Chapter 61

Chong'er was just a little book boy, how could he know about all these schemes? He only felt that Young Master Shiheng was looking at him strangely, making him feel somewhat uneasy and awkward. He gently placed the bowl he had just finished drinking from back on the table.

As soon as he put the bowl down, Yu Qing threw the bone he had just finished gnawing into the bowl with a clatter.

Just then, the metal canister on Yu Qing's waist suddenly started jingling loudly.

"Hey!" Yu Qing exclaimed in curiosity, looking down at the canister hanging from his waist. The little creature inside had been listless for a long time due to lack of food, and it hadn't been so vigorous for a while. Why was it suddenly so energetic again?

Could it be because it drank water?

Could it be that this little creature only drinks water?

But then he thought it didn't make sense. The little creature had never eaten or drunk anything before, and it didn't drink water even when given.

Puzzled, he untied the canister from his waist and unscrewed the lid.

As soon as the lid was removed, the fire cricket shot out.

"Ah!" Chong'er exclaimed in surprise, thinking it had escaped, but then he froze, realizing the fire cricket was still tied to the canister with a silk thread and couldn't get away.

The fire cricket didn't seem to want to run either. After flying around for a bit, it suddenly dove into the bowl where Chong'er had just drunk water.

To be precise, it landed on the bone that had been gnawed clean.

The sound of crunching began.

Yu Qing and Chong'er both froze, then bent down and leaned their heads over the bowl. They could smell each other's breath as they stared wide-eyed at the fire cricket gnawing on the bone, confirming that it was indeed gnawing on the bone.

After observing for a while, they confirmed that the fire cricket was indeed swallowing the bone fragments it gnawed off.

There were large chunks missing from the bone, and no bone fragments in the bowl, so it must have swallowed them.

The two of them looked at each other by the bowl. Yu Qing suddenly turned and looked at the food Chong'er had eaten but not finished, then back at Chong'er.

Without a word, they seemed to have a mutual understanding. Chong'er nodded repeatedly and immediately ran to get the food bowl, using chopsticks to pick some vegetables and a ball of rice and place them on the table.

Yu Qing lifted the fire cricket by the thread, but the little creature wouldn't let go of the bone. It even grabbed the much larger rib and continued gnawing frantically, as if it would die if it stopped.

Yu Qing clamped the rib with one hand and pulled the thread with the other, finally separating the little creature from the bone and throwing the bone back into the bowl.

The little creature seemed unwilling to give up and flew back toward the bone in the bowl.

Yu Qing swung the thread again, smashing the fire cricket next to the ball of rice, clearly trying to make it eat.

But the little creature refused and flew back toward the bone in the bowl.

Yu Qing swung the thread again, smashing the fire cricket onto the vegetables, giving it another chance to choose.

The little creature still refused, flying back toward the bone in the bowl.

This time, Yu Qing didn't stop it, letting the little creature pounce on the bone like a hungry wolf.

Clatter, the impact was so strong that the bone flipped over, but the fire cricket still clung to it, hanging upside down and gnawing away.

After watching for a while, Chong'er asked, "Young Master Shiheng, does the fire cricket eat bones?"

He had seen Tie Miaqing and others worrying about feeding the fire cricket during their journey. He had seen them get very anxious because the fire cricket refused to eat anything, thinking it was sulking because it had lost its freedom.

Yu Qing hesitated several times, then leaned in to observe again. After confirming it was still eating, he scratched his head, "It's really eating the bone! On this journey, it didn't drink water, didn't drink juice, didn't eat meat, didn't eat grass, and didn't touch fruit. It refused everything, but now it's gnawing on a bone like a mad dog? Tie Miaqing would never have guessed. I wonder if the other three fire crickets can survive until they return to Youjiao Port. Even if we wanted to tell them, it's too late now."

The little creature's teeth were indeed sharp, and it gnawed through the bone quickly. In no time, it had gnawed off nearly half of the rib, which was several times its size.

Yu Qing and Chong'er were both amazed, wondering how the fire cricket's stomach could hold such a large amount of food.

They watched as the fire cricket's stomach swelled up, and Yu Qing became worried, afraid it would burst. He tugged on the thread, "Big Head, Big Head, that's enough. Let go, I'll find you more bones later."

But the little creature wouldn't let go and continued gnawing.

Chong'er's bright eyes twinkled, and he asked, "Young Master Shiheng, did you name it 'Big Head'?"

Yu Qing chuckled, "I just called it that because its head is big. It doesn't really have a name." He turned to look at her, "The food is getting cold. Go eat your meal."

Chong'er listened to him and was about to pick up the bowl when her eyes fell on the food she had picked out earlier. She reached out and carefully gathered the rice grains, mixed them with the vegetables, and quietly ate them.

Yu Qing was stunned, staring at her, "Do you have to? The fire cricket touched it. Aren't you afraid it might be poisonous?"

Chong'er realized her behavior looked bad and blushed, feeling embarrassed. She shook her head and quietly went to a corner to eat her meal.

Yu Qing was speechless, thinking about the water he had made Chong'er drink to test for poison. He felt a bit guilty.

When Chong'er finished her meal, the fire cricket had also finished gnawing the bone. Its small, conical stomach, which had been about the size of a thumb, was now swollen like an egg, making its big head look small in comparison.

"Good, you didn't burst," Yu Qing said, lifting the little creature by the thread.

He was about to put it back in the canister when something surprising happened.

Pfft...

A long fart suddenly sounded, and Chong'er's eyes widened as a plume of black smoke shot out of the fire cricket's rear.

The black smoke continued for about ten seconds, filling the room with a gray haze.

The door opened, and Yu Qing and Chong'er rushed out, quickly closing the door behind them.

Looking at the fire cricket in his hand, which now hung limply, they were speechless. The fire cricket seemed full and lazy, and its swollen stomach had returned to its original size.

It was better after a fart? The two of them were amazed.

Yu Qing looked down the corridor and quickly put the fire cricket back in the canister.

When the smoke cleared, they opened the door and went back inside. The table, floor, and bed were covered with a thin layer of ash.

The table and floor were one thing, but the bed was another. They looked at each other.

"I'll clean it up," Chong'er said, rolling up her sleeves to start cleaning.

"It's too late for that," Yu Qing said, hooking her neck and pulling her close, making her cheeks turn red. "It's not just the ash. The fire cricket's sparks burned several holes in the bedding. When they come back, just tell them Xu Fei did it by accident."

Chong'er gasped, looking up at him, feeling reluctant and shaking her head, unwilling to frame her master.

Yu Qing said, "Haven't you noticed? Your master is a big shot now. All the candidates are trying to curry favor with him. If he says it was an accident, everyone will be lenient. It's different for me."

"But... but..." Chong'er looked down, still feeling reluctant.

Yu Qing said, "I'm not asking you to frame your master. Go find Xu Fei now and tell him quietly what happened. Say I told you to. Got it?"

Chong'er sighed in relief and nodded repeatedly.

Yu Qing let her go and kicked her on the buttocks, "Go quickly."

Chong'er stumbled a few steps, blushing again, and quickly tidied up the food box before leaving.

In a small hall of the inn, a long table had been set up, and about ten candidates were gathered.

Most of them were the top performers in the preliminary exam, including the top scorer, Zhan Mochun.

There were exceptions, like Xu Fei and the four others, whose preliminary exam scores didn't rank in the top twenty.

But there were reasons for the exceptions. This was a banquet to comfort Xu Fei, and the four others were the organizers. Although the banquet was nominally hosted by Zhan Mochun, they were the ones paying, so they had the right to be there.

During the banquet, everyone asked Xu Fei about his recent experiences.

Xu Fei could only smile bitterly and said he couldn't talk about it without the permission of the escort officials.

Everyone, who knew nothing, suddenly acted as if they understood the implications.

After a few drinks, Su Yingtao finally asked about the glamorous figure who had left the inn, Tie Miaqing.

Xu Fei still avoided the topic, not wanting to cause trouble. He said he had never even seen Tie Miaqing's true face, but no one believed him, so he was penalized with more drinks.

That night, more people came to visit Xu Fei's room, making it quite lively.

Sitting in a corner of the bunk bed, Yu Qing overheard some recent developments about the examination convoy.

The number of escort personnel had decreased, and the defenses had become lax.

The court had sent people to reassure everyone, saying that the mastermind behind the attacks on the candidates had been dealt with by the Sannan Bureau, and there would be no more danger on the journey.

They only mentioned that the Sannan Bureau had solved the problem, not that it was the Sannan Bureau that had caused it.

Most importantly, the court had announced a major piece of good news to comfort everyone.

Considering the shock experienced by the candidates from Liezhou, the emperor had specially granted five additional places on the golden list for the candidates from Liezhou.

Beyond the regular quota, they would be admitted in order of their scores—this was the emperor's personal decree.

This meant that after the imperial exam results were announced, if the regular quota was the top 100, five candidates from Liezhou would be admitted from the ranks below 100.

This meant that candidates from Liezhou who ranked 150th, 200th, or even 300th might have a chance to be on the golden list, as it was unlikely that the top five candidates from Liezhou would all be in the 101st to 105th positions, and they would be interspersed with candidates from other regions.

So these five additional places were of great significance, giving many people a chance, and it was a tremendous piece of good news that made the candidates from Liezhou ecstatic, all praising the emperor's wisdom!