Chapter 80 Beggar
Xie Shouzheng rode at full speed all the way and returned to Fengnian County after more than half an hour. He got the blood thorn whip from the inn where he stayed yesterday.
After putting away his weapon, he didn't even have time to stop to drink a sip of water before he prepared to ride his horse to catch up with Dongfang Qi and Lin Qingyue.
Just as he untied the horse rope, he suddenly became aware of a demonic aura passing by.
He looked up hurriedly and saw groups of passers-by walking on the street.
Take another deep breath, yes! It's demonic energy!
The wolf's nose is also very sensitive. Although the scent is very weak, he can smell its source.
So, Xie Shouzheng tied up the horse again, followed the faint trace of evil spirit, and hurried to the entrance of the alley. He saw a slim woman in a red dress pushing the door and walking into a small courtyard.
"It's the fox demon from last night. How did she escape? Could it be that Da Mao and Er Mao were murdered?"
His pupils suddenly shrank, he drew out the bloody whip from his waist, and hurriedly followed.
But as soon as I stepped into the courtyard, a mist wrapped in a strange fragrance hit me in the face.
Xie Shouzheng's eyes went dark, and he fell heavily to the ground before he could swing the whip, and the blood-thorn whip also fell to the ground with a clang.
At this moment, Lin Qingyue and Dongfang Qi had already entered Fengxian County.
The streets in the city are wide, the buildings are lined up in an orderly manner, and the prosperity far exceeds that of Fengnian County.
There are many shops on both sides of the main street, especially noodle restaurants. The aroma of wheat and meat goes straight into people's noses, making their stomachs stir.
Lin Qingyue fell in love with this long street with its urban atmosphere at first sight, and found a popular noodle shop and walked in.
Not only was the noodle shop crowded with customers, but there were also small stalls on both sides of the door and across the street, and there were even quite a few beggars begging with bowls in hand.
The noodle shop only serves noodles, but in a wide variety.
There are many different ways to eat noodles, such as fried noodles, soup noodles, mixed noodles, and dipping noodles. There are more than a dozen toppings for soup noodles alone, which makes people feel overwhelmed and confused.
Dongfang Qi said, "Why don't we order them all?"
"There's no need to waste it." Lin Qingyue ordered beef noodle soup and a bowl of fried noodles with shrimp and shredded pork.
Dongfang Qi ordered a bowl of crab roe noodles and a bowl of pork bone dipping noodles, and asked the waiter for two more small bowls.
“We share it in little bowls so you can taste four flavors at once.”
Lin Qingyue smiled with satisfaction: "Okay."
She added each type of noodles to her bowl and tasted it, then put down her bowl and chopsticks and looked out the window again: "What should I do? I suddenly want to eat the fried dough sticks and pan-fried buns from the stall outside."
Dongfang Qi said cheerfully, "Then let's go eat fried dough sticks and pan-fried buns."
Lin Qingyue looked at the remaining noodles in embarrassment: "Then these..."
He said, “I’ll take care of it.”
Lin Qingyue thought he was going to finish all four portions of noodles by himself, and was waiting to see a big eater show.
Dongfang Qi also put down his chopsticks, called the waiter, pointed at a ragged mother and daughter begging outside the store, and said, "These bowls of noodles are still clean. Please help me take them to the beggar mother and daughter outside the door."
"There's essentially no difference between forcing yourself to finish the meal and leaving some in the bowl. Look, isn't this the best of both worlds?" Dongfang Qi paid for the noodles while speaking, and walked out of the noodle shop with Lin Qingyue.
Lin Qingyue bought some fried cakes, but found that Dongfang Qi did not follow her. Turning around, she found that he was bending over and giving the change in his hand to the beggar mother and daughter.
Deep in his eyes, there is compassion for the suffering of the people.
In contrast, Lin Qingyue seemed like a cold-hearted woman. She picked a bunch of delicious snacks on her own, and then asked Dongfang to get up and pay - she would not be lenient when it came to eating and drinking at public expense.
"Here I am!" Dongfang Qi came over and asked, "How much is it in total?"
"15 cents."
"good."
Dongfang Qi reached into his sleeve pocket, but found nothing.
Only then did he remember that when he gave alms to the mother and daughter just now, the little girl tugged at his sleeve and thanked him sweetly.
Could it be that at that time, the other party took the money from his sleeve pocket?
Thinking of this, he hurriedly turned around to look, but found that the mother and daughter who were begging at the door of the noodle shop had disappeared.
"How could this be? I clearly gave them food and money, why did they steal?" He was puzzled, and even more heartbroken.
"Because they're not ordinary beggars at all." Lin Qingyue bit into a crispy and fragrant fried pancake and said, "Bad people won't show mercy to you just because you give them some alms."
"Have you seen it a long time ago?" Dongfang Qi felt sad that his kindness was betrayed.
Lin Qingyue paid for it herself, handed a fried dough stick to Dongfang Qi, and then strolled along the long street while saying:
"Compared to Dongfang Yan, you've indeed been exposed to many folk things. But the places you've visited and the scenery you've seen are only superficial. You've never truly lived among the people, and you don't understand true human nature."
"Take, for example, the beggar mother and daughter. Although they were both dressed shabbily, the child had a blank expression on her face. Meanwhile, the so-called mother beside her had lively eyes, constantly gazing at the people around her. Most importantly, the woman was quite pretty."
"What does this have to do with appearance?" Dongfang Qi asked in confusion.
Lin Qingyue smiled and said, "For the upper class, a beautiful appearance is the icing on the cake. But for the poor at the bottom, especially beggars like this, beauty is a disaster, and will bring them malicious intent from all sides."
"Not to mention humans, even stray female cats would constantly become pregnant, give birth, and eventually die. But that woman clearly didn't suffer any obvious injuries. That's enough to prove she's no ordinary beggar and has the ability to protect herself."
"And that girl with hollow eyes, who has obviously suffered a lot of abuse, is definitely not her child. If I'm not mistaken, the child must have been manipulated by the woman to beg. And you, young master..."
Lin Qingyue looked at Dongfang Qi with a smile on her face. "People like you are just easy to fool. You are rich, simple, and kind. Who else should I steal from if not you?"
Rich, simple, and kind-hearted Dongfang Qi: "...Is this a compliment?"
Lin Qingyue raised her eyebrows slightly, revealing a hint of surprise: "Isn't this belittling you?"
Dongfang Qi laughed: "Then your disparagement is really unique."
Lin Qingyue: “Tsk…”
Dongfang Qi stopped laughing and asked, "You should have seen that 'mother and daughter' going over there just now, right?"
Lin Qingyue asked, "Why, do you want to get back your lost money?"
Dongfang Qi said, "A few taels of silver are insignificant, but that little girl..."
The image of the girl grabbing his clothes and looking at him with a dirty smile appeared in his mind.
Although he already knew at this moment that the action was just to attract his attention and create an opportunity for the woman next to him to steal.
But when he thought of the little girl's empty and numb eyes, even her smile was filled with a faint sadness - he didn't feel it at the time, but thinking about it now, it was like a thorn stuck in his heart.
Of course, Lin Qingyue saw clearly where the beggar couple went. She finished eating the food in her hands and wiped the oil off her fingers with a handkerchief.
"Let's go. I'm really full, let's go and digest the food."
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