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墨書 Inktalez
The meal lasted from noon until after three in the afternoon. Finally, pretending to be drunk, I leaned on Shen Tao's shoulder and walked a little further away before asking, “Tao Ge, how did you meet your wife?”
“Well… one night, I ran into her on my way back after entertaining a client. What do you think? I won her over with my charm,” Shen Tao slurred, having had quite a bit to drink. He couldn't help but boast.
I thought for a moment and reminded him, “Tao Ge, watch out for your wife.”
Shen Tao looked at me with bleary eyes, clearly confused. Just as I was about to explain further, Chang Lili sauntered over and teased, “What secret conversation are you two having? Let me in on it.”
I smiled and replied, “Oh, it’s nothing. Tao Ge just drank too much and wouldn’t let me leave.”
I handed Shen Tao over to Chang Lili, who gave me a long look and said, “Ling Feng, your outfit is quite unconventional. Who wears monk robes these days? Are you a practitioner like Fa Hai?”
“Sister-in-law, please don’t make fun of me. I don’t have Fa Hai’s abilities,” I laughed in response, though I felt a pang of confusion inside.
Shen Tao was a hefty man weighing over a hundred pounds; it took some effort to steady him. Yet Chang Lili seemed to handle him effortlessly, one arm around his waist while the other gently kept him from swaying.
“Well then, sister-in-law, you help Tao Ge back to rest first. I’ll head home now. If there’s anything, just have Tao Ge let me know,” I waved my hand and turned to leave.
Chang Lili chuckled and said, “What’s wrong? Am I an outsider? If there’s something going on, I can inform you just the same.”
Hearing Chang Lili's soft laughter behind me sent chills down my spine. This woman named Chang Lili was definitely not ordinary. But what exactly she was remained a mystery to me.
Once home, I splashed cold water on my face to wake myself up a bit. My dad came over as soon as he saw me return and asked eagerly, “So? What did Tao Ge want with you?”
“Tao Ge is getting married and wants us to be groomsmen,” I replied impatiently. Although I understood my father meant well—he was worried about my future since I had only graduated high school without any skills—his concern felt overwhelming at times.
My father smiled and said, “In our village, Shen Tao is the only one with some capability. He’s built a house for his family after being away for a few years and even bought a car. Now he’s marrying a city girl…”
I couldn't quite understand why, but hearing those words left a bitter taste in my heart. I knew how difficult things had been for my father over the years, so I didn't want to argue with him. I simply made an excuse about feeling dizzy from drinking too much and went back to my room to sleep.
I lay there with my hands behind my head, but sleep eluded me as my mind raced with thoughts. Besides my suspicions about Chang Lili, I was also preoccupied with the idea of opening a shop. What would I sell? Where would I set it up? What if it didn't attract any customers? A series of questions swirled in my head, leaving me feeling dizzy.
As I pondered these issues, I gradually began to drift off. In a hazy state between wakefulness and sleep, I suddenly felt a soft, furry presence in my arms. I opened my eyes to see Fo Zhang nestled against me and asked, "Where have you been?"
Fo Zhang, having been disturbed by my touch, lost all desire to sleep. He sat on my stomach, gesturing animatedly as he communicated something to me.
It turned out that after we had separated earlier, these two little creatures had followed the scent of me and trailed behind. Buddha Sound, the least considerate of the bunch, was probably off somewhere chasing after a female mouse.
Buddha Sound pointed at his previously injured spot and then gestured towards the mountains outside, chattering incessantly.
I asked in confusion, "Are you talking about your injury from when you returned to the village? Do you want me to help you get revenge?"
Fo Zhang stood there with his hands on his hips, looking furious, and then nodded emphatically.
I chuckled and said, "I've already avenged you. The ghostly creature lying in the coffin in that cave has been dealt with."
However, Fo Zhang shook his head vigorously and began bouncing around on the bed. If it weren't so late at night, he probably would have dragged me off into the mountains right then and there.
I patted Fo Zhang's head and reassured him, "It's alright. A gentleman takes his time for revenge; there will be plenty of opportunities in the future."
Just then, my father called me for dinner while I was playing around with Fo Zhang. He looked puzzled and asked, "When did Fo Zhang arrive?"
Fo Zhang obediently bowed to my father and then jumped into his arms, acting all cute. My father chuckled as he cradled Fo Zhang and headed towards the living room, completely oblivious to my presence as his son.
At the dining table, Fo Zhang occupied a corner, with bowls and chopsticks in front of him. My father kept piling food into Fo Zhang's bowl, saying, "Look at Fo Zhang; he’s been with you for so many years, yet he hasn’t grown at all. It must be because you, Usually, haven’t taken good care of him."
Fo Zhang was usually clever and would snatch food when we were together, but tonight he was surprisingly well-behaved, using a spoon to feed himself.
My dad looked at Fo Zhang with a silly grin and then asked, "Ling Feng, now that the New Year has passed, when are you going to get married? I want to hold my grandchild!"
I felt a bit speechless; after all, I had just turned nineteen.
After dinner, I made an excuse to take Fo Zhang out for a walk to help with digestion. We strolled around the village, and when we reached Shen Tao's house, the usually docile Fo Zhang suddenly bristled with fur and bared his teeth in the direction of Shen Tao's home.
I quickly scooped Fo Zhang into my arms, fearing he might hurt someone in his agitation. Once we had moved further away, Fo Zhang's mood calmed down again, settling on my shoulder.
"Fo Zhang, do you sense something is off too?" I asked while stroking his head.
Fo Zhang chirped and squirmed on my shoulder.
The moon rose high in the sky, casting a gentle light. I crouched low and slipped out of the house. Using the moonlight as my guide, I headed towards Shen Tao's house. Fo Zhang leaped onto the roof and then down into Shen Tao's yard.
I hid behind a haystack at a distance, keeping an eye on Shen Tao's place. Sure enough, after a short while, a Daoist figure chased after Fo Zhang out of the house. The figure moved with remarkable agility.
Fortunately, Fo Zhang was nimble and quick; he squeaked a few times before darting towards our agreed meeting spot in the grove at the west end of the village.
Seeing that Fo Zhang had successfully evaded capture, I hurriedly followed after him.
When I reached the edge of the grove, I didn’t see Fo Zhang but spotted Chang Lili standing there in her pajamas with her arms crossed. "So it was you! That Monkey Kid is your pet?"
“Sister-in-law, your skills in scaling walls and flying across rooftops are quite impressive. I wonder if Tao Ge knows about this?” I asked with a smile.
“Do you think Shen Tao would believe you or me?” Chang Lili teased, twirling a lock of her hair that fell over her chest. The silk nightgown she wore accentuated her beautiful figure, making it even more apparent.
“I don’t care what your intentions are, but there’s one thing you cannot do: harm others. Otherwise, I won’t let you off easily,” I threatened coldly.
Chang Lili, however, was not angered. She covered her mouth and giggled, “Ling Feng, you’re quite handsome like this. Even Sister-in-law is a bit moved. How about…”
I took a few steps back and said, “Shameless.”
Chang Lili maintained her smile, but her voice turned icy as she said, “Monk, I advise you to mind your own business. Otherwise, I have plenty of ways to make your life worse than death. For example…”
With that, she loosened one of the straps of her nightgown, revealing a glimpse of her fair skin. “For instance, if I were to scream right now, what do you think would happen to you?”
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