Chapter 27: Eating People

"What are you looking at?" Su Heng’s curious voice suddenly came.

"No... nothing!" Su Li fumbled hastily to stuff the Demon Seeking Compass back into her own bosom, lifting her head with an awkward smile on her face.

"Hahaha..."

"Is that so?" Su Heng raised an eyebrow, asking thoughtfully, "I always feel like you’ve been acting strange since you came back, as if you’re hiding something on your mind."

"Could it be that you were bullied at the prefecture office?" Su Heng’s eyes narrowed, his expression became somewhat dangerous.

"That’s not what happened."

Su Li felt a warmth in her heart, waved her hand, "You know what I’m like."

"That is indeed..."

Su Heng suddenly raised his hand forward, Su Li immediately became alert and took a step back.

But then she saw Su Heng just placing his hand on the front collar of his shirt, unbuttoning it to reveal a patch of bronze skin on his chest.

He shook his head, "The weather really is getting hot."

"That it is, that it is." Su Li knew her reaction just now was over the top, so she could only laugh awkwardly and agree.

"This lady is..."

Su Heng’s gaze moved past Su Li’s head, landing on the servant girl behind her.

"She’s my maidservant, Xiaoqing." Su Li reached out to pull Xiaoqing’s arm, but felt the other body stiffen terribly.

"Xiaoqing,"

Su Li pointed at Su Heng and said, "This is my younger brother, Su Heng. I’ve mentioned him to you before."

The young woman holding the umbrella nodded stiffly, her face stiff, and though she opened her mouth, no words came out.

"Your maidservant, however, seems somewhat unfamiliar." Su Heng spoke lightly.

"She was found in the prefecture city, Xiaoqing is a good person, without her help, this journey would not have been easy." Su Li quickly explained.

"Is that so?" Su Heng nodded thoughtfully.

His gaze shifted from Xiaoqing and landed on Su Li, "Father has already set the banquet at home, it’s getting late, we should head back soon. As for other matters, we can talk over lunch at leisure."

"Yes!" Su Li agreed immediately.

And Su Heng turned around, walking alone in front to lead the way.

Su Li and Xiaoqing, each leading a donkey, followed at a suitable distance behind Su Heng.

"Phew..."

Su Li had just heaved a sigh of relief.

Then she heard Xiaoqing’s fearful voice ring in her ear, "Your brother, he wants to eat me."

"He used to be somewhat lecherous indeed..."

Su Li said, somewhat surprised, "But that joke you told, it’s pretty cold huh."

"I’m not joking." Xiaoqing’s voice continued, "Before you started learning martial arts, have you ever felt like you were being stalked by large predators in the woods? It’s a similar feeling, but even more intense. He wanted to kill me just now, and if he did make a move, I would definitely die."

Having heard this,

Su Li stopped in her tracks and turned around.

She saw Xiaoqing curled up in the shadows, her complexion deathly pale, her whole body trembling uncontrollably.

...

...

...

The fragrance of wine permeated the air as toasting and laughter commingled.

Although the atmosphere was slightly tense at the start, everyone soon warmed up to the festivities.

During the banquet,

Su Li recounted her experiences and observations from her travels for learning.

She also spoke of many wondrous and amusing events that had taken place within the prefecture office, eliciting longing expressions from many in attendance.

The Su Family might be considered local gentry within Changqing County, but within the entire prefecture, they were merely an ordinary family nestled in a corner.

Many people in the family have never even left the vicinity of Changqing County.

Naturally, they were curious about the marvelous cultural experiences of the prefecture office.

Su Gui drank plenty of wine, his face flushed, as he described the various strange occurrences that had recently transpired in Changqing County with his mouth wide open.

Su Li listened with exceptional attentiveness.

When the banquet reached its climax, Su Gui even had Su Shang, who had been quietly eating, go up and perform.



Su Shang felt numb, but constrained by his father’s authority, he had no choice but to recite a passage of reflective poetry in front of everyone.

The only thing that mildly surprised Su Gui was,

In his memory, the relationship between Su Heng and Su Li, the siblings, was extremely close, sometimes even seeming excessively intimate.

But now, after two years apart, upon reuniting...

Su Gui always felt as though they were hiding something from each other, and their conversation at the banquet was not plentiful.

Even though he sensed that the atmosphere was slightly unusual, Su Gui did not think too much of it.

Su Li and Su Heng,

One was the renowned talented lady at the prefectural government, and the other was a bravo capable of tearing demons apart with bare hands.

In the eyes of ordinary people, both were untouchable and esteemed figures.

Children growing up, achieving success and fame, a bit of restraint was nothing out of the ordinary.

The old master was enjoying his drink, these doubts merely flickered through his mind and were then cast aside.

After three rounds of drinks and five courses of food,

The banquet ended.

After bidding farewell to her father and brothers, Su Li, along with her maidservant, walked toward the separate courtyard.

The other people at the banquet also dispersed in twos and threes, each heading home to rest.

The large hall soon emptied, leaving only Su Heng alone.

And a few servants and maids still tidying up the dining table.

Su Heng’s eyes went blank as he gazed in the direction Su Li had left. Outside, the sunlight was strong, casting swaying shadows on the branches and the gray-white floor.

"Coo, coo, coo!"

Two plump gray pigeons flapped their wings and settled back into their nest, preening their feathers with their beaks.

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Su Heng’s brows furrowed slightly, his expression dark.

Reflecting on the scenes that happened since he saw Su Li, he couldn’t help but sigh, squinting his eyes, looking up at the sun, allowing the scorching sunshine to bathe him.

When the water ghost first appeared in Changqing County, Su Heng began to worry about his sister.

From the prefectural city to Changqing County, it was hundreds of kilometers.

A woman.

It was inevitable to encounter some unexpected events.

Only after Su Gui received the news a few days earlier that Su Li had returned safely,

Did Su Heng slowly let go of the anxiety in his heart.

However...

Today, having seen it with his own eyes,

Thinking about all the abnormalities, Su Heng was still able to conclude—without a doubt, something peculiar had happened to Su Li.

As for what exactly happened, Su Heng was not in a position to say.

But the maidservant named Xiaoqing by Su Li’s side had a very obvious demonic aura.

However, compared to the water ghosts he had encountered before, Xiaoqing’s aura was significantly weaker, seemingly different from that of genuine demons.

Su Li said that she was able to make the safe journey thanks to Xiaoqing’s assistance.

The scholar and the female ghost, Ning Caichen and Nie Xiaoqian.

Su Heng thought of the story of "A Chinese Ghost Story."

But both people were women... Yuri! Playing so boldly, no wonder she has returned from the big city.

Su Heng shook his head, feeling that the more he thought, the more preposterous his ideas became.

In fact,

The moment he first saw Xiaoqing,

He entertained the thought of taking her down then and there for interrogation.

But seeing that Su Li and Xiaoqing seemed to share a deep bond, this idea was ultimately suppressed by Su Heng bit by bit.



"Forget it..."

Su Heng was always decisive in his actions, but this matter involved his own family,

And he seemed somewhat conflicted.

After pondering for a while, he still sighed and said, "I’ll just continue to observe for a while, then make further plans!"