Oni-tsubo

Kapitel 4

"How can you be so insensible?" Chen Kai's mother finally snapped. She had been under too much pressure lately and couldn't think straight anymore. She slapped Chen Kai's bottom twice.

Chen Kai was stunned for a moment after being hit, and felt even more upset. He was already upset about not getting candy, so why did he have to be hit?

He burst into tears, covered his face, and ran into the yard. Outside, everything was covered in snow, a world of pure white.

Looking at the vast, monotonous white landscape before him, Chen Kai suddenly didn't want to go back into the house behind him. He didn't know where he got the courage, but he tiptoed, opened the latch on his door, and went out.

Will Mom find out I'm missing? Will she come looking for me? He kept looking back as he walked, but there was still no sign of his mother. His mother didn't chase after him.

He walked for an unknown amount of time and was a little tired. When he looked up, he saw a very large tree in front of him. The branches of the tree could stretch for two meters, and there was a large, very conspicuous bird's nest on the tree.

He lowered his head, pretending not to see the enormous temptation. However, when he lowered his head, he noticed a round object on the ground that gleamed in the moonlight, a dull light unlike that of snow.

He squatted down and picked up the thing on the ground; it was a bird egg.

Was the little bird also driven out of its home by its parents? He suddenly felt that his situation was so similar to that of the bird egg.

Perhaps he should return this future little bird, he thought, and put the bird egg in his pocket and climbed up the tree.

The tree was very tall, but Chen Kai was used to climbing it, so he was quite adept at it. After climbing for a while, he saw the bird's nest right in front of him. He reached into his pocket and took the bird's eggs out to put them in the nest.

But his arms were too short to reach it. He stretched his body upwards again and finally reached it. The round bird egg slid smoothly into the nest along his hand. There seemed to be a bird inside, making a soft rustling sound of feathers rubbing together.

Chen Kai was so happy about doing a good deed that he didn't even notice that the branch he was standing on was already teetering on the brink of collapse.

"Little friend! Little friend, come with me!"

"Is it me?" Chen Kai looked back. When did he climb down from the tree?

"Yes!" Before him stood a very beautiful woman, dressed in black clothes embroidered with golden flowers, the sleeves wide. This outfit reminded him of fairies in illustrations. The woman's hair was also styled high, adorned with sparkling jewelry, making her extremely glamorous. Chen Kai was momentarily stunned by her beauty.

"Auntie, what do you want from me?" Chen Kai stared blankly at the woman.

"Auntie will take you home!" she said, taking Chen Kai's hand. Only then did Chen Kai realize that her hand was completely cold, even colder than ice and snow.

"Did my mother send you?" Chen Kai asked, revealing his inquisitive nature.

The woman didn't answer, but just smiled and pulled Chen Kai forward.

On the snow behind, a figure dressed in white appeared. His clothes were so white that they shone faintly like the snowflakes. His figure was very thin, as if he could barely support the weight of the clothes. The traveler in the snowy night carefully slowed his pace and followed the two people, one big and one small, in front of him.

However, even though three people walked by, only one person's light footprints were left on the pure white snow.

"Where are we going?" Even though Chen Kai was young, he realized that this was not the way home.

"A place with candy!" The woman turned back and smiled at Chen Kai.

Chen Kai perked up immediately upon hearing this, "How did you know I was eyeing the candy?"

“All children crave candy, how could I not know?” She smiled, a very charming smile.

The two walked for an unknown amount of time before a courtyard appeared before Chen Kai. The woman pushed open the courtyard gate, revealing a brightly lit courtyard completely different from Chen Kai's own.

Chen Kai followed her blankly into the house, a scene more like a myth his mother had told him.

"Here! Here's some candy!" The woman reached into the fruit bowl on the table, picked up a beautiful, red, agate-like candy, and handed it to Chen Kai.

Those were the candies that little Chen Kai had been looking forward to for a whole year!

He reached out to grab it, but at that moment a man's voice suddenly came from outside, "Wait a minute!"

The voice was urgent, and Chen Kai paused for a moment, his hand that was reaching for the candy stopping.

A man had appeared outside the door at some point. He was dressed in white, with long black hair, and his face was very handsome, seemingly glowing faintly in the night.

"What are you doing here?" The woman in black looked at the person who had come, seemingly surprised.

The handsome man bowed politely. "I have some fine black agate. Wouldn't you like some, madam?"

"You foxes are indeed very elegant, but black agate is easy to obtain. What would I need so much for?" Her eyes darted around, and suddenly she seemed to remember something. "You're giving me black agate for no reason. You must want something from me!"

"Madam!" the man said with a fawning smile, his smile as gentle as a spring breeze. "Mine is 'top-quality,' a rare, pure black agate!"

As he spoke, he waved his hand, and a very small boy came out with a plate on it. On the plate were several black, shiny spheres. The spheres were so black that they seemed to darken one's soul, as if they were a night without any light.

"Who is this?" The woman in black pointed at the boy, unable to recognize what this attendant was.

“He is my servant, you don’t need to worry!” the man said with a humble smile.

"The agate is indeed quite nice!" The woman picked up a piece on her fingertips and examined it. "But you've gone to so much trouble, so hurry up and tell me your requirements!"

The handsome man in white pointed a finger at Chen Kai, "I want this child to come back with me!"

The woman chuckled. "You certainly know how to think! But it's up to him to decide what to do when we get back!"

Chen Kai felt as if he had entered a fairy tale world, completely different from what he usually encountered. What was wrong with him? Could there really be another world?

As she spoke, the woman took two gemstones from her hair, placed them on a table covered with red velvet, and smiled kindly at him.

"Little friend, one big one and one small one, which one do you want?"

Chen Kai looked at the stones on the table. One was crystal clear and about the size of a coin; the other had some faint stains and was only the size of a fingernail.

"I want candy!" Chen Kai said, revealing his true feelings. What did these stones have to do with him?

The man in white behind him shook his head helplessly after hearing his words. How come he hasn't made any progress even after a thousand years?

"Choose the big one!" A soft voice drifted into his ears, sounding like the voice of the man from before.

He glanced back at him, and the man nodded cautiously to himself.

Should I choose the larger one? What will happen if I choose the larger one? Why should I choose the larger one?

He reached out towards the large, beautifully gleaming gem, and the woman's face immediately darkened.

But that small gem with yellow stains looked so familiar. It was as if he had been with it when he was very young. For some reason, its soft, gentle light gave him a feeling of attachment.

His hand made a turn and grabbed the small gem.

The woman was overjoyed. "See? This was his own choice! Take this small gem and go!"

The man in white was very unhappy and beckoned Chen Kai over, "Give me the gem! Stand next to me!"

He then pointed at the boy and said, "Give the agate to the lady; we must keep our word!"

He then reached out and took the gem from Chen Kai's hand. "You're a good kid! You're still as loyal as ever. I'll definitely help you!"

Didn't I make the wrong choice? Why am I being praised? The feeling of this older brother holding my hand is so familiar, it's like someone held my hand like this a long time ago.

The boy carried the plate of agate to the woman. She happily picked up the agate and looked at it. It was so beautiful. How black must one's heart be to have such a black soul?

She was admiring the view, completely unaware that feathers had grown on the hands of the boy next to her who was holding the plate.

Suddenly, the boy snatched the large gem from her high bun like lightning.

"Go quickly!" the man in white shouted. The boy turned nimbly, drew an arc in the air, transformed into a colorful bird, and flew out of the room like lightning.

"Ah!" The woman in black was startled and jumped up. "What are you doing? How can you break your promise?"

"My servant is ignorant, I'll chase after him and bring him back right now!" The man smiled, grabbed Chen Kai, and ran off.

"You can run away from one, but you think you can run away from three? You underestimate me!" the woman said, and started to chase after him.

But as soon as she took a step, she realized something was wrong. The black agates she had just been holding suddenly began to wriggle and, in the blink of an eye, turned into snakes that tightly coiled around her feet.

"You damned fox, how dare you use the 'Demon Binding Curse' on me!" But she stopped after shouting that one sentence and busied herself dealing with the snakes on her body.

"Hehehe!" The man holding Chen Kai turned around and chuckled again. "How could a fox keep its word? Don't get your hopes up!"

"Aaaaaahhhhhh!" the woman's voice shrieked, "I...I won't let you get away with this!"

Chen Kai had no idea what was going on. He was simply being dragged along by the man, running wildly.

"Uncle! Where are we going?" Chen Kai asked him fearfully.

"I'm the older brother, the older brother who will never grow old, don't call me uncle!" She winked at him as she turned around. "Let's go home now!"

"Home? Where is home?" Chen Kai felt that everything in front of him was dark.

"It's right there!" the man pointed to a point of light ahead.

Chen Kai felt the point of light growing larger and larger, until it seemed to engulf him. He instinctively closed his eyes. The light was so blinding! What kind of light was this? Brighter than the sun?

"Chen Kai, Chen Kai!" Someone called his name in his ear.

He slowly opened his eyes and found himself lying on the snow. It was still a dark night, and in front of him was the pale face of the handsome man.

"Uncle! What's wrong with me?" he said with difficulty, his head throbbing.

"It's my brother!" The man was very unhappy to hear that.

"Brother, what's wrong with me?"

He seemed quite pleased this time, saying, "You fell from the tree, and now the one who controls death has come to take your life!"

"But I'm still alive!" Chen Kai recalled the dream he had just had. It felt so real, and even though he was young, he was still a little scared.

"Hurry up and thank your big brother!"

Chen Kai quickly thanked him, and the man helped Chen Kai up from the snow and brushed the snow off him. "Let's go home, or your mother will worry!"

He pulled him along for a while, then, as if remembering something, said to Chen Kai, "Oh right, we should also thank it!"

Who is it?

"That's it!" The strange older brother pointed to the top of the big tree behind him, where a bird was perched on a withered, gnarled branch.

As he spoke, he waved to the bird. Strangely, the bird seemed to understand him, letting out a sharp "Zha!" and flapping its wings.

"Is the little bird that boy?" Chen Kai asked the older brother in white clothes curiously, remembering the boy who turned into a bird and ran away.

"Yes, it was it that saved you in the end. When I went to find you, it insisted on following behind me to help!"

"Should I thank it with millet?" Chen Kai felt more and more that tonight's experience was like a myth.

"No need!" The older boy smiled. "It has already received your gift. You are the one who returned the most important thing in its life to it."

This time, Chen Kai didn't say anything. He didn't quite understand the term. He just held that warm hand and walked home.

When he arrived at his doorstep, Chen Kai was reluctant to go inside.

"What's wrong?" the older brother in the white shirt asked him.

"I don't want to go home!" Chen Kai thought of the candy he hadn't received.

"Because there were no gifts this year?" This older brother seems to know everything.

He nodded in agreement.