CH 69

One by one, the yellow paper turned into black ashes as the flames burned, rising up on the heat.

Li Huowang's expression was complicated as he looked at everything in front of him.

"Li Zhi, I've burned the paper money you wanted. I hope you receive it," he said, and just as he finished speaking, the black ashes in front of him spun around as if in response.

At that moment, Li Huowang suddenly understood the thoughts of those superstitious people.

Compared to the cruel and desperate disappearance after death, the idea of becoming a ghost and continuing to reincarnate was truly a beautiful fairy tale.

After throwing the last stack of yellow paper into the fire, Li Huowang stood up and dusted off the ashes from his body.

"Let's go. We'll find an inn in town to rest. Everyone is soaking wet," he said, but Bai Lingmiao's words stopped him in his tracks.

"Li Shixiong, Xiaomanjie is missing," she said.

After observing the crowd for a while, Li Huowang realized that the woman with hypertrichosis was indeed gone.

"Oh, I remember now. She told me before that her home is nearby," he said, but no one responded. After what had happened earlier, everyone knew what Xiaoman planned to do when she returned home, and the already oppressive atmosphere became even more stifling.

"Um, Li Shixiong, should we go find her? Maybe we can stop her," said Gouwa, scratching his oily hair under his hat.

Li Huowang glanced at him and walked towards the sign of an inn.

"Let's find an inn first to settle down. This is Xiaoman's hometown, and she will definitely come find us after she's done," he said, and Bai Lingmiao quietly followed, tugging at her clothes with a sad look in her pink eyes, which didn't need to be covered with a cloth anymore.

The dry guest room was quickly prepared, and after everyone finished washing up, they gathered in the lobby to eat.

With little money in their pockets, the dishes on the table were average, mostly vegetarian, with the only meat dish being bitter melon stir-fried with eggs and pork fat scraps stir-fried with chili peppers.

But everyone enjoyed the food, and for some inexplicable reason, the pork fat in the dishes was particularly fragrant and satisfying.

Today was Qingming Festival, and the inn wasn't very busy. A runner was chatting with the accountant next to them.

"Hey, scholar, did you know? I heard that the border is probably going to war again," said the runner.

"Don't talk nonsense. You know nothing. What right does a lowly runner have to discuss national affairs?" replied the accountant.

"I don't like that kind of talk. Although I'm just a lowly runner, I'm well-informed. I heard that this time, we're planning to attack the east," said the runner.

"The east?" Li Huowang, who was eating normally, perked up his ears. The east was the border area.

Li Huowang didn't have many acquaintances there, but he was worried about the members of the Lü family troupe.

But when he thought of the very smooth-talking Lü Zhuangyuan, he felt relieved. The old man was very oily and should be okay.

The runner's voice lowered. "Scholar, let me tell you. Recently, the merchants who were doing business over there have been rushing back. They must have heard something."

Li Huowang shook his head. This place was already in chaos, with evil spirits and phantom horses. Instead of dealing with people's livelihoods, the authorities had the time to raise troops and go to war. It was really absurd.The excited waiter was about to say something when his eyes suddenly lit up, and he hurriedly went to greet someone at the inn's entrance.

"Hey! Miss! Are you here for a meal or to stay the night?"

Upon hearing the commotion, Li Huowang and the others turned their heads and saw a woman with a short knife and a black veil over her hat walking in.

Not many people in the town dress like her, and Li Huowang easily guessed her identity upon seeing the black-haired back of her hand.

"Waiter, bring a pair of chopsticks and have the cook add two more dishes."

"Okay! Right away!"

Li Huowang nudged the fool next to him with his elbow, and the fool quickly took a few bites of food, holding his bowl and squatting down to eat.

Xiao Man walked over to Li Huowang and sat down.

The black veil was lifted, revealing her black hair soaked with tears.

After taking a breath, Li Huowang took a few bites of rice. He smelled a faint scent of blood from Xiao Man.

"The chopsticks and bowl are here~~ Oh my god!!"

Li Huowang shooed away the scared waiter with his hand and placed the bowl and chopsticks in front of Xiao Man. "Eat."

Xiao Man looked at the empty bowl in front of her with a painful expression, as if remembering something. "He sold my sister too. My sister was sold to a man in his fifties, and she died in childbirth earlier this year."

Only the sound of chopsticks hitting the bowl and the sound of chewing and swallowing could be heard on the table, and no one spoke at the moment.

"He's scum! I hate him! I want to eat his flesh and drink his blood!"

Xiao Man gritted her teeth and squeezed out these words from between them.

Upon hearing this, Bai Lingmiao, who was sitting next to her, leaned over with a pained expression and gently hugged her with her white, jade-like hands.

"My mother told me that no matter what, he's still my father, and that killing one's own father will bring down divine retribution. But I'd rather face divine retribution than not kill him!"

Li Huowang scooped up some vegetable and tofu soup into his empty bowl with a spoon and poured it into his mouth as if chatting. "The god of this place is blind."

The table gradually quieted down, and everyone sat silently, staring at Xiao Man with a hint of anger and sadness in their eyes. They were all drug addicts and could sympathize with Xiao Man's situation.

Until they got home, no one could be sure if they had been sold by their families.

As Xiao Man's anger faded from her eyes, she was left with deep confusion. "My home is gone, and I dismantled it myself. I don't know where to go next."

"Stir-fried donkey meat, braised river fish~! Enjoy your meal, everyone!" The waiter who brought two dishes quickly left like he was running for his life.

Li Huowang took Xiao Man's empty bowl, filled it with a full bowl of steaming rice, and pushed it in front of her. "Eat."

After saying that, Li Huowang used a fish bone from the braised fish as a toothpick and walked towards the second-floor guest room.

Others saw this and dispersed in groups of two or three, leaving only Bai Lingmiao to accompany Xiao Man in the lobby.

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Tears fell from Xiao Man's hair onto the rice, and she trembled as she picked up her chopsticks, lifted the bowl, and ate the rice that was mixed with her own tears.

The more she ate, the more tears fell, and she eventually burst into loud sobs while holding the bowl.