"Splash—"
Two pure white lotus roots emerged from the water, their roots still attached to a patch of dark mud.
Xu Milu, barefoot, groped around in the lotus pond, while Zhao Lang, carrying a large basket on his head, picked up the white jade lotus roots from the shore one by one and put them back into the basket.
"If Fairy Xu could come more often, that would be wonderful. The Third Prince's palace is so deserted. In the past, apart from us little demons keeping the Third Prince company, only Erlang Shen would occasionally come by. Although the Prince doesn't say it, it's clear that he's very happy that Fairy Xu is visiting!"
Xu Milu raised her head and wiped the mud off her face:
"Did the Third Prince say this himself, or did you, a little demon, guess it yourself?"
Zhao Lang was small and almost tripped while carrying the bamboo basket. After regaining his balance, he said:
"Nongchao and I were originally carp living in the mountain lake. Because of our special colors, we were taken to the market to be sold. It just so happened that the Third Prince disguised himself as a mortal and bought us. He then enlightened us, and we were able to shed our fish bodies. Fairy Xu, don't look at me because I'm not very old. I've been in this lotus pond for two hundred years!"
As Zhao Lang spoke, a grin spread across his still chubby face:
"The Crown Prince loves lively gatherings and also enjoys all sorts of strange and wonderful trinkets from the mortal world. He is especially fond of the two exotic beasts that Fairy Xu gave him. If Fairy Xu has time in the future, it would be best if you could come and visit more often!"
Xu Milu nodded thoughtfully and said, "Okay, I've got it."
During this time, non-human diners inside and outside Chang'an had all heard about a mountain and sea restaurant that specializes in selling "spiritual food." However, most of the customers were small monsters and wandering ghosts. She was thinking of expanding her customer base and developing some new customers when the little carp spirit's words gave her an idea.
After she had gathered a basketful of lotus roots, she sat by the lotus pond playing in the water when she saw Nongchao, who had gone out on errands, skipping and hopping back, his little face full of pride:
"Fairy Xu, I have found out everything about what you asked me to investigate!"
"So fast?"
When Xu Milu saw that the little monster's chubby face was full of "Praise me!" she couldn't help but reach out and tug at his face.
The surfer, somewhat shyly hiding behind the waves, scratched its face with its chubby little hands, still covered in fish scales, before slowly speaking:
"I followed what Fairy Xu said and carefully inquired with the local landowners near Dingjia Village. As expected, Granny Wang was not lying. Her three sons were truly unfilial. They did not serve their elderly mother or care for their younger sister. For ten taels of silver, they sent Ding Si Niang to marry into a farming family surnamed Niu in a neighboring county!"
When mortals live in the world, their actions are recorded by the local city god or earth god. When a person's soul returns to the underworld, the judge of the Yama's Palace will take out the person's book of destiny to check. If the person has neither merit nor demerit, that's fine. But if the person has done many bad things, they will have to be fried in oil to pay off their evil karma before they can be reincarnated.
Nongchao is the steward of Nezha's palace, and all the local deities know him, so it was most appropriate for Xu Milu to ask Nongchao to inquire about this matter.
"As for the stone temple that Fairy Xu asked me to inquire about, I also asked the local earth god about it. The earth god only said that the stone temple was originally built with money from a woman. The woman was originally from the capital. Later, she brought her son and daughter to join her sister and brother-in-law who worked in the canal gang. If we're talking about the supernatural, this woman also has some supernatural qualities."
Nongchao blinked and continued:
"The woman claimed that she could communicate with ghosts and spirits. A family in the east lost a cow. She could close her eyes and take a nap, and then she could tell you where the cow was in a certain place on a certain mountain. She could also let ghosts possess people who missed their relatives and friends to relieve their longing. That stone statue was erected by that woman."
Perhaps because they had never inquired about other people's gossip before, the two carp spirits blushed with excitement, clenched their little fists tightly, and chattered away:
"Fairy Xu, if that woman is a demon, are you going to subdue her like the Great Sage? What about Granny Wang's three sons? How about I help you capture those three mortals and teach them a lesson?"
"Fairy Xu! I've heard that the Great Sage's weapon is the Ruyi Jingu Bang (Golden Cudgel). Do you also wield a staff?!"
Xu Milu was both amused and exasperated. She placed one of the two lovable creatures beside her and explained helplessly:
"If you're talking about a woman from the capital with a son and a daughter, and her older sister and brother-in-law are working for the grain transport guild, then I think of someone—"
Not long after the Shan Hai Restaurant opened, a deceased yamen runner ate a bowl of braised beef offal with radish at the restaurant. After eating the food, the runner appeared in his wife and children's dreams and guided his wife to find a jar of silver that he had buried before his death. Later, the runner's wife came to thank him and said that she wanted to go back to her hometown of Qiantang.
It seems that she had someone erect that stone statue.
Zhao Lang pouted, somewhat dejected, clearly not expecting things to be so simple:
"I thought it was some arrogant monster using the name of Fairy Xu to swindle and deceive people, but it turns out she's just an ordinary woman. I suppose the stone statue was erected by the woman out of gratitude for Fairy Xu's great kindness—alas! This woman is really foolish. Who builds a temple for a living person? Fairy Xu, you should quickly give her some pointers."
"That's right, that's right. If you're grateful, you can just set up a memorial tablet and burn incense at home. Why would you build a temple? But Lady Xu relieved the people of Chang'an from the snow disaster some time ago, so building a temple for her would be appropriate. It's just a pity that the method of becoming an immortal through incense offerings is no longer feasible. Otherwise, Lady Xu could have secured an immortal position in the Heavenly Court and joined the ranks of immortals!"
Nongchao shook his head.
What was said in jest was taken seriously by the listener, and a vague idea began to form in Xu Milu's mind.
"It's more important to deal with Wang Po's family first. Ding Dalang, Ding Erlang, and Ding Sanlang are just ordinary people. If you really drag them over and beat them up, wouldn't that be the death of them?"
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