thenovelthief #366 - Haha! Snakes have no feet!
#366 - Haha! Snakes have no feet!
Beast.
A true beast!
Who casually resorts to murder?
And against a blind mother and her young daughter?
Both mother and daughter were wearing tattered clothes, clearly from a poor family.
Even in such a state, a normal person, even if unmoved by compassion and unwilling to help, would at least sigh at their hardship, right?
So, Wei Gu is not a normal person.
"No, even a beast wouldn't casually resort to murder," Xu Chengxian shook his head.
Even tigers and wolves kill only to satiate their hunger.
To kill someone for no reason, what good could possibly come of that?
"Huh?" Da Hei listened, stunned.
It seems... that makes sense!
Now that it's been brought up, upon reflection, there are indeed some inconsistencies.
"Even if he was afraid of being賴 (lài) on, you have money to study, so you're not an ordinary person. Couldn't he just run away?" Xu Chengxian scoffed, "To be this selfish is absolutely outrageous!"
"Daoist Xu, how do you know he eventually ran away?" Ao Runji called out.
"He ran away?" Da Hei was stunned again.
It flickered and flew to the top of Ao Runji's head, "Are we talking about the same story?"
"Yes!" Ao Runji nodded.
Then, he continued to tell the story.
The more he listened, the more magical it seemed.
When he heard the reason why Wei Gu ran away, Xu Chengxian knew that his earlier curse of 'beast' was definitely too mild.
Far too mild.
Because in the story, after Wei Gu said he wanted to kill the little girl, the old man only said, 'They are already tied together by the red thread, how can it be reversed?', and then drifted away.
Wei Gu, of course, didn't believe it. He ordered his servant to kill the little girl, but the servant was timid and only pierced the girl's brow before fleeing.
"...Damn it!" Xu Chengxian cursed.
Wei Gu and the old man, one said he wanted to kill someone, the other heard that the former wanted to kill someone. The one who spoke did it, and the one who heard didn't even try to dissuade him.
Truly a pair of mutually consenting bastards!
"Then what?" He really wanted to hear the rest of this story!
He only knew that the legend wasn't good at all, but now Xu Chengxian eagerly wanted to know how... outrageous it could be.
"After that, Wei Gu never married," Ao Runji glanced at Da Hei and continued.
Year after year, although well-intentioned people introduced Wei Gu to potential spouses, none of them succeeded.
More than ten years passed in the blink of an eye. Although Wei Gu didn't marry, he smoothly entered officialdom.
Later, he became a military advisor under the governor of Xiang Prefecture.
"Governor Wang appreciated his talent and learning, so he betrothed his daughter to him, choosing an auspicious day for the wedding ceremony."
The bride, Wang Shi, was eighteen years old, as beautiful as a celestial maiden descending from Yao Pool. Wei Gu was very pleased.
After the marriage, the couple respected each other like honored guests.
"However, the Wang girl always wore a flower between her eyebrows, made of yellow or red paper."
"She wouldn't even take it off when she went to bed at night."
"She would even reapply it after bathing. After a long time, Wei Gu couldn't help but feel strange. He..."
Ao Runji paused suddenly, looking up at Xu Chengxian.
He seemed to have heard a sneer?
"Heh, this dog!" Xu Chengxian stopped in his tracks.
Ao Runji didn't hear wrong.
When he heard about the yellow flower between the eyebrows, he couldn't help but snort.
He probably already guessed who this Wang Shi was.
"What happened to Wei Gu?" he asked.
"Wei Gu couldn't help but ask the reason, and Wang Shi replied, 'I was stabbed by a thug when I was young, leaving a deep scar, so I wear a flower to cover it up,'" Ao Runji said.
Of course, Wei Gu was shocked to hear this, so he repeatedly asked his wife about the incident, and Wang Shi told him the truth, also revealing her background.
"It turned out that Wang Shi was also from an official family. Her father was a magistrate, a good official who served the people, but unfortunately, he died in office."
"He didn't leave any family property, and her mother also died of illness. She had to live with her nanny, Chen Shi, who made a living by selling vegetables, living a difficult life."
Later, they drifted to Xiang Prefecture. Granny Chen heard that Governor Wang Tai was an old friend of Wang Shi's father and had become the governor, so she pleaded for help and sent Wang Shi to Wang Tai for adoption.
"Governor Wang treated her like his own daughter, raising her until she was sixteen years old, until he married her off to Wei Gu."
Ao Runji said somewhat dejectedly.
He had been the Dragon King of the Lover's Well in the Yue Lao Temple in the east of the city for a long time.
After all, he had developed some feelings for the place.
Now that he knew the origin of the Yue Lao Temple was such a story, he couldn't help but feel quite frustrated.
He didn't even want to say the ending.
Da Hei continued, "Wei Gu can be considered courageous enough to admit what he did back then in front of Wang Shi."
"And Wang Shi forgave him, right?" Xu Chengxian directly revealed the ending.
This legend was meaningless at all. Listening to it any further would be a waste of effort and might even tempt him to kill.
"You even guessed that?" Da Hei was slightly surprised.
He felt that Xu Chengxian had suddenly become so smart?
"Or have you heard this story before?"
The story of the Yue Lao Temple began to circulate hundreds of years ago.
Because it concerns marriage, it's not universally known among the human race, but it's still widely circulated.
But Xu Chengxian isn't a human!
They haven't seen this person approach the Yue Lao Temple since they entered human territory.
"I really haven't heard this story," Xu Chengxian said.
At least not a detailed, complete version.
Then, he looked up at the sky and then down at the ground.
"What are you looking for, Daoist Xu?" Ao Runji quickly approached and said ingratiatingly, "Why don't you order me to find it?"
"I want to find a slingshot," Xu Chengxian said with his arms folded, "What kind of slingshot do you think I need to give Yue Lao a big bump on his forehead?"
"..."
"..."
Da Hei and Ao Runji looked at him and remained silent for a long time.
Da Hei finally opened his mouth and said, "Da Xu, there's no need to be so ruthless, right?"
"Yes, Daoist Xu, you've offended that old man..." Ao Runji paused and changed his words, "Old Immortal, if you offend the Old Immortal, what if he messes up your red thread?"
"...That's true," Xu Chengxian looked at himself again.
He couldn't cut off his feet for this.
But he immediately became happy.
"Haha!"
His true form is a snake!
Snakes don't have feet!
Moreover, he hasn't transformed yet!
"Let's see how Yue Lao ties the red thread!"
"Da Xu, look at Wei Gu, he still married a good wife, didn't he?" Da Hei thought for a moment and said, "You don't need to worry so much."
"You're right." Xu Chengxian's face suddenly became even more unsightly.
"But I have a younger sister!"
And Bai Xiaocui!
Damn it!
Should he smash all the Yue Lao Temples?