Abandoned Woman Busy Farming

Chapter 2523: Chapter 2524: Request

The astrologer didn’t know what method he used, but a faint red glow appeared on the female demon’s hand. Although the color wasn’t bright red, Bai Ruozhu felt a vague sense of it being like human blood.

”You’re stained with fresh blood, turned into murderous intent, and you say you don’t kill people?” The astrologer sneered.

The female demon’s face turned pale, but quickly changed to one of resolute determination.

”I know I can’t hide from the Yin Yang Master, but I have my reasons; the people I killed deserved to die!”

”Presumptuous! Demons killing humans is wrong to begin with. Whether they deserve to die or not is for the Government Office to decide. What right do you have to take lives at will?” the astrologer scolded.

Bai Ruozhu saw the female demon’s sorrowful expression and sensed there might be a story behind it, so she spoke up, ”Why not let her tell her story? If she’s lying, you can deal with her later.”

The astrologer, after all, gave Bai Ruozhu some face, as Bai Ruozhu was the most direct victim of this incident.

”Thank you, madam, for giving this humble woman a chance.” The female demon got up and knelt on the ground, kowtowing to Bai Ruozhu before beginning her story.

”My husband and I are demons born from nightmares. My name is Rouge, and his name is Gong Feng. We never intended to harm anyone and only wanted to live peacefully. However, a great demon in the mountain wanted to increase its strength and almost captured us. We were saved by a passing hunter, and out of gratitude, we left the mountain and followed him to his village. My husband occasionally helped him with hunting to supplement his living.”

The female demon’s expression grew increasingly sorrowful. ”But unexpectedly, the hunter went to the city to sell his game and was beaten to death! Gong Feng and I couldn’t follow him to the city, and when we heard the news, it was too late. We found out who was responsible for our benefactor’s death.”

”Initially, Gong Feng only wanted to teach him a lesson. Although we resented him, we knew killing wasn’t right. But the villain used his daughter’s marriage to the Imperial family in Kyoto as leverage to oppress the people in Gangshan, robbing many of their belongings, and resorting to violence if anyone disagreed.”

”We couldn’t stand it and taught him a lesson twice. He gradually became suspicious and somehow found a demon hunter to deal with us...”

Before she could finish, Bai Ruozhu interrupted her, ”What does the demon hunter he found look like? Does he resemble this master here?”

The female demon shook her head, revealing a look of confusion. ”That person wore a mask, so we couldn’t see clearly, but his figure was somewhat similar.”

Bai Ruozhu quickly glanced at the astrologer, wondering if the Yin Yang Master the female demon mentioned could be Ning Yu.

”Continue,” the astrologer said to the female demon.

”The Yin Yang Master was very powerful, and the villain also sent a group of subordinates to assist the Yin Yang Master in hunting us down. Gong Feng fought desperately to kill that villain and shielded me from most of the pursuers. I had no choice but to kill a person and escape,” the female demon said, starting to cry. ”Gong Feng is still in their hands, but I know he’s alive, so I want to ask this lady for help to rescue him.”

Bai Ruozhu looked at the female demon and asked, ”Why did you choose me and not enter someone else’s dreamland?”

”They’re all men and may not be sympathetic. That young lady seems unmarried and might not understand the feelings between husband and wife. You appear to be a married woman, so I thought you might understand my longing to save my husband,” the female demon said, lowering her head.

The astrologer huffed, ”Are you telling the truth? If the villain isn’t royalty or nobility, how could his daughter join the Imperial family in Kyoto?”

”She’s not married as a principal wife but seems to be a concubine of an Imperial family member. That person also came to Gangshan and seems to have a very noble status. But even the Emperor can’t let relatives harm others, right?” the female demon said, a bit agitated.

Bai Ruozhu’s heart skipped a beat. The Crown Prince had come to Gangshan recently; was it not to avoid Master Puru but because his beloved concubine’s father had passed away? Could the Imperial family member the female demon mentioned be the Crown Prince?

The astrologer, with a stern expression, asked, ”Are there any falsehoods in what you said?”

”I wouldn’t dare deceive the Yin Yang Master. You can secretly inquire in the city to verify the truth of my words. Oh, by the way, the villain’s surname is Fushan, and he’s the patriarch of the Fushan Family,” the female demon said.

”Although your reasons seem justifiable, you did kill someone, so I can only capture you in a demon-catching bottle. We’ll consider releasing you after the murderous aura on you is purified.”

As the astrologer spoke, his subordinates were ready to act at any moment since demons, when desperate, could unleash immense power.

Unexpectedly, the female demon didn’t make a move and only said, ”As long as the master can save my husband and keep us locked together, I’m willing to accept any punishment.”

”Alright,” the astrologer agreed, then threw out a talisman that wrapped around the female demon. She instantly shrank, and together with the talisman, transformed into a point of light and entered the bottle in the astrologer’s hand.

Bai Ruozhu found it fascinating. She thought the female demon seemed no different from an ordinary person; how could one tell she was a demon?

She had never encountered such a situation in Zhongyuan; indeed, Fusang was a place overrun with demons.

The group continued their journey. Bai Ruozhu mentioned the news of the Crown Prince coming to Gangshan, and the astrologer nodded, ”I know about it. Before he departed, he even asked me for a protective Peace Talisman.”

”Since it’s for a concubine’s father, there’s no need for the Crown Prince to come personally to the memorial, right? Is the Crown Prince overly fond of his concubine?” Bai Ruozhu deliberately asked.

”Back then, the Crown Prince didn’t say he was going for his concubine’s father’s funeral. He only mentioned that there were some delays in road construction and sought permission from the Emperor to investigate. If what the female demon said is true, it would be quite irregular,” the astrologer replied.

Bai Ruozhu coldly laughed to herself. She had thought too simply earlier; perhaps the Crown Prince just wanted to avoid Master Puru, and being fond of his concubine was just an excuse. As the Emperor’s heir, even if his behavior was somewhat irregular, the people wouldn’t fuss over it too much and might even praise him as a passionate man.

”We’ll find out by checking,” Bai Ruozhu said, urging her horse to go faster.

After traveling day and night, the group arrived near Gangshan City three days later. Bai Ruozhu suggested they take a rest before entering the city, and that they shouldn’t enter the city openly. Instead, they should sneak in separately to avoid alerting the enemy.

The astrologer, eager to find someone, hadn’t considered this much, but upon hearing Bai Ruozhu’s suggestion, he found it reasonable. If Ning Yu was being controlled by the enemy, they naturally wouldn’t want to be discovered too quickly.

”Then we should change our attire before entering the city,” the astrologer said.

Soon, he emerged from the nearby forest with his men, having changed out of the Yin Yang Master’s robes into those of an elegant nobleman, while his subordinates changed into ordinary servant attire.

Bai Ruozhu shook her head and said, ”This won’t do. Just changing clothes isn’t enough; your face is too recognizable.”