CH 11

Mu Xiyun and the silver fox were caught off guard when these remarks were spoken. They exchanged glances before gradually withdrawing their spiritual energy.

As soon as Chixia was pulled out, the silver fox’s left shoulder bleed again. Hong Yu hurriedly came over and covered his wound. Xiyun sighed softly, stepped forward and tapped several of his acupoints, took out a porcelain bottle from his sleeve, and poured out a pill for the silver fox to take.

Although the silver fox described the situation as some kind of embarrassment, he still did not lose his demeanor. He smiled at Mu Xiyun and said, “The healing elixir of Moyun Mountain’s Tianji Peak is indeed well-deserved. Thank you little benefactor.” With that, he gently stroked Hong Yu’s head and spoke softly, “What’s going on, don’t hide anything, you can tell the benefactor.” 

Hong Yu still had tears in her eyes. She nodded after listening, looked at Xiyun and said, “Brother Yin is injured and I don’t know how to heal him, so I thought about going to the medicine hall at the foot of the mountain to steal some herbs.”

Half a month ago, little Hong Yu sneaked down the mountain and broke into a medicine hall in Ping County without anyone knowing. Facing the rows of medicine cabinets in the medicine hall, she just used her keen sense of smell to search for healing herbs. Suddenly, there was a soft noise in the darkness, the little fox was immediately startled and hid in the corner of the medicine cabinet.

A person walked out of the darkness. Because the person was in the shadows,  she couldn’t see his face clearly. Fortunately, he didn’t approach where Hong Yu was hiding, but she clearly felt that the other party’s eyes were always trained on her.

After a moment of silence, Hong Yu became exceedingly frightened that she almost ran out of the door, when the man suddenly said, “Little fox, the medicinal materials you took are useless. To save the silver fox, you need to refine a heart pill.”

Hong Yu was still a naive little fox. Seeing that the man didn’t do any harmful actions and spoke to her gently, her courage gradually grew, and she asked softly. “What is a heart pill? I don’t know how to refine pills.”

That person answered very patiently. “The refining method of the pill is very simple, I can teach you.” After that, he actually told Hong Yu the material and method of refining it in detail.

Because Hong Yu was hellbent on treating the silver fox’s wounds wholeheartedly, she didn’t suspect the man at all. “Brother Yin said to not hurt people. I don’t know where to get a heart.”

“If you can get the heart of a living person or even a cultivators’, of course, the effect would be better. But if you can’t, it’s easy, just find some people who have just died and take their hearts.” After this sentence, the figure suddenly disappeared within the darkness.

The little fox was confused. She sneaked out of the medicine hall in a daze, and walked on the road back to the mountain. Having not walked that long, she suddenly heard several screams. Hong Yu hurriedly hid behind a big boulder, and listened carefully. There seemed to be many people fighting just ahead, mixed with loud scolding and crying.

The little fox didn’t dare to look or show her face, and kept shivering behind the boulder. She waited until everything was quiet and slowly came out behind the boulder. Up ahead,  a cart was overturned on the ground and several dead bodies were scattered around. Everything was a mess.

Hong Yu was petrified and it took a long time for her to relax. She suddenly remembered what the mysterious man told her. She cautiously approached the corpses lying around, unhesitatingly took their hearts and brought them back to the cave. She also found white snake grass and lisan flowers near her cave dwelling. Although she was doing things hurriedly while in a daze, she didn’t know where the luck came from, but she really made a few heart pills.

In the face of the silver fox, Hong Yu only said that she went down the mountain and stole some medicine pills from a Lang Zhong. She was scolded by the silver fox for a few words and muddled through. The silver fox ate the heart pill she refined and his face became better day by day. Hong Yu couldn’t help but rejoice at her good luck.

(t/n Lang Zhong-Langzhong is a senior official who is in charge of the affairs of various departments, and its position is second only to the prime minister. Later, the title of Langzhong as a doctor began in the Song Dynasty. Respectfully calling doctors Langzhong is a southern dialect, which was caused by the proliferation of official titles after the end of the Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties.)

(t/n muddle through-Chinese idiom, pinyin is méng hùn guò guān, which means to evade inquiry or censorship by means of deception.)

“What about that child?”

“Child?” Hong Yu said blankly, “I met that boy in the mountains the day before yesterday. I don’t know where he came from, but I just saw him lying on the ground. When I dug the heart, he was already dead.”

“Is there anyone else?” 

“No, no more. That, today…” Hong Yu shrank back, her face flushed, and she dared not say more. 

This young fox hadn’t been a human for very long, and her natural instinct was still present. Given the effectiveness of the heart pill, it was reasonable to feel dissatisfied and desire more.

The remaining heart pills had been consumed in recent days, and numerous towns at the mountain’s base were on high alert against the heart poaching incident, with town residents temporarily suspending activities such as going up the mountain to chop firewood. She intended to go to Yizhuang in the town to look for a corpse, but she couldn’t find one. She was anxious and apprehensive.

(t/n Yizhuang-The place where the coffin is temporarily housed and built by local or fellow villagers.)

When Mu Xiyun broke into the array and was trapped by the illusion, Hong Yu saw that someone delivered themselves to her door, blinded by evil thoughts, she planned to take the opportunity to kill the person and take their heart.

Mu Xiyun glanced at her, grasped the situation, and felt apprehensive about it all. Furthermore, even if  Hong Yu failed to obtain his heart, he would have been gravely hurt if it hadn’t been for the assistance of the white light suddenly emerging from within his heart. This force had helped him twice, but he wasn’t sure if it was the spiritual power of the Ling Yu plum branch or something else. At this time, he can’t find the answer and can only keep it to himself.

The silver fox was covered in fresh blood at this time, and Mu Xiyun’s front was also torn by a sharp knife. The two faced each other, feeling quite embarrassed. The silver fox then ordered Hong Yu to fetch two of his own robes, and to make a pot of tea along the way. The two left the stone room and into a makeshift hall.

The two of them sat down, and the silver fox bowed to him again and said, “The little demon is still alive, and I almost killed my benefactor today. This silver fox really doesn’t know how to make amends.” 

Xiyun waved his hand and said, “Let’s not mention this, what do you think about what Hong Yu said just now?”

“The mysterious man must be the key to everything.” the silver fox pondered. 

“Indeed.” Xiyun looked up at him. 

“I don’t know where your injury came from?” The silver fox’s heart froze and he already understood what Xiyun meant.

If it was a coincidence that Hong Yu refined the elixirs, the person who told her how to make the elixir must have done it on purpose. In several towns down the mountain, there were more than a dozen medicine halls, yet Hong Yu just happened to meet someone who knew how to make the heart pill. This only meant that the person followed Hong Yu. But why? From this, it was very likely that someone had arranged it in advance. 

But why do so?

The two discussed for a while, but could not come to a conclusion, Hong Yu had already brought them clothes and tea. Xiyun took off his outer robe and replaced it with the one she brought, stood up and said to the two demons, “This matter is strange, and I am afraid there’s more to come. Today, I found out that the two did not commit murder. As God has the virtue of good life, I also won’t temporarily hold you accountable. But I will report it to the elders. If you still plan to practice here, Moyun Mountain will send someone to pay attention to your every move. If you hurt others again, you will be severely punished. That heart pill that uses the human heart as one of its main ingredient is definitely not a good prescription, and it cannot be practiced again in the future. ” 

(t/n God has the virtue of good life- God cares for every living beings) 

Hong Yu was anxious when she heard it, and was about to plead, but was stopped by the silver fox. Mu Xiyun got up to leave, and he hurriedly saw him outside the cave. Without the array, there was only a short way directly out of the boulder.

Xiyun looked at his tired body due to fatigue, sighed softly, and handed him a medicine bottle. The handsome silver-haired young man took the medicine bottle in disbelief, knelt down and bowed in agitation, “Benefactor, more than fifty years ago, your senior brother and you gave me a way out, and now you’ve even given me medicine for healing. If ever you encounter any problem, together with Wan Niang, we will not hesitate to help you.” 

“Wan Niang?” Mu Xiyun said in surprise. Hong Yu was actually…?

“Yes.” Wan Niang was the woman who died fifty years ago for falling in love with the silver fox. 

“Is there such a coincidence in the world?” Mu Xiyun asked. The woman he loved was reincarnated as a fox, and even met the lover of her previous life.

“It’s not so much a coincidence,” The man’s eyes were full of tenderness, “it’s better to say that Wan Niang tried her best to come back to me.”

“You are lucky. However, take care of your little lover, and don’t be deceived again.”

Xiyun turned around and went down the mountain. The silver haired man coughed a few times, and looked at the lonely back as it disappeared under the dim light of the moon, and said with a small smile, “How do you know you don’t also have this luck?”

It was already past the third watch when Mu Xiyun returned to the medicine hall. Su Yanjun was tossing and turning, and was unable to fall asleep. In the end, he decided to just meditate on the bed. When he saw him back, he immediately greeted him. He took his pulse, gave him medicine and asked a disciple to bring hot water. He also personally cooked a bowl of egg noodles and watched him eat it. 

(t/n third watch- refers to 11:00 am to 1:00 am)

Xiyun watched him go back and forth busily, and his heart felt warm. While eating noodles, he explained to him about what happened today.

Su Yanjun agreed with Mu Xiyun and the silver fox. They all believed that someone deliberately lured Hong Yu into digging some corpses’ hearts  and refined them into pills. At the same time, he also raised new questions.

Is there any connection between the murdered people Hong Yu met and the body found in Qingxi Town? And how did that child corpse come to the forest near Yiyun Town?

They thought that the real murderer had been found, but later, it was discovered that all those people had died before the fox demon dug their hearts. The murder cases were also scattered in several places, and the mysterious person who lured Hong Yu into refining the pills… Thousands of threads were entangled together and obscured the truth.

After a few hours of rest, Xiyun had a bunch of messy dreams. At the crack of dawn, Xiyun got dressed and went to the courtyard.

The aunt who specializes in mending clothes came out of the guest room with a few robes. It was said that there lived two medicine dealers from the north. Xiyun saw a young man seeing her out of the door and thanking her. When the young man noticed Xiyun standing in the courtyard, he made a salute and then closed the door. 

The aunt greeted Xiyun with a smile, murmuring in a low voice, “Young people love to fight all day long. Look at how big the tear of the sleeve of this fine dress is.”

Xiyun looked up and saw that the torn clothes seemed very familiar.

At this time, Liang Zheng and Su Yanjun also came to the courtyard and this thought was immediately thrown on the back burner. The three met, and each of them recounted what happened yesterday in detail. While they were discussing, Gu Mingshun sent someone to report that the identity of the corpse had been confirmed, and that he was currently in the Ping County’s local government office.

Ping County was located in the southwest of Yiyun Town. According to the division of the government, Ping County and Yiyun town belong to two prefectures respectively.

A distance of more than a hundred miles can be reached by a quick horse in two hours. The three borrowed horses from the Yamen, and when they arrived at the Ping County’s government office, the court was already in session for the case hearing. A woman sat in the hall, shivering under a startling sound of the gavel and began to explain. 

Gu Mingshun’s colleague explained. “Yesterday, when Constable Gu came to Ping County, he met with Ping County’s constable, and only then did he know that Feng’s family here was missing a young master. When Constable Gu took out the bell bracelet, the wife immediately recognized it. Feng Mansion sent someone to identify the corpse, and it was confirmed that the child whose heart was dug was undoubtedly the young master of the Feng Mansion. Because Ping County and Yiyun Town belong to two prefectures, the case was not reported in time, so we have never known. “

“Kneeling in the hall is the concubine of the Feng family, who is said to be hateful. Since she has never had children, she is not used to the family’s favor for the young master. After Feng Xiaobao disappeared, she was placed under house arrest by the Feng family. Yesterday, her maid reported that the second wife once asked her to burn a child’s clothes. The maid kept it in her thoughts but eventually reported it. When Madame Feng saw the clothes, she fainted…”

At this moment, the woman in the hall let out a burst of laughter. “Hahaha, the head of the Feng family caused me to have no children, so I sold her child to the frontier, making him a slave, and be torture all his life, hahahaha!”

The onlookers couldn’t help but look sideways. The Feng family was rumored to have internal disputes, but who would have thought for the child to be killed. 

Not long after, the concubine of the Feng family helplessly offered the person who bought the child, and Gu Mingshun sent someone to look for the said person.

Wang Ping was the man’s name, and he had been in this industry for decades. He had a house on the outskirts of Ping County that he normally used as a Yaxing, where he gathered all the young boys and girls he had purchased and taught them some manners and etiquette so that he could make more money when he sold them to a large family.

(t/n Yaxing -a firm or middleman that negotiates and introduces transactions for buyers and sellers in the market, and collects commissions. Sometimes also referred to as the dental trade association.)

Everyone rushed to the Yaxing and knocked on the door for a long time, but only a half-deaf and half-mute old man came to open the door. Constable Chen asked the old man patiently and it took a long time to figure out that Wang Ping and four other people had already gone out along with more than a dozen children half a month ago. The old man was just hired to watch the door, and he didn’t know where the owner went.

A group of people looked at each other. Constable Chen gritted his teeth and said, “Search the whole place!”

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Little Theater: 

Gu Qingqiao: What about me? What about me? Why am I missing again?