was off: "Where in the mountains are there so many places that need money?"
The surrounding area, spanning hundreds of miles, is covered in vegetation and wild animals, quite far from the villages and towns at the foot of the mountain. Although he didn't know if there were other villages here, Pingyu remembered that most mountain people were self-sufficient, bartering for their own use. The dog had also shown a greedy look earlier, but there was no lust in his eyes; once he confirmed it was gold, he put it away. His movements were swift, as if he were picking up a small stone from the ground.
“Maybe it won’t be used in the mountains,” Nezha reminded her, repeating what the boy had just said: “He said, ‘What my dad wants to do is impossible because we are people from the mountains.’”
"You mean, he wants to leave here?" Pingyu understood a bit: "If it's about borrowing money from my family, then I can make the decision."
Money buys peace of mind; there's no better deal than that.
"Not necessarily."
“But we can’t ask him.” The girl was unusually anxious and flustered, completely abandoning her composure. She paced back and forth, biting the skin off her fingers until they bled: “That would alert him, how annoying!”
“We’ll find out tonight.” Nezha’s eyes followed her movements, darting back and forth. “Heaven treats all things as straw dogs; there’s no way a god would help mortals care for the elderly. There must be a demon in this mountain; we need to go and explore Peach Blossom Spring.”
In other words, it has to be left until the third day at the very end, no matter what.
Before she could utter the word "annoying," Nezha in front of her squatted down as well. The boy slapped her face, looking at her seriously: "Didn't you learn the Five Thunder Spell? Use it to protect your parents, and then..."
The Qiankun Ring circled around Ping Yu once, and he said, "After we've resolved this matter, let's go home."
Author's Note: I've finished work... I'll be updating like crazy starting tomorrow. Sometimes I feel like they're little RPG characters, automatically triggering dialogues with NPCs to join the party, then unlocking key plot points to beat up bosses.
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