"Selling yourself to bury your father? How pitiful!"
“There are too many such pitiful things.”
After a quick glance, the people on the street walked away as if nothing had happened.
The sun was blazing, it was afternoon, and a gentle breeze was blowing. Inside the restaurant, diners were feasting on a table filled with chicken, duck, fish, and meat. Outside, people lay dotted around the corners of the street, their clothes tattered and their breath barely breathing.
Xihe withdrew his gaze. It was like this: the rich were feasting and drinking, while the poor were freezing to death on the streets.
She picked up the teapot and was about to add a cup to Fulu's cup when she looked up and saw him staring out the window. Following his line of sight, she saw the girl kneeling in the sun with straw in her hair, selling herself to bury her father.
The girl looked to be about eleven or twelve years old, with tattered clothes and a sallow face.
She kowtowed numbly to passers-by: "Please be kind and buy me back. I can cook, work, and eat little. Please..." There was a person covered by the straw mat in front of her, revealing his blue feet.
Xihe paused: "You want to help her?"
Fulu slowly turned his head, a glimmer of light in his eyes: "Is it okay?"
He now depends on her for food, clothing, housing and transportation, so he cannot be too casual in what he says and does.
Xihe smiled and said, "Of course, A'lu, go help that girl." A'lu immediately got up and left. Fulu's eyes softened and he looked at her gratefully.
"Thank you, Cheng Ge."
Xihe shook his head: "It should be."
Soon the girl who sold herself to bury her father disappeared from the streets, and A-Lu also came back soon.
At night, the group stayed at the inn, waiting to learn more about the good news. The next day, they went to the Wen family, a prosperous merchant family in the city. As soon as they entered, they saw many children playing wildly in the yard.
Xihe explained the purpose of their visit, and Master Wen agreed repeatedly, leading them to a courtyard in the northwest corner: "Master Cheng, the person is inside." He swallowed and said, "I won't accompany you in."
He fled with his servants and maids, his back looking panicked.
Xihe was speechless for a moment, then went forward and knocked on the door. Soon, footsteps were heard from inside, and then the door opened, revealing a timid little face: "Daddy?"
Xihe walked in: "Are you Aqiao?"
A group of people walked in, and suddenly there was a "bang" and the doors and windows closed. Xihe subconsciously looked over and saw only a claw with sharp claws.
Its black claws were sharp as a hound's, and there was a mottled smell in the house that was both human and animal.
Her heart skipped a beat. Could it really be a demon?
They originally came here following the power of gods. As soon as they entered the city, they heard people talking about the strange things happening in the Wen family. They said that a thief was very hungry and happened to hear the howling of an animal coming from the Wen family. They had an idea and decided to climb over the wall, drug the animal and knock it unconscious, and then carry it back to replenish its internal organs.
Who knew that instead of filling his internal organs, he saw a horrible monster.
The moonlight was clear, and the creature that looked like a human or an animal had green eyes and long fur, and it growled at him... The thieves were all killed and fell off the wall in fright.
After that, the story became more and more bizarre, saying that the Wen family raised a monster that ate people and peeled off their hearts, and had ulterior motives.
Xihe thought he had nothing to do, so he pretended to be a Taoist priest and came to investigate. When Master Wen heard this, he was overjoyed and brought them here without thinking.
"You, who are you?"
The little girl stared with big eyes, her face full of vigilance.
Xihe took Fulu to the main house: "Let us help you check on your brother, Aqiao, do you know what happened to your brother...huh?" He looked at the little girl who was standing in front of the door with her hands open and trembling, with a look of surprise on his face.
The little girl was so scared that her face turned pale, but she still stood in front of the door: "No, you are not allowed to hurt my brother!"
A low roar was heard in the house at this time. The little girl became even more frightened. Her body was shaking, and with tears in her eyes, she stared at Xihe stubbornly.
Xihe paused and said in a surprisingly easy-going manner: "Okay, I won't go in."
The little girl's tense spirit relaxed.
But the next second she said, "Can you let this brother in?"
'elder brother? '
Everyone subconsciously looked over and landed on Fulu.
Fulu: “…”
Everyone was embarrassed, looking left and right. It was clearly an old man, right? The little girl was confused, but the low roar behind her gradually became smaller. The girl hesitated, stepped aside and said, "Okay."
The door creaked open and slammed shut.
Xihe sat down on the stone bench in the yard and looked around.
The courtyard was in a mess. The bamboo in the corner was dead, a few tattered clothes were hanging on the rope, the kitchen window was half burnt, and there was not even an older maid.
A-Lu gave the mung bean cake to the little girl. The little girl swallowed and hid it in her sleeve.
Ah Lu stuffed the whole box into her arms and asked the little girl questions as if she was chatting about family matters. Soon she understood the situation. Ever since her brother got into trouble two years ago, the maids and servants in the yard ran away, and they had to fend for themselves.
Mr. Wen was afraid of monsters, and it was their aunt who risked her life to save his brother.
They were locked up here and were not allowed to go anywhere except to get their meals.
The little girl rubbed her eyes and burst into tears: "Auntie said that she would go out to help her brother find a solution, but Qiao missed her so much..."
Xihe guessed that the concubine was probably no longer around, and this statement was just to comfort the child.
She felt helpless. The fact that Master Wen could let the child live at least showed that he was not the kind of brainless person who would not eat even a tiger's own cubs. If Fu Lu could be dealt with, the brother and sister could return to normal life.
After waiting for about half an hour, Fulu came out, followed by a child wrapped in black cloth.
Xihe looked puzzled.
Fulu said: "I want to take this child back temporarily."
In the main hall of the Wen Mansion, Master Wen's expression changed constantly after hearing this, becoming extremely complicated. He rubbed his hands together and hesitantly said, "Master, my son, what exactly happened? Can it be solved?"
Xi He couldn't help but look at him deeply: "Master Wen, are you so sure that the child just had an accident and is not a demon?"
Master Wen didn't even think about it and shook his head firmly: "He is definitely not!"
He remembered how the child looked when he was born: naked, kicking his legs and crying loudly. He was definitely not a monster.
It was all his fault that he was incompetent. There were a lot of gossips in the house, and countless people outside the house forced him to get rid of the children. He had no choice but to harden his heart and ignore them, otherwise the two children would definitely not be alive today.
Xi He smiled and said, "Master Wen's guess was correct. Your son really just had an accident and is not a demon."
The child must have swallowed a deer antler accidentally, and hair grew on his body, and his body gradually began to mutate... He told them that they needed to take the child away for a while.
Master Wen breathed a sigh of relief: "It is his blessing to be able to follow Mr. Cheng."
The group returned to the inn. A'lu took A'qiao, who came with them, to wash up. Xihe propped up his chin and looked at the strange-looking child in front of him. The child had fluffy cheeks, clear eyes, and slightly pointed ears.
Her eyes were evasive and her face was red, but she looked cute.
She was curious: "Why did this child mutate?"
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