Chapter 104

Chapter 104

Clearly, what the newcomer was carrying was something that absolutely couldn't be sold.

The boss led Chen Ji to a small room on the second floor, rubbing his hands together. "Er-ge, what kind of good stuff did you get your hands on? Let me have a look! A peek, a peek..."

Er-ge didn't dither. He untied the knots on the bags. The first sack contained the live animal. The boss leaned in first, took a look, and gave a thumbs-up: "You actually managed to get this? And it’s still alive... Er-ge, you must have put in a lot of effort, right?"

"Wouldn't you know it?" Er-ge’s laugh lines crinkled at the corners of his eyes. "It's a clever one!"

His eyes were fierce. Even when he smiled, he didn’t appear particularly friendly—more like the smug, arrogant expression of a murderer who had escaped justice in a TV drama.

Er-ge held the bag open for Chen Ji. Chen Ji leaned in and, at first glance, only saw a white, furry ball. On second look, he realized it was a small monkey with a gray back and white belly. The monkey’s hands and feet were tied, and it was weakly struggling inside the bag.

—How dare they catch this?

What a bold move.

This wasn't just some herbal medicine. If caught by the market supervision bureau, as long as the quantity wasn't too large, they might get off with just a fine. But this was a Class I protected species—if caught, the penalty would start at five years in prison, with no upper limit.

Chen Ji showed a slightly surprised expression: "How did you manage to get this?"

The boss tugged at Er-ge to check the second sack. The second sack was larger than the first but showed no movement. He opened it casually, leaving the mouth wide open. Chen Ji and the boss leaned in to look—inside were pangolins, hedgehogs, and the like.

"All are great for building strength. Young fella, want some?" Er-ge asked, looking at Chen Ji.

Chen Ji had just bought a lot of medicinal herbs, including the Deer Immortal Grass. Plus, Chen Ji looked rather scrawny. The boss said to him in a low voice, "Hey, boss, this monkey is expensive, but every part of it is valuable. Just the monkey brain alone is highly tonifying! And it’s still young—no matter how you cook it, it’ll be tender and flavorful. Eating it boosts both vital essence and energy!"

"And the pangolin..." Before the boss could finish, Chen Ji waved his hand: "I wouldn’t dare eat pangolin. Wasn’t the disease from twenty-odd years ago caused by this thing?"

The boss 'tsk-ed', "That’s because it wasn’t cooked properly! Stew it until it’s tender—this stuff is really good for men!"

Chen Ji knew that if he didn’t buy something today, it might be trouble. They had shown him the goods, and if he left without buying anything, he’d be the first suspect if something went wrong. People involved in this kind of business usually had some connections. It wasn’t necessarily about collusion between officials and businessmen, but they certainly knew a few local toughs. Even if they couldn’t chase him up Little Green Hill to attack him, he couldn’t stay on the mountain forever, could he?

Chen Ji pointed at the hedgehog inside: "Is that hedgehog alive or dead? It’s kind of cute. I’ll take it home as a pet."

Young people loved keeping strange pets. Er-ge didn’t hesitate: "It’s alive, and it’s a female carrying young. Take it back, and it’ll give birth in a few days."

Since the goods hadn’t been handed over to the boss yet, Er-ge directly named the price: "If you want it, 800 yuan!"

Chen Ji said, "Uncle, you're kidding me! Even a pregnant hedgehog shouldn’t cost that much!"

"Then name your price!"

Chen Ji hesitated: "I’ll take it for 500. I’m just keeping it for fun. If it’s too expensive, I can’t afford it. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll just catch one myself."

Although Chen Ji didn’t look like a mountain dweller, his carrying basket had seen its share of battles—filled with mushrooms and medicinal herbs. It was clear he knew his stuff, either because he often went up the mountain himself or his family did. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have such a discerning eye.

The price Chen Ji offered was actually a bit higher than the going rate. Er-ge didn’t haggle: "Done, it's yours."

The boss smiled and said, "I’ll go get a cage!"

"Alright, thanks, Uncle!" Chen Ji responded. Er-ge began checking on the animals in the bags. Most of the animals were breathing weakly, probably because they had caught a big prize today and didn’t care much about the smaller ones.

Soon, the boss returned with a cage and put the hedgehog inside. Er-ge said, "If it doesn’t come to by tomorrow, I’ll refund you 200 yuan!"

Chen Ji nodded in agreement. Holding the cage, he looked at the curled-up hedgehog and tapped its back, laughing, "Look at you, how did you get caught?"

The hedgehog suddenly uncurled, its black bean-like eyes first looking intently at Chen Ji, then turning to look at the boss and Er-ge. After saying this, Chen Ji nodded to the two men as a goodbye and prepared to leave.

He reached the door, one hand on the handle, then suddenly turned back and asked, "Uncle, just out of curiosity, how much for the monkey?"

Er-ge immediately locked eyes with Chen Ji, his eyes shaped like inverted triangles showing mostly whites, fierce as a wolf: "This one’s expensive. I’m afraid you can’t afford it."

The boss quickly smoothed things over: "Hey, hey, Er-ge, don’t judge by his age. He’s got money. He bought most of my good stuff today."

Er-ge’s expression softened slightly. The boss then turned to Chen Ji and asked politely, "Boss, this thing is serious business... Where are you from?"

Chen Ji answered without hesitation: "I’m from Upper Yang Village. If you don’t believe me, go ask around. Everyone knows me."

The boss smiled and asked, "How’s Old Liu’s family at the village entrance?"

Chen Ji said, "Isn’t the Wang family living at the village entrance? Isn’t Uncle Liu their son-in-law?"

"His family hasn’t been doing well lately. Old Man Wang was hexed a while ago. Later, they said it was because his grandson offended a great immortal. The whole family moved to town now. It made waves in our area."

The boss nodded repeatedly, confirming Chen Ji’s identity: "Oh, right, I remembered wrong."

Chen Ji added, "To be honest, Uncle, I’m not planning to eat it. The Taoist priest at the City God Temple told me to do good deeds. I’ll take it back, keep it for a few days for fun, and then release it—just to build up good karma. If the price is too high, I’ll pass. If it’s manageable, I’ll take it."

The boss thought for a moment and nodded to Er-ge: "Er-ge, name your price?"

Er-ge hesitated: "50,000 yuan!"

Chen Ji had never bought a Class I protected species before and had no idea if the price was reasonable. He only considered whether he could afford it. He looked down at his phone’s balance and said somewhat awkwardly, "Probably can’t afford it. Too high."

The boss suddenly asked, "You’re not taking pictures, are you?"

Chen Ji openly displayed his phone screen, which showed his bank balance: "I only have a little over twenty thousand left. I still need to eat. I can’t afford it... Uncle, don’t worry. Given how much I bought today, would I dare take pictures? I’d be the one going to jail."

The sooner they got rid of it, the safer it was. After all, it was a Class I protected species. Besides, no one knew how long it would live. If it died tomorrow, they’d be lucky to get even ten thousand for it, let alone thirty thousand.

—Wealthy people loved eating monkey brains raw—highly nutritious.

Chen Ji thought for a moment and asked, "Can I call a friend?"

The boss and Er-ge both nodded. Chen Ji really called Taoist Master Qingjing: "Qingjing, lend me some money."

Usually, Chen Ji called Qingjing "Taoist Master" and almost never used his Taoist name. Plus, Chen Ji’s lifestyle didn’t require him to borrow money. Taoist Master Qingjing was smart and asked, "Chen Ji, what’s wrong?"

Chen Ji said, "I’m buying some medicinal herbs at the country market. Is it convenient? Lend me five thousand."

Taoist Master Qingjing: "Just five thousand?"

Chen Ji: "Yeah, I’m really just short five thousand."

"Alright." Taoist Master Qingjing confirmed Chen Ji was fine, though he didn’t know why he needed five thousand. After hanging up, he sent the money. Chen Ji watched his balance jump to over thirty thousand and said, "That’s enough. Should I transfer it to you, Uncle?"

Er-ge tilted his chin toward the boss: "Just transfer it to him."

The boss smiled and showed his QR code for payment. Chen Ji scanned it and sent the money. After confirming the payment, the boss nodded to Er-ge. Er-ge handed the sack to Chen Ji, indicating he should check it, and said, "No guarantees on whether it lives or dies. It’s full of life now, but if it dies on you, it’s not my problem!"

Chen Ji could tell the monkey was fine but still pretended to inspect it. Then he tied up the sack and even used a knife to poke a few ventilation holes in it before carrying it away.

Once in the car, Chen Ji placed the hedgehog and the monkey in the back seat. As he drove back, he said, "Get everything memorized? Remember their faces. Later, handle things properly. Don’t cause me any trouble."

The hedgehog curled up into a ball inside the cage, while the monkey continued to struggle.

Chen Ji said: "Great Immortal Hedgehog, tell the little monkey to quit squirming. I'll release it once we're up the mountain. If it has connections at home, have its family come pick it up."

Chen Ji definitely wouldn't release it here—the boss had people tailing him.

No one responded. Without turning his head, Chen Ji said, "Still pretending you don't understand?"

Only then did the hedgehog squeak twice, and sure enough, the little monkey stopped struggling.

Over an hour later, Chen Ji arrived at Shangyang Village. The villagers greeted him as he returned, and Chen Ji carried his things up the mountain. Soon after, a van followed and two sketchy-looking guys got out. Casually, they asked an old lady, "Ma'am, who was that guy we just saw?"

Granny Zhang squinted: "Which one are you asking about?"

"The one who drove this van back!" One of the young men pointed at the still-steaming van parked nearby. Granny Zhang said, "What's this all about? Where are you from? Why are you asking around here?! If you cause trouble, I'll go to your village and have your village chief straighten you out!"

The young man replied, "Hey, we're really not here to cause trouble. He just bought some medicine from us, and our boss is worried he might report us. We're just checking if he's a local—if he is, then we can breathe easy!"

Granny Zhang carefully scrutinized them to see if they were telling the truth. Everyone had seen Chen Ji return with a lot of medicinal herbs, and besides, this kind of thing wasn't uncommon. After all, they were all mountain folk—who hadn't quietly sold some good finds? So she said, "He's from our village. We know him well."

The two young men nodded, then asked about Old Master Zhao's family to confirm he was indeed a local before leaving.

Meanwhile, Chen Ji rode the little spirit flame waiting at the foot of the mountain up to the summit. Once at the top, he untied the sack holding the little monkey and lifted it out: "Alright, off you go."

The little monkey glanced at the nearby spirit flame, then at the red-furred fox crouching by the temple door, and finally at Second Master Huang perched on the eaves. In a flash, it latched onto Chen Ji's leg.