The sky over the rivers and lakes is very clear - Chapter 213
The snake envoy chuckled: "Oh, how old are you? You're already trying to sneak off to meet your lover!"
Zhu Huihui pretended to be very shy and said, "Ashan is the most handsome man in our village. All the girls in the village like him!"
The snake envoy laughed and asked, "So, does that Ah Shan like you?"
Zhu Huihui lowered her head, pretending to be a little sad.
The snake envoy laughed: "Little girl, let me tell you, when it comes to dealing with men, being shy isn't enough. Come, come, let me teach you a few tricks, and I guarantee your Ah Shan will be devoted to you from now on!"
Zhu Huihui looked up at her expectantly. This time, it wasn't feigned; she was genuinely curious. She really wanted to know how this snake envoy could make Ashan so devoted to her—after all, Ashan was the big tabby cat that the old lady next door in their hometown kept!
The snake envoy chuckled and tossed her a small box. "Take this. Find a chance to have your Ah Shan eat it..."
Zhu Huihui recognized it as one of the items she had found in Feng Xuese's arms earlier, which she had later been forced to return. She happily picked it up, feigning disbelief: "Is it okay to give him this?"
The Sky Over the Martial World is Clear, Part Three: Chapter Seventeen (6)
The snake envoy laughed heartily: "It will work! It definitely will!"
Niu Shangshi chimed in, "Sister She, don't use that stuff to harm children! Hey, little girl, let me ask you, have you ever seen a very handsome man dressed entirely in white?"
As expected, they were looking for an old man! Zhu Huihui's heart skipped a beat, but she feigned innocent ignorance: "How handsome? More handsome than Ah Shan?"
Niu Shangshi frowned. This little girl looked clever, but she was actually a silly, lovesick fool. He ignored her and said, "Brother Ma, Sister She, let's go to the village and ask."
The horseman leading the white horse nodded and said, "Xifeng Mountain is really lively today. I wonder who will end up with Young Master Feng. Let's go to the village and contact our brothers to see if anyone else has found him."
The three of them talked as they turned and headed toward the village. After a few steps, the snake envoy suddenly turned back, gave Zhu Huihui a charming smile, and casually tossed her a small piece of silver: "Take this, buy some rouge and powder to use. To deal with men, that box of medicine alone is not enough."
Zhu Huihui picked up the silver, her words as sweet as if she had secretly eaten three pounds of the finest candied fruit: "Thank you! Thank you, beautiful sister!"
The snake envoy was indeed overjoyed and waved goodbye.
As Zhu Huihui watched them head towards the small village nestled in the mountain valley, her legs went weak, and she collapsed to the ground, her heart as cold as ice.
"This Xifeng Mountain is really lively today. I wonder who will end up with Young Master Feng." Doesn't that mean there are indeed many people who want to kill me? It's just that they haven't found me yet.
Normally, no matter how many people are around, the old man wouldn't be afraid. But now that he's blind, he's no match for them. There are a thousand ways to harm a blind man, they don't even need to lift a finger... No, I have to go back and hide the old man in a safer place. They absolutely can't find him.
In a panic, she turned and ran back, but stopped after a few steps. The old man's horse was still in their hands. He loved that horse dearly; he used to never let her even touch it. He was already blind, and now they had bullied him and taken his horse away. He must be very upset.
Zhu Huihui turned around and looked at the small mountain village that had completely sunk into the twilight. Amidst the sounds of birds returning to their nests, dogs barking, and cows mooing, an idea gradually formed in her mind.
Zhu Huihui crouched in the grass, patiently waiting.
The night was cold and the dew was heavy. The mountain wind blew, and strange noises echoed among the grass and trees. Although Zhu Huihui had been a wanderer for many years, she had always been accompanied by beauties or chivalrous heroes. She had never been alone on the mountain so late at night before, and she couldn't help but feel a little scared. She hugged her arms and huddled up, waiting anxiously. Finally, it was time to light the lanterns. Taking advantage of the lights that gradually came on, she quietly sneaked into the village.
This village has about a hundred households, living a very traditional rural life. As soon as it gets dark, everyone closes their doors and windows, and hardly anyone goes out.
Using the dim light, Zhu Huihui made his way to the center of the village and saw a house that looked like a tavern. From a distance, he could see that the windows and doors were open, and on a wooden table in front of the window, the three Serpent Envoys were eating and talking.
The swift and swift horse was tethered to a wooden stake in front of the tavern! Although there was hay in front of it, it completely ignored it, occasionally raising its head and neighing loudly, looking quite aggrieved.
Zhu Huihui, fearing discovery by the Snake Envoy and his men, dared not approach. He thought to himself, "This stupid horse needs to be fed at least, otherwise, how will it have the strength to escape later!"
The thought of food immediately made her stomach rumble. Normally, in this situation, she wouldn't even need to think twice before heading straight for someone's chicken coop. But now, with an important task at hand, stealing chickens was inconvenient, so she had to come up with another idea.
Turning her head, she noticed a relatively large courtyard and a rather beautiful house at the east end. Knowing that the family was quite wealthy, she casually pulled a stick from the fence next to her and leaned towards the house.
The country folk were simple and honest, and the courtyard walls weren't very high. She crouched down at the corner of the wall and listened for a moment. When she heard nothing, she secretly climbed up the wall, looked around, and jumped down. As soon as her feet touched the ground, a big dog came rushing over, barking. Zhu Huihui was prepared, and she struck the dog on the head with a stick, knocking it unconscious. Then she dragged the dog and stuffed it into the doghouse not far away.
The Sky Over the Martial World is Clear, Part Three: Chapter Seventeen (7)
As they were doing this, a door opened, and a woman dressed in simple clothes and wearing a hairpin came out carrying an oil lamp to investigate: "Ah Huang, what are you yelling about?"
Zhu Huihui squatted in the shadow of the doghouse and quickly barked twice, as if to answer Ah Huang's question.
The woman didn't pay much attention; she glanced at it casually, found nothing amiss, and went back to her room.
Zhu Huihui slipped over and listened for a while under the window. She heard a simple conversation between a man and a woman inside, about things like private tutoring and the imperial examinations. The man seemed to be a scholar.
She herself was not very educated and had always looked down on educated people, so she ignored them and went straight to their kitchen.
First, uncover the big and small pots, then rummage through the big and small cabinets, and finally lift the big and small bowls.
The ordinary farmhouse kitchen didn't have much good food. After searching for a long time, all they found were some pickled vegetables, a few dried smoked fish, two salted eggs, and a few coarse steamed buns. They couldn't help but feel quite dissatisfied: "Look how beautiful the house is, but we eat such simple food. Even a dog wouldn't want to eat it!"
Although she disliked the food, she figured a thief couldn't leave empty-handed, so she had no choice but to make do. She found a cloth to wrap the food and tucked it into her bosom. After debating between a kitchen knife and a fire poker for a while, she finally decided the kitchen knife was sharper and grabbed it, tucking it into her waistband. Then she saw a brass kettle on the stove, half-filled with hot water, quite heavy. She thought for a long time, figuring the hero must be thirsty, and finally decided to take it with her. So she found a hemp rope, threaded it through the handle, and hung the kettle on her shoulder. Turning around, she left the kitchen, looked around the yard, and saw some clothes drying on a bamboo pole. Without hesitation, she grabbed a few pieces, haphazardly wrapped them together, and tied them to her back.
After thinking for a while, she felt that she had taken enough things, so she climbed over the wall again.
According to her estimation, it was already dark, and even if the snakes didn't rest in this small village, they wouldn't take their horses up the mountain with them. They would most likely leave the horses in the village and continue their search.
Although she had lingered for a long time, when she returned to the tavern, she found the three serpent envoys still eating there. She squatted in the corner, waiting anxiously, sweating profusely, and in her stomach, she rudely cursed the three men's ancestors to the eighteenth generation.
She didn't know how long she waited before the three men finally got up. Just as Zhu Huihui had predicted, they had left their horses at the tavern for the time being. To be on the safe side, she patiently waited a while longer, and seeing that the three menacing figures hadn't returned, she cautiously approached them.
The white horse was exceptionally magnificent, and ordinary people could not even get close to it. Normally, anyone of low status who approached would be kicked away by a single hoof. However, the horse envoy among the twelve zodiac envoys was a hunter by trade and had a knack for dealing with animals, which was why it had been captured. It was quite aggrieved at first, but upon seeing a familiar face, it immediately let out a long, joyful neigh.
Zhu Huihui was terrified. She covered her head and hid in the bushes behind the fence. She made up her mind that if the snake caught her, she would say that she had come to elope with Ashan.
After waiting for a long time without anyone coming out, she breathed a sigh of relief, climbed out, and whispered, "Brother Ma, Grandpa Ma, please calm down and stop yelling, okay? You want to get me and your master killed!"
Whether the horse understood or not, it snorted but stopped neighing.
Zhu Huihui mustered his courage, untied the reins, and led the horse, step by step, quietly walking out of the village. He was both surprised and delighted, never expecting to be so lucky and steal the horse back so easily.
Having finally left the village, she immediately quickened her pace. Not knowing how to ride a horse, she had to lead it at a brisk pace. Afraid of being found by following the hoofprints, she remembered hearing in a story that wrapping a horse's hooves with cloth would prevent it from leaving any tracks. So she tore off a piece of her clothes and wrapped the white horse's four hooves. Then, by the starlight, she led it in a long circle, finally returning to the place where Fengxuese had been hiding.