Chapter 86 - 2#
World 4: You Are the Snow on the Branch#
With a soft snap, the jade chopsticks in Ye Li’s hand were unconsciously snapped into two pieces by him.
He looked at Qin Qing unblinkingly, his eyes turning red.
Qin Qing stood up and walked towards the door, sighing, “So you should leave as soon as possible. The Marquis’s residence is also a dragon’s pool and tiger’s den.”
Ye Li dropped the broken chopsticks and chased out the door. “If anyone wants to hurt you, I will make sure they die without a burial place!” He gasped, speaking word by word, and then reached out to pull Qin Qing’s sleeve.
“What if you are the one who wants to hurt me?” Qin Qing looked back, his expression calm.
Ye Li’s outstretched hand suddenly stopped in mid-air, not daring to touch the person in front of him who was as fragile as ice and snow.
“I have no trustworthy people around me, and I never pin my hope of living on others.” Qin Qing walked towards the depths of the darkness, his voice carrying a trace of loneliness like cold ashes.
“Little Marquis, you are innocent. No one will come to kill you!”
Two red lanterns hung above Ye Li’s head. He stood in the light, while Qin Qing was being swallowed by the darkness.
“I enjoyed the glory and wealth brought by my grandfather; my existence is the original sin. If I die, please trouble yourself to collect my corpse, burn it to ashes, and scatter it into the Hukou Waterfall.”
After saying this, the hem of Qin Qing’s pale robe was completely swallowed by the darkness.
Ye Li stood under the lantern for a long time without moving, as if he had turned into a stone statue.
Ah Niu chased out and looked at Qin Qing’s back sadly. When he turned his head again, he saw that his master’s eyes were completely red, with glistening light flickering inside.
Was that tears?
“Brother Ye, are we really going to—” Ah Niu made a gesture of raising his hand and dropping a knife.
Ye Li suddenly turned to look at him, his dark eyes bursting with furious flames.
“Who said I wanted to kill Qin Qing? Who said that?” He grabbed Ah Niu by the neck, trying his best to lower his voice and roar, his distorted face showing an indescribable look of fear.
In the darkness, 996 suddenly opened his eyes and asked lazily, “Why did you say those words to Li Suye?”
“Just testing his attitude.” Qin Qing stroked 996’s soft fur casually.
“What did you find out?”
“He seems to be secretly in love with me…”
A soft chuckle scattered in the wind.
Inside the county office, Qi Sifeng dismissed his attendants and had a secret talk with his sister Qi Siyu.
Qi Sifeng: “The Tai’an Marquis’s residence agreed to help Daoist Wuwei organize the rain prayer ceremony. Daoist Wuwei is selecting sacrifices everywhere. This time it’s twenty boys and girls, all children from good families.”
Qi Siyu: “Won’t these people hate the Tai’an Marquis’s residence to the bone?”
“Naturally. What’s even better is that the Fourth Prince is also in the Tai’an Marquis’s residence at this time. Seeing such a tragic event, you can imagine how furious he will be.”
“Should we save these twenty people?”
“On the day of the sacrifice, go to the scene and make a big fuss. Let the Fourth Prince see your kindness and decisiveness. I will send troops to arrive later.”
“What if I fail to stop it?”
“If you can’t stop it, the Fourth Prince can. However, if neither of you can stop it, that would be even better. Once the twenty children die, the Fourth Prince will definitely blame this blood debt on the Tai’an Marquis’s residence. When the reckoning comes, it will be a full clan execution!” Qi Sifeng made a beheading gesture and couldn’t help but smile.
Qi Siyu frowned and thought for a moment, then instructed, “Then, brother, you’d better stop it later.”
“Don’t worry, I’m bringing very few bailiffs. On the day of the sacrifice, all the people in the city will rush to watch the ceremony. It won’t be easy for the few of us to climb onto the altar to stop Daoist Wuwei from doing evil. Those commoners will keep us firmly in place. If I get injured, that would be even better.”
Qi Siyu smiled knowingly: “If brother gets injured, it will be leading the charge for the country and the people. Brother’s loyalty and righteousness will definitely be seen and remembered by the Fourth Prince.”
The siblings looked at each other and hooked their lips in tacit understanding.
Jiang Feishi stood on the tower defense of a fortress in the mountains, overlooking the entire Jiangbei City.
A sturdy man with a tangled beard hurriedly climbed up the high tower and whispered, “Daoist Wuwei is catching children everywhere. This time it’s twenty, personally requested by the Little Marquis of the Tai’an Marquis’s residence. Should we…”
The man made a beheading gesture.
Jiang Feishi’s eyes flashed: “Personally requested by the Little Marquis? Twenty people?”
The man nodded.
“Then don’t act rashly. Wait until the day of the sacrifice to lurk in the crowd and see the situation.”
As the day of the sacrifice approached, Ah Niu pulled Ye Li to a secluded corner and asked, “Brother Ye, are we really going to ignore it?”
“Send troops to lurk around, don’t act rashly. You know, and I know, Qin Qing is not that kind of ruthless person.”
Ah Niu nodded silently, having no objection.
Three days later, the area around Hukou Waterfall was crowded with people praying for rain. On the high platform built of wood, Daoist Wuwei was chanting spells, the peach wood sword in his hand creating a blur of afterimages.
Twenty children were bound hand and foot, their mouths gagged, locked in bamboo cages one by one, like pigs and sheep waiting to be slaughtered.
Their parents were hidden in the crowd, looking viciously at Qin Qing sitting on the altar with eyes swollen from crying.
No one from the entire Tai’an Marquis’s residence attended the rain prayer celebration, except for him. At this moment, he was stroking the fat cat in his arms intermittently, with a comfortable smile on his lips.
The scorching sun made his cheeks flush and his eyes watery.
Such a beautiful face, yet it encased such a vicious heart!
“I will definitely kill Qin Qing!” An unknown desperate mother gritted her teeth and said this while hiding in the crowd.
Qi Siyu looked around, then curled her lips.
Ye Li and Ah Niu stood behind Qin Qing, silently watching Daoist Wuwei breathing fire one moment, spitting smoke the next, and dancing around. This evil Daoist was quite good at playing tricks, causing the people below the stage to exclaim repeatedly.
The lengthy rain prayer finally ended. Daoist Wuwei waved his hand, and two tall and sturdy Daoists threw the sacrifices one by one into the roaring Hukou Waterfall.
First a whole roasted sheep, then a roasted suckling pig, and then a box of silver.
The two Daoists lifted the wooden box containing silver with some “difficulty” and walked slowly to the edge of the altar. Needless to say, this box of silver was also a tribute from the Marquis’s residence.
Throwing silver into the waterfall for the Dragon King to spend was also a custom, fifty taels each time.
Some people coveted this silver but dared not go into the water to fish it out, because Hukou Waterfall was full of rapids and undercurrents everywhere. Even fish would drown if they went in, let alone people.
After throwing the silver, it was time to throw the children. With the help of her servants, Qi Siyu slowly squeezed to the very front, waiting eagerly.
The parents and relatives of the children, as well as the parents and relatives of the children who had been drowned here before, all stared at everything happening on the altar with blood-red eyes. They hated it so much! They wished they could tear these beasts apart with their own hands!
But if they made the slightest move, the surrounding people who were praying for rain would tear them apart! Because a heavy rain could save thousands of lives!
What did the death of a few dozen children matter?
Endure! Endure even if their hearts were bleeding! These people lowered their heads, suppressing the feeling of unbearable pain.
The two Daoists finally moved a box of silver to the edge of the altar.
Qi Siyu kept rehearsing her next moves in her mind. When the children were also carried to the edge of the altar, she would rush out with a stride, shout “Wait!”, then step on the servants’ shoulders to climb onto the high platform and start a verbal battle with Daoist Wuwei and Qin Qing.
She wanted to incite the emotions of the people, make them realize that throwing living people into the water to drown was a sin! She wanted to make the Tai’an Marquis’s residence a target of public criticism!
Qi Siyu composed herself, her eyes radiating determined light.
At the same time, the two Daoists also swung their arms, ready to throw down a box of silver.
“Wait!” A soft shout suddenly rang out.
Qi Siyu hurriedly covered her mouth, looked around, and then realized that this “Wait” was not shouted by her, but by Qin Qing on the stage.
The Daoists who were about to throw down a box of silver looked back in confusion.
Daoist Wuwei asked with a smile, “Does the Little Marquis have any orders?”
Did he finally soften his heart and prepare to honestly take out five hundred taels of silver to buy these children? It’s a pity it’s too late! The Tai’an Marquis’s residence is destined to bear this sin!
Daoist Wuwei’s eyes radiated a ferocious light.
Qin Qing’s slender index finger shook gently.
Ye Li and Ah Niu immediately bent down and carried out a large box with great effort, placing it squarely in the middle of the altar. The lid opened, and a blinding golden light shone out, shocking the crowd below into making an earth-shaking uproar.
“It’s gold! A whole big box neatly arranged!”
“Oh my God! I haven’t seen so many gold ingots in my entire life!”
“The Tai’an Marquis’s residence is indeed extremely wealthy!”
The commoners discussed animatedly, looking on with envy.
Daoist Wuwei’s eyes also turned red. He never expected that what Qin Qing took out was actually gold ingots! A rough count showed there were at least two thousand taels!
Two thousand taels! And it was gold! Daoist Wuwei’s blood boiled. At this moment, let alone asking him to release those twenty children, even if he was asked to stop the rain prayer ceremony immediately, he would have no objection.
Ye Li and Ah Niu spread out both the upper and lower layers of gold for Daoist Wuwei to see, then closed the lid, lifted the box, and strode towards the edge of the altar, making a gesture to throw it into Hukou Waterfall.
Daoist Wuwei: “!!!”
“What are you doing?” Daoist Wuwei shouted out, his voice cracking.
“In the past, no matter how many sacrifices were thrown down, the Dragon King was always unwilling to send rain. This time, my Tai’an Marquis’s residence made the decision to replace the sacrificial silver with two thousand taels of gold ingots. Praying for rain requires sincerity. Now the Dragon King should be able to see our sincerity, right?”
Qin Qing said loudly.
The commoners below the stage immediately broke into noisy discussions, and soon came to a judgment—the Marquis’s residence was truly sincere in doing this! They were willing to throw two thousand taels of gold into the water; the Dragon King would definitely be moved! At least they were already moved to tears! So many gold ingots, their hearts ached for them!
“The Little Marquis is generous! The Dragon King will definitely be moved and send down rain!” Someone shouted in the crowd.
Qin Qing’s eyes flashed, and he quietly looked into the crowd, catching a glimpse of a familiar figure in a white robe.
It was Jiang Feishi. He was inciting the people.
Qin Qing winked at the other party from a distance and raised his teacup to cover his slightly curved lips.
Jiang Feishi also raised his hand, smiling secretly and happily. He had already guessed what the Little Marquis wanted to do; he was truly an interesting person.
Ye Li also recognized Jiang Feishi’s voice and hurriedly looked at Qin Qing, only to see the young man smiling brightly at the people below the stage, his eyes full of clear and joyful light. But towards himself, he rarely had such a completely relaxed demeanor.
Ye Li clenched his fist secretly, suppressing the bitterness in his heart.
Ah Niu exerted force secretly, moving the box full of gold towards the edge of the altar. Seeing that the turbid waves below the stage were about to swallow this box of treasure, the two Daoists carrying the silver box couldn’t help but get anxious, turning their heads to glare at Daoist Wuwei.
The commoners below the stage shouted one after another: “Quickly throw the gold into the water and offer it to the Dragon King! This rain prayer will definitely succeed!”
“Yes, yes, yes, this rain prayer will definitely succeed! The Dragon King will never dislike the sacrifice this time!”
“It’s going to rain! It’s going to rain!”
The longing for rain among the people who had suffered in the drought for months had almost become a sickness. This urgent cry diluted the scorching sunlight.
Daoist Wuwei was forced into a cold sweat, jumping like an ant on a hot pan, and suddenly shouted: “Wait! After the sacrifice is changed, the time for rain prayer must also be changed! Otherwise, the Dragon King won’t receive our offering! Let me calculate, let me calculate.”
Daoist Wuwei quickly pinched his fingers and said hurriedly: “The day after tomorrow, the day after tomorrow is the most suitable time! We will prepare more sacrifices the day after tomorrow and come to pay respects to the Dragon King again!”
The commoners didn’t understand the details, so they could only let him arrange things randomly. The parents of the twenty children almost knelt on the ground with weak legs. Great, they could delay for a few more days and think of a way!
Ye Li and Ah Niu wanted to move the box containing gold ingots back, but the two tall and sturdy Daoists stepped forward, pressed on the lid, and said in a deep voice: “The sacrifices need to be placed in the Taoist temple for fasting and praying to remove the filth of the mortal world. Give the box to us.”
Ye Li and Ah Niu looked at Qin Qing, who nodded silently.
“Hooked.” He smiled slowly in his heart, his eyes curving like a little fox.
996 complained grumpily: “I don’t know what trick you are playing again, always keeping it to yourself.”
Jiang Feishi, hidden in the crowd, also smiled like a fox and slowly left with a group of inconspicuous men.
“If the Little Marquis is harmed by anyone, I will shed tears.” He whispered, his eyes darkening.
A group of secret guards disguised as commoners also dispersed one after another under Ye Li’s inadvertent wave of hand.
Qi Siyu stomped her foot, cursed secretly for bad luck, and then left in frustration surrounded by a group of servants. The day after tomorrow, she would definitely make Qin Qing be accused by thousands and reviled by ten thousand people!