Chapter 154: The Trouble of Poisonous Snakes

Chapter 154: Snake Trouble

"Curious about those sachets?"

Xie Nai noticed Qin Jiao checking out those sachets too.

"Does Sixth Brother know?"

From Xie Nai's tone, it sounded like he knew what was up with them.

"Those sachets are to keep snakes away."

Earlier, Shen Fuqing mentioned at the dock that Xiaoxiang Commandery was crawling with snakes, and folks used to get bitten all the time. So the authorities made these snake-repellent sachets, and every local in Xiaoxiang Commandery carries one. Outsiders like them could get one free too, just by registering with their travel permits.

"If everyone's gotta wear snake-repellent sachets, then we definitely came to the right place in Xiaoxiang."

Xie Nai didn't argue with Qin Jiao, just said, "Shen Fuqing found a guide to take us after the Sharp-crested Snake tomorrow."

"Alright." Qin Jiao nodded.

While Qin Jiao and Xie Nai were chatting, the next round of selection on the stage wrapped up, and no "Red-Eyed Divine Maiden" showed up this time.

Qin Jiao turned and caught the disappointed look on Hu Yuyun's face.

Unlike Hu Yuyun's gloom and even grief, Wang Ge's face showed mostly impatience and irritation.

"Useless waste of money!" Once he was sure he wouldn't get the "divine gift," Wang Ge stormed off cussing, not even glancing at the stunned Hu Yuyun.

Any baby girl who wasn't picked was taken away by her family right then and there. With Wang Ge gone, Hu Yuyun went up on the stage herself to carry the baby down.

Qin Jiao took a look—the baby girl in Hu Yuyun's arms had pale skin, like a soft sticky rice ball, with bright, watery eyes. When she smiled, she had two little dimples, looking real cute and happy.

"Yuyun, go on and take the kid home."

Zhang Fei knew Hu Yuyun and felt sorry for her rough life, so he helped carry the baby's stuff.

"Mm, thanks, Brother Zhang Fei."

Hu Yuyun held the baby carefully, doing her best to hide the letdown in her eyes.

Just as Hu Yuyun and Zhang Fei were about to leave, a nicely dressed little maid squeezed out of the crowd.

"Hey, you there, woman—hold up a sec."

The little maid walked right up to Hu Yuyun. "Miss, you talking to me?" Hu Yuyun asked, confused.

"Yeah, you."

The little maid came up to Hu Yuyun, gave her a once-over, then pulled a jade Buddha pendant from her sleeve and handed it over.

"Our young lady says your daughter is adorable and they're fated to cross paths. This jade Buddha is for the kid to play with."

"This—how can I take this?"

The second the little maid finished, Hu Yuyun's face changed. This jade Buddha was obviously pricey—she couldn't just accept such a big gift out of nowhere.

"A rare bond, then." The maid waved a hand. "It's just a little thing. Our young lady's got plenty."

"Thanks for the young lady's kindness, but this jade Buddha is too valuable. I really can't take it."

Seeing Hu Yuyun keep refusing, the little maid ran out of patience. "Just take it when it's offered!" She shoved the jade Buddha into the baby's clothes and walked off. "Think of it as our young lady doing a good deed!"

"Hey, miss, hold on—"

Just as Hu Yuyun was about to run after her, the baby in her arms suddenly started wailing.

"Yuyun, you ran into a real good person!"

Zhang Fei remarked from the side.

"Yeah, that young lady probably saw you getting hit earlier and felt sorry for you, so she decided to help!"

Another old lady chimed in.

"A real-life bodhisattva!"

"A bodhisattva..." Hu Yuyun clutched the jade Buddha, watching the little maid squeeze through the crowd and climb into a fancy carriage. A moment later, the carriage slowly rolled off and left the area.

From start to finish, that young lady—forget her face—hadn't even shown a sliver of her sleeve.

"Is there really such a thing as a living bodhisattva?"

He Zhao, who'd seen the whole thing, was just as confused as Hu Yuyun. A jade Buddha just drops out of thin air?

"Of course not." Shen Fuqing's voice cut in.

"Hm?"

"That carriage holds Li Nanli." Xie Nai picked up the conversation.

That little maid was specially assigned to Li Nanli by Consort Dowager Ying a while back. Xie Nai used to see her in the palace all the time.

"Huh? It's her?" Qin Jiao blurted out, surprised.

He Zhao and Xiao Baiyu had no clue who Li Nanli was, but Qin Jiao did. After that whole thing at the Marquis of Pingning's place, he never figured she'd show up in Xiaoxiang Commandery too.

"Who? Who's Li Nanli?" He Zhao stuck his head out and asked, curious.

"Hmm..." Qin Jiao thought for a sec, searching for the right words. "She's a girl who's pretty pitiful, pretty pushy, and now pretty kind too."

He Zhao: "..."

"Okay, Little Qin Jiao, you can shut up now." He Zhao shot Qin Jiao a look that said "you're talking out your ass."

Qin Jiao gave a dry laugh. Li Nanli was a complicated girl, and those were honestly the best words he could come up with.

"Do you fine folks know that young lady from earlier?" Hu Yuyun had been listening to them talk and figured they must know Li Nanli. "Could you tell me where she lives? I'd like to bring Ni'er to thank her myself."

At that, Qin Jiao and the others all turned to Shen Fuqing, since he'd been in Xiaoxiang Commandery longer and might know where Li Nanli was staying.

"No comment."

Shen Fuqing flashed a cold, sinister smile under everyone's stare. "She's not worth my attention."

Qin Jiao: "..."

Great, there it was—that familiar wild arrogance.

"Alright, I don't think this Divine Maiden selection ceremony is all that interesting. Let's go."

Perhaps because more and more people were crowding around, the heat was making He Zhao feel stifled. Xiao Baiyu noticed the flush spreading across his face and promptly took out a folding fan to fan away the heat for him.

Cong Shuang and Luo Bei had already gone ahead with some people to prepare their lodgings, so if they headed over now, the timing should work out perfectly.

"Then let's head off first," Qin Jiao chimed in.

So Luo Yue cleared the way through the crowd, Xie Nai holding Qin Jiao's hand, as the group slowly shuffled their way out.

Just as they were about to break free of the crowd, a baby girl's heart-wrenching wail suddenly rang out from the high platform where the Divine Maiden selection was taking place.

"What's going on?"

Qin Jiao was the first to turn back, and the very next second, Luo Yue shot off like a bolt!

He Zhao: "Holy crap, that white-bearded old man just got bitten by a snake!"

Following He Zhao's gaze, Qin Jiao saw that the white-bearded elder who had been feeding the baby girls "sacred water" now had a long, writhing purple-brown snake latched onto his leg.

The baby girl he'd been holding slipped from his arms and hit the ground, wailing loudly. Nearby, the child's parents wanted to rush over and pick her up, but they feared the snake might let go and bite others, leaving the scene frozen in a tense standoff.

Just then, Luo Yue flew onto the platform, scooped up the child and handed her to her parents, then drew his long sword and cleanly sliced the snake in two with a single stroke!

"Wow! That man is incredible!" The crowd erupted in astonished cheers. "Thank goodness he was there, or something terrible would have happened!"

The severed snake writhed on the ground for a while before going still. "Quick! Get him to the Xiaoxiang medical clinic!" By then, the late-arriving officials rushed onto the platform carrying a stretcher.

Those officials sounded urgent, moved swiftly and expertly, and carried the man off at a run without delay.

"Don't worry, we also have..." Before He Zhao could finish saying the word "doctors," the officials had already sprinted out of sight with the man, moving so fast you'd think ghosts were on their tails.

"What, do they have wheels strapped to their legs?" He Zhao exclaimed in shock. "How are they running that fast?"

----------------------------------------