Famine

Chapter 48

"Don't be afraid." Even at this moment, he was still in the mood to comfort me. "Hold me tight, Hengzhi."

At that moment, I didn't think he was riding too fast at all.

I buried my face in Tang Chen's back, blood gushing from my mouth and nose.

Before, it was just instinctive, without much thought, that I "attached" myself to Huang'e. Now I understand a little better. It's a kind of unity, a shared destiny; we are one, each residing in the other's life. I am her, and she is me. This allows us to face hardship together, but if we are hurt, the pain is equally heavy.

The more I was wounded, the more severe the desolation was wounded.

I feel heartbroken, but also very disheartened.

I haven't met many truly great people, just Shuo and Shibo. But I naturally took them as role models, thinking that great people were like that—upright, honest, and righteous. But I forgot how ostracized people are, regardless of their abilities.

Even when resorting to deception, I feel perfectly justified. What's the point of living in this world? What about a monster like me?

The people implicated are now almost dead.

And right behind us, relentlessly pursuing, was none other than the revered Emperor Yan. A…deity. Whom could we pray to?

I coughed loudly again, and black blood clots came out with a thud.

"Hold on, Hengzhi," Tang Chen said calmly. "Shuo will heal you."

"Don't implicate Shuo!" I exclaimed in alarm.

“Trust me, Hengzhi.” He remained steady. “I believe Shuo Chao is more than that.” Harley roared and sprinted into the café’s courtyard. He helped me down and rushed into the café. He shoved Huang E into my arms and turned to face Xu Rujian, who was engulfed in raging flames.

"Enough!" Tang Chen snapped. "Are you ever going to stop? We've chased you all the way here, aren't you going to let us go?"

Xu Rujian glared at him disdainfully, "Eliminate evil completely. A petty traitor will surely become a great traitor!"

I was worried, but Huang E was dying in my arms. For the first time, I was so agile; I jumped over the counter and hid behind Shuo, trembling.

Xu Rujian dared not lay a hand on Tang Chen, but instead shattered the French doors of the coffee shop. "Witch! Hand over that demon and the demon bird."

Shuo, who had been engrossed in grinding herbs, finally looked up. "Sir, you've broken down my door. How am I supposed to do business now?"

Another thunderclap sounded out of nowhere, shaking the entire coffee shop. Tang Chen lost his footing and was pushed by Xu Rujian. I wiped away my tears, calmed myself down, and was about to leave when Shuo stopped me.

But Guan Haifa was one step ahead of her.

She continued with her leisurely pace, sitting down in front of Xu Rujian. Strangely enough, this powerful and imposing spirit medium couldn't even take a single step closer.

"Demon cat! Get out of here!" Xu Rujian waved his hand angrily.

Guan Haifa scoffed. "Kid, you're not worthy to speak to me." She yawned. "Hey, Zhu Rong. Are you deaf? I'm calling you."

Xu Rujian's eyes gradually changed, emitting a crimson-blue-gold light, his expression one of surprise, "...A real cat?"

"So you weren't deaf after all." Guan Haifa washed his face. "Your spirit broke my door and disturbed my children. How do you plan to settle this? Tell me."

Xu Rujian… or rather, Emperor Yan Zhurong, frantically shook his head, “How could I do such a thing? It’s a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding. This little devil is quite talented, and I do favor him a bit, which is why I gave him the spirit mediumship. But you know, with so many people and so many things to deal with, how could I possibly investigate everyone’s motives? He submitted documents and evidence, saying that evil spirits were causing trouble in the cemetery, and demons were running rampant…”

“Hengzhi,” Guan Haifa beckoned to me, “As the Earth God’s sorceress, if you don’t appeal now, when will you? Say what you need to say. Don’t be afraid of this big oaf.”

"Hey, real cat, give me some face. Stop calling me 'big oaf' all the time..." Emperor Yan Zhurong scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly, then put on a stern face, "That sorcerer, what do you have to say?"

Shuo secretly kicked me, and I finally came to my senses. I scrambled to my knees before Emperor Yan Zhurong and tearfully recounted Xu Rujian's many acts of wickedness.

Emperor Yan Zhurong's face, already red, turned increasingly purple as he listened, until finally it became a dark purple. "...Ruining my reputation! This bastard! Isn't he making trouble for me everywhere? Although I have a bit of a temper, I'm not that kind of person! I'm so sorry, young lady, I will definitely punish him severely and discipline him properly! Please convey my regards to the Commander-in-Chief, the God of Fortune, for his lax discipline..."

"Why don't you just go over and say something?" Guan Haifa glanced at him. "A big idiot is a big idiot."

"True Cat, you really are... You remember my childhood name perfectly! I'm going, I'm going... I'll cripple this brat's cultivation first, and then judge and punish him later, what do you say? I'll also make him pay for this door in full." He pleaded cautiously, "True Cat, I miss you so much, do you want to come back to the South with me? There's nothing good about the human world..."

"We'll see," Guan Haifa smiled. "I'm quite comfortable here, and the children are quite adorable."

The matter ended just like that, inexplicably. Don't ask me, I don't know either.

After the spirit medium left the room, Xu Rujian remained in a daze, just squatting there, lost in thought. Shuo sighed and made a phone call to his uncle.

He arrived quickly, but was holding his head in pain. He comforted me for a while, took care of Huang'e's injuries, and then stayed at the hotel.

Uncle Shi naturally stayed in Shuo's room (...). Tang Chen was furious and refused to share a room with Xu Rujian, but Uncle Shi couldn't ignore it because of their fellow disciples. What should they do?

In the end, Tang Chen gave up his room and moved to my place temporarily (…). There was a curtain between our beds, but it was a little awkward to live together.

Xu Rujian remained in a daze for a month before regaining his senses. My uncle called me over, hoping to resolve our misunderstanding.

I can forgive him. Even Emperor Yan bowed his head and apologized. He can't even be a professional. Killing someone is just a matter of beheading them. Why go to such extremes?

But Xu Rujian refused. His reason left me speechless.

"Why did you take her as your disciple?" he yelled at his uncle. "You wouldn't take me as your disciple, but you took in such a demon like her? Did you only take me in because I was going to become a demon? And you even pushed me to your senior brother! You know perfectly well what I feel for you..." He grabbed his uncle, tears streaming down his face, refusing to let go no matter what.

Not to mention Uncle Shi was horrified, Tang Chen and I both got goosebumps. Guan Haifa, the real cat (?) who had accomplished something great, secretly smiled behind his back.

Is she really a cat?

She managed to defuse the situation. Calmly, she pushed Xu Rujian's hand away, hugged her uncle's head, and said, "This is my man, what are you arguing with me about?" She even kissed him on the cheek.

Not to mention Xu Rujian screaming and clutching his head, Uncle Shi's face turned red to the ears, Tang Chen and I were probably all red.

"The witch still has a way." Huang E chuckled, and even Guan Haifa's eyes narrowed with laughter.

Sixth Uncle

Tang Chen has terrible sleeping posture.

Tang Chen moved in with me after giving up her room to Xu Rujian. Although Shuotian bought us double beds, and king-size ones at that, I was always puzzled when she moved in – what was she going to do sleeping in such a big bed by herself?

I have to strongly suspect that Shuo knew this "accident" would happen all along, so he simply bought a king-size bed for every room.

Forced by circumstances, and not because I didn't trust Tang Chen, I used a curtain to separate us. I slept on the side against the wall, and he slept on the side facing outwards. Theoretically, we should be fine...

But he always manages to roll over the curtain and sleep on my pillow, and sometimes he'll even put his hand on me.

"...Do you really like my pillow?" I was speechless. "Let's swap pillows, we can just put a towel on top."

He would always smile sheepishly, "...Sorry, I'm a restless sleeper."

The pillows were swapped, but he still rolled over. When I saw a close-up of his face at dawn, even though it was such a pleasing sight, it still startled me.

I considered simply tying him to the bed so he wouldn't roll around. But Huang'e enthusiastically taught me something about "tortoise shell binding," and by the time I figured out what it was for, I chased after her and beat her all the way.

Why did I keep this shameless, vicious bird?!

"Anyway, nothing will happen between you two, so why do you care if he rolls over or not?" Huang E smiled maliciously.

"Would it be acceptable if this got out?" I was furious.

"Right!" Huang E slapped his forehead. "We should spread the gossip first, so we can rely on public opinion..."

I couldn't take it anymore, so I grabbed a broom and chased after her, continuing to hit her. What kind of person is she to treat other people's embarrassment like that? That bastard!

Fortunately, Xu Rujian was only unconscious for a month. When he regained consciousness, Shuo rudely handed him the bill and told him to get out. That guy even dared to yell at Shuo; he was truly audacious. If he hadn't been Shuo's fellow disciple, his body probably wouldn't have even been found.

Now that Shuo had kicked him out, Tang Chen could go back to his room. But he packed up slowly, looking reluctant to leave.

"Tang Chen," I threatened.

"Okay, actually it's not a big deal if we sleep in the same room..." he muttered, "It's warmer when it's cold."

"Go buy an electric heater," I said, shooing him out without any politeness. "Otherwise, Huang E will definitely love sleeping with you, or you can invite Guan Haifa to share your bed!"

"Why are you doing this?" Huang E was disappointed. "Being close to the water gives you an advantage. Although your mating seasons are worse than a lion's, friction generates heat, and who knows, you might even be able to start a fire..."

I picked up the broom again.

***

Xu Rujian has made a complete mess of the school's environment (?), and I am truly heartbroken to see such ruins.

After lying in bed for two days, I was finally able to get up, and I was eager to go to school, no matter how much my uncle tried to dissuade me. My internal injuries were a bit more serious, but my uncle had already treated me quite well; lying in bed was just a matter of recuperation. But how could I stay in bed any longer?

Tang Chen also said he couldn't neglect his studies, so we supported each other as we went to school.

Of course, it caused quite a stir at school and even made the local news. Thunder rumbled all night, but not a drop of rain fell. After the thunder subsided, the Earth God Temple was still shrouded in a red glow, but no one dared to go look.

After that night, the previously forgotten ghost stories resurfaced, sparking even more speculation.

I dragged my still-healing body to school and heard some classmates complaining that the school was haunted and the school administration was not doing anything about it, letting those ghosts run rampant.

…Child, it's not necessarily a good thing that there are no ghosts. You have no idea what we've been doing behind the scenes.

But I went to see the old man in silence. He looked at me, and I looked at him, and we both sighed.

"Grandpa, please stay," I said softly.

"Even Emperor Yan has come to my little temple to bow his head and apologize, what else can I say?" He sighed, "So the real cat was at the witch's house after all."

Huh? "Grandpa, a real cat... what is that?" I was really curious.

"A real cat? It's..." He wanted to explain, but scratched his head, "It's just a cat, what else could it be?"

“…If cats are this powerful, what chance do monsters have?” I exclaimed.

"Of course not every cat is like that, she's a real cat," the old man replied matter-of-factly.

He answered very clearly, but I was confused.

What exactly is a real cat?

After asking around, the answers were all pretty much the same. So I just grabbed Huang E and asked her. We were so deeply intertwined that we were almost inseparable; if words couldn't describe it, we could understand each other through our shared emotions.

"What exactly is a real cat?" I asked sincerely.

"It's a cat, what else could it be?" She gave me a strange look.

"...Please be more specific. Someone with such abilities, and a childhood friend of Emperor Yan, couldn't possibly just be a cat, could he?"

She scratched her head. "A real cat, it's a real cat. Uh, just like people have real people, there are real cats too... It might be very, very powerful among cats, but it's still a cat..."

Huang E wanted me to understand, but if I could understand the images she sent, I'd chop off my head and give it to you to sit on. So she racked her brains, trying to explain things to me in the simplest terms possible… but then she started smoking.

"Okay, okay, stop thinking about it, your head's starting to smoke!" I hurriedly poured water on her head.

"...It's just a cat, why are you thinking so much about it?" She was confused as to why I didn't understand such a clear-cut truth.

…As the saying goes, humans and demons are different, and even though I'm so close to Huang E, I still don't understand.

I'm guessing it's like humans cultivating Taoism, a... very powerful, Taoist cat?

“That’s not quite right. Why would cats cultivate Tao? They are Tao themselves… that doesn’t seem right either…” Huang’e looked up again, thinking.

“…You’re smoking again.” I poured water on her head again.

In the end, I still don't understand what a real cat is.