Chapter 152 Pan Jinlian's rule is to split one into two, and then split the two into four.
"Is this the whole story?"
Sikong Xiaoqing glanced at the young woman who had just run over from the thick stack of manuscripts in her hand. Her assistant tried hard to ignore the itching on her forehead caused by sweat, and nodded calmly, afraid that the young lady might be dissatisfied.
"Well done."
Sikong Xiaoqing glanced at her pocket watch and realized there wasn't much time left before she had to leave work. She didn't intend to continue experiencing the interruption of her reading, but sitting there was also very boring. So she simply asked about the situation of "I am a cat". The editors next to her seemed not to care, but they also silently perked up their ears.
With Sikong Xiaoqing's permission, the editors also finished reading the story of "The Cat." Unsurprisingly, they were captivated by the article, only to be left feeling like they were going to vomit blood from the sudden abrupt end.
"I was in a rush to bring the manuscript back, so I didn't know much about her."
The assistant kept in mind that the young lady might want to know the author's information, and prepared to do everything more thoroughly next time... if those who coveted her job would let her wait for another opportunity.
"However, she is not very old, and she speaks very kindly."
The assistant diligently gathered his impressions of Yao Xiaoyu, trying to satisfy the young lady's aroused interest without revealing details such as her specific address.
Is it bigger than you?
Sikong Xiaoqing wanted a specific point of comparison. She didn't know her assistant's age, but it was at most twenty-five, or even twenty.
"Probably not."
The 22-year-old assistant thought for a moment, then silently shook her head, before adding:
"But he's very tall, at least a head taller than me."
The assistant is barely over 1.6 meters tall, but she's not short. Most people can't take advantage of their height when they're starving. The assistant was lucky when she came to Shanghai and ate well, which is why she grew so tall.
"Then they need two feet more cloth to make clothes than others. Luckily, tall men have an easier time finding wives."
The editor in the corner made a comment, but everyone else pretended not to hear it. This person called himself an editor, but he only did odd jobs to make it easier to distribute salaries. He was efficient and not a bad person, but most of the time he was really impossible to talk to—he would praise men and belittle women as soon as he opened his mouth. Who could stand that?
As for why she was still able to continue working here... before, when they were about to lose their temper with her mouth, the editorial department was set on fire because some people were wary of her. It was this editor who went in and out of the fire three times, risking burns to move the most important things out.
After that, no one mentioned firing him again, but he just couldn't stop talking like that. So after discussing it, everyone moved him to a corner where he would have the least impact.
“I didn’t say she was a man.”
The editorial team, including the assistants, had no intention of letting the editor go, but when the evidence was conclusive, they didn't mind shutting down those unpleasant words. In fact, because they rarely had the chance to do so, everyone cherished this opportunity.
Just like now.
The assistant blinked, put on his most innocent expression, and dropped the most powerful bombshell with the simplest words.
The author, 'I Am a Cat,' is a woman.
Hearing the sound of the water glass falling to the ground, even though she knew the wooden glass wouldn't break easily, the assistant still felt extremely relieved. After a brief moment of astonishment, everyone started asking all sorts of questions. Only the editor in the corner, blushing, picked up the water glass and locked himself in the corner without saying a word.
"I don't know if this is her first time writing an article, and I didn't ask her."
"She's very pretty, with lychee-shaped eyes and an oval face... Being tall and looking clumsy are two different things. She's like one of those silk dolls we used to play with, the really expensive kind."
"How could I ask whether she's married or not on the first date? Besides, she's beautiful and talented, she definitely won't have trouble finding a partner."
"She didn't say whether she would write more or where she would submit her work. She said she chose our site simply because she liked the name."
...
Sikong Xiaoqing listened for a while, and after confirming that her assistant didn't know much, she moved her ears away. It was time to leave work, so she took the entire manuscript and went home. The manuscript, which she had taken out of the envelope, had already been copied by a specialist, and the time difference between the first printing and publication was enough for her to read the whole book.
Sikong Xiaoqing returned to her home, or rather, the house where she was temporarily staying, in a car. In the eyes of the world, a woman is a pampered guest of her family of origin. The key is not pampered, but guest. Guests always have to leave, and she only has the limited right to use the residence.
The closer Sikong Xiaoqing got to the Sikong family's residence, the more subtle her movements and expressions became. By the time she stepped through the gates of the Sikong family's residence, Sikong Xiaoqing was already a standard noble lady who walked without swaying her skirt, never smiled, and never even let her hair ornaments sway when she moved.
She greeted everyone respectfully, ate elegantly, and gave perfect answers. Everyone in the household was very satisfied with everything she did. Only after returning to her room and closing all the doors and windows did Sikong Xiaoqing reveal a tiny bit of her personal emotions: under a bright enough lamp, she began to read "The Cat in the World's Cracks".
She had read the story of the golden tiger several times, but this time she went directly into the perspective of the lion cat. This lion cat had the rarest heterochromia. Once its fur grew long enough, it went to live in a wealthy family and enjoyed a life of luxury. Like the adorable orange cat, the lion cat lived a good life. However, Sikong Xiaoqing's focus was not on the cat, but on the name of the maid who took care of the cat—Pan Jinlian.
Since the Water Margin was written, this name has become synonymous with a beautiful but ruthless woman who harms her husband. After reading The Plum in the Golden Vase, this impression will only become more deeply ingrained.
However, in modern times, Pan Jinlian's reputation has become much more objective. On Zhihu, many questions have even emerged such as "If Wu Dalang were 1.8 meters tall, a restaurant owner, or had the abilities of a captain, would Pan Jinlian still look down on him?" These questions have been jokingly referred to by netizens as the "Pan Sister Universe," suggesting that Pan Jinlian has become the queen of the dwarf kingdom thanks to their contributions.
Sikong Xiaoqing was unaware of the modern reversal of public opinion, but she was well-read and had read some of the backstory, so she knew about the real Pan Jinlian.
Pan Jinlian was a real historical figure, a good woman who loved her husband dearly. However, the fame of *Water Margin* is so widespread that very few can defend her. And this author…
Sikong Xiaoqing watched with a glimmer of hope, but the faint bubble burst instantly.
Okay, it's still the Water Margin version of Pan Jinlian.
She was somewhat disappointed, but she didn't know that Yao Xiaoyu had also pulled out a lot of hair while writing this story to portray Pan Jinlian. In the end, she decided to put the historical truth at the end of the story and use some classic settings in the article.
In the story of "The Cat in the Crack of the World," Pan Jinlian is still a maid in a wealthy household, but her job is to raise lion cats. As usual, the wealthy man takes advantage of her at first sight, and Pan Jinlian's refusal is just a joke. When she sees the bloodstains on her clothes, she spits angrily and leaves unwillingly.
"Why didn't you tell me sooner that this filthy thing was coming? Now I'm covered in this stuff that's more poisonous than arsenic, and I'm not clean anymore!"
Sikong Xiaoqing watched the wealthy man's scolding and subconsciously covered her lower abdomen. She had never really understood why something that almost every woman had was considered unlucky. Sometimes, when she looked at her menstrual pads that couldn't be exposed to the sun, she would think darkly that it would be better if menstruation really was an unlucky thing. Now she was being scolded and getting nothing in return, which was really not worth it.
The wealthy man disgustedly wiped the red stain off his hand, patted his bottom, and left. Pan Jinlian then seized the opportunity to complain to her wife. Her wife sympathized with her but also knew that her husband was not a good-natured person. She only advised Pan Jinlian to find another way out so that she could return the indenture to Pan Jinlian.
The early story of Pan Jinlian in Water Margin is only a short passage, and the wealthy family doesn't even have a surname. But "I Am a Cat" expands on it, especially the scenes about the lady, that is, the mistress.
Of course, this is from the perspective of a lion cat.
Sikong Xiaoqing was used to being called "two-legged creatures," but a cat's perspective was quite different from a human's. She didn't want to think right now, so she decided to flip to the end first, intending to see everything from a human perspective before switching back to the little raccoon's eyes—
The lady's family was not very powerful, so she dared not openly protect Pan Jinlian. However, she had two sons who were good at studying, and the mother and sons had a very good relationship. If Pan Jinlian were to leave the mansion through her, she could handle the situation with the wealthy family. It was just a pity that she originally planned to make Pan Jinlian her second son's concubine, so that she could become a mistress after having children.
Pan Jinlian was quite clever. She realized that the lady did not want to fight for her, so she began to think about her own way out. However, before she could find a strong and handsome man she could fancy, the wealthy man died with his lips turning blue. The doctor diagnosed him with poisoning, but could not say what kind of poison it was.
Pan Jinlian didn't take it to heart at first, until during another menstrual period, a man who had killed several outside girls by taking advantage of his status as a house-born son set his sights on her. When she struggled, she smeared her menstrual blood on the man. After the man died just like the wealthy man, she belatedly realized that something was wrong.
The blood that was flowing out at this moment... seemed to be poisonous?
Sikong Xiaoqing didn't read through the lines one by one, but instead skipped around to find the key words—this world was different from the first world. The rules didn't take effect on all women instantly, but rather spread from one to two, and from two to four. Pan Jinlian was the first lucky one to be chosen.
But if she dies without sharing the rule with others, the rule will not become invalid. Instead, it will select the next lucky person as the "one" until all the women have been chosen.
The new rules that have emerged in this world are not long-standing: Tian Gui (a concept in Traditional Chinese Medicine) is inauspicious, and touching it will lead to death.
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Author's Note: The rules are quite complex, so this is a simplified version. The next chapter will explain them in detail.
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