Chapter 78

Just as he entered, he saw the peacock walk in from behind, making a creaking sound. She was wearing a brand new light blue coat, adorned with pearl hairpins, and her face was painted with a few ounces of powder, dressed up as if she was about to go out. Upon seeing this, Zhenzhibao immediately approached, grinning and said, "Sister Peacock, you look so handsome today, I bet you'll charm a lot of people when you go out."

The peacock had just received silver from Hai Dongqing and recently obtained wealth from the Shi family, feeling extremely pleased. Hearing the child's sweet words, she couldn't help but giggle, pinched his cheek, and spat, "Pah! You little brat, how do you know what a woman looks like? You're just trying to flatter me—have you been drinking?"

"Not at all!" Zhenzhibao laughed a few times, then leaned in and sniffed with a sidelong glance, praising, "So fragrant! Sister Peacock, you're not only beautiful and have a beautiful name, but you're also fragrant all over. When you go out, you'll truly be like a peacock!"

The peacock was tickled by his words, her laughter like a blooming flower, and she playfully scolded, "Go away! Find a cool place to stay! I have something to do and can't chat with you—hey, you're so clever today, I'll bring you some treats when I come back..." Her smile couldn't be suppressed, and even her cheeks glowed with joy, making her plump face bounce with happiness.

"Promise me, okay?" Zhenzhibao's eyes darted around, then suddenly shouted, "Then I'll go too, and you buy me something, okay?" He followed behind the peacock, muttering to himself, "I'm afraid that when Sister Peacock goes out, she might attract some lecherous men and forget about this."

"You, you're a little devil, I don't know where you learned these tricks to please women," the peacock, seeing that Zhenzhibao lived in the same room as Shi Butuan, thought he was a close relative of the Shi family and liked his cleverness, so she smiled and pulled him over, saying, "Come on, let's go buy some vegetables first, then I'll take you to eat."

With this exchange, the two reached the door and headed straight for the market. The disciple guarding the door only knew to monitor them and didn't know how to handle their departure, so he panicked and followed them from a distance, while another disciple ran upstairs to report.

This was unexpected, and it was too late to stop them. Elder Ji could only order the two disciples to follow from a distance. The disciples, following orders, quickly caught up and joined the first disciple, following not too close and not too far.

Zhenzhibao and the peacock arrived at the market, first buying some fruits, grains, and vegetables, then ordering a whole fat sheep to be delivered to the inn. Just as they were about to buy some wine, the peacock suddenly thought of something, "Oh! I almost forgot. We've been eating the same things for the past few days. I wonder if you're tired of it. We need to change the menu—Bao'er, do you have any other preferences for dinner?"

Zhenzhibao had been thinking about how to escape. Hearing this, he just replied, "Uh, anything is fine." He didn't think much about it, but the peacock immediately complained, "Ah! This place is so remote, it's hard to get anything! Bao'er, you can only get chickens and ducks from other people's houses, and wild game depends on luck, seeing if any hunters come down from the mountains. Fish can only be bought from boats on the river. If you like something, you need to say it early so I can prepare."

"Let's have fish!" Zhenzhibao suddenly had an idea, "We all love fish." His spirits lifted, and he smiled and pleaded, "Sister, I haven't had fish for a long time, I really miss it!"

Kunlun is in the northwest border, and many locals don't like fish. Moreover, the Shimen Ferry is plagued by water demons, making it even less popular. However, some people from the southeast, who had fled there, had small boats and fished during the day, while fishing with rods at other times. They kept the fish alive in a compartment on the boat and sold a few every day, enough to buy a few pounds of cornmeal and vegetables, barely enough to survive.

"Alright! Since you like it, I'll make sure you have fish for lunch."

The peacock, finding this simple, immediately took Zhenzhibao to the Nuchang River. The sun was not yet high, and there were few people around. A light mist covered the river, like a veil, creating a unique atmosphere. Who knew what demons and monsters might be hiding in the mist?

The Shimen Ferry was usually busy with cargo ships, and the small fishing boats stayed in the shallow waters. There were a few mud houses on the shore, covered with straw. The peacock walked to one of the doors and called out, "Hey! Anyone selling fish? Come out! Business is at your doorstep!"

After a few calls, someone inside responded, "Coming, coming, I'll open the door right away." There were some noises, and a woman's loud voice shouted, "Oh! Zhao Lǘzi, you scoundrel! My breasts!" More noises followed, and Zhao Lǘzi immediately shouted, "You beast, you grabbed my balls... Ouch... It hurts so much!" with occasional gasps...

The peacock found this amusing and didn't rush, just laughing. After a while, the door creaked open, and a thin, dark man with a smile on his face emerged, holding his crotch and apologizing, "Sorry, Sister Peacock, my wife is a bit unreasonable..."

Inside, a voice grunted but didn't respond.

The peacock laughed, "Zhao Lǘzi, you scoundrel, always plowing your wife, what kind of shape are you in? You'll die on her belly one day!"

Zhao Lǘzi didn't dare to respond, just nodded with a bitter face, "That's true... By the way, Sister Peacock, what brings you here today?" He changed the topic and tied his pants.

"Buy fish!" the peacock said bluntly, "Pick a few big ones and deliver them to the inn. They must be good."

"Sure, I'll pick the biggest ones!" Zhao Lǘzi responded, "I'll deliver them when the sun comes up."

"The sun coming up won't do!" the peacock rejected, "I need them for lunch—now, go to the boat and pick a few..."

"Hey! Sister Peacock, that's not possible!" Zhao Lǘzi's face changed, and he smiled, "The river god has been in a bad mood lately, coming to the river several times. We don't even fish now, just stay at home... You know how it is with the river, don't make it hard for me."

The peacock knew about the river but wasn't deliberately making it hard. She rarely came to the river and didn't have the same respect for the river god as the locals. Besides, she knew the shallow waters were safe, and the river god couldn't come over. Since she had promised to make fish for lunch, she couldn't back out.

She was used to being domineering, so she immediately lost her temper, her face contorted, and her eyes wide, shouting, "Zhao Lǘzi, you scoundrel, are you trying to take advantage of me because I'm in a good mood today? There's never any trouble by the river, and now you're making excuses... What, are you trying to raise the price?"

"No, no! It's really the river god..."

"River god, my ass!" the peacock spat in his face, "The river god can't come ashore, can he? You can catch a few fish in a moment, what's the big deal?" She raised her hand, "Do you want me to beat you up and burn your house?"

"This is really..."

"Slap!"

Zhao Lǘzi tried to argue but was slapped to the ground, then kicked several times. The peacock kept asking, "Will you go? Will you go? Will you go?" with each question, she kicked him, not caring where she hit.

Zhao Lǘzi couldn't take the beating, covering his head and curling into a ball, repeatedly saying, "I'll go! I'll go! I'll go, Sister Peacock, please stop... I'll go right away!"

The peacock, still not satisfied, kicked him a few more times before stopping, tidying her hair and continuing to scold, "You ungrateful thing! Stop pretending, or I'll beat you to death—hurry up and catch the fish!"

Zhao Lǘzi, beaten without reason, didn't dare to respond, groaning as he got up and walked to the boat, constantly looking at the river, muttering, "Don't come! Don't come! Don't come!"

He was afraid of the river monster, so his eyes were wide open, but the mist made it hard to see. Reaching the river, he couldn't focus on the water and immediately jumped onto the boat, opening the compartment.

Under the compartment was a live water tank, with a bamboo lattice at the bottom to let river water in, keeping the fish alive. Zhao Luvwxyz saw several fat fish swimming in the tank, grabbed one, and used a bamboo stick to pierce its mouth, throwing it onto the deck.

His heart was racing, and his actions were quick. In no time, he had caught three or four fish, lifting them high to show the peacock, "Sister Peacock, are these enough?"

The peacock looked from the shore, huffed, and shook her head, "Not enough, not enough. I have over ten people, how can these few fish be enough? Zhao Luvwxyz, how many more fish are on your boat? Pick a few more big ones!"

Zhao Luvwxyz, hearing this, immediately bent down to catch more fish...

Zhenzhibao, standing on the shore, had been watching for a while. He had already seen where the boat's rope was tied and was about to sneak over to untie it when he suddenly saw a dark, dim light coming from the river through the mist!

PS: A friend's book, though it's a fantasy novel, the fight scenes are described very vividly, and there are no stupid characters. Unfortunately, the title is a bit silly. It's absolutely brilliant, worth a read!

[bookid=3024882, bookname=《修仙大炮》]

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