Ex-Wife is a Big Villainess
Chapter 253 - 152 Peony Fairy

Chapter 253: Chapter 152 Peony Fairy

Jiang Shouzhong felt that the world was becoming more and more magical.

Somehow, there were people trying to snatch a groom for his master. But that also was enough to suggest that the master was quite ugly, otherwise, why would the subordinates be so desperately eager to kidnap someone?

Facing Jiang Shouzhong’s mockery, Jin Ao didn’t get angry and laughed heartily,

"Whether she’s ugly or not, you’ll know once you see for yourself. However, I never force anyone against their will, so if you don’t like to live off a woman, that’s the end of it. After all, a melon forcibly twisted off the vine is not sweet, right?"

"I like to live off a woman, but I don’t like to live off your master."

Jiang Shouzhong’s refusal was very clear.

Jin Ao nodded, "Got it, then let’s leave it at that."

The man stood up and left.

Jiang Shouzhong blinked, a face full of astonishment.

That’s it? He’s just leaving?

Are kidnappers so polite these days?

After watching the man walk upstairs and enter the room, Jiang Shouzhong finally relaxed his grip on the hilt of the knife at his waist and muttered under his breath, "Lunatic."

The waiter was cleaning up the mess on the floor with a belly full of complaints.

The innkeeper, while cursing, was apologizing to the guests who were affected by the ruckus, offering them a fresh table of food and drinks.

The guests didn’t dare to say much, only venting a little frustration quietly.

After all, the girl packed a powerful punch.

The innkeeper was in her thirties, plain-faced, with a plump figure and crow’s feet at the corners of her eyes.

She walked with a swaying waist, exuding a bit of charm.

Approaching Jiang Shouzhong’s table, the innkeeper saw Zhang Que’er looking pretty and amiable and kindly whispered, "Young lady, don’t mind that woman. When she goes mad, she doesn’t talk reason, just stay away from her as much as you can."

"Thank you for the reminder, innkeeper."

Zhang Que’er’s eyes curved into crescents, her smile becoming even sweeter.

Er Liang also took note and gratefully said, "Innkeeper, we’ll try our best to stay away."

The innkeeper patted Er Liang’s little head, taking a liking to this simple and unassuming girl, and said with a smile, "If you’re hungry and want to eat something, just ask for it in the kitchen. I’ll give them a heads-up."

"Thank you, innkeeper, we’ll pay," Er Liang said crisply.

The woman laughed at her response, then turned to look at Yelü Miaomiao, a glint of light in her eyes as she said, "This lady here seems to have a profound fate, surely to marry into a good family in the future."

Yelü Miaomiao maintained her haughty demeanor, scoffing at the innkeeper’s praise.

Just then, a familiar figure entered the inn.

It was none other than the Crown Prince, Zhou Yin.

And he was unaccompanied by any guards, alone.

Upon seeing Zhou Yin, Jiang Shouzhong felt a stir in his heart, his intuition telling him that the man might have come specifically to find him.

And sure enough, Zhou Yin’s gaze quickly swept across the hall, soon locating Jiang Shouzhong. A smile immediately bloomed on the man’s face as he headed straight over.

Zhou Yin still carried the white lantern in his hand.

"Brother Jiang, I’ve finally found you."

Zhou Yin comfortably took a seat opposite Jiang Shouzhong and set the lantern down on the table, smiling as he said, "I figured you all must be staying at an inn, but with several inns in Muling County, it wasn’t easy to find."

Jiang Shouzhong frowned and asked, "Does Young Master Qi have something for me?"

Zhou Yin nodded, saying helplessly, "You must have noticed that strange wind earlier too; it’s highly likely the work of a demon. The magistrates are tight-lipped, and someone higher up has ordered secrecy. Although I’m a relative of the county magistrate, I also can’t get any information."

Zhou Yin paused before continuing, "I remembered Brother Jiang is from the Liushan Division and exceptionally skilled. With matters involving demons, I wonder if Brother Jiang might be interested in investigating?"

Jiang Shouzhong apologetically said, "I’m sorry, but as a covert operative of the Capital’s Liushan Division, there are strict rules. Without an assignment from above, I cannot take on work privately. Unless it’s a special situation, but given that the soldiers have already sealed off the town, I’m sure they have a strategy in place, so I won’t interfere."

"Is that so, what a shame."

Zhou Yin expressed his regret openly, "I’m overly curious yet not very brave; without Brother Jiang’s involvement, I wouldn’t dare to investigate. I was actually hoping to catch a beautiful fox spirit."

He touched the lantern, sighing heavily.

The innkeeper’s wife brought over tea, placing it on the table before turning to leave.

Zhou Yin thanked her and, watching the innkeeper’s wife’s graceful and voluptuous figure, couldn’t help but exclaim, "I see the innkeeper’s wife still has charm." Then, realizing there were two young girls beside him, he coughed awkwardly.

Zhang Que’er couldn’t contain her curiosity and asked, "Why are you carrying a lantern in broad daylight?"

Zhou Yin boldly presented the lantern to the girl in front of him, pointing to the "Auspicious" character on it and said with a smile, "This is no ordinary lantern; it’s a demon-repelling lantern from the Buddhist Sect, consecrated with the prayers from the ’Manifold Cloud Sutra’ of Wuchan Temple. See this character? There’s a lot of attention to detail in it."

Zhang Que’er and Er Liang leaned in curiously and, indeed, they found that the "Auspicious" character seemed to be made up of countless small Sanskrit characters.

"With this lantern, ordinary demons won’t be able to get close."

Zhou Yin chuckled, "Which of you two wants it? Consider it a gift for our acquaintance."

Er Liang immediately shook his head.

Zhang Que’er pursed her glossy lips, "Not interested."

Zhou Yin felt a bit deflated, touched his nose awkwardly, and then lowering his voice, he eagerly whispered to Jiang Shouzhong, "Brother Jiang, would you like to know why Muling County was sealed off? I’ve got some insider news, not sure if it’s accurate or not, but it certainly sounds mysterious."

Jiang Shouzhong was about to shake his head when Yelü Miaomiao, intrigued, couldn’t resist asking, "What news?"

No sooner had the girl spoken that she instinctively looked up at Jiang Mo, seeing his slight frown, she stuck out her tongue a little, realizing she might have been too talkative.

Zhou Yin was already speaking of his own accord, "It is said that a lovesick man, searching for his beloved for ten long years, finally discovers she’s hiding in this small town. To prevent her from running away, he makes a grand show of sealing off the town..."

As he spoke, Zhou Yin burst into laughter, perhaps realizing his fabricated story was too far-fetched, then said gravely, "Actually, the truth is that a Peony Fairy...uh, a peony demon to be precise, is hidden in this little town and is very important to someone. Eating it, one could gain some benefits. As for what those benefits are, I’m also unaware."

At the mention of "peony demon," Jiang Shouzhong’s eyes flickered momentarily.

Whereas Yelü Miaomiao remained composed.

"Well, since Brother Jiang is unwilling to investigate, then I won’t insist," Zhou Yin suddenly stood up and said with a smile, "I won’t disturb you any longer, Brother Jiang. If you run into any trouble, come find me at the magistrate’s estate."

Zhou Yin picked up the lantern and left the inn.

Zhou Yin walked out of the inn and looked at the lantern in his hand, chuckling, "Such demonic energy in a small inn, how very interesting."

...

In the second-floor room of the inn, Long Yuanyuan’s room.

Fu Huren stood timidly in front of the stern young mistress, apologizing in a small voice, "I’m sorry, Mistress, I’m useless, I couldn’t stop those two, and you had to take action yourself."

"Fu Huren, what on earth is the matter with you!?"

Long Yuanyuan demanded angrily, "Why do you keep clinging to me so doggedly?"

Fu Huren’s face turned red, and through gritted teeth he said, "Mistress, I fear you’ve been tricked! That Wen Dong is certainly no good man, I even suspect he’s not human, but a demon—"

Slap!

A heavy slap landed on Fu Huren’s face.

Long Yuanyuan pointed at him fiercely, eyes filled with anger, "If you dare say another bad word about Wen Lang, I’ll kill you!"

Long Yuanyuan’s lips trembled, and she pointed towards the door, "Get out!"

Fu Huren, covering his face, walked silently out of the room.

In the room next door, Wen Dong listened to the quarrel outside, shaking his head with a slight smile on his lips.

He casually opened the folding fan in his hand, swaying it gently, his gaze drifting to the dim horizon outside the window as he murmured to himself, "Peony, oh Peony... where exactly are you hiding?"

Soon after, the image of Zhang Que’er flashed in his mind, causing his brows to slightly furrow.

"It shouldn’t be, there’s clearly a trace of Netherworld Demon Qi, yet no possession. Although there’s some malevolence, it’s far from enough. This girl, she’s a bit mysterious."

...

The following day passed in peace and tranquility.

Even the previously gloomy skies seemed to brighten up, as if washing away the oppressive gloom that had weighed on everyone’s hearts these past two days, bringing a hint of ease.

With nothing better to do, Jiang Shouzhong entertained Er Liang and the others with stories.

He told the tale of The Legend of the White Snake.

At first, only Er Liang was keen to listen then Zhang Que’er joined in, followed by Yelü Miaomiao, who initially expressed disdain ended up squeezing next to the man, listening eagerly.

In the end, Mengniang also came over.

Hearing that Bai Niangzi was suppressed under Leifeng Pagoda by Fahai, Mengniang was so angry that she almost flipped the table, exclaiming furiously, "That damn bald donkey is bullying my snake clan too much! If he dared to suppress me like this, I would wipe out all the monks of Gold Mountain Temple... no, all the bald donkeys in the whole world!"

After venting her anger, Mengniang slipped into a gloomy trance.

Bai Niangzi married Xu Xian to repay her debt of gratitude, only to end up suppressed under Leifeng Pagoda.

And Mengniang herself had married Mo Ruye to repay gratitude, only to be suppressed for twenty long years in that ominous house. How similar their fates were.

Mengniang even wondered if Jiang Shouzhong deliberately crafted a version of The Legend of the White Snake based on her story right on the spot.

Since Jiang Shouzhong’s story was a tragedy, Er Liang cried her eyes out, leaving him no choice but to come up with a happy ending version, which slightly improved the girl’s mood.

Compared to Er Liang’s sadness, Zhang Que’er exhibited more malevolence.

The crimson in her eyes flickered occasionally, and if not for restraining herself, she might have run out into the streets to vent her urge to kill on the monks.

The next morning, on the third day of the lockdown, the sky turned gloomy again, and a drizzle began to fall.

Jiang Shouzhong took the four ladies to the hall for breakfast.

Perhaps because it was the last day of lockdown, the atmosphere in the hall seemed much more pleasant than before.

Like usual, Jiang Shouzhong took his familiar seat. However, the table next to him wasn’t occupied by Long Yuanyuan and her companions, but by the two big men who had been humiliated the previous day.

As for Long Yuanyuan and her group, they chose seats closer to the entrance.

The two big men never dared to raise their eyes to Long Yuanyuan; they just kept their heads down, focusing on their own meals.

After eating, they didn’t linger and hurried back to their rooms.

As they left, one of the men couldn’t help but give Long Yuanyuan a cold, resentful glance, his eyes filled with a trace of unwillingness and bitterness.

"Not cutting the weeds and eliminating the roots will lead to regret sooner or later."

Zhang Que’er muttered.

Jiang Shouzhong, none too pleased, rewarded the girl with a smack on the head, "As if you’re the most sober one here, just eat your meal."

Seeing a grain of porridge on Yelü Miaomiao’s lips, Jiang Shouzhong instinctively reached out and gently wiped it away.

The girl was taken aback but didn’t say anything.

"Damn! My treasure box is gone!"

Just then, an agitated shout came from the second floor, the voice of one of the big men Long Yuanyuan had reprimanded.

He rushed out of his room to the table where he had sat, searching frantically, but seemed to find nothing.

The big man was sweating profusely, his eyes scanning the spacious hall as he yelled, "Did any of you see my treasure box?"

No one in the hall responded.

The innkeeper’s wife quickly came out, eager to know what had happened.

The big man said, "I’ve lost a yellow treasure box, engraved with a pattern that looks like a mouse."

However, Er Liang was taken aback and unconsciously looked back at Wen Dong, sitting next to Long Yuanyuan... In the morning, when she was getting hot water for her master, she unintentionally saw Wen Dong holding a yellow box.

Perhaps coincidentally, this action of Er Liang’s was caught by the big man.

He hastily asked, "Girl, did you see it?"

Er Liang was somewhat at a loss and looked to Jiang Shouzhong.

Jiang Shouzhong chuckled, "Just tell the truth, it’s alright."

Er Liang, reassured, pointed at Wen Dong, "I saw him holding a yellow box this morning when he entered the room."

As these words were spoken, everyone’s gaze fell on Wen Dong.

Long Yuanyuan, furious, "You filthy girl, spouting nonsense! Clearly, you stole it and are framing someone else!"