Chapter 17

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Just then, Zhou Chong's expression suddenly changed, and he said in a righteous tone, "Zhao Er, how can you be so heartless? Even ancient hunters knew to let young beasts go, yet you cruelly want to eat such an adorable puppy. This is truly unforgivable! I, this young master, will confiscate this dog!"

Zhao Er didn't quite understand the earlier part of Zhou Chong's words. To him, he was just hungry and wanted to eat some dog meat. How could that be considered unforgivable? However, he understood the last part and knew that the dog meat he was about to eat was now gone. This made him hesitate several times, but in the end, he hung his head in disappointment and didn't dare to speak.

But then Zhou Chong stepped forward and lightly kicked Zhao Er, saying, "Alright, get up for me. You haven't eaten, right? There happens to be some leftover rice and vegetable soup at home tonight. If you want to eat, come with me!"

"Ah?" Zhao Er, who was feeling utterly dejected, suddenly looked up, his face full of disbelief. He never expected that Zhou Chong would actually invite him to eat.

"What 'ah'? If you want to eat, get up quickly. I'm waiting to go to sleep!" Zhou Chong said impatiently. One must never be too polite to someone like Zhao Er; otherwise, he would think you were easy to bully. The best way to deal with such people is to beat them into submission first, so they won't dare to disobey you afterward.

"Yes, yes! Master Zhou, don't be angry!" Zhao Er immediately jumped up from the ground, his face full of flattery.

Zhou Chong didn't show any displeasure and turned to lead Zhao Er to the kitchen, placing the leftover rice and a bowl of vegetable soup on the table. Zhao Er was indeed very hungry. He pounced on the table, didn't even use a bowl, and directly picked up the large bowl of vegetable soup, poured the rice into it, and started shoving it into his mouth as fast as he could.

Zhao Er had a very distinctive appearance. He was small and thin, with a sharp, small head and a pair of beady eyes that darted around restlessly, even while eating. He was the type of person described as having a weasel's head and a rat's eyes. However, his appearance was quite fitting for a ruffian. Anyone who saw him would know that he wasn't a good person!

Zhao Er was extremely hungry. There were nearly three large bowls of leftover rice in the kitchen, and he ate all of it, along with a large bowl of soup. Even through his thick cotton clothes, Zhou Chong could see Zhao Er's belly clearly bulging.

"Burp~" Zhao Er let out a satisfied belch, then extended his tongue to lick the few remaining grains of rice from the bowl. Only then did he put down the bowl, stand up, and bow solemnly to Zhou Chong, saying, "Master Zhou, you are truly a great benefactor. I have offended you before, and I hope you will punish me!"

Sensing the sincerity in Zhao Er's tone, Zhou Chong nodded and said, "Knowing right from wrong shows that you can still be saved. There's a rice bin over there. Take a bag and get some rice to tide you over for a few days."

Hearing that Zhou Chong not only fed him but also let him take some rice home, Zhao Er was moved to tears, his whole body trembling as he stood there, hesitating to move.

In fact, Zhou Chong was also helpless. He had something he wanted Zhao Er to do, but he couldn't just do it without giving him some benefit. If he had money, he could have directly given Zhao Er a silver ingot, and Zhao Er would have done it perfectly. Unfortunately, he had no money, so he could only use this cheaper method to win Zhao Er's gratitude, achieving the same effect as spending money.

Finally, the grateful Zhao Er, urged by Zhou Chong, took a cloth bag and scooped several bowls of rice from the bin. This amount of rice was enough for him to have porridge for a few days. He thanked Zhou Chong again, saying, "Thank you, Master Zhou, for your great kindness. If you need anything from me in the future, please don't hesitate to ask. I will not refuse!"

Zhou Chong was waiting for Zhao Er to say this, but he didn't immediately speak. Instead, he smiled and shook his head, as if to say that even if he had something, Zhao Er probably couldn't help. Zhao Er understood his status and could read Zhou Chong's expression, feeling disappointed. Although he was a ruffian, he knew the principle of repaying kindness, but unfortunately, Master Zhou didn't seem to value his gratitude.

Just as Zhao Er felt disappointed, Zhou Chong deliberately changed his expression, as if he had just thought of something. After hesitating for a while, he asked Zhao Er seriously, "Zhao Er, I do have something I can't do myself. If you want to repay me, you can help me with it!"

Hearing Zhou Chong's words, Zhao Er's spirits lifted, and he said, "Master Zhou, please tell me. As long as I, Zhao Er, can do it, I will do it even if it means risking my life!"

"Ha ha ha~ No need to risk your life. I just need you to pass on a message!" Zhou Chong said in a very relaxed tone. In fact, what he wanted Zhao Er to do wasn't a big deal, but whether it would be done well depended entirely on Zhao Er's effort. That's why Zhou Chong had taken the trouble to win his heart.

Zhou Chong then whispered a few words to Zhao Er. Zhao Er was initially stunned, but then his face lit up with joy, and he patted his chest, promising to do the job well.

After giving the instructions, Zhao Er took the bag of rice and said goodbye. To show his importance, Zhou Chong personally escorted him to the back garden and helped him climb over the wall. However, when Zhao Er jumped down from the wall, Zhou Chong suddenly felt something was off. He stood at the base of the wall, thinking for a long time, and then slapped his thigh, exclaiming, "Damn it, Zhao Er, you bastard, why didn't you use the door? You're addicted to climbing walls!"

Feeling his IQ lowered by Zhao Er, Zhou Chong first went to the courtyard where Concubine Wang lived. When he heard the silver laughter of Zuo'er and Duo'er from inside, he finally felt at ease. He then returned to his own courtyard, closed the door but didn't lock it, in case Concubine Wang or the others needed him. So, his courtyard door remained unlocked during this period.

Zhou Chong turned around and took out the white puppy from his arms. The puppy's legs were still tied, and it made pitiful whining sounds. Unfortunately, Zhou Chong wasn't a dog lover in his previous life and had even eaten dog meat. He had saved the puppy from Zhao Er merely to create an opportunity to do a favor for him.

Zhou Chong weighed the puppy in his hands and suddenly let out a sinister laugh, muttering to himself, "Little guy, I didn't expect you to be so fat. I ate a lot today, so I'll keep you for a couple of days. When I get hungry, I can ask Butler Xu to make a pot of dog meat to satisfy my craving!"

After saying this, Zhou Chong untied the puppy, and the little guy immediately ran off. However, the courtyard door was already closed, so Zhou Chong wasn't worried about the puppy escaping. He didn't pay any more attention to it and walked into his room.

The layout of Zhou Chong's courtyard was similar to the front courtyard, consisting of a main house and two side rooms. The right side room was his study, and the left side room stored clothes, items, and other miscellaneous things. The maids who used to serve him also lived in the left side room, but now both the study and the left side room were almost empty. The maids had been dismissed, and all the valuable items had been sold.

Zhou Chong went to the empty study, where the tables, chairs, antiques, books, and inkstones had almost all been sold. The only things left were two large wicker boxes containing some cheap pens, ink, and paper. Zhou Chong opened the boxes and took out the necessary items. These were cheap goods that couldn't be sold, and some were even broken, like the inkstone he was holding, which had a corner broken off. He had to raise that corner to prevent the ink from spilling.

After taking these writing materials back to his room, Zhou Chong went to the left side room and moved a low table and a low stool. These were simple items used by the maids for eating, and they couldn't be sold for much, so they were left behind.

He arranged the writing materials on the low table and placed a candle. Zhou Chong then picked up the brush, closed his eyes, and recalled his past life. Memories of his past life began to play like a movie in his mind, and he quickly found the memory of the book "Journey to the West." The words, sentences, and even the punctuation marks were crystal clear.

"Chapter One: The Origin of the Sage and the Birth of the Great Way." Zhou Chong suddenly opened his eyes and wrote the title of the first chapter of "Journey to the West." Then, his brush moved swiftly, and a fantastical and grand world of "Journey to the West" began to unfold under his pen.

"Journey to the West" has over 600,000 words, and Zhou Chong couldn't possibly finish it in one night. In fact, he only wrote a few thousand words of the first chapter before his arm started to feel numb. Writing with a brush pen is not easy; the wrist must be suspended, which tests one's arm strength. Additionally, the structure of traditional Chinese characters is more complex, and the cold weather made it even harder. Zhou Chong had no heating in his room, so he had to warm his hands in his sleeves after writing for a while. Thus, he only managed to write a few thousand words by midnight.

The next morning, the sky, which had been overcast for several days, finally cleared up. Zhou Chong had gone to bed very late the previous night and didn't wake up until the sun was high in the sky. Concubine Wang had called him for breakfast, and although he had responded, his mind was still asleep. As soon as Concubine Wang left, he fell back asleep.

However, just as Zhou Chong was sleeping soundly, he suddenly felt something warm and wet on his face, heard heavy breathing, and sensed a suppressed laugh. At first, Zhou Chong didn't react and instinctively reached out to push the thing on his face away. But to his surprise, his hand touched something furry. This startled him, and he instantly woke up, jumping out of bed in a single motion, his fists ready to attack!