Chapter 69 - Meal
The yellow paper slowly burned, gradually transforming into black ashes that spiral upward into the hot air, disappearing into the skies.
As he looked at this scene, Li Huowang’s expression was quite complicated.
“Li Zhi, I’ve burnt some paper money for you. Hopefully you’ll receive it,” muttered Li Huowang.
Just as he finished saying that, Li Huowang saw the black ashes swirling around in the air; it was almost as if Li Zhi was giving him a reply.
At that moment, Li Huowang had a feeling that understood the slightest bit about the mindset of superstitious people.
Compared to a depressing end in which a human being would be reduced to nothing after their death, the belief that they would become a ghost and be reincarnated sounded like a fairy tale.
He threw the last batch of yellow paper in his hands into the fire before standing up and patting the dust off his body.
“Let's go. We should find an inn to rest. All of us are drenched,” said Li Huowang.
Just as they were about to leave, Bai Lingmiao’s words caused them to stop. “Senior Li, Xiaoman is missing.”
Li Huowang observed his group and saw that the girl afflicted with hypertrichosis was indeed missing.
“Oh, I remember her saying that her house is nearby,” said Li Huowang.
No one replied to him. After what she had told them last time, all of them knew what she intended to do once she reached home. The depressing atmosphere around them became even worse.
“Uhm Senior Li, should we go find her? Maybe we can still stop her.” Puppy smiled sheepishly, scratching his oily hair beneath his veil.
Li Huowang merely glanced at him for a moment before walking toward an inn marked by a wooden sign.
“Let’s find an inn to rest first. Xiaoman’s home is nearby so she should be familiar with the directions here. She will come and find us after she finishes whatever she needs to do,” said Li Huowang.
Bai Lingmiao was just about to say something but after hearing what Li Huowang had said, she decided against it. She just gripped the hems of her clothes as she followed behind him, quietly.
The skies were gray and it continued drizzling. Due to this, Bai Lingmiao didn’t need to use her blindfold. Sadness was reflected in her pink irises.
They soon found an inn and entered their respective rooms. They were delighted to have a dry place to rest. Some of them washed their hair, while others took a bath. Once all of them finished cleaning themselves, they gathered at the food hall.
They didn’t have much money left so they only ordered some simple dishes. Most of them were vegetables; they only had one source of protein—stir-fried bitter gourd with eggs and crispy pork lard with chili.
Everyone happily ate their meals. Even though they didn’t have much choice due to their limited finances, the scent of the pork lard was more than enough to satisfy them. At the very least, they wouldn’t have to stay hungry anymore.
Today was the Qingming Festival so there weren’t many people at the inn. Out of boredom, the waiter was talking with the cashier.
“Hey, did you know that a war will soon be breaking out at the border?” asked the waiter.
“Don’t lie to me. What do you know? You aren’t even qualified to talk about issues of the national level,” replied the cashier with a scoff.
“Hey, don’t judge me like that. I might be a waiter, but I still know the latest information. I’ve heard that this time our kingdom of Si Qi is planning to wage a war toward the East,” said the waiter.
“East?” Li Huowang muttered as he overheard their conversation while eating his meal. They had just come here from the East.
Li Huowang did not know many people there, but there was someone he was worried about—troupe leader Lu and his family.
But thinking back on how cunning Lu Zhuangyuan was, he relaxed.
That old man is very sly, so he should be fine.
The waiter lowered his voice to a whisper as he continued talking. “Let me tell you something else too. Just a couple of days ago, those that went East for business were hurriedly traveling back here. Maybe they know something about it.”
Li Huowang shook his head as he ate his meal.
This damned place is so chaotic. Not only are there evil beings, there are also bandits. The people at the top aren’t even doing their job of maintaining the peace, but they still have the time and energy to wage war. What a bunch of idiots.
The waiter was quite excited as he talked. He was just about to say something when something caught his eye as he hurriedly went to the entrance of the inn.
“Hello young miss! Please come in. Are you here for a meal or will you be staying for the night?” asked the waiter.
Hearing the commotion, Li Huowang and the rest turned around and saw a girl wearing a black veil walking in with a short blade in her hands.
Based on the fact that there were not a lot of people wearing similar outfits and that the girls’s exposed hands were covered in long black hair, Li Huowang easily guessed who it was.
“Waiter, bring us another set of utensils, and give us two more items. This time, something with more meat in it,” said Li Huowang.
“Alright! Just a moment!” replied the waiter.
Then, Li Huowang elbowed Simpleton who was sitting beside him. Simpleton knew what this meant so he helped himself to a few more pieces of vegetables before taking his bowl and squatting down at a corner of the table to eat.
Xiaoman walked over to Li Huowang and sat beside him before taking off the black veil and revealing her face. The black hair on her face was wet from her tears.
Li Huowang took a deep breath and sighed before continuing to eat. He could smell a faint bloody stench coming from Xiaoman.
“Your bowls and chopsticks are here~~ Aiya! Yikes!” The waiter brought the utensils requested by Li Huowang, but shouted out of fright when he saw Xiaoman.
Shooing off the spooked waiter with his hand, Li Huowang placed the bowl and chopsticks in front of Xiaoman. “Eat.”
Xiaoman’s face was filled with pain as she stared at the empty bowl as she recalled something. “He sold my sister as well. He sold her to a fifty-year-old man. She died from birth complications earlier this year.”
Only the sounds of utensils and munching were heard at the table; no one dared to speak.
“He’s trash! I hate him! I hate him so much that I want to eat his flesh and drink his blood!” Xiaoman clenched her teeth as she squeezed out those words.
Hearing that, Bai Lingmiao had a worried expression on her face; she scooted over and gently hugged Xiaoman with her white arms.
“My mom tried to stop me, saying that no matter what, he was still my father. She said that I would suffer Heaven’s wrath for killing my father. But at this point, I would rather accept punishment from the Heavens than not kill my father!” said Xiaoman through her sobs.
Li Huowang scooped up some of the vegetable and tofu soup into his bowl and drank it before saying casually, “Heaven does not have eyes here.”
The table grew silent; everyone just sat and silently stared at Xiaoman.
Everyone had a hint of anger and sadness in their eyes. They were all guiding drug ingredients so they could more or less resonate with her feelings. Without reaching back to their homes, none of them could confirm that they hadn’t been sold off by their family.
The anger in Xiaoman’s eyes was slowly replaced with confusion. “I don’t have a home now. I destroyed it with my own hands just now. I have no idea what to do next.”
“Stir-fried donkey meat! Braised river fish! Please enjoy!” At that moment, the waiter came in and placed the two dishes down before running away.
Li Huowang took Xiaoman’s empty bowl, and filled it with steaming white rice before placing it in front of her. “Eat.”
Having said that, Li Huowang used his chopsticks and picked out a fish bone from the braised fish before using it as a toothpick. Then, he got up and slowly walked back up to his room on the second floor.
Soon, everyone else followed suit, silently leaving the table. Only Xiaoman and Bai Lingmiao were left in the food hall.
Tears streamed down from the black hair on Xiaoman’s face, dripping onto her rice. She picked up her chopsticks with trembling hands, picked up the bowl of rice, and ate a mouthful of the white rice that was mixed with her tears.
The more she ate, the more she cried. When she finally placed the bowl down, she burst into tears, crying loudly.
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